Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor

Charles VI
Portrait by Jacob van Schuppen
Holy Roman Emperor
Reign12 October 1711 – 20 October 1740
Coronation22 December 1711
Frankfurt Cathedral
PredecessorJoseph I
SuccessorCharles VII
Born(1685-10-01)1 October 1685
Hofburg Palace, Vienna, Austria, Holy Roman Empire
Died20 October 1740(1740-10-20) (aged 55)
Palais Augarten, Vienna, Austria, Holy Roman Empire
Burial
Spouse
Issue
Detail
Names
German: Karl Franz Joseph Wenzel Balthasar Johann Anton Ignaz
HouseHabsburg
FatherLeopold I, Holy Roman Emperor
MotherEleonore Magdalene of Neuburg
ReligionRoman Catholicism
SignatureCharles VI's signature

Charles VI (German: Karl; Latin: Carolus; 1 October 1685 – 20 October 1740) was Holy Roman Emperor and ruler of the Austrian Habsburg monarchy from 1711 until his death, succeeding his elder brother, Joseph I. He unsuccessfully claimed the throne of Spain following the death of his relative, Charles II. In 1708, he married Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, by whom he had his four children: Leopold Johann (who died in infancy), Maria Theresa (the last direct Habsburg sovereign), Maria Anna (Governess of the Austrian Netherlands), and Maria Amalia (who also died in infancy).

Four years before the birth of Maria Theresa, faced with his lack of male heirs, Charles provided for a male-line succession failure with the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713. The Emperor favoured his own daughters over those of his elder brother and predecessor, Joseph I, in the succession, ignoring the Mutual Pact of Succession he had signed during the reign of his father, Leopold I. Charles sought the other European powers' approval. They demanded significant terms, among which were that Austria close the Ostend Company.[1] In total, Great Britain, France, Saxony-Poland, the Dutch Republic, Spain,[2] Venice,[3] States of the Church,[3] Prussia,[4] Russia,[3] Denmark,[4] Savoy-Sardinia,[4] Bavaria,[4] and the Diet of the Holy Roman Empire[4] recognised the sanction. France, Spain, Saxony-Poland, Bavaria and Prussia later reneged. Charles died in 1740, sparking the War of the Austrian Succession, which plagued his successor, Maria Theresa, for eight years.

  1. ^ Crankshaw, Edward, Maria Theresa, 1969, Longman publishers, Great Britain (pre-dates ISBN), 24.
  2. ^ Jones, Colin: "The Great Nation: France from Louis XV to Napoleon", University of Columbia Press, Great Britain, 2002, ISBN 0-231-12882-7, 89.
  3. ^ a b c Crankshaw, 37.
  4. ^ a b c d e Pragmatic Sanction of Emperor Charles VI, Encyclopædia Britannica, retrieved 15 October 2009.

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