unconcerned about the effect of religious conflict on the ability to withstand the Ottomans. The Counter-Reformation was to continue to the end of the Thirty Year War in 1648. Austria and the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) Ferdinand II (1619–1637) and Habsburg over-reach When the ultra-pious and intransigent Ferdinand II (1619–1637) was elected Emperor (as Ferdinand II) in 1619 to succeed his cousin Mathias, he embarked on an energetic attempt to re-Catholicize not only the Hereditary Provinces, but Bohemia and Habsburg Hungary as well as most of Protestant Europe within the Holy Roman Empire. Outside his lands, Ferdinand II's reputation for strong headed uncompromising intolerance had triggered the religious Thirty Years' War in May 1618 in the polarizing first phase, known as the Revolt in Bohemia. Once the Bohemian Revolt had been put down in 1620, he embarked on a concerted effort to eliminate Protestantism in Bohemia and Austria, which was largely successful as was his efforts to reduce the power of the Diet. The religious suppression of the counter-reformation reached its height in 1627 with the Provincial Ordinance (Verneuerte Landesordnung). After several initial reverses, Ferdinand II had become more accommodating but as the Catholics turned things around and began to enjoy a long string of successes at arms he set forth the Edict of Restitution in 1629 in an attempt to restore the status quo of 1555 (Peace of Augsburg), vastly complicating the politics of settlement negotiations and prolonging the rest of the war. Encouraged by the mid-war successes, Ferdinand II became even more forceful, leading to infamies by his armies such as the Frankenburg Lottery (Frankenburger Würfelspiel) (1625), suppression of the consequent Peasants' Revolt of 1626, and the Sack of Magdeburg (1631). Despite concluding the Peace of Prague (1635) with Saxony, and hence the internal, or civil, war with the Protestants, the war would drag on due to the intervention of many foreign states. Ferdinand III and the peace process (1637–1648) By the time of Ferdinand II's death in 1637, the war was progressing disastrously for the Habsburgs, and his son Ferdinand III (1637–1657) who had been one of his military commanders was faced with the task of salvaging the consequences of his father's extremism. Ferdinand III was far more pragmatic and had been considered the leader of the peace party at court and had helped negotiate the Peace of Prague in 1635. However, with continuing losses in the