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CLEP Western Civilization II study materials
CLEP Western Civilization II study resources

CLEP Western Civilization II: Competition for Empire and Expansion of Europe, c. 1715–1763

CLEP Western Civilization II · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.

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Competition for Empire and Expansion of Europe, c. 1715–1763

This domain covers great-power rivalry from the Utrecht settlement (1713) to the Peace of Paris (1763): dynastic wars, overseas empire, mercantilism, and the Seven Years' War.

Dynastic rivalry and the balance of power

  • Utrecht (1713) recognized Bourbon Philip V in Spain but barred a union of France and Spain, preserving a balance of power.
  • The War of Austrian Succession (1740–1748) began when Frederick II of Prussia seized Silesia from Maria Theresa. The Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748) restored most conquests but left Prussia in Silesia.
  • The Diplomatic Revolution of 1756 reversed alliances: Austria and France drew together, while Britain subsidized Prussia. This set the alignments for the Seven Years' War.

Global war, 1756–1763

  • Fighting spread to North America, India, the Caribbean, and Europe. British forces took Quebec (1759), and Clive's victory at Plassey (1757) strengthened British power in Bengal.
  • The Treaty of Paris (1763) gave Britain Canada, Florida, and Senegal; France ceded Louisiana to Spain and lost most of its Indian political influence. The Treaty of Hubertusburg (1763) confirmed Prussia's hold on Silesia.
  • Mercantilism, navigation acts, chartered companies, and the Atlantic slave trade tied colonial expansion to state revenue and naval power.
  • Russia and Prussia emerged as major players, while Britain's fiscal-military state proved unusually capable of financing global war.

Worked example

Question: Why did Britain win the Seven Years' War? Reasoning: Britain had naval superiority, a central bank and funded debt that sustained war borrowing, and Pitt the Elder's strategy of continental subsidies plus colonial attacks. France had to finance both a fleet and an army and could not match British naval mobilization. Prussia tied down French and Austrian forces in Europe. This is a multi-causal answer, not simply 'better generals'.

Traps that cost marks

  • Britain did not win everywhere: it lost Minorca, and some Caribbean conquests were returned in 1763.
  • The 'Diplomatic Revolution' was a reversal of alliances, not a social revolution.
  • Do not confuse the Treaty of Paris (1763) with the Treaty of Hubertusburg (1763); one settled colonial and French losses, the other Prussian-Austrian terms.