The Saxon Eagle: A Thirty Years War TL

Stockholm, Sweden, 1610

It had been a long road for the man standing on the docks, still dressed in the clothes of a Swedish military officer, waiting to board a ship to Stralsund. Having been plucked, a few short weeks before, from the marshes of northern Lithuania, he would soon be back at the Wettin court in Dresden. Albert Frederick wondered which place would be more taxing.

Life could sometimes be boring for third sons of nobility, and Albert Frederick, son of Elector Christian I of Saxony and Elisabeth of Palatinate*, had long thirsted for adventure. Furthermore, he often disagreed with his father, something he'd perhaps inherited from his mother. For the first 14 years of Elisabeth's life, the Palatinate had been Calvinist, a religion the deeply pious Elisabeth had soaked up. But, when her grandfather Frederick died and her father Louis, a Lutheran, became Elector, he'd revealed his Lutheranism and forced his daughter to follow along, something she did outwardly but not inwardly. Like most daughters of princes, Elisabeth had been married off to another noble family, in this case the Wettins of Saxony. But her new husband, Christian I, was strongly Lutheran too, and pursued a policy of cooperation with the Hapsburgs**-two things that greatly displeased Elisabeth. She was unable to bring her husband around though, nor her first two sons, but a teenage Albert Frederick struggled to reconcile the piety of his mother with that of the rest of his (Lutheran) friends and family. Despite their differences, didn't all Protestants have a common opposition to Rome? Instead of squabbling amongst themselves, shouldn't they, perhaps, unite to deal with a common foe?

Such points of view had found no support in Dresden, however. Growing up, Albert Frederick had excelled at his studies, especially the martial ones, and had avidly read all the books on military strategy he could get his hands on-both from classical writers, and more recent works on the Italian and Dutch wars and the advances made by the Spanish and men like Maurice of Nassau. But Saxony was not involved in any wars, and as a third son, it seemed unlikely that Albert Frederick might come to be the ruler of anything. So, at 19, he set off in 1606 to join Charles IX's armies in Sweden. And, among the marshes and fields of northern Lithuania and Livonia, the young man finally found himself. He led men into combat, singing Lutheran hyms, against the armies of Catholic Poland. All the skills he had learned from books were tested on the battlefield, and Albert Frederick's fellow officers often praised his superb tactical mind. The four years spent on Polish battlefields proved liberating to the young man, so used to the stultifying confines of Dresden's court.

But, events in Saxony weren't standing still. Albert Frederick's second brother, John George, got the worst of a run-in with smallpox in 1609, and five months later, Christian, the eldest child, died in a hunting accident. At 49, Elector Christian was getting on in his years, and now he needed his only surviving son in Dresden. It was time Albert Frederick came home, and Christian wrote to Charles IX, asking that his son be recalled from the front. Soon, with a heavy heart, Albert Frederick said goodbye to all his subordinates and took a ship to Stockholm, and went from their to Stralsund, to take a journey home through Pommerania and Brandenburg. Christian and Albert Frederick didn't get along any better than they had when the latter had left, but now, Albert was the heir, and everyone knew Christian only had a few years to live. And once those years were done, a lot of things were going to change in Saxony.

*Who was born in 1562, and IOTL died that year. This is the POD.
**IOTL, Saxony was pro-Hapsburg during the early stages of the Thirty Years War, before the growing intolerance of Emperor Ferdinand II forced him to change sides.
 
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Do you perhaps mean 1562 for Elizabeth of Palatinate? 'Cause a 1762 birth for a woman in 1610 requires the timely intervention of the Xenoid Cosmonaut Flying Mammals and what not.

Interesting intrigues in the HREGN, though.
 
Looks like you're following in Dr Waterhouse's footsteps; a German dualism between Austria and Saxony is something I like to see.
 
Looks like you're following in Dr Waterhouse's footsteps; a German dualism between Austria and Saxony is something I like to see.

I actually didn't run into Dr. Waterhouse's TL until after I had this idea. Mine is going to be somewhat different, obviously.

And for novices to Early Modern HRE history, most of this is OTL-Palatinate did turn briefly Lutheran under Louis VI (before again reverting back to Calvinism on his death), and Sweden fought a war with the PLC from 1600 to 1611.
 
Upon the death of his father Christian in 1614, Albert Frederick ascended to the Saxon throne. At his coronation, he made no secret of his intentions, giving a speech praising Saxon's role as the "cradle of Lutheranism", but at the same time calling for Protestant unity in the face of Hapsburg and Catholic aggression. One of his first official acts as Elector was to apply for Saxony's admission into the Protestant Union, an anti-Hapsburg alliance that Christian I had spurned*. Although he was a committed Lutheran, he proved to be much less rigid in his beliefs than his predicessors, especially in his foreign policy. Under Albert Frederick's direction, Saxon diplomats worked tirelessly over the next few years to smooth over the differences that had cropped up between the Lutheran and Calvinist members of the Protestant Union, and, in 1615, arrianged a marriage between himself and Elisabeth, daughter of the (Calvinist) Landgarve of Hesse-Cassel. Believing that a renewed conflict between the Protestant states of the HRE and the Hapsburgs was only a matter of time, Albert Frederick also ordered an increase in the size of Saxony's military, most notably its artillary corps.

The war would not be long in coming. In 1618, Holy Roman Emperor Matthias, wanting to assure the smooth succession of his heir Ferdinand, ruler of Inner Austria**, had him elected king of the Austrian Hapsburg's most senior realm, Bohemia. The estates of Bohemia strongly dominated by Lutherans and Hussites, deeply distrusted the fiercely Catholic Ferdinand-a distrust which Ferdinand did nothing to allay. In May 1618, amid rising tensions, a conspiracy of Bohemian nobles, led by Count Thurn, apprended Ferdinand's two Catholic administrators in Prague castle. The hapless councilors were subjected to a "trial", sentenced to death, and thrown out of a five-story window. The Defenestration of Prague, as it came to be known, was an enourmas insult to Ferdinand, one that, as every Protestant in Bohemia knew, he could not hope but respond to.

As 1618 progressed, the Holy Roman Empire hurtled toward a crisis. Seeing an opportunity to challenge the hated Hapsburgs, Albert Frederick made contact with Thurn and the other rebel Bohemian nobles, who offered to support him as king. Albert Frederick secretly accepted the offer, and began building up support for an anti-Hapsburg offensive among the other states of the Protestant Union.

As the year 1618 neared its end, the armouries of Dresden, Liepzig, and Wittenburg rang with the clash of a blacksmith's hammer and anvil, and recruiters canvassed the countryside, gathering men to fight for Protestant Liberty against Hapsburg tyranny. On November 11th, Emperor Matthias died, and Ferdinand ascended to the throne of the HRE as Ferdinand II. The next day, November 12th, the estates of Bohemia met and deposed Ferdinand as King, electing Albert Frederick of Saxony as his replacement. Albert Frederick began his journey to Prague to accept the crown, bringing with him an army of almost 20,000 Saxon troops, while the other states of the Protestant Union mobilized for war. Albert Frederick endured the long coronation ceremony in Prague, then immediately met with the Bohemian estates to organize a Bohemian mobilization to go along with the Saxon one. The Lutheran dominated estates of Upper and Lower Austria also rose against their ruler***, and joined the Saxon and Bohemian army bearing down on Vienna. The war that would forever shape the course of German history had begun.

*Saxony did not join the Protestant union IOTL

**Here's a map (19th century, but gives you the idea) of the internal divisions of the Hapsburg empire. Territories 1, 9, and 11 (Silesia, which was many times larger in 1618) are the Crown of Bohemia. 14 and 8 are (respectively) Upper and Lower Austria. Styria (12), Carinthia (3), Carinola (4), and Kustenland (7) were collectively known as Inner Austria. Tyrol (13) and Voralberg (15), were, along with various Hapsburg enclaves in southwestern Germany, known as Further Austria

***As OTL. Ferdinand came remarkably close to being kicked out of the entire northern portion of his domains in 1619-1620
 
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Interesting. Spain will likely do something about their kinsman's troubles; with the Netherlands tying them down however they can't focus properly.

And IIRC Silesia was bigger in 1618 than 1914 because Frederick the Great pinched off most of it in 1742. With it being a rather wealthy region I can see the Saxons demanding it for peace if they continue being successful and if Ferdinand manages to regain the Bohemian crown. Although I can see the Habsburgs losing Bohemia TTL, likely to Saxony.

However, with increased Habsburg failures I don't think France will gang up on them as they did in OTL, unless they see a rotting corpse of an empire. In fact France would decide that common faith was more important than political measures if the Protestants are far more successful.
 
Interesting. Spain will likely do something about their kinsman's troubles; with the Netherlands tying them down however they can't focus properly.

Actually, the Dutch and Spanish had a truce from 1609 (OTL until 1621), so at the moment the Spanish can intervene, although it is likely the Dutch will too (and so possibly restart the 80-year war).
 
Actually, the Dutch and Spanish had a truce from 1609 (OTL until 1621), so at the moment the Spanish can intervene, although it is likely the Dutch will too (and so possibly restart the 80-year war).

Ah, I see; if the Saxons manage to extend an alliance to the Dutch this will get very interesting.
 
Ah, I see; if the Saxons manage to extend an alliance to the Dutch this will get very interesting.

OTL the Dutch got involved in the thirty year war, although they got distracted in 1621 by the restart of the 80 year war. So I am thinking it is certainly possible that the Dutch get involved now, even if it is only to profit in the Netherlands from a Spanish distraction in Germany.
 
OTL the Dutch got involved in the thirty year war, although they got distracted in 1621 by the restart of the 80 year war. So I am thinking it is certainly possible that the Dutch get involved now, even if it is only to profit in the Netherlands from a Spanish distraction in Germany.

I could very well see that TTL the Eighty years' war becomes a side-theater of TTL's Thirty Years' War (which might be shorter ;) ) .
 
Note: Here's a map of the HRE in 1618, and here's another one. Not all that good, but the best I could find.

And about army sizes, they're just my inexpert guesses. If I'm going into improbably large territory, feel free to point it out.
***
January 20th, 1619, saw a sight that Vienna had not witnessed in living memory-Albert Frederick's armies came within sight of the city walls. The famous riches of Saxony, including its trade fairs and its well-named Ore Mountains, had combined with contributions from the estates of Bohemia and the two Austrias to produce an army of almost 40,000 men. Vienna was invested, double lines of trenches dug, and the Saxon sappers slowly began working their way towards the walls. At the same time, the army of the Protestant Union, raised by all the members other than Saxony, invaded Bavaria, Germany's most staunchly Catholic lay principality and, up to this point, Vienna's best hope for relief. Albert Frederick and Thurn sent a letter to Emperor Ferdinand, who had refused to leave his capital, demanding a surrender. It was refused.

As the months ticked by, Vienna's situation grew more desperate. Hopes of a Polish rescue were dashed by Gustavus' Aldolphus' declaration (by secret treaty with Saxony) of war against Poland. The Saxons and Bohemians had cut off all sources of food into the city, and by the beginning of April, the stores were beginning to run empty, and Saxon artillery and sappers had breached the city's outer walls. On April 11th, Vienna's last hope of salvation arrived-an Austrian Hapsburg army, put together by Leopold, the governor of Further Austria and Tyrol. Less than half the size of the encircling Saxon armies, it fell on them at Kahlenburg, a small villiage near Vienna. But it was all in vain-Leopold's army failed to break the lines, and was forced to retreat. Hopes in Vienna fell, and on April 23rd, Saxony finally breached its walls, and Vienna fell by storm. Ferdinand, refusing to the last to surrender, was subdued and carted to Prague, to be imprisoned in a castle he still claimed to be the owner of. A month before, at the city of Ragensburg, Bavaria's armies had buckled under a Protestant assault, and now, Albert Frederick led his forces into Styria.

But all couldn't go well forever for the Protestants. Spain, still the greatest military power in Europe, was readying its troops to restore the honor of its Hapsburg cousins. Soon, Albert Frederick's Saxons and Bohemians would face their greatest test yet.
 
Ohhh, the Spanish have gotten involved. How much of Maurice of Nassau's reforms have the Saxons adopted? That coud be the deciding factor in any war with Spain. The Spanish had the best army for the previous style of Tercio warfare, but Maurice's reforms make the Spanish Tercio all but obsolete.
 
Ohhh, the Spanish have gotten involved. How much of Maurice of Nassau's reforms have the Saxons adopted? That coud be the deciding factor in any war with Spain. The Spanish had the best army for the previous style of Tercio warfare, but Maurice's reforms make the Spanish Tercio all but obsolete.

Well, the Spanish haven't quite gotten involved yet, but given the colossal catastrophe unfolding to their Austrian Hapsburg kin, I don't see any way they can not get involved at this point.

And I think I mentioned in the OP that Albert Frederick had studied Maurice of Nassau's reforms and his battles against the Spanish.
 
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