Setting the Stage The Encounter Colonial Life Independence
	Isabella the Catholic, and Ferdinand the Catholic, after engravings from pictures in the Royal Palace at Madrid (Prescott, Ferdinand and Isabella,Vols. I & II, Little and Brown, Boston,1841)		SETTING THE STAGE n the 16th-century, Spain, Mesoamerica, and the Andes were all complex political and social entities dominated by central powers. “The Catholic Kings” Ferdinand and Isabella ruled in Spain, the Aztecs in Mesoamerica, and the Incas in the Andes. Religion, politics, and art in all three civilizations were closely aligned in systems that emphasized the divine rights and responsibilities of rulers. Indeed, in many ways the similarities between Spain and the Americas were as striking as their great differences. SPAIN IN THE 16TH CENTURY The year 1492 was a watershed for Spain. Columbus discovered the Americas and the united Christian armies of Aragon and Castile drove out the last of the Moors who had ruled portions of Spain for eight centuries. Aragon had enclaves throughout the Mediterranean and Castile had close ties to northern Europe. The marriage of “the Catholic Kings”, Ferdinand and Isabella, united these kingdoms and ushered in an era of soaring Spanish confidence and expansion. Hunger for adventure and wealth was coupled with and justified by a zealous desire to spread Christianity.