Philip V (1683-1746) became king of Spain in 1700. He was the first in a series of Spanish kings from the royal Bourbon family of France. Philip was born on Dec. 19, 1683, a French prince, Duke Philip of Anjou, in Versailles, France. He inherited the throne of Spain from his grandmother’s brother, Charles II, who died childless. Other nations feared French control of the Spanish throne and refused to recognize Philip as king. In 1701, Austria, England, the Netherlands, and several German states declared war on France and Spain, and the War of the Spanish Succession began. Philip finally won recognition as king in 1713, but he lost many of his territories to Austria and Britain (see Succession wars (The War of the Spanish Succession)). Philip gave up the throne to his son Louis I for eight months in 1724 but returned after Louis died. Philip then ruled until 1746. He died on July 9 of that year.
