Alva, Duke of

Duke of (1508-1582), a celebrated Spanish soldier. An able, unscrupulous, cruel man, of whom an excellent account may be found in Motley's The Rise of the Dutch Republic. A distinguished general, during the reign of Emperor Charles V, he became the military commander-in-chief of Philip II. Upon being asked at one time to give an account of the money expended in the campaign, he is said to have replied: "If the king asks me for an account, I will make to him a statement of kingdoms preserved, or conquered, of signal victories, of successful sieges, and of sixty years' service." An account of his various campaigns would be a history of the reigns of two monarchs under whom he served. Alva is remembered particularly for the way in which he treated the inhabitants of the Netherlands. He was sent to the Low Countries with an army to subdue a revolt and to exterminate heresy, out of which, it must in justice be said, the revolt proceeded. After a protracted contest Alva and his troops were withdrawn before the victorious forces of William, Prince of Orange. This war cost Spain $800,000,000, her choicest troops, and seven fair provinces. Alva himself boasted that he had caused 18,000 Netherlanders to be beheaded for heretical opinions, though modern writers assert that many were executed for the sake of the wealth they were known to possess. See Netherlands