Fernando III of Castilla: Saint, King, and Conqueror

Fernando III of Castilla: Saint, King, and Conqueror: Fernando III of Castilla was the leader Christian Spain had long awaited. A just ruler, a merciful conqueror, a man of prayer and strict aestheticism, a great protector of the mendicant orders, and above all, a devoted subject of Jesus and Mary; St. Fernando was a Third Order Franciscan, a loving husband and father, and the Spanish ruler who won more territory back from the Moors than any other Christian leader in the Reconquista to date. When Fernando became King of Castilla in 1217 the Moors still had control of most of the south of Spain, including the cities of Sevilla and Cordoba, but by the time of his death in 1252 they only occupied the tiny kingdom of Granada, which was required to pay a yearly tribute to the Spanish crown. Among the victories won by St. Fernando, the reconquest of Cordoba and Sevilla are among the most significant.