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The Peace of Westphalia, also known as the treaties of Münster and Osnabrück, is the series of treaties that ended the Thirty Years' War and "officially" recognized the United Provinces and Swiss Confederation. The Spanish– Dutch treaty which ended the Eighty Years' War was signed on January 30, 1648. The treaty signed October 24 1648 comprehended the Holy Roman emperor Ferdinand III, the other German princes, France, and Sweden.
The peace negotiations were after initial talks held in the cities of MünsterMunster is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. Population: 269. 2003), area 302. In 2003, Munster hosted the Central European Olym and OsnabrückOsnabruck is a city in the Westphalian half of Lower Saxony, Germany, some 80km NNW of Dortmund, 45km NNW of Munster, and some 100km due West of Hanover. It lies in a valley penned between the Wiehengebirge and the northern tip of the Teutoburg Forest, wh, an alternative favoured by Sweden ( HamburgHamburg is Germany's second largest city (after Berlin) and its principal port. The official name Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg recalls its membership in the mediaeval Hanseatic League and the fact that Hamburg is a city state and one of Germany's sixteen and CologneThe article about perfume can be found at Eau de Cologne. Cologne ( German: Koln [ˈkœln]) (population 965,954 as of December 31, 2003), is the fourth largest city in Germany and largest city of the North Rhine-Westphalia state. It is one of being the French alternatives). The two locations were needed as the Protestant and CatholicGeneral meaning Catholic means universal or whole''. With respect to the Christian Church, the early Christians used the term to refer to the whole undivided church. It is in that sense that all Christians today claim ownership of the term, including Prot leaders refused to meet each other. The Treaty of the Pyrenees ending the war between France and Spain is also often considered part of the treaty.
The results of the treaty were wide ranging. Among other things, the Netherlands gained independence from Spain, ending the Eighty Years' War, and Sweden gained Pomerania, Wismar, Bremen and Verden. The power of the Holy Roman Emperor was broken, and the rulers of the German states were again able to determine the religion of their lands. The treaty also gave Calvinists legal recognition. Three new great Powers arose from this peace: Sweden, the United Netherlands and France. Sweden's time as a Great Power was to be short lived, however.
The majority of the treaty can be attributed to the work of Cardinal Mazarin who was de facto leader of France at the time. France came out of the war in a far better position than any other Power and was able to dictate much of the treaty.
It is often said that the Peace of Westphalia initiated the modern fashion of diplomacy as it marked the beginning of the modern system of nation-states. Subsequent wars were not about issues of religion, but rather revolved around issues of state. This allowed Catholic and Protestant Powers to ally, leading to a number of major realignments.
Another important result of the treaty was it laid rest to the idea of the Holy Roman Empire having secular dominion over the entire Christian world. The nation-state would be the highest level of government, subservient to no others.