This is a list of wars that occurred in the southern Low Countries between 1560 and 1829.
Unlike the 'Northern Netherlands', where a set of united provinces and cities proclaimed its independence in 1581 and would become the Dutch Republic in 1588, the southern Low Countries would remain dependent territories throughout this time. These non-sovereign territories included the Habsburg-owned Southern Netherlands (Spanish Netherlands until 1715, Austrian Netherlands until 1795), the Prince-Bishopric of Liège (until 1795), the Princely Abbey of Stavelot-Malmedy (until 1794), the Prince-Bishopric of Cambrésis and the Imperial City of Cambray (until 1678), the Principality of Sedan (until 1651), the Duchy of Bouillon (until 1795), and some western parts of the Duchy of Jülich (until 1795). Aside from these, there were various other small political entities such as the County of Enghien (until 1569), the Imperial Lordship of Kessenich (until 1784), the Duchy of Aarschot, the Duchy of Hoogstraten, the County of Horne, the Double Lordship of Maastricht, the Redemptiedorpen, the County of the Vroenhof (all until 1795), and so on. During the Brabant and Liège Revolutions (1789–1791), the United Belgian States and Liège Republic briefly achieved de facto independence, but remained unrecognised before the Habsburgs restored their power, and French Revolutionary armies soon conquered all the southern Low Countries and annexed them into the French First Republic in 1795. Most of the Low Countries were unified in 1815 as the newly created United Kingdom of the Netherlands under the House of Orange-Nassau, in personal union with the newly created Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, until the Belgian Revolution broke out in 1830.
For earlier wars, see List of wars in the Low Countries until 1560. For simultaneous wars in the Northern Netherlands, see List of wars involving the Dutch Republic (1560–1795) and List of wars involving the Netherlands (1795–present) For subsequent wars in the southern Low Countries, see List of wars involving Belgium (1830–present), from the Belgian Revolution onwards List of wars involving Luxembourg (1890–present).
Start Finish Name of conflict Belligents Outcome Combatant 1 Combatant 2 1566 1648 Eighty Years' War(also called the Dutch Revolt)(mixed with the Thirty Years' War) Spanish Empire (incl. Spanish Netherlands) Portuguese Empire (1580–1640) Austrian Habsburgs (1598–1621) Dutch States Party (incl. Flanders, Brabant,Mechelen, Artois, Hainaut, Namur etc. c. 1576–1585) Calvinist Republic of Ghent (1577–1584) (1577–1585) (1576–1584) Dutch Republic (1581/8–1648) Kingdom of England (1585–1604, 1625–30) Kingdom of France (1596–8, 1635–48) Peace of Münster Dutch Republic attains independence Dutch Reformed Church acquires privileged status; Catholics, Lutherans and Jews tolerated Southern Netherlands remain Spanish Catholic Church remains the state religion, other religions remain illegal 1593 1595 Luxemburg campaigns(part of the Eighty Years' War) Spanish Empire (incl. Spanish Netherlands) Prince-Bishopric of Liège (1595) Dutch Republic Duchy of Bouillon Spanish victory Dutch and Bouillonese troops withdraw 1635 1659 Franco-Spanish War (1635–1659)(emerged from the Thirty Years' War) Spanish Empire (incl. Spanish Netherlands) (1635–48) Modena and Reggio (1635–46) English Royalists (1657–59) Kingdom of France Dutch Republic (1635–48) (1654–59) Modena and Reggio (1647–49, 1655–59) (1635–37) Principality of Catalonia (1640–41) Catalan Republic (1641)
Co-belligerent Kingdom of Portugal (1640–59) French victory Treaty of the Pyrenees France acquires Artois and parts of Flanders (including Arras, Béthune and Gravelines), French Hainaut, parts of Luxembourg (including Montmédy and Thionville), the Three Bishoprics and Sedan England acquires Dunkirk, but sells it to France in 1662 1667 1668 War of Devolution Spanish Empire (incl. Spanish Netherlands) Triple Alliance: Kingdom of France Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1668) France acquires Armentières, Bergues, Charleroi, Kortrijk,Douai, Veurne, Lille, Oudenaarde and Tournai 1672 1678 Franco-Dutch War(mixed with the Third Anglo-Dutch War)(mixed with the Scanian War) Dutch Republic Brandenburg-Prussia Spanish Empire (incl. Spanish Netherlands) Duchy of Lorraine (from 1673) Holy Roman Empire (from 1673): Prince-Bishopric of Münster (1674–79) Lüneburg (Celle) (from 1674) and others Denmark–Norway (from 1675) Kingdom of France Kingdom of England (1672–74) Prince-Bishopric of Münster (1672–74) Electorate of Cologne (1672–74) Kingdom of Sweden (from 1674) Indecisive Treaty of Westminster (1674) Treaties of Nijmegen (1678–79) France acquires Saint-Omer (Artois), Cassel, Aire and Ypres (Flanders),Cambrésis (definitively), Valenciennes and Maubeuge (Hainaut) La Tour d'Auvergne acquires sovereignty over Bouillon (as a French protectorate) from Liège, and renounces all rights to Sedan to France 1683 1684 War of the Reunions Spanish Empire (incl. Spanish Netherlands) Kingdom of France French victory Truce of Ratisbon Spain cedes Luxembourg to France for 20 years Holy Roman Empire cedes Strasbourg to France for 20 years 1688 1697 Nine Years' War Dutch Republic Kingdom of England Holy Roman Empire: Austria Electorate of Bavaria Electoral Palatinate Brandenburg-Prussia Spanish Empire (incl. Spanish Netherlands) Kingdom of Portugal Kingdom of Sweden Duchy of Savoy
Stavelot-Malmedy Kingdom of France Peace of Ryswick French razing of Malmedy and Stavelot on 4 October 1689 1701 1714 War of the Spanish Succession Austria Great Britain Dutch Republic Kingdom of Prussia Kingdom of Portugal Crown of Aragon Duchy of Savoy Kingdom of France Spanish Empire (incl. Spanish Netherlands) Electorate of Bavaria Hungarian rebels Peace of Utrecht (1713–5)Treaty of Rastatt (1714) 1718 1720 War of the Quadruple Alliance Austria (incl. Austrian Netherlands) Kingdom of France Great Britain Duchy of Savoy Dutch Republic Spanish Empire Allied victory Treaty of The Hague (1720) 1740 1748 War of the Austrian Succession Austria (incl. Austrian Netherlands) Great Britain Electorate of Hanover Dutch Republic Saxony (1743–45) Kingdom of Sardinia (1742–48) Russian Empire (1741–43, 1748) Kingdom of France Kingdom of Prussia (1740–42, 1744–45) Spanish Empire Kingdom of Naples Electorate of Bavaria (1741–45) Electoral Palatinate (1741–46) Electorate of Saxony (1741–42) Kingdom of Sweden (1741–43) Republic of Genoa (1745–48) Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748) Maria Theresia recognised as Empress of Austria Spain acquires the Parma and Piacenza from Austria Austria recognises Prussian conquest of Silesia France withdraws from Low Countries, Dutch Republic retrieves Barrier forts France exchanges Madras against Ile-Royale with England 1784 1784 Kettle War Dutch Republic Austria (incl. Austrian Netherlands) Dutch victory: Treaty of Fontainebleau (1785) 1789 1791 Liège Revolution Liège Republic United Belgian States (1790) Kingdom of Prussia (1790) Prince-Bishopric of Liège Austria Austrian–episcopal victory Restoration of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège 1789 1790 Brabant Revolution Statists & Vonckists United Belgian States (1790) Liège Republic Kingdom of Prussia (1790) Austria Austrian victory Temporary overthrow of Austrian rule by an émigré army, followed by local uprisings Establishment of the United Belgian States Growing friction between political factions Exile of the liberal faction First Austrian Restoration 1792 1797 War of the First Coalition(mostly the Low Countries theatre) First Coalition: Dutch Republic Holy Roman Empire Habsburg monarchy (Austria) Kingdom of Prussia Electorate of Hanover Hesse-Kassel Great Britain Spanish Empire (1793–95) Kingdom of the French (1792) French First Republic (from 1792) Republic of Bouillon (1794–95) Batavian Republic (from 1795) Ligurian Republic (from 1795) Cisrhenian Republic (1797) Cisalpine Republic (1797) other sister republics Spanish Empire (1796–97) French victory All southern Low Countries annexed by France (1795) Treaty of The Hague (1795): Batavian Republic established as a French sister republic Treaty of Campo Formio (1797): Habsburg Monarchy accepts the loss of the Austrian Netherlands 1798 1798 Peasants' War (1798) Brigands French First Republic French victory Revolt suppressed 1798 1802 War of the Second Coalition Batavian Republic Cisalpine Republic Helvetic Republic Ligurian Republic Roman Republic (1798–99) Parthenopean Republic (1799) other sister republics Spanish Empire French victory France briefly conquers the Papal States and captures Pope Pius VI (1798–99) Treaty of Lunéville (1801) recognises Holy Roman Empire's loss of southern Low Countries to France Concordat of 1801: Pope Pius VII recognises the abolition of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège 1803 1806 War of the Third Coalition(part of the Napoleonic Wars) Batavian Republic Etruria Italy French victory Treaty of Pressburg (1805): Austrian Empire leaves Coalition Consolidation of the First French Empire Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire Creation of the Confederation of the Rhine Formation of the Fourth Coalition a few months later 1813 1814 War of the Sixth Coalition Sixth Coalition: (already at war) (already at war) (already at war) (already at war) (3 March) (14 March) (17 March)
After Pläswitz (June–August 1813)
(12 August) (8 Oct.)
After Leipzig (October 1813)
(18 Oct.) (18 Oct.) Baden (mid-November) Principality of the Netherlands (21 Nov.)
After January 1814
Denmark Duchy of Warsaw
Naples Until January 1814
Confederation of the Rhine Denmark–Norway Coalition victory Napoleon abdicates and is captured Future of southern Low Countries determined at Congress of Vienna (1814–15) 1815 1815 Hundred Days(also called War of the Seventh Coalition)(part of the Napoleonic Wars) First French Empire Coalition victory Congress of Vienna is concluded with Final Act (9 June 1815) French borders reduced to pre-1792 situation, Bourbon Restoration Most southern Low Countries incorporated into the United Kingdom of the Netherlands under Orange Dutch king also becomes grand duke of Luxemburg, now a German Confederation member state Eupen-Malmedy, Bitburg-Prüm, Niederkrüchten and Erkelenz annexed by Prussia
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