The Marquess of Balbases | |
|---|---|
 Portrait byPeter Paul Rubens (1627) | |
| Governor of the Duchy of Milan | |
| In office 1629–1630 | |
| Monarch | Philip IV of Spain |
| Preceded by | Gonzalo Fernandez de Córdoba |
| Succeeded by | Álvaro de Bazán |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1569 |
| Died | 25 September 1630(1630-09-25) (aged 60–61) |
| Signature |  |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Spain |
| Branch/service | Spanish Army
|
| Rank | Captain-General |
| Commands |
|
| Battles/wars | |
Ambrogio Spinola Doria, 1st Marquess of Los Balbases and 1st Duke of Sesto (1569 – 25 September 1630) was an Italian nobleman from theRepublic of Genoa and a celebrated general in the service of theSpanish Empire. He distinguished himself in several key engagements during theEighty Years' War and theThirty Years' War, and is regarded as one of the greatest military commanders of his time and in the history of the Spanish army.[1] Spanish-speaking sources often refer to him as "Ambrosio". For his service, he was granted the titleMarquess of Los Balbases in theSpanish peerage and was invested into both theOrder of the Golden Fleece and theOrder of Santiago.
Ambrogio Spinola was born inGenoa, the eldest son of Filippo Spinola, Marquis ofSexten and Venafro, and his wife Polissena Grimaldi, daughter of Nicolò prince ofSalerno.[2] The family ofSpinola was of great antiquity, wealth and power in Genoa.[3] Don Ambrogio's sister Donna Lelia was married to Don Giulio Cesare Squarciafico, 2ndMarquess of Galatone, from whom descend thePrinces of Belmonte.
In the 16th century, the ItalianRepublic of Genoa was in practical terms a protected state of theSpanish Empire; the Genoese were the bankers of the Spanish monarchy and had control of its finances. Several of the younger brothers of Ambrogio Spinola sought their fortune in Spain, and one of them,Federico, distinguished himself greatly as a soldier in theArmy of Flanders.
As the eldest brother, Ambrogio remained at home to marry and continue the family. In 1592 he was married to Giovanna Bacciadonne, daughter of the count of Galerata.[3]
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The houses of Spinola andDoria were rivals for authority within the republic. Ambrogio Spinola continued the rivalry with the count ofTursi, then the chief of the Dorias. He was not successful, and having lost a lawsuit into which he had entered to enforce a right of pre-emption of a palace belonging to theSalerno family which the Doria wished to purchase, he decided to withdraw from the city and advance the fortunes of his house by serving the Spanish monarchy in Flanders.
In 1602 he and his brother Federico entered into a contract with the Spanish government—acondotta on the old Italian model. It was a speculation on which Spinola risked the whole of the great fortune of his house. Ambrogio Spinola undertook to raise 9,000Lombard mercenaries[1][4] for land service, and Federico to form a squadron ofgalley ships for service on the coast.[3]
Several of Federico's galleys were destroyed by English and Dutch war-ships; first at theat Sesimbra in June and thenat the Goodwin Sands in October in theEnglish Channel. He himself was slain inan action with theDutch on 24 May 1603.
Ambrogio Spinola marched overland to Flanders in 1602 with the men he had raised at his own expense. During the first months of his stay in Flanders, the Spanish government played with schemes for employing him on an invasion of England, which came to nothing. At the close of the year, he returned to Italy for more men.
His experience as a soldier did not begin until, as General, and at the age of thirty-four, he undertook to continue theSiege of Ostend on 29 September 1603. Despite failing torelieve Sluis under siege at the same time, the ruins ofOstend fell into his hands on 22 September 1604.[3] For this victory, he was appointed a Knight of theOrder of the Golden Fleece in 1605.
The governor of FlandersArchduke Albert and theInfanta Clara Eugenia, daughter ofPhilip II, who had set their hearts on takingOstend, were delighted at Spinola's success, and it won him a high reputation among the soldiers of the time. At the close of the campaign, he went to Spain to meet with the court, then inValladolid, and make arrangements for the continuation of the war. At Valladolid, he insisted on being appointed commander-in-chief in Flanders.
By April, he had returned toBrussels to lead his first military campaign, theSpinola's campaign of 1605-1606. At this period, the wars of theLow Countries consisted almost entirely of sieges, and Spinola made himself famous by the number of places he took in spite of the efforts ofMaurice of Nassau to defend them, including heavily fortifiedGroenlo. His efforts would mark a turning point in the war with his campaign resulting in capturingOldenzaal,Lingen,Wachtendonk,Groenlo andRheinberg for the Spanish.[3]
In 1606 he again went to Spain. He was received with much outward honour, and entrusted with a very secret mission to secure the government of Flanders in case of the death of the Archduke or his wife. However, he could not obtain thegrandeeship which he desired and was compelled to pledge his entire fortune as security for the expenses of the war before the bankers would advance funds to the Spanish government. He was never repaid, resulting in his complete financial ruin.
The Spanish government now had a reason to keep him away from Spain. Until the signing of theTwelve Years' Truce in 1609, he continued to command in the field with general success. After it was signed he retained his post, and had among other duties to conduct the negotiations with France whenHenry II de Bourbon, Prince de Condé fled to Flanders with his wife,Charlotte-Marguerite de Montmorency, in order to put her beyond the reach of the admiration of the olderHenry IV of France.[3] By 1611 Spinola's financial ruin was complete, but he was given the aristocratic title, aGrandeza, which he had sought. In 1614 he was involved with operations connected with the settlement of theWar of the Jülich Succession, which awardedCleves toGeorge William, Elector of Brandenburg andJülich toWolfgang Wilhelm, Count Palatine of Neuburg. From 1620 to 1622, in theThirty Years' War, he led thePalatinate campaign in theLower Palatinate, which included the capture of many towns and villages, includingDrais, and was rewarded with the rank of Captain-General.[3]
After the renewal of the war in the Low Countries in 1621 he had the most renowned victory of his career, the capture ofBreda. Success came after a long siege (28 August 1624 – 5 June 1625), in spite of the objections ofPhilip IV of Spain, who thought the siege was too risky and expensive, and the strenuous efforts ofMaurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange to save it. The surrender of Breda is the subject of a famous painting byVelázquez, known asLas Lanzas.[3]
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Spinola captured the city after a prolonged siege. After its surrender, he gave safe passage to its leaders and soldiers, who were allowed to leave the city with their banners and arms, an extraordinary and magnanimous gesture that made Spinola famous throughout Europe. Spinola famously argued,El valor del vencido es la gloria del vencedor ("The valour of the defeated is the glory of the victor"). The gesture, which was understood as true Christian benevolence, is depicted in Velázquez's work.[5]
Thetaking of Breda was the culmination of Spinola's career. Utter want of money paralysed the Spanish government, and the new favourite,Olivares, was jealous of the general. Spinola could not preventFrederick Henry of Nassau fromtaking Groll (or Groenlo) in 1627, a good set-off for Breda.
In January 1628 he left for Spain, resolved not to resume the command in Flanders unless security was given to him for the support of his army. AtMadrid he had to endure much insolence from Olivares, who endeavoured to make him responsible for the loss of Groll. Spinola was resolute not to return to Flanders.[3]
Meanwhile, the Spanish government added a war over the succession to theDuchy of Mantua to its heavy burdens. Spinola was appointed as plenipotentiary and general. He landed atGenoa on 19 September 1629.[3] With him, at the suggestion of painterPeter Paul Rubens, came the Spanish royal painterDiego Velázquez, who went with him to see famous paintings inGenoa,Milan,Venice andRome.
In Italy, he was pursued by the enmity of the Conde-Duque ofOlivares, who had been born in Rome in 1587, where his father, don Enrique de Guzmán y Ribera, a cadet child from one of Spain's oldest noble families, was the Spanish ambassador. Olivares ultimately caused Spinola to be deprived of his powers asplenipotentiary. Spinola's health broke down, as he was already 61 years old, with over 30 years' experience on the battlefield. He died on 25 September 1630 at theSiege of Casale, muttering, apparently, the words "honour" and "reputation."[3] The title of "Marquess of Los Balbases", still borne by his representatives in Spain, was all that his family received for the vast fortune they spent in the service ofPhilip III andIV.[3] He would be painted however after his death, byDiego Velázquez, in 1635, as ordered by Felipe IV, inThe Surrender of Breda.
Spinola was a brilliant field commander, whose daring in battle often was used to outflank his opponents and catch them off guard. He was not a great technical innovator but was a master of military skills. He used rapid movement and pell-mell actions in his battles. He was skilled at picking out an enemy's weakest spot and applying force there to achieve victory.[6]
Spinola and Giovanna Bacciadonne had three children:
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One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Hannay, David (1911). "Spinola, Ambrose". InChisholm, Hugh (ed.).Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 25 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 686–687.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
| Government offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Governor of the Duchy of Milan 1629–1630 | Succeeded by |
| Italian nobility | ||
| New title | Duke of Sesto 1612–1630 | Succeeded by |
| Spanish nobility | ||
| New title | Marquess of Los Balbases 1621–1630 | Succeeded by |
