HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Treaty of London (french: Traité de Londres), often called the Second Treaty of London after the 1839 Treaty, granted Luxembourg full independence and neutrality. It was signed on 11 May 1867 in the aftermath of the
Austro-Prussian War The Austro-Prussian War, also by many variant names such as Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), (; "German war of brothers") and by a variety of other names, was fought in 186 ...
and the
Luxembourg Crisis The Luxembourg Crisis (german: Luxemburgkrise, french: Crise luxembourgeoise) was a diplomatic dispute and confrontation in 1867 between France and Prussia over the political status of Luxembourg. The confrontation almost led to war between th ...
. It had wide-reaching consequences for
Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
and for relations among Europe's
great power A great power is a sovereign state that is recognized as having the ability and expertise to exert its influence on a global scale. Great powers characteristically possess military and economic strength, as well as diplomatic and soft power i ...
s.


Effects

The immediate effect of the treaty, established in Article I, was the reaffirmation of the
personal union A personal union is the combination of two or more states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, would involve the constituent states being to some extent interli ...
between the
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
and Luxembourg under the
House of Orange-Nassau The House of Orange-Nassau ( Dutch: ''Huis van Oranje-Nassau'', ) is the current reigning house of the Netherlands. A branch of the European House of Nassau, the house has played a central role in the politics and government of the Netherland ...
. It lasted until 1890, when Wilhelmina ascended the Dutch throne. As a form of
agnatic succession Patrilineality, also known as the male line, the spear side or agnatic kinship, is a common kinship system in which an individual's family membership derives from and is recorded through their father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritan ...
was then in effect in Luxembourg (under the Nassau Family Pact of 1783), the Grand Duchy could not pass in the female line. Instead it was the older branch of the House of Nassau (Nassau-Weilburg, now called Luxembourg-Nassau) that inherited that dignity, giving Luxembourg its own exclusive dynasty. The Luxembourg Crisis had erupted after French
Emperor Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A nephe ...
attempted to buy Luxembourg from the Dutch
King William III William III (William Henry; ; 4 November 16508 March 1702), also widely known as William of Orange, was the sovereign Prince of Orange from birth, Stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel in the Dutch Republic from the ...
. Consequently, maintaining Dutch dominance over the
de jure In law and government, ''de jure'' ( ; , "by law") describes practices that are legally recognized, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality. In contrast, ("in fact") describes situations that exist in reality, even if not legall ...
independent Luxembourg, free from French interference, was of paramount importance to
Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...
. The neutrality of Luxembourg, established by the First Treaty of London, was also reaffirmed. The parties that did not sign the earlier treaty were to become
guarantors In finance, a surety , surety bond or guaranty involves a promise by one party to assume responsibility for the debt obligation of a borrower if that borrower defaults. Usually, a surety bond or surety is a promise by a surety or guarantor to pay ...
of Luxembourg's neutrality (an exception was
Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...
, which was, itself, bound to neutrality). To ensure Luxembourg's neutrality, the (westward) fortifications of
Luxembourg City Luxembourg ( lb, Lëtzebuerg; french: Luxembourg; german: Luxemburg), also known as Luxembourg City ( lb, Stad Lëtzebuerg, link=no or ; french: Ville de Luxembourg, link=no; german: Stadt Luxemburg, link=no or ), is the capital city of the Gr ...
, known as the " Gibraltar of the North", were to be demolished and never to be rebuilt. To the east, the city was protected by a deep river valley and medieval fortifications that still exist. Dismantling the westward and underground fortifications took sixteen years at a cost of 1.5 million gold
francs The franc is any of various units of currency. One franc is typically divided into 100 centimes. The name is said to derive from the Latin inscription ''francorum rex'' (King of the Franks) used on early French coins and until the 18th centu ...
and required the destruction of over of underground defences and of
casemate A casemate is a fortified gun emplacement or armored structure from which guns are fired, in a fortification, warship, or armoured fighting vehicle.Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary When referring to antiquity, the term "casemate wall" me ...
s,
batteries Battery most often refers to: * Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power * Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact Battery may also refer to: Energy source *Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...
,
barracks Barracks are usually a group of long buildings built to house military personnel or laborers. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word "barraca" ("soldier's tent"), but today barracks are u ...
, etc. The still very large residual fortifications of Luxembourg City are now part of the World Heritage List of the UNESCO. Furthermore, the Prussian garrison, which had been sited in Luxembourg since 1815 in accordance with the decisions of the
Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna (, ) of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon ...
, was to be withdrawn. The
Austro-Prussian War The Austro-Prussian War, also by many variant names such as Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), (; "German war of brothers") and by a variety of other names, was fought in 186 ...
had led to the collapse of the
German Confederation The German Confederation (german: Deutscher Bund, ) was an association of 39 predominantly German-speaking sovereign states in Central Europe. It was created by the Congress of Vienna in 1815 as a replacement of the former Holy Roman Empire, w ...
. Two former members, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and the
Duchy of Limburg The Duchy of Limburg or Limbourg was an imperial estate of the Holy Roman Empire. Much of the area of the duchy is today located within Liège Province of Belgium, with a small portion in the municipality of Voeren, an exclave of the neighbourin ...
, had the Dutch king as their head of state (as ''Grand Duke of Luxembourg'' and ''Duke of Limburg''). To clarify the position in the wake of the death of the Confederation further, the Treaty of London affirmed the end of the Confederation and stated that Limburg was henceforth to be considered with all its "territories" an "integral part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands".Treaty of London, Article VI The independent Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, still linked to the Netherlands by a
personal union A personal union is the combination of two or more states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, would involve the constituent states being to some extent interli ...
, would rejoin the newly re-established German
customs union A customs union is generally defined as a type of trade bloc which is composed of a free trade area with a common external tariff.GATTArticle 24 s. 8 (a) Customs unions are established through trade pacts where the participant countries set up ...
, the ''
Zollverein The (), or German Customs Union, was a coalition of German states formed to manage tariffs and economic policies within their territories. Organized by the 1833 treaties, it formally started on 1 January 1834. However, its foundations had b ...
'', in which it would remain until 1 January 1919, long after the personal union had ended (1890).


Signatories

The treaty was signed by representatives of all of the Great Powers of Europe:See the text in R. B. Mowat, ed.
''Select treaties and documents, 1815–1916''
(1916) pp 41–44.
* The
Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central- Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence, ...
, represented by the Count Rudolf Apponyi * The
Kingdom of Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to the ...
, represented by
Sylvain Van de Weyer Jean-Sylvain Van de Weyer (19 January 1802 – 23 May 1874) was a Belgian politician who served as the Belgian Minister at the Court of St. James's, effectively the ambassador to the United Kingdom, and briefly, as the prime minister of Belgium ...
* The French Empire, represented by the Prince de La Tour d'Auvergne-Lauraguais * The
Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to ...
, represented by the Marquis d'Azeglio * The
Grand Duchy of Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
, represented by Baron de Tornaco and
Emmanuel Servais Lambert Joseph Emmanuel Servais (11 April 1811 – 17 June 1890) was a Luxembourg politician. He held numerous offices of national importance, foremost amongst which was in serving as the fifth Prime Minister of Luxembourg, for seven years, fr ...
* The
Kingdom of the Netherlands , national_anthem = ) , image_map = Kingdom of the Netherlands (orthographic projection).svg , map_width = 250px , image_map2 = File:KonDerNed-10-10-10.png , map_caption2 = Map of the four constituent countries shown to scale , capital = ...
, represented by the Baron Bentinck * The
Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. ...
, represented by the Count Bernstorff-Stintenburg * The
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War ...
, represented by Baron Brunnow * The
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
, represented by
Edward Stanley, 15th Earl of Derby Edward Henry Stanley, 15th Earl of Derby, (21 July 182621 April 1893; known as Lord Stanley from 1851 to 1869) was a United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, British statesman. He served as Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs twice, from ...
Italy was originally not invited, but
King Victor Emmanuel II en, Victor Emmanuel Maria Albert Eugene Ferdinand Thomas , house = Savoy , father = Charles Albert of Sardinia , mother = Maria Theresa of Austria , religion = Roman Catholicism , image_size = 252px , succession1 ...
persuaded the other kings and emperors to invite his representative. The treaty did not directly affect Italy in any appreciable manner, as she had little relation to Luxembourg. However, it marked the first occasion on which Italy was invited to partake in an international conference on the basis of being a
Great Power A great power is a sovereign state that is recognized as having the ability and expertise to exert its influence on a global scale. Great powers characteristically possess military and economic strength, as well as diplomatic and soft power i ...
, and, therefore, was of symbolic value to the fledgling Italian kingdom.


See also

* Treaty of London, for similarly titled treaties


References

{{reflist London (1867) London (1867) History of Luxembourg (1815–1890) 1867 in the Austrian Empire 1867 in Italy 1867 in France 1867 in Luxembourg London (1867) 1867 treaties London (1867) London (1867) London (1867) Treaties of Belgium London (1867) London (1867) Treaties involving territorial changes May 1867 events 1867 in London