The Black Legend (Spanish: La Leyenda Negra) is a term coined by Julián Juderías in his 1914 book La leyenda negra y la verdad histórica (The Black Legend and Historical Truth), to describe the depiction of Spain and Spaniards as "cruel", "intolerant" and "fanatical" in anti-Spanish literature, starting in the sixteenth century. Spain () or the Kingdom of Spain (Reino de España is a country located mostly in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. The Black Legend propaganda is said to be influenced by national and religious rivalries as seen in works by early Protestant historians and Anglo-Saxon writers, describing the period of Spanish imperialism in a negative way. Protestantism refers to the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated in the 16th century Protestant Reformation. The Spanish Empire (Imperio Español was one of the largest Empires in history and one of the first Global empires In the 15th and 16th centuries Other examples of the Black Legend are said to be the historical revision of the Inquisition, and in the villains and storylines of modern fiction and film. Historical revision of the Inquisition is a historiographical project that has emerged in recent years

The Black Legend and the nature of Spanish colonization of the Americas including contributions to civilization in Spain's colonies have also been discussed by Spanish writers, from Góngora's Soledades until the Generation of '98. The Spanish colonization of the Americas was Spain 's conquest settlement and rule over much of the Western hemisphere. Luis de Góngora y Argote ( July 11, 1561 &ndash May 24, 1627) was a Spanish Baroque lyric Poet. The Generation of '98 (also called Generation of 1898 or in Spanish, Generación del 98 or Generación de 1898 was a group of Novelists Inside Spain, the Black Legend has also been used by regionalists of non-Castilian regions of Spain as a political weapon against the central government or Spanish nationalism. A former kingdom, Castile (Castilla kasˈt̪iʎa or) gradually merged with its neighbors to become the Crown of Castile and later the Kingdom of Spain Modern historians and some political parties have countered with the White Legend, an attempt to describe Spain's history in a more positive way. The White Legend is sometimes associated with Spanish Nationalistic politics and with the regime of dictator Francisco Franco. The term nationalism can refer to an Ideology, a sentiment, a form of Culture, or a Social movement that focuses on the Nation Francisco Paulino Hermenegildo Teódulo Franco y Bahamonde (born December 4, 1892 in Ferrol, died November 20, 1975 in Madrid

Contents 1 Definition 2 Elements of the legend 2.1 The Spanish Inquisition 2.2 Spanish colonization of the Americas 3 Origin 4 Sources 4.1 16th century 4.2 The Enlightenment 4.3 Romantic travellers 4.4 The Spanish Civil War 5 Other uses of the term Black Legend 6 White Legend 7 See also 8 Notes 9 References 10 External links

Definition

The creator of the term, Julián Juderías, described it in 1914 in his book La Leyenda Negra^[1] as

the environment created by the fantastic stories about our homeland that have seen the light of publicity in all countries, the grotesque descriptions that have always been made of the character of Spaniards as individuals and collectively, the denial or at least the systematic ignorance of all that is favorable and beautiful in the various manifestations of culture and art, the accusations that in every era have been flung against Spain. ^[2]

The second classic work on the topic is Historia de la Leyenda Negra hispanoamericana (History of the Hispanoamerican Black Legend),^[3] by Rómulo D. Carbia. While Juderías dealt more with the beginnings of the legend in Europe, the Argentine Carbia concentrated on America. Thus, Carbia gave a broader definition of the concept:

The legend finds its most usual expression, that is, its typical form, in judgments about cruelty, superstition, and political tyranny. They have preferred to see cruelty in the proceedings that were undertaken to implant the Faith in America or defend it in Flanders; superstition, in the supposed opposition by Spain to all spiritual progress and any intellectual activity; and tyranny, in the restrictions that drowned the free lives of Spaniards born in the New World and to whom it seemed that they were enslaved indefinitely. ^[3][4]

After Juderías and Carbia, many other authors have defined and employed the concept.

Philip Wayne Powell, in his book Tree of Hate, also defines the Black Legend:

An image of Spain circulated through late sixteenth-century Europe, borne by means of political and religious propaganda that blackened the characters of Spaniards and their ruler to such an extent that Spain became the symbol of all forces of repression, brutality, religious and political intolerance, and intellectual and artistic backwardness for the next four centuries. Spaniards … have termed this process and the image that resulted from it as ‘The Black Legend,’ la leyenda negra”^[5]

One recent author, Fernández Álvarez, has defined a Black Legend more broadly:

"the careful distortion of the history of a nation, perpetrated by its enemies, in order to better fight it. And a distortion as monstrous as possible, with the goal of achieving a specific aim: the moral disqualification of the nation, whose supremacy must be fought in every way possible. ^[6]

Elements of the legend

The Spanish Inquisition

See also: Spanish Inquisition and Historical revision of the Inquisition

Exaggerations about the Spanish Inquisition have been one of the main elements of the Black Legend since its origin. The Spanish Inquisition started and was established in 1478 by Catholic Monarchs Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile to maintain Historical revision of the Inquisition is a historiographical project that has emerged in recent years The term Inquisition can refer to any one of several institutions charged with trying and convicting heretics within the Roman Catholic Church and Its incorporation into anti-Spanish works dates from the sixteenth century, a time of strong Anglo-Spanish and Protestant-Catholic rivalry. Criticisms of the Spanish Inquisition were first written by Protestant authors such as Englishman John Foxe, a polemicist who published the Book of Martyrs in 1554, and the controversial Spanish convert Reginaldo González de Montes, author of Exposición de algunas mañas de la Santa Inquisición Española (Exposition of some methods of the Holy Spanish Inquisition) (1567). John Foxe (1517 &ndash April 18, 1587) martyrologist is remembered as the author of what is popularly known as Foxe's Book of Martyrs The Book of Martyrs, by John Foxe, is an Apocalyptically oriented English Protestant account of the Persecutions of Antonio del Corro (Corrano de Corran Corranus ( Seville, 1527-London 1591 was a Spanish monk who became a Protestant convert

The fabricated legend depicts the Spanish Inquisition as cruel and bloodthirsty. A legend ( Latin, legenda, "things to be read" is a Narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to The Spanish Inquisition started and was established in 1478 by Catholic Monarchs Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile to maintain The image of moats, chains, cries and rooms of torture is usually attached to it with the intention of creating a sense of mysticism and evil. The myth of thousands of Jews, Muslims, Protestants and non-Catholics being tortured and murdered in the dungeons of the institution by Dominican friars is part of this propaganda. Protestantism refers to the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated in the 16th century Protestant Reformation. The Order of Preachers ( Latin: Ordo Praedicatorum) after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is The Order of Preachers ( Latin: Ordo Praedicatorum) after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is

In fact, the Inquisition was a religious institution that monitored Christian principles and teachings within the Catholic Church, and was supervised by the Spanish Monarchy. It was not an institution of persecution or torture as the Black Legend intentionally portrays, or as fictional literature and films depict. Similar religious institutions existed in other parts of Europe, such as the Roman Inquisition and the Portuguese Inquisition. The Roman Inquisition was a system of Tribunals developed by the Holy See during the second half of the 16th century responsible for prosecuting individuals accused The Portuguese Inquisition was formally established in Portugal in 1536 at the request of the King of Portugal, João III. The first such institution was the Medieval Inquisition, created in Languedoc, France in the 12th century. The Medieval Inquisition is a series of Inquisitions ( Roman Catholic Church bodies charged with suppressing Heresy) from around 1184, including the Languedoc ( in French Lengadòc in Occitan) is a former Province of France, now continued in the modern-day ''régions'' of Languedoc-Roussillon This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics.

Legally, the inquisition only had jurisdiction over Catholics and claimed no authority over Jews or Muslims. However, a person who had been baptized into the Catholic faith who was found to be secretly practicing Jewish or Muslim customs was still considered to be a Catholic culpable of heresy- and punishable under the law. Heresy is an introduced change to some system of belief especially a religion that conflicts with the previously established canon of that belief Like similar European policies before and after the 15th century, the Alhambra Decree removed the Jews from Spain in 1492, and forced the conversion of the last Muslims in 1525. The Alhambra Decree (also known as the Edict of Expulsion) was an edict issued on 31 March, 1492 by the joint Catholic Monarchs of With such decree it can be argued that the Inquisition had jurisdiction over the entire population.

Spanish colonization of the Americas

Main article: Spanish colonization of the Americas

The European colonization of the Americas disrupted the civilization of indigenous peoples of the Americas and used African slaves for their plantations in the New world. The Spanish colonization of the Americas was Spain 's conquest settlement and rule over much of the Western hemisphere. For indigenous peoples in the United States other than Hawaii and Alaska see also Native Americans in the United States. The Atlantic Slave trade, also known as the transatlantic slave trade, was the trade of African people supplied to the Colonies of the New World The New World is one of the names used for the non-Eurasian/non-African parts of the Earth specifically the Americas and Australia. The Spanish conquered vast areas of North, Central and South America, and like other European powers, were involved in the Atlantic slave trade. However, certain differences in the objectives and motivations of the Spanish Crown in America, as opposed to other European monarchies, are often omitted in historical texts. Such omissions are said to be part of the Black Legend which demonized Spanish colonial activity in the New World.

One of Spain's primary endeavours of colonial expansion was to bring Christianity to native peoples. Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings Kings such as Philip II dedicated large resources to sending missionaries and building churches in America and the Philippines. Philip II may refer to Philip II of Macedon (382&ndash336 BC Philip II of France (1165&ndash1223 Philip II of The Philippines ( Filipino: Pilipinas, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (fil ''Republika ng Pilipinas'' RP The Black Legend is said to ignore this fact, as well as to depict the conversion of native peoples under Spanish rule in a brutal and violent manner. Such exaggerations are contrasted by Spanish policies such as Queen Isabella I's Last Will that solemnly ordered that American natives be treated with respect and dignity. Although such directives were sometimes ignored, the recognition of native rights put Spain at the historical vanguard of modern natural and international law. The legitimacy of imperialism was also questioned in the works of Spanish scholars themselves, such as the School of Salamanca and the accounts of Dominican friar Bartolomé de las Casas. Imperialism has two meanings one describing an action and the other describing an attitude The School of Salamanca is the Renaissance of thought in diverse intellectual areas by Spanish theologians, rooted in the intellectual and pedagogical The Order of Preachers ( Latin: Ordo Praedicatorum) after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is Bartolomé de las Casas, OP ( August 24 1484 &ndash July 17 1566) was a 16th century Spanish Dominican

Another difference is that Spain and Portugal, in a policy similar to the French in Canada approved and even encouraged interracial marriages in their colonies in order to support demographic growth, whereas British and Dutch authorities banned such marriages and considered them immoral. Interracial marriage occurs when two people of differing racial groups marry, often creating Multiracial children ^[7] Such racist policies continued centuries later in former British and Dutch colonies like the United States, where racial segregation and anti-miscegenation laws existed until the 1960's, and in South Africa where Apartheid lasted until the 1990's. Anti-miscegenation laws, also known as miscegenation laws, were laws that banned Interracial marriage and sometimes interracial sex between whites and members of other The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa These differences are usually ignored in historical texts that criticize Spanish policies in America. Such omissions are also considered part of the Black Legend.

Origin

From the thirteenth century, the Crown of Aragon dominated Naples and Sicily, laying the foundations for a widespread resentment of Aragonese dominance. The Crown of Aragon was a permanent union of multiple titles and states in the hands of the King of Aragon. Naples ( Napoli, Neapolitan: Nàpule) is a historic City in southern Italy, the Capital of the Sicily ( Italian and Sicilian: Sicilia) is an autonomous region of Italy. Aragon ( Spanish: "Aragón") is an autonomous community of Spain. The reputation of the Aragonese pope, Alexander VI Borgia, assumed an almost mythical villainy. The Crown of Aragon was a permanent union of multiple titles and states in the hands of the King of Aragon. Pope Alexander VI ( 1 January 1431 &ndash 18 August 1503) born Roderic Llançol, later Roderic de Borja i Borja ( Countless legends and traditions attached to his name, and Cardinal Giuliano della Rovere dismissed him as, "Catalan, marrano and circumcised". Pope Julius II (5 December 1443 &ndash 21 February 1513 born Giuliano Della Rovere, was Pope from 1503 to 1513 Marranos or Secret Jews were Sephardic Jews (Jews resident in the Iberian peninsula) who were forced to adopt Christianity or Male circumcision is the removal of some or all of the Foreskin (prepuce from the Penis.

According to Sverker Arnoldsson, Italian criticisms of the Spanish derived not only from economic and political concerns, but also from prejudices over culture. Sverker Arnoldson also states that with the insults by the Italian pope, Paul IV, the Italians demonstrated an inferiority complex in the face of a victorious, conquering and powerful neighbor nation.

In his book Tree of Hate, Philip Wayne Powell describes how the Black Legend developed in different European countries, such as Germany, France, Holland and England. This development is put down to the reaction against Spanish supremacy in Europe and the New World, which was influenced by the emergence of Protestantism - and even by the rise of Nordicism - in an effort to counter the power of the Spanish-dominated southern part of the continent.

Sources

16th century

Exaggerated and lurid accounts of the Roman Catholic Inquisition in Spain were, in the sixteenth century (a time of great Protestant-Catholic strife) and still today, principal sources for the anti-Spanish Black Legend. The term Inquisition can refer to any one of several institutions charged with trying and convicting heretics within the Roman Catholic Church and The Protestant Reformation was a reform movement in Europe that began in 1517 though its roots lie further back in time ^[8] The Inquisition had existed in many European countries before it came to Spain. It had existed in the Kingdom of Aragon for some two centuries but not in Castile until the year 1480 when the Catholic Monarchs, Isabel I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon, requested its establishment throughout Spain with the converso and Dominican friar, Tomás de Torquemada, as its first Inquisitor General. Ferdinand II of Aragon the Catholic (Fernando II de Aragón y V de Castilla "el Católico" Ferran II d'Aragó "el Catòlic" Ferrando II d'Aragón Conversos ( Spanish and Portuguese for "a convert" from Latin conversus, "converted turned around" and its feminine form Tomás de Torquemada (1420 – September 16, 1498) was a fifteenth century Spanish Dominican, first Inquisitor General of Spain and

Some of the strongest and earliest support for the Legend came from two Protestants: the Englishman John Foxe, author of the Book of Martyrs (1554), and the Spaniard Reginaldo González de Montes, author of the Exposición de algunas mañas de la Santa Inquisición Española (Exposition of some vices of the Spanish Inquisition, 1567). England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland John Foxe (1517 &ndash April 18, 1587) martyrologist is remembered as the author of what is popularly known as Foxe's Book of Martyrs The Book of Martyrs, by John Foxe, is an Apocalyptically oriented English Protestant account of the Persecutions of Antonio del Corro (Corrano de Corran Corranus ( Seville, 1527-London 1591 was a Spanish monk who became a Protestant convert Another early source from which the Black Legend drew support was Girolamo Benzoni's Historia nuovo (New History), first published in Venice in 1565. Girolamo Benzoni (born at Milan about 1519 was an Italian historian Venice ( Italian: Venezia, Venetian: Venesia or Venexia) is a city in Northern Italy, the capital of the The origin of the Black Legend can also be traced to published self-criticism from within Spain itself. As early as 1511, some Spaniards criticized the legitimacy of the Spanish colonization of the Americas. The Spanish colonization of the Americas was Spain 's conquest settlement and rule over much of the Western hemisphere. In 1552, the Dominican friar Bartolomé de las Casas published his famous Brevísima relación de la destrucción de las Indias (A Very Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies), an account of the abuses that accompanied the colonization of New Spain, and especially the island of Hispaniola (now home to the Dominican Republic and Haiti). The Order of Preachers ( Latin: Ordo Praedicatorum) after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is Bartolomé de las Casas, OP ( August 24 1484 &ndash July 17 1566) was a 16th century Spanish Dominican Hispaniola (from Spanish, La Española) is the second-largest and most populous Island of the Antilles, lying between the islands of The Dominican Republic ( Spanish: República Dominicana;) is a nation located in the Caribbean region and shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti ( English: ˈheɪ·tiː or haɪ·ˈjiː·tiː French Haïti a·i·ti Haitian Creole: In the section regarding Hispaniola, Las Casas compares the indigenous Arawaks to tame ewes and writes that when he arrived in 1508, "there were 60,000 people living on this island, including the Indians; so that from 1494 to 1508, over three million people had perished from war, slavery, and the mines. The term Arawak (from aru, the Lokono word for Cassava flour was used to designate the Amerindians encountered by the Spanish in Who in future generations will believe this? I myself writing it as a knowledgeable eyewitness can hardly believe it. " [1] The work of Las Casas was first cited in English with the 1583 publication The Spanish Colonie, or Brief Chronicle of the Actes and Gestes of the Spaniards in the West Indies, at a time when England and Spain were preparing for war in the Netherlands. Many scholars agree that Las Casas's population figures are exaggerated, placing the original Arawak population at several hundred thousand. Despite arguments about the actual population size, Las Casas's accounts of widespread slaughter are not widely disputed.

The Duke of Alba's actions in the United Provinces contributed to the Black Legend. Don Fernando Álvarez de Toledo y Pimentel 3rd Duke of Alba (Don Fernando Álvarez de Toledo y Pimentel tercer duque de Alba ( October 29, "United Netherlands" redirects here For the "Kingdom of the United Netherlands" see United Kingdom of the Netherlands. Sent in August 1567 to stamp out heresy and political unrest in a part of Europe where printing presses were a constant source of heterodox opinion, one of Alba's first acts was to gain control of the book industry. In a single year, several printers were banished and at least one was executed. Book sellers and printers were raided in the search for banned books, many more of which were added to the Index Librorum Prohibitorum. A ban (derived from Banishment) is generally any Decree that prohibits something The Index Librorum Prohibitorum ("List of Prohibited Books" was a list of publications prohibited by the Roman Catholic Church. In 1576 Spanish troops attacked and pillaged Antwerp, over three days that came to be known as "The Spanish Fury". ||-||-||-||} Antwerp ( Dutch:, French: Anvers) is a City and Municipality in Belgium and the capital of the The sack of Antwerp during the Eighty Years' War is known as the Spanish Fury. The soldiers rampaged through the city, killing and looting; they demanded money from citizens and burned the homes of those who refused to (or could not) pay. Plantin's printing establishment was threatented with destruction three times but was saved each time when a ransom was paid. Antwerp was economically devastated by the attack, and Plantin's business suffered. Such facts similar to German rampages in the sack of Rome (1527) were enlarged upon to enhance the Black Legend. The Sack of Rome on 6 May 1527, carried out by the mutinous troops of Charles V Holy Roman Emperor, marked a crucial imperial victory in

The rebels in the Dutch Revolt contributed intentionally to the Black Legend in their propaganda efforts against the Spanish Crown. The Dutch Revolt, Eighty Years' War or the Revolt of the Netherlands (1568—1648 was the revolt of the Seventeen Provinces in the Low Countries The depradations against the Indians that De las Casas had described, were compared to the depradations of Alba and his successors in the Netherlands. They reprinted translated editions of the Brevissima relacion no less than 33 times between 1578 and 1648, more than all other European countries combined^[9]. However, these reprints were only grist for an indigenous propaganda mill that was already going full blast. For instance, the Articles and Resolutions of the Spanish Inquisition to Invade and Impede the Netherlands imputed a conspiracy to the Holy Office to starve the Dutch population, and exterminate its leading nobles, "as the Spanish had done in the Indies^[10]. " Marnix of Sint-Aldegonde, a prominent propagandist for the cause of the rebels, regularly used references to alleged intentions on the part of Spain to "colonize" the Netherlands, for instance in his 1578 address to the German Diet. In Politics, a diet is a formal Deliberative assembly. The term is derived from Medieval Latin dietas, and ultimately comes from The Dutch pamfleteers could have constructed their portrait of the Tyrannies et cruautez des Espagnols without recourse to the Indies. However, they connected their projection of their own predicament (potential enslavement by Spain) with their perception of the predicament of the Indians^[11].

Other critics of Spain included Antonio Pérez, the fallen secretary of King Philip II of Spain. This article is about the Spanish statesman For the baseball player of the same name see Antonio Pérez (baseball Antonio Pérez (1539-1611 Philip II (Felipe II de España Filipe I ( May 21, 1527 &ndash September 13 1598) was King of Spain from 1556 until 1598 Pérez fled to England, where he published attacks upon the Spanish monarchy under the title Relaciones (1594). Philip, at the time also king of Portugal, was accused of cruelty for his hanging on yardarms of supporters of the rival contender for the throne of Portugal, on the Azores islands, following the Battle of Ponta Delgada. The Azores ( Açores ɐˈsoɾɨʃ or) is a Portuguese Archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, about 1500 km (950  mi) from The naval Battle of Ponta Delgada, also called the Battle of Terceira, took place on July 26 1582, in the sea of the Azores near Terceira Island

These books were extensively used by the Dutch during their fight for independence from Spain, and taken up by the English to justify their piracy and wars against the Spanish. The Dutch Revolt, Eighty Years' War or the Revolt of the Netherlands (1568—1648 was the revolt of the Seventeen Provinces in the Low Countries England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Foxe's book was among Sir Francis Drake's favourites; Drake himself is regarded by the Spaniards as a cruel and bloodthirsty pirate. Sir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral, (c 1540 &ndash 27 January 1595 was an English Privateer, navigator, Slaver, and politician The two northern nations were not only emerging as Spain's rivals for worldwide colonialism, but were also strongholds of Protestantism while Spain was the most powerful Roman Catholic country of the period. Protestantism refers to the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated in the 16th century Protestant Reformation. All of this contributed to the evolution of the Black Legend

The Enlightenment

Guillaume Thomas François Raynal published, in 1770, his most important work, L'Histoire philosophique et politique des établissements et du commerce des Européens dans les deux Indes (The philosophical and political history of the establishments and commerce of Europeans in the two Indies, that is to say the East Indies and the West Indies). Guillaume Thomas François Raynal ( April 12, 1711 &ndash March 6, 1796) was a French Writer. The Indies or East Indies (or East India) is a term often used to refer to the islands of SE Asia, especially the Malay Archipelago The Caribbean (ˌkærəˡbiən kæ'rəbiən Cariben|Caraïben or Caraïben; Caraïbe or more commonly Antilles; Caribe is a Region consisting

Also during the Enlightenment, the imprisonment and death of Don Carlos inspired the blank verse play Don Carlos, Infant v. The Age of Enlightenment or The Enlightenment is a term used to describe a phase in Western philosophy and cultural life centered upon the eighteenth century Spanien (Don Carlos, Prince of Spain, 1787), by Friedrich Schiller, and later the opera Don Carlos by Giuseppe Verdi. Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller krɪstɔf friːtʁɪç fɔn ʃɪləʁ/ʃɪlɐ (10 November 1759 9 May 1805 was a German Poet, Philosopher This article refers to the opera Don Carlos ( Don Carlo when performed in Italian translation by Giuseppe Verdi

Romantic travellers

In the nineteenth century, many writers, such as Washington Irving, Prosper Mérimée, George Sand, and Theophile Gautier, invented a mythical Andalusia. Washington Irving (April 3 1783 – November 28 1859 was an American Author, essayist, biographer and historian of the early 19th Prosper Mérimée ( September 28, 1803 &ndash September 23, 1870) was a French dramatist historian, archaeologist Amandine Aurore Lucile Dupin, later Baroness (French baronne) Dudevant ( July 1, 1804 &ndash June 8, 1876 See also Pierre Jules Théophile Gautier ( August 30, 1811 – October 23, 1872) was a French Poet, Dramatist Andalusia (Andalucía is an autonomous community of Spain. It is the most populous and the second largest in terms of land area In their writings, Spain is converted into the Orient of the Western World (Africa begins in the Pyrenees), an exotic country full of brigands, economic underdevelopment, Gypsies, ignorance, machismo, matadores, Moors, passion, political chaos, poverty and fanatical religiosity. The Pyrenees (Pirineos French: Pyrénées; Catalan: Pirineus; Occitan: Pirenèus; Aragonese: Perinés An outlaw or bandit is a person living the lifestyle of outlawry; the word literally means "outside the Law " by folk-etymology from the original The Romani people in Spain are generally known as Gitanos. Spanish Roma tend to speak Caló which is basically Andalusian Spanish with a large Machismo is a prominently exhibited or excessive Masculinity. "Matador" redirects here For other uses see Matador (disambiguation. The description Moors has referred to several historic and modern populations of Muslim (and earlier non-Muslim people of Berber and Arab descent Passion (from the Latin patior, meaning to suffer or to endure is an emotion of feeling very strongly about a person In classical music, Georges Bizet with Carmen (1875) and Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov with Capriccio espagnol (1887) contributed to this theme. Georges Bizet (25 October 1838 – 3 June 1875 was a French Composer and Pianist of the Romantic era Carmen is a French Opéra comique by Georges Bizet. The Libretto is by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov ( Николай Андреевич Римский-Корсаков, Nikolaj Andreevič Rimskij-Korsakov) also Nikolay Capriccio Espagnol, Op. 34 is the common Western title for an orchestral work based on Spanish melodies and written by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov

The Spanish Civil War

While the Spanish Civil War in 1936-1939 aroused among the international Left and Right strong waves of support and admiration for the corresponding sides in Spain, there was a considerable part of international public opinion that disapproved of both sides in the civil war. The Spanish Civil War was a major conflict in Spain that started after an attempted Coup d'état committed by parts of the army against the government of For them, the widespread atrocity stories emanating from Spain (and often exaggerated as part of both sides' war propaganda) were taken as a new proof of the supposed inherent brutality of all Spaniards, whatever their politics. This was reinforced by the statements of Spaniards who chose to sit out the war in exile, expressing disgust with both sides.

Other uses of the term Black Legend

The term Black Legend has been also used outside Spain. It can be referred to any person/organization/situation/period in history presented (according to the user of the term) unfairly in popular culture. Examples can be Richard III in England, Cardinal Richelieu in France, Golden Liberty in Poland and many others. Richard III ( 2 October 1452 &ndash 22 August 1485) was King of England from 1483 until his death This article is about a cardinal For information on the Russian also called The Red Eminence, see Mikhail Andreyevich Suslov. Golden Liberty ( Latin: Aurea Libertas; Polish: Złota Wolność) sometimes referred to as Golden Freedoms, Nobles' Democracy

White Legend

The term white legend refers to attempts to describe Spain's history in a more positive light, occasionally in response to what is seen as the negative "propaganda" of the Black Legend. Occasionally attempts to correct the distortions and often manipulated versions of Spanish history are misclassified as part of the "White Legend". The white legend is associated with Nationalistic politics and with the regime of dictator Francisco Franco.

Proponents of the White Legend argue that the Spanish Inquisition was no worse than practices in other parts of Europe, such as the suppression of Catharism in France, it casts the Inquisition in a favorable light as compared with the French Wars of Religion, Oliver Cromwell's conquest of Ireland, and the witch hunts in many Protestant countries.

Similarly, these advocates tend to minimize "The Spanish Fury" or the sack of Rome, emphasizing that troops of Habsburg Spain were composed by many different European nationalities and ethnicities under Spanish command. They explain that Belgian, Italian or German rampages were enlarged upon and attributed to Spanish soldiers in order to enhance the anti-Spanish Black Legend.

Henry Kamen argues that Spain does not deserve blame for all of the actions of the Spanish Empire. According to his book, the Spanish Empire was a multinational enterprise, incorporating armaments from Milan, Genoese and German bankers, foreign sailors, German and Italian soldiers, Native American allies, and English and Chinese merchants.

Versions of history less hostile to Spain including the white legend argue that the conquest of the Americas was not as negative as it is sometimes intentionally portrayed. The White Legend emphasizes that Cortés's army consisted largely of Native American enemies of the Aztec Empire, and credits accounts of Aztec human sacrifice and cannibalism. Some historians claim that the demographics of much of Latin America today contradict claims that Spain destroyed or suppresses native populations and cultures. Furthermore, the demographic collapse which occurred in the Americas upon the conquest was mainly due to diseases imported from Europe which would have been transmitted even if the English or French, rather than the Spaniards, had been the first to arrive into the Americas.

The White Legend also emphasizes the role of other European nations in the trans-Atlantic slave trade. The Atlantic Slave trade, also known as the transatlantic slave trade, was the trade of African people supplied to the Colonies of the New World The defenders of this point of view argue that Spain was prohibited by the Pope from taking part in such activities, together with the fact it would be in breach of the Treaty of Tordesillas, which divided the world outside of Europe in an exclusive duopoly between the Spanish and the Portuguese, assigning Africa to Portugal. The Treaty of Tordesillas ( Portuguese: Tratado de Tordesilhas, Spanish: Tratado de Tordesillas) signed at Tordesillas (now in

Critics of The White Legend counter that it downplays the Spanish role as purchasers and users of slaves in the Americas in the Atlantic slave trade, the treatment of Indigenous peoples of the Americas, and the taking of resources from New Spain during the period known as the Spanish Golden Age. The Atlantic Slave trade, also known as the transatlantic slave trade, was the trade of African people supplied to the Colonies of the New World For indigenous peoples in the United States other than Hawaii and Alaska see also Native Americans in the United States. The Viceroyalty of New Spain (Virreinato de Nueva España was a name given to the Viceroy -ruled territories of the Spanish Empire in North America, This article is about the Spanish Golden Age of the 15th-17th centuries They also point out that much of the treatment of indigenous peoples and the disruption of their culture was documented by Hernán Cortés's and Francisco Pizarro's own men, who had no reason to soil the reputation of the Spanish empire by creating false charges of cruelty. Hernán Cortés de Monroy y Pizarro 1st Marqués del Valle de Oaxaca ( 1485&ndash December 2, Francisco Pizarro González 1st Marqués de los Atabillos (c 1471 or 1476 &ndash 26 June 1541 was a Spanish Conquistador, conqueror of the Incan Empire Critics have also claimed that the conquistadores were likely to exaggerate their accounts of barbaric rituals performed by the indigenous people in order to justify their actions.

See also

• Anti-Catholicism
• Bullfighting
• Encomienda
• Colonial mentality
• Hispanic culture in the Philippines
• History of the west coast of North America
• Lucrezia Borgia
• New Laws
• Philip II of Spain
• Antonio Pérez (Secretary of king Philip II of Spain)
• Population history of American indigenous peoples
• Slavery
• Spanish Armada
• Spanish colonization of the Americas
• Spanish Conquest of the Aztec Empire
• Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire
• Spanish conquest of Yucatán
• Spanish culture
• Spanish Empire
• Spanish Inquisition
• Spanish-American relations
• The Inquisition myth
• Valladolid debate

Notes

References

External links

• Immigration and the curse of the Black Legend
• The Shadow of the Black Legend in John Smith's Generall Historie of Virginia, by Eric Griffin

© 2009 citizendia.org; parts available under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License, from http://en.wikipedia.org
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic