Imperial Spain and the Reign of Philip IIBy Lara Goldstein, Dan Lee, and Dan Zhu

Riches in the New World• Castile

• Regular arrival of gold and silver bars from the Spanish colonies in the New World in Seville

• Silver mines in Potosi and Zacatecas

• Debts from his father

• No new foreign adventures

• Bankruptcy of the Fuggers

Population● As Europe’s wealth increased, population increased - pop. >70 million by 1600

● Increased wealth + population = inflation -> less food and fewer jobs; wages stagnate but price of goods increase

● Spain was epitome of inflation

○ gap b/t haves (rich) and have-nots (poor) widened

○ the Castilian peasantry was the most heavily taxed people of Europe

● The peasants were the backbone of Spanish Empire - Spanish hegemony benefitted more from suffering peasantry

• Philip II organized the lesser nobility into loyal and efficient national bureaucracy

• He controlled kingdom using paper and pen rather than personal presence

• Philip was a pious Catholic - however, popes suspected he used religion for political purposes

Bureaucracy and Military

• This exemplifies how during the current time period was influenced more on politics disguised as religion.

Supremacy in the Mediterranean➢ Spain historically the champion against Islam

➢ Focus in the Mediterranean against the Turkish threat

➢ Don John, Phillip’s ½ brother, was sent to disperse Moors

➢ 1571- Battle of Lepanto (Holy League of Spain, Venice and Pope under Don John)

➢ Spain showcased its naval power-> annexation of Portugal

Fernand Braudel• French historian

• The Mediterranean and the Mediterranean World in the Age of Philip I

• Not one Mediterranean Sea but many in which men could operate.

• Interconnected land masses and bodies of water

• Policies of Philip II in the form of a conventional diplomatic history

Impact ➢ Increased the power of Spain as a nation significantly

➢ Split society even further, politically and economically

➢ Religion isn’t the main focus, used as a scapegoat for political interests