3. Our survey of the history of Spain from the over- throw of the Moors, in the reign of Ferdinand and Isa- In-lla, down to the present time must necessarily be rapiil. The condition of the conquered race was made exceedingly wretched, worse even, as it would seem, than was that of the Christians while under the Sara- cenic authority. It has justly been remarke<l by Kob- ertson, the historian, that "the followers of Mohammed are the only enthusi.asts who have united the spirit of toleration with zeal for making proselytes, and who. at the same time that they took arms to projiagate the diM'trine of their prophet, permitted such as would not embrace it to adhere to their own tenets and to practice their own rites." As a conseipu-nce of the persecutions which they suffered at the hands of the Spaniards, the MiMint aliandoned the country in which for so many hundreds of years they had lived, and to the possession of which their natural right wasjnsi as good as that «f the Spaniards. It is estimated that from the reign of Ferdinniiil of Castile to that of I'liilip III more than three millions of these people left their native land, carrying with them not only a great [lart of their ac- •piired wealth, but that industry and love of labor which
"'■•' ll"' (<• lation of naii>inal prosperity. Another
fatal blow to the prosperity of Sjiain was the expulsion of the .lews, who .jirecled the couimeree of the country, and helil ill their hands so large a part of its movable pro(Krty in the form of the precious metals and of
Owlly jewelH.
The great events which occurred under the reign of
Ferdinand and Isabella are too familiar to need a special recital, and we may ])ass on to the times of Charles V (the title by which he is best known), being Charles I of S|)ain, the grandson of Isabella. During his long reign of forty years Spain reached the highest point of her pros]H'rity. What she accomplished on both sides of the Atlantic, how the Spanish arms were every- where victorious in Europe, how the proud Francis I of France and the Protestant princes of Uermany were humbled, and the onsets of the barbarous Turks were repelled, and how Charles V saw himself standing tirst among the sovereigns of Europe — all these things are well known to readers of history. Philip II succeeded his father, Charles \. The great aim of his adminis- tration was the extirpation of heresy and the complete establishment of the Roman Catholic faith. The proc- ess of decay in Spain commenced under his reign. The immense riches which flowed into the country from the Spanish possessions in America proved a curse instead of a blessing. The people became luxurious, intto- Icnt, and effeminate, so that when Philip II, who, with all the glaring faults of his character, was an enetgetic monarch, died, and the sceptre came into the hands of his successor, Philip III, a weak and unenterprising prince, Spain rapidly fell from its high estate. The destruction or expulsion of hundreds of thousands of Moriscos, descendants of the Moors, brought about the same state of things in Spain which the destruction and expulsion of the Huguenots had produced in France. Some of the most protitable of the industrial arts almost ceased to be practiced. Large sections of the country were so completely depopulated that they have been but little better than barren wastes ever since. Under succeeding monarchs the decline in the fortunes of un- happy Spain continued. The falling-offin the popula- tion was so great that in thirty-two years, from 1668 to 1700, it had gone down from eleven millions to eight millions. With the accession to the throne of Philip of Anjou, a Bourbon prince, who was king of Spain under the title of Philip V, a better day seemed to dawn on Spain, not because her own sons took the lead in civil affairs, but because they were guided by the more skilful hanils of French statesmen. I?ut the claim of Philip to the throne was resisted by Germany, England, and Holland; and the '"War of the Spanish Succession," contiiuied on for thirteen years, was the result of the controversy. Although Philip retained his throne, yet he came out of the contest stripped of no small jiart of the territories which had once belonged to Spain. Coming down to the times of Charles III (1759-88), we tind an improved state of things, at least so far as the internal affairs of the kingdom wx're concerned. Externally, however, constant humiliation attended the military movements of Spain. Both on the land and the sea defeat was the rule, victory the exception. In 1797 occurred the defeat of the Spanish fleet near Cape St. Vincent, and the almost complete annihilation of the combined fleets of France and Spain by Lord Nel- son at Trafalgar, Oct. 21, 1805. A few years later we tind Napoleon setting aside the claims of all as|)irants to royal authority in Spain, and jilacing his brother .Joseph on the throne. Insurrection everywhere fol- lowed what was considered a high-handed outrage, A treaty of alliance was formed with England, which recognised Ferdinand VH as lawful monarch of Spain. Fortune, for a time, everywhere favored the French arms. The two victories of Wellington, however — that at Victoria, .lune 21, 181.'5, and at Toulouse, April 10, 1*^14 — turned the scale, and Spain was once more free. But for years everything was in a most unsettled con- dition. Liberal o|iinions gradually gained a foothold among the people. Attempts were made to bring about radical reforms. At times success seemed to crown these efforts, but soon the order of things would be re- versed. Absolutism an<l des|i()iiim would crush out all progress, and the lil)eral pjirty be thrown again into the shade. Such has been the state of things the last