Editing Battle of Seneffe (section)

==Background==
Since both [[Louis XIV of France]] and the [[Dutch Republic]] viewed control of the [[Spanish Netherlands]] as essential for security and trade, it was a contested area for much of the later 17th century. In the 1667-68 [[War of Devolution]] with [[Habsburg Spain|Spain]], [[Kingdom of France|France]] occupied much of the region before the Dutch-led [[Triple Alliance (1668)|Triple Alliance]] forced them to withdraw in the [[Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1668)]].{{sfn|Macintosh|1973|p=165}} After this, Louis decided the best way to achieve his territorial ambitions was to first defeat the Dutch.{{sfn|Lynn|1999|pp=109-110}}

When the [[Franco-Dutch War]] began in May 1672, French troops quickly overran large parts of the [[Netherlands]], but by July the Dutch position had stabilised. The unexpected success of his offensive had encouraged Louis to make excessive demands, while concern at French gains brought the Dutch support from [[Brandenburg-Prussia]], [[Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor|Emperor Leopold]], and [[Charles II of Spain]]. In August 1673, an Imperial army opened a new front in the [[Rhineland]], and Louis responded by withdrawing from the Netherlands, retaining only [[Grave,_Netherlands|Grave]] and [[Maastricht]].{{sfn|Lynn|1999|p=117}} In January 1674, [[Denmark–Norway]] joined the anti-French coalition, while in February the [[Treaty of Westminster (1674)|Treaty of Westminster]] ended the [[Third Anglo-Dutch War]], depriving Louis of a key ally against the Dutch.{{sfn|Hutton|1989|p=317}}

{{Location map many|Belgium|caption = The Seneffe campaign, 1674; key locations in the [[Low Countries]] (dark green=modern Belgium)|border = black|width =340|float = left|relief=yes|
|label  = Mons           |pos = bottom  |lat_deg  =50|lat_min  =27  |lon_deg  = 3|lon_min = 57
|label2  = Maastricht    |pos2 = left |lat2_deg  =50|lat2_min  =51|lon2_deg = 5|lon2_min = 41
|label3  = Seneffe       |pos3 = left |lat3_deg  =50|lat3_min  =31|lon3_deg  = 4|lon3_min = 15
|label4  = Nivelles      |pos4 = right |lat4_deg  =50|lat4_min  =35|lon4_deg  = 4|lon4_min = 19
|label5  = Liège         |pos5 = right  |lat5_deg  =50|lat5_min  =38|lon5_deg  = 5|lon5_min = 34
|label6  = Brussels      |pos6 = left  |lat6_deg  =50|lat6_min  =51|lon6_deg  = 4|lon6_min = 21
|label7  = Charleroi     |pos7 = right|lat7_deg  =50|lat7_min  =24|lon7_deg  = 4|lon7_min = 26
|label9  = Grave         |pos9 = bottom|lat9_deg  =51|lat9_min  =46|lon9_deg  = 5|lon9_min = 44
|label10  = '''French Flanders'''|pos10 = bottom|lat10_deg  =50.3|lon10_deg  = 2.8}}

In May, the main French army under Louis himself attacked the largely undefended Spanish territory of [[Franche-Comté]]. [[Louis,_Grand_Condé|Condé]] remained on the defensive in the Spanish Netherlands, while a Dutch-Spanish army led by [[William III of England|William of Orange]] and [[Juan Domingo de Zuñiga y Fonseca|Count Monterrey]] spent June and July attempting to bring him to battle. When this proved unsuccessful, William proposed invading [[French Flanders]], which would threaten Condé's rear and force him to fight. Monterrey agreed, since it gave the Spanish an opportunity to recapture the key border town of [[Charleroi]].{{sfn|Lynn|1999|p=125}}

On 23 July, William was joined near [[Nivelles]] by [[Imperial Army of the Holy Roman Emperor|Imperial troops]] under [[Jean-Louis Raduit de Souches|de Souches]], giving him a total of about 65,000. Having occupied Franche-Comté, Louis sent Condé substantial reinforcements, and by early August he had 45,000 men entrenched along the [[Piéton]] river, which joined the [[Sambre]] at Charleroi.{{sfn|De Périni|1896|p=82}} Concluding these positions were too strong to attack, on 9 August the Allies moved into new lines facing the French left, running from Arquennes to [[Roux,_Belgium|Roux]]. By doing so, they hoped to tempt Condé into an attack, but when he simply shifted his troops to face the threat, the Allied leaders decided to bypass [[Seneffe]], and advance straight into the French rear.{{sfn|De Périni|1896|p=82}}