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which constituted the Kingdom of Naples,
had at various times during the Middle
Ages been under common rule with Sicily.
From the mid-1400s onward both were
under the rule of branches of the House of
Aragon and were known as the Kingdom
of the Two Sicilies. Rival French claims to
Naples precipitated a prolonged struggle
between France and Spain (1494-1559)
known as the I
TALIAN
W
ARS
. The interven-
tion launched by F
ERDINAND
V of Aragon
to support his kin in Naples was trans-
formed into the imposition of his direct
rule after the original Neapolitan line died
out (1503). Throughout the 16th and 17th
centuries the Two Sicilies were an impor-
tant part of Spain's dominions in Europe,
providing a reservoir of money and mili-
tary manpower as well as important cul-
tural connections. By 1640, however, the
Neapolitan subjects of P
HILIP
IV were suffi-
ciently discontented with Spanish over-
lordship to launch a revolt. Although put
down by force, it represented a continuing
element of antagonism during the last
decades of Spanish rule.
Over the course of its intervention in the
peninsula Spain at first supported local rul-
ers in northern Italy against France but
then established its own influence. The
most significant of these Spanish intrusions
took place in 1535 when the Sforza dynasty
was replaced at Milan by C
HARLES
I's
assumption of the ducal title. During the
greater part of the next two centuries the
kings of Spain were also dukes of Milan and
dominated much of Lombardy. Like the
Two Sicilies, the Milanese, as the region
was sometimes called, was a valuable
adjunct to Spain's military and political
mastery of Europe, facilitating the move-
ment of Spanish troops and the intrusion of
its diplomacy into central Europe. With the
end of the W
AR
OF
THE
S
PANISH
S
UCCESSION
,
in 1714, Spain lost its Italian dependencies,
chiefly to Austria. The new ruling family,
the Spanish house of B
OURBON
, made vig-
orous efforts to regain their country's piv-
otal role in Italy. Aside from a nominal gain
in Parma (which was recognized as an inde-
pendent duchy under a branch of the Span-
ish Bourbons from 1720 onward), only the
Two Sicilies returned to the Spanish orbit.
From 1735 to 1759, when he became
C
HARLES
III, this Spanish prince ruled at
Naples. When he succeeded his brother as
sovereign of Spain (1759-88), he left behind
one of his sons to govern the Italian realm,
but it was linked to Spain only by royal kin-
ship, not by legal subordination. The north-
ern area around Milan continued under
Austrian rule until the 19th century when
all of these monarchies were absorbed into
the unified kingdom of Italy.
Iturbide, Agustín de
(1783-1824)
Spanish colonial rebel
Born in M
EXICO
of Basque descent, Itur-
bide held increasingly important com-
mands in the Spanish army during the
period 1810-20 and played a significant
role in repressing early Mexican moves
toward independence. However, he was
not fundamentally opposed to a break
between Spain and “New Spain” as long
as it could be achieved in a conservative
spirit. When the revolt of R
AFAEL
DEL
R
IEGO
in 1820 precipitated a shift toward
liberalism in Spain, Iturbide decided to
support a break with the mother country.
He secretly made agreements with nation-
alist leaders while publicly accepting the
task of repressing them. By 1821 he had
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