MEDIEVAL CHURCHES

Early medieval churches were built in the Roman style, called Romanesque.
Romanesque churches had very thick walls made of stone.
They had round arches.
They were built with only a few small windows, so they were dark inside.
Later, medieval churches were built in a new style called Gothic.
Gothic churches had thinner stone walls and stone roofs.
The roofs were vaulted.
Gothic churches were larger and taller than Romanesque churches.
They were bright inside because they had many large windows.

Romanesque Church Santa María del Naranco,
in Oviedo, picture from Wikipedia by Amadalvarez

Gothic Church in Exeter, picture from Wikipedia, by Torsten Schneider

TRAVELLING IN MEDIEVAL TIMES

Travel was difficult and slow in medieval times.
There were few roads, and they were in poor condition.
Travelling was dangerous because many travellers were atacked by thieves.
People travelled on foot, on horseback or in horse-drawn carts.
Small sailing boats were used on rivers and at the sea.

LIFE IN MEDIEVAL TIMES

1000 years ago, noblemen lived in castles with their family, servants and soldiers.
They were built on hills and surrounded by a deep moat filled with water.
Walls made of thick stone surrounded the castle.
Soldiers guarded the castle from towers.
Inside the castle walls was a large house for the lord's family and several other smaller houses.
there were stables for the horses, a blacksmith's a well for water and warehouses for storing food.
Peasants lived in villages near the castle.
They lived in simple huts made of wood, straw and mud, with one simple room.

Manzanares el Real Castle. Picture from Wikipedia by Eleagnus

Medieval Castle: The Tower of London. Picture from fsmschmitt

ROMAN REMAINS

The Romans were excellent builders.
They built:

• Theatres for performing plays.
• Amphitheatres for watching gladiator fights.
• Circuses for watching chariot races.
• Temples for worshipping their gods.
• Bath houses, called thermae, for bathing and relaxing.
• Aqueducts, for transporting water to the cities.

The Romans decorated their houses with works of art:

• Frescos were beautiful wall paintings.
• Mosaics were elaborated floor decorations made from thousands of tiny, coloured tiles.

The Romans spoke a language called Latin.
Castilian Spanish, Catalan and Galician are some modern languages that developed from Latin.

Roman Theatre in Mérida, picture from Wikipedia by Xauxa

Roman Amphitheatre in Itálica, Andalucía. Picture from Wikipedia by Pufacz

Roman Colosseum, Picture from Wikipedia by Dilliff

Roman Circus in Lybia. Picture from Wikipedia by Papageizichta

Roman Temple. Picture from Wikipedia by Arpingstone

Roman Bath in Bath, Picture from Wikipedia

Aqueduct of Segovia, picture from Wikipedia, by Bernard Gagnon

ROMAN TIMES: TRAVELLING IN ANCIENT ROME

Roman cities were linked by straight roads made of stone.

The Romans used the roads to travel on foot, on horseback and in horse-drawn carriages.

Sailing boats were used to carry food and merchandise to other Roman cities.

The Romans built large seaports

ROMAN TIMES: LIFE IN ANCIENT ROME

Over 2000 years ago, the Romans built many cities.
They lived in different types of houses:

• Domus: were private houses for rich people.
• Insulae: were apartment buildings for the poorer people.
• Villas: were luxury Roman country houses where rich land owners lived.

Domus, picture from Flickr by Sebastià Giralt

Domus, picture from Flickr, by Sebastià Giralt.

Roman Villa, picture from Wikipedia, by Boksi

ANCIENT REMAINS

The first human beings decorated cave walls with paintings.
In this period, tools were very simple.
Humans shaped knives and arrowheads by hitting two rocks together.
They made spears and harpoons from wood or bone.
Primitive human beings made clay pots to hold food and water.

Prehistoric painting in Altamira, Spain.
Picture from Wikipedia, by Rameesos.

Picture from Wikimedia Commons, by Mercy

A spear and a series of javelins from Wikipedia, by Master z0b

TRAVELLING IN PRIMITIVE TIMES

The first human beings travelled on foot.
This made travelling very slow.
Later, people domesticated animals.
They invented the wheel and made the first carts.
They also built the first sailing boats.
Travelling became easier and faster.

Ancient British Canoe, from Wikipedia, by MarVelo

LIFE IN PRIMITIVE TIMES

Many thousands of years ago, human beings lived in small groups called tribes.
They ate plants and hunted animals for food.
Tribes travelled from place to place to find fresh food.
They lived ner rivers to obtain fresh water.
They made simple huts from branches and animal skins, or they lived in caves.
later, human beings learned to cultivate plants and domesticate animals.
They built permanent villages with simple houses.

Picture from Wikipedia by Viktor Vasnetsov

LIFE THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO: REMEMBER

FAMILY HISTORY
Family history is made up of memories.
Our grandparents and parents have memories about their lives.
we also have memories of when we were younger.
These memories help us find out about the history of our family.

THE PASSING OF TIME
Everything changes with time: people, customs, objects and the landscape.
history helps us to know how people lived many years ago.

You can remember what we studied last year about:
Your Personal History,
Past, Present and Future,
The History of Your City, Town or Village,
Thousands of Years Ago.

HOW CITIZENS PARTICIPATE: PEACEFUL ASSEMBLY

All citizens have the right to peaceful assembly, that is, to form peaceful groups to defend their interests.
These groups include:

• Political parties.
• Neighbourhood associations.
• Trade unions.
• Consumer protection groups.

Citizens also have the right to attend peaceful demonstrations.

Picture from yourdemocracy.net

HOW CITIZENS PARTICIPATE: PARTICIPATING IN POLITICS

All citizens have the right to participate in matters of general interest.
We participate when we vote in elections.
Voting must be universal, secret and free.

Picture from wikipedia, by Rama

HOW CITIZENS PARTICIPATE: FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION

• The right to demonstrate and to practise our religious and political beliefs.
• The right to express and share our ideas freely.

We have the obligation to respect the freedom of expression of others.

HOW CITIZENS PARTICIPATE: EQUAL BEFORE THE LAW

In a democratic state, all people are equal before the law.
this means that all laws and obligations are applied equally to all men and women.
The right to equality means that we have the obligation not to discriminate against anybody because of their sex, race, religion or beliefs.

HOW CITIZENS PARTICIPATE: LIVING IN SOCIETY

Society is a group of people who live in the same community.
Codes of conduct help make living in society easier.
A code of conduct is a list of rights and obligations, based on respect for others.
For each right, we have an obligation.

HOW THE STATE IS ORGANISED: THE STATUTES OF AUTONOMY

The Statutes of Autonomy are the most important laws of the Autonomous Communities.
The main resposibilities of the Autonomous Community parliament are:

• Making the laws.
• Approving the budgets.
• Making sure the government fulfills its duties.
• Electing the president of the government of the Autonomous Community from among its members.

HOW THE STATE IS ORGANISED: ELECTIONS

Citizens 18 years old and over can vote in elections.
The political party with the majority of votes forms the government.
The other parties make up the opposition.

• Municipal elections. Citizens vote for their local councillors.
• Autonomous Community elections. Citizens vote for the members of parliament of their Autonomous Community.
• General Elections. Citizens vote for the candidates of a political party. Those who win seats in the Lower House of Parliament elect the President of the Government of Spain.
• European Parliament elections. Members of the European Parliament are elected.

HOW THE STATE IS ORGANISED: POLITICAL PARTIES

A political party is a group of citizens with similar ideas about how to govern.
Political parties stand for election to obtain the most votes in order to govern.

Political parties draw up an election manifesto to explain their ideas.

They designate candidates to hold government positions.

They organise an electoral campaign to promote their party's ideas.

Political parties in Spain in 2011.

Election Manifesto

HOW THE STATE IS ORGANISED: THE SPANISH CONSTITUTION

The Constitution is the most important law in Spain.
It was approved by the Spanish people in 1978.
In a referendum.
A referendum is when all citizens vote on an important subject.
The Constitution recognises the rights and obligations of the Spanish people.
The Constitution also establishes the national institutions: the Lower House of Parliament, the Upper House of Parliament and the Courts of Justice.

First page of the Spanish Constitution, from Wikipedia.

Spanish Referendum in 1978

Lower House of Parliament in Spain.

Upper House of Parliament in Spain.

Constitutional Court of Justice in Spain.

HOW THE STATE IS ORGANISED: SPAIN IS A DEMOCRATIC STATE

In a democratic state, all citizens have the same rights and obligations.
Everyone can freely elect the candidates of their choice to represent them in the national institutions.

REMEMBER

GOVERNMENT RESPONSIBILITIES
Governments are elected to make decisions on behalf of the people, and to provide services such as hospitals, schools and airports.

THE LOCAL COUNCIL
All municipalities have a town hall where the local council works.
The mayor and the councillors make up the local council.
They organise the public services that everyone needs.

Here you can click to remember what we studied last year about the Local Council.
Neighbourhood & Local Council,
What do Local Councils do?
Local Councils.