Moorish Artisan work
So once we were set with the car we headed from Malaga to Granada to see the ancient Moorish stronghold called La Alhambra. Historically this was the last Moorish (Muslim) stronghold in Spain. (the other being the city of Ronda which we also visited). The Alhambra had been modified by each Moorish Sultan and even later on my the Spanish Kings. It was an impressive sight to behold and we spent about 5 hours there exploring the grounds. We saw the Sultan’s palace, church, beautiful gardens, and tall towers that had views of the entire valley. Additional portions of the fortress are still being restored, which also made it interesting when considering which parts of the fortress are seen as is and which are restored and are not the original stone and artisan work.
The fortress was a joy for me to see, because this was the last location of Moors in Spain. This fortress was conquered by the Spanish Christians (Ferdinand and Isabelle) the same year Christopher Columbus discovered the Americas in 1492. The Arabic influence can be seen parts of Southern Spain still today as many signs in the cities were in Arabic and Spanish. Though I don’t know how many people in Spain speak Arabic but it’s not totally surprising that an influence can be felt considering it has only been about 500 years since their removal.
View from a tower
Wall surrounding the city
The door is 5x as tall as Krystle!
A beautiful girl in a beautiful garden
A view of the main palace and fortress
Main church in Granada
Beautiful! Just a little bit of trivia, did you know that Ferdinand and Isabelle's daughter was Catherine of Aragon, the first queen (Queen Katherine who was dethroned by Anne Boleyn) to King Henry VIII of England? Yep, that's where she grew up after her parents took it from the Moors until she left for England to marry is older brother, Arthur, later to marry Henry. You guys just saw a major piece of history! Wow!
ReplyDeleteYes I did. Did you learn that from the recent movie? It really was quite breathtaking!
ReplyDeleteNo, actually from reading a book on the topic. A great book called The Constant Princess. It was all about Catherine's life. You guys should check it out.
ReplyDeleteHow beautiful!
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