Iberian Peninsula

Iberian Peninsula map

The Iberian peninsula is located in the West of Europe where modern-day Spain and Portugal are.

Fig. 1 - Map showing Spain and Portugal which are the countries that make up the Iberian Peninsula.

Dynastic developments of the Iberian Peninsula

Dynastic politics were an important instrument of change in Early Modern Europe. The Iberian Peninsula was well known for prevalent dynastic changes. This section will give you a historical understanding of the dynastic developments which laid the foundation for the eventual unification of Spain. Below is a simplified timeline of the different kingdoms that occupied the region.

Fig. 2 - Simplified timeline of the different dynasties that ruled the Iberian Peninsula.

Muslim conquest and Al-Andalus

Early medieval Spain was ruled by the kingdom of Arianist Visigoths, a Christian Germanic tribe, which conquered the Iberian Peninsula after the Romans and converted to Catholicism in the late sixth century. In the eighth century, the Muslim Umayyad caliphate conquered most of the Iberian Peninsula, forcing many of the Catholic Visigoths to retreat to the North of Spain.

The Muslims then established a territory called Al-Andalus that, at its peak, controlled most of Spain, Portugal, and even part of Southern France.

This area was split into five different administrative units:

• Andalusia
• Portugal and Galicia
• Castile and Léon
• Navarre, Aragon and Catalonia

• Languedoc-Roussillon (Southern France)

Fig. 3 - Map of Al-Ándalus, showing the greatest extent of the Umayyad Dynasty.

What was the Reconquista of the Iberian Peninsula?

From the eighth century onwards, the Christian groups in the North attempted to reconquer lands from the Muslims. This resulted in a 700-year war in which the Christians gradually gained more strength and acquired more territories. By the thirteenth century, major Muslim strongholds had fallen to the Christians, who had acquired almost the entire peninsula apart from Granada, ruled by the Nasrid Dynasty.

Fig. 4 - Map showing the Kingdom of Granada. It shows the territories of the Nasrid Kingdom from the 13th to the 15th centuries.

The Reconquista of Granada

From 1482–92, King Ferdinand II of Aragon (joint ruler of Spain with Isabella I) directed a series of campaigns against the Muslim kingdom of Granada, aiming to reconquer it as Christian territory. Internal conflict and civil war had left the Granadans weak, but the Christians were generally unified, giving them the advantage. A long siege in January 1492 forced Sultan Muhammad XII to surrender the city and Spain was brought under Catholic rule.

How did the Iberian Peninsula change under the Catholic Monarchs?

The rule over the kingdoms of the peninsula changed dramatically under the Catholic Monarchs. The five independent kingdoms were eventually ruled by one king in the late sixteenth century.

The independent kingdoms

Although the Reconquista had returned the states to Christian rule, this did not mean Spain was unified. It was split into different kingdoms, ruled by family dynasties. Unifying or establishing power in another kingdom meant invading or setting up a marriage alliance, which was not necessarily the peaceful compromise you would expect. These alliances frequently resulted in wars of succession due to multiple rulers having a right to the throne. For example, when Isabella I ascended the throne, a war broke out in Portugal over another potential accessor.

Ferdinand and Isabella partially united the peninsula with Ferdinand's invasion and absorption of Navarre into Aragon in 1512. This annexation transformed the geopolitics of the area once again, consolidating three kingdoms: Castile (with Granada), Aragon (with Navarre), and Portugal. These regions were independent of each other and run locally rather than by the Crown.

Charles I

Under their grandson, King Charles I of Spain (also Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor King in Germany and King of Italy), the two regions of Castile and Aragon united. Charles also had hopes of bringing Portugal under his reign and married the Portuguese princess Isabella of Portugal to produce an heir to the Spanish and Portuguese throne.

Fig. 5 - Portrait of Charles I, King of Spain, also Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, King in Germany and King of Italy

Religion

The population of the Iberian Peninsula consisted of Jews, Muslims, and Christians, who had lived in convivencia up until the late fifteenth century. However, the Catholic Monarchs brought religious honour with them into their reign. This evolved into the Spanish Inquisition, which forced many Muslims and Jews to convert or leave the peninsula. While many people still observed Islam and Judaism in secret, the dynamics of the peninsula changed. A large proportion of the Jewish and Muslim population emigrated from the region as a result of persecution but their legacies in the form of architecture, language and culture remain to this day.

How did Spain and Portugal’s relationship change?

The story of Spain and Portugal and their respective dynasties is similar to bickering siblings. You unite on issues that benefit both parties (for Castile and Portugal, the Reconquista) but argue viciously to maintain your respective spaces (i.e. the War of Castillian Succession). Although they are on the same peninsula and were eventually ruled by the same Crown, Spain and Portugal were two separate countries. Arguments over succession or maritime conflicts led to wars between the two during the early modern period.

The War of Castilian Succession

When Isabella I ascended to the throne in 1474, a plot to install Henry IV’s daughter as the rightful queen led to a war between Castile and Portugal. This was known as the War of Castilian Succession. The Catholic Monarchs achieved a great victory at the Battle of Toro in 1476, establishing Isabella as a strong leader and securing her position as Castile's Queen.

The war continued until 1479 with Castile winning on land and Portugal winning at sea. Whilst the win on land constituted a victory for the Catholic Monarchs, the Portuguese acquisition of the exclusive right to navigation in the Atlantic represented a major loss of potential wealth and power for Spain. Christopher Columbus’ discoveries later changed this situation.

Overseas expansion and the Treaty of Tordesillas

The expansion of the Iberian Peninsula’s ‘imperial’ borders occurred during the European Age of exploration. One of the most notable Iberian explorers, Christopher Columbus, travelled to the Americas thinking he had discovered a new commerce route with India and claimed the ‘discovery’ of the West Indies in 1492. Columbus insisted in many of his records that these areas were part of the Asian continent, hence the labelling of the ‘West Indies.’

Contrary to popular opinion, Columbus did not ‘discover’ the Americas neither did the other European explorers of the time. Columbus’ navigation to the Americas did define a virulent period of colonisation, conquest, enslavement, and empire that transformed the world and brought the Iberian Peninsula to the forefront of that global stage.

The Spanish laid claim to the islands they had ‘discovered’ as well as mainland South America with the Inter caetera of 1493, a papal bull that was issued to give Spaniards the right to these areas. As Portuguese sailors were also exploring these areas, the Spanish and Portuguese rulers decided that they needed a division of influence to prevent conflict between them.

The Treaty of Tordesillas was thus established in 1494. The treaty divided the territories between the two powers: the Portuguese received everything east of the Cape Verde Islands (giving them Africa, Asia, and part of Brazil) and Spain received anything west of this line (giving them control over the western part of the Americas and the Pacific Ocean islands). The treaty would be beneficial for Spain later in the sixteenth century with the discovery of Mexico and Peru as their part of the divided territories was actually bigger than what they had thought.

King Philip II

The death of King Sebastian of Portugal in 1578 triggered a succession crisis as he did not have an heir. Phillip II of Spain claimed the throne and António, Prior of Crato, was acclaimed King of Portugal across many cities. In the end, Philip was crowned on account of the considerable support base he had accrued.

Philip II marched into Portugal and defeated António's troops in the Battle of Alcântara. He then assumed the Portuguese throne in 1580 and was crowned Philip I of Portugal in 1581. This united Spain and Portugal under one crown, a unity that was continued by his successors.