unclear

Chapter 1088 Religious Wars Are Not Religious

Why, when an emperor of a European empire died, the Ming Empire's ambassador to Austria couldn't even wait to see who his successor would be, and was busy sending the news to Porto Ennio via a Venetian merchant ship?

Because Europe had been at war for more than a decade, the Holy Roman Empire was one of the most important belligerents. Now that the emperor had changed, it would definitely have a significant impact on the war situation. The soon-to-be-appointed Ferdinand III was a dove in the Austrian court and advocated reaching a settlement with the German Protestant princes through negotiations.

If he could use his position as emperor to facilitate peace talks between the warring parties and persuade the Vatican to make concessions on religious issues, then this war that affected the whole of Europe would be near its end.

Europe is no longer at war, but its wounds require a huge amount of wealth to heal. All countries have been impoverished by more than a decade of war. It is obviously not enough to rely on their own slow recovery, and the relatively affluent Asia is likely to become their target.

The ambassador to Austria had obviously thought of this step, so he immediately exercised his highest authority, used his connections with the Venetians, and reported to the country as quickly as possible.

Hong Tao immediately instructed the Ministry of Rites to commend and reward the two ambassadors for their actions. This is more reasonable. As ambassadors stationed abroad, they cannot just be mouthpieces, nor can they wait for orders from their superiors when encountering problems. They must have the most basic thinking ability and judgment of the international situation.

"René, I didn't come to talk to you about steam engines today. These two letters were just delivered from Port En-Nor by a clipper, and the contents are both related to Europe. The most important news you may want to know is that Ferdinand II, the Holy Roman Emperor, has passed away, and the news is very accurate.

I want to talk to you about the war in Europe. If Archduke Ferdinand succeeds to the throne as Emperor Ferdinand III, will it have a big impact on the war? Will countries increase their efforts and continue to invest, or will they start peace talks as soon as possible to seek an end? "

However, even with the latest news and the understanding of the courts of various European countries in recent years, it is still difficult to understand the intricate interpersonal, family and religious relationships between them.

But within the empire, or in the capital, there are talents in this field, who are not experts but are well-versed in it. For example, Descartes and Hobbes. One of them studied philosophy, and the other was a royal doctor. They must have a better understanding of the ruling class and the courts of various countries than the average person.

“Ferdinand II should have died long ago. If it weren’t for his fanaticism for Catholicism and his extreme hostility to the Reformation, suppressing Protestantism everywhere in the empire, Europe would not have been drawn into this meaningless war.

Over the past decade, the German princes, Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands and other places have suffered great losses, and a huge amount of wealth has disappeared, leaving barren fields everywhere. To use your country's words, the people are living in misery.

Now France and Spain have declared war on each other again. Not only does the war show no signs of stopping, it is getting more and more intense. Even the instigators could not have imagined the current situation and are powerless to do anything about it.

Archduke Ferdinand's accession to the throne would alleviate this sinful war to a certain extent, but it would not end it quickly. The grudges between the countries were too deep, and fighting for God was bullshit. The essence was to oppose the Habsburg family's greater interests.

Just like a heavily loaded horse-drawn carriage going downhill, if the brakes fail, no matter how hard the driver and the horse try, they will not be able to stop the carriage from sliding down in a short period of time.

At this time, the emperor was the coachman. The best he could do was to prevent the horses from running away and the carriage from derailing and overturning. If no outsiders took great risks to help, he could only wait for it to slowly stop. "Descartes really lived up to the emperor's expectations. After learning the news of Ferdinand II's death, he spoke out his thoughts on the matter without reservation, and was full of resentment towards the instigator.

"If this is true, then the situation my European colleague is facing is not very good. In addition to the conflicts between European countries, he may also be harassed by the outside world. It can be said that he is facing internal and external troubles!"

Although it was full of personal emotions, Descartes' judgment was very similar to Hong Tao's. The war in Europe seemed quite simple, a struggle between Protestants and Catholics over who was more authentic, much like the feud between Shia Muslims and Sunni Muslims.

But whoever really believes this does not understand the status of European countries. The only thing about this so-called religious war that has anything to do with religion is the cause, and everything else is about two other words: interests.

The Habsburg family was the most powerful family in Europe. In addition to the Holy Roman Empire, it also controlled Spain and Portugal. Its territory stretched from the Mediterranean Sea to the Baltic Sea in the north, occupying almost two-thirds of Europe.

The Balkan region in later generations, Hungary, Romania, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, northern Italy, half of the Netherlands and most of Belgium, plus the Iberian Peninsula, all belong to the sphere of influence of this big family.

The reason why Britain, some German princes, as well as Denmark, Sweden, the Netherlands and other countries converted to Protestantism was not to pursue orthodox beliefs, but to get rid of the control of the Habsburg family and prevent them from abusing their power and taking more than they deserved in the name of the Catholic Church.

This included Richelieu of France, who was a cardinal of the Catholic Church, but stood on the side of Protestantism in this war. From the very beginning, he secretly funded Denmark to go to war with the Holy Roman Empire, and later flirted with Sweden and had secret dealings with her.

In the end, they tore off their faces and declared war on Spain. All these actions were aimed at weakening the power of the Habsburg family, a bit like a wheel battle, one by one, not giving the other side a chance to breathe.

There is only one reason why these countries and princes were so determined to compete with the power ruled by the Habsburg family: to compete for interests.

The Habsburg family occupied large colonies in America through Spain and Portugal and made huge profits. However, they were not satisfied and tried their best to suppress the newcomers, as if they wanted to dominate the New World and eat alone, which had long angered European countries.

The Holy Roman Empire also expanded strongly in Europe, using various means to annex the fiefs of the princes. If the countries did not unite to resist, once the empire really occupied the Baltic coast and dominated the Mediterranean and Baltic trade circles, there would be no chance for resistance.

This is also the fundamental reason why many European countries secretly exchanged information with the Ottoman Empire. They wanted to use the Turks to stab the Holy Roman Empire in the back.

If history had followed its original trajectory, this religious war would have continued for more than a decade until all parties were exhausted and ended in peace talks. In name, no one lost or won, but in reality, both the Holy Roman Empire and the Kingdom of Spain were dragged into poverty.

(End of this chapter)