All times in UTC ·
Dashed edge = started before, or continues beyond, this day
Events on Thursday 20 October 1740 2
1685 – 1740Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor (1685-1740)Died 20 October 1740, aged 55Charles VI ruled as Holy Roman Emperor and head of the Habsburg monarchy from 1711, issuing the Pragmatic Sanction to secure his daughter Maria Theresa's succession. His death without a male heir triggered the War of the Austrian Succession.
1740Maria Theresa inherits the Habsburg monarchyCharles VI's death triggers a succession crisisEmperor Charles VI died on 20 October 1740 without a male heir, leaving his domains to his daughter Maria Theresa under the Pragmatic Sanction. Other European powers contested her succession, setting the stage for the War of the Austrian Succession.