Calderón, Rodrigo, conde de Oliva, marqués de Siete Iglesias

Calderón, Rodrigo, conde de Oliva, marqués de Siete Iglesias

▪ Spanish statesman
born 1576?, Antwerp [now in Belgium]
died October 21, 1621, Madrid, Spain

      Spanish royal favourite who enjoyed considerable authority during the ascendancy of Francisco Gómez, duque de Lerma (Lerma, Francisco Gómez de Sandoval y Rojas, duque de) in the reign of Philip III.

      Calderón was the son of an army officer. On the accession of Philip III in 1598, he attached himself to the king's favourite and chief minister, Lerma (Lerma, Francisco Gómez de Sandoval y Rojas, duque de), by whom he was employed as a secretary. Intelligent and capable, he soon distinguished himself and was repeatedly honoured by the king. There seems little doubt that Calderón exploited his influence for private gain, and he became the main target for the anti-Lerma opposition, headed by the queen, Margarita, for whose death in 1611 he was unjustifiably alleged by his enemies to have been responsible.

      The position of Calderón, who was awarded his marquessate in 1614 on returning from a special mission to Flanders, remained strong until Lerma's fall in October 1618. He was then arrested, tortured, and implicated in the murder of a certain Francisco Xuara. After spending more than two years in prison, he was about to be released when Philip III died. This proved fatal for Calderón, as Gaspar de Guzmán, conde-duque de Olivares (Olivares, Gaspar de Guzmán y Pimental, conde-duque de, duque de Sanlúcar de Barrameda), the chief minister of the new king ( Philip IV), wishing to disassociate his government from the previous regime, ordered Calderón's execution. His pride and dignity while on the scaffold awaiting execution—Calderón embraced the executioner and pronounced that he gave his soul in the name of Jesus—won him the admiration and respect of onlookers. The Spanish saying “Tener más orgullo que don Rodrigo en la horca” (“To be prouder than Don Rodrigo on the scaffold”) derived from his behaviour on that occasion.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Marquesado de Siete Iglesias — El marquesado de Siete Iglesias fue concedido por el rey Felipe III en 1614 a don Rodrigo Calderón (Conde de la Oliva de Plasencia), que casó con doña Inés de Vargas, señora de la Oliva. El título fue rehabilitado en 1915 a petición de Josefa… …   Wikipedia Español

  • Rodrigo Calderón — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Rodrigo Calderón, Conde de la Oliva de Plasencia. Cuadro de Peter Paul Rubens, 1612, Royal Collection. Don Rodrigo Calderón, Conde de la Oliva de Plasencia, Marqués de Siete Iglesias (ejecutado en la Plaza Mayor de… …   Wikipedia Español

  • Rodrigo Calderón, Count of Oliva — Don Rodrigo Calderón, Count of Oliva, Marquis de las Siete Iglesias (es: Don Rodrigo Calderón, conde de Oliva, marqués de las Siete Iglesias ), (d. October 21, 1621) Spanish favourite and adventurer, was born at Antwerp.His father, Francisco… …   Wikipedia

  • Condado de Oliva de Plasencia — Corona condal Primer titular Rodrigo Calderón de Aranda Concesión Felipe III …   Wikipedia Español

  • Historia de la ciencia y la tecnología en España — Fragmento del Atlas catalán de Abraham Cresques, 1375. Historia de la ciencia y la tecnología en España es la denominación …   Wikipedia Español

  • Historia del arte — Para la historiografía de la historia del arte, véase Estudio de la historia del arte. La creación …   Wikipedia Español

  • Plasencia — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Plasencia …   Wikipedia Español

  • Valladolid — Para otros usos de este término, véase Valladolid (desambiguación). Valladolid …   Wikipedia Español

  • Spanische Literatur — Spanische Literatur. Unter spanischer Literatur versteht man die Schriftdenkmäler der Iberischen Halbinsel, mit Ausschluß Portugals, das, seit 1097 unabhängig, eine eigne Sprache und Literatur entwickelt hat. Im engern Sinne begreift man darunter …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”