| Birth: | 24 Feb 1499/00 in Prinsenhof, Ghent 1 2 |
| Death: | |
| Sex: | M |
| Father: | Philip "the Handsome" Habsburg b. 22 Jul 1478 in Bruges |
| Mother: | Joanna "the Mad", of Castile |
| Title (Facts Pg): Bet. 1519 - 1556 Holy Roman Emperor 1 1 1 1 2 |
| Title (Facts Pg): Archduke of Austria 1 2 |
| Title (Facts Pg): Charles- Quint 1 2 |
| Title (Facts Pg): Duke of Burgundy 1 2 |
| Title (Facts Pg): King in Germany 1 2 |
| Title (Facts Pg): King of Castile, Aragon, etc. 1 2 |
| Title (Facts Pg): King of Hungary 1 2 |
| Title (Facts Pg): About. 1501 Member of the Order of the Golden Fleece 1 1 2 |
| Title (Facts Pg): Bet. 1519 - 1555 Ruler of the Netherlands 2 |
| Title (Facts Pg): 22 Feb 1529/30 King of the Lombards 1 2 |
| Medical: He was plagued by gout 1 2 |
| Spouses & Children |
| Children: | |
| Children: | |
| Children: | |
| Notes |
[Anna.FTW]
Charles united the Spanish dominions with the hereditary posessions in the Netherlands and in Austria. When Isabella of Castile died, Philip the Handsome acted as regent for Charles in Castile. (The Holy Roman Empire, pg. 136)
Charles reigned for 38 years until his abidication and spent a quarter of them in transit. Betwenn the time of his first departure from the Netherlands and his abdication he paid 9 visits to the Empire, 7 to Spain, 7 to Italy, 4 to France, 2 to England and 2 to North Africa. He spent 28 years in the Netherlands, 18 in Spain, 8 in the Empire, 2 and a half in Italy, 7 months in France, 4 and a half months in North Africa and 7 weeks in England. He never saw the Adriatic, Prague, Buda or the Habsburg and was in Vienna only once. Despite his frail health, he was driven on by tireless energy; most of the wars fought during this time were conducted by him in person. (The Holy Roman Empire, pg. 148)
Charles was small and sparley built but in his veins flowed the blood of Europe. His ancestry included: Spanish. Portuguese, French, Burgundian, Netherlander, Plantagenet; a little German. His forebearers included Greeks, Italians, Slavs, Lithuanians, Spanish Muslims and Jews. The royal and princely titles of Charles V came to over 60. (Holy Roman Empire, pg. 149) He grew up virtually an orphan. He was born in 1500 with his father dying in 1506 and his mother Joanna (Juana) "the Mad" living a twilight existence in Spain where she died in 1555, only shortly before her son's abdication. His childhood was spent in the care of first Margaret of York, widow of Charles the Bold, who told him many tales of the English War of the Roses, then of Margaret of Austria, Maximilian's favorite daughter. The place of a father in his life was filled by Guillaume de Croy, Sieur de Chievres, who tried to bring him up as a complete Burgundian. The mind of the young duke was nourished on chivalrous romances, aristocratic 'romanticism' and the missionary ideals of Burgundy. (The Holy Roman Empire, pg. 150)
When Charles came to Spain in 1517 to take posession of his inheritance he did not speak Spanish. His Burgundian entourage and Burgundian regime gave offence, giving leading positions to his Burgundians, disregarding the rights of the provinces and their estates and setting up central organs of government. He was met with opposition for the Cortes in Castile and Aragon, from the Comuneros (a group of towns with the support from a section of the nobility), they mounted a revolt from 1520-2. The Spaniard who first resented him and took no interest in the Empire became Charles' truest imperial subjects and Charles himself became a Spaniard with Spanish as his second mother tongue. A later Spanish boast was that Charles spoke French with his ambassadors, Italian with his wives, German with his grooms but Spanish with God. (The Holy Roman Empire, pg. 150).
The expenditure for Charles' election represented more than 2 tons of fine gold. He was the unanimous choice of the electors. He was crowned at Aachen in Charlemagne's octagonal church on Oct. 23, 1520 under the chadelier of Frederick Barbarossa. First he kissed the cross of the Empire which had belonged to Lothar and then prostrated himself. The coronation mass wasthe mass for Epiphany (rise and shine O Jerusalem, for the prince of peace is come). The Elector of Cologne put the prescribed 6 questions to him, to which he answered "I will": Wilt thou hald and guard by all proper means the sacred faith as handed down to Catholic men? Wilt thou be the faithful shield and protector of Holy Church and her servants? Wilt thou uphold and recover those rights of the realm and possessions of the Empire which have been unlawfully usurped? Wilt thou protect the poor, the fatherless and the widowed? Wilt thou pay due submission to the Roman pontiff and the Holy Roman Church? The spiritual electors handed to him the sword of Charlemagne. Cologne, assisted by Trier and Mainz then placed the crown on his head. Charles then took his place on the throne of Charlemagne and recieved communion. He was crowned by the pope on Feb. 24, 1530. (The Holy Roman Empire, pg. 150-1)
Charles confronted Martin Luther. Both believed in the reform of the Church but sought different methods to effect a change. Luther's concept virtually abolished 15 centuries of christian tradition and of the church's understanding of itself. The German princes became the spokemen for German protestantism since thier power and influence was on the increase and the estates and jurisdictions confiscated from the church was added to their own. In his battle to preserve the Empire in the face of the Reformation Charles faced 4 foes: the papacy, the German protestant princes, the king of France and a militant relgious-political Catholic party. At times the emperor held Pope Clement VII prisoner and on May 6, 1527 his captian Charles of Burbon was killed when the imperial troops stormed Rome leaving the men to murder and plunder Rome as they went. (Clement's grand-neice was Cahterine dei Medici, future wife of Henry II of France). The Council of Trent in Dec. 1545 marks the beginning of the Counter-Reformation where the Catholich church saw itself as a religious-political army deploying military and diplomatic means to win back the European territory lost to the Reformation, including the Inquisition. Thoughout this time the French kings conspired with the Turks and the Pope against Charles and the Empire. Charles paved the way for the Diet of Augsburg 1547-8 in which Roman Catholicism and Lutheranism were put on equal terms. Other sects were excluded. The choice of religion was conferred only on the Estates of the Empire - the princes, the non-princely nobility and on the imperial cities. Subjects had to follow the religious profession of their territorial rulers but were allowed the right to emigrate. Ecclesiastical princes might decide personally to follow Protestantism, in which case they were not longer allowed to rule their territories, which had to remain Catholic. In Austria, confessional freedom was given to Protestant subjects of Catholic ecclesiastical rulers. It was the perception of the other European counties in viewing the erection of a closed Spanish state in the New World (ie the church, police, army, schools, legal system and economy all controled by the Spanish government with laws forbidding "foreigners" from setting up establishments such as missions) that Spain would attempt to do so in Europe as well which contributed to the beginning of the Thirty Years War. (The Holy Roman Empire, pgs. 151-65)
One of Charles' themes, received from King Ferdinand of Aragon was that peace must be created among Christians so they may carry out the war against the infidel. To each his own was his ideal which thrust him into several battles with the Frence who tried to claim Burgundy from him. He in turn demands from King Francis of France all the old imperial territories now occupied by France: the kingdom of Arles, the Dauphine, the counties of Valence and Provence, the principality of Orange, Montelimar, the whole of the former Lorraine and still older rights once possessed in south-eastern France. Charles was a formidible enemy of France, he surrounded it from all sides: Spain, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, England and Burgundy thru his inheritance or alliances. (The Holy Roman Empire, pgs. 151-62)
Charles several times challenged Francis I of France to personal single combat to resolve their differences, which Francis ignored. In 1525, Charles defeated and captured Francis at Pavia. In the subsequent treaty of Madrid, Francis was made to renounce not only Milan, Genoaand Naples but also Flanders, Artios and Burgundy - the old Burgundy. Brantome, the great French strategist described Charles as an unparalleled master in the art of war. The supreme weapon was the infantry in which the Spanish were pre-eminent. The concept of fighting in a 'theatre' of war was developed. The mine was also first used around 1495. Great battles were a rarity and took place only by mutual agreement. Siege warfare, starving out and out-manoeuvering the enemy, economic and diplomatic negotiations all played important parts. Delaying tactics spinning out a campaign until the opposing army disbanded due to lack of money and well as enticing away the opponent's mercenaries with higher pay was also praticed. Charles deployed his military genius in achieving victories without great bloodshed. He always rode with his menand when he was plagued by gout had himself tied to his saddle with one leg in a sling. He never gloated over his victories and was at great pains not to humiliate defeated enemies. Starting with Charles and his brother Ferdinand, the old double eagle of the Empire, in the form of the double eagle of the House of Austria, took up residence in both Madrid and Vienna and for close to 2 centuries th history of the Holy Roman Empire and the destinies of the Spanish Empire were closely interwoven. (The Holy Roman Empire, pgs. 162-168)
When he was dying, Charles gazed constantly on Titian's "Gloria" which shows the emperor kneeling and dressed in his shroud; close by the imperial crown which he has discarded. Beside him are the kneeling figures of Isabella, his favorite wife, long since dead, and his sister, Mary of Hungary. Below are Philip II and his daughter Joanna. (The Holy Roman Empire, pg. 175)
| Sources |