Towards Unification: Politics and Religion in Early Modern Iberia PDF

Towards Unification: Politics and Religion in Early Modern Iberia Hispanic Civilization 1 HISP-225 Important Notice: I remind everyone of their responsibility in ensuring that videos and associated materials of this course including this Powerpoint presentation are NOT reproduced or placed in the p...

Towards Unification: Politics and Religion in Early Modern Iberia Hispanic Civilization 1 HISP-225 Important Notice: I remind everyone of their responsibility in ensuring that videos and associated materials of this course including this Powerpoint presentation are NOT reproduced or placed in the public domain. This means that each of you can use it for your educational (and research) purposes, but you cannot allow others to use it, by putting it up on the Internet or by giving it or selling it to others who may also copy it and make it available. Please refer to McGill’s Guidelines for Instructors and Students on Remote Teaching and Learning for further information. Thank you very much for your help with this. Prof. José R. Jouve Martín The Iberian Peninsula at the end of the 14th Century and the beginning of the 15th Century Towards Unification: A Brief Overview of this Lecture https://youtu.be/g88lO1SLYJ0?si=Ji81Kto7lUdfZD2 The Rise of the House of Trastamara in Castille (14th-16th Century) Blood, Blood Everywhere: The Origins of the Trastámara Dynasty The Trastámara dynasty was founded by Henry II (1369–1379) after his victory over his half-brother, Peter I, in the Castilian Civil War. Both were sons of King Alphonse XI of Castile. Peter I was the legitimate son, born to Maria of Portugal, Alphonse’s queen, while Henry II was the son of the king’s mistress, the noblewoman Eleanor of Guzmán. Henry and his siblings were known as the “Trastámaras”, a name derived from the name their family possessions in medieval Galicia. Initially, Peter I, known for his ruthless methods, had the upper hand. He earned the nickname "Peter the Cruel" after executing two of Henry’s siblings and other supporters of the Trastámara cause. However, Henry eventually triumphed, establishing the Trastámara dynasty's rule. A Game of Thrones: Alliance with Aragon or Portugal? By the early 15th century, Castile had emerged as the most powerful kingdom on the Iberian Peninsula. The balance of power hinged on whether it would unite with Portugal or Aragon, which led to internal conflict and civil war within Castile. The struggle revolved around two main factions:  Pro-Aragonese Party: Supported by nobles who favored an alliance with Aragon, especially during the reign of John II (1406–1454). Aragon’s extensive Mediterranean possessions and thriving trade routes made this option attractive.  Pro-Portuguese Party: Advocated for closer ties with Portugal, emphasizing Portugal's historical connection to León and its strategic Atlantic networks. Power and Betrayal: The Role of Queen Isabella (1474–1504) The Unsuspected Queen: Isabella I forced her brother, Henry IV, and the pro- Portuguese party to recognize her as the rightful Queen of Castille with the help of Ferdinand of Aragon. A New Order: The treaty of Alcaçovas was signed in 1479 which recognized Isabella and Ferdinand as sovereigns of Castile- In exchange, Castile granted Portugal hegemony in the Atlantic, with the exception of the Canary Islands (more  https://youtu.be/zXT9O1ySGwY? Becoming a Queen: The Rise of Isabella of Castille and Leon si=Gdlg--RmRX_jQHsp  Ferdinand’s Early Life (1452–1469): Born in 1452, in Sos del Rey Católico, to John II of Aragon and the noblewoman Juana Enríquez. The Crown of Aragon in the 15th Century Fragmented Monarchy: Aragon was a composite monarchy, where the different The Rise of realms (Aragon, Catalonia, Valencia, and Sicily) maintained separate institutions and Ferdinand of laws, limiting royal power. Aragon: Economic Decline: The 15th century saw economic difficulties, especially in Machiavelli’s Catalonia, due to civil wars and internal strife, including the Catalan Civil War Ideal Prince (1462–1472). Political Unrest: John II’s reign was marked by conflicts with the Catalan Generalitat and the nobility, who resisted royal centralization. Ferdinand’s early life was shaped by this political turbulence. Strategic Importance: The Crown of Aragon had key Mediterranean holdings, including Sicily and Naples, making it a vital player in Italian and Mediterranean politics. Path to the Marriage with Isabella Negotiations for Power: By the mid-1460s, Ferdinand’s future was tied to the broader ambitions of his father, John II, to stabilize Aragon’s position. Family matters: The complex interwoven nature of Spanish dynastic politics meant that Ferdinand and Isabella were second cousins; they shared a great-grandfather in King John I of Castile (1358 -1390). They forged the Papal authorization to get married. A Secret Marriage: In 1469, Ferdinand married Isabella of Castile, a union that would eventually lead to the unification of the crowns of Castile and Aragon. However, at the time, both kingdoms remained distinct with separate laws and customs. Nicolo Machiavelli’s ”Ideal” Prince: Machiavelli's The Prince is a political treatise  Both Isabella and “Tanto monta, Monta Tanto”: Ferdinand were Power and Marriage https://youtu.be/Tuna-38dVRw? proud monarchs, equally si=3VROp57LRYFA35Ak determined not to relinquish their authority. This resolve gave rise to their shared motto, Tanto monta, monta tanto ("equal in power and importance"). However, this does not imply that their marriage was without challenges or that they did not strive to assert dominance over one another. Watch the video for a dramatization of their encounter The Catholic Kings: Main Policies Internal policy: Two Kingdoms, Two Monarchs, One Marriage Equal in Power and Importance (“Tanto monta, monta tanto”): Ferdinand and Isabella ruled as co-sovereigns, with each monarch holding equal authority and value in their respective realms. Separate Kingdoms, Separate Governments: The Crowns of Aragon and Castile remained distinct political entities, governed by their own laws and institutions. Despite their union through marriage, the kingdoms retained autonomy and did not merge politically. Expanding Influence Beyond the Iberian Peninsula: Strategic Matrimonial Alliances Queen Isabella of Casti Through the marriages of their children, Ferdinand and Isabella forged powerful alliances with leading European dynasties, especially the House of Burgundy (possessions in France and the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxemburg); the House of Habsburg (possessions in Austria, Hungary and Germany); Portugal and England, notably through the marriage of their daughter, Catherine of Aragon, to Henry VIII of England. Strengthening the Monarchy In Castile: The Catholic Monarchs consolidated royal authority over the high nobility, diminishing aristocratic power to strengthen the central monarchy. In Aragon: Ferdinand bolstered the influence of the Crown across the Mediterranean, securing Aragon's dominance in the region. Economic and Political Stabilization King Ferdinand of Arago The Catholic Kings: The Early Modern State and Religious Orthodoxy The title "Catholic Kings" ("Reyes Católicos") was given to Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon by Pope Alexander VI in 1494 as a recognition of their significant contributions to consolidating Catholicism in Spain and expanding its influence globally. Several key actions contributed to their receiving this title: 1. Completion of the Reconquista: In 1492, Ferdinand and Isabella successfully completed the reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula from Muslim rule by capturing Granada, the last Muslim stronghold, re-establishing Christianity as the dominant religion across Spain. 2. Support of the Inquisition: The Catholic Monarchs instituted the Spanish Inquisition in 1478, a state-run religious institution that sought to maintain Catholic orthodoxy by persecuting heretics, including converted Jews (conversos) and Muslims (moriscos) suspected of secretly practicing their original faiths. 3. Expulsion of Jews In 1492, Ferdinand and Isabella issued the Alhambra Decree, which ordered the expulsion of all practicing Jews from Spain, Key: The imposition of religious unless they converted to Christianity. Similar measures were later extended to the Muslim population. uniformity by the Catholic Kings 4. Patronage of Christopher Columbus: The Catholic Monarchs sponsored was a central element in the Christopher Columbus's voyage in 1492, leading to the European discovery transformation of the Iberian of the Americas, which was framed as part of spreading the Christian faith Peninsula into an early modern to new lands. state, viewed as essential for 5. Humanism and Reform The Catholic Kings also supported those who ensuring social and political called for the internal reform of the Catholic Church (but not in favor of Muslims and Jews) – Importance of Eramus of Rotterdam and Erasmism in stability. Religion was Spain – Creation of institutions such as the Universidad de Alcalá – subservient to politics and the Beginning of Spanish Humanist movement that would strongly influence the development of the Spanish Golden Age Catholic Church in Spain lost its Spain after 1492: Social Transformations Conversos: The expulsion of the Spanish Jews in 1492 resulted in a substantial population of "conversos" (crypto-Jews), many of whom continued to play important roles in state administration, the economies of Castile and Aragon, and the cultural life of the kingdom. While some secretly maintained Jewish practices, others blended elements of Judaism with their new Catholic faith. Moriscos: The fall of the Kingdom of Granada marked the end of Al-Andalus, but a significant Muslim population remained in the Iberian Peninsula, forced to convert and become known as "moriscos." They had a profound impact on the economy and culture of regions such as Valencia, Granada, and Murcia. As we will discuss in a future class, Select: Enable Close Caption – Settings- Autotranslate - English they were expelled Gypsies (Roma):from Spain Arriving in in the the early century, the Romani people or Gypsies, originally from India, mid-15th 17th century. became strongly associated with Spanish and particularly Andalusian culture. They entered Spain from both Northern Europe and North Africa. Despite facing early discrimination, they established themselves across the Iberian Peninsula and even in colonial Spanish America, often adopting a semi-nomadic lifestyle. A Composite Monarchy: The union of Castile and Aragon—and the subsequent absorption of both Navarre and Portugal in the 16th century—did not eliminate regional distinctions. Each kingdom within the Spanish Crown retained its own laws, institutions, languages, and customs, making Spain a "composite monarchy" (a rich tapestry of distinct kingdoms) rather than a unified, homogenous state. Blood Purity Laws: To ensure that only those of "Old Christian" ancestry could hold key positions in the economy and administration, "blood purity" laws were enacted as early as 1449. While racially discriminatory, Student Journal Topics  Late Medieval I III Conceptions of Death. Jorge Manrique’s Verses on the Death of his Father The Black Death (mid-14th Century) and the devastations of the Hundred Years war (1337- 1453) had a profound social and cultural impact on Europe, as illustratred by the medieval dance of death (danse macabre). Spain was not exception. Modern and Medieval attitudes towards death coexisted in the 15th Century, as illustrated by the work of Jorge Manrique (1440- 1479) whose Verses on the death of his father – written around 1476 and first printed in 1501- are still read today. XVI How is the concept of “time” presented Read the three poems in this slide: in the first poem? How is “life” represented in the second one? How is “death” addressed in the third? What do you ”modern” about these The Catholic Kings. The Conquest of Granada. The so-called Conquest of Granada was a series of military campaigns between 1482 and 1491, during the reign of the Catholic Monarchs Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon, against the Nasrid dynasty's Emirate of Granada. It ended with the defeat of Granada and its annexation by Castile, ending all Islamic rule on the Iberian peninsula. Queen Isabella of Castile was one of the most powerful women of her time in a male-dominated world. How was her relationship with King Ferdinand? Was he less powerful than her? Look closely to the painting below and then watch the video. How is the Conquest of Granada and the Catholic Monarchs represented in these two formats? Why did the Catholic Monarchs consider the Conquest of Granada as their “crowning” achievement? The Capitulation of Granada by F. Pradilla (1882): Muhammad XII Granada conquered by the Catholic Monarchs as depicted in Isabel’, a Spanish TV (Boabdil) surrenders to Ferdinand and Isabella. series about the life of Queen Isabella of Castile, (Season 2, Episode 13) Jews, “Conversos”, Heretics, and Autos de Fe An auto-de-fe ('act of faith') was the ritual of public penance carried out between the 15th and 19th centuries of condemned heretics and apostates imposed by the Spanish, Portuguese, or Mexican Inquisition as punishment and enforced by civil authorities. Its most extreme form was death by burning. The number of people killed by the Inquisition is still today hotly disputed (click to read more about it), but Saint Dominic anachronistically there is no doubt that the “Auto de fe” was designed as an instrument both of social conformity and State presiding over an auto-da-fé, terror. by Pedro Berruguete (around 1495) What was a “converso”? Why were the ”conversos” closely watched by the Inquisition? Look at the map below. What does it 1683 tell painting us about the situation of the European by Francisco Rizi depicting the auto-da-fé held Jewry at this time? in Plaza Mayor, Madrid in 1680. Expulsions of Jews 12th-17th Centuries Look at the paintings. Is there anything that you would like to point out? and Printed in Alcalá de Henares, Spain, between 1514 and 1517, the Complutensian Renaissance Polyglot Bible was the passionate project of Cardinal Francisco Jiménez de Cisneros, the most powerful clergyman in Spain. Cisneros spared no expense to complete it; the cost Humanism. of acquiring manuscripts, supporting the scholars, and financing the printing totaled an The estimated 50,000 gold ducats. Although 600 copies were printed in 1517, the papacy did not allow their distribution until 1520. Today around 150 complete copies survive. Complutesian Polyglot Bible What is the religious, political, scholarly value of having the Bible in its original sources? How does this project relate with the (much more polemical) project of having the Bible translated to the vernacular (French, German, English, Spanish, etc)? Why Cisneros would approve of the first project but thoroughly reject the second?