Spain was formed as adynastic union of two crowns rather than a unitary state, as Castile and Aragon remained separate kingdoms until theNueva Planta decrees of 1707–1716. The court of Ferdinand and Isabella was constantly on the move in order to bolster local support for the crown from localfeudal lords. The title of "Catholic King and Queen" was officially bestowed on Ferdinand and Isabella byPope Alexander VI in 1494,[4] in recognition of their defence of the Catholic faith within their realms.
At the time of their marriage on October 19, 1469, Isabella was eighteen years old and the heiress presumptive to theCrown of Castile, while Ferdinand was seventeen and heir apparent to theCrown of Aragon. They met for the first time in Valladolid in 1469 and married within a week. From the start, they had a close relationship and worked well together. Both knew that the crown of Castile was "the prize, and that they were both jointly gambling for it."[citation needed] However, it was a step toward the unification of the lands on theIberian Peninsula, which would eventually become Spain.
Because they were second cousins, they needed a papal dispensation to marry.Pope Paul II, an Italian pope opposed to Aragon's influence on the Mediterranean and to the rise of monarchies strong enough to challenge the Pope, refused to grant one,[5] so they falsified apapal bull of their own. Although the bull is known to be false, it is uncertain who the actual author of the falsification was. Sources tend to citeAlfonso Carrillo de Acuña,Archbishop of Toledo, as the person who provided the dispensation, while other scholars point at Antonio Veneris.[6][7]
Isabella's claims to Castile were not secure because her marriage to Ferdinand enraged her half-brother,Henry IV of Castile, who had withdrawn his support for her to be his heiress presumptive, a status that had been codified in theTreaty of the Bulls of Guisando. Henry instead recognisedJoanna la Beltraneja, born during his marriage toJoanna, Princess of Portugal, but whose paternity was in doubt because Henry was rumoured to be impotent. When Henry died in 1474, Isabella asserted her claim to the throne, which was contested by thirteen-year-old Joanna. Joanna sought the aid of her husband (who was also her uncle),Afonso V of Portugal, to claim the throne. This dispute between rival claimants led to theWar of the Castilian Succession from 1475–79. Isabella called on the aid of Aragon, with her husband, the heir apparent, and his father,Juan II of Aragon providing it. Although Aragon provided support for Isabella's cause and acknowledged her as the sole heir to the crown of Castille,[8] her supporters had extracted concessions. Juan II died in 1479, and Ferdinand succeeded to the throne in January of that year.
In September 1479, Portugal and the Catholic Monarchs of Aragon and Castile resolved major issues between them through theTreaty of Alcáçovas, including the issue of Isabella's rights to the crown of Castile. Through close cooperation, the royal couple were successful in securing political power in theIberian Peninsula. Ferdinand's father had advised the couple that "neither was powerful without the other."[9] Though their marriage united the two kingdoms, leading to the beginnings of modern Spain, they ruled independently, and their kingdoms retained part of their own regional laws and governments for the next two centuries.
The coat of arms of the Catholic Monarchs was designed byAntonio de Nebrija with elements to show their cooperation and working in tandem.[10] The royal motto they shared,Tanto monta ("as much one as the other"), came to signify their cooperation."[11] The motto was originally used by Ferdinand as an allusion to theGordian Knot:Tanto monta, monta tanto, cortar como desatar ("It's one and the same, cutting or untying"), but later adopted as an expression of equality of the monarchs:Tanto monta, monta tanto, Isabel como Fernando ("It's one and the same, Isabella the same as Ferdinand").[12]
Their emblems or heraldic devices, seen at the bottom of the coat of arms, were ayoke (yugo) and a sheaf of arrows (haz de flechas).Y andF are the initials of Ysabel (spelling at the time) and Fernando. A double yoke is worn by a team of oxen, emphasizing the couple's cooperation. Isabella's emblem of arrows showed the armed power of the crown, "a warning to Castilians not acknowledging the reach of royal authority or that greatest of royal functions, the right to mete out justice" by force of violence.[11] The iconography of the royal crest was widely reproduced and was found on various works of art. These badges were later used by theFascist political partyFET y de las JONS, the official party ofFrancoist Spain (1939–1975), which claimed to represent the inherited glory and the ideals of the Catholic Monarchs.[13]
First Royal Standard of the Catholic Monarchs (1475–92)
Royal Banner of the Catholic Monarchs (1475–92)
Second Royal Standard of the Catholic Monarchs (1492–1504/6)
Isabella succeeded to the throne of Castile in 1474 whenFerdinand was still heir-apparent to Aragon, and with Aragon's aid, Isabella's claim to the throne was secured. As Isabella's husband was king of Castile by his marriage and his father still ruled in Aragon, Ferdinand spent more time in Castile than Aragon at the beginning of their marriage. His pattern of residence in Castile persisted even when he succeeded to the throne in 1479, and the absenteeism caused problems for Aragon. These issues were partially addressed by the creation of theCouncil of Aragon in 1494, which joined theCouncil of Castile established in 1480. The Council of Castile was intended "to be the central governing body of Castile and the linch-pin of their governmental system" with wide powers and with royal officials who were loyal to them and excluded the old nobility from exercising power in it.[14] The monarchs created theSpanish Inquisition in 1478 to ensure that individuals converting to Christianity did not revert to their old faith or continue practising it. TheCouncil of the Crusade was created under their rule to administer funds from the sale of crusading bulls, a right appointed by theHoly See. In 1498, after Ferdinand had gained control of the revenues of the wealthy and powerfulSpanish military orders, he created theCouncil of Military Orders to oversee them. The conciliar model was extended beyond the rule of the Catholic Monarchs, with their grandson,Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor establishing theCouncil of the Indies, theCouncil of Finance, and theCouncil of State.
Crowns and Kingdoms of the Catholic Monarchs in Europe (c. 1500)
The Catholic Monarchs set out to restore royal authority in Spain. To accomplish their goal, they first created a group named theSanta Hermandad "Holy Brotherhood". These men were used as a judicial police force for Castile, as well as to attempt to keep Castilian nobles in check. To establish a more uniformjudiciary, the Catholic Monarchs created acuria regis and appointedmagistrates to run the towns and cities. This establishment of royal authority is known as the "Pacification of Castile" and can be seen as one of the crucial steps toward the creation of one of Europe's first strongnation states. Isabella also sought various ways to diminish the influence of theCortes Generales in Castile, though Ferdinand was too thoroughlyAragonese to do anything of the sort with the equivalent systems in the Crown of Aragon. Even after his death and the union of the crowns under one monarch, the Aragonese, Catalan, and ValencianCorts (parliaments) retained significant power in their respective regions. Furthermore, the monarchs continued to rule through a form of medieval contractualism, which made their rule pre-modern in several ways. One of those is that they traveled from town to town throughout the kingdom to promote loyalty, rather than possessing any single administrative center. Another is that each community and region was connected to them via loyalty to the crown, rather than bureaucratic ties.[c]
Along with the desire of the Catholic Monarchs to extend their dominion to all the kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula, their reign was characterised by the religious unification of the peninsula through militant Catholicism. On receiving a petition for authority,Pope Sixtus IV issued a bull in 1478 to establish aHoly Office of the Inquisition in Castile. This was to ensure that Jews and Muslims who converted to Christianity did not revert to their previous faiths. The papal bull gave the sovereigns full powers to name inquisitors, but the papacy retained the right to formally appoint the royal nominees. The Inquisition did not have jurisdiction over Jews and Muslims who did not convert. Since the kingdom of Aragon had existed since 1248, the Spanish Inquisition was the only common institution for the two kingdoms.Pope Innocent VIII confirmed DominicanTomás de Torquemada, a confessor of Isabella, as Grand Inquisitor of Spain, following in the tradition in Aragon ofDominican inquisitors. Torquemada pursued aggressive policies toward converted Jews (conversos) and Muslimsmoriscos. The pope also granted the Catholic Monarchs the right ofpatronato real over the ecclesiastical establishment inGranada and theCanary Islands, which meant the control of the state in religious affairs.
The monarchs initiated a series of campaigns known as theGranada War (1482–92), which was supported by Pope Sixtus IV, who granted tithe revenue and implemented a crusade tax to finance the war. After 10 years of fighting, the Granada War ended in 1492 when EmirBoabdil surrendered the keys of theAlhambra Palace in Granada to the Castilian soldiers. With the fall of Granada in January 1492, Isabella and Ferdinand pursued further policies of religious unification of their realms, in particular the expulsion of Jews who refused to convert to Christianity.
The Inquisition had been created in the twelfth century byPope Lucius III to fightheresy in the south of what is now France and was constituted in a number of European kingdoms. The Catholic Monarchs decided to introduce the Inquisition to Castile and requested the Pope's assent. On 1 November, 1478, Pope Sixtus IV published the papal bullExigit Sinceras Devotionis Affectus, by which the Inquisition was established in the Kingdom of Castile; it was later extended to all of Spain. The bull gave the monarchs exclusive authority to name the inquisitors.[17]
During the reign of the Catholic Monarchs and long afterwards, the Inquisition was active in prosecuting people for violations of Catholic orthodoxy such as crypto-Judaism, heresy, Protestantism, blasphemy, and bigamy. The last trial for crypto-Judaism was held in 1818.
Although the Catholic Monarchs pursued a partnership in many matters, because of the histories of their respective kingdoms, they did not always have a unified viewpoint in foreign policy. Despite that, they did have a successful expansionist foreign policy due to a number of factors. The victory over the Muslims in Granada allowedFerdinand to involve himself in policy outside the Iberian peninsula.[18]
The diplomatic initiative of King Ferdinand continued the historical policy of the Crown of Aragon, with its interests set in the Mediterranean, with interests in Italy and sought conquests in North Africa. Aragon had a historical rivalry withFrance, which had been a historical ally of Castile. Castile's foreign interests were focused on the Atlantic, making Castile's funding of the voyage of Columbus an extension of existing interests.[18]
Castile had historically had good relations with the neighboring Kingdom of Portugal, and after the Portuguese lost theWar of the Castilian Succession, Castile and Portugal concluded the Treaty of Alcáçovas. The treaty set boundaries for overseas expansion which were at the time disadvantageous to Castile, but the treaty resolved any further Portuguese claims on the crown of Castile. Portugal did not take advantage of Castile's and Aragon's focus on the reconquest of Granada. Following the reestablishment of good relations, the Catholic Monarchs made two strategic marriages to Portuguese royalty.
The matrimonial policy of the monarchs sought advantageous marriages for their five children, forging royal alliances for the long-term benefit of Spain. Their first-born, a daughter namedIsabella, marriedAfonso of Portugal, forging ties between these two neighboring kingdoms that would lead to enduring peace and future alliance.Joanna, their second daughter, marriedPhilip the Handsome, the son of Holy Roman EmperorMaximilian I. This ensured an alliance with theHoly Roman Empire, a powerful, far-reaching European territory which assured Spain's future political security. Their only son,John, marriedMargaret of Austria, seeking to maintain ties with the Habsburg dynasty, on which Spain relied heavily. Their fourth child,Maria, marriedManuel I of Portugal, strengthening the link forged byIsabella's elder sister's marriage. Their fifth child,Catherine, marriedArthur, Prince of Wales and heir to the throne of England, in 1501; he died at the age of 15 a few months later, and she married his younger brother shortly after he became KingHenry VIII of England in 1509. These alliances were not all long-lasting, with their only son and heir-apparent John dying young; Catherine was divorced by Henry VIII; and Joanna's husband Philip dying young, with the widowed Joanna deemed mentally unfit to rule.
Under the Catholic Monarchs an efficient army loyal to the Crown was created, commanded by CastilianGonzalo Fernández de Córdoba, known as theGreat Captain. Fernández de Córdoba reorganised the military troops on a new combat unit, tercios reales, which entailed the creation of the first modern army dependent on the crown, regardless of the pretensions of the nobles.[19]
Through theCapitulations of Santa Fe, navigatorChristopher Columbus received finances and was authorised to sail west and claim lands for Spain. The monarchs accorded him the title of Admiral of the Ocean Sea and he was given broad privileges. His voyage west resulted in the European colonization of theAmericas and brought the knowledge of its existence to Europe.
Columbus' first expedition to the supposed Indies actually landed in theBahamas on October 12, 1492. Since QueenIsabella had provided the funding and authorization for the voyage, the benefits accrued to the Kingdom of Castile. "Although the subjects of the Crown of Aragon played some part in the discovery and colonization of the New World, the Indies were formally annexed not to Spain but to the Crown of Castile."[20] He landed on the island ofGuanahani, and he called itSan Salvador. He continued ontoCuba, naming it Juana, and finished his journey on the island of the Dominican Republic and Haiti, calling itHispaniola, orLa Isla Española ("the Spanish [Island]" in Castilian).[21]
On his second trip, begun in 1493, he found more Caribbean islands includingPuerto Rico. His main goal was to colonize the existing discoveries with the 1500 men that he had brought the second time around. Columbus finished his last expedition in 1498 and discoveredTrinidad and the coast of present-dayVenezuela. The colonies Columbus established, and conquests in the Americas in later decades, generated an influx of wealth into the new unified state ofSpain, leading it to be the major power of Europe from the end of the fifteenth century until the mid-seventeenth century, and the largest empire until 1810.
Coffins of the Catholic Monarchs in theCapilla Real, Granada, Spain
Isabella's death in 1504 ended the remarkably successful political partnership and personal relationship of their marriage.Ferdinand remarriedGermaine of Foix in 1505, but they produced no living heir.Had there been one, Aragonese opposed to the union would have likely backed their succession as a chance to re-establish independence, leading to civil war.[citation needed] The Catholic Monarchs' daughter Joanna succeeded to the crown of Castile, but was deemed unfit to rule. Following the death of her husband Phillip the Fair, Ferdinand retained power in Castile as regent until his death, with Joanna confined. He died in 1516 and is buried alongside his first wife Isabella in Granada, the scene of their great triumph in 1492. Joanna's sonCharles I of Spain (also Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor) came to Spain, and, with her confined inTordesillas, was nominal co-ruler of both Castile and Aragon until her death. Charles then succeeded to the territories that his grandparents had accumulated and brought the Habsburg territories in Europe to the expanding Spanish Empire.
^Reyes Católicos,Reis Catòlics orReis Catolicos is literally "CatholicKings" rather than "Monarchs", and is sometimes incorrectly so rendered in English; but in Castilian (Spanish), Aragonese and Catalan it is usual for the masculine plural to be used in a gender-indifferent way, so, for example one would call the children of a person or couplehijos,fills orfillos, literally sons, regardless of actual gender, while in English "sons", and "kings", are exclusively masculine.
^The bookGood Faith and Truthful Ignorance by Alexandra and Noble Cook provides a prime example of how loyalty to the crown was more important in that period than the specific governmental structure.
^Kamen, H. (2005).Spain 1469–1714: A Society of Conflict. Routledge:Oxford. p. 37.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link)
^Los Reyes Católicos: la conquista del trono. Madrid: Rialp, 1989.ISBN84-321-2476-1. "La llegada al trono"
^Edwards, John. Isabel la Católica, edad y fama. Madrid: Marcial Pons, 2004
^Prescott, William Hickling (1852).History of the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella, the Catholic (10th ed.). New York, NY, US: Harper & Brothers. p. 111.OCLC68780126. Retrieved2024-12-30.The nuptials were solemnized in the presence of Ferdinand's grandfather, the admiral of Castile, of the archbishop of Toledo, and a multitude of persons of rank, as well as of inferior condition, amounting in all to no less than two thousand.
^Peggy K. Liss, "Isabel and Fernando" inThe Christopher Columbus Encyclopedia, Simon and Schuster 1992, p. 379.
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