Spanish Crown & Modern Era

After incorporation into the Crown of Aragon (1349) and the later union with Castile (1469, marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella), Mallorca became part of the growing Spanish empire — albeit a rather insignificant part. The following centuries were a time of decline, isolation, and constant threat for the island.

Piracy and Fortification (15th–17th centuries)

The greatest threat came from the sea: North African pirates (Barbary corsairs) regularly and brutally raided the coasts of Mallorca. Entire villages were plundered, inhabitants abducted as slaves. The most famous attack was the plundering of Pollenca in 1550 by the feared corsair Dragut — an event reenacted today at the annual festival "Moros i Cristians".

In response, an impressive network of watchtowers (Torres de defensa) was built around the coast — over 80 towers, many of which still stand today and are among the island's most picturesque photo motifs. Coastal towns like Deia, Valldemossa, and Fornalutx were deliberately built a few kilometers inland to be protected from pirate surprises.

Economic Decline

While Spain flourished with its colonial empire, Mallorca remained off the major trade routes. The island suffered from plague epidemics (particularly devastating in 1652), crop failures, and a feudal social structure that hindered innovation. The Chuetas — descendants of forcibly converted Jews — formed a persecuted minority whose stigmatization persisted into the 20th century.

In the War of the Spanish Succession (1701–1714), Mallorca sided with the Habsburgs — and lost. The victorious Bourbon Philip V. abolished the self-governing rights of the Balearic Islands with the Decretos de Nueva Planta (1715). Castilian (Spanish) became the sole official language — a blow to the Catalan identity, the repercussions of which are still felt today.

19th Century — Tentative Awakening

Only in the 19th century did a slow change begin: Archduke Ludwig Salvator of Austria discovered Mallorca for himself in the 1870s, bought large estates on the northwest coast (including Son Marroig near Deia), and published his monumental work "The Balearic Islands" — the first comprehensive documentation of the island. Frederic Chopin and George Sand spent the winter of 1838/39 in the Charterhouse of Valldemossa — Sand's book "A Winter in Mallorca" made the island known in Europe, albeit not always flatteringly.