How Did Queen Isabella's Influence On The Iberian Peninsula Of Spain

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Ask any elementary school kid in the United States and they will probably be able to tell you that Queen Isabella sent Christopher Columbus on the voyage in which he found America. An iconic figure of the Renaissance, she is often discussed on the subject matter of exploration; however, her prestige and significance go far beyond that. Also commonly known as Queen Isabella the Catholic, she reigned from 1474 to 1504 and together with her husband King Ferdinand II of Aragón, united the kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula and helped pave the way for Spain’s golden age. Yet despite the importance of her marriage to Ferdinand, Isabella was a sovereign queen in her own right, wielding immense power and accomplishing tasks of great proportions in spite of gender norms and political adversity against women. …show more content…

It was split into five kingdoms: Aragon in the East, Portugal on the west coast, Castile in the central peninsula, Navarre as a small section up north, and a Moorish-held Granada at the southern tip. Specifically in the period leading up to Isabella’s time, Granada was held by one of the last Muslim dynasties, the Nasrids. Though the kingdom was slowly eroding because of internal strife, failed alliances and the growing power of Christian kingdoms like Castile, artistic traditions of Islamic Spain still continued under Nasrid patronage. Also, principal kingdoms of Castile and Aragon were further divided into several provinces, each with different political systems, customs, and dialects. The drastic differences between adjacent regions in Iberian Peninsula made border disputes, warfare and power

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