Battle of Mulhouse (1674)

Battle of Mulhouse
Part of Franco-Dutch War
Date 29 December 1674 Location Mulhouse (now in Alsace, France) Result French victory
Belligerents
France	Holy Roman Empire
Commanders and leaders
Vicomte de Turenne	Hermann of Baden-Baden
Strength
3,000	5,000
Casualties and losses
60 killed, wounded or captured	1,300 300 killed 1,000 captured

The Battle of Mulhouse occurred on December 29, 1674, during the Franco-Dutch War between the French army and troops of the Holy Roman Empire and its allies, as part of Turenne's Winter Campaign. The French army was commanded by the Vicomte de Turenne and the imperial army was led by Prince Alexandre-Hippolyte de Bournonville.

While the imperial armies were in their winter quarters, Turenne split up his army and traveled through the Vosges mountains before reforming it near Belfort. This helped confuse his enemy and gave his troops a surprise advantage over his opponents in Mulhouse on December 29, leading to French victory.

The Franco-Dutch War largely stemmed from the desires of King Louis XIV to achieve glory through military victory and to punish the Netherlands for what he perceived to be Dutch betrayal during the War of Devolution (1667–68). The Dutch had started that war as a French ally but, faced with Louis's growing territorial ambitions, had ended by allying with England and Sweden to curb French expansionism. Pressure from this new alliance forced Louis to accept a compromise end to the War of Devolution. Louis then paid off Sweden and England to abandon the alliance. In 1672, France invaded the Netherlands, but the Dutch managed to bog down the French advance. Soon other powers, including the Holy Roman Empire, joined the war against France.

While the main campaign of 1674 was being fought in the Netherlands, Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor sought to open a second front against France in Alsace. An Imperial army under Bournonville crossed the Rhine River into Alsace at Strasbourg in September. Turenne attacked the Imperials on October 4 at Entzheim with a smaller force. Although the battle was indecisive tactically, it prompted Bournonville to end the 1674 campaign and enter winter quarters around Colmar. There he was reinforced by troops provided by Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg.

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