NETHERLANDS.) The same spirit of intolerance which raised such a flame in the Netherlands, stirred up the Moors in Spain to a similar resistance. This industrious people, since their subjection, hail lived as quiet subjects. But it bad been insinuated to the court. of Rome, that though nominally Christians, they still adhered to the Malta metan faith, which induced the pope to press upon Philip the necessity of bringing them by force within the pale of the Catholic church. The king ever rea dy to listen to the instigations of monkish zeal, sent express orders into the kingdom of Granada, to oblige the Moors to change at once their habits, manners, and language; and the clergy were enjoined to require the registration of all Moorish children between five and fifteen years of age, that they might be taught the Castilian tongue, and be instructed in the Catholic faith. Notwithstanding the humble representations of loyalty and attachment from this unfortunate race, and the louder remonstrances of the governor and princi pal officers of the province, against so impolitic and impracticable a measure, Philip remained inflexible. The Moors were driven to despair, and having taken sip arms, renounced their allegiance to the king of Spain, and proclaimed one of their chiefs king of Gran ada and Cordova. The struggle was prosecuted on the part of the Moors with all the fury of religious frenzy, committing every where the most outrageous excesses, and inflicting inexcusable cruelties upon the innocent inhabitants, particularly ecclesiastics; while the Spanish commanders acted with great mo deration, treating their prisoners with lenity, and re ceiving many to mercy. This war lasted between two and three years, cost the lives of 20,000 Casti lian soldiers, of about 100,000 Moors, and depopu lated and destroyed some of the finest countries in Spain.
About this time was formed what is called the Holy League against the 'lurks, and in favour of the Vene tians, one half of the expense of which was to be de frayed by the king of Spain. The command of the armament, consisting of 200 pines, with 50,000 foot, and 4000 horse, was given to Don John of Austria, the king's half-brother, who obtained a signal victory over the Ottoman fleet, in which 30,000 Turks were killed, 10,000 taken prisoners, and 15,000 Christian slaves set at liberty. But the fruits of this victory were lost from want of unanimity among the leaders of the league; and from the same cause, in the follow ing year, another Turkish fleet was saved from de struction. The consequence of this was, that the Turks made a descent upon the coast of Africa, re duced Tunis and the Goletta. which the Spaniards were never after able to recover.
These losses, however, were amply overbalanced by the seizure of the crown of Portugal. The young
king Sebastian, who, with most of his nobles, fell in the battle of Alcacar-quivir, was succeeded by his uncle Cardinal Henry, who, after an uneasy reign of two years, died without naming a successor. Philip, who was one of the competitors for the throne, and had an army ready to act upon the first intelligence of Henry's death, immediately seized upon the king dom, which submitted without a struggle. This ac cession to his dominions, however, afforded him little satisfaction. Portugal had been drained of its wealth and population by the unfortunate expedition of' Se bastian; and though Philip went in person to Lisbon, where lie resided for some time. and conferred many powers upon the nobility, yet finding that all his ef forts to gain the affections of his new subjects were fruitless and ineffectual, lie returned home in displea sure, leaving the management of the kingdom to a regent and council.
The attention of Philip was now directed to a more formidable enemy, the queen of England. Having, in the early part of his reign lost his consort queen Mary, he offered his hand to her successor; but that prudent princess, who wished not to make an enemy of so powerful a monarch in the commencement of her career, returned a respectful but evasive answer. The measures of her government, however, soon con vinced him that he had nothing to hope for on that head; and he soon after married the sister of the king of France. No open rupture occurred between the two courts before 1569; and this was followed by no material consequences until about fifteen years after wards, when the Spanish monarch, enraged at the as sistance afforded by Elizabeth to his rebellious sub jects in the low countries, and at the depredations committed by her fleets, not only on his settlements in America, but even on his own coasts, where Sir Francis Drake destroyed about a hundred vessels in the road of Cadiz, and captured an East Indiaman of great value, bent the whole force of his empire to re venge these repeated insults. Great preparations were consequently made for this purpose; and the in vincible Armada was sent forth with the confident hope of crushing at one blow these presumptdous islanders and their heretical queen. The fate of this armament is well known, (See ARMADA;) and Philip now found his attention sufficiently employed as pro tector of the Catholic league, which opposed the ac cession of Henry IV. of France; and with his own ambitious schemes for the exaltation of his own daugh ter, the infanta Isabella, to the throne of that kingdom. But the conversion of Henry to the Catholic faith de stroyed all his views in that quarter.