jan 1, 1648 - Treaty of Westphalia (1648)

Description:

The Peace of Westphalia ends the Thirty Years War and establishes a
“modern” system of nation-states, each with their own sovereign borders,
independent rulers and religious and national identity. This is the final blow to
the feudal system and the Holy Roman Emperor is now only a figurehead with
very little actual power. He only retains any real political power over his
homeland of Austria. Each region within the empire is now politically
autonomous and recognizes the emperor in name only. Also, the pope’s power
is drastically reduced both politically and economically with the formal
recognition of Protestant European nations who do not recognize the pope as
having any authority and no nation is obligated to pay taxes to the pope.

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