Chapter I: Part 1

THE SPANISH SERIES

GRANADA AND THE ALHAMBRA

THE SPANISH SERIES

_EDITED BY ALBERT F. CALVERT_

GOYA
TOLEDO
MADRID
SEVILLE
MURILLO
CORDOVA
EL GRECO
VELAZQUEZ
THE PRADO
THE ESCORIAL
ROYAL PALACES OF SPAIN
GRANADA AND ALHAMBRA
SPANISH ARMS AND ARMOUR
LEON, BURGOS AND SALAMANCA
VALLADOLID, OVIEDO, SEGOVIA
ZAMORA, AVILA AND ZARAGOZA

GRANADA AND
THE ALHAMBRA

A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE
ANCIENT CITY OF GRANADA
WITH A PARTICULAR ACCOUNT
OF THE MOORISH PALACE
BY ALBERT F. CALVERT
WITH 460 ILLUSTRATIONS

LONDON: JOHN LANE, THE BODLEY HEAD
NEW YORK: JOHN LANE COMPANY MCMVII

Printed by BALLANTYNE & CO. LIMITED
Tavistock Street, London

TO
H.I.M. THE EMPRESS EUGÉNIE
THIS SOUVENIR OF THAT FAIR GRANADAN HOME
FROM WHICH SHE CARRIED
THE CROWN OF SPANISH BEAUTY
TO GRACE THE THRONE OF FRANCE
IS DEDICATED
IN ACCORDANCE WITH HER MAJESTY’S
GRACIOUS PERMISSION

PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION

Although the admission may be construed by the censorious as betraying a lack of becoming diffidence, I am tempted to believe that no apology will be demanded for the publication of this volume by that section of the reading public for which it has been chiefly compiled. My temerity goes even further, and I anticipate with some confidence that visitors to the Alhambra, and pilgrims to that famous Mecca of Moorish workmanship, will recognise in this book an earnest attempt to supply a long-felt want. When I paid my first visit to Granada some years ago, I was surprised and disappointed to find that no such thing as an even fairly adequate illustrated souvenir of this “city of the dawn” was to be obtained. Many tomes, costly and valuable (not necessarily the same thing), have been written to place on record the wonders of “the glorious sanctuary of Spain,” but these are beyond the reach of the general public. Many beautiful pictures have caught odd ecstasies of this superb and perfectly harmonised palace of art, but these impressions are not available to the ordinary tourist.

What is wanted, as I imagine, is a concise history and description of the Alhambra, illustrated with a series of pictures constituting a tangible remembrancer of the delights of this Granadian paradise

“Where glory rests ’tween laurels,
A torch to give thee light!”

The Alhambra may be likened to an exquisite opera which can only be appreciated to the full when one is under the spell of its magic influence. But as the witchery of an inspired score can be recalled by the sound of an air whistled in the street, so--it is my hope--the pale ghost of this Moorish fairy-land may live again in the memories of travellers through the medium of this pictorial epitome.

I desire, however, to submit an explanation--or excuse--for the unusual form in which this volume is issued. At the commencement of my work I experienced no little difficulty in collecting the requisite illustrations, for most of the obtainable photographs were ill-chosen and but carelessly developed, and I was compelled to press my own cameras into the service of my scheme. But when my designs became known, I was inundated with offers of pictures of every description, until the embarrassment of artistic treasures entirely upset the original purpose of my book. Artists placed their studies at my disposal; collectors begged me, with irresistible Spanish courtesy, to regard their galleries as my own; and students directed my attention to little-known publications on the subject.

Don Mariano Contreras, Conservator of the Alhambra, the son of the gifted Raphaël Contreras, who devoted thirty-seven years of his life to the restoration of the Palace--gave me the benefit of his knowledge of this unique treasure-house of art; and I have also laid under contribution the beautiful plates of Owen Jones, who disposed of a Welsh inheritance in order to produce his great work on the _Plans, Elevations, Sections, and Details of the Alhambra_. Jones’s _Grammar of Ornament_, which has been described as “beautiful enough to be the horn-book of the Angels,” also contains the result of his researches in the Alhambra, which occupied him for the greater part of eleven years. A selection of these illustrations is here rescued from the obscurity of public libraries and the inaccessible fastnesses of private collections. The inclusion of John F. Lewis’s drawings, and the reproduction of a series of pictures by James C. Murphy, who spent seven years in the study of the artistic marvels of the Alhambra, I do not feel called upon to defend. The photographs, several of which were placed at my disposal by Don Rafaël Garzón, represent the buildings as they appear to-day; the drawings were made before the Palace was damaged by the disastrous fire of September, 1890.

For the historical portions of the description contained in the letterpress I have levied tribute on a variety of authors. _The History of the Mohammedan Dynasties in Spain_, by the learned Spanish Orientalist, Don Pascual de Gayángos; Raphaël Contreras’ _Étude Descriptive des Monuments Arabes_; Richard Ford’s reverent appreciations; Dr. R. Dozy’s history; Mr. Stanley Lane-Poole’s _The Moors in Spain_; Washington Irving’s fascinating writings; and _The Alhambra Album_, presented by Prince Dolgorouki in 1829, containing the autographs, poems, and thoughts of succeeding generations of visitors to Granada, these and many others have been drawn upon in the following pages.

But the multiplicity of my illustrations convinced me that if I adhered to my idea of furnishing an amount of letterpress sufficient to “carry” the blocks, I should only end in producing a book that would tax the physical endurance of my readers by reason of its bulk, and exhaust their patience with a tedious super-abundance of minute descriptive pabulum. I resolved, therefore, to give pride of place to the pictorial side of the volume; to abandon the traditions regulating the proportions of prose to pictures; and make my appeal to the public by the beauty and variety of the illustrations I have collected, and the immensity of elaborate letterpress which I have not written.

A. F. C.

“ROYSTON,”

HAMPSTEAD, N.W., 1904.

PREFACE TO SECOND EDITION

The compilation of a book of this kind reveals in the author a refreshing optimism which does not always survive the ordeal of publication, and it is, perhaps, out of sympathy with the misgivings that assail him as he approaches the bar of public and critical opinion, that convention cedes to him the privilege of making some apology for the faith that is in him. In his preface he is permitted to explain himself, and this _apologia_ or justification, call it which you will, stands as the last word in his own defence. But the demand for a further edition is the outcome of an amiable conspiracy on the part of the public, and it is not required of the author to explain, justify, or excuse an issue for which he is not directly responsible. Any revision or amplification, however, which is to be found in a second impression, may be briefly referred to, and at the same time tradition allows him to express the feelings of gratitude and gratification that the occasion inspires.

It has been my ambition to acknowledge the favour with which this book has been received, by having the present edition produced with the greatest care on special paper, and by the addition of a number of new illustrations, including some half-tone and coloured plates reproduced from the _Monumentos Arquitectónicos de España_ and other sources, which I have acquired since it was first produced. It will be seen that several of the coloured pictures in this book illustrate designs which are common to the Arabian ornamentation to be found in Cordova and Seville, and, as being representative of the Moresco work of the period, they also appear in the companion volume on _Moorish Remains in Spain_, but it may be stated that the whole of the plates reproduced here are from photographs and drawings secured or specially made to illustrate _The Alhambra_. In its pictorial appeal it has been my ambition to make this edition as worthy of its subject as means and ability permit, and I offer this assurance as an earnest of my sincere appreciation of the generous manner in which the Press and public rewarded my previous effort.

A. F. C.

PREFACE TO NEW EDITION

The generous appreciation with which my larger book on the Alhambra was received by both the Press and the public in Spain and America, as well as in this country, encourages me to hope that the present volume will prove a popular addition to this Spanish Series. Three years ago, when I published _The Alhambra_ to supply what my own experience taught me to be a real want, the scale and quality of the illustrations made it impossible to issue the work at a popular price. I am now enabled to present an inexpensive and, I trust, adequate souvenir of the fascinating city of Granada and its Red Palace. The text is no mere reprint of the matter which appeared in my former work, but embodies the results of a more critical, though not less appreciative, survey of the last monuments of the Spanish Moor. Bearing in mind, too, that the illustrations, being on a reduced scale, called for fuller explanation, I have endeavoured to condense as much detail and descriptive matter into the letterpress as the limits I had laid down for myself admitted. Those limits were still further encroached upon by the additional wealth of illustration which resulted from the decision to include the city of Granada in a work which, in previous issues, had been devoted entirely to the palace of the Alhambra, and the new pictorial matter so acquired threatened to annex all the space allotted for the text. But little as I liked the idea of further condensing the letterpress, I was even less inclined to neglect the opportunity of enhancing the pictorial value of the volume. In dealing with the Moorish art of Spain, I have always recognised that the popular want is for pictures rather than the printed word, and I venture to hope that the present volume, which surpasses its costlier predecessors in the number of the plates reproduced, will constitute a serviceable if not exhaustive guide to the beautiful Moorish capital, and an artistic remembrancer of its fascinating monuments.

I have to acknowledge my obligations to Mr. E. B. d’Auvergne for his kind and valuable assistance in the compilation of the text, and for permission to reproduce many of the additional photographs I am indebted to the courtesy of Don Senan y Gonzalez, of Herr Ernst Wasmuth of Berlin, publisher of Uhde’s _Baudenkmaeler in Spanien und Portugal_, and of Herr Eugen Twietmeyer of Leipzig, publisher of Junghandel’s _Die Baukunst Spaniens_.

As I have remarked in the preface to the volume on Cordova, it may be thought that in the present work I have given an excess of detail of Arabian decoration and ornament, but it has been my aim to provide the last word on Moorish art--so far at least as the pictorial representation of it is concerned--wherever I have dealt with it in Spain. To the general reader these reproductions of tracery and elaborate detail may seem superfluous, but they will, I trust, lend to the book an additional interest in the eyes of students and artists, for whose delectation they are included here.

A. F. C.

CONTENTS

PAGE

THE CITY OF THE MOOR 1

THE ALHAMBRA 25

THE GENERALIFE 61

CATHOLIC GRANADA 65

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

TITLE PLATE

View of Granada, showing the Alhambra and the Sierra Nevada 1

General View of the Alhambra 2

View of the Alhambra from the Sacromonte Road 3

The Alhambra from the Moor’s Seat--La Silla del Moro 4

General View of the Alhambra from San Nicolás 5

View of the Gate of Elvira 6

A View of the Alhambra from the Albaicin (_Sketch_) 7

View of the Cathedral and the Alhambra from San Gerónimo 8

View of the Sierra Nevada from the Carrera de las Angustias 9

View of the Royal Gate 10

View from the Tower in the Alhambra 11

La Plaza Nueva 12

Monument to Columbus in the Paseo del Salon; the Sierra Nevada in the Distance 13

The Street of the Catholic Sovereigns 14

Arab Silk Market 15

La Casa de los Tiros 16

Church of Santa Ana 17

Limoges Enamel Triptych which belonged to the Gran Capitán. (Provincial Museum, Granada) 18

Altar in the Church of San Gerónimo 19

House in the Calle de Darro. The Palacio de Justicia 20

The House of Castril 21

Typical Gypsies and their Quarters 22

Gypsies in Front of their Dwellings 23

Gypsy-dwellings in the Sacromonte 24

General View of the Gypsy Quarters 25

Interior of a Gypsy’s Cave 26

Group of Gypsies 27

A Gypsy Family 28

Gypsies bivouacking 29

Gypsies 30

Gypsies clipping a Mule 31

Gypsies 32

Gypsies 33

Gypsy Dance 34

Interior of the Sacristy of the Cartuja 35

Interior of Cartuja: The Sacristy 36

Interior of the Cartuja Church 37

Saint Bruno, by Alonso Cano, at the Carthusian Monastery of Granada 38

Exterior of the Royal Chapel 39

The Gate of Pardon and the Exterior of the Cathedral 40

Façade of the Cathedral 41

Exterior Gate of the Royal Chapel 42

Detail in the Royal Chapel 43

Ancient Gothic Entrance to the Royal Chapel 44

General Exterior View of the Royal Chapel, Upper Part 45

General Exterior View of the Royal Chapel 46

Façade of the Cathedral. Exterior of the Royal Chapel 47

General View of the Interior of the Cathedral 48

The Cathedral. General View of the Interior 49

The Cathedral. View of the Principal Nave 50

The High Altar in the Cathedral 51

Altar-piece in the Royal Chapel, by F. de Borgoña 52

The Cathedral. Boabdil giving up the Keys of Granada to the Catholic Sovereigns. Fragment of the Altar-piece in the Royal Chapel 53

The Inner Choir of the Cathedral 54

The Cathedral. Tombs of the Catholic Sovereigns in the Royal Chapel 55

View of the Royal Chapel and Tombs of the Catholic Sovereigns, by P. Gonzalvo 56

Royal Chapel. Tombs of Ferdinand and Isabella 57

Vault of the Catholic Sovereigns at Granada 58

Tombs of Ferdinand and Isabella, Doña Juana and Philip the Handsome 59

Tombs of Ferdinand and Isabella, Doña Juana and Philip the Handsome 60

Sceptre, Crown, Sword, Mass-book, and Coffer of the Catholic Sovereigns 61

Relics of the Catholic Sovereigns 62

Royal Chapel: Statue of Queen Isabella the Catholic 63

Statue of Isabella the Catholic 64

Chapel of San Miguel in the Cathedral, Marble Sculpture 65

Plan of the Alhambra Palace at Granada 66

General Plan of the Alhambra 67

General View of the Alhambra from San Nicolás 68

The Red Towers from the Ramparts 69

View of the Alhambra from the Sacromonte 70

General View of the Alhambra and Algibillo Promenade 71

View of the Alhambra from the Cuesta del Chapiz 72

The Red Towers 73

General View of the Alhambra 74

The Tower of the Peaks 75

The Infantas’ Tower and Captive’s Tower 76

View of the Watch Tower and Granada 77

View of the Ramparts and the Watch Tower 78

The Aqueduct Tower and the Aqueduct 79

The Gate of Justice. Detail of a Door in the Court of the Myrtles 80

The Alhambra and the Sierra Nevada 81

Granada, from the Homage Tower 82

“The Queen’s Dressing-room,” at the Summit of the Mihrab Tower, with Distant View of the Generalife 83

The Gate of Justice, erected by Yúsuf I. 84

The Tower of the Peaks 85

The Captive’s Tower 86

Exterior of the Mosque, Private Property 87

Tower of the Aqueduct 88

Ascent to the Alhambra by the Cuesta del Rey Chico--Lesser King Hill 89

The Ladies’ Tower 90

Part of the Alhambra, Exterior 91

The Homage Tower. Ancient Arab Ruins in the Alcazába 92

Gate of Justice, the Alhambra 93

Gate of Justice (_Sketch_) 94

The Gate of Justice 95

Plan, Height, and Details of the Gate of the Law, commonly called of Justice 96

Elevation of the Ancient Gate of Justice 97

Portal commonly called the Wine Gate 98

Porch of the Gate of Judgment 99

Elevation of the Wine Gate 100

Transverse Section of Part of the Alhambra 101

Section showing Heights of the Alhambra 102, 103

Promenades at the Entrance to the Alhambra 104

The Hall of Justice and Court of the Lions 105

Hall of Justice. Left Side 106

Hall of Justice, showing Fountain of Court of the Lions 107

Section of the Hall of Justice (looking East) 108

Section of the Hall of Justice (looking towards the Court of the Lions) 109

Vertical Section of the Hall of Justice 110

Details of the Hall of Justice 111

Plan and Window of the Hall of Justice 112

Painting on the Ceiling of the Hall of Justice. No. 1 113

Painting on the Ceiling of the Hall of Justice. No. 3 114

Part of Picture in the Hall of Justice--The Moor’s Return from Hunting 115

Hall of Justice--The Death of the Lion at the Hands of a Christian Knight 116

Part of Picture in the Hall of Justice representing a Christian Knight rescuing a Maiden from a wicked Magician, or Wild-Man-o’-the-Woods 117

Part of Picture in Hall of Justice--Moorish Huntsman slaying the Wild Boar 118

Hall of Justice--Three Figures from the Picture of the Moorish Tribunal 119

The Mosque and Generalife 120

Court of the Mosque 121

Façade of the Mosque 122

Interior of the Mosque in the Alhambra 123

Interior of the Mosque 124

Elevation of the Portico adjacent to the Mosque 125

Detail of the Entrance Door of the Mosque 126

An Arched Window of the Mosque 127

An Arched Window of the Mosque 128

The Koran Recess in the Mosque, the Scene of Yusuf’s Assassination 129

The Mosque from Koran Recess 130

Details of Ornament of Koran Recess near the Entrance Door of the Mosque 131

Cornice and Window in the Façade of the Mosque 132

Vertical Section of the Mosque 133

Arab Lamp in Mosque 134

Details of the Front of the Mosque of the Harem 135

Details of Ornament in the Court of the Mosque 136

Details in the Court of the Mosque, Eastern Façade 137

Ornament in Panels, Court of the Mosque 138

Window in the Hall of Ambassadors 139

Entrance to the Hall of Ambassadors 140

Hall of Ambassadors 141

Section and Elevation of the Interior of the Hall of Ambassadors 142

Encaustic-tile Work of the Hall of Ambassadors 143

Ornament in Panels, Hall of Ambassadors 144

Inscriptions in the Hall of Ambassadors 145

Kufic Inscriptions, Hall of Ambassadors 146

“Wa la Ghálib ila Alá”--There is no Conqueror but God!--The famous Motto of Mohammed I. and his Successors. An Example from the Hall of Ambassadors 147

The Court of the Lions from the Templete Pomiente 148

Entrance to the Court of the Lions through the Pomiente Corner 149

North Gallery and Façade of the Hall of the Abencerrages 150

The Court of the Lions from the Pomiente Corner 151

View in the Court of the Lions 152

View in the Court of the Lions from the Hall of Justice 153

The Court of the Lions 154

General View of the Court of the Lions 155

Court of the Lions 156

North Gallery in the Court of the Lions 157

Section, Court of the Lions 158

Pavilion in the Court of the Lions 159

Fountain and East Temple in the Court of the Lions 160

Hall of Justice and Court of the Lions 161

Angle in the Hall of Justice 162

Hall of Justice 163

Ceiling of the Hall of Justice 164

The Mosque, and View of the Generalife 165

Exterior of a Window in the Mosque 166

The Mosque, and View of the Generalife 167

Interior of the Mosque 168

Court of the Mosque, West Façade 169

Interior of the Mosque, converted into a Roman Catholic Church 170

Interior of the Mosque, converted into a Roman Catholic Church 171

Jalousies in the Court of the Mosque 172

Entrance to the Hall of Ambassadors 173

Balcony in the Hall of Ambassadors 174

Detail of the Hall of the Arched Windows 175

Detail in the Hall of the Abencerrages 176

The Court of the Lions 177

General View of the Court of the Lions 178

The Fountain and West Temple of the Court of the Lions 179

Elevation of the Fountain of the Court of the Lions 180

The Fountain of the Court of the Lions, with Details of the Ornament 181

Plan of the Basin of the Fountain in the Court of the Lions 182

Section of the Pavilion in the Court of the Lions 183

Section of the Hall of the Two Sisters, and Section of Part of the Court of the Lions 184, 185

Capital in the Court of the Lions, with a Scale of One Metre 186

Details of the Centre Arcade of the Court of the Lions 187

Frieze over Columns, Court of the Lions 188

Detail of the Central Arch in the Court of the Lions 189

The First Six Verses of the Inscription around the Basin of the Fountain of the Court of the Lions 190

Entablature in the Court of the Lions 191

Cupola of the Pavilion in the Court of the Lions 192

Entrance to the Court of the Lions. Little Temple, the Court of the Lions 193

The Court of the Lions 194

The Little Temple, and the Fountain, the Court of the Lions 195

The Court of the Lions 196

The Court of the Lions, West Angle 197

Morocco Embassy, December 1885 198

The Court of the Lions from the West Temple 199

The Court of the Lions from the West Temple 200

West Gallery in the Court of the Lions 201

The Court of the Lions, Façade of the Hall of the Two Sisters 202

The Court of the Lions, Left-hand Angle 203

The Court of the Lions, Façade of the Hall of Two Sisters 204

The Court of the Lions from the Entrance 205

Detail of the Entrance to the Court of the Lions 206

Detail in the Court of the Lions 207

Mosaics, North and South Sides, the Court of the Lions 208

Hall of the Abencerrages 209

Hall of the Abencerrages 210

Hall of the Abencerrages 211

Hall of the Abencerrages 212

Wooden Doors, Hall of the Abencerrages 213

Gallery in the Court of the Fish-pond; or, of the Myrtles 214

Court of the Myrtles; or, of the Fish-pond. Façade of the Hall of Ambassadors 215

Court of the Myrtles; or, of the Fish-pond 216

General View of the Court of the Myrtles; or, of the Fish-pond 217

North Side of the Court of the Fish-pond; or, of the Myrtles 218

Entrance to the Court of the Fish-pond; or, of the Myrtles 219

Gallery in the Court of the Myrtles; or, of the Fish-pond 220

General View of the Court of the Myrtles and Comares Tower 221

Court of the Myrtles, East Façade 222

Detail in the Court of the Myrtles 223

Court of the Myrtles, East Façade 224

Exterior of the Gallery in the Court of the Fish-pond; or, of the Myrtles 225

The Court of the Fish-pond; or, of the Myrtles 226

Ornament in the Court of the Fish-pond; or, of the Myrtles 227

Court of the Myrtles; or, of the Fish-pond, formed by Yúsuf I. 228

The Court of the Fish-pond; or, of the Myrtles. Gallery in the Court of the Fish-pond; or, of the Myrtles 229

The Hall of the Baths 230

The Sultan’s Bath 231

The Sultana’s Bath 232

The Baths, Hall of Repose 233

Chamber of Repose 234

Section of the Hall of the Baths 235

Longitudinal Section through the Baths 236

Ground Plan of the Baths in the Alhambra 237

Ceiling of the Hall of the Baths 238

Plan and Section of the great Cistern in the Alhambra 239

A Section of the Baths in the Alhambra 240

Chamber of Repose. Sultan’s Bath constructed by Yúsuf I. 241

Interior of the Infantas’ Tower 242

Sections of the Infantas’ Tower 243

Interior of the Tower of the Infantas, Upper Part 244

Balcony of the “Captive” (Isabel de Solis), overlooking the Vega, or Plain, of Granada 245

Alcove of the “Captive” (Isabel de Solis) 246

Interior of the Tower of the “Captive” (Isabel de Solis) 247

The “Captive’s” Tower from the Entrance 248

Interior of the Mosque. Room in the “Captive’s” Tower 249

Hall of Justice. Baths, the Chamber of Repose 250

Balcony of the Favourite, “Lindaraja” 251

Alcove in the “Lindaraja” Apartments 252

Garden of “Lindaraja,” and the Apartments traditionally said to have been occupied by “Lindaraja,” a favourite Sultana 253

Detail, Interior of the Balcony of “Lindaraja” 254

Detail, Lower Part of the Balcony of “Lindaraja” 255

Detail of the Central Part of the Balcony of “Lindaraja” 256

The Queen’s Boudoir and Distant View of the Generalife 257

The Queen’s Boudoir and View of the Generalife 258

The Queen’s Boudoir and old Albaicin Quarter 259

The Queen’s Boudoir and Defile of the Darro 260

“Lindaraja’s” Garden and the Apartments in which Washington Irving stayed 261

Angle of the Balcony of “Lindaraja” 262

Balcony of the favourite “Lindaraja” 263

Interior of the Tower of the Captive, Isabel de Solis 264

Exterior of the Captive’s Tower 265

The Tower of the Captive, Isabel de Solis 266

Interior of the Infantas’ Tower, Upper Part 267

Interior of the Infantas’ Tower 268

Detail of the Upper Part of the Balcony of “Lindaraja” 269

Hall of the Two Sisters 270

Entrance to the Hall of the Two Sisters 271

Interior of the Hall of the Two Sisters 272

Hall of the Two Sisters 273

Hall of the Two Sisters 274

Temple and Façade of the Hall of the Two Sisters 275

View in the Hall of the Two Sisters 276

Hall of the Two Sisters from the Entrance Door, built by Yúsuf I. 277

Upper Balcony of the Hall of the Two Sisters 278

Hall of the Two Sisters from the Entrance Door 279

Ceiling of the Hall of the Two Sisters 280

Detail of the Upper Story, Hall of the Two Sisters 281

Detail of the Lateral Windows of the Hall of the Two Sisters 282

Detail in the Hall of the Two Sisters 283

Panel, Ornament, and Inscriptions in the Hall of the Two Sisters 284

Inscription in the Hall of the Two Sisters 285

Frieze in the Hall of the Two Sisters 286

Panel on Jambs of Doorways, Hall of the Two Sisters 287

Details of the Glazed Tiles in the Dado of the Hall of the Two Sisters 288

Band round Panels in Windows, Hall of the Two Sisters 289

Mosaic in Dado of Recess. Mosaic in Dado of the Entrance to the Hall of the Two Sisters 290

Mosaic in Dado of Hall of Ambassadors. Mosaic in Dado of the Hall of the Two Sisters 291

Wine Gate. West Façade 292

Detail of the only ancient “Jalousie” remaining in the Alhambra 293

El Jarro. Arab Vase now in the Museum of the Palace 294

El Jarro. The Arabian Vase and Niche in which it formerly stood, Hall of the Two Sisters 295

An Arab Vase of the Fourteenth Century in the Niche wherein it stood until the Year 1837 296

Sword of the last Moorish King of Granada, commonly called “The Sword of Boabdil” 297

The Surrender of Granada by Boabdil to Ferdinand and Isabella, January 2, 1492 298

Gold Coin (obverse and reverse) of Mohammed I., the Founder of the Alhambra, who reigned 1232-1272 A.D. 299

Details and Inscriptions, and Arabian Capitals 300

The Gothic Inscription set up in the Alhambra by the Count of Tendilla, to commemorate the Surrender of the Fortress in 1492 301

Mosaic Pavement in the Queen’s Dressing-room (Tocador de la Reyna.) Mosaic, from a Fragment in the Alhambra 302

The House of Carbon 303

The ancient Granary Market and House of Carbon 304

Elevation of the Casa del Carbon, or House of Carbon, once known as the House of the Weathercock 305

Courtyard of a Moorish House in the Albaicin 306

Interior of an Arab House in the Albaicin 307

The Proclamation of Boabdil. By Plácido Frances (National Exhibition of Beaux Arts, 1884) 308

The Author in the Alhambra 309

Cornices, Capitals, and Columns in the Alhambra 310

Miscellaneous Ornament in the Alhambra 311

The Fable of Jupiter and Leda in the Alhambra 312

Bas-relief, now in the Museum of the Alhambra 313

Arabian Sword 314

Capitals from the Courts and Halls of the Alhambra 315

Encaustic-tile Work in the Royal Room of Santo Domingo 316

Various Mosaics from the Alhambra 317

Inscriptions in the Alhambra 318

Plan of the Palace of Charles V. and of the Subterranean Vaults of the Alhambra 319

General View of the Alhambra from the Homage Tower 320

Ancient Cistern. Early Fourteenth Century 321

The Alhambra (_Specially drawn for the Spanish Series_) 322

Part of Exterior of the Palace of Charles V. 323

Elevation of the Palace of Charles V. 324

Section of the Palace of Charles V. 325

Fountain of the Emperor Charles V. 326

View of the Alhambra from the Homage Tower 327

Interior of the Palace of Charles V. 328

Doorway of the Palace of Charles V. 329

Bas-relief in the Palace of Charles V. 330

Porch of the Palace of Charles V. from the West 331

Roman Court, Palace of Charles V. 332

Ground Plan of the Generalife at Granada 333

The Generalife 334

The Principal Court of the Generalife 335

The Court of the Fish-pond in the Generalife 336

Promenades and Gardens of the Generalife 337

The Generalife 338

Front View of the Portico of the Generalife 339

Transverse Section of the Royal Villa of the Generalife 340

Gallery in the Generalife 341

The Generalife. Gallery in the Acequia Court 342

The Generalife. Entrance to the Portrait Gallery 343

Garden of the Generalife 344

Elevation of the Portico of the Generalife 345

The Acequia Court in the Generalife 346

A Corner of the Acequia Court in the Generalife 347

Cypress Court. A Corner in the Acequia Court 348

The Cypress of the Sultana in the Generalife 349

A Ceiling in the Generalife 350

The Generalife. The Acequia Court from the Main Entrance 351

The Generalife. The Acequia Court from the Interior 352

Exterior View of the Generalife 353

Entrance to the Generalife 354

The Generalife. Court of the Sultana’s Cypress 355

The Generalife. The Acequia Court from the Interior 356

South Façade of the Palace of Charles V. 357

Bas-relief in the Palace of Charles V. 358

Bas-relief in the Palace of Charles V. 359

Gate of the Granadas 360

Promenades and Hotels of the Alhambra 361

The Gate of Justice and Fountain of Charles V. 362

Environs of the Alhambra. Fountain of Charles V. 363

Gate of Justice. Principal Entrance to the Alhambra 364

Gate of Justice 365

Wine Gate. East Façade 366

Environs of the Alhambra. Tower of the Peaks 367

Tower of the Peaks 368

General View of the Alhambra from the Silla del Moro 369

General View of the Alhambra from the Gypsy Quarters 370

General View of the Alhambra from the Generalife 371

View of Granada and the Alhambra from the Sacromonte 372

General View of the Alhambra from San Nicolas 373

The Watch Tower, the Cathedral, and Granada 374

Villas on the Banks of the River Darro 375

A View of the Alhambra 376

Villas on the Banks of the River Darro 377

The Watch Tower and Cathedral 378

The Red Tower 379

The Homage Tower and Gypsy Quarters: exterior of their Caves 380

Carrera del Rio Darro 381

The Gate of Elvira. The old Entrance to the Fortifications 382

Washing Place in the Puerta del Sol 383

Courtyard of an Arab House 384

A Moorish Archway 385

Interior of an old House in the Calle del Horno de Oro 386

Interior of an old House in the Albaicin 387

The Cathedral and General View 388

General View of the Cathedral 389

General View of the Exterior of the Cathedral 390

Entrance to the Royal Chapel 391

Exterior of the Royal Chapel of the Catholic Sovereigns 392

Detail of the Exterior of the Royal Chapel 393

Exterior of the Royal Chapel 394

Exterior of the Cathedral 395

Exterior of the Royal Chapel 396

Exterior of the Cathedral. The Gate of Pardon 397

Gothic Pinnacle on the Royal Chapel 398

The Cathedral. View from the Choir 399

The Cathedral. General View of the Chancel and High Altar 400

Bas-relief in the Altar-piece of the Royal Chapel 401

General View of the Chancel in the Cathedral 402

The Royal Chapel. Sepulchre of the Catholic Sovereigns 403

The Royal Chapel. Detail of the Sepulchre of the Catholic Sovereigns 404

The Royal Chapel. Sculpture of King Ferdinand the Catholic 405

Sepulchre of Ferdinand 406

Sepulchre of Isabella the Catholic 407

Portal of the Church of San Juan de Dios 408

Sepulchre of Alonso Caño in San Gerónimo 409

Head of John the Baptist 410

Head of John the Baptist 411

Head of John the Baptist 412

Exterior of the Cartuja Monastery 413

Sacristy in the Cartuja, Left Side 414

Sacristy in the Cartuja, Right Side 415

Cartuja. Sancta Sanctorum 416

Cartuja. Detail of the Cupboards in the Sacristy 417

Altars in the Cartuja. Pictures by Sanchez y Cotán, a Monk of the Order 418

Cartuja. The Immaculate Conception. By Murillo 419

Cartuja. The Virgin of the Rosary. By Murillo 420

Cartuja. St. Joseph and the Child. Sculpture by Alonso Caño 421

Cartuja. St. Mary Magdalene. Sculpture by Alonso Caño 422

Cartuja. Horsemen hanging Martyrs. By Sanchez Cotán 423

Cartuja. The Baptism of Our Lord. By Sanchez Cotán 424

Cartuja. The Holy Family. By Sanchez Cotán 425

The Crucifixion of Our Lord. By Morales 426

The Conception of Our Lady. By Morales 427

The Gypsy Quarters. Exterior of the Caves 428

The Gypsy Quarters. An “At Home” 429

Gypsy Dance in their Quarters 430

Gypsy Types at the Doors of their Caves 431

Gypsy Dance in their Quarters 432

Gypsy Dancers and their Captain, J. Amaya 433

Bridge of the Genil 434

General View 435

General View of the old Albaicin 436

General View from the Watch Tower 437

Old Arab Palace, now the Property of a Spanish Nobleman 438

The old Town Hall 439

The Royal Gate and Street of the Catholic Sovereigns 440

Monument to Columbus in the Paseo del Salon 441

The Raw Silk Market 442

The Raw Silk Market. Ancient Arab Silk Market 443

Exterior of an old House, Cuesta del Pescado 444

The Court of Justice 445

Carrera del Darro 446

Market and Gypsy Fair in the Triunfo 447

Calle de San Anton 448

Antequeruela Quarter, Sierra Nevada, and the “Last Sigh of the Moor” 449

Carrera de Genil and View of the Sierra Nevada 450

Plaza de Mariana Pineda, Arab House, and View of the Sierra Nevada 451

General View of the Alhambra and of the Sierra Nevada from St. Michael 452

Huétor High Road and View of the Sierra Nevada 453

Villas on the Borders of the River Darro 454

Defile of the Darro 455

The Green Bridge and View of the Sierra Nevada 456

View of the Sierra Nevada 457

General View of the Sierra Nevada and the River Genil 458

Granada. (_Specially drawn for the Spanish Series_) 459

Arms of Granada 460

Plan of Granada _page_ 89

GRANADA

THE CITY OF THE MOOR

Granada is the creation of the Moors. Its history is all of them--the record of their glory and their fall. The Pomegranate, as its conqueror styled it, ripened only in the warm sunshine of Islam, and withered with its decline. Under the Christian, it fell from the rank of a splendid capital to a poor provincial town. Now it subsists merely as a great monument to a vanished race and a dead civilisation.

With Granada before it became the centre of an independent kingdom, we need concern ourselves but little. Its real interest dates from the establishment of the Nasrite dynasty in the first half of the thirteenth century. It was the time when the great Almohade Empire was breaking up. Probably all Andalusia would have shared the fate of Cordova and Seville, and the conquests of the Catholic kings been anticipated by two centuries, had not a young man of Arjona, Ibn Al Ahmar by name, determined to fashion for himself a kingdom out of the fragments of empire. With an ever-increasing following, he seized upon Jaen in 1232, and obtained possession of Granada itself in 1237. City after city opened its gates to him, including Malaga and Almeria, and in 1241 he was recognised as Lord and Sultan of all the territory between the Sierra Morena and the Pillars of Hercules, from Ronda to Baza.

A great man, in every sense, was this founder of the Nasrite dynasty. His presence was fine and commanding, his manner bland and amiable, his courage worthy of the heroic age. For all his valour and prowess on the battlefield, no monarch prized peace more highly. He proved himself a true national hero and the father of his people. He fostered industry and agriculture, was a patron, like all his race, of arts and letters, and encouraged immigration by every means in his power. A far-sighted statesman, he perceived that a state so limited in area as his own could only hope to exist by virtue of an unusual density of population, and he offered every inducement to Muslims from the provinces conquered by the Christians to settle within his dominions. Granada was the last hope of Islam in Europe, and he resorted to all possible means to safeguard it. He concluded alliances with the rulers of Morocco, Tlemsen, and Tunis, and even of distant Baghdad. Above all, he neglected no means of humouring and conciliating the irresistible Castilian. He negotiated an alliance with Fernando III., binding himself to attend the Cortes (a curious stipulation for a Mohammedan) and to attend the king in his wars with 1500 lances. This latter part of the bargain he was speedily called upon to fulfil, and against his own co-religionists of Seville. It seemed an unnatural warfare, but, to palliate the iniquity, let it be said that Ibn Al Ahmar probably looked upon the Almohade citizens of Ishbiliah as heretics. At all events, whether his conscience approved his action or not, he contributed in no small measure to Fernando’s success, and was hailed enthusiastically as a conqueror upon his return to Granada. That the assistance he rendered was not looked upon as altogether voluntary by the people of Seville is shown by the fact that thousands of them migrated to his dominions and settled there.

Ibn Al Ahmar dreaded the might of Castile. The only hope for the Mohammedans of Spain lay, he knew, in rest and consolidation. Careful not to give offence to his dreaded neighbour, he courteously received the revolted and exiled Infante Don Enrique when he sought refuge at Granada, but sent him on to Tunis with letters recommending him to the Sultan of that country. All his diplomacy, however, could not avert a war with Alfonso, and to add to his troubles, the Walis of Guadix, Malaga, and Gomares revolted against his authority. But an insurrection soon after broke out in Castile, and Alfonso was compelled to leave the Walis to fight their own battles. Ibn Al Ahmar, an old man of eighty years, wearily girded on his armour for another of the campaigns he had learned to hate. But his time for rest had come at last. A few miles beyond the gates of his capital, his charger threw him, as he rode at the head of his army. He breathed his last at sundown, by the roadside, surrounded by his weeping warriors. It was a dark night for Granada.

Al Ahmar’s son, under the style of Mohammed II., succeeded him at the age of thirty-eight years, on January 21, 1273. Arabic historians have lavished their encomiums upon him, as indeed upon most of his dynasty. He is described as a warrior and a statesman, as a man of letters and a poet of considerable ability. During his reign of twenty-nine years, he was almost continuously at war. Soon after his accession he crushed the rebel Walis at Antequera, and then paid a visit to Alfonso X. at Seville, with a view to detaching the Castilian king from his alliance with the defeated insurgents. In this he was successful. Queen Violante, however, at the conclusion of his visit, asked of him a boon, which, according to the custom of the times, as a true knight, he was bound to grant. He then discovered, too late, that he had been tricked into granting a year’s truce to the Walis. Smouldering with rage, he returned to Granada and spent the year in maturing plans for the complete overthrow of his enemies. This he effected with the aid of the Sultan Yusuf of Morocco, whose army of 100,000 men landed at Tarifa in 1275. The Africans, as on previous occasions in Moorish history, proved dangerous allies. Mohammed found himself embroiled in a long and absolutely unprofitable war with Castile, and had the mortification of seeing the Africans possess themselves of Algeciras, Tarifa, and Malaga. He recovered possession of the latter town by bribing the governor to exchange it for the town of Salobreña, to be held as a personal acquisition; and rid himself at last of the troublesome Africans by means of an alliance with Sancho of Castile. But in 1302 we find him again at war with the Christians, fighting against whom he died.

Mohammed III. was the worthy son of his father, and is specially commended for his indefatigable energy. He took a short way with traitors, even for those rough times. Ibn Nasr, the governor of Guadix, having been removed from his office by the Sultan, exerted himself to form a faction in his favour. Mohammed III., hearing of this, summoned him to court, and had him slain there and then in his presence. A more honourable exploit was his conquest of the town of Ceuta, opposite Gibraltar, in the year 1306. With the rich spoils of the foray, he built a magnificent mosque at Granada, resplendent with gold and silver, jasper and marble. His success perhaps excited the jealousy of the Catholic powers. Attacked on either side by the Kings of Castile and Aragon, he was forced to conclude a humiliating peace. On his return to his capital he was seized in the Alhambra itself by a band of conspirators and forced to abdicate in favour of his brother, Muley Nasr. The new Sultan began his reign with some military successes (1309). He forced Jaime of Aragon to raise the siege of Almeria; but as a set-off, he had to deal with conspiracies and rebellions at home, the most formidable of these being headed by his nephew, Abu-l-Walid. In the midst of these complications a curious incident occurred. Nasr was stricken with apoplexy and left for dead. His deposed brother, Mohammed III., was then released by some courtiers and brought to Granada, only to find that the usurper had recovered his health and his crown. The luckless Mohammed did not long survive his partisans’ mistake. But retribution speedily overtook his brother. He was forced to yield to Abu-l-Walid, and was glad to be allowed to retire to Guadix, the sovereignty of which was allotted to him. Usurper though he was, Nasr conducted himself with the dignity of a philosopher. His rival’s triumph chagrined him not at all, and when invited by Pedro I. to join him in an attack on Granada, he patriotically declined. He was a brave man, who did not complain at meeting the fate to which he had subjected others.

The new monarch of Granada, Abu-l-Walid Ismail, was a fighter and a fanatic. He was fond of saying that he believed only in God and his good sword. His faith in the latter weapon was justified. He annihilated a Spanish army which had approached Granada, among the slain being the Infantes, Don Juan and Don Pedro; and carrying his victorious arms eastwards, wrested Baza and Martos from the enemies of his race. But others also reposed their faith in the sword. Like another Agamemnon, he appropriated a beautiful captive, the prize of the young Mohammed of Algeciras. Three days after his triumphal entry into his capital he fell at the gates of the Alhambra, a victim to the poniard of the man he had injured. Perceiving his sovereign to be at the point of death and resolving to avert the horrors of a disputed succession, the Wizir summoned the chief men of Granada to the palace, and announced that Abu-l-Walid was recovering from his wounds. The royal order was that all present should take the oath to the boy-prince, Muley Mohammed Ben Ismail, as successor to the kingdom. When this command had been obeyed, the wily Wizir announced the death of Abu-l-Walid and the accession of Mohammed IV. This was in the year 1325.

When he had freed himself from the control of an unpopular regent, the young Sultan displayed qualities of heart and mind in no way inferior to those of his progenitors. It must be admitted that Arab historians have been somewhat too partial to this line of kings, for there is hardly one who is not described more or less explicitly as a paragon of all the virtues. Mohammed IV. had to fight hard to hold his own against the Spaniards on one side and the Africans on the other. He took Gibraltar, and lost it again to Abu-l-Hasan of Fez. But the African king was soon after obliged to ask his help to hold the fortress against the Christians. Mohammed generously responded to the appeal, fell like a thunderbolt upon the Spanish camp, and raised the siege. He was ill repaid. In August 1333, he was imprudent enough to reproach his African allies with their inability to hold the fortress; and a day or two later, having sent his army home, made an excursion to the summit of the Rock. He was followed by some among those he had reproached, and quickly despatched by their poniards. His body, naked and mangled, was found at the foot of the Rock, and conveyed to Malaga. No attempt seems to have been made to identify or to punish his murderers.

The ill-fated Mohammed was succeeded by his brother, Yusuf I., Abu-l-Hejaj. While possessed, of course, of the virtues which seem to have been inherent in the Nasrite dynasty, this prince was exceptional in being an ardent, almost a passionate, lover of peace. He believed, says Don Francisco Pi Margall, that it was more glorious to remedy evils than to attempt perilous enterprises. Assisted by his able Wizir, Redwân, he revised the laws and purified the administration of justice. He built a magnificent palace at Malaga, and the great aljama or mosque at Granada, of which no trace remains. Abandoning for once his settled policy, he joined the Africans in a war against Castile. He was badly beaten, and was glad to negotiate a truce of ten years. At the end of that time, Alfonso of Castile died, and the Sultan of Granada was stabbed to death by a madman, while at his prayers in the mosque, in the year 1354.

Mohammed V. was as virtuous and as unfortunate as his father. He had reigned but four years when he was attacked in his own palace by the partisans of his half-brother, Ismail. Narrowly escaping death, he fled to his harem, and in the disguise of a slave eluded his pursuers and made his way to Guadix. Ismail II. ran a brief and inglorious career, and was dethroned and slain (1360) by the “Red King,” Abu Saïd. Meantime, Pedro I. of Castile espoused the cause of the lawful sultan and invaded the territory of Granada. But the magnanimous Moor would not consent to remount the throne at the cost of his people’s blood. Pedro accordingly withdrew, but freed Mohammed from his enemies by murdering Abu Saïd when the latter incautiously paid a visit to Seville. Mohammed was reinstated on his throne, and mindful of the services rendered him by Pedro, advanced to his support with a Grenadine army against Enrique de Trastamara. The tragedy of Montiel made a continuance of the struggle useless, and the Moorish sultan devoted the remainder of his reign to improving the condition of his subjects. He founded charitable institutions and asylums, and raised Granada to a high pitch of prosperity. The city, according to the contemporary writer, El Khattib, became the metropolis of the Mediterranean, the emporium of commerce, and the common fatherland of all nations. Under Mohammed V., the kingdom may be considered to have reached its zenith. Thence to its nadir we count but a century of years.

Yusuf II., who succeeded his father in 1391, was so averse to war that his subjects suspected him of Christian sympathies. His son rose against him, and the pacific monarch was disposed to abdicate rather than draw the sword. The exhortations of the Moroccan ambassador induced him to take a manlier course, and putting himself at the head of the army lately arrayed against him, he ravaged Murcia with fire and sword. It was against this peace-loving sultan that Don Martin de la Barbuda, the Quixotic Master of Calatrava, directed his wild expedition--defeated, of course, and emphatically disavowed by Enrique III. of Castile. Yusuf’s younger son and successor, Mohammed VII.,[A] was a prince of a very different stamp. Accompanied by only twenty-five horsemen, he penetrated to Toledo, and negotiated in the heart of Castile with Enrique III. The peace thus concluded was soon interrupted, and Mohammed was quickly waging war throughout the length and breadth of Andalusia. The war continued with varying fortunes, and was carried on, as was usual in those days, by a series of forays, neither side making any determined effort to take the other’s capital or to secure his conquests. On feeling his end approaching, the warlike Sultan bethought him of his elder brother, Yusuf, whom he had confined in the castle of Salobreña. Fearing that the captive might now supplant his own son, Mohammed sent a messenger to command his execution. Yusuf was playing chess with the governor of the castle when the fatal mandate arrived. He asked leave of the emissary to finish the game, and before he had made the final move, the news arrived of the death of Mohammed and of his proclamation as Sultan of Granada. Yusuf showed himself as calm and unmoved at his accession to the throne as when he had stood upon the threshold of death.

As peaceably disposed as his father, Yusuf III. had to withstand some of the most determined assaults upon his doomed kingdom. In his reign took place the celebrated siege of Antequera by the Castilians, the survivors of which founded the suburb of Antequeruela adjacent to Granada. Yusuf ultimately found peace and a valuable ally as the outcome of a strange story of fraternal animosity. The people of Gibraltar revolted against Granada and proclaimed themselves the subjects of Fez. The Sultan of that realm sent his hated brother, Abu Saïd, to take possession of the town, and treating him as David did Uriah, left him at the mercy of the enemy. Yusuf, however, treated the captured prince with generosity, and showed him a letter which he shortly after received from the Sultan of Fez, requesting that he might be poisoned. Thirsting for vengeance, Abu Saïd procured arms and soldiers at Granada, and, invading Morocco, drove his perfidious brother from the throne. Thereafter he was the sworn ally of the Sultan of Granada, whom Castile and Aragon no longer ventured to trouble. Yusuf III. passed away in 1417.

The history of Granada is henceforward one of almost continuous revolution and tumult. Mohammed VIII. was driven into exile by a namesake reckoned as the ninth of his name, and then restored by a counter-revolution. A Castilian army ravaged the Vega up to the walls of the capital. Granada itself would have fallen, had not Juan II. and the great Constable, Alvaro de Luna, been recalled to Castile by the disorders which resulted in the latter’s overthrow. An earthquake desolated the distracted kingdom; and we may suppose that Mohammed VIII. was not altogether sorry when he abandoned his throne to a pretender and fled to Malaga.