Sacred music as public image for Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand III: representing the counter-reformation monarch at the end of the Thirty Years' War

Ferdinand III played a crucial role both in helping to end the Thirty Years' War and in re-establishing Habsburg sovereignty within his hereditary lands, and yet he remains one of the most neglected of all Habsburg emperors.

The underlying premise of Sacred Music as Public Image for Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand III is that Ferdinand's accomplishments came not through diplomacy or strong leadership but primarily through a skillful manipulation of the arts, through which he communicated important messages to his subjects and secured their allegiance to the Catholic Church.

An important locus for cultural activity at court, especially as related to the Habsburgs' political power, was the Emperor's public image.