Economy of Hispania facts for kids
The economy of Hispania, or Roman Spain and Portugal, changed a lot after Rome took control. Before Rome, Hispania was mostly a mystery, but it quickly became one of Rome's most valuable lands. It helped Rome grow and stay strong for centuries.
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Hispania's Economy Before Rome
Before Rome arrived, most of Hispania had a simple subsistence economy. This means people grew just enough food and made enough goods for themselves. There was little trade. The main exceptions were big cities on the Mediterranean coast. These cities often traded with Greek and Phoenician merchants.
Rome's Plan to Conquer Hispania
Old stories from the Phoenicians talked about the amazing riches of Tartessos. They said ships returned from Hispania loaded with silver. These stories made other Mediterranean powers very interested in the Iberian Peninsula.
After losing the First Punic War, Carthage needed money. They had lost important markets and had to pay a lot of money to Rome. To fix this, Carthage decided to expand into Hispania. This area had not been under Roman control yet. Carthage wanted quick profits. They dug up huge amounts of silver from mines along the coasts of Andalusia and Levante. This silver helped pay for much of the Second Punic War and Hannibal's army.
Because of this, one of Rome's first goals when invading Hispania was to capture the mines near New Carthage. Losing these mines, and being cut off, forced Hannibal to stop fighting in Italy in 206 BC.
After Carthage was kicked out, some local groups in Hispania had to pay tribute to Rome. Rome also often broke peace deals to take riches by force. For example, they broke agreements made by Graccus Sempronius. The fights with the Celtiberian and Lusitanian peoples brought even more money to Rome. This was from the huge amounts of war treasures taken by leaders like Cato the Elder.
This way of getting rich by force continued with Pompey and later Julius Caesar. Stories say Caesar fought in Hispania not just against Pompey, but also to get money to pay his debts. Meanwhile, the Spanish Mediterranean coast, which Rome had quickly taken over, began to grow its economy. It soon became famous in the Roman world.
Hispania's Economy Under Roman Rule
Besides minerals, Rome gained access to some of the best farming lands in its empire by conquering Hispania. Rome quickly started using these lands. During Roman rule, Hispania's economy grew a lot. New roads and trade routes helped connect Hispania's markets to the rest of the Roman Empire.
Roman Coins in Hispania
One clear sign of Roman civilization was the use of coins for trade. Before Rome, Hispania mostly used bartering, which means trading goods directly. But in the 3rd century BC, Greek towns like Ampurias started making coins. These coins were not used widely.
Later, Carthage used coins more often to pay its soldiers. But it was the Romans who made coins common across Hispania. They used coins made of valuable metals and also coins of lower value. These lower-value coins were trusted because the Roman treasury backed them. Many coins have been found, especially low-value ones. This shows that money was used a lot in daily life. As Rome expanded, many local groups in Hispania also made their own coins. This made it easier to pay tribute and trade with Roman areas.
During the Republican period, the Roman Senate controlled coin making. But later, powerful leaders took over. Many mints (places where coins are made) then came under imperial control.
Once Rome fully controlled Hispania, many mints made coins. Some famous ones were Tarraco, Italica, Barcino, Caesaraugusta, and Emerita Augusta. Across the Roman Empire, over 400 mints supplied coins to most of Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East.
Minerals from Hispania
Rome's first interest in Hispania was its legendary mineral wealth. This was even more true after they took over Carthage's mines. After the Second Punic War, Publius Scipio 'Africanus' was in charge of the mines. He paid special attention to them. Rome continued the mining methods used by local peoples and improved them with techniques from Ptolemaic Egypt.
The mines belonged to the Roman state. Rome created "public societies" to manage them. These were businesses run by publicans, often wealthy Romans. They became rich very quickly. Later, during his time as dictator, Sulla took the mines from these publicans. He gave them to private individuals, which helped him gain money and power. By the time of Strabo (around the 1st century BC to 1st century AD), mines were given as concessions to private companies. This system allowed some families from Italy to become very rich after settling in Hispania. Sometimes, a city (usually a Roman colony) owned the mines. The profits from mining were huge for seven centuries of Roman rule. This made Hispania a key part of the Empire's economy. Records show that in the 2nd century BC, mine production was worth over nine million denarii each year. This was much more than the money gained from war at the same time.
Rome was most interested in silver, copper, and iron. Hannibal had greatly increased silver mining in New Carthage. Rome continued to mine silver, lead, iron, zinc, and other minerals in huge amounts near Cartagena and Mazarron. About 40,000 people worked in these mines under very tough conditions. Even today, there are big mineral deposits in places like Almaden de la Plata and Aznalcollar in Sevilla. The mercury mine of Almaden also depended on Sisapo. Many sunken ships have been found with silver, lead, and copper bars from Hispanic smelters. This shows how much was produced.
Another important mineral from Hispania was lapis specularis. This was a clear type of gypsum, used like glass for windows in Rome. It was mainly found in the modern Spanish provinces of Toledo and Cuenca. The city of Segobriga was the main center for this mineral's production. It was the city's most important economic activity.
Working in the mines during Roman times was extremely difficult. Many people were forced to work in dangerous conditions, without much safety or rest. For these workers, going to the mines was a terrible fate. They often spent their short lives underground, hauling minerals or swinging a pick, always risking cave ins.
Farming in Roman Hispania
As soon as Rome conquered new lands, they divided them among soldiers. The land was measured and prepared for new settlements. Roman culture often saw farming as an ideal way of life for citizens. The Romans created laws about land ownership. They used surveying techniques to mark property lines and divide fields. This helped new settlers quickly take over the land. Later, in the late 2nd century BC, this led to problems for small farmers. Many people were forced to work in all parts of the economy, which made it hard for small farmers to compete. This problem, even with attempts at land reform, helped big landowners. They owned huge farms dedicated to growing one type of crop, worked by many laborers. Small farmers often had to leave their land and join the growing Roman armies.
Olives and Olive Oil Trade
Olives were a very important crop in Hispania from the 2nd century BC, especially along the Mediterranean coast. Under Roman rule, the province of Bética became known for producing olive oil to export to Rome and northern Europe.
Huge piles of broken amphorae (clay jars) at "Mount Testaccio" in Rome, and jars found in sunken ships, show how much oil was traded. Mount Testaccio was a giant dump for ceramic containers from goods arriving in Rome. Studies show that 80% of this hill is made of Betician olive oil amphorae. This proves how massive the olive oil trade was and how important olive farming was in Hispania. Olive oil was Hispania's most traded product for the longest time. It is still a key part of farming in southern Spain today.
Amphorae from Bética have been found in places like Alexandria and even Israel. Most oil went to Rome until the mid-3rd century AD. In the 2nd century AD, oil was also sent to Roman army camps in Germania.
The sheer number of amphorae found, especially at Mount Testaccio, is amazing. The town of Lora del Rio in Sevilla was home to one of the biggest olive oil exporters. Its ancient remains are still studied today. Many potteries and oil producers existed throughout Bética and to its east during Roman Hispania.
Grapevines and Wine Trade
Classical writers often praised the quality and quantity of Hispanic grapevines. Some wines were highly valued in Italy. Other, less fancy wines were made for ordinary people. This crop was mostly grown on large farms called 'fundus'. These farms handled everything needed to make wine, sometimes even making their own pottery for bottles. Because there were so many of these farms and they produced so much, Hispania could supply its own people and export a lot of wine to other parts of the Empire.
Columella's Farming Books
Lucius Junius Moderatus Columella from Cadiz wrote important books about farming in Hispania. In his twelve books (written in the 1st century AD), he described farming practices of his time. He also pointed out problems, like farms being abandoned or large landowners buying up too much land. He wrote a lot about growing olives and grapevines.
Salted Goods Trade
Archaeological finds of amphorae in southern Hispania show that salted fish was traded even before Carthage took control. There is proof of salted fish production and trade as early as the 5th century BC. The Carthaginians spread this trade across the western Mediterranean, both in Hispania and North Africa.
During the Roman period, Hispania was famous for its thriving salted fish trade from Bética. This trade reached all over western Europe. Remains of factories show this activity. Besides salted fish, they also produced a sauce called garum. Garum was very famous throughout the Empire. It was made by soaking fish insides. Like the wine and oil trade, garum production created a big industry for making amphorae. Many of these jars have been found, helping us understand how far this trade reached.
Images for kids
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Mining tools from the mines of New Carthage. Municipal Archaeological Museum of Cartagena
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Bars of lead from the mines of New Carthage. Municipal Archaeological Museum of Cartagena
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Entrances to a copper mine in Texeo (Principado de Asturias) mined in Roman times.
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Ruins of a factory for salted fish and garum, located in the ancient Roman city of Baelo Claudia, near Tarifa in southern Spain.
See also
In Spanish: Economía en la Hispania romana para niños
