Near the end of chapter two, “Transitions,” after Hagen Shulze talks about Luther and the reformation there is a part about the wars that spread after years of peace (peace that was only around due to ruthless leaders waiting around for the right time to strike). The wars that resulted due to ambitious leaders wanting to take control spread way beyond the borders, to all the great nations around as they tried to restore the Catholic unity that used to exists. Eventually peace was made with the Peace of Westphalia, which had been negotiated at Münster and Osnabrück.
The peace treaties ended the conflicts and became a European settlement. This was, in effect, a European constitution. These treaties look like they would be the beginnings of the European Union. The leaders set out to form a way that each nation could stay true to its roots and remain its own country with its own ideas but also form a way that they could get along and try to avoid conflicts. Their agreements established the rights of the states and every other state recognized, followed, and respected these rights.
In their agreements they also dealt with the religion aspects. It created a weak and fragmented center that was the Hold Roman Empire, partly because the Holy Roman Empire was so weak and tired after the long war it had been fighting. It was now the soft center of the law that held the empire together. These agreements show that after years of fighting it is possible to come together to work in unison for the betterment of the states and their people. The treaties also showed that despite different religious and political beliefs and systems, different states could come together and work well without fighting and being at war for everything they wanted.
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| A drawing of the leaders negotiating the Peace of Westphalia. It shows that many leaders with many different ideas can come together to work towards a common goal. |
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| A map of Europe in 1648, with the boundaries of the Holy Roman Empire outlined in blue. |
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