This is the story of the disaster which befell Catalonia in the fifteenth century. A society already destabilized by rural and urban conflict was driven into civil war by the uncompromising nature of its oligarchies defending the status quo, and an alien monarch resolved to bend them to his will. How that blind, aged ruler overcame the patriotic fervor whipped up by his adversaries in ten years of fighting is a major theme of the book. The material devastation inflicted on Catalonia, together with the long-lasting psychological humiliation brought about by its incorporation in the new Spanish state of Fernando and Isabel, has meant that for centuries Catalans have been struggling to undo that outcome. "With this book, Alan Ryder has performed a valuable service for historians of late medieval and early modern Spain."--Mark D. Meyerson, Renaissance Quarterly Alan Ryder is Professor Emeritus, Bristol University.