The Catholic Monarchs: Dynastic Union and the Fall of Granada

The Catholic Monarchs and the Dynastic Union

The Catholic Monarchs established a dynastic union, developing a centralized government and an expansionist nature in both interior and exterior politics. They finalized the conquest of Granada in 1492 and supported the project of Christopher Columbus. During the last years of Henry IV, the peninsula was characterized by political instability because of the change of succession to his sister, Isabella (Pact of the Bulls of Guisando, 1468). However, this change was met by the marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella. Subsequently, Henry named his daughter, Joanna la Beltraneja (considered illegitimate by a large part of the nobility), as heiress after the Capitulation of Cervera. This caused a civil war between followers of both factions. With the support of most of the towns of Castile and Aragon, Isabella managed to impose herself (notably at the Battle of Toro in 1476) and was crowned Queen of Castile. The Treaty of Alcaçovas in 1479 fixed the conditions of peace between Castile and Portugal and set Atlantic limits. With the death of John II of Aragon, Ferdinand ascended to the throne, concluding the dynastic union.

The Conquest of the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada

The Catholic Monarchs undertook an external policy focused on peninsular territories and the Atlantic, while Ferdinand continued the Aragonese Mediterranean expansion. The Nasrid Kingdom was the primary objective of the foreign policy of the combined kingdoms. Isabella achieved this through fundraising, extraordinary taxes, legations of the church, Andalusian councils, and profits from the Bulls of the Crusade.

The war was of great help for the experimentation of new military systems with firearms. Inside the Nasrid kingdom, the conflict between Muley Hacén, El Zagal, and Boabdil weakened Muslim resistance. In 1489, the Catholic Monarchs combined diplomacy with a military siege in Granada, which led to the final offensive. On January 2, 1492, Christian troops occupied the Nasrid capital. Boabdil was removed to the dominion of the Alpujarras, and with this, 700 years of Muslim presence on the peninsula ended. For Christians, this victory marked the cultural hegemony over Islam and gave them support against the Turks in the Mediterranean. For Muslims, the defeat marked the end of expansion and the beginning of a reversal of positions in the Western Mediterranean.