Back Spanischer Erbfolgekrieg GSW Guerra de Succesión Espanyola AN حرب الخلافة الإسبانية Arabic حرب الوراثه الاسبانيه ARZ Guerra de Socesión Española AST İspaniya mirası uğrunda müharibə Azerbaijani ایسپانیا ورارث ساواشی AZB Вайна за іспанскую спадчыну Byelorussian Вайна за гішпанскую спадчыну BE-TARASK Война за испанското наследство Bulgarian
| War of the Spanish Succession | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of French–Habsburg rivalry; Anglo-French Wars | |||||||||
 Clockwise, from top left:
| |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
 Pro-Bourbon Spain[a] |
 Pro-Habsburg Spain[b] | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| Total: 550,000 killed and wounded | ||||||||
The War of the Spanish Succession[k] was a European great power conflict, fought between 1701 to 1714. The death of Charles II of Spain in November 1700 without children resulted in a struggle for the Spanish Empire between rival claimants. Charles named his heir as Philip of Anjou, who was backed by his grandfather Louis XIV of France. His opponent, Archduke Charles of Austria, was supported by the Grand Alliance.[l] Significant related conflicts include the Great Northern War (1700–1721) and Queen Anne's War (1702–1713).
Although by 1701 Spain was no longer the predominant power in Europe, the Spanish Empire remained a global power, including the Spanish Netherlands, large parts of Italy, and the Americas. Its union with either France or Austria threatened the European balance of power, and the proclamation of Philip as king of Spain on 16 November 1700 led to war. Although by 1709 the Allies had forced France onto the defensive, Philip had confirmed his position in Spain, the ostensible cause of the war.
When Emperor Joseph I died in 1711, Archduke Charles succeeded him as Holy Roman Emperor. Union with Austria was as unwelcome as that with France, while mounting costs led the new British government to withdraw from the war. The remaining Allies fought on, but were forced to make peace due to the loss of British military and financial support. This led to the 1713 Peace of Utrecht, followed by the treaties of Rastatt and Baden in 1714.
Philip was confirmed as King of Spain, but in compensation he renounced his place in the French line of succession and ceded much of Spain's Italian territories to Savoy and Austria, which also acquired the Austrian Netherlands. Britain received Gibraltar and Menorca, along with trade concessions in the Americas, and was established as the leading European commercial entity. For the Dutch, despite securing and expanding their barrier fortresses and gaining part of Upper Guelders, the war marked the beginning of their decline as a major European power, while France was left financially exhausted.
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).
- ^ Dwyer 2014, p. 14.
- ^ Lynn 1994, p. 894.
- ^ Ostwald 2006, p. 128.
- ^ Vault 2016, pp. 98, 540, 625.
- ^ Vault 2016, p. 454.
- ^ a b c Nimwegen 2020, p. 67.
- ^ Bruijn 2011, p. 129.
- ^ Wilson 2016, p. 461.
- ^ Wilson 2016, p. 460.
- ^ Glete 2001, p. 156.
- ^ Ostwald 2000, p. 664.
- ^ Ostwald 2006, p. 135.
- ^ Rasler 1994, p. 129.
- ^ Wijn 1956, p. 509.
- ^ Storrs 2000, pp. 26.
- ^ a b c d Clodfelter 2008, p. 74.
- ^ Urlanis 1971, p. 187.
- ^ Levy 2014, p. 90.