Katharina: Spanish Princess turned British Queen

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Henry, one of the most well known kings of England, is best remembered for breaking with the Church of Rome, Roman Catholicism. There were many reasons behind the reformation in England, but perhaps the most prominent of these had to do with Katharina, the Spanish princess turned English Queen. Though Katharina of Aragon lived a hard life, from the death of her children, to a public divorce, she cared for the people that she reigned over, and stayed in their hearts long after she was exiled.

Katharina was born on December 16, 1485, in Alcalá de Henares, Spain. Katharina is the spanish equivalent to Catharine, and her mother, Isabel, would be considered Isabella(Mattingly, vii). She was the youngest daughter of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabel. The union of Isabel and Ferdinand was not for love, but for political reasons. Isabel was the Queen of Castile, and Ferdinand was King of Aragon, the two major kingdoms of modern Spain. Their union created the first united Spain. They were referred to as the Catholic monarchs, having taken many steps to ensure a catholic empire. They started the Spanish Inquisition, forcing all Jewish and Muslim citizens to convert to Catholicism or leave. They battled with Granada, a Muslim kingdom, and funded Christopher Columbus’ voyage to America (Encyclopædia Britannica, 2011).

Katharina had a strange childhood, and she was given a very well rounded education by her mother, the queen. She also watched as one by one, her siblings left to marry foreign nobilities. Her own fate was sealed very quickly, at age two she was betrothed to marry Prince Arthur of England, to ease political tension. When she was sixteen, she left her home in Spain for a three month journey across Spain to the ...

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