Spain is a leading European power, boasting an expansive empire including American colonies. Spain’s history is marked by war and peace, religious conflict, as well as various cultural and political movements.
The Bourbon Dynasty centralises government and modernizes military, yet traditionalists and liberals hold divergent goals that cannot be reconciled.
Prehistory
Spain boasts a lengthy prehistoric past, dating back to its world-famous cave paintings of Altamira and Cueva del Castillo in Cantabria depicting bison, which are among the oldest artworks ever created by humans.
Neolithic culture brought with it farming, new technologies and complex societies. Copper metalworking began to emerge with Los Millares culture of south-eastern Spain characterized by fortified settlements and corridor tombs similar to El Menga in Almeria.
Roman Conquest
Claudius assembled his troops for his invasion of Hispania from Sicily and Africa. Two of his army generals, Lucius Cornelius Lentulus and Lucius Manlius Acidinus were sent with proconsular power “without magistracy”, an unusual constitutional exception.
At first, they met fierce resistance from local tribes, led by one leader named Viriatus who quickly rose to national hero status through his ability to use mountainous terrain and small unit tactics in battle to successfully repel invaders from later invasions.
Visigothic Kingdom
Reccared’s transition from Arianism to Nicene dogma during this period was an exemplary event of symbolic importance for Visigothic rule in Hispania.
He also introduced the law that would serve as the cornerstone of Spanish nationhood: an amalgam of Visigothic customary laws with Roman legal principles; this became known as Lex Visigothorum. Additionally, Visigoths founded all new cities between 5th and 8th century Western Europe.
Moorish Conquest
In 711, Berber Moors attacked Hispania with overwhelming force. Unfortunately for Visigothic kingdom, which was fragmented and weak at that time, they could not resist this invasion force.
Pelayo led an alliance of Christian Visigoths and native Iberians from his territory into mountain fastnesses in northern Spain where they survived for some time.
This period is known as the Dependent Emirate because Muslim Spain was dependant upon Damascus for support from Damascus-based Umayyad Caliphate.
Christian Reconquest
Reconquista refers to the centuries-long struggle by Christian kingdoms against Islamic rulers to regain territory they lost. This fight created a culture of hyper-masculine, hyper-Catholic societies where men of nobility pledged their allegiance in return for wealth, land, or titles from their monarch.
Regaining independence from Islamic rule, Spain quickly rose as an empire across Europe and North America. The Reconquista left its mark, such as religious uniformity promoted through Inquisition trials and expulsion of Jews and Muslims from Spain.
Kingdom of Asturias
As Muslim Umayyad troops from North Africa invaded Spain in 711, only Asturias was left intact – until Visigoth nobleman Pelagius (locally known as Pelayo) stood up against them and won an epic victory at Covadonga.
Pelayo’s legacy gave rise to the Reconquista movement, which saw Spain regained from Moorish occupation.
Early Modern Period
Spain became more united and expanded its power across Europe during this period, though not for everyone in Spain. Jewish, Muslim and Protestant communities experienced oppression under devoutly Catholic rulers like Isabella and Ferdinand; who encouraged neighbours and relatives to act as informants to identify heretics through public ceremonies known as autos-da-fe ceremonies.
Monarchs also fostered a meritocratic letrado class to fulfill their vision of an integrated state and improve literacy rates.
Early Modern Spain
Golden Age Spanish literature often features protagonists who are traveling aimlessly in pursuit of some goal or another, like roamers seeking the Holy Grail or seeking personal fulfillment. Such characters represent an active society which does not apologize for its often aggressive ways.
By the sixteenth century, Spain had higher literacy levels than some European states – yet that alone does not account for its rich literary traditions and prolific prose fiction production.
Renaissance
A centralized Spanish monarchy maintained control over distant colonial territories through royal proclamations, laws, and appointed officials – further consolidating its grip over its landholdings and reinforcing Spain as an ascendant power in Europe.
Renaissance studies often explore humanism’s influence in cultural endeavors of this era; humanism played an instrumental role in many cultural pursuits during this period and understanding this connection will help students develop a more in-depth view of its development over time.
Baroque Period
Baroque style emerged from Mannerism distortions and sought to appeal to emotions, like those felt when entering Valencia Cathedral’s facade, where its concave and convex surfaces blend in with medieval features to elicit strong emotional responses from visitors.
Literature also provided a response to pessimism: Calderon de la Barca’s philosophical drama Life Is a Dream is one such response; Gongora produced romantic poetry and romances while Quevedo composed satires and metaphysical poems as forms of resistance against such despair.
Architecture in Madrid featured a sober brick Baroque with roots in Herreresque classicism that can be found throughout the Royal Buen Retiro Palace. Furthermore, Casas y Novoa promoted Churrigueresque decorative ornamentation styles with extreme and florid decorative ornaments as another tradition in architecture.