![]() ![]() Vauban had advocated a system of impregnable fortresses along the frontier to keep France's enemies out. Louis XIV, along with his chief military advisor, Louvois his foreign minister, Colbert de Croissy and his technical expert, Vauban, developed France's defensive strategy. Proclaimed the "Sun King", a more mature Louis, conscious that he had failed to achieve decisive results against the Dutch, had turned from conquest to security by using threats, rather than open war, to intimidate his neighbours into submission. Instead, he would rely upon France's clear military superiority to achieve specific strategic objectives along his borders. He had already won his personal glory by conquering new territory, but he was no longer willing to pursue an open-ended militarist policy of the kind that he had undertaken in 1672. In the years following the Franco-Dutch War (1672–78) Louis XIV of France, now at the height of his power, sought to impose religious unity in France and to solidify and expand his frontiers. This would lead to the War of the Spanish Succession in 1701. However, both sides viewed the peace as only a pause in hostilities, since it failed to resolve who would succeed the ailing and childless Charles II of Spain as ruler of the Spanish Empire, a question that had dominated European politics for over 30 years. Louis XIV also recognised William III as the rightful king of England, while the Dutch acquired barrier fortresses in the Spanish Netherlands to help secure their borders. ![]() Under the terms of the 1697 Peace of Ryswick, France retained Alsace but returned Lorraine to its ruler, and relinquished gains on the right bank of the Rhine. Although the initial military balance favoured France, by 1696 neither side was able to gain a significant advantage, and the main belligerents were financially exhausted, making them keen to negotiate a settlement. Over the next few years, fighting focused around the Spanish Netherlands, the Rhineland, the Duchy of Savoy, and Catalonia. However, Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor and German princes supported the Dutch in opposing French aims, while the November 1688 Glorious Revolution secured English resources and support for the Alliance. Louis XIV's decision to cross the Rhine in September 1688 was designed to extend his influence and pressure the Holy Roman Empire into accepting his territorial and dynastic claims. The Truce of Ratisbon guaranteed these new borders for twenty years, but concerns among European Protestants over French expansion and anti-Protestant policies led to the creation of the Grand Alliance, headed by William of Orange. Using a combination of aggression, annexation, and quasi-legal means, he then set about extending his gains to strengthen France's frontiers, culminating in the 1683 to 1684 War of the Reunions. Louis XIV of France emerged from the Franco-Dutch War in 1678 as the most powerful monarch in Europe. Related conflicts included the Williamite war in Ireland, and King William's War in North America. While concentrated in Europe, fighting spread to the Americas, India, and West Africa, and it has been called the first ever world war. The Nine Years' War (1688–1697), also known as the War of the Grand Alliance or War of the League of Augsburg, was a conflict between France and the Grand Alliance, a coalition including the Holy Roman Empire, the Dutch Republic, England, Spain, and Savoy.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |