Ferdinand and IsabellaFer‧di‧nand and Is‧a‧bel‧la /ˌfɜːdənænd ənd ɪzəˈbelə $ ˌfɜːr-/King Ferdinand of Spain (1452–1516) , and his wife, Queen Isabella of Spain (1451–1504) , who were known as the Catholic Monarchs. They are famous for giving Christopher Columbus the money and ships to make the journey on which he discovered America.