Philip 2, Spanish King: a story of life and family. Interesting Facts

Philip 2 is the Spanish king. A brief biography of this ruler indicates the despotism and rigidity of his character. At the same time, the period of his reign is the time of the country's highest power.

Philip 2 Spanish: History

The period of reign of this monarch - 1527-1598 gg. Who was Philip 2 of Spain? The ancestors of the ruler are Charles V and Isabella of Portugal. The future king was born in Valladolid. While visiting his possessions in Germany, the Netherlands and Italy, the future monarch immediately felt the hostile attitude of his subjects. Subsequently, their mutual misunderstanding was aggravated by the fact that the ruler did not know any language well, except for Castilian.

Childhood

Philip 2 Spanish childhood spent in Castile. His father was the emperor of Rome and heir of the Habsburg territories. From 1516 Charles V was also the King of Spain. He ruled by traveling in North Africa and Europe. Valladolid and Toledo were the main cities in which Philip grew 2 Spanish. The family hardly saw my father. State affairs demanded that Charles V be constantly present in the territories under his jurisdiction. When the mother of Philip died, he was not 12. In the early years, he developed a love for nature. Fishing, hunting, trips to nature have become the occupations in which Philip the Spanish has found comfort. The monarch's self-consciousness also began to manifest itself early enough. From a young age, he was very religious, a love of music. Mentors instilled in him a craving for reading. His library numbered 14 thousand volumes.

Contacting the Board

Philip 2 Spanish (photo reproductions of portraits which are presented in the article) developed his political views with the direct participation of his father. Despite the long absence and rare arrivals home, Charles V tried personally, through letters and special instructions, to instruct his son in matters of administration. The father always spoke of great political responsibility, the need for hope in God. Karl urged his son to proportionality and justice in decisions, urged him to defend the old faith, not to allow heretics under any circumstances.

Initial stage of management

In the years of his first regency (from 1543 to 1548), Philip 2 of Spain received the most important experience of government. He was supported by the experienced leaders of the Council. In addition, he constantly consulted his father, coordinated with him many questions. During this period Philip 2 of Spain performed a double function. First of all, he acted as a responsible regent. In this connection, keeping political interest, he married in 1543 on Mary - the daughter of the ruler of Portugal. Secondly, Philip 2 of Spain had to closely monitor everything that was happening in Germany. At that time the main actions in this territory were carried out by his father. Philip also needed to be able to mobilize Spain's resources for subsequent costly policies. In 1547 Charles V defeated the Protestants. This moment marked the rise of the emperor to the peak of his power.

Arrival in Germany

Events occurring on the territory of the empire, as well as the fact that the son of Ferdinand (the brother of Charles), who was prophesied to the rulers, sympathized with the Protestants, affirmed the father of Philip in the opinion that it was time for the heir to prepare for the throne. He was told to come to the Netherlands and Germany. The years 1548-1559 became for the young monarch a fine school of European political life. In the autumn of 1548, Philip 2 of Spain went to Italy. On the way, he stayed in Milan, Genoa, Triente, Mantua with a two-thousand retinue. Then he crossed the Alps, visited Heidelberg, Speyer, Munich. Through Luxembourg, he went to Brussels, where he met with his father.

Getting to know the Netherlands

The journey of the young monarch was accompanied by numerous feasts and feasts, in which Philip 2, the Spanish king, took an active part. A brief biography is full of many events. So, from July 1550 to May 1551, he attended the Augsburg Reichstag. Here the monarch met Ferdinand (his uncle) and his son - Maximilian. In 1549 Philip traveled the Netherlands. Having become acquainted with this country, he learned to appreciate it. The impressions left from the Netherlands largely influenced the architecture of parks and buildings, which Philip subsequently built in Spain. At the same time, in the planning of complexes and ensembles, the monarch took a direct part. A special delight caused the monarch to paint. Soon his collection was replenished with paintings by outstanding artists. There were only 40 pictures of Bosch.

The loss of power by Charles V

In 1551, Philip returned to Spain for 3 years. From there, he tried to act independently, supporting his father in the uprising of the German princes. However, Charles and, accordingly, his son lost power in the empire. Ferdinand and Maximilian were able to defend their interests in Germany against the Habsburg line, which, by the way, has now become Spanish. As a result, Carl had to give in to the empire. Nevertheless, he was able to secure Philip in Italy and the Netherlands. The territory of the latter he expected to strategically protect by marrying his son Maria Tudor, who was much older than him. For this, Philip received the kingdom of Naples. The young monarch moved to London.

Death of the father and the wife

A year after the events described above, Charles's health deteriorated significantly. He gave his son first the Netherlands, and then Spain. For another two years, his father wrote to his son's instructions, until in 1558, in September, he died. Two months later Maria Tudor died. All this allowed Philip to return to Spain in 1559. The monarch was 33 years old. The adversity in his personal life, the fifteen-year political experience made him a mature husband. Philip 2 Spanish, like no European ruler, was ready to take responsibility for the destiny of his power.

The Purposes of the Monarch

What was Philip 2 Spanish ruler? A brief biography of the monarch shows that he understood the importance of his existence, responsibility to God himself for the salvation of the souls of his subjects. His supreme goal was to preserve and expand the possessions of the Habsburg home, to provide protection from Turkish raids, to contain the Reformation, to fight its adherents through the reform of the Catholic Church. In many ways, the tasks that he set for himself were coordinated with those that his father had decided. But at the same time there was also a specificity in politics, led by Philip 2 of Spain. The king, unlike his father, ruled the country mainly from one permanent residence. During his time on the throne, he only came to Portugal for 2 years, after assuming the throne in 1580, Charles V constantly participated in military campaigns. Quite different was Philip 2 Spanish. The king sent his generals to military campaigns.

Transfer of residence

In 1561 Philip moved to Madrid. From 1563 to 1568, alongside him was built the Escorial. It was a symbolic center of power. In it there was a residence, a dynastic tomb and a monastery. With the transfer of the central government and his court, the king carried out what had already been completed in England and France. From that moment, Madrid began to acquire the features of the capital.

Style of government

Philip clearly followed the advice of his father, tried to ensure that he did not become dependent on individual advisers. In general, his style of government can be called bureaucratic and authoritarian. Few representatives of the higher aristocracy were involved in the central administrative apparatus for solving military and foreign policy tasks. One such person, for example, was the Duke of Alba. On the grandees Philip 2 Spanish assigned the duties of ambassadors to European courts. At the same time, he nevertheless removed them from the central administration. The key assistants were mainly scholarly jurists, who often held spiritual ranks. Most of them were educated in leading colleges and universities in Castile.

Advice

They acted as key management bodies. Councils have evolved since the time of the Catholic rulers. Charles V improved their structure. Some organs were endowed with fairly capacious functions. In particular, the State Council decided the most important foreign policy issues, the Financial Council was responsible for money circulation. When Philip finally formed an organ that was in charge of military policy. The supra-regional competence was possessed by the Council of the Inquisition established in 1483. It was he who became the key central structure of power under Philip. Other advisory bodies were allocated mainly regional competence. For example, the Soviets of Aragon, Castile, Overseas Territories acted in the country. In 1555 an independent body was distinguished, which was in charge of the affairs of Italy. In the course of the emergence of new tasks, Philip 2 of Spain created the Councils of the Netherlands and Portugal. Collegial bodies were vested with judicial, legislative and administrative powers. These structures assisted the monarch in solving certain issues and were used to exchange views.

Principle of interaction with authorities

Philip rarely enough attended the meetings of the Soviets. Usually, advisory structures provided draft decisions in writing in the form of recommendations. Secretaries acted as intermediaries. They were also members of the Soviets. In the eighties these secretaries were united in a junta. It turned into Philip in the most important administrative body. The monarch, while interacting with advisory structures, secretaries and other responsible officials, was guided by the principle of "divide and conquer". The Boards held meetings separately from each other. Often even secretaries and a small circle of employees were not fully informed about all matters.

The Penalties

Philip could not stand the neglect of officials to their duties. If anyone was seen using his position for mercenary purposes or failure to perform the assigned tasks, he was immediately deprived of his posts and removed from the court. Such a fate, for example, befell the secretaries of Antonio Perez and Francisco de Eraso. They were imprisoned. Periodically, the Duke of Alba lost confidence because of arbitrariness in the Netherlands. Arrested, and Don Carlos - the son of Philip. The death of the heir saved the country from a deep external and internal political crisis. It is worth noting the public outcry that arose at these events. Philip's contemporaries never for a moment doubted that the decisiveness of the monarch was conditioned by the state's need to protect the dynastic interests. Along with this, the rigidity of the ruler created the ground for political propaganda launched by the opponents. Throughout Europe it was called legenda negra. Her echoes became the basis for the works of German writers F. Schiller ("Don Carlos"), G. Mann, T. Mann.

Revolution in the Netherlands

The uprising was largely due to the actions of Philip. He unswervingly introduced and strengthened the Inquisition in the Netherlands. The persecution of Muslims, Protestants, Jews increased. The Netherlands hated the monarch. On all complaints and requests received to him, he responded with orders to press the heretics, without showing any indulgence. In 1565-1567 the uprising grew. Then Philip sent to the country of Albu - one of the outstanding generals. All his successors could not make peace with the Netherlands. Philip was always against any compromises. He sat in his residence and from there sent letters with orders to his proteges. In 1581 the general states in The Hague announced that Philip was deprived of his possessions in the Netherlands. At the same time, England moved forward against the monarch.

"Invincible armada"

After the death of his first wife, Mary Philip wanted to marry her successor Elizabeth. However, the latter rejected the proposal. As the successes of the Netherlands grew, Elizabeth showed more and more sympathy for their affairs. Adventurer Francis Drake under the auspices of the British government attacked the Spanish coast. Elizabeth sent help to the Netherlands - a large detachment of infantry and artillery. In turn, Philip decided to deal her a decisive blow. In 1588, he sent to the British coast a huge flotilla - "Invincible Armada." But on the march, almost all the ships (there were 130 of them) were lost in the storm and during the attacks of enemy ships. Peace with Elizabeth Philip did not conclude. Until his death, the country was attacked by the British. The treasury of Spain was exhausted. Money was not even for the creation of even a small defensive fleet.

Descendants

During the entire period of government four times the marriage of Philip 2 Spanish. His children were of different sexes. The first son - Don Carlos - was born from Maria of Portugal. She died after the birth of the firstborn. From the second wife - Maria Tudor - Philip had no children. At the same time, Don Carlos died under rather strange circumstances. It is known that he suffered from mental illness. In the third marriage with Isabella Valois were born daughters. One of them began to rule in the Southern Netherlands. Her own Philip tried to make the queen of France. As for the heir to the throne, he became the only son of the monarch. Philip 3 was born into a marriage with Anna Austria. It was originally intended for Don Carlos. From history it is known that Philip 2 often changed his mistresses. Numerous wars, barbarity in relation to the trade and labor population for religious beliefs were devastated by the once rich state, ruled by Philip 2 of Spain. End of life he spent in physical suffering. He developed gout.

Evaluation of personality

Protestant and Catholic authors characterize Philip 2 in completely different ways. The first describe the monarch as a bloody monster, attributing to him a variety of vices. At the same time they emphasize his unpleasant, repulsive appearance. In the courtyard of the ruler, there was an atmosphere of suspicion. State administration was accompanied by vile intrigues. At the same time, Philip was considered a patron and fine connoisseur of art. During his reign literature and painting experienced their Golden Age. It was during this period that the world became known to El Greco, Lope de Vega. The heyday continued until the second half of the 17th century. In the collection of Philip were rare paintings from all over Europe. We have already mentioned his love of books. In his library there were collected works of Copernicus, Erasmus. Despite the depletion of the treasury towards the end of Philip's life, during his reign, the country entered the international arena as a powerful state. In many respects this was promoted by the policy of the father of the monarch - Charles V. However, the suspiciousness, suspicion, cruelty of Philip 2 destroyed the country.