in 1599 Formally from 1598-1599, and effectively beginning from 1601, the Archduke and Archduchess ruled the
Spanish Netherlands together. Their reign is a key period in the history of the Spanish Netherlands. After Albert's death in 1621, sovereignty over their lands was returned to Spanish Habsburgs, and Isabella was appointed Governor of the Netherlands on the
King of Spain's behalf. She was succeeded as Governor by
Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand of Austria, the third son of her half-brother in 1633.
Foreign policy The first half of Albert and Isabella's reign was dominated by war. After overtures to the
United Provinces and to Queen
Elizabeth I of England proved unsuccessful, the Habsburg policy in the Low Countries aimed at regaining the military initiative and isolating the Dutch Republic. The strategy was to force its opponents to the conference table and negotiate from a position of strength. In pursuit of that goal and to get their political agenda to all
Flemish social classes, Albert and Isabella used the most diverse media. Visual art, in the
baroque style popularized in the wake of the
Counter-Reformation, was the perfect tool. This, coupled with the political configuration of the period, made the Archduke's court at Brussels one of the foremost political and artistic centers in Europe of that time. It became the testing ground for the Spanish Monarchy's European plans, a boiling pot full of people of all sorts: from artists and diplomats to defectors, spies and penitent traitors, from Spanish confessors, Italian counselors, Burgundian functionaries, English musicians, German bodyguards to the Belgian Nobles. Brussels became a vital link in the chain of Habsburg Courts and the diplomatic conduits between
Madrid, Vienna, Paris, London,
Lisbon,
Graz,
Innsbruck,
Prague, and
The Hague could be said to run through there. The accession of
James VI of Scotland as James I in England had paved the way for a separate peace with
England. On 24 July 1604, England, Spain and the Archducal Netherlands signed the
Treaty of London. The return to peace was severely hampered by differences over religion. Events such as the
Gunpowder Plot caused a lot of diplomatic tension between London and Brussels, but the relations between the two courts tended to be cordial on the whole.
Anne of Denmark wore Isabella's portrait in a locket as a public token of friendship and kinship. The threat of diplomatic isolation and General
Ambrogio Spínola's campaigns induced the Dutch Republic to accept a ceasefire in April 1609. The subsequent negotiations between the warring parties failed to produce a peace treaty, but led to the
Twelve Years' Truce, agreed in
Antwerp on 9 April 1609. Under the Truce's terms, the United Provinces were to be regarded as a sovereign power for the duration of the truce. After four decades of war, the treaty brought a period of much-needed peace to the Southern Netherlands.
Economy The period of the Truce brought the Habsburg Netherlands a much-needed peace, mainly because the fields could be again worked in safety. The archducal regime encouraged reclamation of land that had been inundated in the course of the hostilities and sponsored the
impoldering of
De Moeren, a marshy area that is presently astride the Belgian–French border. The recovery of agriculture led in turn to a modest increase of the population (and thus workers) after decades of demographic losses.
Industry and in particular the luxury trades likewise underwent a recovery, bringing considerable economic stability and prosperity to the
Southern Netherlands. However, international trade was hampered by the closure of the River
Scheldt. The archducal regime had plans to bypass the blockade with a system of
canals linking
Ostend via
Bruges to the Scheldt in
Ghent and joining the
Meuse to the
Rhine between
Venlo and
Rheinberg. To combat
urban poverty, the government supported the creation of a network of
Monti di Pietà based on the Italian model.
Religion , 1625 The archducal regime ensured the triumph of the
Catholic Reformation in the Habsburg Netherlands. Most Protestants had by that stage left the Southern Netherlands. After one last execution in 1597, those that remained were no longer actively persecuted. Under the terms of legislation passed in 1609, their presence was tolerated, provided they did not worship in public or engage in religious activities. The resolutions of the Third Provincial Council of Mechlin of 1607 were likewise given official sanction. Through such measures and by the appointment of a generation of committed bishops, Albert and Isabella laid the foundation of the Catholic confessionalisation of the population. New and reformed religious orders enjoyed the particular support of the rulers. Although the Archduke had certain reservations about the order, the
Jesuits received the largest cash grants, allowing them to complete their ambitious building programmes in Brussels and Antwerp. The
Capuchins were given considerable sums as well. The foundation of the first convents of
Discalced Carmelites in the Southern Netherlands depended wholly on the personal initiative of the archducal couple and bore witness to the Spanish orientation of their spirituality.
Legislative system The reign of Albert and Isabella Clara Eugenia saw a strengthening of princely power in the Habsburg Netherlands. The
States General of the loyal provinces were only summoned once in 1600. Thereafter, the government preferred to deal directly with the provinces. The years of the Truce allowed the archducal regime to promulgate legislation on a whole range of matters. The so-called
Eternal Edict of 1611, for instance, reformed the judicial system and ushered in the transition from customary to written law. Other measures dealt with monetary matters, the nobility, duels, gambling, etc.
Relationship with Spain The actions of the two rulers stimulated the growth of a separate South Netherlandish identity.
Final years and death After Albert's death in 1621, Isabella joined the
Third Order of St Francis but continued to rule on behalf of her nephew,
Philip IV. As Governess, Isabella alternated successes, such as that of the
Capture of Breda in 1625, with failures and setbacks, such as the losses of
Den Bosch in 1629 and
Maastricht in 1632. She died in Brussels in 1633. ==Patronage of arts==