Altranstadt Convention

The Altranstädt Convention (also known as the Treaty of Altranstädt ) was signed on September 1, 1707 in the Altranstädt Palace between Charles XII. of Sweden and Norway I. Josef closed.

In it the emperor granted freedom of belief to Silesia . The Silesian Protestants were given back 121 of their illegally confiscated churches after 1648 and the construction of six grace churches in Sagan , Freystadt , Hirschberg , Landeshut , Militsch and in Teschen were allowed.

The three existing peace churches of Glogau , Jauer and Schweidnitz were also allowed to be fitted with towers and bells.

Altranstädter Castle

Monument in the inner courtyard erected on the occasion of the Altranstadt Convention of September 1st, 1707

The political background

Commemorative medal for the Swedish-Polish alliance of 1706

After Sweden was attacked by Denmark , Saxony and Russia in March 1700 in the Great Northern War , in which between 1700 and 1721 was struggling for supremacy in the Baltic Sea region , the Swedish King Charles XII occupied. 1706 after successful battles in Saxony and established his permanent quarters in Altranstädt Palace , which was located west of Leipzig . From there he planned militarily and diplomatically the continuation of the war against the Russian Tsar Peter I. On his way to Saxony, Karl moved over Silesia and thus over the imperial territory, thereby violating the obligation to the imperial peace.

On September 24, 1706 there was a peace treaty of Altranstädt between Sweden and Saxony-Poland. In it, August II (Augustus the Strong), who was both Elector of Saxony and King of Poland , had to renounce the Polish crown. Charles XII. put Stanislaus I. Leszczyński as the new Polish king in his place . August the Strong had waged his war against Sweden with the help of a 1226-strong Russian auxiliary force. Charles XII. asked him to hand them over to him. August evaded this demand by ceding the auxiliary troops to the emperor. Now the Swedish king turned this demand in a sharp tone to the emperor. The imperial envoy to the Swedish court, Franz Ludwig von Zinzendorf , feared that Charles XII, who was known as a staunch Lutheran, might use the oppression of the majority Protestant population in the Habsburg-imperial province of Silesia as an opportunity to occupy this province. With this, Sweden would have entered de facto on the side of its traditional ally France in the War of the Spanish Succession against the Emperor, which has been going on since 1701 . Since most of the imperial troops were tied up in the western theaters of war, Silesia could hardly have been effectively defended.

According to the Westphalian peace treaty of 1648, the Swedish king had a say in Silesian religious affairs and was considered the protector of the Protestants. At first the Viennese court did not believe in serious intervention because Karl had turned down this possibility in February 1707. Among the Silesian Protestants he was seen as a savior and a second Gustav Adolf who could restore them to their religious freedom.

Henning von Stralenheim

Charles XII. commissioned his envoy in Vienna, Baron Henning von Stralenheim in March 1707, to prepare a detailed report on the situation of the Silesian Protestants. Although the king's primary focus was on preparations for war against Russia, he welcomed this religious excuse to put pressure on the imperial court.

The subject of the dispute

The dispute was primarily about the (reconciliated) churches in the principalities of Liegnitz , Brieg and Wohlau that had been taken away from the Protestants . After the last Calvinist Piast Duke of Lower Silesia , Georg Wilhelm I, died in 1675, the Reformed people lost their support. Emperor Leopold I then began the Counter Reformation there , which, however, was slow to develop due to the threat of the Turks . Now a journalistic dispute arose there over the interpretation of the Westphalian peace treaty in this area, whether its provisions in favor of the Evangelicals were simply the result of imperial grace, so that they could be withdrawn at any time, or whether they were binding and therefore not dependent on the benevolence of the emperor . The Viennese court maintained the former, the Protestants emphasized that the churches reconciled after 1648 were theirs.

The content

The convention itself did not consist of one document, but of two “instruments”. The reason for this was tensions due to the protocol. Contrary to current diplomatic practice, Charles XII wanted. must be mentioned in front of the emperor and addressed as "Majesty", which Emperor Joseph I did not want to allow. The first “instrument”, which represented the actual convention, was signed by the Catholic side, namely by the imperial minister, Johann Wenzel Graf Wratislaw von Mitrowitz , and by the emperor. The second "instrument" were three separate Swedish articles in which Charles XII. articulated some of his reservations. The main body of the Convention is made up of four articles, the first being the most important.

Silesia

The first article describes the controversial Silesian religious regulations in eleven paragraphs. The principalities of Liegnitz, Brieg, Wohlau, Oels , Münsterberg and the city of Breslau benefited most from these provisions . In these cities all churches and schools that had been taken away from the Protestants after the Peace of Westphalia had to be returned. (Art. 1 § 1). The emperor undertook not to take away any church or school in the entire Silesian area, but to protect the clergy and school employees. In those areas in which a Catholic gentleman exercised the right of patronage over a Protestant church, he had to appoint the Protestant clergy (Art. 1 § 8).

The other provisions related to the whole of Silesia. In particular in the hereditary principalities, in which since 1648 the public confession of the Augsburg Confession was forbidden, the private confession was allowed, the right of public exercise was granted. The number of Protestant clergymen should not be reduced and no one should be forced to attend Catholic services (Art. 1 § 2 and 3).

The Swedish separate articles were introduced with the will of the Swedish king to consolidate the “sincere friendship” with the House of Austria, followed by three articles. In the first, Karl invoked the importance of the Peace of Westphalia; in the second, he promised to withdraw with his army from the imperial hereditary lands immediately after it had been ensured that the emperor would have ratified the convention and published it sufficiently. In the third article, Karl threatened that he would remain in Silesia until the resolutions were ratified if the convention was not complied with within the specified time. The deadline was six months.

In terms of content, the convention was primarily a religious treaty in favor of the Silesian Lutherans - the Reformed were excluded. The Viennese court tried to limit the damage and now had to consider to what extent the treaty would influence the imperial religious policy. It was realized that the convention could have a stabilizing effect on the Reformed allies, since nothing had been decided that did not go beyond the Westphalian peace treaty. Nevertheless, there were quite a few negative voices who, regardless of their tolerant way of thinking, had to admit that the absolutist "universal religious unity" that had been waged since the Thirty Years' War had come to an end in Silesia. Silesia remained a confessionally mixed area in which the Counter Reformation was only partially successful.

The return of the churches

For the Catholics, the return of the churches was almost an imposition, as the number was not small. In the Principality of Brieg, almost half of all Lutheran churches were reduced at that time. In the Principality of Wohlau it was a third and in the Principality of Liegnitz it was less than a third.

The main concerns were theological, however, as Catholics found it difficult to give up consecrated churches. So the Religious Commission began to give back the not yet consecrated churches ("blocked churches"). By the end of the six month period, with a few controversial exceptions, all reconciliated churches have been returned. By 1709 there were a total of 125 churches.

The six Silesian territories privileged in the Peace of Westphalia were largely given their old evangelical freedoms. The Protestant estates tried to obtain further discounts in the other areas. The Evangelicals were able to record some successes. So they were allowed to build towers, bells and schools next to the towerless peace churches of Glogau , Schweidnitz and Jauer , although they had to be made of half-timbered, unless the churches were a cannon shot away from the city gates. It was also decided to re-establish the Lutheran consistory in the principalities of Liegnitz, Brieg and Wohlau.

The grace churches

The Mercy Church of Hirschberg in the Principality of Jauer in a contemporary representation

But the Protestants were certainly able to achieve the greatest success of the second round of negotiations when they demanded the six "grace churches" in Freystadt, Sagan, Militisch, Hirschberg, Landeshut and Teschen from the emperor . The establishment of five to six additional Protestant churches was already the subject of negotiations before the Altranstadt Convention was signed. This point was taken up in the second round of negotiations.

The Silesian evangelical estates had until November 20, 1708 to apply for a church of grace on their territory. In January 1709 the decision on the six cities was finally made. However, this term was not used immediately. Initially one spoke of "tolerance churches". The emperor was ready to make this admission, but wanted to save face. He did not want the Swedes to boast about the erection of these churches, but wanted to show to the outside world that these churches were created by imperial grace. This term was soon picked up.

The Wroclaw Executionary Recess

Almost a year and a half after the signing of the Altranstädter Convention and eleven months after the set 6-month period, the convention was brought to a conclusion on February 8, 1709 with the Wroclaw Executive Recess. As imperial commissioner, Johann Anton Gotthard von Schaffgotsch (1675–1742), the Catholic governor of the principalities of Schweidnitz and Jauer , was involved in the implementation of the convention. The religious commission and the imperial special plenipotentiary, Count Zinzendorff, met in the Wroclaw quarters of the Swedish envoy Stralenheim to issue the relevant documents there. Both sides were now happy that it had come to a close. Seen in this way, unlike a year and a half earlier, there was no loser. For the imperial the so-called "Swedish lapel" was the most important point. In it Stralenheim declared that all demands of the Protestants had been met. Thus the Swedish right of intercession in favor of the Silesian Protestants from the Peace of Westphalia was extinguished. A few months after the Wroclaw executive recession, the Swedish army suffered a disastrous defeat in the Battle of Poltava in Ukraine, which ultimately meant the end of Sweden's position as a great power in Europe. The Silesian Protestants could therefore consider themselves lucky that the convention had come into force before this event.

The importance of the convention

The Altranstadt Convention thus represented a significant turning point in the denominational history of Silesia. It ended Catholic absolutism and thus the Counter-Reformation and ensured that Silesia continued to be a mixed denominational region. The freedom of religion anchored in the Westphalian peace treaty had previously rarely been applied in Silesia, or had been revised afterwards. So the Protestants only gained their rights from 1707/09 (which, however, did not mean equal rights with the Catholics). This tolerance was expressly limited to the Augsburg Confession. For the reformed denominations it was only at the end of the 18th century. easier, namely under the rule of Emperor Joseph II. However , the Protestants became an equal denomination much later, in Austria only with the Protestant patent of Emperor Franz Joseph I (1861).

literature

Sources, editions and translations

Acta Publica including a thorough deduction of Derer Evangel. Schlesier Religions-Freyheit / Worinnen All those writings, which at the Schlesisches Religions-Werck, both from the Kayserl. Highly respectable Execution Commission to Breßlau, as well as the Royal Swedish Plenipotentiary and others came out, also since then. 1707. to last April. 1708. Printed now and then, but now it has been brought together / to be detailed on the sheet opposite. Frankfurt / Leipzig (trade fairs) 1708. - Digitized copy of the Saxon State Library - Dresden State and University Library .

Lehmannus: Suppletus & Continuatus. That is: Continuation of the imperial actions, writings and protocols on the Holy Roman Empire Constitutiones of the land and religious peace. Also what they were reminded of because of the peace tracts on Münster and Oßnabrück [...]. H. Groß, Frankfurt am Main 1709, pp. 811-1042 ( Silesia ), here: pp. 847-852 (Latin and German).

"Brachvogelsche Ediktensammlung": continuation of their Kayser and royal privileges, statutes and sanctionum pragmaticarum of the state of Silesia / with the most gracious Kayser and royal. Grant / the common being brought together for the best. Third part. Christian Brachvogel, Breslau 1717, pp. 919–943 (Latin contract text and German translation).

Johann Adam Hensel: Protestant Church History of the Common in Silesia. Siegerts, Leipzig / Liegnitz 1768, pp. 563-567 (contemporary German translation).

Jaroslav Goll : The Treaty of Alt-Ranstaedt. Austria and Sweden 1707–1707. A contribution to the history of Austrian politics during the Nordic War. Prague 1879 (= Abhandlungen der Kgl. Böhm. Society of Sciences, VI. Volume . Volume 10), pp. 58–61 (Latin text).

Ernst Carlson : The contract between Karl XII. of Sweden and Emperor Joseph I. zu Altranstädt 1707. Stockholm 1907, pp. 34–53 (Latin and German, based on the original contract in the Swedish Imperial Archives).

Secondary literature

Norbert Conrads : The implementation of the Altranstädter Convention in Silesia 1707–1709 (= research and sources on the church and cultural history of East Germany . Volume 8 ). Böhlau, Cologne / Vienna 1971, ISBN 3-412-90171-7 .

Frank Metasch: 300 years of the Altranstädter Convention - 300 years of Silesian tolerance. Accompanying publication to the exhibition of the Silesian Museum Görlitz . Thelem, Dresden 2007, ISBN 978-3-939888-27-7 .

Gregor Ploch: The importance of the Altranstädter Convention (1707) for the Protestants in Silesia . In: Gregor Ploch, Jerzy Myszor , Christine Kucinski (eds.): The ethnic-national identity of the inhabitants of Upper Silesia and Teschener Silesia . Münster 2008, ISBN 978-83-60071-13-7 .

Hans-Wolfgang Bergerhausen (Hrsg.): The Altranstädter Convention of 1707. Contributions to the history of its origins and to its significance for denominational development in Silesia . Würzburg 2009, ISBN 978-3-87057-295-2 .

Web links

Altranstädter Convention (Latin)

Individual evidence

↑ Michael Sachs: The flight of the evangelical wife Anna Magdalena von Reibnitz (1664– ~ 1745) with her five children from Silesia, threatened by forced Catholicization, in 1703 - a mood picture from the age of the Counter Reformation and Pietism. In: Medical historical messages. Journal for the history of science and specialist prose research. Volume 34, 2015 (2016), pp. 221–263, here: pp. 228 f.
↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k N. Conrads: The implementation of the Altranstädter Convention. 1971.
↑ ^a ^b ^c G. Ploch: The importance of the Altranstädter Convention. 2008.
↑ F. Metasch: 300 years of the Altranstädter Convention. 2007, pp. 37-40.
↑ Michael Sachs: The flight of the evangelical wife Anna Magdalena von Reibnitz (1664– ~ 1745) with her five children from Silesia, threatened by forced Catholicization, in 1703 - a mood picture from the age of the Counter Reformation and Pietism. In: Medical historical messages. Journal for the history of science and specialist prose research. Volume 34, 2015 (2016), pp. 221–263, here: pp. 228 f. and 231.

[1] Michael Sachs: The flight of the evangelical wife Anna Magdalena von Reibnitz (1664– ~ 1745) with her five children from Silesia, threatened by forced Catholicization, in 1703 - a mood picture from the age of the Counter Reformation and Pietism. In: Medical historical messages. Journal for the history of science and specialist prose research. Volume 34, 2015 (2016), pp. 221–263, here: pp. 228 f.

[Conrads-2] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k N. Conrads: The implementation of the Altranstädter Convention. 1971.

[Ploch-3] G. Ploch: The importance of the Altranstädter Convention. 2008.

[4] F. Metasch: 300 years of the Altranstädter Convention. 2007, pp. 37-40.

[5] Michael Sachs: The flight of the evangelical wife Anna Magdalena von Reibnitz (1664– ~ 1745) with her five children from Silesia, threatened by forced Catholicization, in 1703 - a mood picture from the age of the Counter Reformation and Pietism. In: Medical historical messages. Journal for the history of science and specialist prose research. Volume 34, 2015 (2016), pp. 221–263, here: pp. 228 f. and 231.