That article gave me a headache, what with so many factoids and conjecture, poor writing, and poor scoping of arguments.

France and the HRE has a long history of rivalry, outright warfare, projections of power against each other, and even cooperation when convenient. In this context the author may have referred to Louis XV's involvement in the Austrian War of Succession, which in itself has a lot to do with the HRE.

While the French had initial success, the outcome of the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1748 was viewed very negatively by the French public. Louis XV gave up significant territory -- considering France had controlled the entire Southern Netherlands (today's Belgium and Lux) -- yet he gave that up in order to preserve an easy-to-defend border. The Treaty increased Louis XV's prestige abroad as the arbiter of European peace, but domestically it was viewed very negatively.

With Austria considered the lesser threat than a rising Prussia, Louis XV did an about-face and allied with Austria in 1756, which dragged France into the Seven Years' War. In that war, France lost significant colonial holdings in North America, South Asia, and Africa.

The debts incurred, and the loss of revenue, weighed heavily into Louis XVI's reign.