Module Information

The period between the eighth and the fifteenth centuries saw the transformation of the Iberian peninsula. Beginning with the Muslim invasion of Visigothic Spain in the eighth century, this module examines the various influences which shaped the rival kingdoms during the centuries of Muslim rule, Christian Reconquista and beyond, until the marriage of Isabela la Catolica of Castile and Fernando of Aragon in 1469 united these two kingdoms, resulting in the formation of a unified, powerful and confident Spain, which had its eyes set on discovery and empire building. The issue of changing religious and political superiority was a constant theme in medieval Iberia, and one which had a profound impact on Iberian society and culture, as did contacts with the rest of western Christendom and indeed beyond, in the steadily expanding Spanish empire. This will be explored in some depth in this module, using a wide range of primary source material, including the thirteenth-century texts The Poem of the Cid and The Book of Deeds of James I of Aragon (in translation).

This module introduces students to one of the most eventful regions of medieval Europe. It traces the development of the various competing kingdoms of medieval Iberia and their formation into what were eventually to become the kingdoms of Castile and Leon, Navarre, Aragon and Portugal. The history of the Iberian kingdoms will be assessed in a wider socio-economic, political and religious context by making extensive use of the abundant chronicle and other primary source material available in translation.