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The Treaty of Lunéville (or Peace of Lunéville) was signed in the Treaty House of Lunéville on 9 February 1801. The signatory parties were the French Republic and Emperor Francis II, who signed on his own behalf as ruler of the hereditary domains of the House of Austria and on behalf of the
Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...
. The signatories were
Joseph Bonaparte it, Giuseppe-Napoleone Buonaparte es, José Napoleón Bonaparte , house = Bonaparte , father = Carlo Buonaparte , mother = Letizia Ramolino , birth_date = 7 January 1768 , birth_place = Corte, Corsica, Republic ...
and Count Ludwig von Cobenzl, the Austrian foreign minister. The treaty formally ended Austrian and Imperial participation in the War of the Second Coalition and the
French Revolutionary Wars The French Revolutionary Wars (french: Guerres de la Révolution française) were a series of sweeping military conflicts lasting from 1792 until 1802 and resulting from the French Revolution. They pitted France against Britain, Austria, Pruss ...
. The Austrian army had been defeated by
Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...
at the Battle of Marengo on 14 June 1800 and then by Jean Victor Moreau at the
Battle of Hohenlinden The Battle of Hohenlinden was fought on 3 December 1800 during the French Revolutionary Wars. A French army under Jean Victor Marie Moreau won a decisive victory over an Austrian and Bavarian force led by 18-year-old Archduke John of Austri ...
on 3 December. Forced to sue for peace, the Austrians signed the treaty of Lunéville, which largely confirmed the treaty of Campo Formio (17 October 1797), which itself had confirmed the treaty of Leoben (April 1797). The
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
was the sole nation still at war with France for another year. The Austrians resumed war against France in 1805.


Negotiations

On 25 December 1799, Bonaparte wrote to Francis II to propose peace. The imperial response was delayed. On 20 January 1800, Austria and Britain signed a convention of alliance against France. On 25 January, Austria responded negatively to Bonaparte's offer. When Bonaparte renewed his offer after Marengo, however, the Austrian response was positive. A series of three negotiations followed. Two armistices preceded the opening of negotiations: the Convention of Alessandria (15 June 1800) in Italy and the
Armistice of Parsdorf An armistice is a formal agreement of warring parties to stop fighting. It is not necessarily the end of a war, as it may constitute only a cessation of hostilities while an attempt is made to negotiate a lasting peace. It is derived from the La ...
(15 July) in Germany.


First round

Count Joseph von Saint-Julien arrived in Paris on 21 July 1800 and was received with enthusiasm. He met with French Foreign Minister
Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord (, ; 2 February 1754 – 17 May 1838), 1st Prince of Benevento, then Prince of Talleyrand, was a French clergyman, politician and leading diplomat. After studying theology, he became Agent-General of the C ...
on 22–24 and 27 July. On 28 July, both signed a preliminary peace, which was mostly a copy of the Treaty of Campo Formio. The main difference was that the House of Austria was to be indemnified for its losses with territory in Italy, rather than in Germany. On 30 July, Saint-Julien left for Vienna accompanied by a French plenipotentiary, Géraud Duroc, although the French had intended for the final treaty to be signed in Paris. Duroc was not allowed to cross the Austrian lines. Saint-Julian arrived in Vienna on 5 August, but his preliminary peace was rejected by the emperor. On 13 August, Duroc was denied a passport and given a letter from Austrian Foreign Minister Johann Amadeus von Thugut, the architect of the Anglo-Austrian alliance, to Talleyrand. Duroc returned to Paris on 20 August. It is thought that his report on the state of the Austrian forces, based on his stay at General Paul Kray's headquarters, influenced Napoleon's decision to launch a new offensive in September. Shortly after Duroc had delivered the Austrian response, Saint-Julien was imprisoned and accused of signing a treaty without authorisation.


Second round

After the Saint-Julien fiasco, Thugut expressed a desire for Austria and Britain to negotiate together, but Napoleon rejected the idea of a peace conference. Britain, in turn, rejected French proposals for a separate peace. On 7 September, British Foreign Minister, Lord Grenville dispatched a counterproject to Paris, which contained a proposed naval armistice. The offer was received on 10 September, and Napoleon extended the armistice one week to consider the proposal, which was rejected. As a result, by the Convention of Hohenlinden of 20 September 1800, Austria ceded the fortresses of Ulm, Philippsburg and
Ingolstadt Ingolstadt (, Austro-Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian: ) is an Independent city#Germany, independent city on the Danube in Upper Bavaria with 139,553 inhabitants (as of June 30, 2022). Around half a million people live in the metropolitan area ...
to France in exchange for a one-month extension to the armistice. On 25 September, Thugut resigned as Austrian foreign minister.


Final round

The emperor originally nominated
Ludwig Conrad von Lehrbach Ludwig may refer to: People and fictional characters * Ludwig (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Ludwig (surname), including a list of people * Ludwig Ahgren, or simply Ludwig, American YouTube live streamer and c ...
as his plenipotentiary for the peace talks in Lunéville. As Lehrbach had signed the Convention of Hohenlinden and caused Thugut's fall, he was unacceptable to the British. He was replaced by Ludwig von Cobenzl, who was not initially authorised to negotiate apart from the British. The final round of negotiations thus began with a long period during which France and Austria haggled over the terms of negotiating while the armistices lapsed in late November. The peace conference was supposed to open in Lunéville on 7 October, but Cobenzl did not arrive for over two weeks, and Lord Grenville never appeared. By 25 October, Cobenzl, without instructions, had gone from Lunéville to Paris. He left a week later, the French having failed to separate him from his British allies. Cobenzl returned for a meeting with Napoleon before his first negotiation at Lunéville on 9 November with
Joseph Bonaparte it, Giuseppe-Napoleone Buonaparte es, José Napoleón Bonaparte , house = Bonaparte , father = Carlo Buonaparte , mother = Letizia Ramolino , birth_date = 7 January 1768 , birth_place = Corte, Corsica, Republic ...
. Since Cobenzl was not authorised to treat for a separate peace, and Joseph was authorised only to treat with Austria, the negotiations began at a deadlock. Joseph proposed that a secret treaty could be negotiated, with the British being invited to a public conference for appearance's sake only after negotiations had been effectively complete and the treaty publicly signed and all earlier copies burnt, only in March 1801, after the expiration of the Anglo-Austrian alliance. The British, meanwhile, had by 23 November suspended payment of the second installment of the subsidy that they had agreed to pay Austria on 20 June. During the negotiations at Lunéville, the French actively sought the alliance of
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...
. After a rapprochement had been made, Napoleon withdrew the offer to admit a British representative under any circumstances on 7 December. On 3 December, the French had won their victory at Hohenlinden. New instructions reached Cobenzl on 26 December. He was authorised to sign a preliminary separate peace to obtain a general armistice. In fact, an armistice covering Germany had already been signed by the commanders in the field on 25 December. On 26 December, the
Second League of Armed Neutrality The Second League of Armed Neutrality or the League of the North was an alliance of the north European naval powers Denmark–Norway, Prussia, Sweden, and Russia. It existed between 1800 and 1801 during the War of the Second Coalition and was ...
was formed. On 27 December, Francis II informed King
George III of the United Kingdom George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Monarchy of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until Acts of Union 1800, the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was ...
of being unable to meet his obligations as an ally. On 31 December, Cobenzl informed the French that he would negotiate without Britain. The final negotiations concerned mainly boundaries and indemnities in Italy. The
Grand Duchy of Tuscany The Grand Duchy of Tuscany ( it, Granducato di Toscana; la, Magnus Ducatus Etruriae) was an Italian monarchy that existed, with interruptions, from 1569 to 1859, replacing the Republic of Florence. The grand duchy's capital was Florence. In t ...
was a major issue. The terms of Campo Formio were accepted by Austria for Germany, and only the nature and the methods of compensation for imperial princes losing territory had to be decided. As of 30 December, the emperor was offering to accept the Oglio (rather than the Adda) as the boundary of his territory in Italy if he held onto the
Legations A legation was a diplomatic representative office of lower rank than an embassy. Where an embassy was headed by an ambassador, a legation was headed by a minister. Ambassadors outranked ministers and had precedence at official events. Legations ...
, and the Duke of Modena was indemnified for his losses in Italy, not Germany. Since the fighting continued in Italy while negotiations were underway at Lunéville, Cobenzl was forced to adjust his demands successively eastward as the French advanced in Italy. By 5 January, he was willing to accept the
Chiese The Chiese, also known in the Province of Brescia as the Clisi, is a Italian river that is the principal immisary and sole emissary of the sub-alpine lake Lago d’Idro, and is a left tributary of the Oglio. The river rises from the Adamell ...
, by 9 January the Mincio and by 15 January the Adige and the . On 16 January, the Austrian and French commanders in Italy concluded the Armistice of Treviso, which left the fortress of
Mantua Mantua ( ; it, Mantova ; Lombard language, Lombard and la, Mantua) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, province of the same name. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the Italian Capital of Culture ...
in Austrian hands. Cobenzl was not aware of that at the time of his sixth official conference with Joseph on 25 January. France demanded the cession of the fortresses of Mantua, Peschiera, Legnano, Ferrara and
Ancona Ancona (, also , ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region in central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region. The city is located northeast of Rome, on the Adriatic ...
and the expulsion of the Grand Duke of Tuscany from Italy in return for an armistice in Italy. Since the Armistice of Steyr was expiring, both sides agreed to extend it as well. As a result, Mantua was lost to Austria. On 1 February, France accepted an Austrian request to allow a representative of the Two Sicilies to take part in the negotiations although that did not happen. The final week was taken up by the issue of the Left Bank of the Rhine and the Empire. Austria wanted another congress like the Congress of Rastatt to make peace for the Empire. Napoleon demanded that Francis sign on behalf of himself, his own territories and the Holy Roman Empire. The treaty was finally signed at 5:00 in the evening on 9 February 1801.


Terms

The Treaty of Lunéville declared that "there shall be, henceforth and forever, peace, amity, and good understanding" among the parties. The treaty required Austria to enforce the conditions of the earlier treaty of Campo Formio. The independence and sovereignty of the Cisalpine, Ligurian, Batavian and Helvetic republics was recognized. The entire left bank of the Rhine, including the
Austrian Netherlands The Austrian Netherlands nl, Oostenrijkse Nederlanden; french: Pays-Bas Autrichiens; german: Österreichische Niederlande; la, Belgium Austriacum. was the territory of the Burgundian Circle of the Holy Roman Empire between 1714 and 1797. The pe ...
, was ceded to France. The Duchy of Savoy and imperial Italy were also ceded by the Empire, becoming parts of France and the new Italian republics. Whereas Campo Formio had not affected the
Grand Duchy of Tuscany The Grand Duchy of Tuscany ( it, Granducato di Toscana; la, Magnus Ducatus Etruriae) was an Italian monarchy that existed, with interruptions, from 1569 to 1859, replacing the Republic of Florence. The grand duchy's capital was Florence. In t ...
, Lunéville ceded it to France. In another change from Campo Formio, certain imperial fortresses on the right bank of the Rhine were to be demolished. Those princes who lost territory, including the Grand Duke of Tuscany and the Duke of Modena, were to be compensated with territory in Germany east of the Rhine. This was to be accomplished largely thought a programme of
secularization In sociology, secularization (or secularisation) is the transformation of a society from close identification with religious values and institutions toward non-religious values and secular institutions. The ''secularization thesis'' expresses t ...
of ecclesiastical principalities as laid out at the Congress of Rastatt. France would supervise the process. Although Austria had been promised the Archbishopric of Salzburg and some Bavarian lands at Campo Formio, those promises were withdrawn at Lunéville. The Austria acquisition of the Venetian ''Terraferma'', Venetian Dalmatia and all of
Istria Istria ( ; Croatian and Slovene: ; ist, Eîstria; Istro-Romanian, Italian and Venetian: ; formerly in Latin and in Ancient Greek) is the largest peninsula within the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic betwee ...
was confirmed.


Imperial deputation

The treaty was accepted by the Imperial Diet on 7 March. The task of compensation was left to an imperial deputation (German: ''Reichsdeputation''). France and Russia greatly influenced the negotiations in the Imperial Deputation, with France urging for larger new territories to be formed, which it hoped would later ally with them, and Russia favouring "a more traditional balance". Eventually, the ''Reichsdeputationshauptschluss'' (Final Recess of the Imperial Deputation), the final document that reorganised the Empire, was signed on 25 February 1803. The Recess did far more than simply satisfy the need to compensate the princes, but it fundamentally restructured the Empire by secularising all ecclesiastical states except for the
Electorate of Mainz The Electorate of Mainz (german: Kurfürstentum Mainz or ', la, Electoratus Moguntinus), previously known in English as Mentz and by its French name Mayence, was one of the most prestigious and influential states of the Holy Roman Empire. In the ...
. Almost all
free imperial cities In the Holy Roman Empire, the collective term free and imperial cities (german: Freie und Reichsstädte), briefly worded free imperial city (', la, urbs imperialis libera), was used from the fifteenth century to denote a self-ruling city that ...
lost their sovereignty. The ''Reichsdeputationshauptschluss'' was the last major law in the history of the Holy Roman Empire before its dissolution in 1806.


See also

* Oranienstein Letters


Notes


References


Bibliography

* * * * * *


External links


Text of the treaty (in French)
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Treaty Of Luneville Luneville 1801 in France 1801 in the Holy Roman Empire Luneville Luneville Luneville Treaties of the French First Republic France–Holy Roman Empire relations February 1801 events Ligurian Republic Batavian Republic Cisalpine Republic Helvetic Republic French Consulate