ABSTRACT
This conclusion presents some closing thoughts covered in the preceding chapters of this book. In the century prior to Westphalia, Protestants and Catholics sought to resolve by force of arms the new religious divisions created by the Reformation and Counter-Reformation. The essays included in the book are quite varied in methodology. Some examine the views and motives of particular individuals: Louis XIV (Sonnino), three English diplomats (Jettot), the dissenting English minister Roger Morrice (Taylor). Others analyse the foreign policy of governments, namely those of Spain (Storrs), England (Thompson), and the Dutch Republic (Onnekink). Still other essays focus on political rhetoric and public discourse (Haks, Stern, Bergin), while the role of religion in the conduct of warfare is also addressed (McLay, Glozier). What emerges from these essays is some real difference in opinion among scholars as to the degree and nature of secularisation in European politics in the period in question.
