The Glorious History of Catalonia
The history of Catalonia originates in the Mediterranean coast of the Iberian Peninsula, when the region was colonized by Ancient Greeks. Both Greeks and Carthaginians intermingled with the main Iberian substratum. Once the Carthaginian were defeated by Rome, it became, along with the rest of Hispania, part of the Roman Empire. Read on to know more about the history of Catalonia Spain.
In 800, Charlemagne's troops extorted parts of Catalonia region today from the Muslims of the Iberian Peninsula. Thus the Catalan nation was founded. The Spanish March was set up by the , including counties of Gerona, Ampurias, Barcelona-Ausona and Urgel-Sardagne. This beach head of the Carolingian Empire continued to expand and grow as pre the history of Catalonia. Eventually, it became an independent nation late in the 9th Century and developed its own identity.
It was during the reign of King Jaime I (1208-1276) that the great territorial expansion of Catalonia took place. The Catalan sovereignty was extended to Valencia and Majorca. This is the reason why King Jaume I is honored as the creator of the Catalan state. Shortly afterwards Catalonia urbanized a true maritime empire in the Mediterranean which included Naples, Sicily, Sardinia and the Greek counties of Athens and Neopatria.
After the dynastic union of the kingdoms of Castile and Aragon, Catalonia continued to exist as a state until the sovereignty of King Philip V. Valencia was defeated in the War of the Spanish Succession in 1707 and so was Catalonia in 1714 as the history of Catalonia reveals.
As a stir to these defeats, the new king did away with the sovereignty and the customary laws and privileges of Catalonia. He also tried to force Castilian language and customs. This state of affairs continued to exist until the formation of the Catalan Commonwealth early in the 20th Century. In 1931, the Generalitat or the national Catalan government was restored, followed by its rebirth in 1977, after the pause of the Franco dictatorship. We hope you found this brief history of Catalonia informative.
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