The War of the Spanish Succession was fought to determine who should sit on the throne in Madrid, once the semi-invalid King Carlos II had died in November 1700. That monarch had no obvious immediate successor, and in his will he named Philippe, Duc d’Anjou – the younger grandson of King Louis XIV of France – as his heir. The problem that this caused was obvious, as such an apparent extension of French influence over the wide and immensely wealthy Spanish Empire would alarm all other states in western Europe, many of whom had suffered at the hands of the Sun King and his military commanders over the preceding decades as the borders of France were extended and strengthened. An additional difficulty was that the younger son of the Emperor Leopold I in Vienna, the Archduke Charles, also had as good a claim to the throne as the young Frenchman.
The quandary for Louis XIV was that if the offer to his grandson was refused, it would then immediately be made to Archduke Charles who would almost certainly accept. In that case, the old French concern at the Habsburg encirclement (with potentially hostile armies to the south in the Iberian peninsula, to the eastwards across the Rhine where many German princes and Electors owed allegiance to the Emperor, and to the north from the populous and affluent Spanish Netherlands – today’s Belgium and Luxembourg), would re-awaken. This could not be tolerated in Versailles, memories were long and it was less than fifty years or so ago that Spanish armies had come to within forty miles of the gates of Paris. In the genuine dilemma that he faced, the French king felt that he must allow his grandson to accept, while offering sufficient reassurance to his neighbours that their own interests would not be put in jeopardy. Compensation would be made to the Archduke Charles for any disappointed hopes of becoming king in Spain, with an important commitment that the thrones of France and Spain would always be kept separate, and commercial concessions in the Spanish Empire would be offered to England and Holland. With a little care, everyone should be able to be satisfied.
On 16 November 1700, Louis XIV announced that the offer of the throne of Spain was accepted by his grandson, and the Duc de St Simon remembered the dramatic and historic scene at Versailles, where the King addressed his courtiers:
Contrary to all precedent, the King caused the double doors of his cabinet [private chambers] to be thrown open, and ordered all the crowd assembled without to enter (it was a very full Court that day); then, glancing majestically over the numerous company, ‘Gentlemen,’ said he indicating the Duc d’Anjou ‘this is the King of Spain’.
The Spanish envoy at Versailles was then invited to kneel and kiss the hand of his new King. With some neat diplomatic footwork all might have been well, and messages were sent to The Hague, Vienna and London with as
