Born into an old but poor noble family, Godoy he followed his brother to Madrid in 1784 and, like him, entered the royal guard. He attracted the attention of Maria Luisa de Parma, wife of the heir to the throne, and soon became his lover. When her husband ascended to the throne in 1788 as Charles IV, the dominant Maria Luisa convinced him to ascend to Godoy in rank and power; thus, by 1792 he became field marshal, first secretary of state, and Duke of Alcudia. Since then Godoy He dominated the royal family, aided by his malleable, cunning and flattering nature, scant or rarely weak.
To strengthen ties with France, Godoy negotiated an alliance against England in the Treaty of San Ildefonso (1796). War was soon declared, and Spain suffered a major naval defeat off Cape San Vicente. France proved to be an unfaithful ally and showed few scruples in betraying Spanish interests. In 1798 Godoy He was removed from office, but still in temporary retirement, he did not cease to enjoy royal favor and exert great influence. When it was reestablished in 1801, the war with England was still raging and Napoleon was dictator of France.
When the war between France and England flared up again in 1803, Godoy he managed to maintain neutrality until December 1804, when he led Spain to join France once again in declaring war on England. Ten months later the Spanish naval power was completely destroyed at the Battle of Trafalgar. Relations with Napoleon gradually improved, and in the secret Treaty of Fontainebleau (1807), in which Spain and France agreed to the partition of Portugal, he was offered to Godoy the kingdom of Algarve, in southern Portugal. Several months later, however, Spain learned that France planned to seize some of its northern provinces.
The court, which sought to establish a government in exile, tried to flee the country, but in Aranjuez a mob loyal to Fernando almost killed him. Godoy and forced Carlos IV to abdicate in favor of his son. Then, Godoy he was detained by Fernando, and in May 1808 the three – Godoy, Fernando, and Carlos – were lured to the French border, where they became Napoleon’s prisoners. Godoy he stayed with Carlos in Rome until the death of the former king in 1819. Then he lived in obscurity in Paris, supporting himself on a modest French royal pension, until 1847, when Elizabeth II of Spain restored his titles and returned some of his confiscated properties.
A few years later, on October 4, 1851, Manuel de Godoy died in Paris, France.