Al-Andalus and the Hispanic Christian Kingdoms

• Unit 4: Al-Andalus and the Hispanic Christian Kingdoms*

Index

• The chapter covers the conquest of Al-Andalus to the caliphate
• Life, culture, and art in Al-Andalus
• Sharq al-Andalus
• Reconquest and repopulation
• The Crown of Castile and Aragon
• The Kingdom of Valencia
• African Consonants, G/J/TG/TJ/IG/X/TX
• Narrative texts

The Conquest of Al-Andalus to the Caliphate

• In 711, the Visigothic kingdom was at war (Roderic vs. Akhila)
• Akhila asked for help from the Muslims of North Africa and defeated Roderic at the Battle of Guadalete
• Toledo was conquered in 713
• The Muslims quickly occupied almost the entire Peninsula but abandoned the northern lands due to the cold climate
• The new territory was called Al-Andalus, and its capital was established in Córdoba
• Al-Andalus was initially organized as an emirate dependent on the caliphate of Damascus, headed by the emir or governor
• In 756, Abd al-Rahman proclaimed himself independent emir of Córdoba
• This first stage of Al-Andalus was complicated due to internal revolts and military incursions by the Franks and Christians from the north
• In 912, Abd al-Rahman III inherited the throne
• Victories in battles gave him great authority, and in 929, he proclaimed himself caliph, also becoming the maximum religious authority of the caliphate in addition to running the government
• The hajib or prime minister and the viziers helped him run the Kingdom
• Valís governed the provinces and border regions of Zaragoza, Toledo, and Mérida
• In 976, Hisham II acceded to the title of caliph at the age of eleven
• General Almansor assumed the government, launching looting campaigns or razzias against the northern Christian kingdoms
• The caliphate of Córdoba was the most brilliant period of Andalusian history

Life, Culture, and Art in Al-Andalus

• Al-Andalus had a heterogeneous society
• The most powerful group was the conquerors and their descendants, a minority that was Arab
• They received land and government positions
• The conquerors of Berber origin held a lower position
• The rest of the population was organized by religious criteria
• Muladíes were ancient Christians who adopted the religion, language, and customs of Islam
• Mozárabs were Christians who continued to practice their religion and paid taxes
• The jews were a very economically active minority, who lived in separate neighborhoods called calls
• Women subjected to a father or husband's authority
• There also enslaved people
• Most economic activity was in agriculture where they grew cereals, vineyards, olive trees, and fruit trees
• High quality craftsmanship was developed in the cities, with ceramics being the standout
• Al-Andalus was also an active commercial center
• Two currencies were used: the dinar (gold) and the dirham (silver)
• A splendid culture developed influenced by economic prosperity and some intellectual tolerance
• Hispanic-Muslim architects built with poor materials covered in abundant decoration
• Islam prohibits the representation of people and animals, so geometric and plant motifs, and inscriptions with verses from the Qur'an were used
• The buildings used columns and pillars that held up various types of arches (pointed, horseshoe, polylobulated...)

Xarq al-Andalus

• In 713, Abd al-Aziz arrived with his troops in Valencian and Murcian lands
• These lands were called Xarq al-Andalus (peninsular east)
• The Visigothic nobility agreed to surrender through a capitulation treaty
• They accepted the new Muslim power and the payment of an annual tax in exchange for maintaining their possessions and religion
• Gradually, the lands became Islamized
• Most Christians remained in small farmhouses, converted to Islam, and received the name muladís
• In 1031, al-Andalus was fragmented into petty kingdoms or taifas
• Valencian territory was divided into three: the taifa of Denia, Valencia, and Alpont
• It was a century of economic and cultural splendor and urban development
• Tensions increased towards the century's end, and the Muslim rulers turned to Christian mercenaries for defence in exchange for payments or taxes

El Almoravids and the Almohads

• In 1086, the Almoravids arrived and imposed a single administration with its center in Valencia
• Instability continued because of the presence of Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (El Cid Campeador), who managed to control much of the territory from 1091 to 1099
• The Almohads built many fortifications and increased communication paths and crops

The Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa

• After the defeat at the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa (1212), prolonged droughts, famine, and plagues triggered an economic crisis
• All these factors facilitated King Jaume I of Aragón's conquest of the territories that today form the Community
• In 1238, he took the city of Valencia, ending the Islamic era in Valencian lands

Economic Splendor

• The Muslims developed hydraulic sènies, cisterns, ditches, and other infrastructure to expand irrigation
• The sènies transported water from the Turia River to the Horta
• The Tribunal de las Aguas was created in the 10th Century to mediate irrigation disputes between farmers
• Craft production grew as well , for example they started making flax and silk (Ontinyent and Elx); esparto grass products (south of Alicante); naval products (Dénia); paper with rice residues (Xàtiva); ceramics (Manises), books and dyes (Valencia)
• Trade was intense
• Cities were reactivated, and maritime circulation intensified

The Tribunal de las Aguas

• The Tribunal de las Aquas used water from the Sequia Real de Montcada
• Since October 2009, the Tribunal de las Aquas has been a World Heritage site
• The exact origin is unknown, but it probably evolved from the ancient Islamic system

Reconquest and Repopulation

• The Christian kings began a process of southward expansion, known as the Reconquista which was slow and had several stages
• The advance to the Duero (9th-10th centuries) was not military, but groups of peasants colonized lands and formed small towns
• The conquest of the valleys of the Tajo and the Ebro (1301 onwards) took advantage of the weakness of the taifas to advance in expansion
• The conquest of the Guadalquivir valley, Levant, and Balearic Islands happened later
• In 1212, all the Christian kings joined in the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa against the Muslims, which facilitated the Reconquista

Repopulating Conquered Areas

• To secure conquered territories, it was necessary to repopulate them
• Until the 11th century, the territories were organized into districts formed by a town that acted as capital and many villages that depended on it
• To attract settlers, municipal charters or furs were granted (documents giving a series of privileges) where the inhabitants were free peasants.
• From the 11th century, extensive territories that were scarcely populated were conquered
• Given the difficulty of repopulation, the kings divided the lands into large latifundios and handed them over to noble families, the Church, or military orders (monk-soldiers)

The Crown of Castile

• The king was the highest authority
  • He made decisions, His court was itinerant, and the advisors traveled to where the king was
  • He directed the army, which was united by vassalage to the king
• The agricultural sector was very underdeveloped, and the economy virtually vanished
• Royal Council
  • Advised the King
  • Hisenda
    • Managed all the money of the Spanish Crown
    • The Audiencia took charge of legal matters
• Cortes
  • Subordinate to the royal power and advised the Kin

The Concell

This was Castile's most important municipal administration who initially included everyone, though the government relied on regidors. The office was life long, and together with aldermen, they composed a council. The nobles ended up controlling these, and at the end of the 14th century councils were instituted by the crown

The Economy of Castile

• Agriculture and livestock were the main activities
• The climate favoured Merino sheep breeding of high quality
• Nobles of orders like the Knights military orders are very wealthy
• These animal owners met in assemblies named meestes
• Alfonso X recognised Honrado and bestowed orders and privileges
• Wool sales had been very beneficial

The Crown At Crisis

Bad harvests hit Castile, and the population diminished. Because of this, they blamed the plague epidemics and many revolts ensued. In the 14th century, King Enrique gained power, which led to political instability. During the rule of King Enrique and later, Gibraltar and the Canary Islands were acquired

The Crown of Aragon

• It consisted of the regions Tarragona and Valenica
• Each were allowed to maintain customs due to Dynastic rule
• Parliament and legal institutions kept an eye on the Kings
  • The institutions in each region were the Generalitat and the Dipitacio
  • Aragon, Valencia, and Catolonia were governed by jurats, and the Alacade
  • Each region maintained its culture

The Economy of The Crown of Aragon

• The land was mostly farm land where they grew all types of crop
• This region also managed commercial realtions across Europe with commercial delegation
• The Catalan city of Consulat controlled who was assigned the position
• Manufacturing included mineral goods and naval construction

The Spanish Kingdoms

• The kingdom expanded to the mediteranean due to the conquest of Sicily, Sardinia and Naples

The Decline of the Crown

• The states in Aragon chose Ferran as the king
• Peasents revolted against nobles
• Barcelona had civil war, which led to civil war, and king Joan defeated Barcelona in 1472

The Kingdom of Valencia

• The weakness of the Valencian kingdoms allowed for Jaime to conquer
• To prevent more arguments from breaking out, an agreement was signed and then re-signed

Valencia Institutions

• An autonomous kingdom was created that governed land
• The generalitat secured the order of internal areas
• El Rei: - He had several powers given to the virrei and the Batlle general

Economic Prosperity of Valencia

• Valencia entered an era of prosperity due to the production
  • Industry like Naval and textile production
  • The kingdom was involved in commerce, and trade in Northern Africa
• Valencia opened banking institutes like Taula and Canvis

The Three Cultures

• Valencia had 3 different cultures amongst it at the time
  • All the Christians were dominant
  • The jews were a finance minority
    • The Musljims were in change of taxes

consonants africades

• Consonants that articulate in 2 instances
  • In which at the start has no sounds from outside
    • The buccal have no sounds from outside
      • These sounds palatar
        • African sounds can be palatar and sorror
          • Each has to have the right pronouciation

Use of J G and African lettering

• Its common lettering has similar pronunciation
• But for each letter there are 2 types
  • For exmaple you could read Jeia But instead, "yeem"

Use of x, ig, tx

• All will make similar sounds
• It is common when referring to palatar areas of language
• To find out when reading you have to be aware of origin

ELLS TEXTOS Narratius

Final text for the narratius for narrar