An outline, era by era

Prussia and Austria (Habsburgs) rise; Poland-Lithuania partitioned

Early Modern Era · ~1500 – ~1800

In the century and a half after the Thirty Years' War, two German-speaking powers rose to the front rank of Europe. The Austrian Habsburgs, rulers of the Holy Roman Empire's imperial title, built a large state in central Europe by pushing the Ottomans back from Hungary. Brandenburg-Prussia, a scattered and poor territory in northern Germany, became a strong military kingdom after 1701 under the Hohenzollern dynasty.

The two states fought each other for Silesia in the mid-1700s and then, with Russia, divided much of Poland-Lithuania. This large elective monarchy had been one of Europe's biggest states, but its weak central government and foreign interference left it exposed. It was partitioned in 1772, 1793 and 1795, and it disappeared from the map for 123 years. The rivalry between Berlin and Vienna shaped German and European politics into the nineteenth century.

Things happened, and the rest is history

  1. The Great Elector builds Brandenburg-Prussia

    Event

    What happened

    Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg, rules from 1640 to 1688. After the Thirty Years' War he builds a standing army and a tax system run by his own officials. At the Treaty of Wehlau in 1657 the Polish king recognises his full sovereignty over the Duchy of Prussia.

    The rest is history

    These steps joined scattered lands in Brandenburg, Prussia and the Rhineland under one efficient government. They gave his heirs the means to seek a royal title. The Hohenzollerns became a power that could field a large army from a small population. His son Frederick III took the title King in Prussia in 1701.

    Sources

    1. BookClark, Christopher. Iron Kingdom: The Rise and Downfall of Prussia, 1600-1947. London: Allen Lane, 2006.
    2. BookCarsten, F. L. The Origins of Prussia. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1954.

  2. The siege of Vienna and the Habsburg reconquest of Hungary

    Event

    What happened

    In 1683 an Ottoman army besieges Vienna. A relief force under King John III Sobieski of Poland and Duke Charles of Lorraine defeats it on 12 September. Habsburg armies then advance into Hungary and take Buda in 1686. The war ends with the Treaty of Karlowitz in 1699.

    The rest is history

    Karlowitz gave the Habsburgs most of Hungary and Transylvania. Their centre of gravity shifted south-east toward the Danube. The Habsburg monarchy became a multinational realm that no longer depended chiefly on its German lands, and it gained the confidence to act as a great power.

    Sources

    1. PrimaryTreaty of Karlowitz. Peace treaty between the Habsburg monarchy, Poland, Venice and the Ottoman Empire, signed 26 January 1699.
    2. BookWheatcroft, Andrew. The Enemy at the Gate: Habsburgs, Ottomans, and the Battle for Europe. New York: Basic Books, 2009.

  3. The Pragmatic Sanction of 1713

    Event

    What happened

    Emperor Charles VI has no surviving son. In 1713 he issues the Pragmatic Sanction, which says the Habsburg lands are indivisible and may pass to a daughter. He spends much of his reign winning other states' recognition of it, often by making concessions.

    The rest is history

    When Charles died in October 1740, his daughter Maria Theresa inherited the lands. Several rulers then questioned the arrangement or ignored their earlier promises. Frederick II of Prussia invaded Silesia in December 1740, which opened the War of the Austrian Succession.

    Sources

    1. BookWilson, Peter H. Heart of Europe: A History of the Holy Roman Empire. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press, 2016.
    2. BookIngrao, Charles W. The Habsburg Monarchy, 1618-1815. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994.

  4. Frederick II seizes Silesia

    Event

    What happened

    In December 1740 Frederick II of Prussia, newly king, invades the Austrian province of Silesia without a declaration of war. He wins at Mollwitz in April 1741. The Treaty of Berlin in 1742 and the Treaty of Dresden in 1745 leave most of Silesia with Prussia.

    The rest is history

    The seizure doubled the speed of Prussia's rise and made Austria its lasting rival. Maria Theresa tried to win Silesia back in the Seven Years' War (1756 to 1763), but the Treaty of Hubertusburg confirmed Prussian possession. Prussia was now accepted as a great power.

    Sources

    1. BookClark, Christopher. Iron Kingdom: The Rise and Downfall of Prussia, 1600-1947. London: Allen Lane, 2006.
    2. PrimaryTreaty of Hubertusburg. Peace treaty between Austria, Saxony and Prussia, signed 15 February 1763.

  5. Maria Theresa and Joseph II reform the Habsburg state

    Event

    What happened

    After the loss of Silesia, Maria Theresa, who ruled from 1740 to 1780, reorganises her lands. She centralises administration, taxes more of the nobility and expands the army. She also introduces compulsory schooling in 1774. Her son Joseph II, sole ruler from 1780, issues a Patent of Toleration for Protestants and Orthodox Christians in 1781.

    The rest is history

    These reforms made the monarchy more capable of fielding armies and collecting revenue. Joseph's more drastic changes met resistance, notably in Hungary and the Austrian Netherlands, and he withdrew many of them before he died in 1790. The state still stood among Europe's strongest in 1772.

    Sources

    1. BookBeales, Derek. Joseph II. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987.
    2. BookIngrao, Charles W. The Habsburg Monarchy, 1618-1815. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994.

  6. The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and its weak centre

    Event

    What happened

    The Union of Lublin in 1569 joins Poland and Lithuania in one Commonwealth with an elected king and a powerful noble Sejm. From 1652 the liberum veto allows a single deputy to end a session and cancel its decisions. After the wars of the mid-1600s, including the Swedish invasion known as the Deluge, the state is weakened.

    The rest is history

    Neighbours with strong armies exploited this weakness. Russian troops were often present in the early 1700s, and by the 1760s Catherine II of Russia was influencing royal elections. She helped place her former lover Stanisław August Poniatowski on the throne in 1764. Reformers within the Commonwealth tried to strengthen it, but too late to avoid the first partition.

    Sources

    1. BookDavies, Norman. God's Playground: A History of Poland. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1981.
    2. BookLukowski, Jerzy. The Partitions of Poland, 1772, 1793, 1795. London: Longman, 1999.

  7. The first partition of 1772

    Event

    What happened

    In 1772 Russia, Prussia and Austria agree by treaty to annex border areas of the Commonwealth. Russia takes lands in the east, Austria takes Galicia in the south, and Prussia takes Royal Prussia, without Danzig and Thorn. The Polish Sejm, under pressure from troops, ratifies the loss in 1773.

    The rest is history

    The Commonwealth lost roughly a third of its population and a large share of its territory. Prussia joined its eastern and central lands, and Austria gained a rich province. The powers justified the move as restoring order and the balance of power. It was the first time in modern Europe that great powers openly carved up a recognised state in peacetime.

    Sources

    1. BookLukowski, Jerzy. The Partitions of Poland, 1772, 1793, 1795. London: Longman, 1999.
    2. PrimaryPartition treaties between Russia, Prussia and Austria, signed at St Petersburg, 5 August 1772.

  8. The Constitution of 3 May 1791 and the final partitions

    Event

    What happened

    The Great Sejm adopts the Constitution of 3 May 1791, which abolishes the liberum veto and makes the throne hereditary. Russia, backed by Polish conservatives of the Targowica Confederation, invades in 1792. In 1793 Russia and Prussia take more land. After the Kościuszko Uprising of 1794 fails, Russia, Prussia and Austria divide the rest in 1795.

    The rest is history

    Poland-Lithuania ceased to exist as a state, and King Stanisław August abdicated in 1795. Polish statehood was restored only in 1918. Prussia and Austria each gained large Polish populations, which shaped their later politics.

    Sources

    1. BookLukowski, Jerzy. The Partitions of Poland, 1772, 1793, 1795. London: Longman, 1999.
    2. BookDavies, Norman. God's Playground: A History of Poland. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1981.

  9. Frederick the Great and the legend of the enlightened king

    Popular belief

    The legend

    Frederick II is often pictured as a philosopher-king who played the flute, corresponded with Voltaire and ruled as the first servant of his state. Many tell that he was a gentle, tolerant ruler who saved Prussia by genius alone.

    The rest is history

    Frederick did write and compose, and he hosted Voltaire at Potsdam from 1750 to 1753 before they quarrelled. His phrase about being the first servant of the state is from his own writings. But he began his reign by invading Silesia without warning, and he kept the army and nobility at the centre of the state. His survival in the Seven Years' War also owed much to luck, notably the death of Empress Elizabeth of Russia in 1762 and her successor's withdrawal from the war.

    Sources

    1. BookClark, Christopher. Iron Kingdom: The Rise and Downfall of Prussia, 1600-1947. London: Allen Lane, 2006.
    2. BookBlanning, T. C. W. Frederick the Great: King of Prussia. London: Allen Lane, 2015.

  10. The Miracle of the House of Brandenburg

    Folk tale

    The legend

    In early 1762, with Prussia nearly beaten by Austria, Russia and France, Frederick is said to have been saved at the last moment. Empress Elizabeth dies, and her successor Peter III, an admirer of Frederick, makes peace. The story is told as the Miracle of the House of Brandenburg.

    The rest is history

    The core is true. Elizabeth died on 5 January 1762 and Peter III ended Russia's war and returned conquered territory. Frederick himself used the phrase miracle of the house of Brandenburg in letters. The story hides that Peter was overthrown by his wife Catherine in July 1762, and that Prussia was also exhausted. Austria too could not keep going, and the war ended with the 1763 peace that left Silesia with Prussia.

    Sources

    1. BookBlanning, T. C. W. Frederick the Great: King of Prussia. London: Allen Lane, 2015.
    2. BookAnderson, Fred. Crucible of War: The Seven Years' War and the Fate of Empire in British North America. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2000.

  11. Poland was erased from the map

    Popular belief

    The legend

    It is often said that Poland simply vanished in 1795, and that its people and culture disappeared with the state. Some also say the partitions were the work of three rulers who agreed to share a victim.

    The rest is history

    The state vanished, but the nation did not. Poles kept their language, law and institutions in various forms, and they rose against the partitioning powers in 1830, 1863 and other years. The powers were not always united: Prussia and Austria disliked Russian influence, and the final partitions came after the 1791 reforms and war. Poland returned as an independent state in November 1918.

    Sources

    1. BookLukowski, Jerzy, and Hubert Zawadzki. A Concise History of Poland. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001.
    2. BookDavies, Norman. God's Playground: A History of Poland. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1981.

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