As a form of agnatic succession was then in effect in Luxembourg (under the Nassau Family Pact of 1783), the grand duchy could not pass in the female line.

Instead it was the older branch of the House of Nassau (Nassau-Weilburg, now called Luxembourg-Nassau) that inherited that dignity, giving Luxembourg its own exclusive dynasty.

Consequently, maintaining Dutch dominance over the de jure independent Luxembourg, free from French interference, was of paramount importance to Prussia.

[citation needed] Furthermore, the Prussian Army garrison, which had been sited in Luxembourg since 1815 in accordance with the decisions of the Congress of Vienna, was to be withdrawn.

However, it marked the first occasion on which Italy was invited to partake in an international conference on the basis of being a Great Power, and, therefore, was of symbolic value to the fledgling Italian kingdom.