A Brill Calendar: October 1 Charles V and the Collateral
Councils Few statesmen have been as important to Europe as the
son of Philip I, "the Handsome" and of Joan the Mad. It was in
the Low Countries that the young man became responsible for
ruling the Netherlands four years before inheriting the proudest
title of Europe: Holy Roman Emperor. Charles V ruled in the
North-Western part of his realm for forty years , before
abdicating his throne in 1555: the first of his possessions upon
which the Sun was not supposed to set. But the seeds of this
abdication were planted much earlier. On October 1, 1531 the
time had come to install a new method to cater for the
prosperity of his subjects and for the peace in lands in the
north of France in an innovative way. That day, Charles called
into being three ‘Collateral Councils’ of powerful and
influential men with the function to provide the emperor with
sound advice, good counsel and true wisdom. It is seldom that
the undisputed head of Christianity could use it bette