Lion and Eagle

There are few significant events in world history such as the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648), which can even be called the First World War, as almost every major state from Scandinavia to Italy, Germany and France to Spain participated in it in some form. The relentless bloodshed that lasted thirty years, which made Europe almost a wilderness, broke out essentially because of religious differences. Both Protestants and Catholics appropriated God as their “strong castle,” and then this disparity in faith was gradually transformed into national endeavors that eventually redrawn the map of Europe. The peace in Westphalia, which ended the war, is no longer a peace of religion, but a division of powers, a settlement of their political relations. During these thirty years, a number of prominent statesmen have ruled the history of Europe. With the exception of antiquity and World War II, no historical era has deployed as many excellent warlords as have entered the battlefield during these thirty years; it is enough to mention the names of Richelieu, Gusztáv Adolf, Wallenstein, Pappenheim, Tilly, the Great Condé or even Turenne. And "of course" we Hungarians could not be left out of this world burning either, but thanks to our excellent princes like Gábor Bethlen or György I. Rákóczi, this time we ended the war on the side of the victors. Adventurers, intrigue and love covered in the glaze of romance, spread through the suffering of the people, make the history of this terrible thirty years colorful and complete.