Francisco Gómez de Sandoval y Rojas, Duke of Lerma

Francisco Gómez de Sandoval y Rojas, fifth Marquis of Denia and first Duke of Lerma, was born in Tordesillas in 1553, the heir to a family of ancient and prestigious lineage, but whose economic fortunes had been forfeited. Thanks to the favour and affection of the Prince and then King Philip III (1578-1621), he was able to gain a position of absolute prominence at court and in the government of the Spanish monarchy. The mighty favourite (valido in Spanish) was in charge of the affairs of the main power of the time instead of its legitimate ruler, uninterested or unwilling to deal with politics. For twenty years (1598-1618), the Duke of Lerma inaugurated a type of government, based on placing relatives, allies, and the men of his trust, in the vital centers of the administration which would later be imitated by the Count Duke of Olivares (1587-1645). The peace with England (1604), the Truce of the Twelve years (1609-1621) and the expulsion of the Moriscos were some of the most important decisions made during his tenure. Ousted at the hands of the faction led by his own heir Cristóbal, the Duke of Uceda, and the confessor of the king Luis de Aliaga, Lerma left the court in 1618, but not before he obtained his appointment as cardinal of the Church. He survived the king who had brought him to power and his son who had betrayed him, dying in Valladolid on 17 May 1625.

Read more:

• A. Feros, Kingship and favoritism in the Spain of Philip III, 1598-1621, Cambridge 2000.
• P. Williams, The great favorite: the Duke of Lerma and the court and government of Philip III of Spain, 1598-1621, Manchester- New York 2006.
• A. Alvar Ezquerra, El Duque de Lerma. Corrupción y desmoralización en la España del siglo XVII, Madrid 2010.