Carlos V - History Lab

Confirmation of all the privileges, freedoms and liberties of the Lordship of Vizcaya by Emperor Charles V

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:32:51 +0000

One of the most outstanding peculiarities of the history of the Basque provinces lies in the existence of a foral regime, inherited from the Middle Ages to the Contemporary Age. The fueros, with some exceptions, are laws particular to a town, territory, social group or institution.

The post Confirmation of all the privileges, freedoms and liberties of the Lordship of Vizcaya by Emperor Charles V first appeared on History Lab.

Letter from Charles V to the Marquis of Frómista, announcing the decision to renounce in his son Philip

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:32:42 +0000

After decades of warfare, Charles I’s last years were marked by retirement and distance from all political matters. Thus, during the process of the Brussels Abdications, Charles I left the imperial government to his brother Ferdinand I (Holy Roman Empire) and that of Spain and the Indies to his son Philip, who became Philip II in 1556 after the death of the monarch.

The post Letter from Charles V to the Marquis of Frómista, announcing the decision to renounce in his son Philip first appeared on History Lab.

Tabula Moderna Hispaniae, from the Cosmographia universalis by Sebastian Münster

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:32:37 +0000

It includes the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands. There is a cartouche in the lower right-hand corner with an explanation of the political division of the Iberian Peninsula. The profiles of the mountain systems, the most important rivers and the cities as groupings of buildings are depicted. The toponymy is written in Latin and Spanish, although the title and cartouche are in German. It is dated to the reign of Charles I (1516-56)

The post Tabula Moderna Hispaniae, from the Cosmographia universalis by Sebastian Münster first appeared on History Lab.

The fortifications of Fuenterrabia around 1535

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:32:18 +0000

Once the conquest of Granada was over, the Catholic Monarchs took measures to protect the north of Spain in the face of a possible confrontation with the French troops, and this work was discontinued until the reign of Philip V in the 18th century. From Philip II onwards, major changes were introduced in the corps of engineers who would work for the crown, with technical training being promoted at the Academy of Mathematics in Madrid and not depending almost exclusively on importing these figures from abroad.
In July 1725, the engineer Jorge Próspero de Verboom arrived in Pamplona to work on the fortification of enclaves such as San Sebastián, Fuenterrabía and Pamplona. One of his most striking actions were his corrections to the engineer Luis de Langot in Fuenterrabía, introducing a whole system of outer forts and redoubts in strategic places, transforming Langot’s proposals to such an extent that it could practically be considered an independent project that would transform the square forever.
In this case, the importance of the enclave can already be seen graphically during the reign of Charles V, a time when some fortresses in the north of the peninsula such as San Sebastián and other coastal cities such as Mallorca or Cádiz continued to be reinforced. The post-medieval wall of Fuenterrabía would be attached to an interior defensive tower, it sat on a hill 250 metres in diameter and with the Bidasoa River covering its western part, it was in a strategically fundamental place.

The post The fortifications of Fuenterrabia around 1535 first appeared on History Lab.

Royal engineer Fratín’s project for Fuenterrabía in 1572

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:32:18 +0000

Fuenterrabía demonstrated its great defensive power during the battles of the early 16th century, culminating in 1524 when the Castilian troops managed to recover it from the Franco-Navarrese army. In 1539 Charles V visited the damaged fortifications of Fuenterrabía, and shortly afterwards sent Captain Luis Pizaño to supervise the works in this square and in those of San Sebastián and Pamplona. One of the first actions was to raise the bastion of La Reina and the bastion of San Nicolás in 1545, partially modernising the fortified enclosure of the square.
During the reign of Philip II, work continued in the north of the peninsula, especially in Pamplona. These amazing works temporarily withdrew the focus of attention from Fuenterrabía, and its improvement work ceased until 1572, when a section of the old wall collapsed due to lack of maintenance. This caused Philip II to order his engineer Jacobo Palear Fratín to carefully analyse the square and give his verdict, which turned out to be rather unfavourable.
Under the king’s command, Fratín undertook a major reform project and numerous repairs. The aim was to extend the bastion in order to gain artillery capacity against the French in the east and to cover possible access from the sea. Although Fratín’s official layout is not available, the correspondence between the engineer and the Court has been analysed and a virtual reconstruction of the shape of the proposed plan has been made.

The post Royal engineer Fratín’s project for Fuenterrabía in 1572 first appeared on History Lab.

Dánae

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:31:59 +0000

Mythological painting showing how Venus gave in to one of her lovers, transforming herself into a shower of gold, in order to avoid imprisonment. It was commissioned by the Duke of Mantua, together with three other mythological works. The elevation of Mantua to a duchy led the Gonzaga to give them as a gift to the Emperor Charles V. Its author, Correggio, is one of the great references of Mannerism

The post Dánae first appeared on History Lab.

Charles V at the Battle of Mühlberg

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:30:09 +0000

Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, was portrayed by the Italian artist Titian after his victory over the Smalkada League, led by Protestant nobles. Faced with the religious rebellion that had arisen in the imperial states in the heart of Europe following the reformism proposed by Luther years earlier, Charles V took action to prevent the break-up of one of his territories over politico-religious issues. Although the significance of the emperor’s victory is political in nature, the religious connotation should not be forgotten, in which Catholicism defeats Protestantism. Thus, in the image, Charles shows the Virgin with the child on her breast in a clear allusion to the fact that God is on his side. The meaning of this painting is to show Charles not as a victor, but as an emperor capable of ruling over the different and diverse states and religions that made up the Hispanic Monarchy. Artistically, it is a novel work for the European imagination, as it synthesises the Roman equestrian portraiture begun in the Renaissance period, which would reach its apogee in the second half of the 16th century.

The post Charles V at the Battle of Mühlberg first appeared on History Lab.

Payment of loans by Charles V in the mid-16th century

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:29:56 +0000

Carlos V’s monetary management was characterised to a large extent by regular recourse to loans from Genoese, German, Castilian and Flemish bankers. Some of these loans were repaid on a regular basis, some were repaid with ecclesiastical revenues, and a third led to delays and non-payments by the Spanish Royal Treasury.
Contributions from ecclesiastical institutions were a very important figure in legitimising a relatively secure guarantee of repayment between them and the king vis-à-vis the bankers. In contrast to the secondary role played by Castilian lenders, ecclesiastical contributions – mainly through the Crusade – did stand out as a key tool for the crown.
It can be seen how in the period between 1547 and 1550 the figures for loan payments fall, largely because they were not so necessary at this peaceful time, rising again between 1551 and 1554, showing the preeminence of Genoese bankers when it came to financing the Spanish monarchy. It should be borne in mind, however, that despite being very clear and definitive data, these may suffer some variation in the royal sphere because some entries showed that the monarch used the bankers as intermediaries to transfer money between his kingdoms, thus increasing the share of these entities.

The post Payment of loans by Charles V in the mid-16th century first appeared on History Lab.

Gonzalo Pizarro and the great encomendero rebellion

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:28:11 +0000

11-minute video analysing the figure of Gonzalo Pizarro (Trujillo, Spain, ca. 1510 – Cuzco, Viceroyalty of Peru, 10 April 1548) Spanish conquistador, younger paternal brother of Francisco Pizarro and one of the main actors in the conquest of Peru and the civil wars between the conquistadors. He led the great encomendero rebellion of 1544 against the Spanish crown in protest at the passing of the New Laws.

The post Gonzalo Pizarro and the great encomendero rebellion first appeared on History Lab.

Potosí. Example of a colonial space

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:28:11 +0000

Chapter of the series “Horizontes Ciencias Sociales”, part of the Encuentro channel, broadcast by the Ministry of Education (Argentina), which explains the process of mining the immense silver deposits by the Spanish colonists. This exploitation had a lot to do with the growth of the city of Potosí, a city that reached similar dimensions to European cities such as London. It also tells what life was like for the mine workers, in this case the Ayaconas Indians, and how their work equipment was made. Of course, the great human toll of the hard work in the mines is not overlooked. Gradually, guilds began to form around the exploitation. In this context, inequalities increased as a result of the wealth and the increase in capital of a few bourgeois merchants whose social ascent had repercussions in Europe, especially in Spain.

The post Potosí. Example of a colonial space first appeared on History Lab.