Visigothic Spain

5th century-8th century

The Visigothic's started out as a Germanic tribe who were displaced in the year 376 by the Huns. They shocked the major empires by defeating the Romans in 410 and established themselves in Iberia in 415. After getting defeated by the Franks they moved their capital to Toledo, and soon took over the entire Peninsula.

While they started out as Arian christian they would convert Catholicism at the Third Council of Toledo in 589. The cities of Toledo and Seville would become the center of the visigothic kingdom.

While the Moorish people were tolerant, the Visigothic's would not be especially to the Jewish people living in the region. In 586 the kings would establish the Visigothic codes that brought about anti-jewish policies. Each ruler interpreted the codes differently, with some rulers in the 7th century forcing Jews to be baptized or be exiled.

The Visigoths would control most of the peninsula until 711, when the Moorish people would defeat them. They became decentralized, and had lack of division within the kingdom and civil wars between leaders made the kingdom very easy to overpower.

The most famous Visigoth thinker would be Isidore of Seville who would write Etymologiae which would try to preserve the heritage of the ancient world. He wanted to be able to explain the world and why things happen.

Front of the Cathedral of Seville

Photo Credit - Grace Pence July 2018

Visigothic Kingdom 419-555 AD

Citations

"VISIGOTHIC SPAIN." In Other Voices: Readings in Spanish Philosophy, edited by WELCH JOHN R., 45-54. Notre Dame, Indiana: University of Notre Dame Press, 2010. Accessed May 3, 2020. www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctvpj7bcw.5

“The Jews of Spain and Visigothic Code.” Internet History Sourcebooks Project. Accessed May 3, 2020. https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/jewish/jews-visigothic1.asp.

The Western Mediterranean: The Visigoth and Vandal Kingdom. 2020. Map Archive. https://www.themaparchive.com/the-western-mediterranean-the-visigoth-and-vandal-kingdoms-419555.html.

The Influence of Visigothic Spain

With all three of the major religions in Spain, the Visigoth influence is seen as the most predominant.

The anti-Jewish sentiment would still be prominent as King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella would expel the Jews during the Reconquista.

Even though their leaders were overthrown by the Islamic state, Catholicism is still the predominate religion in Spain today.

The Visigoth influence can still be seen in architecture that has a mix of Roman and Byzantine influence from their time as a Germanic tribe and time spent with the Romans.