Spanish succession crisis under Charles II (1670s)

Name: Spanish succession crisis under Charles II (1670s)
Start: 1670
End: 1679

Type Event Region Europe Time 1670–1679

In the 1670s the ailing, childless Charles II, last Spanish Habsburg king, made succession a core issue of European diplomacy, with France and the Au…

Timeline

1675–1676Madrid · SpainCharles II assumed personal rule in 1675, but royal authority remained influenced by his mother Mariana of Austria and the favourite Ensenada. The court split over fiscal reform, military reorganisation and foreign policy, and the absence of an heir made each faction more eager to consolidate power.
1677–1679Europe · EuropeLouis XIV of France and the Habsburgs of the Holy Roman Empire probed Spanish succession arrangements through envoys, marriage proposals and secret agreements. Fears that annexing the Spanish Empire's territories to France would upset the balance of power made the diplomatic contest increasingly open.

Sources

Encyclopedia Britannica: Charles II (king of Spain) https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charles-II-king-of-Spain
The Spanish Monarchy and the Creation of the Bourbon State, 1665–1700 — John Lynch (1989)