Everything about Philip Iv Of Spain totally explained
Philip IV, (
8 April,
1605 –
17 September,
1665) was
King of Spain between 1621 to 1665,
sovereign of the
Spanish Netherlands, and
King of Portugal (as
Philip III) until 1640.
Philip IV was born in
Valladolid, and was the eldest son of
Philip III and his wife
Margaret of Austria.
Life
Philip IV's reign,after a few years of inconclusive successes, was characterized by political and military decay and adversity. He has been held responsible for the decline of Spain, which was mostly due, however, to organic causes largely beyond the control of any one ruler. Philip certainly possessed more energy, both mental and physical, than his diffident father. His handwritten translation of
Francesco Guicciardini's texts on political history still exists, and he was a fine horseman and keen hunter.
His artistic taste is shown by his patronage of his court painter
Diego Velázquez; his love of letters by his favoring
Lope de Vega,
Pedro Calderón de la Barca, and other immortal dramatists. He is credited, on fairly probable testimony, with a share in the composition of several comedies. He also commenced the building of the
Buen Retiro palace in Madrid, parts of which still remain near the
Prado.
His good intentions were no avail to governance, however. Feeling himself not yet qualified to rule when he ascended to the throne at age 16, he allowed himself to be guided by the most capable men he could find. His
favourite,
Olivares, was a far more honest and capable man than his predecessor the
Duke of Lerma, and better fitted for the office of chief minister than any Spaniard of the time, perhaps. Philip, however, lacked the confidence to free himself from Olivares's influence once he did come of age. With Olivares's encouragement, he rather busied himself with frivolous amusements. By
1643, when disasters falling on all sides led to the dismissal of the all-powerful minister, Philip had largely lost the power to devote himself to hard work. After a brief struggle with the task of directing the administration of the most extensive and worst-organized multi-national state in Europe, he sank back into indolence and let other favourites govern.
His political opinions were those he'd inherited from his father and grandfather. He thought it his duty to support the House of
Habsburg and the cause of the
Roman Catholic Church against the
Protestants, to assert his sovereignty over the
Dutch, and to extend the dominions of his family. The utter exhaustion of his people in the course of perpetual war, against the
Netherlands,
France,
Portugal,
Protestant forces in the
Holy Roman Empire and
Great Britain, was seen by him with sympathy but he considered it an unavoidable misfortune, since he couldn't have been expected to renounce his legitimate rights, or to desert what he viewed as the cause of
God, the Church and the
House of Habsburg.
He was idealised by his contemporaries as the model of Baroque kingship. Outwardly he maintained a bearing of rigid solemnity, and was seen to laugh only three times in the course of his entire public life. But, in private, his court was grossly corrupt. Victorian historians prudishly attributed the early death of his eldest son,
Baltasar Carlos, to debauchery, encouraged by the gentlemen entrusted by the king with his education. This shocked the king, but its effect soon wore off. Philip IV died broken-hearted in
1665, expressing the pious hope that his surviving son,
Carlos, would be more fortunate than himself. On his death, a
catafalque was built in Rome to commemorate his life.
Ancestors
Family
Siblings
With
Mariana of Austria (1634–1696) - his niece - — in
1649
Margaret of Spain (July 12, 1651 – 12 March 1673), first wife of Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor
Infanta Maria Ambrosia de la Concepción (1655)
Philip Prospero of Spain (1657–1661).
Infante Thomas Charles (Tomas Carlos) (1658–1659)
Charles II of Spain (1661–1700)
With Maria Calderon
In fiction
The novel The king Amaz'd
by the Spanish novelist Gonzalo Torrente Ballester is an ironic portrait of the early years of Philip IV's reign. The movie, based on the novel, was directed by Imanol Uribe and features Gabino Diego as Philip in his early reign.
Spanish author Arturo Pérez-Reverte gives an exquisite description of the difficult social, political and military conditions during the reign of Philip IV in his series of bestselling novels starring the swashbuckler Captain Alatriste.
Further Information
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