The Reconquista: Historical Debates and Interpretations

The Term "Reconquista": Historiography and Tradition

Evolution of the Reconquista (790-1300)

According to some scholars^[1], the term is historically inaccurate, since the Christian kingdoms that "recaptured" the mainland were established after the Islamic invasion. This contradicts attempts by some of these monarchies to present themselves as direct descendants of the ancient Visigothic Kingdom. Instead, it suggests a desire for political legitimacy, with these kingdoms considering themselves true heirs and descendants of the Visigoths, and an attempt by Christian kingdoms (particularly Castile) to justify their conquests by claiming a bloodline to the Goths.

The term also appears confusing, especially considering that after the collapse of the Caliphate in the early eleventh century, Christian kingdoms often opted for a tax policy of dominion (known as parias) over the Taifas, rather than clear expansion southward. Furthermore, internal conflicts between different crowns and dynastic struggles meant that partnership agreements against Muslims were only reached at specific times.

However, the early reaction on the Cantabrian coast against Islam—for instance, Don Pelayo repulsed the Saracens in Covadonga just seven years after they crossed the Straits of Gibraltar—and the rejection of their presence in French territory after the Battle of Poitiers in 732, may support the idea that the Reconquista followed almost immediately after the Arab conquest. Moreover, "much of the Cantabrian coast was never to be conquered"^{[citation needed]}. This justifies the idea that the Arab conquest (very short) and the Christian Reconquista (very long), despite their different durations, overlap significantly. Thus, they could be considered a single historical period, especially given that the Battle of Guadalete in 711, the first battle to defend the Visigothic Kingdom, marks the beginning of the Muslim invasion.

During the Golden Age, poets defined and referred to Spaniards as "Goths" (as Lope de Vega famously stated: "Eah, blood of the Goths"^{[citation needed]}). This identification was also well-known by American patriots during the wars of independence (hence its use in the Canary Islands to refer to the Spanish mainland). Critics argue that the term "Reconquista" is a partial concept, as it primarily transmits the Christian and European vision of this complex historical process, bypassing the perspective of Muslim Andalusians. Conversely, it can be argued that on the Christian side, there was indeed an awareness of "reconquest."

Other historians, such as Ignacio Olaguë Videla in The Islamic Revolution in the West (1974), believe that the military invasion