The eldest son of Charles I of Spain and V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500-1558) and Isabella of Portugal (1503-1539), the future Philip II was educated by his tutor, Juan de Zúñiga, by Cardinal Silíceo, his teacher of elementary education and confessor, and by Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda, who provided his pupil with a humanist education. Prince Philip’s political apprenticeship commenced in 1543, when he first replaced his father, Charles I, as Governor of Spain. In 1548, the heir to the Crown set out on a long tour of northern Italy, Austria, Germany and the Netherlands, thus visiting some of the territories that he would rule over in the future.
Married four times, Philip II's wives were María Manuela de Portugal (1527-1545), whom he married on 14th November 1543, and who was the mother of Prince Carlos (1545-1568), heir to the Spanish Crown until his death; Mary Tudor (1516-1558), Queen of England whom he married on 25th July 1554; the French princess, Elisabeth of Valois (1546-1568), who was wedded to Philip II on 2nd February 1560, mother of Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia (1566-1633), Archduchess of Austria y Sovereign of the Spanish Netherlands married to the Archduke Albert (1559-1621), and the Infanta Catherine Michaela (1567-1597), Duchess of Savoy, wife of Carlo Emanuele I of Savoy (1562-1630); and the Archduchess Anna of Austria (1549-1580), who married the King on 14th November 1570. With her, Philip II had five children: Prince Ferdinand (1571-1578), the Infante Carlos Lorenzo (1573-1575), Prince Diego (1575-1582), the future Philip III (1578-1621) who succeeded his father to the throne, and the Infanta Maria (1580-1583). After the death of Anna of Austria on 26th October 1580, the King remained a widower until his death.
Philip II became King of Spain on 16th January 1556, following the abdication of Charles I in Brussels (1555-1556). His reign coincided with the period of greatest hegemony of the Hispanic Monarchy in Europe after the French were defeated at the Battle of Saint Quentin on 10th August 1557 and the signing of the Peace of Câteau-Cambresis with France two years later. Spanish foreign policy during the reign of Philip II developed in two stages. During his first years in power, the King prioritised the defence of the Mediterranean and the conflicts with the Ottoman Empire, which was settled in favour of the Christian forces after the victory of Lepanto on 7th October 1571. From the mid-1570s, however, the international focus gradually shifted towards the Atlantic. The resurgence of the 1566 rebellion in the Habsburg Netherlands, and Philip II's difficulty in finding a political solution to it; the inclusion of Portugal and its overseas territories under the sovereignty of the Hispanic Monarchy in 1580-1581; worsening tensions with England under Elizabeth I (1533-1603), which culminated in the failed expedition known as the "Invincible Armada" in 1588, and Spanish intervention in the French Wars of Religion from 1590, were some of the events arising from the King's Atlantic policy. In May 1598, Philip II signed the Peace of Vervins with France. However, the confrontation with the British Kingdom and the rebellion of the Netherlands, whose northern regions became an independent state named the United Provinces in 1581, were still ongoing at the time of the King’s death.
With regard to Spain, Philip II's reign was characterised by institutional continuity, the defence of religious orthodoxy against heresy, political and social instability in areas such as Granada and Aragón, and increased taxation due to the monarchy's military commitments in Europe. In this regard, it is worth highlighting the King’s energetic response to the discovery of Lutheran centres in Valladolid and Seville; the implementation of the dictates of the Council of Trent (1545-1563); subduing the Moorish revolt of Granada, which lasted from 1568 until the end of 1570; and the King's response to the riots in Aragón in 1591. In terms of state administration, Philip II established Madrid as the capital of the Hispanic Monarchy (February 1561); he brought the Councils of Italy (1558), Portugal (1582), Flanders and the Chamber of Castile (1588) into the so-called polisynodial system; he promoted the creation of Collegiate Boards to rationalise and streamline the handling of government affairs; and encouraged the political projection of the Royal Secretaries (of whom the most famous was Antonio Pérez) as channels of communication between the Monarch and the different institutions. The King also ordered improvements to be made in both the Spanish Navy and in the organisation and armaments of the Tercio mixed infantry units.
Finally, Philip II's rule overseas was marked by the consolidation of Spanish rule in the Americas; expansion into the Atlantic and the Pacific; the conquest of the Philippines; and the creation of the "Fleet of the Indies" to protect commercial traffic and neutralise privateer attacks encouraged by enemies of the Hispanic Monarchy such as England, France and the United Provinces.
Certain events that took place during his reign (such as the rebellion in the Netherlands), his methods of ruling, aspects of his personality, and events in his private life (for example, the imprisonment and death of his son, Prince Carlos, or the death of his third wife, Elisabeth of Valois, in 1568) were seized upon by anti-Spanish propaganda in the so-called "Black Legend".
Philip II died in the Monastery of El Escorial on 13th September 1598, at the age of seventy-one. His remains are buried in the Monastery's Pantheon of Kings and Queens, erected at the behest of the Monarch to mark the victory of Saint Quentin.
Source: Royal Academy of History (https://www.rah.es)
