Isabella of Castile
...and how she sent Columbus on his way.
Isabella of Castile is a shining example of powerful queenship in the late medieval age. As heiress to the throne of Castile she had her pick of royal suitors. In 1469 she chose Ferdinand, heir to the throne of Aragon. Thus began the thirty-five year joint rule of a unified Spain by the Catholic Monarchs. The Pope bestowed the title on them in 1492 after they routed the Moors from Granada, ending eight centuries of Moorish domination in Spain.
Also in 1492, a landmark year for Isabella, she agreed to sponsor Christopher Columbus' voyage of discovery, which brought the New World and its wealth to the Spanish crown. Until her death she was concerned with the welfare and rights of the natives of the lands she had acquired. She and Ferdinand were also concerned with the eternal souls of their Spanish subjects. They established the Inquisition to ferret out Jews and Muslims whose conversion to Christianity was doubtful. In 1492, the same year they conquered the Moors, the Catholic Monarchs expelled all unconverted Jews from Spain.
The reign of Isabella and Ferdinand was a golden age for Spain. But her last years were marred by family sorrows. Of her five children, two predeceased her. So did her grandson and heir. Her daughter Joanna -Juana la Loca-was mentally unstable.
Also in 1492, a landmark year for Isabella, she agreed to sponsor Christopher Columbus' voyage of discovery, which brought the New World and its wealth to the Spanish crown. Until her death she was concerned with the welfare and rights of the natives of the lands she had acquired. She and Ferdinand were also concerned with the eternal souls of their Spanish subjects. They established the Inquisition to ferret out Jews and Muslims whose conversion to Christianity was doubtful. In 1492, the same year they conquered the Moors, the Catholic Monarchs expelled all unconverted Jews from Spain.
The reign of Isabella and Ferdinand was a golden age for Spain. But her last years were marred by family sorrows. Of her five children, two predeceased her. So did her grandson and heir. Her daughter Joanna -Juana la Loca-was mentally unstable.
