Diego Velázquez: Portrait of king Philip IV of Spain (1635-1636)

(Museo del Prado, Madrid, Spain)

A painting by the Spanish artist Diego Velázquez (1599-1660). King Philip IV of Spain (1605-1665) was the son of king Philip III of Spain and Margaret of Austria. Although Spain still was a huge empire, the rule of Philip IV was characterized by political and military decay and adversity. The most notable losses were Portugal (which was conquered by king Philip II of Spain during the War of the Portuguese Succession) in 1640 and the Netherlands in 1648 which was fighting its was of independence from Spain since 1568. Philip IV was a major patron of the arts but was unable to achieve successful domestic and military reforms. Philip IV first married with Elisabeth of France and after her death with his niece Mariana of Austria. He was succeeded by his son Charles II who had physical and mental disabilities as a result of the inbreeding by his family. His son died childless and after his death the War of the Spanish Succession with the next Spanish king coming from the French House of Bourbon which still rules Spain this day. This painting comes from a series of equestrian portraits for the Hall of Realms, originally a wing of the Buen Retiro Palace in Madrid. Painting from 1635-1636.