Les campagnes du comte Jean-Louis de Rabutin

Abstract

Belonging to the Rabutin-Chamuigy family, a younger branch of the illustrious Rabutin family, Jean-Louis de Rabutin was a cousin of the memorialist Count Roger de Bussy-Rabutin. In 1683, he left the service of the army of the Duke Charles V of Lorraine because of a matter of honor and joined the service of the imperial army. Jean-Louis de Rabutin participated in almost all the major battles of the war of reconquest of Hungary from the Turks from the liberation of the city of Vienna (1683) until the Peace of Karlowitz (1699). From 1697 he was commander of the Transylvanian army and, in this capacity, he was an opponent of Prince Francis II Rákóczi during his war of independence (1703-1711). Apart from the few campaigns on the Western fronts, he participated in almost all major military operations of the Great Turkish War (1683-1699), notably in the sieges of Vienna, Buda and Belgrade and he played an important role in the battles of Nagyharsány (1687) and Zenta (1697). His memoirs describe his military exploits in an uneven manner, which can be explained by the fact that he wanted to highlight his activities in favor of the emperor. In this work most likely inspired by the memoirs of his illustrious cousin, he summarizes the history of his military campaigns. This study aims to recapitulate the military activities of this little-known general based on the reading of his memoirs while comparing them with historical sources and the narratives of historiography.