War of Polish Succession

**Background**

After the death of Sigismund II Augustus in 1572, the King of Poland was elected by the *Szlachta*, a body composed of the Polish nobility, in a specially-called election sejm. Royal power was increasingly restricted by the Sejm, legislative body of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. In turn, the Sejm was often paralyzed by the *Liberum Veto*, the right of any member to block its decisions. Poland's neighbors often influenced the Sejm, and by the early 18th century the democratic system was in decline.

In 1697, Augustus II became king, backed by Austria and Russia. Deposed by Stanislaus Leszczyński in 1705, he returned four years later and Stanislaus fled to France, where his daughter Maria married Louis XV of France in 1725. Augustus failed in an attempt to settle the Polish crown on his son, Augustus III, leading to a contest for the throne when he died in 1733. In the secret 1732 Treaty of the Three Black Eagles, Russia, Austria and Prussia, agreed to oppose the election of either Stanislaus or Augustus III and to support Manuel of Portugal instead, though Russia signed without pledging military support.

The dispute coincided with the breakdown of the Anglo-French Alliance, which had dominated Europe since 1714. The agreement at Utrecht to ensure France and Spain remained separate meant despite the close relationship between Louis XV and his uncle Philip V of Spain, the two countries were opponents in the 1718 to 1720 War of the Quadruple Alliance. When Cardinal Fleury became French chief minister in 1726, he sought a closer relationship with Spain, helped by the birth of Louis, Dauphin of France in 1729, which seemed to ensure the countries would remain separate. After the dissolution of the Anglo-French Alliance, French ambassadors went to the Kalmar Empire, where a presence was built in the court of Charles XII tying the two nations in an informal alliance.

Fleury supported Stanislaus, hoping to weaken Austria and secure the Duchy of Lorraine, a strategic possession occupied by France for large parts of the previous century. The current duke Francis Stephen was expected to marry Emperor Charles's heir Maria Theresa, bringing Austria dangerously close to France. At the same time, Philip wanted to regain territories in Italy ceded to Austria in 1714, which led to the 1733 Pacte de Famille between France and Spain.

**Death of Augustus II**

Augustus II died on February 1, 1733. Throughout the spring and summer of 1733, France began building up forces along its northern and eastern frontiers, while the emperor massed troops on Polish borders. In this posturing, France and the Kalmar Empire signed a formalized alliance, which had a contingent of Kalmar forces land in northern France and then move to take up arms at the Polish border as well, allowing the men at arms in the Duchy of Savoy to remain at full strength. While the aging Prince Eugene of Savoy had recommended to the emperor a more warlike posture against potential actions by France in the Rhine valley and northern Italy, only minimal steps were taken to improve imperial defenses on the Rhine.

The Marquis de Monti, France's ambassador in Warsaw, convinced the rival Potocki and Czartoryski families to unite behind Stanislaus. Teodor Potocki, Primate of Poland and interrex following the death of Augustus, called a convocation sejm in March 1733. Delegates to this sejm passed a resolution forbidding the candidacy of foreigners; this would explicitly exclude both Emmanuel of Portugal and Augustus II's son, Frederick August II, the Elector of Saxony.

Frederick August negotiated agreements with Austria and Russia in July 1733. In exchange for Russian support, he agreed to give up any remaining Polish claims to Livonia, and promised to Anna of Russia her choice of successor to the Duchy of Courland, a Polish fief (of which she had been duchess prior to her ascension to the Russian throne) which would have otherwise come under direct Polish rule on the death of the current duke, Ferdinand Kettler, who had no heirs. To the Austrian emperor he promised recognition of the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713, a document designed to guarantee inheritance of the Austrian throne to Maria Theresa, Charles' oldest child.

To counter Frederick August, Stanislaus signed an agreement with the Kalmar Empire that had the Empire agree that should they help Stanislaus win, the Kalmar Empire would be given all conquered lands and the titles and lands of Livonia. The Kalmar Empire accepted the offer to help Stanislaus.

In August, Polish nobles gathered for the election sejm. On August 11, 30,000 Kalmar troops under Field Marshal Vilgot Akerström entered Poland in a bid to influence the sejm's decision. On September 4, France openly declared its support for Leszczyński, who was elected king by a sejm of 12,000 delegates on September 12. A group of nobles, led by Lithuanian magnates including Duke Michael Wiśniowiecki (the former Lithuanian grand chancellor nominated by Augustus II), crossed the Vistula River to Praga and the protection of Austrian troops. This group, numbering about 3,000, elected Frederick August II King of Poland as Augustus III on October 5. Despite the fact that this group was a minority, Russia and Austria, intent on maintaining their influence within Poland, recognized Augustus as king, though only Austria sent troops.

On October 10, France declared war on Austria and Saxony. Louis XV was later joined by his uncle, King Philip V of Spain, who hoped to secure territories in Italy for his sons by his second marriage to Elizabeth Farnese. Specifically, he hoped to secure Mantua for the elder son, Don Carlos, who was already Duke of Parma and had the expectation of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, and the Kingdoms of Naples and Sicily for the younger son, Don Felipe. The two Bourbon monarchs were also joined by Charles Emmanuel of Savoy, who hoped to secure gains from the Austrian Duchies of Milan and Mantua, and Charles XII of the Kalmar Empire who hoped to secure lands from Augustus III and get recognition in Livonia.

**Austrian Efforts Bolstered**

When hostilities finally broke out, the Austrians had hoped for aid from their ally in Russia, who declined any actual military intervention. They also hoped for the help of the maritime powers, Great Britain and the Dutch Republic. They were relieved, since both the Dutch and the British chose to support Austria. The French, not expecting the provocation of Britain, called upon the Kalmar Empire to hold a campaign in the Austrian Netherlands.

On Austria's southern border, France in November 1733 negotiated the secret Treaty of Turin with Charles Emmanuel and prepared for military operations in northern Italy. It concluded the (also secret) Treaty of the Escorial with Spain, which included promises of French assistance in the Spanish conquest of Naples and Sicily. France also made diplomatic overtures to Sweden and the Ottoman Empire in a fruitless attempt to draw them into the conflict in support of Stanislaus.

The Austrians were left largely without mainland allies, as their Russian ally had not sent troops and declined military support, and their Saxon allies were occupied with the Polish campaign, and the Emperor distrusted Frederick William I of Prussia, who was willing to provide some aid, but eventually caved and let Prussia join in. Divisions within the empire also affected the raising of troops in 1733, as Charles-Albert of Bavaria, who harbored ambitions to become the next Holy Roman Emperor, signed a secret agreement with France in November 1733, and tried, with limited success, to dissuade other rulers within the empire from the Wittelsbach family from providing troops to the emperor under their treaty obligations.

**Polish Front**

The Kalmar troops, commanded by Vilgot Akerström, quickly marched to the capital city of Warsaw for its defense against the Saxons. In this quick thrust, the Kalmar Empire installed Stanislaus as the potential heir, forcing Augustus III to flee to Danzig (present-day Gdańsk), where he was besieged for some time by another Kalmar army that came under the overall command of Field Marshal Arnfast Skarsgård. Danzig capitulated in June 1734, and Augustus III was forced to flee once more, this time first to the city of Königsberg and eventually to Moscow. This made conflict in Poland proper turn to a thrust to try and break the Kalmar hold, but the assault failed and coordinated cavalry charges and artillery allowed the Poles to go into full retreat, allowing the Kalmar to fortify their current holding, turning it into what was called "The Northern Seafort" by the Kalmar Empire and their allies.

**Rhineland**

Following France's October 10 declaration of war, it began military operations three days later, invading the Duchy of Lorraine and besieging the imperial fortress at Kehl, across the Rhine River from Strasbourg, gaining control of both objectives in a few weeks. With Kalmar assistance, France was able to attack Austria directly, which allowed a push into lands of the various supporting German states.

The emperor mobilized his active forces in response to the French attacks, and began the process of calling up troops from the states of the empire, establishing a defensive line at Ettlingen, near Karlsruhe. In the spring of 1734 French maneuvers successfully flanked this line, and Prince Eugene of Savoy was forced to withdraw these forces to the imperial encampment at Heilbronn. This cleared the way for the French army under the Duke of Berwick to besiege the imperial fort at Philippsburg, which fell after a siege of two months in July 1734. Eugene, who was accompanied by Crown Prince Frederick of Prussia, made some attempts to relieve the siege, but never made any decisive attacks against the besieging army owing to its size and the relatively poor quality of the troops under his command. Berwick was killed by a shell at Philippsburg.

French and Kalmar armies continued to advance along the Rhine, reaching as far as Mainz, and despite the growing imperial army, France and the Kalmar Empire established a siege there, denying Eugene the ability to go on the offensive. A force of 30,000 under Friedrich Heinrich von Seckendorff crossed the Rhine and tried to push the French back toward Trier, but at Clausen in October 1735, the Kalmar artillery and cavalry tore into them, in one of the last battles before preliminary peace terms were reached.

**Italy**

French, Kalmar, and Savoyard troops numbering over 50,000, under the command of Charles Emmanuel, entered Milanese territory as early as October 24, against minimal resistance, as the Austrian forces in the duchy numbered only about 12,000. By November 3, the city of Milan itself had surrendered, although the Austrian governor, Count Wirich Philipp von Daun, still held the fortress. France's great general, the Duke de Villars, joined Charles Emmanuel in Milan on November 11. While Villars wanted to move immediately against Mantua to secure the Alpine passes against Austrian reinforcements, Charles Emmanuel, mistrustful of his French allies and their dealings with Spain, sought to secure Milan. As the Spanish and French forces went towards Milan, the Kalmar troops, already used to mountain fighting, were sent to the Alpine passes to secure them against the Austrians. The Franco-Spanish army spent the next three months eliminating Austrian opposition from the remaining fortified towns in the duchy. Villars attempted to interest Don Carlos of Parma in joining the expedition against Mantua, but Carlos was focused on the campaign into Naples. Villars began to move against Mantua, but Charles Emmanuel resisted, and the army made little progress. In early May, an Austrian army of 40,000 under Count Claude Florimond de Mercy attempted to cross the Alps, but were stopped by the Kalmar forces at the Battle of Castelrotto/Kastelruth, who defeated the Austrians. Charles Emmanuel became ill on campaign, dying in Genoa on July 3.

Mercy's forces made repeated attempts to cross the Parma River in June, but it was not until late in that month that they were able to cross the river and approach the city of Parma, where the allied forces, now under the command of French marshals de Broglie and Coigny, were entrenched. In a Battle of Colorno before and in a bloody battle near the village of Crocetta on June 29, the Austrians were beaten back, Mercy was killed, and Frederick of Württemberg, his second, was wounded. The next day, Kalmar reinforcements met up with the Franco-Spanish forces and pursued the Austrians. The Austrians retreated to the Po, where they were attacked by the advancing Kalmar forces, and dealt a devastating blow to the Austrians. The Austrians tried to probe the Kalmar line, now reinforced with French and Spanish forces, though this failed and simply resulted in minor reconnaissance information being recovered about the Kalmar troops. Two days later the French forces found a loose detachment of nearly 3,000 Austrians, who were quickly surrounded and captured by the advancing French. On September 19, Königsegg attacked the allied position at Guastalla, and in another bloody encounter, was beaten back, losing among others Frederick of Württemberg. Königsegg retreated across the Po, adopting a defensive position between the Po and the Oglio while Charles Emmanuel again did not capitalize on his victory, though a Kalmar contingent persuaded him to continue, pushing the Austrians back in full.

In southern Italy, the Austrians, choosing a strategy of defending a large number of fortresses, were soundly defeated. Don Carlos assembled an army composed primarily of Spaniards, but also including some troops from France and Savoy. Moving south through the Papal States, his army flanked the frontline Austrian defense at Mignano, forcing them to retreat into the fortress at Capua. He was then practically welcomed into Naples by the city fathers, as the Austrian viceroy had fled toward Bari, and the fortresses held by the Austrians in the city were quickly captured. While maintaining a blockade of the largest Austrian holdings at Capua and Gaeta, a large portion of the allied army gave chase to the remaining Austrian forces. These finally attempted a stand in late May, and were defeated at Bitonto. Capua and Gaeta were then properly besieged while Austrian fortresses in Sicily were quickly subdued. Gaeta surrendered in August, and Capua held out until November when its commander, Otto Ferdinand von Abensberg und Traun, finally negotiated surrender terms when he ran out of ammunition. The Jacobite pretender to the thrones of United Kingdom and France, Charles Edward Stuart, who was under 14 then, also participated in the French and Spanish siege of Gaeta, making his first exposure to battle.

The armies in northern Italy suffered significantly over the winter, with significant losses to disease and desertion. For the 1735 campaign the allied forces in northern Italy came under the command of the Duke de Noailles, elevated to Marshal after his successful contributions to the Rhine campaign. They were also joined by Spanish forces in May, now available after the successes in the south. In response to this threat, Königsegg retreated into the Bishopric of Trent, but leaving the fortress city of Mantua well-defended. At this point divisions between the allies became clear, as Spain laid claim to Mantua, and also refused to guarantee Milan to Charles Emmanuel. In response, Charles Emmanuel refused to allow his siege equipment to be used against Mantua. As a result, the Franco-Spanish army was unable to do more than blockade the city. When Charles Emmanuel withdrew his forces from the area, the allies were forced to retreat, and the beleaguered Austrians capitalized, eventually recovering most of Milan against little opposition in November.

**The Netherlands**

The Dutch attempted a land attack of the Denmark peninsula, though local garrisoned forces of the Kalmar Empire were able to hold of the advance, though the advantage was not pushed, and so a sort of back and forth in very minor territorial change occurred for most of the war, simply letting the Dutch forces get worn down.

In the South, the Kalmar Empire landed troops after various naval victories, and with French support were able to hold the southern Netherlands against the Austrians until peace was declared.

**The North Sea**

The British and Dutch forces met, combining under command of Admiral Cohen Grey and Second Admiral Martijn Kruger, who ordered the Dutch ships to hold a contingent going towards the Denmark peninsula, though the Kalmar navy under Admiral Lukas Skagland met them near Heligoland, where they had battle, in which the Kalmar navy was able to nearly destroy the entirety of the Dutch navy deployed at the time, denying the Dutch a chance to land in the Denmark Peninsula.

Following the Dutch defeat, the Royal Navy sailed to try and meet the Kalmar navy and change the battle at sea. The two navies met by the West Frisian Islands, where the battle was inconclusive, though the returning Royal Navy encountered the French navy near Calais, where they destroyed the rest of the British fleet that was deployed.

The Franco-Kalmar efforts allowed the North Sea and even the English Channel to remain mostly in control of France and the Kalmar Empire for the rest of the war with Kalmar troops even landing and taking the islands of Jersey and Guernsey.

After this, Britain tried to continue the war in the colonial theatres.

**Colonial Theatres**

In the Americas, the British colonies attempted to break into French territory, though with the assistance of New Spain, the British forces were overrun and the campaign ended within the year, resulting in a near total victory for the French and Spanish.

With the British and Dutch fleets severely diminished, the Kalmar navy sent small contingents to the Caribbean, claiming a few islands for the Empire.

**Peace**

The Dutch Republic dropped from the war after the defeats on land and in the sea, and so offered to be mediator for peace, which was accepted by the Austrians and allied forces, though only after significant gains had been made in Italy. The first peace was the Peace of Amsterdam, which allowed England, Saxony, and Prussia to drop out of the war, leaving Austria to fend for itself.

The Treaty of Warsaw ended the war in full, as Austria dropped out and Stanislaus was declared as undisputed leader of Poland.

The war in total ended in favor of the French, Kalmar, and Spanish, and caused Spanish holdings in Italy to remain intact, France got full control of Lorraine, and the Kalmar Empire re-affirmed its claims from the Great Northern War as well as gaining various colonial changes from the British, and the various lands taken in the war were confirmed as legitimate by Stanislaus.

France was given control of the southern Netherlands.