Check out Sharp Mind Media, where Anna and I are releasing Sudoku books, colouring books, and we have huge plans to make even more! For screen-free entertainment in a screen-filled world, Sharp Mind Media is for you! With the King of Denmark on the march, and the net closing in on him, Emperor Ferdinand was forced to go big or go home. So instead, he went big, VERY big. He turned to Albrecht von Wallenstein, thus far his most important loan shark and self-made millionaire, not to mention influential landowner. What would be the consequences if the Emperor created his own private army, answerable to nobody but him? In fact, you could argue that this was the moment when the war became the conflict we know today. Ferdinand raised the stakes, and those stakes would eventually swallow him whole. **DON'T FORGET TO FOLLOW THESE LINKS!** 1) To support the podcast financially in return for some extra audio content, check out Patreon! 2) To find a community of history friends, look at our Facebook page and group! 3) To keep up to date with us, follow us on Twitter! 4) For everything else, visit our website! 5) For merchandise including tees and mugs, all you have to do is click here! 6) Get our new Thirty Years War book, For God or the Devil!   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.