Joseph de Pons-Guimera Baron de Montclar, (1625 – 1690),
French cavalry general

Commander in chief of the Alsace

Alsace

Alsace is the fifth-smallest of the 27 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the seventh-most densely populated region in France and third most densely populated region in metropolitan France, with ca. 220 inhabitants per km²...

, he was an implacable executioner of the orders of Louis XIV and Louvois

Louvois

Louvois may refer to:* François-Michel le Tellier, Marquis de Louvois , French Secretary of State for War, commonly referred to as "Louvois"* Camille le Tellier de Louvois , French clergyman, son of the marquis...

. In 1676 the king ordered the destruction of Haguenau

Haguenau

-Economy:The town has a well balanced economy. Centuries of troubled history in the buffer lands between France and Germany have bequeathed to Haguenau a rich historical and cultural heritage which supports a lively tourist trade. There is also a thriving light manufacturing sector centred on the...

, which he accomplished in January 1677. The same year he destroyed many more fortresses.

In the War of the Grand Alliance

War of the Grand Alliance

The Nine Years' War – often called the War of the Grand Alliance, the War of the Palatine Succession, or the War of the League of Augsburg – was a major war of the late 17th century fought between King Louis XIV of France, and a European-wide coalition, the Grand Alliance, led by the Anglo-Dutch...

 he took part in the destruction of large parts of the Palatinate.