The History of the Reign of the Emperor Charles V, Vol. 1

This is the first of three volumes. In Volume I William Robertson discusses the state of Europe prior to the accession of the emperor Charles V, the great Hapsburg ruler of the Holy Roman Empire, Germany, Austria, the Spanish monarchy, the colonial empire in the Americas, much of Italy, and the Netherlands. He provides a detailed examination of the social, political, military, economic and religious conditions that formed Europe as it existed at the end of the fifteenth century when it began to acquire the power that allowed it to dominate the world stage for the next 500 years. William Robertson (1721 to 1793) was a Scottish historian, Presbyterian minister, Royal Chaplain to King George III, Historiographer Royal, and Principal of the University of Edinburgh.