Central Europe in the 1600s

• The major powers in central Europe in the mid-1600s, including the kingdom of Poland, the Holy Roman Empire, and the Ottoman Empire, were not very strong.
• Central Europe's economy developed differently from western Europe, with landowning aristocracy restricting serfs' freedom to maintain a profitable surplus crop economy.
• Polish nobility limited the king's power, preventing the formation of a unified state.
• The Ottoman Empire's expansion halted after Suleyman the Magnificent's reign, leading to its decline.
• The Holy Roman Empire was weakened by the Thirty Years’ War and unable to command obedience from German states.
• The Hapsburgs of Austria and the Hohenzollerns of Prussia aimed to fill the power vacuum in central Europe by becoming absolute rulers.

Austria Grows Stronger

• The Austrian Hapsburgs reconquered Bohemia during the Thirty Years’ War, eliminating Protestantism and establishing a loyal Czech nobility
• They centralized the government and created a standing army
• By 1699, the Hapsburgs regained Hungary from the Ottoman Empire.
• Charles VI faced the challenge of ruling a diverse population including Czechs, Hungarians, Italians, Croatians, and Germans.
• Charles VI secured an agreement recognizing his daughter, Maria Theresa, as his heir.

Prussia Challenges Austria

• The Hohenzollerns of Prussia, like the Hapsburgs, had ambitions that upset the balance of power in central Europe.
• Frederick William, the Great Elector, built a strong army after witnessing the destruction of the Thirty Years’ War.
• The Hohenzollerns moved toward absolute monarchy by establishing a standing army, implementing permanent taxation, and weakening representative assemblies.
• King Frederick William I gained the cooperation of the Junkers by granting them exclusive rights to be officers in the army, leading to a highly militarized society.
• Frederick II, known as Frederick the Great, continued his father’s military policies but also enacted domestic reforms such as religious toleration and legal reform.
• Frederick believed a ruler should be like a father to his people, acting with honesty and prudence.

War of the Austrian Succession

• In 1740, Frederick II invaded Silesia, initiating the War of the Austrian Succession.
• Maria Theresa secured aid from Hungary and allied with Great Britain against Prussia and France.
• Despite her efforts, Maria Theresa lost Silesia to Prussia in the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1748.

The Seven Years’ War

• Maria Theresa allied with France, leading to a diplomatic revolution and Frederick's alliance with Britain.
• Austria, France, Russia, and others allied against Britain and Prussia.
• Frederick attacked Saxony in 1756, involving every major European power in the Seven Years’ War, fought in Europe, India, and North America.
• The war did not change the territorial situation in Europe.
• Britain gained economic domination of India and France lost its colonies in North America