Juana of Castile

Joanna (Spanish: Juana) (November 6, 1479 – April 12, 1555), called the Mad (La Loca), queen of Castile and mother of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, was the second daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella, king and queen of Spain, and was born at Toledo on November 6, 1479.

Related Topics:
November 6 - 1479 - April 12 - 1555 - Queen of Castile - Holy Roman Emperor - Charles V - Ferdinand - Isabella - Toledo

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Her youngest sister was Catherine of Aragon, the first wife of Henry VIII. In 1496 at Lille, Joanna was married to the archduke Philip the Handsome, son of the German King Maximilian I, and at Ghent in February 1500, she gave birth to future emperor Charles V.

Related Topics:
Catherine of Aragon - Henry VIII - 1496 - Lille - Philip the Handsome - Maximilian I - Ghent - 1500 - Charles V

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The death of her only brother John, of her eldest sister Isabella of Asturias, queen of Portugal, and then of the latter's infant son Miguel, made Joanna the heiress of the Spanish kingdoms, and in 1502 the cortes of Castile and of Aragon recognized her and her husband as their future sovereigns.

Related Topics:
Isabella of Asturias - Portugal - 1502 - Castile - Aragon

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Soon after this, Joanna's reason began to give way. She pined in an extravagant fashion for her absent husband, whom at length she joined in Flanders; in this country her passionate jealousy, although justified by Philip's conduct, led to deplorable scenes.

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Her mother's death left Joanna Queen of Castile in November of 1504. She and Philip set sail from Flanders to Spain, where he would assume the kingship as her husband. Their ships were wrecked on the English coast and the couple became guests of Henry VII at Windsor Castle. After they continued their trip to Spain, they landed at Coruna in 1506 and started their trip south for the coronation. Ferdinand, her father, claimed that Joanna was being kept prisoner by Philip and that he was speaking for her, and therefore he should be made co-regent with her. This conflict threatened to lead to civil war. However, Philip unexpectedly died due to typhus fever in Burgos in September 1506. Joanna became completely deranged — it was almost impossible to get her away from the corpse of her husband.

Related Topics:
1504 - Henry VII - Windsor Castle - Coruna - Typhus - 1506

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Ferdinand's way to the kingship was cleared. Ferdinand convinced Joanna to grant him co-regency, and, in turn, kept her isolated in the castle of Tordesillas. After his death in 1516, her son Charles laid claim to the co-regency. Joanna was kept prisoner at Tordesillas, however, with the revolt of the comuneros she had a chance to resume her sole sovereignty but failed to take it. When Charles succeeded in quelling the uprising, Joanna was locked up for good in a windowless room in the castle of Tordesillas for the rest of her life. She died on Good Friday, April 12, 1555.

Related Topics:
Tordesillas - 1516 - Revolt of the comuneros

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Joanna was the last of the original Spanish royals; after her, all royalty on the Spanish throne was from houses that came from abroad. Most historians believe she suffered from schizophrenia, and this weakness was ruthlessly exploited by the people closest to her: her husband, her father, and her son. She had no friends or confidants. They all lied to her, kept her in the dark (metaphorically and literally), and used her unscrupulously for their own power plays. Locked away and imprisoned, she was needed by each of them to legitimize the claim to the throne. Nominally, Joanna remained queen of Castile until her death.

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She is entombed in the Capilla Real of Granada, alongside her parents, her husband, and her nephew Miguel.

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She had six children:

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• Eleanor (1498-1558), Queen consort first to Manuel I of Portugal and secondly to Francis I of France.
• Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, King of Spain (1500-1558).
• Isabella of Burgundy (1501-1525), Queen consort of Christian II of Denmark.
• Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor (1503-1564).
• Maria of Austria (1505-1558), Queen consort of Louis II of Hungary and Bohemia.
• Catherine of Habsburg(1507-1578), Queen consort of John III of Portugal.
 
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