Ferdinand VI of Spain

Born 23 September 1713, Ferdinand was the son of Philip V and Maria Luisa, third in the Bourbon line to rule Spain. He took the throne on 9 July 1746 when his father died, inheriting a kingdom still scarred by dynastic war. In 1749 he ordered a general roundup of Spain's Roma population; 9,000 were imprisoned. Beyond that, his reign was defined by what he avoided: he kept Spain neutral, clear of the European conflicts that had bled it dry in previous decades. Moderate reforms followed - taxation adjusted, commerce encouraged, the navy rebuilt, freemasonry banned. By the late 1750s, mental instability overtook him, echoing the affliction that had darkened his father's final years. He died 10 August 1759, leaving the crown to his half-brother Charles III.