How did Prussia take Silesia in 1740?

Prussia seizes Silesia

Preußen erobert Schlesien

16 December 1740. When Emperor Charles VI died in October 1740, his daughter Maria Theresa inherited the Habsburg lands.

Where: Germany

What happened

When Emperor Charles VI died in October 1740, his daughter Maria Theresa inherited the Habsburg lands. Frederick II of Prussia, king for only a few months, used the moment: on 16 December 1740 his army marched into Silesia, one of the richest Habsburg provinces. In three wars, the last of them the Seven Years' War that ended in 1763, Maria Theresa failed to win it back. Prussia rose to be a great power, and the rivalry between Berlin and Vienna shaped German politics until 1866, when Prussia defeated Austria and pushed it out of German affairs.

Say it

Friedrich der Große und Maria Theresia kämpften um Schlesien.

Frederick the Great and Maria Theresa fought over Silesia.

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