History of Silesia - Habsburg Monarchy

Habsburg Monarchy

After the death of King Louis II of Hungary and Bohemia in 1526, Ferdinand I of the Habsburg dynasty was elected King of Bohemia and thus ruler of the Crown of Bohemia (including Silesia). In 1537, the Piast Duke Frederick II of Brieg concluded the Treaty of Brieg with Elector Joachim II of Brandenburg, whereby the Hohenzollerns of Brandenburg would inherit the Duchy of Brieg upon the extinction of the Piasts, but the treaty was rejected by Ferdinand.

The Protestant Reformation of the 16th century took an early hold in Silesia. Its leading advocates were Frederick II of Liegnitz and George von Ansbach-Jägerndorf, who promoted the adoption of the new faith in his own duchy and in the pledged duchies of Oppeln and Ratibor. Breslau not only adopted the faith but, as the seat of the Provincial governor, also promoted Protestantism in the principality of Breslau. After the death of Ferdinand I in 1564 only the bishop of Breslau, the rulers and lordships of Loslau, Pleß and Trachtenberg and 10% of the population were still Catholic. Silesia became closer attached to the center of the Protestant Reformation, Brandenburg and Saxony, and the country produced several important representatives of the Protestant intellectual sphere. In 1526 Silesia received the first Protestant university of Europe when Frederick II opened an evangelic academy in Liegnitz. This school however was closed three years later due to economic difficulties, but even more because of theological disputes between Lutherans and followers of Caspar Schwenckfeld, a sectarian and confidant of Frederick II whose ideas became more and more popular in Silesia.

The Protestant confession was not persecuted by Ferdinand I and Maximilian II, only Schwenckfeld's teachings, Anabaptists and unhallowed clergymen were not accepted. This changed with the accession of Rudolf II to the throne and with the help of archduke Carl, bishop of Breslau.

In order to avert the oppression of their faith the estates of Silesia joined the Protestant estates of Bohemia and denied paying taxes to the emperor in 1609. After the Bohemians forced the emperor to issue his Maiestas Rudolphina (Letter of Majesty) the emperor was moved to publish another similar letter for Silesia containing even further rights. When Rudolf tried to withdraw from these agreements (1611) the estates of Bohemia and Silesia changed allegiance and followed Matthias, who already owned Austria, Moravia and Hungary. Matthias not only affirmed the Letter of Majesty but also granted the Silesian estates its own independent German chancellery in Prague (which was responsible for both Lusatias too). At the same time the Protestants in Silesia were weakened when several Silesian rulers converted to Calvinism or back to Catholicism.

After Matthias was elected to the Bohemian throne Ferdinand II, a staunch Catholic who began to rigorously enforce the Catholic faith at the expense of Protestants. After the second Defenestration of Prague in 1618 the Silesian Estates followed the Bohemian Revolt, elected Frederick V as their new King of Bohemia and paid homage in Breslau. Losing Battle of White Mountain forced Frederick to flee to Breslau where he wanted gather new troops; however, as these attempts failed he advised the Silesians to contact Saxony, which occupied Lusatia, a part of Bohemia and neighbour of Silesia, and as an imperial ally was authorized to negotiate. The mediated treaty, the Dresden accord, spared Silesia for the next few years and affirmed the earlier privileges, however the Silesian Estates had to pay 300.000 gulden and accept Ferdinand II as their suzerain. Soon after the emperor (which secured formerly elective Bohemian Crown as an inheritable possession of the Habsburg dynasty) together with the prince-bishop started the counter-reformation by inviting Catholic orders to Silesia and giving land to Catholic peers.

The Thirty Years' War reached Silesia when Protestant Ernst von Mansfeld started a military campaign against Hungary and crossed Silesia in 1629. This gave the emperor the chance to invade the country and to enforce his imperial might. The Silesian district authority became an imperial office, Albrecht von Wallenstein became lord of the Duchy of Sagan and of Glogau, the infamous Liechtenstein dragoons pressed the citizens of the principalities back into the Catholic Church or otherwise expelled them, Protestant landlords lost their possessions and were replaced by Catholic families.

In 1632 the Protestant countries of Saxony, Brandenburg and Sweden, which were united against the emperor, invaded Silesia. The Protestant estates of Silesia joined these countries, however as neighbouring Saxony made peace with the emperor in 1635 the Silesians lost this important ally, further weakened their position and had to submit to the emperor once again. This time only the duchies of Liegnitz, Brieg, Wohlau, Oels and the town of Breslau could keep their religious liberty.

The quiet years after 1635 were followed by new military conflicts between 1639 and 1648. Swedish and imperial troops devastated the country, cities were destroyed by fires and plagues, many people fled to the neighbouring countries of Brandenburg, Saxony or Poland, where they could freely express their faith, or at least to the countryside to escape the adverse conditions in the cities.

The Peace of Westphalia ended the Thirty Years' War. The duchies of Liegnitz, Brieg, Wohlau, Oels and the city of Breslau retained their religious freedom, and the construction of three Protestant churches, the Churches of Peace, was permitted. The systematic oppression of the Protestant faith however was intensified in the rest of Silesia as most churches were closed or given to the few Catholics left. A new exodus to the surrounding countries started, which led to the foundation of several new towns. Also Protestant churches on the soil of these countries and close to the Silesian border, the so-called "border churches" (German: Grenzkirchen), were built to provide a place were Silesians could practise their religion.

In 1676 the Duchy of Legnica and Duchy of Brzeg passed to direct Habsburg rule after the death of the last Silesian Piast duke, Georg Wilhelm (son of Duke Christian of Brieg), despite the earlier inheritance pact by Brandenburg and Silesia, by which it was to go to Brandenburg.

These remaining Protestant duchies were also recatholized, but as the Swedish king Charles XII pressed Joseph I to accept the treaty of Altranstädt (1707) the religious freedom in these duchies had to be restored. Moreover the construction of six further churches, the so-called "churches of mercy" (German: Gnadenkirchen; Czech: milostivé kostely), was allowed.

Due to the Thirty Years' War, diseases and emigration Silesia lost large parts of its population. Especially affected were the cities, which recovered sometimes not until the 19th century. Despite the uncertain political, economic and religious circumstances Silesia became the center of the German Baroque poetry in the 17th century. Its most important representatives were poets like Martin Opitz, Friedrich von Logau, Andreas Gryphius or Christian Hoffmann von Hoffmannswaldau, but also writers and mystics like Angelus Silesius, Abraham von Franckenberg or Christian Knorr von Rosenroth.