The Great Favourite: The Duke of Lerma and the Court and Government of Philip III of Spain, 1598–1621 - Studies in Early Modern European History

This is the first biography of the last major unknown figure in European history. The Duke of Lerma was the first and greatest of the royal favourites of the European seventeenth century. He was the greatest art patron of his generation and the greatest lay builder in Spanish history. This study is profoundly well researched and fluently written. -- .