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.