Catholic Monarchs
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The Catholic Monarchs were Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon, two rulers whose marriage in 1469 united their kingdoms in late 15th-century Spain. Their reign is historically significant because it marked the beginning of a unified Spanish state and included major events like the completion of the Reconquista and the sponsorship of Columbus's voyage to the Americas.
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Wedding portrait of Queen Isabella I of Castile (right) and King Ferdinand II of Aragon (left), married in 1469
The Catholic Monarchs were Queen Isabella I of Castile (r. 1474–1504) and King Ferdinand II of Aragon (r. 1479–1516), whose marriage and joint rule marked the de facto unification of Spain. They were both from the House of Trastámara and were second cousins, as they were both descended from John I of Castile. To remove the obstacle that this consanguinity would otherwise have posed to their marriage under canon law, they were given a papal dispensation by Sixtus IV. They married on October 19, 1469, in the city of Valladolid; Isabella was 18 years old and Ferdinand a year younger. Most scholars generally accept that the unification of Spain can essentially be traced back to the marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella. Their reign was called by W.H. Prescott "the most glorious epoch in the annals of Spain."