Kingdoms of Asturias, León, Aragón, and Navarre: A History of Medieval Spain

Kingdom of Asturias

Pelayo defeated the Muslims in the Battle of Covadonga in 722, marking the start of the Christian Reconquest of Al-Andalus. Under Pelayo's successors, Oviedo became the capital. Alfonso III advanced the territory due to conflicts in the Emirate of Córdoba. In the 10th century, the capital moved to León.

Kingdom of León

Fernán González established his authority over all of Castile but was a vassal of the King of León. Fernando I became king in Castile in 1035 and in 1037, he became king of León. In 1157, the kingdom split again: Fernando II ruled León and Alfonso VIII ruled Castile. Fernando III inherited León in 1230 and in 1217, he inherited Castile.

Crown of Castile

The Crown of Castile had the same institutions and laws as the Kingdom of León. It had a monarch, a parliament, noblemen, clergy, and representatives of cities. The royal council advised the king, while the high court held judicial authority. The council was the main governing body, and the mayor acted as the chief magistrate, representing the king in cities and performing judicial and military functions.

Transhumance in Extremadura and Andalusia

After Castile conquered Extremadura and Andalusia, transhumance developed on a large scale. In summer, sheep owners moved to northern Castile, and in winter, they moved to the south along routes called cañadas. In 1273, the sheep owners united in an association called Mesta. This period saw a boom in trade and artisan activity due to the wool of merino sheep and the establishment of trade fairs.

Kingdoms in the Pyrenees

The Kingdoms in the Pyrenees broke away from the Carolingian Empire after Charlemagne established a defensive frontier called the Hispanic March in the 9th century. Aragón, Sobrarbe, and Ribagorza were no longer under Carolingian control. Aznar Galíndez rose to power in Aragón in 820. The Catalan counties also gained independence.

Kingdom of Navarre

Íñigo Arista declared himself King of Pamplona, which later expanded into the Kingdom of Navarre. After the death of Sancho III, the kingdom was divided among his sons: García Sánchez ruled Navarre, Fernando I ruled Castile, Ramiro I ruled Aragón, and Gonzalo ruled Sobrarbe and Ribagorza. The last king of Navarre was Sancho VII the Strong, and in 1512, Navarre was conquered by Fernando the Catholic.

Kingdom of Aragón

The Kingdom of Aragón included Aragón and Navarre until 1134. In 1137, Ramón Berenguer IV married Petronilla of Aragón, leading to the creation of the Crown of Aragón. The federation of states included the Catalan counties, the Kingdom of Aragón, Valencia, and Mallorca. Each territory had its own parliament, and the king was at the head of all institutions. The economy varied across the territories, with Aragón being primarily rural, Catalonia developing a manufacturing industry, and Valencia serving as an important trading center.

Al-Andalus

Musa, a Muslim ruler from North Africa, led the conquest of most of the Iberian Peninsula in 711, establishing Al-Andalus with Córdoba as its capital. Al-Andalus was initially dependent on the Umayyad caliphate in Damascus. In the 8th century, Abd al-Rahman escaped to the Iberian Peninsula and founded the independent Emirate of Córdoba. Abd al-Rahman III later established the Caliphate of Córdoba. After the Caliphate ended in 1031, Al-Andalus fragmented into taifas. Christians gradually conquered the peninsula, with the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada being the last Muslim stronghold. Granada was eventually conquered by the Catholic Monarchs in 1492.