Figure 1.-- |
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The 16th century in many ways can be seen as the beginning of the modern era. The Renaissance which had begun in Italy during the 14th century had reached most of Europe by the 16th century meaning that the new humanist outlook was now percolating throughout Europe. This neat the end of Feudalism and the Medieval era. This change was amplified by the Protestant Reformation launched by Martin Luther (1519). The Reformation emphasized the individual responsibility and thus amplified the humanist outlook of the Renaissance. The European voyages of discovery begun in the 15th century result in major discoveries throught the 16th century. The Protestant Refornation and Catholic Counter Reformation would usher in a series of bloody religious wars that wouls conginue into the 17th century. Spanish Conquistadores wept through Mexico and Peru. The Spanish carved out a colonial Empire in the Americas and vast uantities of gold and silvr flowed into Spain. The bullion was what caught popular attention, but in the long run it was humble crops like potatos and corn that had an even greter long term impact. This helped make Spain the most powerful country in Europe. The Spanish use thos power to break Ottomon naval power. The Austrians stoped the advance of the Ottomons and Islm in Europe. The Spanish also attempted to use their power to supress the Reformation and Protestant states. The Spanish Inquisition successfully supressed questioining minds in Spain itself, but the Dutch Protestants held out in the Low Lands and the English defeated the Great Armada (1588). The Spanish defeat not only preserved the independence of England, but made possible the English settlment of North America.
The Italian Wars are often referred to as the Habsburg-Valois Wars. Historians often refer to this as the beginning of modern history. As the time frame included the Reformation, this seems a reasonable assessment.
Italy was the major theater of operations. It was an on-again off-again series of conflicts between the the Austrian Hapsburgs and French Valois. The war widebned when he Hapsburgs inherited the Spanish crown under Charles V. Austria, France, and Spain were the major continental powers. And the instsability of Italy and many small principalities resulted in the Italian Pemimsula becoming the focus of competition between these powers. The wars involved most of the Italian states including the Papacy. King Charles VIII of France (1483–98) launched the conflict by invading Italy (1494). He capured Naples o the south (March 1495). The French artillery made a powerful impression, not only because of its effectiveness, but because of its mobility. Charles' invasion was also notable for the brutality, including several notable masacres of civilians.
The great European voyages of discovery of the 15th and 16th centuries were fundamentally economic enterprises. They were conducted by the European countries of the Atlantic coasts to establish direct trade contacts with China and the Spice Islands (Indonesia) that was being blocked by Byzantium/Venice and the Arabs. At the time, trade in silk, porcelin, and spices from the East carried over the Silk Road had to pass through Turkish, Arab, Byzantine, and Italian middleman, making them enormously expensive. The crusaders failed to break the Islamic wall separating still primitive Europe from the riches of the East. Circumventing the land Silk Road and the sea Spice Route would have profound economic consequences for Europe and the world. The ballance of power would shift from Eastern to Western Europe and eventualkly to northern Europe. Two nations led the early explorarions in the 15th century--Spain and Portugal. These two countries pioneered the sea routes that would lead Europeans to Asia and the Americas, but the Dutch, English, and French were to follow in the 16th century.
The English defeat the Scottish at Flodden (1513). The english prevail again at Solway Moss (1542).
The voyages of Columbus and the other European Voyages of Discovery had profound consequences for both Europe and the world. Following on Columbus' voyages, Spain rapidly beagan estalishing colonies. At first Columbus and the Spanish did not realize that they had chanced upon an entirely new continent--the Americas. They thought it ws India and thus called it the Indies and the Caribbean Islands have become known to us as the West Indies. Spanish colonization was at first in the Caribbean and extrodinarily brutal. The native Americans on the islands were for the most part exterminated. Next the Spanish looked to the mainland where rumors described natin American civilizations of vast wealth. This led to Diego Cortez's Conquest of Mexico. Balboa had earlier found the Pacific across the Istmus of Panama. This led to Hernando Pizarro's Conquest of Peru. The gold and silver flowing from the Americas made Spain a European super-power and financed the Great Armada. The most significantimpact of the conquests, however, may well have been the introduction of the humble potato to Europe fom Peru.
The Protestan Revolution was the religious struggle during the 16th and 17th century which began as an effort to reform the Catholic Church and ended with the splintering of the Western Christendom into the Catholic and Protestant churches. Combined with the Renaissance which preceeded it, the reformatuin marked the end of the Medieval world and the beginning of a modern world view. The French Revolution which followed the Reformation in the 18th century marked the beginning of our modern age. Conditions developing in Medieval Europe laid the groundwork for the Reformation. The Reformation began when a German monk, Martin Luthur nailed his 95 Thesis on the church door in ??? (1517). Luthur was offended by the papal sale of indulgences by which the Renaissance popes were fiancing the splendid new church of St. Peters in Rome. Luthur's concern with indulgences were soon mixed with a complex mix of doctrinal, political, economic, and cultural issues that would take Ruropean Church anfd temporal leaders nearly two centuries to partially resolve and several devestating wars, especially the 30 Years War in Germany. Western Christendom would be left permanently split and even the Cathloic Church profoundly changed. Changes in man's view of himself and the Church were to also affect his view relative to the state and many in Europe began to question royal absolutism and divinr right monarchy, a process keading to the French Revolution.
Philip II of Spain proclaimed himself as the leader of the Counter Reformation. Philip was determined not only to rule their inherited territories, but to use the the power he inherited to turn back the Reformation. Philip used the powers of the Spanish state to enforce political absolutism and persue the Counter-Reformation. The gold and silvr from the America'salong with the income from his realm gave Philip the wealth to ggressively persue the Counter Reformation. Although Philip began his reign without a major European power oposing Spain, his policies involved Spain in wars throughout Europe in the Netherlands, Portugal, England, Italy, and France. In assessing these cnflicts its difficult to determine towhat extent tgey were affected by the religious zeal of the Counter Reformation and that of Spanish national expansionism.
The War of the Schmalkaldic League followed the spread of the Reformation in Germany. It pitted France against the German Protestant estates. It was a response to the threat of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V vowed to stamp out Protestantism in Germany (Lutheranism) (1530). The Schmalkaldic League was an alliance formed at the German city of Schmalkalden in respmse to Charle's threat (1531). It was forned by the Protestant princes and the representatives of free Protestan cities. The League was led by Philip of Hesse and John Frederick I of Saxony and grew rapidly. The protection in aforded Protestants permitted the Reformation to become well-established, especially in morthern Germany. The issues involved more than religion, but were part of a long-estanlished effort of German princes to create autonomous states within the Empire. Charles initiated what became known as the Schmalkaldic War to both countrr the clsims of autonomy/independemce and to restablish the unity of Western Christendom under the Roman Catholic Church. Charles' forces gained a major victory over the League at the battle of Mühlberg (1547). By this time, however, the Lutherns had become well estanlished in northern Germany.
The Ottomans were one of the great European empires. Like the Russians their empire straddled Europe and Asia. Christianity tied the Russians to Europe and the West. Islam tied the Ottomans to the East and Asia. It also insulated the Ottomans from both the effects if the Renaissance and Reformatiin which played such an important role in the making of the Western mind abd modern Europe. Byzantium had been the major bulwark between the Ottomans and Europe. The Ottonans has penetrated into the Balkans (14th cenntury). It was not until they took Constantinople, however, that they could direct the full force of their armies north (1458). Soon Serbia and other Christian kingdoms in the Balkans fell and finally so did Hungary. The Austrians with the help of a Polish army held out in Vienna. The Ottomon failure to support scientific inquiry, however, meant that could not contunue to compete with the rising European states. The Spanish smashed Ottomon naval power in both the Indian Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. The key engagement was the Battle of Lepanto where the Spanish and Italians defeat the Ottoman navy (1571). This was the beginning of a long period of decline.
Norway, Denmark, and Sweden were the three kingdoms of the Kalmar Union. Sweden objected to Denmark's continued use of the Trekronor coat of arms. Swedish claimed the large island of Gotland west of Sweden was still held by Denmrk, Efforts at negotiation failed. Swedish King Gustavus I. Vasa died (1560). He was suceed by his son Erik XIV who declared war on Denmark (1563). a Danish force took Älvsborg on the Jutland Peninsula which was Sweden's only North Sea stronghold (September 1563). A Danish fleet defeated a Swedish fleet in an engagement fought between between Øland and Gotland (May 1564). A small Sanish army defeated a Swedish army (1565). This was the last important engsgement of the War. King Erik XIV was deposed due to insanity (1568). The two countries signed a peace treaty (1571). The Danes returned Älvsborg to Sweden which paid 150,000 Dalers in compensation. Both countries had local allies. Denmark was allied with Lübeck (a Grman Hanseatic port) and with Poland. Sweden at the time was expanding along the southern Baltic coast. It seized trrotory in Estonia (1561). And while fighting Denmark were also contenting with the Poles over Livonia (part of modern Latvia) (1563-70). After King Erik XIV was deposed. his brother Johan relpaced him As he was married to a Polish princess, the war with Poland essentially was over. The major impact of the War was to interrupt the Baltic grain trade. Substantial shipments of grain were shipped from Danzig to the Netherlands which was not self sufficent in food poroduction. This resulted in a famine in the Netherlands. Denmark continued to control the Sound and trade routes between the North Sea and Baltic. This meant that the Danes controlled the Russia trade. Denmark's ability to control trade between the North Sea and Baltic mean that Sweden viewed the Danes as a potential threat.
The Reformation reached Livonia (a part of modern Latvia) and other areas in the Baltic during the 1520s. Livonia formally declared for the the Lutheran confession (1558). This undercut the authority of both the Livonian Order and the Livonian bishoprics. The Livonian Order had been declining for decades and by the 1560s no longer had the ability to defend the principality. Tsar Ivan IV (the Terrible) invased Livonia (1558), exposing the weakness of the Livonian Order. Livonia disintegrated. Parts of Livonia appealed for assistance from Poland- Lithuania. This brouht Poland-Lithuania into conflict with Russia. For a time a truce prevented opened warfare.
Ivan IV refused to extend the truce (1562). A Russian army appeared off Polock which was forced to surrender (February 15, 1563). A truce was negotited which lasted for several months (until December). Sweden signed an alliance with Russia, Poland sined an alliance with Denmark. The war is sometimes called the First Northern War. It was fought on three fronts. First, was along the the Dano-Swedish border. This fisghting it also referred to as the Dano-Swedish War (1563-70). Second, was in Livonia and refered tonas the Livonisan War (1558-82). Third, was fighting in Lithuania, often called the Russo-Polish War (1563-1570). A Lithuanian army commanded by Prince Nicholas Radziwill inflicted two winter defeats on the Russian forces (January and February 1564). Ivan's military commander in Lithuania Prince Andrey Kurbski defected to the Lithuanians. The Poles and Russians negotiated a peace (1570). Russia maintaned its hold on Polock. The Sejm decided that Pollock had to be retrived frim the Russians. Polish troops retook Polock (1579). Another peace treaty was negotiated (1582). Ivan IV. ceded all of Livonia and Polock. In exchage, Poland-Lithuania returned Smolensk which it had recently seized. The War shattered the balance of power in the eastern Baltic. The implosion of Livonia had created a power vacuume. This was exacerbated by the rise of Russia under a strong monarchy. A factor here was Englih deliveries of gunpowder through the port of Archangelsk. This exposed both Livonia and Lithuania to increasingly powerful Russian armies. Andisolated cities were less able to withsand major seiges. Neither Lithusanisa or Poland had a stroing standing army and mobilzing forces required time. A major result was the Union of Lublin which forged a stronger union between Poland and Lithuania. This left Poland in nominal control of much of the Baltics, including Lithuania and what is now Latvia (Courland, Riga and Livonia).
The French religious wars began with the First Huguenot War (1562-63). The percecution and religious intolerance on the part of many Cathloics resulted in reprisals from the the Protestants. The result was a civil war in France. Catholics under de Guise slew some 1,200 Huguenots at Vassy (1562). This ignited the the Wars of Religion which would last three decades and devestate the country. There were eight outbreaks of fighting separated by formal peace treaties. There was open war, attrocities. brutal acys, assainations, trachery and other acts during the civil war (1562-98). The Huguenot forces were led by Louis I de Boubon Prince de Condé and Admiral Gaspard de Coligny and later Henry de Navarre (Henry IV). The Catholic forces were led by Duc de Guise (Henry I de Lorraine) and Catherine de Médicis and later by Henry III. As in Germany, foreign troops were involved in the fighting. Soldiers from England, Germany, and Switzerland. The Catholics were supported by primarily by Spain. The treaties that end the various outbreaks granted the huguenots various levels of toleration. Afterwards the French royal Government attempted to repudiate or ignore these pledges resulting in renewerd hostilities. The essential problem was both the intolerance of the time and the conviction on the part of Catholic monarchs that Protestants would not be loyal, fully trusted subjects. The Wars were not finally ended until Henry of Navarre converted and finall was ceowned as Henry IV and subsequently issued the Edict of Nantes.
English audacity and technology at sea laid the groundwork for the Royal Navy and command of the seas. Sir Francis Drake, Sir John Hawkins ,
and the other "Sea Dogs" bedelved the Spanish treasure fleet with Queen Elizabeth as a secret partner. The English then formed overseas trading companies and very modest colonization attempts were made in the Caribbean and North America by Sir Humphrey Gilbert and Sir Walter Raleigh. The long conflict with Spain was rooted in an English hunger for Spanish treasure and a commercial and maritime rivalry, but Philip II's desire to destroy the Reformation in the Netherlands and England was also a very important factor. This struggle culminated in Philip's decession to build a Great Armada. Spain in the 16th century was the preminent international power. The Spain as a result of the Reconquista had buily a powerful military capability. Spain and Portugal at the time had colonized or claimed of the known world and huge quantities of gold and silver flowed into Spain from its American colonies. This enabled Spain to build a hugenavy to maintain its colonial dominions. Phillip was a devout Catholic and determined to destroy the Protestant Revolution in his domanins in the Netherlands and to do the same in England. The depredations of the Sea Dogs had convinced him that he must act against England. He built at great cost an "Invincible Armada" of 125 ships which would link up with the Duke of Parma's army already deployed in the Spanish Netherlands to destroy Protestantism. The Armada would then be used to ferry the Duke's army across the Channel to England where it would march on London and seize the Queen. England would then be brought back to the True Faith at the point of Spanish swords. The Armada was placed under the command of the Duke of Medina Sedonia, a nobelman of limited naval experience. The Armada sailed in late May 1588 and reached the Southwest coast of England on July 19. Limited engagements were fought by Lord Howard and Francis Drake who commanded the English fleet. The more manueverable English vessels harassed the Spanish, using superior cannonery tomdamage several vessels and actually capturing one vessel. The Armada anchored at Calais, but found that the Duke of Parma and his army was not yet there. The English set fire-ships at the Spanish (July 28). Little actual damage was done, but the Spanish scattered to avoid the preceived danger. The principal engagement occurred at Gravelines and in an 8-hour running engagement, many Spanish ships destroyed or damaged (July 29). The Commander of the Armada, the Duke of Medina Sedonia, fearing defeat decided not to invade and return to Spain. The prevailing winds forced him to take a northerly route into the North Sea anfd around Scotland and Ireland. The English pursued the Spanish for 3 days, but returned to port when they exhausted their ammunition. Much more damage, however, was done by storms in the North Sea andd floundered in the coasts of Scotland and Ireland. Only a small number of Spanish ships managed to reach Spanish ports. The destruction of Philip's Grreat Armada was a pivital turning point in history. Spanish naval power was ebbing despite the flow if gold and silver from the America. Britain was beginning its rise as a great naval power.
Spain and the northern provinces of the Netherlands negotiated a 12-year truce (1609-21). Spain was preparinfg a new offensive against the Dutch when the truce ended. The problem for Spain was how to support military operations in the low countries. The rise of a Dutch navy made it difficult to send troops and provisions by sea. Reach the Dutch by land was also difficult. France stood between Spain and the Netherlands. And the French were not about to permit Spanish troops to pass through their country. It suited French purposes at the time to have an independent Netherlands even though they were Protestant. Thus the Spanish would have to send their forces along a circuitous route from Spain to Italy by sea and then through the Alpine passes to the the Rhine River Valley. The Rhine than led to the Dutch. This was a very difficult march for any body of troops and needed equipment and supplies, especially given the nature of roads at the time. The key to the route was the Rhineland. This was a contested area. The Spanish hoped to acquire Alsace which Ferdinand had promissed for supporting his imperial candidacy.
The War of the Three Henries (1585-89 was a struggle for te French crown. Henri of Navarra secures the succession to the crown. The assassination of King ??? left King Henri of Navarra as the legitimate heir to the French crown. And Henri was a protestsant. Henri was able to draw moderate Catholics into his camp and accept the idea of a protestant king. The Catholic League was determined to resist and they were supported by Spain. Henri confronted the League militarily. He defeated the League forces commanded by the Duke of Mayenne at Arques (1589) and subsequently at the Battle of Ivry (1590). Henri gained control of Normandy, but the League controled Paris and control of the capital was vital for any French monarch. Henri was militarily dominant, but his force proved to small to breach the city's defenses. Henri laid siege to Paris. The people of Paris sufferred terribly and the city was near capitulation. Finally a Spanish force under the Duke of Parma, Alessandro Farnese, msarched on Paris from the Netherlands. he Spanish suceeded in breaking the seige. They brought in food and other supplies and stationed a garrison there. Parma conducted a second expedition toward Paris (1592). The League-dominated Estates General met in Paris to chose a Catholic candidate for the throne (1593). They ignored
Henri's claim. Finally recognizing that he could not take the capital with the Spanish there, King Henri converted to Catholicism (1594). He is reported famously to have said, "Paris is worth a mass." The capital ired of war, seige, and the Spanish, through open ther gates of the city to him. the Spanish garrison departed. King Henri IV. of France, proved to be a wise leader. He was not revenful to hisformer opponents and drew many into his camp. Some resistance continued in the in the provinces. The most troubelsome area was in the north in the border regions with the Spanish-controlled Lowlands (modern Belgium and the the Netherlands) where they were able to obtain support from the Spanish. Royalis forces finally took Cambrai and Calais (1595-96). The League leader Mayenne surrendered (1596) and most of the lords of he League followed him. The Spanish suceeded in taking Amiens (1597). The Peace of Vervins signed by France and Spain brought the Wares of the League to an end (1598).
Japan invded Korea (1592).
Tyrone launches a rebellion against the English in Ireland (1596).
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