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Main Nationalist Party:

Independent Republic of Sardinia

http://www.indipendentzia.net/

The History of Sardinia

Prehistory

In 1979 human remains were found that were dated to 150,000 BC. The first men to settle in Gallura and Northern Sardinia probably came from Italian peninsula, possibly Tuscany. The central region may have been populated by people arriving from the Iberian Peninsula through the Balearic Islands.

Prehistoric arrowheads (3rd millennium BC) and sculptures of the Mediterranean Mother Goddess (now in the Archeological Museum of Cagliari) were retrieved which demonstrate a well developed industry of stone carving.

The Stone Age and Obsidian

Already in the Stone Age Monte Arci played an important role. The old volcano was one of the central places where obsidian was found and worked for cutting tools and arrowheads. Even now the volcanic glass can be found on the sides of the mountain.

The prehistorical era of Sardinia is characterised by the typical structures in stone that are called Nuraghe. There are about 7000 of these structures, more or less complex. The most famous is the complex of Barumini in the province of Cagliari. The Nuraghe were built in the period from about 1800 to 250 BC, with the climax between 1200 and 900 BC. Next to that holy waterplaces have been built (for example Santa Cristina, Sardara) and the grave structures called Dolmen. It is known that the Sardinians already had contact with the Myceneans, who traded with the West Mediterranean.

The alleged connection with the Shardana, the sea people that invaded Egypt has not been proven. Tombs (Tombe dei giganti) have tombstones shaped like a sinking ship, probably witness to a tragedy on sea expeditions. Euboians, the first Greeks to navigate westwards, called the island Hyknousa (later latinized in Ichnus(s)a). The Nora stone has been seen as proof that the island was called Sharden by the Phoenicians, and from there it derived the name Sardinia.

Phoenicians, Punics and Romans in Sardinia

From the 8th century BC, Phoenicians founded several cities and strongholds on Sardinia; Tharros, Bithia, Sulcis, Nora and Karalis (Cagliari). The Phoenicians came originally from Lebanon and traded in the Mediterranean. They settled everywhere in the region. Sardinia had a special position because it was central in the western Mediterranean between Carthage, Spain, the Rhone river and the Etruscan civilization area. The mining area around Iglesias was important for the metals (lead and zinc). The cities were founded on strategic points, often peninsulas or islands near estuaries, easy to defend and natural harbours. After the Phoenicians, the Punics (from Carthage) took over control in that part of the Mediterrenean, around 550 BC. The Punics expanded their influence in almost the whole of Sardinia.

In 238 BC the Romans took over the island. They did fight a war with Carthage, the First Punic War, but only after the war Carthaginian mercenaries revolted and gave the Romans the opportunity to land on Sardinia and occupy it. When the Romans took over Sardinia they practically took over an existing developed infrastructure and urbanized culture (at least in the plains). Together with Sicily it formed one of the main granaries of Rome until the Romans conquered Egypt. The Phoenician-Punic culture remained very strong under the Romans until the first centuries AD. Tharros, Nora, Bithia, Antas and Monte Sirai are now important archaeological monuments where architecture and city planning can be studied.

The Middle Ages

After the fall of the Roman Empire, Sardinia was subject to several conquests. In 456, the Vandals occupied the island coming from North Africa, after which the Byzantines liberated the island and made it part of the Byzantine Empire.

From 711, the Saracens harassed the population of the coastal cities. For that reason in the ninth century Tharros was abandoned in favor of Oristano, after more than 1800 years of occupation. The aid of the maritime republics of Pisa and Genoa was called in the struggle against the Arabs. From 1063 on the island, following the Byzantine political and administrative organization of the territory, the Giudicati ("held by judges") were formed. The most remarkable figure in the Late Middle Ages was Eleonora d'Arborea, the woman who laid the foundations for the laws that remained valid until 1827, the Carta de Logu. At the same time the influence of the Spanish Aragonese increased until they conquered Sardinia. The watchtowers all along the coast are called Aragonese towers and served to protect the island against the Arab incursions. Some of these towers were built with the stones of the Phoenician cities because these lay on strategic sites. A nice example of reuse for secular and ecclesiastical architecture can also be found in the church of Santa Giusta where the old city of Othoca had been. The influence of the Spanish has been so strong that even now around Alghero a Catalan dialect is spoken.

From the kingdom of Sardinia until the present day

Between 1718 and 1861 (the unity of Italy), Sardinia and Piedmont formed the Kingdom of Sardinia. The development of the infrastructure was slow. Under Carlo Felice, the most important road was built from south (Cagliari) to north (Sassari). It still bears his name. In 1883 the first trains travelled between Cagliari and Sassari and under Mussolini the swamps around Oristano were laid dry and the foundation of the most successful agrarian community was laid, Arborea. Mussolini also founded Carbonia, the centre of the mining activity. After the Second World War coal decreased in importance and that of tourism increased. Many efforts to create jobs have failed because of the high costs of transport that could not compensate the cheap labor.

Today Sardinia is an autonomous region and its history is still visible in language and culture. Noticeable is also the difference between coastal regions and the inland. Coastal regions have always been more open to outside influences. Nowadays Sardinia is most known for the northern coasts and island (La Maddalena, Costa Smeralda) and the coast near Cagliari because these are easily reached by ship and by plane.

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