1. Spain in the Age of Absolutism

2. Europe in 1500

3. Spain’s Empire Charles V was King of Spain and Holy Roman Emperor
Devout Catholic
1555 Peace of Augsburg

4. Phillip II Son of Charles V
When his father retired he received Spain, American colonies, and the Spanish Netherlands

5. shy, very religious, and could be aggressive for the Empire
1580 the King of Portugal died without and heir—Phillip II (his nephew) seized Portugal
colonies provided Spain with a huge amount of money
Phillip II took between a forth and a fifth of each ship for his own
Spain could easily support a standing army of 50,000

6. Battle of Lepanto

7. Escorial

8. El Greco
The Burial of Count Orgaz

9. Problems Weaken the Spanish Empire
severe inflation caused by:
increased population
the huge amounts of silver coming into the country decreased its value
when Spain expelled the Jews in 1492, they expelled many artists and businesspeople
Spain’s nobles did not pay taxes—tax burden fell on the lower classes
lower classes remained poor and Spain never developed a middle class
guild system used old fashioned methods
Spaniards bought things they needed from other countries
Spanish kings also borrowed money from German and Italian bankers to finance their wars
Phillip II had to declare Spain bankrupt 3 times

10. The Dutch Revolt
Dutch were Protestant, had a prosperous middle class and did not speak Spanish
Phillip raised taxes and tried to get rid of the Protestants
1566 the Dutch revolted and destroyed Church
Phillip sent and army to punish the Dutch and crush the rebellion

11. William of Orange
for him the struggle was political—he wanted to free the Netherlands from Spain

12. Independent Dutch
the United Provinces of the Netherlands was different from the rest of Europe
religious toleration was practiced there
was a republic-each province elected a governor who depended on support of merchants and landlords

13. Absolutism Grows
authority was centralized when nations grew, feudalism declined, and cities emerged
growing middle class supported monarchs—promised a peaceful and supportive environment for business
wealth from colonies helped to pay for expanded ambitions
the Church authority was weakened after the Reformation, allowing monarchs to step in

14. religious and territorial conflicts led to almost constant war
governments had to build larger armies and increase taxes to pay for them
-peasants would respond with unrest and revolts—monarchs responded by increasing their power
-expanded their bureaucracies, increased the size of their courts, and regulated daily life