The island is known for its collection of
megalithic stone monuments:
navetes,
taules and
talaiots, which indicate very early
prehistoric human activity. Some of the earliest culture on Menorca was influenced by other
Mediterranean cultures, including the Greek
Minoans of
ancient Crete (see also
Gymnesian Islands). For example, the use of inverted plastered timber columns at
Knossos is thought to have influenced early peoples of Menorca in imitating this practice. The end of the
Punic Wars saw an increase in piracy in the western Mediterranean. The
Roman occupation of
Hispania had meant a growth of maritime trade between the
Iberian and
Italian peninsulas. Pirates took advantage of the strategic location of the Balearic Islands to raid Roman commerce, using both Menorca and
Mallorca as bases. In reaction to this, the Romans
invaded Menorca. By 123 BC, both islands were fully under Roman control, later being incorporated into the province of
Hispania Citerior. In 13 BC, Roman emperor
Augustus reorganised the provincial system and the
Balearic Islands became part of the
Tarraconensis imperial province. The ancient town of Mago (
Mahón) was transformed from a
Carthaginian to a Roman town.
Jews of Menorca The island had a Jewish population. The
Letter on the Conversion of the Jews by a fifth-century bishop named
Severus tells of the
forced conversion of the island's 540 Jewish men and women in AD 418. Several Jews, including Theodore, a rich representative Jew who stood high in the estimation of his coreligionists and of Christians alike, underwent baptism. The act of conversion brought about, within a previously peaceful coexisting community, the expulsion of the ruling Jewish elite into the bleak hinterlands, the burning of synagogues, and the gradual reinstatement of certain Jewish families after the forced acceptance of Christianity, allowing the survival of those Jewish families who had not already perished.
Middle Ages The
Vandals easily conquered the island in the fifth century. The
Byzantine Empire recovered it in 534. Following the
Umayyad conquest of Hispania, Menorca was annexed to the
Caliphate of Córdoba in 903, with many
Muslims emigrating to the island.
Manûrqa () was the Arabicized name given to the island by the
Muslims from its annexation to the
Caliphate of Cordoba by 'Isâm al-Khawlânî in 903 until the rule of the last Muslim ra'îs,
Abû 'Umar ibn Sa'îd in 1287. The only urban centre of the island was
Madînat al Jazîra or
al Manûrqa (modern
Ciutadella). Most of the population lived in small farm communities organized under a
tribal structure. In 1231, after Christian forces took Mallorca, Menorca chose to become an independent Islamic state, albeit one tributary to King
James I of Aragon. The island was ruled first by
Abû 'Uthmân Sa'îd Hakam al Qurashi (1234–1282), and following his death by his son,
Abû 'Umar ibn Sa'îd (1282–1287). A
Catalan-Aragonese invasion, led by
Alfonso III (also known as
Count of Barcelona Alfons II), came on 17 January 1287; its anniversary is now celebrated as Menorca's national day. Once the island was captured, most of its Muslim inhabitants were enslaved and sold in the
slave markets of Eivissa,
Valencia and
Barcelona, while others became Christians. After the Christian conquest of 1287, the island was part of the
Crown of Aragon. For some time it was ceded to the
Kingdom of Mallorca, a vassal state of the Crown, but it was retaken by the king of Aragon in 1343. Eventually the
Crown of Aragon merged with the
Crown of Castile, and so Menorca became part of Spain. During the 16th century,
Turkish naval attacks
destroyed Mahon, and the then capital,
Ciutadella. In Mahon,
Barbary pirates from North Africa took considerable booty and as many as 6,000 slaves. Various Spanish kings, including
Philip III and
Philip IV, styled themselves "King of Minorca" as a subsidiary title.
British rule in 1756 Anglo-Dutch forces
captured Menorca in 1708 during the
War of the Spanish Succession. The island became a British possession and was formally ceded to Great Britain by Spain in the 1713
Peace of Utrecht. Governed by a succession of
British Army officers, during the period of British rule Menorca's capital was moved to
Mahón and a
Royal Navy base established in the town's harbour. Menorca remained a British possession until 1756, when French forces
captured it during the
Seven Years' War after
repulsing a British relief attempt. However,
Britain's victory in the war led the island to be ceded back to them in the 1763
Treaty of Paris. In 1782, Franco-Spanish forces
captured the island during the
American Revolutionary War, and Britain ceded the island back to Spain in the 1783
Peace of Paris. The British once again
captured Menorca in 1798 during the
French Revolutionary Wars, though they ceded it back to Spain in 1802
Treaty of Amiens.
Renewed Spanish rule As with the rest of the Balearic Islands, Menorca was not occupied by the French during the
Peninsular War, as it was successfully protected by the Royal Navy, this time allied to Spain. A quarantine station (
lazaretto), Llatzaret (Catalan), was constructed from 1793 to 1807 next to the entrance to the Port Mahon. It served ships from North Africa wishing to reach the Iberian Peninsula or the ports of the Balearic Islands. Lazarettos confined the crews of ships that were suspected of carrying infectious diseases, such as the plague. The crew needed to spend up to 40 days within its walls until it was clear there was no infection or until the sick recovered. It is now a national monument and can only be reached as part of an official tour. From 1815 until the mid-19th century, the U.S. Navy developed its Mediterranean headquarters at Port Mahon, leaving behind the
English Cemetery, which was restored by the
Spanish government in 2008 and is maintained in the 21st century.
Since 1900 During the
Spanish Civil War, Menorca stayed loyal to the
Second Spanish Republic, while the rest of the Balearic Islands supported the Spanish
Nationalists. The island did not see ground combat, but it was a target of aerial bombing by the pro-Nationalist Italian
Corpo Truppe Volontarie. Many Menorcans were also killed when taking part in a failed
invasion of Mallorca. During the Pedro Marqués Barber era (July–December 1936) some Mallorcans and a priest were executed on the island. After the Nationalist victory in the
Battle of Minorca in February 1939, the Royal Navy assisted in a
peaceful transition of power in Menorca and the evacuation of some political refugees aboard . In October 1993, Menorca was designated by
UNESCO as a
biosphere reserve. In July 2005, the island's application to become the 25th member of the
International Island Games Association was approved. == Climate ==