Charles Léopold Nicolas Sixte (April 3 1643 – April 18 1690), was the titular Duke of Lorraine from 1675 to 1690, a time when Lorraine was occupied by France. He found refuge with the Habsburgs, in whose service he had a notable military career. The Habsburg connection was cemented by his marriage (1678) with Eleonora Maria Josefa, Archduchess of Austria (1653-1697), daughter of Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor and Eleonore Gonzaga. She was also the widow of Michał Korybut Wiśniowiecki, King of Poland. She passed to her heirs the inheritance of the Gonzaga of Mantua. He was younger brother of Ferdinand Philip of Lorraine who died at twenty years old in 1659, with whose demise he inherited his aunt's Duchy of Bar. In the Imperial service, Charles led the Imperial contingent in the army which relieved Vienna and Hungary from the Turks in 1683. (See Battle of Vienna). He had first distinguished himself at the battle of August 1 1664, fighting among Imperial forces against the Turks and had campaigned in Hungary with general Johann Sporck in 1671. He was in command at the siege of Murau in the Steiermark. The following year he was in command of Imperial cavalry under Raimondo Montecuccoli. At Seneffe in 1674 he received a head wound; in 1676 he was present at the siege of Philipsburg. Finally, named generalissimo of the Imperial army in 1683, he helped the king of Poland at the Battle of Vienna.
He had several children, amongst whom were:
- Léopold Joseph Charles Dominique Agapet Hyacinthe de Lorraine (1679-1729), who would recover the duchy to the family in 1697.
- Charles Joseph of Lorraine (1680-1716).
See also
References
- House of Lorraine: genealogy
| Preceded by Charles IV |
titular Duke of Lorraine 1675-1690 |
Succeeded by Leopold |
