Prehistory to Romanization: A Concise History of the Iberian Peninsula
Prehistory (2 Million – 1000 BC)
Known only through remnants, prehistory is a function of man and culture. It encompasses several stages:
Palaeolithic
Characterized by the use of stones, the evolution of man, a nomadic lifestyle, the beginning of language, and a lithic industry. Divided into:
- Lower Palaeolithic (2 Million – 100,000 BC): Atapuerca findings. Upright walking, manual dexterity, adaptation to the environment. Homo habilis and Homo erectus.
- Middle Palaeolithic: Homo sapiens. Use of caves, development of language, upright walking, shrines, fire, and spears.
- Upper Palaeolithic: Homo sapiens sapiens. Communication, semi-permanent cave dwelling, magical-religious activities (cave paintings), advanced lithic technology, hierarchical groups, and the emergence of art.
Mesolithic (from 10,000 BC)
Levantine art, possible early agriculture, semi-nomadic lifestyle. Paintings may indicate territorial limits.
Neolithic (5000 – 3000 BC)
Economic revolution with the practice of agriculture in the East (Tigris and Euphrates), animal breeding, the creation of small towns exceeding family units, and the first forms of political states. The first social divisions appear, along with necropolises where individuals are buried with belongings reflecting their status.
Copper Age (3000 – 1000 BC)
The AlmerÃa culture (metallurgist and megalithic) emerges, driven by the arrival of civilizations seeking tin for bronze.
Metal Age
- Bronze Age: The El Argar culture.
- Iron Age: Arrival of the first colonists, the Phoenicians and Greeks. In 1100 BC, the Phoenicians founded Cadiz, and the Greeks established cities along the Mediterranean coast. The Phoenicians encountered the Tartessian civilization in the south, with a king, economy, and culture. The Greeks interacted with less developed settlements in northern Spain.
Romanization
Romanization involved the establishment of an administrative-political structure (territorial division), political offices (censors), and an economic structure based on agriculture, cities as centers of production and consumption, and a transport and communication system. Roman society replaced pre-Roman cultures, although indigenous cultures survived in some areas (e.g., the North). The social structure was a complex system of control with legal diversity. Society was divided into:
- Free and Slaves: Slaves were the main workforce with no rights, but could be freed by their owners.
- Ordines (Senators): The elite of society with the best legal status (tax-exempt), privileges (exemption from judgment, political positions), wealth, and family importance.
- Plebs: Middle groups (artisans, merchants) who worked in cities and paid taxes, and servants working for a lord, but not slaves.
The family was very important in Roman society. The father was the head of the household, with legal authority over his children, conveying ideology. Questioning the emperor was equivalent to questioning the family or the cult of the emperor, which guaranteed the order of Roman society.
The Church emerged as a critical social force, challenging the social structure of Rome by denying the emperor’s cult, the social division between rich and poor, praising poverty and work, and proclaiming one God. This ideology was quickly adopted by slaves and led to persecution by the emperor. By the 2nd century, the Church had become a significant social force.