The Sovereign Council of Alsace. The limits of sovereignty

In 1657, the purpose of establishing a Sovereign Council of justice in Alsace was to foster the acceptance of the sovereignty of the king of France in the newly conquered territories. However, that purpose was hampered by the fluctuating borders of the court's territorial jurisdiction in a region which - the policy of the so-called "reunions" notwithstanding - remained a bone of contention between France and the Empire. On the one hand, many bailiwicks were still being disputed, as the princes who enjoyed the possession never gave up, until the Revolution, asserting their claims, for which they relied on specific terms in the international treaties. On the other hand, the lords would seek support in the imperial tradition and take advantage of those terms in order to remain each "an emperor in his own lands". Moreover, the king could not count on the support of the nobility in those territories which had been organised as a separate province of the realm. Instead, he had to rely on the members of the Sovereign Council, who were mainly drawn among commoners. The effect of the belated introduction of public offices was that the king's leeway in exercising his prerogatives became even more complicated and restricted. In spite of the Sovereign Council, the king's sovereignty remained therefore distinctly limited in the new province.