1. The Catholic Monarchs1.1. DOMESTIC POLICY1.2. FOREIGN POLICY

1.3. ECONOMY

1.1. DOMESTIC POLICY

A) DYNASTIC UNION AND ARRIVAL INPOWER

In 1469, Prince Ferdinand, the son of theAragonese King John II, married Isabella, thesister of the Castilian King Henry IV.

Ferdinand became King of Aragón in 1479after his father died. In the same year, Isabelladefeated her niece, Joanna la Beltraneja in acivil war that had lasted five years (havingIsabella the support of Aragón and Joanna thesupport of Portugal).

The union was only a dynastic one because their territories (Castile and Aragón) didnot become one kingdom. Both kept their own borders, feudal laws institutions,taxes, etc.).

They both recognized the other one sovereignty in all their kingdoms, but theynever exercised it. (Tanto monta, monta tanto, Isabel como Fernando…)

B) THE ORGANISATION OF THE NEW MONARCHY

The Catholic Monarchs became authoritarian monarchs, limiting the power of thenobility.

To this effect, they created new government institutions, unified religion, promotedstate diplomacy and embarked on the an ambitious foreign policy.

However, the result was different in Castile (that became an authoritarianmonarchy) from the Crown of Aragón (where the king had his power quite limited):

B.1 The Kingdom of Castile

B.2 The Crown of Aragón

B.3 Religious uniformity

B.1 The Kingdom of Castile

• In Castile, Isabella punished the high nobility and clergy who had supported Joanna, limiting thepowers of the privileged:

• Isabella limited the land granted to nobles.

• A professional army was created.

• New royal institutions:

• Expert members (who had studied in universities, frequently non-privileged) were chosen andpaid by the king, joining different positions in the administration:

B.2 The Crown of Aragón

In Aragón, Ferdinand wanted to reduce the Powers of thenobility who had opposed his father in the Catalan CivilWar (1462-1472):

• He dictated the Judgement of Guadalupe to abolishsome feudal rights and improve the living conditions ofthe peasants (payeses).

• He established an elective system (insaculación) for theposts in the townhalls, and the could reject thecandidates.

• However the medieval institutions of Parliament (Cortes),the kingdoms’ councils (Diputaciones) and the pacts withthe different estates (pactismo) limited his power.Pactismo meant the negotiation of laws and taxes withthe three estates in the parliaments of every kingdom(Aragón, Valencia and Cataluña).

• As the king used to lived in Castile with his wife, heestablished the viceroys: royal representatives in eachone of the territories of the monarchy (Aragón, Catalonia,Valencia, Mallorca, etc.)

B.3 Religious uniformity

The Catholic Monarchs wanted all their subjects to have the same religion they practiced,Catholicism. To achieve this, they:

• Established a religious court of justice (the Inquisition) in 1478, to try suspects of heresy(faith crimes) and punish those convicted (trials = auto-da-fé (auto de fe)).

• They forced Jews to convert to Christianity in 1492, and they expelled from the territorythose who refused. New Christians (conversos) were strictly watched by Inquisition.

• They forced the Muslims in Granada to be baptized as Christians (moriscos) or go toexile in 1502.

C) EXPANSION ON THE PENINSULA

One of the priorities of the CatholicMonarchs was to unite all of thePeninsula’s territories under the Crown.These included the kingdoms of:

• Granada: After ten years of war, thelast Nasrid King of Granada, Boabdil,surrendered in 1492, and Granadabecame a part of the Crown of Castile.

• After Isabella’s death, Navarre wasconquered by Ferdinand in 1515 andincorporated to Castile, but it kept itslaws and institutions.

• They tried the union with Portugal by amarriage policy. Her daughter marriedthe King of Portugal, but she died afterthe birth of their first son, who diedtwo years later. So, this union had towait until the King Philip II.

1.2. FOREIGN POLICYThe Catholic Monarchs pursued ambitiousobjectives in their foreign policy:

• In the Mediterranean, Ferdinand continuedthe traditional Aragonese presence:• He clashed with France over the Kingdom of

Naples, governed by a member of the House ofAragón. France wanted to conquer it. Theydefeated the French in Naples and alsoconquered Catalan territories in the north ofthe Pyrenees (Roussillon and Cerdanya).

• To stop the Barbary pirates in theMediterranean, they conquered the cities ofMelilla, Orán, Algiers and Bugia in the North ofAfrica.

• In the Atlantic:• Castile and Portugal explored the Ocean. As the Portuguese added Madeira and Azores to

their territories, the Catholic Monarchs conquered the Canary Islands between 1478 and1496.

• Christopher Columbus arrived to a new continent (the Americas) in 1492, thanks to Castile’seconomic support. This supposed the beginning of the configuration of the greatest empireof that period.

• They performed alliances by marriage with the aim of isolating France, so theyarrange marriages between their children and royal heirs in Europe.

1.3. ECONOMYThe late 15th century supposed a slow but steady recovery of economy in the Iberian peninsula:

A) IN CASTILE

• The most profitable economic activity was sheep farming. The monarchs protected the Mesta (sheepfarming association) which ensured pastureland for livestock and limited agricultural expansion.

• Highest quality wool was exported to Flanders and England.

• This hindered the development of local textile industry.

• Livestock and other products were sold in fairs like the one of Medina del Campo (Valladolid).

• Social inequality remained, as the privileged continued to own most of the land and there was notmuch land available in the market.➢ This got worse as Isabella established the majorat laws, that prohibited the sale of family land and ensured

that it was inherited by the oldest son or the nearest relative.

• Largest cities: Valladolid, Seville and Toledo.

B) IN THE CROWN OF ARAGÓN

• As Ferdinand had abolished some feudal rights in the countryside,peasants could have better working conditions.

• He protected textile industry in Catalonia and ports like Barcelonaand Valencia increased their trade with other Mediterranean cities.

• This allowed the development of a strong bourgeoisie in the cities(artisans, traders, etc.), who competed with the nobility for positionsin government institutions.

• The main cities (and ports) were Barcelona and Valencia.