He served as bishop of Cádiz and Pamplona, archbishop of Burgos, cardinal, councillor of state for Philip III, Viceroy of Naples, and Inquisitor General of the realm.

In July 1587 he renounced the noble title he had inherited by right of primogeniture in favor of his brother Diego, and in November that year he was made bishop of Cádiz at the urging of Philip II, and consecrated by Cardinal Gaspar de Quiroga.

[3] In 1599 he was named a councillor of state, and in September the following year Philip III made him archbishop of Burgos, in which post he contributed to the ornamentation of the city's cathedral.

In June 1604 Pope Clement VIII named him a cardinal,[4] after which he resigned from the office of archbishop and moved to Rome, where he lived for the following years.

Inclement weather, which left the kingdom isolated for several months, thereby hindering commerce, added to the precarious situation of the Neapolitans, who protested angrily against his government, leading on several occasions to physical aggression against the viceroy.