The House of Habsburg, also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most prominent and important dynasties in European history.
The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period, was the ruler and head of state of the Holy Roman Empire. The title was held in conjunction with the title of king of Italy from the 8th to the 16th century, and, almost without interruption, with the title of King of Germany throughout the 12th to 18th centuries.
Charles V was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain from 1516 to 1556, and Lord of the Netherlands as titular Duke of Burgundy from 1506 to 1555. He was heir to and then head of the rising House of Habsburg. His dominions in Europe included the Holy Roman Empire, extending from Germany to northern Italy with rule over the Austrian hereditary lands and Burgundian Low Countries, and Spain with its possessions of the southern Italian kingdoms of Naples, Sicily and Sardinia. In the Americas, he oversaw the continuation of Spanish colonization and a short-lived German colonization. The personal union of the European and American territories he ruled was the first collection of realms labelled "the empire on which the sun never sets".
A reign is the period of a person's or dynasty's occupation of the office of monarch of a nation, of a people or of a spiritual community. In most hereditary monarchies and some elective monarchies there have been no limits on the duration of a sovereign's reign or incumbency, nor is there a term of office. Thus, a reign usually lasts until the monarch dies, unless the monarchy itself is abolished or the monarch abdicates or is deposed.
Eleanor of Austria, also called Eleanor of Castile, was born an Archduchess of Austria and Infanta of Castile from the House of Habsburg, and subsequently became Queen consort of Portugal (1518–1521) and of France (1530–1547). She also held the Duchy of Touraine (1547–1558) in dower. She is called "Leonor" in Spanish and Portuguese and "Éléonore" or "Aliénor" in French.
Pedro Folc de Cardona, an illegitimate son of Joan Ramon Folc de Cardona y de Prades, 3rd Count of Cardona, was bishop of Urgell (1472–1515), president of the Generalitat of Catalonia (1482–85), editor of the Usatges de Barcelona (1505), viceroy of Catalonia (1521–23) and archbishop of Tarragona (1515–30).
An imperial election was held in Cologne on 5 January 1531 to select the King of the Romans of the Holy Roman Empire. As the current emperor, Charles V, had not yet died nor abdicated, this election was conducted so as to determine his successor.
The Empire of Charles V, also known by the umbrella term Habsburg Empire, included the Holy Roman Empire, the Spanish Empire, the Burgundian inheritance, the Austrian lands, and all the territories and dominions ruled in personal union by Charles V from 1519 to 1556. It was the first to be labelled as "the empire on which the sun never sets", a term used to describe several global empires throughout history. The lands of the empire had in common only the monarch, Charles V, while their boundaries, institutions, and laws remained distinct. Charles's nomenclature as Holy Roman Emperor was Charles V, though earlier in his life he was known by the names of Charles of Ghent, Charles II as Duke of Burgundy, and Charles I as King of Spain and Archduke of Austria. The imperial name prevailed due to the politico-religious primacy held by the Holy Roman Empire among European monarchies since the Middle Ages, which Charles V intended to preserve as part of his project to unite Christendom under his leadership.