Maria of Austria, Holy Roman Empress (1528-1603)

Maria of Austria was one of the longest surviving Renaissance Empresses but until now has received little attention by biographers. This book explores her life, actions, and management of domestic affairs, which became a feared example of how an Empress could control alternative spheres of power.

Autorentext

Rubén González Cuerva is Permanent Scientist at the CSIC, Madrid. He has published on the diplomacy and courts of the Habsburgs, including Baltasar de Zúñiga, una encrucijada de la Monarquía hispana (2012) and (with Alexander Koller) A Europe of Courts, a Europe of Factions (2017).

Inhalt

1. Infanta Maria: A Discreet Childhood (1528-1539) 2. The Orphan Learning at Court (1539-1548) 3. The Exercise of Authority: Marriage and the Iberian Regency (1548-1551) 4. The Queen of Bohemia Fighting for her Own Space (1552-1564) 5. Empress Consort, Discreet Mediator (1564-1576) 6. The Uncertain Role of the Dowager Empress (1576-1581) 7. Establishing an Imperial Household in Madrid (1581-1587) 8. The Empress without an Empire and the Dynastic Turn (1587-1598) 9. New Opportunities? The Reign of Philip III (1598-1603) 10. Conclusions