The Empire on Which the Sun Never Sets

Download or read book The Empire on Which the Sun Never Sets written by Lambert M. Surhone and published by . This book was released on 2010-07-14 with total page 76 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. The phrase The Empire on which the sun never sets has been used, with variations, to describe global empires so large that at least one part of their territory is always in daylight. It has been used mainly of the Spanish and British empires. The phrase was first used to describe the Spanish Empire in the 16th century, and originated with a remark made by Fray Francisco de Ugalde to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. As emperor of the Holy Roman Empire and king of Spain Charles had an enormous empire which included many territories in Europe and vast territories in the Americas. The phrase gained added resonance during the reign of Charles's son, King Philip II of Spain. The Philippines was obtained by Spain in 1565. When King Henry of Portugal died, Philip II was recognised as King of Portugal in 1581, resulting in a personal union of the crowns.