Westphalia, Peace

Westphalia, Peace of

(1648) European settlements that ended the Thirty Years' War, negotiated in the Westphalian towns of Münster and Osnabrück. The deliberations began in 1644 and ended in 1648 with two assemblies that produced the treaty between Spain and the Dutch (signed January 30) and another between Emperor Ferdinand III, the other German princes, France, and Sweden (signed October 24). Territorial changes gave Sweden control of the Baltic Sea, ensured France a firm frontier west of the Rhine River, and provided their allies with additional lands. Independence was confirmed for the United Provinces of the Netherlands and for the Swiss Confederation. The treaties also confirmed the Peace of Augsburg and extended the religious toleration of Lutherans to include toleration of the Reformed (Calvinist) Church. The Holy Roman Empire was forced to recognize its German princes as absolute sovereigns in their own dominions, which greatly weakened its central authority.