Denmark and the Thirty Years' War, 1618-1648: Diplomacy, war, and government during the reign of King Christian IV
Abstract
During the century following the Reformation, Denmark was the most powerful Protestant monarchy. Through its command of entrance to the Baltic, Denmark controlled the vital Baltic trade. The Crown itself was elective, and the aristocracy vied with the king for political power. Denmark was closely tied to Germany. The king of Denmark was also duke of Holstein and hence a prince of the Empire. The kings of Denmark were deeply involved in political developments within the Empire, and participated fully in the dynastic politics of the territorial princes. King Christian IV (1588-1648) took great pains to expand his holdings in northern Germany. The extension of Imperial political authority and of the Catholic Counterreformation into the North caused Christian much concern, and by 1625--goaded by promises of foreign support--he felt compelled to go to war with the emperor. Though Denmark had every reason to expect a victory, the "Lower Saxon War" (1625-29) against the emperor soon took an unfavorable turn. Denmark made a remarkable recovery from the defeats of the first two years of war, and by the end of the war Christian IV had recovered most of what had already been lost. Denmark was able to resurrect its reputation in European politics, and by the late 1630s it was recognized as the chief mediator of the forthcoming peace negotiations. But its position of armed neutrality earned it the enmity of Sweden and the mistrust of the emperor; restrictive commercial policies, designed to finance huge military and diplomatic expenditures, alienated all its former allies. When Sweden invaded Danish soil in 1643-44, no-one came to Denmark's rescue. Denmark lost its great-power status as a result. The demands of thirty years of war and armed neutrality had a tremendous influence on the constitutional development of the Danish polity. The crown managed to finance its foreign and military policies through its own means; but attempts to introduce centralized political and military institutions responsive to royal control met with strong resistance, and the Thirty Years' War left the government discredited and bankrupt. The unrest stirred up by these pressures paved the way for the introduction of absolutism in 1660.
Degree
Ph.D.
Advisors
Rothenberg, Purdue University.
Subject Area
European history
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