In this activity, students will examine the causes, phases, and consequences of the Thirty Years’ War (1618–1648), tracing how a religiously driven conflict in Bohemia expanded into a Europe-wide contest for political and territorial control. They will also explore the Peace of Westphalia and its establishment of state sovereignty as a founding principle of the modern international system.

It has 11 questions for students to answer, as well as a paragraph response section for them to demonstrate their understanding of the topic.