Quadruple Alliance

I

(1718) Alliance between Austria, Britain, the Dutch Republic, and France, formed to prevent Spain from altering the terms of the Peace of Utrecht (1713).

When Philip V of Spain seized Sardinia and Sicily, the British fleet brought Austrian troops to Sicily and the French occupied northern Spain, and Philip was forced to renounce his claims in Italy.

II

(1815) Alliance between Britain, Russia, Austria, and Prussia first formed in 1813 to oppose France in the final phase of the Napoleonic Wars.

It was officially renewed in 1815 to enforce the peace settlement concluded at the Congress of Vienna. The allies agreed to meet occasionally to keep European political development within terms of the 1815 settlement. This program was partially carried out by the Congresses of Aix-la-Chapelle (1818), Troppau (1820), Laibach (1821), and Verona (1822).

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▪ Europe [1718]

      alliance formed Aug. 2, 1718, when Austria joined the Triple Alliance of Britain, the Dutch Republic (United Provinces), and France to prevent Spain from altering the terms of the Treaty of Utrecht (Utrecht, treaties of) (1713). Philip V of Spain, influenced by his wife, Elizabeth Farnese (Isabella Farnese) of Parma, and her adviser Giulio Alberoni (Alberoni, Giulio), seized control of Sardinia and Sicily (assigned to Austria and Savoy, respectively, by the Utrecht treaty). With the backing of the Quadruple Alliance, the British fleet brought Austrian troops to Sicily, and the French sent troops to occupy northern Spain. By the Treaty of The Hague (Feb. 17, 1720), the allies forced Philip to renounce his claims in Italy; Victor Amadeus II of Savoy gave up Sicily to Austria in exchange for Sardinia.

▪ Europe [1813-15]

      alliance first formed in 1813, during the final phase of the Napoleonic Wars, by Britain, Russia, Austria, and Prussia, for the purpose of defeating Napoleon (Napoleon I), but conventionally dated from Nov. 20, 1815, when it was officially renewed to prevent recurrence of French aggression and to provide machinery to enforce the peace settlement concluded at the Congress of Vienna (Vienna, Congress of). The members each agreed to put 60,000 men in the field in the event of French aggression. More significantly, they agreed to meet occasionally to confer on European problems and to keep European political development within terms of the 1815 settlement. This program was partially carried out by the congresses of Aix-la-Chapelle (Aix-la-Chapelle, Congress of), Troppau (Troppau, Congress of), Laibach (Laibach, Congress of), and Verona (Verona, Congress of). At the Congress of Aix-la-Chapelle (Aachen, 1818) France was admitted to full participation in the proceedings, creating in effect the Quintuple Alliance.

      Although the old alliance was secretly renewed on Nov. 1, 1818, because of some continued fear of France, there was never an occasion for the alliance to oppose France, and it remained inactive. British foreign policy diverged from that of the other powers in the 1820s, weakening the efforts of the Austrian prince Klemens von Metternich (Metternich, Klemens, Fürst von) to use the alliance for reaction and counterrevolution throughout Europe.

▪ Europe [1834]

      alliance formed on April 22, 1834, between Britain, France, and the more liberal claimants to the thrones of Spain and Portugal against the conservative claimants to those thrones. The alliance successfully supported Maria Cristiana, who was acting as regent for Isabella II in Spain and had allied herself with the liberals against the pretender Don Carlos (Carlos María Isidro de Borbón, conde de Molina) in the First Carlist War (1833–39). In Portugal the alliance successfully supported Maria da Glória (Maria II) by intervening in the Miguelite Wars (1828–34) and expelling the reactionary Dom Miguel from Portugal. The cooperation between France and Britain in the affairs of the Iberian Peninsula broke down in 1846, when Isabella and her sister, Luisa, married French princes (see Spanish Marriages, Affair of the).

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