Treaty Of Compiègne (1624)
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The Treaty of Compiègne, signed on 10 June 1624, was a mutual defence alliance between the
Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the Middle Ages, medieval and Early modern France, early modern period. It was one of the most powerful states in Europe from th ...
and the
Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherlands ...
, for an initial period of three years. One of a series of treaties designed to isolate
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, France agreed to subsidise the Dutch in their
War of Independence Wars of national liberation, also called wars of independence or wars of liberation, are conflicts fought by nations to gain independence. The term is used in conjunction with wars against foreign powers (or at least those perceived as foreign) ...
in return for naval assistance, as well as trading privileges. It ultimately proved controversial, since its provisions were used to require the
Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
Dutch to help suppress their French co-religionists in
La Rochelle La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle'') is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime Departments of France, department. Wi ...
.


Background

The first half of the 17th century in Europe was dominated by the struggle between the Bourbon kings of
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
and their
Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...
rivals in
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
and in the
Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...
. Habsburg territories in the
Spanish Netherlands The Spanish Netherlands (; ; ; ) (historically in Spanish: , the name "Flanders" was used as a '' pars pro toto'') was the Habsburg Netherlands ruled by the Spanish branch of the Habsburgs from 1556 to 1714. They were a collection of States of t ...
,
Franche-Comté Franche-Comté (, ; ; Frainc-Comtou dialect, Frainc-Comtou: ''Fraintche-Comtè''; ; also ; ; all ) is a cultural and Provinces of France, historical region of eastern France. It is composed of the modern departments of France, departments of Doub ...
, and the
Pyrenees The Pyrenees are a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. They extend nearly from their union with the Cantabrian Mountains to Cap de Creus on the Mediterranean coast, reaching a maximum elevation of at the peak of Aneto. ...
blocked French expansion, and left France it vulnerable to invasion. During the
French Wars of Religion The French Wars of Religion were a series of civil wars between French Catholic Church, Catholics and Protestantism, Protestants (called Huguenots) from 1562 to 1598. Between two and four million people died from violence, famine or disease di ...
, Spain co-operated with the Catholic League in occupying large areas of France, before the succession of Henry IV in 1589 ended the conflict. After Henry's assassination in 1610, his wife
Marie de' Medici Marie de' Medici (; ; 26 April 1575 – 3 July 1642) was Queen of France and Navarre as the second wife of King Henry IV. Marie served as regent of France between 1610 and 1617 during the minority of her son Louis XIII. Her mandate as rege ...
became
regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...
for the nine-year-old
Louis XIII Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown. ...
, and continued to exercise considerable influence after the regency ended in 1614. This led to a series of revolts by powerful regional nobles, both Catholic and Protestant, who resented attempts to reduce their authority, while religious tensions were heightened by the outbreak in 1618 of the
Thirty Years War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine, or disease, whil ...
. In 1621, Royalist forces re-established Catholicism in the Protestant region of
Béarn Béarn (; ; or ''Biarn''; or ''Biarno''; or ''Bearnia'') is one of the traditional provinces of France, located in the Pyrenees mountains and in the plain at their feet, in Southwestern France. Along with the three Northern Basque Country, ...
, resulting in a
Huguenot rebellion The Huguenot rebellions, sometimes called the Rohan Wars after the Huguenot leader Henri, Duke of Rohan, Henri de Rohan, were a series of rebellions of the 1620s in which French people, French Calvinist Protestants (Huguenots), mainly located in ...
led by Henri de Rohan and his brother Soubise. The revolt ended in stalemate with the October 1622 Treaty of Montpellier. Having first entered government in 1616,
Cardinal Richelieu Armand Jean du Plessis, 1st Duke of Richelieu (9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), commonly known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a Catholic Church in France, French Catholic prelate and statesman who had an outsized influence in civil and religi ...
's policy was to 'arrest the course of Spanish progress', and 'protect her neighbours from Spanish oppression'. Unlike many of his colleagues, he primarily opposed the Huguenots because their autonomy threatened the strong, centralised state needed to defeat Spain, rather than because of their religion; he later proved equally ruthless in attacking their Catholic counterparts. With France weakened by internal divisions, Richelieu avoided direct conflict by supporting Spain's opponents, regardless of religion. This included funding the Protestant
Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherlands ...
in their 1568 to 1648 struggle for independence from Spain. In 1609, the two sides agreed a
Twelve Years' Truce The Twelve Years' Truce was a ceasefire during the Eighty Years' War between Habsburg Spain, Spain and the Dutch Republic, agreed in Antwerp on 9 April 1609 and ended on 9 April 1621. While European powers like Kingdom of France, France began tre ...
, and when the war restarted in 1621, Spain won a series of victories; by 1623, domestic opposition to the war and the heavy taxes levied to pay for it led the Dutch to seek external support. For different reasons, both
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and France were concerned by Spanish advances in the Netherlands; in the Anglo-Dutch defensive alliance of 5 June 1624, James I agreed to provide 6,000 troops for two years. The Treaty of Compiègne was part of a two-pronged approach by Richelieu, who was also negotiating an alliance with England that resulted in the marriage of
Henrietta Maria Henrietta Maria of France (French language, French: ''Henriette Marie''; 25 November 1609 – 10 September 1669) was List of English royal consorts, Queen of England, List of Scottish royal consorts, Scotland and Ireland from her marriage to K ...
to
Charles I of England Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of Kingdom of England, England, Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland, and Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland from 27 March 1625 until Execution of Charles I, his execution in 1649. Charles was born ...
.


Provisions

The principal negotiators were Richelieu for France and Nicolaas van den Bouckhorst, Sweder van Haersolte, and Arnold van Randwijck for the Dutch Republic. The signatories were
Louis XIII of France Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown. ...
and
Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange Frederick Henry (; 29 January 1584 – 14 March 1647) was the sovereign prince of Orange and stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel in the Dutch Republic from his older half-brother's death on 23 April 1625 until his ...
. The term of the treaty was three years, during which France would pay subsidies as long as the Dutch continued fighting Spain. They received an immediate payment of 480,000
thalers A thaler or taler ( ; , previously spelled ) is one of the large silver coins minted in the states and territories of the Holy Roman Empire and the Habsburg monarchy during the Early Modern period. A ''thaler'' size silver coin has a diameter o ...
, with the second instalment in November; by 1625, France was funding approximately 8% of the total Dutch defence budget. At this point, the
French Navy The French Navy (, , ), informally (, ), is the Navy, maritime arm of the French Armed Forces and one of the four military service branches of History of France, France. It is among the largest and most powerful List of navies, naval forces i ...
was a negligible force, while the bulk of their merchant fleet was controlled by Huguenots. The Dutch gave France the right to purchase warships, agreed to contribute twenty for a joint attack on the
Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( ; ; ) was a medieval and early modern Maritime republics, maritime republic from the years 1099 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italy, Italian coast. During the Late Middle Ages, it was a major commercial power in ...
, provide protection against pirates based in the
Barbary States The Barbary Coast (also Barbary, Berbery, or Berber Coast) were the coastal regions of central and western North Africa, more specifically, the Maghreb and the Ottoman borderlands consisting of the regencies in Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli, a ...
, and favourable terms for transporting French goods. However, they refused to allow French merchants to join voyages made by the
Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( ; VOC ), commonly known as the Dutch East India Company, was a chartered company, chartered trading company and one of the first joint-stock companies in the world. Established on 20 March 1602 by the States Ge ...
or
Dutch West India Company The Dutch West India Company () was a Dutch chartered company that was founded in 1621 and went defunct in 1792. Among its founders were Reynier Pauw, Willem Usselincx (1567–1647), and Jessé de Forest (1576–1624). On 3 June 1621, it was gra ...
; the treaty ultimately agreed only to 'continue discussions'. The Treaty of Compiègne was concluded on 10 June, ratified by the
States General of the Netherlands The States General of the Netherlands ( ) is the Parliamentary sovereignty, supreme Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of the Netherlands consisting of the Senate (Netherlands), Senate () and the House of Representatives (Netherlands), House of R ...
on 12 July and by Louis XIII on 4 September.


Aftermath

Encouraged by Richelieu, over the next few months England,
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
, Denmark-Norway,
Savoy Savoy (; )  is a cultural-historical region in the Western Alps. Situated on the cultural boundary between Occitania and Piedmont, the area extends from Lake Geneva in the north to the Dauphiné in the south and west and to the Aosta Vall ...
and
Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice, officially the Most Serene Republic of Venice and traditionally known as La Serenissima, was a sovereign state and Maritime republics, maritime republic with its capital in Venice. Founded, according to tradition, in 697 ...
agreed to co-ordinated action against Spain. In 1625, England declared war on Spain, Denmark invaded the
Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...
, while Venice and Savoy agreed to attack the
Spanish Road The Spanish Road was a military road and trade route linking Spanish territories in Flanders with those in Italy. It was in use from approximately 1567 to 1648. The Road was created to support the Spanish war effort in the Eighty Years' War ag ...
, an overland route connecting Spanish areas in Italy with
Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...
. However, this network of alliances was threatened in 1625 by another Huguenot revolt, centred on
La Rochelle La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle'') is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime Departments of France, department. Wi ...
, then the second or third largest city in France, with over 30,000 inhabitants, and one of its most important ports. In addition to the customs duties generated by imports, it was also among the biggest producers of salt, a major source of taxes for the state; its economic value and position made its capture crucial. Richelieu now activated the mutual defence provisions of both treaties; England was asked for seven warships, while the twenty Dutch vessels allocated for the attack on Genoa were now to be used against La Rochelle. Despite popular opposition to attacking fellow Protestants, the Dutch States-General felt they had no option, since they could not afford to lose France as an ally. A combined French, English and Dutch force defeated a Huguenot squadron at Pertuis Breton in September 1625; the remnants led by Soubise were given refuge in Falmouth, calling into question England's commitment to the French alliance. In December, the States General gave secret orders to their commander, Admiral
Willem Haultain de Zoete Willem de Zoete, Heer Haultain (1565 – 26 September 1637, Sluis) was a Dutch people, Dutch admiral of the 17th century. He served as a lieutenant-admiral from 1601 to 1627. Biography During the Eighty Years' War he directed Dutch fleets in v ...
, to use any excuse possible to withdraw his ships. He did so in February 1626, at which point the French exercised their right to purchase six of them. The treaty of Compiègne thus allowed Richelieu to achieve his aim of neutralising Huguenot seapower and blockade La Rochelle; despite English attempts to relieve it, the city surrendered in October 1628, and the June 1629 Peace of Alès largely ended Protestant autonomy.


References


Sources

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Further reading

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Treaty of Compiegne (1624) Treaties of the Kingdom of France Treaties of the Dutch Republic 1624 treaties 1624 in the Dutch Republic 1624 in France Dutch Republic–France relations Louis XIII Cardinal Richelieu