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From the beginning of the century until 

1443, Luxembourg was passed around 

among many possessors.

Holy Roman Emperor Wenceslas II, unable 

to pay back his loans, had been forced to 

give this land up and it eventually became 

the possession of his niece, Elizabeth of 

Goerlitz. 

Later, his successor still did not pay off the 

loan so Luxembourg remained in the 

possession of Elizabeth.

In 1441, Elizabeth of Goerlitz sold the 

Duchy of Luxembourg to Philippe the 

Good of Burgundy.

Two years later, the Burgundian army 

captured and conquered Luxembourg. 

The duchy was ruled by dukes of 

Burgundy from the Burgundian capital 

in Brussels until 1555.

In 1482, Luxembourg became property of the 

Hapsburgs. During this time, the Duchy of 

Luxembourg was part of the provinces of the 

Netherlands.

Mary, the daughter of Charles the Bold of 

Burgundy and Maximilian I, the son of Holy 

Roman Emperor Frederick III became married.

After her death, the Burgundian Netherlands 

(including Luxembourg) were passed to her son 

Philip the Handsome, who was a Hapsburg.

Later down the line of Holy Roman 

Emperors in the early fifteen hundreds, 

Charles V of Spain became the Duke of 

Luxembourg in addition to his other 

titles.  

This meant that the area surrounding 

Luxembourg was now the Spanish 

Netherlands.

From 1552-1554, large parts of Luxembourg were 

destroyed during the siege it was put under by Francois I 

in the war between France and Spain. Eventually the 

Spanish armada was defeated and lost any hope of 

regaining their territory in the northern part of the 

Netherlands.

Meanwhile, in 1598 the actual possessor of Luxembourg 

was Philip II of Spain. He passed the territory to his 

daughter Isabella and her husband Albert VII, Archduke 

of Austria.   He was a descendant of Elisabeth of Austria, 

Queen of Poland, who was the youngest granddaughter 

of Sigismund of Luxembourg, a previous Holy Roman 

Emperor.   Therefore, Luxembourg remained within this 

lineage for quite some time.

During the Thirty Years’ War 

from 1618-1648, Luxembourg 

played the role of a 

battleground.   With the end of 

the war and formation of a 

treaty, Luxembourg was 

partitioned by France.

In 1684, Luxembourg was invaded by 

Louis XIV of France, who was also the 

husband of Maria Theresa, daughter of 

Philip IV. 

The French ruled Luxembourg from 

1684 with the capture of the fortress of 

Luxembourg, until 1697.   During this 

time, Luxembourg’s fortification 

underwent much redesign.

In 1715, the Treaty of Utrecht confirmed 

Hapsburg rule and it became part of the 

Austrian Netherlands (previously the 

Spanish Netherlands).   This meant that it 

had returned to its previous hereditary 

ownership through Albert VII.

Later, Joseph II hoped to make Charles 

Theodore the Duke of Luxembourg in 

exchange for other pieces of land, but was 

opposed by Prussia.

During the War of the First Coalition, 

Revolutionary France conquered 

Luxembourg and it was annexed to France.  

Beginning in 1795, the French ruled 

Luxembourg as a part of the Department of 

Forests.

In 1798 there was a peasant rebellion in 

Luxembourg called the Peasants’ War, but 

it was quickly oppressed by the French.

Luxembourg remained under French rule 

until Napoleon’s defeat around 1815.

Following the French rule, a provisional 

administration was installed in Luxembourg by the 

Allies.

Soon after, the Congress of Vienna gave formal 

autonomy to the small country.   Despite this, 

Prussia, France, and Austria each had claims in 

Luxembourg.

In 1840, Willem II, son of William I of the 

Netherlands, who was a descendant of the Prussian 

royal family, became king of the Netherlands and 

Grand Duke of Luxembourg.

From 1830-1839, most of Luxembourg had 

been part of Belgium and therefore many 

Luxembourgian peasants joined in the Belgians 

fight against the rule of the Dutch.

In 1839 with the Treaty of London, Luxembourg 

became sovereign and was in personal union 

with the king of the Netherlands. In addition, 

the French-speaking portion of Luxembourg was 

ceded to Belgium, leaving Luxembourg as a 

mostly German state.

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