Customer Reviews

The Story of Spain: The Dramatic History of Europe's Most Fascinating Country

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

This engagingly written survey History of Spain hits the spot. Williams has a lot of material and a heck of a lot of conflict to cover, and he does it well. He starts in pre-history and is about as detailed as you can get for a survey. I had never heard of the Tartessos (the earliest Iberians) and the Guanches (a tribe that dominated the Balearic Islands in ancient times) before. Williams covers the Roman empire and the influence of the Punic Wars. Barcelona was named after the royal family that included Hannibal, for example. He also explains the birth of Christianity, adding that Pontius Pilate was born in what is now Tarragona, and moves on to the fall of the Western Empire, the triumph of the Visigoths, complete with gorey detail and the arrival of the Moors.

At first the History of Spain is the tale in great part of the Iberian peninsula. Before the marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella, the central kingdom of Castille might have united with Portugal rather than Aragon. The chapter on the Renaissance is probably the best written, illustrating vividly how Spain brought together such diverse characters as Martin Luther, Suleiman the Magnificent, the Tudors of England and Montezuma of Mexico in one Century. Williams also discusses the evolution of Art and Literature throughout the book, never omitting to show that Titian, El Greco, Cervantes, Velasquez, Goya, Dali, Picasso, Miro, Machado and the like are responsible for diffusing and creating the glory that is Spanish culture, and sometimes too that which is not so Glorious. Williams doesn't neglect the Inquisition, but explains its birth, transmutations and really odd dying out. He also does well in explaining the lackluster years of the 19th century, the birth of modern Spain, with revolutions, 'pronunciamentos' and finally civil war, and the emergence of Franco. He explains regional unrest and is particularly good at showing how Catalonia and the Basque regions developed differently than other regions. He keeps the personality of monarchs and political leaders in sight, so much so, that if I were a Bourbon I might be insulted.

In fact, this well-written and informative survey really only has one flaw, that is, more or less understandable given the subject. It seems slightly biased, a little too pro-Spanish. Although Williams doesn't shrink from showing the flaws of leaders, he does however spend a great deal on what is called apparently "The Black Legend," the literary view of Spaniards as villains. While this is certainly desirable, it seems perhaps he goes too far. He says the legend began with a hyperbolic monk in the Americas who exaggerated the abuse and murder of Native Americans by the conquistadors. While he handily refutes the claims of this one man, there are still some things which seem questionable. As early in the chapters on the Moors for example, one wonders if the cruelty and debauchery he attributes to their most perverse monarchs doesn't find similar outlets in the worst of the Christian monarchs. He flatly states that many of the agricultural innovations of the Moors were really Roman innovations carried over by them. He rather underplays the cruelty of the Inquisition by saying it wasn't particularly bad or 'unjust' for the time, and that there were more Religious murders in England than during the Inquisition. This seems at least very arguable. He calls Phillip II's enemy, the Dutch leader, William of Orange, 'an essentially corrupt figure,' but doesn't mention how so or if there would be those who disagree with this assessment. In one refutation of 'the Black Legend' he gives the intermarriage between Spanish and native peoples in the New World as proof that the view is unjust. Obviously a smear is going to be unjust, but simply allowing intermarriage between colonizing and colonized doesn't prove that there are no abuses going on. It is not that he doesn't have a point (one he's not alone in making) but it's an oversimplified one. He doesn't mention incredible caste systems that exist in Latin America, or that the 'Indian Leaders' of those countries could only come to power after great civil unrest and oppositions by the 'Spaniards.' And he has one really shocking line about Native Americans in Northern countries eking out their pathetic existence on reservations. While the reader will see his point, the very phraseology seems disrespectful of the Native Americans. But that of course is not really a judgement about Spain itself.

So, in spite of the fact that you may want to take some of Williams assessments or even his adoration of Spain with a grain of salt, this is still an excellent survey. There is much to learn and be introduced to, and Williams tackles the job with gusto. Each chapter ends with a list of sites germaine to the period, and the maps, of the Iberian portion of Spain only, are quite explanatory. This book is a singularly satisfying reading experience that gives a first grade impression of a powerful culture. This would make an excellent companion to The Lonely Planet Spain which is a great guidebook.

Being an avid student of history, I found the book "The Story of Spain" by Mark Williams a magnificently well written, factual, unbiased, and complete synthesis of Spain's complex history compiled in less than a 300-page volume. Yet, it covers with amazing detail from pre-historical times to our very present.

Many are the merits of this outstanding book. For one, instead of presenting a succession of dry historical facts as is often the case, this book is written in such a fluid and exciting manner that the reader gets passionately involved in its lecture as if going through the most intriguing fiction drama hard to set aside. Further, internal events and external influences are precisely narrated to convey their progressive impact in forging the unique, often tragicomic, always dramatic Spanish personalities - the reader clearly understands each new development as a natural result of a prior build up. Furthermore, from beginning to end, all its historical and cultural protagonists are vividly presented as true human beings, with their predominant characteristics but also with their strengths and weaknesses skillfully outlined by well-selected phrases, back-and-forth comparisons, and anecdotes.

But its principal merit in my opinion is the extraordinary ability of this author in grabbing the undivided attention of the reader, walking effortlessly through some 15,000 years while impressing a remarkable sense of perspective that other authors require volumes to convey.

Humbly conceived by its author for the educational enjoyment of English-speaking tourists, it is pitiful that such a jewel has not been translated into the Spanish language as serious history students in Spain and Latin American could gain much insightful knowledge. Having read lots of books on this topic (Madariaga, Menendez-Pidal, Castro, S. Albornoz... as well as Livermoor, Carr, Bertrand...), I emphatically recommend this brief "story" as superbly narrated, highly perceptive, and very comprehensive.

I got this book to prepare for a tourist trip to Spain. It gives a very good overview of the history of Spain starting from prehistoric times up to about the mid-1990's. The more modern history is understandably rather cursory. The Spanish Civil War was a bit confusing with the multiple political parties and really requires it's own book to understand. The author gives a small biography on each time period for futher reading. The best feature of this book is that after each chapter the author gives tourist sites related to each historic period. For example after the Roman history chapter, he lists sites with Roman ruins and how it relates to what you just read. This makes the book a good reference to bring along on the trip. It you plan a tourist trip to Spain and only have time for one book, this would be the one to pick up.

No wonder this book has not been translated into Spanish. It would be an absolute fiasco. "The Story of Spain" was so obviously designed to be a good seller among American tourists, that it would make an excellent Hollywood movie -such is the distortion of history!

The author did very little research or none at all, and never submitted the manuscript to the scrutiny of a Spaniard scholar. To prove what I am saying I need only to state that he committed the two most capital of the sins: first, to be wrong about Spain's Saint Patron; and second, to mix up the most precious symbol of hispanidad.

In page 44 you can read: "Popular legend says that Saint James the Elder (Santiago), believed to be half-brother of Jesus, brought Christianity to the peninsula around AD 40."

Some confusion has arisen over the identity of James, the Lord's brother, who was not one of the original twelve apostles, and St. James, son of Alpheus, also known as James the Less. Neither of them is Spain's Patron Saint. In about AD 44 King Herod Agrippa I beheaded the Apostle St. James, James the Great, son of Zebedee and St. John's the Evangelist's brother. This is the one we venerate. Every Spanish man, every Spanish woman, knows the difference. Ask them.

As for the symbol of hispanidad, there is one Virgin of Guadalupe whose statue lays in a monastery near Caceres, Spain. There is another Virgin of Guadalupe, with no relation whatsoever to the first one, whose picture was, according to tradition, miraculously imprinted on an Indian's cape, that of san Juan Diego. This picture (not a statue) can be seen at a Basilica in Mexico City. The latter was declared "Queen of the Americas" by the Catholic Church. Most Latin Americans don't even know that the first one exists, let alone that She is "the symbol of hispanidad".

I picked this book up because I'm going to Spain for 10 days and I wanted background. What a page-turner. All those people hovering around the perifery of my historical knowlege are examined and put into perspective in the history of Spain: Cervantes, Goya, Velezquez, the Holy Grail, Sephardic Jews, Muslims, the Alhambra, Catherine of Aragon,the Altamira Cave, the Roman aqueducts, Napoleon and his brother Joseph (King of Spain, ever so briefly),the Basques,Hadrian again, and on and on. A scholarly synthesis of Spain's history wonderfully written immensely readable and hard to put down.

I found "The Story of Spain" to be a highly readable, informative book about a very complex subject. So I was puzzled by another, quite mean-spirited review attacking the book. Spanish history lite? Well, telling the entire exciting story in under 300 pages must have been a challenge, but Williams was up to the task as all other reviewers agree. The John Crow book, "Spain: The Root and the Flower," is also excellent, if a bit more academic in approach, and would make a good follow up for those wanting another perspective. In fact, Williams himself cites it as a source for further reading. Regarding the use of an identical quotation, that must be common in history books. I doubt if Mr. Crow was there to hear the words direct from the saint! (He too copied it from somewhere.) And in fact Williams acknowledges using Crow and many other traditional sources (the usual boring history) to tell "the story" with breathtaking clarity. The scholarship must be sound as well, if so many professors have endorsed it. Indeed, Williams' book has been highly praised by Dr.Paul Smith, who used it for several years in a course he taught for the Spanish department at U.C.L.A. That's the same place where Mr. Crow once taught, I believe. Yet it's "The Story of Spain" that was selected. To me, that says a lot.

I reviewed The Story of Spain, as well as several other books, to see if I would recommend it to my Spanish students. To my surprise I found it well-written and fast-moving. Mark Williams covers a huge stretch of time, but does it in an manner which is both interesting and at times, amusing. He vividly recreates each of the dramatic events and social changes in the history of the peninsula.
He also closes each chapter with a list of places in Spain where artifacts, architecture and art, typical and representative of the time period covered in the preceding chapter, can still be found today. This is very useful for anyone travelling to Spain.
The modern history of Spain is complex, and we bogged down a few times with the endless list of political activists, but this is minor. I think the greatest testiment is that most of my students (college & high school) enjoyed this book so much, they read ahead.

This book is a cursory view of Spain's history. It is very easy to read, but I was a little put off when I found a historical inaccuracy in the very first Chapter. Williams suggests that the ancient Iberians "probably" crossed from North Africa, when the most accurate and current research (analyzing the metallurgical, agricultural, and linguistic customs of the Iberians) points conclusively to the fact that the Iberians had immigrated from the EAST VIA THE DANUBE VALLEY IN EUROPE. I admire Williams' love of Spain, a country that I adore as well; regardless, historical anomalies get on my nerves. I recommend Raymond Carr's book, Spain: A History instead.

History wasn't my favorite subject in school but if only my textbook was written like this book! This book really helps you understand this culturally and historically rich country. I can say that after a 3 week trip to Spain, which was fantastic. It's written well and the characters really come to life in the book.

I even bought my uncle this book. He's the ambassador to Spain and he wished the foreign ministry bought him this book instead of all the long briefings. Highly recommended.

The Story of Spain by Mark Williams is an excellent history summary of Spain. In less than 300 (although large) pages, he can portray the history of Spain ("Europe's Most Fascinating Country") interestingly and in-depth. All points of Spanish history are touched on. Williams fully details the stories of the Iberians, the Romans in Iberia, Moorish Spain and Al-Andalus, the Reconquest, the Inquisition, the French Century, and 20th Century Spain. If you are looking to get a good handle on the history of Spain, I would recommend this book.