Video - Juana la Loca: The Tragic Tale of Spain's Forgotten Queen

Juana of Castile, born in 1479, was destined to be queen of Spain. At 16, she married Philip of Burgundy, a powerful alliance meant to strengthen the kingdom—but it quickly turned into a nightmare. Philip betrayed her, and when her mother died in 1504, Juana fell into despair. But it was Philip’s sudden death in 1506 that truly broke her. She clung to his corpse for days, lost in grief. Her advisors, seeing an opportunity, declared her "mad" and locked her away in a palace, calling her "Juana la Loca"—the mad queen. Isolated from her children and the throne, Juana spent 46 years in confinement, forgotten by the world. But was she truly mad, or was she just a woman broken by betrayal and heartbreak? Her tragic story remains a haunting reminder of how power, love, and loss can destroy even the mightiest.