The exquisite Alhambra Palace gardens

Surmising from Spain

Buying the book, A Vanishing World, in Granada, we began to understand a little about the culture of Spain. The Islamic sultans made an effort to tolerate the Jews and Christians, setting an example of coexistence, or convivencia. All three religions even shared ovens so everyone could have fresh bread daily. In 1492, Granada was the last Islamic bastion to succumb, and King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella moved into the fabulous structure of the Alhambra. They refused to let the inhabitants of the city coexist and ousted the Jews in 1492 and forced the Muslims to convert. The original complex began to be destroyed as rooms were torn apart and alterations gutted parts of the structure.

Christopher Columbus met with the King and Queen in the Salon de Embajadores at the Alhambra in 1492 to discuss trading plans with the Far East.

This is where King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella’s famous daughter, Katherine of Aragon, grew up. She would become the long suffering wife of King Henry VIII, who founded a new religion so that he could divorce Katherine and marry Ann Boleyn.

Napoleon arrived in 1808 and his troops seized the Alhambra, blowing up parts of the Alcazaba. The story goes that a wounded soldier stymied the plans of blowing up the palace by diffusing the bomb. Thank goodness!

As the glorious Alhambra fell into disrepair, Washington Irving moved into the crumbling structure along with the squatters and beggars living there. The famous American writer wrote Tales of the Alhambra about the Arabian Nights while residing in the city. These romantic stories revived interest in the Alhambra and prompted the Spanish government to start conservation efforts.

And that is how this fabulous structure remains as a beautiful monument to Spanish history today.