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| Otto von Habsburg, Charles V, trans. Michael Ross (London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1970) |
Reprinted from The War for Christendom ~ Center for Legitimist Documentation
By Matthew Scarince
Born on the eve of the cultural and political upheaval of the sixteenth century, Charles V inherited a vast and wide-reigning authority as King of Spain and Holy Roman Emperor that few men in history have ever rivaled. Dr. Otto von Habsburg, a descendant of Charles and heir of the last Habsburg emperor, prefaces his renowned ancestor’s 1967 biography by stating “later centuries were incapable of grasping Charles V’s conception of the world.” Nevertheless, Habsburg argues that challenges facing Europe in the present day are similar enough to the cultural revolution of the sixteenth century that “Charles V, once regarded as the last fighter in a rearguard action, is suddenly seen to have a been a forerunner.” Throughout the book he explores the relevance of the deeply Catholic and chivalric vision of Christendom that motivated Charles’ reign. It might seem easy to accuse the author of a favorable bias towards his subject, an accusation from which the book is not entirely immune. However, such an accusation ignores the real awareness of Charles’s vision that Habsburg gains from his concrete understanding of his own familial tradition. Otto von Habsburg’s Charles V offers a brilliant insight into the world and worldview of the history-shaping emperor, yet its lack of primary source citations and heavy reliance on secondary sources render it more of an introduction to its subject, and not, as seems to have been intended, an analytic biography.
The focal point of Habsburg’s Charles V is Charles’ vision as a ruler and how that vision was consistently acted upon in the rapidly changing world of sixteenth-century Europe. Contrary to the political philosophy of Machiavelli prevalent among rulers of that era, Habsburg confidently states that Charles “saw the state, politics, and war through the eyes of a knight, an emperor, and a Christian”. While these ideals seem in some way bound to the Middle Ages and out of place in the modern world, Habsburg maintains that the emperor’s “conception corresponds to the fundamental principles rooted in human nature,” principles which are relevant to any age. Thus, the central argument of the biography is to show how these principles, identified as honor, justice, and devotion to the Catholic faith, were practiced and upheld by Charles throughout his life. More than simply a figure of historical interest, Charles is presented as an exemplar for modern political leaders, especially those seeking a supranational European unity as the solution to the crises of the twentieth century. Continue reading
