Castile and Aragon. History of Spain. Exacerbation of the class struggle

Unification of Spain

Attempts to unite several Spanish states into one were carried out before. For example, the marriage of Alfonso I of Aragon and Princess Urraca of Castile united both kingdoms until 1127. And the marriage of Raymond Berengar II of Barcelona with Petronilla, heiress of Aragon, united Aragon and Catalonia. But these alliances were temporary.

Birth of Isabella of Castile

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Enrique IV the Powerless

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In 1455 he married again. His wife, Juana of Portugal (1439-1475), is the sister of the Portuguese king Alfonso V. In 1461, having learned that his wife was pregnant, Enrique decides to transfer his closest rivals Alfonso and Isabella to his castle in order to control their actions. In 1462, Enrique IV and Juana of Portugal had a daughter, Juana. Some believed that her father was the court favorite of King Beltran de la Cueva, so the girl was called Juan Beltranich. The official version was fertilization using mechanical devices.

Talk about the infidelity of his wife did not give Enrique peace, and he exiled her to Coca's castle. There, from the cardinal's nephew, Pedro de Castilla and Fonseca, she gave birth to twins - Pedro and Andres.

The pressure exerted on Enrique IV by the Cortes led to the fact that Enrique was forced to recognize his half-brother Alfonso as his heir. But in 1468 Alfonso dies.

Becoming Isabella

Back in 1475, Juan was married to her maternal uncle, King Alfonso V of Portugal. It was he who supported his wife's claims to the Castilian throne. But after the defeat in 1479, Pope Sixtus IV annulled their marriage due to their close relationship. However, Juana considered herself a queen until her death and all letters were signed by La Reina (queen). She died in 1530.

Children of Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon

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But Ferdinand also had illegitimate children (bastards). Two of them were born before the marriage with Isabella (Alfonso of Aragon - became Bishop of Zaragoza; Juana of Aragon - married the constable of Castile Bernardino Fernandez de Velasco). Two sisters with the same name Maria of Aragon were placed in the convent of Santa Maria de Grazia near Madrid.

Reign time

Death of Isabella

In the same year, Ferdinand conquered Naples, in 1509 - Oran, in 1512 Navarre was annexed to Spain.

Ferdinand married a second time. His chosen one was the daughter of the Viscount of Navarre, Germain de Foix. In 1509 they had a son, but he did not live long. They had no other children.

Isabella and Ferdinand's heirs

The youngest daughter of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile, Catherine of Aragon, was given in marriage to Prince Arthur of Wales, son of King Henry VII of England, in 1501. But a year later, Prince Arthur died of an illness. His brother, Henry VIII, having become King of England after their father's death in 1509, married Catherine the same year. In 1533, Henry VIII annulled their marriage, citing the inability of the wife to give birth to a male heir. After 3 years, Catherine died. From the marriage with Henry VIII left the daughter Mary Tudor (1516-1558), the future Queen of England, who went down in history as Mary I Bloody.

The only heir to whom the throne of Castile could pass was Juana the Mad. In 1496, she was married to the son of the King of Germany and Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I, Duke Philip of Burgundy from the Habsburg family. They had four daughters and two sons. After the death of Isabella I, Juana became Queen of Castile. Since by this time she had already manifested mental disorders, her husband Philip, nicknamed the Handsome, actually began to rule the country. This categorically did not suit Juana's father, Ferdinand. A year later, Philip died suddenly. Some blame the King of Aragon for his death. Due to the death of her husband, the queen's mental illness worsened. For several weeks she did not allow her husband to be buried, she traveled all over the country with his embalmed body, sometimes lifting the lid of the coffin to look at him. Then Juana the Mad was placed in the castle of Tordicellas, where she remained until her death. However, she was still considered a queen. But in fact, Castile and Aragon until 1516 was ruled by her father.

The formation of Charles V - the grandson of Ferdinand and Isabella

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First King of Spain

In the Pyrenean states, earlier than in other countries of Western Europe, class-representative institutions appeared. This is due to the high political activity of the privileged estates and cities, caused by the reconquista. In the course of the liberation struggle, local laws and customs arose, the political role of the nobility and townspeople increased, and it acquired the privileges of nobility. The royal power needed the support of all these influential forces and had to reckon with their rights and privileges. Often it turned out to be completely dependent on class-representative institutions.

First of all, the Cortes arose in Leon, united in one kingdom with Castile. This happened in 1188, during the reign of King Alphonse IX, when, along with the secular and spiritual feudal lords, city representatives began to sit in the royal curia. From 1250 Cortes began to meet regularly in Castile. In Catalonia, the Cortes with the participation of representatives of the cities functioned from 1218, in Aragon - from the second half of the 13th century. At the same time, the Cortes took shape in Portugal and Navarre. The composition of the Cortes usually included representatives of three estates - the clergy, the nobility and the townspeople. In Aragon, four estates were represented in the Cortes - the feudal nobility, the nobility, the clergy and representatives of some urban municipalities. The composition of the city curia of the Castilian Cortes at first included representatives of free peasant communities - begetries.

The Cortes had broader rights than the class-representative bodies in other Western European countries. They had not only financial functions, but participated in legislation and intervened in matters of succession to the throne. The Cortes of Aragon took an oath from the king that he would respect the customs (fueros) of the country. The Castilian Cortes set the budget for the royal court. Members of the Cortes enjoyed "parliamentary immunity" here.

The two largest states of the Iberian Peninsula - Castile and Aragon united in 1479 into a single Spanish kingdom as a result of the dynastic marriage of Ferdinand of Aragon with Isabella of Castile. This association met the interests of the Castilian and Aragonese feudal lords, since a common struggle was ahead against the Arabs, who still held the region of Granada. At the same time, the Castilian nobility and cities were interested in the foreign markets held by Aragon in the Mediterranean basin. The dynastic union proved to be strong and led to the creation united state, because the population of both kingdoms, despite local differences, was basically already a single ethnic community - the Spanish people.

By the end of the XV century. The royal power in Spain was greatly strengthened. Although each of the kingdoms continued to maintain its autonomy for the first time (a separate king and separate Cortes), the privileges of the feudal nobility in both Castile and Aragon were violated. She was forbidden to wage private wars, to mint coins. The lands of the rebellious feudal lords were confiscated in favor of the king. In the fight against the nobility, royal power relied on the cities and their military power.

The Catholic kings (as Ferdinand and Isabella were called) subjugated the church and used it as an instrument of absolutism. Ferdinand received from the pope the mastership of all the spiritual and knightly orders and confiscated their rich land holdings. In 1480, the Inquisition was introduced in Spain, which entirely served the interests of state power. Under her vigilant supervision was the entire population of the country, but most of all the Moors and Jews converted to Christianity. Any Spaniard suspected of heterodoxy or dissent could be subjected to the court of the Inquisition by secret denunciation. With the help of the Inquisition, any political opposition was suppressed.

Having strengthened their power within the country, the Spanish kings began a war against the Emirate of Granada. In 1492, after a long siege, Granada fell and the south of the country was annexed to the Spanish kingdom. The Moors were promised to keep their religion, but these promises were immediately broken. Religious persecution of Muslims and Jews began, which caused uprisings on their part. Many left Spain and moved to Africa. This led to the economic decline of the once flourishing south of the country.

At the end of the XV century. In Spain, in basic terms, an absolute monarchy has already taken shape. The powerful feudal nobility was pacified and turned into a court aristocracy. The Cortes lost their former influence and convened rarely. The administration of the state was carried out with the help of the bureaucracy. However, unlike other absolutist Western European states, Spain did not become a strictly centralized nation-state. The provincial and estate disunity that had developed over the centuries persisted.

History of the Kingdom of Aragon

In the period 1975─1982. after the end of Franco's dictatorship in Spain, a number of democratic reforms were carried out during the transition to a constitutional monarchy. At that time, the autonomous community of Aragon appears as part of Spain. However, the history of Aragon goes back to the Middle Ages. Having appeared on the ruins of the Roman Empire, Aragon is gaining strength in the Middle Ages. And then it becomes the center of crystallization of the state of Spain. During their history, the kings of Aragon fought many wars. The main war was fought with the Arab states, which were formed on the Iberian Peninsula after the arrival of conquerors from Africa. As a result of constant struggle, by the XIII-XIV centuries, the kingdom of Aragon, having captured a significant part of the Iberian Peninsula and a number of islands in the Mediterranean, becomes a major power. Subsequently, Aragon enters into a union with Castile and the Spanish state is formed. This article will focus on the history of the Kingdom of Aragon.

In ancient times, Aragon was not marked by anything special on the territory of Iberia. The Celtiberians who lived here traded with Carthage, Greeks and Phoenicians. The Romans arrived here at the end of the 3rd century BC. During the reformation of the empire by Augustus, Tarraconian Spain was created in the northeast of modern Spain, which was a province of the Roman Empire. This happened in the period from 27 BC. e. to 14 a.d. e. At the same time, the Romans found here the city of Caesaraugusta (Zaragoza), which receives the name of the emperor. When the Roman Empire collapsed, the kingdom of the Visigoths was formed on the Iberian Peninsula. This happens in the 5th century AD simultaneously with the spread of Christianity in the territory of the Iberian Peninsula.

The main shock for the people inhabiting the Iberian Peninsula was the invasion of the Arabs, who in those days were called the Moors. They came to these lands in 712-718. They quickly captured the entire territory of modern Spain. Free from them was the land in the north-west of the Iberian Peninsula. The Visigoths could not offer serious resistance to the Arabs, and were destroyed or captured by the Muslim Moors. The only force that could withstand the onslaught of the Arabs were the Franks.

From 768 to 814, the king and then emperor of the Franks was the warlike Charlemagne. During his reign, he was able to win back the lands in the north of modern Spain from the Arabs. The Spanish brand was formed on this territory. Surrounded by Charlemagne was Count Aureolo, who was one of the generals. He was able to liberate the city of Jacu, located in the Pyrenees in the northeast of the peninsula.

As a result of this campaign, he was able to drive the Moors out of the territories they occupied between the Aragon River and its tributary Subordan. The county of Aragon got its name from the name of this river. The capital of the county was the city of Jaca. After some time, Aureolo died and the capital of the county was again captured by the Arabs. And then Aznar Galindes, the new Count of Aragon, again began to liberate these territories.

War Aznar Galindes with Banu Qasi (Arab state) led with the support of the Basques. Galindes during his lifetime made the County of Aragon independent from the Frankish Empire. In fact, Aragon became an independent state. The composition of the new Aragon, in addition to the environs of Jaca, included the counties of Ribagors and Sobrarbe. The latter are located in the northeast of Spain in the foothills of the Pyrenees).

In 922, the last representative of the Galindes dynasty dies, and Aragon passes under the control of the kings of Navarre, with whom the Aragonese counts were related. At the beginning of the 11th century, the kingdom of Navarre became the largest Christian state on the Iberian Peninsula. This is the main center of opposition to the Arabs. But, as time has shown, the state of Navarre was fragile. When Sancho III the Great died, his kingdom of Navarre fell apart into several parts. Ramiro, who was the illegitimate son of Sancho III the Great, becomes the head of Aragon. As a result, Aragon regains its independence.

Rapid development and the era of conquests (XI-XIII centuries)

For the first time after the death of Sancho III the Great and the beginning of the reign of Ramiro in Aragon, the territory of the county was insignificant. But Ramiro was not one of those who are content with little and he went to war with his brother Garcia, who was the king of Navarre. But here his troops defeated, he abandoned the intention to conquer Navarre. After some time, he still managed to expand his possessions. His brother Gonzalo died and Ribagors and Sobrarbe joined the county of Aragon by right of inheritance. So, the Aragonese kingdom began to expand.

Ramiro tried to further expand his possessions further Ribagorsa and got involved in a war with the Moors. However, he failed at the siege of Graus, where he was killed. After his death, Sancho-Ramirez, his son, took over the kingdom. He came to the throne in 1063. Sancho Ramirez continued the war, but more successfully. He first took the fortresses of Monzón and Barbastro. Then Graus and others submitted to him. settlements.

During the reign of Sancho-Ramirez, the kingdom of Aragon expanded not only through war, but also through peaceful means. We are talking about the annexation of Navarre. The inhabitants of the kingdom did not want to give the crown to the murderer of Sancho and swore allegiance to Sancho—Ramirez. Subsequently, he undertook a campaign to the west to besiege Huesca, but there he had no luck. He died during the siege.

As a result of the campaigns and conquests undertaken, the Aragonese kingdom expanded significantly due to the territories in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. By the end of the 11th century, Aragon stretched from Ribagora Noguera to San Sebastian, and reached the Ebro (modern Rioch). Huesca was conquered by the son of Sancho Ramirez ─ Pedro I in 1096. In addition, he annexed several more cities to the kingdom, recapturing them from the Moors. Pedro I dies in 1104, passing the throne to his son Alphonse I. He began to wage wars with the Muslims even more vigorously in the direction of the right bank of the Ebro. The main thing that Alfonso I did was the conquest of Zaragoza in 1118. After that, all the fortresses of the Moors in the Ebro region entered the kingdom of Aragon. These are Daroka, Tarakona, Kalatayud and others. The borders of the kingdom advanced beyond the Ebro towards Teruel and Cuenca. Several times the Almoravides tried to recapture Zaragoza, but the army of Alphonse I defeated them at Kutanda in 1120.

After brilliant victories, Alfonso I was awarded the title "Warrior". In agreement with the Mozarabs, in 1125 he made a campaign against the possessions of Murcia, Valencia and Andalusia. Some big cities he failed to take, but his army reached the shores of the Mediterranean Sea after the victory at Arinsola in 1126 near Lucena. In order to populate the conquered lands, Alfonso I brought with him several thousand Mozarabs.

On the right bank of the Ebro, several fortresses remained under the control of the Moors, which posed a threat. Alfonso I organized a campaign against Mexinense and conquered this fortress. Then he carried out operations against Fraga, located on the Sinque River, but here he was defeated. And in 1134 Alfonso I dies without heirs.

According to the will of Alphonse I, the kingdom of Aragon should be given to military orders: the Templars and the Johnites. But the population of Navarre and Aragon thought differently and did not fulfill this testament. The nobility of Aragon chose the brother of Alfonso I ─ Ramiro to the throne. He was a monk in a Narbonne monastery. The nobility of Navarre chose their king and seceded from Aragon, regaining their independence.

Ramiro II did not perform any outstanding deeds and military exploits. He received from the pope an exemption from his vow of celibacy. After that, he took Agnes of Aquitaine as his wife. They had a daughter, Petronila. Ramiro II married her to Berenguer IV. It was the Count of Barcelona. In 1137, Ramiro II abdicated and entered a monastery, after which the Count of Barcelona became the ruler of Aragon. The result is a union of these key kingdoms in the Iberian Peninsula. The further fate of Catalonia and Aragon becomes common. Catalonia brought with it the spirit of expansion, trade and culture. Through it, relations with other European states began to be established. The first common king of the united Catalonia and Aragon is Ramon Berenguer, who was the son of Ramon Berenguer IV.

He adopted the name of Alphonse II as a sign of respect for the people of Aragon. His close ally was Alfonso VIII of Castile, with whom they fought against Navarre. Alfonso II was unable to include Navarre in Aragon, but he nevertheless took several of their fortresses. At the same time, he also achieved success in the field of diplomacy. In 1167, his cousin from the house of the Counts of Barcelona dies. His father Ramon Berenguer IV and the German emperor entered into a treaty, according to which Alfonso II inherited the Duchy of Provence. And in 1172, Alfonso II inherited the county of Roussillon.

In addition, in 1187 Alphonse II was sworn in by the counties of Bigorre and Bearn in southwestern France. Thus, the power of the state of Alphonse II increases significantly and he receives almost complete control over the south of France. Little by little, Alfonso II expanded the borders in the south. He fought with the Moors himself and together with Alphonse VIII of Castile.

He succeeded in conquering Caspe and Albarracina, where he founded the city of Teruel in 1170. In parallel with this, they had to repulse the raids of the Moors on Tarragona. The province suffered greatly from these raids. In 1173, the Moors caused serious damage to the villages in this province, although they were unable to capture Zaragoza.

Alfonso II later conquered Cuenca for Castile. As a result, the king of Castile freed Aragon from fiefdom. Towards the end of his reign, Alfonso II, along with León, Navarre and Portugal, united against Castile. But in 1179, Castile and Aragon again conclude an alliance treaty. Under this agreement, they divided the Spanish lands among themselves. Alfonso II died in 1196.

The son of Alfonso II ─ Pedro II inherited the throne at a troubled time for the kingdom. Unrest constantly broke out in the French possessions of Aragon and Catalonia. French kings sought to take these territories under their crown. In Provence, the nobility tried to gain independence from Aragon. But Pedro II managed under these conditions to annex the county of Montpellier in 1204. This he achieved as a result of his marriage to Countess Maria. A year later, the county of Urgell came under the crown of Aragon.

Pedro II decided to travel to Rome in order for the Pope to crown him. Historians have not yet found an unequivocal explanation of why he decided on this innovation, which was not previously in the customs of Catalonia and Aragon. Apparently, the main motive was to obtain the support of the Pope, as well as Pisans and Genoese. The latter had powerful fleets, and Pedro II needed them to capture the Balearic Islands. In addition, he hoped to solve problems in the south of France with the help of the political influence of the Pope. Peter II was crowned by the Pope in November 1204, and then also knighted. Pedro II undertook to protect the Catholic faith, persecute heretics and inviolability of churches.

In addition, he declared himself a vassal of the Pope and gave him about his kingdom as a fief. Now the kings of Aragon had to pay remuneration to the Pope every year for the patronage that he would provide to him and his heirs. The population and nobility of Catalonia and Aragon were unhappy with this decision. After all, Pedro II did this without their consent, and they considered this oath invalid. The cities of the kingdom united in the so-called hermandad and demanded that the king renounce the vassal oath. Pedro II refused and began to pay Rome a reward, assuming the status of a Catholic king. Meanwhile, in southern France, the religious question was becoming more and more complicated. The situation was especially difficult in Provence.

Relations between the Pope and the nobility in the south of France became very strained. The nobility did not at all seek to suppress heresy to please Rome. This eventually led to war. The Pope declared a crusade against the Albigensians. The main enemies were declared the Count of Toulouse (son-in-law of Pedro II) and Viscount Roman Roger (Beziers and Carcassonne), who was a vassal of Aragon. This campaign was announced by the Pope in 1209.

The crusaders began their offensive from Lyon. Under the leadership of Simon de Montfort, they stormed Beziers and staged a terrible massacre there, and then also set fire to the city. After that they also took the city of Carcassonne and slaughtered all the heretics there. The Count of Toulouse had to submit to Rome against his will.

As a result, the crusaders of Simon de Montfort seized the lands of Viscount Ramon Roger, but this did not suit Peter II at all. However, under the pressure of circumstances and representatives of the Pope, he had to recognize Simon de Montfort as the ruler of Carcassonne and Beziers. After this, a short peace was restored, during which Pedro II was engaged in the affairs of his kingdom. Alfonso VIII declared a crusade against the Moors, joined by Aragon. In 1212, a victory was won at Las Navas. Around the same period, Pedro II was able to annex Ronceval and Aibar, belonging to the kingdom of Navarre, to Aragon. In addition, some territories in the south of the kingdom and the land of Castile under the name of Moncayo were annexed. But in the south of France, things went according to a bad scenario for the Aragonese king.

In 1213 fighting crusaders against the Count of Toulouse resume. Pedro II turned to the Pope with a request to protect the Count of Toulouse from Simon de Montfort. But the request remained unanswered, and he had to defend the nobility and the count, whose lands were taken from him, by force of arms. But luck was not on their side, and at the battle of Muret, Pedro II was killed and his army was defeated. After his death, Catalonia and Aragon were left without a king. Pedro II had a son, Jaime, who was in the hands of Simon de Montfort. The late monarch himself gave it to him when he planned a marriage with Montfort's daughter.

Pope Innocent intervened in this situation, and after that Montfort returned Jaime in 1214. But since he was a minor, he could not immediately take over the reign of the kingdom. Therefore, the Cortes of Aragon and Catalonia chose Guillen de Monredo as guardian for Jaime. It was the Grand Master of the Knights Templar. Sancho, who is the brother of Jaime's grandfather, became the procurator of the kingdom. In addition, junior prosecutors for Aragon, Catalonia and Montpellier were selected. At the same time, there was no agreement in the kingdom. The uncle of the heir ─ Fernando and the procurator general Sancho sought to seize the throne.

At the same time, the nobles of Aragon behaved in their fiefdoms as independent rulers. They fought each other, trying to grab a piece from the other. There was a group of nobles in the kingdom who came to the defense of the imperfect King Jaime. Guillen de Monredo imprisoned the heir in the fortress of Monzon, and they rescued him from there. After that, Jaime led the troops and began to fight against the aristocrats and their relatives who claimed the throne. His party consisted mainly of the nobility of Catalonia. He did not manage to curb his relatives and know soon. The constant struggle lasted until 1227. The result of this struggle was the signing of an agreement with the nobility, according to which peace was restored. This turmoil in the kingdom was reflected in foreign affairs. Especially on business in southern France.

The Battle of Muret never brought about a resolution of the situation with Simon de Montfort. The local nobility resisted Simon de Montfort and did not want to recognize his authority. As a result, the Count of Toulouse, having united with the Catalan nobility, again went to war against Montfort. The result was the death of Simon de Montfort and the end of French domination, which reigned here after the Crusade in 1209. After the end of the turmoil, Jaime I began to expand the borders, in which his intentions coincided with the mood of the population. He was especially supported in this matter by the inhabitants of Catalonia.

Since ancient times, the Catalans traded by sea and sought to establish their hegemony in the Mediterranean. With the coming to power of Jaime I, they began to realize their plans. On the way of conquests, the Balearic Islands became the first. At that time, the Moors lived there, who terrorized the coast of Spain with raids. The nobles of Aragon refused to lend their troops and money to this campaign. Part of the Catalans was also against it. Jaime I had to manage only with the means and people that the cities of Catalonia, some of the lords and representatives of the clergy provided him.

An army was assembled, which was loaded onto 43 ships and 12 galleys. The flotilla headed for the island of Mallorca, where the troops landed in September 1229. Jaime I easily conquered the island. The Moors in Palma and the mountains were quickly defeated. In addition, one of the local rulers collaborated with Jaime. As a result of the campaign, good booty was obtained, and the lands of the island were divided among themselves by generals and nobles. Now the king of Aragon appointed his governor in Palma. In 1232 Jaime I undertook a new campaign. Now to the island of Menorca, which also became a vassal of the kingdom. In 1235, Ibiza was conquered. Thus, the Muslim Moors were expelled from the Balearic Islands or annexed to the kingdom of Aragon. In parallel with the conquest of the Balearic Islands, Jaime I began to prepare for the conquest of Valencia lands next to it. At that time, Muslims dominated there. In 1232, Blasco de Alagon, a nobleman from the Aragonese nobility, captured Morelia with his troops. In fact, Morella was conquered with the help of several barons and Catalan militias. Then for another 5-6 years, Jaime I conquered various fortresses and territories in the vicinity of Valencia. At the beginning of 1238, the siege of Valencia itself began, which capitulated in September. According to the terms of the surrender, the emir of the Moors and anyone who wants to can leave the city. At the same time, it was allowed to take the property that you could carry with you. After the conclusion of the agreement, 50,000 Muslims left the city.

After Valencia was taken, the Aragonese army captured other important settlements of this kingdom. In particular, the powerful fortress of Xativa, Alzira and a number of other settlements, on the territory of the modern province of Alicante. The Kingdom of Valencia was completely subjugated by 1253. In gratitude for the assistance rendered to the king, Jaime I distributed the occupied lands among these aristocrats. But after the conquest of these territories, uprisings of the Moors rose several times in the mountains. They managed to suppress, although not without difficulty. After that, many Muslim inhabitants were expelled from the lands of Valencia. Jaime I planned, in general, to expel all Muslims, but did not have time to do this, because he died. In addition, during the reign of Jaime I, some more conquests were made in the territory inhabited by the Moors.

The borders of the kingdom of Aragon now reached the city of Bear. A corresponding agreement was concluded on this with the King of Castile Fernando III. The territories that were located south of Beara were recognized as Castile. But despite this treaty, Jaime I violated this treaty in 1265. With the support of the Catalan and Aragonese nobility, he started a war with the Emirate of Murcia. First he took the cities of Alicante and Elche, and then in 1266 he conquered the city of Murcia.

According to the peace treaty, Muslims received the right to remain in the city. In addition, they retained the right to build mosques and have their own court. King Jaime I populated Murcia with colonists from Catalonia, and distributed the territories among the nobility, which helped in the conquest. But he recognized this territory for the king of Castile. During his reign, Jaime I often made various compromises and concessions. This was necessary in order to avoid a civil war. The Aragonese nobility was very headstrong and often acted without regard for the monarch. They could at any moment refuse to help the king with troops and money.

Therefore, the king of Aragon constantly tried to weaken the influence of the nobility and limit the feudal lords. The eldest son of the king ─ Pedro took part in this process. He tried to amend the laws and force the nobility to do their duty. As a result, there was a sluggish civil confrontation in Aragon. He managed to stop only for the time of the new Muslim invasion of the territory of Murcia. In 1276, Jaime I dies in a campaign undertaken to suppress the uprising of the Moors in Valencia.

During his reign, the kingdom was greatly strengthened politically, expanded its territories and laid the foundation for further expansion in the Mediterranean. In parallel with external conquests, the king tried to carry out internal reforms and overcome the all-powerful feudal lords. He protected all his royal rights and powers, not wanting to make Aragon a vassal of Rome. And this was insisted on by Gregory X, who was then the Pope of Rome.

Jaime I also unified the laws, put things in order in the finances of the kingdom and founded a number of educational institutions. Not only that, he also had a talent for writing. He wrote poetry, and also left behind a chronicle, where he spoke about his reign. But in his will, for some reason, he went against his main idea ─ the unification of the possessions of Aragon and Catalonia. He bequeathed to divide the kingdom between his sons. The eldest son Pedro received Aragon, Catalonia, Valencia. The younger son received lands in the south of France and the Balearic Islands. As a result, the possessions of the kingdom of Aragon were divided for some time. This turned out to be an unwise move, as the kingdom was then in need of centralization.

Aragon in the XIII-XV centuries

Even during his lifetime in Jaime I, he married his eldest son Pedro III to the daughter of the King of Sicily ─ Manfred of Hohenstaufen. As a result of this union, the kings of Aragon received a legal right to parts of the lands of Italy. Because of this, there were subsequently many conflicts between Argon and a number of states in Western Europe. In particular, Charles of Anjou, the prince of the royal house of France, became an opponent of this. The first thing Pedro did on the throne was to declare independence from the Pope. In breaking the vassal treaty, he was supported by the majority of the population.

Soon after this, Pedro III had to fight the nobility in his state. This time, the “bone of contention” was the right to inherit the county of Urgell. The civil war of the king against Armengol X, who claimed the county, began. As a result of this struggle, Armengol X recognizes himself as a vassal of the king, but the struggle does not end there. In 1280, all the nobility of Catalonia unites against the king. The rebels took refuge in the city of Balaguer, which Pedro III besieged along with the militia of the cities. At the head of the rebels was the Count of Foix, who was joined by about three hundred nobles. The local population did not support the rebels, and they quickly capitulated. The instigators were imprisoned, but soon released. The king ordered them to pay compensation for the damage and conclude an agreement.

In 1278, the king's brother Jaime, who inherited Mallorca and Roussillon, concluded an agreement according to which the heirs of the Aragonese king are recognized as overlords of these lands. Around the same time, friendly allied relations were established with Portugal and Castile. This was facilitated by the marriage of the Portuguese king Dinis with Isabella ─ Infanta of Aragon. Pedro III completed the suppression of the uprising of the Moors in Valencia, which was started by his father. As a result, many Muslim Moors were expelled from these territories.

During the time of Jaime I, the emir of Tunis (al-Mostansir) was an ally of Aragon and paid tribute. When al-Mostansir died, one of his sons seized power. Under this pretext, Peter 3 began to interfere in the internal affairs of the emirate. In 1280, he sent an expeditionary force to Tunisia under the leadership of Conrado de Llans. As a result of this campaign, he established a protectorate over the emirate of Tunis. The Aragonese now had the right to collect duties on the wine trade at a rate of 50%. In addition, Tunisia now had to pay tribute and Aragon received the right to appoint an mayor to govern the Christian population of Tunisia. Alcalde could fly his own flag, which was given honors on a par with the Tunisian. In cities such as Tunis and Bougie, there were consuls of Catalonia. The result of this military campaign was the strengthening of the diplomatic and military positions of Aragon in North Africa.

Next, Pedro III turned his gaze to the kingdom of Sicily. There were some Neapolitan lands under the crown of Sicily at that time. These territories belonged to the sons of Frederick II (German Emperor). But this right was disputed by the Pope, resulting in a long struggle. The pontiff sought to consolidate his right to the lands of Sicily and, with some reservations, offered them to Charles of Anjou. Tom only needed to win them back from the representatives of the Hohenstaufen dynasty, and then manage them in the status of a vassal of Rome. Angevin liked the deal. He defeated the Sicilian troops and killed the regent Manfred, as well as his nephew Conradin, who was captured and beheaded in 1268.

Pedro III was married to one of the daughters of the regent Manfred and could not stay away from these events. Gradually he came into contact with the Sicilians and began preparations to conquer the kingdom. Preparations directly for the war began in 1281. For this, an army of 15 thousand people and a fleet of 140 ships were equipped. The King of France, learning of these preparations, sent envoys to find out the reason. He was officially told that the expeditionary corps was sent to Algeria (in those days of Constantine), to help this city in the fight against the sultanate.

In 1282 the fleet went to the city of Alcoil. It was taken and the Aragonese troops began to conquer the settlements around the city. At this time, an event took place that went down in history under the name "Sicilian Vespers". On March 31, 1282, the Sicilians exterminated the French invaders. Some time after this, an embassy from the Sicilians arrived at the headquarters of the Aragonese troops and asked them for help in the fight against Charles of Anjou. Pedro III agreed, believing that the Sicilian throne was rightfully his. In August 1282 he landed at Trapani and easily captured Sicily.

Aragon won a number of unconditional victories on land and at sea. Charles of Anjou was forced to flee to Italy. By February 1283, Pedro III had established control over Calabria. Further fighting in Italy was also successful for the Aragonese army. Admiral Roger de Lauria in 1284 managed to defeat the French squadron at Malta, and not far from Naples, he captured Charles the Lame (son of Charles of Anjou). The Pope could not forgive the conquest of the Sicilian kingdom. He proclaimed that Pedro III was dispossessed and his subjects were released from their oath of allegiance to him. The Pope entrusted their fate to Charles of Valois, who was the youngest son of the King of France.

Charles of Anjou dies in January 1285 and the French troops in Italy are left without leadership, since the son of the late king was captured by Pedro III. The French army invaded Catalonia, and the Pope presented it as a crusade. Jaime (King of Mallorca and Roussillon), who was the brother of Pedro III, took the side of the French. However, some fortresses and cities resisted the invaders, remaining loyal to the kingdom of Aragon. But there was no full support for Pedro III in the kingdom. The nobility and clergy of Ampurdan turned their backs on him or even "put a spoke in the wheel."

French troops used a poorly guarded site in the Pyrenees to capture Ampurdan. As a result, they managed to capture almost the entire country. After taking the castle of Lierse, Charles of Valois settled there, and his troops besieged Girona. Thanks to the heroic resistance of the city, Roger de Loria arrived in time to help. In addition, luck was on the side of the Aragonese. An epidemic began in the French army, which led to large non-combat losses. Roger de Loria's flotilla defeated the French fleet. The French troops could no longer receive reinforcements from the sea and began to retreat behind the Pyrenees. At the Panissars pass, the troops of Aragon and Castile attacked them and staged a terrible massacre. Almost the entire French army ceased to exist.

Meanwhile, the war in Roussillon did not stop, and Pedro III held Charles the Lame prisoner. Before sending a military corps to the island of Mallorca in November 1285, Pedro III dies, and before his death he promises to return Sicily to the Pope. This desire of King Pedro was not realized. But the sons of the king were more sensible and were not going to give the pope Sicily. The youngest son Jaime ascended the Sicilian throne, and the eldest son ─ Alfonso becomes the king of Catalonia and Aragon. Majorca was also in his possession until 1295. He gave it to Jaime II only after he took the fealty oath.

In Italy, the war of France with Aragon and Castile continued. In 1288, the parties conclude a peace treaty in Campfranche. According to it, the Pope of Rome invalidated the act of donating the Sicilian kingdom to Charles of Anjou. In addition, the right to Roussillon and the island of Mallorca was recognized for Aragon. Alfonso released Charles the Lame, and he had to make amends from the war. And also he had to provide hostages instead of himself. Jaime was recognized as King of Sicily by treaty.

However, after the release of Charles the Lame, he did not fulfill his obligations. Moreover, he, in collusion with Jaime, the king of Mallorca, threatened Aragon with war. Yes, and in Sicily the struggle continued. In 1291, an agreement less favorable to the Aragonese was concluded in Tarascon. Jaime was recognized as the king of Sicily, but the king of Aragon had to pay tribute for all the time from the moment it was established by Pedro II. In parallel with these events, Alfonso III tried to take the Sicilian crown from his brother. At the beginning of 1286, Alfonso III conquers the island of Menorca. Formally, he was a vassal of the kingdom, but in fact an independent entity. Constant external threats could not make the Aragonese nobility cohesive. They constantly fought with the king. Under Alphonse III, the internal situation escalated, since he did not have a strong character and experience in managing his father's affairs. Due to external problems, the nobility decided to promote their interests and seek privileges. Alfonso III followed their lead and agreed to significant concessions. As a pretext, the nobility used the fact that Alfonso III became king of Aragon without swearing allegiance to the fueros on the Cortes. The union of the noble Aragonese demanded his return to Aragon. Otherwise, they threatened to revolt.

Moreover, representatives of the union maintained contacts with Charles of Valois, who claimed the crown of Aragon. They even began to open their embassies in European states. At first, Alfonso III sentenced the instigators of the rebellion to death, but this only led to an aggravation of the conflict. Due to the aggravation of the foreign political situation, the country needed peace inside. As a result, Alfonso III conceded to the union and granted the nobility the privileges they demanded. This happened in 1287. According to the adopted “Privileges of the Unia”, Alfonso III recognized the mediator judge (hustis) and took upon himself the obligation not to encroach on the life of the nobility in the Cortes and the nobility. In addition, the "Privilege of the Union" established other restrictions on the power of the king.

Alfonso III died in 1291 without issue. The crown of Aragon passed to Jaime, who was the king of Sicily. He handed over Sicily to his son Fadrika, which was a violation of the treaty in Tarascon. The result was a new war with France. But Jaime did not fight for long, and under the influence of Pope Boniface VIII, he made a humiliating peace. June 5, 1295 in Aguani. Under the treaty, he renounced the rights to Sicily. The Sicilians, led by their son Fadrique, did not recognize this treaty and continued to fight. In fact, Jaime took upon himself the obligation to wage war against his own son in order to return Sicily to the Pope.

Instead of this Boniface VIII removed the excommunication of the kings of Aragon from the Church, and France renounced the rights to the Sicilian crown. In 1297, the pope grants Jaime rights to the islands of Sardinia and Corsica. And he, in turn, recognized Aragon as a vassal of the Pope and assumed obligations to pay tribute. And he must conquer these islands on his own. Jaime II entered into a marriage agreement with the daughter of the King of France ─ Blanca of Anjou.

But, despite all the diplomatic concessions, the war began again. The Sicilians proclaimed Fadrique their independent king, and a long war began with Aragon. Eventually, the House of Angevin leaned towards peace negotiations as the alliance with the Pope fell apart. In 1302, a peace treaty was concluded, according to which the crown of Sicily was recognized for Fadrike, and he married Eleanor (daughter of Charles of Anjou). At the same time, Fadrike promised that after his death the throne would not pass to his children, but would go to his father-in-law. But Aragon later still retained Sicily under his rule.

In addition to the difficulties in the Sicilian question, Jaime was also worried about other unresolved problems in Spain. In particular, these are disagreements with Castile, which appeared as a result of unrest in this kingdom. There was a struggle between Sancho IV and the Infantes of Cerda, who eventually fled to neighboring Aragon. Jaime II made an attempt to capture Murcia and as a result received recognition of the rights to its northern part. In addition, the Aragonese royal house was able to increase its territory as a result of marriage alliances. So, the daughter of Jaime II married the Duke of Austria. Subsequently, he became the German emperor, which improved relations with the Pope. Alfonso (another son of Jaime II) was married to the niece of the Count of Urgell. This gave him the right to inherit Urgel after the death of the Count. The wife of Jaime II (Blanca of Anjou) died and he married the daughter of the Cypriot king.

The grandson of Jaime II became the king of Mallorca, and the counties of Ampurias and Ribagors went to his son ─ Pedro. In 1323-1324 Alphonse conquered Sardinia. Jaime II received the right to do this from the Pope. But this company was not an easy walk. The Pisans put up stubborn resistance. At the end of his reign, Jaime II was able to partially curtail Zanti privileges. For example, the powers of the great Khustisya.

At that time there were no regular armies and after the conclusion of the peace treaty, many people remained without any kind of occupation. And since these people were armed, they posed a serious threat to the territories where they remained. Gangs of mercenaries were formed, who served any master for money. And simply, they devastated and plundered the territories in which they were located. Therefore, the owners of such lands have always tried to facilitate the exodus of armed people to other territories. Fadrique ─ the king of Sicily acted in the same vein when he liberated the territory of the island from the military, who remained there in 1302 after the conclusion of a peace treaty.

In 1303, the Turks greatly annoyed Andronicus (the Byzantine emperor) and Fadrika invited one of the commanders to go to the aid of the emperor of Constantinople. He accepted this offer and went to Constantinople with several thousand soldiers, who were deployed on several dozen ships. These ships were provided to Fadrika, if only the mercenaries went home. This army was led by Roger de Flor, to whom the Byzantine emperor granted the title of Grand Duke and gave him the daughter of the Tsar of Bulgaria as his wife. In the company that began against the Turks, the army of Roger de Flora showed itself well in battles. Since de Flor himself was well rewarded, adventurers from Aragon, Catalonia, the kingdom of Navarre reached out to him. Two more campaigns were made, led by Berenguer de Entensa and Berenguer de Rocafort. As a result of the help, the Byzantine emperor was freed from the Turks. For this, he awarded where Florus the title of Caesar, and Berenguer de Entensa granted the title of Grand Duke. In addition, in 1305 he gave them Anatolia with all the adjacent islands.

Such an award aroused the envy of the Greek nobility and Crown Prince Michael. They organized a conspiracy, as a result of which de Flor, his entourage and more than a thousand soldiers were killed. Similar killings also took place in Constantinople and Gallipoli. Fernando de Aones was killed, and about 3 thousand lightly armed soldiers remained from the army. The remaining troops, as a sign of revenge, attacked the Greeks, defeated them and ravaged the cities and suburbs. These events have been called the "Catalan revenge". All these mercenaries were also at enmity with each other. Together with them, Fernando, the son of the Sicilian king Fadrique, took part in these campaigns. Later, the Duke of Athens called the Aragonese troops for help, and then he himself began to plot against them in order to get rid of them. His plan was discovered, and then the Aragonese took control of Athens. They declared themselves vassals of Fadrika, and called Manfred (another son of the king of Sicily) to the kingdom. This Aragonese Athenian duchy existed in the period 1326-1387.

In 1327 Jaime II dies and Alfonso takes his place on the throne. At this time, there was still a war for Sardinia with the Pisans. Alfonso decided to divide the kingdom into two parts to give them to his sons. Fernando, his son from his second marriage, he planned to give the Marquisate of Tortosa. There he included many lands from the kingdom of Valencia. However, the Valencians did not agree with this, because they did not want to obey the prince of Castilian blood. He inherited it from his mother, the sister of the Castilian king. This is explained by the fact that Valencia is a border region with Castile and they often had conflicts. As a result, Alfonso had to give up his intentions. In 1335, Alfonso's son, Pedro IV, occupies the throne of Aragon. He was a very energetic, cunning and cruel man. At the same time, he carefully observed all the requirements of etiquette, for which he received the nickname Pedro the Ceremonial.

He turned out to be more perspicacious in the fight against the Aragonese and Catalan nobility. Pedro IV emerged victorious from this struggle with the nobility and eliminated the threat of unrest. And Castile, at the same time, was shaken by constant internal strife. At the beginning of his reign, Pedro IV was constantly at war with the Moors in the Iberian Peninsula, as well as with the island of Mallorca. Against the Moors, he acted in conjunction with the king of Castile. This protracted war ended with the victory at Salado.

The war with Mallorca ended differently. The king of the island, Jaime III, arrived in Barcelona in 1342 to take the fealty oath to Pedro IV. He accused him of a state conspiracy to kill the king of Aragon and arrested him. In addition, the wife of Jaime III was arrested. He then organized a military campaign against Mallorca and achieved victory without difficulty. Shortly thereafter, he went on a campaign against Roussillon and won. As a result, Mallorca and Roussillon were included in Aragon. On March 29, 1344, Peter the Fourth swore an oath to the Cortes never to seize these territories from the kingdom.

Relations between the king and the nobility were still tense and even hostile. Among the cities, some also supported the nobility. The situation was such that even a small occasion could lead to an open civil war. Pedro IV had no sons. Therefore, the throne was to be inherited by his brother Jaime. But Pedro deprived him of the throne and the right to inherit. At the same time, he forced the Infanta Constanza to take the oath, considering her the future heir to the throne. The Aragonese and Valencian nobility rebelled because of this, and Jaime returned to Aragon and organized the "Unia of the nobility." Pedro IV had to submit to their demands and satisfy the claims. In 1347, at the session of the Cortes, held in the city of Zaragoza, he restored the post of procurator. However, this success of the nobility was temporary, since Pedro IV was not one of those who surrender after the defeat.

Shortly thereafter, in November 1347, Jaime dies. Pedro IV is sent to Valencia with the aim of reprisal against the Union. But the rebellious people began to hold him in the position of a hostage. In 1348, he manages to escape and, at the head of the Catalan army, he crushes the supporters of the union in the city of Epile. After that, he comes with an army to Zaragoza and executes the rebels there. At the same time, he cancels the privileges of the union. According to eyewitnesses, he cut the parchment with the charter with a dagger. After the defeat of Unia in Aragon, Pedro IV went to Valencia and defeated the rebel army there. Revenge was not long in coming. The king ordered mass executions of Union supporters. Most of them were severely tortured. The bell, which was created by the nobility at the meeting of the Union, was melted, and this molten metal was poured into the throats of the rebels.

It is worth noting here that not only the nobility, but also the general population opposed the Aragonese king. There is no reliable information about this, but historians suggest that the Uniate program contained not only the demands of the nobles for independence, but also some proposals from the cities for limiting centralization and the absolutist demands of the king. After the abolition of the Privilege of the Union, absolutism and the centralization of power in Aragon increased significantly. But, despite the strengthening of the throne, the nobility retained many of its privileges. Only their excessive demands were eliminated and the Khustisya institution was revised. At the same time, the Catalan nobility in this struggle was on the side of the king. After solving internal problems in this way, Pedro IV returns to foreign policy.

First of all, Pedro IV had to solve problems on the island of Sardinia. Uprisings constantly arose there, which were provoked by the Republic of Genoa. To solve this problem, Aragon declares war on the Genoese, making an alliance with the Venetians. There were two victories in naval battles, but this did not help calm the situation in Sardinia. Therefore, in 1354, Pedro 4, at the head of a large army, went to Sardinia. There he captured all the key settlements, but some pockets of resistance still remained. At this point, he has to switch to the war with Pedro the Cruel.

In the wars with Castile, the success of the Aragonese kingdom was ensured by the victory of Enrique of Trastamar. After this victory, Enrique II married his son Juan to the Infanta of Aragon ─ Eleanor. As a result, the House of Trastamar received rights to the throne of Castile. Therefore, by right, in 1412, a representative of the House of Trastamara became king of Aragon. In 1381, a delegation of Athenian nobility and citizens who depended on Sicily came to Pedro IV with a proposal to admit Athens to Aragon. He accepted their offer and gave privileges, as with the Barcelona lands. Pedro IV also made attempts to take possession of the island of Sicily.

The last years of his life, Pedro IV unsuccessfully tried to subdue Tarragona and was engaged in family strife. He died in January 1387. By this time, his wife and children had left him. During the reigns of Martin I and Juan I, there were no achievements in foreign policy. The kingdom lost Neopatria and the Duchy of Athens. At this time, an uprising breaks out in Sicily, which is suppressed by force. And there were also short-term wars with de Foix and Armagnac, who claimed the throne of Aragon.

During this period, Sicily joins Aragon, which was prepared by Pedro IV. The king of Sicily at that time was Martin, who, after the death of Juan I in 1396, occupies the throne of the Aragonese kingdom. He died in 1410 without leaving any heirs. The issue of succession to the throne was resolved peacefully. There were many contenders for the crown of the Aragonese kingdom, who indicated kinship with Martin I. The main ones were Fernando de Antequera (uncle of Juan II ─ King of Castile), Jaime (Count of Urgell ─ son of Martin I's sister).

The rank and file of the people in Valencia and Catalonia spoke out for Jaime. And Fernando was supported by the Church of Aragon, part of the nobility and cities, Castile and the great Justis. Fernando was not popular among the people because he was a stranger. There was no king in Aragon from 1410 to 1412. All this time there were serious riots and clashes between noble houses. They used the situation to settle scores among themselves. At this time, Fernando de Antequera occupies part of Aragon in confirmation of claims to the throne.

At this time, Catalonia, Aragon, Valencia were governed by deputations, which were allocated by the Cortes. Therefore, the parliament in Catalonia initiated a discussion on the issue of the heir to the throne. Candidates for the throne appeared at the meeting to present the legal grounds behind their claims. In February 1412, the representatives of Aragon and Valencia, as well as the parliament of Barcelona, ​​reached an agreement to resolve the issue of succession to the throne. A commission was assembled, which did not include deputies from Sicily, Majorca and Sardinia. All these lands were part of Aragon. In total there were 9 members of the commission (three each from Aragon, Valencia and Catalonia). Four were lawyers, the other five were confessors.

The created commission discussed the issue in the city of Caspe for several days and on June 25, 1412 recognized the right of Fernando de Antequera to the royal throne. In Aragon, this decision was accepted with jubilation, and in Catalonia and Valencia there were many dissatisfied. After Fernando arrived in Aragon, the Count of Urgell (Jaime) raised a rebellion against him. On his side were many noble noble families who waged armed struggle during the absence of the king.

The Count of Urgell was supported by many ordinary people of Aragon, who were unhappy that Fernando surrounded himself with courtiers and troops from Castile. Jaime used mercenaries from England and Gascony for his own purposes. But Fernando managed to defeat the Count of Urgell in the battle of Balaguer. After that, he announced a manifesto, according to which he guaranteed forgiveness to those who surrendered their weapons and ceased resistance. Jaime surrendered and Fernando, who gave him life. Despite the sympathy among the Catalans, they reacted with indifference to Jaime's defeat.

After the issue of succession from the throne was resolved, it was time to turn attention to affairs outside the borders of the Aragonese kingdom. At this time, the struggle for the papal throne unfolded. There were three candidates running for it. To put an end to this turmoil, the German emperor demanded the abdication of all three popes. This was necessary so that the papal throne was free until the moment when the cathedral in Constance chooses the appropriate candidate. The candidates Gregory XII and John XXII followed this request, but Benedict XIII (in the world Don Pedro de Luna) refused. He was an Aragonese to whom Fernando owed much of the crown. So he began to support him.

However, later, under pressure from European monarchies and the emperor, he refused to patronize Benedict XIII. He did not renounce the papal throne and locked himself in the fortress of Peniscola. There he died in 1423. And Fernando died in 1416, leaving the throne to Alfonso V, his son. He earned the nickname of the Magnanimous and the Wise. At the same time, almost all of his reign was spent in wars.

All conflicts under Alfonso V near Aragon were outside the Iberian Peninsula. At first, the reason for the war was that the Neapolitan Queen Juana recognized King Alfonso as her heir. Instead, she hoped that Aragon would protect her from Louis of Anjou. Alfonso V accepted this offer and began to carry out the standard policy of his kingdom. This policy was to increase their territories at the expense of Italian lands. Therefore, the old war between France and the Argon flared up again. Alfonso fought against several Italian states and French troops. At first, the war went according to a favorable scenario and the Aragonese troops occupied Naples and Marseilles.

In 1434, Juan dies and the war breaks out with renewed vigor. Now Alphonse V's affairs went very badly. In 1435, in the naval battle of Ponza, his fleet was defeated, and he was taken prisoner. He received freedom only after 2 years and continued to fight with the enemy. Now his army took Naples again, and then the whole territory of the Neapolitan kingdom. After that, peace negotiations began. Alfonso declared Fernando heir to the Neapolitan throne. It was his natural son. In 1447, he inherited the Duchy of Milan, which strengthened the position of Aragon in Italy.

As for domestic political life, at the court of Alphonse V there were many poets and scientists widely known in European countries. At the end of his reign, Alfonso V was at war with Genoa and deserved military glory. The wars that he waged contributed to the increase in the territory of Aragon. But in general, all this had a bad effect on the management system, which was gradually upset. The brothers of the king and his wife began to manage state affairs. The Cortes urged the king to return to Aragon in order to eliminate the civil strife and self-will of the Infantes. But he was constantly in Italy and planned new conquest campaigns.

Alfonso V moves his residence to Naples from ancient Zaragoza. Thus, he tried to shift the center of the Aragonese kingdom to southern Italy. He dies in 1458 and after his death Naples is separated from Aragon. His younger brother, who was named Juan II the Unfaithful, ascends the throne in Zaragoza, and the illegitimate son of Alfonso 5 ─ Ferdinand I puts on the Neapolitan crown.

To strengthen order in the country, Isabella created something like a special police force, supported by each city or village. She wanted to cleanse the country of the crime that had overwhelmed her, which always grows in crisis conditions. And she quickly achieved this, but at what cost! For the slightest theft, a hand was cut off or executed. And the corpses remained hanging on the trees as a warning to others. The Queen never missed a chance to preside over trials here and there.

At this time, Queen Isabella said that four things pleased her the most: a warrior on a battlefield, a bishop in a cathedral, a beautiful lady in bed, and a thief on the gallows.

But she did all this alone, since Ferdinand was in Barcelona at that time, where his father, Juan II of Aragon, died on January 19, 1479, and it was necessary to take care of obtaining the throne due to him.

In the same year, 1479, Ferdinand became king and Isabella became queen of Aragon. From that moment both crowns united in a dual monarchy.

The historian Christian Duverger gives us the following explanation: “Ferdinand ... took the throne of Aragon. Two crowns joined. In addition to Aragon itself, with its center in Zaragoza, his Crown belonged to Catalonia - the former kingdom of Valencia, the Balearic Islands and Sicily. These territories, with a population of one million, joined Castile, which had four million inhabitants in 1479, not counting the inhabitants of Navarre and Granada. The new formation on the map of Europe, which became the Spain of Ferdinand and Isabella, was as yet little compared to France with its thirteen or fourteen million inhabitants. But Spain could compete with Northern Italy (5.5-6 million people), England (3 million) or the Netherlands (2.5-3 million). Germany of that time was demographically insignificant than Portugal (about one million inhabitants).

But although on paper the Spain of 1479, the fruit of a successful marriage, inheritance and victory in the civil war, came into existence, it was still more abstract than reality. Both Aragon and Castile retained their own internal structure, and within these "borders" each province sought to emphasize its own identity. Galicia, Asturias, the Basque Country, Leon, Estremadura, Andalusia, Cordoba, Jaen, Murcia and Toledo coexisted in Castile, which constituted a very unstable formation around Burgos, the capital of Old Castile. In Aragon, things were no better: the Catalans zealously cultivated their particularism, while in Valencia, which was distinguished by a strong concentration of Moriscos, a spirit of rebellion soared. To this we must also add the independent position and military strength of the nobles who settled in their estates, the economic power spiritual knightly orders, liberties granted to cities, university freedoms and impunity for highway robbers ... What else is left of royal power?

In M.V. Barro, in an essay on Torquemada, we read: “The two largest kingdoms of Spain were thus united into one political entity, although at first nominally.”

Nevertheless, both kingdoms continued to maintain autonomy for a certain time.

Historian Jean Sevilla writes about this: “Castile and Aragon retained their institutions of power, their money and their languages ​​(Castilian would then take over), and their crowns remained separate until the 18th century. The personal union of Isabella and Ferdinand, however, became the trigger for the formation of Spain. It is the Catholic kings - this name was bestowed on them by Pope Alexander VI - who will give the country a strengthening of the state, inner world, pacification of the nobility and a new social balance. These are decisive things without which the continuation of Spanish history could not have been written."

Thus, in itself, the marriage between Isabella and Ferdinand was not yet the birth of the Spanish nation-state. And yet, ever since then most of The Iberian Peninsula was united into a dual monarchy with two equal rulers (in 1474 Isabella and Ferdinand became queen and king of Castile, and from 1479 - queen and king of Aragon and Valencia, as well as, respectively, countess and count of Barcelona).

In this dual monarchy, Castile was the leader: it had many more inhabitants, Castile accounted for 65 percent of the joint territory, and the royal couple lived almost exclusively in Castile (a viceroy or regent was appointed to manage Aragonese affairs, and from 1494 also a special council at court).

In contact with

They both came from the Trastámara dynasty and were second cousins, both descended from Juan I of Castile; in this regard, they received permission to marry from Pope Sixtus IV.

They received the title of Catholic kings in 1496 from Pope Alexander VI, a native of Spain.

The wedding took place on October 19, 1469 in Valladolid; Isabella was 18 years old, Ferdinand was a year younger.

Thanks to their marriage, two crowns - Aragonese and Castile - united in one family.

Despite the fact that many historians, such as John Elliot, believe that the unification of Spain began with the marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella, there is no historical evidence that under their rule Spain already became a single monarchy.

Castile and Aragon remained independent state entities for a long time.

The court of Ferdinand and Isabella constantly moved to enjoy the support of individual feudal lords.

inheritance rights

Isabella inherited the throne of Castile from her half-brother Enrique IV under the Treaty of the Bulls of Guisando.

She became Queen of Castile in 1474. Her niece, Juana of Castile, attempted to seize the throne with the help of the Portuguese King Afonso V, starting the War of the Castilian Succession.

If the question of the legitimacy of Juana's claim to the throne was debatable, then Isabella was able to prove her rights.

Supporters of Isabella were able to find a way out thanks to the support of Ferdinand of Aragon, and the war officially ended in 1479 with the Treaty of Alcasovas.

Ferdinand became King of Aragon in 1479.

Thanks to this marriage, both kingdoms were united under the rule of one family, which marked the beginning of the creation of modern Spain, but they ruled in their own kingdoms, both kingdoms had their own laws and governments for several more centuries.

Domestic politics

The Catholic kings made every effort to strengthen the royal power in Spain. To achieve this goal, they created the Holy Hermandade.

These were detachments of the city militia, maintained at public expense and created to maintain order. In addition, with their help, the Catholic kings tried to control the nobility.

A judicial reform was carried out, a Royal Council was created and magistrates (judges) were appointed to govern cities. This strengthening of royal power was one of the most important steps towards the creation of one of the first strong nation-states in Europe.

Isabella also took various measures to reduce the influence of the Cortes Generals in Castile, but Ferdinand respected Catalan customs and was himself a Catalan, and did not conduct similar events in the Aragonese kingdom.

Even after his death and during the unification of the crowns under the rule of one monarch, the Aragonese, Catalan and Valencian Cortes (cat. corts) retained significant influence in their regions.

In the future, the reign of monarchs continued in the form of medieval contractualism, which had two characteristic manifestations.

First, the Catholic kings constantly moved around their country from city to city, which undoubtedly increased the loyalty of their subjects, and did not lead the country from a single administrative center.

The second manifestation was that each community or province could contact them directly, bypassing bureaucratic barriers.

Ferdinand and Isabella are known as the monarchs who unified Spain and opened a new chapter in its history.

The Catholic kings sought to achieve their goal - to complete and conquer the Muslim Emirate of Granada.

A series of military campaigns known as the Granada War began with an attack on Alhama de Granada. This attack was led by two Andalusian nobles, Rodrigo Ponce de León and Diego de Merlo.

The city fell under the onslaught of the Andalusian troops in 1482.

Assistance in the Granada War was provided by Pope Sixtus IV, who handed over the tithe and introduced a cross tax to finance military expenses.

Ten years after many bloody battles, the Granada War ended in 1492 when Emir Boabdil handed over the keys to the Castilian soldiers.

Expulsion of non-Christians and the Inquisition

Ferdinand and Isabella ordered everyone and Jews to be expelled from Spain.

Converting to Catholicism avoided exile, but between 1480 and 1492 hundreds of converts (Marranos and Moriscos) were accused of secretly observing the rites of their former religion (crypto-Judaism) and arrested, imprisoned, tortured and in many cases executed at the stake, both in Castile and in Aragon.

The Inquisition was founded in the 12th century. by Pope Lucius III to combat heresy in the south of modern France.

The Catholic kings decided to introduce the Inquisition in Castile and requested permission from the pope. On November 1, 1478, Pope Sixtus IV published the bull Exigit sinceræ devotionis, by which he established the Inquisition in the kingdom of Castile; subsequently, its powers extended to all of Spain.

The bull gave monarchs the exclusive right to appoint inquisitors.

During the reign of the Catholic kings and thereafter, the Inquisition actively persecuted people for such crimes as crypto-Judaism, heresy, Protestantism, blasphemy and polygamy.

The last trial of crypto-Judaism took place in 1818.

In 1492, Ferdinand and Isabella ordered the creation of closed quarters for the Gentiles, which later became known as the "ghetto".

This segregation, common at the time, also contributed to increased pressure on Jews and other non-Christians through higher taxes and social restrictions.

As a result, in 1492, under the Alhambra Decree, the Spanish Jews received four months from the kings in order to convert to Catholicism or leave Spain.

Ten thousand Jews were deported from Spain to Portugal, North Africa, Italy and the Ottoman Empire.

Later, in 1492, Ferdinand wrote a letter to the Jews who had left Castile and Aragon, inviting them to return to Spain if and only if they became Christians.

Discovery of new lands

The Catholic kings sent an expedition of Christopher Columbus, who received from them the title of Admiral of the Sea-Ocean, who opened the New World for Europeans.

The first expedition of Columbus, in which he reached the Indies, was marked by a landing on the Bahamas on October 12, 1492.

He landed on the island of Guanahani and named it San Salvador. Later, he continued sailing to Cuba (naming it Juana) and discovered the island of Haiti, giving it the name Hispaniola.

The second journey began in 1493, this time he discovered a number of islands in the Caribbean archipelago, including Puerto Rico. Now his main goal was the colonization of open lands, for which he took with him about 1,500 people.

Columbus returned from his last expedition in 1498, having discovered Trinidad and the coast of present-day Venezuela.

These discoveries and the subsequent colonization and conquest of the Americas in just a few decades brought enormous wealth to Spain, and made a significant contribution to the transformation of Spain into the most powerful European state.

Death

Isabella died in 1504. Ferdinand remarried Germaine de Foix; he died in 1516

Photo gallery

Expiration date: 1516

Helpful information

catholic kings
Spanish Los Reyes Católicos

Children and marriage alliances

Isabella sought to ensure Spain's long-term political stability by having all five of her children marry politically; political security was important for a country that played an increasingly important role in the European arena.

Her first child, daughter Isabella, married the Portuguese prince Afonso, forming an important bond between neighboring countries, which made it possible to count on peace and a future alliance between them.

Juana, Isabella's second daughter, married Philip, son of the Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I.

This successful alliance with the mighty Holy Roman Empire subsequently greatly expanded the territories controlled by the Spanish monarchs and ensured political security.

Isabella's first and only son, Juan, married Margaret of Austria, strengthening the dynastic link with the Habsburg dynasty, an alliance with which his parents considered very important.

The fourth child, Maria, married King Manuel I of Portugal, again creating a dynastic link with Portugal after the death of her elder sister Isabella, who was in her second marriage to Manuel.

The fifth child, Catherine, first married Arthur, Prince of Wales, and after his untimely death Henry VIII, King of England, becoming the mother of the future English queen Mary I.

Motto and emblem

The motto of the Catholic kings was "Tanto monta, monta tanto".

This motto was coined by Antonio de Nebrija and was either an allusion to the Gordian knot: Tanto monta, monta tanto, cortar como desatar (“The result is one, cut or untie”), and (or) spoke of the equality of monarchs: Tanto monta, monta tanto, Isabel como Fernando ("Everything is one, Isabella is the same as Ferdinand")

Their symbol was el yugo y las flechas, a yoke, possibly alluding to the Gordian knot, and a fascia of arrows. Y and F are the initials of Isabella (Ysabel in archaic spelling) and Ferdinand.