Don John of Austria

Don John of Austria (February 24, 1547 - October 1, 1578), also known as Juan De Austria and Don Juan de Austria, was an illegitimate son of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. "Don" is a Spanish honorific, akin to "Mister" in English, and is not a name (or an abbreviation of "Donald"). Don Juan was a military leader; his most famous victory was at the naval Battle of Lepanto in 1571.

Related Topics:
Don - February 24 - 1547 - October 1 - 1578 - Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor - Battle of Lepanto

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Born in Regensburg, Germany, the progeny of a liaison between Charles and Barbara Blomberg, a burgher's daughter, Don John was raised anonymously in Spain as Jerónimo, nicknamed Jeromín. In obedience to Charles' testement, Philip II of Spain recognised Don Juan as a half-brother, give him an income and the title of Infante. Philip desired that Don John enter the Church, but was unable to stem the latter's enthusiasm for a military career. Don John's first engagement in 1568 was against Barbary pirates; its success resulted in his appointment as the leader of the Spanish forces ranged against the Morisco rebellions in Granada.

Related Topics:
Regensburg - Germany - Barbara Blomberg - Burgher - Spain - Philip II of Spain - Infante - Church - Military - 1568 - Barbary pirate - Morisco - Granada

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In 1571, at the height of Don John's prestige, Philip set him at the head of the navy of the so-called "Holy League" pitted against the Ottoman Empire. Don John, by dint of leadership ability and charisma, was able to unite this disparate coalition and inflict a historic defeat upon the Turks at the Battle of Lepanto in 1571.

Related Topics:
1571 - Navy - Holy League - Ottoman Empire - Turks - Battle of Lepanto

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This victory fired Don John's ambitions, but Philip was loath to allow his bastard half-brother too prominent a stature in European politics. Philip appointed him governor of the Spanish Netherlands in 1576, hoping that the office would at once appease his ambitions and limit their scope; Don John resisted the appointment and only accepted it on the understanding that he would be allowed to marry Mary I of Scotland, then held captive in England, by invading and staging a "liberation" of England.

Related Topics:
Governor - Spanish Netherlands - 1576 - Mary I of Scotland - England

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His entanglement in Dutch politics and a deteriorating relationship with Philip frustrated his plans and he died in Bouges, near Namur (in present-day Belgium) in 1578.

Related Topics:
Dutch - Bouges - Namur - Belgium - 1578

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Preceded by:Luis de Zúñiga y Requesens

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Governors of the Habsburg Netherlands

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Succeeded by:Alessandro Farnese, Duke of Parma and Piacenza

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