Carlos de Aragón de Gurrea, 9th Duke of Villahermosa
Carlos de Aragón de Gurrea y de Borja, 9th Duke of Villahermosa (1634–1692), was a Spanish nobleman who served as viceroy and governor. He was Governor of the Habsburg Netherlands from 1675 to 1677. In his time, Spanish power in the Southern Netherlands was weak, and France and the Dutch Republic could fight the Battle of Cassel (1677) on its territory with little Spanish help. Around 1677 he received reinforcements from Gaspar Téllez-Girón, 5th Duke of Osuna, including the Valladares Tercio led by Isidoro de la Cueva y Benavides. He was soon replaced by Alessandro Farnese, Prince of Parma, who governed from 1678 to 1682. During Farnese’s tenure, the Brussels Military Academy was established, led by Sebastián Fernández de Medrano, with Flemish engineers among its students such as Prospero Jorge de Verboom. In 1678 he was made a Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece. He later served as Viceroy of Catalonia from 1688 to 1690, and died in 1692. He married Maria Enriquez de Guzman y Cordova in 1656; they had no children.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 06:05 (CET).