queen+isabella

=Queen Isabella I of Spain (1451-1504) = =By Elly = = = = =

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Queen Isabella was born in Madrigal de la Atlas Torres (in north western Spain), April 22, 1451. She was named after her mother (Isabella of Aviz). When she was a child she loved needle work and going on long horse rides with her brothers. She was second in line for the throne with her older brother in front of her. When her brother (king Henry IV) got the throne, Isabella and her mother moved away from Madrigal de la Atlas to a rundown Village nearby, where she went to school at a convent with nuns. Henry tried to get Isabella to marry his friend (who Isabella disliked greatly). But on the way to their wedding he died. Isabella was happy to be out of the marriage because she loved her second cousin Ferdinand. When King Henry died a few years later Isabella claimed the thrown. After she became queen she married Ferdinand, when she was still a young girl, and they ruled Castile and Aragon (his family's kingdom) together, uniting the two parts of Spain. Ferdinand and Isabella had 10 children but only 5 survived after infancy (1 boy and 4 girls). ======

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Soon after Ferdinand and Isabella were in power they tried to make everyone in their Kingdom Catholic. So Jews and Muslims practiced their religion in secret. When Isabella and Ferdinand found out about their secret religion they said that if the Jews and Muslims didn't convert they would be kicked out of Spain. After that many Jews fled. When the pope found out about their efforts Isabella and Ferdinand were given new titles "The Catholic" and "Athletes of Christ". ======

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Later on Isabella was asked by Christopher Columbus to sponser a Voyage. Before asking Isabella he went to King Henry VIII of England and John II of Portugal for a sponsor. After three times of saying no to him (even though Ferdinand didn't agree until later), she finally agreed because Columbus was always talking about how wealthy Spain would become. Columbus needed $14,000 to make his voyage possible. Columbus' Idea was to sail west from Europe to Asia to get spices and gold because crossing through the middle east was too dangerous at the time (People in Europe in the Renassance didn't know about America yet). ======

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Columbus and Isabella were one of the first people to believe the idea that the world was not flat but round. They put America on the European maps. If you compare a map that dates from before Columbus' journey and maps from after you see the American continant is on the map, even though it is only a sliver, after the voyage. Columbus' voyage was one of the things that made Isabella so wealthy and historical. She claimed the east coast of America as part of Spain. ======

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Although she and Ferdinand were seen as equals by their subjects she thought of herself as a better leader than him. She was also thought as a powerful military leader too because she helped care for the injured soldiers and she even fought alongside them with Ferdinand. She enjoyed being in armor just as much as in fancy gowns and jewelry. ======

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Queen Isabella died at age 53. She was a role model for many leaders (both men and Women) because she was such a good leader. She accumulated wealth and was very popular with her subjects. She also wanted to be the one who was recorded in history for discovering America. Even though we celebrate columbus discovering America (Columbus day) we still remember Queen Isabella I and how she is known for aiding Columbus and being forward thinking enough to believe that the world was round and he could sail West to Asia, when most in her day did not. Her daughter (Cathrine of Aragon) later grew up to be King Henry VIII's first wife and she was Elizabeth I step grandmother. Another one of her great accomplishments to remember was that she united Spain when she married Ferdinand. ======

====**Right : King Ferdinand (Isabella's husband) **====

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Bibliography
[|http://www.ucalgary.ca/applied_history/tutor/eurvoya/isabella.html](picture)

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[|[[http://womenshistory.about.com/cs/medrenqueens/p/p_isabella_i.html|http://womenshistory.about.com/cs/medrenqueens/p/p_isabella] ======

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[] [] [] Outrageous Women in the Renaissance Lives of Extraordinary Women By: Kathleen Krull