25 años de la Condesa Eylo I | Page 58

Capítulo IX

Valladolid in the 11th and 12th centuries

The history of the period

During the 11th and 12th centuries many important historical events happened in Spain:

The kingdom of Castile was established by Fernando III.

The kingdom of Aragon was formed by a strange marriage between a teenager count and a baby princess.

The Reconquest started, and the Muslims were defeated.

The medieval society was divided like this:

Nobility: they had most of the power and money.

Merchants and bourgeoisie: they had little money and possessions.

Peasants: they worked a lot but they didn’t get enough money for their families.

The economy of the medieval age was based on:

-Agriculture: the production of crops of grain, olives and grapes.

-Livestock: the production of wool of Merino sheep was the most important trade.