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Spain - Philip II: When Charles abdicated his various lands (1555–56), Philip II (1556–98) succeeded to all his father’s dominions except Germany. His empire in Europe, now without the imperial title, was still only a loose union of independent states recognizing the same head.
Philip II is considered one of the greatest sovereigns in the History of Spain in terms of leading global exploration and colonial expansion across the Atlantic and the Pacific, and became for a time the foremost global power.
Philip II, Spanish Felipe, (born May 21, 1527, Valladolid, Spain—died Sept. 13, 1598, El Escorial), King of Spain (1556–98) and of Portugal (as Philip I, 1580–98).
Philip regarded the totalitarian claim of mono-denominationalism as the most important basis of his rule. Under his rule Spain became the tutelary power of the Catholic Counter-Reformation. This was implemented with the utmost cruelty, with the result that even today the Spanish Inquisition is synonymous with intolerance and terror.
Philip II (21 May 1527 – 13 September 1598), also known as Philip the Prudent ( Spanish: Felipe el Prudente ), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from 1580, and King of Naples and Sicily from 1554 until his death in 1598.
1527 - 1598. Born in 1527, Philip became King of Spain on the abdication of his father Charles V. He ruled over a unified Spain and all its dominions in the New World, as well as the Netherlands and Naples and Sicily.