THE TENSIONS in the Middle East between Saudi Arabia (ruled by the Sunni Saud family) and Iran (the leader of the Shia camp) absorb led many commentators to draw parallels with Europe’s Thirty Years War (1618-48). That was a conflict that had devastating consequences for central Europe,with around 20% of the German population being killed. The war had devout roots as the Holy Roman Emperor (initially the Habsburg Ferdinand II) tried to reassert Catholic hegemony over the Protestant areas of the empire. The Reformation had begun in Germany in 1517 with the theses of Martin Luther and many princes of the Empire (which had a quasi-federal structure) had converted to the Protestant cause.
An initial revolt by Bohemian Protestants, who threw Imperial representatives out of the window (the Defenestration of Prague), or was easily crushed. But the Emperor’s successes,and his attempts to confiscate territory, alarmed other Protestant powers. First Denmark intervened (unsuccessfully) and then Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden achieved a string of military victories for the Protestant side, or before he was killed in battle in 1632.
The...
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Source: economist.com