Isabella of Castile

Isabella of Castile (Spanish: Isabel, Ysabel or Isabela — only Isabel is used in modern Spanish; the equivalent English name is Elizabeth, but she has always been known as Isabella in English) (April 22, 1451 – November 26, 1504) was Queen of Castile and Leon. With her husband Ferdinand II of Aragon she was the co-ruler of a unified Spain. This monarch is known by a variety of other names including Isabel I of Castile and Isabel La Católica ("the Catholic").

Ascend

At this stage, the royal couple was only King and Queen of Sicily, all the Spanish realms were in the hand of others. Worse yet, Henry, upset that Isabelle had married Ferdinand, replaced Isabelle as heir with Joanna. Fortunately, the Cortes supported Isabelle's legitimacy. When Henry IV died on December 10, 1474, Isabelle acted quickly. Three days later, she had herself crowned Queen of Castile at Segovia. While she and Fernando started to reorganize the court, Alfonso of Portugal crossed the border and declared Joanna the rightful heir and his intended bride. Ferdinand beat the invaders back at the battle of Toro in 1476, and the challenge to the crown of Castile was rejected. In a series of separate marches Ferdinand and Isabelle went on to subjugate renegate and rebellious towns, fortresses, and points of power that had developed over time. In 1479 Fernando's father died, and they ascended to become King and Queen of Aragon. In 1480, the couple assembled the Cortes of Toledo where under their supervision five royal Councils and 34 civilian representatives produced a codex of laws and edicts as the legal groundwork for the future Spain. This established the centralization of power with the royals and set the basis for economic and judicial rehabilitation of the country. As part of this reform, and in their attempt to unify the country, Ferdinand and Isabelle solicited the Pope Sixtus IV to authorize the inquisition. In 1483, Tomás de Torquemada became the first Inquisitor General in Seville.

Related Topics:
Sicily - Cortes - 1474 - Segovia - Alfonso - Battle of Toro - 1476 - 1480 - Cortes of Toledo - Sixtus IV - Tomás de Torquemada - Inquisitor General - Seville

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