#Prologue
The Sun of Rocroi- A better Grand Condé

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"The purple of the Prince or the sword in the service of the Prince... These two ideals of greatness can only be achieved if one or the other is chosen. "
-Louis XIII on his deathbed addressing the Grand Condé before the latter's triumph at Rocroi (1643).

"It is difficult to sum up France's military history in so few words. It has known so many wars, battles, great generals in the service of powerful monarchs that it is difficult to choose the person who forged the nation the most. However, if we were to choose just one, we would have to choose the first marshal of the Sun King. The one who, through his talent, sowed the seeds of the French world power to come, the most faithful among the faithful, the foundation on which France has rested for the past four centuries: The Grand Condé. "
-An excerpt from the book "Le Soleil de Rocroi" by Joseph de Laugier.
 
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if we were to choose just one, we would have to choose the first marshal of the Sun King. The one who, through his talent, sowed the seeds of the French world power to come, the most faithful among the faithful, the foundation on which France has rested for the past four centuries: The Grand Condé. "
Alright a timeline about the House of Bourbon-Conde! Will the Grand Conde be rivals with Philippe d’Orleans? I can see him becoming like a sort of Belisarius for Louis XIV with his stellar military record in otl.
 

krieger

Banned
The Sun of Rocroi- A better Grand Condé

View attachment 530176
"The purple of the Prince or the sword in the service of the Prince... These two ideals of greatness can only be achieved if one or the other is chosen. "
-Louis XIII on his deathbed addressing the Grand Condé before the latter's triumph at Rocroi (1643).

"It is difficult to sum up France's military history in so few words. It has known so many wars, battles, great generals in the service of powerful monarchs that it is difficult to choose the person who forged the nation the most. However, if we were to choose just one, we would have to choose the first marshal of the Sun King. The one who, through his talent, sowed the seeds of the French world power to come, the most faithful among the faithful, the foundation on which France has rested for the past four centuries: The Grand Condé. "
-An excerpt from the book "Le Soleil de Rocroi" by Joseph de Laugier.
If House of Conde is doing considerably better than OTL, is it possible for them to gain Polish crown ITTL? During 1660s and 1670s OTL both Grand Conde and his son were pro-French candidates to Polish throne and their candidature was one of the most serious ones.
 
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What is the POD?
The Grand Conde was one of the Sun King’s and one of history’s best military leaders. But he was relieved of command due to political intrigue. This severely affected France’s military performance. I think the main pod is him staying in command under the Sun King.
 
Foreword
Hello, everybody. I present you my first chronology on this forum (second one instead, I had done another one on a French-speaking forum on Napoleon II, but the forum closed).
This chronology has for point of divergence a Grand Condé much less inbred (or more autistic... to be seen) which makes him one of the greatest military of history, between Prince Eugene and Napoleon to "simplify".
This chronology will see France succeed much better at the end of the 17th century but also its 18th century. The purpose of this chronology is to show you a world that is more influenced by the French model of the time (unlike our world imbued with Anglo-Saxon culture).
On the way I will write my chronology it will be inspired by @Direwolf22 with "Disaster at Leuthen". His chronology which made me discover this forum inspired me a lot and I hope to be inspired by it in its structure, its narration but also its illustrations (I like maps very much).
Speaking of inspiration, I will use the butterflies in the same way as in "Disaster at Leuthen", they will move away from the Pod (Condé) before spreading around the world and totally changing the course of History.
I hope to keep this calendar to the end and carry you with it. As I am still a novice I am open to all criticism.

Edit: if during the chronology you have ideas to share with me, I would be ready to read them and why not integrate them into my chronology.
 
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Alright a timeline about the House of Bourbon-Conde! Will the Grand Conde be rivals with Philippe d’Orleans? I can see him becoming like a sort of Belisarius for Louis XIV with his stellar military record in otl.
So yes, there will be rivalries with the Orleans but also the Conti. But that's still a bit far off in my timeline.
Condé will be a Belisarius, but he won't be alone, the other marshals of louis XIV will help a lot.

If House of Conde is doing considerably better than OTL, is it possible for them to gain Polish crown ITTL? During 1660s and 1670s OTL both Grand Conde and his son were pro-French candidates to Polish throne and their candidature was one of the most serious ones.
I had plans for poland in my chronology but I didn't know the Condé's were candidates. Do you have a link to this ?
What is the POD?
The Grand Conde was one of the Sun King’s and one of history’s best military leaders. But he was relieved of command due to political intrigue. This severely affected France’s military performance. I think the main pod is him staying in command under the Sun King.

Yes that's right, Condé is less inbred which makes him less angry than OTL and more thoughtful. This will allow him to remain a close friend of Louis XIV as well as one of the great marshals of the Kingdom.
 
The Sun of Rocroi- A better Grand Condé

View attachment 530176
"The purple of the Prince or the sword in the service of the Prince... These two ideals of greatness can only be achieved if one or the other is chosen. "
-Louis XIII on his deathbed addressing the Grand Condé before the latter's triumph at Rocroi (1643).

"It is difficult to sum up France's military history in so few words. It has known so many wars, battles, great generals in the service of powerful monarchs that it is difficult to choose the person who forged the nation the most. However, if we were to choose just one, we would have to choose the first marshal of the Sun King. The one who, through his talent, sowed the seeds of the French world power to come, the most faithful among the faithful, the foundation on which France has rested for the past four centuries: The Grand Condé. "
-An excerpt from the book "Le Soleil de Rocroi" by Joseph de Laugier.
To call Conde “faithful among the faithful” is plain silly, taking into an account his role in the Fronde and following service to Spain. The later faithfulness was due to an absence of options. “Foundation” of what? He was an arrogant prick, a pathetic politician and not necessarily the best French general of that period (how about Turenne?). Not to mention that Rocroi was a purely tactical victory with close to zero strategic results. Some authors simply don’t know where to stop.
 
The Grand Conde was one of the Sun King’s and one of history’s best military leaders. But he was relieved of command due to political intrigue. This severely affected France’s military performance. I think the main pod is him staying in command under the Sun King.
“Political intrigue” as in him trying to become a political leader (something to which he did not have any abilities), becoming the leading figure of 5he Fronde, alienating all his allies except for that idiot Grand Mademoiselle, losing militarily and fleeing to the enemy. While he was on the Spanish service the French were doing just fine under Turenne and after the Peace of the Pyrenees he was permitted to return and given military command . Where and when exactly was he missed and how the French “performance” was affected by his absence? At the Dunes he was on the Spanish side and that side lost.

As a general he was a good and very aggressive tactician but his qualities as a strategist were not, by all accounts, on Turenne level (and he never
become Marshal General of France). He surely was one of the best French generals of that period but in a world military history he is hardly a great figure.
 
To call Conde “faithful among the faithful” is plain silly, taking into an account his role in the Fronde and following service to Spain. The later faithfulness was due to an absence of options. “Foundation” of what? He was an arrogant prick, a pathetic politician and not necessarily the best French general of that period (how about Turenne?). Not to mention that Rocroi was a purely tactical victory with close to zero strategic results. Some authors simply don’t know where to stop.
“Political intrigue” as in him trying to become a political leader (something to which he did not have any abilities), becoming the leading figure of 5he Fronde, alienating all his allies except for that idiot Grand Mademoiselle, losing militarily and fleeing to the enemy. While he was on the Spanish service the French were doing just fine under Turenne and after the Peace of the Pyrenees he was permitted to return and given military command . Where and when exactly was he missed and how the French “performance” was affected by his absence? At the Dunes he was on the Spanish side and that side lost.

As a general he was a good and very aggressive tactician but his qualities as a strategist were not, by all accounts, on Turenne level (and he never
become Marshal General of France). He surely was one of the best French generals of that period but in a world military history he is hardly a great figure.
My chronology has precisely for POD a "different Condé" at his birth who will not have the same personality at all and will prove to be a great military man.
Between the birth of this "Condé ITL" and 1648 France will have already changed. The Thirty Years' War will also change and the Fronde will not take place as we have known it with Condé allying with the Spanish. As my "false quotation" of Louis XIII says to Condé, he will learn to remain faithful to the crown and the King of France. Without his disgrace and with his much more developed military thought he will be seen as one of the best marshals in the History of France.
You can read my other messages from the thread, I'm already discussing it.
 
#1 France 1621-1643
Youth of the Duke of Enghien: France 1621-1643

Louis de Bourbon, Duke of Enghien was born in Paris on September 26, 1621 [1]. He is the son of Henri II de Bourbon Condé and Charlotte-Marguerite de Montmorency, heiress of a great ducal family of the Kingdom. His father was a cousin of the late King of France Henri IV, making the Duke of Enghien and his branch the first prince by blood. However, her youth is nothing exceptional and we know little about her private life. We do know that his father made sure that he had an accomplished education by sending him to the Jesuit school in Bourges where he studied mathematics, law but especially History which fascinated him. After his studies in Bourges he entered the Royal Academy of Paris.

His youth will be marked by the numerous difficulties of the Kingdom of France. King Louis XIII will experience multiple crises during his reign. The Protestant revolts in the south and south of France, the political intrigues of the brother of the King of France Gaston d'Orléans to take the throne. War with the Habsburgs since 1635. Louis XIII will only overcome these crises with the unfailing support of Cardinal de Richelieu, head of the King's council. On 28 October 1628, the city of La Rochelle was taken back from the Protestants. On 1 September 1632, Gaston d'Orléans was defeated with the Duke of Montmorency at the battle of Castelnaudary. The former was reconciled with his brother before going into exile in Alsace. The second will be condemned to death and beheaded on October 30th of the same year in Toulouse. During this period, the Duke of Enghien will get closer to Louis XIII. On September 5, 1638, after twenty-three years of fruitless marriages, the infanta Anne of Austria finally gave birth to an heir for the kingdom. Putting an end to Gaston d'Orléans' ambitions for the crown, the birth of the young Louis Dieudonné definitively ensured the succession of the Kingdom. The birth of the future Louis XIV will be followed by that of his younger brother, Philippe d'Orléans in 1640.

In 1640, the Duke of Enghien was betrothed to Claire Clémence de Maille-Brézé, niece of Cardinal de Richelieu. He will join in August Louis XIII and Cardinal de Richelieu at the siege of Arras during the campaign of the Spanish Netherlands. The city of Arras was besieged by the French army, the latter requisitioning the local peasantry to establish the fortified trenches around the city. However, while the French were establishing themselves around the city, the Infante cardinal Ferdinand, governor of the Spanish Netherlands, also surrounded the French troops with his thirty thousand men. He did not attack the troops of the King of France, preferring to starve them. From Amiens, Louis XIII and Cardinal de Richelieu will send a relief army of eighteen thousand men. The Duke of Enghien will integrate this supply force under the command of the Lord du Hallier. The cavalry charge of Jean de Gassion in which the Duke of Enghien participates will push back the Spaniards definitively and take the city of Arras on August 9th. The use of cavalry during the siege will mark the young Louis de Bourbon in his future military tactics.

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French cavalry charging the Spaniards at the siege of Arras.

He accompanied the King and his retinue on the Catalan front to the siege of Perpignan until his fall in September 1642. This siege was part of the Reapers' War that had been raging in Catalonia since the previous year. The long conflict that the Spanish crown was waging against France and its Protestant allies came at a price. Taxes, the raising of arms and the housing of troops in the country were the seeds of the Catalan revolt. In May 1640, the peasant reapers who gave their name to the revolt massacred the troops they housed and marched to Barcelona. The impossibility of the Spanish troops mobilized on other fronts will allow the Catalan bourgeoisie led by Pau Claris to proclaim the Catalan Republic. But very quickly Philip IV will recover and will try to quell the Catalan revolt. Pau Claris called for help from Louis XIII proclaiming him Count Barcelona. On January 26th 1641 at the battle of Montjuïc, the Franco-Catalans repelled the Spanish forces who had to abandon the town of Sants and its artillery. But since the death of Pau Claris a month after the victory, the conflict got bogged down and the Catalans could not stand the French hold on the city.

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Franco-Catalan victory in Montjuïc keeps the Spaniards at bay until the end of the conflict.

The year 1642 is also marked by the last conspiracy against Richelieu led by the Marquis de Cinq Mars. The latter gathered together many conspirators such as François-Auguste de Thou Gaston d'Orléans, the Prince of Sedan and even Queen Anne of Austria. The leader of the conspirators will also make contact with the King of Spain Philippe IV who in exchange for an armed force will put Gaston d'Orléans on the throne. He will commit himself to restore the fortresses conquered by France on as well as the end of the support to the Protestant and Swedish cause in Germany.The conspiracy will be discovered by the police of Cardinal de Richelieu and Louis XIII who will arrest the Marquis de Cinq Mars and François-Auguste de Thou before condemning them to death. The Prince of Sedan will only save his head by exchanging his principality of Sedan. During this conspiracy, the Duke of Enghien will support Cardinal de Richelieu and Louis XIII who will treat him as a member of his close family. On December 4, 1642, Cardinal de Richelieu died, leaving Cardinal Mazarin to resume his politics at the Council of State. The year 1643 began in a difficult way for the kingdom. Louis XIII experienced a very long agony and was unable to bring his country out of the war with Spain. Louis de Bourbon, who had become a confidant of the King and a close friend of the young son of Louis XIII [2], was given command of the army of Picardy despite his young age.

Louis XIII said these words to him before his departure for the Spanishs Netherlands: "My dear, promise us to lead our Kingdom to glory and triumph. Promise us also that you will have no covetousness on our son's throne even if it means turning against your own blood and birth. We see a certain genius in you, but you will always need to be measured and patient to rally others to your cause and lead them to victory. The purple of the Prince or the sword in the service of the Prince... These two ideals of greatness can only be accomplished if you choose one or the other. »
At his words, the Duke of Enghien promised him to bring his son and his descendants to the greatest glory. On 14 May 1643, thirty-three years after his father, the reign of Louis XIII came to an end. Unfortunately, he was unable to see the coming triumph of the one to whom he entrusted his son.

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Louis XIII, King of France and Navarre (1601-1643).

[1] OTL he was born on September 8, 1621; that is the exact discrepancy in my chronology.

[2] OTL I could not find the relationship between Condé and Louis XIV when the latter was a child. ITL by getting closer to Louis XIII, Condé became fond of his son in spite of his title of first prince by blood.
****
This is my first real chapter written. So yes, the differences are only anecdotal at this point. But I thought it was important to point them out to explain Condé's future behavior. The next chapter I hope will mark real changes from OTL. If you have criticisms about the form of my chapters, my English which is not my mother tongue or the History itself I invite you to share your point of view.
 
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#2 Europe 1618-1631
The Twenty-Five Years' War Part I: Europe 1618-1631
The twenty-five year war would at the time be the most devastating conflict known to the European continent. The conflict, initially religious and local, would over the years become increasingly political and international.
The conflict would begin in the Holy Roman Empire of Germany. The latter had not known war since the Peace of Augsburg in 1555. This peace had put an end to the religious wars between Catholics and Reformed and created the principle of "Cuius regio, eius religio" (like Prince, like religion). They allowed the states of the Holy Roman Empire to choose their religion freely, the inhabitants having to either convert or emigrate. This peace, however, did not put an end to religious tensions in the empire. In 1606, the incident at Donauwörth, where Catholics were banned from practising their religion, provoked the intervention of the Duke of Bavaria, Maximilian I, sent by the Holy Emperor Rudolf II, seeking to restore freedom of worship. The Duke of Bavaria banned Protestant worship in the city, which in reaction provoked the creation of the Evangelical Union by the Protestant princes, headed by Frederick IV of the Palatinate to defend their interests. In response, the following year saw the creation of the Holy Catholic League led by Duke Maximilian I.
In 1609, Emperor Rudolf II, after losing his titles of Archduke of Austria and King of Hungary to his brother Matthias, granted freedom of worship in Bohemia to ensure the loyalty of his subjects. This did not prevent Matthias from being elected King of Bohemia in 1611. He became Emperor Matthias I after the death of his brother the following year. In 1617, the Bohemian crown went to Ferdinand II, a fervent defender of the Catholic faith. His religious positions provoked the hostility of Bohemian Protestant nobles.
On May 23, 1618, two representatives of Ferdinand II and their secretary were defenestrated by Protestant nobles at Prague Castle. Although they survived their fall (which the Catholics would consider a miracle), the great Bohemian Protestant nobles present at the defenestration and fearing Ferdinand II's reaction, rose up. Thus began the revolt that marked the beginning of the conflict.
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On the left the Duke of Bavaria Maximilian I. On the right the Holy Emperor Ferdinand II.

1) The Bohemian and Palatine period

In 1619 Emperor Matthias died and his titles went to Ferdinand II who became Holy Emperor. Ferdinand II had Cardinal Klesl, on whom old Matthias had relied to lead the empire, arrested. The cardinal sought to reconcile the revolts and the Habsburgs, realizing that the empire had neither the money nor the means to quell the revolt. The confrontation becoming inevitable between the two camps, Ferdinand II to avoid disaster will ask for help from the Habsburgs of Spain. The latter could not and did not have the means to intervene, so Ferdinand II turned to the Duke of Bavaria Maximilian I.
The Bohemian revolts were also looking for allies, but were rejected by many Protestant princes and monarchs, and even by the Protestant Union, which wanted to be defensive and could not intervene in the internal affairs of the House of Habsburg. The Protestant nobles finally recruited the leader of the latter, Frederick V of the Palatinate, in exchange for the Bohemian crown. The emperor was stripped of his title of King of Bohemia and Frederick V became King of Bohemia. But the latter will only be King for one winter. On November 8, 1620 the Protestant rebels were crushed at the Battle of White Mountain. The conflict did not end, however, because in exchange for his support of the Emperor, Maximilian of Bavaria demanded the titles and territories of Frederick V, the electorate of the Palatinate. This was no longer an internal affair in the Habsburg domains, but an attack on a principality protected by the Protestant Union. In 1621 the leaders of the Bohemian revolt were executed and the Protestant Union was dissolved. However, some principalities and mercenary troops were still active, the most important being Christian of Brunswick. A Catholic but anti-Habsburg general, Ernst Von Mansfeld, led the Protestant forces and together with the elector of Baden in Mingolsheim defeated Tilly, generalissimo of the Catholic League on 27 April 1622. The latter took his revenge in Wimpffen and Höchst in May and June 1622, ravaging the region in the process. It was at this point that the conflict was exported abroad. Mansfeld intervened in the conflict between the Spanish and the United Provinces by supporting the latter in the siege of berg-op-Zoom in October of that year. With General Spinola's forces repelled, the Spanish garrisons on the Rhine began to move.
The Protestants will be crushed in August 1623 at the battle of Stadtlohn which will see the entry of Spain into the conflict. France worried about this situation will support and push the Kingdom of Denmark to enter the conflict at the end of 1624.
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Frederick V, Elector of the Palatinate King of a Winter.
2) The Danish period
Christian IV enters the conflict. A Protestant monarch, he is king of Denmark as well as Duke of Holstein, the title by which he is vassal of the Holy Emperor. He used this title to commit himself to protect the interests of the Protestants in the empire but at the same time to expand his kingdom and influence in the circle of Lower Saxony. Copenhagen seeks to ensure the preservation of the bishoprics won by the Protestants since the Augsburg War. Denmark also has views of the rich city of Hamburg, the great economic centre of northern Germany. Taking advantage of the absence of Sweden, occupied with the kingdom of Poland, Christian IV of Denmark brings his troops into the Holy Roman Empire and war. But the lack of coordination with the other Protestant states in the north of the Holy Roman Empire led to the isolation of the Danish forces cut off from his human and financial support.
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Christian IV, King of Denmark.

At the Battle of Dessau in April 1626, Mansfeld was defeated by a new imperial commander, Albrecht von Wallenstein. Mansfeld, after fleeing to Hungary, fell ill and lost his life. General Tilly defeated the Danes at the Battle of Lutter in August 1627 and Wallenstein after his pursuit of Mansfeld defeated them at Wolgast in September 1628. This victory allowed him to approach Berlin and keep Brandenburg away from the conflict and to occupy the Baltic Sea by freeing the subjects of Mecklenburg from their rebellious duke under the Emperor's orders. The war seems to be over after the occupation of Jutland, which pushes Denmark to peace.
The Peace of Lübeck puts an end to the conflict between Ferdinand II and Christian IV, the latter can only intervene in the affairs of the empire as Duke of Holstein and not as King of Denmark. Although he loses no land, Christian IV is forced into a forced neutrality which he cannot leave. At the same time, spurred on by his victories, Ferdinand II will issue an edict of restitution of the property of the secularized Church by the Protestant princes. This restitution will push the latter to rise up against the emperor violating the conditions of the Peace of Augsburg.
Before the Peace of Lübeck, Wallenstein continued to administer the Mecklenburg while seeking to create a fleet in the Baltic in the service of the Empire. Thus the cities of the Hanseatic League were placed at the service of the Emperor. The city of Stralsund refused and Wallenstein laid siege to it. In spite of fierce resistance, the city could not receive the help of the waiting Denmark [1] and the city fell at the end of May 1628. This capture of the city will push the Swedes to accelerate their entry into the war.
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Stralsund under siege by the imperials.

3) The Swedish period
On July 1, 1629, after signing an armistice with Poland, Sweden led by its King, Gustav II Adolphe landed in the city of Peenemünde. The imperials were busy helping Spain in the Netherlands and fighting France in the War of Succession of Mantua in northern Italy, but were slow to react. In addition, the dismissal of Wallenstein in September, unpopular at the Viennese court and increasingly seen as too powerful by the Emperor, deprived him of a competent soldier to arrest the Swedes. Moreover the financing of the Swedish army by Richelieu from Paris allows the establishment of a powerful army strongly underestimated by the imperials. In addition the dismissal of Wallenstein allows the release of many mercenaries to be added to the army of the northern lion. Gustav II Adolf of Sweden urged the Elector of Brandenburg to join him in the war before descending to the south and taking Frankfurt on the Oder in April 1631. But the imperials pull themselves together and make peace with France at Cherasco, putting an end to the War of Succession in Mantua. Tilly in May 1631 takes the Protestant city of Magdeburg after a siege that lasts since November. Despite several rather violent lootings, the rich city of Magdeburg is relatively unscathed by Tilly's Catholic troops [2]. The preventive attack of Saxony by the imperials will push the prudent ally of Vienna, the Saxon elector Jean-George, into the Swedish camp. After a defeat at Havelberg [3] against Gustav II Adolf, Tilly's armies were defeated by the Swedes at Breitenfeld.
This battle opposed 42000 Swedish and Saxon against 37000 Catholics and took place north of Leipzig. After artillery exchanges of 12h and 14h between the two sides, Tilly to prevent his Tercios from being further decimated by the powerful Swedish artillery sent his cavalry from his left wing commanded by Pappenheim against the Swedish right. At the same time he attacks the Swedish left occupied by the Saxons. The Swedish wing repulses Pappenheim's cavalry with efficiency but the Saxons, troops not very seasoned troops are sunk, they get out of the way by abandoning artillery and equipment. As victory could only come from his right, Tilly set his centre in motion to take advantage of the breach in the Swedish position. But some of his troops went in pursuit of the Saxons hoping to plunder their baggage and the Tercios in his centre only slowly redeployed and had to abandon their heavy artillery. Gustav II Adolphe rebuilt a line of halt in front of the Tercios while harassing them with his light artillery much easier to redeploy than that of Tilly. Suddenly at 5pm, the Swedish right led by the King of Sweden himself diagonally crosses the entire battlefield capturing the defenseless Catholic artillery. The Swedish infantry massed against the Spanish Tercios and the captured artillery was turned against their former owners. Tilly's army collapsed against the Swedes, Tilly managed to escape with a tiny fraction of his troops. The imperials lost more than 20,000 soldiers, half of them killed and the other half taken prisoner by the Protestants. The Swedes suffered only 4,000 casualties.
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Gustav II Adolf during his triumph at Bretenfeld.

The North Lion suffered the first real defeat for the imperials since the beginning of the conflict, and this victory will allow him to federate the Northern Reformists and to relaunch the conflict in favor of the Protestant cause in the Holy Empire. However, the end of the conflict is still a long way off and total victory is far from assured.

[1] OTL the Scottish and German reinforcements sent on May 8 by Christian IV were already delayed and did not arrive until May 24. ITL they were even further delayed and the city fell without Danish and Swedish reinforcements.
[2] OTL the sack of Magdeburg by the armies of Tilly killed more than 20,000 inhabitants and destroyed a large part of the city by fire.. ITTL Tilly is making efforts to hold its armies and looting is less numerous and organized.
[3] In the battle of Werben OTL, the location changed just slightly because of the butterflies.

****
Very big chapter I wrote. I've done a lot of research on the Thirty Years' War and I hope you like the result. Feel free to comment and give your opinion. Many thanks to @alexmilman who enlightened me on many points about the Thirty Years War as well as @Basileus_Komnenos for his support since the beginning of my chronology (have a look at his chronologies, he does a very good job).
 
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The Twenty-Five Years' War Part I: Europe 1618-1631
The twenty-five year war would at the time be the most devastating conflict known to the European continent. The conflict, initially religious and local, would over the years become increasingly political and international.
The conflict would begin in the Holy Roman Empire of Germany. The latter had not known war since the Peace of Augsburg in 1555. This peace had put an end to the religious wars between Catholics and Reformed and created the principle of "Cuius regio, eius religio" (like Prince, like religion). They allowed the states of the Holy Roman Empire to choose their religion freely, the inhabitants having to either convert or emigrate. This peace, however, did not put an end to religious tensions in the empire. In 1606, the incident at Donauwörth, where Catholics were banned from practising their religion, provoked the intervention of the Duke of Bavaria, Maximilian I, sent by the Holy Emperor Rudolf II, seeking to restore freedom of worship. The Duke of Bavaria banned Protestant worship in the city, which in reaction provoked the creation of the Evangelical Union by the Protestant princes, headed by Frederick IV of the Palatinate to defend their interests. In response, the following year saw the creation of the Holy Catholic League led by Duke Maximilian I.
In 1609, Emperor Rudolf II, after losing his titles of Archduke of Austria and King of Hungary to his brother Matthias, granted freedom of worship in Bohemia to ensure the loyalty of his subjects. This did not prevent Matthias from being elected King of Bohemia in 1611. He became Emperor Matthias I after the death of his brother the following year. In 1617, the Bohemian crown went to Ferdinand II, a fervent defender of the Catholic faith. His religious positions provoked the hostility of Bohemian Protestant nobles.
On May 23, 1618, two representatives of Ferdinand II and their secretary were defenestrated by Protestant nobles at Prague Castle. Although they survived their fall (which the Catholics would consider a miracle), the great Bohemian Protestant nobles present at the defenestration and fearing Ferdinand II's reaction, rose up. Thus began the revolt that marked the beginning of the conflict.
View attachment 532793
On the left the Duke of Bavaria Maximilian I. On the right the Holy Emperor Ferdinand II.

1) The Bohemian and Palatine period

In 1619 Emperor Matthias died and his titles went to Ferdinand II who became Holy Emperor. Ferdinand II had Cardinal Klesl, on whom old Matthias had relied to lead the empire, arrested. The cardinal sought to reconcile the revolts and the Habsburgs, realizing that the empire had neither the money nor the means to quell the revolt. The confrontation becoming inevitable between the two camps, Ferdinand II to avoid disaster will ask for help from the Habsburgs of Spain. The latter could not and did not have the means to intervene, so Ferdinand II turned to the Duke of Bavaria Maximilian I.
The Bohemian revolts were also looking for allies, but were rejected by many Protestant princes and monarchs, and even by the Protestant Union, which wanted to be defensive and could not intervene in the internal affairs of the House of Habsburg. The Protestant nobles finally recruited the leader of the latter, Frederick V of the Palatinate, in exchange for the Bohemian crown. The emperor was stripped of his title of King of Bohemia and Frederick V became King of Bohemia. But the latter will only be King for one winter. On November 8, 1620 the Protestant rebels were crushed at the Battle of White Mountain. The conflict did not end, however, because in exchange for his support of the Emperor, Maximilian of Bavaria demanded the titles and territories of Frederick V, the electorate of the Palatinate. This was no longer an internal affair in the Habsburg domains, but an attack on a principality protected by the Protestant Union. In 1621 the leaders of the Bohemian revolt were executed and the Protestant Union was dissolved. However, some principalities and mercenary troops were still active, the most important being Christian of Brunswick. A Catholic but anti-Habsburg general, Ernst Von Mansfeld, led the Protestant forces and together with the elector of Baden in Mingolsheim defeated Tilly, generalissimo of the Catholic League on 27 April 1622. The latter took his revenge in Wimpffen and Höchst in May and June 1622, ravaging the region in the process. It was at this point that the conflict was exported abroad. Mansfeld intervened in the conflict between the Spanish and the United Provinces by supporting the latter in the siege of berg-op-Zoom in October of that year. With General Spinola's forces repelled, the Spanish garrisons on the Rhine began to move.
The Protestants will be crushed in August 1623 at the battle of Stadtlohn which will see the entry of Spain into the conflict. France worried about this situation will support and push the Kingdom of Denmark to enter the conflict at the end of 1624.
View attachment 532794
Frederick V, Elector of the Palatinate King of a Winter.
2) The Danish period
Christian IV enters the conflict. A Protestant monarch, he is king of Denmark as well as Duke of Holstein, the title by which he is vassal of the Holy Emperor. He used this title to commit himself to protect the interests of the Protestants in the empire but at the same time to expand his kingdom and influence in the circle of Lower Saxony. Copenhagen seeks to ensure the preservation of the bishoprics won by the Protestants since the Augsburg War. Denmark also has views of the rich city of Hamburg, the great economic centre of northern Germany. Taking advantage of the absence of Sweden, occupied with the kingdom of Poland, Christian IV of Denmark brings his troops into the Holy Roman Empire and war. But the lack of coordination with the other Protestant states in the north of the Holy Roman Empire led to the isolation of the Danish forces cut off from his human and financial support.
View attachment 532795
Christian IV, King of Denmark.

At the Battle of Dessau in April 1626, Mansfeld was defeated by a new imperial commander, Albrecht von Wallenstein. Mansfeld, after fleeing to Hungary, fell ill and lost his life. General Tilly defeated the Danes at the Battle of Lutter in August 1627 and Wallenstein after his pursuit of Mansfeld defeated them at Wolgast in September 1628. This victory allowed him to approach Berlin and keep Brandenburg away from the conflict and to occupy the Baltic Sea by freeing the subjects of Mecklenburg from their rebellious duke under the Emperor's orders. The war seems to be over after the occupation of Jutland, which pushes Denmark to peace.
The Peace of Lübeck puts an end to the conflict between Ferdinand II and Christian IV, the latter can only intervene in the affairs of the empire as Duke of Holstein and not as King of Denmark. Although he loses no land, Christian IV is forced into a forced neutrality which he cannot leave. At the same time, spurred on by his victories, Ferdinand II will issue an edict of restitution of the property of the secularized Church by the Protestant princes. This restitution will push the latter to rise up against the emperor violating the conditions of the Peace of Augsburg.
Before the Peace of Lübeck, Wallenstein continued to administer the Mecklenburg while seeking to create a fleet in the Baltic in the service of the Empire. Thus the cities of the Hanseatic League were placed at the service of the Emperor. The city of Stralsund refused and Wallenstein laid siege to it. In spite of fierce resistance, the city could not receive the help of the waiting Denmark [1] and the city fell at the end of May 1628. This capture of the city will push the Swedes to accelerate their entry into the war.
View attachment 532796
Stralsund under siege by the imperials.

3) The Swedish period
On July 1, 1629, after signing an armistice with Poland, Sweden led by its King, Gustav II Adolphe landed in the city of Peenemünde. The imperials were busy helping Spain in the Netherlands and fighting France in the War of Succession of Mantua in northern Italy, but were slow to react. In addition, the dismissal of Wallenstein in September, unpopular at the Viennese court and increasingly seen as too powerful by the Emperor, deprived him of a competent soldier to arrest the Swedes. Moreover the financing of the Swedish army by Richelieu from Paris allows the establishment of a powerful army strongly underestimated by the imperials. In addition the dismissal of Wallenstein allows the release of many mercenaries to be added to the army of the northern lion. Gustav II Adolf of Sweden urged the Elector of Brandenburg to join him in the war before descending to the south and taking Frankfurt on the Oder in April 1631. But the imperials pull themselves together and make peace with France at Cherasco, putting an end to the War of Succession in Mantua. Tilly in May 1631 takes the Protestant city of Magdeburg after a siege that lasts since November. The rich city was pillaged and destroyed, with more than 15,000 dead [2]. The preventive attack of Saxony by the imperials will push the prudent ally of Vienna, the Saxon elector Jean-George, into the Swedish camp. After a defeat at Havelberg [3] against Gustav II Adolf, Tilly's armies were defeated by the Swedes at Breitenfeld.
This battle opposed 42000 Swedish and Saxon against 37000 Catholics and took place north of Leipzig. After artillery exchanges of 12h and 14h between the two sides, Tilly to prevent his Tercios from being further decimated by the powerful Swedish artillery sent his cavalry from his left wing commanded by Pappenheim against the Swedish right. At the same time he attacks the Swedish left occupied by the Saxons. The Swedish wing repulses Pappenheim's cavalry with efficiency but the Saxons, troops not very seasoned troops are sunk, they get out of the way by abandoning artillery and equipment. As victory could only come from his right, Tilly set his centre in motion to take advantage of the breach in the Swedish position. But some of his troops went in pursuit of the Saxons hoping to plunder their baggage and the Tercios in his centre only slowly redeployed and had to abandon their heavy artillery. Gustav II Adolphe rebuilt a line of halt in front of the Tercios while harassing them with his light artillery much easier to redeploy than that of Tilly. Suddenly at 5pm, the Swedish right led by the King of Sweden himself diagonally crosses the entire battlefield capturing the defenseless Catholic artillery. The Swedish infantry massed against the Spanish Tercios and the captured artillery was turned against their former owners. Tilly's army collapsed against the Swedes, Tilly managed to escape with a tiny fraction of his troops [4]. The imperials lost more than 20,000 soldiers, half of them killed and the other half taken prisoner by the Protestants. The Swedes suffered only 4,000 casualties.
View attachment 532797
Gustav II Adolf during his triumph at Bretenfeld.

The North Lion suffered the first real defeat for the imperials since the beginning of the conflict, and this victory will allow him to federate the Protestant cause and to relaunch the conflict in favor of the Protestant cause in the Holy Empire. However, the end of the conflict is still a long way off and total victory is far from assured.

[1] OTL the Scottish and German reinforcements sent on May 8 by Christian IV were already delayed and did not arrive until May 24. ITL they were even further delayed and the city fell without Danish and Swedish reinforcements.
[2] "Slightly" less than OTL or Tilly's armies caused more than 20,000 casualties. However, this does not change the nature of the massacre, which still remains a rallying cry for the Protestant cause.
[3] In the battle of Werben OTL, the location changed just slightly because of the butterflies.
[4] OTL he was wounded and died from this wound because of his frail health and old age.

****
Very big chapter I wrote. I've done a lot of research on the Thirty Years' War and I hope you like the result. Feel free to comment and give your opinion. Many thanks to @alexmilman who enlightened me on many points about the Thirty Years War as well as @Basileus_Komnenos for his support since the beginning of my chronology (have a look at his chronologies, he does a very good job).
I like it. Just a couple of comments, if you don’t mind:

1. It seems that you have the same issue with the software as I do: it always “knows better” and changed “infante Cardinal” to “infantry cardinal” 😂
2. Comment [4] leaves an impression that Tilly was wounded at Breitenfield and died soon afterwards, which was not the case: he was wounded at the Battle of Rain more than 7 months later and, honestly, taking into an account situation with a contemporary medicine, it would not necessarily need a bad health to die from getting a thigh bone shattered and having bone infection: Giovanny dalle Bande Nero died at the age of 28 from almost exactly the same wound (the only difference being a falconete ball vs. 90 gram arquebuse bullet).
3. What about Wallenstein? You left him out of picture after taking Stralsund. If he is still in service, Tilly is not in charge.
 
Amazing update as always @Comte de Dordogne!

I can’t wait for more!

Do you still see Prussia rising in the same manner that it did historically in otl? Or do you perhaps see a Catholic Brandenburg-Prussia emerging?

I see Bavaria taking advantage to grow like in otl which I love! Bavaria later became a rival to the Habsburgs seeking to usurp the Imperial title from the Habsburgs in the coming centuries.

How fared the overall strength and economic situation of the House of Habsburg?
 
I like it. Just a couple of comments, if you don’t mind:

1. It seems that you have the same issue with the software as I do: it always “knows better” and changed “infante Cardinal” to “infantry cardinal” 😂
2. Comment [4] leaves an impression that Tilly was wounded at Breitenfield and died soon afterwards, which was not the case: he was wounded at the Battle of Rain more than 7 months later and, honestly, taking into an account situation with a contemporary medicine, it would not necessarily need a bad health to die from getting a thigh bone shattered and having bone infection: Giovanny dalle Bande Nero died at the age of 28 from almost exactly the same wound (the only difference being a falconete ball vs. 90 gram arquebuse bullet).
3. What about Wallenstein? You left him out of picture after taking Stralsund. If he is still in service, Tilly is not in charge.
1. Indeed I can't stand my autocorrector. Already that translating from French to English is a nightmare, the slightest German or Spanish word has to be checked even more to avoid this kind of error. Although, "the Cardinal's infantry" sounds good, doesn't it? ;)
2. I seemed to have read somewhere that Tilly had died at Bretenfeld from an injury during the battle. I double-checked and indeed he did not die in that battle. I completely over-interpreted what I read without double-checking.
3. At the moment Wallenstein is in the same situation as OTL. His victory at Straslund has not improved his relationship with the imperial court and the emperor himself. His life is likely to change a little too with the butterflies becoming more and more numerous.

Amazing update as always @Comte de Dordogne!

I can’t wait for more!

Do you still see Prussia rising in the same manner that it did historically in otl? Or do you perhaps see a Catholic Brandenburg-Prussia emerging?

I see Bavaria taking advantage to grow like in otl which I love! Bavaria later became a rival to the Habsburgs seeking to usurp the Imperial title from the Habsburgs in the coming centuries.

How fared the overall strength and economic situation of the House of Habsburg?
Thank you again for your unwavering support.
Prussia is in danger of being floundered as well and its situation will probably be altered when the conflict ends.
Could Brandenburg-Prussia still have become Catholic? To be honest I don't know the proportion of Catholics in the region at that time, can you enlighten me?
On the other hand do not expect Gustav II Adolf of Sweden to become Holy Protestant Emperor in Vienna or conversely the Counter-Reformation to reach the whole of Scandinavia with an ultra-Catholic HRE. 🙃
There is a good chance that Bavaria as in OTL will remain a "winner" of this conflict that nobody really won. If it manages to avoid the devastation and to pull through, it can succeed. But nothing is less sure!
I'll let you find out in the following. ;)
 
1. Indeed I can't stand my autocorrector. Already that translating from French to English is a nightmare, the slightest German or Spanish word has to be checked even more to avoid this kind of error. Although, "the Cardinal's infantry" sounds good, doesn't it? ;)
2. I seemed to have read somewhere that Tilly had died at Bretenfeld from an injury during the battle. I double-checked and indeed he did not die in that battle. I completely over-interpreted what I read without double-checking.
3. At the moment Wallenstein is in the same situation as OTL. His victory at Straslund has not improved his relationship with the imperial court and the emperor himself. His life is likely to change a little too with the butterflies becoming more and more numerous.


Thank you again for your unwavering support.
Prussia is in danger of being floundered as well and its situation will probably be altered when the conflict ends.
Could Brandenburg-Prussia still have become Catholic? To be honest I don't know the proportion of Catholics in the region at that time, can you enlighten me?
On the other hand do not expect Gustav II Adolf of Sweden to become Holy Protestant Emperor in Vienna or conversely the Counter-Reformation to reach the whole of Scandinavia with an ultra-Catholic HRE. 🙃
There is a good chance that Bavaria as in OTL will remain a "winner" of this conflict that nobody really won. If it manages to avoid the devastation and to pull through, it can succeed. But nothing is less sure!
I'll let you find out in the following. ;)
Just as a wild idea, how about GA being smart enough to offer Wallenstein an employment before emperor called him back to service? He could be offered the Mecklenburg duchies and some other territories and the French money could be helpful as well: almost immediately after Wallenstein was fired his banker committed suicide because he lost a chance to repay the huge debts. According to the pro-Hapsburg rumors Wallenstein wanted to become the King of Bohemia. True or not, GA could promise this bonus because it would cost him nothing and would seriously cripple the Hapsburgs. Most of Wallenstein’s former troops did not really care on which side to fight as long as there was a loot: most of the POWs at Breitenfield switched to the Swedish side.
 
Just as a wild idea, how about GA being smart enough to offer Wallenstein an employment before emperor called him back to service? He could be offered the Mecklenburg duchies and some other territories and the French money could be helpful as well: almost immediately after Wallenstein was fired his banker committed suicide because he lost a chance to repay the huge debts. According to the pro-Hapsburg rumors Wallenstein wanted to become the King of Bohemia. True or not, GA could promise this bonus because it would cost him nothing and would seriously cripple the Hapsburgs. Most of Wallenstein’s former troops did not really care on which side to fight as long as there was a loot: most of the POWs at Breitenfield switched to the Swedish side.
I find your idea very interesting, especially a Mecklenburg that Wallenstein can fully control. However, I wonder who will take over from the imperials. I would also like to avoid a Habsburgs/Catholic screw in this conflict. Finally, it would be stupid if my "25 Years War" lasted less, because Sweden has six in a row with Gustav II Adolf and Wallenstein working hand in hand. 🤪
Edit: I find it hard to see the French continuing to fund over-efficient' Swedes. The cure should not be more harmful than the disease, or work too well.
 
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I find your idea very interesting, especially a Mecklenburg that Wallenstein can fully control. However, I wonder who will take over from the imperials. I would also like to avoid a Habsburgs/Catholic screw in this conflict. Finally, it would be stupid if my "25 Years War" lasted less, because Sweden has six in a row with Gustav II Adolf and Wallenstein working hand in hand. 🤪
Edit: I find it hard to see the French continuing to fund over-efficient' Swedes. The cure should not be more harmful than the disease, or work too well.
To answer your questions:

Who would take over? Well, after Tilly is dead, probably Gallas (as in OTL) and, after he is compromised by a lousy performance, Ottavio Piccolomini who ended up being the last Hapsburg generalissimo of the 30YW. Actually, even Gallas was seemingly capable but his army suffered from a lack of a discipline (inherited from Wallenstein) . Or, based upon the rank, Pappenheim who already was a field-marshal, quite popular and personally favored by the emperor (he got the Golden Fleece, which Wallenstein never did).

W coming to GA service is not a fast winning scenario you are afraid of. 🤪Of course, Wallenstein is a very respected figure (during the siege of Prague the Swedes took care not to damage his palace) and immediate benefits are seemingly obvious. But he is also a primadonna and handling of the primadonnas is a tricky business for which GA (unlike Ike) was ill-suited being himself a great general. So having such a subordinate commanding his own army and having his own political ambitions could easily turn into a very explosive affair. Not to mention that their warfare styles had been substantially different, which is a ground for potential problems on its own and that GA is never going to trust W completely (unlike a truly subordinate figure like Bernard of Weimar).

Now, if we assume that W is given the Mecklenburg duchies and promised Bohemia, there are two options:
1st, “to promise is not to same as to marry” and GA may be either incapable or unwilling to deliver. Result: Wallenstein is pissed off and tries to reapproach the Hapsburgs. If situation is lousy enough, he can be taken back with a variety of the follow ups.
2nd, Bohemia is getting a new king and King Albrecht is not interested in a further destruction of his country and tries to arrange for peace. Result: GA is pissed off while Ferdinand is unwilling to accept the loss and Wallenstein is trying to get guarantees from all possible corners that his rule lasts after the peace is concluded. The most obvious ally is France.

Then there could be scenario in which W joins GA but then comes a higher bidder, Richelieu, who sees that GA keeps taking the French money but pursues his own goals. The French national army is not quite there so Richelieu is buying Wallenstein with his army (pretty much as he bought the troops of Bernard of Weimar but with a greater success). Of course, W is going to lose his HRE possessions but France has means to compensate him for the losses both in France and within the HRE (during the peace negotiations).

Of course, it is necessary to keep in mind that we are talking about both branches of the House of Hapsburg and that the Austrian branch heavily relied both on financial and military help of the Spanish branch (hence the “infantry cardinal” 🤪) and that for both the Spanish branch and for France the main theater had been the Netherlands with the operations on the Rhine being mostly a way to protect the route from Italy to the Netherlands (for Spain) or to close that route (for France). “Super-efficient” Swedes still would have their main interests elsewhere (actually, it does not look like anybody, including his own Chancellor, could tell for sure what exactly GA was trying to achieve in Germany) meaning that the war would keep going on. And, with the Napoleon not being anywhere around, even “super-efficiency” hardly would result in a decisive victory because the armies were too small and the rulers usually did not give a s—t about their subjects being looted and killed (by their own troops as often as by the enemy). And many of the HRE princes earned quite soon that GA is not really an attractive alternative to the Hapsburgs (as long as the Hapsburgs are not too domineering) so neither side is going to run out of armies too soon. So we are still looking for a war of exhaustion.
 
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