Philip III of Spain
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| Philip III | |
|---|---|
| King of Spain, Portugal, Naples, Sicily | |
| Reign | April 14, 1598–March 31, 1621 |
| Born | April 14, 1578 |
| Madrid, Spain | |
| Died | March 31, 1621 (aged 42) |
| Madrid, Spain | |
| Predecessor | Philip II of Spain |
| Successor | Philip IV of Spain |
| Consort | Margaret of Austria |
| Father | Philip II of Spain |
| Mother | Anna of Austria |
Philip III (Spanish: Felipe III; April 14, 1578 – March 31, 1621) was the King of Spain and King of Portugal and the Algarves, where he ruled as Philip II (Portuguese: Filipe II), from 1598 until his death. His chief minister was the Duke of Lerma. Philip III married Margaret of Styria, sister of Emperor Ferdinand II.
Born in Madrid, the son of Philip II of Spain and his fourth wife (and niece) Anna, daughter of the Emperor Maximilian II and Maria of Spain. He inherited the beliefs of his father, but no share of his industry. The old king had sorrowfully confessed that God had not given him a son capable of governing his vast dominions, and had foreseen that Philip III would be led by his servants. This calculation was exactly fulfilled.
The new king put the direction of his government entirely into the hands of his favorite, the Duke of Lerma, Francisco Goméz de Sandoval y Rojas, and when he fell under the influence of Lerma's son, Cristóbal de Sandoval, the Duke of Uceda in 1618, he trusted himself and his states to the new favourite.
The king's own life was passed amid court festivities, on which enormous sums of money were wasted, or in the practice of piety. It was said that he was so virtuous as hardly to have committed a venial sin. He cannot be justly blamed for having been born to a ruling monarchy, without even the capacity which would have qualified him to manage a small estate.
He died at Madrid on March 31, 1621. The story told in the memoirs of the French ambassador Bassompierre, that he was killed by the heat of a brasero (a pan of hot charcoal), because the proper official to take it away was not at hand, is a humorous exaggeration of the formal etiquette of the court.
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The policies of the Duke of Lerma were aimed towards the maintenance of international peace, towards the expulsion of the Moors and towards his desire of personal enrichment, as much economic as political.
Throughout his reign institutional reforms followed one after another to solve the problems of corruption and inefficiency that plagued the administration of the Monarchy: apart from the changes introduced in the traditional system of Counselors, resources were extended to the Juntas, bodies responsible for decreasing the power of those in favor of a more agile and coherent government, but they didn't produced the desired result. The financial problems that arose from the previous king, made the king dependent on the Courts, who had to meet more frequently then their predecessors in order to grant the resources to run things outside the Monarchy.
The most significant domestic policy acts during the reign of Philip III were the expulsion of the Moors from the Peninsula and the adoption of the coins of a copper and silver alloy for domestic money transactions.
In 1609 a decree for the expulsion of the Moors from Spain was declared for the following reasons:
- The Christian attitude desire to maintain a Catholic state
- A possible alliance between the Barbers to attack the coast of Levante
- Their unpopularity among the people
- The necessity of the State to control its riches and values
Between 1609 and 1610 they began their departure from the peninsula. To accomplish this, the Navy and 30,000 soldiers were mobilized with the mission of transporting the Muslims to Tunis or Morroco. Approximately 300,000 Moors were expelled.
This measure considerably affected the Kingdom of Valencia, the valleys of Aragon and the markets of Murcia. The cheap labor and the rent paying owners in these areas decreased considerably. The cultivation of sugar and rice had to be substituted for white mulberry, vineyards, and wheat.
In 1618 the corruption grew to intolerable levels in the Court of Madrid. The King dismissed the Duke of Lerma and named the duke's son as his successor, the Duke of Uceda, who he sent to detain Rodrigo Calderón, a figure emblematic of the administration of his father.
With the ascension to the throne of James I of England, a solid alliance was created between England and Spain. In August of 1604 the Treaty of London was signed, through which diplomatic and commercial relations between both countries would be improved.
Philip II of Spain had bequeathed this territory to his daughter Isabella Clara Eugenia of Spain and her husband, Archduke Albert, under the condition if she died without any heirs, the land would return to the Spanish Crown. The equality of forces between the rebellious provinces of the north - Calvinist Protestants - and the southern provinces - allied with Spain - led to war exhaustion and ultimately the Truce of Twelve Years with the United Provinces, also known as Pax Hispanica. This acknowledge the de facto independence of the Dutch and allowed its beginning of expansion into the Caribbean and the East Indies.
With the death of Henry IV of France - a supporter of the war against Spain - a period of instability commenced in the Kingdom of France. The Queen Regent, Marie de' Medici, asked Spain for help in the fight against the Huguenots. And so the peace with France that Philip II of Spain had arranged in his last moment with the Peace of Vervins was consolidated in 1615, by means of the marriage of the King of France with a Spanish infant and the crown prince of Spain (future Philip IV) with Elisabeth of Bourbon.
The Duke of Osuna, viceroy of Naples, the Marquess of Villafranca, and the Governor of Milan directed the Spanish policy in Italy that encountered resistance from the Kingdom of Saboya and the Republic of Venice. To secure the connection between Milanesado and the Netherland a new route was opened through Valtelina, Switzerland and in 1618 the plot of Venice occurred in which the authorities engaged in the persecution of Pro-Spanish agents.
Confrontation between the Catholics and Protestants in Bohemia.
Emperor Ferdinand II of Habsburg ask his family in Spain for help to make a front against the rebellion of the Protestant Czechs.
Spain, allied with Austria and Bavaria confronted the Bohemian Protestants supported by the Electoral Palatinate. The Spanish troops headed by Ambrosia Spinola in the Palatinate and by the Count of Tilly - Johan Tzerelae - in Bohemia achieved victory against the Czechs in the Battle of White Mountain.
| Philip III of Spain, II of Portugal | Father: Philip II of Spain, I of Portugal |
Paternal Grandfather: Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor |
Paternal Great-Grandfather: Philip I of Castile |
| Paternal Great-grandmother: Joanna of Castile |
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| Paternal Grandmother: Isabella of Portugal |
Paternal Great-Grandfather: Manuel I of Portugal |
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| Paternal Great-Grandmother: Maria of Aragon |
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| Mother: Anna of Austria |
Maternal Grandfather: Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor |
Maternal Great-Grandfather: Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor |
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| Maternal Great-Grandmother: Anna of Bohemia and Hungary |
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| Maternal Grandmother: Maria of Spain |
Maternal Great-grandfather: Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor |
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| Maternal Great-Grandmother: Isabella of Portugal |
Philip married Margaret of Austria. They had the following children:
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anne of Austria | September 22, 1601 | January 20, 1666 | Married Louis XIII, King of France (1601 - 1643) in 1615. |
| Philip IV, King of Spain | April 8, 1605 | September 17, 1665 | Married (1) Elisabeth of Bourbon (1603 - 1644) in 1615. Had issue. Married (2) Mariana of Austria (1634 - 1696) in 1649. Had issue. |
| Maria Anna of Spain | August 18, 1606 | May 13, 1646 | Married Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor (1608 - 1657) in 1631. Had issue. |
| Carlos, Prince of Spain | September 14, 1607 | July 30, 1632 | Died unmarried. |
| Ferdinand, Prince of Spain | May 16, 1609 | November 9, 1641 | Had illegitimate daughter (nun). |
- This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.
- See also Philip Allen, Philip III and the Pax Hispanica.
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Philip III of Spain
Born: 14 April 1578 Died: 31 March 1621 |
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| Regnal titles | ||
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| Preceded by Philip II of Spain I of Portugal |
King of Spain 1598 – 1621 |
Succeeded by Philip IV of Spain III of Portugal |
| King of Sicily 1598 – 1621 |
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| King of Naples 1598 – 1621 |
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| King of Portugal and the Algarves 1598 – 1621 |
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| German nobility | ||
| Preceded by Philip II |
Duke of Brabant, Guelders, Limburg, and Lothier 1598 – 1621 |
Succeeded by Philip IV |
| Duke of Luxembourg 1598 – 1621 |
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| Count of Burgundy, Flanders, Hainaut and Namur 1598 – 1621 |
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| Spanish royalty | ||
| Preceded by Diego |
Prince of Asturias 1582 – 1598 |
Succeeded by Philip (future Philip IV of Spain) |
| Portuguese royalty | ||
| Preceded by Diego |
Prince of Portugal 1582 – 1598 |
Succeeded by Anne |
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| House of Habsburg (Philippine Dynasty excluding Charles I) |
Charles I of Spain • Philip II of Spain • Philip III of Spain • Philip IV of Spain • Charles II of Spain |
| House of Bourbon |
Philip V of Spain • Louis I of Spain • Philip V of Spain • Ferdinand VI of Spain • Charles III of Spain • Charles IV of Spain • Ferdinand VII of Spain |
| House of Bonaparte |
Joseph Bonaparte |
| House of Bourbon, First Restoration |
Ferdinand VII of Spain • Isabella II of Spain |
| House of Savoy |
Amadeo I of Spain |
| House of Bourbon, Second Restoration |
Alfonso XII of Spain • Alfonso XIII of Spain |
| House of Bourbon, Third Restoration |
Juan Carlos I of Spain |
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| House of Burgundy | Afonso I • Sancho I • Afonso II • Sancho II • Afonso III • Denis • Afonso IV • Peter I • Ferdinand I • Beatrice (disputed) |
| House of Aviz | John I • Edward • Afonso V • John II • Manuel I • John III • Sebastian • Henry • Anthony (disputed) |
| House of Habsburg | Philip I • Philip II • Philip III |
| House of Braganza | John IV • Afonso VI • Peter II • John V • Joseph I • Maria I with Peter III • John VI • Pedro IV • Miguel I • Maria II with Ferdinand II • Pedro V • Luís I • Carlos I • Manuel II |