Archduke Charles of Austria (1607–1632)

For other people named Archduke Charles of Austria, see Archduke Charles of Austria (disambiguation).

Portrait of the infante Don Carlos by Diego Velázquez, 1626/27

Charles of Austria (15 September 1607 – 30 July 1632) was infante of Spain, the second son of Philip III of Spain and Margaret of Austria.

Life

Charles was the younger brother of Philip IV and as long as the King remained childless was heir to the Spanish throne. Charles was never a friend of Philip's favourite and prime minister, the Count-Duke of Olivares, and though he was uninterested in politics, he was used by various nobles in attempts to overthrow Olivares.

During his brother's severest illness, Charles was on the point of ascending the throne but Philip recovered and in 1629 finally fathered a son, Balthasar Charles. This dissipated Charles' political importance completely.

Charles was one of the era's most enigmatic characters due to his strange and possibly unhealthy personality. He died in 1632, aged 25. Francisco de Quevedo dedicated a sonnet entitled The Burial of the Most Serene Infante Don Carlos to this event.

Ancestors

Charles's ancestors in three generations

Archduke Charles of Austria	Father: Philip III of Spain, II of Portugal	Father's father: Philip II of Spain, I of Portugal	Father's father's father: Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
			Father's father's mother: Isabella of Portugal
		Father's mother: Anna of Austria	Father's mother's father: Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor
			Father's mother's mother: Maria of Spain
	Mother: Margaret of Austria	Mother's father: Charles II, Archduke of Austria	Mother's father's father: Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor
			Mother's father's mother: Anna of Bohemia and Hungary
		Mother's mother: Maria Anna of Bavaria	Mother's mother's father: Albert V, Duke of Bavaria
			Mother's mother's mother: Anna of Austria