Statue of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V (1500-1558) in Ghent, Belgium
Charles V (24 February 1500 - 21 September 1558) was ruler of both the Spanish Empire as Charles I from 1516 and the Holy Roman Empire as Charles V from 1519, as well as of the lands of the former Duchy of Burgundy from 1506. He stepped down from these and other positions by a series of abdications between 1554 and 1556. Through inheritance, he brought together under his rule extensive territories in western, central, and southern Europe, and the Spanish viceroyalties in the Americas and Asia. As a result, his domains spanned nearly 4 million square kilometres ( million square miles) and were the first to be described as "the empire on which the sun never sets". Charles was the heir of three of Europe's leading dynasties: the Houses of Valois-Burgundy (through his paternal grandmother), Habsburg, and Trastámara (his maternal grandparents were the Catholic Monarchs of Spain). Charles inherited the Netherlands and the County of Burgundy as heir of the House of Valois-Burgundy. As a Habsburg, he inherited Austria and other lands in central Europe. He was also elected to succeed his grandfather, Maximilian I, as Holy Roman Emperor, a title held by the Habsburgs since 1452. From the Spanish House of Trastámara, he inherited (from his maternal grandmother Isabella I of Castile) the Crown of Castile, which was developing a nascent empire in the Americas and Asia, and (from his maternal grandfather Ferdinand II of Aragon) the Crown of Aragon, which included a Mediterranean empire extending to Southern Italy. Charles was the first king to rule Castile and Aragon simultaneously in his own right (as a unified Spain), and as a result he is often referred to as the first king of Spain. The personal union under Charles of the Holy Roman Empire with the Spanish Empire was the closest Europe would come to a universal monarchy since the death of Louis the Pious (778-840), the son of Charlemagne.
Size: 3840px × 5760px
Location: Statue of Charles V, Prinsenhofplein, 9000 Ghent, East Flanders, Flanders, Belgium, Europe
Photo credit: © DE ROCKER / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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