istorical/socio-political climate
The vihuela flourished in Spain most importantly during the rule of Charles V. and Philip II. In order to gain understanding and historical context of the vihuela, it is important to familiarize oneself with the social and political context. Vihuela appeared already earlier during the times of Isabel I. of Castille and Ferdinand II of Aragon, however, I decided not to focus so much on this, as the majority of printed sources and also my interest in the musical use of vihuela belongs to the 16th century.
Spain was at that time one of the most eminent countries in Europe, from a political perspective, but also culturally. We are speaking about a time of overseas discoveries, conquering distant territories of the New World, and also about renaissance and humanism, important movements. However, it is important to mention that this is a time of significant paradoxes. On one side we have amazing cultural development also known as Siglo de oro (The Golden Age) marked by big names such as writers Miguel de Cervantes, Lope de Vega, painters El Greco and Francisco Pacheco, and composers Cristóbal de Morales and Francisco Guerrero. On the other hand, Spain was suffering from financial decline ending with a declaration of bankruptcy. Despite all the problems, the 16th century was one of the most important historical eras determining the identity of Spain and how we know it today.
Charles V. (1500 - 1558) together with his son Philip II. are known as so-called Austrias Mayores (The Great Habsburgs), for several reasons. Firstly, two important ruling lines were connected: the members of the Habsburg family in Central Europe and Trastámaras in Spain, who ruled in Spain for two centuries. Also, the Iberian peninsula became one of the most wealthy and important powers of the western world. As Charles V. was the son of Philip I. of Castile (son of the Emperor Maximilian I.) and Joanna, Queen of Castile and Aragon (Also known as Juana la loca, daughter of Isabel I. of Castile and Ferdinand II. of Aragon), he inherited extensive possessions in Italy, in addition to the American continent (during Charles’s time, the conquerors took control of approximately two million square meters of the territory).3 Later these possessions were extended by the Low Countries and in combination with the extensive territory gained from the imperial crown resulted in the famous saying about Spanish countries of 16th century: “The Empire where the sun never sets.”4 This impressive extension of territory corresponds with the rich variety of cultures.
Charles was born in Gent and raised in Mechelen by his aunt Margaret of Austria, and up to the death of his grandfather Ferdinand II of Aragon, he lived outside the Spain. He appeared for the first time on the Iberian peninsula in 1517 escorted by the Flemish court and friends, who considered this journey mostly for great entertainment and the opportunity to gain lucrative posts in the Spanish court.5 Towards the Spanish nobility, this behavior was indeed provocative. Charles did not know the language and would not be ashamed to spend the treasuries' state money.6 After he became a Holy Roman Emperor, his intention was to defend Catholic Europe against the Protestant Movement, which was very strong during those years. Madrid and Vienna became Roman Catholic centers. Also within Spain, the movement of protecting the Catholic church and uniting the religion continued, as it had already started a few generations previously with the help of the ingloriously known Saint Inquisition. Charles V wanted to unify the Christian world against Muslims too, however several countries influenced by reform refused. For instance, King Francis I of France collaborated more with the Turkish sultan than with Charles. Despite this, an epoch commenced of long wars trying to retain this idea. One of the hardest battles was with King Francis I, who refused to consider Spanish dominance over Christian Europe. This ended in 1555 with the Peace of Augsburg, which resulted in the end of the religious struggle between the Holy Roman Empire and the Lutherans. The long wars affected the financial situation of Spain and during Charles's absence, some of the Spanish cities, led by Toledo, declared allegiance to the king. This notion was supported by several nobles and clerics, who were against the occupation of the post of archbishop of Toledo (the primas of the Spanish Church) by Flemish William de Croÿ. Charles was able to suppress the rebellion and absolutism started to be introduced.7
In the year 1556 Charles V abdicated. His son Philip II (1527 - 1598) inherited an indebted and unstable country due to the very expensive political decisions of his father. Due to this, Philip had to declare state bankruptcy three times during his reign. In many aspects, Philip was very different from his father. He was born in Valladolid and all his life he was surrounded by Spanish mentors and educators (for instance, cardinal Sílecio, Juan de Zuñiga, and others).8 His model of the Spanish court was very strict, fanatic, and almost isolated from the rest of Europe. His motto of “religion in the first place” and his political strategies were an example of uncompromising defense of the Catholic religion. Not only the court was isolated, Philip himself almost did not travel and he spent the majority of his life in his palace El Escorial. Spain started to close its borders against foreign influences. In 1599 the prohibition of studying in foreign universities was declared. Saint Inquisition controlled the cultural life completely and with a little bit of exaggeration, also the Inquisition experienced “The Golden Age”. Philip met with the opposition in the most wealthy part of the empire, the Low Countries, where a revolt started in 1566. Their primary refusals were high taxes and imposing Catholicism. Philip admitted his defeat and the recognition of the independence of the Low Countries became the end of Spanish hegemony in Europe.9 Philip II is known as a controversial and defaming ruler. One of the reasons for this is the so-called “Leyenda Negra”. This legend had an unfavorable impact on the Spanish monarchy in general. Two main sources were La brevísima relación de la destrucción de las Indias by Bartolomeo Casas and Apology by William the Silent, the main leader of the Dutch Revolt against the Spanish Habsburgs. This legend is related to the genocide during the conquest of America by Spanish conquistadors. They were fanatically spreading the Catholic religion and exterminating several Indigenous tribes.10 Despite all the enmity with the Low Countries, the Flemish influence is very notable, not only in music, as we can see in the vihuela books, where there is often an appearance of works by composers such as Josquin Despréz.
