Infante Ferdinand

Full Name: Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand, also known as Don Fernando de Austria, Cardenal-Infante Fernando de España and as Ferdinand von Österreich
Profession: Cardinal and General

Nationality:

Biography: Infante Ferdinand was a Spanish and Portuguese prince who served as the Governor of the Spanish Netherlands (1634-1641), a Cardinal of the Holy Catholic Church, Archbishop of Toledo, and Viceroy of Portugal (1667-1668). This many-titled man was also a general during the Thirty Years' War and the Franco-Spanish War.

Ferdinand was the son of King Philip III of Spain and Margaret of Austria, and was appointed a cardinal at 10 years old. He would not become ordained as a priest until much later, and during his youth was broadly educated and prepared especially for military leadership.

It was during the Thirty Years' War that Ferdinand first came prominence, leading the Spanish forces in a series of successful campaigns. His command at the Battle of Nördlingen, in particular, resulted in a decisive victory for the Catholic Imperial-Spanish forces against the Swedish-Protestant army. These successes made him a hero in Spain.

Subsequently Ferdinand was made Governor-General of the Spanish Netherlands, in which role he was charged with fighting the Dutch Republic as a part of the Eighty Years' War as well as consolidating Spanish rule. He brought a period of relative stability to the Spanish Netherlands and was a patron of the arts, including bringing Peter Paul Rubens to his court, but he never managed to conclude the conflict definitively.

Born: May 16, 1609
Birthplace: San Lorenzo de El Escorial, Kingdom of Spain
Star Sign: Taurus

Died: November 9, 1641 (aged 32)