Emperor Charles V, impresario of war : campaign strategy, international finance, and domestic politics

Emperor Charles V (1500-1558) Asserted His Princely Authority By Deciding At Times To Lead His Own Armies To War, Despite The Misgivings Of Advisers. But Because Europe's Wars Were Fought With Money Borrowed Against Future Revenues, Even An Emperor Had To Share Power With His Bankers And His Parliaments. This Book Examines All Three Dimensions Of European Warfare. Charles's Role As Commander In Chief Is Evaluated By Measuring The Strategic Aims Of His Personal Campaigns. The Process By Which Bankers Took Control Of The Finances Of The Habsburg Lands Becomes Clear From An Examination Of Where The Money Came From To Pay For Charles's Campaigns. Finally, A Comparison Of The Realms That Provided Most Of Charles's Revenues - Castile, Naples, And Three Low Countries Provinces - Shows How Some Parliamentary Bodies, If Not All, Successfully Pursued Long-term Local Interests By Exploiting The Dynasty's Need For Money.--jacket. Pt. 1. Strategy And Finance. 1. The Grand Strategy Of Charles V. 2. The Habsburg-valois Struggle: Italy, 1515-1528. 3. The Search For Revenue, I: The Hard Roads Of Fiscal Reform. 4. The Search For Revenue, Ii: Parliamentary Subsidies. 5. The Search For Credit: Charles And His Bankers -- Pt. 2. Impresario Of War: Charles's Campaigns, 1529-1552. 6. Finding Uses For An Army: Charles In Italy, 1529-1530. 7. Crusades In Austria And The Mediterranean, 1532-1535. 8. Failures In Provence And At Prevesa And Algiers, 1536-1541. 9. Charles's Grand Plan, 1543-1544. 10. The First Schmalkaldic War, 1546-1547. 11. The Second Schmalkaldic War And The Assault On Metz, 1552. James D. Tracy. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 317-327) And Index. This book examines the three dimensions of European warfare, based on the campaigns of Emperor Charles V (1500-1558). Charles's role as commander-in-chief is evaluated by measuring his strategic aims. The process by which bankers took control of the finances of the Habsburg lands becomes clear from an examination of the source of the money to pay for Charles's campaigns. Finally, a comparison of the realms that provided most of Charles's revenues shows how some parliamentary bodies successfully pursued long-term local interests by exploiting the dynasty's need for money. Before taking up the campaigns that are the central topic of this book, some general considerations about why Charles went to war and how he paid for his campaigns are in order.