BACKGROUND: 1469 - The Iberian Peninsula has been splintered into numerous caliphates and kingdoms over the last 700 years. Warfare—part of the desperate competition between Christian and Muslim faiths often referred to as the Reconquista—has been the one constant. Now age 18, Isabella of Castile has already been offered in marriage alliances to both Portugal and France. Against the wishes of her brother, King Henry IV, she refuses both deals and instead elopes to marry her original betrothed, Ferdinand II of Aragon. Within five years, her brother is dead, and Isabella is named Queen of Castile. But can this fragile alliance between Castile and Aragon hope to prosper facing threats from all sides?