Quick review of Spanish History

Quick, basic, overly simplified review of Spanish history:

1. Romans (1^st century though 4^th century)

2. Muslims (~5^th century, more in the south of Spain than in the north, where there were christian kingdoms)

3. Christians (They took the last Muslim city, Granada, in 1492, and united Spain under one crown instead of the several small kingdoms that there had been before)

There's a lot more to it, but understanding those three influences really helps in understanding why the country is the way it is. For example, if you look at a map of Sevilla, it has the completely disorganized mesh of streets that (for example) Cairo has, because it was originally founded by the moors. The mudejar style, a mix of arab and christian styles, is something you see quite a lot, even in buildings that are quite new. Keep in mind here that when referring to Spanish stuff, I'm using “Muslim” and “Arab” pretty much interchangeably, because in Spain (at least when talking about the past) they're synonymous.