3. SPAIN IN 1492
• The Early Modern Age in Spain began with
Isabel I Fernando II.
• They conquered the Kingdom of Granada
(The Reconquista).
• Later on they expanded their territories:
Kingdom of Navarra and Canary Island.
4. Reforms:
• Power was centralised: army, economy
and government.
• No privileges for the nobility and the
Church.
• They built a strong, modern army to fight
enemies.
• Time to expand and explore.
• Spanish Inquisition to punish people
who didn’t follow the Catholic Church’s
5. The “discovery” of America
• The Catholic Monarchs sponsored C.
Columbus’s trip to find a new route to India
and China.
• It was a period of expansion and exploration.
• They found small tribes and big empires when
they arrived in America: The Mayas, Aztecs,
Incas…
• The Spanish expeditions imposed their
language, religion and customs.
6. • Spanish ports, such as Sevilla, grew in
importance as a result of a greater demand
for ships.
• Spain exported goods so craftspeople and
farmers became richer.
• Spain imported many products from
America(important raw material were gold
and silver). This made Spain the most
powerful country in Europe.
7. Religion = Intolerance
• Jews and Muslims lived with Christians
peacefully. Both shared kwnoledge about
Science, music and literature.
• Isabel and Fernando ordered them to convert
to the Catholic religion =moriscos.
• Otherwise, they were expelled = Inquisition.
8. Social structure
• From the 15th century to 18th century, social
structure was based on status and wealth.
• Society was divided between the privileged
class and the unprivileged class. = Hierarchical
society.
• Privileged class: monarch, nobles and clergy.
• Unprivileged class: middle class (merchants,
lawyers…) and lower class (peasants, poor
people).
10. The Spanish Empire
• Throughout the 16th century, Carlos I and
Felipe I, descendants of the Catholic
Monarchs, ruled the most powerful empire in
the world, with territories in Africa, America,
Asia and Europe.
11. The Empire of
Carlos I
• Carlos I, was son of
Juana, Isabel's second
daughter, and Felipe the
Handsome,the son of
Holy Roman
Emperor Maximilian I.
• Carlos I became king in
1516.
• He was the first Spanish
king of the Habsburg
dynasty.
12. • He ruled Spain and its territories in America.
• He also inherited the German Empire from his
father´s family (he was also called Carlos V of
Germany).
• Before he died, he divided his empire in two
kingdoms: the German Empire to his brother
Fernando and the Spanish Empire (included
the Netherlands) to his son Felipe II .
13. The Empire of
Felipe II
• Felipe II became king in 1556.
• The Spanish empire expanded under his reign,
especially in America.
• In 1580, Felipe II conquered Portugal which
included the Portuguese territories in
America, Africa and Asia.
14. • The reign of Felipe II was also a period of wars
and conflicts.
• Felipe II´s armies won many important battles
on land and at sea.
• In 1571, in the Battle of Lepanto, the Spanish
fleet stopped the Turkish Empire from taking
control of the Mediterranean Sea.
• These wars were very expensive, so the price
of products increased and the Spanish
population became poorer.
15. • Problems in the 16th century:
- Controlling the new territories in
America.
- Internal revolts in Spain.
- Wars in Europe.
- War against the Turks.
