On June 7, 1660, I was waiting to meet Maria Theresa of Spain on the Feissan Island on the Bidassoa River (located at the foot of the Pyrenees, near the Bay of Biscay), the boundary river between France and Spain. Louis XIV is in a good mood now.
He was in a good mood because his unmarried daughter-in-law, Maria Theresa, had just lost her brother!
This happened on October 22 last year. Maria Teresa’s half-brother Fernando Tomas Carlos was called by the Lord and passed away at the age of 10 months... Now Maria Teresa is the only one left. The next brother was Philip Prosper, Prince of Asturias. This younger brother is also in poor health. He suffers from severe epilepsy and is very stupid. He is over two and almost three years old and still cannot speak or walk. He cannot even crawl well.
Obviously, Prince Sturrias is not suitable to be king. Even if he reluctantly ascends the throne, there is a high probability that he will not be able to continue the Habsburg Dynasty in Spain, and there is a high probability of dying early!
At that time, only Maria Theresa and Margaret Theresa are left to inherit the Spanish throne...
Of course, Philip IV also anticipated such a situation. So the negotiations about this marriage were very difficult!
Spain insisted that Maria Theresa give up her right to inherit the throne, while Bishop Mazarin, representing France, showed his cleverness and gambler nature at the last moment - on the one hand, he did something about Maria Theresa's right to inherit the throne. Conceded, but at the same time set a trap for the Spaniards and demanded a large dowry as compensation.
However, no matter how poor the Kingdom of Spain is, it will not be unable to earn hundreds of thousands of crowns of silver. However, people or countries that owe a lot of debt will have the idea that they can only rely on a little.
Therefore, as long as France allows Spain to pay dowry on credit, there is a high probability that Spain will continue to delay the payment of money.
And this dowry is the compensation for Maria Theresa giving up her right to inherit the throne - if the compensation is not given, then the agreement to give up her right to inherit the throne is naturally invalid!
Therefore, as long as Philip IV died without a male heir, or his male heir died not long after being king and left no children.
Then Maria Theresa can overturn her promise on the grounds that she has not received compensation!
By then Louis XIV would have the legal basis to seize the Spanish throne - such things as righteousness and honor exist not only in East Asian civilizations, but also in Europe, and they are more particular.
If Louis XIV had no legal basis for inheriting the Spanish throne and just invaded by force, even if he won, it would be difficult to get the recognition of the Spanish subjects and the Catholic Church...The invasion would only be a loss outweighing the gains.
But if Maria Theresa was the first heir to the Spanish throne, then Louis' invasion would be justified - the Habsburg dynasty was also an outsider anyway, and they obtained the Spanish crown by marrying the mad Queen Juana.
What the Habsburgs could do, couldn’t the Bourbons do?
Moreover, Louis XIV not only had the righteous title inherited through marriage, but also the new army of Prince Condé... and a secret treaty signed with Charles Cromwell on the other side of the English Channel!
According to the treaty, if the Netherlands opposes France in the future "War of Spanish Succession" or "War of Spanish Heritage", then Britain must join France in fighting the Netherlands and Spain!
Considering that the hostility between Austria and the Ottoman Empire is intensifying, Austria should not be able to help much in the future "War of Succession" or "War of Heritage".
So with the Anglo-French alliance, Louis XIV believed that he would win without a doubt!
Now we are waiting for the arrival of Her Royal Highness Princess Maria Theresa, the legendary first beauty of the Habsburg Dynasty!
"Your Majesty, the Spaniards are coming!"
One of the attendants of the King of France suddenly shouted loudly.
Louis XIV, who was sitting in a tent, immediately stood up and quickly walked out of the tent. Looking towards a pontoon bridge not far away, he saw a large group of gorgeously dressed knights surrounding several beautifully decorated carriages. After boarding the pontoon, we landed on the Feissan Island where Louis XIV was located in a blink of an eye.
"King, the man with the big red feathers in his hat is the noble King of Spain!"
The elderly Bishop Mazarin walked to Louis XIV on a walking stick and pointed at a man wearing a big red-haired hat.
Louis XIV stretched his neck and looked around, and saw a long face that was a bit out of proportion. He thought to himself: This is what the defaulter who cheated half of Europe's loan sharks looks like!
At this time, Philippe IV, the oldest man in the 17th century, also saw Louis XIV, that little man who liked to wear high heels!
Philip IV was quite satisfied with the son-in-law of Louis XIV - although this son-in-law was not tall, his nose was too big, and he was said to be particularly stinky, thinking that he was the most beautiful man in France... But one thing that made Philip very satisfied was that Louis did not force him to cash in the dowry, and it seemed that he really liked Maria Theresa.
And Maria Theresa is indeed a beautiful girl that everyone loves, and she is definitely worthy of Louis' love. Philip IV thought: Maria's rectangular face and plump chin were so charming that they could charm any man in the world. And her chin is just small, not big, and it doesn’t feel difficult at all when chewing food...
With the love of Louis and Maria as a guarantee, peace between Spain and France should be guaranteed.
Of course, peace between Spain and France was not enough; relations should be further developed until an alliance could be established that would ensure eternal Catholic domination of the world.
In the past many years, the Kingdom of Spain has shouldered the heavy responsibility of defending God alone... It could barely bear it at first, but the rapid rise of the blasphemous Ming Dynasty in the East has made Spain unable to hold on.
The retreat from Manila meant that for the first time the flag of God was replaced by the flag of heaven!
This is a religious war!
As the third most powerful country in the Catholic camp (Spain first, HRE second), France has the obligation to stand with Spain and defend God!
The thought of defending God brought an expression of divine solemnity to Philip IV's long face. At this time, he had arrived in front of Louis XIV, and with the help of his attendants, he got off his horse and stood in front of the French King who came to greet him.
Louis looked at his father-in-law's expression and was a little confused - he hasn't arrived at the church yet, so there's no need to be like this, right?
"Hello, your Majesty King Philip." Louis greeted his father-in-law in Latin.
Philip also nodded, took off his hat first, and then responded in Latin: "I'm fine. Thank you for your greetings, His Majesty King Louis!"
As he spoke, he waved to the carriage that had just stopped behind him, and then he saw the door of the carriage opened. First a petite and exquisite maid came out, and then a long face wrapped in a fluffy white palace dress. The girl with a double chin waddled out and stood on the land that belonged to France.
"Let me introduce you," King Philip pointed to the girl, "that is Maria Theresa, the most beautiful treasure in Spain!
Maria, this is His Majesty Louis XIV, the most dazzling man in France! "
Louis XIV looked at the Spanish princess with a double chin, and then cast an annoyed look at Mazarin - What are you doing? Is this the most beautiful woman in Spain? There is no comparison with those "Mancini"! There's a huge difference... If I had known better, I wouldn't have let Mary (Mary Mancini) go to China!
At the same time, King Philip was also being stared at by two reproachful eyes! That was his daughter Maria Theresa staring at him - that man with high heels and a particularly ugly big nose was the most handsome man in France?
The old man next to him looks more handsome than him (that's Bishop Mazarin)!
