France emerged as the dominant power on the continent, while the Holy Roman Empire began a long, slow decline into a loose collection of independent states.

The Peace of Augsburg was reaffirmed and expanded to include Calvinism, effectively ending the era of large-scale religious wars in Europe.

The war was brutal. It introduced "total war" tactics where armies lived off the land, seizing crops and burning villages.

Spain and the Holy Roman Empire fought to maintain Catholic dominance and imperial unity.