The Catholic Monarchs: Unification, Reforms, and Expansion of Spain

The Formation of the Hispanic Monarchy

In the same year, Ferdinand became the King of Aragon after the death of his father. This unified Castile and Aragon. As a single state was not created, it is referred to as the Hispanic Monarchy.

The Catholic Monarchs carried out a series of domestic reforms to centralize power.

Centralizing Power: Key Domestic Reforms

• Permanent Army: A permanent army was formed with professional soldiers, which could overpower the militias of the nobility.
• Royal Treasury: The Royal Treasury was given greater powers to control and administer tax collection.
• Councils: The most important council was the Council of Castile. Those of Aragon and Navarre were also important in administering territories.
• Judicial System: The judicial system of Castile was restructured through the Audiencias of Valladolid and Granada, whose judges were appointed by the monarchs.
• Viceroyalty: The position of Viceroy was created. This figure represented the monarch in each of their kingdoms in their absence.
• The Inquisition: It was a religious court, although it was controlled by the Crown.

Improving International Relations

To improve international relations, the Diplomatic Corps, which represented the monarch in other kingdoms, was expanded.

Establishing Religious Unity and Expulsions

One of the Catholic Monarchs’ main political objectives was to establish religious unity in their domains. Their aim was to prevent revolts and internal divisions. In order to do this, the Jews and Muslims were expelled.

The Expulsion of the Jews (1492)

The Jews were persecuted by the Christian population towards the end of the Middle Ages. In 1492, the monarchs forced the Jews to convert to Christianity. Those who did not obey had to sell their assets at a loss and leave their homes. They are known as Sephardic Jews.

Those who agreed to convert were known as Conversos and were investigated and persecuted by the Inquisition to prevent them from practicing their old religion in secret.

The Expulsion of the Muslims

The Mudéjar were Muslims who lived in Christian territories. After the conquest of Granada in 1492, they were expelled from Castile in 1502 and from Aragon in 1526.

Those who converted were known as Moriscos, and they were also persecuted by the Inquisition.

Foreign Policy and Territorial Expansion

The Catholic Monarchs’ main objectives were:

• The unification of the Iberian Peninsula.
• The isolation of France.
• The consolidation of the Crown of Aragon in the Mediterranean.
• Expansion across the Atlantic.

Expansion on the Iberian Peninsula

• 1492: Boabdil, ruler of the Kingdom of Granada, surrendered the last existing Muslim state on the peninsula.
• 1512: Ferdinand conquered Navarre to prevent it from forming an alliance with France.

Expansion Outside the Iberian Peninsula

Northern Africa

Conquests included Melilla, Oran, and Bugia.

Italy (Mediterranean)

Secured the Aragonese territories of Naples, Sicily, and Sardinia.

The Atlantic Ocean

The Canary Islands were conquered following the subjugation of their inhabitants, the Guanches. These islands served as a stop-off point for Christopher Columbus’s first voyage to the Americas in 1492.

Economic Focus: The Crown of Castile

The expansion of wool production, supported by transhumant livestock farming, was very important to the economy of the Crown of Castile.