Meantime the Thirty Years' War (1618-48) was desolating central Europe. The princes of North Germany proved timid and incapable ; and the cause of Protestantism was saved only by foreign intervention — by Denmark, by Swe den and finally by Catholic France. At the close of the struggle, the first European Con gress reorganized Europe. By the Peace of Westphalia, France received most of Alsace and some other Rhine districts. The independ ence of Switzerland and of the United Provinces was formally recognized; and the second of these two republics ranked as one of the Great Powers. Sweden, already reaching down both west and east shores of the Baltic, secured much of the south shore also, with command of the mouths of the German Oder, Elbe and Weser. On the other hand, the empire lost more than territory. The political rearrange ments within that state reduced the imperial Diet to the level of a useless debating society and put an end to whatever shadow had per sisted of natiunal unity. From this time until it vanished, a century and a half later, the Holy Roman Empire was a meaningless survival, cumbering the earth. Henceforth the Haps burg "Emperors" derived their only real im portance from their position as hereditary arch dukes of Austria; and soon they turned to their proper task of defending Europe against the Turk. To most of Germany the war had brought blasting ruin. Half the population and two-thirds the movable property were swept away. Land tilled for centuries became waste, and men became savages. Not till the middle of the 19th century did large districts again contain as many homesteads and cattle as in 1618; while the low position of the German peasantry, until 1850, was due in great measure to this war.
American Colonization.— Before the re ligious wars closed, the continent of Europe had ceased to be the sole scene of important historical development. American colonization was well advanced and political liberty had re ceived a remarkable development both in Eng land and in English colonies. These topics de mand attention before the student enters upon the consideration of the next period of Euro pean wars.
Spain made her first settlement upon the American continent at the Pearl Coast in 1513. Then sweeping to north and south, she took swift possession of all South America except Portugal's Brazil, all Central America and Mex ico, and of the Floridas and Californias, far up both coasts of North America, while plans were afoot to plant her flag over the rest of that continent. But the ruin of the Armada, together with Spain's decay at home, came in time to leave room for other colonization. France seized upon the mouths of the Missis sippi and the Saint Lawrence, the apparent gate ways to the continent ; and English colonies stretched themselves in patches along the fringe of the North Atlantic coast. The Dutch spent their colonizing energies mainly in the Orient; and, despite some ambitious beginnings, Swe den soon grew too weak to be a serious factor in North America. Thus that continent was left in dispute between Spain, France and Eng land. The contest was to be interwoven with the European wars of the last half of the 17th century and of the 18th century, and the out come was big with consequence to the world. All European countries except England gov erned their colonies on despotic plans. The English colonists took to the New World insti tutions and principles of freedom, and soon gave them a wider development there than had been possible even in the old home. Besides the rights of free speech and jury trial and ha beas corpus, each English colony had from the first, or very quickly inaugurated, a representa tive legislature with full parliamentary privi leges and with control over taxation. In sev
eral colonies, local government also was con ducted on extreme democratic principles. Not until 200 years later did any of these free prin ciples appear in the colonies of any other peo ple —and then only because of their success in the English colonies.
England in the 17th Century.— In England itself the 17th century saw an important development in free government. Through the engaged in a critical struggle between the royal claims, of Right') government and the rising spirit of popular government. Except for brief intervals the conflict was parliamen tary, not military, but it was constant and stub born. Much of the time it was confused with ecclesiastical questions, which, to the men of the time, often seemed the chief issue; and it was fortunate, indeed, that the stern heroism of Puritanism became engaged on the side of po litical liberty. During this century, too, Eng land was the last remaining battle ground in Europe for free government. In the other large states,— in Spain, France, Austria, in the Scandinavian lands, even in the petty principal ities of Italy and Gerifiany,—despotism was triumphant. In England, popular principles not merely maintained themselves against the Stu art attack: they came out of the conflict with increased vitality. The great experiment of a Puritan Commonwealth failed; but after the Stuart Restoration it became apparent that the body of the monarchists themselves were now thoroughly devoted to parliamentary govern ment, and the attempt of the later Stuarts to set up a personal absolutism called forth the "Glorious Revolution" of 1688, which estab lished the supremacy of Parliament over the king.
Dynastic and Commercial Struggles, 1648 1783.— We now return to the general develop ment of Europe after 1648. On the Continent the period from the Peace of Westphalia to the French Revolution (1648-1789) is marked (1) by absolutism within the several states and (2) by dynastic interests in their foreign relations, —with incessant selfish war, as the result. The famous phrase ascribed to Louis XIV of France,—"I am the State,"— might have been used appropriately by any monarch of the time outside of England. A few great rulers domi nate the period. Indeed the stage is largely filled by three monarchs,—Louis XIV (1643 1715), Peter the Great (1689-1725), and Fred erick the Great (1740-86). The influence of Peter was restricted for the most part to Russia, which had thrown off the Tartar yoke a century and a half before, and had been looming an indistinct menace on the East. But the other two monarchs belong to all Europe, and the period divides itself naturally into the Age of Louis XIV and the Age of Frederick II. The chief aim of statesmen was to prevent any one country from becoming too strong for the safety of its neighbors. The Peace of Westphalia had transferred political predomi nance from the Hapsburgs to the Bourbons. Thus, during the first half of the period France threatened the "balance of power,° and league after league of other powers was organized against her. International morality, however, was low; and commonly rulers were willing to let a strong power rob a weaker one if they could find "compensation" by robbing some other state themselves. In the last wars of Louis XIV, just before and after 1700 (known in American history as King William's War and Queen Anne's War), the dynastic interests of European ruling families became merged in a titanic, century-long struggle between France and England for world dominion,— though neither country was yet fully conscious of the import of the strife.