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France: After Wars of Religion France began her climb with the help of extremely good monarchs and superior ministers. The great achievement of French politics is late participation to the 30 Years War and ability to keep Spain out of it. France machinates two wars against England and was very successful in these. Late in the period he helps Turkey to reduce Spanish influence to Venice to pave his own supremacy in Med.
Holland: Holland uses pro-English policy, and concentrates his commercial actions to Med and South America. As the rest of Hungary is threatened by Turkey, he allies with Spain and fights a short indecisive war with Turkey, which hinders Turkish drive towards Wien. As English predominance seems to grow too high, Holland joins France and Spain to slow England. Holland has used very cautious tactic, which brought him more VPs than any other player got. It still left Holland vulnerable to the future shocks to her economy, as French interests conflict his owns in Med and in Flanders.
Russia: After Polish disaster Russia raised his stability and participated to the war against Sweden as Swedish armies were in Germany. After war of attrition Russia was able to get Courland from Sweden and prevent total protestant victory in the 30 Years War. Early Peter the Great left Russia to improve his economy and to prepare his armies to the future operations against Poland. It could be hard to stop Russian armies in the sixth period.
Spain: 30 Years War started fabulously, but it turned to be almost disasterous as reinforcement die rolls were under all considerations. (Lot of 1s and 2s.) Only Russian help turned the tide to the stalemate. Spain used Turkish low stability and hit him hard early on the period, so it took half a period for Turkey to be a active major power in Europe. With the help of his Venetian and Genoese allies he almost pressed Turkey back to the Black Sea and away from the shores of Med. Only at land Turkey were able to operate and finally Turkish forces threatened Wien, as Hungarian provinces were annexed one by one. Spanish and Dutch help postponed this threat from the Habsburgs, but it will emerge again, as Spain was unable to save her ally Venice from the combined attack from Turkey and France. Although Spain operated several times together with France, it has become clearer all the time, that the main threat to Spain is coming, not from Turkey, but from France. The greatest victory to the Spain was suppression of Portuguese national revolt, and it will keep Spain high during the years of the 18th century.
Turkey: Polish disaster combined with unconditional surrender to the
Spain was almost fatal to the Turkish empire, but as all other powers were
concentrated to the 30 Years War, English Civil War and Wars between England
and Allies, he was able to take Persia out of the game totally, and late
in the period he is able to neutralize Spanish hegemony in Eastern Mediterranean
together with France by forcing unconditional surrender to Venice twice.