Isabella of Castile: The First Renaissance Queen - Hardcover

Rubin, Nancy

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0312058780 ISBN 13: 9780312058784

Publisher: St Martins Pr, 1991

Synopsis

Looks at Queen Isabella's life and marriage in a time of fierce political intrigue, the rise of the nation-state, the discovery of the new world, and the demise of the old order

About this title

From the Author

Biographical analysis of the queen's 3 historic images.
Isabella of Castile traces the queen's development from an orphaned and neglected princess of Castile into Spain's most powerful monarch, a woman who codified the laws, protected widows and orphans, triumphed over the Moors, reformed the Catholic Church, started the Inquisition, expelled the Jews from Spain in 1492 and in that same watershed year, supported Columbus in his famous trans-Atlantic journey to the New World. Today, three disparate images of the queen still prevail -- that she was an unbeatified saint, a visionary and a she-devil whose relgious beliefs shattered the lives of thousands of people. Which of these three images was the real Isabella? Or were all three exaggerations,distortions of time, religious beliefs and special interests over the last 500 years? My goal in writing Isabella of Castile was to plummet the depths of those images and arrive at a human portrait of the Queen, unclouded by parochial interests. Indeed, as Isabella's life story unfolds, the reader will come to understand how personal, political and religious pressures motivated the Queen to act as she did and make decisions that still impact upon millions of people today. A woman's story as well as a political account, Isabella of Castile includes a sweeping overview of Spain at the dawn of its most exciting historical era.

About the Author

Nancy Rubin is a best-selling author who specializes in women and social history. Her other books are American Empress, The Mother Mirror and The New Suburban Woman. For Isabella of Castile, she won the 1992 Author of the Year Award from the American Society of Authors and Journalists. http://www.Nancyrubinstuart.com

Edition details

• Publisher: St Martins Pr
• Publication date: 1991
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0312058780
• ISBN 13: 9780312058784
• Binding: Hardcover