Spain and Portugal

Medieval Spain was divided between Christian and Muslim kingdoms. After several wars, two monarchs ended Muslim rule in Spain. They were Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile.

In 1469, Ferdinand and Isabella were married, uniting Spain’s two strongest Christian kingdoms. By 1492, their forces had captured Granada, the last Muslim outpost in Spain. The new rulers were intolerant of other religions and set up the Spanish Inquisition to seek out heretics- both Christians who held different beliefs from the Roman Catholic Church and people of other faiths, such as Jews.

In the 16^th century, Spain became Europe’s strongest nation. Its army fought wars in Europe (against the Dutch, for example) and its navy controlled the profitable trade in gold and silver from Spain’s new empire in the Americas.

Spanish power reached its peak during the reign of Charles I (1516-56). He became Holy Roman Emperor in 1519, which gave him control of lands in what is now Germany, Austria and the Netherlands, as well as parts of France and Italy.

On his death, his lands were divided between his son Philip II (who ruled Spain, the Netherlands and Spanish colonies in the Americas) and his brother Ferdinand (who became Holy Roman Emperor).

By 1580, the Spanish empire included Portugal. Portugal had led the way in European exploration of the oceans. Its sailors had opened up new trade routes to Asia. The Portuguese already controlled an overseas empire that included large stretches of coastline in East and West Africa, Brazil and India, as well as trading posts such as Goa in India, Macao in China and many islands in Southeast Asia.

HENRY THE NAVIGATOR

Prince Henry of Portugal (1394-1460) had a passion to explore. He bought together seamen, shipbuilders and mapmakers to plan voyages to the Madeira islands and south along the coast of Africa. These voyages used carracks (large, three-masted ships that used square and lateen sails) and caravels. Caravels were light sailing ships that were developed in the 15the century. They were fast for the period and are thought to have been used on many voyages of discovery, including Columbus’s trip to the Americas.