Table of Contents
Introduction
For many centuries, the life of Carlos II had not been further studied and his image as the king of Spain had been tainted by the events that came after his death in 1700. It wasn’t until recently after the advancement of the study of genetics and the revision of Carlos II of Spain’s life, that further analysis has been made regarding his misunderstood reign, his death, and the extent of his role in the events that occurred in Spain after his death.
Felipe IV and Mariana of Austria had not been the first in the Spanish Habsburg Dynasty to take part in a consanguineous marriage, and in fact this had taken place for over 300 years before them (NCBI). For generations, marriages between cousins and uncles and nieces were common to provide political stability for individuals already in power. Inbreeding also ensured that those in power shared their own power, riches, and throne only with those who were related to them.
This affected the Spanish Habsburg lineage and led to various effects for the dynasty not only genetically but also physically culminating in its final product: Carlos II. Unfortunately for this monarch, the effects of inbreeding would not just exist genetically within, but also physically, visible to their subjects.
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Carlos II of Spain was only 4 years old in 1665 when his father passed away and he took the throne. His mother took charge as his regent until Carlos II came of age in 1675. Throughout his childhood however, the young prince had suffered much for he lacked the education a king was supposed to have. According to Luis Ribot from the Real Academia de la Historia, Carlos II had “the lack of the necessary education in order for him to be king” and faced much difficulty throughout his childhood when it came to basic actions such as speaking, writing, reading, and walking.
Although he was the king, Carlos II left much of the management of Spain to his royal court, to the Duke of Medinaceli, the Count of Oropesa, and the Cardenal Fernandez de Portocarrero. Although the king did make decisions for his kingdom throughout his reign historical accounts state that it was very difficult for him to even walk most of the time.
During his reign various events occurred in Europe including a war against France in which Luxembourg was lost and the French invasion of Catalonia in 1891. Through the treaty of Ryswick, however, there came a possibility that the Spanish throne could possibly be taken over by France. At the time of Carlos’s reign the Spanish military simple did not have enough resources nor men to take care of this. This downfall of the military however had already been occurring during Felipe V’s reign and the Spanish monarchy had remained resilient throughout these years persevering even through the supposed lousy rule of Carlos II.
During Carlos II’s lifetime and hundreds of years after his death, not much was really known about genetics or the effects inbreeding may have had on both the genome and phenome of an individual.
In his essay regarding Genetics, Eugene Chapman uses layman terms to describe inbreeding as the mating between relatives. Scientifically, inbreeding is a “mating system in which individuals carry alleles that originated from a common ancestor. This allows for a much higher possibility of a damaging recessive allele to be inherited. These recessive alleles may lead for an individual to be born with serious physical and mental deformities. According to Heather E. Lorimer from Youngstown State University, one of the reasons we do not have many genetic diseases is because during sexual reproduction, the alleles of genes are being shuffled. If these alleles are not shuffled because both parents are related, then inbreeding depression may come as a result. This depression is defined as the decrease of a population’s chances of surviving includes various physical health and mental health defects. Two of these possible defects include the reduced fertility in sperm viability and fluctuating asymmetry such as crooked faces and uneven eye placement. As of now, scientists have gained a partial understanding of all the possible effects of inbreeding, and much more is being done, but during Carlos II’s life, not much was known about the physical effects of inbreeding on a person’s genes.
The physical and mental deformities of Carlos II affected the way he was viewed throughout Spain. Because of his physical ailments, many believed that he was cursed. He became known as “the Bewitched” throughout Spain and even he believed himself to be cursed agreeing to take part in exorcisms that would prove to be unsuccessful for the king who was not suffering from a mysterious curse, but instead was suffering from the effects of inbreeding.
The physiological effects caused by inbreeding in Carlos II affected the perspective not only of his royal court and his subjects, but also affected the perspective of him from others around Europe regarding him and his capability not only to rule but to produce an heir. The king had already married once and had produced no heirs that would take the throne. His second marriage also produced no heirs leaving the Spanish Habsburg Dynasty at the brink of extinction. This affected the condition in Spain after his death because this lack of a direct heir directly contributed to the struggle for power in Spain after Carlos II’s death contributing to what would later become the “War for the Succession of the Spanish Throne.”
Despite of the king having already had chosen a successor, the doubts of his subjects influenced the ignoring of his wishes for 12 years.
Felipe V was named successor of Carlos II in his will however, this decision was rejected by other European powers including Austria in which, Leopold I feared the potential power that would arise if France and Spain formed an alliance.
There was division regarding the ruling of Spain which directly contributed to the civil war that arose after the death of Carlos II. According to history teacher and collaborator of unProfesor.com Juana Moreno, the division in Spain arose as two sides were taken. On one hand there were the kingdoms who declared themselves supporters of the old crown of Aragon. These included Aragon, Catalonia, Valencia, and Mallorca. The rest of Spain seemed to support the king’s chose successor, Felipe V.
The Unfortunate Life of King Carlos II
Carlos II came as a blessing to the Spanish throne which was already experiencing a downfall at the time of his birth. Carlos II was born on Sunday, November 6, 1661 appearing to be, “a robust male, of very beautiful features, proportionate head, black hair, and somewhat pudgy,” according to the Gaceta de Madrid published after the prince’s birth. This description seemed to outline the beautiful features of a young and healthy king that would continue his family lineage in the throne. Despite of this positive article written about the king by the Spanish Gazette, the prince’s issues seemed to be highlighted and emphasised by the ambassador of France who in his letter to Luis XIV wrote, “ The prince appears to be very weak, shows sign of degeneration, has gum boils on his cheeks, has a head full of scabs, and his neck oozes…[Carlos II] is scary as ugly.” This statement demonstrates the great contrast between the information that was given to the public regarding the prince and his health conditions and the information that was sent out by ambassadors and royal subjects who were able to visit and see the prince themselves.
Carlos II was a necessity for the Spanish throne for he had become the only living male heir of the dynasty. He was born 5 days after his brother Prospero died and his birth became an interest for other European powers who were interested in the possible rise of a new Spanish heir. His physical deformities became clear through rumours surrounding the royal court and rumours spread by royal ambassadors. For example, according to the text in a letter sent to the Austrian imperial ambassador in Madrid, it stated, “They say quite clearly, among other things, that they do not think Spain has a prince, because he is not male but female.” This statement alongside other historical accounts have been used to hypothesise and conclude the genetic and physical conditions the king may have suffered from. The worry after his birth became very extreme and, through the fear of there being no future heir to the Spanish throne other European rulers, Louis XIV of France and Leopold I of Austria had already stablished a pact that involved the distribution of territories in case the prince died. The survival of the king however disturbed these plans, yet before his death it would be clear that there would be intervention of other European powers which all wanted a piece of the royal inheritance left behind by Carlos II.
Various children had been born from the marriage between Carlos II’s parents however only Carlos II and Margarita Teresa survived. The childhood of Carlos II was marked by the death of his father alongside his recurring illnesses and physical defects. According to an article by Fiona Govan of “The Telegraph”, in a study conducted by Gonzalo Alvarez of the University of Santiago de Compostela, it was found that nine out of 11 marriages over the course of 200 years before Carlos II between close relatives, mostly cousins, nieces and uncles. According to Alvarez this would produce a small gene pool that made rare genetic illnesses more prevalent. Moreover, through this study, it was found that only about half of the children in the Spanish Habsburg dynasty survived past their first year. In Spain this percentage was an 80 % at the time according to Alvarez.
By the time Carlos II was four years old, his father had passed away and his mother had been named his regent. She would be assisted by a Regency Board composed of 6 members. Despite of him being a royal, Carlos II did not receive the education a royal child needed in order to grow up to become a king. Queen Mariana named Francisco Ramos del Manzano as official instructor of the future king, according to an essay by Adolfo Martinez Ruiz from the University of Granada. This caused for Del Manzano to become one of the most influential members of the royal court, however his teachings did not aid the young prince in his studies. According to
By the time, Carlos II’s father had passed away, Spain and the Spanish throne were already in decline, therefore the conditions of Spain after the death of Carlos II should not be directly attributed to him. Before Carlos II was even born Spain had already faced the 30 Years War which caused the death of over 8 million people all over Europe. In addition, during his father’s reign, Spain had experienced a military power decline in which it suffered from revolts and rebellions that tarnished Felipe IV’s reign until his death in 1665.
Professor Philip Van Kerrebroeck (urology) from the University of Maastricht, hypothesised that Carlos II suffered from, “posterior hypospadias, monorchism, and an atrophic testicle. He probably had an intersexual state with ambiguous genitalia, and a congenital mono-kidney with stones and infections.” This clinical hypothesis was supported by the autopsy performed on Carlos the II in which the following results came about: “…A very small heart, lungs corroded, intestines putrefactive and gangrenous, three large stones in the [!] kidney, a single testicle black as coal, and his head full of water.”
Kerrebroeck gave several possible diagnoses for the physical conditions of Carlos II. He concluded that the king may have suffered from a combination of sexual inversion a fragile x syndrome. These may have caused many of the unbelievable symptoms Carlos II may have suffered at the time.
At the time of Carlos II, this autopsy supported the idea that the king was cursed and that the curse was the cause of all his misfortune both physically and as a ruler. Carlos II really lacked the physical and mental capabilities to be able to rule Spain effectively and many of the failures Spain experienced during his reign can be attributed to not only him but also to his mother and the royal court that was present at the time.
It is not unreasonable nor invalid to claim that Carlos II was an inefficient king, however this belief should also be influenced by the actions all of those around him took during his reign. It is also important to not ignore the failures of Carlos II’s predecessors including those of his father and his grandfather. By the time Carlos II became king at the age of 4 after his father’s death, the Spanish state was already in a state of decay. Spain had already suffered from Felipe IV’s conclusion of the Peace of Pyrenees with France, which proved to be extremely detrimental for Spain since the conclusion of the treaty led to the loss of European dominance in favour of France. At this point France had experienced a triumph over Spain. When King Felipe IV died in 1665, the Great Power Spain was known as was left in the hands of the future King Carlos II and his regent Mother, Queen Mariana.
Carlos II was not physically nor mentally capable of being the king of Spain. As regent, his mother nor the Regency board were capable of effectively running Spain either. The opinion of the unfortunate king was also influenced by his physical looks which according to many were hideous. Because of his looks, many thoughts that the king was cursed by the devil himself.
According to Luis Ribot, from The Real Academia de la Historia states in his article, “The reign of Carlos II is one of the periods of our History most deformed by myths, whose strength has been so great that, until a few years ago, we were very few historians that we were interested in him. Why study something whose general characteristics were taken for granted a priori. The myth of decadence was so great and the appeal of the King so scarce that many studies on the Habsburg era ended around 1665 and numerous Stories of Spain, written by prestigious Spanish and foreign historians, passed over the dark embers years, eager to connect as soon as possible with 1700 and the arrival to the throne of the first Bourbon king.” For many centuries, Carlos II has been overlooked as just another ineffective ruler in history, however his misfortunes both physical and mental played a great role in the conditions that arose in Spain after his death. The lack of an heir directly influenced the power struggle between other European Powers after the king’s death for there were fears that a union between powers would cause for there to be another dominion of Europe.
According to Ribot, the myth of the bewitched king is “unjust for it bases itself on some events that are very concrete of the end of the reign, in addition to a culture that broadly believed in such trickery.” I agree with Ribot, and of course this perspective is biased, however it is based on the now known knowledge of the possible effects of inbreeding.
It is clear that at least one of the physiological effects in Carlos II, one which resulted after generations of consanguineous marriage, had an obvious effect on Spain. Carlos II was sterile and left no heir to the throne despite of having been married twice. His sterility brought into question the sovereignty of Spain, yet not all the conditions in Spain should directly be attributed to him. It is unjust to accuse this man as a lousy ruler by his own terms since much of the damage and decay that Spain faced can be traced back to generations before him. Throughout his father’s reign, Spain had already experienced a grave decay, having already gone through a war that saw the country lose various territories and must accept the annexation of one of his territories. The actions Carlos II are not justified; however, they may be somewhat explained by his mental and physical disabilities.
The war for the Spanish Succession took place not because he had left no direct heir, but because a part of his royal court disagreed with the decision he took before his death. A month before, his death, Carlos II had already chosen Felipe V as his successor naming him successor in his will. Before choosing Felipe V as successor, Carlos II already had chosen Jose Fernando Maximiliano of Bavaria as his successor, however Jose Fernando happened to pass away before Carlos II himself. The death of Jose Fernando created disputes over the succession to the Spanish throne, for although Carlos II firmly believed that the support of France would allow for the conservation of the Spanish throne, this worried other European rulers including Leopold I of Austria, who feared that an alliance between Spain and France would be able to overpower his own power.
Conclusion
Although the history of Carlos II was overlooked for many centuries especially through the various mythical beliefs of him being a cursed man, historians and scientists have begun to take notice of the man and the various things he could possibly teach us about physiology, history, and psychology. Carlos II was undoubtedly an ineffective king in the history of Spain, however this ineffectiveness should not be directly attributed to him. The sole fact that based on many historical accounts, it is widely accepted that Carlos II suffered from both mental and physical disorders is not enough to justify many of the actions he took, however it is enough for it to be understood that the ineffectiveness of his rule was also affected by other factors that may have been out of his control.
The relatively recent rise of the studies concerning this historical figure allows us to further argue the importance of not ignoring history. When we ignore history, we may also be ignoring the things it may teach us about ourselves and our society. In the case of Carlos II, it wasn’t just the lack of knowledge regarding genetics that influenced the perspective people held about the king, but instead this perspective was also influenced by the great belief in myths in order to explain an event.
