Part 1 Introduction, Spain - rise and decline, 1474-1643: the geographical background; the historical background; the institutions of Aragon and Castile; religion; the growth of the empire. Part 2 Ferdinand and Isabella, 1479-1516: the conquest of Granada; internal policies - the establishment of order in Castile and Aragon, administraton, finance, religious policies; the beginning of the overseas empire; foreign policy; conclusion - the closing years of the reign, did Ferdinand and Isabella create a united Spain? Part 3 Charles I, 1516-56: rebellion - the Comuneros, the Germania, Charles's return to Spain, 1522; the government of Spain - the councils, the cortes, finance, protestantism. Part 4 Philip II, 1556-98: early life and character; the government of Spain; the empire - the Indies, Aragon, the Moriscos, Portugal, the Mediterranean, the Netherlands; relations with England; France. Part 5 The decline of Spain? 1598-1643: Philip III, 1598-1621 - the expulsion of the Moriscos; Philip IV, 1621-65 - Olivares; the empire and foreign policy - Catalonia, Portugal, Castile, foreign policy; the economy; was there a decline in Spain in the seventeenth century?