NAME NIMRA SAUD

R.NO AF-20795

CLASS 5th

SECTION B

SHIFT Evening

SUBMITTED TO Miss Sumaiya

DATE 01-11-2022
Introduction
The treaty of Westphalia is the collective name for two peace treaties signed in October 1648 in
the Westphalian cities of Osnabrück and Münster. They ended the Thirty Years' War (1618–
1648) and brought peace to the Holy Roman Empire, closing a calamitous period of European
history that killed approximately eight million people. The Holy Roman Emperor (Ferdinand
III), the kingdoms of France and Sweden, and their respective allies among the princes of the
Holy Roman Empire participated in these treaties.

Background
Religious indifferences backed by political ambitions marred the relations between Lutheran
Sweden and Catholic Poland, German Protestants and Catholics, and the Protestant Dutch and
English against Catholic Spain. The monarchical France were against the Spanish and Austrian
Habsburgs who had ringed its borders to the north, south, and east after its own set of religious
wars. Venice faced problems against Austria over pirates in the Adriatic sea which led to
conflicts between these two states. All these tangled religious and political conflicts divided
Europe into two camps, exclusively dominated by religion. The Protestant camp composed of
German Protestants, Denmark, the Dutch Republic, England, Sweden, Catholic Venice, and
Catholic France. The Catholic camp was composed of German Catholics, Spain, Austria, the
Spanish Netherlands, Naples, Milan, the Papacy, and Poland.Fearing an impending war, the
respective monarchs of the nations fortified and strengthened their armies and established
leagues to protect their common interests. The Protestant princes organized a defensive league
known as the Protestant Union in 1609, while the Catholic princes organized the Catholic
League.Europe’s economy turned increasingly cumbersome due to the military budget
requirements, declining silver production, and the impending colder climate that triggered an
onset of lower crop yields. In 1618, Protestants in Bohemia, who were a part of the Holy Roman
Empire, arose against the Austrian Habsburgs.This local conflict dragged the whole of Europe,
especially Germany, into a series of religious wars. Spain, Poland, the German Catholics, and the
Pope rushed to Austria’s aid to crush the rebellion.Sweden later attacked Austria, punitively in
defense of the German Protestants, but was finally defeated. Catholics dominated France, and
extended their help towards the Protestants against the Habsburgs. Each new nation that
eventually got involved only fed more fuel into these combustible religious battles.These thirty
years of wars were a blood blot, and catastrophic human and material losses were reported
throughout the European nations, especially Germany. The war also necessitated an attempt to
curb the dynastic power of the Habsburg in central Europe and its pompous claim towards
universal monarchy. In order to overcome all the disastrous effects, the Peace of Westphalia was
proposed. Uniquely for the first time, a peace treaty was scripted by representatives from all
political quarters. Thousands of diplomats assisted in drafting it, thus establishing the common
law of a diplomatic congress, which has inspired diplomacy even today. After 1648, a new state
organization came forth in Europe.

Peace of Westphalia
 • According to the Peace of Westphalia, all parties would recognize the Peace of
Augsburg of 1555; Christians of non-dominant denominations were guaranteed
the right to practice their faith; and the exclusive sovereignty of each party over
its lands, people, and agents abroad was recognized.
Multiple territorial adjustments were also decided.
• The Peace of Westphalia established the precedent of peace reached by
diplomatic congress and a new system of political order in Europe based upon
the concept of co-existing sovereign states. The Westphalian principle of the
recognition of another state’s sovereignty and right to decide its own fate rests
at the foundations of international law today.
• The European colonization of Asia and Africa in the 19th century and two
global wars in the 20th century dramatically undermined the principles
established in Westphalia.

DEVELOPMENT OF NATION-STATE
The Birth of the Modern Nation State
Kings ruled and kingdoms had absolute power on a regular basis in prior times.
When one analyzes the course of history, the nation state as we know it today is a
comparatively recent phenomena. For instance, the idea of the nation state did not
emerge until the European Renaissance and Enlightened of the late 17th and early
18th centuries. The most prominent philosophers of that period pondered the social
contract of man and the nation and proposed the notion of a nation state that looks
out for its inhabitants by offering them rights while alsoimposing obligations on
them. The Agreement of Westphalia, which gave origin to the modern state, was
based on this guiding idea. As a result, the Westphalian principles of government
are considered to represent the contemporary understanding of the nation state.
The Enlightenment and the Nation State
Of course, only in Europe and in the United States—where the American
Revolution gave riseto the idea of a state—during the 17th and 18th centuries was
the nation state truly born. The underlying idea of unification and the creation of
the American state known as the United States of America emerged following the
Civil War between the North and the South. The rest of the world was either
colonized by Western nations or was governed by Kings and Princes. The British
ruled over nations like India, and they only relinquished control after World War
Two. Speaking about World War Two, it may be said that it marked a crucial
turning point in human history because its conclusion saw the emergence of
several nation governments.
Democracy Blooms and Retreats
Following the war, and particularly in the 1960s, when several African republics
won their freedom from colonial authority, the development of the modern nation
state accelerated. Additionally, when contemporary communication technology
proliferated, it became simpler for the indigenous people to unite and remove their
colonial rulers, hastening the development of the modern nation state. It should be
emphasized, nevertheless, that despite these modifications, the idea of the nation
state has been under threat due to both internal and external conflicts. This is a
pretty depressing facet of modern nationalism since, although nation governments
now transfer power to powerful conglomerates and businesses as a result of
globalization, rebellions against it cause the state's authority to erode.Last but not
least, the recent Arab Spring has rekindled optimism in the spread of freedom and
the desire of the peoples of the world to live under representative democracies
rather than autocratic leaders. This piece comes to a close with the hopes that
democracy will soon regain ground and that the deep-seated desire of the human
spirit for freedom will come true.