Mariana of Austria (1634 - 1696). Mariana of Austria or Maria Anna was Queen of Spain from 1649 until her husband and uncle, Philip IV, died in 1665. She was then appointed regent for their three-year-old son Charles II, and due to his ill health remained an influential figure until her own death in 1696. Her regency was overshadowed by the need to manage Spain's post-1648 decline as the dominant global power, internal political divisions and the European economic crisis of the second half of the 17th century. The inability of her son Charles to produce an heir led to constant manoeuvring by other European powers, which ultimately ended in the 1701 to 1714 War of the Spanish Succession. Maria Anna was born on 24 December 1634 in Wiener Neustadt, second child of Maria Anna of Spain and her husband Ferdinand, who became Holy Roman Emperor in 1637. Her parents had six children, of whom only Maria Anna and two brothers survived to adulthood; Ferdinand, and Leopold, elected emperor in 1658. The Habsburgs often married within the family to retain their lands and properties, and in 1646 Maria Anna was betrothed to her cousin and heir to the Spanish throne, Balthasar Charles, Prince of Asturias. His death three months later left her without a prospective husband and her widowed uncle Philip IV without an heir. On 7 October 1649, Philip married his fourteen-year-old niece in Navalcarnero, outside Madrid; from then on, she was known by her Spanish name 'Mariana.' Her exclusion from political life meant she focused on religion and education, which society viewed as fitting women's 'role' as nurturers and providers of moral guidance. Only two of their five children survived to adulthood; in 1666, Margaret Theresa married her maternal uncle Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor. Mariana's second daughter, Maria Ambrosia, lived only fifteen days, followed by two sons, Philip Prospero and Ferdinand Thomas. On 6 November 1661, Mariana gave birth to her last child, Charles, later known as El Hechizado or The Bewitched, in the belief his disabilities were caused by sorcery. In his case, the so-called Habsburg lip was so pronounced he spoke and ate with difficulty all his life. He did not learn to walk until he was eight and never attended school but foreign observers noted his mental capacities remained intact; others speculated the Regents over-stated his defects to retain political control. It has been suggested Charles suffered from the endocrine disease acromegaly and a combination of rare genetic disorders often transmitted through recessive genes, including combined pituitary hormone deficiency and distal renal tubular acidosis. However, his elder sister did not appear to suffer the same issues and the authors of the most significant study state it has not been demonstrated disabilities.were caused by.recessive alleles inherited from common ancestors. Regardless of the cause, Charles suffered ill-health throughout his life and the Spanish court was split by the struggle between his co-heirs, Louis XIV and Emperor Leopold. His death was expected almost from birth; he was short, lame, epileptic, senile and completely bald before 35.repeatedly baffling Christendom by continuing to live. Charles was only three when Philip died on 17 September 1665; Mariana was appointed regent, advised by a Regency Council, until he became a legal adult at the age of 14. Many modern English-language sources are based on contemporary views women were incapable of ruling without a man and imply a sexual relationship. As a 'foreigner' herself, she often selected other outsiders; of her two main ministers, Juan Everardo Nithard was an Austrian Jesuit, while Valenzuela came from outside the top level of Spanish nobility or Grandees. The external situation she faced would have challenged even the most competent ruler; Spain had been at war almost continually for 60 years and was financially exhausted. Her reign also coincided with the Little Ice Age, a period of cold and wet weather that affected the whole of Europe in the second half of the 17th century. Between 1692 to 1699, an estimated 5-10% of the European population starved to death. Charles' poor health and lack of an heir led to a constant struggle between 'Austrian' and 'French' factions, respectively led by Mariana and his illegitimate half-brother John of Austria the Younger. This was worsened by Spain's division into the Crowns of Castile and Aragon, whose very different political cultures made it almost impossible to enact reforms or increase taxes. Government finances were in perpetual crisis and Spain declared bankruptcy nine times between 1557 and 1666, including 1647, 1652, 1661 and 1666. Mariana governed through validos or 'favourites', a role established by Philip in 1620 and widely used elsewhere in Europe.