ALL meanings of thirty years' war
Thirty Years' War
T t - noun thirty years' war the war, often regarded as a series of wars (1618–48), in central Europe, initially involving a conflict between German Protestants and Catholics and later including political rivalries with France, Sweden, and Denmark opposing the Holy Roman Empire and Spain. 1
- noun thirty years' war a major conflict involving principally Austria, Denmark, France, Holland, the German states, Spain, and Sweden, that devastated central Europe, esp large areas of Germany (1618–48). It began as a war between Protestants and Catholics but was gradually transformed into a struggle to determine whether the German emperor could assert more than nominal authority over his princely vassals. The Peace of Westphalia gave the German states their sovereignty and the right of religious toleration and confirmed French ascendancy 0
- noun thirty years' war a series of European wars (1618-48) on political and religious issues, fought orig. between German Catholics and German Protestants, but later involving the Swedish, French, and Spanish 0