Ferdinand V

(1452–1516)

   Monarch.

   Ferdinand was born in Sos, Aragon, the son of King John II. In 1469, he was married to his cousin isabella, who was to become Queen of Castile. Together Ferdinand and Isabella united the Kingdom of Spain. In 1492 Granada was annexed; in 1504 Naples became a Spanish possession and in 1515 Navarre was added to their territories. In addition the Pope was persuaded to divide the lands of the newly discovered Americas between Spain and Portugal. Ferdinand is often given the title ‘the Catholic’ because he expelled the Muslims from Granada, evicted the Jewish community from Spain and established the Spanish Inquisition. However, despite his zeal for the Church, in his personal life he was neither kind, nor modest, nor chaste.

   F. Fernandaz-Armesto, Ferdinand and Isabella (1975);

   J. Vicens Vives, Historia Critica de la Vida y Reinado de Ferdinando II de Aragon (1962) [no English translation available].