Course: The Thirty Years' War (1618-1648) - People, Period, Society

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Course title The Thirty Years' War (1618-1648) - People, Period, Society
Course code KHI/PV338
Organizational form of instruction Lecture + Seminary
Level of course Bachelor
Year of study not specified
Semester Winter
Number of ECTS credits 4
Language of instruction Czech
Status of course Compulsory-optional
Form of instruction Face-to-face
Work placements This is not an internship
Recommended optional programme components None
Lecturer(s)
  • Sláma Lukáš, Mgr.
Course content
1. The Thirty Years' War as a research topic: a. Introduction to archival research possibilities, b. Important source editions, c. Contemporary historiography, 2. 1618: the beginning of the war? a. Prerequisites and course of the Czech Estates Uprising, b. White Mountain and its second life, 3. Newspaper reporting and leaflet propaganda, a. Spread of the war in the press of the time, b. Leaflet propaganda as a weapon of Gustav II Adolf, 4. The military revolution as a European phenomenon and its manifestations, a. Modern armies and their systematization, b. The influence of the scientific and technological revolution on the war, c. Excursion into non-European areas (Russia, the Ottoman Empire), 5. Sweden and its superpower politics, a. The struggle for the Baltic Sea on land, b. Axel Oxenstierna, Queen Christina, and the stormaktiden, 6. Material culture in the first half of the 17th century, a. Weapons and armor in museum collections, b. Pictorial sources as a source of knowledge about the reality of the time, c. Fortress construction in the Czech lands, 7. Workshop for students with period training, 8. The generation of White Mountain and Jankov, a. The impact of war on the state of the aristocracy in Bohemia, b. The military nobility and its examples, c. Old families, new circumstances, 9. The imperial army and its transformations, a. Wallenstein and the end of private armies, b. The rise of the dragoons, c. Raimond Montecuccoli and his reforms, 10. The economics of war, a. Methods of maintaining armies, b. Cities as a decisive factor in financing armies, c. Post-war reconstruction, 11. In the heat of battle, or an analysis of important encounters, a. Desava (1626), b. Lützen (1632), c. Nördlingen (1634), d. Wittstock (1636), e. Jankov (1645), f. Prague (1648), 12. People in the turmoil of war, a. Friend or foe? People and the army in the early modern period, b. Peter Hagendorf: a soldier's perspective, 13. Workshop - working with sources and presenting results a. Contribution registers, b. Stable cadastre, c. Visual materials, 14. Excursion: European war? a. Related conflicts and their results, b. The "legacy" of the Thirty Years' War to the present day, c. Reenactment, pop culture

Learning activities and teaching methods
unspecified, unspecified, unspecified
Learning outcomes
The aim of the course is to introduce students to the issues surrounding the Thirty Years' War in the lands of the Czech Crown, including social, economic, and cultural aspects. Graduates will be able to consider the subject matter not only as a war theme, but as a phenomenon affecting a large part of human life. The course will examine the culture and thinking of the period, as well as the consequences and manifestations of climate change and social transformation. Students will also be introduced to the possibility of studying in the form of demonstrations and active work with period sources. Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
Graduates will be familiar with events from the Thirty Years' War. They will be able to critically approach literature and sources. They will be able to analyze contemporary documents based on the information they have acquired. They will recognize the basic logistical and strategic aspects of the conflict and be able to interpret them.
Prerequisites
Nothing

Assessment methods and criteria
unspecified
1. No other courses are required. 2. Standard requirements, knowledge of German is an advantage. 3. No more than two absences.
Recommended literature
  • A. KLÍMA. Dlouhá válka, 1618-1648. Praha, 1996.
  • Axel Gotthard. Der Dreißigjährige Krieg. Eine Einführung. Köln, 2016. ISBN 978-3-8252-4555-9.
  • FUKALA, Radek. Třicetiletá válka, nebo všeobecný evropský konflikt 17. století?. České Budějovice. 2012.
  • HROCH, M., PETRÁŇ, J. 17. století - krize feudální společnosti?. Praha, 1976.
  • Jan Kilián (ed.). Paměti krupského měšťana Michela Stüelera (1629-1649). Teplice, 2013.
  • Josef PAUSER ? Martin SCHEUTZ ? Thomas WINKELBAUER (edd.). Quellenkunde der Habsburgermonarchie (16.-18. Jahrhundert). Ein exemplarisches Handbuch. Wien, 2004.
  • Josef POLIŠENSKÝ. Třicetiletá válka a evropské krize XVII. století. Praha, 1970.
  • Koldinská, Marie - Šedivý, Ivan. Válka a armáda v českých dějinách. Sociohistorické črty.. Praha, 2008. ISBN 978-80-7106-953-9.
  • Medick, H. Experiencing the Thirty Years War: a brief history with documents. Boston-New York, 2013.
  • Parker, G. The army of Flanders and the Spanish Road, 1567-1659: the logistics of Spanish victory and defeat in the Low Countries? Wars. Cambridge, 2004.
  • Parker, Goeffrey. The Thirty Years´ War. London - New York, 1997.
  • Pekař, J. Kniha o Kosti. Praha, 1970.
  • Peter H. Wilson. Europe's tragedy : a new history of the thirty years war. Oxford. 2010.


Study plans that include the course
Faculty Study plan (Version) Category of Branch/Specialization Recommended year of study Recommended semester