The Novelty of the Utrecht Peace Settlement (1713)

This article argues that the modern European states system came into being not with Westphalia (1648) but as a result of the Utrecht Peace Settlement (1713). Besides summarizing recent revisionist scholarship on the nature of the ’Westphalian order’, the author tries to enlist the new features of the Utrecht Settlement which he considers the real turning point in the European inter-dynastic relations. He relies not only on written primary sources (the Anglo-Spanish and the Anglo-French Treaties) but also visual evidence to buttress this claim, and underlines the relevance of visual representation of peace conferences as an important field of political iconography.