Religion and the State

Henry IV (or Henri, also known as Henry of Navarre) helped to usher in a slightly more "tolerant" age and brought the Bourbon family into power as the feeble Valois family declined. Henry decided that his state, France, was more important than his religion (Protestantism), and that "Paris was worth a mass." Meaning he would convert to Catholicism if that meant he could be king. Under Henry IV the Huguenots, French Calvinists, were recognized by the French government and allowed to live in certain fortified cities in the Edict of Nantes. For awhile at least, Henry helped to stave off the implosion of France.

They call me daddy long legs

Meanwhile in Germany, similar problems were also brewing between the Protestant and Catholic factions. The Peace of Augsburg had developed problems. While it allowed nobles to choose the religion, Lutheranism or Calvinism, of their land but  it did not recognize the growing number of Calvinists in Germany. Also, religious pluralism was not allowed within a noble's land. Meaning if he had chosen Catholicism then you could get in trouble for choosing Lutheranism. Additionally political tensions among the various nobles in the general area of the Holy Roman Empire had been brewing for years. Religious tensions just served as a catalyst for war. Finally in Bohemia the infamous Defenestration of Prague occurred that started off the Thirty Years War. Two Catholic officials of the unpopular Ferdinand II had been thrown out a window. Whether their survival can be attributed to a pile of soft manure or angels; well, that would depend on your religion. This marked the beginning of the first part of overly convoluted war.