Roman Hispania: Conquest, Society, and Culture

Roman Hispania: Conquest and Influence

The Romans dominated the Italian peninsula and aimed to control Mediterranean trade and create a vast empire. Their main rivals, the Carthaginians, were established in the Iberian Peninsula. To dominate the peninsula, the Romans landed in Emporion in 218 BC. The Roman conquest of the peninsula lasted 200 years and was conducted in three stages:

Mediterranean Coast

The Romans defeated the Carthaginians. The Iberian peoples did not offer resistance.

The Plateau

Its conquest was longer. Indigenous peoples offered greater resistance.

Cantabrian Coast

The geography and the fierceness of its inhabitants (the Celts) made it difficult to conquer.

Roman Cities and Society

Roman City Characteristics:

• Walled
• Grid layout
• Forum in the center (a large square)
• Public baths (Termas)
• Theater
• Amphitheater
• Circus
• Triumphal arch
• Aqueduct

Roman Properties:

• Domus: Properties of the wealthy
• Insulae: Houses of the poor
• Villas: Countryside estates

Urban Activities: Cities were the centers of social, economic, and cultural life in the Roman world.

Roman Society:

• Free People:
  • Rich: Owned large amounts of land and large businesses.
  • Poor: Possessed little land or small businesses.
• Slaves: Had no possessions or freedom. Owned by another person, they worked in mines, domestic service, or as gladiators.

Religion: Romans were polytheistic, worshiping many gods, including Juno, Minerva, and Jupiter. They also worshiped Lares, the household gods. They were superstitious. Eventually, Christianity appeared and was declared the official religion of the Roman Empire.

Romanization of Iberia

Romanization is the name given to the process of assimilation of Roman civilization, ideas, and customs after the conquest of Iberia by Rome.

Pre-Roman Peoples of Iberia

Celts

Inhabited the north and center of the peninsula. They lived in walled towns with circular houses called forts. They were ranchers, farmers (cereals), and practiced metallurgy and ceramics. They did not know writing or currency.

Iberians

Lived on the Mediterranean coast and the south of the peninsula. They were farmers and lived in high-walled settlements. They knew iron and were skilled manufacturers of ceramics, gold, and weapons. They knew currency and writing. They spread the use of the plow and introduced the vine and olive. In the first millennium BC, the current Valencian Community was inhabited by various Iberian peoples: Ilercavones in the north, Edetanos in the center, and Contestanos south of the Xúquer River. The most representative work of Iberian art is the Lady of Elche.

Colonizing Peoples

Phoenicians

Came from North Africa and established themselves in the south of the peninsula, interested in its mineral wealth. They reached the Mediterranean coast in the 7th century BC and traded with the Iberians.

Greeks

In the 6th century BC, Greek traders arrived on the Mediterranean coast and traded with the Iberians. Their most important city was Hemeroskopeion.

Carthaginians

Phoenicians and Greeks traveled to the Mediterranean coast in the 6th century BC. The Carthaginians and Romans fought over the territory of the Valencian Community. The capital cities of the Carthaginians were Carthage and Ebusus.