Franco-Spanish War
The Franco-Spanish War (1635-1659) was a significant conflict that emerged from the strategic rivalry between Bourbon France and the Spanish Habsburgs, particularly influenced by their ambitions in Italy, Germany, and the Low Countries. Initially sparked by the Thirty Years' War, France, under Cardinal de Richelieu, intervened in various European theaters to counter Spanish influence, leading to a formal declaration of war in 1635. Throughout the war, both nations engaged in numerous campaigns, with France aiming to invade the Spanish Netherlands and Spain seeking to threaten Paris. Key battles included the French victory at Rocroi in 1643 and subsequent territorial gains in northern Italy and the Spanish Netherlands.
The conflict was characterized by shifting alliances and internal strife, including the Fronde, which temporarily hindered French efforts and allowed Spain to regain some lost territories. The war concluded with the Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659, marking a significant shift in European power dynamics. France emerged as a dominant military force, acquiring several territories, while the marriage of Louis XIV to the Spanish Infanta symbolized a new era of Bourbon influence. This war laid the groundwork for future conflicts and redefined relationships between the major European powers.
On this Page
Subject Terms
Franco-Spanish War
At issue: Domination of Western Europe
Date: May 21, 1635-November 7, 1659
Location: France, Spain, Spanish Netherlands, Germany, and Italy
Combatants: French, Dutch, Swedish, English vs. Spanish, Austrians, Bavarians
Principal commanders:French, Turenne (1611–1675); Spanish, Francisco de Melo (1608–1666); French, then Spanish, the Great Condé (1621–1686)
Principal battles: Casale, Rocroi, Lens, Arras, Valenciennes, Dunes
Result: French victory; France replaces Spain as the dominant European power
Background
Bourbon France and Spanish Habsburg strategic interests in Italy, Germany, and the Low Countries clashed during the Thirty Years’ War. The French, under the Cardinal de Richelieu, intervened against Spanish ambitions in Mantua and the Valtelline in northern Italy in 1629 and 1630. In 1631, Richelieu financially supported Sweden’s war against the Austrian and Spanish Habsburgs in Germany. In 1633, Richelieu extended French power into Germany by occupying Lorraine and part of Alsace, as well as supporting the German Protestant League of Heilbronn against the Habsburgs. Richelieu acquired a Dutch alliance and declared war on Spain in May, 1635.
Action
The French army invaded the Spanish Netherlands in 1635, but Spanish forces repulsed the attack. Spain responded by invading France and threatening Paris in 1636. French forces drove the Spanish back at Corbie and recovered lost ground by 1637.
France then launched offensives into the Spanish Netherlands, northern Italy, Spain, and Germany. In 1638, Spain lost the Spanish Road when French forces captured the strategic fortress of Breisach in Alsace. In northern Italy, the duke of Harcourt defeated the Spanish at Quiers in 1639 and Casale (April 29, 1640). French forces invaded Roussillon on the Spanish frontier in 1639 and were aided by Spain’s difficulties with revolts in Catalonia (1640–1659) and Portugal (1640–1668). French and Catalonian forces defeated the Spanish at Barcelona in 1641, followed by a French invasion of Aragon in 1642.
In May, 1643, a Spanish-Imperial army, under Francisco de Melo, invaded France and besieged Rocroi. Duke Louis of Enghien (later the Great Condé) attacked and destroyed the Habsburg forces at Rocroi (May 19, 1643). The French army proceeded to capture Thionville in 1643 as well as Dunkirk, Gravelines, Mardyck, Ypres, Menin, and Courtrai in the Spanish Netherlands in 1646. The duke of Enghien defeated a combined Spanish-Imperial army under the command of Archduke Leopold William at Lens (August 20, 1648).
The French war against the Austrian Habsburgs ended in the Peace of Westphalia (1648). Condé and the Viscount Turenne commanded French forces that, combined with the Swedish war effort, defeated the Holy Roman emperor and his allies, except for Spain.
After the peace settlement, France under Cardinal Mazarin sought to defeat Spain and acquire the Spanish Netherlands, Luxembourg, Franche-Comté, Catalonia, and Spanish lands in Italy. However, the outbreak of the Fronde (1648–1652) paralyzed France, allowing Spain to recover Catalonia and the Spanish Netherlands as well as invade France. As a result of the Fronde, Condé changed sides and led Spanish invasions of France after 1653. Turenne defeated Condé at Arras (August 25, 1654), and Condé defeated Turenne at Valenciennes (July 16, 1656). In March, 1657, Mazarin acquired an alliance with England that resulted in the Anglo-French capture of Montmédy, Saint-Venant, and Mardyck in 1657. The allies besieged Dunkirk in May, 1658, but Turenne had to fight and defeat a Spanish relief force led by Don Juan de Austria and Condé at the Dunes (June 14, 1658). The allies then captured Dunkirk.
Aftermath
France and Spain agreed to the Treaty of the Pyrenees (November 7, 1659). France acquired Artois, small parts of Flanders, and Montmédy in the north as well as Roussillon, including Perpignan, and Cerdagne in the south. England acquired Dunkirk, which it sold to France in 1662. Spain agreed to the marriage of Louis XIV of France and Maria Teresa, the Spanish Infanta. Under Louis XIV, France became the dominant military power in Europe.
Bibliography
Israel, Jonathan I. Conflicts of Empires. Rio Grande, Ohio: Hambledon, 1997.
Maland, David. Europe at War 1600–1650. London: Macmillan, 1980.
Treasure, Geoffrey. Mazarin. New York: Routledge, 1995.