Spain’s Golden Age and the Reign of Philip II

In this essay, the author

• Explains that a 'golden age' can be interpreted in many ways, such as the peak of activity, or the period of great peace, prosperity, and happiness.
• Explains that the kingdom of aragon had its own cortes, which limited ferdinand’s power as he was subject to the fueros.
• Explains that the town councils became too large and the ‘corregidors’ were disliked and were withdrawn in some cities. the royal council did not increase much in ferdinand and isabella’s reign, as they dealt with matters in person and didn’t delegate to officials

• Explains that a 'golden age' can be interpreted in many ways, such as the peak of activity, or the period of great peace, prosperity, and happiness.
• Explains that the kingdom of aragon had its own cortes, which limited ferdinand’s power as he was subject to the fueros.
• Explains that the town councils became too large and the ‘corregidors’ were disliked and were withdrawn in some cities. the royal council did not increase much in ferdinand and isabella’s reign, as they dealt with matters in person and didn’t delegate to officials
• Explains that ferdinand and isabella travelled most of their life, so the administration was wherever they were. charles i of spain had many problems even before he arrived in spain.
• Explains that charles made reforms in the administration of spain; a new council of state was set-up in 1522, and others soon followed, giving the impression of centralisation.
• Explains that charles was the source of all power, and the councils only offered advice to him. the administration did not change much, as efficiency was only improved because of financial needs. philip ii had many advisors, but he made the final decisions.
• Explains that philip built a castle in madrid, where he lived, and this meant that the administration was stationary, not like with his father and ferdinand and isabella.
• Opines that the administration of spain did not contribute to any of the monarch’s reigns being a ‘golden age’.
• Opines that foreign policy may contribute to a monarch's reign being 'golden age' as increase in land would mean more prestige and more power.
• Describes how the monarchs gained a huge overseas empire through expeditions, made by christopher columbus, sponsored by isabella.
• Explains that america had ports along the north african coast, sicily, sardinia, and southern italy. ferdinand and isabella used their children for their foreign policy.
• Explains that charles i had a huge empire, inherited the spanish lands, and fought in wars with france.
• Explains that charles' foreign policy was not very successful, and future rulers suffered from these events.
• Explains that philip had problems with the dutch, they wanted their independence, and were revolting throughout his reign. he saw war against infidels as a crucial part of his god-given duty.
• Explains how philip persuaded the turks to never fight spain again in the western mediterranean. spain's war against england was a failure.
• Explains that ferdinand and isabella's reign was the only one that could be considered a 'golden age', due to foreign policy. they gained lands and used marriage alliances to improve relations between spain and rival countries.
• Explains that ferdinand and isabella brought about prosperity in their reign. they received their income from many places; taxation, loans, and the church gave them the cruzada.
• Explains that the annual income of maravedis from powerful aristocracy had more than doubled from 150 million to 320 million. ferdinand and isabella introduced new taxes and ensured the existing ones were collected efficiently.
• Explains that royal finances were stable, and had enough income to run the government during peacetime. charles' finances, however, were poor.
• Explains how charles loaned excessively from foreign bankers to meet his demands. in 1534, charles introduced the encabezamiento, which brought in about 70 percent of the castilian revenue.
• Explains that charles' reign had some prosperity, as the population was increasing, but the new world's income was rising, from 65,000 ducats a year in 1536 to 175,000
• Explains that the papacy added to the revenue with the excusado and in 1560 the new world gave 90,000 ducats a year and that tripled by 1590s. philip introduced millones and sold noble titles and government offices.
• Explains that philip had to declare bankruptcy four times; he had inherited large debts from charles which meant a large part of the annual income was spent paying them off.
• Opines that ferdinand and isabella's reign could be considered a 'golden age' because they made beneficial changes in finance, not only initiating new taxes but also building el escorial.
• Explains that at the beginning of ferdinand and isabella's reign, the spanish church only owed allegiance to the pope in rome. however, when conquering granada, ferdinand claimed he was doing it to ‘expel from all spain the enemies of the catholic faith.
• Explains that the reconquest by the church, as they were spreading roman catholicism, made them more loyal to the crown. this meant the two most powerful groups; church and nobles were supporting the crown.
• Explains that the pope granted them complete control over the church in granada and introduced the spanish inquisition which dealt with moriscos and conversos.
• Explains that charles' religion did not change much throughout his reign and charles got on reasonably well with the popes. philip devoted more time to religion, as he was a devout roman catholic.
• Explains that philip used the inquisition as an instrument of repression, which involved prosecution by torture and burnings. modern historians have found that this was not the case.
• Explains that ferdinand and isabella's reign could be described as a ‘golden age’, as they made great changes in religion.
• Explains that philip ii made changes in religion, including improving the life of clergyman, and reforming the church to make it less corrupt, but his reign could not be described as a ‘golden age’.
• Explains that philip ii's reign was a ‘golden age’ in some areas, the people loved him, and he eliminated heresy in spain. all the monarchs in the period 1474 – 1598 experienced this.
• Opines that spain's 'golden age' does not apply more specifically to philip ii’s reign, as it was not a ‘golden age’ in other ways.
• Explains that spain was a 'golden age', as they were at peace, eradicated heresy and internal enemies, and their finances were reasonably balanced.