The Hapsburg War
La Guerra Habsburgo
Der Habsburgerkrieg
Introduction
As any student of history knows, the conflict known as the Hapsburg war in English, La Guerra Habsburgo in Spanish, Der Habsburgerkrieg in German must undoubtably rank as one of the defning moments in European history. Arguably, if the war had proceeded differently, Europe as a entity would have ceased to exist, replaced instead by the domination of Paris and Vienna. It is the task of the historian to both teach and analyse history- I hope in this work that I am capable of doing both.
Part I
European political developments prior to the war
In the 1660s, Spain appeared at the peak of her powers, having wrested control of the Americas from savage tribes such as the Aztecs, Inca, Navajo, Cherokee and Creek. Spain obtained vast income from these territories, which excited both greed and fear amongst the monarchs of Europe, on the one hand eager to obtain Spanish gold for themselves, whilst at the same time wary of Spain's obvious wealth and power. Emperor Leopold Von Hapsburg, Archduke of Austria, King of Italy, Hungary and Germany, began making his plans. Using the little known writings of the Florentine Machiavelli as his guide, the Emperor developed a plan of beautiful simplicity. Spain's power thwarted his plans for European domination. Therefore, Spain must be defeated. Although his power was great, he realised that it would be impossible to take on the Spanish alone, and even worse, costly. Through subtle diplomatic maneuvers, he was able to convince many European monarchs that Spain was a threat, and organised a grand alliance to attack Spain.
El Judas villano y traidor, Emperor Leopold of Austria
Thus it was that in January 12th 1670, at the behest of Emperor Leopold I of Austria that the nations of France, Austria, England, the Ottoman Empire and Persia declared war on Spain, seeking to destroy her through shear numbers. In the end, Spain and her valiant allies Portugal and Sweden (note- AI) could not hope to defeat such a grand alliance, and was forced to sign the humiliating treaty of Vienna in early 1673, ceding vast rich territories to her enemies. Leopold would be forever known in Spain as "El Judas villano y traidor" (Vile treacherour Judas).
Thus the next phase of European history began. Spain's brief period as the driving force in Europe had been ended. The grand alliance, which had been composed of such diverse elements, slowly disintegrated. It quickly became clear that the monarchs of France and Austria had not waged their war upon Spain to restore the balance of power in Europe, but to upset it. The Alliance of France and Austria would become a stable fixture of European diplomacy.
The most obvious effect of Victory was the enormous number of French and Austrian traders who quickly appeared in all parts of the globe, attempting through nefarious means to gain a total monpoly upon world trade. This policy quickly alienated the other members of the Grand Alliance. England left the grand alliance, briefly allied with Spain upon fear of a French attack, but then realigned themselves with Portugal, forming a neutral trading bloc. Persia collapsed into civil war following the death of Shah Abbas II, and the new Shah, Suleiman I faced enormous problems attempting to reassert control. The Ottoman Sultan was deeply upset with the piracy and insults of the French and Austrians, and instead waged war upon their one-time ally Persia. There remained however, the core of the Alliance, France and Austria. A nickname was given to this alliance, by none other than Louis XIV himself.
For myself, it is clear. I am the Sun king. The world revolves around the axis of the sun. The sun shines from Paris and Vienna, and no other cities
The Axis had been born- it was clear to most that at some point the Axis would attempt to dominate Europe, but no-one was sure when. Under Louis XIV, "Le Roi Soleil", the French had expanded their European holdings substantially as a result of wars and diplomacy. During this period, the French annexed the territories Savoy and Lorraine, as well occupying the Swiss confederacy and ending its centuries old independence. However, despite the best efforts of Louis's minister Colbert, the French had failed to balance their finances, mainly due to Louis' extravagant spending. These problems would continue into the reign of his son, Louis XV. War almost broke out after French and Austrian merchants murdered several Spanish merchants in Montana in 1692- however, in the end the Spanish backed down, swallowed their pride, and was forced to extend France and Austria's trading priveliges. Nevertheless, France's finances were severely damgaged by the Sonoran company fiasco. Frenchmen invested millions of livres into French holdings in Mexico, drawn by the lure of easy money, only to find a barren land, left uncolonised by Spain only due to its barren and poor soil.
Sweden was entering a new phase of government. Sweden's monarchs had successfully reestablished the Kalmar Union of Sweden, Denmark and Norway, albeit with the capital in Stockholm rather than Copenhagen. The Swedish monarchy had established a strong centralised state and the finest quality army in Europe. Control of the lucrative Baltic trade gave large wealth to the kings of Sweden, which they used to expand their boundaries into the Baltic and Northern Germany. However, the nobility under Arvid Hoorn had sought, successfully to limit the powers of the Swedish monarchy, and Sweden was entering a new phase of constitutional monarchy, which Swede's nicknamed "The Age of Freedom".
Poland and Russia were both nations at the edge of European poltics. Poland had lost substantial territories to Sweden and Austria. However, the Archduke returned the provinces in question, Wielkopolska (The Great Plain) and Gallicia (land of the Celts) to Poland, in return for his alliance. Poland was however backward both militarily, economically and poltically, it's central government weakened by the enormous disruptive power of the aristocracy. Russia was a stronger beast. Under Peter I, Russia had made great strides in economic and military development. Russian colonisation efforts had reached deep into Siberia. However, Russia still lagged behind western European powers.
England and Portugal decided to concentrate upon economic matters rather than military, and formed into a neutral alliance to protect their own interests. Treaties such as the Meuthen Agreement (1703) saw increased commercial ties, and both these nations expanded their economies considerably. England and Portugal would later fight together in a war against Persia over trading rights.
The only serious European conflict prior to the Habsburg war was the Swedish-Brandenburg conflict, which began as a trading war over dues from Danzig, but eventually escalated into an all out war in 1709-12. Although Austria provided minimal support to the elector of Brandenburg, the commanding general of the Imperial forces, Waldeck, was a notorious drunkard. He would often fight his battles with a hangover, and seldom won victories. His opponent, the dashing Swedish King Karl XII, proved more than a match for him and the forces of Brandenburg, commanded by the "Old Dessauer". The war ended with the total submission of Brandenberg to Sweden, after the Prince elector himself was a casualty of war. The Brandenburg government collapsed, and Sweden would later take total control of all of Brandenburg's territories. Spain had funded Sweden's war effort considerably, and was pleased with the outcome. One of the emperor's allies had been destroyed, whilst the Imperial armies had suffered considerable losses.
In November 1700, Carlos II, King of Castille and Leon, Navarra, Catalonia, the two Sicilies and much more besides, died. His life had been unfortunate journey from an extended childhood to premature senility- his death was mourned but also welcomed. There remained however, the choice of a successor. The main candidates were either the Bourbons of France or the Habsburgs of Austria. There could be no question of allowing a heretic French Calvinist on the most Catholic throne of Spain, and so instead the throne went to Karl Von Habsburg- crowned as Carlos II. Karl was something of a black sheep to the Austrians. The new Emperor, Josef I, hated him intensely, mainly due to his criticism of Josef's autocratic policies. Despite his background, Carlos quickly earned the love and appreciation of all Spaniards. As his chief minister, Carlos named Alberoni. He certainly proved able. The years of decline were reversed. Spain's trade rebounded, sending most of the French and Austrian trading interlopers out of business, whilst organising trade deals with England. The army and navy was reorganised, and for the first time in many years Spain posessed military leaders of skill. The navy was headed by Blas de Lezo, the finest Spanish admiral since the great Alvaro de Bazan, and he had a fleet capable of meeting his exacting standards, second only to the Portuguese in size and quality.
The Spanish armies were less well endowed- commanded by the aging Marqués de Lede, they were sizable, below the quality of the Imperial armies, but above the quality of the French. Spain's position was slowly improving.
What then was the catalyst for the Hapsburg war? There are many hypotheses.
It is known that In June of 1718, the Hofkriegsratt, the central planning department of Imperial war machine issued general order 5011a, which called for general conscription of all abled bodied men in Imperial, Hungarian and Italian territories. The size of Austrian armies was unmatched. Also, Imperial diplomacy secured the assistance of Russia and Poland. These allies, although posessing large armies were primitive by most standards, and were even well behind the West african muslim nations in military doctrines. However, their size was great, and they could bring enormous pressure to bear upon Spain's main ally Sweden. If Austria were to attack Spain, she would have the advantage of superior quality and quantity of both troops and generals. In the opinion of Trevor Roper-
The alliance of France, Austria and the eastern powers posessed a superior military machine. The Habsburg war was quite simply an attempt by the king of the Germans to force his will upon the whole of Europe. Delay may have given his enemies such as the Swedes and Spaniards time to develop armies to withstand his own. Emperor Josef decided that [during the 1710s] it was time to strike while the conscripts were hot.
Or was it perhaps the French that took action, and the Austrians merely followed? Ray Huang has explored this thesis in depth, in his seminal work
The Habsburg war: It's causes and effects on Qing poltics.
It is known that the new French king, Louis XV, was eager to emulate his father's achievements and gain military glory for himself. It is also true that several unsavoury characters gained enormous influence at court. One name in particular stands out, the Duc De Slarg. A Calvinist nobleman of immense welath and influence, De Slarg was known to posess an enormous personal army, known as the Slarhost. De Slarg was an avid warmonger, and eager to fight almost anyone, who had developed impractical schemes such as the invasion of China. The personalities of the military commanders cannot be discoutned either. France and Austria posessed commanders of unparalled skill and determination. Villars, Prince Eugene, Von Mercy, Conte, Dougay Truin to name but a few. Many of these men regarded the relative inactivity of the French and Imperial armies as a waste. What was the point of fashioning so fine an army, only to see it rot?
However, despite these geopolitical realities, the thesis developed by Hobsbawn in his fine history "The Age of Enlightenment" has gained widespread endorsement. This is best described as "Brother against Brother". It was no secret that the Austrian and Spanish leaders possessed an enrmous personal rivalry, and neither was prepared to see the other prosper, even if by doing so they may avoid conflict. Karl III had imbibed the attitudes and manners of the Spaniards he ruled, most of whom detested Austria's expansion. The desire to prove once and for all who was the stronger, and right percieved wrongs cannot be discounted, and remains the best explanation for the facts surrounding the start of the conflict. Indeed, the name of the conflict, "La Guerra Habsburgo".
Carlos III de Habsburgo- Spain's leader
A last thesis, developed by Nigel Davies posited that the war was merely an extension of Poland's domestic struggles. However, this does not have much evidence and it normally regarded as a joke.
In any case, whatever the reason France and Austria, along with their allies Poland and Russia declared war on Spain and Sweden on June 20th 1720.
The Habsburg war had begun.