Religion and Political Conflicts in the 16th and the 17th Century

Religion and Political Conflicts in the 16th and the 17th Century and Their SignificanceBy (Your Name)DateCourse Political and religion conflicts played a role in the 16th and the 17th century. Most of the conflicts that took place around this time were actually driven by religion factors and the struggle for power among the different nations. In this essay, we are going to evaluate three main religion and political conflicts that took place in European and Arabian countries. The paper will highlight the significance of this conflicts and how they shaped politics and religion. One of the greatest religious conflicts that took place in Europe in the 17th century was the Thirty Years War. This was a primarily a religious conflict involving the Protestants and the Catholic states that formed the Holy Roman Empire. The conflict actually began when Emperor Ferdinand II came into power and informed that people that all the states on the Holy Roman Empire were supposed to adhere to Catholicism as a form of religion. The Emperor actually played a great role in the control of some of the European states even though the Roman Empire was actually a collection of states CITATION Par06 \l 1033 (Parker 2006). The Bohemians who rejected the imposition of Catholicism on them formed a revolt to protest against Ferdinand II. It is also during this time that Bohemian sought the support of the protestant states which was actually made up of Germany. Ferdinand II sought the support of Spain in the war. As the armies organized themselves, a brutal war began which led to the loss of many lives. In 1635, a temporary treaty called the Peace of Prague was arrived at. It protected the Lutheran states in North East Germany. However, some of the states were dissatisfied with the treat and the political tension increased among the countries. The French who were also Catholics were not pleased with the provisions in the Peace of Prague and they therefore joined the conflict in 1635. The conflict came to an end in 1648 when the parties signed a treaty called the Peace of Westphalia. There are a number of factors that can be attributed to the intensification of the conflict. Protestant Reformation which had taken place in Germany led by Martin Luther King was spreading at a fast rate. The growing negativity towards the papacy and Catholicism also made many states to find out their ways to do away with Catholicism. As Bainton R. H points out, the papacy was no longer viewed as a religion but rather as a power struggle between the Italian City State and the European power states. Thus further led to the spread of protestant reformation across various states in Europe. The conflict also played a great role in shaping the politics of Europe. The Catholic Church had less influence in the political affairs of Europe as compared to the previous instances. There was also a balance of power and a growth of sentiments between the Protestants and the Catholics. The Dutch Revolt was also another political conflict that took place in Netherlands. During this war that lasted or about eighty years, the Netherlands were seeking independence from Spain, The conflict led to the formation of the Northern and the Southern Netherlands as well as the Dutch Republic which was referred to as the United Provinces of Netherlands. The war began with the first two invasions that were led by Prince William I in 1568 and 1572 CITATION Dar03 \l 1033 (Darby and Darby 2003). The invasions also involved the Geuzen which was a large Dutch military force that led the revolution against the Spanish rule. The Geuzen were successfu...