Wallenstein
Also by Geoff Mortimer : EARLY MODERN MILITARY HISTORY, 1450 1815 EYEWITNESS ACCOUNTS OF THE THIRTY YEARS WAR 1618 48
Wallenstein The Enigma of the Thirty Years War Geoff Mortimer
Geoff Mortimer 2010 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2010 978-0-230-27212-5 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No portion of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, Saffron House, 6 10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. The author has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. First published 2010 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN Palgrave Macmillan in the UK is an imprint of Macmillan Publishers Limited, registered in England, company number 785998, of Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS. Palgrave Macmillan in the US is a division of St Martin s Press LLC, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010. Palgrave Macmillan is the global academic imprint of the above companies and has companies and representatives throughout the world. Palgrave and Macmillan are registered trademarks in the United States, the United Kingdom, Europe and other countries. ISBN 978-0-230-27213-2 ISBN 978-0-230-28210-0 (ebook) DOI 10.1057/9780230282100 This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and sustained forest sources. Logging, pulping and manufacturing processes are expected to conform to the environmental regulations of the country of origin. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Mortimer, Geoff, 1944 Wallenstein : the enigma of the Thirty Years War / Geoff Mortimer. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Wallenstein, Albrecht Wenzel Eusebius von, Herzog von Friedland, 1583 1634. 2. Thirty Years War, 1618 1648. 3. Generals Holy Roman Empire Biography. 4. Holy Roman Empire History 1517 1648. 5. Nobility Czech Republic Bohemia Biography. 6. Bohemia (Czech Republic) History 1526 1618. 7. Bohemia (Czech Republic) History 1618 1848. I. Title. D270.W19M67 2010 940.2'4092 dc22 [B] 2010012501 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 Transferred to Digital Printing in 2011
Contents List of Illustrations Conventions, References, Author vii viii 1. A Riddle Wrapped in a Mystery inside an Enigma 1 2. No Great Expectations 6 Early manhood 9 Maturity 15 Gradisca 18 3. A Scandal in Bohemia 22 4. Richer Than All His Tribe 35 Minting money 38 A man of property 41 5. The Fault Is Not in Our Stars 52 6. Some Achieve Greatness 68 War without end 70 A general and a duke 75 7. Go, Captain, Greet the Danish King 82 The Dessau bridge 82 1626: A campaign and a conference 88 1627 28: Denmark and Stralsund 95 8. At the Parting of the Ways 106 The Edict of Restitution 111 An Italian entanglement 114 The limits of power 117 9. The Wheel Is Come Full Circle 123 Dismissal 123 Intermezzo 132 Resumption 138 v
vi Contents 10. Once More unto the Breach 139 Wallenstein s second army 142 Towards confrontation 147 11. From the Fury of the Norsemen Deliver Us 153 The Alte Veste 153 Lützen 164 12. Of Peace and Other Demons 177 Exile intrigues 182 Fruitless endeavours 186 13. Decline and Fall 199 The gathering storm 201 Hope springs eternal 209 Condemned unheard 213 14. Assassination Is the Quickest Way 221 Death, a necessary end 227 Aftermath 232 Requiem 238 15. But Brutus Says He Was Ambitious 240 References 254 Bibliography 264 Index 269
List of Illustrations Maps and plans 1. The Holy Roman Empire, c.1630 x 2. The battle at the Alte Veste 159 3. The battle of Lützen 172 Plates (Between pages 152 and 153) 1. The old image: Seni predicts Wallenstein s death 2. Wallenstein, aged about 30, c.1614 3. Wallenstein, aged about 46, c.1630 4. Emperor Ferdinand II, aged about 55, c.1633 5. Elector Maximilian I of Bavaria, aged about 60, c.1633 6. The battle for the Dessau bridge 7. The defences at the Alte Veste camp 8. The murder of Trčka, Ilow, Kinsky and Niemann vii
Conventions, References, Author Conventions Dates given in this book are new style according to the Gregorian calendar. Recognised anglicisations of the names of people and places are used where they exist, but otherwise the Germanic form is normally employed in preference to Czech or equivalent versions, although the ubiquitous von is omitted from aristocratic German names. All translations are the author s own. References There are no notes, but source references are given throughout the text. These are limited to author names and page numbers, with details given in the bibliography. Works by the same author are distinguished by the abbreviations shown. Author Dr Geoff Mortimer studied history and German at Oxford University, where he also taught at St Edmund Hall. viii
x 0 100 0 100 200 300 kilometres 200 miles DENMARK JUTLAND FUNEN NORTH SEA HOLSTEIN Hamburg FRANCE SPANISH NETHERLANDS Brussels Paris The Hague UNITED PROVINCES Cologne Rhine Osnabrück Weser WESTPHALIA PALATINATE Mainz LOWER Heidelberg SAXON CIRCLE Weser Elbe Hanover Halberstadt Erfurt THURINGIA Frankfurt/Main Coburg Main FRANCONIA Nuremberg SWABIA Stuttgart Donauwörth Rain Strasbourg Ulm Augsburg ALSACE Breisach Memmingen Rhine Basel Zurich Innsbruck Danube SWISS CANTONS GRAUBUNDEN TYROL SAVOY MILAN Turin MONT FERRAT Milan MANTUA 1. The Holy Roman Empire c.1630, showing territories relevant to Wallenstein s biography (Switzerland and part of northern Italy were also theoretically still within the Empire.)
xi SWEDEN Copenhagen POEL Stralsund Wismar Wolgast Stettin Werben Berlin Frankfurt/ Oder Dessau Halle Leipzig Lützen Naumburg Dresden SAXONY BOHEMIA BAVARIA MORAVIA LUSATIA SILESIA Elbe Torgau Glogau Sagan Steinau Prague Pilsen Eger UPPER PALATINATE Oder Breslau Hermanitz Olmütz Brunn Göding Regensburg Ingolstadt Linz Munich Salzburg SALZBURG Graz CARINTHIA CARNIOLA ADRIATIC Gradisca Venice VENICE UPPER AUSTRIA AUSTRIA STYRIA Vienna Znaim Passau LOWER FRIED LAND Gitschin Schweidnitz Magdeburg Oder DENMARK BALTIC SEA Königsberg Warsaw Krakow Pressburg Danube Belgrade Budapest EMPIRE OTTOMAN TRANSYLVANIA Danube POLAND HUNGARY Vistula Vistula PRUSSIA N POMERANIA MECKLEN BURG BRANDENBURG