Editing History of Spain (section)

===Dynastic union of the Catholic Monarchs===
[[File:Ferdinand of Aragon, Isabella of Castile (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|Wedding portrait of the Catholic Monarchs]]
In the 15th century, the most important among all of the Christian kingdoms that made up the old [[Hispania]] were the [[Kingdom of Castile]], the [[Kingdom of Aragon]], and the [[Kingdom of Portugal]].  The rulers of the kingdoms of Castile and Aragon were allied with dynastic families in Portugal, France, and other neighboring kingdoms.

The death of King [[Henry IV of Castile]] in 1474 set off a struggle for power called the [[War of the Castilian Succession]] (1475–1479). Contenders for the throne of Castile were Henry's one-time heir [[Joanna la Beltraneja]], supported by Portugal and France, and Henry's half-sister Queen [[Isabella I of Castile]], supported by the Kingdom of Aragon and by the Castilian nobility.

Isabella retained the throne and ruled jointly with her husband, [[Ferdinand II of Aragon|King Ferdinand II]]. Isabella and Ferdinand had married in 1469.{{sfn|Thomas|2003|p=18}} Their marriage united both crowns and set the stage for the creation of the Kingdom of Spain, at the dawn of the modern era. That union, however, was a union in title only, as each region retained its own political and judicial structure. Pursuant to an agreement signed by Isabella and Ferdinand on January 15, 1474,{{sfn|Thomas|2003|p=21}} Isabella held more authority over the newly unified Spain than her husband, although their rule was shared.{{sfn|Thomas|2003|p=21}} Together, Isabella of [[Crown of Castile|Castile]] and Ferdinand of [[Crown of Aragon|Aragon]] were known as the "Catholic Monarchs" ({{langx|es|los Reyes Católicos|links=no}}), a title bestowed on them by [[Pope Alexander VI]].

==== Conclusion of the Reconquista and expulsions of Jews and Muslims ====
{{Further|Reconquista|Spanish Inquisition|Black legend (Spain)}}
The monarchs oversaw the final stages of the [[Reconquista]] of [[Iberian Peninsula|Iberian]] territory from the [[Moors]] with the conquest of [[Granada]], conquered the [[Canary Islands]], and expelled the Jews from Spain under the [[Alhambra Decree]].
Although until the 13th century religious minorities (Jews and Muslims) had enjoyed considerable tolerance in Castile and Aragon – the only Christian kingdoms where Jews were not restricted from any professional occupation – the situation of the Jews collapsed over the 14th century, reaching a climax in 1391 with large scale massacres in every major city except [[Ávila, Spain|Ávila]].

The Catholic Monarchs ordered the remaining Jews to convert or face expulsion from Spain in 1492, and extended the expulsion decrees to their territories on the Italian peninsula, including [[Sicily]] (1493), [[Naples]] (1542), and [[Milan]] (1597).<ref>{{cite book|title=Religious Refugees in the Early Modern World: An Alternative History of the Reformation|date=2015|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1107024564|page=108}}</ref>

Over the following decades, Muslims faced the same fate; and about 60 years after the Jews, they were also compelled to convert ("[[Moriscos]]") or be expelled. In the early 17th century, the converts were also expelled.

Isabella ensured long-term political stability in Spain by arranging strategic marriages for her five children. Her firstborn, [[Isabella, Princess of Asturias (1470–1498)|Isabella]], married [[Afonso, Prince of Portugal|Afonso of Portugal]], forging important ties between these two neighboring countries and hopefully ensuring future alliance, but the younger Isabella soon died before giving birth to an heir. [[Joanna of Castile|Juana]], Isabella's second daughter, married into the [[Habsburg dynasty]] when she wed [[Philip the Handsome|Philip the Fair]], the son of [[Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor|Maximilian I]], King of Bohemia (Austria) and likely heir to the crown of the [[Holy Roman Emperor]].

This ensured an alliance with the Habsburgs and the [[Holy Roman Empire]], a powerful, far-reaching territory that assured Spain's future political security. Isabella's only son, [[Juan, Prince of Asturias|Juan]], married [[Margaret of Austria, Duchess of Savoy|Margaret of Austria]], further strengthening ties with the Habsburg dynasty. Isabella's fourth child, [[Maria of Aragon, Queen of Portugal|Maria]], married [[Manuel I of Portugal]], strengthening the link forged by her older sister's marriage. Her fifth child, [[Catherine of Aragon|Catherine]], married King [[Henry VIII of England]] and was mother to Queen [[Mary I of England]].

==== Conquest of the Canary Islands, Columbian expeditions to the New World, and African expansion ====
{{See also|Conquest of the Canary Islands|Kingdom of the Canary Islands|Voyages of Christopher Columbus}}
[[File:Landing of Columbus (2) (cropped).jpg|thumb|Christopher Columbus leads expedition to the New World, 1492, sponsored by Spanish crown]]
[[File:Cisneros en la Toma de Oran Juan De Borgoña 1514 (cropped).jpeg|thumb|right|Taking of Oran by [[Francisco Jiménez de Cisneros]] in 1509.]]
The Castilian conquest of the [[Canary Islands]], inhabited by Guanche people, took place between 1402 (with the conquest of [[Lanzarote]]) and 1496 (with the conquest of [[Tenerife]]). Two periods can be distinguished in this process: the noble conquest, carried out by the nobility in exchange for a pact of vassalage, and the royal conquest, carried out directly by the Crown, during the reign of the Catholic Monarchs.<ref name="Mercer1980">{{cite book|first=John|last=Mercer|title=The Canary Islanders: Their Prehistory, Conquest, and Survival|url=https://archive.org/details/canaryislanderst00merc|url-access=registration|year=1980|publisher=Collings|isbn=978-0-86036-126-8|page=[https://archive.org/details/canaryislanderst00merc/page/214 214]}}</ref> By 1520, European military technology combined with the devastating epidemics such as bubonic plague and pneumonia brought by the Castilians and enslavement and deportation of natives led to the extinction of the Guanches.
Isabella and [[Ferdinand VII of Spain|Ferdinand]] authorized the 1492 expedition of [[Christopher Columbus]], who became the first known European to reach the [[New World]] since [[Leif Ericson]]. This and subsequent expeditions led to an influx of wealth into Spain, supplementing income from within Castile for the state that was a dominant power in Europe for the next two centuries.

Spain established colonies in North Africa that ranged from the Atlantic Moroccan coast to [[Tripoli, Libya|Tripoli]] in Libya. [[Melilla]] was occupied in 1497, [[Oran]] in 1509, [[Larache]] in 1610, and [[Ceuta]] was annexed from the Portuguese in 1668. Today, both Ceuta and Melilla still remain under Spanish control, together with smaller islets known as the ''[[presidio]]s menores'' ([[Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera]], [[Alhucemas Islands|las Islas de Alhucemas]], [[Chafarinas Islands|las Islas de Chafarinas]]).