History History

Minorca was already inhabited in the Copper Age, probably by people from the south of present-day France. Megalithic remains from prehistoric times suggest as much. Megalithic and cyclopean monuments dating back to the island's prehistory can still be found in every corner of the island (a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2023).

The first talayot constructions marked the beginning of what we call talayotic culture, which developed in Menorca with unique characteristics. Towns were formed in which stone towers were erected without mortar: these were talayots. Hitherto poorly organized, the tribes built their first monumental structures in a simple manner.

The Carthaginians founded a colony in Eivissa, but did not settle in Minorca or Majorca. They built their own towns and fortifications, and above all exploited the archipelago's riches: salt marshes and murex (a carnivorous mollusc from which purple was extracted, a much sought-after dye in antiquity). They also planted vineyards and olive groves to produce wine and oil.

During this period, trade with the Mediterranean basin intensified, with Greeks and Carthaginians stopping off in the Balearic Islands to offer their wares. The Greeks are said to have called it the "island of Meloussa" ("land of cattle"), while the Phoenicians called it the "island of Nura" ("land of fire"), although recent research has cast doubt on whether the name Nura refers to Menorca. In 205 BC, the Carthaginian general Magon Barca spent a winter with his fleet in the port of Maó, giving it its current name.

It only took a few years for the Romans to understand Carthage's interest in the Balearic Islands. In 123 BC, the consul Caecilius Metellus incorporated the archipelago into the territories of Rome. He created Palma and developed the port of Maó, then called "Portus Magonis", which became a strategic location as well as a prosperous city. It was also he who laid out the roads to Majorca and Minorca. Nevertheless, the Roman Empire left no deep traces of monumental construction in Menorca. After 300 years, the empire was a shadow of its former self. Its fall, around 476 CE, plunged Menorca and the Balearic Islands into a period of retreat.

In 427, the archipelago was devastated and annexed to the lands of the Vandals of North Africa. A Paleo-Christian civilization survived year after year during this period.

Minorca is conquered by Flavius Belisarius of the Byzantine Empire.

After the conquest by general Belisarius (Flavius Belisarius) in 534, under the reign of Justinian, Emperor of Byzantium, the Balearic Islands became part of the Eastern Empire in 553. In the ^7th century, the Visigoths drove out the Byzantines, but it was the Moors who quickly became the masters of the area.

The Arabs made their first incursions as early as the 7th century, although this was not a true invasion. Despite some looting, their main aim was to trade, taking advantage of the islands' privileged position on major sea routes. Charlemagne tried to re-establish a lasting Christian domination of Majorca, but his efforts were dashed in 902, when the Caliph of Cordoba, Issam al-Jawlani, effortlessly seized the archipelago. Following his death in 1031, a succession of Moorish overlords from Spain maintained tolerant relations with the Christians. Although few vestiges are visible today, the cultural, technical (particularly in agriculture) and architectural contributions of the Moors have given the archipelago a new lease of life. Menorcas' current passion for horses and the island's many popular horse festivals are just one of the still visible effects of the Moorish influence. The town of Ciutadella, in the far west of Menorca, was renamed "Jamma" and became the island's capital.

The islands remained Muslim lands, but for the first time in centuries, they became an independent kingdom. Between 1113 and 1114, Ramon Berenguer, Count of Barcelona, attracted by the Balearic Islands' geographical location at the crossroads of Mediterranean trade routes, joined forces with privateers from Pisa to occupy Palma. The conquest dragged on, giving the Muslims time to reorganize, and the attempted reconquest failed. The archipelago returned to its former state of Arab domination.

Driven by a genuine sense of divine mission, and taking advantage of the dissensions between the various Arab suzerains of the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands, James ^I of Aragon (also known as James the Conqueror) took advantage of the ongoing attacks by Arab pirates against merchant ships to attempt to drive the Muslims out of the Balearic Islands. In September 1229, he sent a powerful fleet. On September 9, the young king (aged 21) emerged victorious from the main confrontation between the two armies. However, the Moors had taken refuge in Medina Majorica, the Arab name for Palma. James ^I had to wait three months. The city finally fell into his hands, and the Kingdom of Majorca was born.

Alfonso III the Liberal kicks the last leader of the Caliphate, Abu Umar, off the island and incorporates Menorca into the Kingdom of Aragon. Minorca's Muslim population was enslaved and gradually deported, before being replaced by a Catalan population. Since this conquest, Menorca's history has been closely linked to that of Majorca.

Minorca became part of the Kingdom of the Balearic Islands. Until his death in 1276, the sovereign James I The Conqueror successfully contributed to the development of the Balearic economy. On his death, he bequeathed Majorca to his youngest son, James II, with the title of King of the Balearic Islands, while the eldest son received the Kingdom of Aragon. With this division, the islands became an independent kingdom for the last time in their history. This remained the case until 1343, despite pressure from the Aragonese branch of the family to reclaim the Balearic Islands. These tensions came to a head when Sanche, son of James II and without a male heir, appointed his nephew, the future James III, to succeed him, while Aragon claimed the archipelago. Conflict was averted thanks to France's support for James III, but when Peter IV of Aragon came to power, the conflict flared up again, and the kingdom of Majorca was abandoned by the French king, who was in the midst of the Hundred Years' War.

After securing the support of the local population by promising to maintain all his privileges, Peter IV seized the kingdom of Majorca by crushing the army of James III.

In the early ^15th century, Menorca was at war with the Germans. It was also subject to internal strife between two classes of citizens: the so-called "nobles" and the "peasants". As at the time of the first Arab incursions, piracy once again devastated the archipelago, leading to almost total depopulation. In the second half of the ^15th century, following the union of the Crown of Aragon with that of Castile, Menorca became part of the Kingdom of Spain.

During the ^16th century, pirate raids on the Balearic Islands were commonplace. In 1534, the Turkish pirate Barbarossa sacked the town of Maó. In retaliation for Charles V's conquest of Tunis in 1535 (which the Ottoman Empire recaptured in 1574), Berber privateers also attacked Menorca. Another tragic event was the invasion of Ciutadella by the pirate Mustafa PiSali on July 9, 1558. The pirate turned the town into a heap of ruins and took 3,500 prisoners, who were reduced to slavery.

Early in the following century, King Philip II decided to build the Sant Felip fort at the entrance to the port of Maó, as well as a number of defensive towers along the coast. Overall, the ^17th century was a period of decline for Menorca. Plague, drought, incessant pirate threats and internal strife within the island made it very fragile.

The ^18th century was a tumultuous period in Menorca's history. The island was colonized in turn by England and France, before coming under Franco-Spanish rule.

In September 1708, an English squadron under the command of General Laeke succeeded in capturing Menorca from the Spanish. In 1713, the Treaty of Utrecht confirmed the conquest: Philip V ceded Menorca to Great Britain. This colonization lasted until 1756.

At the very start of the Seven Years' War, France and England fought for control of the island. The French won the Battle of Menorca (or Battle of Port Maó) and held the island throughout the war. In 1763, with the signing of the Treaty of Paris, the English regained control of Menorca (as well as India and Canada), until 1782. This was the second phase of English domination.

Franco-Spanish troops led by General Crillon reclaimed Minorca. But the English held out, occupying the island for a third time from 1798 to 1802, before ceding it to Spain once and for all (Treaty of Amiens). During the first two periods of British occupation, Sir Richard Kane, an Irish soldier who was governor of the island, decided to move the capital from Ciutadella to Maó. Throughout this period, thanks to trade with England, Menorca's economy was very healthy.

Spain did not regain sovereignty over Menorca until 1802, when the Treaty of Amiens returned the Balearic Islands to Spain.

After the war between Spain and Napoleon's empire, many Catalans found refuge on the island. Then, from 1825 onwards, due to very poor harvests and high livestock mortality caused by the scarcity of pasture, many Menorcas emigrated. They emigrated to North America, the Caribbean and South America, but above all to Algeria.

During the reign of Isabella II, the fortress of La Mola was built at the entrance to the port of Maó. It was soon converted into a military prison, and remained so until 1968.

During the Civil War, between 1936 and 1939, the military on Mallorca and Ibiza rallied almost immediately behind General Franco, with only Menorca remaining loyal to the Republicans until the Second World War. In February 1939, at the end of the war, it was retaken by Franco's forces.

After years of semi-autarky, Franco's Spanish government accelerated the opening-up process and the first tourists arrived in the Balearic Islands.

Although Minorca has been a vacation destination since the 1960s, it has always kept its other economic sectors (cheese, footwear and jewelry) very active. Mass tourism arrived later than on Mallorca and Ibiza. Tourism is better controlled in Menorca than elsewhere.

The feast of Sant Antoni, the island's patron saint, becomes Menorca's Festival of the People.

In the early 1980s, the islands underwent a veritable revolution, with Minorca's long-awaited accession to autonomy and the creation of an autonomous Balearic government on February 25, 1983. A parliament was created. Since then, Balearic voters have been regularly called to the polls to elect their deputies. A government was formed, headed by a president: Gabriel Cañellas Fons.

Gabriel Cañellas i Fons was the first President of the Autonomous Community of the Balearic Islands, a position he held until 1995. After being re-elected several times (1987, 1991 and 1995), he was forced to resign.

Menorca has been declared a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO. This is recognition of the island's unique environmental values and characteristics, which include most of the Mediterranean ecosystems and a rich artistic and cultural heritage.

Joana M. Barceló Martí takes over as President of the Menorca Island Council.

After two difficult years, tourism is back on the rise on Menorca and the other three islands, although not to the very high levels seen before the pandemic. Even so, tourism has become the main driving force behind the island's economy, although the footwear and jewelry sectors have been revived. Cheese production is also holding up well, despite the abandonment or transformation of many "llocs" (farmhouses) into charming rural hotels.

Menorca's Talayotic architectural ensemble officially enters the Unesco World Heritage list.