Original subtitles

Previously... We are retreating. I will ask for a truce.

We disarmed the Emperor, my son. Here you have his sword.

Damn it! Sometimes I would like to take his place.

Before he keeps reducing, with his mistakes, what I will get one day.

- I am going to kill the dying man. - You accepted to negotiate a truce with him.

Only in Flanders. I am talking about Italy.

I wish to retire. I don't want my decline to cause that of my domains.

But don't worry, I know my will cannot be complied immediately.

Your mother. You have to govern Casile in her name until she dies.

- Father, I would like to marry again. - Do you have candidates?

My cousin Maria of Portugal has not been married off yet.

I left her in Portugal and didn't look behind.

- What kind of a mother behaves likes like that? - Ours.

Let us forgive each other.

Both of us. Let us be mother and daughter, even if just one time.

Your Majesty, the King of England is dead.

Marry Mary Tudor?

It would associate us with England and, giving it an heir, Catholicism would be perpetuated in that kingdom.

Let all Castile know that their queen is dead.

I have no strength any more to govern the states that God gave me.

I cannot do you any services the way those will who receive my legacy.

It is my will that the King of England should enjoy the privileges and rights he deserves by his title.

You are the legitimate emperor. And as such, you can choose your worthy successor.

My lord! France has invaded Naples.

Prepare everything. We are leaving.

Father

Monastery of Yuste

6

My sister Eleanor wishes to go to Portugal to live with her daughter in her last years.

Fair desire.

The Crown of Portugal protects your order.

You have had occasion to get to know their court well.

Will King John agree to grant Eleanor's wish?

Your Majesty,

the portuguese Crown took it as a very grave offense

that your son's engagement with the Infanta was broken off.

I know. So does my sister.

That is why she applies to my authority to mediate in this issue.

The royal couple loves the Infanta as a daughter.

They will show resistance but they will not go against it.

Let us hope it will be so.

Eleanor has earned to see this last aspiration come to true.

When do we expect my grandson's visit?

Next week, Your Majesty.

I will best write that letter as soon as possible.

God lets us abdicate of an empire but not of our relatives.

It seems in this war the King of France wages against me everyone takes him as the winner.

Listen:

the King is pusillanimous and inexperienced

since he has never fought a battle neither seems to be capable of that.

His inheritance is dispersed and his states are sunk in continuous conflicts.

Pushing one of his pieces, all the others will collapse afterwards.

Typical gosspis of the Venetian ambassadors. You will get used to it.

When you face your enemy on the battlefield

everyone will have to shut his mouth.

It is actually truw that this war has to settle your reign.

What you do in it will decide how they will look at you in the years to come.

My mother, the Empress,

thought that a good king doesn't have to go to battle to demonstrate his greatness.

Although there were none better than her,

she was a woman in the end.

No doubt, I have to go to battle now and have to come out victorious.

Because I know I am risking my prestige before my enemies.

And before my friends.

Your Majesty.

- Did you wish to see me? - Come closer.

We will not attack what Henry conquered.

We will invade France itself.

We will do it on the north. On the south, we would have to go through the Pyrenees, and from Milan

we should recover Savoy before to enter France.

We have to choose well where we strike.

We need a city important enough so that its defeat

procures us the prestige we need.

And so that its fall cuts the French advance towards Flanders,

facilitating ours towards Paris.

So,

it could only be Péronne,

or Saint-Quentin.

Do you agree with my opinion?

No one would have calculated better the strategy to follow.

Péronne or Saint-Quentin?

Saint-Quentin obligates to take smaller places to secure the position,

but its defenses are more vulnerable.

- Saint-Quentin, then. - Will your wife support us?

With that, we would have the war half won.

My duke,

I am the King of England.

Nobles of England,

God has led home the King, our lord.

You have been so...

cordial to my nobles that I thought they would never leave us alone.

For them, I am only

the Queen's husband.

I have to earn their trust.

Do you imagine that

that would be your only one job?

To be the Queen's husband.

That would be the most beautiful of the tasks.

But God has wanted to burden my shoulders with troublesome obligations.

And I have to talk to you about them.

Let us give ourselves some minutes.

It is a matter of great importance.

Are there anything more important than the succession?

Your Majesty.

Charles,

my grandson and heir.

Finally, here.

Your Majesty,

why did you choose such a secluded place to live?

Of all the favors God has given me,

this dwelling is the one I am most grateful for.

I will be like you in everything.

Except in the end of my days.

It is a sovereign's obligation to surpass his predecessor.

You will be better than your father, and, this way, better than me, too.

I will really surpass both of you.

Are you planning the campaign against the French?

It is your father the King's job now.

What are you doing here? Leave us!

Come on!

Harsh treatment with someone who did nothing except serving us.

I just treated him as a servant.

Accept this gift.

Read Caesar.

And learn that it is not the same to play war as wage war.

But you ran away!

You ran away from the Lutherans!

I will never run away! Never ever ever!

I would have won or would have died.

It is getting late.

His Highness has to go back.

Despite everything, my biggest wish is that I keep being like you.

Did you know about my grandson's character?

Deed like the one you witnessed are not new.

Though, according to what they say, they are less and less frequent.

Where have we gone wrong?

Your grandson has lived without mother and far from his father.

- The King's return will bring order. - My grandson needs to have him close.

I was also absent for long times

but the Empress was always together with our children.

Bring me the box.

Of campaign in Germany, everybody remembers the victory In Muhlberg.

But I suffered a grave defeat there that only a few people know.

If it was so grave how could you keep it in secret?

It only affects my person and my soul.

- Do you wish to confess? - God already knows my sin.

I am not applying to you as priest but as man.

And as friend.

But I order you to keep it in secret.

In those days, I let myself be gripped by a woman,

of which meeting she gave me a son.

Don't look at me with this face, for God's sake!

I am not the first one who sins.

And it would not be the first time. You know about my daughter Margaret.

- But that was before your marriage. - Of course!

I was always faithful to her!

At least, in life.

Does God have nothing to forgive you, perhaps?

There is no sin that God could not forgive with His infinite mercy, Your Majesty.

He will do so with yours.

And I hope he will with mine.

I want to get to know him.

He lives in the village of Cuacos with my steward Quijada and his wife.

- Have you brought him here? - You will go to find him.

But keep your tongue under 7 locks.

He doesn't know I am his father.

And I want to get to know him when he doesn't know he is speaking with the emperor.

I bought two good hounds.

There is no better dog for hunting than an English dog.

My lord,

my lords are opposed to the war against France.

What makes them refuse to help their king in a moment of such necessity?

They allude to marriage settlements that you signed yourself.

There is a part that England would not fight in the Emperor's wars.

The Emperor's?

You and I are the owners of the territories that France wants to have.

- This is our war! - England wants peace.

Do I deny it, perhaps? Let us defeat France and there will be peace.

Your Highness,

I suspect that amongat those who advise you someone wants our kingdom in hands of the French.

Prudence can lead to mistake.

- But it should not be taken for treason. - Tell me:

and do they advise you not to recognise your sister Elizabeth as your successor?

- Half-sister! - Half-sister.

Those felons prefer that the Queen of Scotland succeeds you.

Mary Stuart lives in France, waiting for marrying the Dauphin!

Permit if you like that the next monarchs of France will be those of England.

You are sure that I cannot give you children?

Where are our children? Where are they?

How should I conceive with an absent husband?

God!

Queens of England, what kind of curse do we have?

I know you are right.

I know that appointing Elizabeth as my successor would keep the danger away.

But how could one forget 24 years of suffering?

The Boleyn woman caused your disgrace.

- And she already paid with her head for harm she caused you. - And do I have to legitimize

her marriage with my father by appointing my half-sister as heiress?

- Your Highness... - You don't know what my life has been like.

The repugnance it causes me to betray my mother's memory like this.

I am on your side.

I will look after you.

Always.

I will do whatever is necessary to get you my lords' support.

But about Elizabeth...!

We will talk about Elizabeth later.

And may God want it

that before Mary Stuart's wedding with the Dauphin of France

you and I create the next king of England.

Jerónimo!

For that is how you are known.

- Are you not? - Your Majesty.

- I see you have already been told who I am. - No one said anything, my lord.

Then?

In the village, we all live to serve Your Majesty.

And I have seen everyone some time.

Do you like clocks?

I don't need them. I am going to be a soldier.

Like everyone.

Anyone can be a soldier.

But if what you want is commanding an army, it is not enough if you play with a lath.

Do you like reading?

At home, we read things of saints.

One can learn from them, too.

But read Caesar.

He was one of my masters in the art of war.

Now, go.

But... why have you called me?

Because you remind me of my son.

The King?

I would like to be with him, defeating the French.

Patience... As far as I know,

there will always be a war to win against France.

Be prepared.

I would say the Emperor will wish to see you again, sooner than later.

- But... he dismissed me. - Well.

Today His Majesty has had a bad day.

The gout is a very tiring illness.

Lisbon

What do you think?

It is understandable that a mother wants to live near her daughter.

Why does it worries you?

Does the breaking off of the engagement annoy you so much?

I worry about Eleanor.

Don't get me wrong.

I don't want to stir up the past being at the end of my life.

I just wish your peace and your feelings were not disturbed.

Thank you.

Then let our Maria meet her mother.

Because it is your duty as a good Christian.

I have only one petition to you.

That Eleanor should not come to live in Portugal.

There cannot be two queens in the Court.

Especially if the two are sisters.

I will be as you wish.

I will give the Infanta the good news myself.

I don't even remember my mother.

I was just a child when she left.

In that respect, her childhood was not different from yours.

Only the obedience to the Emperor separated her from you.

She has always written to you.

And I have followed her advice.

I know about her concern for me.

And I have her present in my prayers.

This way it is a blessing for you.

Do you believe so?

We better leave thins as God has disposed.

- Do you refuse to grant her wish? - Understand me!

- We are two strangers. - But she is your mother.

No.

You have been my mother.

It is from the portuguese court.

Your sister will not be able to live with her daughter the way she wished.

King John refuses to forget the insult...

Only God knows if my sister Catherine did what she had to to convince him.

Your Majesty,

it is Infanta Maria herself who declines.

Your Highnesses.

Does Castile give you good treatment?

We cannot complain about anything.

Do you have news from Portugal?

The Court of Lisbon refuses that you meet your daughter.

That Philip broke off his engagement with her, it is an insult they are not going to forget.

Is that all that you have done for me?

You have always had your way.

I had to leave Maria because of you!

- Intercede one more time! - I granted your request.

- I cannot do more. - You are the emperor!

Your daughter is princess in Portugal.

- It is their king who... - No!

Only your disinterest takes her away from me!

I have given you my life and now you condemn me to die alone!

Like you! But you have chosen it for yourself.

You have heart of stone! I will never forgive you!

I am afraid this disappointment worsens Eleanor's poor health.

Before we both leave let me try to convince

the royal couple of Portugal.

You will not achieve anything.

You should know that it is our niece who refuses to pay respect to her mother's request.

- But you said... - Is it not easier

to accept the disillusion of a brother than of a child?

For Eleanor's sake, I ask you to keep it in secret.

Please.

I will go to Portugal anyway. I wish to get to know our sister Catherine.

Do you think that stubborn Infanta will obey you more than me?

She will listen to Catherine. She raised her.

I will make our sister make Eleanor's request hers.

Children and parents have to be close when they need each other.

There is no greater truth.

My lord! Leave us with the King.

I made the Coucil understand that the war against France is our war, too.

Can I expect then England's support?

My fleet will cover the Channel.

7000 men will go to France and join your army.

Some of my lords will accompany you in your return to the Continent.

But...

you have to comply with something.

If it is also England's war

the victory will have to be ours as well.

My troops will participate in the decisive battle

- or the lords would not forgive us. - You can count in it.

I am giving you my word.

And all my gratitude.

When will you leave?

As soon as possible.

There are many things pending.

There cannot be other answer.

I know.

I know...

You are too virtuous.

Virtuous?

No, my lord!

There is not virtue in this world that my love for you could not overcome.

It is fear to show that might displeases you!

Why are you saying such a thing?

What sin have I committed that God punishes me in such a cruel way?

I swore... I swore as a young girl that I would not suffer the torments of love and now...

And now I find myself together with a young and vigorous husband,

and I am without head or will!

Never...

May God

never want it that you love someone who cannot requite.

- Have you read it already? - Yes, Your Majesty.

And what is it that you liked the most?

When Caesar encourages his men to go to battle.

Then you have learned something important.

A general is the soul of his army.

If his men believe in him and he believes in victory

nothing will stop them.

Then take the second lesson of the art of war.

One cannot win always.

It is always more difficult to retreat than to fight.

But the general who sees himself obligated to it

shows more courage than the one who fails in his duty and endangers everything

so that his honor could not be criticized.

But... honor is everything.

Do you also believe that honor cannot exist not only after a retreat but also

after an escape?

- Is it possible, perhaps? - That will be the third lesson.

Do you allow me?

Accept this gift.

I will give you them according to how you read them.

Have you written about your campaigns?

I started a book years ago.

Well, that is what I would like to read.

His Majesty attempted to ease his pain, undertaking continuous travels,

battling without rest against his rivals.

But neither the victories nor the power he had over so many creatures of God

eased the agony he lived in after the Empress's death.

His Majesty cosidered that, because of the difficulties said above, there was no...

His Majesty wanted to spend his last days in Yuste,

where other sorts of battles turned up every other day.

There he brought to him a youngster who was named Jerónimo.

Enough!

God has wanted me to get here.

Go!

- Maria, come closer! - Don't tire yourself.

Come closer, I am telling you.

I am dying.

I want to ask you to go with your mother.

I owe this to her.

I will go calm only if she is happy.

Will you do it?

Will you do it?

I will.

Let us hug each other finally like sisters.

If the regency didn't obligate me I would gladly go with you

and join our siblings finally.

How much I yearned for your closeness when I was child!

And I envied you for being together with Mother.

It was very hard

and painful.

I know.

That is why our sister Eleanor's suffering hurts me

for not being able to meet her daughter.

She is ill.

I believe she will not live long.

Don't worry.

Will the Infanta grant her request?

She will, because she said so to my husband at his deathbed.

Your Highness! A large French contingent is nearing Saint-Quentin,

to break our siege.

- What do we know about the English reinforcements? - They have already disembarked

but they need rest and supply. They will not arrive in 2 days.

- We will wait. - It is hour of action!

Your army is waiting only for your arrival to start the storm!

- If you leave now we will have... - Did you not hear me, perhaps?

The fortune of the English tied to mine if we don't want them to turn their backs on us.

- Go and talk to Alba. - My lord,

lose this battle and you will lose it all.

I know I have to go into battle. But go and wait to the limit.

What madness is this? The Frensh standards are descried now. And the King?

The King has to wait for the English and you have to wait for the King.

Monsignor, we are not here to do politics. This is war!

Either we go to meet the Constable or we will see ourselves exposed to cross-fire.

- It is now or never. - You have heard me!

- You must wait. - Waiting is being defeated.

- We have to go to the limit. - We have already left that behind.

Know that the defeat will be only yours,

but the victory will be the King's.

I am with family here.

And the natural understanding that has united us

has made it possible that your fair wish comes true.

The Infanta will accompany me when I return, and, passing the border,

you will be able to hug your daughter finally.

Battle of Saint-Quentin August 1557

Duke.

The victory against France is round and complete.

The battle of Saint-Quentin will be remembered with that of Pavia or Mühlberg.

As the great triumph of the Hispanic monarchy.

I was absent in the three alike.

Your Majesty.

This victory is yours

because you disposed everything so that it could be possible.

The triumph is so great that nothing else matters.

Everyone will cheer you for it.

We still have to enter the city and beat other resistances.

The battle continues and you will be in it.

More than 5000 Frenchmen died in the battle.

Among our men, we hardly have 300 losses.

And many only suffer injuries.

The prisoners are waiting.

There is no family in France that can boast of not being beaten here by you.

This is the victory God has wanted.

And, no doubt, it has been a great victory.

My lord, the standards of the army of Frane are at your feet.

Because your victory has been just and noble.

Get up, Constable.

The courage you demonstrated in the battle

will only increase your fame.

Let me present you to your prisoners.

Duke of Montpensier.

Duke of Longueville.

Prince of Mantua.

Your Majesty. Your son the King achieved a great victoriy in Saint-Quentin.

The French army was completely defeated.

Did the King command his men?

- I don't know, my lord.

- He must have.

- It was his duty. - Yes, of course.

- But, fortunately, he will come back soon. - God forbid.

The King of France still has his Italian army.

Don't doubt that he will try to get back what he lost.

Or recoup himself, taking some place that restores his prestige.

The King has to go to Paris! And he has to do it now.

Only this way the victory will be definitive.

- Your Majesty, will you not finish the meal?

- I have to write to my son.

He must not commit the same mistake as I did.

- We have to advance towards Paris. - Why take risks?

No. It is fair what I want to avoid.

But the defeat of the French has been indisputable.

It will be when I enter Paris on the front of my men.

You are right, my lord.

But we don't know the forces that protect the capital.

If we advance, King Henry will order the troops in Italy to assist him

and we could see ourselves between hell and high water.

Neither the Flemings nor the English will support you. We won.

They will not risk any more lives and money.

Do you want to annex France, perhaps? You know that is quite impossible.

You are not going to obtain more from this war than you already have.

Do you think the same?

My heart is with you, Your Majesty.

But reason takes sides with Monsignor.

Come here, my son.

We have to face the adversity together.

Deprived as we are of our best men.

Today, you are the heir of a defeated kingdom.

May god want it that my shame will not be yours as well.

Was the defeat so big?

If the Spaniards take the road towards Paris

- all will be lost. - Do you want to surrender?

Never! But you must know

that only the providence and a bold strike could save us.

And the two things rarely happen at the same time.

God will do his part. What do we have to do?

Our army comes back from Italy. If Philip delays his advance

we can still defend the capital.

But what do you mean by boldness? Reconquer Saint-Quentin?

If we save Paris,

that is the strike they expect.

And that will be the one we will not give.

We will take...

- Calais. - Calais?

Father, this is madness.

You will provoke that England will return to help Philip.

No. On the contraty.

This war has caused so much fear amongst the English that

they will make him responsible for their loss

and will turn against him.

Do you trust me?

For France! For the victory!

And the Infanta?

The Portuguese border

Don't search. No one is coming with me.

- But your letter... - Everything happened as I told you

until the moment of departure.

No!

They are called siblings and they are not capable of relieving my misfortune!

They make my daughter pay for their mutual grievances!

- Don't offend God with these words. - Do you still defend them?

It is your daughter who refuses to live with you.

I tried to make her change her mind but it was in vain.

She didn't even respect the word she gave to King John on his deathbed.

Charles withheld it from you because he wanted to save you from such a bitter.

May God forgive me but this is the truth.

Do you know what the Emperor advises me?

To march on Paris!

That is not within the confines of possibility. The army King Henry had in Italy is in France now.

That is right! Now nothing can be done. But in that moment, it could have. And much!

The arguments that were advanced then are so valid today.

If I had ignored your advice Paris would be mine.

And instead of disappointing the Emperor, I would have demonstrated

that I am capable of governing without his advice!

What kind of victory is this that I got?

Paris. He should have taken Paris.

Maybe he is still in time.

I calculate that the army of Piedmont could be around here now.

With the threat of those reinforcements it would be madness to venture.

What detains the King?

Money.

Or perhaps the mistake of thinking that after the great victory he achieved the war is already resolved.

Sometimes we cannot take the right decision.

You did so.

Escaping.

Does escaping not deprive a general of honor, then?

You would have been a bad general and worse emperor

if you had let yourself be caught.

Who did you ask about what happened?

Your father?

I don't have a father.

- But Quijada cares for you as such. - I know.

And everyone thinks I am his son. But I know I am not.

My lord! Wake up!

France has taken Calais.

- May God help the Queen! - Ask for us, too.

Because England will accuse us of having caused such a grave damage.

When I die

the name of Calais will appear graven in my heart.

Eleanor...

Drink a sip at least.

Do it for me.

From our mother, I learnt

not to put obstacles before the inevitable things.

Fight. Fight!

I beg you.

Don't abandon me.

Mary...

The only happiness left for me

is death.

Queen of France and of Portugal.

How many women envied me for being who I was?

And I would have gladly been anyone of them.

History will not give queens as miserable

as those of our family.

I was the most powerful man

and I was incapable of granting an anguished woman's request.

We don't achieve many things when our life nears its end.

But if you take stock of all that you have achieved

you will have to be satisfied.

There is much distance between what I intended to do and what I achieved.

That has only one name: failure.

Charles, today melancholy speaks for you.

I didn't finish with the heresy,

neither overcame the infidels,

nor managed to unite the Christendom in one universal monarchy.

Maybe the goals you set out were too high.

I should have killed Luther.

God will not forgive me that the heresy have struck root in the Empire.

What remains from so much endeavor?

My son ignores my advice.

And my grandson...

- I don't know what to think of him. - Philip will maintain the Empire

with firm and secure hand.

He will not let his son mislead it.

Old age...

Well, longing is worth nothing now.

Just like Eleanor, we are also denied everything.

What elso do you want to ask of the Lord at this time?

You are where you wanted to be.

And you met your son.

That boy you saw fills me up.

Because there is nothing I don't like about him.

However...

- he is not her son. - But he is your son.

Legitimize him if he has demonstrated that he is worthy of you.

Do you believe I have not thought about that?

But that would go against the memory of Isabella.

- What would say Philip, moreover? - Philip would respect your will.

Jerónimo is child of sin.

And I have not some here to satisfy my wishes

but to prepare myself to leave.

Is that the penitence you have forced upon yourself?

Denying yourself the desire that that boy looks at you as father?

You would be better welcomed in heaven if you thought of him before of yourself.

And if that is not enough for you, think as emperor

before as man.

This child you think so highly of can be very valuable for our family.

How great empress you would have been!

I am leaving.

And I am taking you in my heart.

And think about that, brother,

if God had not wanted you to have that son

He would not have given you him.

Your Majesty!

What is wrong?

Heat stroke.

Let us go inside.

Your Majesty.

No, no... Don't get up.

They have to draw blood so that your fever lowers.

Then is it not a heat stroke?

I have to ask you to settle something.

And it has to be done without delay.

I want to watch my own funeral.

Caesar grabbed a soldier's shield and went to stand on the front.

Calling the centurions by their names

and heartening the others, he commanded the advance.

With his presence, the soldiers invigorated

each one wishing to make their last efforts,

at the sight of the general in the middle of their biggest danger.

- What does he tell you when he leaves here? - When we went back

he insisted that they serve you marrow for dinner.

He was ill once. He thinks that was what saved him.

My poor son!

The thing that should reproach me the most is that he stays by my side now.

Your other children are prince and princesses and have to run the business of these kingdoms.

Don't pay attention to my words.

They are grumbles of a man who sees his hour coming.

- Your Majesty... - Don't tire me.

You know as well as I know that everything is done.

Listen to, then, what I have to tell you.

A most important thing and I need it from you.

I will serve you in anything you ask.

I am going to add a codicil to my testament.

In that, I will recognize my son Jerónimo.

God will be very happy for your decision, Your Majesty.

I would like to give him our surname

and I would like him to get a name of a prince of the family.

Juan.

In memory of my mother.

The name she wanted me to have.

And what do you want from me?

I am not going to do it in my life.

That is why I ask you to see to it that my son keeps my will.

Your Majesty,

will you die

without hearing that this child who you love now calls you father?

Fulfill my order.

What am I reading you today, Your Majesty?

There is no more time for readings.

Don't cry.

The king's best soldier must not cry.

And the Emperor must not surrender.

Come closer.

I have sent for you

because I have to tell you something important

I am very proud of you.

I also want

ask your forgiveness.

What do I have to forgive you?

Goodbye, my son.

Goodbye, Your Majesty.

I will come tomorroy and I will read you the end.

Yes...

We will get to know the end tomorrow.

The troops are ready. These news must be sent to the Emperor.

May God want that it restores his faith in me.

My lord, that letter is not going to arrive in time.

You must prepare yourself.

The Emperor is dying.

The Empress's crucifix.

I am holding on to the cross

that accompanied you in your last breath.

May God let us meet soon.

My hour has come.

This is the moment.

Ay, Jesus!

21 September 1558