An analysis of the role of exiles in the evolution of Spanish culture traces the contributions of the Spanish state's racial minorities and dissidents over the course of five hundred years, arguing that Spanish exiles became universal products of their changed culture.

This book, published four hundred years after Philip's death, is the first full-scale biography of the king. Placing him within the social, cultural, religious and regional context of his times, it presents a startling new picture of his character and reign. Drawing on Philip's unpublished correspondence and on many other archival sources, Henry Kamen reveals much about Philip the youth, the man, the husband, the father, the frequently troubled Christian...