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Nine Years' War

Nine Years War
Siege of Namur, June 1692 by Jean-Baptiste Martin le vieux
Military Conflict
ConflictNine Years' War
DateSeptember 1688 � September 1697
LocationContinental Europe, Ireland, North America, Asia
ResultTreaty of Ryswick
Louis XIV recognizes William III of Orange as King of England, Scotland and Ireland.
Territorial
changes
France retains Alsace (including Strasbourg) and surrenders Freiburg, Breisach and Philippsburg to the Holy Roman Empire, regains Pondicherry (after paying the Dutch a sum of 16,000 pagodas) and Nova Scotia, Spain recovered Catalonia from France, and the barrier fortresses of Mons, Luxembourg and Kortrijk. The Duchy of Lorraine was restored to Leopold Joseph from France.
Grand Alliance:
Dutch Republic
Kingdom of England
Holy Roman Empire
Spain
Duchy of Savoy
Sweden (until 1691)
Kingdom of Scotland
Kingdom of France
Irish Jacobites
Dutch Republic Kingdom of England Kingdom of Scotland King William III/II
Dutch Republic Prince Waldeck
Holy Roman Empire Duke of Lorraine
Holy Roman Empire Elector of Bavaria
Holy Roman Empire Margrave of Baden
Holy Roman Empire Elector of Brandenburg
Holy Roman Empire Eugene of Savoy
Duchy of Savoy Duke of Savoy
Spain Marquis of Gastañaga
Spain Duke of Villahermosa
Kingdom of France Duc de Luxembourg
Kingdom of France Marquis de Vauban
Kingdom of France Duc de Boufflers
Kingdom of France Duc de Lorge
Kingdom of France Nicolas Catinat
Kingdom of France Duc de Noailles
Kingdom of France Duc de Duras
Kingdom of France Duc de Villeroi
Kingdom of France Duc de Vendôme
James II of England
Earl of Tyrconnell

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The Nine Years' War (1688 � 97) � often called the War of the Grand Alliance, the War of the Palatine Succession, or the War of the League of Augsburg � was a major war of the late 17th century fought between King Louis XIV of France, and a European-wide coalition, the Grand Alliance, led by the Anglo-Dutch Stadtholder-King William III, Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I, King Charles II of Spain, Victor Amadeus II of Savoy, and the major and minor princes of the Holy Roman Empire. The Nine Years' War was fought primarily on mainland Europe and its surrounding waters, but it also encompassed a theatre in Ireland, where William III and James II struggled for control of the British Isles, and a minor campaign between French and English settlers and their Indian allies in colonial North America. The War was the second of Louis XIV's three major wars.

Louis XIV had emerged from the Franco-Dutch War in 1678 as the most powerful monarch in Europe; but, although he had expanded his realm, the 'Sun King' remained unsatisfied. Using a combination of aggression, annexation, and quasi-legal means, Louis XIV immediately set about extending his gains in order to stabilize and strengthen France's frontiers, culminating in the brief War of the Reunions (1683 � 84). The resulting Truce of Ratisbon guaranteed the extended borders of France for twenty years, but Louis XIV's subsequent actions � notably his revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685, and his attempt to extend his influence in the German Rhineland � led to the deterioration of his military and political dominance. Louis XIV's decision to cross the Rhine and besiege Philippsburg in September 1688 was intended to pre-empt a strike against France by Emperor Leopold I and to force the Holy Roman Empire into accepting his territorial and dynastic claims. But, when the Emperor and the German princes resolved to resist, and when the States-General and William III brought the Dutch and the English into the war against France, Louis XIV at last faced a powerful coalition aimed at curtailing his ambitions.

The main fighting took place around France's borders: in the Spanish Netherlands; the Rhineland; Duchy of Savoy; and Catalonia. These campaigns were dominated by siege operations, notably at Mons, Namur, Charleroi and Barcelona: open battles such as Fleurus and Marsaglia were less common. These engagements generally favoured Louis XIV's armies but by 1696 France was in the grip of an economic crisis. The Maritime Powers (England and the Dutch Republic) were also financially exhausted, and when Savoy defected from the Alliance all parties were keen for a negotiated settlement. By the terms of the Treaty of Ryswick (1697) Louis retained the whole of Alsace but was forced to return Lorraine back to its owner; he also had to give up any gains on the right bank of the Rhine. Louis XIV agreed to accept William III as King of England, while the Dutch garrisoned a line of fortresses in the Spanish Netherlands to help secure their border. However, with the imminent death of the childless Charles II of Spain a new conflict over the inheritance of the Spanish Empire (the most important unsolved question of European politics) would soon embroil France and the Grand Alliance in Louis XIV's final conflict � the War of the Spanish Succession.


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