Background
Suspicions and tensions between the Moriscos and the Christians had been high for some time. While some Moriscos did hold influence and power, and they had some allies such as the nobility of Valencia and Aragon who depended on them as a cheap labor force, their overall political and economic heft in Spain was low. The Christian population constantly suspected the Moriscos of not being sincere in their Christianity. As the Moriscos had been forced to choose between conversion and exile, many indeed held little loyalty to either the crown or the church.
Several revolts broke out, the most notable being the 1568–1573 revolt against an edict of Phillip II's banning Arabic, Arabic names, and requiring Moriscos to give up their children to be educated by priests. After the suppression of the revolt, Philip ordered the dispersal of the Moriscos of Granada to other areas. Philip expected that this would break down the Morisco community and facilitate their assimilation into the Christian population. This may have happened to a degree to Granada's Moriscos, but not in Valencia or Aragon, where genuine crypto-Muslim enclaves still existed.
At around the same time, Spain recognized the loss of more than half of its holdings in the Low Countries to the Protestant Dutch Republic. The ruling class already thought of Spain as the defender of Catholic Christendom, and this defeat helped lead to a radicalization of thinking and a desire to strike a blow to regain Spain's honor. Some critiques of Spain from Protestant countries included insults of the Spanish as corrupted by the Muslims and crypto-Muslims amongst them, which some of the nobility may have taken personally.
The situation further deteriorated in the early 17th century. A recession struck in 1604 as the amount of gold and treasure Spain's American holdings fell. The reduction in the standard of living led to increased tension between the Christians and the Moriscos for precious jobs.
Read more about this topic: Expulsion Of The Moriscos
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