The Rise of the Spanish Monarchy: Castile and Aragon's Dynastic Union

Castile and Aragon: A Dynastic Union

The Modern Age began in Spain with the reign of the Catholic Monarchs, Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon. Their marriage in 1469 marked the first step towards the union of the Kingdom of Castile and the states under the Crown of Aragon, effectively uniting them in 1479. This union, however, was primarily dynastic, meaning the territories shared monarchs but retained their own institutions, laws, and monetary systems. Despite this, the union established common goals, including religious and territorial unity and increased monarchical power.

Religious and Territorial Unity

The first step towards territorial unity was the incorporation of the Nasrid kingdom of Granada in 1492, concluding the peninsular conquest. This process culminated with the integration of the Kingdom of Navarra in 1512. The monarchs also laid the groundwork for a future union with Portugal through marriage alliances. To achieve religious unity, the Catholic Monarchs established the Tribunal of the Inquisition in 1478 to ensure Catholic orthodoxy. Laws were passed ordering Jews (1492) and Muslims (1500) to convert or leave.

The Power of the Monarch

The Catholic Monarchs established the modern state and an authoritarian monarchy in Spain through several measures:

• Reduced the power of the nobles: They controlled the possessions of the military orders and reduced the autonomy of towns and cities by appointing corregidores to represent them. The Cortes (parliament) were summoned infrequently.
• Improved state administration: They created councils of jurists and modernized the administration of justice by establishing courts. These courts regularized taxes, modernized the army by organizing it into tercios, and created the Santa Hermandad to maintain order in the countryside.
• Established a common foreign policy: By supporting each other's interests, they projected a unified image of Spain on the European stage.