Ferdinand and Isabella

by Melveena McKendrick

King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain are most often remembered for the epochal voyage of Christopher Columbus. But the historic landfall of October 1492 was only a secondary event of the year. The preceding January, they had accepted the surrender of Muslim Granada, ending centuries of Islamic rule in their peninsula. And later that year, they had ordered the expulsion or forced baptism of Spain’s Jewish minority, a cruel crusade undertaken in an excess of zeal for their Catholic faith. Europe, in the century of Ferdinand and Isabella, was also awakening to the glories of a new age, the Renaissance, and the Spain of the “Catholic Kings” - as Ferdinand and Isabella came to be known - was not untouched by this brilliant revival of learning. Here, from the noted historian Melveena McKendrick, is their remarkable story.

Genres: History, Biography, Spain

136 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 26, 2015

Reviews

[Malcolm Hebron · Rating 4 out of 5]

At the time of writing, some Oxford students are campaigning for the removal of the statue of Cecil Rhodes from Oriel College, on the grounds that he espoused a racist vision incompatible with decent moral values. That provokes several thoughts, one of which is that every year in Spain processions are held with giant statues of Ferdinand and Isabella, 'Los Reyes Católicos', who were responsible for the forced conversion and / or expulsion of the Moorish and Jewish populations of Spain, and the establishment of the Spanish Inquisition with its many barbarities. Hispanist scholar Malveena McKendrick provides a valuable primer into this royal couple, who come across as at once vividly human and unreachably distant, belonging - Isabella in particular - to a world of cruelty and religious zeal nowadays associated with terrorist groups like Daesh. Chapters cover the remarkable secret wedding, the sponsorship of Columbus, and the conquest of Granada, with helpful overviews of the state of Christendom, the remarkable pre-1492 pluralistic life of Spain. McKendrick deals sensitively with the question of the post-1492 religious policies, frankly detailing their terrible effects (the pight of exiled Jews is vividly described in a few paragraphs), while helping us to see them in the context of their time.The book end with a touching chapter on the collapse of Ferdinand and Isabella's dynastic hopes through the disastrous marriages of their children. Throughout, the wider picture is enlivened by local detail: there are memorable sketches of Columbus, Cisneros, courtly life and love, Juana la Loca and many other topics - remarkable, for such a short space. Complicated narratives, from the relations between the kingdoms and Portugal around the time of the marriage in 1469, to the military campaigns leading to the Conquest of Granada, are delivered clearly. The book has been beautifully transferred to digital text by the publisher, and makes an excellent starting point on the topic, which could be followed by reading J H Elliot, Henry Kamen et al. I'd also recommend the Spanish TV series 'Isabella' which, although it over-glamourises the costumes and interiors, follows political events in careful detail. Oh, and the movie 'Juana la Loca' is well worth watching, too. I'd be delighted to see McKendrick's Concise History of Spain given the same digital treatment.

[Judy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good quick overview of the Catholic Monarchs and their place in Spanish and European history. It seems a bit of an apologetic for such tough subjects as the Inquisition and the expulsion of the Jews and Moors, but it does give some context at least. There´s no doubt that Isabella and Ferdinand did something no one else had been able to do in uniting their two kingdoms and starting the creation of the present day Spain, and that their reformation of the Catholic Church kept Spain from the tumult that the Reformation created in much of the rest of Europe during that time period. All in all, worth reading for the context.

[Kathy Lundquist · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short but informative

[Barbara Leonard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short, Like icing on a cake but no cake. No real depth to the issues. But it was a good start. Sparked my interest to read more.

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brain Food:
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Must be ___ old to read:
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[Mohammad Al-ubaydli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very enjoyable

I hadn't known that these two had done so much. The book is a little too admiring of Isabella and her intentions but otherwise a good read.

[Stanley Hirsch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brief history

This book does not purport to be a complete and detailed history of Ferdinand and Isabella. If one is interested in greater factual information, another book might be better. However, if one wants a quick overview of the times of Ferdinand and Isabella, it does well.