Charles IV, duke of Lorraine

Charles IV, 1604–75, duke of Lorraine. He succeeded to the duchy in 1624 but was to lose it several times because of his anti-French policy. In 1633, French troops invaded Lorraine in retaliation for Charles's support of Gaston d'Orléans Orléans, Gaston, duc d' (gästôN` dük dôrlāäN`)
..... Click the link for more information. . Forced to make humiliating concessions to France, he abdicated (1634) in favor of his brother and entered the imperial service in the Thirty Years War. He briefly recovered his lands in 1641 and 1644, but he was excluded from the Peace of Westphalia (1648) at the war's conclusion. Although he joined the Spanish during the Fronde Fronde (frôNd), 1648–53, series of outbreaks during the minority of King Louis XIV, caused by the efforts of the Parlement of
..... Click the link for more information. , he communicated with the French government and as a result was imprisoned by the Spanish (1654–59). In 1661, at the price of heavy concessions to King Louis XIV, Charles recovered Lorraine and the duchy of Bar. Expelled once more by the French in 1670, Charles later helped to instigate the alliance of Spain and the Holy Roman emperor with the Dutch in the third of the Dutch Wars Dutch Wars, series of conflicts between the English and Dutch during the mid to late 17th cent. The wars had their roots in the Anglo-Dutch commercial rivalry, although the last of the three wars was a wider conflict in which French interests played a primary role.
..... Click the link for more information. . In 1675 he defeated François de Créquy at Konzer Bruck.

Charles IV, king of Spain

Charles IV, 1748–1819, king of Spain (1788–1808), second son of Charles III, whom he succeeded in place of his imbecile older brother. Unlike his father, Charles IV was an ineffective ruler and in 1792 virtually surrendered the government to Godoy Godoy, Manuel de (mänwĕl` dā gōthoi`), 1767–1851, Spanish statesman.
..... Click the link for more information. , his chief minister and the favorite of his wife, María Luisa. Spain entered the French Revolutionary Wars in 1793, but in 1795 made peace with France in the second Treaty of Basel. By the Treaty of San Ildefonso (1796) Spain allied itself with France and became involved in the war with England. It suffered major naval defeats at Cape St. Vincent (1797) and Trafalgar (1805). The convention of Fontainebleau (1807) precipitated the events leading to the Peninsular War Peninsular War, 1808–14, fought by France against Great Britain, Portugal, Spanish regulars, and Spanish guerrillas in the Iberian Peninsula.

Origin and Occupation

..... Click the link for more information. . As French troops marched on Madrid in Mar., 1808, a popular uprising led to a coup at Aranjuez; the king was forced to abdicate in favor of his son, Ferdinand VII Ferdinand VII, 1784–1833, king of Spain (1808–33), son of Charles IV and María Luisa . Excluded from a role in the government, he became the center of intrigues against the chief minister Godoy and attempted to win the support of Napoleon I.
..... Click the link for more information. . Napoleon I tricked both father and son into a meeting with him at Bayonne, France, and forced them to abdicate in turn. The royal family was held captive in France until 1814, while Joseph Bonaparte was king of Spain. Charles IV and his family have been frankly portrayed by Goya, one of their court painters.

Charles IV, king of France

Charles IV (Charles the Fair), 1294–1328, king of France (1322–28), youngest son of Philip IV, brother and successor of Philip V. Charles continued his brother's work of strengthening the royal power. He also increased the royal revenues, notably by debasing the coinage. Pope John XXII, having declared Holy Roman Emperor Louis IV deposed, offered (1324) to support Charles for emperor, but the plan came to nothing. Charles invaded (1324) Guienne (Aquitaine), a possession of the English king, and in 1327 he compelled England to cede to France the Guienne districts around Agen and Bazas and to pay a large indemnity. The English, however, retained the rest of Guienne. Charles, the last king of the Capetian dynasty, was succeeded by Philip VI, of the Valois line.

Charles IV, Holy Roman emperor

Charles IV, 1316–78, Holy Roman emperor (1355–78), German king (1347–78), and king of Bohemia (1346–78). The son of John of Luxemburg John of Luxemburg, 1296–1346, king of Bohemia (1310–46). The son of Holy Roman Emperor Henry VII , he married Elizabeth, sister of Wenceslaus III of Bohemia, and in 1310 he was chosen king of Bohemia, which had been in virtual anarchy since Wenceslaus's
..... Click the link for more information. , Charles was educated at the French court and fought the English at Crécy Crécy (krāsē`), officially Crécy-en-Ponthieu
..... Click the link for more information. , where his father's heroic death made him king of Bohemia. Pope Clement VI Clement VI, 1291–1352, pope (1342–52), a Frenchman named Pierre Roger; successor of Benedict XII. His court was at Avignon. He had been archbishop of Sens, archbishop of Rouen, and cardinal (1338).
..... Click the link for more information. , to whom he had promised far-reaching concessions, helped secure his election (1346) by the imperial electors as antiking to Holy Roman Emperor Louis IV Louis IV or Louis the Bavarian, 1287?–1347, Holy Roman emperor (1328–47) and German king (1314–47), duke of Upper Bavaria.
..... Click the link for more information. . Louis's death (1347), the popular desire for peace, which was fostered by the ravages of the Black Death (bubonic plague), and the absence of a strong leader to unite the opposition enabled Charles to make good his claim to the crown by 1349.

In 1355 he journeyed to Rome, where, on Easter Sunday, he was crowned emperor by the papal legate (the pope was then residing at Avignon). His coronation with papal approval ended years of conflict between popes and emperors, during which time the imperial rulers had tried to regain control of Italy and the papacy. Although the emperors continued to be crowned at Rome, they were excluded from Italian affairs. At the same time, Charles's Golden Bull of 1356 ended papal interference in the Holy Roman Empire by eliminating the need for papal approval and confirmation of emperors. Although he had virtually renounced imperial pretensions in Italy through his treaty with Clement VI, Charles supported the plans of Urban V Urban V, 1310–70, pope (1362–70), a Provençal named Guillaume de Grimoard; successor of Innocent VI. He was a Benedictine renowned for his knowledge of canon law.
..... Click the link for more information. to return the papacy from Avignon to Rome.

Charles's major concern was to strengthen his dynasty. Through skillful diplomacy he acquired Brandenburg (1373) and added to his territories in Silesia and Lusatia. He ensured the succession of his son Wenceslaus Wenceslaus, 1361–1419, Holy Roman emperor (uncrowned) and German king (1378–1400), king of Bohemia (1378–1419) as Wenceslaus IV, elector of Brandenburg (1373–76), son and successor of Emperor Charles IV.
..... Click the link for more information. by bribing the electors to name him German king (1376). To raise the money for the bribes, he imposed even higher taxes on the cities. This led to a revolt by a league of Swabian cities. Charles obtained peace (1378) by granting concessions.

During Charles's reign Bohemia flourished. His imperial capital was at Prague, where he founded (1348) Charles Univ. Charles University, at Prague, Czech Republic; also called Univ. of Prague. The oldest and one of the most important universities of central Europe, it was founded in 1348 by Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV, for whom it is named.
..... Click the link for more information. (the oldest in Central Europe) and rebuilt the Cathedral of St. Vitus. By introducing new agricultural methods and by expanding industries, he fostered economic life. He drew up a code of laws, the Maiestas Carolina (1350)—which, however, was rejected by the diet—and he protected the lower classes by giving them courts in which to sue their overlords. Through Charles's efforts as margrave of Moravia, Prague was elevated (1344) to an archbishopric, thus gaining ecclesiastic independence. By the Golden Bull, which strengthened the electors at the expense of the emperor, he confirmed Bohemia's internal autonomy. As Holy Roman emperor, his reputation rests mainly on the Golden Bull, which, although it confirmed the weakness of the imperial power, provided a stable constitutional foundation for its exercise.

Bibliography

See biographies by G. G. Walsh (1924) and B. Jarett (with a translation of Charles's autobiography, 1935).

Charles IV, king of Hungary

Charles IV, king of Hungary: see Charles I Charles I, 1887–1922, last emperor of Austria and, as Charles IV, king of Hungary (1916–18); son of Archduke Otto and grandnephew and successor of Emperor Francis Joseph. He married Zita of Bourbon-Parma.
..... Click the link for more information. , emperor of Austria.

Charles IV

known as Charles the Fair

(born 1294—died Feb. 1, 1328, Vincennes, Fr.) King of France and of Navarre (as Charles I) 1322–28. The last of the direct line of the Capetian dynasty, he took the throne on the death of his brother Philip V. His intrigues aimed at gaining the German throne and annexing Flanders were unsuccessful. He renewed war with England by invading Aquitaine and won a generous settlement in the peace of 1327.

Charles IV

orig. Wenceslas known as Charles of Luxembourg

(born May 14, 1316, Prague—died Nov. 29, 1378, Prague) King of the Germans and of Bohemia (1346–78) and Holy Roman emperor (1355–78). Charles was elected German king in place of Louis IV in 1346. That same year his father died in a war against England, and Charles became king of Bohemia. He invaded Italy and won the crown of Lombardy as well as the imperial crown at Rome. Charles enlarged his dynastic power through skillful diplomacy and made Prague the political and cultural center of the empire. He issued the Golden Bull of 1356 and won the right of succession to the German throne for his son Wenceslas.

Charles IV

Spanish Carlos

(born Nov. 11, 1748, Portici, Kingdom of Naples—died Jan. 20, 1819, Rome) King of Spain (1788–1808) during the turbulent period of the French Revolution. Son of Charles III, he lacked leadership qualities and entrusted the government to Manuel de Godoy. After a French invasion in 1794, Spain was reduced to the status of a French satellite. When Napoleon again occupied northern Spain in 1807, Charles was forced to abdicate (1808) and go into exile.

Charles IV

1. known as Charles the Fair. 1294--1328, king of France (1322--28): brother of Isabella of France, with whom he intrigued against her husband, Edward II of England

2. 1316--78, king of Bohemia (1346--78) and Holy Roman Emperor (1355--78)

3. 1748--1819, king of Spain (1788--1808), whose reign saw the domination of Spain by Napoleonic France: abdicated

4. title as king of Hungary of Charles I (sense 5)