Profession: Queen of Castile
Biography: Isabella's marriage to Ferdinand II of Aragon created the partnership of the 'Catholic Monarchs', and their union helped lead directly to the eventual unification of Spain. In office she reorganized the government, lowered considerably the crime rate and had the Kingdom relieved of its debt.
Together with her husband they sponsored Christopher Columbus' 1492 voyage where he discovered the New World and completed the Reconquista by annexing Granada, ending centuries of Muslim rule over areas in the Iberian peninsula. She also formed the Spanish Inquisition with her husband, initially to find and punish heretics among the Muslims and Jews who had converted to Catholicism and to maintain orthodox Catholicism within their empires.
Their grandson, King Charles V, would eventually reunify Spain based on their marriage and claims.
Born: April 22, 1451
Birthplace: Madrigal de las Altas Torres, Kingdom of Castile
Star Sign: Taurus
Died: November 26, 1504 (aged 53)
Articles and Photos
Historical Events
- 1474-12-13 Isabella I crowns herself Queen of Castile and León
- 1486-05-01 Christopher Columbus proposes his plan to search for a western route to India in an audience with Spanish monarch, Isabella I. Full support is granted 3 years later, in 1489
- 1492-03-31 Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon issue the Alhambra Decree which expels Jews from their kingdoms
- 1492-04-30 Christopher Columbus is given royal commission by Spanish monarchs Isabella I and Ferdinand II to equip his fleet to the New World
- 1493-04-15 -20/4] Columbus meets with the Spanish monarchs Isabella I and Ferdinand II in Barcelona
- 1501-09-03 Nicolás de Ovando y Cáceres appointed Governor of the Indies by Spanish Queen Isabella I
- 1504-10-12 Queen Isabella I of Spain signs her last will and testament, instructing her descendants to treat indigenous Americans well and fairly
Agrippina the Younger
Catherine of Aragon
Margrethe II
Maria II
Mary II
Queen Juliana