On what exact date was the Peace of Westphalia signed?

The Peace of Westphalia was signed on 24 October 1648. It was a settlement made up chiefly of the Treaty of Münster and the Treaty of Osnabrück, agreements that ended the Thirty Years’ War in the Holy Roman Empire.

The peace was negotiated in two Westphalian cities because the principal sides wanted talks on ground acceptable to them. Münster hosted negotiations involving the emperor and France, while Osnabrück handled negotiations involving the emperor and Sweden. The separate treaties were signed on the same date, making 24 October 1648 the canonical answer for the Peace of Westphalia.

The settlement adjusted territory, confirmed the political rights of many imperial princes, and recognized Catholicism, Lutheranism, and Calvinism within the Empire’s religious framework. It also strengthened the independence of the Dutch Republic and Switzerland in the wider European settlement. A common mix-up is the Peace of Münster signed on 30 January 1648, which ended the Dutch Revolt’s war with Spain and is related to—but distinct from—the October agreements. Westphalia is often linked to modern state sovereignty, although historians debate how directly that concept originated there.