alternatehistory.com

many of us are aware of Voltaire's quote that the Holy Roman Empire was neither Holy, nor Roman, nor an Empire. After Westphalia, the argument goes, it's a ramshackle affair. This is quite true, actually.

Certainly, much of the empire had been broken. The Imperial chambers court was understaffed and its officials went unpaid; and the diet which met at Regensburg was stymied by religious and dynastic conflict.

Yet even so, the Empire could contribute to the Emperor; some states helped pay for the conquest of Hungary, for instance. And at the level of the imperial circles, things looked much brighter. Originally established as units of imperial administration, they became a loose sort of organization for the empire. In much of Germany, either absolutist states took center stage (like Prussia), or religious conflict was a problem.

But in Swabia and Franconia, things were different. Franconia, for instance, had a coinage for the circle and had its own tariffs. Troops from the circle were uniformed according to the circle's standard and marched under its banner. Louis XIV's actions inspired the movement, and by 1682 Franconia had a 5,500 man army. The next decade saw the usual political maneuvering, but basically Swabia and Franconia joined forces to keep Louis XIV from using their lands as a battleground.

So, by 1695 there's a plan for the establishment of an association of the Franconian and Swabian circles, the Electoral states of the Rhineland, and Westphalia. The movement lost impetus with the establishment of peace in 1695, but it's interesting. The states of Western Germany have no desire to play power politics the way Prussia and Bavaria do; and it's a surprising expression of a desire for another force besides Austria in German politics.

Thoughts?
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