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Emperor Ferdinand II

Ferdinand II
Georg Pachmann 001.jpg
Emperor Ferdinand II
(by Georg Pachmann, c. 1635)
Holy Roman Emperor
King in Germany
Reign 28 August 1619 – 15 February 1637
Coronation 9 September 1619, Frankfurt
Predecessor Matthias
Successor Ferdinand III
Archduke of Austria
Reign 9 October 1619 – 15 February 1637
Predecessor Matthias
Successor Ferdinand III
King of Hungary and Croatia
Reign 1 July 1618 – 15 February 1637
Coronation 1 July 1618, Pressburg
Predecessor Matthias
Successor Ferdinand III
King of Bohemia
Reign 5 June 1617 – 15 February 1637
Coronation 29 June 1617, Prague
Predecessor Matthias
Successor Ferdinand III
Born 9 July 1578
Graz, Austria
Died 15 February 1637 (aged 58)
Vienna, Austria
Burial Mausoleum in Graz, Austria (body)
Augustinian Church, Austria (heart)
Spouse Maria Anna of Bavaria
Eleonor Gonzaga
Issue Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor
Maria Anna, Electress of Bavaria
Cecilia Renata, Queen of Poland
Archduke Leopold Wilhelm of Austria
House House of Habsburg
Father Charles II, Archduke of Austria
Mother Maria Anna of Bavaria
Religion Roman Catholicism

Ferdinand II (9 July 1578 – 15 February 1637), a member of the House of Habsburg, was Holy Roman Emperor (1619–1637), King of Bohemia (1617–1619, 1620–1637), and King of Hungary (1618–1625). His acts started the Thirty Years' War. Ferdinand's aim, as a zealous Catholic, was to restore Catholicism as the only religion in the Empire and to suppress Protestantism.

He was born at Graz, the son of Charles II, Archduke of Austria, and Maria Anna of Bavaria. He was educated by the Jesuits and later attended the University of Ingolstadt. After completing his studies in 1595, he acceded to his hereditary lands (where his older cousin, Archduke Maximilian III of Austria, had acted as regent between 1593 and 1595) and made a pilgrimage to Loreto and Rome. Shortly afterwards, he began the suppression of Protestantism in his territories.

With the Oñate treaty, Ferdinand obtained the support of the Spanish Habsburgs in the succession of his childless cousin Matthias, in exchange for concessions in Alsace and Italy. In 1617, he was elected King of Bohemia by the Bohemian diet, in 1618, King of Hungary by the Hungarian estates, and in 1619, Holy Roman Emperor.

His devout Catholicism and negative regard of Protestantism caused immediate turmoil in his non-Catholic subjects, especially in Bohemia. He did not wish to uphold the religious liberties granted by the Letter of Majesty conceded, signed by the previous emperor, Rudolph II, which had guaranteed the freedom of religion to the nobles and the inhabitants of the cities. Additionally, Ferdinand was an absolutist monarch and infringed several historical privileges of the nobles. Given the relatively great number of Protestants in the kingdom, including some of the nobles, the king's unpopularity soon caused the Bohemian Revolt. The Second Defenestration of Prague of 22 May 1618 is considered the first step of the Thirty Years' War.


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