Amendist Wars

Amendist Wars
The Estmerish siege of Wiesstadt, 1603
Date 1582 – 1607 Location Northern and central Euclea Result Peace of Frankendorf Amendist princes in the Rudolphine Confederation permitted to continue religious practices First Hennish Republic disbanded
Belligerents
Amendist League Ostbrücken Wolfsfled Bonnlitz Azmara Wittislich Estmere Caldia Hennish Republic Amathian Union Supported by: Soravia	Catholic League of Heaven Cislania (1582-1599) Roetenberg Ruttland Prizen (1582-1599) Elbenweis (1582-1599) Empire of Gaullica Poveglia Paretia
Commanders and leaders
Maximilian I Clovis VII	Otto VIII Louis IV
Strength

The Amendist Wars, also known as the Euclean Wars of the Religion, First Rudolphine Civil War, and the Twenty-Five Years War, was a series of conflicts from 1582 until 1607 fought between various Catholic and Amendist states in Eastern Euclea. Fighting began between members of the Rudolphine Confederation over the right of Amendist princes to practice their religion. The Rudolphine Protector Otto VIII sought to restrict the rights of Amendist princes. Internal conflict within the Confederation drew in Estmere, which supported many of the Amendist princes against the protector. The Amendist and Catholic sides each drew in their own allies, who fought for religious and political reasons. It was one of the largest and most destructive conflicts in Euclean history.

Tensions between the Amendist and Catholic sides had gone back decades to the Amendist Schism of 1534. The tolerant rule of Karl IV ended when his successor Otto VIII was selected in 1579. A devout Catholic, Otto instituted a policy of religious uniformity on his own domains. Solarian Catholicism was forced on the peoples of the territories directly ruled by the protector. During the 1570s, the protector expanded these policies to include all members of the Rudolphine Confederation. Angered by attempts to forcibly convert them and the threats Otto posed to their religious liberties, Amendist princes elected their own Protector following the Gothberg Diet in an act known as the Amendist Defiance. The pretender, Maximillian of Ostbrücken, solidified the support of other Amendist nations against the Catholic protector.

Fighting began in 1582 when Otto defeated forces loyal to Maximillian at the Battle of Kottenwice. The protector was successful in defeating the Amendist forces, but was stopped by a larger Amendist army days later. His attempt to swiftly end the Amendist Defiance and restore his authority over the Confederation failed. Estmere, which had guaranteed the rights of Amendist princes in the Confederation, soon intervened. The Estmerish intervention transformed what had initially been an internal conflict of the Rudolphine Confederation into a full-scale continent conflict that involved many of Euclea's leading powers. In 1599 the Estmerish were able to secure the election of Maximilian as protector following the sudden death of Otto VIII which drew further Catholic nations into the conflict.

The Amendist Wars resulted in the destruction of much of Northern Euclea. Entire regions were devastated by the conflict and cities were burned to the ground. Massacres were common throughout the war, with the worst happening during the Siege of Burges when Amendist forces killed over 20,000 of the cities 35,000 residents and defenders. There was a high mortality rate for members of the Rudolphine Confederation, Estmere, and Gaullica. Looting was also commonplace which resulted in significant hardships for the civilian populations in many regions.

While the overall conflict had no clear winner, the Amendist princes and Estmere ultimately benefited from the conflict. The right to free practice of religion was guaranteed by the Peace of Frankendorf. Amendist princes were also able to maintain and even grow their influence within the Rudolphine Confederation despite previous attempts by the protector to restrict their legal rights. Estmere was able to successfully undermine the authority of the Rudolphine Protectors and prevented Gaullica from relieving Catholic states in Werania. However, it the Gaullican Empire was able to make advancements into Hennehouwe, resulting in the end of the First Hennish Republic. Template:Kylaris