Man of War: Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
An article by Chad Arnow
Politically-motivated marriages have been a mainstay of the nobility throughout the ages, as rulers and other powerful figures sought to solidify and increase their holdings. In Charles V, we see one of the peaks of this system in a monarch who ruled large portions of Europe and oversaw some of the explorations to the New World.
Portrait of Charles V, 1519-20, from the Museum of Fine Arts, Budapest
Charles V as painted
by Titian, 1533
Tomb of Charles V from 1598. Escorial, Madrid
|
The future Charles V was born February 24th of 1500. His grandparents were Ferdinand II, King of Aragon, Isabella I, Queen of Castile, Mary of Burgundy and Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor. Charles was born in Ghent in family territories in Burgundy, and grew up influenced by the many cultures from which he descended. He was said to have been able to speak at least a little French, Dutch, German, Spanish, and Italian throughout the course of his life. Early in his life, he was tutored by the future Pope Adrian VI.
With the death of his father Philip the Handsome in late 1506, the very young Charles became titular ruler of the family's Burgundian territories, inherited through his grandmother Mary. In reality, the territories were under the rule of the appointed regent, his aunt, until 1515. Throughout his life, he expanded the Burgundian territories and strengthened their ties with the Holy Roman Empire.
With the death of his maternal grandfather, Ferdinand II, the teen-age Charles V became the first ruler of a united Spain, bringing together Aragon and Castile. This united kingdom included the old kingdom of Navarre, bordering the western Pyrenees Mountains, the city of Granada, Naples, the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia, and all the Castilian territories in the New World. Though considered by many to be a foreigner, Charles spent most of his life in Spain after his succession to the Spanish throne.
The death of Maximilian I in 1519 gave Charles control of the Habsburg lands, extending his rule into Austria. His lineage and holdings made him an obvious candidate to succeed Maximilian as Holy Roman Emperor. His main rival for the position was France's Francis I, who would conflict with Charles throughout his life. Charles prevailed and was elected in June of 1519, around six months after his grandfather's death. Francis and Charles would spend years in conflict over the sovereign rule of Burgundy (held by Francis), as well as territories in Italy. Charles eventually gained control of Milan, and conquered Rome. When not fighting France directly, Charles fought against the Ottoman Empire, a threat to his Habsburg holdings, which was known to ally itself with France.
Charles's lifetime saw the rise of Protestantism in Europe. Martin Luther's theses were written shortly before Charles was elected Holy Roman Emperor. Charles, as emperor, outlawed Protestantism, which led to conflict in his German lands. His capture of Rome kept Pope Clement VII from issuing an annulment to Henry VIII's marriage to Catherine of Aragon, Charles's aunt. This was one of the steps toward the eventual souring of Anglo-Spanish relations and towards the establishment of the Church of England.
In 1556 Charles V, bothered by ill health and gout, passed control of his Spanish and his Burgundian territories to his son Philip II. His German lands and the Holy Roman Empire were passed to his brother Ferdinand, who had been given increasing control over them as Charles had fought in Italy and against the Ottomans. Charles spent his late years at the monastery of Yuste in Extremadura, a western province of Spain. Though not in control any more, he did communicate with those in power and remained interested in the fate of the empire. Charles died September 21, 1558. His remains were permanently interred over two decades later at the newly-built Real Monasterio de San Lorenzo de El Escorial (Royal Monastery of Saint Lawrence of El Escorial). It was built by Philip II to house the remains of Spanish monarchs in its Royal Pantheon.
Equipment of Charles V
It should be no surprise that a monarch with Charles's wealth and political reach should have left behind a plethora of fine examples of arms and armour. Charles had access not only to the fine armourers of Germany like the Helmschmids and Konrad Seusenhofer (favorites of Maximilian I), but also to the finest Italian armourers, like the Negroli family. This trove includes many full harnesses, many other armour pieces, firearms, and other weapons with ties to Charles.
Two armours made for Charles V when he was a boy, circa 1512-14
|
The earliest surviving items attributed to Charles V are two "costume" harnesses made for him as a child by Innsbruck armourers, probably commissioned by Maximilian I. The earlier one was made in circa 1512 by H. (Hans?) Rabeiler, the later one between 1512 and 1514 by Konrad Seusenhofer. Both are of a design called puffed and slashed and were made to follow fashion popular at the time, especially among the Landsknechts employed by the Holy Roman Empire. The later harness, with its skirt (tonlet), features pierced bands of gilded silver over violet velvet. Both harnesses are housed in Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.
Four examples of the many surviving helmets belonging to Charles V:
Close helm, Kolman Helmschmid, circa 1536; "Diamond" burgonet, Kolman Helmschmid, before 1532; Parade burgonet,
Filippo and Francesco Negroli, 1545; Burgonet and buff in the shape of a bearded man, Filippo Negroli, 1533
|
In Madrid's Could not connect to link database |
