Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 22.djvu/355

 PHILIP III. AND IV.] SPAIN 331 Austrian envoy at Madrid, and by the Spanish party, headed by Zuiiiga, which had always opposed the policy of Lerma. But neither Uzeda nor the royal confessor Aliaga was in favour of an alliance by which Spanish blood and treasure were to be expended in securing the Thirty interests of Austria. Philip III., however, was gained Years' over by an appeal to his religious feelings, and in January War - 1620 he undertook to send assistance in men and money to Ferdinand II. Thus Spain was involved in the Thirty Years' War, which had been commenced in 1618 by the revolt of Bohemia against Ferdinand, and the acceptance of the crown by the elector-palatine Frederick V. Spanish troops from Italy aided Tilly to win the battle of the White Hill, and Spinola led an army from the Netherlands against the Palatinate. But the party of peace was still strong in Spain. Frederick V. was the son-in-law of James I., and his complete humiliation would hinder the long-cherished project of a marriage between Prince Charles and the Spanish infanta. The truce with Holland would expire in April 1621, and if the war was to be resumed with the Dutch it was essential to isolate them by concluding the alliance with England. Moreover, the finances of Spain were by no means in a condition to support the extraordinary expenses of a European war. All these considerations pointed to peace, and Philip III. was on the point of recalling Lerma, when he died in March 1621. His reign had not been glorious or advantageous to Spain, but it contrasts favourably with those of his successors. Spanish literature and art, which had received a great impulse from the intercourse with foreign countries under previous rulers, reached their zenith during his lifetime. Three writers have obtained European fame Cervantes, who produced the immortal Don Quixote between 1605 and 1613, and two of the most fertile of romantic dramatists, Lope de Vega and Calderon. In the domain of art Spain produced two of the greatest masters of the 17th century, Velazquez and Murillo. Philip IV. The time which Philip III. had spent on his devotions was given by his successor to the more secular pleasures of hunting and the theatre. But Philip IV. shared to the full his father's disinclination to burden himself with the cares of government. The office of first minister was given to Zufiiga, the chief advocate of an aggressive policy in the late reign. Lerma and Uzeda were banished from the court. But the chief influence over the adminis- tration was exercised from the first by the royal favourite, the count of Olivares, who succeeded to Zuniga's office on the latter's death. Olivares was a man of considerable industry and ability, though his reputation has suffered from the inevitable comparison with his great contem- porary and rival, Richelieu. He conceived the plan of restoring Spain to its former greatness by returning to the policy of Philip II., regardless of the change in the internal resources of the country. All ideas of peace were abandoned, and Spain plunged headlong into the European struggle. The truce with the United Provinces was unpopular because the commercial progress of the Dutch was fatal to the trade of the Spanish Netherlands, and Amsterdam had already begun to take the place of Ant- werp. The expiration of the truce in April 1621 was followed by an immediate renewal of the war. To make the war successful it was imperative to secure the alliance with England, but this was sacrificed because the emperor insisted upon confiscating the Palatinate, which was conferred upon Maximilian of Bavaria. The match with the Spanish infanta was broken off, and Prince Charles married Henrietta Maria of France. The alienation of England was enough in itself to ensure the ultimate failure of the Dutch War. On the mainland the succes- sive stadtholders, Maurice and Frederick Henry, held their own even against the experienced Spinola, and after the latter's recall in 1629 had a distinct advantage. But it was by sea that the Dutch gained .their most con- spicuous successes. In 1628 the Spanish treasure-fleet was captured by Admiral Hein, whose booty was estimated at seven millions of guilders. The greater part of Brazil, together with Malacca, Ceylon, Java, and other islands, were conquered by the Dutch sailors. Instead of con- quering the northern provinces, Spain had to make great exertions to defend the frontiers of the southern Nether- lands. In central Europe the fortune of war was more favour- able to Spain and her allies. The crushing defeat of the elector-palatine was followed by the humiliation of the Protestant champion, Christian IV. of Denmark. Ferdi- nand II. enjoyed for a moment greater power than any other successor of Charles V., and the Edict of Restitution seemed to complete the triumph of the Catholic reaction in Germany. But the revival of the Hapsburg power awakened the jealousy of France, which in 1624 had fallen under the strong rule of Richelieu. The Spaniards had occupied the Valtelline, an important pass which connected Lombardy with Tyrol. A French army expelled the conquerors in 1624, and the treaty of Monc_on restored the pass to the community of the Orisons. For a time France was occupied with the suppression of a Huguenot rising, but no sooner had La Rochelle fallen than Richelieu again interfered to thwart the designs of Spain in the question of the Mantuan succession. The Spaniards endeavoured to exclude the duke of Nevers, the rightful heir to the duchy, on account of his connexion with France. But Richelieu forced the Spanish troops to raise the siege of Casale, and ultimately extorted the treaty of Cherasco (1631), by which the emperor recognized the succession of the duke of Nevers in Mantua. The occupation of Pinerolo in this war gave the French an opening into Italy and threatened the ascendency which Spain had so long exercised in the Peninsula. Mean- while the victories of Gustavus Adolphus had destroyed the imperial and Catholic ascendency in Germany. The Spaniards were ignominiously driven from the positions which they occupied on the Rhine. The death of Gustavus Adolphus at Liitzen inspired the Roman Catholic powers with new hopes. Spain determined to strain every nerve to turn the tide of victory. Philip IV. 's brother Ferdinand, the cardinal- archbishop of Toledo, was sent to raise troops in Italy and to lead them through Germany into the Netherlands. In 1634 Ferdinand effected a junction with the imperial forces, and their combined efforts won a signal victory at Nordlingen. The Lutheran princes, headed by John George of Saxony, hastened to make terms with the emperor in the treaty of Prague (1635). The Swedes were left almost isolated in Germany, and a speedy termination of the war seemed inevitable. At this crisis Richelieu decided to embark in the war as a principal, and concluded a close alliance with the Dutch against Spain. For two or three years the new policy of France seemed likely to be attended with failure. The French troops, unaccustomed to war, were no match for the trained veterans of Spain. Not only were they repulsed from the Netherlands, but the cardinal-infant actually invaded France (1636) and inspired a panic in the capital itself. His success, however, was only temporary, and before long the superior policy of Richelieu gave France the upper hand. The occupation of Alsace, which fell into French hands after the death of Bernharcl of Saxe- Weimar, interrupted the connexion between the Nether- lands and Italy. In the latter peninsula the French