Anna of Austria

Bartolomé González
Spanish 1564–1627
Queen Ana of Austria, fourth wife of Philip II c.1616
oil on canvas
108.5 x 87.0 cm
Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid (P01141)

Lived: 1 November 1549 – 26 October 1580

Fourth wife and niece of Philip II.

As the daughter of the Holy Roman Emperor, Maximilian II and Maria of Spain, Anna of Austria was highly sought after as a future consort in the European courts.  Her father chose to strengthen ties between the Spanish and Austrian branches of the Habsburg dynasty by offering her for marriage initially to Philip II’s son Charles (from his first wife Maria Manuela of Portugal). After Charles’s mental health deteriorated, Maximillian II arranged her marriage to Philip II. It is said that the king had the greatest affection for his last wife and they had five children together, before Anna died suddenly at the age of 31.