History re-written: the Galicians
The third delivery of who the nationalists re-write the history is about the Galicians. Galicia (Galiza in Galician language) does not have to be confused with Galitzia or Galicia, the region between Poland and Ukraine. Galicia is a region on the north of Spain, just on top of Portugal.
The nationalism in Galicia does have little elements to base its creed, its religion, its own existence. The basis for nationalism in Galicia are basically on the myth of Breogán. Breogán is the name of a mythical celt king of Galicia. According with this myth, Breogán build a tower on the Iberian city of Brigantia, from where he and his songs were able to see very far. This led them to Ireland, a land where they sailed. There, in Ireland, Ith, one of the sons of Breogán, was killed and, in revenge, they conquered the whole Ireland. What do you think? True? It is just a myth. Nothing has revealed true. There are hundred of myths in Spain, all similar. Some of them have a part of true, such as Tartessos and its king Argantonio.
The thing here is the Celt origin of Galicia, which is true and so has to be recognized. And, opposite to Catalonia and the so called Basque Country, Galicia itself has been a kingdom. But it was for a short period of time, and always integrated on the kingdom of León, first, and Castile, second. True also, the kingdom of Galicia was comprised of two counties, one of them become the kingdom of Portugal (with the help of the Burgundiam people that came to the Spanish kingdoms to help on the Reconquest.
As I said, the Galician kingdom was integrated on the Castilian kingdom, and thus recognized as a part of this kingdom. This is clear on some examples, from the dependency of the Santiago de Compostela bishop to the Castilian crown, to, for instance, the complaints of Galicia being represented by Zamora (a city not Galician).
In 1833, Galicia and all the Spanish kingdoms lost their privileges when the Spanish government instituted the division of Spain in provinces, model which was first conceived by the brother of Napoleón, José Bonaparte, and the Courts of Cádiz.
The Galician nationalists do not talk about the kingdom of Galicia; they do talk about the Celt origins of Galicia. Nationalism in Galicia is based on a myth, the myth of Breogán. Basically.
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