Quadruple Alliance (1718)
Bloc | Defunct
1718 CE to 1720 CE
The Quadruple Alliance of 1718 is an alliance among Austria, France, the Dutch Republic and Great Britain - aimed at revising (principally at Spain's expense) the treaties which had ended the War of the Spanish Succession.
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The Cellamare Conspiracy and the War of the Quadruple Alliance (1718–1720)
The Cellamare Conspiracy (1718) confirmed France’s fears of Spanish aggression, as Philip V of Spain attempted to reclaim lost territories in Sardinia and Sicily, violating the Treaty of Utrecht (1713). This led to the formation of the Quadruple Alliance (1718)—an anti-Spanish coalition of Austria, France, Britain, and the Dutch Republic—which fought Spain in the War of the Quadruple Alliance (1718–1720).
Background: Spain’s Expansionist Ambitions Under Philip V
- Philip V, still seeking to reverse Spain’s losses from the War of the Spanish Succession, aimed to expand Spanish influence in Italy.
- In July 1718, Spanish forces seized Sardinia and Sicily, directly challenging the terms of the Peace of Utrecht.
- France, Austria, Britain, and the Dutch Republic saw this as a threat to European stability.
The Formation of the Quadruple Alliance (1718)
- In response to Spanish aggression, Austria, France, Britain, and the Dutch Republic formed the Quadruple Alliance to uphold the balance of power in Europe.
- The treaty aimed to force Spain to withdraw from Sardinia and Sicily.
- France, Britain, and Austria formally declared war on Spain on December 17, 1718.
- The Dutch Republic joined the war in August 1719.
Military Campaigns and Spain’s Defeat
✔ The Allies Occupied Sicily and Northern Spain
- Austrian forces landed in Sicily, engaging Spanish troops in a series of battles.
- British and French fleets secured naval dominance, isolating Spain’s forces.
- French troops invaded northern Spain, forcing Philip V onto the defensive.
✔ Spain Is Forced to Renounce Its Claims
- The war ended with Spain renouncing its claim to Sardinia and Sicily.
- Sardinia was given to Austria, while Sicily was transferred to the House of Savoy.
Conclusion: A Setback for Spanish Ambitions
The War of the Quadruple Alliance (1718–1720) halted Spain’s attempts to expand in Italy, reinforcing the balance of power established by the Treaty of Utrecht. The war:
✔ Weakened Spain’s military and diplomatic standing.
✔ Strengthened Britain, Austria, and France’s control over European affairs.
✔ Ensured that Spain remained isolated from major European alliances for decades.
Philip V’s aggressive policies backfired, reinforcing Habsburg and Bourbon dominance in Italy, while Spain struggled to recover from its diplomatic and military defeats.
The Cellamare Conspiracy and the War of the Quadruple Alliance (1718–1720)
The Cellamare Conspiracy (1718) confirmed France’s fears of Spanish aggression, as Philip V of Spain attempted to reclaim lost territories in Sardinia and Sicily, violating the Treaty of Utrecht (1713). This led to the formation of the Quadruple Alliance (1718)—an anti-Spanish coalition of Austria, France, Britain, and the Dutch Republic—which fought Spain in the War of the Quadruple Alliance (1718–1720).
Background: Spain’s Expansionist Ambitions Under Philip V
- Philip V, still seeking to reverse Spain’s losses from the War of the Spanish Succession, aimed to expand Spanish influence in Italy.
- In July 1718, Spanish forces seized Sardinia and Sicily, directly challenging the terms of the Peace of Utrecht.
- France, Austria, Britain, and the Dutch Republic saw this as a threat to European stability.
The Formation of the Quadruple Alliance (1718)
- In response to Spanish aggression, Austria, France, Britain, and the Dutch Republic formed the Quadruple Alliance to uphold the balance of power in Europe.
- The treaty aimed to force Spain to withdraw from Sardinia and Sicily.
- France, Britain, and Austria formally declared war on Spain on December 17, 1718.
- The Dutch Republic joined the war in August 1719.
Military Campaigns and Spain’s Defeat
✔ The Allies Occupied Sicily and Northern Spain
- Austrian forces landed in Sicily, engaging Spanish troops in a series of battles.
- British and French fleets secured naval dominance, isolating Spain’s forces.
- French troops invaded northern Spain, forcing Philip V onto the defensive.
✔ Spain Is Forced to Renounce Its Claims
- The war ended with Spain renouncing its claim to Sardinia and Sicily.
- Sardinia was given to Austria, while Sicily was transferred to the House of Savoy.
Conclusion: A Setback for Spanish Ambitions
The War of the Quadruple Alliance (1718–1720) halted Spain’s attempts to expand in Italy, reinforcing the balance of power established by the Treaty of Utrecht. The war:
✔ Weakened Spain’s military and diplomatic standing.
✔ Strengthened Britain, Austria, and France’s control over European affairs.
✔ Ensured that Spain remained isolated from major European alliances for decades.
Philip V’s aggressive policies backfired, reinforcing Habsburg and Bourbon dominance in Italy, while Spain struggled to recover from its diplomatic and military defeats.
The grateful new queen—the princesse des Ursins having been chased out—had actively exerted her influence of on Alberoni's behalf, and within not much more than a year Alberoni had been made a duke and grandee of Spain, a member of the king's council, appointed bishop of Málaga, and in 1715 prime minister, and had been made cardinal by Pope Clement XI, under pressure from the court of Spain, in July 1717.
His vigorous internal policy mixed the economic reforms of Colbert for Louis XIV with some conservative Spanish aspects: a regular mail service to the Americas is instituted, yet the school of navigation he founds is reserved for the sons of the nobility.
Alberoni has by a series of decrees in 1717 reduced the powers of the grandees in royal councils.
His main purpose is to produce an economic revival in Spain by abolishing internal custom houses, throwing open the trade of the Indies and reorganizing the finances along lines that had been established by the French economist Jean Orry.
With the resources thus gained, Alberoni undertakes to enable Philip V to carry out an ambitious foreign policy to undo the Treaty of Utrecht, with the aim of countering the Habsburgs and recovering Spanish possessions in Italy, where he is responsible for unwarranted invasions of Sardinia (November 1717, strongly supported by Sardinian politician Vicente Bacallar) and Sicily (July 1718), in spite of promises made to the Pope, while pressing Spanish causes in France with the Cellamare Conspiracy.
Tensions between Spain and Britain are high.
The Treaty of Passarowitz, which had finally ended the war with the Ottoman Empire on July 21, 1718, leads to the formation of the Quadruple Alliance, with the Emperor now joining the Triple Alliance on August 2, 1718.
A British fleet led by Sir George Byng on August 11 effectively eliminates the Spanish fleet stationed off Sicily at the Battle of Cape Passaro.
The British fleet lands a small Austrian army assembled in Naples by the Austrian Viceroy Count Wirich Philipp von Daun, near Messina to lift the siege by the Spanish forces.
The Austrians attack very early in the morning of October 15, taking the Spanish by surprise.
The two Spanish Dragoon regiments (Batavia and Lusitania) stop the attack, to give the rest of the Spanish army time to deploy.
Both regiments are decimated, but their sacrifice gives Lede the opportunity to counterattack.
The Austrians are pushed back and the Spanish pursue the fleeing army, causing many casualties.
The Austrians lose fifteen hundred killed or wounded and three hundred prisoners.
The Spanish loss fifteen hundred killed or wounded and two hundred prisoners.
Messina is taken by the Spanish, but the Marquis de Lede does not take this opportunity to drive the Austrians completely from the island, leaving them a bridgehead around Milazzo.
This bridgehead, and naval supremacy after the Battle of Cape Passaro, will give the Austrians a chance to send over more troops in the coming year.
The plotted restoration of the Stuarts to the British throne in two Jacobite expeditions to Scotland in the spring of 1719 is another extravagant scheme of Alberoni's.
By provoking Britain, France, the Netherlands and the Empire to form the Quadruple Alliance, his hasty and ambitious plans have brought a flood of disaster to Spain, for which Alberoni is held responsible.
France launches an invasion of eastern Spain while the British successfully raid Vigo.
With Philip V fast becoming the common enemy of all Europe, Alberoni is on December 5, 1719, ordered to leave Spain, Elizabeth herself having taken an active part in procuring the decree of banishment.
The successful conclusion to the War of Quadruple Alliance vindicates the French decision to ally with Great Britain and the Dutch Republic.
The war, which provides a unique example during the eighteenth century when Britain and France are on the same side, comes during a period between 1716 and 1731 when the two countries are allies.
Spain will later join with France in the Bourbon Compact, and the two will become continual enemies of the British.
The war has also demonstrated the growing seapower of Britain, and the successful deployment of the Royal Navy in the Mediterranean Sea.
The Quadruple Alliance of Austria, France, Great Britain, and the United Provinces, having warred with Spain, mostly in Italy, between 1718 and 1719, concludes the Treaty of the Hague on February 17, 1720, by which King Philip V of Spain agrees to abandon his Italian claims, but wins Austria’s assurance that the Duchy of Parma will be inherited by his son, Charles, upon the extinction of the Farnese line.
Victor Amadeus II, Duke of Savoy and sovereign of Piedmont, on August 24 formally surrenders Sicily to Austria in exchange for Sardinia (until now a Spanish possession) under the terms of the Treaty of London concluded two years earlier, gaining for himself the title King of Sardinia, although the main part of the Savoyard territories are in Savoy and Piedmont, with its capital at Turin.