The world: historical and actual . here were elements of true grandeur in his charac-ter. In the judgment of many of his contempora-ries, he was the most renowned and glorious monarchin Christendom. Impartial, economical, indefati-gable in his application to business, he was neitheran epicure nor ostentatious ; he loved history, horse-manship, the rites and ritual of a splendid churchceremonial, knightly virtues and chivalrous un-dertakings ; and with unusual control over histemper, undaunted personal courage, and a far-see-ing political sagacity, he made few bad mistakes,and, by wonderful goo
The world: historical and actual . here were elements of true grandeur in his charac-ter. In the judgment of many of his contempora-ries, he was the most renowned and glorious monarchin Christendom. Impartial, economical, indefati-gable in his application to business, he was neitheran epicure nor ostentatious ; he loved history, horse-manship, the rites and ritual of a splendid churchceremonial, knightly virtues and chivalrous un-dertakings ; and with unusual control over histemper, undaunted personal courage, and a far-see-ing political sagacity, he made few bad mistakes,and, by wonderful good fortune, raised Sjiain, joint-ly with his magnanimous queen, from a conglom-eration of reciprocally hostile states into a spaciousand concentrated European empire. Charles V. was sixteen years of age when hisgrandfather died. Little more than a year later he assumed the reins of government, and the year nextfollowing he was elected Emperor of Germany. Nomonarch had ^; ever swayed sovast an empire. Besidethe splendidkingdom. CUARLES V. ofSpain, inclu-ding quite alarge part ofItaly, and theaugust em-pire of Ger-many, werehis vast Am-erican posses-sions, alreadygrowing intoenormous im-portance. His reign extended from 1516 in Spain and 1519 inGermany until 1556, when he voluntarily abdicatedin favor of his son Philip II., known fitly as Philipthe Catholic, retiring himself to a monastery toprepare for death. Subsequent chapters will narrate the founding ofAmerican colonies, some of them imperial. In ageneral way it may be said that his reign witnessednearly all the settlements which grew into thatchain of republics extending from the United Statesto Patagonia. In 1526 he was married to Isabellaof Portugal, a union which ultimately brought theentire Spanish peninsula under one scepter for atime. The death of Charles V. occurred September21, 1558, in the fifty-ninth year of his age. Hislast act was the execution of a codicil to his will inwhich he solemnly and quite superflu
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