To end the threat of Portuguese expansion, Spain invaded its Iberian neighbour in 1580, defeating Portuguese, French, and English forces. In the beginning, Portugal was the only serious threat to Spanish hegemony in the New World. The crown's authority in the Indies was enlarged by the papal grant of powers of patronage, giving it power in the religious sphere. The structure of the empire was further defined under the Spanish Habsburgs (1516–1700), and under the Spanish Bourbon monarchs, the empire was brought under greater crown control and increased its revenues from the Indies. Castile (formed in 1230 from the Kingdoms of Leon and Asturias) became the dominant kingdom in Iberia because of its jurisdiction over the overseas empire in the Americas. Īn important element in the formation of Spain's empire was the dynastic union between Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon in 1469, known as the Catholic Monarchs, which initiated political, religious and social cohesion but not political unification. At its peak in 1810, the Spanish Empire covered over 13 million square kilometres (5 million square miles), making it one of the largest empires in history.
It was one of the most powerful empires of the early modern period, becoming known as " the empire on which the sun never sets". In conjunction with the Portuguese Empire, it was the first empire to usher the European Age of Discovery and achieve a global scale, controlling vast portions of the Americas, Africa, various islands in Asia and Oceania, as well as territory in other parts of Europe. The Spanish Empire, sometimes referred to as the Hispanic Monarchy or the Catholic Monarchy, was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its predecessor states between 14. United States Military Government of the Philippine Islands
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