Thanks for your support on Patreon, Philip Rice.

Philip Rice was present during the Battle of the River Leck and claimed to have fired the

cannonball the doomed Count Tilly.

We'll never know the truth for sure, but good effort, Philip.

This of course is all lie, but if you would like me to lie about you, you know where to go.

patreon.com forward slash when diplomacy fails. Now, on to the show.

Hello and welcome history friends patrons all to episode 56 of the 30 Years' War.

So last time we watched the triumphant scene of Brightonfeld play out,

as the Swedish army, led by its conquering King Gustavus Adolphus,

could us wade through Count Tilly's formerly unbeaten force,

with dramatic and immediate consequences for all involved.

Bridenfeld was a dramatic turnaround. This much is true, but for Gustavus, it was only the

beginning. Winning victory on the battlefield was one thing, but cementing that triumph,

placing his personal stamp over Germany, a stamp which would stand the test of time, was quite another.

To do this, as 1631 became 1632, Gustavus would have to stand up to another fearsome leader of

the Emperor's men, Albert von Wallenstein.

Wallenstein had been recalled to lead by his Emperor, but after a year of watching his

personal fortunes

plummet, as his estates and land holdings were raided or returned to their former owners,

Valenstein would probably have felt compelled to intervene anyway. Banking on the experience of

Tilly to save his livelihood had not worked out, in fact a disaster had been visited upon the imperial cause instead.

Now, as the men who had once so gleefully undermined him in summer 1630 turned out to offer him

...