Philip IV of Spain (Spanish: Felipe IV, Portuguese: Filipe III; 8 April 1605 – 17 September 1665) was King of Castile and Aragon between 1621 and 1665, and King of Portugal until 1640. He was also king of Naples and Sicily as Philip III. Philip is remembered for his patronage of the arts, including such artists as Diego Velázquez, and his rule over Spain during the challenging period of the Thirty Years War (1618–48).
On the eve of his death in 1...
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Philip IV of Spain (Spanish: Felipe IV, Portuguese: Filipe III; 8 April 1605 – 17 September 1665) was King of Castile and Aragon between 1621 and 1665, and King of Portugal until 1640. He was also king of Naples and Sicily as Philip III. Philip is remembered for his patronage of the arts, including such artists as Diego Velázquez, and his rule over Spain during the challenging period of the Thirty Years War (1618–48).
On the eve of his death in 1665, the Spanish Empire had reached its seventeenth century territorial zenith, spanning a then unheard of 12.2 million square kilometres (4.7×10^ sq mi), but in other respects was in decline, a process to which Philip's inability to achieve successful domestic and military reform is felt to have contributed.
Philip IV was born in Valladolid, and was the eldest son of Philip III and his wife, Margaret of Austria. Aged ten, he was married to Elisabeth of France in 1615, although the relationship does not appear to have always been close; some...
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