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Essay / Treaty of Westphalia Research Paper - 1258
Born in the Westphalian region of northwest Germany, the Treaty of Westphalia ended one of the most destructive religious conflicts in history European. Stemming from a complicated diplomatic congress, the Treaty of Westphalia created what is known as the Westphalian model of sovereign states in 1648. Particularly, at a time of great economic, political and religious conflicts between European principalities, The Treaty effectively ended the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) in the Holy Roman Empire and Eighty Years' War (1568–1648) between Spain and the Dutch Republic. Accordingly, the Treaty established three fundamental principles: the principle of state sovereignty, the principle of legal equality of states and the principle of non-intervention of one state in the affairs of the other. Additionally, the Treaty of Westphalia ended the rule of the Holy Roman Empire and recognized Calvinism as the third acceptable religion after Catholicism and Lutheranism. In essence, the Westphalian model gives preference to the national interests of each nation-state over the interests of the international community as a whole. The Westphalian model launches the development of market capitalism and celebrates the triumph of sovereignty over empire and nationality over globality. The Westphalian model works as follows: MARKET CAPITALISM – ANTI-GLOBAL CAUSE – ANTI-IMPERIAL FORCE1. The Treaty of Westphalia unleashes the forces of market capitalism.2. Its principles of sovereignty and self-determination, non-interference and legal equality constitute a major force of the anti-global cause in the 21st century. By effectively ending the rule of the Holy Roman Empire, the Treaty of Westphalia emerged as an anti-imperial force. The Westp...... middle of paper ...... as a result, the Westphalian model creates a dichotomy between the interests of market capitalism versus the global agenda. The Peace of Westphalia model in its entirety can be used to justify a national movement that favors managed rather than expansive neoliberal capitalism due to its fixation on the national cause. The analytical deconstruction of the Westphalian model provides important clues to the nature and development of concepts such as capitalism, imperialism and globalization. The “ghost” of the Westphalian model still pursues and influences the decisions made by leaders around the world. In its quest to build a democratic and egalitarian national order, the Westphalian model seeks to promote legal equality and the capitalist economy of nation-states without destroying or hindering its cultural and political diversity by establishing an imperial or global regime..