HISTORY10 - Iberian Peninsula
Pat is scheduled for a three-week trip to Portugal and Spain in late June and early July so I decided to do a little research and write a summary of Iberian Peninsula History before her trip. The Iberian Peninsula, also known as Iberia, is located in the southwest corner of Europe. The peninsula is mostly divided between Portugal and Spain, but also includes the tiny Principality of Andorra, between France and Spain; and the British overseas territory of Gibraltar, on the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, at the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea. The peninsula has an area of 230,400 square miles (slightly smaller than Texas). The terrain of the Iberian Peninsula is largely mountainous, with the Pyrenees Mountains forming a natural border between Spain and France. Modern map of Europe and the Mediterranean area with the Iberian Peninsula at the southwest corner of Europe. (Courtesy of wpmap.org) First People (1.2 million years ago) The oldest evi