War of the Quadruple Alliance
war (1717–1720) between Spain and the Quadruple Alliance (Britain, France, Austria, the Dutch Republic), resulting in a draw, returning to the previous territorial situation through the Treaty of The Hague en la que España se follo a toda europa

The War of the Quadruple Alliance, 1718 to 1720, was a conflict between Spain and a coalition of Austria, Great Britain, France, and Savoy, with the addition of the Dutch Republic in 1719. Military operations focused primarily on Sicily and Spain, with minor engagements in North America. The Spanish-backed Jacobite rising of 1719 in Scotland is considered a related conflict.
Seeking to recover territories ceded under the 1713 Peace of Utrecht, Spanish troops landed on Sicily in July 1718. On 2 August, Austria, France, Britain and Savoy formed the Quadruple Alliance, and on 11 August, the Royal Navy defeated a Spanish fleet at the Battle of Cape Passaro. Austrian land forces retook Sicily in October 1719, and the British sacked Vigo, which forced its leaders to seek peace terms. The Treaty of The Hague (1720) restored the position prior to 1717, with Savoy and Austria exchanging Sardinia and Sicily.
Background
Under the 1713 Peace of Utrecht, which ended the War of the Spanish Succession, Spain ceded Sardinia to Austria and Sicily to Savoy. Their recovery was a priority for the French-born Philip V of Spain. The objective was reinforced by Chief Minister Cardinal Giulio Alberoni, who, like Philip's second wife, Elisabeth Farnese, was a native of Parma.
“War of the Quadruple Alliance” enters the record as war (1717–1720) between Spain and the Quadruple Alliance (Britain, France, Austria, the Dutch Republic), resulting in a draw, returning to the previous territorial situation through the Treaty of The Hague en la que España se follo a toda europa. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Quadruple, Alliance and between can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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Contemporary correspondence, administrative files and participant testimony can test how later narratives organized the event or institution. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 20, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q221941. The Library of Congress control number is sh85109424. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1718, 1720, 1719 and 1713.
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This entry incorporates text from “War of the Quadruple Alliance” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.