Imprudent King: A New Life of Philip II

by Geoffrey Parker

Overview

A vast archive of documents, unread since the sixteenth century, revises the portrait of  Philip II, Spain’s best-known king

"A superbly informed narrative of Philip II’s long career as Europe’s most powerful king."—Henry Kamen, Little Reviews

"This authoritative, intelligently revisionist biography must stand now as the primary reference."—Iain Finlayson, The Times

Philip II (1527-1598) is not only the most famous king in Spanish history, but one of the most famous monarchs in English history: the man who married Mary Tudor and later launched the Spanish Armada against her sister Elizabeth I. This compelling biography of the most powerful European monarch of his day begins with his conception (1526) and ends with his ascent to Paradise (1603), two occurrences surprisingly well documented by contemporaries. Eminent historian Geoffrey Parker draws on four decades of research on Philip as well as a recent, extraordinary archival discovery—a trove of 3,000 documents in the vaults of the Hispanic Society of America in New York City, unread since crossing Philip’s own desk more than four centuries ago. Many of them change significantly what we know about the king.
 
The book examines Philip’s long apprenticeship; his three principal interests (work, play, and religion); and the major political, military, and personal challenges he faced during his long reign. Parker offers fresh insights into the causes of Philip’s leadership failures: was his empire simply too big to manage, or would a monarch with different talents and temperament have fared better?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780300216950
Publisher:	Yale University Press
Publication date:	11/24/2015
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	456
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.50(h) x 1.50(d)

About the Author

Geoffrey Parker is Distinguished University Professor, Andreas Dorpalen Professor of European History, and associate of the Mershon Center, Ohio State University.

Table of Contents

List of illustrations ix

Conventions xiii

Preface xiv

Part I The Threshold of Power

1 Apprenticeship, 1527-1543 3

2 A Renaissance prince, 1543-1551 26

3 The changing face of empire, 1551-1558 41

Part II The King and His World

4 The king at work 61

5 The king and God 80

6 The king at play 100

Part III The First Decade of the Reign

7 Getting a grip, 1558-1561 121

8 I would rather lose a hundred thousand lives if I had them': keeping the faith, 1562-1567 140

9 Family life - and death 156

10 The enigma of Don Carlos 175

Part IV The King Victorious

11 Years of crusade, 1568-1572 195

12 Years of adversity, 1573-1576 213

13 The crisis of the reign, 1576-1577 228

14 Murder most foul? 247

15 Years of triumph, 1578-1585 264

16 'The most potent monarch in Christendom' 282

Part V The King Vanquished

17 The 'Enterprise of England', 1585-1588 305

18 Philip at bay, 1589-1592 324

19 Towards the tomb - and beyond, 1593-1603 341

Epilogue 363

Abbreviations 376

Note on sources 380

Notes 386

Bibliography 414

Acknowledgements 424

Index 428

Editorial Reviews

"Parker’s highly detailed but also immensely readable book has come far closer to that than any previous account of the most enigmatic of Spanish kings."—Anthony Pagden, New York Times Book Review on The Grand Strategy of Philip II

"He is at pains to know Philip through the testimony of his friends, foes, courtiers and his own words and this authoritative, intelligently revisionist biography must stand now as the primary reference."—Iain Finlayson, Times

"Parker has managed to navigate the archival whirlpools with remarkable flair. His admiration for his subject is evident on almost every page, yet the book is no whitewash. We are constantly made aware of the possibility that Philip might be deceiving us."—Fernando Cervantes, TLS

"This is no mere updating of Parker's previous work on Philip, though. It is the consummate biography of the king, the mature reflection of a master historian at the height of his craft writing about the subject he knows best."—MHQ: The Quarterly Journal of Military History

"A splendid biography of Philip II, ruler of Spain and the world’s greatest empire. In short, highly readable chapters, the author examines Philip’s youth and education for his future role. . . .Based heavily on extensive research in primary sources and a cache of previously unknown documents. Scholars, students, and general readers will enjoy this book. All libraries should purchase it."—Choice

"The research . . . is astoundingly thorough and impressive. The writing is superb. . . . This biography is as definitive as definitive' can get. And, best of all, it's as splendid a book as one could ever hope to read."—Carlos Eire, Books & Culture

"Readers will find in it . . . a superbly informed narrative of Philip II’s long career as Europe’s most powerful king."—Henry Kamen, Little Reviews

"Lively . . . Impressive."—John T. Wing, Historian

Selected as an Outstanding Academic Title 2015 by Choice

"The first global empire, a master historian, and a wealth of new archival documents provide the essential elements for this terrific biography of Philip II as both statesman and man. Parker has brought Philip to life and, with him, the challenges of ruling an early modern empire."—Stuart Schwartz, author of All Can Be Saved: Religious Tolerance and Salvation in the Iberian Atlantic World

"Geoffrey Parker, one of the world’s leading early modern scholars and, most certainly, the greatest authority on Philip II, has written a remarkable, erudite, thoroughly researched, and thoughtful book. Imprudent King benefits from the exhaustive research undertaken for his monumental, ‘definitive’ study of Philip II published in Spanish, but Parker’s deployment of close to 3,000 new documents permits a very different understanding of Philip II’s successes and failures. This, together with Parker’s unique gift as a historian, makes Imprudent King a profound, original and engaging new interpretation of the king’s life and of the manner in which he wrestled with the almost hopeless task of managing the first truly world empire."—Teofilo F. Ruiz, author of Spanish Society, 1400-1600

From the Publisher

"This is no mere updating of Parker's previous work on Philip, though. It is the consummate biography of the king, the mature reflection of a master historian at the height of his craft writing about the subject he knows best."—MHQ: The Quarterly Journal of Military History

MHQ: The Quarterly Journal of Military History

"Lively . . . Impressive."—John T. Wing, Historian

Historian - John T. Wing

"The research . . . is astoundingly thorough and impressive. The writing is superb. . . . This biography is as definitive as 'definitive' can get. And, best of all, it's as splendid a book as one could ever hope to read."—Carlos Eire, Books & Culture

Books & Culture - Carlos Eire

Selected as an Outstanding Academic Title 2015 by Choice

Choice

‘…Parker has managed to navigate the archival whirlpools with remarkable flair. His admiration for his subject is evident on almost every page, yet the book is no whitewash. We are constantly made aware of the possibility that Philip might be deceiving us…’—Fernando Cervantes, TLS.

TLS - Fernando Cervantes

'He is at pains to know Philip through the testimony of his friends, foes, courtiers and his own words and this authoritative, intelligently revisionist biography must stand now as the primary reference.'—Iain Finlayson, The Times

The Times - Iain Finlayson

“Parker’s highly detailed but also immensely readable book has come far closer to that than any previous account of the most enigmatic of Spanish kings.”—Anthony Pagden, New York Times Book Review on The Grand Strategy of Philip II

New York Times Book Revier - Anthony Pagden

'There is no Anglophone historian who knows more about Philip II than Geoffrey Parker. In this soaring biography, which draws on a cache of recently discovered documents as well as the enormous back catalogue of archival deposits, he paints a compelling, even-handed portrait of the most powerful man in 16th-century Europe. Parker informs us that Philip’s handwriting is hard to read. It is no easier to decipher his legacy. It seems that he didn’t kill his son Don Carlos (whatever the Verdi opera tries to tell you) but he was not averse to removing other obstacles. He continues to fascinate –- if you are in the market for a nuanced study bolstered by a lifetime of study, Parker is your man and this is, for me, the historical biography of the year.'—Jonathan Wright, The Herald (Scotland)

The Herald (Scotland) - Jonathan Wright

"[T]he world’s outstanding historian of Philip II, his court, his problems and tragedies. . . Imprudent King is readable and broad-minded, as well as being scholarly. . . Parker has given us a really magnificent biography, whose documentation is impeccable while never heavy."—Hugh Thomas, The Spectator

The Spectator - Hugh Thomas