TheTreaties of Peace of Nijmegen (French:Traités de Paix de Nimègue;German:Friede von Nimwegen;Dutch:Vrede van Nijmegen) were a series oftreaties signed in theDutch city ofNijmegen between August 1678 and October 1679. The treaties ended various interconnected wars amongFrance, theDutch Republic,Spain,Brandenburg,Sweden,Denmark-Norway, thePrince-Bishopric of Münster, and theHoly Roman Empire. The most significant of the treaties was the first, which established peace between France and the Dutch Republic and placed the northern border of France very nearits modern position.^[1]

Treaties of Peace of Nijmegen

Traités de Paix de Nimègue (French)
Dutch and French diplomats signing the peace treaty
Context	Franco-Dutch War:Franco-Dutch War end; France controlFranche-Comté, selectFlanders cities, andHainaut.
Signed	1678–79
Location	Nijmegen,Dutch Republic
Parties	Kingdom of France  Dutch Republic Habsburg Spain Brandenburg-Prussia Swedish Empire Denmark–Norway Bishopric of Münster Lüneburg (Celle)  Holy Roman Empire

TheFranco-Dutch War of 1672–78 was the source of all the other wars that were ended formally at Nijmegen. Separate peace treaties were arranged for conflicts like theThird Anglo-Dutch War and theScanian War, but all of them had been directly caused by and form part of the Franco-Dutch War.England initially participated in the war on the French side but withdrew in 1674, after theTreaty of Westminster. TheElectorate of Cologne left the war in 1674, while the Prince-Bishopric of Münster switched sides from France to join the anti-French coalition that year. Denmark-Norway also joined the anti-French side in 1675, primarily fighting against Sweden.^{[citation needed]}

At the end of the Franco-Dutch and Scanian Wars, these were the belligerents:

Peace negotiations had begun as early as 1676, but nothing was agreed to and signed before 1678. Most treaties were concluded in Nijmegen, therefore the sum of all documents is known as the 'Treaties of Nijmegen'. Some of the countries involved signed peace deals elsewhere, such as theTreaty of Celle (Sweden made peace withLüneburg (Celle)),Treaty of Saint-Germain (France and Sweden made peace with Brandenburg) andTreaty of Fontainebleau (France dictated peace between Sweden and Denmark-Norway).^{[citation needed]}

The Franco–Dutch War ended with a treaty which gave France control over theregion of theFranche-Comté.^[8] France also gained further territories of theSpanish Netherlands, adding to those it had annexed under the 1659Treaty of the Pyrenees and 1668Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle. These included the town ofSaint-Omer with the remaining northwestern part of the former ImperialCounty of Artois; the lands ofCassel,Aire andYpres in southwesternFlanders; theBishopric of Cambrai; and the towns ofValenciennes andMaubeuge in the southernCounty of Hainaut.^{[citation needed]}

In turn, French KingLouis XIV ceded the occupied town ofMaastricht and thePrincipality of Orange to the DutchstadtholderWilliam III. The French forces withdrew from several occupied territories in northern Flanders and Hainaut.^{[citation needed]}

EmperorLeopold I retained the captured fortress ofPhilippsburg but had to accept the French occupation of the towns ofFreiburg (until 1697) andKehl (until 1698) on the right bank of theRhine.^{[citation needed]}

The treaties did not result in a lasting peace.^{[citation needed]}

Marc-Antoine Charpentier wrote aTe Deum for this occasion. Theprelude of the Te Deum is also known as theEurovision theme.

• Louis XIV Victory Monument

• Scan of the Franco-Dutch treaty (10 Aug 1678, in French, IEG Mainz)^{[permanent dead link‍]}