Pyrenees, Peace of the

Pyrenees, Peace of the, 1659, treaty ending the warfare between France and Spain that, continuing after the Peace of Westphalia, had been complicated by French intervention in the revolt of the Catalans (1640–52) and by Spanish intervention in the Fronde. Together with the Peace of Westphalia, it marked the rise of France as the dominant European power. France received Roussillon and extensive territories in Flanders, while its Spanish border was set at the Pyrenees. A marriage contract between Louis XIV and Marie Thérèse, daughter of Philip IV of Spain, was included in the terms. The infanta renounced her claims to the Spanish throne in consideration of a large payment. The nonpayment of that dowry was the occasion for the War of Devolution and, indirectly, the War of the Spanish Succession.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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