Isabella I Of Castile: The Queen Who Forged an Empire (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798247448945)

From forgotten princess to Europe's most powerful woman-the extraordinary true story of the queen who united Spain, sponsored Columbus, and changed the world forever.

Isabella I of Castile wasn't supposed to rule. Exiled as a child, dismissed as irrelevant, she seemed destined for obscurity. Yet through cunning, courage, and unshakable will, she seized the crown of Castile and transformed a fractured kingdom into a global empire.

Her reign didn't just shape Spain-it reshaped the world. She completed the centuries-long Reconquista, capturing Granada after a brutal ten-year siege. She defied every expert to sponsor an obscure Italian navigator named Christopher Columbus, launching Spain into the Americas. She married strategically, ruled fiercely, and built a dynasty that would dominate Europe for generations.

But Isabella's legacy is written in both triumph and tragedy. She established the Spanish Inquisition, expelled Spain's Jews, and initiated colonial systems that devastated millions. She was a devoted mother who lost three children within three years. A faithful wife in a political marriage that somehow worked. A warrior queen who commanded armies while embroidering church vestments. A scholar who learned Latin at forty. A visionary whose decisions echo through five centuries.

Discover the untold story:

• The secret marriage that united the kingdoms and defied a king
• The civil war that nearly destroyed her before she could rule
• The impossible gamble on Columbus that everyone said would fail
• The Inquisition's dark machinery and the price of religious purity
• The children sacrificed to dynastic ambition across European courts
• The final tragic years as her body failed, but her will endured

This is history that reads like a novel-political intrigue, battlefield drama, family tragedy, and moral complexity that refuses easy answers. Isabella of Castile built an empire. Whether that empire was a blessing or a curse depends on who paid the price.

The queen. The conqueror. The contradiction. Discover the woman who made Spain and broke the world.