History UsefulNotes / WarOfTheSpanishSuccession

You will also notice how, this whole time, we have referred to the Kingdom of ''England''. This is because it was only during the War of the Spanish Succession that the parliaments of England and Scotland, until that time separate states ruled by the same monarch, officially united to become the United Kingdom of Great Britain. Prior to this it was by far England which was the senior partner in the relationship, and which made all the serious decisions.

It is tempting to try to see the War of the Spanish Succession as either the start or end of something, but really it was far from anything of the kind. Europe had just gotten off the Nine Years' War (1688–1697) and the Thirty Years' War before that (1618-1648). The War of the Spanish Succession was Louis XIV the Sun King's last great war, but the 76-year-old had been fighting for his entire life. The Great Northern War (1700–1721), fought between Sweden and Russia, was concurrent with the War of the Spanish Succession. The United Kingdom almost immediately fought the Jacobite rising in 1715. A two-year war between Spain and an anti-Spanish coalition would soon follow (1718–1720), followed by the War of the ''Polish'' Succession (1733–1735) and the War of the ''Austrian'' Succession (1740-1748). The United Kingdom would fight ''another'' Jacobite rising in 1745 against Catholic pretender Bonnie Prince Charlie, shortly followed by the Seven Years' War (1756–1763) between Britain and France. Then the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783), then 23 years of constant war caused by the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. War, war, and endless war. In truth, though by no means inconsequential, there was nothing particularly extraordinary about the War of the Spanish Succession. For Europe, it was just another day at the office.

Emperor Charles VI would soon have a daughter, Maria Theresa, and he would spend the rest of his life working to ensure that his daughter would be accepted by the other European powers as ruler of the Habsburg realms (even to the detriment and neglect of everything else). She would go on to become ''the'' [[UsefulNotes/MariaTheresa Maria Theresa of Austria]], one of the most extraordinary Habsburg monarchs. It would turn out to be a mighty struggle for her, because all those monarchs who promised her father they would recognize her [[ILied immediately turned on her]]. Maria Theresa herself would go on to have another famous daughter, [[UsefulNotes/MarieAntoinette Marie Antoinette]], though famous for quite a different reason.

Emperor Charles VI would soon have a daughter, Maria Theresa, and he would spend the rest of his life working to ensure that his daughter would be accepted by the other European powers as ruler of the Habsburg realms (even to the detriment and neglect of everything else). She would go on to become ''the'' [[UsefulNotes/MariaTheresa Maria Theresa of Austria]], one of the most extraordinary Habsburg monarchs. It would turn out to be a mighty struggle for her, because all those monarchs who promised her father they would recognize her [[ILied immediately turned on her]]. Maria Theresa herself would go on to have another famous daughter, [[UsefulNotes/Marie Antoinette Marie Antoinette]], though famous for quite a different reason.

So you've got two potential candidates to the Spanish throne. One is Louis ''le Grand Dauphin'', the son of the King of France. The other is Joseph Ferdinand, the grandson of the Emperor Leopold of Austria. The most obvious and direct line of succession was through Charles II's eldest sister, Maria Theresa, making Louis ''le Grand Dauphin'' heir to the Spanish Empire. However, this would make him direct heir to both the Kingdom of France and the Empire of Spain. This was deeply alarming to many in Europe, in particular the Kingdom of England and the Dutch Republic, who feared the formation of an unstoppable Catholic juggernaut.

So you've seemingly got two potential candidates to the Spanish throne. One is Louis ''le Grand Dauphin'', the son of the King of France. The other is Joseph Ferdinand, the grandson of the Emperor Leopold of Austria. The most obvious and direct line of succession was through Charles II's eldest sister, Maria Theresa, making Louis ''le Grand Dauphin'' heir to the Spanish Empire. However, this would make him direct heir to both the Kingdom of France and the Empire of Spain. This was deeply alarming to many in Europe, in particular the Kingdom of England and the Dutch Republic, who feared the formation of an unstoppable Catholic juggernaut.

At first the war went well for Louis XIV, but the tide swiftly turned against him. After seven years of war, by the end of 1708, the French had been driven out of Italy and the Netherlands, and Austria had occupied Bavaria. These victories convinced Savoy and Portugal to join the Grand Alliance. England also captured the strategically important peninsula of Gibraltar and island of Menorca from Spain, giving them control of the western Mediterranean. A French-sponsored Hungarian uprising against the Austrians was also crushed. The winter of 1709 - "the Great Frost" - was the coldest Europe experienced in centuries, and hundreds of thousands died of starvation in France and Spain.

Austria did well out of the war, and by the Treaty of Rastatt secured its core interests by acquiring all of Spain's Italian territories, in particular the territory around Milan, and while Austria did not particularly care for them, the acquisition of the Spanish Netherlands also provided some additional revenue. Nevertheless the Archduke Charles (now Emperor Charles VI) considered the war a failure, as he had hoped to acquire the entirety of Charles II's realm and re-create the empire of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V from over a century previous, with an Austrian-Spanish-Italian-Dutch realm all united under a single Habsburg. He continued to insist he was the rightful heir to the throne of Spain. Nobody else liked this idea though and ignored him, so he had to be content with the bulk of the Spanish Empire going to the Bourbons.

A series of treaties would end the war between the multiple combatants: the treaties of Utrecht, Rastatt, and Baden. By the Peace of Utrecht it was agreed that Philip V would keep the throne of Spain, but would renounce for himself and his heirs any claim to the throne of France, with his relatives in France likewise renouncing any claim to the throne of Spain. In what should by now be fairly familiar, England and France decided other parties' territorial dispositions between them without the other parties' input. The French negotiator taunted the Dutch with the scathing remark, "De vous, chez vous, sans vous." Meaning negotiations would be held, "About you, around you, ''without'' you."

The other option was he could accept Charles II's will, and have his grandson Philip, Duke of Anjou become king of an undivided Spanish realm. Philip, Duke of Anjou, as the second son of Louis XIV's heir, was not in direct line of succession to the French throne, so therefore a direct union of crowns was not an immediate threat. Nevertheless, for England and others, it remained a disturbing possibility.

Also: Louis, Duke of Anjou, the great-grandson of Louis XIV, managed to survive his measles (almost certainly being saved when his governess called a halt to his blood-letting, a "medical" procedure that undoubtedly contributed to the death of his older brother). He would become King Louis XV at five years old when his great-grandfather, Louis XIV, called the Sun King, finally passed on in 1715, having survived every other monarch who originally started the conflict, as well as his own son and grandson.

In 1711, the English reopened secret negotiations with the French, leading to the signing of preliminary articles, the main takeaway of which was the agreement in principle that the monarchies of Spain and France would remain separate. Then, ''once again'', a series of deaths threatened to throw everything back into chaos. In 1711, three days before Joseph I of Austria's own death, Louis ''le Grand Dauphin'' died of smallpox, putting his first son Louis, Duke of Burgundy (grandson of Louis XIV) in line for the French throne. The next year in 1712, Louis, Duke of Burgundy ''also'' died (of measles). Both ''his'' sons ''also'' became infected, ''both'' of whom were also named Louis (we know). His eldest son, the five-year-old Louis, Duke of Brittany, died a few weeks after his father, leaving the two-year-old Louis, Duke of Anjou, the ''great''-grandson of Louis XIV, as heir to the French throne, but he was not expected to survive. This meant the scenario that originally freaked everyone out so much was now within arm's reach: Philip of Anjou, former prince of France, now ruler of the Kingdom of Spain, was separated from becoming the direct heir to the Kingdom of France by a single toddler on the verge of death. This made his prompt abdication from the French line of succession a matter of immediate urgency.

In 1711, the English reopened secret negotiations with the French, leading to the signing of preliminary articles, the main takeaway of which was the agreement in principle that the monarchies of Spain and France would remain separate. Then, ''once again'', a series of deaths threatened to throw everything back into chaos. In 1711, three days before Joseph I of Austria's own death, Louis ''le Grand Dauphin'' died of smallpox, putting his first son Louis, Duke of Burgundy (grandson of Louis XIV) in line for the French throne. The next year in 1712, Louis, Duke of Burgundy ''also'' died (of measles). Both ''his'' sons ''also'' became infected, ''both'' of whom were also named Louis (we know). His eldest son, the five-year-old Louis, Duke of Brittany, died a few weeks after his father, leaving the two-year-old Louis, Duke of Anjou, the ''great''-grandson of Louis XIV, as heir to the French throne, but he was not expected to survive. This placed the scenario that originally freaked everyone out so much within arm's reach: Philip of Anjou, former prince of France, now ruler of the Kingdom of Spain, was separated from becoming the direct heir to the Kingdom of France by a single toddler on the verge of death. This made his prompt abdication from the French line of succession a matter of immediate urgency.

In 1711, the English reopened secret negotiations with the French, leading to the signing of preliminary articles, the main takeaway of which was the agreement in principle that the monarchies of Spain and France would remain separate. Then, ''once again'', a series of deaths threatened to throw everything back into chaos. In 1711, three days before Joseph I of Austria's own death, Louis ''le Grand Dauphin'' died of smallpox, putting his first son Louis, Duke of Burgundy (grandson of Louis XIV) in line for the French throne. The next year in 1712, Louis, Duke of Burgundy ''also'' died (of measles). Both ''his'' sons ''also'' became infected, ''both'' of whom were also named Louis (yes, we know). His eldest son, the five-year-old Louis, Duke of Brittany, died a few weeks after his father, leaving the two-year-old Louis, Duke of Anjou, the ''great''-grandson of Louis XIV, as heir to the French throne, but he was not expected to survive. This put the scenario that originally freaked everyone out so much within arm's reach: Philip of Anjou, former prince of France, now ruler of the Kingdom of Spain, was separated from becoming the direct heir to the Kingdom of France by a single toddler on the verge of death. This made his prompt abdication from the French line of succession a matter of immediate urgency.

Unfortunately, their interests were fairly divergent. All three wanted to see Archduke Charles placed on the Spanish throne, but for different reasons. Emperor Leopold's main concern was the Austrian Habsburg possessions in Italy. It was the threat of French acquisition of territory in northern Italy (the gateway to Austrian heartlands) that made him object to the Treaty of London in the first place. The Netherlands were less important to him, while they were the primary concern of England and the Dutch. They wanted to see the Spanish Netherlands placed under Austrian control - something Austria actually did ''not'' want, viewing it as a burden rather than an asset. Divisions between the allies would prove critical to how the war turned out.

In 1711, the English reopened secret negotiations with the French, leading to the signing of preliminary articles, the main takeaway of which was the agreement in principle that the monarchies of Spain and France would remain separate. Then, ''once again'', a series of deaths threatened to throw everything back into chaos. In 1711, three days before Joseph I of Austria's own death, Louis ''le Grand Dauphin'' died of smallpox, putting his first son Louis, Duke of Burgundy (grandson of Louis XIV) in line for the French throne. The next year in 1712, Louis, Duke of Burgundy ''also'' died (of measles). Both ''his'' sons ''also'' became infected, ''both'' of whom were also named Louis (yes, we know). His eldest son, the five-year-old Louis, Duke of Brittany, died a few weeks after his father, leaving the two-year-old Louis, Duke of Anjou, the ''great''-grandson of Louis XIV, as heir to the French throne, but he was not expected to survive. This put the scenario that originally freaked everyone out so much within arm's reach: Philip of Anjou, former prince of France, now ruler of the Kingdom of Spain, was a single dead toddler away from becoming the direct heir to the Kingdom of France. This made his prompt abdication from the French line of succession a matter of immediate urgency.

How you view Louis XIV's actions here depends on whether you believe that war was still inevitable at this point. It was still theoretically possible to avoid war (or, at least, a large one), but it was Louis XIV's arrogance that pushed everyone into an alliance against him and declaring war. On the other hand, it may have been that Louis XIV believed that a general war against him was inevitable no matter what he did, so the steps he took that so antagonized his neighbors were merely preemptive, rather than provocative.

We'll never know what would have happened if things actually came to a head on this point, because in 1699 Joseph Ferdinand died of smallpox, sending everyone back to the drawing board.

This conflict started over the line of succession that ended when the last Habsburg King of Spain, Charles II, died without an heir in 1700. As his health had always been poor throughout his life [[note]] He was the latest in what was, [[RoyalInbreeding if we're being honest,]] a rather ''un''diluted gene pool[[/note]], the different factions saw this coming for decades, and to their credit they did at least try to take steps to prevent a military conflict from an issue they knew was inevitable.

It is tempting to try to see the War of the Spanish Succession as either the start or end of something, but really it was far from anything of the kind. Europe had just gotten off the Nine Years' War (1688–1697) and the Thirty Years' War before that (1618-1648). The War of the Spanish Succession was Louis XIV the Sun King's last great war, but the 76-year-old had been fighting for his entire life. The Great Northern War (1700–1721), fought between Sweden and Russia, was concurrent with the War of the Spanish Succession. The United Kingdom almost immediately fought the Jacobite rising in 1715. A two-year war between Spain and an anti-Spanish coalition would soon follow (1718–1720), followed by the War of the ''Polish'' Succession (1733–1735) and the War of the ''Austrian'' Succession (1740-1748). The United Kingdom would fight ''another'' Jacobite rising in 1745 against Catholic pretender Bonnie Prince Charlie, shortly followed by the Seven Years' War (1756–1763) between Britain and France. Then the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783), then 23 years of constant war caused by the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. War, war, and endless war. In truth, there was nothing particularly extraordinary about the War of the Spanish Succession. For Europe, it was just another day at the office.

Unfortunately, their interests were fairly divergent. All three wanted to see Archduke Charles placed on the Spanish throne, but for different reasons. Emperor Leopold's main concern was the Austrian Habsburg possessions in Italy. It was the threat of France acquisition of territory in northern Italy (the gateway to Austrian heartlands) that made him object to the Treaty of London in the first place. The Netherlands were less important to him, while they were the primary concern of England and the Dutch. They wanted to see the Spanish Netherlands placed under Austrian control - something Austria actually did ''not'' want, viewing it as a burden rather than an asset. Divisions between the allies would prove critical to how the war turned out.

It is easy to look back on the War of the Spanish Succession as the absurd egotistical squabbling of a couple of inbred European royal families which led directly to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people. To a certain extent and from a certain point of view, this is absolutely correct. However, it was also the point at which national interests were really starting to take precedence over personal ones. The centuries-long process of Europe's transformation from a continent dominated by ''families'' to one dominated by ''nations'' was still ongoing, and the War of the Spanish Succession was an important milestone on the road to a transformation that arguably would not be complete until after the First World War. That Louis ''le Grand Dauphin'' had a right to inherit the throne of Spain was something nobody denied. Nevertheless, even from the earliest days of the conflict, it was judged that, "Because of the great danger which threatened the liberty and safety of all Europe, from the too-close conjunction of the kingdoms of Spain and France, the same person should never become King of both kingdoms." While this was a principle that Louis XIV did not necessarily accept, even he did not dare to flout it too blatantly. It was an important marker on the road to the development of the nation state, as well as the principle of collective security.

It is tempting to try to see the War of the Spanish Succession as either the start or end of something, but really it was anything but. Europe had just gotten off the Nine Years' War (1688–1697) and the Thirty Years' War before that (1618-1648). The War of the Spanish Succession was Louis XIV the Sun King's last great war, but the 76-year-old had been fighting for his entire life. The Great Northern War (1700–1721), fought between Sweden and Russia, was concurrent with the War of the Spanish Succession. The United Kingdom almost immediately fought the Jacobite rising in 1715. A two-year war between Spain and an anti-Spanish coalition would soon follow (1718–1720), followed by the War of the ''Polish'' Succession (1733–1735) and the War of the ''Austrian'' Succession (1740-1748). The United Kingdom would fight ''another'' Jacobite rising in 1745 against Catholic pretender Bonnie Prince Charlie, shortly followed by the Seven Years' War (1756–1763) between Britain and France. Then the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783), then 23 years of constant war caused by the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. War, war, and endless war. In truth, there was nothing particularly extraordinary about the War of the Spanish Succession. For Europe, it was just another day at the office.

It is tempting to try to see the War of the Spanish Succession as either the start or end of something, but really it was anything but. Europe had just gotten off the Nine Years' War (1688–1697) and the Thirty Years' War before that (1618-1648). The War of the Spanish Succession was Louis XIV the Sun King's last great war, but the 76-year-old had been fighting for his entire life. The Great Northern War (1700–1721), fought between Sweden and Russia, was concurrent with the War of the Spanish Succession. The United Kingdom almost immediately fought the Jacobite rising in 1715. A two-year war between Spain and an anti-Spanish coalition would soon follow (1718–1720), followed by the War of the ''Polish'' Succession (1733–1735) and the War of the ''Austrian'' Succession (1740-1748). The United Kingdom would fight ''another'' Jacobite rising in 1745 against Catholic pretender Bonnie Prince Charlie, shortly followed by the Seven Years' War (1756–1763) between Britain and France. Then the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783), then 23 years of constant war caused by the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. War, war, and endless war. In truth there was nothing particularly extraordinary about the War of the Spanish Succession. For Europe, it was just another day at the office.

It is tempting to try to see the War of the Spanish Succession as either the start or end of something, but really it was anything but. Europe had just gotten off the Nine Years' War (1688–1697) and the Thirty Years' War before that (1618-1648). The War of the Spanish Succession was Louis XIV the Sun King's last great war, but the 76-year-old had been fighting for his entire life. The Great Northern War (1700–1721), fought between Sweden and Russia, was concurrent with the War of the Spanish Succession. The United Kingdom almost immediately fought the Jacobite rising in 1715. A two-year war between Spain and an anti-Spanish coalition would soon follow (1718–1720), followed by the War of the ''Polish'' Succession (1733–1735), War of the ''Austrian'' Succession (1740-1748). The United Kingdom would fight ''another'' Jacobite rising in 1745 against Catholic pretender Bonnie Prince Charlie, shortly followed by the Seven Years' War (1756–1763) between Britain and France. Then the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783), then 23 years of constant war caused by the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. War, war, and endless war. In truth there was nothing particularly extraordinary about the War of the Spanish Succession. For Europe, it was just another day at the office.

It is tempting to try to see the War of the Spanish Succession as either the start or end of something, but really it was anything but. Europe had just gotten off the Nine Years' War (1688–1697) and the Thirty Years' War before that (1618-1648). The War of the Spanish Succession was Louis XIV the Sun King's last great war, but the 76-year-old had been fighting for his entire life. The Great Northern War (1700–1721), fought between Sweden and Russia, was concurrent with the War of the Spanish Succession. The United Kingdom almost immediately fought the Jacobite rising in 1715. A two-year war between Spain and an anti-Spanish coalition would soon follow (1718–1720), followed by the War of the ''Austrian'' Succession (1740-1748). The United Kingdom would fight ''another'' Jacobite rising in 1745 against Catholic pretender Bonnie Prince Charlie, shortly followed by the Seven Years' War (1756–1763) between Britain and France. Then the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783), then 23 years of constant war caused by the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. War, war, and endless war. In truth there was nothing particularly extraordinary about the War of the Spanish Succession. For Europe, it was just another day at the office.

It is easy to look back on the War of the Spanish Succession as the absurd egotistical squabbling of a couple of inbred European royal families which led directly to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people. To a certain extent and from a certain point of view, this is absolutely true. However, it was also the point at which national interests were really starting to take precedence over personal ones. The centuries-long process of Europe's transformation from a continent dominated by ''families'' to one dominated by ''nations'' was still ongoing, and the War of the Spanish Succession was an important milestone on the road to a transformation that arguably would not be complete until after the First World War. That Louis ''le Grand Dauphin'' had a right to inherit the throne of Spain was something nobody denied. Nevertheless, even from the earliest days of the conflict, it was judged that, "Because of the great danger which threatened the liberty and safety of all Europe, from the too-close conjunction of the kingdoms of Spain and France, the same person should never become King of both kingdoms." While this was a principle that Louis XIV did not necessarily accept, even he did not dare to flout it too blatantly. It was an important marker on the road to the development of the nation state, as well as the principle of collective security.

It is tempting to try to see the War of the Spanish Succession as either the start or end of something. But really it was anything but. Europe had just gotten off the Nine Years' War (1688–1697) and the Thirty Years' War before that (1618-1648). The War of the Spanish Succession was Louis XIV the Sun King's last great war, but the 76-year-old had been fighting for his entire life. The Great Northern War (1700–1721), fought between Sweden and Russia, was concurrent with the War of the Spanish Succession. The United Kingdom almost immediately fought the Jacobite rising in 1715. A two-year war between Spain and an anti-Spanish coalition would soon follow (1718–1720), followed by the War of the ''Austrian'' Succession (1740-1748). The United Kingdom would fight ''another'' Jacobite rising in 1745 against Catholic pretender Bonnie Prince Charlie, shortly followed by the Seven Years' War (1756–1763) between Britain and France. Then the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783), then 23 years of constant war caused by the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. War, war, and endless war. In truth there was nothing particularly extraordinary about the War of the Spanish Succession. For Europe, it was just another day at the office.

In 1711, the English reopened secret negotiations with the French, leading to the signing of preliminary articles, the main takeaway of which was the agreement in principle that the monarchies of Spain and France would remain separate. Then, ''once again'', a series of deaths threatened to throw everything back into chaos. In 1711, three days before Joseph I of Austria's own death, Louis ''le Grand Dauphin'' died of smallpox, putting his first son Louis, Duke of Burgundy (grandson of Louis XIV) in line for the French throne. The next year in 1712, Louis, Duke of Burgundy ''also'' died (of measles). Both ''his'' sons ''also'' became infected, ''both'' of whom were also named Louis (yes, we know). His eldest son, the five-year-old Louis, Duke of Brittany, died a few weeks after his father, leaving the two-year-old Louis, Duke of Anjou, the ''great''-grandson of Louis XIV, as heir to the French throne, but he was not expected to survive. This put the scenario that originally freaked everyone out so much within arm's reach: Philip of Anjou, former prince of France, now ruler of the Kingdom of Spain, was a single dead toddler away from becoming the direct heir to the Kingdom of France as well. This made his prompt abdication from the French line of succession a matter of immediate urgency.

In 1711, the English reopened secret negotiations with the French, leading to the signing of preliminary articles, the main takeaway of which was the agreement in principle that the monarchies of Spain and France would remain separate. Then, ''once again'', a series of deaths threatened to throw everything back into chaos. In 1711, three days before Joseph I of Austria's own death, Louis ''le Grand Dauphin'' died of smallpox, putting his first son Louis, Duke of Burgundy (grandson of Louis XIV) in line for the French throne. The next year in 1712, Louis, Duke of Burgundy ''also'' died (of measles). Both ''his'' sons ''also'' became infected, ''both'' of whom were also named Louis (yes, we know). His eldest son, the five-year-old Louis, Duke of Brittany, died a few weeks after his father, leaving the two-year-old Louis, Duke of Anjou, the ''great''-grandson of Louis XIV, as heir to the French throne, but he was not expected to survive. This put the scenario that originally freaked everyone out so much within arm's reach: Philip V of Spain, former prince of France, now ruler of the Kingdom of Spain, was a single dead toddler away from becoming the direct heir to the Kingdom of France as well. This made his prompt abdication from the French line of succession a matter of immediate urgency.