Let. 7 .
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during manyyears, the influence these treatieshadçiven him among the princes and stases of theempire. The famous capitulation madeat Frankfortor. the election of Leopold, who succeeded Fer-dinand about the year one thousand six hundredand sifty-seven, was encouraged by the intriguesof France : and the power of France was lookedupon as the sole power that could ratify and secureeffectually the observation of the conditions thenruade. The league of the Rhine was n ot renewedI believe aster the year one thousand six hundredand sixty-six; but though this league was notrenewed, yet some of these princes and statescontinued in their old engagement with France :whilst others took new engagements on particularoccasions, according as private and sometimesvery paultry interests, and the emiiïaries of France in ail their little courts, disposed them. In shortthe princes of Germany íliowed no alarm at thegrowing ambition and power of Lewis the fonr-teenth, but contributed to encourage one, and toçonfirm the other. In fuch a state of things theGerman branch was little able to affist the Spaniíhbrandi against France , either in the war tliat endedby the Pyrenean treaty, or in that we are fpeakingof here, the short war that began in one thousandsix hundred and sixty-seven, and was ended bythe treaty of Aix la Chapelle, in one thousand sixhundred and sixty-eight. But it was not thisalonethat difabled the emperor from acting with vigorin the cause of his family then, nor that hasrendered the houfe of Austria a dead weight upon
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