DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.47347#0052
3G
HISTORICAL ESSAY ON
Here ends, with the extinction of the Spanish branch of
the house of Austria, with the transfer of the crown of
Spain to the family of the Bourbons, the first great period
of the history of the right of succession in Spain. We have
followed, step by step, the development of its fundamental
principles, supporting ourselves, on the one hand, upon
history, and on the other upon legislation; and thus far
we have met with nothing that can be explained in favour of
the present claims of Don Carlos. On the contrary, his-
tory perfectly agrees with legislation in favour of queen
Isabella II.; that is to say, of the cognatic succession. The
principles of Spanish public law that we have just cited,
the respect and application of those principles at every
accession since the tenth century, the solemn declaration of
the assembly of the kingdom and of the Cortes, the wills of
the sovereigns, all grounded on these same fundamental
laws, form a compact whole, an indestructible system, which
proves an ever uniform march in the sovereignty, inces-
santly based upon the cognatic succession by a possession of
more than five centuries. We shall now proceed to the
investigation of the modern history and legislation, request-
ing the reader to follow us with attention, when we shall
answer the objections raised without foundation against the
immutable validity of the right of cognatic succession : we
beg him in particular to notice the documents on which we
shall support ourselves, for we are arriving at an epoch in
which the defenders of Don Carlos pretend to find the justi-
fication of his claims.
We have already stated that Philip V. was acknowledged
legitimate king of Spain in the treaty of peace of Utrecht,
in 1713, by all the great powers of Europe ; that, in admit-
ting his legitimacy, they at the same time, once for all,
recognized his right; and that this right was no other than
that of the ancient laws of las Siete Partidas, which, by
HISTORICAL ESSAY ON
Here ends, with the extinction of the Spanish branch of
the house of Austria, with the transfer of the crown of
Spain to the family of the Bourbons, the first great period
of the history of the right of succession in Spain. We have
followed, step by step, the development of its fundamental
principles, supporting ourselves, on the one hand, upon
history, and on the other upon legislation; and thus far
we have met with nothing that can be explained in favour of
the present claims of Don Carlos. On the contrary, his-
tory perfectly agrees with legislation in favour of queen
Isabella II.; that is to say, of the cognatic succession. The
principles of Spanish public law that we have just cited,
the respect and application of those principles at every
accession since the tenth century, the solemn declaration of
the assembly of the kingdom and of the Cortes, the wills of
the sovereigns, all grounded on these same fundamental
laws, form a compact whole, an indestructible system, which
proves an ever uniform march in the sovereignty, inces-
santly based upon the cognatic succession by a possession of
more than five centuries. We shall now proceed to the
investigation of the modern history and legislation, request-
ing the reader to follow us with attention, when we shall
answer the objections raised without foundation against the
immutable validity of the right of cognatic succession : we
beg him in particular to notice the documents on which we
shall support ourselves, for we are arriving at an epoch in
which the defenders of Don Carlos pretend to find the justi-
fication of his claims.
We have already stated that Philip V. was acknowledged
legitimate king of Spain in the treaty of peace of Utrecht,
in 1713, by all the great powers of Europe ; that, in admit-
ting his legitimacy, they at the same time, once for all,
recognized his right; and that this right was no other than
that of the ancient laws of las Siete Partidas, which, by