Mustapha Khokhar

AP European History Research Paper

The War of Spanish Succession (1701 – 1714)

The War fought over dispute regarding the succession to the throne of Spain following

the death of Charles II, the last of the Spanish Habsburgs. The battles raged across

Europe for eleven years. In an effort to regulate the inevitable succession; England, the

Dutch Republic, and France signed the First Treaty of Partition, agreeing Prince Joseph

Ferdinand, should inherit Spain. As a result of the War of Spanish Succession England

and France were left as the two dominate forces in Europe and the idea of the “balance of

power” was born.

The war was fought between conflicting nations with the main goal for any

respective nation being picking a side. England and Holland were against the union of

French and Spanish dominions; this would have made France the dominating world

power and would have diverted Spanish trade from Holland and England to France.

However, on the flip side of the coin, France, England, and Holland were all against the

rule of Archduke Charles because under his rule the Spanish and the Austrian branches of

the Hapsburg Dynasty would have been reunited resulting in Spanish domination over

European trade due to the strong link between Spain and Austria. Essentially there was

the eventual formation of a Grand Alliance against the French and the Spanish. This

Alliance consisted of Holland, England, Brandenburg, Portugal, Savoy, and the Holy

Roman Empire.1 At the time England did not want another War following the events of

1698 and as for France, Louis believed that another major conflict would be unnecessary.

1 Spielvogel, Jackson J. Western Civilization: Comprehensive Volume. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2000. Print.

After Charles II’s death the European powers found themselves in a provocative and

ambiguous situation that was turned on its head following Leopold’s declaration of War

following the acceptance of the throne by Louis’ grandson in 1700. This ascension to the

throne had made real the Bourbon threat of European domination as well as control of the

Americas. The main cause of the war was an attempt to prevent Hapsburg domination in

an attempt to promote and foster trade amongst other nations such as England, France

and Holland, because Spanish dominion would have meant total domination due to the

fact that at the time they had the largest land army in Europe. If France and Spain had

been united under the concept of Two Crowns, they would have had access to Spanish

America as well as the French colonies and would have formed an empire too massive

for the rest of the European nations to deal with, and this was not acceptable to the

English, the Dutch or the Austrians. 1

Each country involved in the War had its own individual motives for fighting.

Even despite the alliance formed all nations were out for personal gain and maintenance

of trade. Besides the fact that each country was prone to taking sides on one side of the

spectrum or the other, the main conflict was the ascension of Archduke Charles. France

was in the war in order to hold two crowns by uniting with the Spanish and by this they

hoped to get French traders into Spanish America in attempts at economic gain and

colonization. 2 Spain had simpler motives for fighting, it was their intention to hold and

maintain Spanish possessions such as Spanish America and other colonies and their goal

was to advocate mercantilism for dominion.1 Austria wanted to keep Spain under the

influence of the Hapsburg Dynasty, something the Spanish were trying to refute and

2 "War of the Spanish Succession — Infoplease.com." Infoplease: Encyclopedia, Almanac, Atlas, Biographies, Dictionary, Thesaurus. Free Online Reference, Research & Homework Help. — Infoplease.com. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. <http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/history/A0846179.html>.

additionally the Spanish wanted influence in Italy. 3 Holland’s motives for participating

in the war were more centralized. The Dutch were prospering economically and practiced

policies of tolerance and their main goal was economic growth and social prosperity

earned not simply through colonization but through establishing trade agreements and

doing good business. The main goal of the Dutch was to attract clientele to trade with, as

is shown in their colonization of the Spice Islands in Indonesia. They were all about

profit and marketability. Above all the Dutch wanted to maintain their independence and

security. 3 England were in the war because they wanted to advance their commercial

positions and create a favorable reputation for themselves on a national level while at the

same time it was their intention to preserve the culture and prosperity that existed in the

country in 1688.4

The War lasted thirteen years or so and it included some battles that have been

labeled as classics in history. Most notable were the dominant victories of the Grand

Alliance at the Battle of Blenheim in 1704 5 and the Battle of Ramillies in 1706.5 The

significance of these battles was that they drove the French out of Germany and the

Netherlands. Once again, the French were defeated at the Battle of Oudenarde in 17085

and these back-to-back losses encouraged Louis VIX to consider negotiations. However

the negotiations were very embarrassing for the French so Louis decided to fight the War

till its end. The result of this was another Grand Alliance victory at the battle of

3 "War of the Spanish Succession — Infoplease.com." Infoplease: Encyclopedia, Almanac, Atlas, Biographies, Dictionary, Thesaurus. Free Online Reference, Research & Homework Help. — Infoplease.com. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. <http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/history/A0846179.html>

4 The Spanish Succession and the War of the Spanish Succession. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. <http://www.spanishsuccession.nl/>.

5 Spielvogel, Jackson J. Western Civilization: Comprehensive Volume. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2000. Print.

Malplaquet in 1709. 5 We must not forget Queen Anne’s War, which was the American

counterpart of the Spanish War of Succession. 6 It broke out following the acceptance of

the throne by King Louis XIV’s grandson in 1700. The principal events of Queen Anne's

War were the capture and burning in 1702 by English colonists of Saint Augustine,

Florida, then a Spanish possession; the capture and burning of Deerfield, Massachusetts,

and the massacre of many of the inhabitants of the town in 1704 by French troops and

their Native American allies; unsuccessful expeditions in 1704 and 1707 by troops from

New England against Port Royal, Acadia; the conquest of Acadia in 1710 by colonists

supported by a squadron of British ships and commanded by the British colonial

administrator Sir Francis Nicholson; and the failure in 1711 of a large British and

colonial joint military and naval expedition against Québec and Montréal. The war was

ended in 1713 by the Peace of Utrecht, which also brought to a close the War of the

Spanish Succession.7 In the period following 1709 the French were given some hope with

a French and Spanish victory at the Battle of Villaviciosa in 1710. 5 There were continued

skirmishes with the result being French victories and as such they were able to capture

considerable ground by 1712. 4 Amidst all of this chaos peace negotiations were taking

place under the table between France and England. In 1711 Archduke Charles’s brother

died and therefore Charles become Emperor Charles VI. 3 Now the European powers

were becoming open to the idea of the possibility of the existence of a Spanish-German

superpower as opposed to the previous notion of a Spanish-French one.

6 "Queen Anne's War: The Second of the French and Indian Wars." United States American History. Web. 30 Oct. 2011. <http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h846.html>.

7 Queen Anne's War." Angelfire: Welcome to Angelfire. Web. 30 Oct. 2011. <http://www.angelfire.com/realm/shades/nativeamericans/queenawar.html

By 1712 there were initial negotiations taking place between France and England

and a peace conference was opened followed very shortly by an armistice between these

two nations. 4 England and France had decided to stop warfare and fighting because of the

great amount of damage being dealt to either side, and the number of lives lost. And

additionally they came to the conclusion that working together they could achieve a

greater level of economic prosperity. In 1713, England, France, and Holland signed the

Treaty of Utrecht. 8 However Charles VI fought on in an attempt to continue the war even

though Eugene had already been defeated in 1712. 6 Charles finally gave in by 1714 6 to

two new treaties; the Treaty of Rastatt and the treaty of Baden which were supplements

to the overall settlement. With this final agreement the principle of “the balance of

power” took precedence in Europe and remained for generations to come.

Following the war in there was a shift in paradigms for each individual nation that

was a part of the war. Spain had a new ruler in the form of Philip Bourbon V and as a

result the two thrones of France and Spain were kept separate from one another. 9 The

Spanish monarchy had been revived by the French and the resulting trade with the new

world aided France. France suffered in the war and the monarchy had lost out to both

parliament and the aristocracy. The imperialistic dreams of the French were kept in check

but the French were allowed to keep Alsace-Lorraine and the Franche-Comte. 7 England

profited from the war as is shown by its new colonies of Minorca and Gibraltar in the

Mediterranean and Nova Scotia in Canada. It also was granted the unique privilege of

providing the Spanish Americas with African Slaves, this was known as the “asiento.” 6

8 "War of the Spanish Succession, 1701-1714." Military History Encyclopedia on the Web. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. <http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/wars_spanishsuccession.html>9 Spielvogel, Jackson J. Western Civilization: Comprehensive Volume. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2000. Print.

Austria too profited from the war, gaining the Italian Habspurg territories of Milan,

Naples, Sicily and of course the nation of Belgium. Brandenburg was given Guelderland

and Savoy was granted Sardinia and both men were crowned Kings and Brandenburd

became known as Prussia. 7

The foundations had been laid for the formation of the nations of Italy and

Germany while Holland was given a “Dutch Barrier”(string of forts) in Belgium. The

Treaty of Utrecht had brought peace and the concept of the balance of power and while

doing so had confirmed a system of international relations.10 England and France were

left as the two spearheads and the dominant powers in Europe and through their

domination they became the principle exporters of European civilization and culture.8

France's goal of absolute control was prevented with the reduction of their power. Spain

declined and became a second-rate nation and no longer maintained its previous role of

prominence. The United Provinces also declined, and the fall of these major powers and

the rise of nations like Austria and England triggered the equilibrium of power in

Europe.11 A balance of power cannot be maintained indefinitely because of the constant

rise and fall of empires but the allies in the War of Spanish Succession did achieve an

important feat in bringing stability to Europe.

Bibliography

10 "War of Spanish Succession Erupts in Europe." Italian Culture and History. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. <http://www.boglewood.com/sicily/succession.html>

11 "THE WAR OF THE SPANISH SUCCESSION." HistoryWorld - History and Timelines. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. <http://www.historyworld.net>e

Encyclopedia, World Book. The World Book Encyclopedia S-Sn: Volume 17. Chicago, ILL: World Book, 2003. Print.

The Spanish Succession and the War of the Spanish Succession. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. <http://www.spanishsuccession.nl/>.

Spielvogel, Jackson J. Western Civilization: Comprehensive Volume. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2000. Print.

"War of Spanish Succession Erupts in Europe." Italian Culture and History. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. <http://www.boglewood.com/sicily/succession.html>.

"War of the Spanish Succession — Infoplease.com." Infoplease: Encyclopedia, Almanac, Atlas, Biographies, Dictionary, Thesaurus. Free Online Reference, Research & Homework Help. — Infoplease.com. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. <http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/history/A0846179.html>.

"War of the Spanish Succession, 1701-1714." Military History Encyclopedia on the Web. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. <http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/wars_spanishsuccession.html>.

"THE WAR OF THE SPANISH SUCCESSION." HistoryWorld - History and Timelines. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. <http://www.historyworld.net>e

"Queen Anne's War: The Second of the French and Indian Wars." United States American History. Web. 30 Oct. 2011. <http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h846.html>.

"Queen Anne's War." Angelfire: Welcome to Angelfire. Web. 30 Oct. 2011. <http://www.angelfire.com/realm/shades/nativeamericans/queenawar.htm>.