The Peace of Utrecht (Vrede van Utrecht in Dutch) marks a turning point in world history. On 11 April 1713, after eighteen months of negotiations, diplomats from all over Europe concluded a peace treaty in the Utrecht city hall, which had enormous consequences for the countries involved and their possessions overseas. It ended a series of devastating wars in which religious persecution and the pursuit of political power went hand in hand.They arrived in Utrecht in late January 1712 on horseback and in carriages, bumping through snow, mud and ice; diplomats from Spain, from the court of the Sun King Louis XIV, on behalf of the Habsburg Emperor, from Savoy, Portugal and Great Britain and, from not so far, the...   Read more