Baron of Bertier’s embassy to Madrid and the construction of the diplomatic network of Elector Maximilian II Emanuel of Bavaria (1695-1696)

Abstract

Elector Maximilian II Emanuel of Bavaria’s marriage to Archduchess Maria Antonia of Austria gave him a central role in the complex context of Charles II of Spain’s succession. To achieve his main goals and, ultimately, the Spanish succession for his son Joseph Ferdinand, the elector needed to have a strong diplomatic network at Madrid’s court that could defend his interests. But Bavaria had not had an important presence in the court of the Spanish Monarchy before, so the elector and his main collaborators needed to build a powerful network in the court of Madrid, unconnected to Emperor Leopold I, practically from the ground up. To do it, the elector sent to Madrid in 1695 one of his most treasured diplomats, Pierre, baron of Bertier. In the following pages, we will analyze the background of the diplomatic relationship between Bavaria and the Spanish Monarchy before Charles II’s reign, how the elector’s envoys communicated with the members of a court where there were almost no precedents whatsoever of a steady presence of Bavarian ambassadors and how they built a very important network for their master with the help of the queen mother, Mariana of Austria.