THE CATHOLIC MONARCHS

María Jesús Camposlearningfromhistory.wikispaces.com

The 15th century is considered to be a period of transition between the Middle Ages and the Early Modern Age.

The Early Modern Age was a period full of changes but most of these changes were seeded during the 15th century.

ISABEL OF CASTILE

Trastamara dynasty. The Crown of Castile

suffered continuous revolts of the nobles. They tried to control the monarch.

When King Henry IV died (1474) the Crown suffered a civil war between the king’s daughter, Juana “la Beltraneja” and the king’s sister, Isabel,

Juana, “la Beltraneja” was supported by Portugal as she was married with the king of Portugal.

Isabel was supported by the Crown of Aragon as she had married prince Ferdinand of Aragon (1469)

Isabel was proclaimed Queen of Castile in 1479 in the Alcaçovas Treaty.

Juana secluded herself at a convent.

FERNANDO OF ARAGON

Trastamara dynasty.

Son of King Juan II and his second wife Juana Enriquez.

Married with princess Isabel of Castile in 1469. As they were cousins they had to obtain a Papal bull.

THE CREATION OF SPAIN? WAS IT A REAL UNION?

In 1477 Isabel was proclaimed Queen of Castile as Isabel I.

In 1479 Fernando was proclaimed King of Aragon as Fernando II.

They decided to govern together over the two Crowns, and to have similar power in both: “tanto monta, monta tanto”

They were going to be known as the Catholic Monarchs

The “Concordia of Segovia” (1475) set up the terms of the Catholic Monarchs’ government over the two Crowns: Ferdinand was

named King of Castile as Ferdinand V as he would cogovern with his wife Queen Isabel I

Nevertheless it was not a real union. It was only a dynastic union.

Although Isabel and Fernando both would rule over the two Crowns, each kingdom would keep its independence, its own laws, institutions and customs.

And after the death of any of the monarchs, the survivor would go to its own Crown to rule while the other Crown would be inherited by their first descendant.

THE CATHOLIC MONARCHS: COMMON AIMS

Although the Crowns were, in fact, independent, the Catholic Monarchs established some common aims for both Crowns: Religious unity Territorial expansion Sthrengthening of the

monarchs authority

The Crown of Castile

The monarch was the highest authority.

The monarch’s power came from God’s desire. He/she had been chosen by God to govern and protect the kingdom’s subjects.

Divine right of kings/queens.

God

Monarch

Laws Government Justice

Subjects

• To assert the monarch’s authority over the nobility and the clergy

• To unify their subjects on common grounds

Domestic Policy

• To build a strong system of alliances to increase its influence over EuropeForeign

Policy

THE CROWN OF CASTILE: DOMESTIC POLICY

To assert the monarch’s authority over the nobility and the clergy: Professional and centralized administration Holy Brotherhood and Corregidores Audiencias and Chancillerías Professional Army Royal Treasury

Professional and

centrilized administr

ation

Professional army

Royal Treaury Diplomatic system

The path to Authoritarian Monarchies

Administration

• Professional: officials and jurists of the Third Estate (bourgeoisie) or lesser nobles that had studied in the recently created universities.

• Centralized: depends directly on the monarchs

• Objective: not to need the noblity or clergy when ruling and controlling the territories.

Audiencias and Chancillerías

• Supreme judicial bodies to impart justice on the territories.

• Objective: to get rid of the nobles’ and clergy’s influence on justice

Professional Army

• Professional soldiers trained for war.

• Depend on the monarch’s authority and follow only his/her orders.

• Objective: not to need the nobility’s armies anymore

Royal Treasury

• To collect and organize taxes.

• The monarchs created new taxes and reorganized the existing ones to make taxation more effective.

• Objective: to pay the rest of the institutions, not to need the nobility’s and the clergy’s support any more.

Corregidores

• Officials from the administration that represented the monarchs in the cities.

• To supervise City Councils, collect taxes for the Royal Treasury, make sure that law was being followed, etc.

Holy Brotherhood

• Santa Hermandad.

• Judicial police force that worked in the municipalities fighting against bandits and defending peasants and workers from the abuses of the nobility.

• Objective: to defend the land and its inhabitants and to stop the nobles’ inferences.

To govern the different territories and attend the different issues, the Catholic Monarchs created a polisinodyal system.

Different Councils in charge of different territories and matters.

ROYAL COUNCIL

To give advice to the monarchs in all matters connected to the government of Castiled and legal and political disputes within the Crown.

Formed by nobles, clergy and jurists. The nobles and clergy position in the council was only honorary. The jurists were the ones helping the monarchs in all governmental matters.

THE CROWN OF CASTILE: DOMESTIC POLICY

To unify their subjects on common grounds: Ordenanzas Reales: New legal code. Same laws

for the whole Crown. Religious unity:

Conquest of the Nasrid kingdom of Granada (1492) The Tribunal of Inquisition (1478) to prosecute

heretics. It didn’t have authority over Muslims or Jews. Compulsory Conversion: 1492 Jews were forced to

convert or to migrate (the Expulsion of the Jews). Around 80,000 Jews left the country, the ones that converted were known as conversos

Compulsory Conversion: 1512, Mudejars (Spanish Muslims) were forced to convert or migrate. Muslims who converted were known as moriscos.

THE CROWN OF CASTILE: FOREING POLICY

To build a strong system of alliances to increase their influence over Europe and obtain support: Council of State: to deal with foreign

negotiations, hear embassies, etc. Diplomatic System: to represent the monarchs in

other kingdoms and negotiate the Crown’s interests, set up alliances, avoid war, establish alliances, etc.

Alliances through marriages. To expand their territories Professio

nal and centrilize

d administr

ation

Professional army

Royal Treaury Diplomatic system

The path to Authoritarian Monarchies

Territorial expansion of the Crown of Castile

Focused in finishing the Reconquest, expanding through the Atlantic Ocean and protecting trade with Flanders: 1492 Conquest of the

Nasrid kingdom of Granada

1512 Conquest of Navarra who was annexed to Castile in 1515.

Conquests in the North of Africa: Canary Islands, Melilla, Orán, Bugía, Tunis…

The Crown of Aragon

The monarch was the highest authority.

The monarch’s power came from a pact with the subjects who gave them authority to govern and organize the territories but respecting their natural rights and customs.

Pactist monarchy

Monarch

Laws Government Justice

Subjects

• It was difficult to strengthen the monarch’s authority because of the pactist system.

• Unity on common groundsDomestic Policy

• To build a strong system of alliances to increase its influence over EuropeForeign

Policy

THE CROWN OF ARAGON

THE CROWN OF ARAGON: DOMESTIC POLICY

The monarchs tried to assert their power over the nobility by reducing some feudal rights (Sentencia Arbitral de Guadalupe)

Their government was a constant struggle with the nobility to try to establish an authoritarian monarchy.

Professional and

centrilized administr

ationProfessional army

Royal Treaury Diplomatic system

The path to Authoritaria

n Monarchies

CORTES

Aragon Cataluña

Valencia

Because of that Fernando spent more time in Castile attending Castilian bussiness as he was able to implement decisions easily.

Lugartenientes: represented the king in the different territories of the Crown of Aragon. Then a viceroy, Alonso de Aragon (ilegitimate son of Fernando) represented him.

Polisinodyal system: Counsil of Aragon,

COUNSIL OF ARAGON

Formed by nobles, clergy and jurists from the Crown of Aragon

Located in Castile Advised the monarchs

in governmental matters connected to the Crown of Aragon but needed their approval to implement measures

Monarch

THE CROWN OF ARAGON: DOMESTIC POLICY

To unify their subjects on common grounds: Religious unity:

The Tribunal of Inquisition (1478) to prosecute heretics. It didn’t have authority over Muslims or Jews.

THE CROWN OF ARAGON: FOREIGN POLICY

To build a strong system of alliances to increase their influence over Europe and obtain support: Council of State: to deal with foreign

negotiations, hear embassies, etc. Diplomatic System: to represent the monarchs in

other kingdoms and negotiate the Crown’s interests, set up alliances, avoid war, establish alliances, etc.

Alliances through marriages. To expand their territories

Territorial expansion of the Crown of Aragon

Focused in its Mediterranean interests.

Struggle with France for influence over Italy.

Naples, Sicily and Sardinia were kept as an Aragonese possesion.

Catholic Monarchs

Polisinodial System

Councils: - Castile- Aragon- Navarra- Inquisition- War…

Viceroys

- Aragon- Navarra

- Catalonia- Valencia- Naples

Cortes

- Castile- Aragon

- Catalonia- Valencia

Court of Justice

- Audiencia of Valladolid

- Audiencia of Granada

ALLIANCES THROUGH MARRIAGE

Following the customs among royal families the Catholic Monarchs arranged their children’s marriages with political aims: To obtain support To increase their

influence over Europe

To annex new territories through dynastic unions…

Portugal: Isabel (first daughter) married infant Alfonso of Portugal and when he died, she married again with his husband’s brother Manuel I the Fortunate. Then, when Isabel died, her sister María married Manuel I, the Fortunate.

England: Catalina of Aragon married Arthur, Prince of Wales, and when he died, she married his husband’s brother Henry VIII.

The Low Countries, Austria and the Holy Roman Empire: Juan, the eldest son and heir of the Crowns of Castile and Aragon, married Margarita of Austria; Juana, the mad, married Prince Philip, the handsome.

QUEEN ISABEL I DIES

Queen Isabel I died in 1504. As her only male heir, Juan, had died as well as her eldest daughter, Isabel, the Crown of Castile was going to be inherited by Juana, the mad.

Juana was living in the Low Countries with her husband Philip the Handsome.

Isabel I’s testament established that Juana would inherit the Crown and, only if she was absent from the country or could not or did not want to reign Fernando would act as a regent until his grandson Carlos (son of Juana) would become of age.

It also established that Castilian positions could only be occupied by Castilian subjects.

Waiting for the Queen to come to Castile, the Cortes named Fernando regent.

Fernando, reluctant to hand power over to his daughter, who was showing signals of mental illness, or to his son-in-law Phillip tried to convince the Cortes to declare Juana not capable of governing. But the Cortes did not want to accept that.

Without Castilian support and army, Fernando was worried of losing the Kingdom of Naples. So he secretly agreed with King Louis XII of France, that in exchange of France recognizing aragonese sovereignity over Italy, Fernando would marry with Germana de Foix, King Louis XII’s nephew.

So that if Fernando and Germana had a child, he would inherit the Crown of Aragon and its territories and would rule over them under the influence of France.

This decision was against the pact established between Isabel I and Fernando as it did not respect the rights of their own children.

Nevertheless, although Germana bore Fernando a son, he died several hours after his birth.

In the Crown of Castile, the Cortes soon realized that Juana was not capable of ruling. And when Phillip the handsome suddenly died, the Cortes established that Carlos, Juana and Philip’s son, would be proclaimed king with his mother.

As Fernando and Germana did not have a child, when Fernando died the Crown of Aragon was also inherited by Charles.

Developed by María Jesús CamposChusteacherwikiteacher