The Experience of Violence During the Thirty Years War: A Look at the Civilian Victims

In more popular accounts, the description of violence centres on the atrocities that were the hallmark of the drawn out conflict. The sack of Magdeburg and the so-called "Swedish drink", a method of torture, figure prominently in them. They focus on the brutal acts committed by the soldiers, while the victims within the populace are not given much thought, if at all. Victims, civilian victims to be precise, deserve attention. Thus a clear picture of the experience of the victims is of utmost importance for understanding the war and its impact. It is well-known that the plague was the main cause of death during the Thirty Years War, followed by hunger. Quite often the victims succeeded in reducing the amount of money demanded. To sum up the findings of a close look at violence, it becomes obvious that it would be wrong to claim that the experience of the civilians was always that of down-and-out losers.