ABSTRACT
Throughout the nineties, Europe has experienced what are without doubt some of the most fundamental changes in its history. One cannot help feeling a certain degree of perplexity when considering its possible future paths in light of some of the questions probed here. Our interest centers mainly upon the relationships between the cultural, economic and territorial processes that go to make up the North-West Mediterranean Axis. This space is currently included within the Spanish State. It comprises Catalonia, Valencia and the Balearic Islands, but may be considered to extend toward the south of the Iberian Peninsula, reaching the regions of Murcia and Western Andalusia. In this paper we consider the development of this axis of economic expansion within the dynamics of the great spaces of European development: the Rhone-Rhine Axis or “Backbone of Europe,” the Atlantic Axis and the Mediterranean Axis, with its metropolises of Rome, Barcelona, Valencia, Milan, Lyons, Turin, and Naples. Within the framework of the Iberian Peninsula, this Mediterranean Axis displays a special interrelation and homogenous structural characteristics. The present dynamics of the Mediterranean space contrasts greatly with the evolution of the other Peninsular spaces. One of these spaces is the so-called “Cantabrian Coast,” which is situated on the Atlantic Axis and includes the national communities of the Basque Country and Galicia, together with Asturias and Cantabria. Another such space is that of central Spain, with a centuries-long regressive dynamic which contrasts with the lines of growth at the periphery. Located in this central area, Madrid tries to compensate the strong internal imbalance and realign its connection with the great areas of expansion.
