The Treaty of Utrecht

The most lasting result of the War of Spanish Succession was the Treaty of Utrecht, signed in 1713. It was brought about by a Tory government in Britain, which represented the interests of the merchants who were losing money because of the war. After the disastrous battle of Malplaquet they had the political ammunition they needed to call for peace.

The Treaty of Utrecht altered the balance of power in Europe. First, it recognized Phillip V as the legitimate Spanish monarch, on the condition that the Spanish and French thrones never be joined. This satisfied those worried about a combined, Bourbon-ruled Spanish-French empire and Louis, who got a Bourbon on the throne in the end. It divided Spanish territory: Phillip V retained Spain and its American possessions, Charles VI, now Holy Roman Emperor, gained most of Spain’s Italian holdings and the Spanish Netherlands, Savoy gained Sicily, and Britain kept Gibraltar and Minorca in the Mediterranean.

Britain was a true winner in the aftermath of the war. Besides the Mediterranean possessions, it gained Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, and the Hudson Bay from France in North America. France also recognized Protestant succession in England, forever ending the issue of the exiled, Catholic Stuarts. From Spain, they won the right to send one ship a year to Spain’s colonies and provide all Spanish colonies with slaves for thirty years, called the Asiento. Britain was now a major player in European affairs and would continue to expand her power during the coming century.

The Treaty of Rastadt, which ended French fighting with the Holy Roman Empire in 1714, officially brought the war to an end.