1714 peace treaty between France and Austria following the War of the Spanish Succession
Ended the War of the Spanish Succession between France and Austria, reshaping European territorial boundaries and reinforcing the principle of balance of power.
Key Facts
- Date signed
- 7 March 1714
- Location
- Rastatt, Baden
- Parties
- France and Austria
- Chief negotiators
- Marshal Villars (France) and Prince Eugene of Savoy (Austria)
- Preceded by
- Treaty of Utrecht, 11 April 1713
- Followed by
- Treaty of Baden, 1714 (France and Holy Roman Empire)
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
By 1713, prolonged fighting in the War of the Spanish Succession had militarily exhausted all belligerents, making further conflict unlikely to produce decisive results. The Treaty of Utrecht had already resolved hostilities among France, Spain, Great Britain, and the Dutch Republic, but a separate settlement between France and Austria remained necessary.
Negotiations at the First Congress of Rastatt, opened in November 1713, were conducted by Marshal Claude Louis Hector de Villars for France and Prince Eugene of Savoy for Austria. The resulting treaty, signed on 7 March 1714 in Rastatt, formally ended the Franco-Austrian phase of the war and complemented the earlier Treaty of Utrecht.
The Treaty of Rastatt, together with the Treaty of Utrecht and the subsequent Treaty of Baden, concluded the War of the Spanish Succession. It reinforced the emerging European doctrine of balance of power, redistributing territories and preventing any single power from achieving dominance over the continent.
Political Outcome
France and Austria ended hostilities from the War of the Spanish Succession; treaty complemented the Treaty of Utrecht and reinforced European balance of power.
Ongoing Franco-Austrian conflict following the War of the Spanish Succession with disputed territorial claims
Negotiated peace with redrawn European boundaries emphasising balance of power between major states