Hey, everyone. So I'm reading about the Thirty Years War and could use a little clarification on this. So Matthias was the Holy Roman Emperor as well as the King of Bohemia and King of Hungary. Ferdinand was elected to follow Matthias as King of Bohemia in 1617. Did he become the king right after the election, or was he supposed to become king once Matthias died? I know that things got all screwed up with the Defenestration of Prague and the election of Frederick to be king, etc. etc. But I don't quite understand if Ferdinand was actually king by that point, or just kind of a "king-elect."
Also, a related question: How did Ferdinand II die? None of the sources I have give a cause of death.
A reply to /u/old_idiot
Ferdinand became "king-elect" upon election by the Diet of Bohemia in 1617. His coronation was on June 29, 1617, at which time he became "King Designate of Bohemia". He did not have to wait for Matthias' passing before he took power. Such succession was not uncommon, the Habsburgs did this to ensure proper succession among their unwieldy states of inheritance. In particular, Matthias was heirless, so Ferdinand II the newphew had to work with Matthias to ensure each of the succession.
After securing the Kingship of Bohemia, he and Matthias went to visit other HRE electors to lobby for their support in the coming HRE election. The following year, they went to Hungary to try and also ensure Ferdinand's election there.
As Ferdinand II rose to be King of Bohemia, and Matthias retired, the process of regime change started. Imperial diplomats and courtiers largely left Prague to follow Matthias back to Vienna at the end of 1617. This is one reason why Ferdinand seemed unaware of the brewing discontent in Prague.
Ferdinand II naturally rewarded his own supporters with high office, including Vilém Slavata z Chlumu a Košumberka and Jaroslav Bořita z Martinic, to be regents and as such to administer Bohemia in his absence. They were sent to Prague in May 1618, just as Bohemian nobles in Prague started protesting against the election of Ferdinand II, and then .... wait for it ..... defenestrate these two off the palace window. This was a calculated move by Protestant aristocratic malcontents to literally stir trouble, in hopes of gaining support from their more moderate colleagues.
The rest, as they say, is history.
Ferdinand II died at age 58 from natural cause.
G. Parker, "The Thirty Years' War," ISBN-13: 978-0415128834, 1997.
P. H. Wilson, "The Thirty Years' War: A Sourcebook," ISBN 978–0–230–24206–7, 2010.