Charles V

Charles V of Habsburg - King of Spain (Castile and Aragon) under the name Carlos I (Spanish Carlos I) from January 23, 1516, King of Germany (Roman King) from June 28, 1519 (crowned in Aachen on October 23, 1520) to 1556, Holy Roman Emperor from 1519 (crowned on February 24, 1530 in Bologna by Pope Clement VII). The largest statesman of Europe in the first half of the XVI century, who made the greatest contribution to history among the rulers of that time. Charles V is the last emperor officially crowned by the Pope, he is also the last emperor to celebrate a triumph in Rome.

Charles was the son of Duke Philip of Burgundy and the Spanish Infanta Juana. He was born in his father's domain, in the city of Ghent. The father, who was trying to inherit the Castilian crown from his famous mother-in-law, spent a lot of time in the Spanish possessions. Karl stayed to live in the Netherlands. His native language was French, his knowledge of other languages in his youth was modest. After assuming the Spanish throne, he learned Castilian. By the end of his life, he already had a good command of many languages.

In 1506, Philip died, and Juana went mad. Karl lived under the patronage of his aunt, Margaret of Austria, the ruler of the Netherlands, until the age of 17. Until his death, he maintained a tender relationship with her.

On June 28, 1519, the College of German Electors in Frankfurt unanimously elected the King of Germany (the official title is the King of the Romans) Charles V. On October 23, 1520, Charles was crowned in Aachen. At the same time, Charles V proclaimed himself the "elected" emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, thus depriving the papal throne of the prerogative of appointing and crowning emperors. He achieved general recognition of this title later, after victories over France and Rome. As a result, he was officially crowned emperor in 1530 by Pope Clement VII in Bologna. This was the last case of the coronation of emperors by popes. The title of emperor later became inextricably linked with the elective title of the King of Germany.

During the reign of Charles V, a criminal code was drawn up (adopted in 1532), later called the Constitutio Criminalis Carolina. It is a procedural code, 77 of its 219 articles are devoted to substantive criminal law. In its content, Carolina occupies an intermediate position between Roman and Germanic law. The Code was distinguished by the special cruelty of punishments and was in effect until the end of the XVIII century.

In 1526, Charles married Isabella of Portugal. She was his cousin (their mothers Juana and Maria were sisters). It was one of many closely related marriages in the dynasty that eventually led the Spanish Habsburg family to physical degeneration in 1700.

Their children:

Philip II (21 May 1527 - 13 September 1598), King of Spain

Maria (June 21, 1528 - February 26, 1603) was the wife of Emperor Maximilian II since 1548.

Isabella (1529)

Ferdinand (November 22, 1529 - July 13, 1530)

stillborn son (June 29, 1534)

Juana (June 26, 1535 - September 7, 1573) - since 1552 the wife of Juan Manuel, Infante of Portugal

Juan (October 19, 1537 - March 20, 1538)

stillborn son (April 21, 1539)

At the age of 36, Isabella died. Carl never remarried. But he had mistresses who bore him children:

Germaine de Foix:

daughter Isabella of Castile.

Johanna Maria van der Geinst:

daughter of Margaret of Parma - ruler of the Netherlands.

Barbara Blomberg:

son Juan of Austria