Back to: Seville car hire
Back to: Spain car hire History of Sevilla, Seville's History
Seville's history is intimately linked to that of the river Guadalquivir
because from its most remote past the city has been both a river
port and bridge between the Atlantic Ocean and the hinterland
of Andalusia, nor should we forget that Seville has always been
the crossroads between the North- East and West of the Iberian
Peninsula. Even as far back as the beginnings of the first milenium
B.C. the area of Seville was destined to become the great market
place of the Guadalquivir Valley. The original Seville was born
where the river became no longer navigable for seagoing ships.
Archaeological excavations undertaken in La Cuesta del Rosario
confirm that the first permanent settlements date back to the
9th century.
In 206 B.C., after defeating the Carthaginians in Ilipa Magna
(Alcalá del Río), Scipio Africanus settled a contingent
of veteran soldiers in Itálica just outside Seville. This
Roman city is a must for anybody who wants to see for themselves
how highly advanced the region surrounding the river Guadalquivir
was during the Roman occupation. Itálica, birthplace of
the Emperors Trajan and Hadrian, reached its apogée between
the second and fourth century A.D. Among its many public buildings
the Amphitheatre, with a seating capacity of 25,000, is the jewel
in Itálica's crown. Also of great interest are its porticoed
streets which protected the inhabitants from the elements. Itálica
offers exceptional examples of domestic architecture such as De
Exedra, Los Pájaros or Hylas, three houses which boast
splendid mosaics. However, the majority of Italica's most important
archaeological treasures are now in the city of Seville, either
in the Archaeological Museum in El Parque de María Luisa
Park or in La Casa de la Condesa de Lebrija mansion in calle Cuna.
Although Hispalis (Roman Seville) was being rebuilt after its
being pillaged by the Carthaginians at the end of the third century
B.C., the name of Hispalis only appeared for the first time in
the official Roman history in 49 B.C., five years before Julius
Caesar granted it the status of colony to celebrate his victory
over Pompey. Such is the reality behind the myth of Caesar´s
founding the city. Even today the outlay of Seville city centres
streets belie their Roman origins. What was the Eastern part of
Decumanus Maximus is modern-day Calle Aguilas, while the Northern
section of Cardus Maximus coincides with Calle Alhondiga. This
leads us to conclude that what is today La Plaza del Alfalfa,
at the junction of these two streets may possibly have the Imperial
Forum while ther nearby Plaza del Salvador was probably the site
of the Curia and Basilica.
By the end of Imperial Rome, Hispalis was the eleventh most important
city in the Roman world and was even the centre of Christian activity
in the Iberian Peninsula, far above its rivals such as Mérida
and Astorga. In 287 A.D.. two potter girls, Justa and Rufina achieved
martyrdom for their repeated refusal to adore a graven image of
the god Salambó. As joint patron saints of Seville, they
have been immortalised by the painters Murillo, whose painting
is in the Fine Arts Museum, and Goya, whose canvas hangs in the
cathedral. In 411 A.D. Baetis, the Roman province roughly equivalent
to Andalusia and Murcia, was conquered by the Silingian Vandals
and in 426 Seville was taken by the Vandal king Gonderic who according
to popular myth was killed by a thunderbolt after profaning the
Basilica which had contained the relics of St. Vincent since the
reign of Emperor Constantine I in the previous century. The Barbarian
hosts left the province in 429 for Tunisia in search of new conquests
and plunder, only to be replaced by the Suevi who also temporarily
occupied the city.
The Visigoth occupation of Seville, which roughly coincided with
the reign of Emperor Justinian (527-565 A.D.) in Constantinople,
had much more far-reaching consequences than those of the Vandals
and Suevi. Having originally settled in what is now Galicia, the
Visigoths took control of most of Hispania. It is speculated that
during this period, Seville was witness to the murder of two kings,
Teudis and Teudiselus, but the event which shook the Visigoth
world to its foundations was a civil war between two religious
factions. Prince Hermenegild, a recent convert to Catholicism,
led and uprising against his father Leovigild who, like most Visigoths,
was an Arian Christian. After beseiging and taking Seville, Leovigild
took his son prisoner in Córdoba. Hermenegild was banished
to Valencia where he was later murdered by order of Leovigild.
The above is what factual history tells us, yet after centuries
the myth persists that Hermenegild was imprisoned and murdered
in a fortified tower near Puerta de Córdoba, one of Seville's
city gates, in 584. Indeed a marble plaque on the tower still
reminds the passer-by of the myth, the inscription of which in
English would be thus: "Venerate all ye who pass this place
for it was considerated by the blood of Hermenegild, King".
With the death of Leovigild, his other son Recared, converted
to Catholicism in 589, brought religious and political unity to
the Visigoths. Culturally, Seville basked in the intellectual
light of Leander (Leandro) and Isidore (Isidoro), bothers, bishops
and ultimately saints. Isidore's "Etymologies" was in
its time regarded as the repositary of all the knowledge of Antiquity
and Isidore himself was universally celebrated as "Pride
of Spain and Doctor of wisdom applauded by all nations".
In fact, one of
Seville's oldest parish churches wich has recently been restored
is dedicated to Isidore, while both he and Leander were subjects
for several canvasses by Murillo.
During its five hundred years of occupation by the Moors, Seville
was of prime importance, both culturally and politically. In 712
following the siege and conquest of the city (by Musa b. Nusayr
in 712) its Roman name, Hispalis, was changed to the Arabic Isbilya.
During the eigth and ninth centuries people of many different
Arab nations settled in Seville. One of the mos numerous contingents
to settle in Seville were the Yemenis who were responsible of
many uprisings and disturbances during Abs Al Rahman I's emirate
(756-788), besides their continuous struggle against the Ommiad
dynasty in Córdoba which had been capital of Al-Andalus
since 716.
The tranquility enjoyed in Al-Andalus during the emirates of
Hassim I (788-796) and Al Hakam I (796-822) was shattered following
the Norman invasion of 844 during the reign of Abd-Al-Rahman II
(822-852). Isbilya was saved by troops from Córdoba after
one and a half years of sacking and pillaging throughout the whole
region. Fifteen years before the arrival of the Normans, Ibn Adabbas
had completed Isbilya's principal mosque on a site now occupied
by the Baroque parish church of Divino Salvador. Visitors to this
church can still admire the mosque's sahn, or orangerie and the
base of its minaret. The area around the mosque with its narrow
winding streets was dedicated to silk trading. Although the silk
traders and their premises are long gone, the buildings which
have taken their place, follow their sinous street plan as can
be seen in the streets between la Plaza del Pan, la Plaza del
Alfalfa and La Plaza de la Encarnación.
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