Resumen de Contribución militar del Sacro Imperio a la pervivencia de la Monarquía española en el siglo XVII
The importance of the Holy Roman soldiers fighting within the armies of the Spanish Monarchy during the 17th Century has been the object of several research projects. Their role was crucial for the defence of the provinces of Flanders and Milan, where the main combat troops and the largest military garrisons were located, but little has been written about their importance in the defence of the Iberian Peninsula itself.
If, at the turn of the century, Germanic military presence in Spain was simply symbolic, reduced to a few personal guards for the Sovereign and some halberdiers giving ceremonial escort to some of the main military figures, their number grew considerably after war erupted in Catalonia and rebellion broke out in Portugal, when thousands of mercenaries joined the armies fighting on both fronts. Their participation in the reconquest of Catalonia and in the fierce struggle in Extremadura was always praised by the Spanish high command. Such regiments of combat-hardened troops, due to their effectiveness and professionalism, were used on various occasions as part of the main core of the Army, participating in some of the most significant actions of the War such as the conquest of Lérida (1644), Barcelona (1652) and Évora (1662). Thus, the end of the War did not entail the end of the Germanic presence within the Iberian Peninsula, since, after 1668, a contingent of forces from the Holy Roman Empire remained as part of the Army in Catalonia where they continued being part of the garrison in that Principality, until the turn of the century taking part in all the military actions in the Netherlands (1673-78), Lux-embourg (1683-84) and in the Nine Years� War (1688-97).Nevertheless, such a significant presence did not give rise to strong links between Germans and Spaniards and did not lead, except on rare occasions, to the promotion to higher positions for officers in these units. In fact, the rendering of professional services within the Iberian Peninsula was not particularly attractive for the elites of the Holy Ro-man Empire and many noblemen preferred to continue serving in Mi-lan or Flanders, where the possibilities of promotion to posts of great responsibility were greater than in Spain. In this sense, the singular career, at the end of the 17th Century, of Prince George of Hesse-Darm-stadt, due to an array of exceptional events, would necessarily be a unique and unrepeatable case.
