Isabella I of Castille (1474 – 1504)
Isabella of Castille was a fighter from the start. She wrestled rule of Castile from her half-brother, King Henry IV’s heirs in in 1479. Marriage to Ferdinand of Aragon created a physically and culturally united Spain. Isabella and Ferdinand set up reforms that would reduce the power of the nobility and increase the power of monarchs. Her religious reforms included widespread conversion.
In a controversial move, she oversaw the 1480 Spanish Inquisition. Her goal was to find Jewish and Muslim people who claimed they converted to Christianity but were secretly still practicing their original faith. She also enacted the Alhambra Decree in 1492, where Jewish citizens were given the choice to convert to Christianity or leave Spain.
