Isabella I Of Spain Research Paper

Isabella I of Castile, also known as Isabella the Catholic (Spanish-Isabel la Catolica) was a dominating figure in the history of Spain. She was born on April 22, 1451 in Madrigal de las Altas Torres, Castile, and died on November 26, 1504, in Medina del Campo, Spain. She became queen of two kingdoms, Castile(1474), and Aragon (1479), staying the queen of both, in a way, until her unfortunate, yet unavoidable, death. Her husband was Ferdinand II of Aragon, and her parents were John II of Castile, and Isabella of Portugal, who was actually John’s second wife. Her half brother became King Henry IV of Castile. Isabella played a role in many things that were of great importance. These include the formation of Spain through her marriage, the Reconquista,

and the sponsorship of Christopher Columbus.
Since Isabella was heiress to the throne of Castile, her future marriage was a big deal, and it became a subject of great discussion and debate as to whom she should marry. She got marriage candidates from Portugal, Aragon, and France. King Henry IV appeared to have been pushing for Afonso V, who was the King of Portugal. Isabella and her council were deciding between Afonso, and Ferdinand of Aragon. Obviously, she decided on Ferdinand. The following is a quote describing her marriage to him from Briticanna.com: “A third suitor, the French duc de Guienne, was sidestepped, and without Henry’s approval she married Ferdinand in October 1469 in the palace of Juan de Vivero, at Valladolid.” In 1474, King Henry died, leaving Isabella to become queen. This was, of course, opposed by those who believed that they had a chance at becoming Henry IV’s heir when she had been on his bad side for marrying Ferdinand without his approval. Quite literally defeating them, she went on to become the rightful queen. In 1475, Ferdinand’s first will made Isabella his heir in Aragon, also openly declaring the good things that his subjects would get from the union with Castile. The year 1479, John II of Aragon died. Thus Ferdinand became King of Aragon, while Isabella was Queen of Castile. Their marriage would eventually lead to the union of their two kingdoms, but that would be long in coming. For the time being, the two kingdoms would continue to be governed separately. Once they were to join together, though, this would become the country of Spain.
Both Isabella and Ferdinand wanted to end the Reconquista.

A quote from an article on Britannica.com says: “the two sovereigns were certainly united in aiming to end the long process of Reconquista by taking over the kingdom of Granada--the last Muslim stronghold in Spain.” The conquest of Granada began in 1482, lasting until 1492. The conquest was no easy win, and it lasted for a long time, also straining Castile’s finances. Some features of the campaign were medieval, and some of them were new. Isabella had a keen eye to the goings of war. She seems to have been responsible for improved methods of supply, and the establishment of a military hospital. In 1491 she and Ferdinand set up headquarters at Santa Fe, close to Granada, until Granada finally fell on January 2nd of the following

year.
While Isabella was still at Santa Fe, another major happening occured.

It involved someone who nearly everyone past 6 years old knows the name of, or at least the rhyme related to him. Christopher Columbus. “Columbus visited her there to enlist support for the voyage that was to result in the European settlement of America.”(Britannica.com) To those who know more about Christopher Columbus than just his name, and the rhyme, the names Isabella and Ferdinand should seem familiar. Yes, this is that Isabella (and Ferdinand). The condition by which the voyage to discover a new way to the Indies were written up on April 17, 1492. The New World that was found and explored because of Isabella’s decision was adjoined to the land considered to be under the crown of Castile, like it has been done with previous discoveries in the Atlantic. If one were to follow the dots, it could be said that she caused the eradication of the practice of keeping slaves. If she hadn’t sponsored Christopher Columbus, he wouldn’t have discovered the New World. Then the colonies would not have been set up, America would not be the way it was when people began to fight the idea of slaves, and then there would still be slaves, from whenever people conquered each other’s lands. Wouldn’t that be just plain horrible? Except people as a whole wouldn’t really know that it would be horrible, because there has never been another way, another country/kingdom that they could see stop with slavery, and realize that

they need to stop, too. That’s how much one little turning point in history could change the entire formation of the future. Think of that. Without Isabella, there might still be slavery in the world, just because she decided not to sponsor some random guy on his quest to find another way to the Indies. A terrifying thought indeed.
To conclude this lovely account of some of Isabella the Catholic’s greatest deeds, one must turn to Isabella’s legacy. Isabella influenced much of how people view the modern world. For one, her decision to marry Ferdinand eventually led to the creation of the country Spain. She played a great role in the Reconquista by defeating the kingdom of Granada. And who could forget that it was her sponsorship that led to the discovery of the places where many people now reside, North America. There is no doubt that Isabella was a great figure in history, and that she has had a great impact on where civilization is now.