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Why did Charles VI issue the Pragmatic Sanction in 1713?

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Stone ruins of Habsburg Castle, also known as Habichtsburg, stand on a hill above green vineyards in Aargau canton, Switzerland, with a flag flying atop the tower. — House of Habsburg Ruins of the castle of Habsburg, or Habichtsburg (“Hawk's Castle”), built 1020, the original seat of the house of Habsburg, Aargau canton, Switzerland.

Emperor Charles VI issued the Pragmatic Sanction in 1713 primarily to ensure the indivisibility and orderly succession of the Habsburg inheritance.12

Following the death of his elder brother, Joseph I, in 1711, Charles VI became the last male member of the Habsburg line. Because no woman could rule the Holy Roman Empire and succession in certain hereditary lands was restricted to the male line, Charles faced the prospect of his domains being partitioned or lost upon his death.23

The decree stipulated that if Charles died without a son, his entire inheritance would pass to his eldest daughter, Maria Theresa, and her descendants, followed by the daughters of his late brother, Joseph I. By establishing this rule of primogeniture, Charles sought to keep the Austrian, Bohemian, and Hungarian lands as an integral whole. Although he spent the remainder of his reign securing international recognition for the document, the Pragmatic Sanction was contested by several European powers immediately upon his death in 1740, triggering the War of the Austrian Succession.1243