Phoenicians, Greeks, Carthaginians: Iberian Peninsula History
Historical Settlers: Phoenicians, Greeks, and Carthaginians
South of the Iberian Peninsula, rich in copper, silver, and gold, attracted peoples from the Eastern Mediterranean (Phoenicians, Greeks, and Carthaginians) for commercial establishments. At the end of the second millennium BC, the Phoenicians founded several colonies, the most important being Cadiz. The Greeks arrived in the southern Peninsula around the 8th century BC and founded colonies such as Ampurias and Mainake. The colonization by Carthage had two forms:
- Commercial, with the first stage (from the 5th century BC), following the Phoenicians.
- Military, in the second stage, at the end of the 3rd century BC, coinciding with the development of the struggles against Rome (Punic Wars). Mostly, Carthage (Cartagena) was founded during this period.
The contacts between settlers and indigenous peoples favored the agricultural development of the peninsular peoples (new crops like olives and vines), craft activities (using the potter’s wheel, etc.), and iron metallurgy. Trade favored the use of money, urban planning, and writing.
The Process of Romanization: The Cultural Legacy
The Romans introduced cultural elements to Hispania: language, religion, law, ideology, and institutions. This led to what is known as Romanization, i.e., the integration of Hispanics into the cultural territory of Rome. Thus, Latin, the Roman religion (and later Christianity), Roman law, and its institutions within the empire provided cohesion to the inhabitants of Spain. This integration is shown in the fact that it was the birthplace of intellectuals such as Seneca, Martial, and Quintilian, and emperors such as Trajan, Hadrian, and Theodosius.
Rome imposed its economic and social structures. The Romans brought new agricultural techniques and improved mine extraction systems. They created cities (legal and economic administrative centers) which were embellished with circuses and arenas. They built roads, such as the Via Augusta, favoring trade and managing currency with the introduction of the silver denarius. Small industries developed for urban use (oil, salted fish) or for consumption in the city, experiencing great development.
The Visigothic Monarchy and Institutions
In the 5th century AD, Hispania saw the presence of a barbarian people, the Visigoths, who led after the final demise of the Roman Empire. The Visigoths remained in the peninsula until the Muslim invasion of 711. The Visigothic monarchy built its dominance on the peninsular lands from a process of territorial, political, religious, and legal unification. First, they imposed their rule over most of the territory. Leovigild and Recaredo managed to dominate the Basques, Cantabrians, and Asturians, and expel the Swabians and the Byzantines.
Having dominated the Peninsula, the Visigoths structured a monarchy which, despite its primitive elective character, often became hereditary. The king was supported by a number of government institutions, among which were the Aula Regia (an advisory body composed of senior officials, aristocrats, and clerics) and the Councils of Toledo (meetings with religious and civil authorities).
The Visigoths achieved legal and religious unity in society. Leovigild was the great promoter of equality between both peoples (Visigoths and Hispano-Romans) within the kingdom and repealed the law prohibiting mixed marriages. His son, Recaredo, along with a large group of Visigothic nobles, converted to Catholicism. Finally, Receswinth promoted a single law, the Visigothic Code (Liber Iudiciorum), which ended the existence of different laws for each group.