[PATRONS]
By 1628, the Habsburgs seemed triumphant. The plan was then to reach the Baltic, and build a fleet of their own to terrify Scandinavia into submission. Would it work? The recent gift of Mecklenburg, along the Baltic shore, and Pomeranian weakness, suggested it would.
All that stood in the way of Wallenstein's plan, was the Baltic port city of Stralsund. Stocked by veteran mercenaries, and aided by Swedish and Danish troops, the city's residents stood strong. By the summer, the city was under Sweden's protection, hinting that King Gustavus Adolphus would soon turn his attention to Germany, as his Polish war wound down.
Triumphant, the Emperor believed the time was right to rectify the religious order of things... just at exactly the wrong time.