The United Spanish Monarchy

1. The United Spanish Monarchy
Chapter 1

2. The Iberian Peninsula in
the 15th century
The Iberian Peninsula in
the 15th century

3. • 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.
The 15th century

4. 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

6. • 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)

7. • Isabel was proclaimed
Queen of Castile in 1479 in
the Alcáçovas Treaty.
• Juana secluded herself at a
convent.

8. 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.

9. The unification
• In 1479 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

10. 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

12. • 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.
A real union?

13. St. John’s eagle
Castile & Leon
Yugo (Ysabel)
Aragon & Two Sicilies
Granada
Flechas (Fernando)

14. Common aims
• Although the Crowns were, in fact, independent, the
Catholic Monarchs established some common aims for
both Crowns:
• Territorial expansion
• Strengthening of the Monarchs authority
• Religious unity

15. The Crown of Castile
• The monarch was the highest
authority - Divine right of the
Monarchy
• The monarch’s power came
from God’s desire. He/she had
been chosen by God to govern
and protect the kingdom’s
subjects.
Subjects

16. 1
2

17. 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
1

20. • 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.

21. • To unify their subjects on common grounds:
• Ordenanzas Reales: New legal code. Same laws for the whole
Crown.
• Religious unity:
• Conquest of the 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
- 1512, Mudejars (Spanish Muslims) were forced to convert or
migrate. Muslims who converted were known as moriscos.
2
The Crown of Castile: domestic policy

22. • 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
The Crown of Castile: foreign policy

23. 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…

24. The Crown of Aragon
• The monarch was the highest
authority.
• Pactist monarchy
• 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.
Subjects

26. The Crown of Aragon
1
2

27. 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.
1

28. • 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,

29. Council 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

30. 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.
2

31. 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

32. 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.

34. 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…

36. • 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.

38. 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.

39. • 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.

40. • 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.

41. • 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 of Aragon and his new
wife Germana did not have a child,
when Fernando died the Crown of
Aragon was also inherited by Carlos.
Juana “la loca” (“the mad”)