European balance of power Austria which continued to rule as Holy Roman Emperor. Hapsburg Austria did directly control some states outside of the Holy Roman Empire. It was France who took the status of dominant continental power from the Habsburgs thanks to the Treaty of Westphalia and the Treaty of the Pyrenees. In the 16th and 17th centuries, English foreign policy strove to prevent a creation of a single universal monarchy in Europe, which many believed France or Spain might attempt to create. To maintain the balance of power, the English made alliances with other states—including Portugal, the Ottoman Empire, and the Netherlands—to counter
Treaty of London (1827) Treaty of London (1827) The Treaty of London was signed by the United Kingdom, France, and Russia on 6 July 1827. The three main European powers had called upon Greece and the Ottoman Empire (Turkey) to cease hostilities that had been going on since the Greeks had revolted against Ottoman rule on 6 March 1821. After years of negotiation, the European allied powers had finally decided to intervene in the war on the side of the Greeks. The allied powers mainly wanted this treaty to cause the Ottoman Empire to create an independent Greek state. It stated that while the