Philip II was born on May 21st, 1527 in Vallalodid. He was the only Legitimate son of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, and his wife Isabella of Portugal. His father was a very influential man, and ruled over one of the most extensive empires the world had ever known. It included the Holy Roman Empire, Spain, Naples, the Netherlands, and numerous other territories. Because of this Philip was born into a life of prestige and luxury. As a boy he was athletic and intelligent, and excelled in his private lessons. His father considered him to have great potential, and later bequeathed the Spanish throne to Philip in 1556, along with many other areas such as Holland and the New World; whereas he gave the Holy Roman Empire to Philip's uncle Ferdinand I. Soon after being crowned, Philip sought to expand the Spanish empire and proceeded to take over several areas in the name of Spain. Among the first territories Philip took over was Portugal. He did this by marrying his first wife, and cousin Maria Manuela of Portugal. The marraige also gave him control over other large territories in south America, in what is now Brazil. Sadly his wife died soon after the birth of his firstborn son Carlos. Although Carlos was Philip's first legitimate son, he wouldn't be considered a plausible heir. Carlos was mentally and physically deformed. For many years Carlos was taken care of and recognized as Philip's son. However, things eventually became so bad that Philip locked his son in a dungeon, where he soon died. He later went on to further expand the Spanish Empire by marrying his second wife, Mary I, the Queen of England. This, of course, gave him control over England as well. Mary was, like Philip, a devout Catholic that had overthrown the original heir to the English throne, Lady Jane Grey. Being an avid Catholic, she had oveer 300 religious dissenters publicly burned at the stake. This earned her the nickname Bloody Mary. Four years after their marraige, Mary died during an outbreak of influenza, which ultimately ended in the loss of the king's control of England. Philip later built a very formiddable navy and proceeded to seize control of many different territories, such as the Philipines, which he named after himself. However, inheriting and seizing control over so much land earned a person many enemies. There were many wars waged against the Spanish Empire during Philip's reign. To avoid even more unnecessary conflict, Philip took on a third wife, Elisabeth Valois of France. The marraige solidified the treaty of Cateau Cambresis, signaling the end of the Italian Wars. Again, however the marraige was short lived as died during a childbirth. Frustratingly, after watching three wives die consecutively the King of Spain still had yet to be presented with an heir to his throne. He proceeded to marry again soon after the death of his third wife in hopes of recieving an heir. Philip married his niece, and most beloved wife Anna of Austria. Together they had five children, including Philip III, the only child of the King's to live to adulthood and heir to the Spanish Empire. Though recieveing an heir was an urgent matter, Philip II also sought to combat the growth of the Protestant Reformation. This proved to be far more difficult after his second wife's death as the new Queen of England was a supporter of the Protestants and no friend of Philip's. Early on, Philip tried to maintain his alliance with England, even sending Queen Elizabeth a marraige proposal, which was denied. Nonetheless, Philip still tried to support Elizabeth and stay in England's good graces by defending the Queen against the Pope's threats of excommunication. Regrettably, however, England began a series of piracies on Spanish ships, and posed a serious threat to cargo being shipped in from the New World. The Queen of england also signed the Treaty of Nonsuch in 1585. The treaty obligated her to assist rebels in the Netherlands, one of Spain's territories. Philip was outraged by what he called "Unforgiveable and ungrateful treachery". He formed the daunting elite Spanish Armada, one of the most imposing military establishments known to man, and sent them out to sea to wage war on England. Unfortunately for Philip, just as they passed through the English channel a storm swept away many men. They still proceeded to Emgland, but were ultimately defeated and forced to abandon the invasion. He later sent two more armadas to take England, but failed again. He eventually rebuilt the Spanish navy and even distributed pension to the men who returned and compensation for the families of men who didn't. Philip died on september 13, 1598.