Secondly, another motive for Louis invading the Dutch could be because the Dutch are Republican and Protestant. Under the reign of Louis XIV, France was a very Catholic country, which was evident as Louis himself was named the “Sun King” and the “Most Catholic King”. It is possible that Louis wanted to invade the Dutch to remove any Protestant threat from around France, so with this as Louis’ motive, the Dutch war could be seen as more of a failure than a success.
It could be seen as a failure for numerous reasons, but first and foremost William of Orange, who was the Dutch Protestant leader, was still alive after the war ended in 1679. Secondly, Louis failed to replace the republic with the Monarchy, so this combined with the fact that William of Orange survived means that Louis failed the motive of turning the Dutch into Catholics and a Monarchy. On the other hand, Louis managed to capture several towns, including the Protestant town of Ypres, which could be seen as a success
A third motive for Louis invading the Dutch could be to destroy the Dutch trade routes that had been so successful prior to the war in 1672. By destroying the Dutch trade routes, Louis could receive more trade from other countries through Colbert’s theory of mercantilism (there’s a finite amount of trade to go round). Louis thought that by destroying the Dutch ports and trade ships, France would then get more business, as Colbert had made several policies to strengthen the French trade routes – e.g. Canal de Deux Mers.
If this was Louis motive, then the Dutch War could be seen as a huge success, as every single port and trade route around Holland had been flooded by their own people. Not only were the trade routes destroyed, but the actual trade was destroyed as well, as cattle and other trade were seen floating around Amsterdam towards the end of the War.
Another motive that Louis could’ve had for invading the Dutch could be revenge. Louis and France had been greatly betrayed in the War of Devolution, which took place between 1667 and 1668. In the War of Devolution, Louis tried to claim several important towns, both in and around the Spanish Netherlands, e.g. – Lille. The Dutch had betrayed Louis in this War as, oblivious to the fact that France had protected them in the past; they had the effrontery to combine with the Swedes and the English against their benefactor. In “Louis XIV, Access to History”, Richard Wilkinson quotes, “Louis XIV was also in great rage. The object of his wrath was human ingratitude, and the guilty men were the Dutch.” This evidence shows that revenge is a likely motive for Louis invading the Dutch in 1672.
If Louis’ motive was revenge, then the Dutch War can be seen both as a success and a failure. It can be seen as a success in the view that the Dutch economy was ruined, and most of their land, houses and crops had been flooded by themselves. However, if the motive for Louis was revenge then the Dutch War could also be seen as a failure as the Dutch, under William of Orange dragged the War out until 1679, which avoided humiliation as Louis wanted a short and successful war. In addition, Louis did not get revenge as he could not capture the capital city Amsterdam.
The last motive that could’ve caused Louis to invade the Dutch could have simply been because he wanted ‘La Gloire.’ This is an unlikely motive; however Louis may have just wanted to invade the Dutch as he simply loved War!
If this was Louis’ motive, then the Dutch War could be seen as a success, as he had 50,000 French troops at his disposal, which means that there would have been bloodshed. Also, the Dutch War dragged on for seven years, which would have been great for Louis as it meant seven years of battles and fights (whether successful or unsuccessful) e.g. the battle of Sole Bay in 1672, where the rejuvenated French fleet were destroyed by the Dutch under de Ruyter. However as I’ve mentioned before, Louis did not manage to kill the Dutch leader, William of Orange so in that view the War could be seen as a failure.
I believe that because of the outcome of the Dutch War, Louis did lose the peace between himself and other countries. There was the anti French coalition in 1673 formed by Leopald I, Spain, Netherlands and Lutherans from anti-French covenant. There was also the Triple-Alliance in 1668, where England, Netherlands and Sweden signed the Alliance against French. By committing atrocities in Holland, French troops had behaved badly by the standards of the age, provoking widespread criticism from other countries. This could be another reason why Louis lost the peace, as many other countries frowned upon the French actions during the War. However, Louis didn’t lose the peace completely, as the Elector of Brandenburg wrote, “In the present state of affairs it seems that no prince will henceforth find security and advantage except in the friendship and alliance of the King of France”..later that year, the city of Paris bestowed the title of ‘Great’ on Louis.
