The Treaty of Dresden was signed on 25 December 1745 at the Saxon capital of

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...

between

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon German, 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 ...

and

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 e ...

, ending the

Second Silesian War The Second Silesian War (german: Zweiter Schlesischer Krieg, links=no) was a war between Prussia and Austria that lasted from 1744 to 1745 and confirmed Prussia's control of the region of Silesia (now in south-western Poland). The war was fough ...

. In the 1742 Treaty of Breslau,

Maria Theresa of Austria Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia Christina (german: Maria Theresia; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was ruler of the Habsburg dominions from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position '' suo jure'' (in her own right) ...

, struggling for the

succession Succession is the act or process of following in order or sequence. Governance and politics *Order of succession, in politics, the ascension to power by one ruler, official, or monarch after the death, resignation, or removal from office of ...

after her father

Emperor Charles VI Charles VI (german: Karl; la, Carolus; 1 October 1685 – 20 October 1740) was Holy Roman Emperor and ruler of the Austrian Habsburg monarchy from 1711 until his death, succeeding his elder brother, Joseph I. He unsuccessfully claimed the thron ...

according to the

Pragmatic Sanction of 1713 The Pragmatic Sanction ( la, Sanctio Pragmatica, german: Pragmatische Sanktion) was an edict issued by Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor, on 19 April 1713 to ensure that the Habsburg hereditary possessions, which included the Archduchy of Austria ...

, had to cede most of the

Bohemian Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Beer * National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst * Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, origin ...

province of

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. S ...

to the attacking King

Frederick II of Prussia Frederick II (german: Friedrich II.; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was King in Prussia from 1740 until 1772, and King of Prussia from 1772 until his death in 1786. His most significant accomplishments include his military successes in the S ...

. In the following years, however, she was able to strengthen her position. She attacked the

Electorate of Bavaria The Electorate of Bavaria (german: Kurfürstentum Bayern) was an independent hereditary electorate of the Holy Roman Empire from 1623 to 1806, when it was succeeded by the Kingdom of Bavaria. The Wittelsbach dynasty which ruled the Duchy of Ba ...

and in January 1745 achieved the support of

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It ...

, the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands ( Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiograph ...

and Saxony to reconquer Silesia. Furthermore, her rival,

Emperor Charles VII Charles VII (6 August 1697 – 20 January 1745) was the prince-elector of Bavaria from 1726 and Holy Roman Emperor from 24 January 1742 to his death. He was a member of the House of Wittelsbach, and his reign as Holy Roman Emperor thus marked the ...

, died a few days later, and on 22 April 1745 his son and successor, Elector

Maximilian III Joseph of Bavaria Maximilian III Joseph, "the much beloved", (28 March 1727 – 30 December 1777) was a Prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire and Duke of Bavaria from 1745 to 1777. Biography Born in Munich, Maximilian was the eldest son of Holy Roman Empero ...

, concluded the

Treaty of Füssen The Peace of Füssen (german: Frieden von Füssen) was a peace treaty signed at Füssen, between the Electorate of Bavaria and Habsburg Austria. Signed on 22 April 1745, it ended the participation of Bavaria on the French side in the War of th ...

with her. By the end of May 1745, Austrian and Saxon troops invaded Prussian Silesia but were halted by Prussian forces at the Battle of Hohenfriedberg on 4 June. Maria Theresa's husband

Francis I Francis I or Francis the First may refer to: * Francesco I Gonzaga (1366–1407) * Francis I, Duke of Brittany (1414–1450), reigned 1442–1450 * Francis I of France (1494–1547), King of France, reigned 1515–1547 * Francis I, Duke of Saxe-Lau ...

was finally elected

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperat ...

on 13 September, and Frederick's troops gained shining victories at Soor and

Kesselsdorf Kesselsdorf is a village in Saxony, Germany, part of the town of Wilsdruff. It is located close to the Saxon capital city of Dresden. The village is known for the decisive Battle of Kesseldorf between Austrians and Prussians on December 15, 17 ...

, occupying Dresden on 18 December. Frederick, however, had to cope with a rising number of enemy powers and expiring resources, all the more because he had failed to obtain support from Empress

Elizabeth of Russia Elizabeth Petrovna (russian: Елизаве́та (Елисаве́та) Петро́вна) (), also known as Yelisaveta or Elizaveta, reigned as Empress of Russia from 1741 until her death in 1762. She remains one of the most popular Russian ...

. Facing the situation, both sides agreed on a ''

status quo is a Latin phrase meaning the existing state of affairs, particularly with regard to social, political, religious or military issues. In the sociological sense, the ''status quo'' refers to the current state of social structure and/or values. ...

''. Based on the terms of the agreement, Frederick acknowledged Francis as Holy Roman Emperor. In return, he maintained control over Silesia. The actually-disadvantaged side was Saxony, which had to pay Prussia one million

rixdollar Rixdollar is the English term for silver coinage used throughout the European continent (german: Reichsthaler, nl, rijksdaalder, da, rigsdaler, sv, riksdaler). The same term was also used of currency in Cape Colony and Ceylon. However, the R ...

s in reparations. Overall, the accord ratified and confirmed the tenets of both the Treaty of Breslau and the Treaty of Berlin. The accord brought the Second Silesian War to an official end.Encyclopædia Britannica Concise - Dresden
''The Treaty of Dresden (1745), between Prussia, Saxony, and Austria, ended the second Silesian War and confirmed Silesia as Prussian.''

References

Sources

Encyclopædia Britannica Concise - Dresden
{{Authority control Treaties of the Silesian Wars 1745 in Austria 1745 treaties

Treaties of the Electorate of Saxony

1745 in Prussia 1745 in the Habsburg Monarchy 1745 in the Holy Roman Empire 18th century in Saxony Habsburg Monarchy–Prussia relations Maria Theresa Frederick the Great Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor

See also

References

Sources