Entry 1: Introduction
For the most part, entries under this category will consist of recordings of reactions to readings, lectures, and other materials for each week of course HIST3714: Medieval Spain, taught at the UofM Twin Cities campus.
I've only recently come to realize how little attention my studies of Medieval History have paid to Spain. That is not to say that I've covered in depth all other regions, peoples, and trends, just that, upon reflection, it is evident that my knowledge of the Iberian Peninsula from the distant past to recent history is rather dismal... This, as I was relived to learn in class, is par for the course. The peninsula, I am told, does not follow the patterns of crusading and conquering that the greater western culture engages in. Though, from last semester's study of Medieval Art, it does seem to have some continuity in architectural style (I have in mind Santiago de Compastela).
Studying the geography of Spain does shed some light on the reasons for habitually glossing over its history. Such varied terrain is sure to provoke little in the way of united sentiment - after all, when one lives in snow-capped mountains, one can hardly expect arid desert-dwellers to share the same concerns, let alone daily experiences. One can easily imagine how, in a time in which the resources of the land were all there was to be had, such varied regions would even have different gods, not as a matter of rebellion or conflict, but simply as a result of praying for water or praying for warmth.