Section 4.22

Wars of Louis XIV: The Peace of Utrecht, 1713

The Crossing of the Rhine by the Army of Louis XIV, 16721699PARROCEL, Joseph

Questions to Consider• Describe Louis XIV’s foreign policy in the years

prior to the War of Spanish Succession. Of what significance were the chambres de reunion in Alsace and Lorraine?

• What features of the War of Spanish Succession made it distinctive? Why was the war fought?

• Summarize the main developments of the war. What motives prompted each state to continue to fight?

• What were the major provisions of the Treaty of Utrecht? On what basis were differences between the great powers settled?

Terms to Know

• War of Devolution• Dutch War• Treaty of Nimwegen• Chambres de reunion• War of the League of

Augsburg• Peace of Ryswick• Charles II of Spain• “The Pyrenees exist no

longer”• William III

• John Churchhill, Duke of Marlborough

• Philip V of Spain• Grand Alliance of 1701• Prince Eugene of Savoy• Treaties of Utrecht and

Rastadt• Asiento• “Dutch Barrier”

Introduction: Before 1700• France surrounded by Span• Spain weakened state• 1667 Louis XIV invades the Spanish

Netherlands– Blocked by the Triple Alliance of

Dutch, English and Swedish interests

• 1672 Louis XIV invades the Spanish Netherlands again

– Alliance with Charles II of England keeps British at bay

– William of Orange formed an alliance with Habsburgs (Spanish and Austrian) blocks France

– Treaty of Nimwegen 1678 France takes the Franche-Comte’

• 1679 Louis XIV invades Alsace and Lorraine– Leopold I of Austria is

engaged with Turks that are supported by the French• In 1683 they had

moved up the Danube and laid siege to Vienna

– Western boarder of the HRE is eroding

Introduction: Before 1700

League of Augsburg (1686) • developed to respond to French

threat• HRE, Spain, Sweden, Dutch and

England– Huguenots, Catholics,

Lutherans, aligned with each other against France» Revocation of Edict

offended protestants• 1688 War of the League of

Augsburg (Glorious Revolution)– Louis XIV has a fight on

several fronts and leans on the nobility for taxes

– 1697 Peace of Ryswick leaves matters along original lines

The War of the Spanish Succession (1702-1713) AKA Queen Anne’s War

• A Modern, formal war against states not against civilians

• Religion counts for very little in the conflict

• English are becoming noteworthy political force

• First “world war” events on several continents are involved

• Charles II of Spain is without an heir– Louis XIV is married to Charles II of

Spain’s sister– Leopold I married Charles II of Spain’

s sister– Each could put a young family

member on the throne– Groups explored the idea of dividing

French holdings to maintain the balance of power (Austria and France)

– 1700 Charles II of Spain died and left everything to the grandson (17 yrs. Old) of Louis XIV (not a capable leader)

• French influence would run from Belgium to Gibraltar

– “the Pyrenees exist no longer”– great threat to political balance

The War of the Spanish Succession (1702-1713) AKA Queen Anne’s War

Philip V

The Grand Alliance• William III organizes the “Grand

Alliance” of 1701– War aims

• England support Dutch, keep Stuarts off throne of England, keep France out of Spanish American trade

• Holland keep France out of Belgium and keep Scheldt closed, France out of Spanish American trade

• Austria put Habsburg back on Spain’s throne and crush Bavaria

• Brandenburg, Italian duchy of Savoy: opportunists

• Portugal, interests in Spanish territory

The Peace of Utrecht (1713-1714)• Partitioned the world of Spain

– Britain’s Queen Anne raised 12 commoners to peerage so to give a Tory majority (the party in favor of signing a peace treaty)

– Britain gets Gibraltar and Minorca– Savoy gets Sardinia– Austrian Habsburgs get Milan, Naples, Sicily, and

Spanish (now Austrian) Netherlands– Grandson of Louis XIV was crowned Philip V of

Spain• keeps new world territories• Crowns of France and Spain can never be united• Absolutism comes to Spain (lasted until 1931)• New World markets are available to French goods

– Domination by France is prevented

Consequences of the war• France is weakened

– depopulation• famine

– Peasant uprisings are brutally put down

• taxes– Aristocratic and

parliamentary opposition begin again

– Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, and Hudson Bay territory are British

– Retain Alsace and the Franch-Comte’

– Influence is strong in Spain

• Dutch are strengthened against France– “Dutch Barrier”- a string

of forts and garrisons in Belgium are granted

– Never play a prominent role in European political affairs

• Rulers of Brandenburg and Savoy are elevated to title of King

Consequences of the war

Consequences of the war• British

– Major presence in the Mediterranean (Gibraltar and Minorca)

– asiento opens the Spanish New World up to British trade (slaves and smuggling)

• right to supply Spanish America with African slaves (very lucrative)

– Assure Protestant monarchy

• Louis ceases to recognize the Stuart pretender as king

• Confirmation of the European system– Powers accepted each other as

members of the system– Recognized each other as

sovereign states• free to negotiate, make war, and

treaties– adjusted balance of power through

exchange of territories (third party territories?)

• Leaves France and England as the two major powers to export Europe to the world

Consequences of the war