Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748)

The 1748 treaty that ended the War of the Austrian Succession and recognized Maria Theresa’s inheritance, while leaving Prussia in possession of Silesia.

War of the Austrian Succession: A European conflict from 1740 to 1748 over the Habsburg succession and control of territories including Silesia. The treaty formally ended this war.
Maria Theresa: The Habsburg ruler who governed Austria and other hereditary lands from 1740 to 1780. The treaty recognized her inheritance but did not restore every Habsburg territory.
Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor: The Habsburg emperor who ruled from 1711 to 1740 and issued the Pragmatic Sanction to secure his daughter’s succession. His death in 1740 triggered the succession dispute that preceded the war.
Treaty of Utrecht: A series of agreements signed in 1713–1715 that ended the War of the Spanish Succession and reshaped European and colonial power. It established an earlier balance-of-power settlement that the 1748 treaty sought to restore.
Silesian Wars: Three conflicts between Prussia and Austria over Silesia, fought from 1740 to 1763. The settlement confirmed Prussia’s hold on Silesia without resolving Austria’s claim.
Frederick II of Prussia: The Hohenzollern king of Prussia from 1740 to 1786, known as Frederick the Great. His seizure of Silesia remained the settlement’s most consequential territorial result.
Invasion of Silesia: Frederick II’s 1740 invasion of Habsburg Silesia, which opened the First Silesian War. This attack began the territorial contest the final treaty left unresolved.
Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1668): The 1668 treaty ending the War of Devolution between France and Spain and regulating French gains in the Spanish Netherlands. It shares the city’s name but ended a different war eighty years earlier.
Seven Years' War: A global conflict from 1756 to 1763 involving most European powers and their overseas empires. Renewed Austro-Prussian rivalry after 1748 helped lead to this later war.
Silesia: A historic region in Central Europe, most of which came under Prussian rule in the eighteenth century. The treaty left this disputed region under Prussian control.

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