Demanding justice or expressing dissatisfaction can be done in various ways. Protestant Czechs had a particular fondness for defenestration (throwing people out of windows). They began this tradition in 1419, during the Hussite uprising, and in 1618, they treated the imperial governors in the same way, which subsequently led to the outbreak of the Thirty Years’ War. Initially, it was a religious war between Protestants and Catholics. However, the issue of dominance in Europe was equally significant. For example, France, wanting to weaken the Catholic Habsburgs and gain strength itself, joined the fight in 1635 on the side of the Protestants, despite being a Catholic country.

Thirty years of fighting took a bloody toll on both soldiers and civilians. However, it did not bring a definitive resolution. France’s influence in Europe increased, and Sweden also gained. The Habsburgs theoretically suffered greater losses, but their power in Bohemia and Hungary grew.

In our alternative version of history, the Treaty of Westphalia, which ended the war, was never signed. Numerous treaties and agreements between the various sides of the conflict were signed, ending the war but on slightly different terms. Above all, the peace is much less stable, and the threat of war still hangs over Europe. Additionally, the power of the Austrian Habsburgs over all the German states was not weakened, and they did not gain the right to conduct their own foreign policy.