330 MODERN CIVILIZATION along the route; the French army subdued the Leaguers. Philip, being short of money, decided to make peace (1598). He died, leaving the kingdom of Spain com- pletely ruined. The provinces, united, continued the war, and forced his successor, Philip III., to recognize their independence (1609). However, the efforts of Philip II. had not been entirely useless. If he did not succeed in imposing upon all Christendom the Catholic religion, he at least contributed to the re-establishment of it throughout the greater part of Europe. ELIZABETH Protestantism in England,—The England of the six- teenth century was very different from the England of our day: it had as yet neither industry nor com- merce; the population was composed of peasants and of country gentlemen. Excepting London and Bristol, there was no town of more than 10,000 souls. From the end of the fifteenth century the king had had abso- lute power over the nation and the clergy. The reli- gion of England then depended upon the decision of the king. Therefore England changed religion with every change of sovereign (four times in the period of thirty years), Henry VIII., who had studied theology, had decided against the doctrines of Luther; he even wrote a refu- tation of them; his prime minister, Wolsey, had been made a cardinal, and Henry VIII. was for some time one of the firmest upholders of the pope. He broke