page_title: Bourbon claim to the Spanish throne
section_title: War of Spanish Succession
hierarchical_section_title: Bourbon claim to the Spanish throne / War of Spanish Succession
caption_attribution_description: Español: Felipe V de España con su esposa Isabel de Farnesio y sus desendientes De izquierda a derecha: El futuro Fernando VI, Felipe V; el futuro rey Luis I; Felipe, futuro duque de Parma; Isabel Farnesio; un retrato de la infanta Mariana Victoria, comprometida en Francia con Luis XV; y el luego rey Carlos III. English: Philip V of Spain with his wife Elisabetta Farnese and his descendants.
context_page_description: After the death of the last Habsburg monarch of Spain in 1700, the childless Charles II, the Spanish throne was up for grabs between the various dynasties of Europe despite Charles having left a will naming his heir. In this will, Charles left Philip, Duke of Anjou, grandson of the French king, the possessions of the Spanish Crown.
  The Austrian Habsburgs, who considered themselves the rightful heirs of Charles II, fearing that the vast domain of the Spanish Crown would be taken over by the French monarchy, formed a European coalition against the Bourbon monarchs of France and Spain, therefore starting the War of the Spanish Succession. In this article, the Bourbon claim to the Spanish Crown and its origins are explained in detail.
context_section_description: The actions of Louis heightened the fears of the English, the Dutch and the Austrians, among others.  In February 1701, the French king caused the Parlement of Paris (a court) to register a decree that should Louis himself have no heir, the Duke of Anjou — Philip V of Spain — would surrender the Spanish throne for that of the French, ensuring dynastic continuity in Europe's greatest land power.
  However, a second act of the French king "justified a hostile interpretation": pursuant to a treaty with Spain, Louis occupied several towns in the Spanish Netherlands (modern Belgium and Nord-Pas-de-Calais). This was the spark that ignited the powder keg created by the unresolved issues of the War of the League of Augsburg (1689–97) and the acceptance of the Spanish inheritance by Louis XIV for his grandson.
  Louis' position in the Conseil d'en haut gave him an opportunity to have his voice heard in the years and crises leading up to the War of the Spanish Succession. From his mother, Louis had rights and claims to the Spanish throne. His brother-in-law  Charles II of Spain had produced no descendants and, as he lay dying, had no heir to whom he could pass the throne. The choice of a successor was essentially split between the French and Austrian claimants. In order to improve the chances of a Bourbon succession, Louis gave up his rights in favour of his second grandson, Philip, Duke of Anjou, who, as second son of the Grand Dauphin, was not expected to succeed to the French throne, thus keeping France and Spain separate. Moreover, in the discussions in the Conseil d'en haut regarding the French response to Charles II's last will and testament, which did indeed leave all Spanish possessions to Anjou, Louis persuasively argued for acceptance. He opposed those who advocated a rejection of the will and the adherence to the Partition Treaty signed with William III of England, even though that treaty had awarded Naples, Sicily and Tuscany to him.
  The War of the Spanish Succession (1702–1713) began. After eleven years of bloody, global warfare, fought on four continents and three oceans, the Duke of Anjou, as Philip V, was confirmed as King of Spain on substantially the same terms that the powers of Europe had agreed to before the war. Thus the Treaties of Utrecht and Rastatt ended the war and "achieved little more than...diplomacy might have peacefully achieved in 1701." A proviso of the peace perpetually forbade the union of the Spanish and French thrones.
  The House of Bourbon, founded by Philip V, has intermittently occupied the Spanish throne ever since, and sits today on the throne of Spain in the person of Juan Carlos I of Spain (1975–2014). On 2 June 2014, Juan Carlos announced that he would abdicate in favour of his son, Felipe on 19 June 2014. He and his wife will retain their titles.
caption: Portrait of Philip V and his family
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