CHAPTER 1193: CHAPTER 754: AUTUMN OF 1489 AD, THE SURRENDER OF BAZA, SUNSET IN THE WESTERN LANDS

Outside the Baza fortress, cheers thundered loudly! With the arrival of Queen Isabella, it felt as if a miraculous force uplifted the despondent tens of thousands of the Holy War Army, from top to bottom!

"Praise the Almighty! Praise the devout and fearless Queen!"

This was the praise from over a hundred Castilian lords. They stood respectfully, with genuine smiles on their faces, unlike anything they’d ever shown in front of King Fernando.

"The Queen has arrived! The Queen has indeed arrived! For the Queen, we must carry on the Holy War!"

This was the cheer of thousands of Castilian knights. Their eyes were filled with reverence. They bowed to the Queen, sweeping away their despair and gathering renewed courage for the fight.

"Ah! The sacred Queen! She is the Virgin Mary incarnate on earth! Praise the Holy Mother!"

The loudest cheer came from the tens of thousands of soldiers in the camp. They prayed devoutly, venerating with all their hearts, as if they truly regarded the Queen in front of them as the embodiment of the Holy Mother.

Seeing this welcome scene, King Fernando at the forefront of the welcoming party took a deep breath, filled with an uncontrollable envy. He knew that he could never, in his lifetime, earn such veneration from his subjects as Queen Isabella had. Because it wasn’t just about prestige and capability, but the unique advantage only the Queen possessed!

In later generations, when people describe this era of the Middle Ages, they often speak of the chivalrous customs and the worship of women. However, the women revered by the knights had nothing to do with ordinary common women. The objects of their worship were esteemed females of noble standing, or high-born ladies with virtues. In reality, this was an extension of the worship of the Holy Mother, a glow given by faith. And those who received this reverence needed, as much as possible, to align with the virtues demanded by Catholicism.

"Innocent, pure, sacred, devout, brave, fearless..."

King Fernando counted silently in his heart the virtues glorifying his wife. Innocence and purity were unique to women, while sacredness and devotion were acknowledgments by the Church and the faithful, and bravery and fearlessness were choices faced with danger... Regrettably, he possessed none of these virtues. The most he could pretend to have were devotion and bravery.

"Diligent, thorough, intelligent, far-sighted, cautious, flexible..."

King Fernando counted his own traits, a bitter smile on his face. In traditional Catholic understanding, it’s hard to say whether these are strengths or weaknesses, but they certainly aren’t virtues. Therefore, even as the King of Aragon, it was difficult for him to add religious moral prestige to himself.

For such reasons, among the Dual Kings, Queen Isabella’s status was firmly above King Fernando’s. This was not only because of Castile’s stronger military, but more importantly, because King Fernando lacked religious moral authority and could not truly earn the knights’ and vassals’ loyal allegiance!

In this era where medieval traditions remained strong, in the traditional Kingdom of Castile, when King Fernando could achieve victory, the glory would certainly belong to the Queen!

Accompanied by Cardinal Mendoza, Queen Isabella walked with steady strides. She raised her scepter to salute the cheering knights and soldiers, and in return, she won even greater applause. Thus she arrived in front of King Fernando, expressing her resolve in simple yet firm words.

"Fernando! The Almighty called me, and I have come! You welcomed me, and I have arrived!"

Queen Isabella spoke as such. She glanced at Judge Thomas, bowing in salute, and received a respectful return in kind.

"The Almighty has promised! We will take this mountain city!"

At these words, Queen Isabella lifted her gaze towards the Baza fortress a few miles away. The cheers of the Crusaders had already startled the Moorish defenders. At that moment, eyes filled with worry and unease peered from the city wall, towers, and rooftops of the fortress.

With the arrival of the Queen, the morale of the besieging army surged, and an inexplicable despondency suddenly began to spread throughout the mountain city. The morale of both combatants in war always waxed and waned, where rational thinking was abandoned at critical moments, giving way to the intangible spirit, causing hearts to be stirred and shaken.

"Now that I am here, I will not leave, no matter what happens! We shall continue the siege until the Moors send their envoy to announce surrender!"

Queen Isabella said it, and she did it. Behind the Queen’s grand caravan came more than half of the Castilian court. This determined display of resolve, this decisive action, left all the Castilian great nobility who were considering retreat unable to voice their intentions. They couldn’t bypass the Queen to retreat, or they would completely lose their reputations. And in the Christian World of the time, losing one’s reputation had disastrous consequences.

The autumn wind rustled day after day. Black smoke of death arose fairly both inside and outside the fortress. Queen Isabella showed no fear, even risking herself, with guards by her side, to visit sick soldiers from a distance of a dozen steps.

After the Queen’s arrival, more supply horse carriages also reached the camp. The Queen even hosted an outdoor banquet before the fortress, receiving the great nobility and sharing rare and precious... spiced cured meat.

Seeing this situation, the determination of the defenders of the Baza fortress finally wavered completely. They did not know that many of the supply carriages were actually full of empty boxes. They also didn’t know that the plague in the besieging camp had already claimed the lives of over a dozen Castilian nobility. In the face of the indiscriminate plague, the Castilians outside the city merely had a breath left more than they, with only a thin skin between them and death.

More than ten days later, the lord of the Baza fortress, the elderly Moorish noble, Ben Hassan, finally sent an envoy, the Moors Warrior Cidi Yahye, to negotiate the terms of surrender.

Queen Isabella personally participated in the negotiations and agreed to all of Yahye’s requests. These were generous terms the Catholic side had never offered in the entire Granada holy war, spanning ten years from start to finish:

The Moors Army within Baza city could withdraw, with the Catholics not pursuing them. The Moors inside the city could take all their wealth, leave with the army, or stay in their homeland, retaining all their possessions. All Moors choosing to remain would become subjects of Castile, only required to pay tribute on time, and could even retain their original religious beliefs!

Upon hearing such merciful terms of surrender, Moorish Lord Hasan was incredulous, speechless with surprise. However, Queen Isabella promised in the name of the Almighty and signed a written agreement, stamping it with her royal seal.

The Moorish Lord Hasan reviewed the agreement three times before genuinely praising the Queen’s mercy and signing his name and affixing his seal. He would withdraw with his army and wealth to the southern ports. There, Moorish ships would pick him up, taking him across the Strait to the Moorish Kingdom of Wattas. And the Aragonese Kingdom’s naval blockade would honor the agreement, letting him pass.

The autumn sky was high and clear as the departing Moorish convoy raised plumes of dust. Half of the city’s Moors chose to leave, while the other half, unwilling to abandon their homes, chose to stay. The flag of the Kingdom of Castile rose atop the Baza fortress, symbolizing the end of the Moorish dynasty and representing the closing Chapter of the Granada war. Having lost its northeastern shield, the final Granada was but an isolated city, unable to hold on for long.

For the Moors who chose to stay, the Queen’s promises were real and effective, and not even the Spanish Inquisition would violate them. They could settle peacefully around Baza city for more than a decade, until the Queen’s death, when the gates of the Inquisition would open to them!

"Praise the Almighty! Isabella, Baza fortress, from now on, belongs to us!"

King Fernando’s expression was complex as he looked at the Queen beside him, magnificently dressed and on horseback, as if looking at the radiant Sun. He turned his head slightly, uneasily, advising.

"The bubonic plague continues to spread inside and outside the Baza city, unstoppable despite isolation! Even among the country’s noble ones, there continues to be deaths. Of ten infected, often four will die..."

"May the Almighty protect us! We should tidy up quickly, leave behind a garrison, and lead the main forces of the kingdom’s army back to the North!"

"Very well! Fernando, I promise you that. However, before leaving, I still have one thing left to do!"

Hearing her husband’s words, Queen Isabella displayed a confident and brilliant smile. Squeezing her strong legs to the horse’s sides, she galloped forward toward the high fortress.

"Let’s go! Accompany me, let me have a good look at this newly acquired mountain city. This is what the Almighty promised me, my mountain city!!"

The sun dipped westward, the sky reflecting vibrant hues, with new flags flying over the fortress. The black smoke of death had never dissipated, nor would the march of war ever halt. Beyond Baza fortress lay Granada, and what would come after Granada?

The Sun did not answer; it only continued its journey westward until setting into the western mountains, merging into the western seas and skies, the unknown West of Europe.