Destruction of the Oberstift

Destruction of the Oberstift
	Part of The Cologne War
	; Several dozen small towns and fortified farms and villages south of Bruhl were plundered and burned.
Date	late December 1582 – June 1583
Location	Electorate of Cologne50°41′0″N 7°8′0″E
Result	no winners
Belligerents
Gebhard Truchsess von Waldburg, Prince-Elector, Cologne 1578-1588; House of Neuenahr-Alpen; House of Waldburg	Ernst of Bavaria Prince-Elector, Cologne, 1583-1612 ; House of Wittelsbach; House of Isenburg-Grenzau; House of Mansfeld (main line)
Commanders and leaders
Karl, Truchsess von Waldburg	Ferdinand of Bavaria
Casualties and losses
unknown	unknown

The destruction of the Oberstift, which included Linz, Ahrweiler, and other small towns and villages, occurred in the opening months of the Cologne War, from Christmas Day, 1582 until the end of March, 1583. Over these few weeks, armies of the competing archbishops of Cologne burned the southernmost villages, cloisters, and small towns.

In the Cologne War (1583–1589) two men competed for control of the Electorate of Cologne and sought to control one of the wealthiest Electorates in the Holy Roman Empire. Their contest lasted until 1589, when Gebhard Truchsess von Waldburg renounced his claim and moved to Strassbourg; Ernst of Bavaria became uncontested Prince elector of Cologne, the first Wittelsbach to hold the position; his family maintained their hold on it until 1761. Under his direction, Jesuits introduced the Counter-Reformation to the north-western German states and under the leadership of his successors, these territories remained a Catholic stronghold until the late eighteenth century.

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