French Hegemony, or the age of Louis XIV

[Endymion]

Note: This TL is the result of an earlier discussion thread, which can be found here.

The POD is that Emperor Leopold I does die in 1670 from a severe fever, whereas in OTL he manages to recover.

Enjoy.

​

Prologue, 1670​

Part I, The Fall of Austria
On the night of December 23, 1669, after attending a court masque in Vienna, Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I is taken ill with a minor chill, which soon develops into a raging fever. Court physicians immediately do their best to heal the emperor, though their repeated bleedings and purges only weaken him further. Finally, on February 2 (the Feast of the Purification of the Virgin), 1670, the emperor dies, aged only twenty-nine. Immediately, Europe is thrown into disarray concerning the Austrian succession crisis. The emperor’s young widow and niece, Empress Margarita Teresa (b. 1651), is currently in the final stages of her third pregnancy, while his only living child at this time is his infant daughter, Archduchess Maria Antonia (b. 1669).

The empress dowager is immediately installed as regent in Vienna the following day, while meanwhile, all of Europe intently watches the events at the imperial court unfold. The longed for heir is born posthumously several weeks later, on February 20, 1670. The boy however is sickly and premature and dies within hours of his birth, living just barely long enough to be christened and proclaimed ‘Archduke Leopold II of Austria’.

The death of the short-lived archduke essentially throws the situation of the succession into chaos. While the Austrians immediately proclaim the infant Maria Antonia as their archduchess, with her young mother as regent, they are now faced with the ever-present nightmare of losing the elective thrones of Bohemia and Hungary, as neither of those realms have any precedent for female inheritance.

Meanwhile, the Diet of the Kingdom of Hungary and Croatia is summoned by the realms’ respective viceroys, Count Ferenz Wesselényi and Count Péter Zrínyi, to elect a new king of Hungary. At this time, both men are not only party to, but leaders of, a conspiracy of Hungarian nobles desiring the overthrow of the Habsburgs, the instillation of a native monarch and the restoration of the old aristocratic privileges (the so-called Zrinski-Frankopan plot—which in OTL would ultimately fail and be discovered in March, 1670 by Emperor Leopold I). Much to the horror of the young Empress Margarita Theresa in Vienna (and of the Habsburg party in Pressburg), the Hungarian nobles elect Michael I Apafi (b. 1632), Grand Prince of Transylvania, as their new king on March 10, 1670. This is mostly done out of lack of confidence in the infant archduchess, the need for a strong leader in the face of Ottoman aggression and a general sentiment in favor of the restoration of the abused privileges of the Hungarian aristocracy. In accordance with tradition, the newly elected king is crowned ‘King of Hungary, Croatia and Dalmatia’ with the holy crown of St. Stephen the day of his arrival, a week later, having been secretly contacted by the viceroys before the summoning of the Diet and invited to come and seize the crown based on the popular sentiment in his favor.

The situation in Bohemia is not much better. Devastated by the wars of their Habsburg rulers and facing economic and cultural decline at this time, not to mention a gradual loss of independence in its personal union with Austria, the Bohemian nobles—once the greatest supporters of Habsburg rule (though mostly in the face of Protestantism)—now find themselves in a unique and crucial historical position. The Estates General of Bohemia, summoned to Prague in June of that year, is thus highly divided on the issue of who to elect as its new sovereign. After nearly a month of debate, the nobles finally select Elector Ferdinand Maria of Bavaria (b. 1636) as their king.

While many of the more undecided aristocrats accept the decision of the Estates and declare their support for the Bavarian elector, the election is hotly contested by the pro-Habsburg minority of nobles, who, though they consist of less than a quarter of the Estates at this point, nevertheless refuse to accept the decision of the pro-Bavarian party in protest, though now a clear majority. Instead, the rebel aristocrats meet Tábor in late August and proclaim the infant archduchess Maria Antonia their queen instead.

Part II, The Rise of France
Meanwhile, in France, King Louis XIV now finds himself in the ideal position. Upon hearing of recent events in Austria in early 1670, he is said to have remarked to his secretary of state for foreign affairs, Hugues de Lionne, ‘It is as if in the space of a moment, all of my prayers have been answered.’

Not wishing to miss the opportunity to act, he immediately sends his support to Elector Ferdinand Maria of Bavaria, promising him money and troops in order to maintain his new position in Bohemia. As the elector of Bavaria is also a close ally of the French king at this time, King Louis XIV thus also secretly sends him his promise to support him in the coming imperial election. In return, Elector Ferdinand Maria promises to aid the French in any coming wars with the Dutch and Spanish.

The French also are able to further secure their network of alliances by signing the secret Treaty of Dover with the pro-French King Charles II of England in June, 1670, in which the king promises to join the French in any campaign against the Dutch. At this time King Charles is personally opposed to United Provinces, and supports the designs of King Louis to expand French territory into the Netherlands. In return, King Louis XIV promises him a string of key Dutch ports, essentially giving the English a position on the continent and several new bases of Baltic trade. By secret clause of the agreement, King Charles II also promises to convert to Catholicism in the future; the treaty also ensures that he be granted a large annual pension from French coffers for his cooperation. This is all of course unbeknownst to either the Dutch or the Swedish, who at this time believe that the English are still in alliance with them, since the conclusion of the Triple Alliance against France two years earlier.

Stay tuned for part two, coming soon, 'The War of Austrian Succession'.
​

 

[Gonzaga]

And so it begins!

Just one comment: considering that HRE states didn't have a tradition of female rulers (I can only remember Mary of Burgundy and the later Maria Theresa of Austria) I wouldn't be surprised if some people would defend the rights of Charles II of Spain as Archduke of Austria, as he would be the last male Habsburg. Of course, it doesnt mean he would be interested in it.

 

[ImperialVienna]

Another note, the term Bratislava did not come into common usage until after WWI. Pressburg or Pozsony would be more accurate for the time period.

 

[Endymion]

Another note, the term Bratislava did not come into common usage until after WWI. Pressburg or Pozsony would be more accurate for the time period.

Good to know. Fixed.

 

[Kara Iskandar]

Really interesting.
Consider me suscribed.

 

[Nicksplace27]

Wait a victorious Kingdom of France? Sweet, I'd love to see people do one. DoD and LTTW both have been a stomp-on-France fest and to see that change would be refreshing to say the least.

 

[Endymion]

The War of Austrian Succession, 1671-1675​

Faced with the possibility of losing their possessions in Bohemia, the desperate Habsburgs opt to secure their patrimony by conquest. On New Years’ Day, 1671, just as Elector Ferdinand Maria of Bavaria is crowned ‘King of Bohemia’ in Prague, Empress Margarita Theresa sends an army under the command the Italian Count Raimondo Montecuccoli to invade Bohemia. This is mostly sent at the behest of the pro-Habsburg faction of the nobility, having now been driven into Moravia by the supporters of the new king. While they are able to occupy southern Moravia at least, Count Montecuccoli soon finds himself unable to proceed any further, due mostly to hostility from the local population of landowners and peasantry, neither of whom wish to see a repeat of the disasters of the Thirty Years War, and further devastation in their country.

Meanwhile, Elector Friedrich Wilhelm of Brandenburg (b. 1620), not wishing to see his rival the Elector of Bavaria in such an uncomfortably close position in Bohemia and also fearing his immanent election as Holy Roman Emperor, decides to ally himself with the Habsburgs, though mostly out of necessity. In late February he is able to secure an alliance with the desperate Margarita Theresa, though at the price of the dowager empress agreeing to cede to him the long-coveted Silesia if she is able to secure control of Bohemia. Satisfied with his agreement, the elector soon personally invades Bohemia, managing to besiege Prague by late July.

It is at this point that the effectively Triple Alliance collapses. The United Provinces, allies of Brandenburg, agree to send troops and money to Elector Friedrich Wilhelm, in accordance with an earlier agreement hammered out that winter. As the regency council in Sweden (at this time governing the realm for the minority of King Carl XI) at the time is pro-Bavarian in its sentiments, and already is experiencing tensions with Brandenburg, mostly in regards both to the fragile dominance of Sweden in the realm of Baltic trade and their ambitions in Pomerania (something that the elector sees as a direct threat, while the Swedes, for their part, find the idea of a stronger Brandenburg just as dangerous). As Sweden is currently experiencing a severe financial crisis, the French manage to persuade them to declare war on Brandenburg, in exchange for financial assistance. This has been the ambition of the council for some time now, and comes as a welcome bribe; further, the Swedish have had little faith in the Triple Alliance, feeling both politically isolated and seeing little benefits to it over the course of the last few years. Thus, the lure of French monetary aide and the promise of an alliance with King Louis XIV proves all too tempting to resist. After concluding a treaty with the French at Calais, they invade Brandenburg in November, their troops marching with the abundant help of French supplies and finances.

With Swedish withdrawal from the Triple Alliance, and Dutch support of the Habsburgs, King Charles II now has the pretext he has long needed to ensure Parliament’s support of a second Anglo-Dutch war. Playing upon both the anti-Dutch and the anti-Habsburg sympathies of the British aristocracy, he manages to receive a handsome grant of money for the building and outfitting of a new navy to combat the Dutch; this assured, the king declares war on the United Provinces in early winter, 1672.

At this time, the Dutch are technically allied with the Spanish, the queen mother Maria Anna having closely supported her daughter, Empress Margarita Theresa, throughout her troubles in Bohemia. By this time, they have already been sending troops to reinforce the Austrians in Bohemia and Moravia, though the current state of their finances has placed strains on the limits of their good will. Thus King Louis XIV finds himself presented with the perfect opportunity to attack the Spanish Netherlands: the Treaty of Dover compels him to war against the Dutch and their allies, if his own friend King Charles II does so; further, the focus of Spain on the Eastern European theater of the war and the stressed limits of its finances. And, with the Austrian Habsburgs (traditional allies of their Spanish cousins) currently both weakened by the losses of Bohemia and Hungary, and occupied by their current war of succession, there is little to stop them.

In February, 1672, King Louis XIV invades Flanders, and managing to score a stunning victory at Ypres later the following month, and then another at Bruges, both under the command of Prince de Condé. He is reinforced by a small force of British troops, sent by King Charles II, and under the command of his bastard son, the Duke of Monmouth. By summer, Luxembourg is under siege and Flanders and Hainaut are occupied; further, the efforts of the Vicomte de Turenne in Franche-Comté also have managed to bear tremendous fruit, with the unprepared Spanish being forced to abandon Besancon by the fall.

The rapid successes of the French in the Spanish Netherlands are mirrored by the English in the Channel. With the assassination of the Dutch politician Johan de Witt by French agents, the Dutch army finds itself in a state of confusion. Though the appointment of his rival, Prince William III of Orange (b. 1650), to the position of Stadtholder soon after at least manages to restore order, the inexperience of the young prince and the decline of the Dutch navy in the face of rising British sea power all manage to provide major setbacks for the United Provinces. Further, the preoccupation of their allies in Brandenburg with Swedish and Bavarian offensives ensure that they are left virtually alone to face King Charles II and his navy, under the command of the Duke of York. After several initial setbacks in the spring of 1672, the Duke of York is able to score a series of crushing defeats against the navy of the republic in the summer.

On the Eastern European front, Elector Friedrich Wilhelm manages to occupy the whole of Moravia by the close of 1672, though the Bavarians hold out in Bohemia. Against the Swedish they see far more success, scoring several major victories at the battles of Stettin (winter, 1672) and Demmin (spring, 1673), and occupying much of the east of Swedish Pomerania by the close of 1673.

Meanwhile, the long anticipated election of the Holy Roman Emperor finally commences after nearly three years of delay due to war and upheaval, in November, 1672. Meeting at Frankfurt, the electors spend the next three days in heated and deadlocked debate. Finally, under heavy pressure from the French, they come to their decision. On November 15, 1672, Elector Ferdinand Maria of Bavaria is elected Ferdinand V, King of the Romans, and crowned Holy Roman Emperor that same day in the Cathedral of Saint Bartholomew in Frankfurt. The results do not come as a great surprise to most of Europe, especially given the new emperor’s prior candidacy during the election of the late Emperor Leopold I. Nevertheless, the resulting victory comes as a final blow to Habsburg pride.

In late fall of 1673, after a four month siege, the Austrians, under the command of Count Montecuccoli, are finally able to turn the tides of battle, at least temporarily, and seize Prague, scoring a crushing victory. The Bavarians, along with their French and Swedish allies, are forced to retreat west and winter in Loket. However, the new French offensive against the Habsburg ally of Lorraine in the spring of 1674 (forcing the Spanish to transfer many troops to the Rhineland to protect their allies there, and in hopes of regaining control of their Burgundian possessions), and the further preoccupation of Brandenburg with Sweden in Pomerania and the Baltic, all leave their position dangerously undefended, and the Emperor is able to retake the city by June of that year.

At this point, the Elector of Brandenburg privately sues for peace with the French and Swedish. No longer wishing to involve himself in a conflict that is quickly turning against the Austrians, and not wanting to sacrifice anymore of his treasury or reserves of men, he simply negotiates a separate peace with his enemies. In the Peace of Munich, signed in late 1674, Elector Friedrich Wilhelm agrees to recognize Emperor Ferdinand V as rightful King of Bohemia, and in exchange, the emperor cedes him Silesia, thus both minimizing the Wittelsbach threat and gaining for the elector all that the Austrians had before promised him. The elector also agrees to a peace with Sweden, at least for the moment, as the northern war in the Baltic has become far too expensive for both realms.

With Brandenburg effectively out of the equation, the war quickly draws to a close. The Dutch are forced to surrender in April, 1674, after their crushing defeat at the hands of French forces at Rotterdam (the French by now occupying the whole of Dutch Brabant), and the accompanying naval defeat by the British off the coast of Frisia. The following month, the Habsburgs too sue for peace, abandoned by their allies, and severely weakened by the strains of heavy losses in men and money.

The Treaty of Utrecht, concluded on February 1, 1675, essentially brings the long and bitter conflict in Europe to an end, at least for the moment; further, it secures an essential French dominance of continental affairs. According to the terms of the agreement, Brandenburg retains possession of Silesia, and also gains Swedish Pomerania; Emperor Ferdinand V is also recognized as both emperor and King of Bohemia by all, including the Austrians, with Empress Margarita Theresa renouncing her daughter’s claims to that kingdom on her behalf. However, it is the Dutch and Spanish who suffer the greatest, mostly to the gain of the British and French. The Spanish are forced to agree to a humiliating peace; further, Queen Maria Anna, in the name of her son, the minor and mentally handicapped King Carlos II, is forced to recognize French claims to the Low Countries, and cede both the Spanish Netherlands and the Franche-Comté to King Louis XIV, in the right of his wife, Queen Maria Theresa (according to his earlier claims for her inheritance of these lands during the War of Devolution, 1667-1668)*. The Dutch are also forced to cede their possessions in Brabant and the West Indies to the French, while the British receive the Frisian Islands, and the ports of Den Helder, Haarlem, Katwijk, Middleburg, and Rotterdam.

*This being seen by the major powers of Europe as an easy way of beginning the inevitable partition of the Spanish Habsburg empire. Further, it is seen by the Austrians and the Prussians as ensuring French interests are occupied in Northern Europe and do not extend beyond the Pyrenees.

 

[MNP]

What no Turks? Kara Mustafa should have ripped through Hungary like a hot knife through butter . Well I suppose Kara Mustafa is only getting the Vizierate next year so there's still time. French-Turkish wank?

 

[Endymion]

What no Turks? Kara Mustafa should have ripped through Hungary like a hot knife through butter . Well I suppose Kara Mustafa is only getting the Vizierate next year so there's still time. French-Turkish wank?

Patience.

 

[Endymion]

The Fall of Vienna, 1676-1677​

With Austria now severely weakened by its heavy losses in the war of succession, not to mention financially crippled and without its reserves in Hungary and Bohemia, the Ottomans Sultan Mehmed IV, now see the time to be ripe to strike against their arch-rivals. As King Michael I Apafi of Hungary is at this time a vassal of Sultan Mehmed IV (having gained the throne of Transylvania before his election with Ottoman backing), he agrees to invade Austria with Ottoman backing.

In the summer of 1676, King Michael Apafi, along with a massive force of allied Turks under the command of Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa, invades Austria. Unprepared and caught by surprise, Empress Margarita Theresa and her daughter, the infant Archduchess, are forced to evacuate Vienna and flee to the safety of Innsbruck, along with most of the Habsburg court. While she manages to raise an army to meet the attacking Hungarians and Turks, Vienna is soon besieged.

Though no ally of Austria, Emperor Ferdinand V finds the recent Ottoman aggression far too threatening to be ignored, and immediately sends troops to reinforce the Austrian position in Vienna. King Jan III Sobieski of Poland also raises a large force of Polish troops and marches south. However, both the King of Poland and the Emperor have responded far too late, and Vienna falls in August before they can come to its rescue.

The victorious King of Hungary then installs himself in Vienna with a large garrison of Hungarian troops, while the Turks under Kara Mustafa march west under the orders of Sultan Mehmed. However, this time, the so-called ‘Holy League’ of Austria, Poland and Bavaria is prepared. In Winter, 1677, under the joint command of King Jan III of Poland and Duke Charles V of Lorraine, Kara Mustafa and his forces are defeated at Salzburg, in a massive imperial victory. Thanks to the expert Polish cavalry, the Ottomans suffer heavy losses and are forced to retreat back into Austria, halting their advance into the Empire. However, further attempts to regain the archduchy later that year fail miserably, after the Ottomans manage to score several minor victories on the field.

In the end, an uneasy peace is reached with King Michael of Hungary, who, along with his Janissary allies, now occupies Austria, Styria, and Carniola, with the luckless Habsburgs holding onto only Carinthia and Tyrol. While the Austrians refuse to recognize the loss of their possessions, they nevertheless are unable to muster the strength at this time to regain them. Thus, the Imperial-Hungarian border remains unstable for some years to come, with King Michael Apafi relying heavily on his Hungarian and Transylvanian troops to garrison Austria and Styria. The Turks for their part pull out and return to the Balkans, their occupation no longer necessary; under the orders of Sultan Mehmed (as per the advice of his Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa), King Michael is thus set up as vassal ruler of the conquered Austrian lands, which now are to act as a buffer state against the Empire. The news is well received in Hungary, whose aristocrats see the victory of their king as a final triumph over the hated Austrian overlords and the solidification of their independence.

Already ill at this time with smallpox, the horrified empress dowager Margarita Theresa dies at Innsbruck, having lost all hope of seeing the recovery of her daughter’s possessions in the face of the Turks.

With her death, Duke Charles V of Lorraine is immediately set up as regent for his young cousin, the Archduchess Maria Antonia, though by this point her inheritance is now greatly eroded. The duke immediately takes up an anti-French policy, seeing King Louis XIV and his interference in Habsburg affairs as the primary reason for the current situation. To protect the crumbling independence of the Archduchess’s realm, he secures an alliance with both the Spanish and the Polish, as well as a non-aggression pact with the Wittelsbachs by the treaty of Augsburg, by which he secures the betrothal of Archduchess Maria Antonia to the Emperor's eldest son, Duke Maximilian Emanuel of Bavaria (b. 1662). This is welcomed as a triumph in Innsbruck, and a step to possibly recovery of the sinking fortunes of the Habsburgs.

Meanwhile, in France, King Louis XIV finds himself now in a position of almost complete dominance of the continental stage. Immediately, he begins secret negotiations with King Charles II for another war with the Dutch, who, under Prince William III of Orange, he sees as his primary threat. By the secret Pact of Westminster, the King of France agrees to a partitioning of the Dutch Republic between the two powers. Realizing that the only possible threat to this plan is the Dutch alliance with Brandenburg (the Swedish still being bought off at this time with regular stipends, just as King Charles II himself), the French king begins making secret overtures to his former enemy in Prussia. By the secret treaty of Cambrai, signed at the close of the year, Elector Friedrich Wilhelm of Brandenburg agrees to remain neutral in the coming conflict, in exchange for a share in the division of the republic, particularly the province of Frisia.

 

[The Professor]

An enjoyable start Endymion.
Methinks the cracks in the relationship between the Emperor Ferdinand and King Louis are starting. The Emperor can't be too happy at the loss of imperial territory (though now held by the French, the FrancheComte and former Spanish Netherlands are still technically part of the HR Empire).

 

[Geekhis Khan]

Sweetness... The whole European order just got pimpslapped.

Cardinal Richelieu is tapdancing in his grave in celebration, I'm sure.

Color me subscribed.

 

[Endymion]

Franco-Dutch War, 1678-1681​

The year 1678 opens with a French invasion of the United Provinces in mid-March. As per the terms of their secret agreements the year before, both the British and the Prussians remain neutral in the conflict, refusing to send any form of assistance to the Dutch, with King Charles II of England even going so far as to send supplies and money to the French (though illicitly and without the knowledge of Parliament). At the same time, the Austrians are far too preoccupied with garrisoning their borders against the Ottomans in Carinthia (and not to mention severely weakened with the losses of Styria and Vienna) to be of much help to their Dutch allies.

King Louis XIV also manages to buy off the Spanish with the Peace of Bordeaux, signed earlier that year. As the two nations have been at war now for the greater part of the last few decades, with the Spanish Habsburgs still embittered about their humiliating losses in the Low Countries by the Treaty of Utrecht, the peace agreement comes as a surprise to much of Europe. According to the terms of the pact, King Louis XIV’s niece, Marie-Louise d’Orléans (b. 1662), is betrothed to King Carlos II of Spain; the French also promise to both allow the Spanish to remain neutral in the coming Dutch war and also to cease sending to King Afonso VI of Portugal, a constant thorn in the side of the Habsburgs since the Peace of Lisbon. Despite whispers of a possible new Franco-Spanish alliance, the truth is that the Spanish are simply unable to effectively compete against the French at this time, the government suffering from financial ruin and bankruptcy, not to mention widespread dissatisfaction amongst the aristocracy, who are quickly losing confidence in the abilities of Queen Regent Maria Anna and her ministers. The marriage between the seventeen year old, mentally unstable King Carlos II and his sixteen year-old cousin will take place later that year, in August at Burgos, thus sealing the long awaited peace agreement.

Meanwhile, King Louis XIV launches his Dutch campaign. Prince William III of Orange now finds himself in a dire position. Already lacking a strong land army, and further crippled by both debts and heavy losses in the War of Austrian Succession, he has little choice but to muster what strength he can and defend the United Provinces. For the moment, however, luck seems to be on his side, despite the abandonment of the Republic by her allies. In July, the Dutch manage to deal a heavy blow to the French by scoring a major victory at Bergen and driving the French forces, under the command of the Duke of Luxembourg, back into Brabant.

Seeing the desperate situation his allies in the Netherlands are in, and recognizing the danger that French influence there posses to his own nearby duchies of Lorraine and Alsace, Duke Charles V of Lorraine (still regent of Austria at this point and residing at Innsbruck) finally decides to act. Having bided his time until the Dutch seem to be gaining the upper hand, he manages to gather a small force of his own and march against the French in Hainaut. It is there, at the battle of the Rhine, in late fall of 1678, that he manages to retake Breda for the Dutch (which has been in French possession since the Treaty of Utrecht, 1675).

In retaliation, French forces, under the brilliant Marquis de Vauban, invade Alsace, and, after a two-month long siege, manage to take Strasbourg in December, thus securing Alsace for the French and extending King Louis XIV’s territory to the Rhine, an ambition until now unachieved by his forbearers. By the opening of 1679, he also has managed to occupy much of Lorraine, with Vauban besieging Nancy in May.

Forced to shift his attention to his territories in the south, Duke Charles V abandons his ally the Prince of Orange and instead marches towards his capital at Nancy to relieve the siege. This is, of course, just what King Louis XIV and his commanders wish for, as it diverts the duke’s attention elsewhere and allows the French to once again gain the upper hand against the weakened Dutch. While the Duke of Lorraine manages to defeat the French at Nancy, forcing Vauban to retreat back into Alsace, it comes at the cost of a crushing defeat for Prince William III at Arnhem, in September, 1679.

With no choice but to retreat into Holland with his forces, the Prince of Orange soon finds Utrecht under heavy siege by the French in the winter of 1680 by the Duke of Luxembourg. With the Duke of Lorraine weakened and attempting to solidify his defenses in Lorraine at this time, he is unable to come to his ally’s aid there. Finally, unable to withstand French aggression and alone against the world, the young Prince of Orange finally sues for peace on May 1, 1680.

It is now that King Louis XIV’s expert diplomacy manages to pay off. With an unquestionably dominant position in the Low Countries, and backed by both Elector Friedrich Wilhelm and King Charles II, he manages to impose a humiliating peace treaty upon the United Provinces that is tantamount to a partition of the republic itself. Concluded in the late fall of 1680, the Treaty of Limburg carves up the provinces: France receives Gelderland and the colony of Ceylon; the British receive Zeeland, the Dutch East Indies, and the exclusive trade rights to Japan monopolized by the Dutch; and the Elector of Brandenburg is awarded Groningen, Drenthe, and Overijssel. The rest of the former Dutch Republic, now much reduced and limited to Holland, Frisia, and Utrecht is reformed into an independent duchy of Holland and awarded to Prince William of Orange as a personal fief (this peace being imposed upon the resistant States General by the combined threat of another Anglo-French offensive, and accepted mostly out of desperation to salvage the former provinces in some form).

The Duke of Lorraine concludes a separate peace with the French later, in the winter of 1681, by which he agrees to recognize their annexation of Alsace and the imperial city of Strasbourg, in return for the promise of King Louis XIV to renounce any right to his duchy of Lorraine, and to respect its independence and neutrality.

Meanwhile, with the death of Emperor Ferdinand V Maria in mid-1679, his son Duke Maximilian Emanuel of Bavaria succeeds him as Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian III, having been elected King of the Romans and of Bohemia without much challenge during the desperation of the Ottoman campaign two years before in 1677 (his father having seized the opportunity to secure his new territories, much to the despair of the late Empress Margarita Theresa). The following year, his sister, the Duchess Maria Anna Victoria of Bavaria (b. 1660) weds King Louis XIV’s only legitimate son, the Dauphin Louis de France (b. 1661), the betrothal having been in place since the two were barely eight years old. The wedding being celebrated at Fontainebleau later that year.

The end of the year 1681 will see one more notable event: the permanent move of the French court to the palace of Versailles, just outside of Paris. The magnificent new palace, now the envy of much of Europe, now becomes the center of France, with King Louis XIV making it his fixed place of residence and de facto seat of government (which officially still remains in Paris). The palace will soon come to represent the infamous luxury and absolutism that will characterize the reign of the so-called ‘Sun King’ of France.

 

[The Sandman]

I'm vaguely surprised that the British hadn't already grabbed the Dutch East Indies during the earlier Second Anglo-Dutch War. Given what's happening back home, the Dutch certainly couldn't have stopped them. I think that the French would be able to grab Ceylon and the Caribbean stuff, though.

This also means that Britain presumably becomes the one permitted European trading partner in Japan. I would think that might have a few effects there.

 

[Endymion]

Just so we're all clear:

Europe after the Franco-Dutch War, 1681
​

​

 

[Endymion]

I'm vaguely surprised that the British hadn't already grabbed the Dutch East Indies during the earlier Second Anglo-Dutch War. Given what's happening back home, the Dutch certainly couldn't have stopped them. I think that the French would be able to grab Ceylon and the Caribbean stuff, though.

This also means that Britain presumably becomes the one permitted European trading partner in Japan. I would think that might have a few effects there.

Yes, as to Britain's status with Japan. However, in this scenario, the French were already awarded the West Indies earlier. But point taken, I think I'll amend it to have the French just getting Ceylon, and the British receiving the East Indies...

 

[Nicksplace27]

Hmm, well the glorious revolution isn't happening with the Dutch dismembered and the Stuarts aren't getting any less Catholic or any less absolutist with thier ally (France) doing so well. I'm looking foward to Britain's next twenty years.

So could we see a second English Civil War?

 

[rcduggan]

First of all, this looks like an awesome TL. I am very partial to timelines in which France is more successful than in OTL, so you've got me already.

Two minor quibbles:
First, I doubt that the Ottomans can hold Vienna for very long. I also wonder whether they would actually want to keep the city. What value would mountainous and indefensible Austria be for the Ottomans, when a buffer state might be more effective?

Also, related to the re-alignment of colonies in Asia. AFAIK, until the 18th century the center of the Dutch East Indies was in India itself (especially Ceylon), and not Indonesia. But as the Dutch were driven out of India by the British and French, their focus shifted to what became the Dutch East Indies / Indonesia. But ITTL is it explicitly the *Indonesian trading posts like Jakarta that are ceded to the British, while the French gain the Indian posts? That could lead to interesting developments: British Indonesia and French India.

 

[Valdemar II]

First of all, this looks like an awesome TL. I am very partial to timelines in which France is more successful than in OTL, so you've got me already.

Two minor quibbles:
First, I doubt that the Ottomans can hold Vienna for very long. I also wonder whether they would actually want to keep the city. What value would mountainous and indefensible Austria be for the Ottomans, when a buffer state might be more effective?

Also, related to the re-alignment of colonies in Asia. AFAIK, until the 18th century the center of the Dutch East Indies was in India itself (especially Ceylon), and not Indonesia. But as the Dutch were driven out of India by the British and French, their focus shifted to what became the Dutch East Indies / Indonesia. But ITTL is it explicitly the *Indonesian trading posts like Jakarta that are ceded to the British, while the French gain the Indian posts? That could lead to interesting developments: British Indonesia and French India.

I agree with the Austria point, after the sack of Vienna, it quite most likely that the Ottomans leave it again and the Habsburg regain it (through it has lost much of it value)

 

[Gonzaga]

I agree with the Austria point, after the sack of Vienna, it quite most likely that the Ottomans leave it again and the Habsburg regain it (through it has lost much of it value)

Although it is likely the Ottomans leave it, could they give it to Michael Apafi as new Hungarian territories? After all, he was supported by then, and only shifted his alliance IOTL after the failure at Vienna. It would give him more territories (maybe even convincing him to not go to war against the Ottomans in future in order to expand his new realm) and would create a nice buffer state between the Porte and the new Bavarian Emperors (who could always try to claim Hungary as they did with Bohemia).