Few things in history are more remarkable than the ease with which Spain, a country naturally fitted for defense, was subdued by a mere handful of invaders.  The misgovernment of the Visigoths, the internal factions and jealousies, and the discontent of numerous classes, notably the Jews, co-operated to facilitate the conquest and to weaken the power of resistance.  These conquerors were of the Mohammedan faith, but while they were united by religion, they were of different races.  Besides the Moors there were the Arabs, the Egyptians and the Syrians, and when the task of conquest was achieved, and the need for unity removed, quarrels arose between them.  So difficult was it to prevent these quarrels, that it was found necessary to subdivide the conquered territory, and to allot separate settlements to the different tribes.

During the period of Moorish domination a number of small independent kingdoms were formed in opposition to Moslem rule.  These comprised Castile, Leon, Navarre and Aragon, and sometimes separately, sometimes in combination, they were in constant war with the common enemy.  The age of the great crusades came, and all Christendom was absorbed in the struggle against the infidel, both in the East and West.  Spain, like Palestine, had its crusading orders, which vied with the Templars and the Hospitallers both in wealth and military distinction.  The decisive battle was fought in July, 1212, when the combined forces of Castile, Leon, Navarre, Aragon and Portugal met the Mohammedan army, and gained the most celebrated victory ever obtained by the Christians over their Moslem foes, the latter losing, according to the account transmitted to the pope, 100,000 killed and 50,000 prisoners.  The king of Grenada was speedily forced to become a vassal of Castile, and from this period all danger from Moorish rule was over.

Following this time until the different kingdoms became as one, there is nothing in their history deserving a detailed account.  The history of Spain as a united state dates from the union of Castile and Aragon by the marriage of Isabella and Ferdinand, the respective rulers of those kingdoms, in 1469.  Grenada, the last remaining possession of the Moors, fell before the Spanish forces in 1492, and Navarre was acquired in 1512.

Discoveries in America.

The year 1492, during the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella, witnessed the discovery of America.  Spain had become consolidated into one empire from the Pyrenees to the strait of Gibraltar, and civil wars were at an end.  Maritime exploration was the task of the age, and under the patronage of Isabella, Columbus planted the flag of Spain in the West Indies.  This grand achievement led to the opening of a splendid continent, teeming with riches, for Spanish adventure and despoliation.  In 1498, Columbus landed on the continent of South America, and in a few years the entire western coast was explored by subsequent adventurers.  In 1512, Ponce de Leon discovered Florida, and the following year, Balboa crossed the Isthmus of Darien, and gazed for the first time upon the Pacific.