Charles (V)

Charles V (1500–1558) was a Habsburg ruler who became King of Spain (as Charles I) in 1516 and Holy Roman Emperor in 1519. He inherited a vast composite monarchy spanning Spain and its overseas empire, the Low Countries, parts of Italy, and Austrian lands. His reign was marked by near-constant conflict: wars with France, pressure from the Ottoman Empire, and the upheaval of the Protestant Reformation within the Empire. He presided over the Diet of Worms (1521) and later sought religious settlement through imperial policy. In 1556 he abdicated, dividing his realms between Philip II of Spain and Ferdinand I, and retired to the Monastery of Yuste.