User:Dr Gangrene/French occupation of Luxembourg

After the siege of Luxembourg by the French in 1684, the Duchy of Luxembourg passed into the rule of Louis XIV.

The city after 1684
The first expedition under Créquy from 21 to 27 December 1683, had the goal to destroy the city. Louvois wrote to Créquy on 27 November:
 * Prenez vos mesures pour faire commencer à jeter des bombes dans Luxembourg et essayer de brûler cette place le 20 du mois prochain [...] Le roi s'attend à ce que vous n'oublierez rien de ce qui sera possible pour bien brûler toutes les habitations de la ville [...]

Luckily not all the bombs hit, and the city was able to save itself from total ruin, also through the efforts of the magistrates and the citizenry. Despite this, the city of Luxembourg suffered heavy damage. Vauban's first impression was the following:


 * Les bâtiments sont extrêmement ruinés tant de la bombarderie de l'hiver dernier que des coups échappés du siège qui sont infinis et qui l'ont tellement gâtée qu'il n'y a peut-être pas dix maisons qui ne soient criblées de coups de canon ou crevées de bombes.

32 buildings were completely destroyed by the bombardments. The rest, with some exceptions, were in very poor condition. Roofs were missing, and the ground had craters from projectiles. In most cases, only the ground floor was inhabitable.

The destruction of so many houses was a disaster for all population groups, and particularly for craftsmen and traders. Many of them had built small houses after 1671 in the Chimay, Monterey, Louvigny, Porte-neuve and Beaumont streets, and almost all of them were mortgaged at the time the French came. New loans had to be taken out, in order to pay for the reparations which Louis XIV demanded in January 1685.

A good overview of the condition of the city is provided by the Visite générale faicte le 13 juin 1684, a list of buildings in the city centre to determine where French soldiers could be lodged, and one of the documents the French did not take home with them, when they left the city in 1697. It lists 305 houses:


 * [...]
 * Jean Wirth at bouticq, cuisine et poil ; enhault une petite chambre ou couchent ses enfants et valets. La maison est sans toict et la ch. sur le devant brisé. – ne loge pers., peut loger 3 soldats.
 * Nic. Dhorn, sa maison entierrement delabore et incapable a loger sans estre refaicte.
 * George Grasser, La maison est sans toict ; il occ. un poil, une cuis. et une ch. enhault sur ledevant ; sur le derrier appartenante a Josep Pedro loge un vivandier lequel at loué 3 ch. et une autre pardessus avecq une petite escurie. – ne loge personne, peuvent loger avec ledit vivandier 6 soldats.
 * La maison de l’avocat Hugonel occ. par Ambroise le Prince, le quartier derrier consistant en 2 ch. tout enfonce et sans toict, il occ. un poil, une cuis., une ch. derriere icelle, enhault encore une ch. qui luy serve de grenier, celle de devant a feu, est occ. par les soldats, le toict et grenier entierrement brisé. – loge le lieut. du Prevost, 4 haultbois et un valet de la Corone, peut loger 4 lieut. en quittant les autres.
 * La maison de l’avocat Aldringen occ. par louage de Harlach : contient un poil, une cuis. et chambrette sur le bas ; enhault une ch. a feu et derriere icelleune petite ch. ; le toict entierrement brisé et les desgres enfoncé par les bombes. – peuvent loger 4 lieut.
 * [...]

"Vive le Roi"
To understand the sympathies of the Luxembourgish people for the new French monarch, one must consider the discontnt of the Luxembourgers with the Spanish and their garrison. The Conseil provincial and États généraux of Luxembourg often complained about the excesses of the Spanish regiments, and wrote many requests to the government in Brussels.

It is then easier to understand how for many Luxembourgers a new regime could only be better. The country became safe again, commerce experienced an upturn, and through the large sums that Louis XIV invested, the city was rebuilt and the fortress enlarged and improved under Vauban.

Many members of the old Conseil provincial did not go into exile. Under the Spanish, they had made their career, and did not want to interrupt this. The historian Paul Margue described the situation as follows: "Il n’y avait guère de réticence, désormais, à servir les Français pourvu que le service nourrît son homme".

Louis XIV's visit
From 21 to 26 May 1687, Louis XIV visited the city of Luxembourg to inspect the fortress, which had been expanded under Vauban in the previous three years.

During his visited he held several audiences, and showed himself generous towards the Luxembourgish clergy. He left again on 26 May.

Kuckt och

 * Belagerung vun der Stad Lëtzebuerg