R. A. Stradling Knihy

Madrid. 21 cm. 510 p. Encuadernación en tapa blanda de editorial ilustrada. Colección 'Historia. Serie menor'. Stradling, R. A. 1942-. Traducción de Carlos Laguna. Traducción Phlip IV and the government of Spain, 11621-1665. Rey de España. 1621-1665 (Felipe IV). Historia (Ediciones Cátedra). Serie menor .. Este libro es de segunda mano y tiene o puede tener marcas y señales de su anterior propietario. 8437608236

The book provides a detailed narrative of the armada's combat history over a century, emphasizing the strategic and logistical aspects of policymaking in Madrid. It explores the political implications of maritime policy and examines the dynamics between Madrid and its subordinate headquarters in Brussels, highlighting the interconnectedness of military actions and political decisions.

This book concentrates on the political history of the reign of Philip IV, and the role of the king within it. Philip is kept near the forefront, and issues and events are often seen - if sometimes critically - from his viewpoint. It is, therefore, a work of revision and rehabilitation, representing an attempt (against all other extant accounts) to establish Philip IV as a positive figure, with an autonomous character and political identity. A secondary, supportive, intention is to demonstrate that after the fall of Olivares, the king ruled and governed without a favourite (valido). This is the central theme in the most detailed treatment of the second half of the reign available in any language. Reference is made throughout to Philip's own words and actions. At the same time, the Olivares period itself is approached from a new perspective, some issues being examined with the use of new material. Although not intended as a conventional biography, the book retains several characteristics of the form, in that it is a 'career-study', part thematic, part chronological. Philip IV is examined also in relation to the political writing of the age, and to his court and capital in Madrid.