I was going through the archives of the Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs from the Torre do Tombo archives and they have records, including correspondences and letters of ambassadors, envoys, kings etc that are all quite fascinating and are combined into volumes.
One thing that I ran across that I found interesting was that Infanta Maria Theresa of Spain was offered as a bride to Charles II of England as part of a way to shore up peace between England and Spain after the Anglo-Spanish War. Marriage negotiations between between France and Spain as part of the peace between those two countries dragged and it seemed that England might be a better option as a marriage to Charles II would not require such a large dowry, and also they wanted to prevent the marriage of Charles II to Catherine of Bragança.
Meanwhile, Cardinal Mazarin had proposed a marriage between Louis XIV and Catherine of Bragança. The negotiations included a dowry of 2 million cruzados, and Tangier or Mazagan. Mazarin demanded both Tangier and Mazagan along with the revenues of the vacant bishopric of Évora for himself (some 400,000 cruzados). In the end, the Portuguese negotiators thought they would get a better deal from the English, and had to part with 2 million cruzados as a dowry in addition to Tangier and Bombay.
Now my question is what if Charles II of England married Maria Theresa and Louis XIV married Catherine of Bragança or some other princess?
Firstly it would have some important effects, such as no War of the Devolution, but I assume that Louis XIV being Louis would still attempt to enlarge his domains. After that, Charles II of Spain still dies without an heir, what would happen if Charles II of England and Scotland has a son? From what I could see there were no pre-conditions about Maria Theresa having to renounce her rights to the Spanish throne? If they only have one living son, would he become ruler of the Spanish domains along with the British Isles? I imagine that France would certainly challenge this, as would Austria?
With Charles II having an heir I imagine the Glorious Revolution might be butterflied away, but we might see kings of England whom remain crypto-Catholics. Also, Parliament would be weakened to more of an advisory body, with the King still supreme over parliament. Or eventually have a situation akin to Saxony where the Royal Family remains Catholic, but the Church of England remains the state church.
If Charles II has two children, one might claim the English/Scottish throne, while another claims the Spanish domains in their entirety. The Elder could remain in England and remain Catholic, and the Younger could become King of Spain. However, Spain and its Empire might prove to be such an enticing prize, would the English mercantile classes acquiesce to having a Union of Crowns ruled from London where the King becomes Catholic? In return, the English get free trade with Spain and her Empire.
Another scenario might be a partition of Spain's Domains, though this would become unpopular among the Spanish Court. If England agrees to cede Spanish territory, such as Naples and Milan to the Austria Habsburgs. France might demand Milan and Lorraine possibly. The Spanish Netherlands is also problematic as England might want to hold it, the Dutch Republic might be unhappy with that arrangement as they were still distrustful of England, France too would not be happy, so giving it to Austria might be accepted by all.
If Louis XIV is without legitimate heirs, and Catherine of Bragança lives to 1705 having several miscarriages, it would be problematic for him to get an annulment. That being said, the Duc d'Orleans' son Philippe would would marry a foreign princess and the result would be that after Louis XIV died, his grandnephew would inherit the French throne. France would not have a legitimate claim to the throne of Spain, but could France and England agree to partition the Spanish domains between themselves? The Bourbons and Stuarts had close relations and I could envision a scenario where Austria, the Dutch Republic, Spain and Prussia fight against an Anglo-French alliance.
I am curious to get the thoughts of others.
One thing that I ran across that I found interesting was that Infanta Maria Theresa of Spain was offered as a bride to Charles II of England as part of a way to shore up peace between England and Spain after the Anglo-Spanish War. Marriage negotiations between between France and Spain as part of the peace between those two countries dragged and it seemed that England might be a better option as a marriage to Charles II would not require such a large dowry, and also they wanted to prevent the marriage of Charles II to Catherine of Bragança.
Meanwhile, Cardinal Mazarin had proposed a marriage between Louis XIV and Catherine of Bragança. The negotiations included a dowry of 2 million cruzados, and Tangier or Mazagan. Mazarin demanded both Tangier and Mazagan along with the revenues of the vacant bishopric of Évora for himself (some 400,000 cruzados). In the end, the Portuguese negotiators thought they would get a better deal from the English, and had to part with 2 million cruzados as a dowry in addition to Tangier and Bombay.
Now my question is what if Charles II of England married Maria Theresa and Louis XIV married Catherine of Bragança or some other princess?
Firstly it would have some important effects, such as no War of the Devolution, but I assume that Louis XIV being Louis would still attempt to enlarge his domains. After that, Charles II of Spain still dies without an heir, what would happen if Charles II of England and Scotland has a son? From what I could see there were no pre-conditions about Maria Theresa having to renounce her rights to the Spanish throne? If they only have one living son, would he become ruler of the Spanish domains along with the British Isles? I imagine that France would certainly challenge this, as would Austria?
With Charles II having an heir I imagine the Glorious Revolution might be butterflied away, but we might see kings of England whom remain crypto-Catholics. Also, Parliament would be weakened to more of an advisory body, with the King still supreme over parliament. Or eventually have a situation akin to Saxony where the Royal Family remains Catholic, but the Church of England remains the state church.
If Charles II has two children, one might claim the English/Scottish throne, while another claims the Spanish domains in their entirety. The Elder could remain in England and remain Catholic, and the Younger could become King of Spain. However, Spain and its Empire might prove to be such an enticing prize, would the English mercantile classes acquiesce to having a Union of Crowns ruled from London where the King becomes Catholic? In return, the English get free trade with Spain and her Empire.
Another scenario might be a partition of Spain's Domains, though this would become unpopular among the Spanish Court. If England agrees to cede Spanish territory, such as Naples and Milan to the Austria Habsburgs. France might demand Milan and Lorraine possibly. The Spanish Netherlands is also problematic as England might want to hold it, the Dutch Republic might be unhappy with that arrangement as they were still distrustful of England, France too would not be happy, so giving it to Austria might be accepted by all.
If Louis XIV is without legitimate heirs, and Catherine of Bragança lives to 1705 having several miscarriages, it would be problematic for him to get an annulment. That being said, the Duc d'Orleans' son Philippe would would marry a foreign princess and the result would be that after Louis XIV died, his grandnephew would inherit the French throne. France would not have a legitimate claim to the throne of Spain, but could France and England agree to partition the Spanish domains between themselves? The Bourbons and Stuarts had close relations and I could envision a scenario where Austria, the Dutch Republic, Spain and Prussia fight against an Anglo-French alliance.
I am curious to get the thoughts of others.
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