Editing Prince Eugene of Savoy (section)

=== 'Cold war' ===
[[File:Portrait of Prince Eugene.jpg|thumb|170px|Prince Eugene by [[Jan Kupecký]].|left]]

The 1720s saw rapidly changing alliances between the European powers and almost constant diplomatic confrontation, largely over unsolved issues regarding the Quadruple Alliance. The Emperor and the Spanish king continued to use each other's titles, and Charles VI still refused to remove the remaining legal obstacles to Don Charles' eventual succession to the duchies of Parma and Tuscany. Yet in a surprise move Spain and Austria moved closer with the signing of the [[Treaty of Vienna (1725)|Treaty of Vienna]] in April/May 1725.<ref>Philip V and Elisabeth approached Austria to exploit Charles VI's isolation, and his differences with the Maritime Powers over the Ostend Company. They intended to conclude marriage alliances for their two sons to the Emperor's daughters, aiming to bring their children control of the [[Erblande|Habsburg hereditary lands]] and most of Italy.</ref> In response Britain, France, and [[Prussia]] joined in the [[Treaty of Hanover (1725)|Alliance of Hanover]] to counter the danger to Europe of an Austro-Spanish hegemony.<ref>Hatton: ''George I,'' 274–275: Sweden, Denmark, and the Dutch Republic signed the Treaty of Hanover in 1727.</ref> For the next three years there was the continual threat of war between the Hanover Treaty powers and the Austro-Spanish bloc.

From 1726, Eugene gradually began to regain his political influence. With his many contacts throughout Europe Eugene, backed by Gundaker Starhemberg and [[Frederick Charles, count von Schönborn|Count Schönborn]], the Imperial vice-chancellor, managed to secure powerful allies and strengthen the Emperor's position—his skill in managing the vast secret diplomatic network over the coming years was the main reason why Charles VI once again came to depend upon him.{{sfn | McKay | Baker | von Savoyen | 1977 | p=213}} In August 1726 [[Russian Empire|Russia]] acceded to the Austro-Spanish alliance, and in October [[Frederick William I of Prussia]] followed suit by defecting from the Allies with the signing of a mutual defensive treaty with the Emperor.{{sfn | Coxe | 1820 | p=139|ps=: The Allies failed to support Frederick William's claims to [[Duchy of Jülich|Jülich-Berg]].}}

[[File:Alliances in Europe 1725-1730.jpg|thumb|300px|Coalitions in Europe between 1725 and 1730. Signatories of the [[Treaty of Vienna (1725)|Treaty of Vienna]] (30 April 1725) in blue and signatories of the [[Treaty of Hanover (1725)|Treaty of Hanover]] (3 September 1725) in red. Prussia, in brown, first joined the Hanoverian Alliance, but later changed sides after the Treaty of Berlin on 23 December 1728.]]
Despite the conclusion of the brief [[Anglo-Spanish War (1727)|Anglo-Spanish conflict]], manoeuvring between the European powers persisted throughout 1727–28. In 1729 Elisabeth Farnese abandoned the Austro-Spanish alliance. Realizing that Charles VI could not be drawn into the marriage pact she wanted, Elisabeth concluded that the best way to secure her son's succession to Parma and Tuscany now lay with Britain and France. To Eugene it was 'an event that which is seldom to be found in history'.{{sfn | McKay | Baker | von Savoyen | 1977 | p=219}} Following the Prince's determined lead to resist all pressure, Charles VI sent troops into Italy to prevent the entry of Spanish garrisons into the contested duchies. By the beginning of 1730 Eugene, who had remained bellicose throughout the whole period, was again in control of Austrian policy.{{sfn | McKay | Baker | von Savoyen | 1977 | p=219}}

In Britain there now emerged a new political re-alignment as the Anglo-French ''entente'' became increasingly defunct.{{sfn | Simms | 2009 | p=218}} Believing that a resurgent France now posed the greatest danger to their security British ministers, headed by [[Robert Walpole]], moved to reform the [[Anglo-Austrian Alliance]], leading to the signing of the [[Treaty of Vienna (1731)|Second Treaty of Vienna]] on 16 March 1731.{{sfn | Simms | 2009 | pp=215–219}}{{sfn | Mckay | Scott | 2014 | p=136}} Eugene had been the Austrian minister most responsible for the alliance, believing once again it would provide security against France and Spain. The treaty compelled Charles VI to sacrifice the [[Ostend Company]] and accept, unequivocally, the accession of Don Charles to Parma and Tuscany. In return King [[George II of Great Britain|George II]] as King of Great Britain and Elector of [[Electorate of Hanover]] guaranteed the [[Pragmatic Sanction of 1713|Pragmatic Sanction]], the device to secure the rights of the Emperor's daughter, [[Maria Theresa]], to the entire Habsburg inheritance. It was largely through Eugene's diplomacy that in January 1732 the [[Imperial Diet (Holy Roman Empire)|Imperial diet]] also guaranteed the Pragmatic Sanction which, together with the Treaties with Britain, Russia, and Prussia, marked the culmination of the Prince's diplomacy. But the Treaty of Vienna had infuriated the court of King [[Louis XV]]: the French had been ignored and the Pragmatic Sanction guaranteed, thus increasing Habsburg influence and confirming Austria's vast territorial size. The Emperor also intended Maria Theresa to marry Duke [[Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor|Francis Stephen]] of Lorraine which would present an unacceptable threat on France's border. By the beginning of 1733 the French army was ready for war: all that was needed was the excuse.<ref>McKay & Scott: ''The Rise of the Great Powers: 1648–1815,'' 136–137</ref>