Spain is in Southwestern Europe and borders on to the Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean and the Pyrenees Mountains. It's neighbours are France, Portugal and Gibraltar, occupying most of the Iberian peninsula. This region once had several independent kingdoms. In the early 8th century A. D. a Moslem occupation began and lasted for nearly seven centuries. In 1492 Christians from the north re-conquered the region resulting in the unification of kingdoms known as Spain today.

Spain became a world power in the 16th and 17th centuries (sometimes called "the Golden Age of Spain) when Christopher Columbus discovered America and Spain colonised parts of the Caribbean, Central and South America, the Philippines and Africa. They used their military and naval power to pillage Central and South America, enslaving or exterminating many of its peoples. Perhaps it is karma that Spain yielded command of the seas to England and has fallen behind Britain, France and Germany in economic and political power. Spain suffered a devastating civil war from 1936-39 but remained neutral in World Wars I and II.