The War of Austrian Succession (1740-1748) was a Europe-wide conflict triggered when Frederick II of Prussia ignored the Pragmatic Sanction and seized Silesia from Maria Theresa, pulling the great powers into a fight over the Habsburg inheritance and the balance of power.
When Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI died in 1740, his daughter Maria Theresa inherited the Habsburg lands. Charles had spent decades getting Europe's rulers to sign the Pragmatic Sanction, a promise to respect a female heir. The ink was barely dry before Frederick II of Prussia tore up that promise and invaded Silesia, Austria's richest province. Other powers smelled weakness. France and Bavaria piled on against Austria, while Britain backed Maria Theresa to keep France in check.
The result was eight years of fighting (1740-1748) that ended with the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle. Maria Theresa kept her throne and most of her empire, but Prussia kept Silesia. That outcome mattered more than any battle. It announced Prussia as a genuine great power, made Austria and Prussia permanent rivals for dominance in central Europe, and showed how 18th-century states fought wars over dynastic claims, territory, and commercial advantage rather than religion.
This war is core content for Topic 5.1 (Contextualizing 18th-Century States) and Topic 5.9 (Continuity and Change in 18th-Century States), supporting AP Euro 5.1.A and AP Euro 5.9.A, which ask you to explain crisis, conflict, and political change from 1648 to 1815. It also feeds Topic 4.6, since the war's two main antagonists, Maria Theresa and Frederick II, are the CED's named examples of Prussian and Habsburg rulers experimenting with enlightened absolutism (AP Euro 4.6.A). The war is your go-to evidence for the post-Westphalia world the CED describes in 4.6.B, where Prussia rose to power and the Habsburgs shifted their empire eastward. For the Politics and Power theme, it's the textbook case of balance-of-power diplomacy in action. Nobody wanted Austria destroyed or Prussia unchecked, so alliances shifted until equilibrium returned.
Keep studying AP Euro Unit 4
Pragmatic Sanction (Units 3-5)
The Pragmatic Sanction was the legal agreement guaranteeing Maria Theresa's inheritance, and the war started the moment Frederick II ignored it. The two terms are cause and effect, so know them as a pair.
Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (Unit 5)
This 1748 treaty ended the war. It confirmed Maria Theresa's rule but let Prussia keep Silesia, which is why it settled nothing long-term and set up the next round of fighting.
Enlightened Absolutism (Unit 4)
The war's losers learned its lessons. Maria Theresa (and later Joseph II) reformed Austria's army, taxes, and administration to compete with Prussia, which is exactly the state-strengthening logic behind enlightened absolutism in Topic 4.6.
Peace of Westphalia and State Building (Unit 3)
Westphalia weakened the Holy Roman Empire's central authority, opening space for Prussia to rise and pushing the Habsburgs eastward. The War of Austrian Succession is what that new power competition looked like a century later.
Multiple-choice questions usually test cause and outcome. A stem might ask what triggered the war (Frederick II's rejection of the Pragmatic Sanction and seizure of Silesia), what challenge Maria Theresa faced at the start of her reign, or what the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle actually settled (Austria survived, Prussia kept Silesia). No released FRQ has used the term verbatim, but it's strong evidence for LEQs and DBQs on 18th-century state rivalry, balance-of-power diplomacy, or continuity and change in European politics from 1648 to 1815. The strongest move is using it to show how dynastic and commercial competition, not religion, drove 18th-century warfare, and how the war launched the Austro-Prussian rivalry that reshaped central Europe.
These two wars are easy to blur because they involve the same rivals back to back. The War of Austrian Succession (1740-1748) started the fight, with Prussia grabbing Silesia from Austria. The Seven Years' War (1756-1763) was the rematch, after Austria flipped alliances to ally with France (the Diplomatic Revolution) and tried to get Silesia back. Quick check for an MCQ: Pragmatic Sanction and Aix-la-Chapelle point to the first war; the Diplomatic Revolution and global colonial fighting point to the second.
The war began in 1740 when Frederick II of Prussia violated the Pragmatic Sanction and seized Silesia, challenging Maria Theresa's inheritance of the Habsburg lands.
The Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748) ended the war by confirming Maria Theresa's rule but letting Prussia keep Silesia, which left the rivalry unresolved.
The war established Prussia as a great power and made the Austria-Prussia rivalry the central political contest in central Europe.
It's a model example of 18th-century balance-of-power diplomacy, where states shifted alliances to prevent any one power from dominating.
Defeat pushed Maria Theresa toward administrative, military, and fiscal reforms, connecting the war directly to enlightened absolutism in Unit 4.
It was a Europe-wide conflict from 1740 to 1748 over whether Maria Theresa could inherit the Habsburg throne. Frederick II of Prussia rejected the Pragmatic Sanction and seized Silesia, and France, Bavaria, and Britain were drawn into the fight over the balance of power.
Not exactly. She kept her throne and nearly all of her empire, which counts as survival against long odds, but she permanently lost Silesia to Prussia. The Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1748 confirmed both outcomes.
The War of Austrian Succession (1740-1748) was the first round, sparked by Prussia taking Silesia. The Seven Years' War (1756-1763) was Austria's attempt to win it back after switching alliances to side with France. Same rivals, different decade, different alliance map.
Charles VI died in 1740 leaving his daughter Maria Theresa as heir under the Pragmatic Sanction. Frederick II of Prussia ignored that agreement and invaded Silesia, and other powers joined in hoping to carve up or defend the Habsburg lands.
Yes. It appears in Topics 5.1 and 5.9 on 18th-century states and connects to Topic 4.6 through Maria Theresa and Frederick II, both named in the CED. Expect multiple-choice questions on its cause and on the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, and use it as essay evidence for balance-of-power arguments.
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