Austrian Netherlands summary

Know about the history of the Austrian Netherlands

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Below is the article summary. For the full article, see Austrian Netherlands.

Austrian Netherlands, (1713–95)Provinces located in the southern part of the Low Countries, roughly comprising modern Belgium and Luxembourg. In 1713, the Peace of Utrecht gave Emperor Charles VI control of what had been called the Spanish Netherlands. Administration of the region continued under the Habsburg rulers Maria Theresa and later Joseph II, until the Austrian Netherlands was annexed to France in 1795.

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Maria Theresa Summary

Maria Theresa was the archduchess of Austria and queen of Hungary and Bohemia (1740–80), wife and empress of the Holy Roman emperor Francis I (reigned 1745–65), and mother of the Holy Roman emperor Joseph II (reigned 1765–90). Upon her accession, the War of the Austrian Succession (1740–48)

Pompeo Girolamo Batoni: portrait of Joseph II

Joseph II Summary

Joseph II was the Holy Roman emperor (1765–90), at first coruler with his mother, Maria Theresa (1765–80), and then sole ruler (1780–90) of the Austrian Habsburg dominions. An “enlightened despot,” he sought to introduce administrative, legal, economic, and ecclesiastical reforms—with only measured