French invasion of the Rhineland

E55384

The French invasion of the Rhineland was Louis XIV’s 1688 military incursion into the Holy Roman Empire’s western territories, intended to pressure German princes and assert French claims, which helped trigger the wider Nine Years’ War.

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Statements (44)

Predicate Object
instanceOf campaign of the Nine Years' War
military invasion
belligerent Holy Roman Empire
Kingdom of France
causeOf outbreak of the Nine Years' War
commandedBy French marshals under Louis XIV's authority
commander Louis XIV of France
conflict Nine Years' War
conflictType offensive campaign
country Kingdom of France
followedBy wider European coalition against France
follows French policy of expansion under Louis XIV
geographicalContext Rhine Valley
surface form: Rhine River valley
hasParticipant German princes
Holy Roman Empire
Kingdom of France
Louis XIV of France
historicalPeriod late 17th century
involved French occupation of key Rhineland fortresses
crossing of the Rhine by French forces
location Rhineland
western territories of the Holy Roman Empire
motivatedBy French desire to secure its eastern frontier
French dynastic claims
objective to assert French territorial claims in the Rhineland
to pressure German princes
opponent Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor
opposedBy Imperial and German territorial forces
partOf Nine Years' War
War of Devolution
surface form: wars of Louis XIV
politicalContext rivalry between Bourbon France and the Habsburg Monarchy
precededBy French diplomatic pressure on German states
region Central Europe
relatedTo French expansionism under Louis XIV
Grand Alliance
League of Augsburg
result contribution to the formation of the Grand Alliance against France
escalation of tensions within the Holy Roman Empire
mobilization of Imperial forces
significance helped trigger a major European coalition war against France
marked the opening phase of the Nine Years' War
startTime 1688
temporalContext 1688–1689 opening phase of the Nine Years' War
year 1688

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Nine Years' War hasCause French invasion of the Rhineland