1. By Shannon Embry

2. A Peninsula in southeastern Europe, Spain, Portugal and a small part of France make it up and earned its name from the Iberians its ancient inhabitants. Pyrenees form a barrier in the northeast, blocking it from Europe. South at Gibraltar the Peninsula is blocked from North Africa by a narrow strait of the Atlantic Ocean that also blocks the western and northern coasts. The Mediterranean Sea blocks the east.

3. Rise of the first civilization in Iberia. the people in the Iberian Peninsula lived in caves, open-air settlements and rock shelters. some thing made from copper was pottery but it wasn’t made from pure copper. It wasn’t until they found large amounts of copper that they began using pure copper. Other things made from copper were copper axes and tools but the tool didn’t last long because of the amount of times it had to be sharpened.

5. Bronze replaced copper as the best metal, started in the civilization of Los Millares to El Argar and then Bronze age technology spread. Several waves of Pre-Celts and Celts migrated to the Iberian Peninsula from central Europe and changing the ethnic landscape of Iberia. Some things made in the Bronze Age were tools, coins, and weapons.

7. Founded several coastal colonies and trading posts. Helped begin the Iron Age. Developed fishing and fish-salting industry, brought specialized crafts, new goldsmithing techniques, forging iron and wheel-turned pottery and made boats. Introduced new domestic fauna such as donkeys and chickens. Introduced commercial and political dynamics of the Mediterranean. introduced mining in the southeast that was fundamental to supply silver to Tyrus and Sidon. Would eventually lose it to the Carthaginians and become the city of Baria.

9. Celts moved from the north to the Iberian Peninsula and joined the Iberians. Were fair skinned when compared to the Iberians. The Celts the merged with the Iberians were called Celtiberians. Lived in sizeable hill-fort towns called Castros. Introduced iron technology to the north.

11. Seafaring Carthaginians, Phoenicians and Greeks, settled along the coast of the Mediterranean. 1100 B.C. Phoenician merchants created the trading colony of Gadir. (Today called Cádiz) Iron quickly replaced Bronze as the number one metal. Once again things made in the iron age were tools, weapons, new items were comb. Some bronze weapons were still used.

13. Steel replaced iron as the number one metal. First Greek colonies created along the Mediterranean. First Punic war fought for control of Sicily between Rome and Carthage who responded by invading the Iberian Peninsula. In 219 B.C. the first Roman troops invaded the Iberian Peninsula, the second Punic War had started. After two centuries of war the tribes of the Iberian and Celt, Greek, Carthaginian and Phoenician colonies caused the creation of the province of Hispania.

15. 6 th century B.C., pushed Phoenicians and Greeks out of the western Mediterranean. Came into conflict with Rome. Lost to Rome in the first Punic War. Invaded the Iberian Peninsula. First landing in 237 B.C., General Hannibal used elephants to attack Rome causing Roman legions to invade Spain. Eventually routed into north Africa.