Barrier Treaty

The "Barrier Treaties" were the names of three agreements signed and ratified during or immediately after the War of Spanish Succession.

Contents

First

The first Barrier Treaty (also known as the Treaty of Den Haag or the Treaty of The Hague[1]) was signed on October 29, 1709 between Great Britain and the states-general of the United Provinces. By the terms of the treaty, the United Provinces engaged to guarantee the Protestant succession in England in favor of the House of Hanover, while Great Britain undertook to procure for the Dutch an adequate barrier on the side of the Netherlands, consisting of the towns of Veurne, Nieuwpoort, Ypres, Menen, Lille, Tournai, Condé, Valenciennes, Maubeuge, Charleroi, Namur, Halle, Damme, Dendermonde and the citadel of Ghent. The treaty was based on the same principle of securing Holland against French aggression that had inspired that of Treaty of Ryswick in 1698, by the terms of which the chief frontier fortresses of the Netherlands were to be garrisoned by Dutch troops.

Second

The second Barrier Treaty was signed between Great Britain and Holland on January 29, 1713, by which the strong places designed for the barrier were reduced to Veurne, the fort of Knokke (also called fort de la Kenoque, or Le Henoque) ), Ypres, Menen, Tournai, Mons, Charleroi and the citadel of Ghent, and certain fortresses in the neighborhood of that city and of Bruges; Great Britain undertaking to obtain the right for the Dutch to garrison them from the future sovereign of the Spanish Netherlands. Its terms were included in the Treaty of Rastatt, between the emperor and France, signed on the March 7, 1714.

Third

The third Barrier Treaty (also known as the Treaty of Antwerp) was signed on November 15, 1715. Based on the terms of the accord, Frederick William I of Prussia ceded to the United Provinces several cities in the upper regions of Guelders.[2]

The result of the Barrier Treaty was that the Holy Roman emperor Charles VI did not have a lot to say about "his" Austrian Netherlands. This caused quite a lot of frustration with the Austrians, especially because the Dutch troops they had to allow were paid with money raised by the Austrian Netherlands themselves. This would last until empress Maria Theresa refused to pay for those troops any longer.

See also

References

  1. ^ Myers, p. 799. By the first barrier treaty of The Hague of October 29, 1709, Great Britain promised to cede to the States General the upper portion of Guelder with the right of garrison in the forts of Liége and Huy and the city of Bonn.
  2. ^ Myers, p. 799. By Article XVIII of the third barrier treaty of Antwerp of November 15, 1715, the Emperor ceded to the States General in full sovereignty and ownership several cities in the upper portion of Guelder, this not seeming to affect the previous treaty engagements except in point of neighbors and political influence.

Sources