AHC/WI: Successful German Peasants' War

Well, in the unlikely event it does, Protestantism will be stronger and the nobles and the church will have less power. But IMHO, it probably will get crushed:(
 
From what I understand about the Peasants' War, the whole thing would have had a lot more chances of some kind of success, or at least major effect, if it occurred in some way concurrently with the Knight's Revolt. One of the things that the peasants seem to have lacked is real central or even coherent organization. Really successful rural rebellions in medieval and early modern times tended to involve both the poorer villiens/other non-nobility and at least the lower levels of the gentry.
 
From what I understand about the Peasants' War, the whole thing would have had a lot more chances of some kind of success, or at least major effect, if it occurred in some way concurrently with the Knight's Revolt. One of the things that the peasants seem to have lacked is real central or even coherent organization. Really successful rural rebellions in medieval and early modern times tended to involve both the poorer villiens/other non-nobility and at least the lower levels of the gentry.

I thought the same. Some knights joined, but you'd need far more small knights and also the Imperial cities to join. Then they stand a chance of establishing a functional order that allows to defeat the High Lords.

A first result probably is that many higher nobles die, which in turn gives you a lot of interesting PODs and changes the map and the power balance of Southern Germany even in a later defeat of the peasants.

If the peasants really win, I would expect some sort of Swiss-like entities to emerge: Cantons that effectively institutionalize local self rule, held together by treaties.
 
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