Bernardino de Mendoza (c.1540 – August 3, 1604) was a Spanish military commander, a diplomat and a writer on military history and politics. Year 1540 was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. ... August 3 is the 215th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (216th in leap years), with 150 days remaining. ... Events January 14 – Hampton Court conference with James I of England, the Anglican bishops and representatives of Puritans September 20 – Capture of Ostend by Spanish forces under Ambrosio Spinola after a three year siege. ...

Life and works

Bernardino de Mendoza was born in Guadalajara, Spain around 1540. In 1560, he joined the army of King Philip II and for more than fifteen years fought in the Low Countries under the command of Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, Duke of Alva. In 1576, he was appointed a member of the military order of St. James (Orden militar de Santiago) in recognition of his military achievements. Location Coordinates: Country Spain Autonomous Community Castile-La Mancha Province Guadalajara Tows 5 (Guadalajara, Iriépal, Taracena, Usanos & Valdenoches) Founded 8th century, probably, by moors Government  - Mayor Jesús Alique (PSOE) Area  - Land 236 km² (91. ... Philip II (Spanish: Felipe II de Habsburgo; Portuguese: Filipe I) (May 21, 1527 – September 13, 1598) was the first official King of Spain from 1556 until 1598, King of Naples and Sicily from 1554 until 1598, King of England (as King-consort of Mary I) from 1554 to 1558, King... The Low Countries, the historical region of de Nederlanden, are the countries (see Country) on low-lying land around the delta of the Rhine, Scheldt, and Meuse (Maas) rivers. ... Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, Duke of Alva. ...

In 1578, Philip II sent Mendoza as his ambassador to London. There he acted not only as diplomat but also as spy, using a variety of secret codes in the reports he returned to Spain. He was expelled from England in 1584 after his involvement in Francis Throckmorton's plot against Queen Elizabeth I was revealed. Crucial to this plot was his correspondence with Phillip II, using a code known only to himself and the king which they had learnt years earlier. An ambassador, rarely embassador, is a diplomatic official accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization, to serve as the official representative of his or her own country. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... In the context of cryptography, a code is a method used to transform a message into an obscured form, preventing those not in on the secret from understanding what is actually transmitted. ... Francis Throckmorton (1554—1584) was a conspirator against Queen Elizabeth I of England. ... Elizabeth I redirects here. ...

For the next six years, Bernardino de Mendoza served as Spanish ambassador to the king of France. In 1590, he resigned due to ill health. His eyesight had been deteriorating for years and by the time of his return to Spain, he had become completely blind. His last years were spent in his house in Madrid. Kings ruled in France from the Middle Ages to 1848. ...

Among Mendoza's writings is a famous account of the war in the Low Countries entitled Comentario de lo sucecido en los Paises Bajos desde el año 1567 hasta el de 1577. Bernardino also published a book on the art of warfare under the title Teoria y práctica de la guerra and a Spanish translation of the Politicorum sive civilis doctrinae libri sex of the Flemish philosopher Justus Lipsius. Justus Lipsius, Joost Lips or Josse Lips (October 18, 1547 — March 23, 1606), was a Flemish philologian and humanist. ...

References

• Miguel Cabañas Agrela (ed.), Bernardino de Mendoza, un escritor soldado al servicio de la monarquía católica (1540-1604), Diputación de Guadalajara: 2001.

External links

• (Spanish) Biography of Bernardino de Mendoza by Prof. Dr. Antonio Herrera Casado.