Spain has an extraordinary and varied history. After Roman rule was abandoned, Germanic groups (Visigoths, Sueves and Vandals) invaded and then eventually Muslim forces took control in both its south and center regions.
Early Modern Period (1489-1630). After the marriage between Castile and aragon crowns, dynastic unity was achieved and political analysis expanded throughout Spain as new literary, philosophical, and scientific institutions emerged.
Roman Empire
Roman influence over Spain for 200 years left an indelible mark both culturally and economically. Their one-man control consolidated one-emperor rule through their worship of one emperor over local rulers’ cults.
Romulus and Remus being saved from an angry she-wolf has long been revered as Rome’s founding myth; moreover, this legend inspired Spain to come together.
Visigothic Kingdom
Visigothic rule may be best remembered for the tribal infighting that led to Muslim conquest of Spain, but they also left two significant legacies: Nicene Christianity centralized authority while assimilation programs helped absorb non-Visigothic peoples.
Their legal code, Liber Iudiciorum, stressed written law and equality before the law. For centuries after, its influence continued to shape Spanish legal history. Their religious union between Catholicism and Hispanic culture also set an enduring example for how Church and State should interact closely in Spain.
Al-Andalus
Medieval Spain was marked by an eight-century Islamic presence known as al-Andalus that greatly shaped both its culture and politics.
Al-Andalus is best understood through the lens of coexistence or “convivencia,” an idealized conception that has proved hard to attain over time. Yet this was never simple issue to navigate through.
This book, comprising of both scholarly essays and catalogue entries, presents a fresh interpretation of this period.
Caliphate of Cordoba
Cordoba’s mosque-cathedral stands as a vivid reminder of this period when domestic rivalries and Christian forces threatened Islam’s once unifying empire.
Abd al-Rahman I managed to win local support by promising religious freedom for both Christians and Jews (Al-Andalus, 2019), thus helping both groups prosper. Through his influence came both Hindu-Arabic numeral systems as well as instruments such as an astrolabe.
Islamic Empire
In 711, the Umayyad caliphate sent Berber forces from North Africa across Gibraltar Strait into Spain to invade it and take control of Visigothic kingdom – creating an Islamic empire known as al-Andalus.
Muslim rule created a multicultural society where Christians and Jews coexisted alongside Muslims while intermarriage was prevalent – this legacy can be found throughout medieval Spain’s architecture and art.
Spanish Renaissance
The Spanish Renaissance was an age of nationalistic culture and artistic experimentation, featuring works from El Greco and Pedro Berruguete among others.
The Renaissance marked a period of European expansion into the New World, which greatly affected global trade and culture.
Garcia Gainza 1991 provides an exhaustive survey of art literature from this period. More recently, Rodriguez Ortega and Tain Guzman (2015) offer a comparative analysis of Renaissance studies across multiple historical periods.
Baroque Era
Baroque art emerged during the late 16th century as an antidote to Protestant Reformation and Catholic Counter-Reformation, as witnessed by artists like Diego Velazquez, Francisco de Zurbaran and Bartolome Esteban Murillo who found patronage from Spanish courts.
Style was lavish and dramatic. Architecture, art, and music all showcased the power of Spain’s Royal Family to maintain an expansive empire.
18th Century
The 18th century, commonly known as El Siglo de las Luces (The Century of Lights), saw the birth of Enlightenment ideas with new educational institutions, science, public works and rational approaches to politics and life. Spanish literature flourished, as minstrel verses were replaced with more learned works.
Economic instability and significant debt led to disjointed, rapidly changing governing coalitions that ultimately resulted in Spain losing her Americas to independence movements.
19th Century
1492 – Christian Kingdoms of Aragon, Castile and Navarre defeat Granada Emirate after 800 years of Muslim rule; Christopher Columbus begins his epic voyages across the Atlantic and initiates Spain as a major world power.
Literature was revolutionized by Generation of ’98; an Enlightenment movement quickly spread throughout Spain.
20th Century
In Spain’s 20th century, its ancient pillars of power – monarchy, church and aristocracy – were challenged by new voices including regionalism, political parties, anarchism, workers movements and Republicanism.
This decade was marked by an upsurge in manufacturing and tourism industries as well as the formation of Eta armed separatist group. Meanwhile, Preston’s research was widely referenced across Spanish newspapers of various political persuasions.