Alhambra

Historical Introduction

There is no reference of the Alhambra as residence of kings until the XIII Century, although the fortification comes from the IX Century. The Ziries monarchs were probably who built the Alhambra. The history of the Alhambra starts in 1238 when Mohammed I conquered a fortress placed where nowadays is located the Alcazaba, so the Nasrid dynasty was created and in this way the Kingdom of Granada was constituted. This king chose this place to build a city as his and their successors´ residence.

The founder of the dynasty, Mohammed Al-Ahmar, started with the redesign of the old stronghold. His work was completed by his son Mohammed II, whose immediate successors continued with the repairs. The construction of the palaces (called Casa Real Vieja) comes from the XIV Century, and it is a work of two great kings: Yusuf I and Mohammed V. Yusuf I built the Comares Room (Cuarto de Comares) and the Justice Gate (Puerta de la Justicia), the Baths and some towers. His son, Mohammed V, completed the palaces building the Hall of the Lions (Sala de los Leones), as well as other rooms and fortifications.

The Alcazaba became the main political and aristocratic focus of the Arab west. Al-Ahmar, firstly installed in the Alcazaba, started to build a palace on the ruins of Sabika and built an irrigation ditch to bring water from the River Darro. The most refined and impressive enlargement was carried out by Yusuf I and Mohammad V, between 1333 and 1391. In the XV Century, when the Christian troops were in advance, the fight against two opposite sides started. The last sultan who governed in Granada was Abu Ibn Allah Mohammad, better known as Boabdil. The 2nd January 1492, after the signing of the capitulations, he handed the keys of the City of Granada to Fernando the Catholic.

The Alhambra became a Christian Court in 1452 when the Catholic Monarchs conquered Granada. Later, several structures were built to house prominent citizens, barracks, a church and a Franciscan Monastery.

The Emperor Carlos V, who stayed several months in Granada, started the construction of the palace of his own name and made some reforms inside the buildings. These measures caused a meaningful controversy due to political reasons. The following Monarchs, from the Austria dynasty, did not forget this monument and each of them left his sign, although in a more discreet way.

During the XVIII Century and part of the XIX Century, this monument was forgotten and its halls and rooms were used as bars and stables where bad habits people lived. If worst comes to worst, the Napoleonic troops occupied Granada from 1808 to 1812, and turned the palaces into barracks. During a withdrawal, the towers were mined and some of them were destroyed. Two of them, the Tower of the Seven Floors (Torre de los Siete Suelos) and the Water Tower became ruins. In this way, this carelessness continued until 1870 when the Alhambra was declared national monument. Artists and tourists from all over the world fought for the defence of this monument. From then until our days, the Alhambra has been restored, protected and even improved in many aspects for people admiration and enjoying.

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Alhambra

Historical Introduction

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