Habsburg Spain

Monarchia Hispaniae[b]
1516–1700
1570 map of the Iberian Peninsula
1570 map of the Iberian Peninsula
CapitalMadrid (1561–1601; 1606–1700)
Valladolid (1601–1606)
Official languagesSpanish
Religion
Catholicism
Demonym(s)Spaniard, Spanish
GovernmentComposite monarchy
Monarch 
• 1516–1556 (first)
Charles I
• 1665–1700 (last)
Charles II
LegislatureCortes of Castile
Courts of Aragon
Courts of Catalonia
Courts of Valencia
Cortes of Navarre
Cortes of Portugal
Historical eraEarly modern period
• Ascension of Charles I
23 January 1516
1568–1648
1580–1640
1635–1659
1640–1668
• Death of Charles II
1 November 1700
CurrencySpanish real and others
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Crown of Castile
Crown of Aragon
Kingdom of Navarre
Kingdom of Naples
Habsburg Netherlands
Bourbon Spain
Dutch Republic
Kingdom of Sardinia
Iberian Union
Knights of Saint John
Today part ofSpain

Habsburg Spain[c] refers to Spain and the Spanish Empire, also known as the Catholic Monarchy, in the period from 1516 to 1700 when it was ruled by kings from the House of Habsburg. It had territories around the world, including modern-day Spain, a piece of south-eastern France, eventually Portugal and many other lands outside the Iberian Peninsula, like in the Americas. Habsburg Spain was a composite monarchy and a personal union. The Habsburg Spanish monarchs of this period are chiefly Charles I, Philip II, Philip III, Philip IV and Charles II. In this period the Spanish empire was at the zenith of its influence and power. Spain, or "the Spains", referring to Spanish territories across different continents in this period, initially covered the entire Iberian peninsula, including the crowns of Castile, Aragon and from 1580 Portugal. It then expanded to include territories over the five continents, consisting of much of the American continent and islands thereof, the West Indies in the Americas, the Low Countries, Belgium, Luxembourg, Italian territories and France in Europe, Portuguese possessions such as small enclaves like Ceuta and Oran in North Africa, and the Philippines and other possessions in Southeast Asia. The period of Spanish history has also been referred to as the "Age of Expansion".

The marriage of Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon in 1469 resulted in the union of the two main crowns, Castile and Aragon, which eventually led to the de facto unification of Spain after the culmination of the Reconquista with the conquest of Granada in 1492 and of Navarre in 1512 to 1529. Isabella and Ferdinand were bestowed the title of "Catholic King and Queen" by Pope Alexander VI in 1494.[3] With the Habsburgs, the term Monarchia Catholica (Catholic Monarchy, Modern Spanish: Monarquía Católica) remained in use Spain continued to be one of the greatest political and military powers in Europe and the world for much of the 16th and 17th centuries. During the Habsburg's period, Spain ushered in the Spanish Golden Age of arts and literature producing some of the world's most outstanding writers and painters and influential intellectuals, including Teresa of Ávila, Pedro Calderón de la Barca, Miguel de Cervantes, Francisco de Quevedo, Diego Velázquez, El Greco, Domingo de Soto, Francisco Suárez and Francisco de Vitoria. After the death in 1700 of Spain's last Habsburg king, Charles II, the resulting War of the Spanish Succession led to the ascension of Philip V of the Bourbon dynasty, which began a new centralising state formation, which came into being de jure after the Nueva Planta decrees of 1707 that merged the multiple crowns of its former realms (except for Navarre).

  1. ^ Monarchia Hispanica.google.com, Monarchia Hispaniae. digital.ub.uni.
  2. ^ Reyno de España, google.com
  3. ^ Kamen, H. (2005). Spain 1469–1714: A Society of Conflict. Routledge:Oxford. p. 37.


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