2. THE MIDDLE AGES
The Middle Ages began in 476 A.D. when the Roman
Empire ended.
During the Middle Ages, Spain
didn`t exist.
In the North, there were
Christian kingdoms.
In the South, there was a
Muslim state called Al-Andalus.
3. 1. The Visigoths (507 – 711 A.D.)
2. Al- Andalus (711 A.D. – 1492)
3. The Christian kingdoms (711 A.D. – 1492)
4. 1. THE VISIGOTHS (507 – 711 )
The Visigoths were an important Germanic tribe.
They came to Roman Hispania in the 5th
century.
At first, they helped the Romans fight other
Germanic tribes.
In 507 A.D. the Visigoths established the
Kingdom of Toledo. It was the end of Roman
Hispania.
5. VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TG9hu5vr9uY
1. THE VISIGOTHS (507 – 711 )
GOVERNMENT
The king made the
laws.
Sometimes he had
meetings with the
nobles and bishop.
(Council of Toledo)
RELIGION
King Recaredo
converted to
Catholicism and built
small stone churches.
CULTURE
The Visigoths learned
to speak Latin and
adopted Roman laws.
ECONOMY
Most Visigoths were
farmers and they
lived in the
countryside.
6. 2. AL – ANDALUS (711-1492)
In 711, Muslims conquered the Visigothic
Kingdom of Toledo after the Battle of Guadalete.
It became a new Muslim territory called Al-
Andalus.
Video:https://www.youtube.co
m/watch?v=q7-
gGNvnBuw
7. Who were the Muslims?
The Muslims were the followers of Islam. Their
prophet is Mohammed. They believe in Allah
and their sacred book is the Koran.
The Muslims empire was called caliphate and it
was ruled by the caliph. Al-Andalus became
part of the caliphate.
8. Government in al-Andalus
The emirate was part of the
caliphate and the capital
was Córdoba. It was
governed by an emir.
An emir called
Abderramán III declared
that al-Andalus was an
independent caliphate.
He established the
Córdoba Caliphate.
There was a political crisis.
Cordoba Caliphate was
divided into small kingdoms
called taifa kingdoms. They
fought against each others.
The Kingdom of Granada
was the only remaining taifa
kingdom.
9. Life in al-Andalus
Most people were farmers. Agriculture was the
most important economic activity. There were
also artisans in the towns and cities. Merchants
sold the products made by the artisans in the
souk.
10. Life in al-Andalus
The alcazaba was a
fortress. The governor of
the city lived in the
alcazaba.
Mosques were
important buildings in
the city. Muslims built
the Great Mosque in
Córdoba.
11. Muslims, Jews and Christians lived in peaceful
coexistence in al-Andalus.
The Muslims didn`t consider non-Muslims to be
equal but they gave them some rights.
-
Life in al-Andalus
- They could live where
they wanted
- They could practise their
religion.
- They could do any job.
- They couldn`t have
authority over a Muslim.
- They couldn´t carry
weapons.
- They had to pay special
taxes.
- They had to obey Muslim
law.
- They had to wear a special
badge.
12. People spoke Arabic. Many Spanish words
come from Arabic.
Life in al-Andalus
13. 3. THE CHRISTIAN KINGDOMS
When Muslims created Al-Andalus, many
Christians moved to the mountains in the North.
In 722 A.D. the Battle of Covadonga took
place between Christians and Muslims.
Don Pelayo was the leader of the Christians
and established the Kingdom of Asturias.
14. The Christians
Society was divided into 3 groups: the clergy,
nobles and peasant. Most people were
peasant and they lived in the countryside. There
weren`t many big cities.
Priests and monks were very important
people.
Each area was ruled by a noble that was called
the lord.
Each kingdom had its own language similar to
Latin.
15. The Christians built many religious buildings
that we can still see today, such as churches
and monasteries. There were two main styles
for architecture in the Middle Ages.
Romanesque Gothic
The Christians
