The glorification of the Catholic Monarchs by the chroniclers in their service has continued to the present. A few attempts have been made—notably by Jaime Vicens Vives for Fernando, and Fr. Tarsicio de Azcona for Isabel—to strip away the varnish of legend. Mr. Fernández-Armesto’s very readable book is in this more objective tradition. The author is particularly concerned with the two rulers’ personal lives but sets them in historical context. The book’s lack of notes reduces its value for students, though there is a useful bibliography. The work is short and a great deal has been left out. The focus is almost entirely on Castile, not Aragon, and there is little on Ferdinand after Isabel’s death.
The account of Isabel’s youth is up-to-date on debated points, and makes clear the fact that Isabel’s accession was “contrary to law,” since the rightful heiress was her niece, Princess Juana. Major themes of the reign are well handled, with emphasis on the limitations of the monarchy and the continued power of the nobility. Isabel’s personal and family life is well described and there is an interesting account, with fresh material, of the attitude of the Monarchs toward the natives of the Canaries and the Caribbean.
The account of the War of Succession understates the opposition to Isabel, and that of the conquest of Granada underplays the role of Andalusia. The chapter most open to criticism, and the only one in which an apologetic note intrudes, is that on religion. Two points must suffice here, the description of reconciliation’ of penitents by the Inquisition, which involved social disgrace and ostracism, as a “mild” punishment (p. 174), and the treatment of the Mudejar problem in 1499-1502 (pp. 177 f.), which ignores the facts of forced baptism. In general, however, the book is a useful introduction to its subject.