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Dateline
11th century B.C. Phoenicians settle Spain's coasts.
650 B.C. Greeks colonize the east.
600 B.C. Celts cross the Pyrenees and settle in Spain.
6th-3rd century B.C. Carthaginians make Cartagena their colonial capital, driving out the Greeks.
218-201 B.C. Second Punic War: Rome defeats Carthage.
2nd century B.C.-2nd century A.D. Rome controls most of Iberia. Christianity spreads.
5th century Vandals, then Visigoths, invade Spain.
8th-9th century Moors conquer most of Spain, and found Mayrit on original site of Madrid.
10th century Madrid occupied by Christian king Ramiro II.
1202 Madrid officially given town status.
1214 More than half of Iberia is regained by Catholics.
1339 First parliament (Cortés) held in Madrid by Alfonso XI.
1469 Ferdinand of Aragón marries Isabella of Castile.
1492 Catholic monarchs seize Granada, the last Moorish stronghold. Columbus lands in the New World.
1519 Cortés conquers Mexico. Charles I is crowned Holy Roman Emperor, as Charles V.
1556 Philip II inherits throne and launches the Counter-Reformation.
1561 Phillip II establishes Madrid as Spain's capital.
1588 England defeats Spanish Armada.
1600 Capital moved from Madrid to Valladolid by Phillip II, but returned to Madrid 6 years later.
1700 Philip V becomes king. War of Spanish Succession follows.
1713 Treaty of Utrecht ends war. Spain's colonies reduced.
1734 Madrid's Moorish Alcázar fortress burned down. Royal Palace completed on same site 30 years later.
1759 Charles III ascends throne.
1808 Napoleon places brother Joseph on the Spanish throne. Resistance and rebellion in Madrid.
1813 Wellington drives French out of Spain; the monarchy is restored.
1876 Spain becomes a constitutional monarchy.
1898 Spanish-American War leads to Spain's loss of Puerto Rico, Cuba, and the Philippines.
1906 Grand opening of Madrid's Ritz hotel.
1908 Construction work on Gran Vía begins.
1921 Launching of Madrid Metro.
1923 Primo de Rivera forms military directorate.
1930 Right-wing dictatorship ends; Primo de Rivera exiled.
1931 King Alfonso XIII abdicates; Second Republic is born.
1933-35 Falange party formed.
1936-39 Civil war between the governing Popular Front and the Nationalists led by Gen. Francisco Franco. Ends when Franco enters Madrid victoriously after a 3-year siege.
1939 Franco establishes dictatorship, which will last 36 years.
1941 Spain technically stays neutral in World War II, but Franco favors Germany.
1955 Spain joins the United Nations.
1969 Franco names Juan Carlos as his successor.
1975 Juan Carlos becomes king. Franco dies.
1976 El País, Spain's first world-class democratic newspaper, launched in Madrid.
1978 New democratic constitution initiates reforms.
1981 Coup attempt by right-wing officers in Madrid's parliament building fails.
1982 Socialists gain power after 43 years of right-wing rule.
1986 Spain joins the European Community (now the European Union).
1992 Barcelona hosts the Summer Olympics; Seville hosts EXPO '92.
1996 A conservative party defeats Socialist party, ending 13-year rule. José María Aznar chosen prime minister.
1998 Two cultural milestones for Spain: the inauguration of the controversial Guggenheim Museum at Bilbao and the reopening of Madrid's opera house, Teatro Real. Real Madrid soccer team wins European Cup for a record seventh time.
1999 Spain falls under the euro umbrella.
2000 Economy goes on an upswing. Complete euro unity looms.
2001 Spain moves forward as an economic powerhouse in Latin America.
2002 Spain gives up its historic currency, the peseta, and adopts the euro as its national currency.
2004 Al Qaeda-linked terrorists bomb three suburban Madrid trains, killing almost 200 people; PSOE (Spanish Socialist party) candidate Zapatero is elected as prime minister, ending 8 years of rule by Aznar's Populist party.
2006 Basque terrorist organization ETA declares a "permanent" truce. PSOE and PP differ in opinion regarding negotiations.
Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without
notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before
planning your trip.
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