There were a number of factors that brought the two sides to the negotiating table in Utrecht on 29 January 1712: the lengthy duration of the war; the change in the political party in government in England; the consolidation of the allied victories in Europe; and the position of Louis XIV, who found himself forced to continue supporting Felipe V due to the considerable pressure he came under from Castilian nobles. A further cause was the unexpected death of Emperor Joseph I, which threatened to destabilise the new balance of power in Europe. The opposing forces decided, then, to agree to peace, despite the lack of the signature of Emperor Charles VI, though he did sign the peace agreement with France in the later treaties of Rasttat and Baden. In the negotiations between France and Great Britain in Utrecht, they set aside the commitments made to the Catalans in Genoa in 1705, which were to preserve the laws and governing bodies of the Principality of Catalonia.
Manuscript bound in leather
36 x 25 cm
Ministerio de Cultura, Archivo Histórico Nacional, Madrid, AHN, Estado, 3367