Europe in 1650

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Europe in 1650

• Overview of Politics and Society

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Political Map of Europe in 1650
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Holy Roman Empire in 1650
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Crises of the 17th Century

• War
• Plague
• Famine

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Thirty Years War 1618-1648

• Defenestration of Prague
• Causes
• Religious
• Political
• Confused
• General Devastation in central Europe

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Treaty of Westphalia 1648

• Rulers in each of the states within the Holy
  Roman Empire independent of Emperor
• HRE a loose confederation of 352 states
• Recognition that different religions can co-exist
  within the Empire

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Effects of Thirty Years War

• German states of central Europe fragmented for
  more than 200 years
• Population of central Europe decimated
• In 1600, approximately 20 million people
• By 1648, only 13 million
• By 1700, still only 14 million

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English Civil War 1641-1648

• Struggle between Royal forces (Cavaliers) and
  Parliamentary forces (Roundheads)
• Issues
• Religion
• Royal authority
• Taxation
• War ended with trial and execution of King
  Charles I in 1649

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Fronde in France 1650s

• Rebellious groups of nobles attacked royal
  strongholds, trying to capture child King Louis
  XIV
• Issues
• Religion
• Royal Authority
• Taxation
• Revolt fizzled, largely because nobles were not
  united

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Plague

• Epidemics of plague ravaged Europe
• 1649-1654 Mediterranean region
• 1657 Southern Italy
• 1665 London and southern Englan
• 1675-1685 Spain
• 1720 France

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Bubonic Plague or Black Death

• Bubonic plague from bite of an infected flea
• enlarged and inflamed lymph nodes (around arm
  pits, neck and groin).
• headaches, nausea, aching joints, fever of
  101-105 degrees, vomiting, and a general feeling
  of illness
• 1-7 days to appear
• mortality rate was 30-75

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Pneumonic Plague

• Second most common form of early modern plague
• Spread through droplets from coughs
• Infected the lungs
• Slimy sputum tinted with blood, becoming
  progressively worse bright red
• Mortality rate 90-95

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Causes of Plague

• Poor sanitation
• Overcrowding, especially in cities
• No understanding of disease and its causes
• Bubonic Plague spread by fleas carried by brown
  rat
• Often half population died
• Famine often preceded or followed plague

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Famine Why?

• 85 of population lived directly dependent on the
  land for survival
• Low yield 41 ratio needed for prosperity
• Little or no fertilizer2/5 of land left fallow
  each year
• Climate colder and wetter during 17th century
  seeds sometimes rotted in ground

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Results of Famine

• In rural areas, lack of food to survive winter
  and plant next year
• In towns and cities, rising prices created
  hardship for poor and even middling folk
• Poor transportation networks made movement of
  food difficult
• Example Weavers of Beauvais