Triple Alliance

I

Introduction

Triple Alliance, name given to several international coalitions. The following Triple Alliances are the most important:

II

Triple Alliance of 1596

The Triple Alliance of 1596 was concluded between England, France, and the Dutch Republic of the United Provinces (now the Netherlands), pledging the signatories to mutual aid against Spain. This treaty was notable in that it constituted the first formal recognition by France and England of the national status of the United Provinces, which was fighting its war of independence from Spanish rule. The alliance lasted until 1609, when a 12-year truce, negotiated by envoys of England and France, suspended the war between the United Provinces and Spain.

III

Triple Alliance of 1668

The Triple Alliance of 1668 was signed by England, Sweden, and the United Provinces and was designed to check the aggression of King Louis XIV of France, who had invaded the Spanish Netherlands (now Belgium) the previous year. The alliance was broken when Charles II of England negotiated a secret agreement with Louis XIV in 1670, whereby England consented to assist France against the Dutch.

IV

Triple Alliance of 1717

The Triple Alliance of 1717 was negotiated by Great Britain, France, and the United Provinces and was designed principally to strengthen those clauses of the Peace of Utrecht that guaranteed the succession of the reigning monarchs in their respective countries. In 1718, Austria also became a signatory to the treaty, and the coalition thereupon became known as the Quadruple Alliance.