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60-515: The empire on which the sun never sets is a term for particular global empires, the idea being that they were so extensive that there was always at least one part of their territory in daylight. The Sun Never Sets may also refer to: The empire on which the sun never sets The phrase " the empire on which the sun never sets " (Spanish: el imperio donde nunca se pone el sol ) has been used to describe certain global empires that were so territorially extensive that it seemed as though it

120-508: A Council of Portugal to advise him on Portuguese affairs. António exploited the opportunity that the war between Elizabeth and Philip presented in order to convince the English to back an amphibious assault on Portugal in April 1589. Led by Francis Drake and John Norris , the expedition of 120 ships and 19,000 men failed due to poor planning. Portugal's status was maintained under

180-553: A national of one kingdom was a foreigner in all other kingdoms. Possessing territories in all known continents of the time, the Iberian Union was the most wide-spread empire of the early modern era. The Union led to Portugal's involvement in the Dutch Revolt against Spain. The Dutch Republic in turn saw the union as a justification to start targeting Portuguese colonies and would weaken Portugal's overseas empire in

240-595: A permanent seat, and Philip II of Spain established in 1562 the permanent capital in Madrid , seat of the Royal Court and of the administrative staff, although transferred to Valladolid , with the whole administrative staff, during a brief period (1601–1606). The government functioned as follows; the administrative correspondence came to the different Councils in Madrid, then the secretary of every Council arranged

300-492: A policy of intermarriage. Some of the most famous attempts are those of Miguel da Paz , who would inherit the crowns of Portugal , Leon , Castile , and Aragon , but who died at a young age; and those of Afonso, Prince of Portugal , who was to marry the eldest daughter of the Catholic Monarchs , if not for his untimely death by an accident in which he fell off his horse. The Battle of Alcácer Quibir in 1578 saw

360-639: A tenancy was created to assure upgrades on all fortresses that would be paid with regional taxes. John IV also organized the army, established the Military Laws of King Sebastian, and developed intense diplomatic activity focused on restoring good relations with England. Meanwhile, the best Spanish forces were pre-occupied with their battles against the French in Catalonia , along the Pyrenees, Italy and

420-660: A war over Brazil, which would see the Dutch establish a colony called New Holland . However, the Second Battle of Guararapes , the second and decisive battle in a conflict called Pernambucana Insurrection, ended the Dutch occupation of the Portuguese colony of Brazil. On the other hand, the Iberian Union opened to both countries a worldwide span of control, as Portugal dominated the African and Asian coasts that surrounded

480-737: The Basque Autonomous Community of Spain, the Valdegovía adopted the royal coat of arms during the Iberian Union period with the Navarre arms and the Portuguese arms added on the honor point. The Spanish city of Ceuta was a part of the Portuguese Empire until the end of the Iberian Union in 1640, after which it decided to remain with Spain. Thus the coat of arms of the city is nearly identical to that of

540-615: The Council of Portugal . The Council of Portugal, established in 1582, was integrated with a president and six (later four) counselors, and it was abolished at the end of the war in 1668, when Charles II of Spain gave up his title as king of Portugal. The function of the Council consisted in representing the Cortes of the Crown of Portugal for matters of justice and the economy. Any decision of

600-614: The Low Countries and Austria , and of Spain, which also included the southern Italian kingdoms of Sicily , Sardinia and Naples and the long-lasting Spanish colonies in the Americas . He also reigned over the short-lived German colonies in the Americas . Sources variously attribute the phrase "the empire on which the sun never sets" to describe this empire to Charles V himself, the poet Ludovico Ariosto , or others. Charles's son, Philip II of Spain , made Spain (his homeland)

660-551: The Peninsular War , "Reflect that the sun never sets in the immense inheritance of Charles V, and that I shall have the empire of both worlds." This was cited in Walter Scott 's Life of Napoleon . It has been claimed that Louis XIV of France 's emblem of the "Sun King" and associated motto, " Nec pluribus impar ", were based on the solar emblem and motto of Philip II, who was his maternal great-grandfather. In

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720-631: The metropole of the territories that he inherited. In particular, he placed the Council of Castille , the Council of Aragon , the Council of Italy , the Council of Flanders and the Council of the Indies in Madrid. He added the Philippines (named after him) to his colonial territories. When King Henry of Portugal died, Philip II pressed his claim to the Portuguese throne and was recognised as Philip I of Portugal in 1581. The Portuguese Empire , now ruled by Philip, itself included territories in

780-576: The 19th century it became popular to apply the phrase to the British Empire . It was a time when British world maps showed the Empire in red and pink to highlight British imperial power spanning the globe. Scottish author, John Wilson , writing as "Christopher North" in Blackwood's Magazine in 1829, is sometimes credited as originating the usage. However, George Macartney wrote in 1773, in

840-758: The Americas, in the North and the Sub-Saharan Africa, in all the Asian Subcontinents, and islands in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans. In 1585 Giovanni Battista Guarini wrote Il pastor fido to mark the marriage of Catherine Michelle , daughter of Philip II, to Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy . Guarini's dedication read, " Altera figlia / Di qel Monarca, a cui / Nö anco, quando annotta, il Sol tramonta. " ("The proud daughter / of that monarch to whom / when it grows dark [elsewhere]

900-586: The British Empire, because even God couldn't trust the English in the dark". From the mid-nineteenth century the image of the sun never setting can be found applied to anglophone culture, explicitly including both the British Empire and the United States, for example in a speech by Alexander Campbell in 1852: "To Britain and America God has granted the possession of the new world; and because

960-623: The Castilian troops were occupied in the other side of the Iberian Peninsula. The rebels killed Secretary of State Miguel de Vasconcelos and imprisoned the king's cousin, Margaret of Savoy, Vicereine of Portugal , who had governed Portugal in his name. The moment was well chosen, as Philip's troops were at the time fighting the Thirty Years' War in addition to the previously mentioned revolution in Catalonia. The support of

1020-575: The Council of Portugal. In the Kingdom of Portugal, the polysynodial system was reinforced: Nevertheless, the political conjuncture need urgent reactions, and in this context a system of meetings appeared for specific issues, as the Junta for the reform of the Council of Portugal (1606–1607, 1610), the Junta for the classification of the debts to the treasury (since 1627) or the Juntas for the organization of

1080-417: The Council of War ( Consejo de Guerra ) exercised its jurisdiction on the troops placed in the Castilian strongholds established on the Portuguese littoral. And also, there were Councils of territorial character, which functions specialized in a concrete territorial space, the Council of Castile , Council of Aragon , Council of Navarre , Council of Italy , Council of the Indies , Council of Flanders , and

1140-620: The Dutch possessions in Brazil in 1637 by the Dutch West India Company . He landed at Recife, the port of Pernambuco, in January 1637. By a series of successful expeditions, he gradually extended the Dutch possessions from Sergipe in the south to São Luís, Maranhão in the north. He likewise conquered the Portuguese possessions of Elmina Castle , São Tomé Island , and Luanda , Angola, on the west coast of Africa. This began

1200-606: The German General Frederick Schomberg led about 20,000 Portuguese forces to victory at Montes Claros near Vila Viçosa with only 700 killed and 2,000 wounded. The Spanish army of 22,600 men was devastated with 4,000 dead and 6,000 captured. Protests erupted in Madrid as Spain had wasted 25 million ducats on the disastrous Portuguese war. The Spanish tried to carry on the war for two more years of increasingly fitful warfare. Spain recognized Portugal's sovereignty and made peace on 13 February 1668. In

1260-606: The Habsburg monarchy to support the Catholic side of the Thirty Years' War also created strains within the union, although Portugal did also benefit from Spanish military power in helping to retain Brazil and in disrupting Dutch trade. These events, and those that occurred at the end of Aviz dynasty and the Iberian Union, led Portugal to a state of economic dependency on its colonies, first India and then Brazil. The joining of

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1320-609: The Indian Ocean, and Spain the Pacific Ocean and both sides of Central and South America, while both shared the Atlantic Ocean space. When Philip II of Portugal (and III of Spain) died, he was succeeded by Philip III (and IV of Spain), who had a different approach on Portuguese issues. Taxes raised affected mainly the Portuguese merchants (Carmo Reis 1587). The Portuguese nobility began to lose its importance at

1380-606: The Indies . For periods, Portugal maintained a viceroy, appointed by the king, although the turnover was often rapid; in the 60 years of the Union, the country had 13 viceroys and four regency councils (see List of viceroys of Portugal ). Similar viceroys were appointed in Aragon , Catalonia , Valencia and other kingdoms of the Union. The governments, institutions, and legal traditions of each kingdom remained independent of one another. Alien laws ( Leyes de extranjería ) determined that

1440-536: The Low Countries. The Spanish forces in Portugal never received adequate support. Nevertheless, Philip IV felt he could not give up what he regarded as his rightful inheritance. By the time the war with France ended in 1659, the Portuguese military were well established and ready to confront the last major attempt of a worn out Spanish regime to reclaim control. English soldiers were sent to Portugal and helped

1500-649: The Network of Foreign U.S. Military Bases . Iberian Union As a personal union, the Kingdom of Portugal, the Crown of Castile and the states of the Crown of Aragon remained independent states, sharing only a single monarch. The kings from the Spanish branch of the House of Habsburg were the only element that connected the multiple kingdoms and territories, ruled by the six separate government councils of Castile , Aragon , Portugal , Italy , Flanders-Burgundy , and

1560-528: The Orient. The unification of the peninsula had long been a goal of the region's monarchs with the intent of restoring the Visigothic monarchy . Sancho III of Navarre and Alfonso VII of León and Castile had both taken the title Imperator totius Hispaniae , meaning "Emperor of All Hispania ". There were many attempts to unite the different kingdoms after Alfonso VII's death in 1109, especially through

1620-550: The Persian territory as far as God's heaven reaches. The sun will then shine on no land beyond our borders." The Roman Empire was also described in classical Latin literature as extending "from the rising to the setting sun". Charles V of the House of Habsburg controlled in personal union a composite monarchy inclusive of the Holy Roman Empire stretching from Germany to Northern Italy with direct rule over

1680-483: The Portuguese provinces a subjection of Philip before entering Lisbon, where he seized an immense treasure; meanwhile, he allowed his soldiers to sack the vicinity of the capital. Philip was recognized as king by the Cortes of Tomar in 1581, beginning the reign of the House of Habsburg over Portugal. When Philip left in 1583 to Madrid, he made his nephew Albert of Austria his viceroy in Lisbon. In Madrid he established

1740-470: The Portuguese rout Don John 's army at Ameixial near Estremoz on June 8, 1663. The Spaniards lost 8,000 men and all their artillery while the Portuguese had only 2,000 casualties. On 7 July 1664 about 3,000 Portuguese met 7,000 Spaniards near Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo and killed 2,000 and took 500 prisoners. Many Spanish communities lost population and blamed their decline on the war against Portugal. Louis XIV sent French troops to Lisbon, and on 17 June 1665

1800-507: The Portuguese were unable to capture the entire island of Ceylon, they were able to keep the coastal regions of Ceylon under their control for a considerable time. Brazil was partially conquered by both France and the Dutch . In the 17th century, taking advantage of this period of Portuguese weakness, many Portuguese territories in Brazil were occupied by the Dutch, who gained access to the sugarcane plantations . The whole Brazilian northeast

1860-491: The Spanish Cortes , and government posts in Portugal were occupied by Spaniards. Ultimately, Philip III tried to make Portugal a royal province, and Portuguese nobles lost all of their power. Several other problems also damaged Portuguese support of their union with Spain. One of these was certainly the pressure from the center, especially from Gaspar de Guzmán, Count-Duke of Olivares , towards uniformity and sharing

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1920-701: The border. The most significant battles were the Battle of the Lines of Elvas (1659), the Battle of Ameixial (1663), the Battle of Castelo Rodrigo (1664), and the Battle of Montes Claros (1665); the Portuguese were victorious in all of these battles. However, the Spaniards won the Battle of Vilanova (1658) and the Battle of the Berlengas (1666) . The Battle of Montijo (1644) was indecisive, starting out with great Spanish success and ending with Portuguese success;

1980-529: The crowning of Philip I. This revolution, while foreseeable, was most immediately sparked by a popular and institutional revolt in the Principality of Catalonia against the Crown. The plot was planned by Antão de Almada, 7th Count of Avranches , Miguel de Almeida and João Pinto Ribeiro. They, together with several associates, known as the Forty Conspirators , took advantage of the fact that

2040-429: The death of the young king Sebastian . Sebastian's granduncle and successor, Cardinal Henry , was 66 years old at the time. Henry's death was followed by a succession crisis, with three grandchildren of Manuel I claiming the throne: Infanta Catarina, Duchess of Braganza (married to John, 6th Duke of Braganza ), António, Prior of Crato , and King Philip II of Spain . António had been acclaimed king of Portugal by

2100-423: The fact that the sun never sets on American philanthropy"; after which, The New York Times received letters attempting to disprove his presupposition. In the course of the 20th century, the metaphor of the sun never setting was used systematically, together with empire allusions such as Pax Americana , in the rhetoric of US foreign policy. A 1991 history book discussion of U.S. expansion states, "Today ...

2160-514: The financial and military burden of Castile's wars in Europe. However, the Portuguese were hardly inclined to help with that, as Spain had failed to prevent the Dutch West India Company 's occupation of several of Portugal's colonial holdings, despite the fact that both the Portuguese and the Spanish were nominally under the same crown. This situation culminated in a revolution by the nobility and high bourgeoisie on 1 December 1640, 60 years after

2220-449: The first two kings under the Union, Philip II and Philip III . Both monarchs gave excellent positions to Portuguese nobles in the Spanish courts , and Portugal maintained an independent law, currency, and government. It was even proposed to move the royal capital to Lisbon. The history of Portugal from the dynastic crisis in 1578 to the first Braganza dynasty monarchs was a period of transition. The Portuguese Empire 's spice trade

2280-486: The independence of Portugal, and continued administering those Portuguese faithful to the Spanish monarch, and the government of Ceuta . Relating to the particular government of the Kingdom of Portugal itself. During the union of the Kingdom of Portugal to the Spanish monarchy, the Spanish Hasburgs on the whole respected the pledges made at Thomar in 1581 to allow considerable Portuguese autonomy and to respect

2340-478: The king concerning his kingdom had to be consulted with the council before being transmitted to the chancellery of Lisbon and to the concerned courts. The Council of Portugal was briefly replaced twice: in 1619, with the presence of the king in Lisbon, and between 1639 and 1658, when it was replaced by the Junta of Portugal. From the Restoration, the Council continued existing, since Philip IV had not recognized

2400-585: The lands from sunrise to sunset", and the Story of Sinuhe (19th century BC) announces that the Egyptian king rules "all what the sun encircles". Georg Büchmann traces the idea to a speech in Herodotus ' Histories , attributed by Xerxes I before invading Greece . γῆν τὴν Περσίδα ἀποδέξομεν τῷ Διὸς αἰθέρι ὁμουρέουσαν. οὐ γὰρ δὴ χώρην γε οὐδεμίαν κατόψεται ἥλιος ὅμουρον ἐοῦσαν τῇ ἡμετέρῃ "We shall extend

2460-459: The material for the attention of the king, and later the king assembled with the secretaries requesting the opinion of the council. After that, the Council held a session to deal with the issue and to formally agree to consult the monarch. The secretary raised the issue to the king, and his reply was returned to the council with the decision to be executed. The meetings of the Councils took place in

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2520-466: The navies of succor of Brazil (since 1637). Throughout the 17th century, the increasing raids on Portuguese merchant shipping by Dutch , English and French privateers and their establishment of trading posts in Africa, Asia and the Americas undermined Portugal's monopoly on the lucrative spice trade . This sent the Portuguese spice trade into a long decline. The diversion of wealth from Portugal by

2580-465: The number of casualties were nearly equal. Several decisions made by John IV to strengthen his forces made these victories possible. On 11 December 1640, the Council of War was created to organize all the operations. Next, the king created the Junta of the Frontiers, to take care of the fortresses near the border, the hypothetical defense of Lisbon , and the garrisons and sea ports. In December 1641,

2640-486: The people became apparent almost immediately and soon John, 8th Duke of Braganza , was acclaimed king of Portugal throughout the country as John IV. By 2 December 1640, John had already sent a letter to the Municipal Chamber of Évora as sovereign of the country. The subsequent Portuguese Restoration War against Philip III ( Portuguese : Guerra da Restauração ) consisted mainly of small skirmishes near

2700-567: The people of Santarém on 24 July 1580, and then in many cities and towns throughout the country. Some members of the Council of Governors of Portugal who had supported Philip escaped to Spain and declared him to be the legal successor of Henry. Philip marched into Portugal and defeated the troops loyal to the Prior of Crato in the Battle of Alcântara . The troops occupying the countryside ( Tercios ) commanded by Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, 3rd Duke of Alba arrived in Lisbon. The Duke of Alba imposed on

2760-601: The present time." In 1821, the Caledonian Mercury wrote of the British Empire, "On her dominions the sun never sets; before his evening rays leave the spires of Quebec , his morning beams have shone three hours on Port Jackson , and while sinking from the waters of Lake Superior , his eye opens upon the Mouth of the Ganges ." Daniel Webster famously expressed a similar idea in 1834: "A power which has dotted over

2820-471: The royal palace, and they did not count on the presence of the king habitually. In this poly-synodical system, "Consejo de Estado" (Council of State) stood out for its importance. The Consejo de Estado in Madrid, entrusted to declare on the major decisions that concerned the organization and the defense of the ensemble of the Hispanic monarchy, and it had frequently that to get into Portuguese matters. Even,

2880-453: The sun never set in their dominions, has been more truly realised amongst ourselves." By 1861, Lord Salisbury complained that the £1.5 million spent on colonial defence by Britain merely enabled the nation "to furnish an agreeable variety of stations to our soldiers, and to indulge in the sentiment that the sun never sets on our Empire". A rejoinder, sometimes attributed to John Duncan Spaeth , runs in one variant, "The sun never set on

2940-441: The sun never sets on American territory, properties owned by the U.S. government and its citizens, American armed forces abroad, or countries that conduct their affairs within limits largely defined by American power." Although most of these sentiments have a patriotic ring, the phrase is sometimes used critically with the implication of American imperialism , as in the title of Joseph Gerson's book, The Sun Never Sets: Confronting

3000-409: The sun never sets upon our religion, our language and our arts...". By the end of the century, the phrase was also being applied to the United States alone. An 1897 magazine article titled "The Greatest Nation on Earth" boasted, "[T]he sun never sets on Uncle Sam ". In 1906, William Jennings Bryan wrote, "If we can not boast that the sun never sets on American territory, we can find satisfaction in

3060-584: The sun never sets."). In the early 17th century the phrase was familiar to John Smith and to Francis Bacon , who writes: "both the East and the West Indies being met in the crown of Spain, it is come to pass, that, as one saith in a brave kind of expression, the sun never sets in the Spanish dominions, but ever shines upon one part or other of them: which, to say truly, is a beam of glory [...]". Thomas Urquhart wrote of "that great Don Philippe, Tetrarch of

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3120-483: The surface of the whole globe with her possessions and military posts, whose morning drumbeat, following the sun and keeping company with the hours, circles the earth with one continuous and unbroken strain of the martial airs of England." In 1839 Sir Henry Ward said in the House of Commons , "Look at the British Colonial empire—the most magnificent empire that the world ever saw. The old Spanish boast that

3180-446: The territories of its empire. Public offices were reserved for Portuguese subjects at home and overseas. The king was represented at Lisbon sometimes by a governor and sometimes by a viceroy. So, Spain left the administration of Portugal and its empire largely to the Portuguese themselves, under general supervision from Madrid channeled through the viceroy in Lisbon. Important matters, however, were referred to Madrid, where they came before

3240-662: The two crowns deprived Portugal of a separate foreign policy, and Spain's enemies became Portugal's. England had been an ally of Portugal since the Treaty of Windsor in 1386. War between Spain and England led to a deterioration of the relations with Portugal's oldest ally, and the loss of Hormuz . War with the Dutch led to invasions of many countries in Asia , including Portuguese Ceylon (today's Sri Lanka ), and commercial interests in Japan , Africa ( Mina ), and South America . Even though

3300-591: The wake of the territorial expansion that followed Britain's victory in the Seven Years' War , of "this vast empire on which the sun never sets, and whose bounds nature has not yet ascertained." In a speech on 31 July 1827 Rev. R.P. Buddicom said, "It had been said that the sun never set on the British flag; it was certainly an old saying, about the time of Richard the Second , and was not so applicable then as at

3360-447: The world, upon whose subjects the sun never sets." In the German dramatist Friedrich Schiller 's 1787 play Don Carlos , Don Carlos's father, Philip II, says, "Ich heiße / der reichste Mann in der getauften Welt; / Die Sonne geht in meinem Staat nicht unter." ("I am called / The richest monarch in the Christian world; / The sun in my dominion never sets."). Joseph Fouché recalled Napoleon saying before invading Spain and starting

3420-426: Was always daytime in at least one part of their territory. The concept of an empire ruling all lands where the sun shines dates back to the Egyptians , the Mesopotamians , the Persians , and the Romans . In its modern form, it was first used for the Habsburg Empire of Charles V , who, as Duke of Burgundy, King of Spain, Archduke of Austria, and Holy Roman Emperor, attempted to build a universal monarchy . The term

3480-403: Was occupied, but the Dutch conquest was short-lived. The Recapture of Bahia by a Spanish-Portuguese fleet in 1625 was followed by a rapid recovery of the lost territories. The Dutch returned in 1630 and captured Recife and Olinda in the captaincy of Pernambuco , the largest and richest sugar-producing area in the world. John Maurice, Prince of Nassau-Siegen , was appointed as the governor of

3540-426: Was peaking at the start of this period following the great age of exploration . It continued to enjoy widespread influence and dominated global trade routes. Due to the complexity in the management of government, the Spanish monarch needed some auxiliary bodies, as the Councils ( Consejos ), dedicated to the advice and resolution of problems, and submitted to the monarch's knowledge and dictum. This complexity needed

3600-540: Was then used for the Spanish Empire under Philip II and his successors, when it reached a global territorial size, particularly in the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries. It was also used for the British Empire , mainly in the 19th and early 20th centuries, a period in which it reached a global territorial size. In the late 20th century, the phrase was sometimes adapted to refer to the global reach of American power . Mesopotamian texts contemporary to Sargon of Akkad (c. 2334 – 2279 BC) proclaim that this king ruled "all

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