King+Ferdinand+II

=King Ferdinand II=

King Ferdinand II of Spain, also known as Ferdinand the Catholic, was an important king in Spanish history. He was born on March 10, 1452 in Aragon as part of Aragon's royal family. In his youth, his father (John II of Aragon) gave him the title King of Sicily, and when John II died, Ferdinand became king of Aragon as well.

Isabella I was Queen of Castille and Leon. Isabella is often overlooked as a leader thanks to the political clout and power displayed by here husband, but Isabella was a legitimate leader and made many great reforms in the kingdom of Castile without Ferdinand's assistance. During her reign, Isabella reorganized the government, reduced the crime rate to record lows, and brought Castile out of the tremendous debt her brother (Henry IV or Castile) left it in.

When Ferdinand married Isabella, he was given the title King of Castile and Leon, although it was in name only - she had it written into the marriage contract that she would remain the sole ruler of Castile. He and Isabella combined their kingdoms and began to join them into one unified Spain, and they were given the titles King and Queen of Spain.

With all of Spain under their control except the Moorish kingdom of Granada, the royal couple set out to push the Moors out of Spain, which they were finally able to accomplish in 1492. That was a big year for Ferdinand and Isabella, the pushed the Moors out of Granada, began the Inquisition, and sent Christopher Columbus out to discover new territory and trade routes for their emerging empire. In 1494, they signed the Treaty of Tordesillas, agreeing with Portugal to divide the world evenly with them while both countries continued to explore and expand. They also began their attempt to rule over Italy too, resulting in the Italian Wars.

After Isabella's death, her kingdom went to their daughter, Joanna the Mad and her husband Phillip I. Since Joanna was mentally unstable, Ferdinand continued to rule in her place, finally leaving his kingdom to his grandson Charles V when he died.

King Ferdinand's legacy was also carried on by his daughter, Katherine. She married the infamous King of England, Henry the VIII. It was that marriage that caused a huge divide in the Christian religion. Henry VIII wanted a male heir and Katherine was unable to do so. So he wanted to divorce his wife, but in the Catholic religion this was not accepted. He then decided to create his own church, The Church of England, which marked the beginning of the Protestant religion.