War of the Spanish Succession –

Although today it is difficult to believe, not so long ago, Spain was one of the great European and world powers since the time of Elizabeth the Catholic. Today we are going to talk about one of the historical processes that marked part of the History of Spain and from Europe: the War of the Spanish Succession.

Centuries ago, one of the most important things a king should produce was a inheritor, a child born of a royal marriage. This was critical, and indeed when a wife did not have a son, in some cases the ruling king would seek a dispensation from the Vatican in order to divorce his wife in order to marry another woman of the noble line to marry. ButWhat could happen if this critical condition was not met?

The War of the Spanish Succession

The war of spanish succession originated from the death of Charles II of Spain (November 1, 1700), who died without leaving children and with it the Habsburg dynasty of Spain became extinct.

The possessions of Spanish Empire were vast: the territories of Spain, the American Colonies, Sicily, Naples, Sardinia, Milan, and the Netherlands, so that the death of Charles II of Spain is a historical fact that unleashed a dynastic war between the European powers and a civil war in Spanish territory. After the War of the Spanish Succession, a new map of power was established in Europe in the 18th century. But let’s see what were the reasons for the Civil War to break out.

The vacant throne had two candidates, both married to sisters of Carlos II. one was Louis XIVking of France of the house Bourbon. His intention was that the Spanish throne would be occupied by his grandson: the Duke of Anjou (who would later become Felipe V). On the other hand, there was the Austrian Emperor, Leopold Iwho wanted the Spanish Crown for his son Carlos. This sounds a lot like Game of Thrones, right?

Before dying, however, Carlos II had already appointed Philip of Bourbonnephew of the king Louis XIV of France and his wife Maria Teresa (half-sister of the deceased king), as universal heir to the Spanish empire, as long as the two branches of the Bourbon dynasty (of the monarchy of France and Spain) remained separate. Charles II He believed that in this way he could preserve the integrity of the Spanish monarchy and mitigate the great French threat.

Obviously, Leopold I -the other candidate- objected. Other European countries saw this as a possible threat. They feared that by uniting the kingdoms of France Y Spain too powerful a state would be formed, and the “european balance”.

Start of the War of the Spanish Succession

In 1701, Felipe de Borbón ascended to the throne of Spain with the name of Felipe V. However, none of the great European powers was prepared to believe that the separation clause would be respected (Louis XIV himself, first, had begun the occupation of the Spanish Netherlands).

That same year then occurs The Grand Alliance of The Haguemade up first of all by Austria, England, the Netherlands and Denmarkwho would later be joined Portugal, Prussia and Savoy in the year 1703, in favor of being able to crown Carlos of Austria as King of Spain, although this would not end up being crowned as such and definitively, with the title of Charles III until 1759.

When starting the War of succession Spanish the results were favorable to France. But then the setbacks began: England I take Gibraltar and the Austrians entered Catalonia and then in Madrid.

Although Madrid and Zaragoza were taken, it was not a bed of roses for Carlos III, left Madrid in 1706. During the following years, Valencia and Aragon were taken by the Bourbons, Menorca by the English. Philip V suffered a minor setback when Louis XIV’s support was temporarily withdrawn during a peace negotiation.

Added to this is another important twist in the course of the War of the Spanish Succession what happens when you die Austrian Emperor Joseph I (successor of Leopold I). the heir to throne austrian was Carloscrowned as Charles VI. This challenged the policy of England of “european balance”. Just because Carlos also accessed Spanish thronethe house of Habsburg it would be too powerful.

peace treaties

In this new international context, England prompted the signing of a treaty that would end the War of the Spanish Succession. It must be said that in these years, wars were not only messy, but also very expensive. Although the two coalitions continued to fight in 1709, peace negotiations began, although it would not be until 4 and 5 years later that the peace treaties were signed.

The Treaty of Utrecht (1813) ended hostilities with Great Britain and the Dutch Republic, and Felipe V was confirmed as the king of Spain, at a price, since he had to renounce the rights of the French Crown, just as several of the French principalities renounced the right to the Spanish throne among those who were, Sicilythe Netherlands, Milan, sardinia Y Naples. With the signature of treaty of utrecht and rastatt the most benefited were the English. And that was how the War of Succession came to an end.

At the same time, the European empire of Spain was divided, Sicily and parts of the Duchy of Milan went to Savoy, while the Kingdom of Naples, Sardinia, and most of the Duchy of Milan were ceded to Charles VI, the Emperor of the Roman Empire, and the Archduke of Austria. .

Also, Gibraltar and Minorca were ceded to Great Britain, however, Philip was allowed to keep his territories abroad. He granted the British the right to trade non-Spanish slaves in the Spanish Americas for 30 years. And so ended the War of the Spanish Succession. However, hostilities between France and Austria ended a year later, when the Treaty of Rastatt (1714).

At the end of the War of the Spanish Successionthe politics of “european balance” (which pointed out that none power of Europe should prevail over the others) would be the greatest concern of the rulers until the twentieth century.

Consequences of the War of the Spanish Succession

One of the main consequences brought by the War of the Spanish Succession was the rearrangement of the European map, either through conquests during the war or the signing of treaties at the end of it. The main beneficiaries were England. Spain, on the other hand, lost much of its European territory. The arrival to the throne of Spain of a new dynasty, the Bourbon dynasty, took place, but he paid a high price for it. France He achieved his goal of putting a French dynasty on the Spanish throne, however, his efforts caused him great human and economic casualties in the war, and he would enter into a crisis that would last almost the entire century.

The consequences in Europe

Although in principle, it seemed that the end of the war maintained a balance in European politics between the powers, the reality was different. First, the new United Kingdom that had formally united Scotland with England had emerged as a world Power, largely thanks to the war and its consequences. Britain gained several key territories, particularly in the New World, such as Newfoundland and access to trade in areas where the French had dominated. In addition, they controlled Gibraltar, taking it from Spain (and which they still have to this day). However, instead of mainly weakening his main enemy, Francethe war significantly weakened the Dutch, which found themselves with large debts. This now allowed Britain taking on many business opportunities, in Africa, North America and, in particular, in India and the east, which the Dutch once controlled. The ABritain’s rise as a trading empire and territorial development had essentially accelerated due to the consequences of the war. In fact, the rise of the British India East Company, for example, greatly accelerated after this time, especially as the fortunes of the Dutch East India Company began to decline shortly after the war.

For the dutch, the war dragged on for a long time and the population of three million could not cope with a large debt. In essence, the Dutch had been very influential in European affairs in the 17th century, but after this war that influence dwindled dramatically as their maritime empire and trading prowess dwindled due to debts and the cost of the war. for them. Indeed, despite being on the side that benefited most from the end of the war, the Dutch saw significant losses in their overall influence and economic prowess.

For Francethe war seemed to go disastrously in the early years, but by the end of the war they were in a more strong and, despite losses in North America, they did not lose most of their colonies. What might have weakened France had more to do with the monarchy in France had become too centralized and strong. In addition, the costs of the war had a long-term consequence, since France after this war began to have more difficulties to pay their conflicts, incurring more debt. This created a further distance between the French government and the French people, where over time this distance proved devastating and helped lead to the French Revolution. In fact, the last Seven Years’ War and the American Revolution probably contributed more to the decline of France’s royal family.

The consequences in Spain

Within Spain, the most notorious consequence was the persecution that Philip V exercised against the Austrians, that is, those who had supported Archduke Carlos. This persecution manifested itself in various ways, including the expropriation of his property and land. Most of the pro-Austrians had to go into exile, in what is considered the first political exile in the history of Spain. It was a mass exodus. It is estimated that around 25,000 people emigrated outside the Spanish bordersthe majority to the territories that had been taken from Spain, where Archduke Carlos, rival of Philip V in succession to the Spanish throne, now reigned.

In the same way, on the land seized from the Crown of Felipe V also carried out a persecution of supporters of the Bourbons. Archduke Carlos created a council for this purpose, and the money raised by the expropriation of the Bourbons was used to pay rents and pensions to exiles from Spain.

According to historians, with the arrival to the throne of the new Bourbon dynasty, far-reaching initiatives were also carried out in relation to the education or scientific research. In addition, they created what was called rreal factorieswhich modernized the modes of production and tried to improve the situation of sectors in low hours.

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