Treaty of Nymphenburg
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The Treaty of Nymphenburg was a treaty between
Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
and
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
that was concluded on May 28, 1741 at the
Nymphenburg Palace The Nymphenburg Palace (german: Schloss Nymphenburg, Palace of the Nymphs) is a Baroque palace situated in Munich's western district Neuhausen-Nymphenburg, in Bavaria, southern Germany. Combined with the adjacent Nymphenburg Palace Park it cons ...
in
Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
. It was the first formal pact of a series of French-sponsored alliances against the Habsburg Monarch, Maria Theresa. Through the agreement, the Bavarian
Elector Elector may refer to: * Prince-elector or elector, a member of the electoral college of the Holy Roman Empire, having the function of electing the Holy Roman Emperors * Elector, a member of an electoral college ** Confederate elector, a member of ...
Charles Albert Charles Albert (; 2 October 1798 – 28 July 1849) was the King of Sardinia from 27 April 1831 until 23 March 1849. His name is bound up with the first Italian constitution, the Albertine Statute, and with the First Italian War of Independenc ...
gained the support of King
Philip V of Spain Philip V ( es, Felipe; 19 December 1683 – 9 July 1746) was King of Spain from 1 November 1700 to 14 January 1724, and again from 6 September 1724 to his death in 1746. His total reign of 45 years is the longest in the history of the Spanish mon ...
to become the next Holy Roman Emperor against the claims of the Habsburgs. The treaty was brokered by Marshal Belleisle under the authority of
Louis XV Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (french: le Bien-Aimé), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reached ...
of
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
. As part of the negotiations, the French agreed to materially support Charles Albert's claims. The treaty signaled the expansion of the
First Silesian War The First Silesian War (german: Erster Schlesischer Krieg, links=no) was a war between Prussia and Austria that lasted from 1740 to 1742 and resulted in Prussia's seizing most of the region of Silesia (now in south-western Poland) from Austria. T ...
, which started as a local war between
Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...
and the Habsburg Monarchy, into the
War of the Austrian Succession The War of the Austrian Succession () was a European conflict that took place between 1740 and 1748. Fought primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italy, the Atlantic and Mediterranean, related conflicts included King George's ...
, a pan-European conflict.


Background

The major event leading up to this treaty was the death of the Habsburg Monarch and Holy Roman Emperor, Charles VI in October, 1740. Charles VI died without a son, so the succession fell to his daughter Maria Theresa. The Habsburg Monarchy had been subject to Salic law which excluded women from inheriting the Habsburg throne, but the 1713 Pragmatic Sanction, which the majority of major European courts agreed to, allowed a daughter of the emperor to succeed to the throne. Based on the Pragmatic Sanction, Maria Theresa assumed the throne. In December 1740, Frederick II used the death of Charles VI and the uncertain status of Maria Theresa as an opportunity to invade and acquire the Habsburg Monarchy's province of
Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...
for
Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...
. This started the
First Silesian War The First Silesian War (german: Erster Schlesischer Krieg, links=no) was a war between Prussia and Austria that lasted from 1740 to 1742 and resulted in Prussia's seizing most of the region of Silesia (now in south-western Poland) from Austria. T ...
between Frederick II of Prussia and Maria Theresa of the Habsburg Monarchy. On 10 April 1741, the Prussian army defeated the Habsburg forces at the
Battle of Mollwitz The Battle of Mollwitz was fought by Prussia and Austria on 10 April 1741, during the First Silesian War (in the early stages of the War of the Austrian Succession). It was the first battle of the new Prussian King Frederick II, in which both s ...
, which allowed Frederick to maintain his hold on Silesia and showed the military weakness of Maria Theresa's armies. This in turn, encouraged other courts to take advantage of the Habsburg Monarchy's apparent vulnerability to expand their own territories at the Habsburg's expense.


Negotiations

Within two months of Frederick's victory at Mollwitz, Marshal Belleisle, who served under the authority of
Louis XV Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (french: le Bien-Aimé), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reached ...
of
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
, began a circuit of the courts of the Holy Roman Empire to find allies in a war against the Habsburg Monarchy. In May 1741, Bellisle went to
Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
to negotiate with the Bavarian
Elector Elector may refer to: * Prince-elector or elector, a member of the electoral college of the Holy Roman Empire, having the function of electing the Holy Roman Emperors * Elector, a member of an electoral college ** Confederate elector, a member of ...
Charles Albert Charles Albert (; 2 October 1798 – 28 July 1849) was the King of Sardinia from 27 April 1831 until 23 March 1849. His name is bound up with the first Italian constitution, the Albertine Statute, and with the First Italian War of Independenc ...
, who wished to be crowned as the Holy Roman Emperor rather than an Austrian Habsburg heir. When Bellisle arrived, Charles Albert was already meeting with representatives of King
Philip V of Spain Philip V ( es, Felipe; 19 December 1683 – 9 July 1746) was King of Spain from 1 November 1700 to 14 January 1724, and again from 6 September 1724 to his death in 1746. His total reign of 45 years is the longest in the history of the Spanish mon ...
regarding a military alliance against the Habsburg Monarchy, as Philip was looking for an opportunity to create a duchy for his son Don Philip from the Habsburg Monarchy's Italian territories. Bellisle quickly brought negotiations between Bavaria, Spain and France to a successful conclusion. He brokered a treaty between the
Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
and
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
, which was signed on May 28, 1741 at the
Nymphenburg Palace The Nymphenburg Palace (german: Schloss Nymphenburg, Palace of the Nymphs) is a Baroque palace situated in Munich's western district Neuhausen-Nymphenburg, in Bavaria, southern Germany. Combined with the adjacent Nymphenburg Palace Park it cons ...
. In this treaty, Spain supported the claim of Charles Albert to become the next Holy Roman Emperor. In addition, Bellisle also committed France to an alliance with Bavaria, providing both financial and military support for Charles Albert's claim. Charles Albert later affirmed his personal commitment to these agreements by stating: "I will never separate myself from my friends and never conclude peace without their knowledge and approval". Although the French subsequently provided money and soldiers to support Charles Albert against the Habsburg Monarchy, there is still no reliable evidence that a formal written treaty between France and Bavaria existed.


League of Nymphenburg

After the negotiations in Nymphenburg, Marshal Belleisle continued to expand the alliance against the Habsburg monarchy by recruiting other Central European courts. France signed a treaty with Frederick II of Prussia in June 1741, and another with Frederick Augustus II of
Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...
in the following September.
Charles Emmanuel III Charles Emmanuel III (27 April 1701 – 20 February 1773) was Duke of Savoy and King of Sardinia from 1730 until his death. Biography He was born in Turin to Victor Amadeus II of Savoy and his first wife the French Anne Marie d'Orléans. Hi ...
of Savoy-Sardinia also joined the alliance. This anti-Habsburg alliance of France, Spain, Bavaria, Prussia, Saxony and Savoy-Sardinia became known as the League of Nymphenburg. For their role in the alliance, each of the participants were promised portions of the Habsburg lands. This coalition effectively negated the Pragmatic Sanction through its agreement to carve up much of the Habsburg lands amongst themselves. As a result, the First Silesian War broadened into a continent-wide conflict, the
War of Austrian Succession War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...
, as Maria Theresa defended the Habsburg monarchy against the array of European courts making up the League.


References


Citations


Works cited

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * {{free access 1741 treaties 1741 in the Holy Roman Empire Treaties of Bavaria Treaties of Spain Treaties of the Silesian Wars 18th-century military alliances Military alliances involving Bavaria Military alliances involving Spain Charles VII, Holy Roman Emperor