Published in Mirabilia Journal 31 (2020/2)  

Keywords: Keywords: Charles V, Maiestas, Portraiture, Propaganda, Titian.

The importance of the court portrait is decisive to understand the painting of the 16th century in its correct artistic and propaganda dimensions. Charles V was born into a family with very clear ideas in this regard. In him, as in few men and women in history, an evolution from the local factor to the global reality is perceived, which is reflection and consequence at the same time of a life that took him from the County of Flanders to being the most powerful ruler in the world. This paper analyzes the evolution of his effigy in the light of those events, as well as the role played by color in its consolidation, focusing in a special way on the contributions of Titian, the great architect of the imperial image that has survived to this day.