Isabella The Reconquista Summary

Isabella has always traditionally been viewed as a heroin of Spain and an admirable woman, Elliot saying of her ‘although highly strung in temperament, [Isabella] was a woman of great character and determination, she knew her own mind’. I would therefore hypothesise that the feminist perspective of Isabella would be favourable and as a great woman of history. Liss portrays Isabella as a woman who knows exactly what she is doing and all her actions are purposeful and done to benefit her interests. She saw Isabella as very aware of her limitations as a female and thus presented herself and Ferdinand as equals to strengthen her Queenship, hence giving it more power.
Liss sees Isabella as a woman who was very pious and acted in many situations, such as the Reconquista
of Granada and the many other holy wars she embarked on, because she believed it was the will of god. Isabella used holy wars to justify her reign and enhance her power regularly, as was the situation when she declared war against Portugal, her piety and belief this was gods wish bought the Castilian churches support and this was a key factor in her triumphing over the Archbishop of Toledo and Portugal.
Liss believes that Isabella I of Castile is a global figure who has and shall continue to outlast her time period, she is still revered in many places in modern society-this is especially so in Spain. Weisberger gives another feminist perspective on Isabella, one which is less favourable. Weisberger argues that she gives herself such a heroic reputation by editing the chronicles and therefore portraying herself as a strong woman, masculinising herself, and feminising Henry IV-her predecessor- making her seem Spain’s rescuer. Isabella diminishes henry greatly, depicting him as a monster, insinuating that he had illicit relationships with Beltran de la Cueva and Joanna of Portugal and that he ‘was not all man’.
Palencia is a chronicler which Weisberger brings to attention, he became uncomfortable with writing the chronicles with rose tinted spectacles and began to write for Ferdinand, he contradicts what most of chronicles of the time say and insults women.
He describes women as weak creatures prompted by desire, that they were masters of deception and pretence, indirectly insulting Isabella and dismissing all the writings of her being a strong independent ruler. The fact that Weisberger has introduced this alternate view on Isabella shows how she does not fully agree that Isabella was a picture perfect queen, as the majority of chronicles would have you believe.
On the contrary, another chronicler Pulgar consistently wrote in favour of Isabella pronouncing her as wilful, strong and controlling by her own discretion. Weisberger still considers these two opinions and looks at other evidence that shows of how Isabella attempted to change people’s image of her, for example she carried an unsheathed sword ahead of her at her coronation, a phallic symbol, which again masculinised her to give her more power and respect from those whom she ruled over, such as the Cortes, and her enemies to show her
strength.
Isabella is said to have patriarchal views of authority and centralism, and as such had to portray herself as a masculine figure, capable of ruling a country and leading it to victory and success.
Weisberger seems to admire Isabella however she appears to believe much of the empowering, admirable characteristics of her were either emphasised or completely fabricated in chronicles edited by her to ensure she was remembered with respect and admiration. Both Liss and Weisberger have similarities in their views, both agreeing that Isabella edited the chronicles, however Weisberger seems to think they were more than altered slightly to give a more favourable view. Linked to this they also believe that she was clearly wise in the way of image making, both in the chronicles and in her time period she altered her image to ensure people thought of her as she wished. Isabella’s piety is reflected in both of their views, both proclaiming that she imitated both Mary and John the Baptist-believing she had Gods favour. They are also undisputed in the conviction that she had to beat the Archbishop of Toledo in order to become successful. Personally I believe that, like Liss, Isabella was successful and had very admirable qualities and that she was indeed pious. However I do think that although she may have believed that she was doing Gods will in some cases such as the Reconquista, the war against Portugal and the Archbishop of Toledo I believe she claimed it was a holy war to gain support in a strongly Roman Catholic Spain as she was a very tactile, intelligent woman. I agree with Weisberger that she was continuously trying to portray herself as masculine to give her more control and power. I am unanimous with Weisberger and Liss that Isabella did edit the chronicles to seem more favourable to her.