DK Travel : Mallorca : History & Culture

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Palau de l’Almudaina, Palma

Many Moorish elements can still be appreciated in the old, rambling palace.
Pedro, Son of Jaume I

Jaume I’s violent son Pedro and grandson Alfonso III tried to take Mallorca away from the rightful heir, Jaume II.
Plaça Weyler

Several interesting examples of Palma’s Modernista output are found in this square. The Gran Hotel was Palma’s first luxury hotel when it opened in 1903. Designed by Catalan architect Lluis Domenech i Muntaner, it was the building that began the craze for Modernista in the city and is now an excellent art gallery (free) with a permanent display of paintings by Hermen Anglada-Camarasa and a major venue for temporary exhibitions. Across the street is the wonderful façade of the Forn des Teatre pastry shop next to the old-fashioned Bar Central (see Bar Central).
Pollentia

The Moorish town of Alcúdia is built over an ancient Roman settlement called Pollentia. Little more than a few original Roman columns and foundations remain in situ – after being burned by Vandals in AD 440, the antique structures were dismantled to help create the new town (see Alcúdia).
Prehistory

Neolithic pastoral societies have formed by at least 4000 BC. They live in the island’s caves and keep domesticated animals. As bronze-working is introduced around 1400 BC, the Talayot period begins (seeSes Paisses, Capocorb Vell).
Quintus Metellus

Roman Consul who occupied Mallorca and Menorca in the 2nd century.
Ramon Llull

Great 13th-century mystic, poet and scholar who had a profound influence on Mallorcan spiritual life.
Robert Graves

The 20th-century English writer, scholar and poet put Mallorca on the international literary map (see Deià).
Roman Conquest

In the third century BC, Carthage comes into conflict with the expanding Roman Empire. Rome is victorious in 146 BC and establishes order for the next 500 years. Roads and towns are built and, in AD 404, Mallorca and its neighbouring islands are established as the province of Balearica.
Sa Seu, Palma

The Romans had some sort of major building on the site of Palma’s Cathedral, and it was graced with an important mosque under the Moors. The existing edifice shows the stylistic influences of both those and other cultures (see Sa Seu: Palma Cathedral).