The

The Welcome to a history of Europe Key Battles.

The French Wars of Religion 1562 to 1598.

Part 3 of 4

The Last week I talked about the outbreak of the French wars of religion.

At the same time as this was happening, I talked about the outbreak of the French wars of religion.

At the same time as this was happening, a similar crisis broke out across the border in the Habsburg Territories

of the Low Countries, or Netherlands.

The Habsburg's authorities had tried hard to stamp out Protestantism throughout the Empire,

and at first were having some success.

In the 1540s, the numbers of Protestants declined, but in the 1550s, as in France, their

fortunes were revived.

In 1556, Philip II inherited the Low Countries at the same time as he became King of Spain.

At first the local Protestants were cautious about open descent,

but Philip's heavy-handedness helped combine the zeal of the Protestant minority

with the fierce pride of the Dutch nobility and the defence of their traditional local privileges.

Trouble began with calls over demands from Philip for more taxes.

Dutch nobles were also unhappy about the increased powers put into the hands of Philip's

representatives. What's more, they bitterly resented proposals for reforms, which threatened

the liberties which they had fought so hard for since the times of the Valois, Dukes of Burgundy.

Tensions came out fully into the open in 1566, known in the Netherlands as the Wonder Year, the real beginning of Dutch resistance to Spanish rule.

The problems were exacerbated by the fact that the region was suffering economic hardships,

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