Philip’s father Charles V saw Spain as the greatest Christian kingdom in Europe, and he saw his young son as t

Philips policy in the 1560s regarding the Low Countries once again showed that while he was happy to use religion as one of many reasons to take military action it was not his sole reason for doing so. This period also showed that while Philip was happy to be on good terms with the Vatican he was not willing to be its subordinate. Pope Pius V was anxious that Philip “go in person to the Low Countries as his presence there was the only safeguard for the church” (Lynch, p.33). For months Philip ignored the Catholic losses in the Low Countries. During this time he was under pressure from the Vatican to travel there in person to quell the uprising. Philip resisted for a long time and his response to yet another request for intervention by the Pope protested Philips grave concern for the preservation of religion on the Low Countries “you can assure His Holiness that rather than suffer the slightest prejudice to religion and the service of god I will lose all my states and a hundred lives if I had them, because I do not wish nor do I intend to be lord over heretics” (Lynch, p.33). The Vatican now wanted a peaceful solution to the problem but showing again how religion did not dictate Philips outlook on foreign policy he formed the opinion that armed force was needed to resolve the problem. The Pope argued that all that was needed was a show of force to frighten the rebels into surrender but Philip was now convinced that military action was required. This again showed how Philips foreign policy was not dictated by the Vatican and when Philip did take action “The Pope would have preferred that the accent be placed on its religious character, that it be called a war against heretics rather than a suppression of a rebellion” (Lynch, p.35). Spain disagreed with this view and Philip was shrewd enough to argue successfully the point that waging war solely on religious grounds could draw the attentions of other protestant peoples such as England and Lutheran Germany, which would be unwelcome in the extreme. However this does not mean that Philip was not concerned with the spiritual aspect of the war. Philip argued that he was fighting the war on both political and religious grounds. However over time Philip became less concerned about drawing the attention of Lutheran powerhouses, Germany and England, speaking of a war against “rebels and heretics” (Claire Cross, Church and People 1450-1660, [Fontana/Collins, 1976]). Also the personal correspondence of the soldiers fighting in Philip’s armies spoke about the war being waged “to defend the Catholic religion” (Lynch, p.35) . This shows that whi

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