text: The principal claimants to the throne of Spain belonged to the ruling families of France and Austria. The French claim derived 
  from Louis XIV's mother Anne of Austria (the older sister of Philip IV of Spain) and his wife Maria Theresa (Philip IV's eldest 
  daughter). Based on the laws of primogeniture, France had the better claim as it originated from the eldest daughters in two 
  generations. However, their renunciation of succession rights complicated matters. In the case of Maria Theresa, nonetheless, the 
  renunciation was considered null and void owing to Spain's breach of her marriage contract with Louis. In contrast, no 
  renunciations tainted the claims of Emperor Leopold I's son Charles, Archduke of Austria, who was a grandson of Philip III's 
  youngest daughter Maria Anna. The English and Dutch feared that a French or Austrian-born Spanish king would threaten the 
  balance of power and thus preferred the Bavarian Prince Joseph Ferdinand, a grandson of Leopold I through his first wife 
  Margaret Theresa of Spain (the younger daughter of Philip IV). 
  
  In an attempt to avoid war, Louis signed the Treaty of the Hague with William III of England in 1698. This agreement divided 
  Spain's Italian territories between Louis's son*le Grand Dauphin*and Archduke Charles, with the rest of the empire awarded to 
  Joseph Ferdinand. William III consented to permitting the Dauphin's new territories to become part of France when the latter 