War of the Palatinate Succession (1688 - 1697)
By invading the Holy Roman Empire, King Louis XIV of France (1638 - 1715) wanted to force permanent recognition of the Reunions.
But the hope for a quick victory was not fulfilled.
The annexations carried out as part of the Reunion policy were almost completely destroyed in the Peace of Rijswijk (1697).
1. The situation in the Electorate of the Palatinate
With the death of Charles II (1651 - 1685), the Palatinate-Simmern line died out in the Electorate of the Palatinate.
The new Elector was Philipp Wilhelm (1615 - 1690) from the Palatinate-Neuburg line.
But Louis XIV of France also laid claim to parts of the Palatinate inheritance, because the sister of the deceased Elector was married to the brother of the Sun King.
Louis XIV demanded the allodial ancestral property of the Palatinate-Simmern line and the deceased's private assets in the name of his sister-in-law Liselotte of the Palatinate (1652 - 1722).
The allodial ancestral property included, for example, the principalities of Simmern and Lautern as well as parts of the county of Sponheim.
Negotiations on the Sun King's demands were unsuccessful until 1688.
2. The Cologne Bishop Election
On June 3, 1688, the Cologne Elector and Archbishop Maximilian Heinrich of Bavaria (1621 - 1688) died.
A power struggle developed over his succession between Louis XIV of France and Emperor Leopold I (1640 - 1705).
While the Sun King wanted to push through his ally Wilhelm Egon von Fürstenberg (1629 - 1704) as the new archbishop, the emperor promoted the candidacy of Joseph Clemens of Bavaria (1671 - 1723).
In the vote in the Cologne cathedral chapter, neither of the two candidates achieved the necessary two-thirds majority.
Ultimately, Pope Innocent XI (1611 - 1689) made the decision. He was not intimidated by French pressure and declared Joseph Clemens the new archbishop and elector of Cologne.
3. The goals of the Sun King
On September 24, 1688, French troops marched into the Holy Roman Empire.
A manifesto by the Sun King dates from the same day, in which he formulated his goals and demands.
Louis XIV wanted to subsequently have Wilhelm Egon von Fürstenberg appointed as elector and archbishop of Cologne.
The French king also demanded financial compensation for giving up his territorial claims in the Electorate of the Palatinate.
And the annexations that France had carried out as part of the Reunion policy were to be finally and permanently recognized.
The Regensburg standstill four years earlier had only provided a temporary solution for the next 20 years. The Sun King wanted to secure the annexations permanently.
4. French initial successes
In the early stages of the war, the Holy Roman Empire was literally overrun.
Emperor Leopold I was simultaneously waging war against the Ottoman Empire in the east and thus only a few troops were available for defense.
One city after another was conquered by the French troops.
On October 17, 1688, Mainz fell. 12 days later, the Philippsburg fortress capitulated. And on November 12, 1688, Mannheim came under French control.
The Sun King's soldiers also conquered Trier, Worms, Speyer, Kaiserslautern, Heidelberg, Heilbronn, Frankenthal, Koblenz, Alzey, Neustadt an der Weinstraße, Oppenheim, Bingen and Bad Kreuznach.
Within a few months, France was able to bring the left bank of the Rhine almost completely under its control.
5. The devastation of the Palatinate
In the occupied areas on the left bank of the Rhine, France carried out systematic destruction.
Cities such as Worms, Oppenheim, Bingen, Offenburg, Pforzheim, Durlach, Rastatt, Baden-Baden, Bad Kreuznach, Alzey and Frankenthal fell victim to the devastation.
In Speyer, the French troops even plundered the imperial tombs in the cathedral.
And the destruction of the Electorate of the Palatinate's residence city of Heidelberg poisoned the German-French relationship for centuries.
Ezéchiel de Mélac (1630 - 1704) was particularly brutal and became an enemy for many Germans.
According to historian Eberhard Weis (1925 - 2013), the strategic calculation behind the systematic devastation of the areas on the left bank of the Rhine was to prevent the imperial army from advancing.
France wanted to create an insurmountable “desert-like glacis”.
6. The fate of Heidelberg
The destruction of Heidelberg caused particular outrage among the European public.
French troops under the command of Mélac destroyed Heidelberg Castle, the residence of the Electors of the Palatinate, in 1689.
They laid mines beneath the castle, the Electoral Library, the bridge pillars and the city walls. The soldiers then stole guns and ammunition. They also plundered chambers and rooms in the castle. The demolition was then carried out.
The Heidelberg Castle was also destroyed