TERMS IN THE HISTORY OF 8TH TO 16TH CENTURY SPAIN
Boiling down Spanish medieval history is a very a risky task but understanding a few terms or themes will enrich your journey.
The Visigoths – prior to the Muslim conquest, the Visigoths were ‘in control’ of Spain (defeated in France by the Franks).
The Muslim conquest – in the 8th century Spain was conquered by Muslims (a mix of Arabs and recently conquered Berbers or Moors) with the Visigoths ‘holding out’ on the northern side of the Cantabrian Mountains in the Asturias.
The Marche Hispancia – the Muslim advance north into France was halted at the Battle of Toulouse in 721 and they were completely expelled in 759. Under Charlemagne (748–814) – a series of tiny buffer states (counties) – the ‘Marche Hispancia’ (like the Welsh Marches) was established south of the Pyrenees.
The northern Christian kingdoms – out of the Marche Hispancia and the kingdom of Asturias a series of often-competing kingdoms emerge between the 8th and 10th centuries (Galicia, León, Castile, Pamplona (later Navarre), Aragón and Barcelona (later Catalonia) united for the first time, and briefly, as a single Christian entity by Sancho III Garcés the Great (992–1035).
Umayyad Caliphate – from 756 to 1031 Muslim Spain was ruled as a single entity with Cordoba the capital (Abd al-Rahman I fled to Spain after the Umayyad dynasty which had ruled the whole of the massive Muslim empire had been overthrown). It reached the peak of its powers in the 9th and 10th centuries and dominated the small Christian kingdoms to the north (who typically paid taxes to the Umayyad Caliphate).
First Taifa period (1009–1106) – with the fall of the Umayyad Caliphate Muslim Spain split into a series of mini-states sometimes dependent for their survival on the northern Christian kingdoms. The period ended at the start of the Almoravid dynasty who united the reduced Muslim part of Spain.
The reconquest – the start of this period is traditionally dated as 722 with the Battle of Cavadonga although the real significance of that battle is that it secured the independence of the kingdom of Asturias, a significance reinforced when the bones of St James were claimed to have been found in Galicia at Santiago de Compostela.
The Crusades – although usually associated with efforts to recapture Jerusalem the reconquest increasingly becomes part of the wider conflict between Islam and Christianity. With the capture of Toledo, Pope Urban II tied the conflict in Spain to his preaching for the First Crusade. From 1212 to 1295 the Christian kingdoms from the north reduced Muslim Spain (which after the fall of the Almoravid dynasty had disintegrated again into mini-states) to a rump in Granada.
Spanish Unification – the marriage of Ferdinand II of Castile and Isabella I of Aragón was the basis of the unification of Spain (secured by their grandson Charles V); they captured Granada, completing the reconquest in 1492 and in 1500 enforced a policy of Muslim exile or conversion (a similar policy had been adopted towards the Jewish community in 1492).
Churches and castles
The oldest Christian churches remaining along the GR1 are in the Asturias, a region that was never fully conquered by the Moors. A distinct ‘pre-Romanesque’ style of architecture developed, albeit with Visigothic and Arab (Mozarabic) influences. The oldest Spanish Romanesque buildings, with their distinctive semi-circular arches, are in modern-day Catalonia where the wonderfully-named Wilfred the Hairy forced his way south and populated what had been a sort of no man’s land between the Moors and Christians with monks and nuns. The famous Monastery of Santa Maria de Ripoll, built in the Romanesque style, was founded in 888.
The Riglos (Section 4, Stage 5 and Section 5, Stage 1)
Perhaps the best preserved Romanesque castle in the world, Loarre Castle, was built by Sancho III of Navarre (‘Sancho the Great’) on the site of a former Roman fortress, to defend the lands he had recently acquired from the Moors (as the Umayyad Caliphate was collapsing).
Ujué, further west along the GR1 in Navarre, whose superb defensive position was also valued by the Romans, was subsequently developed as a hill fortress to defend Pamplona (now known as Navarre) against the advancing Moors. Its Romanesque church was built in the 11th century but then fell into decay as the Moors retreated and the site lost its value. It was later rebuilt on a lavish scale, in Gothic grandeur, as a church fortress by Charles II (‘Charles the Bad’) who recognised the value of the location in his power struggle with the kingdom of Castile.
Sos del Rey Católico, another stunning hilltop town, was the birthplace of Ferdinand II, King of Aragón. Built to defend land newly acquired from the Moors, it’s a beautifully preserved medieval town with both Romanesque and Gothic elements. Ironically it was the marriage of Ferdinand II to Isabella I that, by ending Christian infighting, led to fortified locations like Sos del Rey Católico, Ujué, Olite and others losing their strategic significance.
It would be a mistake to assume that the larger fortified towns are the only things to excite a GR1 walker with an interest in medieval history. What is amazing, once you learn to spot the signs, is how almost every settlement has the remains of stone-built fortifications of some kind. These could be the huge square Moorish stone watch towers built on hills above villages or at the end of a valley; massive stone gates at the entrance to a village; or, more subtly, the alignment of street patterns around what would have been the defensive perimeter wall.
The loveliest surprise is often the sudden appearance of an old castle, a defensive tower on the side of a hill with commanding views across a valley. If you stumble upon such a place don’t worry, you’re probably not lost, there are just too many of them to mention them all in this guide.
While the castles and other fortifications lost much of their significance with the unification of Spain, chapels and churches continued to be used and developed. Even the tiniest village had a church and every architectural style is represented along the route – from pre-Romanesque through to neo-classical. Unfortunately nearly all the churches are locked and their treasures can be viewed only if the key holder is contacted notice as needs often to be given.
Many walkers will be happy to view the churches from the outside. If they don’t know how to identify an architecture style at the beginning of the trip they should be able to by the time they have finished. The most important distinction is between the older Romanesque churches (known as ‘Norman’ in Britain) which have semi-circular arches and apses, and the later Gothic churches which have a pointed arch and, in bigger buildings, flying buttresses.
It is interesting to study the different styles of tympanum and sculptures that greeted the worshipper over the main door as they entered the church. The Last Judgement is a favourite subject and early Renaissance tympanums often provide graphic reminders (originally they would have been in full colour), using contemporary imagery, of the unpleasant things that would happen to the medieval sinner.
Huge cliffs converging on the Noguera-Ribagorçana in the Sierra de Montsec area (Section 6, Stage 3)
Although the principle theme of the walk is Spanish medieval history (from the beginnings of the reconquest to the foundations of modern Spain) there is more on the route to interest the amateur historian. The walk finishes on the Mediterranean coast at Sant Martí d’Empúries near the site of a port founded by Greek colonists in 575BC. The remains, which are still being excavated, include the foundations of buildings and the street pattern
