THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Irchitecture BEQUEST OF ANITA D. S. BLAKE Bridge of AUanuu a, Toledo. PHOTOGRAVURE. BUILDERS OF SPAIN BY CLARA CRAWFORD PERKINS ILLUSTRATED TIVO VOLUMES IN ONE NEW YORK HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY 1911 Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2007 with funding from IVIicrosoft Corporation http://www.archive.org/details/buildersofspainOOperkrich T" PREFACE HAT Its native stock has produced no ■ rulers, and that from even before the "^ dawn of history It has been continuously ruled by alien peoples who have successively stamped their own Individuality upon It, Is the most striking fact In the long perspective of the changeful and varied history of the Spanish peninsula. Beginning with Geryon, who, Mariana tells us, was accounted by Greek and Latin authors the first king of Spain, and whose name, he also says, was Chaldean for stranger, we read of Invasion after invasion; of Celtic, Phoenician, Carthaginian, Roman, Vandalic, VIsIgothIc, Moorish and Arabic conquest and domination. The numbers of these Invading hosts are now generally conceded to have been relatively small as compared with the native population; furthermore, its aboriginal stock has been the only permanent force in the history of the peninsula. But the native Spaniard was lacking In initiative and leadership, and each alien people In turn has left the Impress of its char- acter upon the civilization of Its period, and upon the cities which were their chief monuments. Much has been lost through the vicissitudes of PREFACE time, and even In their own day all the conquerors of Spain could not have occupied a position of equal Importance In her history. But, beginning with the Roman period, the first of profound and en- during Importance In the development of the pen- insula, the record of Spanish civilization falls nat- urally Into the four great and contrasting epochs of her greatest rulers — those of the rule of Rome, 206 B. C.-417 A. D. ; of the Visigoths, 417- 711; of the Arabs and Moors, 711-1492; and of the Christian kings, 1492-^ — / With the Spaniards as an underlying force, these are the peoples who, in a special sense, have been the Builders of Spain, and It Is with them that this book Is chiefly concerned. The series of cities whose study forms the larger portion of the work, have been chosen as representing distinct develop- ments. Four of the first five have enjoyed periods of pan-peninsular Influence, and many of them 1 The rule of the Christian kings actually began with a tiny prin- cipality in the north as early as 718, from which date the develop- ment of Christian civilization, so called, was contemporaneous with that of the Moslems, the one in the north, the other in the south. But in the above broad divisions it is found more convenient to date the beginning of the Christian period from the completion of their reconquest of the entire peninsula. It may also be explained that the names Christian and Spanish, which came to be interchangeable, began to be applied, after the Moslem conquest, to all the earlier inhabitants of Spain, to dis- tinguish them from the invaders, who, to the earlier inhabitants, were strangers and heathen. vi PREFACE to-day are among the most Important towns in Spain; yet the chief interest of their historic mon- uments — the most tangible results left us of earliei civilizations — must always lie In the life and char^ acter which produced them. To the end that this life and character should be more easily arfd clearly understood, the earlier chapters have been devoted to the consideration, first of the native stock, and then of the' alien peoples, with the cultures introduced by them Into the peninsula. The complexity of the subject is evident at a glance, but Its treatment has been made as broad as Is consistent with the detail nec- essary to vitality of interest; and the general trend of great movements, rather than the lesser streams of minor developments, has been constantly borne in mind. In order that these movements should be fully comprehended. It has been found neces- sary, In some Instances, to trace them from their beginnings. It follows, therefore, that the earlier portion of the book takes the form of a series of studies, each starting from a fresh point of view; but in a work whose main purpose is an understanding of the strongly contrasting influ- ences which, in the hot cauldron of Spanish life have been fused into the vivid product of pen- insular civilization, there has seemed to be no other way. The unreliability of most early Spanish his- vii PREFACE torians is well known. Even more than elsewhere In Europe, chronicles of mediaeval life are biased by a partisan spirit, or rendered of questionable value by the easy credulity of those who tran- scribed them. When we come to the conflicting accounts of contemporary Christian and Arab writers, each of whom was chiefly Inspired with a desire to outdo the other in magnifying the prowess or extolling the accomplishments of his own people, the contradictoriness of the result may be imagined. Such authorities must always be quoted with suspicion. But when, as in this case, they often serve as the sole source of Infor- mation, and furnish the only possible local colour and personal Interest, they must be accepted, at least as representing conditions and tendencies, and frequently, also, as preserving, which they doubtless do, some proportion of fact. A constant source of confusion to the student of the Moslem period, Is the spelling of Arabic names. There is absolutely no authority for their translation, and each historian has followed his own ideas. Most systems are supposed to be phonetic, but the results are as various as there have been writers to originate them. In this book the rule has been to adopt the simplest forms, or, as far as possible, those which are most com- monly accepted and most readily recognized. viii CONTENTS Vol. I Prologue. The Spaniards: Pre-Roman Civi- lization o . I CHAPTER I. The Romans 17 II. The Visigoths 26 III. The Arabs and Moors 58 IV. The Moslems in Spain 90 V. The Christian Kings. Pelayo. Henry V. 118 VI. The Christian Kings. Ferdinand and Isabella 139 VII. The Christian Kings. Charles I. (V.). Philip II 152 VIII. The Christian Kings. Philip III. Philip IV 165 IX. The Christian Kings. The Bourbons . 179 X. Toledo 197 XL Toledo {Continued) 238 XII. Cordova 280 IX CONTENTS Vol. II CHAPTER PAGE XIII. Cordova (Continued) i XIV. Seville 34 XV. Granada 84 XVI. Granada (Continued) Ill XVII. Madrid 147 XVIII. The Northern Frontier: Santiago, Leon 171 XIX. Old Castile: Burgos^ Salamanca, Val- LADOLiD 192 XX. Saragossa AND Aragon 223 XXI. The East Coast: Barcelona, Valencia 245 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Vol. I PAGE Bridge of Alcantara, Toledo. Photogravure . . Frontispiece Section of Screen, Capilla Mayor. Cathedral, Toledo . . 8 San Gregorio, Valladolid. Fagade lo Court, Palacio del Infantado, Guadalajara 12 Roman Aqueduct, Segovia 22 Palacio Pedro el Cruel, Toledo no Screen of Coro. Cathedral, Toledo ........ 134 Figure of Isabella, Granada. Altar of Chapel Royal . . 138 Figure of Ferdinand, Granada. Altar of Chapel Royal . . 144 Charles V. Titian. Museo del Prado, Madrid ... 152 Empress Isabella. Titian. Museo del Prado, Madrid . . 154 Philip II. Titian. Museo del Prado, Madrid .... 158 Mary Tudor. Moro. Museo del Prado, Madrid .... 160 Philip IV. Velasquez. Museo del Prado, Madrid . . . 164 Infante Carlos Baltasar. Velasquez. Museo del Prado, Madrid 170 Las Meninas. Velasquez. Museo del Prado, Madrid . . 172 Infanta Maria Therese. Velasquez. Louvre 174 Charles IV. Goya. Museo del Prado, Madrid .... 186 Marie Louise. Goya. Museo del Prado, Madrid .... 190 Palacio San Telmo, Seville. Main Entrance (Churrigue- resque Ornament) 194 xi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS PAGE Toledo. View from Southeast 196 Puerta del Sol, Toledo 246 Sta. Maria la Blanca, Toledo 248 Cathedral, Toledo. Nave Looking West. Interior of Coro in Foreground 250 Capilla Mayor, Cathedral, Toledo 254 Chapel Santiago. Cathedral, Toledo 258 Heraldic Ornament. San Juan de los Reyes, Toledo . . . 260 Cloister, San Juan de los Reyes, Toledo 262 Hospital Sta. Cruz, Toledo. Main Portal 264 Marianne of Austria. Velasquez. Museo del Prado, Madrid 276 Vista in Mosque, Cordova 280 Mosque, Cordova. Exterior of Enclosing Wall .... 298 Vol. II Casa de Pilatos, Seville. Entrance to Court. Photo- gravure Frontispiece Arch of Mirab, Mosque, Cordova 20 Arabesque from Mirab. Panel of Portal, Mosque, Cordova 24 Giralda, Seville 44 Alcazar, Seville. Patio de las Mufiecas. (Court of the Dolls.) 66 View Across Aisles. Cathedral, Seville 72 Vaults at Crossing. Cathedral, Seville 74 The Alhambra and Granada. From the Albayzin ... 84 Exterior View of Walls and Towers, Alhambra .... 90 Little Mosque, Alhambra, Looking toward the Generalife 100 Salon of the Abencerrajes, Alhambra. Stalactite Pendcntives 102 Window of Lindaraja, Alhambra. Looking into Garden of Lindaraja 108 Garden of Lindaraja, Alhambra no Court of Lions, Alhambra 120 Puerta de Justicia, Alhambra 132 xii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS PAGE The Alhambra and Palace of Charles V. Birds-eye View . 142 Gallery of Charles V., Alhambra 144 Royal Palace, Madrid 146 Alcazar (Old Castle), Segovia 182 Cathedral, Leon. West Front 188 Cathedral, Burgos. West Front 198 Cathedral, Burgos. View across Transept 202 Chapel of the Constable. Cathedral, Burgos 206 Stairway inside Portal, North Transept. (Scala d'Oro), Cathedral, Burgos 208 Apse and Cupola, Old Cathedral, Salamanca. Tower of New Cathedral in Background 210 University, Salamanca. (Plateresque Ornament. Detail of Facade) 212 Renaissance Stairway, University, Salamanca 214 Torre del Clavero, Salamanca 216 San Pablo, Valladolid. Fagade 218 Exterior of Apse. Cathedral (La Seo), Saragossa . . . 222 Torre Nueva, Saragossa 242 Arms of Charles V. From Chapel, Escorial 260 Xlll BUILDERS OF SPAIN VOL. I PRO L O GU E THE SPANIARDS PRE-ROMAN CIVILIZATION HISTORIANS have long agreed In giv- ing the name Iberian to the peoples who at the dawn of history were In possession of the Spanish peninsula; and most ethnologists now declare that the Iberians were of that great Mediterranean race found in the earliest times all the way from the latitude of the Pyrenees to that of the desert of the Sahara, and from the Pillars of Hercules to the Bosporus. It Is not doubted by authorities to-day that the basin of the Mediterranean has changed materially since the last glacial period, and that Europe and Africa were once united at one or more points. Even separated as they now are by the great sea, — "that Mid-sea that moans with memories'' — the essential unity of the great basin Is readily recognized. It is frequently said that Europe be- gins at the northern boundary of the Sahara, or, that all Is Africa south of the Pyrenees. The population of such a region by a similar and hom- ogeneous race, therefore, Is a fact so natural, al- most Inevitable, that it scarcely needs confirmation I BUILDERS OF SPAIN by sclelice; and the racial likeness of Iberians, Provencals, Italians, iEgeans, Greeks, Numldlans, and Berbers, as established by recent investiga- tion, serves simply as its confirmation. The varied development of the Mediterranean race has produced a number of great nations, and some of the most vital chapters in the growth of modern civilization. Most of these chapters are well-known history, but the origin of the race still remains a matter for speculation. Although considered by the majority of ethnologists as scarcely tenable, the suggestion of a recent author- ity — that the Mediterranean race may have been the primal race all over Europe, and that the Teutonic peoples were bleached and developed into their greater stature by their northern en- vironment — opens up a most suggestive field for thought. But the trend of recent investigation points instead to an African origin, or at least to an early racial relationship between the Medi- terranean race and certain African peoples. A lost island to the east of Africa is thought by some to have been the original home of this race; further, that offshoots from It are to be found to- day in the Tamil-speaking peoples of southeastern India and in certain tribes of Oceanica and Cen- tral America. So far back, of course, we may only speculate, but there are facts In support of the African relationship which, owing to the THE SPANIARDS marked preservation of aboriginal traits in the Iberic stock, as established by recent scientific In- vestigation/ must largely depend upon Spain for their confirmation. Coupled with the: Iberians are the Kabyl tribes of the Atlas Mountains, whose close racial rela- tionship to the native Spaniards Is recognized by all authorities to-day, and who likewise have pre- served to a striking degree their primitive traits. These two peoples, therefore, the Iberians on the north of the Straits, and the Kabyls to the south of them, represent the most primitive type of the Mediterranean race remaining in the vicinity of the great basin; and It Is fairly startling to find their head forms practically the same as those of a number of distinctively African peoples, notably the Hausa and Bantu tribes. All are dolicho- cephalic, or long headed, and while the head of the modern Spaniard has broadened very slightly in comparison with the crania taken from pre- historic caves and barrows, the latter, the pre- historic crania, show an almost absolutely negroid long headedness. The Spaniard, like the African, has dark or black hair, and dark eyes; and, while the African has black skin, the Mediter- ^ Ripley tells us that the population of the Spanish peninsula is the most homogeneous of any country in Europe of like extent, and further, that it more nearly preserves its aboriginal type than any civilized land on the continent. BUILDERS OF SPAIN ranean is of a decidedly brunette type, growing darker toward the south. The height varies in both races according to environment, but both are slender. The hair of the African is more curly than that of any other nation, and that of the pure-blooded Spaniard is flat in section and inclined to curl.- The marked preservation of primitive traits among all the above peoples indicates a lack of Intermixture which, in every case, appears to have proceeded primarily from racial characteristics. Among the African peoples an inherent tribal aloofness has been strengthened by natural condi- tions, chief among which is a lack of harbours in proportion to their coast line, entailing scanty inter- communication with other peoples. In Spain an exactly opposite geographical con- dition is found. Owing to its position, the Span- ish peninsula was for centuries the chief highway between Europe and Africa. It was, therefore, continually overrun by invading and migratory peoples, and that racial heterogenlty has not re- sulted is so surprising as to be almost unbeliev- able. Homogenity In Spain, therefore, must be attributed entirely to inherent racial characteristics. We recall at once that Spanish pride has been a proverb for hundreds of years; that all through its history pride has been recognized by historians 2 Curly hair is always flat in cross section. 4 THE SPANIARDS as the most pronounced mental characteristic of the entire peninsula; and pride of blood Is one of the most potent causes known of racial purity. Furthermore, in Spain, we find the inevitable re- sult of homogenity, in dwindling physique, lack of Initiative, and poverty of mental fertility. Cross fertilization has been proved to be abso- lutely essential to development and progress in both the natural and animal world, and through lack of It, not only the native African, but the native Spaniard, In a lesser degree, has stunted his mental growth as well as his physical develop- ment. An African race of pure blood has never produced a poet, an artist, a great ruler, or a great nation; has never developed a great religion or a civilization; and a recent authority predicts that no great degree of progress will ever be possible. The history of Spain likewise shows that the native Iberian has never developed un- aided either a nationality or a culture. In addition to the physical and mental affinities found among certain African peoples and the na- tive stock of the Spanish peninsula, there are also many striking similarities of customs and tradi- tions which are traceable to the same racial pur- ity. Pride of blood always engenders tribal jeal- ousy, and tribal jealousy produces a spirit of local independence, and conduces to the formation of petty states rather than the development of the 5 BUILDERS OF SPAIN broader spirit of unity. It is a well-known fact that the Kabyl tribesmen have successfully resisted for thousands of years all attempts to unite or subject them to a uniform dominion. ^ A racial likeness has long been recognized between the Kabyls and ancient Egyptians, but it has only re- cently been known that In the earliest times like social conditions existed among the latter. The Berbers are usually recognized as forming the connecting link between the Iberians and the Kabyls, Hausas, and native Egyptians; and with them, also, we find a marked preservation of tribal jealousy, and a division into a number of petty and independent states. Finally, the Iberian Spaniards, from the dawn of history even to the present day, have displayed as their chief char- acteristic the same indomitable Independence. Their organization, like that of the Atlas peoples, has always been clannish and tribal, and in spite of centuries of alien domination, with a consequent forced centralization of power, it still remains true that every pure-blooded Spaniard gives his first allegiance to his town, his second to his province, and last of all to his state. This regional independence has undoubtedly been accentuated in the peninsula by its physical conformation. Local jealousies are always perpetu- ated, and petty states built up, by a surface split s Hume. 6 THE SPANIARDS up by mountain ranges Into numerous small di- visions; and more than any country In Europe, Spain has suffered all through her history from disunion and consequent Intestine strife. In fact, the entire peninsula has never been united under one rule. Even now, besides the independence of Portugal which deprives Spain of most of her western coast, her union with the provinces In the extreme north is little more than nominal; and the frequent outbreaks In Catalonia are nothing less than ebullitions of the same old spirit of local in- dependence, and renewals of the same old effort to throw off the yoke of the centralized power. The foregoing racial tendencies and physical en- vironment account for much of the backwardness of development of the native Spaniards, but to them must be added the depression resulting from the frequent and heavy oppression of their alien rulers. The primitive Iberians were great fight- ers. No sooner were they overcome, therefore, than they were pressed into the ranks of conquer- ing armies. The Spanish soldiers were the most valued of the legions of Rome, and among the most numerous; and Rome was always at war, sending her armies all over the then known world to fight the battles of the Empire. As an able- bodied legionary rarely returned home, it is a question whether there remained in Spain at the close of the Roman period, any appreciable pro- 7 BUILDERS OF SPAIN portion of the virile blood of the old Iberian stock. It would seem, then, that the influence of the native Spaniard upon the development of the pen- insula must have been a comparatively negligible quantity. But preponderance of numbers and permanence of occupation, coupled with a strik- ing individuality of type, must Inevitably produce a profound and pervasive Impression; and, al- though the constantly changing trend of Spanish civilization must be ascribed to Its alien rulers, the native Iberic stock of the Spanish peninsula must be recognized as a factor which has coloured and modified much of Its final expression. Spanish lit- erature was founded In the beginning upon that of Rome, but the Imagination and diction of Cer- vantes and Calderon are Spanish and not Roman. The Spanish school of painters followed the lead of that of Italy, but, except In the soft grace of Murlllo, there Is nothing Italian In any of the splendid work of the great Spaniards, while the dignity and splendour of the greatest of them all, Velasquez, is the very flower of a long inherit- ance of Spanish pride. Again, while the Spanish architecture of each period Is fundamentally of exotic styles, it Is also permeated to a marked degree with the personality of the native IberIc stock; and it will be conceded by all students of Spanish archaeology, that It is the peculiarities 8 Section of Screen, Capilla Mayor, Cathedral. Toledo. THE SPANIARDS which are Spanish In the monuments of Spain, which constitute a large proportion of their dis- tinction and Interest. That such qualities are everywhere to be found must become evident at once to every student of the monuments of Spain. Their very want of structural originality testifies to the chief limita- tion of the native Spaniard — his lack of Initiative. But, on the other hand, the magnificence of size and splendour of ornament of many of the great monuments of Spain are the unmistakable expression of the supreme egoism of its Iberic stock. Under foreign leadership the Spanish people constantly aspired to rear the most splendid monuments in Europe; and, In spite of their lack of originality and frequent barbarities of style, they very nearly succeeded. In magnitude the Important monu- ments of Spain are scarcely rivalled elsewhere In Europe; and In richness of ornament many of them are only comparable to the barbaric splen- dours of India. It will be seen, then, that the distinctive qual- ities In Spanish architecture which are due to the native stock, and which constitute what we may term Its Spanishness, must largely be found in matters of detail. That ornament is of secondary impor- tance, and should be subordinated to construction, must always be granted; yet without decoration, architecture as a Fine Art does not exist, and or- 9 BUILDERS OF SPAIN nament may make or mar the most splendid con- struction. True ornament forms a vital union with construction, and often adds to barren walls the breath of life, the touch of individuality. Its study, therefore, frequently becomes a matter of primary importance. As a record of local Influence and native ten- dencies, especially where foreign ascendency has governed fundamental principles, decorative detail frequently outweighs construction. In the carved ornament of historic temples Is found the expres- sion of the life and faith, not merely of a ruling class, but of a people. Racial tendencies, native types, the local flora and fauna, all are repro- duced; even the configuration of a country is not without Its Influence upon line and composition. True ornament, therefore, Is rarely other than an indigenous growth. Even when modelled upon a foreign style, or following traditional designs, dec- orative detail, if rendered with life and vigour, will be permeated with the personality and moulded by the environment of the people by whom It Is produced. That which is vital and Spanish, therefore. In the architecture of Spain, is commonly limited to matters of ornamental detail. It cannot be denied that this local distinction, this Spanishness, may often be felt rather than de- fined. Especially Is this true during the early 10 San Gregorio, Valladolid. Fagade. THE SPANIARDS years of each period when there is naturally a closer following of imported models, and, in many cases, work was done by imported workmen. But in the later effort of each movement is displayed an increasingly marked outcropping of native feel- ing and local influence. Then we find a tendency to excess, an exuberance of fancy, and an imag- ination entirely unrestrained by a feeling of pro- priety or sense of organism, whose results, al- though triumphantly picturesque, are often half barbaric. Nowhere in Europe was the elaboration of Romanesque or Gothic carving carried to such a degree of splendour as in Spain. The screen of the Capilla Mayor at Toledo, although want- ing the elegance of French work, displays the ut- most limit of sculptured magnificence in the Gothic style; and the last word in the lace-like cutting of stone is attained in the decoration of the Chapel of the Constable at Burgos. Moreover, in the latter the designs are distinctly unique and bizarre, and, to a student of ornament, are un- mistakably Spanish. Splendid but coarse and impure examples of Spanish decoration are found in the overloaded convent at Belem in Portugal; in the Palacio del Infantado at Guadalajara; and in the facades of San Domingo at Salamanca and San Gregorio at Valladolid. The great tree which spreads its branches over the latter is truly an astonishing BUILDERS OF SPAIN architectural decoration, but its richness of effect and even its barbarisms — undoubtedly traceable to native influence — make a quick appeal to the eye of an artist. Tried by the usually accepted canons of taste, it is grotesque, but its very ab- surdities lend It a sort of distinction, and It is vigorous to the last detail. In conclusion, while it cannot fail to be ad- mitted that the qualities in Spanish architecture which are due to native taste and local Influence, namely, exuberance and lack of discrimination, are those commonly found among primitive and unde- veloped peoples, it may not so readily be granted that in line and composition, and In that in- describable something that we call style, Spanish decoration suggests the work of the dark-skinned peoples to some of whom the Iberians seem strangely akin. It Is only necessary, however, to lay side by side examples of architectural orna- ment produced by the Tamil-speaking peoples of southeastern India, and those of Spain In which the Iberian spirit Is most clearly displayed, to create an Instant Impression of a relationship of some kind between the peoples which produced them. A similar tendency to elaborate and un- related ornamental design Is found In Slam, In Oceanica, and In Central America, as well as, In a primitive way, among the ancient Egyptians. In all these cases we find a population preserving a 12 ^'»i>-crfL'; ' wefer- Court, Palado del Infantado, Guadalajara, THE SPANIARDS marked degree of racial purity; and it is at least a curious fact that whenever the Spaniards have colonized in either of the above localities they have intermarried freely with the native stock, and have merged themselves into a practically homogeneous people, a result never accomplished elsewhere. It is, however, the indefinable likeness of purely Spanish ornament to that of the Tamil-speaking peoples, to which attention here is especially In- vited. The writer is perfectly aware that nothing whatever can be proved except the negative evi- dence which precludes the possibility of a com- mon culture. But the haunting feeling remains, that purely Spanish ornamental design has a flavour of that of southern India, and, to account for it, we are forced back upon the hypothesis already suggested, of a common racial origin, or at least of an early racial affinity, between the two peoples; a relationship which may also In- clude certain tribes of Oceanica and Central America. • • • • • The earliest Invasion of Spain recognized by re- liable historians was that of a people long called the Celts, a name so variously understood and applied by different ethnologists that a recent au- thority has attempted to simplify research by using the word Celt for a culture instead of for a 13 BUILDERS OF SPAIN people, and by designating the Spanish invaders as the Alpine race. But, however called, this race was distinguished by traits totally different from those of the Iberians. They were brachycephalic, that is they had round heads and broad faces, with chestnut hair, grey eyes, and stocky figures. Although the date of the so-called Celtic In- vasion of Spain Is not definitely known, the fact has never been doubted. But that the invaders failed to dominate, or to Intermingle, to any ap- preciable extent, with the native stock, is proved by the fact that, notwithstanding the slight broad- ening of the head form of the native Spaniard, and the supposed formation of a mixed race In the middle of the peninsula called the Celtiberlans, Celtic traits, as the characteristics of any propor- tion of the population, have long been confined to a few Isolated provinces on the northwest coast. There the Celtic Invasion appears to have en- tirely dislodged the Iberians, and any return by the native stock was prevented by the region's re- moteness and Inaccessibility. Following the Celtic, or Alpine, race, came the Phoenicians, Greeks, and Carthaginians, who suc- cessively invaded the peninsula before the coming of the Romans; but no architectural monuments of any Pre-Roman period are known to remain In the Spanish peninsula. It Is not improbable that Roman walls may Incorporate occasional frag- 14 THE SPANIARDS merits of earlier construction, and that the mounds which now cover the ruins of cities built by Phoenicia, Greece, or Carthage, may conceal valu- able remairis, but of Carthaginian, Greek, or Iberic work, nothing of distinctive character or value has yet been uncovered. In the domain of the Industrial Arts, much more of Pre-Roman antiquity Is left to us, and, although Spain Is as yet almost a virgin field to archaeologists, recent discoveries of work in metals and clay form a valuable source of Information as to Pre-Roman civilization In the peninsula. Dating from the earliest times, there have been found hatchets and other arms, with bracelets, and ornaments, which indicate a culture similar to that found elsewhere in Europe at the same period. The first exotic Influence In Spain, that of the so-called Celts, Is seen In pottery dug up, within comparatively recent years, In the vicinity of Seville, and also In Portugal. The vessels are of clay ornamented In clay of a lighter tone, and the geometric figures which form the decoration are distinctive of Celtic work. In the development of Spanish culture, the strongest early Influence was that of Greece. The first coins known to have been struck In Spain are called Greek, although they bear on one side the horse which was the most common Celtiberian de- 15 BUILDERS OF SPAIN vice. On the other is the' name of the Greek city, Emporlas, sometimes in Greek letters and some- times in Iberic characters. Large quantities of Greek pottery have been found in Spain, much of it undoubtedly manufactured there. From the earliest times the Greek city of Saguntum was famous for its pottery. Its ornamentation, as well as that of Ivory combs, plaques, and other small articles, Is thought to have profoundly influ- enced the taste of the native people, and, doubt- less, much of the so-called Greek work was exe- cuted by native workmen. As Carthage had followed the lead of Greek culture at home, her conquest of Spain continued the influence of Greek traditions In the peninsula, only modified or exaggerated by Punic taste. In the excavations near Seville were also found bronze ornaments and arms thought to belong to the Carthaginian period. They bear characteristic Greek ornament, together with figures of winged bulls, combats of lions and other oriental devices.* ■* A most striking example of the Carthaginian period Is de- scribed by Riano as a bust of a woman, sculptured life size, and elaborately dressed after the Carthaginian fashion. This was found in 1897 at Elche, near Alicante, and the same author says that it was placed in the Louvre, but I failed to find it there in 1905. 16 Chapter I THE ROMANS THE Roman domination of Spain dates from the siege and capture of Cadiz by Sclpio Africanus, In 206 B. C. With that event the earlier rule of the Carthaginians was broken, and thereafter for six hundred years Rome was the chief power to be reckoned with In the peninsula. Of that period two hundred years were spent In the frequently recurring at- tempts of the Spaniards to expel their new mas- ters, and In the almost constant warfare found necessary by Rome to maintain her authority. If the petty Spanish states could have presented a united front, the Roman rule in the peninsula might have been limited to a dozen years. But In spite of the common oppression which should have formed a bond of union, disunion and intestine strife continued to prevail; and not until Julius Caesar appeared was a pacification effected which finally rendered Spain one of the most loyal of the colonies of Rome. As a result of Caesar's policy of conciliation, Spain in time became the most Roman of the provinces of Rome; and, during the first two hun- 17 BUILDERS OF SPAIN dred years of our era, the rapid development of her material resources rendered her a most im- portant factor in the affairs of the Empire. Learn- ing and the arts flourished, and so thoroughly did Spain adopt and assimilate the language, learning, and manners of the Romans, that, before the close of the reign of Augustus, Spanish poets, Spanish teachers, and Spanish rhetoricians ranked with those in Rome. But the chief glory of Spain during the Roman period lies in the wise' and beneficent reigns of the so-called Spanish emperors. Trajan and Ha- drian were both born in Italica near Seville, and because of a Spanish grandfather, Marcus Aurelius is also called a Spaniard. It must not be imag- ined, however, that any one of these famous em- perors was of Spanish blood. Trajan and Ha- drian were both born of Italian parents, and even the Spanish grandfather of Marcus Aurelius was of a Roman family of high birth. But all three displayed a marked kindness for Spain, and dur- ing the period covered by their reigns (sixty of the first eighty years of the second century), not only did Rome attain the zenith of her power, but Spain reached her highest early importance and prosperity. With freedom from war, the arts of peace flourished. Spanish oil, Spanish wine, Spanish steel, and Spanish linen challenged comparison with the best produced anywhere else i8 THE ROMANS in the world, and in many cases attained an un- rivalled excellence. Furthermore, during these years of Imperial favor were executed those mighty works of engineering and architecture whose remains to-day are among the chief glories of Spain. After the death of Marcus Aurellus, the Roman emperors gave less and less attention to the affairs of Spain, and with the decline of Rome came also the deterioration of Roman Spain. During the last two hundred years of the Roman period, the history of Spain presents little to distinguish it from the decaying fortunes of the Empire. The Spaniards, like the Romans, were enervated by many years of prosperity. Like the Romans also, the vices which follow in the wake of over re- finement left them an easy prey to the barbarians from the north, who, as early as the later years of the third century, began to make Incursions into the south. In Spain, as in Italy, the first invaders were driven back into the north, or across into Africa. But the growing weakness of the south again and again tempted fresh invasion. From the reign of Honorius (395), the Roman empire in Spain existed only on sufferance. From 417, the peninsula was entirely overrun by bar- barians; and by 466, Roman authority over any part of the peninsula was practically extinguished. During the later years of the Roman period, the 19 BUILDERS OF SPAIN chief fact of interest to the general student is the introduction of Christianity into the peninsula. The arrival of Christian missionaries is claimed by Spanish historians as early as the first century. Tradition has long asserted that St. James the elder was the first herald of the new faith, and that after his martyrdom his work was carried on by St. Paul. But there is no historical warrant for the visit to Spain of either apostle, and it is only with the Christian martyrs of the second century that the Christian history begins which we may not reasonably doubt. During the last years of Roman rule, the Chris- tian church became an important factor in the administration of the Empire; and in its councils the Spanish church won and maintained a position of eminence. But in Spain, as elsewhere, as the church was freed from fear of persecution, abuses and heresies began to creep in, and the investiga- tion and punishment of these heresies soon devel- oped within the church a spirit of intolerance even more bitter than that to which the Christians themselves had earlier been subjected. Less than a hundred years after the conversion of Constan- tine, occurred the execution, not only of Spanish heretics by so-called Spanish Christians, but that of fellow-Christians who failed to subscribe to every detail of the creed considered orthodox. The church had thriven on persecution, but peace 20 THE ROMANS and prosperity soon stifled its vital principles; and, along with her bigotry, she soon absorbed the corruption of the decadent empire. As the state degenerated, the spiritual power of the church weakened, and during the years of bar- barian Invasions many portions of the peninsula relapsed Into paganism. • • • • • The Roman architectural monuments found In the Spanish peninsula to-day are among the most Imposing left anywhere by the great empire. Many of those which are most familiar to us should doubtless be classed as works of engineer- ing, rather than of architectural, skill. Yet the beauty of outline and splendour of construction of the great arches, aqueducts, towers, and bridges of the Roman period, lift them above merely utilitarian effort. Like the Titanic works of the Romans else- where, the Spanish monuments are usually con- structed of huge blocks of stone fitted together without cement. Round keystone arches, often of great breadth of span and striking beauty of line, are also a distinguishing feature; and their stabil- ity to-day Is but another evidence of the sound- ness of the constructive methods followed by Roman builders. The famous bridge at Alcantara crosses the deep gorge of the Tagus In six splendid arches. 21 BUILDERS OF SPAIN The two middle arches have each a span of fifty feet, and are nearly two hundred feet above the bed of the stream. Those at the ends are nar- rower, but all are round and spring from oblong buttressed piers, which, In turn, rest upon square piers whose Impression of strength and solidity is enormous. We are told that the usual depth of water in the gorge is thirty-seven feet, but that in time of flood it piles up to a height of one hundred and eighty feet. The force and weight of such a torrent are scarcely to be conceived, and yet, save for the damage to this bridge from the hand of man, it remains as nearly perfect to-day as when completed by Roman workmen. One of the smaller arches, destroyed in 12 13, was restored by Charles V.; and another, blown up by the British in 1809, and again by the Carlists in 1836, was restored in 1860.^ But the beauty of this bridge does not lie en- tirely in its strength and stability. All its lines are dignified, and its roadway is spanned by a su- perb Roman gateway. The keystones of the round arched opening of the latter are of cut stones fitted together with the nicest precision; and Its massive top is finished with squared battlements, each alternate battlement being cut through with a foliated and highly decorative loophole. Below 1 This bridge must not be confounded with the bridge of Alcan- tara at Toledo. 2Z Roman Aqueduct, Segovia, THE ROMANS the battlements are two mouldings, one of which may have been introduced as a dripstone, and, therefore, may have been entirely utilitarian; but two could not have been necessary, and the two lines of shadow add so much to the beauty of the bridge that their decorative effect can hardly have been entirely absent from the builder's mind. The bridge over the broad Guadiana at Merida, although its construction is necessarily .not so great a tour de force as that at Alcantara, Is still a magnificent work. It crosses the river in sixty-four arches, and is half a mile long. Even to-day it is one of the longest bridges In the world. At Segovia, Tarragona, and Merida are splendid aqueducts, that at Segovia still remaining one of the most stupendous works of the Roman Empire. At Tarragona are yet to be seen por- tions of the Roman wall, some of It of cyclopean masonry, whose foundations are said to be of Carthaginian work. At Murviedo, Italica, and Merida are remains of splendid theatres, that at Murviedo, according to some authorities, being the best preserved Roman theatre extant. At Murviedo also Is found a remarkably fine piece of Roman mosaic. The arch of Torre de la Barca, and the tower of Corunna complete the list of the more famous existing monuments of the Roman period in Spain, but It by no means exhausts the number of splendid examples. 23 BUILDERS OF SPAIN It cannot fail to be remarked that there are no temples or churches in the above list, and our attention is directed to the fact that only occa- sional traces remain which Indicate temple con- struction. It Is probably true, therefore, that In Spain, as elsewhere, the sites of early temples have been freely used by succeeding peoples, one after the other, for their places of worship. In Sevjllle we know that the site of the present great cathedral was first occupied by a temple dedicated to Venus Salambo. This was first transformed Into a basilica consecrated to St. Vincent, and later into a splendid mosque which, after much rebuild- ing, gave place to the present structure. It Is also true that the cathedral at Saragossa occupies a site consecrated to Christian worship as early as 290. But to-day there are In Spain no remains of Roman temples of any Importance, and no Christian basilicas whose date Is earlier than the ninth century. • • • • • Perhaps the most Important memorial of the Roman period of Spanish history Is Roman-Span- ish literature. Gifted with a natural exuberance of language, the Spanish people were endowed with peculiar talents for literary expression, and have always excelled In its pursuit. A bare list of the Latin writers of the first rank produced by Spain during the first century of our era, includes 24 THE ROMANS some of the best-known names of the best period of Roman literature. The two Senecas, Lucan, Quintilian, Columela, Martial, and Pomponius Mela were all born In Spain. Like the Spanish- Roman emperors, they are called Spanish, but it is most probable that they, also, were, at least partially, of Roman blood. ^ The elder Seneca Is known to have been the son of a Roman father and a Spanish mother, but, as a rule, gene- ological mention Is rare and unreliable, and we are left to depend upon a knowledge of the gen- eral course of advancement, which was more fully open to those of mixed Roman and Spanish blood than to an enslaved native population. Many were undoubtedly the children of Roman soldiers by Spanish women, such children always being en- dowed with the freedom of Roman citizenship. 2 Individual genius, when produced, was usually the result of such intermixture. 25 Chapter II THE VISIGOTHS THE Visigoths, hke the Franks, the Suevi, and the Alans, all of whom poured down Into southern Europe during the third, fourth, and fifth centuries, were of the race usu- ally designated as Teutonic. Like the Iberians they were dolichocephalic. But while the southern people were short and dark with curling hair, the Visigoths were tall and blond with straight hair. The Goths are supposed to have come originally from Scandinavia. But authentic history first finds them in the region now known as Prussia, where they were already divided into Ostro- Goths, or East Goths, and VIsI-Goths, or West Goths. It was the VIsI-Goths, who, during the fourth and fifth centuries, made their way down into the south and west of Europe, where they first set up a kingdom in Southern Gaul. Long a favourite possession of Rome, Southern Gaul, under the Empire, had become so thoroughly Romanized as to be known as The Province, a name preserved to-day in Provence. During their occupation of it, the barbarism of the Visigoths was materially softened. Early efforts were made 26 THE VISIGOTHS to extend the VIsIgothic power into Spain, which met with little opposition except from the bar- barians who had preceded them, and under the Visigothic king, Wallia (417-419), they overran the peninsula, and gained a permanent foothold there. The Visigothic court in Spain was first set up at Barcelona, and later at Seville; but, about 560, was finally and permanently removed to Toledo, where, from that date, the chief interest of the Visigothic period centres. Its most striking move- ments sprang from the struggle between the con- flicting creeds professed by the Visigoths and the Romanized Spaniards. The conversion of the Visigoths to Christianity dates from the middle of the fourth century. They were, therefore, nominally a Christian peo- ple before their conquest of Spain, but they were Arians; and the Roman Church, arrogating to her- self the term orthodox, had branded Arianism as a heresy, nearly, if not quite, as dangerous as paganism, and even more to be condemned. In- deed the great Catholic doctrine of the equality of the Trinity had been formulated at Nicea, in 325, chiefly to confute the growing heresy of Arianism which denied that equality. In further contrast to the church of Rome, that of the Visigoths was a very primitive organiza- tion, if indeed it may be said to have been or- ganized at all. Yet, notwithstanding unusual 27 BUILDERS OF SPAIN freedom and a broad tolerance of other faiths, a high standard of morality and a tone of marked social purity are said to have existed. But through lack of organization, always a fatal defect, the Gothic church, and the Gothic empire as well, were destined to yield In the end to the suprem- acy of the church of Rome. The first note of the long struggle had been sounded In that Prankish advance Into southern Gaul which had finally driven the Goths across the Pyrenees Into Spain. Clovls and his Franks were of the orthodox or Roman faith; and, while the rich plains of Provence were a tempting bait, the avowed pretext for their conquest had been the expulsion of heretical Arlans from Gallic soil. The church of Rome had stood behind the Franklsh advance, and continued to Inspire the pressure, both warlike and diplomatic, with which it was followed up in Spain. There the Roman church, which In many local- ities had survived the ruins of the Empire, was already. In many localities, strongly established. Further, It was the one field of advancement left open by their new VIsIgothic rulers to the native Spaniards. The marked susceptibility of the Iberic stock to ecclesiastical rule Is evidenced all through Spanish history. It follows, therefore, that, while the Spaniards upon their own initiative had vol- unteered practically no opposition to the VIsIgothic 28 THE VISIGOTHS conquest, under the leadership of a Roman priest- hood they soon became an antagonistic, even an aggressive, power In the state. The VIsIgothIc rulers were tolerant, but it could not be expected that they would accept meekly and at once the rule of a priesthood, largely recruited from the native population, which derived Its authority from Rome. For nearly eighty years, therefore, they resisted the pressure of the overwhelming numbers and superior organization of the Roman church. Vivid personalities and stirring scenes soon be- gin to stand out. Athanaglld (554-567), under whom the Gothic capital was removed to Toledo, had for his queen Gosvinda, who for many years held the centre of the stage as the most bitter partisan of her faith produced by the Arlan church. One may read in detail the stories of her two daughters, Brunhllda and Galesvlntha, both of whom were married to Prankish kings, and both of whom suffered tragic deaths In that country. The almost masculine character of Brunhllda, together with the savage persecution which she endured and her horrible death, forms one of the best-known chapters of early French history. But her girlhood and that of her equally unfortunate sister belong to the rugged city on the Tagus, then just emerging into the new consequence of the Gothic capital. There Brunhllda Imbibed to 29 BUILDERS OF SPAIN a striking degree the indomitable courage of her race. Like her people she stood for the supremacy of royal authority, and finally gave her life in its defence.* During these early years any one of the Visi- gothlc chieftains was eligible to the office of king, which was the reward of military prowess. The oath of office was a mutual promise between the people and the king. " King shalt thou be If thou doest right, no king shalt thou be If thou doest not right." The ceremony of inauguration consisted In raising the successful candidate upon a buckler, while his followers hailed him as their leader. But while this simple system, with Its primitive oath and ceremonial, had answered well enough for a wandering and warlike people. It soon proved Inadequate to the needs of a settled and civilized kingdom; and with the culmination of the religious struggle, which came during the reigns of Leoviglld (570-587) and his son Re- cared (587-601), the inherent weakness of the VIsigothIc form of government proved an added menace to VIsigothIc power. Already Intrigue and murder had marked the 1 It will be remembered that at the age of eighty, Brunhilda was tied by the hair, one hand and one foot, to the tail of an unbroken horse, whose wild gallop dashed her to pieces before a mob of ferocious Franks. 30 THE VISIGOTHS election of a new king. Soon after his accession, therefore, LeovIgUd assembled the VIsIgothIc chiefs at Toledo, where^ after laying before them the dangers that beset the state under existing conditions, he succeeded In procuring a decree making the crown hereditary In his own family; his sons, ErmlnlgUd and Recared, being appointed successively his heirs. But, although Leovlglld was able to wrest this proof of loyalty from his nobles, their native Independence, and consequent lack of unity, rendered them an unstable support during the bitter struggle in which for the next dozen years he was to be the chief figure. Upon the death of his first wife, the Greek Theodosia, Leovlglld had espoused the widowed queen of Athanagild, Gosvlnda; and the tragic tale begins with the marriage of the Prince Er- mlnlglld with the Prankish Princess Ingunda. This event was made the occasion of much kind- ness and liberality by the Gothic king. He even associated his son with himself In the royal dig- nity, sharing with him the honours as well as the labours of his office, and allotting for his occupa- tion apartments In the same royal palace occupied by himself and Gosvlnda. But the residence of two queens in one household soon proved an Im- possible arrangement, especially as one was old and ugly and the other young and pretty; al- though, as Ingunda was a devoted adherent of 31 BUILDERS OF SPAIN the Orthodox church, their animosity is usually attributed to religious intolerance. The altercations between the two queens soon became a public scandal. Historians of the time, who are largely Catholic, charge Gosvlnda with the most outrageous behaviour. St. Gregory of Tours asserts that one day she seized Ingunda by the hair, threw her down and trampled upon her, then thrust her into a fish pond to be baptized by an Arian priest. But, whether or not the two royal ladies came to actual blows, our earlier and later knowledge of Gosvlnda proves that she con- stantly aggravated those domestic quarrels which embittered the later years of the kindly Leovlglld, and nearly cost him his throne. Mariana ob- serves that, "Gosvlnda, who ought to have ap- peased her husband's passion and laboured for an accommodation, being herself obstinate and a mother-in-law, blew the coals and stirred up the king." A separation of the belligerents finally became necessary, and Erminigild was sent to Seville, where a separate court was set up for him and the orthodox Ingunda. In Seville, however, the young king was exposed, not only to the growing influence of his wife, but to the persuasions of the powerful Catholic bishop, Leandro, who Is supposed to have been his maternal uncle. Under their combined efforts, Erminlglld's conversion was 32 THE VISIGOTHS soon accomplished, after which he became the chief weapon in the aggressive policy at once adopted by the Orthodox party. Under Arlan rule the Roman church every- where In Spain had been allowed the widest free- dom. Ingunda herself, except for the persecution by Gosvlnda, had been permitted the free prac- tice of her faith. But no sooner had ErminlgUd partaken of an Orthodox mass, than plans were laid for the overthrow of Leoviglld, and the usurpation of the entire authority for his son, whose chief business thenceforth was to be the extinction in the peninsula of the ancient heresy of Arlanlsm. Almost at once Ermlnlglld was in correspond- ence with the enemies of his father; and, although the King made every effort to turn his son from treasonable designs, he was finally obliged to take the field against him. The ensuing hostilities oc- cupied more than a year. At one time Ermini- gild was persuaded to throw himself upon the mercy of his father. The result of the interview — the forgiveness of the parent, but the justice of the king, which banished Ermlnlglld, — should have ended the conflict. But scarcely had the young prince reached his city of exile than he was again enmeshed In guilty plots. Hostilities were again begun, ending this time in the capture and Imprisonment of Ermlnlglld. 33 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Then a final effort was made to deal with the un- stable prince. He was offered an entire restora- tion to royal favour if he would return to his Arlan faith. That he refused to do so Is the one act In the tragic story that does him honour, but It left the King In a most difficult situation. That ErmlnlgUd living would prove a constant menace to the peace of the kingdom, as well as to the stability of the throne Itself, had already been amply proved. But It Is hardly probable that Leovlglld would have proceeded to extreme measures had not the young prince received with marked Insolence the Arlan bishop sent to offer him communion. The report of the Insult reached the old King at a moment of unbearable stress, and Leovlglld, at last exasperated beyond endur- ance, and without waiting for his anger to cool, gave orders for the execution of his son. The order, which was but too promptly obeyed, left Leovlglld for the moment master of the sit- uation, but his remorse for so unnatural and hor- rible an act, with the evil passions which It excited and strengthened, overshadowed the re- mainder of his life, and doubtless shortened It. Yet, during the two years remaining to him, the staunch old Arlan maintained a dauntless front. Forced Into a position of Intolerance, his persecu- tion of Catholic churches and monasteries threw into his hands a mass of rich plunder which sur- 34 THE VISIGOTHS rounded the royal person with a new splendour. He erected a magnificent throne In his palace, and was the first of the Gothic kings who wore a crown and used a sceptre In public. It Is also said that he was the first who wore garments dif- ferent from the rest of the people. After the death of Leovlglld, It was whispered that, In his last moments, he had been converted to the Orthodox faith. It Is not Improbable that, wearied by the urgency of an Importunate priest- hood, he may have made some sign of submis- sion in order to secure peace during his dying hours. A powerful lever, which could not have failed to Influence the old and broken King, lay in his remorse for the execution of his son (al- ready made a martyr and saint In the Roman cal- endar), for which execution Rome doubtless prom- ised absolution in return for his conversion. But with Leovlglld the chief issue, after all, was not the form of faith. His struggle with the church was for the supremacy of the royal authority, and long before his death the grand old warrior must have foreseen that with him his cause must fall. Recared succeeded to the throne In 587, and soon after his accession representatives of both the Arian and Catholic priesthoods were invited to meet together to discuss the points In dispute be- tween them. Recared presided over this council in person, and, professing himself an enemy to 35 BUILDERS OF SPAIN all persecution, he succeeded In establishing a tone of moderation as welcome as It had been rare, for a hundred years at least. In the Gothic king- dom. It was at this time that rumours of Leovi- glld's death-bed conversion began to circulate, and the advantage to be derived, by Recared and the Orthodox party, from such a suspicion, strongly suggests its Inspiration by them. In this manner the way was carefully prepared for the momen- tous announcement of the young King's change of faith. On the eighth of May, 589, two years after his accession, Recared called together at Toledo the most distinguished assemblage of nobles and prelates which had yet been congregated In the Gothic capital. Even the titles of the dignitaries who followed In the King's train must Indicate the Importance of the convocation, as well as the rapid growth of pomp and ceremonial at the Gothic court. "There were dukes, counts, and palatines. Then came a count of the drinking cup, a chamberlain, a chief groom, major domos, counts of the patrimony, several counters In chief, the count of the viands, a knight of the youths, a captain of the guards, a keeper of the sacred things, and a keeper of the treasure, besides the grandees and governors of the territories and kingdoms." All wore flowing robes of silks and costly stuffs, with heavy ornaments of gold and 36 THE VISIGOTHS jewels, which, with the richly robed clergy, made a fine show even against the rude background of Gothic, or battered Roman, walls. The pretext for the convocation was the dis- cussion of important measures for the public good, and the first three days were devoted to fasting and prayer. Then the King rose and de- livered a long and elaborate address, largely de- voted to the importance of religion to the well being of man, and its necessity to the organization of society. In closing he referred to the many miracles wrought in behalf of the Orthodox form of faith, and finally avowed his conversion to it. Then Recared, and after him his Queen, Baddo, publicly subscribed to the creed of the Catholic church, a ceremony which, It is not too much to say, laid the foundation for the ecclesiasticism which from that day to this has ruled Spain. A surprisingly large number of the Gothic no- bility followed the King's example. It was the easiest way out of their difficulties, and the Goths, even in their most vigorous days, had never been given to profound thought or the subtleties, of doctrine. There remained, of course, the Arlan priesthood, with a few of the most unyielding of the nobles, who together entered a determined protest against the king's action. But they ac- complished nothing, except perhaps a temporary disturbance of the historic assemblage, from which 37 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Recared and all laymen soon marched out in a solemn procession, leaving the foundation of a new system of government In the hands in which the business has largely remained ever since, those of the Spanish clergy. It is very probable that the supremacy of the church of Rome gave Spain a better government than she would have enjoyed under the Irrespon- sible sway of the later degenerate Visigoths. But, with the decree which rendered the sanction of the priesthood necessary to validate an elec- tion to the throne, the strife for the kingship soon became, In the church as it had earlier been in the the state, a source of intrigue, and even crime. Furthermore, the rapidly increasing per- secution of the Jews but too clearly shows that the enormous accession of ecclesiastical power tended to a proportionate growth of intolerance among the clergy. Even under Recared, severe laws were passed against the Hebrew race; and so rapid was the growth of religious bigotry that, within forty years, a council held at Toledo pro- hibited in the VIsigothic kingdom the practice of any other religion than that of Rome. Fifty years later it was further decreed that no man should be nominated as king who was not of noble blood and Gothic descent. And in the sixth council of Toledo, held in 638, a canon obliged all future kings to swear, not only that 38 THE VISIGOTHS they would not suffer the exercise of any other religion than the Catholic, but that they would rigorously enforce the laws against all dissidents, especially against that accursed race, the Jews. Thus early was the Spanish church pledged to that extreme policy of conversion or extermina- tion which repeatedly during later years was to expel or destroy the most valuable and Industrious portion of the population. Indeed, It is said that the maxims of the modern inquisition may all be traced to the canons of the Gothic Code which were Issued for the persecution of the Jews. The weakness which had undermined the early strength of the VIsIgothic character may be traced to the enslavement of the native Spaniards. We are told that almost the entire native popu- lation had been gradually pressed Into bondage; and the fundamental Injustice of the VIsIgothic Code, which provided punishment in Inverse ratio with the station In life of the accused, not only rendered the condition of the slave one of ab- ject misery, but most effectually destroyed a sense of honour In the master. When a crime which cost a serf his life might be committed by a noble for a nominal penalty, the moral degrada- tion of the latter could not long be delayed. Long before the accession of Recared, the Gothic nobility had proved themselves incapable of a just or sustained government; and, as they 39 BUILDERS OF SPAIN became more and more idle, enervated, and cor- rupt, it grew increasingly evident that the final supremacy of the only united force in the king- dom, that of the church of Rome, was inevitable. It was the only power that could hold the state together. Recared's conversion, therefore, is usu- ally regarded as a political necessity. Like Henry IV. of France, he was compelled to embrace Catholicism if he were to retain his throne; and, also like the great Henry, the Gothic king dis- played a dexterity in preparing the way for his change of faith, and, during the ensuing years, a moderation in his dealing with both religious fac- tions which cannot be too highly commended. But there the likeness ends; for Henry IV. was a leader who shaped history, and Recared, an opportunist. As we approach the latter days of the Visi- gothic empire in Spain, historians become more numerous as well as more prolix, and the student is fairly embarrassed with varied and contradic- tory accounts. Of the many legends of Wamba's (672-680) ^ elevation to the throne, the one most commonly told relates that the Gothic nobles ap- pealed to Pope Leo for assistance in their choice of a king. The Holy Father, after praying for divine guidance, directed them to seek a labourer 2 Eleven kings occupied the Gothic throne during the seventy years between Recared and Wamba. 40 THE VISIGOTHS in the west called Wamba, who should be miracu- lously made known to them. Soldiers were accordingly dispatched to scour the western country, and In a field on the confines of Portugal was discovered, following his plow, an old man who answered to the name of Wamba, To him they at once offered the Gothic crown. But Wamba, considering their offer a jest, replied that they would doubtless make him king when the pole In his hand should bud and bring forth leaves. The dry wood was Immediately clothed with fresh verdure, and Wamba hailed as King. Another legend first discovers Wamba at the funeral of Recesvlnthus,^ after which a Gothic noble encountered him in a street of Toledo, where, placing his poniard at the breast of the old man, he gave him the choice of death or the throne. Wamba doubtless reflected that the end might be the same in either case, but for the time even a dangerous eminence was better than immediate death, and within twenty days he was crowned King of Spain. As African invaders were already beginning to threaten the south, Wamba built, for the defence of the coast, a fleet whose service was so effec- tive that It delayed for thirty years the Moslem conquest of Spain. The period of Wamba's reign, 3 Recesvinthus immediately preceded Wamba. 41 BUILDERS OF SPAIN therefore, saw a reconsolidation of the loosely held kingdom of the Visigoths; and the wisdom and justice of his Internal administration produced a last interval of peace and prosperity under their rule In the peninsula. But a wise and honeist rule was neither ex- pected nor desired by the degenerate nobles who had elevated Wamba to his high office, and its end was not long delayed. The story of Wamba's deposition is even more remarkable than that of his election. Proofs have always been wanting, but it Is most probable that he fell victim to a treasonable Intrigue of Ervlgius, who had long aspired to the throne. The story goes that upon a certain Sunday In October, 680, Wamba f ell ' Into an unaccountable state of Insensibility. His servants, who believed him dying or dead, following the custom of the times, shaved his head and enveloped him In the habit of a monk. Within twenty-four hours the king recovered consciousness, but his doom was sealed. Although his adoption of holy orders had been without his knowledge or consent, he was nevertheless accounted a monk, and a monk could not be king. With the disappearance of Wamba into his cloister. Is begun a veritable orgle of Intrigue and crime at the Vislgothic court. Ervlgius was so strongly suspected of having had a hand in 42 THE VISIGOTHS the enforced encloistering of Wamba, that he soon found It necessary to yield the succession to Egica, a brother of Wamba, attempting at the same time to Insure the loyalty of Eglca to himself and his family by the gift to the latter of his daughter In marriage. But no sooner was Eglca seated upon the throne than he repu- diated his wife and all the promises earlier made to Ervlglus. Egica further rendered his reign in- famous by a persecution of the Jews which was the most extreme in all history. His edicts left open to them nothing but exile, slavery, or death, and In each case the hunted people were plundered of all the wealth which they could not hide from their persecutors. The overweening power of the church, evi- denced by the extent and success of its persecu- tions, had long tended, among the clergy, to the grossest Immorality. But when Witiza, the son and successor of Egica, executed a decree permit- ting the marriage of priests, a measure doubtless Intended to correct existing abuses by legalizing them, the resulting scandal fairly shook the foun- dations of the grim old city, and Witiza has come down through history as a monster of depravity. Witiza is also credited with having put out the eyes of Theodofred, Duke of Cordova; and, in this case as In many others, this favourite Visi- 43 BUILDERS OF SPAIN gothic brutality served as the beginning of a series of reprisals. A party at once rose against WItiza, deposed him, and replaced him on the throne by Roderick, the son of the blinded Duke; after which Roderick, in his turn, blinded and banished WItlza. These barbarities, which sig- nalized the accession of Roderick, were naturally followed by the formation of a party In opposi- tion to the new king, headed by the friends and relations of the dethroned WItlza. Oppas, who Is sometimes said to have been Archbishop of Toledo, but who was more prob- ably Bishop of Seville, took a leading part In the revolutionary councils. By some he Is ac- counted one of WItiza's two sons, but he Is usu- ally said to have been his brother. Tradition has long associated with Oppas the powerful Count Julian, and history has always heaped upon the latter the chief odium of the treason which finally cost the Visigoths their Spanish kingdom. According to a long-accepted legend, Count Julian had a personal grievance against young King Roderick, In the dishonour of his daughter, the beautiful Florlnda, who had been sent to the Gothic court as one of the ladles-In-waltlng upon the Queen. This story, now generally dismissed as a fable, has been translated by some his- torians as a figurative rendering of the oppression of the Jews. Count Julian Is believed by many 44 THE VISIGOTHS to have been a Jew, and to have belonged to a tribe called the Caat. The persecution of this tribe was especially bitter, and was frequently referred to as the violation of the Caba, a name which might easily have grown into that of la Cava, or the harlot, under which name Florlnda Is equally well known. Even through legend, therefore, we come back to the persecution of the Jews as the final cause of the overthrow of the Gothic empire in Spain, and the above Intrepretatlon is amply borne out by facts. Whether or not Count Julian was a Jew; in the negotiations which were opened up with the Arabs and Moors by the friends of the dethroned Witlza, he was undoubtedly the rep- resentative of the Jewish race; of the bitterly op- pressed remnant In Spain, and their exiled brethren In Africa. Moreover, as Count Julian was the governor of Ceuta, the African post op- posite Gibraltar, he may be said to have held the key to the situation. Added to the above treason, was the disaffec- tion of a small but rancorous party of Arians, and, last but not least, the rising pressure of the enslaved native population. The condition of the latter had become most abject, and they would undoubtedly go over en masse to any new ruler whose coming promised even a temporary amelio- ration of their misery. 45 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Any but the passion-inflamed eyes of the trai- torous Goths might have foreseen that the Mos- lem hordes, whom they now invited into Spain to assist in the dethronement of Roderick, would In the end become their conquerors. But blinded by their hate, the adherents of Witlza thought only of their own vengeance; and Roderick, whose traditional splendour and physical beauty have long rendered him a favourite of romance, fully occupied with the new pleasures connected with being king, gave little heed to conditions which were rapidly undermining his throne. Within six months of the accession of Roderick, a Moslem army was landed In Andalusia, and within the year occurred the decisive battle, near Xeres de la Frontera, on the western bank of the Guadalete, which put an end to the empire of the Visigoths In Spain. Many picturesque and not a few fabulous accounts, have been written of this battle. Ancient Spanish writers have related ro- mantic tales of the matchless valour and miracu- lous preservation of the Gothic king, together with glowing descriptions of his beauty and the splendour of his equipment. Even In modern romantic literature, Roderick, *' The Last of the Goths,'' has long been a favour- ite hero, and the battle on the bank of the Guada- lete has served as the climax for at least two famous poems. In both. King Roderick's steed 46 THE VISIGOTHS " Orella " plays an Important part, founded on the legend which tells of finding, on the bank of the Guadalete a few days after the battle, of King Roderick's robe, his armour, and the body of his horse. Because of this legend, many author- ities claim that Roderick was drowned while at- tempting to cross the river to a place of safety. Another story tells of the discovery, two hundred years later, of a sepulchre in Portugal whose In- scription, Hie reqiiiescit ultimus Rex Gothorum, gave rise to the belief that King Roderick es- caped, at the close of the disastrous battle, and ended his days in an obscure Portuguese con- vent. These and many other legends, most of which have no foundation of fact, have gathered around the famous battle of the river Guadalete. From them we gather that Roderick and his ninety thousand warriors (?) went into action burdened with the pomp which, during the later years of their empire, had replaced the early and rude but far more effective methods of VIsigothIc warfare. Their long ranks doubtless formed a most Im- posing pageant, but with their cumbersome ar- mour they were utterly unable to cope with the swift tactics and sudden onslaught of the Moors. Then, too, disaffection rendered unreliable a large proportion of the VIsigothIc army, and, although three times the number of their foes, their battle 47 BUILDERS OF SPAIN was a losing one from the outset. With the de- sertion of the conspirators to the ranks of the enemy, a death blow was dealt the Gothic cause, and disorder and flight soon gave the victory Into the hands of the Moslems. But while the VIsIgothIc defeat put an end to their early empire, Roderick was by no means the last of the VIsIgothIc kings of Spain. A con- siderable remnant of the VIsIgothIc army, com- posed of Its most determined and resolute leaders, found Its way into the mountain fastnesses of the north, where, within seven years of their flight from the plains of Xeres, the Goths had founded a new kingdom, that of the Asturlas. Other small kingdoms under the rule of noble Goths soon began to spring up around that of the Asturlas. Disunion and intestine strife were to prove a source of weakness for many years, but these petty states were destined to grow In strength and unity until in the end they won back the entire peninsula to Christian rule. Side by side, therefore, with the brilliant Sara- cenic civilization produced by the Arabs and Moors in Spain, the student must bear in mind the growth of this northern power which was at once the survival of the old Gothic empire and the germ of the modern kingdom of Spain. The kings of Spain may still trace their descent through these princes in the north to the early 48 THE VISIGOTHS Gothic kings, and a large proportion of the Span- ish nobility to-day are of VIsIgothIc blood. • • • • • In the field of the Fine Arts the VIsIgothIc period was the most unproductive of any of the great epochs of Spanish history. Except in the domain of letters there are no works of im- portance left to us, and even the so-called Gothic literature was largely Inspired by Rome, and the work of Greek or Roman churchmen in the Latin tongue. The most eminent of the Spanish writers of the VIsIgothIc period, Isidro, Bishop of Se- ville, was of neither VIsIgothIc nor Spanish blood, having been born in Carthaginia of one Severinus, an Imperial Greek or Roman. Isidro's work is largely encyclopedic or historical, and is our chief source of information to-day with regard to his age, and earlier. In Spain. The works of his brother Leandro, those of Ildefonso of Toledo, and others whom we might recall, are more dis- tinctly ecclesiastical; but all are written in Latin, and, as the power of the church gradually over- shadowed that of the kingship, even the VIsI- gothIc tongue was forgotten and Latin became the language of the court. Primarily warriors, the Visigoths held learning and the arts of civilization in open contempt; and it was the enjoyment of luxuries and refinement, rather than their production, to which they later 49 BUILDERS OF SPAIN gave themselves up. They revelled in what they found of Roman culture In both Provence and Spain, but they adopted rather than absorbed, and utterly failed to develop creative power. That other Teutonic people, the Franks, found much less of Roman work in the He de France than was left by the Empire in Spain. But from what they found, together with what they gleaned from a variety of sources, the Franks developed the most brilliant architectural style that the world has ever produced. The Visigoths in Spain, although they took possession of some of the most superb Roman walls and palaces, towers, aqueducts, bridges, and amphitheatres, found any- where In Europe, produced practically nothing. We find records of repairs and strengthening of walls, and we hear of the building of a few churches. Under Wamba we even read of a new palace. But neither the meagre remains of Visi- gothlc work, nor what we can read of Vlsi- gothic skill, indicates the production of anything of architectural importance. Even Toledo must have remained a rough and worn old stronghold during all the three hundred years of the Visi- gothic dominion, and elsewhere not only was nothing new erected, but much of Roman work was wantonly destroyed. Provincial cities with walls were found to be far more independent and more frequently in re- 50 THE VISIGOTHS volt than those without. Orders for the destruc- tion of defences, therefore, were a common means of repression; serving at once as a penalty for past uprisings and a measure of prevention against their recurrence. It was not foreseen, of course, that the decrees for the dismantling of cities which placed them at the mercy of their Visi- gothic rulers, would also leave them defenceless before Invading Moors and Arabs, and the ease with which the Moslem conquest was accom- plished Is quite as much to be attributed to earlier Gothic vandalism as to Moslem prowess. Against this rude architectural background, rec- ords of Visigothic splendour of personal adorn- ment, and accounts of the pomp and circumstance which attended Visigothic shows and festivals, shine with striking incongruity. A passion for silks and brocades, gold and jewels, was devel- oped among the Visigoths even during their so- journ In Provence; and during the height of their power in Spain there was probably no city in Europe so rich as Toledo In the sumptuous ap- pointments of royal and ecclesiastical pageants. Highly coloured accounts of the magnificence of Gothic festivals and tournaments are found in all the old chronicles, and the rich booty* taken by * Much of this booty Is described in the chapter on Toledo, and it is most probable that a large part of it had earlier been the spoils of Visigothic wars. 51 BUILDERS OF SPAIN the Moslems at Toledo tests even the florid pens of the Arabian historians. In these Arabic descriptions It Is quite evident that some allowance must be made for the ar- dour of oriental pens, as well as for the natural desire of the Moslem conquerors to boast of rich plunder. But, fortunately for us, striking proofs of the Immense luxury of the Visigoths, at least In the enjoyment of the products of the Indus- trial arts. Is furnished by the recovery of the famous Gothic crowns. The latter are a part of the treasure dug up, In 1858, at Guarrazar, a village six miles from Toledo, on a spot once oc- cupied by a Gothic sanctuary. Unfortunately a large part of the treasure was lost, the Ignorant labourers who first found It having sold many ar- ticles of Inestimable value to silversmiths wht> melted them down before the authorities were aware of their discovery. Some Idea of their importance may be gained from the fact that what remains, — eleven gold crowns, two crosses, and a quantity of fragments of gold and jewels, — are regarded to-day as the most Important col- lection In Europe of jewel work of the period of the VIsIgothIc empire In Spain. Two of these crowns are now in the Royal Armoury at Madrid, and nine are in the Cluny Museum at Paris. All are called votive crowns t for all have chains by which they are supposed 5a THE VISIGOTHS to have been suspended In the sanctuary. Such circles of gold, sometimes with pendant lamps, were frequently hung before altars during the middle ages, and the name crown was equally applied to them and to those worn on the head.^ It IS not Improbable that votive crowns were fre- quently worn before they were devoted to the service of the sanctuary. The size and form of the rims of some of those of Guarrazar strongly suggest that they were so used, and, if we may credit Conde, the wearing of crowns was a luxury largely Indulged In by the Visigoths. He tells us that the four hundred Gothic hostages of royal Hood, carried by the victorious Arabian general to Syria to grace his triumph, all wore golden crowns on their heads as well as golden girdles. The same author further records that the Moors found In a secluded corner of the royal palace at Toledo twenty-five gold crowns Inlaid with hya- cinths^ and other precious stones; " for," he adds, " It was the custom, after the death of a king, that his crown, after having engraved upon it his name, age, and the length of his reign, should be laid aside here." All the crowns of Guarrazar bear inscriptions, 5 The huge circles of such mediaeval candelabra as that in the cathedral at Hildesheim were doubtless derived from the above custom. 6 Hyacinth, a red variety of zircon sometimes used as a gem. 53 BUILDERS OF SPAIN or pendant letters, which Indicate the names of the Gothic kings by whom they were offered to the sanctuary. If they were ever worn, the pen- dant letters and other pendant ornaments, with the chains, must have been added when they were hung up as votive crowns. The designs and de- tails of the eleven crowns differ very materially; and, as a rule, the pendant ornaments are of coarser workmanship than the crowns themselves. All betray a certain rudeness which Is common to their age, but they also display a splendour, and even a beauty, which Is truly surprising. There are rosettes formed of jewels, and a delicate orna- mentation of cloisonne work. Some of the colour IS supplied by what appears to be red glass, but there are also magnificent pearls and sapphires, as well as rich designs In gold. Some of the chains are made of leaves, pierced Into lace like designs, which are attached by links; and the bor- der of some of the crowns Is formed by a network of small but massive gold balustrades, having be- tween them square spaces In which pearls and sapphires are set^ The personal magnlficance of the Visigoths is fully attested by the beauty and richness of these crowns. But by far the more important question remains — By whom and where were they made? [Upon this point leading authorities differ. The '^ Riano. 54 THE VISIGOTHS names of the donors attached to them must at least have been added in Spain, but It has already been remarked that the pendant letters and orna- ments frequently differ In style and workmanship from the crowns themselves. By some authori- ties the workmanship of the crowns Is thought to resemble certain ornaments of the Merovingian period In France, and some of the details are said to be found only In the work of Germanic na- tions. But the frequently recurring combination of circles, imbrications, and palms, which appears equally In Roman, Greek, and Asiatic jewels, go far to prove a common origin, and that In the East, for all the gold and silversmith's work pro- duced at this time both In the north and south of Europe. Jewel work everywhere was In a high state of development, and technical methods all over Europe are found to be similar to those in the East. Even the red glass cloisonne, which one authority claims as made only by Teutonic peoples, was found by RIano at Wiesbaden in a plaque which bears the name of a Sassanlde king of the third century of our era. That Eastern designs and methods of gold- smith's work should be Introduced Into Rome and Byzantium, arid should spread from those centres throughout Europe, should not be surprising. It is only what has occurred in all other branches 55 BUILDERS OF SPAIN of artistic activity. Rome first, and later Byzan- tium, were In constant and close touch with East- ern civilization; and during several centuries By- zantium was the art school for all Christian na- tions. Not only were Byzantine Ivories, minia- tures, and jewels sent all over Europe, but By- zantine workmen in the employ of the church, everywhere followed the spread of the faith. When the Visigoths took possession of Provence they undoubtedly found there, as part of the high civilization of Rome, skilled artisans in all de- partments of Industrial art, whose works they greedily employed to add to their new and unac- customed magnificance. In view of the long period of disruption and warfare which had preceded their conquest, it Is doubtful whether they found such workmen In Spain. But, when once their kingdom was estab- lished, nothing could be more probable than the importation of craftsmen to direct the manufac- ture of the showy luxuries which they seem especially to have prized. Such a procedure is far more likely than that the Visigoths them- selves or the native Spaniards should have in- vented or executed such work alone. The royal crowns of Guarrazar may have been manufactured in Spain, possibly they were partially the result of Spanish labour, but only the presence, in the be- 56 THE VISIGOTHS ginning at least, of a large and Influential colony of Eastern artisans, can account for their produc- tion in the peninsula, for their splendour of de- sign, and for the magnificence of the Visigothic court as described by early writers. 57 Chapter III THE ARABS AND MOORS FEW things In history are more remarkable than the swift spread of the Arabian em- pire after Its foundation by Mahomet. Be- fore that date (622) the Arabs scarcely possessed a nationality, but within a dozen years of the death of the prophet, the authority of the caliphs who claimed to succeed him had been acknowl- edged In Syria, Persia, and portions of Egypt; and a hundred years later their empire extended from India to the Atlantic. During Its earlier years the union of the rapidly growing empire was comparatively close. The caliph, who was the head of both church and state, wielded an absolute authority. From Medina first, and later from Damascus, he dis- patched armies to fresh conquests, and emirs to govern provinces and receive and transmit the rich spoils and enormous tribute which soon began to flow back into his treasury. But so sudden an accession of wealth and power could produce but one result, namely, the loss of the early spiritual mission of the prophet, with the development of an ordinary oriental 58 THE ARABS AND MOORS despotism which, through Its Inherent weakness, must soon fall to pieces. Indeed the seeds of disintegration were soon sown. In 644, a dozen years after the death of Mahomet, revolution and murder marked the accession of a new caliph, and the court, then removed to Damascus, soon be- came a very sink of Iniquity. Yet, for the first hundred years, the brilliance of Moslem con- quests, coupled with their mild and liberal rule, held together almost without a break the unwieldy federation whose climax of power was to be reached in the conquest of Spain. As early as 647, Moslem armies began to make forays along the north coast of Africa. There they encountered, In the cities still tributary to Constantinople, the last remnants of the provincial power of Rome, and the more or less stubborn resistance of the native Berber tribes. Al- though the hold of Constantinople had long been slackening, many campaigns were required, and sixty years had elapsed before the entire region was subdued. The conquest of the western part of this north coast, called by the Arabs, Al- Magreb — The land of the West, or the Sun- set, — was accomplished under the brilliant leader- ship of Musa ben Nosier, an Arabian general of marked military ability, who was destined also to complete the subjugation of Spain. The name Mauritanlans or Moors, meaning 59, BUILDERS OF SPAIN dark skinned, had been given by the Romans to the Berber peoples who occupied this African re- gion; and, as the Moors formed numerically the largest portion of the Moslem host which con- quered Spain In 711, it is usual to give their name to the period of Moslem rule. But it should be borne in mind that, at the time of the conquest, the Moors were subject to the Arabs, and that for three hundred years the Arabs held the bal- ance of power In Moslem Spain. By some the Berbers are considered to be closely akin to the Arabs, which relationship, if true, would necessitate the recognition of the Arabs as of Mediterranean stock. But whatever the origin of the Arabs, whether African or Asiatic, the language and traditions of Arabs and Berbers betray many similarities. A common culture, if not a common ancestry, is universally recognized, and both are classed among those peo- ples whose civilization is known as Semitic. Through this apparently recognized relationship, as well as by force of arms, Musa was quickly en- abled, not only to extend the sovereignty of the caliphs to the Atlantic, but to win large numbers of these Berber peoples to the dogmas of the new faith. Later their native independence rendered them a most unstable part of the Arabian em- pire, and a relapse Into a number of independent states, some of whose Moslemism was largely 60 THE ARABS AND MOORS coloured by an earlier paganism, was the final re- sult. For the time, however, the new faith inspired widespread enthusiasm, and nothing could have been suggested better calculated to maintain the loyalty of the new province and the ardour of the new converts than a forward movement into Spain. The peninsula was reputed to be a land of inexhaustible resources and magical fertility. The Moors had long cast covetous eyes across the narrow straits, and had already attempted depredations along the Spanish coasts. The popu- larity of a new movement was beyond question; and, even without the opening afforded by Gothic treason, a Moslem invasion of the Spanish pen- insula must have been inevitable. But, with the wisdom of an able leader, Musa played his part with extreme caution. The in- trigues of exiled Jews, and even the invitation sent by disaffected Goths, with their offers of rewards and alliance, might prove a trap which would cripple the undertaking at the outset. He de- layed, therefore, ostensibly until he should receive the express sanction of the Caliph, but in reality for what was of far more real importance, the report of spies sent over into Spain. From them It was learned that the chances of success were even greater than they had been led to expect. The degeneration of the Visigoths had so wcak- 6z BUILDERS OF SPAIN ened their early martial spirit that descents of pirates upon the undefended Spanish coasts were regarded with Indifference. So low had they sunk that they were found practically " without industry, without commerce, and without arms/* With this reassurance as to the weakness of the' enemy, and with Ceuta in his hands as a base of operations, Musa sent over two preliminary ex- peditions. In July, 710, Abu-Zarah-Tarif landed at what is now Algeclras, made a predatory incursion in- land, and returned reporting practically no oppo- sition. A second expedition was at once fitted out under an able Berber lieutenant, Tarik ben Zeyed. Although TarIk is said to have commanded only fifteen hundred horse, he landed on the coast of Andalusia and ravaged the country with perfect impunity. Then, whether or not he returned for reinforcements, a point upon which authorities differ, the thirtieth of April, 711, found TarIk entrenched at the base of the great rock, until then known as Calpe, one of the pillars of Her- cules, but afterwards to take his name, GIbel Tarik — The mountain of Tarik — since corrupted into Gibraltar. The rapid campaign which fol- lowed was crowned within three months by the victory on the banks of the Guadalete. The Moors numbered not a third of the Gothic army, but they were light and swift and inured to hard 62 THE ARABS AND MOORS fighting; and, what was of far greater impor- tance, they were desperate, for Tarik had liter- ally burned his ships behind him. There can be little doubt that the Gothic de- feat on the banks of the Guadalete was caused by Gothic treason rather than by Moslem prowess, but it is equally true that a Gothic victory could have meant little more than a postponement, for a time, of the Moslem conquest of Spain. The Arabs and the Moors possessed the virility that the Goths had lost, and their final triumph was inevitable. It is, of course, true that all of Spain was not conquered in one battle; much was left to be accomplished by Musa's army, which soon followed that of Tarik. But after so decisive a victory little resistance was to be expected, and within the short space of two years the chief cities of the main body of the peninsula were in Moslem hands. The story of that two years, as well as of all the early period of the Moslem empire in Spain, is picturesque to the last degree, and has served more than one writer with materials for ro- mance. In the very beginning, Musa was jeal- ous of the brilliant success achieved by Tarik, and sent him commands to cease operations un- til his arrival. But Tarik, well knowing that the fruits of his victory would be lost if it were not followed up at once, ventured to disobey; 63 BUILDERS OF SPAIN and Cordova and Toledo, besides a number of smaller cities, had been reduced before the arrival of Musa. The latter, therefore, landed in Spain deeply incensed against his subordinate, who had already reaped so rich a harvest of glory as to appear a dangerous rival. But Tarik was in the far north, and, before a meeting with him could be accomplished, Musa's conquests of Seville, Merida, and the most of the province of Lusi- tania, furnished some ground for his boast that he had added another kingdom to the vast em- pire of the caliphs. To Musa, therefore, belongs the glory of the subjugation of most of southern Spain, but to Tarik that of the first great victory, and the conquest of the north. The rival conquerors finally came together at Talavera de la Reyna. Musa was wrathful and haughty, Tarik dignified and respectful. The lat- ter maintained that his only desire had been to spread the faith of the prophet and build up the empire of the caliphs, and his enormous and rich booty was placed unreservedly at the disposal of Musa. But Musa was not to be appeased, and shortly after the entry of the two armies into Toledo, Tarik was openly, and In the name of the Caliph, deprived of his command. Later, because of the outcry raised by his followers, he was restored to It, but jealousy and lack of harmony between the two generals finally necessitated the recall of 64 THE ARABS AND MOORS both to Damascus. Musa is said to have made the journey surrounded by the pomp of a numer- ous escort, carrying with him as captives four hundred Gothic nobles, together with an enor- mous booty. By the gift of such valuable spoils he hoped to attest his success In war, and dis- arm the displeasure of the Caliph. The two leaders were finally confronted In the royal pres- ence, and there, according to many early writers, culminated the romantic story of the famous table of Solomon. This jewelled treasure, with other booty taken by Tank at or near Toledo, had been handed over to Musa, who upon receiving It had Imme- diately discovered that one of Its legs was miss- ing. Now Tarik had secretly broken It off and secreted It, but upon being questioned, he had declared that the table was mutilated when he found It. When, therefore, Musa, In his turn, presented the table to the Caliph as a part of the fruits of his victories, and when he also was asked to account for the missing leg, he likewise explained that he had found It broken and the leg lost. Then Tank produced the leg, and, fitting It to the table, proved to the Caliph that it was he, and not Musa, who had captured the treasure, and that at least a part of the conquest of Spain had been the result of his leadership. Although the legend of the table further re- 65 BUILDERS OF SPAIN cords that Its beauty and value caused it to be preferred by the Arabs to the throne at Damas- cus, the entire story Is considered by most his- torians to have been an Arabic Invention. Even the existence of a jewelled table Is sometimes denied. But It remains true that Tarik was able In some way to clear himself of the accusations of Musa, and to confound the latter In the pres- ence of the Caliph, proving that Musa and not he was responsible for the altercations which had necessitated the recall of both to Damascus. Be- cause of real and brilliant service to the state, however, Musa would probably have escaped with only a reprimand but for the sudden death of the Caliph who had recalled him, and to whom his enormous booty had been offered. The new Caliph, resenting Musa's refusal to delay his ar- rival at Damascus until his accession (the death of the former Caliph had long been Imminent), and angry at the consequent loss of honour and treasure to his reign, signalized his enthronement by the punishment of the great general. Impris- onment and Impoverishment, therefore, were Musa's final reward for the addition of its richest province to the Arabian empire. After his exoneration In the presence of the Caliph, Tarik drops out of sight In the history of Spain, but there remains another chapter In the story of the disgraced and unhappy Musa. 66 THE ARABS AND MOORS Before leaving Spain Hc' had appointed his fa- vourite son, Abd-al-Aziz, governor of that province during his absence. Whether the latter was able and upright or weak and designing Is a matter of varying opinion; but, owing to his romantic love for the beautiful EgUona, and his tragic death, he has become one of the most popular heroes of the Moorish conquest of Spain. He fell beneath the poniards of assassins, under or- ders from the Caliph, at Seville, and his head was Immediately sent to Damascus. The Caliph, without a word of warning, showed It to the un- happy Musa, asking him with a bitter smile If he recognized It. The exclamation of the wretched father, " Cursed be he who has de- stroyed a better man than himself," was the last cry of a broken heart. The last days of Musa were spent In the desert of Arabia, but happily for him they were few. • • • • • The term Saracenic, meaning levantinc or east- ern, has long been applied to the polished civil- ization and brilliant scholarship whose production by Moslem peoples Is one of the most remarkable things In history. Although we find records In- dicating a high degree of culture among certain of the ancient Arabs, they had become a primi- tive and unlettered people centuries before the birth of Mahomet; their only arts those of a 67 BUILDERS OF SPAIN rude nomadic life, and their only literature the verse of the wandering story-teller. So lightly did they esteem the learning of other peoples that it was one of the early successors of the prophet who gave the order for the ruthless destruction of the Alexandrian library. But within a hundred years of that costly conflagration, literature was enjoying the munificent patronage of the caliphs, and the rapid assimilation by Moslem peoples of the arts and sciences found in conquered countries had begun. The question at once present^ Itself, therefore, — From whence came their Inspiration and ability? In an inquiry into the sources of Saracenic culture, the earlier development, in the countries which rapidly fell under Arabian dominion, of a high degree of civilization, must be considered as of the first importance. It must be remembered that the early followers of Mahomet conquered many provinces of the decaying Byzantine empire, and that Egypt, Greece, Persia, and much of India soon yielded to their dominion. But, as other semi-barbaric invasions had preceded the Moslems Into many of these countries and had assimilated or produced nothing, a natural sus- ceptibility to refinement and a certain degree of creative power must be recognized in the Arab stock. It is true, of course, that the Arabs them- 68 THE ARABS AND MOORS selves formed but a small proportion of the many and diverse peoples rapidly added to their vast empire; also that Saracenic culture differed mate- rially In different localities. But for many years, and in almost every province, the Arabs formed the ruling class, and ruling classes have rarely failed to control the trend of the culture produced. Moreover, the universally ac- cepted laws of the faith added largely to the widespread prevalence of many characteristics. As a consequence, while we find marked local pecu- liarities, the result of native influences, Saracenic civilization everywhere displays many similarities, due to the somewhat capricious Arabian taste or to the trend and limitations of Arabian ability, which similarities, especially In their architecture, constitute an unmistakable style. For centuries before the birth of Mahomet, little is known of the attainments of the primitive inhabitants of Arabia. As they were worshippers of the stars, they undoubtedly possessed some knowledge of astronomy. But we are told that the science upon which the Arabs most prided themselves was that of their own language, with the construction of extemporaneous verse and the elegance of discourse. Al-Makkari observes that: " Science was sent to the brains of the Greeks, the hands of the Chinese, and the tongues of the Arabs." 69 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Their natural bent, therefore, was toward music and literature, in both of which forms of expres- sion they have always excelled. But In the domain of the monumental arts the Arabs had accomplished practically nothing before they began that career of conquest which was to carry their empire far to the east, and three- fourths of the way around the shores of the Mediterranean. The one architectural monument of note which had been produced by them in Arabia, the reconstruction of the antique shrine at Mecca, ^ was the work of a wandering Egyp- tian architect, no native workmen apparently hav- ing sufficient skill to undertake the task. Surrounded by conditions which necessitated a no- madic existence, for at least a large proportion of the population; by tribal feuds which entailed for all a state of constant warfare; and imbued from the earliest times with the repugnance to the reproduction of living forms, later crystallized Into the Koranic laws forbidding such effort; the problems of permanent construction and monu- mental decoration had never presented themselves to these children of the desert. Even In the few cases of permanent settlements, an essentially no- madic character was preserved in all arrange- 1 Rendered necessary during the lifetime of Mahomet by the destruction, by fire, of the earlier framework of sticks and palm branches covered with textile hangings. 70 THE ARABS AND MOORS ments. Shelter was furnished by the simplest of tent like enclosures, and ornament was limited to conventional or geometrical patterns woven or em- broidered Into fabrics, or traced upon armour or rude utensils. It will be seen, therefore, that the creative effort of the Arabs was largely confined to the most primitive of the Industrial arts. In which field their most Important product was woven or embroidered fabrics for clothing, car- pets, tents, and saddle cloths. In all the region of Arabia the manufacture of textiles was highly developed from the earliest times, and It is probable that the modern Arabs still follow the methods and designs practiced by ancient Chaldeans and Assyrians, as well as by their own ancestors. The fabrication of glazed pottery, likewise, has long been especially asso- ciated with this region, but It Is thought that the manner of life of the Arabs, contemporary with, and long antecedent to, Mahomet, precluded the possibility of the manufacture of anything but the ruder sorts of such ware, finer articles being obtained by barter with neighbouring peoples. Great caravans engaged In the transportation of merchandise constantly crossed and recrossed the desert. Through them It was easy to ex- change, for the products of more settled civiliza- tions, the fine wool and camel's hair, produced by Arabian flocks, and spun by Arab women. Then, 71 BUILDERS OF SPAIN too, bands of Arabs occasionally joined these cara- van companies, and with them penetrated Into distant countries. Such Intercommunication and barter must have introduced somewhat of the products of foreign civilizations into Arabia; but, in their purchase as in their manufacture, the life of the desert forbade to the wandering Bedouin the accumulation of superfluous property, or of articles whose size or character rendered them difficult of carriage on the swaying backs of camels. Only simple or Imperishable utensils could have been desired, and exotic influence upon primitive Arabian effort must be considered as comparatively slight. Not only was the creative work of the Arabs in a great measure restricted to the manufacture of textiles, but the character of its result was largely peculiar to the people and indigenous to the soil. The conventional Interwoven patterns; from the beginning a distinctive characteristic of Arabian carpets and tapestries; and, from their designers, long called arabesques; present the same fanciful grace and endless variety found in the florid and exuberant language of the Arabian story-teller; while the splendour of colour, which fairly vies with Arabian grace of design, but re- produces the brilliant hues seen In the tropical vegetation of Arabian pasture lands, or even in the glowing sands of the desert; one region to- 72 THE ARABS AND MOORS day being known from its colour as the crimson desert. It will be seen, therefore, that while the Arabs possessed neither talent nor training for the prob- lems of monumental construction, they early attained pre-eminence in the field of conventional decorative design. As a consequence, interwoven or embroidered designs of bright colour have formed the basis of all Arabian or Saracenic art. No country produced a greater degree of influ- ence than Syria upon Western Moslem civilization. The conquest of Syria, effected as early as 634, first placed the Arabs in touch with Byzantine civilization. The historic capital, Constantinople, the repository of the most of what was left of Greek science, literature, and art, was to resist Moslem armies for eight hundred years; but its culture, which had long held sway in both Syria and Egypt, was among the first to be assimilated by the all-absorbing Arabs. Immediately upon the conquest of Syria, the seat of Moslem power was removed to Damascus, and before the close of the seventh century, Syrian caliphs are known to have had In their employ scholars, architects, artists, and artisans imported from Constanti- nople. Under the patronage of these early suc- cessors of Mahomet, Byzantine scholars translated Into Arabic the masterpieces of Greek and Roman literature; and Byzantine workmen wrought ac- 73 BUILDERS OF SPAIN cording to Inherited traditions In all departments of the fine and Industrial arts. Thus early was kindled that marked mental activity of Moslem peoples, which, during the centuries when Chris- tian Europe was plunged into the barbarism of the dark ages, was to keep alive the flame of ancient learning. Indeed, It Is not too much to say that the Renaissance In Europe owes quite as much to the knowledge preserved and devel- oped by Moslem peoples during the middle ages, as to the re-dlscovery, by Christian Italy, In the fourteenth century, of Greek and Roman learning. Beginning with the awakening of the Arabs, through Byzantine scholarship, to a knowledge of ancient learning; In most localities, the estab- lishment of schools rapidly followed the setting up of Moslem power: and not only was earlier learning quickly assimilated, but in many branches of science a marked advance was made. It is un- doubtedly true that, in the beginning at least, the Arabs themselves played the part of patrons rather than producers, and we know that certain of the subject peoples, especially the Jews, who formed a large percentage of the population in many of the conquered countries, furnished a large proportion of so-called Arabian scholar- ship. But, even granting that Saracenic culture was largely produced by Hebrews, Greeks, Ber- bers, or any other subject people, the fact of 74 THE ARABS AND MOORS Arabian patronage, through which alone such effort was often rendered possible, must count for much In an estimate of that race, and must give them an Important place In the history of civil- ization. Much more, however, may be claimed for them. Not only Is there a long list of Arab writers of repute, but In the fields of science, philosophy, and mechanics, the names of many Arabs stand for Investigations, conclusions, and results, some of which, lost during the Christian persecutions, still baffle modern effort; while the distinctly Arabic character of much of Saracenic art must Indicate at least a certain proportion of Arab labour. The earliest effort of a conquering people, especially when the war-cry of that people Is the watch-word of a new faith, is the building of temples. It follows, furthermore, as has already been intimated, that a people with no architecture of their own would everywhere adopt the styles of construction found most commonly In use in the countries they conquered; their choice being limited by their taste, and their ability to repro- duce, or to employ workmen to reproduce native monuments for them. Especially would this be true when, as in the present case, the ritualistic requirements of the conquering faith were very slight. So simple and elementary was the Mos- 75 BUILDERS OF SPAIN lem worship that even a temple was never an actual necessity. A follower of Mahomet, when he prayed, needed only to turn his face toward the shrine at Mecca. But, with the spread of the Moslem empire, a place for public prayer, whose eastern name, Masjid — a place for worship or kneeling — has been corrupted Into mosque, became customary In every community. Furthermore, as almost any kind of building could be made to serve, local styles were freely adopted, and In many cases earlier buildings were re-dedlcated and re-used.^ The main form of a mosque, therefore. Is not a settled one, and the universally accepted char- acteristics of mosque architecture are largely lim- ited to certain members and arrangements, such as the kiblah, the mimber, and the minaret, which, from their need or convenience, grew Into general use; to those constructive features, such as the arch and dome, which especially appealed to the Arab fancy and became sufficiently popular to be frequently adopted In different localities; 2 Like the Christians before them, the followers of Mahomet were strongly imbued with a horror of anything associated with idolatry, consequently they rarely, if ever, made actual re-use of the blood-stained temples of pagan faiths. Pagan materials, how- ever, were freely re-dedicated to the service of the prophet ; and many ancient temples became almost inexhaustible quarries of dressed stone, and of the even more precious columns which were so necessary a feature of mosque construction. 76 THE ARABS AND MOORS and above all, to the prevailing use of an essen- tially Arabic style of ornamentation. The most Important architectural monuments, found In the countries earliest conquered by the followers of Mahomet, were the columned halls and arcaded courts which best serve for the con- gregation of masses of people In all tropical re- gions. Such were the enormous palaces of Assy- rian and Persian kings, and such the Egyptian temples. The most essential feature of the lat- ter, — an arcaded court enclosing or leading to a sanctuary, — already reproduced In the recently erected shrine at Mecca, — was to be so frequently adopted elsewhere that, by many. It has come to be regarded as pre-eminently the typical mosque form. Of almost equal importance with the arcaded court, In the development of mosque architecture, was the form of the Christian basilica. At this time, in most Mediterranean countries, basil- icas had largely superseded, as places of worship, the earlier pagan temples; and, although not so eminently adapted to climatic conditions as the earlier style, the plan of these Christian churches answered all essential Moslem needs. Moreover, as the faith for whose service they had been reared inspired none of the repugnance felt for pagan rites, they could be freely re-used. Indeed, so tolerant were the early Moslems of Judaism 77 BUILDERS OF SPAIN and Christianity, with both of which faiths they readily recognized many points of affinity, that in a number of Instances, notably at Damascus and Cordova, the conquering Arabs and con- quered Christians, for many years, worshipped side by side In the same Christian temples. ^ In each case, half the chief Christian church was reserved for the adherents of that faith, while the Moslems, by right of conquest, took posses- sion of the other half. It win be seen, therefore, that. In mosque archi- tecture, the arcaded court of the pagan temple, and the cruciform enclosure of the Christian basilica furnished the fundamental arrangements most generally adopted In Mediterranean coun- tries. Of them all the most popular feature was, undoubtedly, the open court, and It Is fre- quently found combined with the basUIcan form; either frankly added as an exterior enclosure, or formed by leaving the heart of the structure, the square at the crossing of nave and transept, open to the sky. The distinctive features of mosque interior ar- rangements were the kiblah, the mimber, and the maksura. At first a simple outline of an arch drawn upon the wall Indicated the direction of Mecca, but this bare outline was rapidly devel- 3 It was Christian rather than Moslem bigotry which fomented the later bitter antipathy and strife between the two faiths. 78 THE ARABS AND MOORS oped into a niche, called a kiblah or mirab, upon which was lavished the richest decoration of the entire building. As httle attention was paid to the orientation of early mosques, the position of the kiblah is frequently found to have no relation whatever to the structural lines of the building, being placed in any corner which indicated the point of the compass looking toward Mecca, a point which varied of course in every community. Its position, however, always located the sanctu- ary which, in arcaded courts, was formed by a multiplication of the arcades upon one side of the enclosure into what was practically a columned hall. But, in early basilican mosques, the kiblah and sanctuary were quite as likely to be found In one of the arms of the transept or nave, as In the apse. With the custom of reading prayers In public, came the need of an elevation for the reader, which produced the pulpit or mimber. The seat of the caliph or his representative, called the maksura, was early Isolated by a railing, but later, when it became necessary to protect those potentates from the violence which so often put an end to their power, the railing was replaced by an enclosing wall. The location of both the mimber and the maksura was purely arbitrary, and bore no relation to the structural form of the building. 79 BUILDERS OF SPAIN The most universal external feature of a Mohammedan mosque, the minaret, or muezzin tower, was the latest distinctive member of mosque architecture to be developed. During the life of the prophet, the call to prayer was given In the mosque itself. Later it was proclaimed from the threshold; and It was not until 833, more than two hundred years after the Hegira, that It was decided to build towers from which the voice of the Iman, or priest, could be heard from a greater distance. As with all other arrange- ments, the location of the tower was chosen with reference to its use, rather than with regard to the architectural composition of the entire struc- ture. It was placed toward the most thickly pop- ulated district, where the call could be heard by the greatest number of people; and large or Im- portant mosques frequently have a number of muezzin towers. The form of those towers varies materially In different localities and at different periods. Early ones are frequently of several stories, square, octagonal, and round, as they ascend. But there are also examples of successive many-sided sections growing smaller toward the top, as well as plain round or square towers. All are crowned by some kind of an open gal- lery, and, in proportion and detail, many are ex- tremely graceful and elegant. In matters of construction, as in fundamental 80 THE ARABS AND MOORS arrangement, the Arabs largely adopted the methods practiced by the peoples they conquered. But with no inherited taste for solidity and sta- bility, and no natural aptitude for the difficult problems of monumental building, the tendency everywhere was toward light or roughly built walls, covered with a rich veneering of surface ornamentation. This ornamentation, however, was largely confined to interiors; the superstitious fear of exciting envy with the baleful influence of the much-dreaded evil eye, tending to the prevalence of barren exteriors. In many regions lacking in stone, notably in portions of Syria and northern Africa, walls were commonly built of a conglom- erate composed of lime, clay, and pebbles, and faced with vitrified bricks, tiles, plaster, or stucco. This conglomerate mixture was well known and freely used by the Romans, especially in locations more or less barren of stone, and the usual Roman revetment was of thin slabs of stone or marble which similated solid construction. But the Arabs, attracted by the light and rapid method, frequently erected conglomerate walls when stone was freely to be had; and, having no regard for lithic character, their most common revetment was the stucco, or plaster, which could be quickly applied, and was so susceptible of dec- orative treatment. Among matters of constructive detail which 8l; BUILDERS OE SPAIN have long been regarded as contributing especial beauty and distinction to Saracenic architecture, IS the almost universal use of the arch, with the wide variety of the arch forms employed. It Is now generally recognized by all authorities that all forms of the keystone arch were originated in Asia. Not only Is the earliest known round keystone arch found in an ancient Assyrian mon- ument, but a pointed keystone arch has been dis- covered in a palace at Nimrud, dating before 800 B. C. The so-called horseshoe form Is now said to have been first produced during the Sassanlan period in Persia, Its earliest distinctly developed example being found In a monument on Mt. Zagros, dating as early as the fifth century. Even the flamboyant arch, with its double curve, is thought by some authorities to have been origin- ated In the region east of ancient Chaldea. Each of these forms, therefore, may have been known to the Romans, but they adopted only the round arch, leaving to the Arabs the Introduc- tion into Europe of the lighter more fanciful shapes. As round-arched Roman construction was found by the Moslem conquerors in most of the Mediterranean countries, the round arch was the form first adopted In Moslem construction. But the more uncommon shapes, eagerly seized upon in the East, were soon everywhere introduced, and quickly superseded the earlier style in general use. 82 THE ARABS AND MOORS It must not be Imagined that arches were adopted by Arab builders for their constructive value, which made no appeal whatever to the primitive Arabian mind, but because of their grace and novelty. In fact, in the earliest Ara- bian use of the arch, its constructive value was distrusted or Ignored; and In the concrete walls, which later largely superseded those of stone, arches frequently possessed no more technical value than if cut out of paper. Arabian taste revelled In caprice, a fact not only amply proved by their early choice of novel and uncommon arch forms, but by the endless variety and strik- ing combinations into which those forms were later developed, every segment of a circle or combination of curves possible of construction being found in their later work. Only secon3 in importance to the arch as a distinctive feature of Saracenic architecture, was the cupola, or dome, which the Arabs found as the most universal characteristic of Byzantine Christian ecclesiastical construction. While the long nave of the Roman basilica was occasionally found in Syria and Egypt, the form more com- monly used in countries subject to Byzantine in- fluence was that of the Greek cross, in which the length of nave and transepts was equal, and whose point of crossing was covered by a cupola or dome. In all early construction, and very 83 BUILDERS OF SPAIN frequently later, especially in small churches, these domes were supported by circular drums, which, in turn, were carried by octagonal bases of piers or columns. But in the great monument of Sancta Sophia at Constantinople, Byzantine 1 /-vl 1 / 1 \l / \ 1 L\ L\ False Arch builders achieved the most brilllait success of their style, in the support of a dome over four open arches by means of pendentlves. The principle adopted In the construction of the pendentlve, that of the false arch (repeated and overlapping horizontal projections). Is first found In the East. Its earliest use for the sup- port of a domed vault has been discovered in Persia, where it appears as a series of gradually enlarging arches called squlnches. * By means of * Although the dome of San. Lorenzo at Milan is carried by an octagonal base, squinches, or stepped arches, are employed to equalize the sides of the octagon at the base of the cupola. 84 THE ARABS AND MOORS these stepped arches, which fill the angles, it was there first demonstrated how a hall of square plan could be covered by a circular dome without vertical supports; and many early Byzantine domes, as well as not a few Moslem ones, are supported by simple squlnch construction. In Byzantine hands, however, the angles of the stepped arches were smoothed off, forming what was called a pendentlve, and It will readily be seen that a smoothly arching pen- dentlve forms the most admirable transition from a square or oblong ground plan to the circular base of a dome. The pendentlve dome Is not only the chief glory of Byzantine architecture, but Its most famous example. In Sta. Sophia, In which the pendentlves are supported by piers and open arches. Is the most brilliant single achieve* ment of man In the art of building. It Is possible, of course, that the Arabs, like the Byzantine Greeks, derived their knowledge of squlnch construction from the East, but It Is far more probable that Moslem domes were largely erected by Byzantine workmen. Domes abound In Syria and Egypt, where such workmen were freely to be had, and they are much less common, as well as less pretentious, where such aid was less available. Moreover, nothing that we know of the Arabs, especially In the begin- ning of their development. Indicates the taste or the ability to cope with the always difficult prob- 85 BUILDERS OF SPAIN lems of vaulted construction. Even witH the aid of Imported craftsmen, Moslem domes were more frequently supported by drums than by penden- tlves, and they never attained the monumental proportions of those of purely Byzantine work. In many cases they were built of timbers covered with stucco or tiling. It was the form, there- fore, rather than the solution of a problem of roofing, which struck the Arabian fancy; and, as in the case of arched openings, domes. In Moslem hands, were to assume an amazing variety of shapes and curves. In early efforts, the low parabolic form commonly found in Byzantine domes is usual, and a multiplication of such domes frequently served to cover columned halls and arcades, each bay having Its separate dome. But In later Moslem construction, domes were more often carried up to a point, frequently also being drawn In at the base, thus reproducing the outline of a pointed horseshoe arch. Moslem build- ers in Persia exaggerated this form Into what Is known as the bulbous dome which has since be- come a distinctive feature of Russian architecture. In Moslem hands the principle of the false arch was to Inspire the production of unique and distinctive decorative features. Its most striking examples are found in the small timber cupolas whose domed Interiors, built of small blocks of stucco, reproduce the effect of stepped squlnch 86 THE ARABS AND MOORS construction. The lower surface of these blocks Is cut Into the fringe-like forms which give the name stalactite to these roofs. Similar effects are also frequently produced In the semi-domes of niches; and stalactite ornamentation, cut In stone or stucco, Is common In arches, cornices, and even In capitals. By some, these stalactite domes are likened to pomegranates picked of their seeds, but the stalactite forms are more usually thought to Imitate the fringes of Arabian tapes- tries; and It Is not Improbable that, as walls were covered with arabesque designs In palpable imitation of the tapestry tent hangings, these so- called stalactite ornaments may also have been so derived. In the field of decorative design, the Arabs readily re-used and adopted everywhere such conventional forms as appealed to their fancy. Especially was this true In Persia. But their own traditions furnished such an Inexhaustible fund of patterns and motives that much borrow- ing was unnecessary. In technical methods, how- ever, as In construction, everything had to be learned; and, while In both cases the actual early labour was doubtless performed by native or Im- ported workmen under Moslem patronage, great strides were quickly made by the Arabs In their assimilation and development. From Byzantine workmen Moslem builders derived one of their 87 BUILDERS OF SPAIN richest means of ornamentation, namely, the art of mosaic executed in minerals, glass, or metal. This art, which furnished another admirable method by which to reproduce the effects of rugs and tapestry hangings, was to be developed into rare perfection and beauty In Moslem hands, and certain of their efforts, which have been preserved to us, remain to-day unrivalled examples of such workmanship. The facing or revetment of brick or clay walls with vitrified materials, began as far as we know in Chaldea. There, and in adjacent countries lacking in stone, the practice has given a distinct character to architectural monuments. The Arabs early adopted the art as yet another means of reproducing the textile designs of their tapestry tent walls upon the more substantial foundation of brick or stone. With the extension of their conquests, the manufacture and use of tiles was carried along the north coast of Africa and into Spain; and from Spain, during the Spanish supremacy, it penetrated into the Nether- lands. It is a far cry in more senses than one from Chaldean to Dutch titles, but the long con- necting link was the Arabian product found in each of the countries which fell under Arab do- minion, and whose designs, colour, and glaze, are still unrivalled in the history of the art. With their progress along the north coast of 88 THE ARABS AND MOORS Africa, the Arabs were thrown more and more upon their own Initiative. Nowhere did they find a race superior to themselves in constructive skill, and the chief monuments were the Roman ruins whose stupendous remains served the con- querors as quarries rather than models. As a result, early architectural effort in these regions was largely limited to imitations of arrangements earlier adopted in Syria and Egypt, modified or coloured by local resources. The foundation of the famous mosque at Kairouan, some eighty miles south of Tunis, Is ascribed by tradition to SIdl Okbar, the com- panion of the prophet and founder of the faith In north Africa. Its original arrangements — thought to be largely preserved — repeat the fun- damental form of the most famous early mosque at Cairo; and a hundred years later similar ar- rangements were to be adopted at Cordova. 89 Chapter IV THE MOSLEMS IN SPAIN f ■ ^HE history of the Moslem period falls I broadly into four divisions: "■* First — The Emirs (711-756). Second — The Kingdom of Cordova (756- 1031). Third — The African Kings (1031-1236). Fourth — The Kingdom of Granada (1236- 1492). The First Period Is a short one, and serves merely as an Introduction to the other three. During these forty-five years, Moslem Spain was ruled by governors or emirs, sent by and account- able to the caliphs at Damascus, and remained a part of the great Arabian empire. Confusion and disorganization which cost the peninsula far more than its actual conquest, mark the entire period. The strife was rarely the result of native up- risings, but was rather the outgrowth of jeal- ousies among the conquerors themselves. The Arabs, who represented the arm of the caliph, considered themselves pre-eminently the masters 90 THE MOSLEMS IN SPAIN of the peninsula. But the Berbers were numerically largely in the majority; besides which they had actually won the first decisive victory under a Berber leader, and had conquered more than half the peninsula before the arrival of the Arabs. Then there were swarms of other peo- ples, who had flocked across the straits In the vans of both conquering armies, and who now joined in the strife for the most desirable lands. In the beginning, the Arabs appropriated the entire fertile southern coast; the Egyptians and other Eastern peoples occupied the hot dry re- gion now known as Murcia; while the Berbers were relegated to the more barren plateau of Castile, where they formed a bulwark against the dispossessed Visigoths who had been driven into the north. But a little later, we find the Arabs in possession of the rich vega of Granada and of a few of the large cities toward which they early began to gravitate; the Berbers spread down over most of the fruitful southwest; and other peoples left In subjection to either Arabs or Berbers. A second source of discord was the chronic state of disorganization found within the ranks of both dominant peoples. The only unity of either Arabs or Berbers was that of the tribe or family, and both were constantly split up into factions. Indeed, the antagonisms of the hls- 91 BUILDERS OF SPAIN toric feud, which from time immemorial has di- vided the Arabs Into Yemanltes and Maadltes, Is traced by some historians all through the history of their occupation of Spain. The rivalry for the chief office, that of Emir, was practically confined to the Arabs, but It at once became a source of Intrigue, and the penin- sula was soon overrun by aspirants to Its honours and emoluments. Twenty emirs are recorded dur- ing this first period of forty-five years, while a constant stream of emissaries carried complaints and accusations back to the caliphs. In 752, a revolution at Damascus overthrew the Maadite house of Omeya, and elevated to the caliphate the Yemanite house of Abbas. This change of dynasty not only furnished another cause of disunion to the already distracted Span- ish Moslems, but dealt a fatal blow In the pen- insula to the authority of the Eastern caliphs. The difficulties of so distant a rule had already produced many advocates of Spanish independ- ence; and the period of disorganization neces- sarily attending the revolution, which culminated in the removal of the caliphate to the even more distant city of Bagdad, furnished an admirable opportunity for the growth of an independent party In Spain. Then there remained many sup- porters of the house of Omeya, who, immediately after the revolution, had formed a party in 92 THE MOSLEMS IN SPAIN opposition to the Yemanite usurper, Abdul-Abbas, A movement which should unite these two fac- tions, therefore, was the one most likely to pro- vide a ruler for Spain. Such a movement. In 754, resulted in an in- vitation to the Omeyad prince, Abd-al-Rahman, to set up an Independent throne In Spain. Early in the following year Abd-al-Rahman landed on the coasts of Andalusia, where his kingly qual- ities rapidly won him adherents. For a time his march northward was a continual triumph, but in the neighbourhood of Cordova a sturdy resist- ance was offered by the army of the Emir, then claiming the authority of the Caliph. In a great battle just outside the city, Abd-al-Rahman was victorious; and although, for a number of years, opposition and insurrection were not infrequent, for all practical purposes his entry Into Cordova marks the elevation of Moslem Spain into an independent state, and Its permanent separation from the Eastern empire. The ready submission of the mass of the native Spaniards to Moslem rulers is largely accounted for, of course, by their long dependence upon alien leaders, and by the universal desire to throw off the yoke of the Visigoths. Any change of masters would have been hailed as a possible amelioration of their condition. But some credit must also be given to the broad policy of tolera- 93 BUILDERS OF SPAIN tion practiced, at least in tKe beginning, by con- quering Moors and Arabs. Property was re- spected to a degree unheard of before In similar conquests, and the religious liberty permitted by the Moslems during the early years of their domi- nation of Spain, gave practically no cause for the desertion of their homes by the mass of the earlier inhabitants. It is true that the hosts of the invading Moslems had to be provided with lands, but so large a proportion of. Spanish landed property had been appropriated during their later years, by the Visigothic nobility, that little was left in the actual possession of either Jews or Span- iards. The Jews, in Spain as elsewhere, had been almost exclusively engaged in commerce, and the Spaniards were largely slaves attached to the land, and allotted a certain percentage of its produce in return for their labour. With the defeat of the Goths, therefore, the ownership of vast tracts of territory was left to the conquering peoples, who took possession and parcelled out such lands among themselves, thus filling the places of the earlier "top dressing" of the population. But, in the case of Spanish own- ers who remained on their lands and offered no resistance, we are expressly told that their rights were absolutely respected; further, that Christians remaining under Moslem rule were governed ac- cording to their own laws. 94) THE MOSLEMS IN SPAIN A special head tax was levied upon Jews and Christians. It was not excessive, but Its returns augmented by such an appreciable amount the resources of the Caliph that proselyting to the faith of Islam was distinctly discouraged. Dur- ing the early years, however, conversions were fairly numerous. With many, especially among slaves and the poor, religion meant little more than a vague superstition, and a convert to Islam- Ism not only escaped the head tax, but, if a slave, became free. Intermarriage was encouraged and to a certain extent Indulged In. The racial affinity between the Berbers and Spaniards removed In a measure that antipathy so strongly felt with other peoples, and but for the development, after a few years, of a bitter religious hatred, largely fomented by the fanatical zeal of the Christian priesthood. It Is possible that a more or less close intermixture might have resulted. But, owing to this intoler- ance, the mass of the Spanish population remained a distinct people and Christian. The name Mo- zarabes, from the Arabic — Must Arab — meaning those who lived with and profited by Arab civ- ilization, came to be applied to the Christians liv- ing in Moslem cities. And under the benevolent Moslem administration, both Christians and Jews prospered and multiplied exceedingly for many years. 95 BUILDERS OF SPAIN The Second Period, that of the Kingdom of Cordova, is the most glorious of the Moslem do- minion in Spain. Beginning with the elevation to the throne of Abd-al-Rahman L, which inaugurated the Moslem independence of Spain, the rule of the house of Omeya, with the supremacy of Cordova, endured for nearly three hundred years, and during those years Moslem Spain reached the zenith of its power and prosperity. In the cultivation of the fine and industrial arts, the peninsula not only led all Europe at that time, but attained a position which it has neve'r approached either before or since. The history of this period was marked by four powerful reigns — those of Abd-al-Rahman I. (756- 787); Abd-al-Rahman III. (912-961); Al-Hakem 11. (961-976) ; and of the powerful vizier, Al- Mansur, who ruled under the weak Hlxem 11. (976-1002). During these reigns, Moslem power occasionally reached the confines of the peninsula; at one time it even spread into Africa. But In the years which He between them, the weakness pro- duced by internal dissensions frequently tempted Christian armies to the very gates of Cordova. Stately courtesies between the belligerents were often interchanged during the periods of peace, but even then it behooved each to be wary. The fall of the Omeyad dynasty, and with it the collapse of the Kingdom of Cordova, may be 96 THE MOSLEMS IN SPAIN attributed to a number of causes. To-day it is easy to see that the Moslem system of govern- ment was inherently vicious. In the hands of a few able men it produced brilliant results, but with the degeneration which is the inevitable out- come of an enervating climate and a polished civilization, It undermined and finally wrought the ruin of the Arab power in Spain. A constant source of weakness was the numer- ous wives and enormous families permitted, and even encouraged, by the laws of the prophet, which at the death of the king left a number of claimants to the throne. The king usually named his successor, but an uncontested accession was rare. In the very beginning, Abd-al-Rahman I. chose his youngest son, Hixem, the child of his favourite wife, to succeed him. As a result, not only were there frequent revolutionary uprisings headed by the brothers of Hixem, but by their children even unto the third and fourth genera- tion. The multiplication of such pretenders, af- forded by the families of successive kings, pro- duced a constantly increasing crop of Intrigues and almost unceasing intestine warfare. With physical and mental degeneration, came the loss of the early hardihood which had effected the conquest of the peninsula, together with the religious enthusiasm which had inspired and bound together the diverse peoples found In the ranks 9? BUILDERS OF SPAIN of the invading host. This decadence was most strongly felt among the Arabs, and was especially to be seen in the capital. There, also, as early as the reign of Abd-al-Rahman III., the power of an Arab aristocracy had grown to such propor- tions as to threaten the authority of the Moslem King, and that ruler found it necessary to sur- round himself by a royal guard of mercenary Slavs. The introduction of a paid soldiery has ever been one of the first indications of internal weakness, and prophetic of final overthrow. Another source of danger to the Moslem state was the presence in every community of a distinct and separate Christian population. The short- sighted policy of the Moslem rulers, which dis- couraged proselyting to their faith for the sake of the revenue from the tax imposed upon Jews and Christians, tended from the beginning to the preservation among the Spanish people of earlier Spanish institutions, with a broad line of differenti- ation between them and the Moslems; and the later development of religious antipathy gradually widened the gulf. The most imminent danger, however, and that which, more than any other, wrought the ruin of the Kingdom of Cordova, was the racial jealousy and religious fanaticism of the half-barbaric Ber- bers. They had accepted the faith of Mahomet, but they had been subdued by its primitive tenets 98 THE MOSLEMS IN SPAIN and the savage enthusiasm of Its early followers. With the growth of scholarship and tolerance among the Arabian aristocracy, the fervid Berbers became more and more hostile. Even before the reign of Abd-al-Rahman III., the over refinement of Cordova was regarded with suspicion, and a later king, although himself a scholar of repute and a lover of books, found It necessary, in order to preserve Berber loyalty, to sacrifice to their bigoted zeal that portion of the great library of Al-Hakem which dealt with astrology or those sci- ences forbidden by primitive Moslem precepts; a loss whose magnitude can hardly be estimated. The Omeyad dynasty must have fallen through its own degeneration and the Inherent weakness of the Moslem system of government; but Its fall was precipitated by the zealous and bigoted Ber- bers, who, twice during the next two hundred years, were to subject the peninsula to Invasions of hordes of half-savage Africans led by Moslem fanatics, who claimed a special inspiration to preach a return to the primitive precepts of the faith. • V • • • The Third Period, that of The African Kings, begins with the period of disintegration which immediately followed the overthrow of Cordovan supremacy, when the Moslem empire began to break up into a number of petty states ruled by 99 BUILDERS OF SPAIN local governors or princes. For a time, a dozen or more cities strove for the supremacy. Once or twice Cordova again enjoyed brief periods of power, but Seville gradually gained the ascend- ency. By about 1075, a king of Seville, Mo- tamid, became the most powerful and almost the only remaining independent sovereign in southern Spain. But although, for a time, Motamid was able to command an unwilling allegiance from the majority of the Moslem princes, he was no ■'J match for the Christian kings with whom he had to cope. Furthermore, Immersed In his own affairs, and secretly disdaining his northern enemy, Motamid gave no heed to the danger until Toledo was taken by Alfonso VI., of Leon and Castile. Then an Immediate and bitter outcry rose from all Moslem Spain, and Motamid, when too late, came to a realizing sense of the common peril. As might have been foreseen, the conquest of To- ledo was far from satisfying the Christians. Not only were the near-by cities of Madrid and Gua- dalajara speedily subdued, but Saragossa, Badajoz, and, it is hinted, Seville itself, were soon terrified into paying tribute to Christian kings. Representatives from all the chief cities of Moslem Spain were at once called together to consult as to measures for the common good. The result was an appeal for aid sent across the 100 THE MOSLEMS IN SPAIN straits to a new military leader just arisen In Africa, Yussef ben Tashfin, whose followers were known as the Almoravldes. Yussef ben Tashfin first crossed the straits in 1086, and, although the conquest of the peninsula for himself may have been his purpose from the outset, It was soon demonstrated that any other course was Impossible. The Spanish Moslems were not only thoroughly disunited, but hopelessly un- reliable. In 1090, therefore, a fresh Invasion of fanatical Almoravldes poured across the straits, and this time they came to make a clean sweep of the petty kings whose jealousies were fast undermining the Moslem power in the penin- sula. Beginning with Granada, city after city fell or was delivered Into the hands of the African hordes, and when too late the fatuous Motamid realized the danger of dependence upon a stronger power. Later, after four years of con- tact with the rude African zealots, an alliance with or even submission to the Christian kings seemed a much less despised alternative. In des- peration, and to promote that alliance, a daughter of Motamid was offered In marriage to the King of Castile. The latter then sent twenty thousand men Into the south to assist In expelling what was now recognized, by both Christians and Moslems, as a common foe. But the co-operation came too lOI BUILDERS OF SPAIN late. In 1094, Seville capitulated to Tashfin's army, and from that date was begun the rule of the Almoravides in Spain. The rule of these first African kings endured only fifty years, and its history is paralleled by that of the Almohades who succeeded them. Both the Almoravides and Almohades were sects of fanatical Berbers who rose to power through the preaching of holy wars. Each began with an effort to return to the purity of the early faith of Islam, which Included as well a return to rather barbarous habits of living. After their occupation of Spain, both, for a time, attempted to profit by the high degree of civilization they found, and in each case a brief period of prosperity and produc- tiveness followed their conquest. But pitted against the bigotry and barbarism of the mass of their followers, and the constantly outcropping discontent of the Spanish Moslems and Christians, the real ability of a few kings could produce no lasting influence. Fresh Invasions from Africa were again and again summoned to the support of their quickly waning powers, and to as- sist In repelling the Christian armies which omitted no opportunity to press into the south. Notable Moslem victories crowned many con- tests, but no one of them opposed a lasting resist- ance to the Christian advance. Finally in 121 1, a stupendous force was landed, which was expected 102 THE MOSLEMS IN SPAIN to win back the entire peninsula to Moslem rule. But owing to the blunders of Moslem leaders, and disorganization and discontent within its own ranks, this army was practically annihilated on the field of Navas de Tolosa. This overwhelming defeat forever broke the preponderance of Mos- lem power in Spain. Cordova and Seville were loosely held for another forty years, but after their loss in 1235 and 1248, Moslem power was practically confined to the small Kingdom of Granada. • • • • • The Fourth Period, that of the Kingdom of Granada, vies in some respects with the brilliancy of that of the Kingdom of Cordova. After the Christian subjugation of Seville the tide of reconquest was stayed for two hundred and fifty years, and during that period the eastern half of the southern coast, united more or less loosely un- der the supremacy of Granada, became the refuge of the most valuable remaining Moslem popula- tion of Spain. The rich and lovely vega of Granada has long been recognized as the heart of the eastern half of southern Spain: dominated by the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, it has always been the natural centre of power for all that region. Its value and importance were recognized by both Carthage and Rome; and in the general distribution of 103 BUILDERS OF SPAIN lands at the Moslem conquest, the powerful Syrian Arabs at once seized upon it, not only as the garden of the peninsula, but as a region where well nigh independent sovereignty was possible. In the course of time, through the feudal wars which finally rendered many tribes extinct, the ownership of the territory, which came to be known as the province of Granada, was vested in a few powerful families. The authority of an emir sent from Cordova was usually recognized, but, surrounded by her wall of mountains, the province of Granada was less vitally affected than any other Moslem province by the revolutions which again and again threatened the power of the Spanish caliphs. It will be seen, therefore, that the choice of Granada as the region which was to serve as the last desperate effort to maintain a Moslem state in Spain was not only eminently wise, but possibly the only one which could have held the Christian armies at bay for any length of time. The rise of this new kingdom upon the foundation of the earlier semi-independent Arabian province, oc- curred within a year of the capitulation of* Cor- dova. At this date the virility of the early Arab stock, even In the province of Granada, was sensi- bly weakened, and when the African prince, Ma- homet-al-Hamar, after having made himself master of Arjona, Jaen, Gaudix, Baeza, and Al- 104 THE MOSLEMS IN SPAIN meria, demanded also the submission of Granada, he met with little opposition. The subjugation of many of the neighbouring Moslem cities speedily followed, and within a few years the new king of Granada practically con- trolled a stretch of territory comprising the eastern half of the southern coast of Spain with Its im- portant ports of AlmerIa and Gibraltar, and ex- tending north to Jaen and Huesca. The kingdom was by far the richest domain of like extent In the peninsula. Its mountains were filled with valuable minerals, and Its valleys are still so fer- tile as to produce several crops a year with little or no cultivation. This boundless fertility, coupled with natural defences of mountains and strong frontier cities, rendered Granada the natural ref- uge, as it became for years, of a desperate peo- ple. Fourteen large and more than a hundred small cities were Included within its domain, and to their population were constantly added rapidly increasing numbers of thrifty and industrious Mos- lem exiles, who, as their homes elsewhere In the peninsula fell into Christian hands, flocked thither for the companionship of their brethren and the protection of a Moslem king. From Its foundation the new kingdom of Gra- nada occupied a position of Importance In the af- fairs of Spain. It was a power to be reckoned with; and the fact that It maintained Its exist- 105 BUILDERS OF SPAIN ence in the face of the overwhelming numbers of Christian foes for two hundred and fifty years, and that its final subjugation required the united forces of Ferdinand and Isabella, is sufficient evi- dence of its vitality, even during the later years of its degeneration and decline. The entire history of Granada is a record of this conquest, for scarcely had Mahomet chosen his capital than he was called upon to defend his borders, and the annals of few states present a more continuous warfare or a more romantic and picturesque in- terest. Even divested of the glamour cast over it by thd magic of Irving's pen, the story of the conquest of Granada has the fantastic atmosphere of the tales of the Arabian Nights. It was a life or death struggle, and again and again the fruitful plain of Granada was given over to the horrors of fire and sword and stripped of every living thing. But accounts of siege and battle are al- ternated with stories of courtly pageantry and the interchange of chivalric courtesies, which, together with stilted heroics and absurd complications, must provoke a frequent smile even with the sense of keen sympathy for a hapless people. It must be admitted that it is exceedingly difficult to trace to a reliable source many of the most commonly ac- cepted of these tales. Contemporary historians of this period, both Spanish and Arabian, are more io6 THE MOSLEMS IN SPAIN « unreliable, If that were possible, than those of earlier times, and later authorities differ very widely as to what or how much may be accepted. Dates and events are confused and names Inter- changed to such an extent that the reader Is fre- quently tempted to regard all as fictitious. It Is safe to assume, however, that the more Important names and the general trend of events have a foundation of fact; and for the rest, even the con- fessed semi-fiction of Irving undoubtedly repro- duces much of the spirit of the place and period. Moreover, In many cases the tales which he has rendered Into such delightful English have become so thoroughly Ingrained Into the memories of the time that they must be recognized to-day as a part, and often an Important part, of the Interest which attaches to a study of the kingdom of Granada. • • • • • Beginning with the mosque at Cordova, — the first important effort of the Moslems In the pen- insula, — Saracenic architecture In Spain, and Sara- cenic civilization as well, may be divided into the same broad periods which distinguish Its political history. Nowhere did the Arabs find so little construc- tive skill as among the native Spaniards, and dur- ing the supremacy of Cordova the strongest Influ- ence was that of the civilization of Byzantium. 107 BUILDERS OF SPAIN During this entire period the power of the Syrian Arabs predominated, and friendly alliances with Constantinople permitted the frequent Importation of Byzantine workmen Into Spain. It follows, therefore, that the effort of the period. In all essentials, Is like that of the East, but simplified and modified by local influences. Stone, even when convenient to hand, was sel- dom employed, and, after a few early and simple efforts, domes, except those of timber and stucco, were rarely attempted. It at once becomes ap- parent, then, that little of structural dignity Is to be expected, and that the beauty or value of Mos- lem architecture In Spain Is largely limited to those matters of ornamental detail to which By- zantine labours were mostly confined. Among structural features, the horseshoe arch became especially popular In Spain, and later was combined with all kinds of round, pointed, and composite arches. Another marked characteristic was the division of windows, by slender columns with arches, Into two or three openings, which were surrounded by an enclosing arch, and known as ajimiez windows. These, with the profuse and deep cusping of arches, were nowhere more freely used than In Spain. During the period of the African kings, the Influence of Byzantium gave place in a great measure to that of Mauritania. Although be- io8 THE MOSLEMS IN SPAIN fore this date the Spanish Moslems had bor- rowed certain Industrial methods from their breth- ren In Africa, they themselves had taken the lead In art and architecture. Even during the su- premacy of the Almoravldan and Almohadan kings, It was the peninsula, already far In advance in most departments of civilization, which supplied the Impetus which produced a striking and quick development In many African centres. But, while Spain gave perhaps more than she re- ceived, the native methods of the Berbers pro- duced a very strong influence upon this and the succeeding period of Saracenic architecture In the peninsula. Owing to their lack of stone, the Berbers had built their walls of brick or mud, and a rapid In- crease In the use of these materials quickly fol- lowed the ascendency of the African kings In Spain. The weathered battlements,^ always a ne- cessity for the protection of mud walls from quick destruction by water, and still a striking feature of Berber frontier strongholds on the bor- ders of the great desert, soon supplanted in the peninsula the earlier stepped^ or flame battlements of the East; and to Berber initiative and Berber 1 A weathered battlement is surmounted by a pyramidal roof which protects, or weathers it. 2 Stepped battlements, and in fact most stepped construction, were originated in Persia. 109 BUILDERS OF SPAIN influence was undoubtedly due the rapid develop- ment of profuse and elaborate stucco ornamenta- tion. The most beautiful result of the African influ- ence was the ornamental brickwork which quickly became a pronounced feature of Saracenic archi- tecture in Spain. Warm in colour, rich in texture, and clear cut in outline, these moulded bricks were chiefly used to outline small arcades of arches; but they were also arranged in patterns on walls or in pavements, where they produced the most charming effects. The most beautiful exam- ple left to us, which is also the chief monument remaining of this period, Is the minaret, now called the Giralda, at Seville. A number of sim- ilar towers produced during this period are still to be found In North Africa, which, as works of architecture betraying any degree of constructive skill, must rank In advance of any Saracenic mon- uments left In that entire region. Of the further effort of this period, comparatively little has been left, but the tendency was toward more pretentious effects, with a more barbaric display of florid or- nament and colour. The last period of Saracenic architecture in Spain is best exemplified to-day by the famous palace of the Alhambra at Granada. But, al- though what is left of that abode of enchantment may still be considered one of the most exqui- izo Palacio Pedro el Cruel, Toledo. THE MOSLEMS IN SPAIN site works of decorative skill extant, it is also quite just to question Its right to any rank what- ever among architectural monuments. Only the most primitive of constructive principles were em- ployed In the erection of Its concrete walls, and Its sole value as a work of art lies in the elab- oration of ornament which Is spread over them, and In the adroitness of arrangement by which windows and doorways were everywhere made to command the most beautiful vistas. Encaustic tiles, which under the African kings had largely superseded mosaic as a means of re- vetment, reached their greatest beauty and perfec- tion during this period. Like stucco, their pro- duction and application were cheap and expedi- tious. The result was an endless profusion of ornament, whose patterns furnish to-day an Inex- haustible fund for the student of decorative de- sign. As the production of the colour and lustre of the best of these tiles Is now a lost art, many of them to-day are worth their weight in gold; but the fact remains that In their own day they were a cheaper substitute for the more expensive and richer effects of the Byzantine glass and min- eral mosaics. In the Industrial Arts, the Moslems in Spain stand absolutely unrivalled in the history of the peninsula. Following their conquests In the far East, they were able to introduce into Spain a III BUILDERS OF SPAIN knowledge of oriental civilization, which, coupled with the natural resources of the peninsula, and their own activity, resulted in a marvellous de- velopment and productiveness. In a brief outline the manufacture of textiles should stand first. The most valuable fabric was silk, whose output was enormous, and of such delicate texture and ex- quisite colours that Spain became, during the entire Moslem period, Its chief source of supply In Europe. In the manufacture of pottery, likewise, Mos- lem Spain attained pre-eminence in Europe. In their earliest work the Arabs undoubtedly bor- rowed many of their methods from the Persians. A number of early specimens found In the penin- sula present a Persian character, and a few are most probably of Persian origin. The metallic lustre which later became famous was likewise undoubtedly originated in the East. Fragments of metallic lustre pottery were found by Layard in Ephesus and Asia Minor. The art of making glazed potteries, as devel- oped among the Arabs, was more largely devoted to the production of tiles for the revetment of walls than for any other one thing, but the man- ufacture of vessels and ornaments was likewise enormous. Examples, both of tiles and vessels, now to be seen In most European museums of Ceramics, attest the wide variety and striking 112 THE MOSLEMS IN SPAIN beauty attained. Among the caprices of the art, a kind of red pottery Is mentioned which was edible. It was delicate and scented, and, after drinking or eating what the vessels contained, they themselves were made to serve as the final deli- cacy. Arabian armour, which Is justly celebrated for the beauty and delicacy of its workmanship, was probably an imitation of Persian models. Cer- tain portions of the surface were covered with silver or other precious metals, which were dec- orated with outlined or embossed patterns similar to those found in Persian or Arabian carpets; and they were often further enriched with a setting of precious stones. The Spanish Arabs early be- came expert in handling bronze and iron. Owing to its value for other purposes, and the ease with which it could be melted down, little of their bronze work is left to us; but there are a few doors, lamps, keys, and other small articles which still attest their artistry. Iron was freely used, and skilfully wrought into nail heads, screens, and ornamental hinges. The carving of Ivory, an art originated in the East, was carried to great perfection among the Arabs in Spain; and many exquisite ornaments and caskets, now preserved in Spanish churches and monasteries, betray at a glance their Moslem origin. The peculiar method employed in the 113 BUILDERS OF SPAIN manufacture of leather for which Cordova be- came famous, was borrowed from Africa. The word, guadamecil, early applied to this leather, IS derived from Ghadames, the place of its origin. Goat skins were used and, when properly cured and coloured, were stamped with designs largely, if not entirely, in gilt. From Its immense produc- tion in Cordova this leather has long been known as Cordovan leather. To Moslem achievements in the fine and Indus- trial arts must be added their attainments In sci- ence, philosophy, literature, and mechanics, all of which indicate a prodigious activity, and. In cer- tain directions, a consummate ability as well. Of their success In the field of mechanics, records have been preserved of the most curious and In- genious clocks, hydraulic machines, and other in- ventions; and In the domains of philosophy and science, the Moslems In Spain anticipated In many directions the conclusions reached by modern thought. In Spain, as in the East, one of the most In- teresting questions In connection with the produc- tion of Saracenic civIUzatlon, Is the part played by the Arabs themselves; and here also we find the primary role was that of patrons, but of patrons who fostered the development of the arts which they adopted. Finding nothing which ap- pealed to them In the rude remains of the de- 114 THE MOSLEMS IN SPAIN cayed VIsIgothIc civilization, the art of the Mos- lem conquerors In Spain was purely exotic. It Is Improbable that craftsmen possessing any degree of skill in any of the fine or industrial arts remained among the native Spaniards at the close of the VIsIgothIc period, but, whatever the conditions, new methods and a vitally contrasting Inspiration immediately superseded those to which the penin- sula had long been accustomed. The training of these native workmen, there- fore, and with them, of the even more Ignorant Berbers and other African peoples, not only In craftsmanship, but In habits of thrift and Indus- try, was the great work of the Arabs In Spain. Great schools were quickly set up, and, even dur- ing the first century of Moslem rule, amazing progress Is recorded. The place In this development occupied by the Jews Is second only to that of the Arabs. It is scarcely necessary to say that the Jews controlled the commerce of mediaeval Europe. But their Intellectual achievements are possibly not so well known, and the latter were largely accom- plished under Moslem patronage. By many, the Jews and Arabs are thought to have sprung from the same branch of the human family, but what- ever their racial origin, similarities of character, tradition, and culture, have always tended to draw the two peoples together. It Is a matter of hls- 115 BUILDERS OF SPAIN tory that the down-trodden Hebrews have always been better treated by the Moslems than by any other people. Large numbers of Jews were found In all the Mediterranean countries, and the Arabs were ever quick to employ Jewish Intelligence. Indeed, the first book In Arabic was written by a Jew. As a result of these friendly relations, fifty thousand Jewish families are said to have followed the Moslem conquerors Into Spain. In all probabil- ity, many of them had earlier been exiled from It by VIsIgothIc persecution; but It was during the Moslem period that the race made Its most mar- vellous progress. All pursuits were open to them, and many Jews attained wealth and position equal to those of their Arab masters. It was during the tenth century and In Spain that the Jews attained the culmination of their power and influence in Europe. Up to that period, so highly were they esteemed that, not only was Intermarriage freely indulged in between Moslems and Jews, but Jewish women were fre- quently espoused by Christian nobles.^ Indeed, so many noble Spanish families were known to have strains of Jewish blood, that it was found necessary, during the sixteenth and seventeenth 3 It "will be remembered that the Spanish nobility were largely of alien stock, and racially far more mixed than the mass of the population. ii6 THE MOSLEMS IN SPAIN centuries, to assemble councils whose chief busi- ness was to declare that such strains were no blemish. Because of their great financial ability, the Jews under Moslem rule were frequently en- trusted with the highest offices of the state. But their chief renown should be found In the long list of Jewish scholars and scientists, and In the additional impetus which their culture gave to the development of Saracenic civilization In Spain. 117 Chapter V THE CHRISTIAN KINGS PELAYO— HENRY IV. THE Story of the foundation of the King- dom of the Asturias by the VIsigothIc prince, Pelayo, of the royal house of Chlndaswind (?), Is partly legendary. But it is generally accepted that, within a few years of the Moslem conquest, Pelayo was able to rally a small band of followers and make a stand for independent sovereignty not far from the Bay of Biscay In what Is now the province of Oviedo. The date given is 718, and the Asturias were but the first of a number of petty principalities which soon sprang up along the northern frontier. These little kingdoms were mostly ruled by Gothic nobles whose feuds kept them for many years more commonly at war with each other than with their common foes, the Moslems In the south. Conquest or marriage occasionally united two or more of these petty states, but the sense- less policy, Indulged in by many of these kings, of partitioning an inheritance among a number of children, constantly effected new divisions and cre- ated fresh complications. Furthermore, in the 118 PELAYO— HENRY IV. course of time, Intermarriages produced the most astonishing Intermixture of relationships; while, to the average reader, a crowning perplexity is found In the Immensb popularity of the names Alfonso, Fernando, and Sancho. During several different periods, Alfonsos, Sanchos, or Fernandos, to the number of two, or even three, are found occu- pying as many different thrones at the same time, and it is a constant effort to distinguish one from the other. Light begins to gather In the eleventh century when Fernando I., of Castile, by means of mar- riage, Intrigue, and conquest, succeeded in uniting to his kingdom, the Asturlas, Leon, and Gallcia. Why, after accomplishing so much, he should have undone it all at his death, is one of those singular facts of which history Is prolific. Of Fernando's three sons, Sancho inherited Castile; Alfonso, Leon ; Garcia, the Asturlas and Gallcia ; and his two daughters, Elvira and Urraca, were given respectively the cities of Toro and Zamora. The usual consequences of such testamentary blunders—^ family Intrigues and civil wars — at once resulted; and during the struggle which followed, that fa- mous hero of mediaeval romance, Rodrigo del Blvar, better known as the Cid,' first made his appearance in history. 1 From the Arabic, Said — Lord. Also known by his Spanish title, El Campeador— The Challenger. 119 BUILDERS OF SPAIN At first the CId fought with Sancho, and Sancho's early victories quickly wrested from his brothers their petty sovereignties. Alfonso was captured and imprisoned near Burgos, but later escaped and fled to Toledo, where he was given refuge by the Moslem king, Al-Mamun; while Garcia succeeded in reaching Seville. The con- quest of the Inheritance of his two sisters was next attempted by Sancho, and Toro was soon taken, but at the siege of Zamora his murder was accom- plished, probably by the agents of some of his outraged family. At Sancho's death (1072), Alfonso at once seized upon the thrones of Castile and Leon, adopting the title of Alfonso VI., of Castile and Leon. A little later Garcia returned to claim his patrimony, but Alfonso had already annexed Galicia and the Asturias to his own kingdom, and Garcia vanished from history Into a prison. Al- fonso VI., therefore, once more united the Chris- tian kingdoms first brought together by his father; but the young king did not stop there. In 1085, he effected the conquest of Toledo, the first Im- portant step in the Christian reconquest of Spain. The ancient Gothic capital at once became the chief city and capital of the united kingdom of Castile and Leon, whose history thenceforward forms a fairly clear record of growth in power and importance. I2Q PELAYO— HENRY IV. During the four hundred years lying between Alfonso VI. and the close of the reign of Henry IV., a few names stand out as of especial im- portance. Among the first is Alfonso IX. (1187- 12 14), under whom was won the famous battle, already mentioned, of Navas de Tolosa. The Moslem army defeated in that engagement was the most overwhelming ever sent into the field in Spain : that much we need not doubt, although some of the figures are palpably exaggerated. It is said that a year was occupied in assembling the African contingent, and that four months were re- quired to transport it across the straits, both of which statements appear very probable. But we hesitate when we are told that one of the five divisions alone numbered one hundred and sixty thousand men. But whatever the numbers, they were quite suf- ficient to alarm all Europe. Innocent III. pro- claimed a crusade, and the doughty prelate of Toledo, Rodrigo de Rada, journeyed to distant courts to arouse their rulers and ask for aid in the common cause. Men and money were sent from France and elsewhere, and the force thus prepared was the most formidable ever got to- gether by the Spanish Christians. But, even so, it was fortunate for them that, before the op- posing armies came to battle, the Moslem enemy was shorn of its preponderance of strength 121 BUILDERS OF SPAIN through divisions in Its ranks and the Incompe- tence of Its leaders. Finding the strong but utterly unimportant for- tress of Salvatierra in his path as he marched northward, the Moslem king spent several months in Its reduction, after which waste of time it was found necessary to postpone a further advance until the following season. This delay not only weakened his army and Imposed the prolonged burden of their support upon the discontented Andalusians, but, what was quite as important, gave the Christian kings the time they needed to perfect their coalition and prepare more fully for the contest. The following June, while the Christian army was assembled at Toledo under the command of the kings and princes of Leon, Castile, and Ara- gon, word was brought that the enemy lay be- tween Sierra Morena and Baeza. A forward movement was at once ordered. The early de- sertion of one of the foreign contingents, the French soldiery, who, as they advanced south- ward were disappointed in the amount of booty which fell to their lot, was a blow which might well have dampened the ardour of the Spanish forces. But good fortune was to meet them as they neared the enemy. There, according to tra- dition, they encountered a shepherd who offered to lead the Christian army across the mountains through defiles known only to himself, and by 122 PELAYO— HENRY IV. which they might surprise the Moslem host en- camped on the other side. By the devout Spaniards the kindly shepherd has been transformed into St. Isidore; but his- torians to-day assert that the Christian army was led across the northern passes by a band of Mos- lem deserters. In the midst of the fierce fight which followed, we are told that the entire body of Andalusians withdrew their support from the Moslem army, a move which strongly indicates treachery. But, while Moslem treason probably played its part in deciding the fortunes of the battle of Navas de Tolosa, the desperate onset of the Christians, whose final and decisive charge was led by De la Rada, still forms the proudest page in all the history of Spain. No true Spaniard but glories to-day in the splendid final dash of Toledo's Bishop, and even the stranger experi- ences a glow of enthusiasm at sight of the worn and faded banner, now the chief treasure of the convent of Las Huelgas at Burgos, which was carried through the thickest of the fight by Al- fonso VIII. of Castile. Fernando III. (1217-1252), better known as St. Ferdinand, was the son of Alfonso IX. of Leon and Berenguela^ of Castile. For the last 2 Berenguela was the daughter of Alfonso VIII., of Castile, whose queen was Eleanor Plantagenet (daughter of Henry II.), and St. Ferdinand's daughter Eleanor, named after her English great- grandmother, went back to England as the chere reine of Edward I. 123 BUILDERS OF SPAIN time St. Ferdinand united those oft-divided king- doms; and during his reign their territory was ex- tended far Into the south. In 1235, his standard was set up In Cordova, and In 1248, It waved from the towers of Seville. With the exception of his persecution of the Moslems, the reign of St. Ferdinand was wise and beneficent, and his personal character Is very attractive. Alfonso X. (125 2-1 284), the son and successor of Ferdinand III., was neither a great warrior nor a very wise ruler; but he became famous as a scholar, and as a patron of scholars and philoso- phers, and Is popularly known as El Sabio, or the wise. The most Important single work of his reign was the compilation of the code of laws known as the Siete Partldas. Even a bare list of other works In science and letters produced under his patronage would extend far beyond our lim- its here, but it Is not too much to say that, not only was the foundation laid for all later scien- tific and philosophic effort In Christian Spain during the reign of Alfonso X., but then also the rude Castlllan dialect was first crystallized into dignified and sonorous Spanish. With regard to this Intellectual activity, it should be said, however, that the scholars who laboured under the patronage of Alfonso were largely Jews and Arabs who were found In the cities formerly subject to Moslem rule, or who 124 PELAYO— HENRY IV. were tempted to the Christian court by the en- lightened patronage of the Christian king; more- over, the pursuits of Alfonso were regarded with more suspicion than sympathy by the large ma- jority of his Christian subjects. Pedro I., or Pedro el Cruel (1350-1368), Is chiefly famous for the perfidies and brutalities which gave him his best-known title. His love of intrigue involved him in constant wars with other kings of Spain, as well as with his bastard brothers, the sons of his father's favourite, Maria de Guzman. Pedro was early married to Blanche of Bourbon, but on a flimsy pretext he Impris- oned her and finally caused her to be poisoned. He also made every effort to secure the succes- sion for his son by his favourite, Maria de Padilla. Among the many murders by which Pedro cleared his path of those who stood in his way, that of his half-brother, Fadrlque, was accom- plished In the king's presence and possibly by his hand, but another brother, Henry of Trasta- mara, succeeded In organizing a strong party against Pedro. During the struggle which en- sued, Pedro was able at one time to secure the co-operation of Edward, the Black Prince, of England, and the famous French freelance, Ber- trand du Guesclln. Both were finally revolted by his duplicity and cruelty, and It was with the as- sistance of Bertrand du Guesclin that Henry of 125 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Trastamara finally encompassed the defeat and death of Pedro. But with all his brutalities It Is but just to say of Pedro, that, while his private life was vicious and he rarely kept faith with kings or nobles, his government was far wiser and more upright than those of the majority of the kings of Castile, and his career of duplicity was often forced upon him. The growing arrogance of the nobility was be- coming the chief danger to the state. Pedro was forced Into a constant struggle to keep them within bounds; and It was the discontented no- bility which. In supporting the revolution headed by Henry of Trastamara, finally accomplished his overthrow. Henry II., Trastamara (1368-1379), is claimed to have been quite as vicious as his brother, Pedro, although he left not quite so black a rep- utation. His reign, however, as well as the four which Intervene before the accession of Isabella I., form dark and disordered pages of Spanish his- tory. The great nobles who had placed Henry upon the throne speedily became a law unto them- selves, and their strongholds little better than nests of outlaws. Under Pedro, the mass of the people had been in a great measure protected from the oppression of the great lords, but for a hundred years after the accession of Henry of Trastamara, their condition became more and more 126 PELAYO— HENRY IV. wretched. The fruits of their labours were filched from them without the pretext of a legal tax, and the roads were given up to highwaymen, for whose robberies there was no practical means of punishment or redress. Long before the acces- sion of Isabella, respect for law and order had vanished from Castile, and the kingdom at large was plunged Into a condition of anarchy and misery. Juan II. (1406-1454), the third in succession from Henry II., was an amiable, even an enlight- ened prince, but was notoriously weak and unstable. His chief title to fame is derived from his having been the father of Isabella I. Juan was married twice. His first Queen, Maria of Aragon, was the mother of Henry, who succeeded him as Henry IV. His second Queen, Isabella of Portugal, bore him two children, Alfonso and Isabella. It is said that the second marriage was brought about by his prime minister and favourite, Alvaro de Luna, who hoped to continue his ascendency over the weak King through the Influence of a queen who owed her elevation to him. But the new Queen soon became jealous of the minister and finally de- manded his death. The doting King was unable to refuse her, and the powerful Conde de Luna was beheaded In 1453 ^t Valladolld. Henry IV., El Impotente (1454-1478), was ex- ceedingly popular for a few years after his ac- 127 BUILDERS OF SPAIN cession; but the later years of his reign produced little but scandal and turmoil at the court, and anarchy and warfare throughout the kingdom. The chief source of dissension was the disputed succession; the so-called daughter of the king, Juana, being popularly supposed to be the daugh- ter of the queen, Juana of Portugal, by her fa- vourite, Beltran de la Cueva. The princess was commonly called La Beltraneja, and Henry was considered to have disgraced the nation when he required the Cortes to swear allegiance to her. A revolutionary party assembled at Burgos and declared In favour of Alfonso, the young half- brother of the king. After the sudden death of Alfonso, probably by poison, the ccfnfederated nobles turned to Isabella, and In 1468, six years before his death, Henry was compelled to name her as his successor. In 1469, Isabella's mar- riage with Fernando II., of Aragon, better known as Ferdinand V., of Spain, promised at her acces- sion the union of the two more important king- doms of Christian Spain: Castile, which from now on may be considered to have absorbed Leon and the southwestern Moslem states, and Aragon which already claimed the most of the eastern half of the pensinsula. • • • • • In the development of Christian Spain, the 128 PELAYO— HENRY IV. growth of the kingdom of Aragon had been sec- ond only to that of Castile. Early a tributary of Navarre, Aragon had emerged Into Independ- ence toward the close of the eleventh century, and with the conquest In 1118, of the Moslem city of Saragossa, which city at once became her capi- tal, Aragon assumed a position of Importance in the affairs of the peninsula, contributing equally with Castile towards Its reconquest. In 1137, the power of Aragon was materially augmented by the marriage of an heiress of Aragon with a count of Catalonia. Both states continued to maintain their own Institutions and a degree of Independence, but the union thus begun added Important ports and great wealth to the resources of the kings of Aragon. During the following century, the advance made on the west Into Moslem territory, by St. Fer- dinand (III.) of Leon and Castile, was paral- leled on the east, by that of Jaime I. (The Con- queror) of Aragon, (1208-1276^). Under the leadership of this famous warrior, Valencia, Murcia, and the Balearic Isles were overrun and subdued, and Valencia and the Balearlcs were added to the kingdom of Aragon. But Jaime's Ideas of em- pire were not confined to the peninsula. He aspired to become a world power, and was the first of the Spanish kings to take an active part in European politics. It was Jaime who inaugu- * Gayangos. 129 BUILDERS OF SPAIN rated the foreign policy which resulted later in Spanish supremacy in Sicily and Italy, and which finally placed Spain among the great continental kingdoms. Ferdinand I., of Aragon (The Good), in 1409. found himself king of Aragon, Valencia, Majorca, Sicily, and Sardinia, and Count of Barcelona. Seventy years later, Ferdinand II., through his marriage with Isabella of Castile, formed the union of Aragon with Castile which was to com- plete the Christian reconquest of Spain; and whose descendants (except for the little kingdom of Portugal) were to unite the entire peninsula under one rule. • • • • • The development of the Industrial and Fine Arts under the Christian kings never approached the brilliancy of that achieved under Moslem rule. It has already been seen that the Visi- goths, even during the prosperous days of their early empire, had given themselves to warfare, or to feasting and display, rather than to creative effort; and when driven into the wild fastnesses of the Pyrenees, they quickly relapsed Jnto a state bordering upon barbarism. The culture found among the rude mountaineers was of the most primitive kind; and the barrenness of the region, coupled with the warfare of the recon- quest, for many years precluded among them the 130 PELAYO— HENRY IV. production of anything of permanent importance in the progress of Spanish civilization. With the extension and development of Chris- tian power came, of necessity, a renewed interest in industrial and intellectual pursuits. But the lack of creative power inherent in the Visigoths, coupled with their disdain for labour, especially for labour with the hands, left the actual activities of the new civilization almost, if not altogether, in the hands of the again subjugated Spaniards and reconquered Moslems. In the earlier years, the efforts of these sub- jugated peoples was largely influenced by Sara- cenic traditions. As the working population of Spain, even in the north, had long laboured under Moslem leadership, other forms and methods were largely unknown to them. Saracenic Influ- ence has never been entirely superseded In the South, but In the North It gradually gave way before the growth of Christian intolerance, and finally yielded to waves of foreign Influence which penetrated the peninsula from southern France, or which were Introduced Into Spain by means of wars or alliances with other European powers. The Christian architecture of Spain may be broadly divided into the same styles found else- where in Europe at the same period — namely, the Romanesque, the Gothic, and the Renaissance. Owing to Its marked Byzantine tendencies, the 131 BUILDERS OF SPAIN first period Is perhaps better entitled the Romano- Byzantine: and the other two are subdivided by the development of striking peculiarities — the Gothic Into Gothic, and Plateresque Gothic — and the Renaissance Into Plateresque,^ Greco-Roman, and Churrlgueresque* Renaissance. These are broad divisions and of necessity take no account of tribal and geographical Influences which, dur- ing the Christian period more than any other, produced a wide diversity In the results attained. Among the earliest efforts of the Romano-By- zantine period, there are to be found to-day In the neighbourhood of Oviedo a few primitive churches and monasteries, erected. It Is thought, during the eighth century. All are patterned after the Roman and Byzantine forms which had doubt- less served as models for earlier Visigothic build- ing, as indeed for all the churches of Christen- dom at that period. Owing to the common origin of all Christian styles, but more especially to con- tiguity and constant Intercommunication during those early years when, politically speaking, there were no Pyrenees,^ the resemblance of these early 3 Plateresque — from Plata, the Spanish for silver, indicating ornament in low flat relief like that on silver plate. ■* Churrigueresque — so called from the name of the man, Chur- riguerra, who introduced the cheap and tawdry ornamentation of the later period. ^ Several of the petty states of northern Spain at times saddled the Pyrenees. 132 PELAYO— HENRY IV. structures to those of southern France is very strong. In these earliest Christian churches of northern Spain the usual form Is that of the simplest type of a basilica : an oblong enclosure, with a raised transverse section at one end, and divided length- wise by rows of columns into a nave and aisles. Roofs, like those of southern France, are either barrel vaulted, or have flat ceilings supported by piers. In a few Instances the Byzantine cruci- form plan is found, but the Byzantine Influence Is more strongly seen In matters of decorative de- tail. In the field of decoration, however, rude and barbarous designs occasionally attest an effort after originality, or, what In remote localities is more probable, to a lack of tradition or exotic influence. The earliest monument of importance left In any degree of completeness In northern Spain Is the church of Sta. Maria Naranco, near Oviedo, dating about the middle of the ninth century. From Its peculiar shape (It bears little resem- blance to the usual baslllcan forms) It is gen- erally considered to have been originally a part of a palace. Its roof, however, is barrel vaulted with heavy ribs. The outer wall is reinforced by heavy projecting buttresses; and its Inner surface Is richly decorated with round arched arcades, formed by spirally-fluted shafts, crowned by capl- U3 BUILDERS OF SPAIN tals imitated from Byzantine and Corinthian forms. The other details of this most curious and interesting building are largely Byzantine in form and feeling. Beginning with the addition of an apsidal ter- mmation to the east end of the nave, the devel- opment of the Christian ecclesiastical architecture of Spain, for many years, follows very closely that of southern France. Apsidal terminations were frequently added to the ends of the aisles as well as to the nave, and even to the transepts, but the long extension of the central apse to form the choir, which commonly followed the develop- ment of the cruciform ground plan elsewhere, never became popular in Spain. The result was that projection of the choir far down into the nave, which has become the most marked peculiarity of Spanish ecclesiastical arrangements. As the apse which formed the head of the cross was rarely long enough to accommodate more than the high altar, the chorus of priests necessary for the Catholic service were forced to take up their positions in the nave beyond the crossing, a location which was at once surrounded by a screen. This screen was usually a solid wall upon three sides with an open railing of iron or other metal enclosing the end facing the altar. The altar was similiarly surrounded by a wall on three sides but open toward the choir. The en- • 134 ^^m. Screen of Coro. Cathedral, Toledo. PELAYO— HENRY IV. closure of the high altar is usually designated in Spain as the Capilla Mayor, and the choir as the Coro. The metal railings which protect and yet leave open the opposite ends of the Capilla Mayor and Coro are called Rejas, and the great carved altar piece, which from the eastern wall of the capilla mayor looks down upon both, is known as the Retablo, It will be seen that the above arrangement not only blocks up the nave and ruins the long vista which is the chief beauty of most Gothic churches, but that it leaves only the space at the crossing, that between the open ends of the Capilla Mayor and Coro, available for the assembling of wor- shippers who could both see and hear. Further- more, when this space, usually called the Trascoro, was filled with people, the passage of the clergy between the Coro and Capilla Mayor was often rendered difficult. As a result a narrow passage leading from one to the other was frequently en- closed by another railing. This railing, however, Is usually low and only prevents passing at this point, during service, from one side of the church to the other. In methods of construction. In Spain as in southern France, the first vaulting was of the round barrel form (the thrust of the nave vault being counteracted by the half barrel vaults of the aisles) ; and the division of the nave into bays, 135 BUILDERS OF SPAIN by piers which carried transverse vaulting ribs, was developed by successive stages Into groined vaulting with diagonal ribs, and finally into the pointed Gothic roof. Along with the development of a system of vaulting, came the adoption of a cupola or dome at the Intersection of the nave and transepts, which Is a distinctly Byzantine feature. The most famous of these cupolas is that of the old cathe- dral at Salamanca,^ but the one at Zamora is strikingly like it, and both are said to be modelled after similar constructions in Auvergne. Although the foundation of the old cathedral at Salamanca dates from the beginning of the twelfth century, and all its details are so distinc- tively Romanesque that it Is usually designated as a Romanesque monument, its vaulting is pointed and Gothic, and the early years of the thirteenth century in Spain found the Gothic movement in full swing. Large numbers of master workmen had been Imported from France, and the great Gothic cathedrals of Leon, Toledo, and Burgos were soon under way. The beginning of the Gothic period in Spain, therefore, may be placed at about the year 1200, and the style continued In vogue with Increasing vigour of development until «The cupola at Salamanca was Richardson's model for certain features of the tower of Trinity Church, Boston. 136 PELAYO— HENRY IV. its culmination during the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella. Secular and domestic architecture during the Romano-Byzantine, and early Gothic periods in Spain, as might be expected, is much less impor- tant than ecclesiastical architecture. Life was ex- tremely rude even well along into the reigns of the Catholic sovereigns. Ecclesiastical ceremonials called for splendour of construction and ornamen- tation, but private needs demanded little more than the security afforded by strong walls; the love of luxury apparently being satisfied by that per- sonal adornment of silks and jewels which during their earlier empire had so strongly appealed to the Visigothic temperament. Accordingly the little that has been preserved to us of the early dwellings of the Spanish nobles indicates the rude strength of the fortress rather than the splendour of the palace. Many of the walls erected for the defence of border cities, besieged again and again by both Moslem and Christian arms, were superb examples of mili- tary engineering skill. The one at Avila, which still remains complete, is one of the finest exam- ples of mediaeval defence left in Europe. With the advance southward of Christian power, a line of border castles was erected across the frontier from which the name Castile was given to a 137 BUILDERS OF SPAIN broad stretch of the debatable territory. Owing to the ruin or inaccessibility of the most of these fortresses, the subject of Spanish castles, as to materials for study, still remains very much In the air. The only one with which the writer Is familiar, that at Segovia, has been many times re- stored, the last restoration a very recent one; and while It still remains primarily a fortification, and a most picturesque one, its interiors suggest noth- ing but modern and rather flimsy workmanship. 138 Figure of Isabella, Granada, Altar of Chapel Royal. Chapter VI THE CHRISTIAN KINGS FERDINAND AND ISABELLA ISABELLA I. (1474-1504), at her accession, found the kingdom of Castile almost gone to pieces; the result of long years of misrule, and the arrogance and lawlessness of the CastUIan nobility. With such conditions, and with the claims of La Beltraneja to combat, It was well for the young Queen that her marriage not only strengthened her position, but gave her an able helpmate. According to the traditional rights of each state, both Castile and Aragon jealously maintained for many years separate governments; yet the union of the two young sovereigns was the beginning of a united rule for Christian Spain, and Hume calls them the greatest governing geniuses of their age. The first dozen years of their joint reign were required to seat Isabella firmly upon her throne, and to establish law and order In the kingdom. But at the end of that time. La Beltraneja was safely enclolstered in Portugal, travellers upon the high roads of Spain were reasonably safe from robbery or murder, and the poor might expect a 139 BUILDERS OF SPAIN degree of justice from Castillan courts. It was a great work for so short a period. The next great task, and that which had beck- oned the sovereigns from the beginning, was the national unification of* the entire peninsula. The most obvious step In the undertaking was the conquest of Granada. But as yet there was no real consolidation of the Christian states. Even under a united king and queen, the Aragonese and Castllians were divided by bitter jealousies; and, not only was each petty state a distinct and separate entity, maintaining entirely separate insti- tutions, but every community was cut up into factions by social, racial, and religious peculiari- ties. It is easily seen to-day that a national unifica- tion of such discordant and long-divided elements was only possible along religious lines; further, that nothing was more likely to promote that union among the Spaniards than the conquest and persecution of their former Moslem masters. It Is very probable, therefore, that the Catholic sovereigns were not actuated alone by a narrow bigotry when they embarked upon the policy of conquest whose final aim was the expulsion of all heretics from Spain; but that their underlying purpose, which could only be effected by enthu- siasm for a common cause, was the unification of all the Spanish people. 14^ FERDINAND AND ISABELLA It IS true that national solidarity achieved through Intolerance entailed for Spain speedy de- generation and final ruin, but with her Instincts and training It was not to be expected that Isa- bella would foresee such an end, and Ferdinand was far too much absorbed In his schemes for per- sonal aggrandizement to look far ahead. Spain, therefore, entered at once upon the career of re- ligious persecution which has given her so gloomy a celebrity, but, for the time, the nation grew rapidly In power. For a hundred years at least, the financial drain, entailed by the persecution and exile of her most Industrious and productive popu- lation, was largely offset by the almost fabulous wealth poured into the peninsula by the discovery of America. In the short list of really great queens, Isa- bella of Castile Is one of only two or three whose personal characters have been above reproach. Because of that fact, and her able administration, many apologists have sought to clear her name from responsibility in the establishment of the Inquisition. But, In a woman with her antece- dents. It should be found more remarkable that she disliked bull fights, than that she gave over thousands of her most valuable subjects to death or exile for the sake of eradicating from her king- dom what she considered heresy. Isabella, like all the rulers of her time, stood 141 BUILDERS OF SPAIN for absolute power; the shedding of blood was her royal prerogative, a right held by her prede- cessors for hundreds of years. Not only was the divine right of kings an essential principle in her policy, but their divine righteousness as well. Ac- cording to this latter doctrine, it was decreed dur- ing her reign, that thereafter the infamous Pedro the Cruel should be known as Pedro the Just. And, with progenitors of whom Pedro is a not uncommon example, coupled with a character largely formed by early and profound religious training, religious bigotry in Isabella was the in- evitable result. As might be expected, three of the four men whose names stand out with especial prominence during the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella were churchmen — the Inquisitor General, Torquemada, and the great Cardinal Archbishops, Mendoza and Ximenes. The first, Torquemada, was a nephew of Cardinal Torquemada. He early be- came a Dominican monk, Prior of the Monas- tery at Segovia, and Confessor to the Princess Isabella. Of great piety and austerity, Torque- mada early acquired an ascendency over the se- rious mind of the young Princess. It is even as- serted that he obtained a promise from her that, in the event of her elevation to the throne, she would devote her reign to the destruction of heresv and the aggrandizement of the church. 142 FERDINAND AND ISABELLA For ten years Torquemada had in his hands the moulding of the character of the young Queen. His was the spirit behind the throne which con- stantly preached, as the first duty of a true daugh- ter of the church, the extermination of heresy; and upon his shoulders must rest the burden of responsibility for Isabella's intolerance. From 1484 until his death, In 1498, Torquemada was Inquisitor General, and during those y^ars he was the most masterful spirit, and the most dreaded man In Spain. Cardinal Mendoza, son of Ifiago Lopez de Mendoza, Marquis de SantUlana, was one of a long line of princely churchmen, who, as archbish- ops of Toledo, fairly shared the royal honours with the sovereigns of Castile. Indeed, during the reign of Henry IV., and the early years of that of Ferdinand and Isabella, Cardinal Mendoza Is frequently spoken of as the third king of Spain. Alfonso Xlmenes de CIsneros was In all re- spects the opposite of Mendoza. Born in hum- ble life, and with few graces of person, Xlmenes, as he is best known, was yet possessed of consum- mate powers of leadership and administration. He early attracted the notice of Mendoza, and when the appointment of Talevera as Archbishop of Granada left vacant the post of Confessor to the Queen, it was at once offered to him. Al- though Xlmenes accepted this appointment with 143 BUILDERS OE SPAIN reluctance, and even manifested a strong disin- clination for the honours of the Primacy, which fell to him upon the death of Mendoza, he threw all his great ability Into the labours of both offices. During his archbishopric he wielded a power even greater than that of Mendoza. Abuses and scandals being rife among church- men, the first work of Xlmenes was the reforma- tion of the clergy and monastic orders, a task requiring all of even his strenuous powers. But in the end the priesthood was reduced, at least for a time, to order and submission, and, during the remainder of his career, Xlmenes was free to render what was often Important administrative service to the Queen; and to push on the zealous prosecution of the Inquisition. Gonsalvo Hernandez, better known as Gonsalvo de Cordova, Is the fourth name that demands especial mention during the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella. One of the most popular among the youthful courtiers in the train of the young Queen, Gonsalvo emerges into prominence In Spain dur- ing the war of the Conquest of Granada, but his universally recognized title, *' The Grand Cap- tain, " was won during the earlier Italian cam- paigns of Ferdinand. The half legendary prowess of the CId is marred by much of chicanery and dishonesty, but history fails to record one blot upon the knightly honour of El Gran CapUan, 144 Figure of Ferdinand, Granada. Altar of Chapel Boyal. FERDINAND AND ISABELLA Gifted with unusual graces of person, as well as consummate military ability, Gonsalvo early be- came the idol of the Spanish army, and his name still remains, not only among the greatest pro- duced by Spain, but with those of the few great generals who stand pre-eminent In the history of Europe. Although his many defects of character have conduced to far less of popularity, the part played by Ferdinand In their joint reign was equally Important with that of Isabella. His lust for power and greed for money were notorious even during the lifetime of his Queen. More than once he attempted to usurp her authority in Castile, and It required all her great wisdom and tact to maintain the equality with Aragon, of which Castile continued to be jealous. Furthermore, It is now very generally conceded that the zeal with which the Inquisition was pushed was due quite as much to Ferdinand's avarice as to Isabella's bigotry. The property of condemned heretics was divided between the church and state, with a cer- tain amount set aside for the informer, and many thousands of victims are known to have suffered death or exile for no other reason than that they were rich. Ferdinand needed vast sums, not only to pay for the architectural monuments of which this reign was so enormously prolific, ,but to sup- port the wars In Italy, Sicily, and France, in 145 BUILDERS OF SPAIN which he was constantly involved by his tortuous foreign policy. Although of the Machiavelian type, Ferdinand is usually ranked as a great diplomatist, and he was the first of European importance produced by Spain. He rarely if ever kept his promises, and his entire career is one of shrewd and crafty trick- ery, but the fact remains that, beginning with his kingship in a petty Spanish principality, Ferdi- nand made himself at one time the dictator of Europe. Moreover, although his most cherished designs were largely overthrown before his death, his grandson and heir ruled the most extensive kingdom of modern times. The fondest hopes of Ferdinand and Isabella were centred upon their children, and the bril- liant marriages arranged for them among the most powerful royal families of Europe were all a part of Ferdinand's vast schemes for the ex- pansion of his kingdom and the aggrandizement of his house. But rarely has an adverse fate so persistently followed so promising a family. The only son and heir, Juan, after a most attractive and hopeful youth, died at the early age of nine- teen, only two months after his marriage with Marguerite, daughter of Maximilian of Austria; and his posthumous child was born dead. Of the three daughters then left to the Catholic King and Queen, the eldest, Isabella, was married twice, each time to a prince of 146 FERDINAND AND ISABELLA Portugal; an alliance which was expected to unite that kingdom to Spain. But this Princess survived her second marriage scarcely a year, and her son, recognized as the heir to the thrones of both Portugal and Spain, died at the age of two. The second daughter, Catherine, was first wedded to Arthur, Prince of Wales, and at his death to his brother, Henry, who became Henry VIII. of England. The latter. It will be remembered, began his "Bluebeard" career by divorcing this unhappy Queen. The third daughter, Juana, popularly called " Crazy Jane, " was early married to Philip, son and heir of Maximilian of Austria and Mary of Burgundy, and Philip, at his mar- riage, was already in possession of Burgundy, his maternal inheritance. Philip was noted for strik- ing physical beauty, but was also possessed of a mean and selfish nature. Juana gave him her most passionate devotion, but received little in return either of affection or consideration. As a consequence, she soon became exceedingly unhappy, but whether she also became mad is a question upon which historians have never agreed. Some writers go so far as to assert that she was the victim of an avaricious father, an unscrupulous husband, and an ambitious son; and there are un- doubtedly many facts which might be consid- ered to warrant such a conclusion. The greed and duplicity of both Ferdinand and Philip are 147 BUILDERS OF SPAIN well attested by many acts In the career of each, and at the time the suspicion was largely enter- tained that, In 1504, after the death of Isabella, the two kings entered Into an agreement by which Juana, already known to be passionate and Intractable, should be set aside as Insane, while they shared the government of Castile between them. This suspicion was further strengthened by the early death of Philip, under circumstances which strongly suggested poison administered by the agents of the crafty Ferdinand. But there are records which indicate, at least at times, Juana's Incapacity to govern. The Castllians, therefore, although they maintained a nominal al- legiance to her during her lifetime, were forced to leave the actual control, until his death. In 15 16, In the hands of Ferdinand; and after- wards to allow it to pass into those of her son Charles. Juana left two sons: Charles, bom in Ghent in 1500, who, at the age of six, inherited his father's kingdom of Burgundy;^ and Ferdinand, who was brought up by his grandfather in Ara- gon. King Ferdinand had desired to bequeath his own kingdom of Aragon, with Its depend- encies In Sicily and Naples, to this second grandson, his namesake. But the unification of 1 Burgundy then included what is now Belgium, Dauphiny, and parts of Holland, Savoy, Provence, and Languedoc. 148 FERDINAND AND ISABELLA the peninsula, accomplished during his joint reign with Isabella, was not to be so lightly undone, and Charles inherited the titles and dependencies of both Castile and Aragon, at last united under one sovereign. In the annals of Spain he is known as Charles I. But, In addition to his earlier titles and possessions and the sovereignty of united Spain, Charles was to Inherit, In 15 19, from his paternal grandfather, Maximilian, the kingdom and title of Grand Duke of Austria, and the same year saw his election to the imperial dignity as Charles V., Emperor of Rome. Allusion has already been made to the enormous activity In architecture during the reigns of the Catholic sovereigns. Indeed, it sometimes seems while travelling in Spain that no great monuments are left which they did not build, rebuild, or em- bellish. Although a number of the great Gothic cathedrals were begun a hundred and fifty years earlier, such stupendous works were rarely If ever completed, and It was always possible to add chapels, furnishings, and ornament, ad infinitum. At their accession, Ferdinand and Isabella, follow- ing the prevailing mode, built in the Gothic style; but within a few years, Ferdinand's diplomacy and foreign wars Introduced the first wave of the Renaissance movement from Italy and France. This impulse first made Itself felt In an addition 149 BUILDERS OF SPAIN to Gothic construction of Renaissance ornament, whose character gave the name Plateresque to the later Gothic period, which period also served as a period of transition to the Renaissance movement proper. So rapidly was this movement of transi- tion developed that, while the first Important mon- ument of the Catholic monarchs, the Church of San Juan de los Reyes at Toledo, was an example of pure, though florid Gothic, the masterpiece of the transition, the portal of the University of Salamanca was executed only a few years later,* and within twenty years (1494), the splendid Renaissance Hospital of Santa Cruz was begun In Toledo. This period of transition was the golden period of Christian architecture In Spain. For hundreds of years Spanish craftsmen had wrought under the leadership of skilled master workmen, both Moslem and Christian. With the mastery of Byzantine, Moorish, and Gothic methods, and with the Inspiration of the first breath of classic- ism, whose slavish imitation had not yet descended like a blight upon their fervid imaginations, the Spaniards for a quarter of a century were freer than ever before or since to work out their own native Impulses. With all Its over-elaboration and incongruities, the splendour of the result, as well as its Spanishness, Is beyond question. Following the use of Renaissance ornamental designs, came the Introduction of fundamental 150 FERDINAND AND ISABELLA classical forms "of construction, and the dominance of horizontal lines Instead of the vertical ones of the Gothic. So closely Is this early, or Plater- esque Renaissance, Intermingled with the late, or Plateresque Gothic, that both styles are frequently found In the same building. But the entire Plateresque period was a short one. Enormously rich and prolific, the over-facility of clever work- manship which It rapidly developed, coupled with the unrestraint of native Spanish taste, quickly stifled, first the vigour of the Gothic spirit, and later the early freshness of the Renaissance. Freely Intermingled with both movements was the Influence of Saracenic craftsmen and Saracenic traditions. In the South, as earlier Indicated, such traditions have remained a power even down to the present day; there, all through the Christian development, Moslem arches, doors, windows, and towers are freely added to Gothic and Renais- sance construction. Even In the North, Moslem forms and methods long remained a strong Influ- ence. Horseshoe arches and other matters of de- tail are not Infrequent in many early Northern Christian churches, while well along in the Renais- sance period, certain arrangements and occasional bizarre, almost grotesque effects of ornamentation are unquestionably the result of an Indiscriminate mingling of Saracenic with Gothic or Classical motives. 151 Chapter VII THE CHRISTIAN KINGS CHARLES I. (V.)— PHILIP II. CHARLES I. (15 16-1555) is best known even in the peninsula by his greater title, Charles V., and with his accession the history of Spain becomes in a great meas- ure the history of Europe, in which for many years the *' Emperor " became the chief figure. But the prestige of its king by no means advanced either the power or prosperity of the peninsula. At his accession Charles had never even seen Spain, and during his reign of forty years he vis- ited it only six times. Furthermore, with his vast empire it was inevitable that he should regard it as but a province whose chief value lay in its ability to furnish men and money for his Eu- ropean wars. The Spaniards at once resented the position of secondary importance assigned them in the realm of their young sovereign, and when the Flemish servants sent by Charles to represent him, dis- puted the authority of the regent appointed by Ferdinand (the Cardinal Archbishop Ximenes), evincing at the same time a disposition to exploit 152 Charles J\ Titian. Masee del Pcado, Madrid. CHARLES I. (V.)— PHILIP 11. the peninsula for the benefit of the Low Coun- tries, Spain at once blazed into opposition. When, therefore, a year later (15 17), Charles himself arrived, he met with but a sullen reception. Especially in Castile the spirit of distrust ran high. Juana was still living, and it was whis- pered that possibly she was not mad after all. At any rate her son should only be permitted a joint rule with her. The early demand for subsidies produced in Aragon and Catalonia even a stiffer resistance; and resentment in Aragon was further aggravated by the removal of the King's younger brother, Ferdinand, from Aragon, where he had been brought up, to Flanders. Further call for illegal subsidies, and the con- tinued gift to his Flemish followers of the high- est offices, finally resulted in widespread and open rebellion. But for the chronic disunion of the people, this outbreak might have cost the young Emperor his Spanish crown. Charles at once proved his sagacity by standing aside until the rebels, by their own quarrels, had defeated their own cause: and by 1523, when the peninsula was subdued, he had learned to treat his Spanish sub- jects with so much consideration that, during the remainder of his reign, they were fairly submis- sive to his rule. As gold still continued to pour into Spain from America, the peninsula was the Emperor's chief re- 153 BUILDERS OF SPAIN llance, not only for men to fill his armies, but for money to maintain his Imperial state. The conse- quent drain upon her resources, together with that of the continued persecutions of the Inquisition, promised the early exhaustion of the peninsula; but the Spaniards loved the glory of which Charles gave them full measure, and It is un- doubtedly true that no Institution ever established in Spain was more generally popular than the In- quisition. The persecution of heretics enriched the Informer; cupidity is a fairly universal human weakness, and Intolerance is an Inseparable con- comitant of pride. Spanish bigotry had been the ready instrument employed In the unification of Spain, and was to shape much of Its later his- tory. When Charles V., in 1531, ceded his Ger- man empire, together with his Imperial honours, to his brother Ferdinand, he Is considered by many historians to have been forced to the act by the final recognition of the impossibility of uniting under one rule the Catholicism of Spain and the growing Protestantism of Germany. Charles V. made an early marriage, which was very popular in Spain, with Isabella of Portugal. The union Is considered to have been a very happy one, being marked by every evidence of the deep attachment of the Emperor for his wife. Her portrait by Titian Indicates a delicate type or beauty and the high-bred dignity of a charm- 154 .^^•■taaratigfv' ^j>^j3 Wte^aaHi-^' '. y Empress Isabella. Titian. Museo del Prado, Madrid. CHARLES I. (V.)— PHILIP IL ing woman who is every inch a queen. Besides Its intrinsic value, this portrait has been rendered famous by the Emperor's fondness for It. It was especially prized after Isabella's early death, from which time Charles is said to have carried It con- stantly with him on his never-ending journeys, and during his last Illness it was hung at the foot of his bed where his waking eyes should always fall upon It. With no authentic portraits before this date, it seems amazing to begin a gallery of Spanish mon- archs with the perfections of Titian. But earlier Spanish sovereigns were rarely, If ever, out of Spain, and Spanish painters of any Importance date not earlier than the sixteenth century. Charles V. found Titian in Italy, and was many times painted by him, as was also his son and suc- cessor, Philip II. ; and to-day the popular con- ception of both royal sitters Is due quite as much to the art of the great painter as to the long volumes which have been written of their reigns. The keynote of both faces Is the profound melan- choly which may well have been their Inheritance from cruel and bloodthirsty progenitors, and In their successors was to become a species of In- sanity. If a man without a sense of humour Is half mad, then all of these descendants of Ferdi- nand and Isabella were at least touched with de- mentia. Even the great Charles V. was prob- 155 BUILDERS OF SPAIN ably a victim to it during the last years of his life. Charles V. inherited much of the administrative genius of Ferdinand and Isabella, but the close of his reign found him bitterly disappointed in the failure of his vast scheme of centralizing the sov- ereignty of Europe In the throne of Catholic Spain; long greatly afflicted with gout, the result of yielding for years to an inordinate appetite; and burdened by an incurable hypochondria. In 1555, therefore, he voluntarily relinquished his remaining possessions,^ the thrones of Flanders and Spain, In favour of his son Philip. He then retired to the poor and almost inaccessible monas- tery of St. Juste, near the confines of Portugal, where he died In 1558. Philip II. (1555-1598) inherited what appeared to be the most powerful kingdom in Europe, but the seeds of decay, sown even during the reign of Isabella, were already beginning to produce their inevitable fruit, and under the heavy hand of Philip her downward pace was rapidly accel- erated. It must be admitted that the young king found a difficult task when he succeeded to the throne of Spain. The country was already greatly exhausted by the drain of the Moslem Conquest, the Inquisition, and the long and costly reign of 1 The imperial dignity and German kingdom had already passed into the possession of Ferdinand. 156 CHARLES I. (V.)— PHILIP 11. Charles V. In the face of these discouragements, Philip was saddled with the maintenance of the splendid traditions of the two powerful preceding reigns, together with the already Impossible po- litical system which the Emperor had Inherited from the wily Ferdinand, but which Philip reso- lutely set himself to follow regardless of changing conditions. With mediocre natural abilities, and brought up by women and the church, Philip would have proved Inadequate to a far simpler situation. During the early years of the preceding reign, Charles V. had rather permitted than pushed the Inquisition, but before his death he, too, had been bitten with the mania of his Spanish subjects for persecution, the culmination of whose horrors was to be reached under Philip. It Is not Improbable, however, that neither Charles nor Philip was as entirely actuated by religious bigotry as has long been supposed. Each stood for centralization of absolute power in the person of the sovereign, and with each the national unity of Spain was increasingly essential. As has already been pointed out, that unity had been achieved (as far as unity was possible in Spain), and could only be preserved along re- ligious lines. A royal decree issued by Charles had nominally absorbed all Spanish subjects Into the Catholic church, and thereafter heresy was re- 157 BUILDERS OF SPAIN garded as a resistance of royal authority. The persecutions of Charles' later years and all of those under Philip were considered, therefore, not only as a righteous work In which the Emperors were the agents of the Almighty, but as the most essential part of their political system. That sys- tem was pursued to the bitter end during the reign of Philip, and his entire foreign policy con- sisted of repeated attempts to foist it upon the other nations of Europe under the leadership of Spain. The result was the utter ruin of his own kingdom and the absolute loss of all prestige in the affairs of the continent. With Philip's persecutions in the Netherlands under Alva we have nothing to do here, but a word must be said of the rebellion which broke out in Granada as the result of Increasing hard- ships and restrictions imposed upon Its Moslem and Jewish population. For a number of years that province became a prey to a bitter civil war- fare which was not ended until Granada was practically clear of Moriscoes, its most valuable population. This stamping out of heresy in Gra- nada was accomplished by an army under the natural son of Charles V., Don Juan of Austria. The matrimonial career of Philip II. is suffi- ciently long and varied to demand a volume by itself. His first wife was his cousin, Maria of Portugal, but she died within eighteen months of 158 Philip IL Titian. Museo del Prado, Madrid. CHARLES I. (V.)— PHILIP II. her marriage, leaving a sickly and melancholy In- fant, the unfortunate Don Carlos. After her death a second marriage was proposed for Philip, with that noble woman and Invincible Protestant, Jeanne of Navarre. As the latter finally married the Due de Vendome, and became the mother of Henry IV. of France, It Is rather startling to re- flect upon the changes which might have been made In European history had she made the Span- ish marriage Instead. Philip's second marriage, contracted a year be- fore his accession, was with another cousin, Mary Tudor (daughter of Henry VIII. and Catherine of Aragon). With Philip this union was simply a part of what was at the time his father's foreign policy, which necessitated an alliance with England. But Mary Is said to have been much enamoured of her solemn Spaniard, having fallen In love with the Titian portrait which was all she had seen of Philip before their wedding day. The marriage was exceedingly unpopular in England, and Mary's early death renders It of little im- portance In the history of either England or Spain. Moreover, the alliance between the two countries, which Charles had hoped to strengthen, necessarily fell away under Mary's successor, Eliz- abeth, whose claims to legitimacy and the English throne necessitated a repudiation of the Roman church, and English enmity with Catholic Spain. 159 BUILDERS OF SPAIN The third queen of Philip II. was Elizabeth* of Valols, daughter of Henry II. and Catherine de Medlcls. At the time of their marriage, in I559> the young princess was fourteen years of age and Philip thirty-three, and Elizabeth had been previously betrothed to Philip's son, Don Carlos. This circumstance has served as a foun- dation for much of romance.^ There are tales of the King's jealousy, and he is even charged with the secret murder of his son; but recent investiga- tion claims to prove what Is probably true, that the young Prince was mad, and that his seclusion was necessary. Evidence is further produced to show that a deep affection existed between Philip and Elizabeth, that the marriage was a very happy one, and that her death, in 1568, plunged the King yet more deeply into his inherited mel- ancholia. A number of children were born to Elizabeth, but only two daughters survived her. Of these, Clara Eugenia long occupied a place in her father's affections accorded to no other, and finally succeeded to the government of the Neth- erlands. The fourth and last Queen presented to Spain by Philip was his niece Anne, daughter of his sister Maria and the Emperor Maximilian. This 2 Sometimes called Isabella. The two names are used inter- changeably for some of the late queens of Spain. 3 Schiller's Don Carlos. 160 ^m Mary Tudor. Moro. Museo del Prado, Madrid. CHARLES I. (V.)— PHILIP II. queen survived her marriage ten years and left several children, one of whom became Philip III. • • • « • When Charles V. ascended the throne of Spain, a rage for classicism In architecture had already seized all Europe, and Instead of a free adapta- tion of the spirit of Greek and Roman art, which had been the result of the first breath of the Renaissance movement, a closer Imitation of clas- sical models, or of Italian Imitations of them, now became the fashion. Although Charles had not yet been to Italy, he at once Imported Italian architects to superintend the erection of buildings which, as elsewhere at this period, were not churches but palaces. By the beginning of the sixteenth century, Spain, as well as the rest of Europe, was pretty well supplied with churches. Furthermore, ideas of private luxury, which had already taken root and borne much fruit In Italy, were spread broadcast over the continent through the intercommunication produced by a century during which most of the great armies of Europe had penetrated into that peninsula. The result was a great palace-building age, whose richest effort was found In Italy and France; but. In Spain as well, the sixteenth cen- tury produced many monuments of domestic archi- tecture which are magnificent in size and sumptu- ous in detail. Among the important works of i6i BUILDERS OF SPAIN the reign of Charles V. Is the Renaissance palace at Granada (to make way for which a portion of the Alhambra was destroyed), begun soon after his accession, In the Tuscan manner, by Italian architects. It was never finished, and a rebuilding of the old palace (the Alcazar) at Toledo, al- though begun by Charles, was left for Philip II. to complete. Many German and Flemish artisans had found their way Into Spain during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, but their influence naturally reached Its greatest Importance during the reign of Charles V. From the first, the Flemish Influ- ence was more strongly felt In the lesser rather than in the monumental arts. The earliest coloured glass In Spain Is believed to be Italian, or pro- duced under Italian Influence, but by far the larger proportion made during the fifteenth century and later, was manufactured under Flemish super- vision. Flemish wood carvers were famous for their skill, and the altar furniture of many Span- ish churches was carved into rich relief by schools of Flemish workmen. Besides these there were Northern painters and workers in metal, with skilled craftsmen In many of the Industrial arts, who flocked into Spain in the train of the Em- peror, who give a distinct character to much of the late Gothic and early Renaissance ornament. But in architecture the tendency all through the 162 CHARLES I. (V.)— PHILIP II. reign of Charles V. was toward a closer follow- ing of classical models which culminated in the Greco-Roman style of the reign of Philip II. This style, in Spain, is frequently called that of Herrera, from the architect who was its chief exponent. Its development was primarily a revolt or reaction from the over-floridness of the Plater- esque periods, but its pedantic barrenness ex- presses, perhaps better than any other one thing, the phlegmatic temperament of the cold and pains- taking Philip. Its monuments display the same slavish following of tradition, regardless of condi- tions, which characterized his rule; moreover, its best example, the Escorlal, serves not only as the tomb of an exhausted dynasty, but as another ex- ample of the exaggeration of Spanish taste. It Is the extreme expression in Europe of Its period, whose results everywhere In Spain are clumsy, pedantic, and cold. Industrial development under Christian rule may be dismissed with few words. In the early days of the reconquest the products of Moslem handi- crafts were seized upon with avidity, but Moslem craftsmen were soon subject to persecution and exile, and, as the resulting Impoverishment of the country was later attributed to excessive personal luxury, stringent sumptuary laws and heavy taxa- tion discouraged and finally ruined production. Under the Moslems, Spain had been the first 163 BUILDERS OF SPAIN manufacturing country in Europe, but under the Spanish sovereigns her products were speedily re- duced to practically nothing. During the reign of Philip II., in Seville alone, sixteen thousand looms were reduced to less than three hundred, and the results elsewhere, and in other industries, were not less disastrous. 164 Philip IV. Velasquez. Museo del Prado, Madrid. Chapter VIII THE CHRISTIAN KINGS PHILIP III— PHILIP IV. PHILIP III. (1598-1621) was as indolent as his father had been industrious, and soon found Insupportable the centrali- zation of all power and authority In the person of the king, which it had been the llfework of Philip II. to establish. Under Philip II., It had been necessary that every slightest detail of the administration should receive the royal sanction. The result was that his ministers were deprived of all Initiative, and the machinery of the state was rendered hopelessly slow and cumbersome, while the king was the most overworked man in Spain. Philip III. had neither ability nor desire to imitate such plodding and painstaking methods, and after a few months turned over all the af- fairs of his kingdom to his corrupt favourite, the Duke of Lerma. As it was still conceived, in the minds of her devoted subjects, that Spain was the greatest na- tion on earth, It continued to be necessary that marked magnificence should be maintained by her sovereign, and that a prominent part should be 165 BUILDERS OF SPAIN played wherever possible in the affairs of Eu- ropean diplomacy. The consequent drain of al- ready sorely depleted resources proceeded with increasingly disastrous results, and the misfortunes which had attended most of the ventures of Philip II. continued to follow those of his suc- cessor. Under Philip IL, the province of Granada, and in fact all of Andalusia, had been depopulated and ruined; now under Philip III., Valencia was to be devastated. There still remained in that province many Moriscoes, who, although law- abiding and, of necessity, nominally Christian, were also thrifty, industrious, and rich. Their spolia- tion, on the pretext of insincerity of profession, was easily contrived, and proved an admirable means of replenishing the purses of informers and, for a short time, the royal treasury. Thus was completed that desolation of the pen- insula which, during the reigns of the later Span- ish monarchs, so impoverished the country that It was often absolutely Impossible to collect taxes. The mass of the Spanish population, long infected with a scorn of labour with the hands, early learned of the Visigothic nobility, spent their days in idleness and beggary, or flocked into monas- teries where they remained equally a burden upon the country. At one time it was even found necessary to send from door to door to beg for 1 66 PHILIP III.— PHILIP IV. money to pay the personal expenses of the King, whose lavish manner of living, Instead of render- ing him unpopular, was considered necessary to the proud position Spain was thought to hold among the great nations of Europe. Philip III. was early married to Marguerite of Austria, and the really brilliant marriages ar- ranged for three of their children indicate that, at moments, Spain was able to Infect other coun- tries with her own notions of her greatness. The son and heir of Philip III., who became Philip IV., was married to Elizabeth (or Isabella), of France, daughter of Henry IV.; his daughter Anne became the queen of Elizabeth's brother, Louis XIII.; and Maria, after being long sought by James I. of England, for his son Charles (I.), and at one time betrothed to him, was finally mar- ried to Maximilian III., of Hungary. Philip IV. (1621-1 665) found Spain In so de- plorable a condition that greater depths of misery seem Impossible, but during his long reign, and that of his son, Charles II., even deeper wretch- edness was to be reached. Philip was weak and self-indulgent, and at once turned over all the work of administration to the Duke of Ollvares. This minister, by his fertility of resource In pro- viding amusement for his royal patron, retained his ascendency over the king for many years. With Philip fully occupied, Ollvares plundered 167 BUILDERS OF SPAIN the country at will, but stripped as It already was, and with the vast sums required to maintain the traditionary grandeur of the King, it seems im- probable that the favourite could have got much for himself except power. The odium of the early years of this reign has always been heaped upon Olivares, but the very maintenance of his position necessitated the continuance of the ruin- ous policy of Philip 11. , to which an utterly cor- rupt bureaucracy had been added by Philip III. The gradual loss of Spanish possessions in Italy, Sicily, and the Low Countries must not be en- larged upon here, where it must syffice to say that the great protagonists of Philip III. and Philip IV. in the field of European statesmanship, were Richelieu, Mazarin, and Louis XIV., and that as France became the chief among the great conti- nental powers, Spain sank to the position of the weakest. After twenty-five years of Philip IV. and Olivares, there was no longer a question of ex- tending, and scarcely of holding, foreign do- minion for Spain, but rather of how she was to maintain the integrity of her own soil. By the one piece of good fortune which fell to his reign, Philip II. had been able to incorporate Portugal within his realm, but, through the at- tempted exactions of Olivares, the Portuguese, in 1640, revolted and declared themselves independ- 168 PHILIP III.— PHILIP IV. ent. At the same time Catalonia blazed into re- bellion, placing herself under the protection of France; and one of the leading grandees of Spain, the Duke of Medina SIdonIa, attempted to set up an Independent sovereignty in Andalusia. The treason of the latter accomplished nothing except his own disgrace, but the struggle In Catalonia endured for a number of years, and Portugal was permanently lost to Spain. If Ollvares were the scourge of this reign, its good genius was the first queen of Philip, Eliza- beth of Bourbon. The king made no pretence of concealing the scandal of his life, but he gave her great respect and as much affection as he could spare from his own royal person. The downfall of Ollvares was the result of the disasters for which he was held responsible, but it was Imme- diately instigated by the Queen, who had long watched his course with dismay. She also at- tempted to Inspire the King with some degree of her own spirit and ability, but Philip, who now essayed to rule for himself, soon proved even more Incompetent than Ollvares. To retrieve her fallen prestige, Spain was once more plunged into European diplomacy and foreign wars. But, ex- cept for a few successes won by the popular young Don Juan, a natural son of the King by the ac- tress Maria Calderon, defeat after defeat fell to Spanish arms. During the remainder of this 169 BUILDERS OF SPAIN reign, Spanish pride was literally dragged In the dust. The death of Elizabeth, In 1644, left Philip with two children, Don Carlos Baltasar and Maria Theresa. Two years later, in 1646, the young Prince fell a victim to that scourge of the middle ages, small pox. Then Philip made a second marriage with his niece, Marianne of Austria, earlier betrothed to Don Carlos Baltasar. Mari- anne, described as bright and buxom, was sent into Spain at the age of seventeen to become the wife of the lugubrious King, and she soon fell a victim to the traditions of his pompous court. The story goes that among the gifts offered the young Queen upon her royal progress across her new kingdom, one unfortunate deputation pre- sented silk stockings. The solemn grandees who were In attendance are represented as being much shocked at so Indelicate an attention. " Do you not know," they expostulated, "that the Queen of Spain has no legs?" Whereupon Marianne, to whose Imperfect understanding of Spanish the reprimand seemed most portentous, burst Into tears, crying, " She never could have been dragged from Vienna had she known that her legs were to be offered up as a sacrifice to her new dignity." Marianne was accompanied on her journey by her brother Leopold, who later became Leopold I., of Austria, and who at this time desired to marry 170 Infante Carlos Baltasar. Velasquez. Museo del Prado, Madrid. PHILIP III.— PHILIP IV. the Infanta Maria Theresa. Failing In that, he remained unmarried a number of years, and finally espoused his niece. Marguerite, the daughter of Marianne and 'Philip. The administrative inactivity of both Philip III. and Philip IV. is largely responsible for rendering their reigns the golden age of Spanish literature and art. The Idle courts had to be entertained, and the names of Cervantes, Lope de Vega, and Calderon are sufficient to indicate the brilliancy of the entertainment, as well as Its Iberic character. Moreover, If there were nothing else to render famous the reign of Philip IV., the work of Velas- quez would shed a glory upon It for all time. This great painter, recognized to-day as the greatest in the history of the art, early attracted the notice of the King, who at once gave him commissions, and soon made him painter to the court. In the royal patronage extended during the life of Velasquez (i 599-1 660), Philip IV. honoured himself even more than he did his painter, for through the splendid gallery of portraits left by Velasquez, we gain our most intimate knowledge of the time. For forty years the great painter lived under the shelter of the royal palace at Madrid, and portrait after portrait of the King, the royal family, nobles, courtiers, and buffoons issued from his tireless hands. 171 BUILDERS OF SPAIN The portraits of Philip begin with one, now In Madrid, In which we see a pale narrow face, 'proud and sensitive, but with a heavy jaw already its most prominent feature. Then, through a long list of subsequent portraits culminating in the last lifeless mask, now In London, we may trace the degeneration of the "planet king" into a sensu- ous, self-centred, and pompous old age. The art of Velasquez Is so vivid and telling that the actual personality of Philip IV. seems to gaze out of these canvases, and the curious observer is still repelled by the gloom In which the King so enshrouded his dignity that he Is said to have smiled but three times In his whole life. He also seldom indulged In conversation with his grandees, fearing thereby to lessen the reverence with which he desired them to regard him. We have only one portrait by Velasquez of Queen Elizabeth, and that not of great Importance. Indeed, It Is catalogued as not entirely by the mas- ter's hand. In It she Is painted on horseback, and the picture Is now In Madrid. Don Carlos Baltasar was a favourite subject of the court painter. Four portraits of the young Prince are now In the Prado. One of these, that In which the Infante Is on horseback, is one of the most popular portrayals of child life In existence. An- other. In which he stands under a tree, has for many an equal charm. Besides these In Madrid, 172 Las Men'tnas. Velasquez. Mnseo del Prado, Madrid. PHILIP III.— PHILIP IV. there Is hardly a gallery of repute which has not one or more portraits of this little Prince. The one now in Boston, purchased a few years ago, is said to have cost that museum $80,000. Accounts of Don Carlos Baltasar vary greatly. We have tales of his charm and brilliant promise, and stories of early dissipation. But, In the popular estimation, the boy that Velasquez loved to paint must always remain a bright engaging lad, Inheriting the fearless confidence of his maternal grandfather, Henry IV., and something at least of the personal attraction of the great Isabella. It Is only too probable, however, that his ruin was already begun before his death at the age of seventeen, and that his early removal from the vicious court was the best thing that could have happened to him. The doll-like Infanta Maria Theresa, wHo was early betrothed to her cousin, Louis XIV., of France, was also frequently painted by Velasquez. Several of her portraits are said to have preceded her Into France. If one of these, as seems prob- able. Is that which is now In the Louvre, the ob- server to-day cannot but wonder what the young princess wore when presented to him, if, as we are told, the French King was appalled at her costume when he finally saw her. This mar- riage was delayed for a number of years; for, after the death of Don Carlos Baltasar, the little 173 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Princess became heiress to the crown of Spain, and as such could not be permitted to make such an alliance. It was only after the second mar- riage of Philip, and the birth of an heir, that Maria Theresa became Queen of France. At the date of Philip's marriage with Mari- anne, Velasquez was at the height of his powers, and the Queen and her young children were fre- quent subjects for his brush. There is a famous Marianne in the Prado, and an even more famous Marguerite (her daughter) has long been one of the gems of the Louvre. This little Marguerite Is also the central figure in the masterpiece of the artist's second period, the *' Las Meninas " of the Prado. In this great picture, the painter has left us a most engaging child, but one whose pre- cocious solemnity indicates even thus early an in- heritance of the royal melancholia. There is also a glimpse in Las Meninas which suggests an occa- sional breath of spontaneity at the heavy court. The entrance of the King and Queen, indicated In the mirror, with the oft-repeated tale of how the King himself added the red cross which decorates the breast of the painter, gives one of the few bright touches left us of the life of Philip IV. All else tells of dreariness and disaster. Not only was the kingdom plunged Into misery, and Its very existence during these latter days hang- ing in the balance, but the court was a nest of 174 hifmta Maria Thcrese. Velasquez. Lourre, PHILIP III.— PHILIP IV. vice and intrigue. The giddy young Queen, fright- ened and repelled by its dismal atmosphere, soon threw herself into the arms of Its worst elements; but the scandal of her later career may almost be excused upon the ground of the wretchedness of those first few years In Spain. Three sons were born to Philip IV. and Mari- anne, of whom portraits of two, Prospero and Ferdinand, painted by Velasquez, may now be seen In Vienna, whither they were doubtless sent to her own family by the Queen. Both these chil- dren died In infancy, and of the third son, Carlos, who became Charles II., we have only repulsive descriptions; for this las,t degenerate result of vicious living and constant Intermarriage was not born until after the death of the great painter. The later years of Philip IV. were not less un- happy than those of Philip II. Everywhere he was surrounded by unmitigated gloom, and at last he saw himself obliged to leave his tottering throne to the regency of a young and selfish Queen, chiefly occupied with schemes for her own advancement or pleasure, while his heir was a sickly Infant of four whose physical deformities already Indicated the seml-Idlocy of his later years. Charles II. (i 665-1 700) was permitted to oc- cupy the Spanish throne for thirty-five years, and no one fact better establishes the traditional rev- erence of the Spanish people for his office. Again 175 BUILDERS OF SPAIN and again, both before and since, the peninsula has endured untold wretchedness at the hands of her sovereigns, and yet has hedged them about with a halo of divinity which has justified and even sanctified both weakness and vice. Punish- ment for misgovernment might be inflicted, or vengeance wreaked, upon vicious ministers, but the person of the king was always Inviolate. Of this Inherited veneration for the royal authority, the reign of Charles II. was the supreme test. With a monstrous head and an abnormal de- veloprnent of the Hapsburg jaw, which, with a swollen tongue, rendered speech and mastication Imperfect, Charles II. could neither walk nor talk until his tenth year, and he died of senile decay before he was forty. Alternately the tool of his scheming mother, Marianne, or of his natural brother, the popular young Don Juan, the poor half idiotic King was hurried from one set of in- trigues to another, and the history of his reign records little more than these plots and counter- plots. Don Juan succeeded In arranging a marriage for this degenerate specimen of royalty with Marie Louise of Orleans, granddaughter of Charles I. of England, and niece of Louis XIV. of France. Whether her death, after a few years, was the result of unhappiness or poison may never be known. The party of Marianne 176 PHILIP III. PHILIP IV. then secured another unfortunate In the person of a German princess, Anne of Neuberg, who be- came Queen of Spain In 1692. The latter proved much less sensitive and far more ambitious than poor Marie Louise, and during the few remaining years of Charles II., the court was fairly divided, in the struggle for the succession, between her party, that of Austria, and that of Marianne, which represented France. It Is not possible or necessary here to enter fully Into the question of the Spanish succession which for many years plunged all Europe Into war. Suffice It to say that both the Austrian Emperor, Leopold I., and the French King, Louis XIV., were grandsons of Philip TIL, and both had married daughters of Philip IV. The Spanish court, therefore, was soon divided into bitterly hos- tile camps representing these royal claimants, each striving to keep possession of the person of the King and to wrest from him a will in favour of Its candi- date. Success finally crowned the efforts of the French party, and Charles signed a will In favour of Philip of Anjou, grandson of Louis XIV. In 1700, Philip of Anjou, as the first of the Bour- bons, succeeded to the Spanish throne. Architectural effort during the reigns of these later Spanish kings did not equal the brilliance of their product in literature and painting. As else- BUILDERS OF SPAIN where In Europe, the severity of the Greco-Roman style was followed by the heavy decoration of the Baroque, with an accentuation, in the Spanish de- velopment, of its heaviness and coarseness. But with all the vast expenditure, the living of the times was rude; and money was squandered on shows and pageants rather than upon perma- nent monuments. It is not likely that the writers already mentioned, or even the great Velasquez, would have enjoyed the patronage of Philip IV. if their service had required the expenditure of much money. We hear of a costly toy palace built by Olivares, in the park of Buen Retiro at Madrid, and presented to the king. But that has been burned, and to-day we have no great monuments left us of these reigns. 178 Chapter IX THE CHRISTIAN KINGS THE BOURBONS PHILIP V. (1700- 1 746) was only seven- teen years old when he became King of Spain, and his bride, Marie Louise of Savoy, to whom he was wedded at Barcelona, was but fourteen. With a new dynasty, a new life, In which only happiness and prosperity were expected to have a part, was anticipated for the nation. For the time even the partisans of the rival claimant, the Archduke Charles of Austria, were silenced. Philip and his young Queen were accompanied into Spain by the brilliant Princess des Urslns, sent with them, in the pay of Louis XIV., to in- fluence their administration in the Interests of France. Whether this woman accomplished more harm than good is a matter of varying opinion, but some advisor was necessary for these royal children, and they might easily have fared worse. Naturally the first difficulties which Philip had to face were those connected with his accession: for, at the first breath of dissatisfaction which fol- lowed the introduction of French ways and French 179 BUILDERS OF SPAIN servants into Spain, the adherents of the Arch- duke Charles effected an uprising In his favour. The ensuing struggle, which dragged along for twenty years, finally Involved all the great powers of Europe. Twice Charles Invaded Spain, and twice he occupied Madrid. At one time Philip was a fugitive across the border and all seemed to be lost. But, at bottom, the Spaniards did not like Charles, and they did like Philip, and In the end the latter was left in undisturbed possession of his kingdom. This early popularity of Philip V. was partially due to his youth and to a certain dashing Intrepid- ity which at times flamed out, but far more to the Inspiration of his plucky little queen. Indeed, it Is likely that Marie Louise and the Princess des Urslns between them counted for more than Philip did himself In holding the crown for this first of the Spanish Bourbons. Possessed of end- less wit and resource and unconquerable courage, Marie Louise more than once saved the day for her more unstable husband. She sold her jewels to pay his armies, and when things looked black infused fresh life into his campaigns. No better proof of her greater ability Is needed than the fact that after her death Philip counted for little in the events of his reign. After her loss, Philip sank into a condition of lethargy, with periods of melancholia which later i8o THE BOURBONS approached insanity; and he Immediately fell un- der the control of the Princess des Ursins, into whose hands he practically resigned the adminis- tration of all affairs of state. The latter, fearing to lose the reins of control through the King's possible remarriage concluded to arrange that marriage herself, thus assuring the choice of a bride who would prove a tool in her hands. But, clever as she was, the Princess des Ursins was out- witted by the Cardinal Alberoni. The latter, while secretly intriguing with the queen dowager,* managed to ingratiate himself with the Princess, and by representing Elizabeth Farnese as young, soft, and pliable, succeeded In marrying her to Philip. But Instead of being gentle and timid, Elizabeth was bold and resolute. Even more, she was the niece of Anne of Neuberg, and sent into Spain on purpose to avenge that banished queen. It followed, therefore, that when the Princess des Ursins met her expected tool on the frontier, she found herself packed off across the border in such haste that she was not even allowed to procure a change of clothing. Thus summarily was closed the chapter of her influence In Spain. With such a beginning, it Is easy to see that the remainder of the reign of Philip V. was really that of his imperious second wife. 1 Anne of Neuberg, who still burned for vengeance upon the Bourbons, who had outwitted her at the dying bedside of Charles II. i8i BUILDERS OF SPAIN Further, as the methods of Elizabeth were those of the petty Italian court from which she came, that Spain was to be Involved In Interminable Intrigues and constant difficulties with other Euro- pean powers. As Made Louise had left two sons, there seemed to be but little chance of a Spanish Inheritance for either of those born to Elizabeth; and the foreign wars in which Spain was in- volved during the latter half of Philip's reign were largely the result of her efforts to provide thrones for them elsewhere. As a consequence, Elizabeth Farnese was never popular In Spain. Yet so per- sistent and Indomitable was she that, at the death of Philip, one of her sons, Charles, was King of Naples, and the other, Philip, was Duke of Parma. In the domestic administration of this reign, it was to be expected that great changes would be attempted, and that those changes would ulti- mately prove unpopular. During the disastrous reigns of the seventeenth century, the peninsula had fallen at least a hundred years behind other European nations in all that pertained to the advance of modern civilization. The rich and prosperous kingdom that the Christian kings had wrested from Moslem rule had been turned into a desert. Now sweeping reforms In all depart- ments had become essential to its very existence. But while the Spanish people desired, or tho 'vht 182 THE BOURBONS they desired, a change; when It came to a defi- nite overthrow of the methods to which they were accustomed which were Spanish, and the sub- stitution of those which, although better, had the disadvantage of being French, Spanish pride at once flamed out: and the first hundred years of Bourbon administration was consumed by the struggle to reconcile the peninsula to a sounder system of finance, to modern industrial methods, and even to the establishment of law and order. With the intrigues in which the reign of Philip V. was unavoidably involved It is not to be ex- pected that much should be accomplished beyond the establishment of his house upon the throne. But through the tact of the Princess des Ursins and the ability of certain of his French ministers, a foundation, at least, was laid for a new era In Spain. Ferdinand VI. (i 746-1 759) was the second son of Philip V. and Marie Louise (Louis, the elder son, having died before his father), and his short reign is chiefly memorable as a period of peace. A gentle kindly man, Ferdinand VL, for his age, was a just and enlightened ruler. From the war- fare which had been almost constant during the preceding reign, he found the peninsula once more on the verge of exhaustion, and he reso- lutely set himself to give his kingdom the tran- quillity which was necessary for the recovery of Its 183 BUILDERS OF SPAIN financial and physical balance. In all that Ferdi- nand undertook for the welfare of his people he was ably seconded by his devoted Queen, Barbara of Braganza. But her early death, In 1758, plunged him Into such deep grief that, like his father, he fell Into melancholia and Insanity, and his death, which followed a year later, left the throne to Charles, the eldest son of Elizabeth Farnese, who. In order to accept It, resigned the throne of Naples. Charles III. (1759-1788), with his Queen, Amelia of Saxony, landed In Spain toward the close of the year 1759. During the few months which had been required to close up his affairs in Naples, his mother had acted as regent, and It soon became evident that she expected to continue her rule through her son. But, together with marked ability, Charles had Inherited a large share of his mother's will and Independence, and after his arrival she ceased to figure with any degree of Importance In the affairs of Spain. Of the first three of the Spanish Bourbons, Philip V. was the most popular, but Charles III. was by far the ablest. Although Charles allowed himself to become entangled In a few petty foreign wars, his reign, upon the whole, was one of peace, and under his wise domestic admin- istration, a season of growing prosperity as well. Many of the reform measures Inaugurated by 184 THE BOURBONS the King were much disliked, as, for Instance, the paving of the streets of Madrid, until then well nigh impassable with mud and rubbish. The filth was at least Spanish, and the people resented the Implication that French cleanliness was better. Moreover, when Charles Issued a de- cree prohibiting the muffling of the face in the Spanish capa and slouch hat, a custom generally followed and naturally a cloak for crime, resent- ment burst into a rebellion that nearly cost the King his throne. Of the many and wholesome reforms which were accomplished during this reign, a bare list would extend far beyond our limits. As was to be expected from a king who had already founded the now famous manufactory of Neapolitan porce- lain at Capodlmonte, industries were re-estab- lished; education was nationalized; the Inquisition, which still lingered, a curse upon the penin- sula, was relegated to a position of suf- f ranee; and a modern and fairly sound sys- tem of finance was inaugurated. But all these and many other reforms were imposed by a more or less despotic king, rather than worked out by the people themselves; and it was inevitable that under less able rulers Spain must suffer from a reaction. The monarchs who, during the next hun- dred years, succeeded Charles III. were not only less able, but increasingly weak and corrupt. As 185 BUILDERS OF SPAIN a consequence, the story of Spain during the nineteenth century is another chapter of mis- government and misery, Involving the peninsula in a succession of insurrections and revolutions which largely annulled the work of Charles, and again left Spain a century behind in the prog- ress of modern Europe. Charles IV. (178 8-1808), the son of Charles III., succeeded to the throne at the age of forty. He was simple and honest, but perhaps it Is not exceeding the truth to say that he was quite the stupidest king who ever occupied a throne. The crowning misfortune of this reign, however, is found in the fact that the Queen, Marie Louise of Parma, possessed many of the qualities of her domineering ancestress, Elizabeth Farnese, together with a number of even less de- sirable traits. She at once became the power be- hind the throne, and when it is added that she. In turn, was ruled by her weak and Incapable favourite, Godoy, little more need be said. The son and heir, Ferdinand, resented the position occupied by Godoy, and headed a party In oppo- sition to that of his mother, and, during the remainder of this reign, the court at Madrid was disgraced by a succession of family broils which conduced, neither at home nor abroad, to the dig- nity or prosperity of the kingdom. Of government there was practically none; 186 Charles IV. Goya. Museo del Prado, Madrid. n b. 1 ^ J im ^ ■ !^i t^ 1 ? 11 w^ e:z^ ^ ^0SM \ ■ p .^SH^JN^- — - mw m m THE BOURBONS peculation was rife even In connection with the highest offices; and the foreign policy of the Queen and her favourite was as weak and senseless as It was possible for It to be; this at a time when a wise head and a strong hand were absolutely necessary at the helm. Although France was literally torn asunder by her revolution, and all Europe was seeth- ing with Ideas of democracy, Spain, as yet a hundred years In arrears In modern thought, clung to her unworthy kings with a devotion which only their Incapacity and shamelessness de- stroyed. It was the weakness of her rulers that plunged the peninsula into the rapidly changing conditions which, elsewhere In Europe, ushered In the nineteenth century, and for which she was utterly unprepared. The overthrow of Charles IV. was the im- mediate result of Spanish diplomacy, or lack of It, with France. The witless King, Inspired by Godoy, to save his cousin, Louis XVI., first truckled to the "Terror,'' then crawled at the feet of the Directory, and later fell Into a trap laid for him by Napoleon. By this time Ferdi- nand was In opposition to his father, and, owing to the general disgust with the government of the King, the young Prince soon became a pop- ular idol. 187, BUILDERS OF SPAIN Napoleon, therefore, found it easy to open up a way for himself into Spain by offering to sup- port Charles and Godoy; and in the end he not only persuaded them, but Ferdinand as well, to confer with him on French soil. Then, when all were safely In his hands at Bayonne, the Emperor informed them that the throne of Spain was Intended for his brother Joseph, while for them were reserved Chateaux, not In Spain, but In France, with suitable pensions. Charles and Ferdinand Indulged In their usual mutual recrimi- nations, but, with Godoy, the pusillanimous trio were soon fawning at the feet of the dictator and thankfully accepting what he chose to give them. If Napoleon could have managed the Spanish people as easily as he disposed of the affairs of the King and Infante, his star need not so soon have begun to decline, and possibly Spain might even yet lie under Napoleonic rule. But the Spaniards were roused to fury at the trick played upon the now Idolized Ferdinand; for Charles they seem not to have cared; but his son they loved with a passionate and unreasoning devotion, and, to place him upon the throne, the country was plunged for four years Into the struggle of the Peninsular War. England lent a hand, osten- sibly In aid of the Spanish cause, but really to impose a limit to the power of the Emperor, i88 THE BOURBONS and In the Spanish campaigns the supremacy of Napoleon began to decline. From the beginning, the French occupation of Spain was fiercely resented. Every step of the French advance was bitterly contested, and con- stant insurrections followed all Joseph's attempts to govern. Twice Saragossa revolted. Twice she was besieged by French armies, and each time the desperation of the defence is only compar- able with that of the historic siege of Numantia. Upon Joseph's arrival in Madrid, he reported to his brother that he controlled only the territory awed by his bayonets: and conditions constantly grew worse rather than better until the victory of Sir Arthur Wellesley at Vlttoria, in 1813, finally expelled the French from Spain. Ferdinand, who now became Ferdinand VII. (18 14-1833), was welcomed back by his devoted people with extravagant expressions of joy, but the Spain that he found was a very different Spain from that which he had left behind him six years earlier. The time, it is true, had been spent in fighting his battles, but it had been spent, as well, in acquiring new and as yet scarcely digested Ideas of liberty and democracy. A constitution had been framed by a party of those who had defied the French rule; and, al- though it was a crude effort, Ferdinand found that he was expected to sign it and become a 189 BUILDERS OF SPAIN constitutional sovereign. But Ferdinand was a des- pot, and he promptly hanged as many as possible of those concerned in the advance of liberal Ideas, who, naturally, were largely those to whom he owed his throne. The situation speedily became intolerable. For a time Spain was given up to a "terror," and the remainder of Ferdinand's reign was passed In a continuous struggle between the party of the King and that of the constitution. Both factions were extremists, and neither could be relied upon to fulfill the promises wrested from them when out of power. The pendulum, therefore, constantly swung from one to the other, while the advisors of the weak and domineering Ferdinand lacked even the dignity of Godoy. In the world of art, one great name belongs to the reigns of Charles IV. and Ferdinand VII., that of Goya, a painter possessed of striking orig- inality and imagination, together with great power and distinction. Goya made his chief reputation as a painter of low life, and was especially suc- cessful In rendering bull fights and such festas. But he Is mentioned here chiefly by reason of the gallery of portraits left by him of the courts of Charles and Ferdinand. Many times he painted the heavy face and form of the bour- geois Charles and the vixenish features of his ter- magant Queen; and once at least he executed a large canvas showing the King and Queen in the 190 Marie Louise. Goya. Museo del Prado, . Madrid. I Irorii :i'- THE BOURBONS centre of a long group, fourteen in all, called the Family of Charles IV. There are also a dashing figure of Ferdinand on horseback, and a coarse one of Godoy, whose fat form is displayed at length upon a couch. All are touched with the glamour lent by really great art, but in spite of it, all look stupid, except perhaps the Queen, with whom, however, stupidity gives place to qualities far more unpleasant. Ferdinand VII. was married four times, but he had no children except the two daughters borne by his fourth wife, Marie Christine of Naples. The eldest, Isabella, was three years of age at the death of her father, and her succession was at once disputed by her uncle, Don Carlos. As to the justice of his claim, Spain is still divided. The early laws of Castile recognized the right of female succession, otherwise there w^ould have been no Isabella I. But Philip V. had caused a law to be passed, similar to the Salic law of France, limiting the succession to the m^le line. Under Charles IV. this measure had been par- tially abrogated, but the abrogation had never been legalized. Ferdinand VII. had completed its legalization, but had afterward annulled his action. With such a tortuous history the question of the legitimacy of Isabella's succession must ever remain a doubtful one. But It is to be hoped, that after convulsing Spain at intervals 191 BUILDERS OF SPAIN for half a century, the struggle to place Don Carlos or his son upon the throne has finally worn Itself out, and will furnish no further cause for bloodshed. The early years of the reign of Isabella II. ( 1 846-1 868) were passed under the regency of her mother, Marie Christine, a woman of little ability and no personal dignity: and It was from both parents that Isabella Inherited traits which finally rendered her conduct a public scandal and drove her from Spain. As a child, owing to an open and generous nature, Isabella was extremely popular, but she became Queen at the age of thirteen, and, surrounded by the Intrigues of the vile court, of which her unprincipled mother was the chief figure, she was soon utterly perverted. The almost criminal marriage Into which Isa- bella was hurried was sufficient In Itself to ruin her. Both physically and mentally a degenerate, Don Francisco de' Assis was doubly Isabella's cousin; his father being the third son of the Queen, Marie Louise (by either Charles IV. or Godoy), while his mother was the sister of Isa- bella's mother, Marie Christine. At the time, agents from both England and France were in- triguing for the alliance, and the jealousy of Eng- land prevented what would have been a far better match for the young Queen, namely, that with the Due de Montpensler, the youngest son 192 THE BOURBONS of Louis Philippe. The marriage with Don Francisco de' Assis was hastily arranged by Marie Christine simply as a display of her power (a silly cleverness) to outwit the diplomacy of both England and France. Then the Due de Mont- pensier, who was a man of ability and a gentle- man, was at once married to Isabella's sister, Fernanda. The story of Isabella's reign presents little more than a succession of court Intrigues with trivial attempts at government. The young Queen had moments of cleverness, but no sustained ability, and her career, both public and private, was so turbulent and corrupt that the last shred of Span- ish reverence for her office broke down under It, and she was finally driven from Spain in 1868. She died in Paris In 1904. Following Isabella's banishment, a provisional government was formed (to rule until a perma- nent one could be evolved) whose chief figure was one of the heroes of Spanish history, Prim. But Spain was already distraught by factions, and the eve of the arrival of the Duke of Aosta, the second son of Victor Emmanuel, who had been Invited to ascend the vacant throne of Spain, saw the assassination of Prim at the hands of the opposition who preferred a democracy. In 1870, the Duke of Aosta became King of Spain as Amadeo I. But, after two years of 193 BUILDERS OF SPAIN honest effort to rule Spain, he voluntarily re- linquished the task as too hard for him. He was a gentleman, and would doubtleiss have made a wise ruler, but he had no Spanish blood, as had Philip v., and the Spaniards found him cold. Moreover they were not accustomed to honest rulers. Both Amadeo and his Queen became so unpopular that they were frequently treated with public rudeness, and they were doubtless thank- ful to get out of the country alive. The short reign of Amadeo was followed by an equally short republic, which likewise proved unsatisfactory to the distracted Spaniards, and, In 1874, the son of Isabella 11. was proclaimed kiiig as Alfonso XII. Alfonso XII. (i 874-1 886) had been early sep- arated from his mother and educated In England. At the time of his proclamation he was a cadet, aged seventeen, at Sandhurst. He was considered handsome and was gifted with his mother's ready sympathy and tact. If we may judge from his face, Alfonso XII. was possessed of a genial, kindly nature, and had he lived, it is possible he might have developed Into an able ruler. He was at least honest and sincere, and retained great popularity until his death. Alfonso's first marriage with his cousin Mer- cedes, the daughter of Fernanda and the Due de Montpensler, has been surrounded with much ro- 194 Palacio San Tehno, Seville, Main Entrance (Charrlgueresque Ornament.) an THE BOURBONS mance, and doubtless it was a love match. In it we see another effort of France to secure the succession to the Spanish throne to a descendant of Louis Philippe, which was again brought to naught by the early death of the young Queen. A second marriage made Maria Christina of Austria, Queen of Spain, and after the death of Alfonso, In 1886, she became Regent for her son, who in 1902 ascended the throne as Al- fonso XIII. Alfonso XIIL, although so young, has already displayed to an unusual degree the kingly qualities of dignity and courage, together with the more useful traits (to his country) of energy and enter- prise. His marriage, in 1906, to the English Princess, Ena of Battenberg, who then became Queen Victoria of Spain, has already (1909) been blessed by the birth of two sons. In the early architecture of this period, the coarseness of the Baroque style ended In an excess of tawdry ornament, which took the name of the architect, Churrlguerra, who flourished under the early Bourbon kings, and who largely employed it. Churrlgueresque ornament, much of It ex- ecuted In lath and plaster, was spread over earlier Renaissance construction; and even occa- sionally replaced the more delicate Plateresque or Gothic decoration. It is a hideous nightmare of 195 BUILDERS OF SPAIN art, and the last example of the excess to which all styles were carried In Spain. As might be expected, the Bourbon kings early made an effort to introduce Into Spain, along with French methods of finance and French sani- tation, French styles and methods of building. These efforts were largely expended in Madrid, with the result that the Spanish capital, then a comparatively new city, is more French than Spanish. Strenuous efforts were also made to revive earlier industries and introduce new ones, but after two hundred years of endeavour, Spain IS still not a manufacturing country. Even the fans which have long been the most distinctive and universal article of feminine adornment in the peninsula, arc almost entirely Imported from France or Japan. As all other manufactures are likewise produced elsewhere, there is no portion of Europe in which industrial products are so scarce and expensive. Some recent attempts have been made to revive Spanish industry, and under her spirited young King it is hoped that a brighter future is open- ing up for the peninsula. The recent action of the Spanish government looking to the encouragement of tourist travel, is not only a most sagacious move, but indicates a modern policy based upon business principles which must bear fruit in other directions as well. 196 m I Toledo. View from Southeast. Chapter X TOLEDO EVERYTHING about Toledo deals in super- latives. Its boldness of situation, Its sombre and monotonous colour, Its magnificence of historic monuments, itsi atmosphere of tragic grandeur, and, above all. Its loftiness of spirit, are the supreme expression of those qualities in the peninsula. If we listen to the voice of legend, even the antiquity of Toledo is superlative: and In the pride which vaunts its length of years and splendour of mediaeval association, Is betrayed the temper of what Is the most Spanish city of Spain. Here as elsewhere are found legends of Her- cules, Atlas, Osiris, and other visiting deities, who are claimed to have founded every city of Importance in the peninsula. But so exaggerated are the Toledan fables that a witty churchman has gravely chronicled how the' newly created sun first rose directly over Toledo, apparently an earlier creation, and that Adam, first man, be- came her first king. Notwithstanding that this biting satire was strongly resented by Toledans, Spanish historians even down to the fifteenth cen- tury continued to accept and transcribe the pre- posterous and boastful fables of earlier chronicles. 197 BUILDERS OF SPAIN A thirteenth century writer asserts that Tubal, the grandson of Noah, migrated to Spain after the flood; that his descendants peopled the penin- sula; and that Tubal himself founded Toledo, whose name, it is claimed, is a corruption of Tu- balia. Another historian, who flourished as late as the fifteenth century, tells of the coming to Toledo of Pyrrhus, a captain of Cyrus; and Iberia, the wife of Pyrrhus, is said to have been a daughter of King Hispan, a legendary founder of Spain itself. We are told that Pyrrhus found Toledo al- ready a thriving and beautiful city, a statement somewhat confusing if one accepts the remainder of the tale. A less improbable fable tells of a colony of Jews who came to Toledo after the sack of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar. The Jews fled to Tarshish, says the Bible, and Tarshish is the scripture name for Spain. Furthermore, To- ledoth, the Hebrew for city of generations, may easily be corrupted into Toledo; and Toledo has always had a large Jewish population. These and many other tales of Toledo's length of years indicate an antiquity whose foundation of fact no student of history may reasonably doubt: and it is equally probable that the legends of fabulous heroes dimly record those invasions of alien peoples which have ruled Spain from very early times. But, although it may be al- 198 TOLEDO lowed that her alien conquerors gave her a name, Toledo was undoubtedly founded long before their coming. The little group of rocky hills almost surrounded by the Tagus presented an unassail- able place of refuge, and the broad and fertile vega beyond afforded a rich pasturage for flocks; advantages which could not have remained long unappropriated even by the most primitive in- telligence. Natural conditions, therefore, render it most probable that the site of Toledo was occupied long before the beginning of history by a settle- ment of Iberian shepherds, of which supposition, corroborating evidence of the most convincing character Is found In the preservation within her walls, all through her history, of a marked degree of the Iberian spirit. If elsewhere In Spain the native Iberic stock has preserved Its aboriginal type and primal traits, in Toledo is found their most striking survival. Protected by the encir- cling river and the precipitous sides of her seven hills, the early Toledans nourished and developed their Iberian pride into a spirit of fierce Inde- pendence which has always rendered her the most indomitable city In Spain. Together with the rest of the peninsula, Toledo submitted to successive periods of alien rule; and, owing to the fact that her importance as its chief city began, and to a certain degree was 199 BUILDERS OF SPAIN ended, with the Gothic period, Toledo has long been called, The Gothic City of Spain. But her temper has always been that of the tribal aloof- ness of the Iberians, rather than of the dominating arrogance of Gothic blood. Never betrayed in her early days into a desire for conquest of more than the surrounding vega, or into a sympathetic alHance with her often hard-pressed fellow- countrymen, still less in her later years did she yield to a vital union with thd various alien peoples who conquered and claimed to rule her. Neither Carthage nor Rome was able completely to subjugate the proud little city on her rocky heights, and later rulers won a grudging submis- sion from Toledo only while administering to her greatness or yielding to her sway. The authentic history of Toledo does not be- gin until its discovery by the Carthaginians. They found it one of the chief towns of the Carpetanians, a group of Iberic tribes with whom they entered into a half friendly alliance. It is doubtful if we may give full credence to a Moorish tale of the treachery of the Carthaginian general, Hasdrubal, with the consequent revolt of the Carpetanians; but it appears that Hannibal, in a campaign dating about 220 B. C, met with a degree of success in subjugating the half-wild tribes, and that for a time the Carpetanians were, nominally at least, under Carthaginian rule. 200 TOLEDO But Toledo and the Carpetanlans were much too far Inland to possess a great amount of im- portance for the early invaders. The strongholds of the latter were largely on the seacoasts, and they held very lightly the territory conquered dur- ing occasional forays Into the interior. Accord- ing to a palpably exaggerated account, Hannibal IS said to have defeated one hundred thousand barbarians on the banks of the Tagus, but after his victory, Toledo was most probably left with a Carthaginian governor, and a gradually lessen- ing guard, while life doubtless went on much as before. Then, as the Carthaginian power In the peninsula declined and fell away, even her nom- inal rule was forgotten. Roman armies commanded a large part of the peninsula as early as 210 B. C, but It was not until 191 B. C. that a Roman general stood be- fore the little city on the Tagus and In the name of a new conqueror demanded submission. Then the Toledans, Instead of defying these new foes from their Impregnable heights, went down to fight in the valley, and with their defeat Toledo was claimed as a possession of Rome. But even under Rome, Toledo failed to attain a great Im- portance. Pliny calls It the metropolis of Carpe- tanla, and it is certain that walls and an aqueduct were built. Furthermore, there are accounts of a Circus Maximus, an amphitheatre, and temples, 201 BUILDERS OF SPAIN one of which, a temple of Hercules, was situated in the vega beyond the Tagus, and was two hun- dred feet in width by three hundred in length. Yet the rank of the town seems never to have exceeded those of many others of the inland stations along the Roman roads, which, early in the Roman period, began to cross and recross the peninsula. Of Roman remains to-day, Toledo can show nothing to compare with those of the more notable cities of the empire along the eastern sea- board. Tarragona and the ruins of Saguntum are still distinctly Roman in physiognomy, but at To- ledo there are only the foundations of a few walls and bridges, with scattered stones dug up from time to time under her streets or in the vega. Toledan history of the Roman period is nearly as meagre as the more tangible witness of stone and cement, unless we accept the legends of the early Spanish saints, which, together with a large amount of fiction, undoubtedly preserved a modi- cum of fact. Through them we learn that To- ledo was one of the first cities in Spain to em- brace Christianity; that St. James and St. Peter both visited her, and possibly also St. Paul, the latter preaching and creating bishops. Of the bishops of Toledo, Eugenius was the first. His legend narrates that, after becoming Bishop of Toledo, he was moved to pay a visit 202 TOLEDO to St. Denis in France, and that while there he suffered martyrdom together with St. Denis and another apostle. The bodies of the three were thrown into a lake, but are said to have been afterwards recovered, and the return of the relics of St. Eugenlus, first of his arm. In the twelfth century, and of the remainder of his body, in the sixteenth, occasioned many reciprocal courtesies between France and Spain. Eugenlus was one of the earliest Spanish saints, but Leocadia, who Is believed to have suffered un- der Daclan, the governor of Spain under the emperors Diocletian and Maximlan, is the real patron saint of Toledo. She was first ven- erated In the seventh century; her legend, therefore, was a production of the Gothic period, but no devout Toledan has ever doubted the story of her early martyrdom. Of more Importance than her martyrs were the churchmen who early laid the foundation for the hieratic power which, though all her succeeding history, was to be the chief source of Toledo's glory. So-called portraits of ten bishops of To- ledo, during the Roman period, now adorn the Sala Capitular of her cathedral; and the third Council of the Spanish church was held In Toledo in the year 400. Nineteen bishops and an equal number of inferior ecclesiastics were in attendance, and the first act of the assembled council was to 203 BUILDERS OF SPAIN indorse the articles of faith earlier adopted at the council of Nicea. Thus the great Catholic doc- trine of the equality of the Trinity was early In- corporated Into the creed of the Spanish church. Most curious evidence of the unlimited jurisdic- tion claimed by the early fathers Is found In the decrees of this Council, which excommunicated vegetarians, mathematicians, and those who exe- crated marriage. With the passing of the Roman empire In Spain, comes a brief period when Toledo regained her early Independence. Protected by her strong position and Roman wall, she successfully resisted the first onslaughts of the barbarians; and the SuevI, the Alans, and the Vandals, who early divided up the peninsula between them, failed to conquer the staunch little town which lay at the juncture of their three kingdoms. By the begin- ning of the fifth century the Visigoths had be- come the dominant power In Spain, but not until 467 did Toledo yield to their powers. Then the Gothic king, Euric, besieged and took the city, and this time Toledo was destined to gain, with her rulers, an Importance which she has never entirely lost. The period of disorganization and barbarian in- vasion had wrought ruin in every part of the peninsula, and the Toledo of which Euric took 204 TOLEDO possession could have been little better than a rude mountain fastness, its Roman monuments worn and defaced, and its walls- battered by long warfare. This grim stronghold the Visigoths turned into a half-barbarian camp, and, during the hundred years that elapsed before it became the chief seat of Gothic power, there is nothing to indicate more than the bare preservation of what had been found. As under Rome, so now under the early Visi- goths, the chief importance of Toledo lay in the supremacy of her church; a dignity which the Spanish clergy had managed to preserve. Their early resistance of Roman efforts to Latinize their ritual was to be continued for hundreds of years, and their independence laid the foundation for the hieratic supremacy which has proved To- ledo's most enduring dignity. The power and state early maintained by her bishops was scarcely second to that of the king himself. When, there- fore, Toledo was made the capital of the Visi- gothic kingdom, she became doubly the chief city of the peninsula, both Its civil and ecclesiastical head. But along with her new dignity came the necessity of setting up a new court, which not only must divide the honours with that of the ecclesias- tical dignitaries, but, through difference of faith, must speedily become antagonistic to it. According to tradition, Athanaglld built a 205 BUILDERS OF SPAIN churcH on the site of the chapel now known as Cristo de la Luz. Some rudely cut capitals still preserved In this tiny church are thought to be- long to the original work of Athanagild, and, strange to say, this chapel of Athanagild is the earliest church In Toledo of which we have any reliable or definite knowledge; while Information regarding the early residence of the Gothic kings is almost as scanty and much confused. Pisa tells us of four Alcazars, or royal palaces, of which the earliest was on the site now occupied by the Hospital of Sta. Cruz and the Plaza de la Concepclon. Here, under the shadow of the high- est of Toledo's seven hills, then, as now, crowned by its citadel, the Goths are believed to have found the Roman Praetorlum which they at once appropriated as their official residence. It was doubtless first used by the local governors, and later, when the court was removed to Toledo, by the kings themselves. There is mention of a wall connecting this palace with the citadel above, which probably enclosed both within the same fortification. Thus the royal residence was pro- tected, and both palace and citadel dominated the town and vega. It was doubtless in this palace that Athanagild first set up a VIsIgothIc court In Toledo, and here, for the time, were held those military elections which were the last evidence of VIsIgothIc inde- ao6 TOLEDO pendence. Here, after the death of his Greek wife, Theodosia, Leovlglld brought the widowed Gosvinda to be for a second time .the Queen of Spain, and here as a result of her step-motherly activities,^ was opened up that domestic drama which gave another saint to the Roman calendar.^ We are told that after his conversion Re- eared at once began the restoration of lands and honours, earlier confiscated from the church by his father, and that he also endowed many churches and monasteries with royal magnificence. A con- secration stone, discovered in 1591 in the cloister of the cathsdral at Toledo, Informs us that a church on that site was dedicated to Santa Maria by Recared as early as 587, two years before his public announcement of his conversion. It is assumed by some authorities that this church of Recared was a rebuilding of what was already recognized as the cathedral church of Toledo; and that it was upon this site that her first bishop, Eugenius, had set up his throne. This assumption Is founded purely upon tradition, but In such a case tradition counts for much: and. If we may judge by what almost Invariably happened else- where. It Is not only probable that Recared's church covered the location of the first archiepls- copal seat In Toledo, but that the latter re-used or replaced the chief earlier pagan temple of the 1 See chapter on Vislgothic history, page 32. 2 Errainigild. 207 BUILDERS OF SPAIN city. In the absence of data, however, all Is sup- position until the consecration stone of Recared, and even then there is nothing else to indicate the extent or style of the structure. That it was rude and primitive goes without saying. If Roman walls remained standing the enclosure was doubtless small, and Visigothic additions or re- building must have been rough and simple, with possibly a little rudely cut ornament. Along with the primitive cathedral, there had existed another important early church down In the vega. According to some authorities the site had been originally occupied by a Prgetorlan tem- ple. But it Is also said to have been the place of Sta. Leocadia's martyrdom, and early covered by a Roman basilica dedicated to her. As Sta. Leocadia was not venerated until 633, the pre- Gothic dedication to her must be dismissed as an error, but the early Importance of this church in the vega Is attested by Its use for the assemblage of a number of the early Toledan councils. Its rebuilding, therefore, followed very naturally that of the cathedral up In the town. The work was undertaken by King Sislbert (612-621) about 620, and glowing descriptions of his church when completed Indicate, not only that It far exceeded in magnificence the earlier work of Recared, but that It was considered the first church In the peninsula. To counterbalance 298 TOLEDO the archleplscopal rank of the cathedral, this was made a praetoriensis church, that is, it had royal privileges. The first famous Council held in To- ledo after its rebuilding was convened in this church of SIsIbert, and its chief business appears to have been the canonization of Sta. Leocadla. This Council took place in 633, and the dedica- tion of the church to her doubtless dates from that occasion. At that time, also, the tomb of Sta. Leocadla was set up within Its walls upon the traditional spot of her martyrdom, and there It soon came to be not only the chief shrine In this, her church, but also the most important point for pilgrimage in that part of Spain. But the event of the greatest Importance In the church of Sta Leocadla was the appearance of the saint herself to the almost royal Bishop, Ildefonso, who somewhat more than divided the honors of the reign of Recesvlnthus (649-672) with that monarch. Ildefonso's great fame was founded upon his defense of the perpetual Virginity of the mother of Our Lord, a work rendered neces- sary by the growing scepticism of the times; and his notable triumph was deemed worthy of a grand celebration. A splendid mass was ordered by the King, who, possibly wearing the crown bearing his name, now a curiosity In the Cluny Museum, marched with his Bishop at the head of a great procession formed by the entire court, 209 BUILDERS OF SPAIN to the church of Sta. Leocadia down in the vega. There the King and Ildefonso knelt side by side, when, suddenly, a miracle occurred. Clouds and sweet scents arose from the shrine, and amidst a group of angels Sta. Leocadia was disclosed smil- ing graciously upon the astonished Archbishop. She extended her hands in sign of benediction, pro- nouncing the words, ''^ Ildephonse p.er te vivat domina meaJ* The vision began to fade, and, as the saint vanished, Ildefonso, Impulsively reaching forward, grasped a floating end of her veil. The King quickly passed him his dagger, and the Bishop cut off a piece which was left in his hand. Excitement ran high as the report of the vision of Sta. Leocadia spread from the mouths of those who saw It to the ears of those who did not. But scarcely had the first wonder at that marvel sub- sided when an even greater honour came to the now famous Archbishop. This last marvel thrilled the entire peninsula, and news of it penetrated even to Rome. Nine days after the miraculous mass down in the vega, the Virgin appeared in person to thank and bless her zealous defender. There are two legends of this vision vouchsafed to Ildefonso by the Mother of Our Lord, both of which relate its occurrence In the cathedral up in the town, and in both of which the miracle 210 TOLEDO appears to have been seen by the Bishop alone. In one the Virgin Is said to have attended matins, sitting in the Bishop's seat while he recited the office at the altar. In the other we are told that Ildefonso, upon his entry Into the cathedral in the morning, discovered on the wall a light like a flame which, when he approached nearer, proved to be the radiance surrounding the Virgin who was seated upon his throne. The Bishop in an ecstasy fell prostrate, while around him was the sound of heavenly music and the smell of sweet odours. After addressing a few words to the ador- ing Ildefonso, the Virgin placed upon his shoulders a splendid chasuble, brought from heaven, which had been wrought by the hands of angels. The vision faded, and Ildefonso was found fainting upon the ground, his lips pressing the stone in which his heavenly visitor had left the print of her foot, and with the miraculous chasuble still upon his shoulders. Even the Pope took especial cognizance of this miracle, and, it is said, "because of it the church at Toledo was given precedence of all others in Spain." After Ildefonso's death, which occurred within a few months of this heavenly visitation, his body was entombed In the church of Sta. Leo- cadla, where his shrine soon rivalled hers in pop- ularity, and, as a point for pious pilgrimage, added greatly to the Importance of the church. 211 BUILDERS OF SPAIN The heavenly chasuble, with the piece of Sta. Leocadla's veil and the royal dagger which sev- ered It, was placed among the treasures of the cathedral; and by the faithful, the chasuble, at least, Is thought to have been among the relics carried north to Oviedo to save them from Infidel confiscation, at the time of the Moorish conquest. At that time the church of Sta. Leocadia was des- ecrated and partially if not entirely destroyed, and, either then or later, the bodies of both saints were lost. That of St. Ildefonso Is claimed to have been recovered by means of a miracle In the thirteenth century, when it was entombed In the cathedral, and in the sixteenth, what were claimed to be the relics of Sta. Leocadia, after being dis- covered In Flanders, were purchased for the sum of one thousand ducats and returned amidst great rejoicing and imposing ceremonials to her church In the vega, which by this time had been rebuilt, and had even received a new name — that of Cristo de la Vega. The tomb of Sta. Leocadia still occupies the centre of this church, and an ex- quisite statue of the saint, carved by Berruguete In the sixteenth century for a niche In the Puerta del Cambon, is now placed over its main en- trance. The earliest portion of the church of Cristo de la Vega left to-day, is Moresque In Its workmanship and details, and Is thought to be not earlier than the twelfth century. 212 TOLEDO The Archbishop Julian tells us that Wamba was anointed King in the church of St. Peter and St. Paul, near the royal palace. This palace was still the old Roman Praetorium, but of the church we know nothing except its name. Of the anoint- ing, however, there are further particulars; for the Bishop goes on to relate a most marvellous circumstance — how "when King Wamba was crowned there arose from his head a cloud in the form of a pillar, and a bee was also seen to mount on high from his head." Even Mariana's credulity seems to have been tested by this amaz- ing tale; for he observes by way of defence, "It may be said that people often imagine or fancy such things, but the authority of the author, Archbishop Julian, Is of great force." The pillar of cloud and the bee were to be amply justified by the vigour and activity of Wamba's administration, which fairly made To- ledo's dry bones rattle. Wamba was doubtless a Vislgothic noble, else he would never have been offered the crown; but. In the rapidity of his methods and the amount he accomplished during his short reign of eight years, he is neither Visl- gothic nor Spaniard, but a modern of moderns. He found the authority of his office scarcely rec- ognized beyond the gates of his rude and broken- down capital, but within two years the entire pen- insula was reduced to order and submission, and a 213 BUILDERS OF SPAIN most serious rebellion In the Gallic provinces had been put down. Upon Wamba's return, In 674, from his victorious campaign In the north, he made a triumphant entry into Toledo. Before him marched a train of captive rebels, their heads shaved, their feet bare, and clothed in garments of goats' or camels' hair. The procession was led by the treacherous Greek general. Count Paul, who had Instigated the revolt, who, besides being shaven and barefoot, wore, in mockery of his at- tempt at Independent sovereignty, a leathern crown. With peace and order restored throughout his kingdom, Wamba at once took up the work of strengthening and beautifying his capital. After his glimpse of the cities of Provenge, he was doubtless struck by Its rudeness, and with char- acteristic energy. Immediately set to work to Im- prove It. Only six years of his short reign re- mained to him, but during that time a new wall and a new palace are recorded, the most consider- able building operations In all the three hundred years of VIsIgothic rule. Wamba's wall, although partially the rebuilding of an earlier Roman one, still bears his name, and still forms Toledo's In- ner circle of defence. What are called the foun- dations of his palace are found to-day near the promenade called the Miradero, overlooking from the northeast corner of the city the vega and 214 TOLEDO the Tagus. This palace was close to Wamba's newly built wall, and not far from the earlier residence of the VIsIgothIc kings. With that palace and the citadel, it completed a long group of buildings, all of which may have been pro- tected by the old Roman wall, some of whose ruins have been discovered under the Plaza de Zocodover. These fortifications not only placed the entire eastern quarter of the city In the hands of the King, but more closely watched Its approach by the Tagus. Wamba's wall, and probably his palace, were built, at least partially, of the ruins of Roman structures down In the vega. What Is supposed to have been a circus supplied much material. We are told that many stones were marble, with figures like roses or wheels carved on them. Pisa says that "the common sort" were persuaded that these were Wamba's arms, but that the very stones prove to the contrary, because they were laid " without order or method, but just as they were brought, so they were placed by the work- men." The walls were broken at Intervals by towers, probably much as they are to-day, and the principal towers were crowned by statues of those saints held In greatest veneration by the town. These were of white marble, but unless they also were Roman relics their forms were doubtless ex- tremely crude. Under them were verses In the 215 BUILDERS OF SPAIN unpolished Latin used in that age. One of them read: *^ Vos Domini sancti, quorum hie referentia fulget, Hanc urhem plehem solito, ser nate faureJ* Most of Wamba's Inscriptions have long been effaced or replaced, and beyond the bare wall, the traditional foundations of his palace, and a noseless statue called that of the King himself, little remains of the great works of Wamba. Tradition has long asserted that King Roder- ick occupied a palace overlooking the bridge of San Martlno. As his reign endured only two years, this palace must have been built before his accession by some one of the kings in- tervening between him and Wamba. Its site com- manded the western reaches of the^Tagus, as the palace! of Wamba had overlooked Its eastern ap- proach to the city. The natural circumvallation of Toledo Is the long loop of the gorge of the Tagus with Its background of mountains. On a map the river has the form of a letter U. The pal- aces of Wamba and Roderick, therefore, stood at the top of either arm of the letter, and, with the wall which enclosed Its open end, they com- pletely dominated the plain of the vega which stretches away to the north and forms Toledo^s only vulnerable approach. The site of each palace has long commanded a 216 TOLEDO bridge, and, although authorities differ widely as to the original construction of these bridges, It is most probable that both date from Roman' times, If not earlier. The superb arch of el Puente de Alcantara^ which with Spanish redundancy of ex- pression is literally *' The bridge of the bridge, " Is often referred to as Roman work. But while it may preserve the outline of a Roman arch, the long history of destructions and rebuildings for- bids an earlier date for any part of the existing structure, than the close of the ninth century. The present bridge of San Martino was erected in the thirteenth century, but there are some remains of piers which are probably those of a Roman fabric. With the reign of Roderick, tales of marvels and magnificence culminate In spectacular confu- sion. The best known legend, that of the frail Florinda, already narrated, assumes a new form in the hands of each new historian. In con- nection with It and other legends, there are ac- counts of King Roderick's splendour of person and magnificence of environment; of his sumptuous palace with Its high towers and luxuriant gardens; Its rich furnishings and brilliant court. The King himself Is usually represented as a striking figure of youth and beauty, endowed with heroic daring and Invincible courage; but there are accounts which represent him as eighty years old at his accession, 217 BUILDERS OF SPAIN From this perplexing jumble of history and fable, the first vivid scene which stands out is the tale of the magnificent tournament with which King Roderick celebrated his marriage, an event which followed closely upon his accession. Doubt- less the tale was highly coloured by the historian who wrote It up in the seventeenth century, but underneath all these legends there lies unquestion- ably some foundation of fact, and, after discount- ing palpable exaggerations, it is from them that we must gain our only possible impression of life in the Gothic capital. The Queen of King Roderick is usually called Egllona, but we also find the names Ellaca and Blanche. According to Rojas, she was the daugh- ter of an African king. In which case the latter name was probably given her with her baptism into the Christian faith. Rojas narrates with much circumstantial detail the early events of Roderick's reign and those connected with his marriage. " In the beginning, '' he informs us, " King Roderick called together at Toledo, a Cortes of the higher nobility and clergy of the realm. These he soon rendered willing to serve him in all that he desired, by yielding to many measures proposed by them, and even by suggest- ing generous decrees for the public good and the benefit of the state." Then the young King (If young he were) made 218 TOLEDO known his wishes. In the words of the historian, "The beauty and grace of Ellaca, daughter of the King of Africa, had been made known to Roderick, who had become enamoured of her, and who now de- sired to send an embassy composed of the noblest of the kingdom, accompanied by the Archbishop of Toledo, to ask her hand In marriage, who if she would become a Christian, should be made the spouse of King Roderick and Queen of Spain. '* The conciliated Cortes yielded a ready assent to the wishes of King Roderick. The em- bassy was appointed, and they at once set out for the court of the African King. There they were courteously received and their proposition accepted. The young beauty was entrusted to their care and the straits were soon recrossed to Malaga, where, amid suitable festivities, she was baptized Into her new faith. The King was overjoyed to hear of the arrival of his bride on Spanish soil, and gave orders that she should at once set out for Toledo, where her entry was made the occasion of pub- lic rejoicing. The marriage was then celebrated and Egilona was crowned Queen of Spain. As a further honour to his royal bride, Roderick proclaimed a tournament to be held at Toledo. According to the grandiloquent historian, six months were required for despatching invitations and making preparations to receive the guests; for it was the king's wish that this should be the 219 BUILDERS OF SPAIN greatest festa ever seen in all the world. Invi- tations were sent, not only throughout all Spain, but to all the kings and princes of Europe; and so widespread was the fame of this tourney that many princes and great lords were eager to see It. Of those who came, were the two " Counts of Gascony, the Duque de Vlana, the Conde de Marca, the Duque d'Orllens, with four other French Duques, the King of Poland with two Marqueses and four Captains, the Lord of Rome with three Alcaldes and five Captains, the Em- peror of Constantinople with three Counts, a son of the King of England with two great Lords of his kingdom; and besides all these were many lords and nobles from Turkey and Syria and other parts, to the number of five thousand, and all were followed by cavaliers numbering from fifty to five hundred each. These were the stranger guests alone, and there came also from Spain more than fifty thousand cavaliers." With swelling enthusiasm the writer goes on: " For the lodging of these guests the city was emptied of its citizens and their homes given up to the most distinguished of those who came from afar. Then there were ten thousand tents set up in the vega, wherein were lodged as many as they could accomodate; besides which there were used all the houses of the country round about, and all the entertainment was at the cost of King Rod- 220 TOLEDO erick. Even horses and armour were provided at his expense. Iron and steel to the amount of one hundred thousand hundred-weight was wrought into helmets, swords, and breastplates; all the master armourers of Spain to the number of fifteen thousand being occupied for six months with the work;' The King, Don Roderick, further commanded that a sumptuous palace should be built in the vega near the Tagus, convenient to the lists where the tourney was to be held, so that the illustrious knights who took part in it might the more easily be seen ; and when the Queen with her court, and a large number of noble ladies, sat in the windows to witness the jousts, those who passed to see them were more than six thousand. *' On the first day, twelve thousand cavaliers went out, on the second, two thousand, and so on, but on Sunday no tilts were held. The great tourney lasted thirty days from the beginning until the end, and no one before had ever see such gener- osity and such grandeur. At its close the King invited all the combatants to a great feast where he regaled them much, and the Queen gave jewels of price to the victors, and the great pleasure that all experienced at this feast was only diminished by the arrival, while it was in progress, of a mes- senger who came to announce the death of the King of Africa, the father of the Queen." 221 BUILDERS OF SPAIN In the old " Cronica del Rey Rodrlgo " Is found the companion allegory to that of the be- trayal of Florlnda — the legend of the cave of Hercules; and In this tale, Roderick's daring Is represented as putting the final touch to the ruin of his kingdom which his earlier sin had begun. So deeply Imbedded was this belief In Roderick's responsibility, and In the portentous marvel by which his ruin and theirs was foretold, that many are still convinced of the existence of the great cave of Hercules under the very centre of Toledo, and that It was not finally closed up until the seventeenth century, when a daring archbishop with a few followers returned half dead with fright after penetrating Into its depths. Some versions of this legend tell of an en- chanted tower or a temple, instead of a cave, but in every case the portals were securely locked, and entrance forbidden under penalty of extreme peril. Not only were the kings of Spain commanded not to seek to know what was within, but each, in turn, was bidden to add another lock to its se- curity. Upon his accession, King Roderick had added his lock, but, like the first Adam, forbidden knowledge tempted him. We read, that in an evil moment King Roderick remembered the enchanted cave and desired to possess Its secret. His knights, fearful of the consequences, for upon the opening of Its portals the destinies of Spain were believed 222 TOLEDO to depend, attempted to dissuade him. But King Roderick was not to be turned aside; all the locks must be opened and his fate and that of Spain must be disclosed. A sixteenth century copy of the fabulous chron- icle bears a rude representation on wood of the opening of the portentous portal. A man with a huge pair of pincers is breaking the locks on the door. Near him stands Roderick In his regal robes, and at the feet of the King a prelate is kneeling, apparently endeavouring, even at the last moment, to dissuade him from his purpose. A knight Is also holding up his hand In astonish- ment at the King's temerity, and as a warning of the consequences to follow; but Roderick looks haughty and determined. Upon the opening of the door. King Roderick entered, followed by knights and courtiers. In the first apartment, a huge statue of a man was found lying on a bed. In Its hand was a scroll, and in the scroll was written that the man was Hercules the Strong, with the warning, " Never could any conquer me save only Death. Look well to what thou doest, for from this world thou wilt carry with thee nothing but the good which thou hast done." In the second apartment the walls were found col- oured, one part white as snow, one part black as pitch, one part green as an emerald, and one part 223 BUILDERS OF SPAIN redder than fresh blood. And there was a door cunningly made, over which was an inscription saying that Hercules had built this house in the three hundred and sixth year of Adam. Then the king opened this door and found In Hebrew letters, " This house Is one of the wonders of Hercules." And there was a niche In a pillar in which was a coffer of silver, strangely and subtly wrought. It was gilded and set with many precious stones of great price. The lock was curiously fashioned of mother-of-pearl, and upon it was cut an Inscription In Greek letters which read: " It cannot be but that the king, In whose time this coffer shall be opened, shall see won- ders before his death: thus said Hercules, the Lord of Greece and Spain, who knew some of those things which are to come." Then King Roderick took the lock and broke It; for none other dared to touch it, and when the coffer was open it was found to contain nothing except a white cloth folded between two pieces of copper; and Roderick took it and opened It and found It covered with pictures of strange-looking men wear- ing turbans, and with swords around their necks.* They carried banners, and their bows behind them at the saddle bow. And over these figures were letters, which said, "When this cloth shall be opened, and these figures seen, men apparelled like 8 Doubtless the curved scimitars of Oriental peoples. 224 TOLEDO them shall conquer Spain and shall be Lords thereof." Although this legend of the Tower of Her- cules, like that of the fair Florlnda, was undoubt- edly fabricated long after the event It was sup- posed to foretell, It may well have been Inspired by the appearance of the Moors and Arabs, who, In 710, were sent over to spy out the land. So great was the terror produced by their strange dress, superb horsemanship and swift attack, that they were able to ravage the country with perfect Impunity. Upon their second appearance. In 711, Theodomir (the Tadmir of the Arabs), Governor of Andalusia, sent a hasty appeal to King Roder- ick. " A horde of Africans," he wrote, " have landed on the coast, so strange In appearance that one might take them as much for Inhabitants of the sky as of the earth. They suddenly assailed me: I disputed, as well as I could, their entrance Into the country, but their numbers and Impetuos- ity have prevailed: In spite of my efforts they are now encamped upon our soil. Send me more troops without a moment's delay: collect all who can bear arms. So urgent is the occasion, that I consider even your own presence necessary." According to all accounts, Roderick met the crisis with dignity and courage. With or without the warning of the prophecy, he recognized in the summons of Theodomir that now his fortunes 225 BUILDERS OF SPAIN were put to the touch, and that the Gothic Empire in Spain must be saved quickly if saved at all. Within three months he set out from Toledo at the head of the entire fighting force of the Goths, numbering, It Is said, ninety thousand men. Imagination pictures the Imposing pageant of their departure, the King in the ivory car inlaid with silver In which he Is later described as be- ing borne Into the battle of the Guadalete. A canopy of brilliantly coloured silks sheltered him from the too-fervid rays of the sun, and the car was drawn by white mules. Over his shoulders was a cloak of purple; upon his head a royal diadem, and his robes of cloth of gold were en- riched with priceless jewels. So led, the vast and pompous procession set forth from Toledo, march- ing down the precipitous streets and across the bridge of Alcantara, while walls and towers were alive with spectators, some gay and proud in con- fident expectation of the speedy discomfiture of the enemy, but many also who looked with lower- ing brows upon the departing King, and made ready for their part in the treason which was to accomplish his overthrow. Within eight months of the Vislgothic defeat on the bank of the Guadalete, Tarik with his army stood before Toledo. Already It was prac- tically emptied of its Vislgothic population. The larger proportion of -the fighting men had fol« 226 TOLEDO lowed Roderick Into the south, leaving an Insuf- ficient number to control the disaffected Spaniards and Jews, and, at the same time, offer an effective opposition to the Moslem army. The dread news of Its approach, therefore, had plunged the city into all the horrors of anarchy and excess. Pri- vate houses were plundered by a lawless garrison, while the clergy and remaining nobility hastily buried treasures and relics, or packed them Into chests to be carried with them in a desperate flight. The Archbishop retired to Rome, but the most of the patrician Visigoths took refuge In the north. In spite of this exodus Toledo's strong posi- tion rendered it difficult to capture. Alone among Spanish cities, Tarik found it surrounded by a wall which rose to a great height even on the side protected by the river; the approach from the vega on the north being covered by out- works and barbicans of double strength; all as designed and completed by Wamba. Accounts of the capitulation are confused and contradictory. Even the date varies from 712 to 719, and it is probable that some time was spent by Tarik in the pursuit of the flying nobles before he set him- self to the subjugation of their deserted capital. Some say that Tarik found only Jews left in the city, and that its gates were thrown open to wel- come his approach, but Toledo was never yet 227 BUILDERS OF SPAIN ready to bow to any conqueror, and the terms se- cured from the Berber general, which were espe- cially advantageous, indicate considerable resistance. Among the fabulous accounts of the booty found by Tarik, Al Makkari tells of one hundred and seventy royal diadems set with pearls, rubies, and other precious stones; and of a spacious temple filled with vases of gold and silver, which temple was of such dimensions that when its riches were removed It afforded sufficient room for the Arab cavaliers to exercise. In throwing the spear and other military sports. The writer goes on to observe that the latter seems almost Incredible, although he had It from most trustworthy author- ity, but he piously adds, " God only knows." Two Berber soldiers are said to have found an altar cloth of gold brocade enriched with hyacinths and emeralds. They cut off the shining stones, which appealed to their Ignorance, and cast the remainder away. Another threw away the pearls which filled a golden vase, and kept the vase. A room In the palace, taken possession of by Tarik, was found filled with treasures and royal insignia, chains, diadems, urns, uncut jewels, sceptres, dec- orated weapons, armour, and robes of cloth of gold. The climax Is reached In a tale of the Psalms of David, written on gold leaf in water made of dissolved rubies;* and In a description of * Doubtless an illuminated manuscript of especial beauty. 228 TOLEDO the famous table of Solomon, finally carried piece- meal by Musa and Tarik to Damascus, whose top was said to be made of a single emerald, and whose legs were of carved gold. Although such highly coloured accounts are much exaggerated, our knowledge of the jewels dug up at Guarrazar forbids that we should regard them as entirely Imaginary. Not only the above list, but many others, represent a treasure which served to dazzle the eyes of the Arabs and Moors who took possession of It, and whose destruction Is an Immense loss in the history of the goldsmith's art. The Moslem conquest of Toledo was soon found, after all, to have produced little more than a temporary disturbance of the city. The Arabs were far more enamoured of Cordova and Seville, and so little attention was given to the Gothic capital that within a few years the generous con- ditions granted by the new conquerors had been turned Into practical Independence: and, during the entire three and a half centuries that Toledo lay nominally under Moslem rule, she persistently rebelled against that authority. Reconquered by Abd-al-Rahman I. (756-787), Toledan Independence still ran so high that Al- Hakem I. (796-821) resorted to the most ex- treme measures to break It down. But although cowed from time to time, revolt followed revolt. 229 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Again, In 854, the city was besieged by an army of the Caliph. Once more she was subdued, but later, with the weakening of Moslem authority all over the peninsula, Toledo again assumed her In- dependence. But with the accession to the caliph- ate of Abd-al-Rahman III., Toledo found a king whose indomitable will was to prove even stronger than her own. At his hands the stubborn city en- dured a siege of eight years, and in the end was starved into a sullen submission. But the break- ing up of the Cordovan caliphate was not far in the future, and Toledo was one of the first cities of Spain to set up her independence under a petty Moslem prince. The most gruesome episode of the above period, and indeed in all the history of Toledo, occurred during the reign of Al-Hakem I. The Governor, Amru, had succeeded in getting the turbulent city pretty well in hand when called upon to lead an expedition Into the eastern part of the peninsula. During his absence, Al-Hakem was persuaded to appoint, as his father's substi- tute, Amru's son Yussef. But Yussef was both weak and tyrannous, and speedily had Toledo in revolt against him. Then Amru returned, and, doubtless with the consent of Al-Hakem, planned a retribution whose cold-blooded cruelty is scarcely paralleled in history. For many months Amru dissimulated his anger. As one of the chief hardships of which the peo' 230 TOLEDO pie complained was the billeting of soldiers upon householders, Amru proposed, for their accommo- dation, to build a citadel In the centre of the city, which should also be of valuable assistance In the assertion of Toledan rights. When the citadel was complete It was heavily garrisoned. Then the young prince, Al-Hakem's heir, Abd-al- Rahman, halted In front of the city with several thousand troops. He was ostensibly en route for the north, with no Intention of entering Toledo. But Amru suggested that It would be most in- hospitable not to offer him some entertainment, and the Toledans, only too ready to show off the new citadel and at the same time enjoy a royal banquet, accepted the hint with enthusiasm. A great feast was proposed, and the citizens deputed to carry the Invitation to Abd-al-Rahman returned with glowing accounts of his courtesy and liberality. The list of guests Included all the chief citizens and most eminent leaders of Toledo; and, for the better accommodation of so large a number. It was arranged that all should enter by a postern on one side of the citadel, and leave by another In the opposite wall. Upon the great day crowds surrounded both portals, enviously watching the arrival of the fortunate guests, and later waiting for their exit. But hours went by. After a time some one remarked upon the omi- nous stillness. Then another called attention to a vapour rising above the wall near the entrance, 231 BUILDERS OF SPAIN as an evidence that the festivities had not ceased. " But there was a man of medicine among the bystanders who quickly perceived its cause. * Un- happy are we ! ' he cried ; * that is not the smoke of a banquet, but the vapour from the blood of our murdered brethren.* " The victims of this horrible massacre are vari- ously estimated at from seven hundred to five thousand. They were decapitated as they entered, the headsman being stationed just inside the por- tal. The bodies were cast into an open trench which had been dug during the construction of the citadel, and from this fact the day was known as the *' Day of the Foss. " The day following, the heads were ranged In a ghastly row upon the battlements. For a time Toledo's independence was crushed. Stunned by the blow, she was also deprived, almost to a man, of her leaders. But sullen resentment, after smouldering for a time, at length flamed out again, and both Amru and his castle were burned. Surely never was retri- bution more just! Thirty years later Toledo needed another les- son. This time she was besieged by the Caliph, Mahomet I., who, finding the old walls impreg- nable to assault, resorted to a trick. He under- mined the bridge of Alcantara while his own troops were upon it; then by withdrawing them inveigled the Toledans into pursuit. With their 233 TOLEDO onrush the bridge split and the deep gorge was piled high with their fallen bodies. Yet, In spite of frequent tyrannies on the part of the caliphate, and constantly recurring Insubor- diation on that of Toledo, no city of Spain yielded more readily and completely to the Influ- ence of Saracenic civilization. The most Insistent note In her aspect to-day, as all through her his- tory, is that of the mountain eyrie of her Iberic founders; yet the touch of Moslem hands has everywhere left its impression. Her character Is masculine as compared with the softer feminine grace of Seville, yet Toledo's great monuments are almost as distinctly and constantly Saracenic as are those of the southern city. From the very beginning of their occupation, the Moslems devoted tireless activity and foster- ing care to the Improvement of the old Gothic capital. Houses and mosques sprang up; public Improvements were undertaken; and gardens soon blossomed luxuriantly both In the town and In the vcga. An Arabian poet sings: " Toledo surpasses in beauty the most extravagant descriptitn. She is indeed a city of pleasures and delights. God has lavished upon her all sorts of ornaments. He has given her her walls for a turban, her river for a girdle, and the branches of trees for stars." Among the royal and princely residences In the environs of Toledo, one, the Mansion of Hours, 233 BUILDERS OF SPAIN stood near the Tagus a short distance west of the city. Its walls sparkled with mosaics and gilded stucco; rare marbles paved Its floors and gushing fountains cooled Its courts. In the basin of the largest fountain was placed one of the most remarkable pieces of hydraulic mechanism ever invented. This clepsydra, or water clock, was In- vented by the famous astronomer, Al-Zarkel. It consisted of two basins supplied with water whose quantity was regulated by the phases of the moon. With the appearance of the crescent, water be- gan to run Into the basins, continuing until the moon was full. Then, as It waned, the water also diminished until, exactly as the moon disap- peared, the basins were found empty. As the mechanism acted automatically. If at any time water was taken out or added to that In the basins, the amount was not affected, and at all times represented the proper amount in relation to the state of the moon. In the garden of another Toledan villa was a pavilion built In the centre of an Immense foun- tain. It was approached by an underground pas- sage, and was constructed of a delicate frame- work filled with glass In many colours, relieved by gold and silver arabesques, while the floor was a rich mosaic. At midday, when the Emir took his siesta there, the pavilion was enveloped in the spray of the fountain. This not only cooled the 234 TOLEDO atmosphere of the Interior, but the sound of fall- ing water, combined with the play of changing colours caused by its flow upon the wall of glass, was calculated to produce the most delightful sensations of luxury and enjoyment. Another fabled palace was that made famous by the oft-told legend of Gallana. For this beautiful daughter of a Moorish governor of Toledo, her father rebuilt an earlier Gothic (or Roman) palace In the vega to the northeast of the city, and Lozano relates, at some length, how she was found there by Charlemagne, who not only won her favour, but In a duel cut off the hand of a rival who persecuted his mistress with unwelcome attentions. It Is even said that Ga- llana was carried back to France by her royal lover, who made her Queen of his vast empire. As Charlemagne was never within hundreds of miles of Toledo, the story crumbles at a touch; but there arc still a few defaced remains of the palace called that of Gallana, which, together with descriptions of what was In existence fifty years ago, Indicate* an abode of exquisite beauty whose style and finish might have vied with the famous palaces of Cordova and Granada. When it comes to actual existing remains of Saracenic monuments in Toledo, little is left of the Moorish period. The old citadel still remained the chief fortification, and here, as elsewhere, was 235 BUILDERS OF SPAIN given the Arabic name Alcazar, which has clung to It, but many rebuildlngs have left little If any- thing earlier than the reconquest. The " Taller del Moro " Is thought to preserve some portions of the walls of the citadel built by Amru, but with this, as with most of the Saracenic palaces and public works which remain In Toledo to-day, although almost entirely built or rebSIlt by Mos- lem workmen, they were done In the employ of their conquerors, after the Christian re-occupatlon. Practically the only complete earlier example left is the tiny mosque built on the site of the chapel of Athanagild, now known as the chapel of Cristo de la Luz. Only twenty-one feet seven and a half Inches, by twenty feet two Inches, on the ground plan, this little mosque Is one of the earliest, ds well as one of the most Interesting Saracenic monuments in the peninsula. The square enclosure Is divided into nine bays by four pillars. (Their clumsily cut capitals, as before pointed out, were probably re-used from the earlier structure.) These pillars are placed at equal distances from the walls and each other, and support dividing walls which are continued up to the roof. These upper walls In- tersect and produce nine cupolas, each crowned by an arched and ribbed dome, all varying In de- sign. The central cupola Is carried one stage higher than the others, and Its dome Is somewhat 236 TOLEDO more pretentious. In the first story the cross walls have plain horseshoe arches springing from the ancient capitals; while those of the second stage are pierced by arches of the same form, but cusped. There are few buildings anywhere of so much originality of design, and rarely has an effect of architectural importance been produced upon so small a scale. What is left of the original ex- terior shows beautiful brick work with arcades of cusped Interlacing arches. In some of which red and green bricks are alternated. The side wall seen from the garden Is one of the most exquisite bits of detail and color in Toledo. 237 Chapter XI TOLEDO— Continued THE conquest of Toledo by Alfonso VI., of Leon and Castile, is usually charac- terized as an act of the basest Ingrati- tude. Not only had the city served as Alfonso's refuge from the treachery of his brother Sancho, but he had been received with distinguished kind- ness by the Moslem King, Al-Mamun. A royal palace had been assigned him with a train of slaves for his service. He had enjoyed the Inti- macy of the King, and shared all the pleasures of the court. He had even been given an honoured po- sition, with a command. In the Moslem army ; thus was obtained, by Alfonso, a knowledge of the city's defences, and of the growing weakness of Moslem rule, which rendered It an easy prize for the Christian advance. But although Alfonso was not above taking advantage of a friend's extremity, it must also be recognized that Yahia, the son and successor of Al-Mamun, was weak and effeminate, and that his reign had reduced the fortunes of Toledo to their lowest ebb; furthermore, the prog- ress of Christian arms southward was inevitable. The degenerate Yahia had sunk so low that, after appealing at one time to Alfonso for aid 238 TOLEDO against his own subjects, he finally accepted thank- fully from the Christian king the kingdom of Valencia In exchange for Toledo; then, after spending his last hours there In consultation with his astrologers as to the most propitious moment for departure, this abject kingling might have been seen taking his mournful way down through her steep streets and across the wide vega; pre- ceded by the treasure he had been permitted to retain, and expending more concern upon his as- trolabe than upon his lost estate. On the twenty-sixth of May, 1085, Alfonso, followed by an Imposing train, made his royal entry into Toledo. There was the pompous splen- dour of a vast body of ecclesiastics, and the long ranks of a great army. Prelates in official vest- ments bore aloft the crosses and sacred vessels car- ried away three hundred and fifty years earlier In hasty and desperate flight; now brought back from their long hiding in the depths of the Asturias. Many of the nobles who followed in Alfonso's train were descendants of families who once inhabited palaces in the old Gothic capital, now returning to the homes of their ancestors. The long and glittering cavalcade was closed by the ladles of the court, dressed in silks of many colours, with gleaming jewels, mounted on richly caparisoned horses, and guarded by a detachment of the Castllian army. 239 BUILDERS OF SPAIN This vast and splendid procession entered the city by the road sometimes called the Via Sacra. By Its winding way they climbed the steep hill to the tiny mosque which had long replaced the an- cient chapel of AthanagUd. It was the first tem- ple encountered within the walls, and as the king was passing by, his horse knelt. The action was at once regarded as a supernatural sign. A place In the wall was opened; one wonders how they happened to hit upon the exact spot so readily; and the opening disclosed a crucifix with a lamp still burning, although It was three and a half cen- turies since it had been walled up. Then the Archbishop appeared and mass was said, and the mosque, after Its purification, became Cristo de la Luz, or Christ of the Light. The terms granted by Alfonso to the conquered city were most generous. To those who submitted were guaranteed unmolested residence and enjoy- ment of property. Moslem citizens were per- mitted the practice of their own religious rites, the services of their own magistrates, and were subject to their own laws. Tribute to the new king was to be the same as that rendered to the old, and the Grand Mosque, with a number of lesser mosques, was to be preserved inviolate for their use. Only royal palaces and gardens, for- tifications, and public works were to become the property of the Castlllan crown. 240 TOLEDO Alfonso appointed the CId (?) as alcalde or governor, and his French Queen, Constance of Burgundy, with her Archbishop, Bernard of Cluny, as regents, while he conducted an expedition into the north. Now the Grand Mosque had long re- placed the cathedral built by Recared, and some- where within its greater extent and increased splendour is thought to have been preserved some portion of the primitive earlier edifice. No sooner had Alfonso departed, therefore, than the Queen and her Bishop discovered It to be a most unholy thing for the service of Islam to be conducted upon so sacred a spot; the Moslems were sum- marily ejected, and the throne of the Archbishop was quickly re-established upon Its ancient site. Moslem outcry against Christian perfidy was quick and loud. It penetrated even to the ears of the King at Leon, who at once hurried back to disclaim any part In the wrong done In his name; his denunciations of the culprits went to the extreme of an offer to burn both the Queen and the Bishop. The part was somewhat over- acted, and one is not without a suspicion that Alfonso may have been privy to the treachery; but it served Its purpose with the tender-hearted Moslems, whose righteous anger evaporated in pity for the victims of the King's wrath, and In the end they condoned the offence with the acceptance of a new site for a new mosque. 241 BUILDERS OF SPAIN But the Queen and her zealous Bishop were not yet through with their reforms In Toledo. Although the Toledan church under Recared had embraced the Orthodox form of faith, with the Catholic doctrine of the Trinity, the clergy had stubbornly refused to yield their Gothic liturgy, and still followed its quaint forms In their wor- ship. These simple and ancient rites were found shocking and even heretical by the Queen and the monk fresh from Cluny, and It was at once proposed to replace them with the more generally accepted Roman ritual. But Toledo had no mind to give up the liturgy sanctioned by the usage of her fathers for hun- dreds of years and inherited from the very found- ers of her church ; and excitement soon ran high, splitting the city into discordant factions. Finally It was resolved to submit the matter to a trial of arms. But the issue of the duel, in which the champion of the Toledan ritual was victorious, was found unsatisfactory by the Bishop, Bernard, and a final test by fire was arranged. In the old plaza of Zocodover a bonfire was lighted, and copies of both formulas were cast into the flames. The French office struggled with the blaze and leaped out, while the Toledan ritual remained quiet and unharmed. Even this could scarcely have been considered perfectly conclusive, and the matter finally settled itself with the pres- 242 TOLEDO ervatlon of the ancient Vlsigothic rites, soon called the Mozarabe ritual, in a half dozen churches, which were gradually reduced to two, while the Romish service was set up in the cathe- dral and finally came to be generally accepted. The Cid, it is said, was established with great magnificence in the Moorish castle of San Ser- vando, whose remains now look down upon the bridge Alcantara from the heights across the Tagus. The shrewd warrior (if he really came to Toledo at this time) knew better than to place himself in the hands of Alfonso and his fierce and unstable Toledans, by accepting the royal palace within the walls which was tendered for his use. But although it was at Toledo that the Cid was publicly avenged upon the Princes of Carrion who had married and then scorned his daughters, his governorship counted for nothing In the history of Toledo Itself, and the famous freebooter was soon ofl[ for Valencia, which he speedily conquered for himself from the miser- able Yahia. The King, Alfonso, set up his throne In a royal palace within the city. Its walls, we are told, were hung with gold brocade, and with the shields of a hundred Christian knights; but which palace, or where located, we may only conjecture. Alfonso ruled his kingdom from Toledo, and his reign left a profound impression upon its aspect. 243 BUILDERS OF SPAIN He at once set about the rebuilding of the old Citadel-Alcazar. Under him It first assumed some- what of Its present proportions, and doubtless, when his work was completed, he lived In It; but its primary Importance was still that of a fortifi- cation from which the CastUIan King could hold In check his mixed and often turbulent new sub- jects. Alfonso VI. is also credited with the new wall which describes a wide sweep down Into the vega, although Its date, 1109, Is also given as the year of his death. In this wall, and spanning the way by which the Christian King and his victorious army entered Toledo, was the massive Moorish gateway, called the Puerta de VIsagra. The date of this antique Puerta VIsagra, like the deriva- tion of Its name, is as variously given as there are historians who have attempted It. Because of its early Moorish character it is usually ascribed to the ninth century. But, although It Is possible that it may have spanned the roadway before the wall of Alfonso was built, it seems far more probable that it is contemporary with, and a part of, the latter work In the twelfth century. The name of the roadway, Via Sacra, has resulted from an attempt to explain the name VIsagra, but Ford's Bib Sakra, Arabic for gate of the country, appears far more plausible. Since the building of the new Puerta de VIsagra farther up, by Philip II., the 344 TOLEDO old gateway Has beeii blocked up and called Puerta Lodada. Alfonso VI. used all his endeavours to retain the Industrious Moslem and Jewish population In his new capital, a policy followed by his succes- sors until religious Intolerance Introduced a con- trary attitude; and for the next three hundred years, Moslem labour and Jewish tradesmen were employed at Toledo In the production and Im- portation of those luxuries for which the VIsI- gothlc nobility had always displayed a passionate fondness. It follows, therefore, that In the archi- tectural activities which soon resulted In the build- ing or rebuilding of a new crop of churches and palaces, the dominant note Is always Saracenic. In many cases, as In those of Cristo de la Luz and the cathedral, mosques were purified; a for- mality which by no means indicated greater clean- liness, often quite the reverse; after which they were consecrated to the Christian faith. Such churches, of which San Roman Is a notable ex- ample, have usually been subject to subsequent changes and rebuilding. In such work, and in newer structures, the Influence of the North grad- ually crept in. Alfonso VI. was not the only king of Castile who brought a queen and a bishop from beyond the Pyrenees, where the new man- ner of building, miscalled Gothic, was soon to spring into the full vigour of a great style; and as 245 BUILDERS OF SPAIN the years rolled on, more or less of Gothic details are to be found mingled with the earlier Moorish forms. Yet it remains true that, save only one, every monument of Importance In Toledo, dating earlier than the fifteenth century, is fundamentally and distinctly Saracenic. The most imposing Moorish monument of the Christian period is the superb gateway, the Puerta del Sol. Built In the old Inner wall and dating probably from the end of the twelfth century, Its grandeur and solidity Impart a look of power which Is of the North rather than of the South. But all Its details. Its horseshoe arches, both round and pointed, and Its cusped and Interlaced arches of brickwork, are constructed after the Moorish fashion and are purely Saracenic. Built with due regard to military requirements, It Is also beautiful In proportion and detail, and Is still one of the noblest works of architecture preserved In the peninsula. Probably of about the same date was the syna- gogue now known as Sta. Maria la Blanca. This remarkable structure has been subject to so much rebuilding, and so many reconsecratlons to various uses, that It Is a question how much of the orig- inal edifice remains; possibly nothing but Its baslllcan ground plan, with the form of Its octag- onal columns and horseshoe arches. As restored to-day, later work upon it appears to have been 246 Piicrta del Sol, Toledo. TOLEDO largely, If not entirely, after the Saracenic style. Fine stucco covers the walls and columns, and even the capitals. Delicate arabesques cut In the stucco are mostly of Arabic designs, but the deep and elaborate cutting of the capitals is more By- zantine in feeling than Saracenic. Fine Moorish tiling covers the floor, and openings pierced in the upper walls between nave and aisles are cusped after the Saracenic fashion. Converted to Chris- tian uses during the fifteenth century, this old syn- agogue has since been used as a barracks, an asylum, a military store, and a dancing hall. These desecrations and rebuildlngs have left noth- ing of Its early exterior, and, as restored to-day, authorities are greatly in doubt as to the date of much of the Interior finish. But many things besides the building of walls and citadels, churches and gateways, were hap- pening in Toledo during these early years of its Christian rule. Army after army of Andaluslan Moslems and Berber fanatics appeared under her walls, sent up fierce challenges, received haughty replies, and were finally forced to retire, having accomplished nothing against her Impregnable for- tifications. Finally there came news of the stu- pendous preparations for invading the north, of the last of the African kings, which was followed by the arming of all Europe to repel his ad- vance; and In the spring of 121 2, Toledo was 247 BUILDERS OF SPAIN made the rendezvous of the vast numbers of the united Christian forces. So great was the host of warriors that they overflowed Into the villas and gardens of the sur- rounding country. Luckily the CastUIan King, Alfonso VIII. , had provided an abundance of provisions, but the great wealth of the Jewish population quickly aroused the cupidity of the soldiers, who were mostly adventurers; and out- rage and reprisals soon threatened, not only the peace of the city, but the very existence of the army. A plot was discovered for the wholesale massacre of large bodies of troops, which It re- quired all the authority of Alfonso, and the Influ- ence of the clergy, to frustrate. That danger averted, the departure of the army was hastened as rapidly as possible, and In June Its long columns crossed the vega towards the battlefield of Navas de Tolosa, where, through the Intrepid- ity of Toledo's warrior Archbishop, Rodrlgo de Rada, another great step was to be made in the Christian reconquest of the peninsula. After the conquest of Cordova and Seville, which followed within fifty years, the CastUIan court drifted more and more to the south, with only occasional visits to Toledo, but the hieratic power of the latter never waned; and although St. Ferdinand's extension of his kingdom deprived Toledo of her importance as the capital of Cas- 248 m ■^'i %. x>: •» Std. Maria la Blanca, Toledo, TOLEDO tile and Leon, It was he who laid the foundation of her great cathedral, the seat of her powerful archbishops, not a few of whom have been openly recognized as the real rulers of Christian Spain. Like Alfonso VL, St. Ferdinand had a French Queen, and she a French Bishop; and when It was decided to build In Toledo a new and splendid cathedral, the result amply proves that between them they engaged a French architect, or at least one thoroughly familiar with the best contempo- rary French monuments. The name of the archi- tect as preserved, Petrus Petri, Is usually rendered Pedro Perez, but it might as well be Pierre the son of Pierre, as in fact it most probably was. Moorish workmen, under Christian direction, were still building In Toledo, Saracenic churches, towers, and palaces. But while the Toledans were content with such construction for less Im- portant edifices, it is not Improbable that, even without a French queen and French bishop, what was recognized as a more distinctly Christian ec- clesiastical style would have been chosen for the supreme effort of their great church. Street calls it a grand protest against Moslem architecture; and the splendour of so Isolated an example of a great style is unique In the history of building. The ancient structure, half cathedral, half mosque, was entirely cleared away, and. In August, 1227, the first stone of the new minster was laid 249 BUILDERS OF' SPAIN witK Imposing ceremonials by the King and the redoubtable Archbishop, Rodrigo de Rada. To- ledo's proud spirit and lofty aspirations were ex- pressed In the very foundation of her new church. The ground plan still places it among the largest in Christendom, and although this magnificence of size was to be exceeded by the later cathedral at Seville, the effort of succeeding ages upon It has left Toledo's cathedral unrivalled In Europe In its splendour of decoration. As he surveys It to-day, the student must realize at once that comparatively little of the exterior of the cathedral at Toledo has been left un- touched during the past three centuries. Repairs and additions have made a hodge-podge of the most of Its walls and roofs, and even the effect of Its mountainous mass of stone Is effectually spoiled by the closely huddled bulk of contiguous buildings. In Its Interior, however, both construc- tion and detail have preserved their original forms to a remarkable degree, and both are singularly pure Gothic. This fact Is astonishing when it Is considered that the larger proportion of the work- men were doubtless Moslems, or Spaniards trained in Saracenic methods. Only once In the fabric of the church itself does Moslem feeling creep In, and that in the clerestory of the choir, where the arched openings Incline to the horseshoe form, and are sharply cusped after the Moorish man- 250 Cathedral, Toledo. Nave Looking West. Interior of Coro in Foreground. of I la IT: 2:^0 TOLEDO ner. The Spanlshness of the completed structure Is more pervasive, and touches with a barbaric magnificence the most of the ornamentation. But in its fundamental form, and in its mouldings and traceries, the cathedral at Toledo Is compara- ble, and occasionally to the advantage of the Spanish church, with the best of the French Gothic monuments. For a study of its most salient characteristics, no better plan can be followed than that of a comparison of the cathedral of Toledo with Notre Dame, Parls.^ First as to proportions. The length of the two churches is nearly equal. Paris is four hundred, Toledo three hundred and ninety feet long; but In width Paris is one hundred and ten feet, and Toledo one hundred and seventy- eight. Toledo's vast extent is, therefore, entirely a matter of width, and when it Is found that Its nave Is no higher than that of Paris, its great- est structural defect, namely, too great width for its length and height, is fully disclosed. The same mistake was made at Milan, but the aisles of Toledo are lower, and the greater expanse of Its clerestory walls where, in Its enormous win- dows, every available Inch Is made to glow with colour, prevents to a great degree the monotony of proportions and interior gloom of the Italian 1 See " French Cathedrals and Chateaux," by the author of this book. 251 BUILDERS OF SPAIN example. Indeed, In Toledo the proportionate height of the two aisles to that of the nave Is so admirable that the structure does not appear as wide and low as It really Is; and even Its propor- tionate shortness Is lost sight of In purity of line, simplicity of organism, and Imposing construction. The most brilliant achievement In the construc- tion of the cathedral at Toledo Is found In the vaulting of the curving aisles which surround the apse, always a problem of the greatest difficulty In the erection of Gothic churches. In early and small examples, the curving bays were left, as naturally formed — that Is, wedge-shaped, and the first advance was made when the diagonal ribs of the vaulting, instead of being left straight, were either bent at an angle, or curved, so that they crossed the centre of each bay.^ With the growth In size of the great cathedrals, and espe- cially with double aisles. It was found necessary to place more piers In the outer curves of the aisles than were found In the end of the apse. This effected new divisions of the vaulting bays, and a wide variety of arrangement Is found. At Paris the additional outer piers are placed oppo- site Inner arches, and the vaulting compartments are uniformly wedge-shaped, alternately pointing in and out. But at Toledo, the architect has hit 2 See chapter on St. Denis, " French Cathedrals and Chateaux," by the author of the present volume. 252 TOLEDO upon a plan which Is by all means the best solution of the problem ever reached. He has doubled the number of each encircling row of columns, but has so arranged them that the main bays are nearly square, and radiate at right angles from the arches of the curving apse, while between them are triangular bays, all with their sharp points directed Inwards. As a result. Instead of block- ing up the vista through each arch by an outer column, as at Paris, this arrangement at Toledo renders possible an unobstructed view, from any point In the nave or aisles, to the outer windows of the choir aisles; an effect among the most beautiful of the results of the Gothic style. But, besides the solid screen and Retablo of the Capilla Mayor, the walls of the east end of Toledo's cathedral. Instead of being filled with windows, are now blocked up by chapels, re- ducing the choir aisles to mere passageways, and depriving of half its possible effect the admirable placing of columns. But that arrangement, with the resulting vaulting system, remains nevertheless the chief constructive success of the entire fabric, and one of the most brilliant achievements of the Gothic style. The blocking up, by the solid walls of Its Coro, of the long vista of the nave. In Toledo, is partly compensated by the unrivalled richness of both Coro and Capilla Mayor. White 253 BUILDERS OF SPAIN marble, mellowed by time, with jasper and porphyry, are cut Into such elaboration of carving as one may not see in Europe outside of Spain, and in Spain nowhere In such piled-up magnifi- cence as In Toledo. Undoubtedly overdone, and frequently bizarre, the endless labour of sculpture, together with bronze and gilded screens and painted altar pieces, all stained with additional colour from the brilliant walls of glass, produce an atmosphere of sombre splendour which Is seldom equalled except where some barbaric or oriental Influence Is paramount. All of this furnishing and decoration, as well as the chapels which surround the aisles, have been the gradual work of the centuries since Pierre the son of Pierre (who Is believed to have lived until 1290) saw the body of the great cathedral well on to Its completion. The growth of the great pile, therefore, forms an abstract of the ar- tistic development, as well as of the history, of Toledo. A wave of the Norman Influence, which followed the alliances of the royal house of Cas- tile with that of England, Is seen In the dog- tooth ornament which Is fairly plentiful at the east end of the church. There is even a little of the later English ball-flower to be found. A richly carved Moresque arch of stucco In the chapel of Sta. Lucia, and the sumptuous ante sala of the Sala Capitular, In the same style, bear 254 C a pill a Mayor, Cathedral, Toledo. TOLEDO witness to the long preservation of Saracenic tra- ditions; the latter work probably dating from the fifteenth century. But the mass of the orna- ment Is Gothic, Gothic Plateresque, Renaissance Plateresque, and so on In the regular progression of the styles developed in Spain. The names which ring out the most sonorously in the annals of the cathedral are those of To- ledo's powerful churchmen. The chapel of Ilde- fonso was founded by Rodrlgo de Rada. The magnificent Cardinal-Bishop Tenorlo built the cloisters, the chapel of San Bias, and the superb exterior walls of the Coro; the latter composed of fifty-two precious and differently coloured marbles. Many other important works In the town are due to this more than royal Bishop, not the least of which was the reconstruction of the bridge of San Martino, after it was broken down by Henry IV. The *^ Tertius Rex'* of the earlier years of the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella, Mendoza, left the sumptuous carvings of the lower stalls of the Coro, with their historical medallions of the con- quest of Granada. This Archbishop also secured for himself a tomb among the early kings of Castile In the Capllla Mayor. Cardinal Xlmenes, to whom the Spaniards usu- ally give his other name, CIsneros, being far more frugal In his personal expenditure than his prede- 255 BUILDERS OF SPAIN cesser, had greater wealth to bestow upon his church. Much of the splendour of the Capilla Mayor is due to him, as well as the carvings of Berruguete and Borgogna in the stalls of the Coro. But the most magnificent single work of Ximenes was the Custodia In solid silver, wrought between the years 15 17 and 1523, by Enrique Arfe, a Spaniard by birth but of German parent- age. It is In the form of a Gothic hexagonal temple, so delicately pierced that it looks like lace work. It Is studded with gems; bells and Incense holders of filagree hang from the roof; and two hundred and sixty statues fill Its niches. Within It Is placed the virll which Ximenes had made of the first gold brought by Columbus from Amer- ica, an Ingot weighing twenty-nine pounds. The whole structure is crowned by a gold and jewelled cross, said to have been raised by Mendoza above the towers of the Alhambra the day of the sur- render of Granada. Although Cardinal Tavera left no distinctive impression upon his cathedral, his reputation for piety and justice has preserved a noble name in the history of Toledo: and. In the great Hospital founded by him down In the vega, a monument worthy of his fame, one of the most splendid tombs in existence, was reared by Berruguete. Cardinal Rojas, who erected the shrine to mark the spot where the Virgin appeared to St. Ildefonso; and 256 TOLEDO Archbishop Contreras, who completed the western tower and spire with its triple crown of thorns, complete the list of the most eminent of the archbishops of Toledo, whose labours upon her cathedral carry us well into the Renaissance period. That the results are not equally pure should be expected, but it is worthy of remark that only once in the entire structure does the critic find work which is utterly to be condemned, and that in the latest effort for its decoration. In the eighteenth century that abomination of the degraded Churrigueresque movement, the Tras- parente^ replaced a part of the earlier Gothic screen back of the High Altar. This " fricassee of marble " is said to have cost two hundred thousand ducats, and never in the history of art was anything more atrocious conceived and ex- ecuted. Yet the unveiling of this horror, composed of clouds, rays of light, and limbs of angels, all heavily executed in marble, was made the occasion of national rejoicing, with processions, bull fights, fireworks, and illuminations. Like the superb eagle of the desk of the Coro, and the incon- ceivable richness of the Treasury, where the single item of the robe of the Virgin is embroidered with eighty-five thousand seed pearls, not to men- tion diamonds, rubies, and other precious stones, the Trasparente is the supreme example of its 257 BUILDERS OF SPAIN kind, a monument to the barbaric extravagance of Spanish taste, and to the lowest degradation of Spanish art. • • • • • Until the fifteenth century the old Citadel was most frequently used as a fortress or a prison. One of Its most pathetic Inmates was the unhappy Queen of Pedro el Cruel, Blanche of Bourbon; but her royal spouse, when in Toledo, preferred for himself a residence In the Moresque palace which still bears his name. Another example of Pedro's reign was a synagogue in the Jewish quarter, in the bastard Moresque style of Pedro's restoration of the Alcazar at Seville. After a long chapter of vicissitudes, what is left of this synagogue is now known as the church of El Transito. Its original splendour, still indicated by its rich ornamentation, furnished such conspicuous evidence of the wealth of Its builder, Samuel Levi, that Pedro's cupidity, always easily aroused, suggested suspicions of the Jew's honesty, and his disgrace and spoliation were quickly accomplished. But poor Blanche appears to have inspired lit- tle feeling of any kind In the breast of her ty- rant. The excuse usually given for her long imprisonment was the alleged discovery by Pedro of a mutual tenderness between her and his half- brother, Don Fadrlque; but we know to-day that the pale timidity of the young Queen failed to at- 258 ■^ Chapel of Santiago. Cathedral. Toledo. TOLEDO tract the vindictive Pedro, and, furthermore, that his passion for Maria de Padllla left him little thought or sentiment for her legitimate rival. One day while praying In the cathedral, Blanche, at last grown desperate, suddenly called out "Sanctuary!" The Toledans at once rallied to the support of the outraged Queen. Word was sent to Don Fadrlque, who, as Grand Master of Santiago, had Its forces at his command, and within a few weeks, most of the nobility of Cas- tile, at this period chronically at odds with the King, had flocked to her standard. Blanche was proclaimed free and lawful sovereign of Spain, and Pedro was summoned to give the Queen her rightful place. Pedro, caught at a disadvantage, was obliged to temporize, but lack of any real union among the leaders finally defeated their cause, and Blanche was sent to a stronger and more Isolated fortress, while the leaders of the movement were hanged. But, for the time, Fad- rique escaped his brother's anger. King Juan II. displayed a marked fondness for Toledo, and to him are attributed extensive ad- ditions and restorations at the old Citadel-Alcazar. These works were accomplished under the care of the great Conde de Luna, who also erected the most magnificent chapel of the cathedral. The Conde de Luna was another Grand Master of Santiago, and his chapel, which also served as the 259 BUILDERS OF SPAIN tomb of his family, was dedicated to that saint. It IS In the richest flamboyant Gothic, with open arches curiously built across Its corners. The arms of its founder, with the scallop shells indicating his office, are freely mingled with other decora- tions, and splendid tombs of the Conde and Con- dessa occupy the centre of the chapel. The original tombs, designed under the super- vision of the great favourite himself, were even more magnificent, and possessed the added charm of providing entertainment for the curious. The recumbent full-length figures were of bronze, and so fashioned that whenever mass was recited they rose and knelt during the service. Had these figures been spared, what a fruitful source of in- come to the modern sacristan! But after the dis- grace and execution of De Luna, his enemies clamoured, as an additional indignity, for their de- struction, and they were broken up and recast into the pulpits outside the reja of the Capilla Mayor. The present tombs were erected by the daughter of the fallen favourite, after his so-called crimes had been forgotten. During the troubles incident to Isabella's acces- sion, Toledo, aways strenuous, violently cham- pioned first one side and then the other. But once seated upon the throne, no city in Spain be- came more loyal to the great Queen. Although the most stirring events of Isabella's reign lie 260 Heraldic Oruameut. Saji Juan de los Beyes, Toledo. TOLEDO elsewhere, she visited Toledo many times, and the power of Its archbishops was never so great either before or since. Here was erected the first archi- tectural work of importance of this reign: the church and convent of San Juan de los Reyes. It was begun, In 1476, to commemorate a decisive victory over the forces of La Beltraneja at Toro. Although the building suffered serious Injury at the time of the peninsular war, It still remains a famous example of late and florid Gothic. The church Itself Is small, or at least It appears so. Its chief architectural feature Is a pendentlve cupola, or lantern, at the crossing, which strongly sug- gests the famous octagon at Ely. Besides this cupola the superb sculpture of the Interior walls demands attention. Street observes that this ap- pears to have been the age of heraldic achieve- ments; for here once more, as in the chapel of Santiago, angels are engaged in the unangellc oc- cupation of holding up the shields which crowd the walls.^ Here first we find the quartered arms of Ferdi- nand and Isabella, which, during their reign, were made to appear upon every monument of impor- tance in Spain; but here the lions and castles of Leon and Castile, with the bars of Aragon, and the bars and eagles of Sicily, are borne by an eagle 3 The chains hung on the outside walls are said to have been taken from the limbs of Christian captives at Granada. 261 BUILDERS OF SPAIN with a halo. This Is the eagle of St. John, carved here to do honour to the saint to whom the church was dedicated, and for whom at the same time the Infant prince and heir was named. The F. and Y. for Ferdinand and Isabella (Ysabel) also frequently appear, as well as the yoke and the bundle of arrows, which were the especial device of each. " It was common," says Oviedo, " for each party to adopt a device whose Initial corre- sponded with that of the name of the other." Thus a Yugo or lugo (yoke) was Ferdinand's especial emblem, and a Flechas (bundle of arrows) that of Isabella. Both devices are further in- terpreted — the yoke as indicating equality (the words tanta monta — tantamount — are often found with It), and the bundle of arrows as referring to the binding together of the states of Spain Into a united kingdom. The lace-like carvings of mouldings and panels In the church become even more delicate and thread-like In the ornamentation of the cloisters. The work Is exquisite, yet somehow it fails to satisfy as does the less elegant but more distinctly llthic work of earlier periods. Here the sculptor is carving for the sake of his carving, rather than for that of the monument which he decorates, and his measure of success lies very largely in the astonishment he provokes. The same criticism may be applied to the bizarre forms of the upper 262 Cloister, San Juan de los Beyes, Toledo. a unite TOLEDO arches of the cloisters, and, in some degree also, to the weak tracery of the lower ones. The at- mosphere is of enervation rather than of vigour, and one wonders at the ardent spirit of Xlmenes, who here entered upon the strenuous life of pov- erty and self-abasement which he had marked out for himself before called upon to begin the great career which made him the successor of Men- doza. In 1494, only a year before his death. Cardinal Mendoza had determined upon the erection, at or near the location of the old Praetorian palace, of a hospital which, from the form of its ground plan — a Maltese cross — was to be known as Santa Cruz. The work, which was carried to Its com- pletion by Queen Isabella, was the earliest dis- tinctive example of importance in Spain of the Renaissance movement, and from that fact, as well as from Its extent and splendour. It remains one of the most significant architectural monuments in the peninsula. In its superb portal are still to be found Gothic details, and the heavy doors are studded with huge Moorish nails. But, although the absurdly pliant columns of Its second stage are inconceivable In any region blessed with pure tra- ditions or sanity of taste, the mass of the ricK ornament Is purely classical In design. In the two courts and the splendid staircase, even more of the Gothic has crept In than In the portal, but funda- 263 BUILDERS OF SPAIN mentally the edifice Is a Renaissance monument, with Plateresque ornamentation. In 1479, the Infanta Juana was born in To- ledo. From her resemblance to the mother of Ferdinand, Queen Isabella playfully called this little daughter, her mother-in-law. " Playfulness " In Isabella seems somehow out of character, but one feels thankful for a season of light-hearted gaiety to offset the prevailing heaviness of her career and the gloom of that of the melancholy Juana. Upon the occasion of Juana's first visit to Spain after her marriage, a grand reception was given her at Toledo by Isabella. A cortes was convened to swear fealty to the Infanta, then recognized as the heiress of the united kingdom of Christian Spain. In order to render the stately ceremonial more Imposing, and possibly also to please the luxuriously Inclined Philip, the sumptuary laws were relaxed for the time, and once more the grim old city blossomed out In silks and jewels. Many years later, the accession of Philip and Juana was proclaimed from the plaza Zocodover. Isabella's death occurred at Medina del Campo, from whence a courier brought the news with breathless haste; a platform was hastily im- provised, and from It, the heralds, after a long blast of trumpets, announced the passing away of the beloved Queen. Then Ferdinand, in accord- 264 Hospital Sta. Cruz, Toledo. Main Portal. TOLEDO ance with the will of Isabella, publicly resigned the crown, so long shared with his Queen, and assumed the title of Governor of Castile, which he was to hold until the arrival of his daughter and her husband. The ceremonial was concluded with the unfurling of the standard of Juana by the Duke of Alva. As might have been expected, the high-spirited citizens of Toledo were among the first and most resolute of those who rebelled against the unpop- ular measures of the early reign of Charles V.; and after Charles had demanded and received an unconstitutional grant from the cortes, which he Insulted his subjects by assembling in remote Gallcia, the fiery Toledans flew to arms. After capturing the gates and the Alcazar, they deprived of all authority any person whom they suspected of attachment to the King. Then they proceeded to set up a popular government. The chief leader of the rebels, who was also the hero of the revolution, was the son of the commander of the castle, Don Juan de Padllla, a young man of marked ability, daring courage, and a true patriot. In his early hours of popularity, twenty thousand workmen rose at his call, and, arming themselves, followed him down to Valla- dolld to bring away the seals of the kingdom, the public archives, and the treasury books. The in- trepid leader with his devoted little army paid a 265 BUILDERS OF SPAIN visit to Juana, imprisoned at Tordesillas, but, although she spoke them fair, and they claimed to have found her quite sane, she could not be in- duced to sign any authoritative papers, or to place herself at the head of the insurrection. By this time the party of Charles had gathered sufficient force to attack Padilla, whose defeat left the rebels in immediate need of reinforcements and supplies. Then the heroic wife of Padilla came to the front. Toledo was already so thoroughly stripped of her resources that little was left except the treasure of the cathedral. There was great danger of giving offence to the pious and superstitious, but money must be sent. Then Maria de Padilla (born Pacheo, and usually so-called) placed herself at the head of a solemn procession of the des- perate women of Toledo, who, clad in mourning habits, marched to the great church. There they fell upon their knees, and beating their breasts, with tears streaming from their eyes, they first implored pardon from the saints, and then vio- lated the shrines. But the sacred treasure was fruitlessly spent; jealousy of his leadership soon cost Juan de Padilla his life; and the defeat of the insurgents which naturally followed these dis- sensions within their ranks, quickly left Toledo to stand out alone against the Imperial army. But Toledo never yet gave up until the last 266 TOLEDO extremity, and in the wife of her dead patriot she still possessed a leader worthy of her most virile days. Robing herself in black, the "great widow," as a Spanish poet calls Maria de Pacheo, placed herself at the head of the insurgents. By this time a considerable court party had formed in Toledo, but so inspiring was her presence that at one time both factions carried Maria de Pacheo in triumph to the Alcazar, where they enthroned her like a queen. For days her lightest word was a command; and, although the enemy found her Implacable, she also possessed that rarest quality of a woman suddenly given great power, absolute justice. But her cause, always a desperate one, was soon hopeless; and when resistance became worse than useless, the heroic widow with her baby son stole out of Toledo by night and made her way to Portugal. After the triumph of Charles, the palace of Padilla was razed to the ground. The latest architectural work of importance in Toledo was undertaken during the reign of Charles V. Think of a city practically untouched since the beginning of the sixteenth century! The work of Charles was practically confined to the rebuilding of the Citadel-Alcazar. At last it was to be made into a royal palace, and Charles brought together all the best architects of Spain to contribute of their efforts for its splendour. It 267 BUILDERS OF SPAIN IS probable that he intended to revive the ancient glories of Toledo as the residence of the court. But the death of the Empress, for whose home It was especially planned, was a heavy blow to the work, and, although Charles frequently resided in the Alcazar, it was left to be completed by Philip II. We are told that the east and west fagades, together with a few rooms of the earlier struc- ture, built by Alfonso VI. and embellished by Alfonso X. and Juan II., were preserved in the new Alcazar; further, that for many years it was the most sumptuous palace in Spain. Although the Alcazar has suffered from four fires and as many rebulldlngs, the last rebuilding having been accomplished since 1886, it is still claimed that most of the exterior walls and a few rooms remain as left by Charles and Philip. The east fagade still bespeaks the thirteenth century and Alfonso X.; that on the west is believed to be of the fifteenth, although Its portal in the Plater- esque style is later. The other two facades, with the great court and imposing staircase, represent the work of Charles and Philip. That on the north, the earlier of the two, Is richly decorated after the Plateresque fashion; the later southern one was erected from designs by Juan de Herrera in the more severe Doric style. The court pre- sents double rows of Corinthian columns, but its size and simplicity leave it also cold and severe. 268 TOLEDO To-day these lofty fagades possess considerable artistic value and great historical significance, but the square mass of the Alcazar which towers above everything else In Toledo can only be re- garded as a discordant note In a picture in all other respects distinctively mediaeval. Scarcely second to the high spirit of the ancient Toledans themselves, was the pride of her grandees, the old VIsIgothIc nobility, which waxed more and more arrogant as the fortunes of their city declined. One day, after a tournament. King Charles {V*) was returning to the Alcazar through the narrow and tortuous streets, when the press of his attendants threatened to block the way. A zealous sergeant, who was especially of- ficious In attempts to force a passage for the Em- peror, accidentally struck the horse of the Duke of Infantado with his baton. That haughty gran- dee immediately drew his sword and beat the over-zealous official. Then Charles, resenting such Insolence In his presence, ordered RonquUlo, the judge of the court, to arrest the duke. Ronqulllo advanced to obey, but the Constable of Castile Interposed, claiming as the privilege of his office the right of jurisdiction over a grandee. So pleased were those present with the spirit and in- dependence of the official, that all deserted the Emperor and followed the Constable with loud applause as he conducted the Duke of Infantado 269 BUILDERS OF SPAIN to his apartments. Only the Cardinal Tavera was left to accompany Charles to the Alcazar. Once again the Emperor was to feel the prick of Toledan pride, when he forced upon them the entertainment of the Due de Bourbon. The lat- ter had come to offer his arms to the Emperor, and at the time his service promised to be of the utmost value. Charles himself met his ally with every mark of honour at the city gate; and, placing him upon his left hand, conducted him to his apartments. But the Toledans detested the Due and his treason, and the Marques de VUlena, whose palace had been requisitioned for the use of the royal guest, well voiced the popular feel- ing when he replied that he could not refuse his sovereign, but that his house should be burned to the ground Immediately after his guest had de- parted. That expert relic hunter, Philip II., added two of Its most precious shrines to Toledo. The first was for the bones of her first archbishop, Eu- genlus, which were recovered from France amid national rejoicing. The second, for those of St. Leocadia, which, after being brought from Flan- ders, whither In some mysterious manner they are claimed to have been spirited, were received with Imposing ceremonials at the Puerta VIsagra. So resplendent a procession had rarely been seen In Toledo, and the King himself, with the Infante, 270 tOLEDO Don Carlos, the Infanta, Dona Isabella, and other members of the royal family, all in stiff brocades and gleaming jewels, received the pre- cious relics in the porch of the cathedral. A few years later, when the Prince Don Carlos came of age, Philip came again to Toledo, whither he had summoned all the grandees of Spain to swear allegiance to his heir. For the stately ceremony a great throne was erected for Philip, and beside it one for the young Infante. The long line of grandees, sumptuously attired, passed one by one, bending low before the King and his son. But when it came the turn of the Duke of Alva, the Prince was ostentatiously ig- nored. Don Carlos turned his sad eyes to his father and inquired "Whether this was done to his liking?" "No!" replied Philip, and sternly calling Alva back, commanded him to kneel. But by this time Don Carlos had lost his temper, too, and refused to give his hand, "And from that hour," says the historian, " dates the deadly strife with Alva, which ended in Don Carlos' death."* Such were the shows and pageants by which Toledo kept up the semblance of her former greatness, but except in the inflated imaginations of her own citizens, her days of glory were fast ^We know now that the Duke of Alva had nothing to do with the sad end of the mad prince, but many strange tales were written down by the gossiping scribes of that day. 271 BUILDERS OF SPAIN departing. Not many years later, her chief inter- est was to lie in her splendid past. As early as the seventeenth century, that earliest of Spanish tourists, the French Countess de Danois, Madame d'Aulnoy, made a pilgrimage to Toledo; -and her " impressions '* depict the arrogant old city, al- ready broken and deserted, but with her head still in the clouds. Marianne, the widowed queen of Philip IV., was in residence at Toledo, where she occupied the old Alcazar; and the clever Frenchwoman with a few ladies of the Spanish court came to pay her a visit. Madame d'Aulnoy, to whom the journey was one of curiosity as well, describes Toledo as surrounded by hills and rocks, from which, she remarks, " it would be easy with gunpowder to batter It down." The city Itself she describes as "built on a rock whose unevenness made it high and low In places"; and the streets were found so narrow that the travellers were obliged to halt their coach in the great square of Zocodover. After the fashion of more modern tourists, these titled ladies went at once to see the famous cathedral, which they had heard was the finest In Europe. "The Spaniards call it holy," the Countess continues, "whether on account of the relics which are there, or for some other reason which they did not tell me, I know not." Then, evidently comparing it with French churches: "If 27a TOLEDO It were as long and high as It Is broad It would be much better." "The divers chapels by which It Is beautified are as big as churches, and they all shine with gold and paintings; the chief of which are those of the Virgin, St. Martin, St. James, Cardinal Sandoval, and the Constable de Luna. In the choir I saw a niche or a hollow place, from whence It Is pretended there issued out for several days together a spring of water, In the time they maintained the sieges against the Moors, when they were half dead with thirst. Without digressing from my subject, I must tell you that in the city there is not so much as a well or spring, and that they fetch all their water from the Tagus, which Is so very troublesome that one would wonder how Toledo comes to be so full of people as It Is. Near the entrance Into the church there Is a marble pillar which they rever- ence because the holy Virgin appeared upon it to St. Ildefonso. It Is enclosed with an Iron gate, and through a little window they kiss It. I was amazed when I saw the treasury. There must be thirty men to carry the tabernacle upon Corpus- Chrlstl day. It is made of silver, gilt, and there Is exquisitely wrought upon it several spires or steeples, with abundance of angels and cherublms. W^Ithln this there Is also another of massy gold, and such a vast quantity of precious stones that their value Is Inestimable; the chalices, the patlns, 273 BUILDERS OF SPAIN and the pyxes, are no less beautiful. Indeed every- thing shines with great diamonds and oriental pearls; the sun, where the holy sacrament is kept, the crowns, and robes of the Virgin are the most splendid things I ever saw in my days.'* " I have told you that the bishopric of Toledo pro- duced three hundred and fifty thousand crowns a year. I must now add that the revenue of the church itself is a hundred thousand crowns.'' News of the arrival of these distinguished vis- itors having been carried to his eminence, Porto Carrero, the Cardinal-Archbishop, an invitation which brooked no denial was at once sent to them to reside during their stay in the Archiepiscopal palace. With the invitation came " an abundance \ of pages," some carrying umbrellas of gold and silver brocade; others to perform the task of watering the street which the ladies had to cross from the church to the palace. This was accom- plished with the aid of two mules who drew a little cart upon which was a tub full of water. In this way, they were told, it was the custom to water the way every time a Cardinal went to church, also that the gorgeous umbrellas were those used to defend him from the sun. Spanish dress was necessary for the visit to the Queen, and the plump Countess endured tortures in squeezing her rather ample proportions into its narrow and rigid lines. *' I do not think there can 274 TOLEDO be a more troublesome dress," she laments. — " Your shoulders must be squeezed so that It hurts you; you cannot lift up your arm, nor can you hardly get It Into the sleeve. I had on a farthingale of a prodigious bigness (for you must wear that in the Queen's presence), I knew not what to do with myself with this strange Invention; there Is no sitting down In It, and I believe If I were to wear It all my life I should never be reconciled to It. My head was dressed after the Melene fashion; that Is, the hair all spread over the neck and tied at the ends with some nonpareil ribbon; this Is a great deal hotter than a patlne; so that being now In the month of August, and In Spain, you may easily guess how I suffer. But this being a ceremonial dress of the head, there was nothing to be omitted upon such an occasion; besides, I wore their pattens, which are more fit to break a person's neck than to walk with." When all were ready for royal inspection they were fortified for their reception by an elaborate repast: for, although they were to have the honour of seeing the Queen dine, nothing more satisfying could be vouchsafed them in the royal presence. But the food offered by the hospitality of the Cardinal was so highly seasoned that the French woman avowed '' she fancied herself like Tanta- lus in the midst of plenty, and yet starved with hunger." Arnber, saffron, garlic, onion, pepper, 275 BUILDERS OF SPAIN and spices appear to have entered into the per- fumed sauces, and rendered them fairly impos- sible to a strange palate. Madame was only saved from starvation by the dessert, which was not only delicious, but extremely decorative. "The fruit was the best and pleasantest thing one can see, for whole trees with their fruit were iced over with sugar, after the Italian way. There were orange trees thus ordered, with small artificial birds fastened in them. There were likewise cherry trees, raspberry and gooseberry bushes, and others set in little cases of silver.'* The ladies were carried to the Alcazar in chairs. They found it build upon a rock. Before its gate there was a large square; and, upon entering, there was a court one hundred and sixty feet long by one hundred and thirty broad, adorned with two rows of colonnades whose pillars were monoliths. But that which pleased the countess most was the staircase fifty feet wide, at the bottom of the court. Then she says: "After you have gone up some steps it parts in two, and to speak the truth, I believe it to be one of the finest in Europe. " . They passed through a great gallery and several vast apartments and found the Queen- mother in a great hall whose windows were all open, from which one had a prospect to the val- leys and the river. The Queen received her guests most graciously, 276 ^^"i, Marianne of Austria. Velasquez, ' Museo del Prado, Madrid. TOLEDO allowing them to kiss her hand, which was ex- tremely delicate. The Countess describes her as very pale, her face a little long and flat, and her stature of a middling size. Like all Spanish widows, she was dressed like a nun, without so much as one hair appearing. "And there are many,'' Madame observes, ("though she is not of that number) that cause all their hair to be cut off when they lose their husbands, for a greater expression of their grief. " It was also noticed that her majesty's gown was tucked up quite round according to the fashion of the coun- try, so that it might be let down as it wore out. After a little time given to gracious conver- sation, the Queen was invited to her supper by a little she dwarf " thick as a tun, and no taller than a good big mushroom, clothed all in gold and silver brocade, and with long hair hanging down to her feet. " The ladies offered to with- draw, but the Queen told them that they might follow her. Then she went into a parlour, all of marble, where she sat down at a table alone, and they all stood around her. Melons cooled with ice, with some salads and milk, formed the first course. Then the Queen called for a drink which was brought by a Menine who knelt and gave it to the Camerera. The latter also kneeled when the Queen took it from her hand; and on the 277 BUILDERS OF SPAIN other side a Lady of the Palace, on her knee, presented a napkin to the Queen, with which to wipe her mouth. The solitary repast occupied an hour and a half, a period doubtless much less tedious to the royal diner than to her guests, who were obliged to continue standing while she ate. Following the earlier Tantalus feast, this ordeal must have left the Countess In a state bordering upon ex- haustion, and one does not wonder that she found the theatrical entertainment, provided by the Cardinal upon their return to the Archlepiscopal palace, extremely poor. The arrangement of the audience, the men and women separated by a cur- tain stretched the length of the room, was also not at all to the taste of the vivacious French- woman. The next day a second visit was paid to the Alcazar, this time not to see the Queen, but the castle Itself. Madame found it very stately, so that she did not wonder that Charles V. pre- ferred to live there rather than in any other city under his obedience. But the great pile was al- ready in disrepair. A powerful hydraulic ma- chine, built and worked by the Moors, had furnished the Alcazar, and much of the city, with the water which had rendered cleanliness pos- sible, and Toledo's gardens a delight. Earlier al- lowed to become useless, It had been repaired by 278 TOLEDO the Emperor, but was again In ruins, and now was only shown as a curious broken toy. Little of the palace was In use, and everywhere were signs of neglect and decay. Besides the natural decline caused by her loss of royal favour, Toledo suffered much, during the early years of the eighteenth century, from the wars of succession; and In the nineteenth, no city In Spain, except only Saragossa, was so hardly treated by Napoleon^s armies. Later still came her crowning misfortune. In the appropriation by the state of a large part of her enormous ecclesi- astical revenues; the last remaining prop of her grandeur. Despoiled of that, and too proud and Impractical to save herself by work, the city which once numbered one hundred thousand souls has dwindled to-day to twenty thousand; and the sole remaining evidence of the lofty spirit of her Iberic builders, save only In the monuments they have left, Is found In the pride which prefers beggary to labour, and In an atmosphere whose mediaeval aloofness Is unmatched in Europe. 279 Chapter XII CORDOVA " ALTHOUGH other cities may be better to /-\ live in, none are better to be born in than Cordova." So declared her greatest son, " El Gran Capitan,'' voicing the long- vaunted claim of his native city to the bluest blood in Spain. Added to this pride of blood is the memory of one glorious period during which Cordova not only dominated the peninsula, but became the centre of civilization In Europe, and indeed in all the Western world as it was then known. Yet in spite of patrician blood and past mag- nificence, the aspect of Cordova to-day gives little indication of any period of civic greatness or worldly splendour. Its streets are quaintly pictur- esque, and its mosque remains one of the wonders of the world; yet one's first and abiding impres- sion is of an unimportant provincial town with a commonplace past and no possible future. One enjoys wandering in its crooked, grass-grown streets; catching glimpses through open portals of marble patios with their fountains and flowers; and one never tires of the singular charm of its 280 yista in Mosque, Cordova, CORDOVA splendid mosque. But beyond these, and the old bridge, which dates from Roman days, Cordova, as seen to-day, is comparatively modern. The glories of Its past must perforce belong to another Cordova, as In fact they do — to a city long since vanished. But, after all, Is not this vanished city the only real Cordova, Its life the only vital page In her history? Such, at least, it must appear to those who read the brilliant pages of Arab chroniclers, whose florid pens recall scenes of the most vivid splendour, and men thrilling with the most passionate life. The dramas which they unfold have nothing to do with the sordid little town of the present, but belong to the Cordova which they rebuild in our Imagination, and whose history is practi- cally told In one glorious period; one beginning with the elevation, and ending with the overthrow, of the house of Omeya as sovere'Igns of Moslem Spain. Only a few glimpses of Cordova are to be found during the Carthaginian and Roman periods. Un- der the rule of Rome, the town came to possess a degree of Importance, becoming the capital of Ulterior Spain. From its early population by the Impoverished patricians of Rome, it was then known as Patricia. Here doubtless Is the origin of Cordova's boasted blue blood. But in spite of its influx of Roman Inhabitants, and their 28l BUILDERS OF SPAIN lofty claims to distinction, Its Iberic name, from Cor^ or Karta, tuba, meaning important city, has survived. Under the Visigoths, Cordova lost the degree of importance it had possessed under the Romans, and the town practically sank out of sight until taken, in 711, by the Moslems. So weakened were its defences, and Ineffective its defenders, that a small detachment of Tarik's army found an easy entrance by way of a fig tree which stood near its wall. Upon a dark and stormy night, an active soldier climbed into Its branches and, by means of his unrolled turban, drew up others who were quickly over the barriers. By morning the city was in the hands of the Moslem invaders. The governor and four hun- dred of the garrison fled to the church of St. George, outside of the western wall. The church was strongly fortified, surrounded by a moat, and supplied with water from a mountain spring by means of subterranean pipes. There this small force rendered the only effective resistance offered by the city. But with the discovery and cutting off of their water supply, they were also obliged to capitulate. During the forty-five years which immediately followed its subjugation to Moslem rule, the his- tory of Cordova presents little to distinguish It 282 CORDOVA from a number of other cities of the south of Spain. The courts of rapidly succeeding emirs were* as often found at Seville or elsewhere, as at Cordova, and the latter, like every other con- siderable city of Spain, was subject to sieges or revolutions in the interests of rival claimants to power. One of the early emirs repaired the old bridge, built during the reign of Augustus; and some restorations of the walls were rendered neces- sary by the unsettled state of the country; but during all this period, life consisted of little more than a struggle for bare existence. The rise of Cordova's importance begins in this the darkest hour of "her history; and its jRrst im- pulse is found in the historic assemblage within her walls, of eighty Syrian sheiks, to whom the messenger of the young Omeyad prince, Abd-al- Rahman, brought his master's claims of sov- ereignty. Lafuente, in an address before the Royal Academy of History, of Madrid, thus apostrophizes the patriotic assemblage: "Every time that I reflect upon them, my regard in- creases for those eighty venerable Mussulmans with their long white beards, chiefs of as many tribes, who congregated themselves in assembly at Cor- dova to discuss means whereby Moslem Spain might be saved from the troubles into which she then was plunged; and who finally projected the 283 BUILDERS OF SPAIN foundation of a great empire, independent alike of Asia and Africa." Following the overthrow of the house of Omeya at Damascus, the usurper, Abbas, fearing an at- tempt to reinstate them In the caliphate, had attempted to Insure himself against It by a whole- sale murder of the entire family. The usual oriental methods were followed In the^ horrid deed. A banquet was prepared, with the promise of amnesty to all the Omeyad princes who should attend. Through absence from the court, Abd- al-Rahman and one brother were saved, and the noble Abd-al-Rahman was to prove the flower of his house, and one of the greatest rulers ever produced by his race. After being warned of the death of his brethren, Abd-al-Rahman succeeded in reaching Africa, where he was sheltered by wandering tribes of exiled Arabs. Later, when tracked by the em- issaries of the Caliph, the quick wit of his hosts enabled him to fly again to Mauritania. There word was brought of the extreme disorder to which the Spanish Moslems were reduced. A trusty messenger was at once despatched by Abd- al-Rahman, who was empowered to seek out the adherents of the house of Omeya, and claim for him the throne of Spain. The above assembly with its invitation to Abd-al-Rahman was quickly 284 CORDOVA followed by his landing on the coast of Andalusia. Many of the southern cities appear to have opened their gates to the young conqueror, but at Cor- dova, Abd-al-Rahman had to encounter the army of the Caliph, under the Emir, Yussef ben Fehri. The Issue of the battle, which occurred outside the walls of the city, appears to have been decided quite as much by the division and distrust which pre- vailed in the army of the Emir, as by the warlike prowess of that of Abd-al-Rahman. So little con- fidence had the forces of Yussef In his Integrity, that he Is said to have been obliged to exchange his war-horse for an old and crippled mule, to avoid the suspicion of intent to abandon his fol- lowers In the event of disaster. The siege of the city at once followed the defeat of her army. Yussef made a vain effort to relieve It, and the Inhabitants maintained as stubborn a resistance as they were able, but Abd-al-Rahman's successes elsewhere soon convinced them that the Abbas- slde cause was hopeless, and a capitulation was arranged on terms of marked advantage to the town. As Cordova had been the residence of Yussef's court, and was regarded at that time as the capi- tal of Moslem Spain, its surrender was considered to have founded the sovereignty of Abd-al-Rah- man in the peninsula. Yet there remained many other cities to be subdued, and for a number of 285 BUILDERS OE SPAIN years, Yussef and his sons, as well as later Emirs who were armed with the authority of the Ab- basslde caliphs, menaced his growing power. For a time, therefore, Cordova became primarily the headquarters of an army which had no sooner returned with the spoils of one campaign than It took the field again upon another; marching In and out of the gates of the city, at the back of the vigorous young King, whose able generalship and personal magnetism soon rendered him the Idol of his followers. Although in his dealings with subjugated cities Abd-al-Rahman was often conspicuously generous, he was equally severe In his punishment of pro- longed resistance. Look, for example, at the piti- able figures of the leaders of Toledo's stubborn opposition, as they were paraded through the streets of Cordova. Some distance outside the walls they had been met by a tailor, a barber, and a basket-maker. The tailor had made them strait-jackets of coarse cloth; the barber had shaved their hair and beards; and the basket- maker had encased the body of each in a narrow pannier which effectually prevented any movement of the lower limbs. Slung across the backs of donkeys, these patriotic Toledans were made the victims of the taunts and missiles of a street mob; then dragged to the place of execution, where they were crucified; after which their heads were added 286 CORDOVA to the ghastly rows of those of other "rebels'' upon the city walls. The defenders of Carmona were subjected to even harsher measures, after which the heads of their leaders were packed in camphor and salt, with a label fastened to each ear, and sent as a menace to the Abbasside Emir at Kairouan. Personal magnificence early became a necessary adjunct to Moslem power in Spain, and the im- provement and embellishment of his capital occu- pied a place scarcely second to the subjugation of the peninsula, in the labours of Abd-al-Rahman. It naturally followed that Damascus, the home of his race, should be regarded as the model upon which many of the institutions of the new seat of power were to be formed. Not only did the authority of the Syrian Arabs long preponderate In Spain, but the population of Cordova, and espe- cially the train of the young sovereign, were largely made up of exiles from Damascus itself. During the entire period of the Kingdom of Cordova, a close and significant relationship between the two cities was maintained. The narrow labyrinthine streets of Cordova, with many buildings and fortifications, soon repro- duced In effect those of Damascus. During the reign of Abd-al-Rahman I. the streets were paved, and water was brought from the mountains in leaden pipes. With a bountiful supply of water, 287 BUILDERS OF SPAIN luxuriant gardens and fruitful orchards, the crown- ing delight of the Eastern capital, became likewise the chief beauty of the Western one. Even the coins of the Cordovan mint were identical in size, weight, and inscription, with those issued by the Omeyad princes of Damascus. As after the Mos- lem conquest of Damascus, the chief Christian church at Cordova was at first shared between the conquerors and the conquered; furthermore, in its rebuilding, begun during this reign, certain features of the splendid new mosque of the East- ern capital were to produce a strong influence. The old Gothic palace to the southwest of the city, near the river, which the Moslems called the Balatt Ludheric, or Castle of Roderick, had been made the oflicial residence of the early emirs, and later was that of Abd-al-Rahman. Doubt- less it had belonged to Theodofred, Duke of Cordova, father of King Roderick. Rebuildings and additions w^ere begun by Abd-al-Rahman, and continued under most of his successors; the castle thus transformed remaining the chief seat of Mos- lem power during the entire period of the Omeyad kings. In it was erected the throne of the King, and there daily was assembled the Divan or Coun- cil, which deliberated with him upon the admin- istration of the affairs of the kingdom. For the sake of the instruction it afforded them in the business of government, all of Abd-al-Rah- 288 CORDOVA man's forty-four sons were compelled to attend the regular sittings of this Divan. The further education of these sons was most carefully looked after by the King himself, who frequently called upon them to participate in the literary contests which early became a feature of court life. As women were allowed much greater freedom and accorded far higher honour by the Syrians than by any other Moslem people, It is quite possible that Abd-al-Rahman's forty-two daughters were also allowed attendance upon these occasions. Such contests, always popular In Cordova, were doubtless a survival of the patronage extended to wandering story-tellers by the Bedouin Arabs, but transformed by the Cordovan sovereign into gala court functions. The King himself presided, and rich rewards were bestowed for talent or profi- ciency in the formation of verse, and for attain- ments in any branch of intellectual endeavour. By means of a wall or embankment, Abd-al- Rahman narrowed the broad and shallow bed of the Guadalquiver near his palace, and the land thus rescued he transformed into a beautiful gar- den In which he built a tower. There was also a suburban villa, the famous Rusafah, modelled and named after a similar retreat which had be- longed to his grandfather, Hixem, at Damascus. It was in this garden of Rusafah that Abd-al- Rahman planted the first palm seen in Spain. To 289 BUILDERS OF SPAIN it he addressed the melancholy lines which are still quoted as evidence of his poetical ability, but even more, as showing the King's unconquer- able longing for the land of his birth. As was to be expected, the early popularity of Abd-al-Rahman was largely lost during his later years. The mixed and discordant elements, of which his kingdom was composed, often rendered the most severe measures necessary. Despotic power has always maintained Itself by force, and long before his death Abd-al-Rahman found It nec- essary to seclude himself after the manner of most oriental monarchs. He was even forced to, protect his movements in public by a strong guard. Berber pretensions, or insolence, constantly re- quired to be put down. The Spanish Christians, likewise, early began to show insubordination. Al- though allowed the free practice of their own rites, the one requirement of the Moslem rulers — that they should refrain from reviling Mahomet — soon appeared to the Christian priesthood to be a courtesy incompatible with the stern precepts of the faith, and public indignities were soon offered to the name of the prophet. The execu- tion of a few offenders was followed by a furore for the honours of martyrdom; and scores of vic- tims considered themselves happy in forcing the Moslem sovereign to offer them up as sacrifices 290 CORDOVA to what they called their faith, but which was more properly their intolerance and incivility. That the outrages of these zealots were not up- held by all Christians is hinted, even by the bigoted Mariana, who says that *' Abd-al-Rahman, with many Christians assembled in synod agree' ing with him, put the offenders to death." Until 786, the chief place of Moslem assem- blage for public prayer in Cordova remained in half of the Christian church of St. Vincent. With the rapid growth of the city, which followed the establishment of the power of Abd-al-Rahman, especially when we consider the other works un- dertaken, it seems remarkable that he should have reigned thirty years before beginning the erection of a more commodious and suitable edifice. Then, too, the great distance from the chief shrines of the faith, rendered expedient the early establish- ment of some Spanish centre to serve as a point for those religious pilgrimages which formed so essential a feature of mediaeval piety. This dual need, the mosque, begun in 786, was Intended to supply, and, when once he had set about it, Abd-al-Rahman employed all possible means to accelerate its progress. As no other site seemed so desirable as that of the Christian cathedral,^ purchase of rights in the half of the structure ^A Roman temple dedicated to Janus had earlier occupied this site. 291 BUILDERS OF SPAIN remaining to the Christians, had first to be arranged. A hundred thousand dinars, with the privilege of erecting a certain number of churches elsewhere, having been accepted by them, the old edifice was at once razed to the ground. Then Abd-al-Rahman himself traced the plan of the new mosque, and with his own hands laid the first stone of its foundation. I The ground plan outlined by Abd-al-Rahman did not follow the basilican form of the great mosque at Damascus, but that of the arcaded court of the mosques of Amru at Cairo, and Okbar at Kairouan. This simpler form was doubtless chosen by Abd-al-Rahman because of the lack of either Arab or Spanish workmen of suffi- cient ability to cope with the complex construction of vaults or domes. Also, following the early custom of Arab builders elsewhere, the materials used in the erection of the mosque were largely the remains of the earlier edifice it replaced, to- gether with columns and cut stone from Roman ruins elsewhere. J But Abd-al-Rahman was already oppressed witK years when he began his mosque; and although he prosecuted the work with feverish activity dur- ing the two years remaining to him, labouring upon it for an hour each day with his own hands, it is probable that little more had been accomplished, before he saw his end was drawing near, than 292 CORDOVA the collection of a mass of materials and the erection of a portion of the walls. Then the venerable sovereign caused a space to be cleared within his enclosure, hung his half-built walls with tapestries, and, mounting to a mimber under a great awning spread to protect his enfeebled frame from the heat of the southern sun, read the first service In the mosque he was not to see completed. Standing tall and majestic In his flowing white robes, his face furrowed by the strong lines produced by an Imperious character and vigorous life, his piercing eyes shaded by the ample folds of his white turban, Abd-al-Rahman saw beneath him a vast concourse of people hurriedly gathered from all the region within reach of his hasty summons; while beyond their forms, prostrate in prayer, were the heaps of cut stone and precious columns, which to-day are among the chief glories of the great mosque he founded. Abd-al-Rahman then called together, in order to claim their oaths of allegiance to his successor, the walls of the six great provinces of his king- dom, Toledo, Saragossa, Valencia, Granada, Merlda, and Murcia; together with those of the six cities next In Importance. As was expected, the King's choice fell upon Hlxem, his son by his favourite wife Howara, sometimes also called Holal. During an Interval of peace, this beautl- 293 BUILDERS OF SPAIN ful Sultana had been given as a slave to Abd- al-Rahman, by his old enemy, Yussef ben Fehri. She had speedily become his favourite concubine; and her son, the first child born to Abd-al-Rah- man at Cordova, had been reared with especial care. As far as his own character was concerned, Hlxem soon proved the wisdom of his father's choice. But Abd-al-Rahman set a dangerous prec- edent in Ignoring the laws of primogeniture, thereby laying the foundation for much of the Intestine strife which disturbed the reign of Hixcm, and finally contributed very largely to the overthrow of his dynasty. Although Hlxem sent a few armies against the Christians in the north, one of which achieved a measure of success beyond the Pyrenees, at Narbonne, his own efforts, during his short reign of eight years, were largely employed In the care and Improvement of his capital. Like his father, he laboured daily with his own hands upon the unfinished mosque; and after expending upon It one hundred and sixty thousand dinars, he lived to see It completed. Hlxem Is also said to have rebuilt or repaired the old Roman bridge, and to have erected many buildings and public works, palaces, mosques, baths, and fountains. Hlxem's devout piety, and the fatherly solici- tude which he displayed in the welfare of his subjects, are sometimes attributed to the predic- 294 CORDOVA tlons of his early death, which imparted a tinge of melancholy to his character and ren- dered him especially thoughtful of the good of others. He discarded rich clothing and always appeared in white, the distinctive colour of his house. He frequently visited the poorest of his people, distributing alms with his own hands. Taxes were reduced, the widows and children of soldiers killed in battle were pensioned, and Moslem captives held by Christians were ransomed out of the King's private purse. So thoroughly was the latter good work accomplished that, at the close of Hixem's reign, diligent search failed to discover a single Mussulman in captivity. Authorities vary materially as to the size of the mosque began by Abd-al-Rahman I. and finished by his son Hixem. But many things tend to prove that the early foundation was neither so large nor so magnificent as many Arabian writers would lead us to suppose. The evidence of the fabric itself indicates that it was about one-fourth or one-fifth the size of the present structure; very likely its extent was not far from that of the church it replaced; furthermore, it is most probable that Hixem, with pious regard for his father's designs, deviated very little from the original plans of Abd-al-Rahman. To the materials saved from the earlier church, Hixem, like Abd-al-Rahman, added stones and 295 BUILDERS OF SPAIN carved columns from Roman ruins elsewhere In the peninsula, and even from Africa and southern Gaul. Thus upon the return of his victorious army from Narbonne, there might have been seen a long train of captives, who entered the gates of Cordova carrying upon their backs or dragging painfully behind them, huge stones brought from the ruined walls of their conquered city. These stones, cut in Provence In the time of Augustus, were made to serve for the foundations of the eastern portion of the mosque. The royal fifth of the spoil of this campaign, amounting to forty- five thousand pieces of gold, was also set apart for the pious work. It appears, therefore, that the eastern part of the mosque from the very foundation, was the work of Hixem, and In all probability all the upper part of the structure, arches and roofing, were also his. As planned by Abd-al-Rahman, the open court was surrounded by an arcade which was Increased on one side to a depth of ten or twelve columns. These were set in ten rows which, with the en- closing walls, produced eleven aisles, the centre aisle being somewhat wider than the others and leading to the kiblah, or mirab. All the aisles were open to the court and the broad central aisle was opposite its chief portal. P Columns gathered from so many sources nat- urally varied materially In size and style. Unl- 296 CORDOVA formity of style received little consideration from these early builders, but the height was approxi- mately equalized by burying the bases of the longer columns beneath the floor; and, as plinths or projecting bases would have been in the way of pedestrians, when found, they were either burled or removed. But monolithic columns are "^ rarely of sufficient length to serve as the sole roof [ support of any great edifice. Even with the double rows of superimposed arches, which piece out the height of those at Cordova, the roof is only about thirty-five feet from the floor. With its present dimensions this low ceiling is the chief defect of the mosque. But it should be remem- bered that, in the smaller structure designed by Abd-al-Rahman and completed by Hixem, it could not have been nearly so obvious; possibly was not apparent at all. -^ V As for the superimposed arches themselves, they form the sole constructive distinction of the great mosque. Possibly the Idea was derived from the double row of round arches which support the clerestory walls of the mosque at Damascus, as well as many Romanesque basilicas. But the form and arrangement at Cordova, as far as is known, was originated at Cordova and remains unique in that monument. Angular piers rise from every capital, and between the piers, running at right angles from the court, spring round, or 297 BUILDERS OF SPAIN horseshoe arches in two stages, one above the other. The ground plan of the structure, rows of columns supporting a flat roof, is of the most primitive description, and If that were all, tech- nical critics would be entirely warranted in char- acterizing it as entirely devoid of architectural design or constructive merit. But, with this clever and most effective multiplication of arches, it must be granted that somewhere among its builders was a workman of power and originality. And, if the soaring arches of the Gothic minsters of the north were inspired in any degree by the lofty aisles of the great northern forests, may not these have been suggested by the low and al- most horizontal branches of the olive and orange orchards of the south. The enclosing wall Is still one of the most pic- turesque features of the great mosque. It Is built of tapla, or conglomerate; and, although only thirty-five feet in height, except where the ground slopes away rendering a deep wall of foundation necessary, It Is strengthened by massive but- tresses. The early portions of the wall are crowned with Persian (stepped) battlements, origi- nally painted scarlet and called flame battlements. The decoration and lattices of the arched open- ings, together with some degree of the surface ornament, even of the original walls of Abd-al- Rahman, arc doubtless the work of succeeding years. 298 Mosque, Cordova. Exterior of Enclosing Wall. the sou ^ wail nf fli CORDOVA But not all the spoil of Narbonne was lavished upon the great mosque. AI-Makkari tells of the embellishment by Hlxem of the chief portal of the royal palace. This gate is described as fur- nished with folding doors covered with iron plates, and to the plates was affixed a brass ring **in the form of a man with his mouth open." This ring was of exquisite workmanship and an extraordinary work of art. It served as a bar to the gate, as well as a knocker, and had formerly been attached to one of the gates at Narbonne. Above this gate was a balcony, from which the King dispensed justice, whose splendour, we are told, "was without equal In the whole world." Already Cordova was growing in extent and In magnificence. Like Palermo, the city was divided into separate quarters, each of which was isolated from the others when the gates were closed. The discordant racial and religious elements of wjiich the population was composed, furnish an obvious reason for such divisions, but their wisdom may well be doubted. Furthermore, the development of a factional spirit, pronounced enough at the outset, was soon largely augmented by the growth of numerous sects among the Moslems themselves. During the reign of Hixem, a beautiful suburb was built on the south side of the river, which was entirely given up to the Malikltes, or fol- lowers of Malik-al-Anas, a famous doctor of the- ology of Medina. Through the especial favour 299 BUILDERS OF SPAIN of Hixem, the Malikites occupied the highest offices In the state, and their suburb became one of the most attractive portions of the capital. The level surface on that side of the river being favourable to open spaces; commodious markets, elegant mosques, and luxurious villas soon lined broad streets and spacious squares. A belt of beautiful gardens with walks laid In a mosaic of pebbles, and with countless fountains, encircled the suburb, whose population soon numbered twenty thousands souls. Hlxem's excessive piety was not inherited by his son and successor, Al-Hakem I., who soon proved to be, not only Irreligious, but Irascible, arrogant and cruel; besides yielding to what to a Mussulman Is the most objectionable of all vices, drunkenness. The Infamous governor of Toledo, Amru, of the " Day of the Foss " fame, was the worthy servant of Al-Hakem, whose character pre- sents that compound of craft, cruelty, and profli- gacy commonly associated with oriental despot- ism. But Al-Hakem's crowning offences were not his cruelty nor his personal outrages against Mos- lem morals, but his disregard of the priesthood which, during Hlxem's reign, had become all pow- erful. Not only the dominant Malikites, but all the officials of the already vast organization of the Moslem hierarchy, had enjoyed a considera- tion under Hixem which was no longer accorded 300 CORDOVA them under Al-Hakem. Instead of Immediate admis- sion at all times to the royal presence, the doc- tors of theology, with their saints and faquls, were now compelled to wait with other suppliants in an ante-chamber until the King should be pleased to receive them; and the discontinuance of the enormous gifts of the generous Hixem, diminished by a very appreciable amount their former re- sources. Headed by the embittered Mallkites, the vari- ous sects soon united in a plot to dethrone Al- Hakem and replace him by his cousin, Al-Sham- mas, a grandson of Abd-al-Rahman L But Al- Shammas, after listening with apparent favour to the proposal, betrayed the plot to the King, and a trap was laid for the traitors. Upon a dark night, a few of the leaders repaired to the house of Al-Shammas where, according to stipulation, they were to read a list of those who were pre- pared to support him. The secretary of Al- Hakem, who was hidden behind a curtain, began to write down the names as they fell from the lips of the conspirators. As they proceeded, it appeared that all the leading citizens of Cordova were implicated. Then the secretary, fearing to hear his own name given, as possibly others may have been, to add weight to the plot, allowed his pen to scratch his tablet. The traitors took fright and fled precipitately from the house. The alarm 301 BUILDERS OF SPAIN was instantly spread and a large number escaped, but seventy-two were caught and crucified. Al-Hakem at once prepared to increase his de- fences. Already the royal palace bristled with towers and other fortifications, giving it far more the appearance of a stronghold than the usual abode of a sovereign. Now the body guard of the King was increased to the enormous number of six thousand; and, with the habitual distrust of his race, none were Arabs or even Moslems. Three thousand were Spanish Christians, and the rest, slaves purchased in Africa and the East. All of this guard were superbly equipped with the finest uniforms and most expensive armour, which, with the cost of their maintenance, imposed a new burden upon an already discontented people. Especially among the fanatical population of the southern suburb, complaint was loud and deep. Indignities were constantly offered to the two thousand of the royal guard who were detailed to patrol that quarter, and there were even those who dared to deride the King himself. When from many minarets came the call to public de- votion, voices, which it seemed impossible to lo- cate, responded from hidden gardens, roofs, and bazaars — Come, O Drunkard I Come to prayer! The now odious monarch was even ridiculed and mocked in the great mosque while In the exercise of his duties as the head of the church. Even a 302 CORDOVA mild sovereign could not have been expected to endure such reviling, and Al-Hakem, after cap- turing ten of the leaders, promptly had them crucified. An outbreak was then carefully planned by one of the chief Malikites, but a trifling altercation precipitated the uprising, and, in a moment, the southern suburb blazed into insurrection. A mob surged through the city streets; the efforts of the royal cavalry to oppose their progress producing no more effect than a summer wind ; and the palace gates were none too quickly closed to pro- tect the King from the army of angry fanatics which at once attacked the walls with fire and timbers. Although in such imminent peril, Al- Hakem displayed his usual imperturbability, per- forming a careful toilet even to the perfuming of his hair and beard before beginning operations against his assailants. He even dared to further inflame their passions by ordering exposed upon the battlements the heads of certain rebel prisoners which were struck off for the purpose. All things being ready, Al-Hakem placed him- self at the head of one body of picked cavalry, and his cousin Obeydallah as leader of another. Then the latter was directed to cut his way through the mob and set fire to the southern sub- urb. Obeydallah succeeded in accomplishing his task, and when the smoke from their burning 303 BUILDERS OF SPAIN homes had thrown the rabble Into a panic, Al- Hakem himself Issued from the palace gates. By this time Obeydallah was returning, and the two bodies of cavalry literally mowed down the now demoralized Insurgents. Within an hour the streets were piled with corpses, and by nightfall the beau- tiful southern suburb lay a heap of smoking ruins. Those Implicated In the uprising who sur- vived this day of horrors, were condemned to banishment within three days, under penalty of crucifixion, with confiscation of their property and destruction of their homes. Twenty thousand are said to have been driven from Cordova by this decree, of whom we are told that one body finally settled in Crete, where they built Candla. Occasional Christian successes were beginning to cloud the prestige of Moslem arms In Spain. But in Cordova, a rapid growth of population, with wealth and luxury, marks all the first half of the ninth century, and the reputation of Its already brilliant civilization was beginning to make Itself felt In the East. Not only one, but two embas- sies from the Emperor at Constantinople were received by Abd-al-Rahman II. Both occasions were surrounded with all possible pomp and dis- play. The ambassadors were escorted by the King's own guard through streets filled with a vast multitude of people; and, in the palace In which they were lodged, every luxury which Cor- 304 CORDOVA dova was able to produce was placed at their dls- posal. Upon their first visit, the gifts brought by the Greeks to the western King included some fine horses caparisoned with cloth of gold and silver. Both embassies were sent to Cordova in the hope of an alliance with Moslem Spain against the Caliphate of Bagdad, whose armies were a con- stant menace to Constantinople. As a bait to se- cure the co-operation of the Omeyad King, the eastern Emperor held out the project of a con- quest of Syria and Damascus. But Abd-al-Rah- man was wise enough to return only vague and conditional promises to these overtures, and be- yond the return of rich gifts by the hand of his favourite poet, and the Introduction of increasing numbers of Byzantine workmen Into Spain, the alliance amounted to nothing. Through Abd-al-Rahman's Inordinate love of luxury, his court, and the entire city, grew rapidly In splendour. The King himself assumed a richer dress than ever before adopted by a Moslem ruler in Spain. For the first time the royal robes dis- played the royal cipher Interwoven in their fab- ric. To enhance his dignity, Abd-al-Rahman habitually secluded himself, even veiling his face when in public. He also increased the already enormous body guard which had surrounded his father. All this personal magnificence set a pace for the Cordovan nobility which, during the next 305 BUILDERS OF SPAIN fifty years, was to produce a quick decay of their power. Its cost, coupled with that of the public works undertaken: baths, fountains, schools, a double line of gardens bordering the river, and, of greatest importance, the introduction of a more abundant supply of water from the mountains. Imposed an enormous burden of taxation upon the people. But thrift and industry produce an enor- mous revenue, and Abd-al-Rahman's paternal care of his subjects, especially when, like Joseph, he was able to distribute vast stores of grain during years of drouth and locusts, always retained for him the love of his people. By far the most Important member of Abd-al- Rahman's court was the famous musiclan-poet-epi- cure-scientlst and arbiter of fashions, Ziryab. This universal genius had first been Invited from his native Bagdad by Al-Hakem, but the lustre of his accomplishments was not permitted to shine upon Cordova until the reign of his son. Ziryab ap- pears to have possessed all courtly gifts in a su- perlative degree, as well as a knowledge of science and mechanics which alone would have rendered him famous. According to Arab writers, his skill In improvisation was considered marvellous by a nation of improvlsatores ; and his epigrams are still repeated as proverbs. He composed music and Invented savoury dishes with equal facility. He added a fifth string to the lute; in- 306 CORDOVA troduced new forms of social Intercourse; provided a new system of drainage for Cordova; and In- vented new toilets for the beauties of the harem. With ZIryab for a leader, life could never have been slow at the court of Cordova, and dullness was further prevented by the harem Intrigue In- stigated by the royal favourite, Tarub. The only thing Abd-al-Rahman was able to refuse this Im- perious beauty, was the promise of the succession for her son; whereupon, although money and jewels to a fabulous amount had been lavished upon her, Tarub plotted the murder of the King as the first step In the accomplishment of her am- bitious designs. But one of her confederates be- trayed her, and Abd-al-Rahman was warned to drink nothing not already tested by his chamber- lain, the eunlch Nassir, who was the tool of Tarub. When Nassir, therefore, particularly rec- ommended, as a valuable remedy, a potion espe- cially prepared for the King by an eminent physician, Abd-al-Rahman suggested a preliminary experiment upon the chamberlain himself. The latter was unable to refuse, and within an hour expired In agony. Although saved from the murderous designs of his false favourite, Abd-al-Rahman was stricken to the heart by the knowledge of her perfidy. He survived the scene of Nasslr's death only a few weeks; and only the unexpectedness of his end se- 307 BUILDERS OF SPAIN cured the succession to Mahomet, the one of his forty-five sons chosen by him to Inherit the throne. The possession of the royal palace, with the seals and archives, had come to be considered as prima facie evidence of title to succession, and often It was a race to sec which of various aspirants should get there first. In this case a loyal eunuch managed to convey a secret message to Mahomet, who, dressed as a woman, stole through the streets, and gained admission to the palace gates before the death of Abd-al-Rahman had become known to any but a few attendants. By morning Mahomet was master of the royal Insignia, and his prompt enthronement and recognition as King of Moslem Spain put an end to the Intrigue of Tarub. Although the reign of Abd-al-Rahman II. had been so prolific of other public works, he had added little, if anything, to the great mosque; and for another seventy-five years after him. It appears to have been left In all essentials as completed by Hlxem. During these years the rapid Increase of personal luxury and scholarship Is the chief thing to be noted, and with It the equally rapid decrease of the actual power of the Mos- lem state. The apparent neglect of the further embellishment of the great mosque, together with the growth of scholarship, Indicates likewise the lessen- ing of the earlier purity of religious enthusiasm. 308 CORDOVA Especially was this true of the dominating Arabs, who, with their learning, were becoming skeptical; and with their polish and refinement, weak. The Berbers, on the contrary, retaining a mor& simple and fervid piety, together with a sturdy native in- dependence, were beginning to resent the subor- dinate position in which they had long been held. When King Abdalla, who died In 912, dared one day to Indulge in a bit of mild facetlousness at the expense of a Berber captain of the guard, whose services, nevertheless, he prized most highly, the latter Immediately left the royal pres- ence without even attempting to hide his resent- ment. " We Berbers, " said he, " are a numerous people, and surely deserve to be called fools for coming so far to crawl In the palaces of kings." Besides constant dissension within the capital, there were foes without to contend with. Chris- tian armies were steadily advancing. But It was the suppression of revolts In tributary Moslem cities which furnished the larger proportion of the ghastly skulls which now looked down In countless numbers from the walls of Cordova. Eight thousand heads are said to have been the trophies of one combat. Thus there was an oc- casional show of power, but Cordovan authority grew more and more circumscribed, and again and again rebel bands ventured to pillage and burn her very ' suburbs. 309 BUILDERS OF SPAIN VOL. II 1 u:r<': Casa de Pilatos] ^Seville, Entrance to Court. PHOTOGRAVURE. Chapter XIII CORDOVA— Continued THE accession of Abd-al-Rahman III., as well as the long and brilliant reign that followed It, presents much that is re- markable. Not only had the father of this prince been executed as a traitor, but his uncle, then recognized as the heir, had been passed over In 'Abd-al-Rahman's favour. What Is even more re- markable Is that the uncle, Al-Modhaffer, with all the royal family, joined in an Immediate and un- swerving loyalty to the young King. Gifted, like Abd-al-Rahman I., with striking personal beauty and a distinguished presence, Abd-al-Rahman III. was a born ruler of men. His reign saw the full re-establlshment In the peninsula of Moslem power, and In Cordova Itself a material splendour and Intellectual brilliance whose descriptions, as chronicled even by the sanest authorities, strongly suggest tales of magic. The population of Cordova during this reign Is estimated at from three hundred thousand to one million, and Its revenues at sixty million dol- lars. The narrow streets, paved and drained ac- I BUILDERS OF SPAIN cording to a most admirable system, were also shaded during the summer heats by awnings stretched from house to house, and at night ten miles of these streets were brilliantly illuminated. There were over eighty thousand shops, in which the most expensive objects and rarest delicacies were found in the greatest profusion. There were seven hundred mosques, nine hundred baths, and more than four thousand markets, where were daily congregated the motley throngs of its own highly mixed population, together with traders from Africa and the Orient. The dwellings which lined the streets, usually unpretentious on their exteriors, were richly adorned within with mosaics, tapestries, and other luxuries and works of art, while every house had its fountain of fresh and sparkling water usually surrounded by luxuriant plants. There were likewise fountains everywhere in the public squares and streets, and an abundant sup- ply of pure water from the mountains was as- sured by a new aqueduct built during this reign. Even under the Visigoths there had been leaden pipes laid underground, but now for the first time the broad valley was crossed by the long line of arches first employed by the Romans for the car- riage of water. The water thus conveyed, as Al- Makkari observes, " by dint of extraordinary science," was discharged Into a vast reservoir in 2 CORDOVA the western part of the city; and on this reser- voir was a colossal lion of wonderful workman- ship, so lifelike as to cast fear Into the hearts of all beholders. " Continuing, he says, " It was covered with pure gold, and Its two eyes were two jewels of Inestimable value, which sent forth torrents of light. The waters of the aqueduct en- tered Into the hind part of the monster, and then poured out from his mouth Into a basin, which circumstances, added to the overawing appearance of the lion, never failed to produce an extraor- dinary Impression upon all who saw It for the first time." The city was still divided into five wards or quarters, each separated from the others by high walls and ponderous gates; and from each of the gates in the wall of circumvallatlon, broad highways stretched away toward the chief tribu- tary cities of the kingdom. The old Alcazar, built upon the site of the castle of the VIsIgothic dukes of Cordova, was still the chief seat of royal power, and the strongest and most splendid palace within the city. The suburban tower, or villa, Rusafah, remained a favourite retreat, and had also been turned Into a sort of botanical gar- den for the scientific cultivation of rare and exotic plants. Twenty-two suburbs surrounded the city, in which luxuriant gardens with countless fountains 3 BUILDERS OF SPAIN embellished the villas of wealthy citizens. Among these villas were ten owned by the King. Each was famous for some especial beauty — Its foun- tains, its flowers, or Its ornamentation — and all bore fanciful names, such as the Abode of the Fortunate, or The Palace of the Diadem. Chief among them all was that chef d^oeuvre of this reign, as Indeed of the entire Moslem period In Spain, the villa of Medina Az Zahra, literally the City of Zahra; Zahra being the name of a royal favourite, which, translated, means Blossom, or Flower, of the World. A charmingly Inconsequent tale relates, that the money used In the foundation of this exquisite abode was left to the King by a wealthy concu- bine, for the ransom of Moslem captives. But Abd-al-Rahman, after a long and careful search In which he failed to find a single Moslem In bondage, determined with It to build a palace which should fittingly represent the glories of his reign. As the last pleasing project was the sug- gestion of the beautiful Zahra, In whose honour the villa was to be named. It seems likely that the search for the enslaved Moslems may not have been very exhaustive. In all consistency the tale should conclude with the vengeful ghost of the departed sultana roaming the halls built with her misappropriated wealth, and disturbing the peace of mind of the beautiful favourite who had CORDOVA not only usurped her place, but had stolen the distinction which belonged to her predecessor. In- stead of which we find that the Imperious Zahra continued to flourish yet many years. When she found the mountain back of her new abode dark and forbidding, the enamoured King at once or- dered Its removal, and, when the Impossibility of compliance with his command was proved to him, he caused its dark forests to be cut down and replaced by flowering fruit trees. The building of the villa Az Zahra speedily became a passion with Abd-al-Rahman, and for many years a third of the royal revenue was set aside for Its completion. The plans for what soon promised to be a city, were early put Into the hands of architects Imported from Constantinople; and columns and cut stone were brought from elsewhere In Spain, Southern France, Africa, and even from the East. A number of the most beautiful columns were sent as a royal gift by the Emperor of Constantinople. They are de- scribed as of exquisite tints of green and rose, and were probably of porphyry and jasper. The en- tire villa, which was surrounded by a wall four thousand feet one way by two thousand two hun- dred the other, was divided Into three sections. The Alcazar, or palace proper, occupied the slope of the mountain which rose back of the villa; below It were the quarters of the guard; 5 BUILDERS OF SPAIN and below that again were the gardens. The royal seraglio housed In the Alcazar is said to have numbered six thousand three hundred women, with attendants, counting altogether seven- teen thousand; while the body guard amounted to twelve thousand men. These figures, with the four thousand three hundred columns, required for the support of Zahra's halls and galleries, are a severe test to one's credulity, but they are given by many authorities, and convey the only ade- quate Impression of the extent of the enclosure. As to its splendour, even the most conservative of modern authorities describes : " Halls paved with marbles In a thousand varied patterns; walls of the most precious materials, and ornamented with friezes of the most brilliant colours; roofs con- structed of cedar, ornamented with gilding on an azure ground, with damasked work and Interlac- ings." "And in truth," he concludes, "did this palace of Az Zahra now remain to us, we could afford to despise the Alhambra and all the works of that declining age of Moorish art." The central pavilion, upon which were lavished the richest materials and most superb and delicate ornamentation of the entire villa, was circular In form. Its columns are said to have been of mar- ble and rock crystal with their capitals set with precious stones; walls and dome were of onyx, and the roof was of gold and silver tiles. By- 6 CORDOVA zantine mosaics of the rarest beauty and most delicate finish ornamented the spandrels of the arches and the frieze, and the doors were of odoriferous woods Inlaid with ebony and gold and even with jewels. In the centre of this pavilion was a most mar- vellous fountain In whose description historians wax fairly Incoherent. According to one account Its basin of porphyry was filled with quicksilver. When the basin was made to rotate by a hidden mechanism, the rays of the sun, reflected by the glitter of jewelled walls, probably also by hidden mirrors, caused blinding flashes of light to leap like the waters of a fountain. This magical toy appears to have been especially designed for the edification and amazement of foreign ambassadors, whom it was desirable to impress with the magi- cal power of the Moslem King and the vast re- sources of the Moslem state. When the quick- silver was in motion, the pavilion appeared to be traversed by flashes of lightning; to strangers, the floor appeared to tremble and move away, and so blinding were the rays that many are said to have been deprived of sight. Above this foun- tain was suspended the pearl of fabulous size and Inestimable value, sent by the Emperor as a gift to Abd-al-Rahman. The mosque of Az Zahra, while smaller than the great mosque at Cordova, rivalled it in beauty 7 BUILDERS OF SPAIN of materials, richness of design, and elegance of finish. Rising like a creation of magic, at the imperious behest of the despotic King, this ex- quisite mosque was completed within forty-eight days of Its commencement; one thousand workmen having been concentrated upon Its construction. The entire mosque was paved with marble whose colour was like red wine. There was a minaret measuring ten cubits at the base, and rising to a height of forty cubits; and In the maksurah, It- self ornamented with costly magnificence, Abd-al- Rahman upon the day of its completion placed a pulpit of extraordinary beauty and design. On that day, which happened to be Friday, prayers were publicly solemnized for the first time In this mosque, and the King himself officiated as Iman. The figure of the Sultana Zahra, carved in marble or alabaster over the chief entrance to this royal city, together with the human figures in bronze which ornamented one fountain, and the grotesque animals In metals set with jewels, overlaying the green marble basin of another, in- dicate a growing laxity In the observance of the primitive tenets of the faith. There was also the golden Hon of the water reservoir. Probably none of these figures, except possibly that of the sul- tana, were executed in Spain. Yet their very pres- ence must have been an offence to the priesthood, which remained sufficiently devout, as well as suf- 8 CORDOVA ficlently powerful, to administer a public rebuke to the King, when he became so absorbed in the construction of Medina Az Zahra that, for three successive Fridays, he absented himself from the public service of the great mosque. Abd-al-Rahman's labours upon the latter, the chief shrine of Western Islamism, bear no propor- tion to his expenditure of thought and money upon the luxurious villa. By some he is thought to have added the width of the present court to the Cordovan mosque, but as work of this reign we can only be certain of the minaret by which he replaced an earlier one. It is described as sur- mounted by a dome; on the summit of this dome were three apples, two of which were made of pure gold, and the middle one of silver. Each one was three spans and a half in circumference, *' and they were encompassed within two six- petalled lilies in a most elegant manner, the whole being surmounted by a small pomegranate made of pure gold, rising about a cubit above the top of the dome." The dome indicates here, as at Me- dina Az Zahra, the employment of Byzantine workmen. The Arabian writer above quoted concludes by saying that this tower was un- equalled in height and beauty by any other in any country subject to the rule of Islam. But a later scribe, commenting upon this excessive praise, ob- serves that its author could not have been 9 BUILDERS OF SPAIN familiar with the minarets of Seville and Morocco, which, he says, were far more lofty as well as of greater beauty. It appears, therefore, that Abd- al-Rahman's minaret could not have approached the splendour of Medina Az Zahra. As the power and wealth of the Western Mos- lem empire now far exceeded that of the East, whose rulers had sunk Into a state of dependence upon powerful vassals, Abd-al-Rahman added to his royal dignity the spiritual title of Caliph, or successor of the Prophet; and for the next fifty years the Western Caliphs were the most conspicu- ous figures In the Moslem world. Of the numerous embassies which now followed closely one after the other at the Illustrious court at Cordova, none was received with more Impos- ing ceremonies and greater lavlshness of display than that of Porphryogenitus, the Byzantine Em- peror. A suite of attendants met the ambassadors as far away as Jaen, and numerous bodies of cavalry awaited their approach to Cordova. The avenues leading to Medina Az Zahra, where the Caliph awaited them, were lined by the royal guard, whose burnished armour and jewel-hllted sclmlters glittered In the dazzling rays of an Andaluslan sun. Awnings of silk, with hangings of cloth of gold and silver, marked the way through lofty halls and across the marble terrace to the royal audience chamber. The Caliph was lO CORDOVA found seated on a throne blazing with jewels, surrounded by the princes of the royal family and the chief officials of the realm In their most re- splendent robes of state. These were flanked by long lines of white-robed eunuchs, with striking groups of the black-skinned African guard, the latter In white turbans, brilliant uniforms, and shining armour. After profound and repeated prostrations, an address from the Emperor was presented. It was Inscribed on blue parchment In letters of gold, encased In a wondrously carved golden box bear- ing on the lid a mosaic portrait of the sender, and all was further enveloped In a tissue of silk and gold. A reply, for the Caliph, was made by a court poet, who extemporized for the occasion in glowing measures and long-sounding strains, and who was rewarded for his effort by a purse of gold and an appointment to a high office. Of a different stamp was the embassy sent by the Western Emperor, Otho, son of Henry the Fowler. Through a misunderstanding, the latter considered that he had been Insulted by the Caliph, and prepared a most scurrilous epistle as a measure of retaliation. But It was found much easier to write the letter than to procure a mes- senger to deliver It; death at the hand of the Moslem King being considered the certain penalty for Its presentation. Finally John of Gorza, a fa- il BUILDERS OF SPAIN natic monk who thirsted for martyrdom, offered himself and was allowed to set out for Cordova. Now, Abd-al-Rahman was fully informed of the contents of the letter before the arrival of the rude ambassador, and, wishing to avoid an un- necessary rupture with the Emperor, caused the monk to be met by the shrewdest diplomatists of his court, who, after repeated efforts, finally pre- vailed upon him to send back a messenger with explanations, and defer his audience with the Moslem sovereign until another and a less ob- jectionable letter could be procured. At the end of eighteen months the second let- ter arrived, but then there arose the difficulty of the reception by the Caliph of an envoy whose coarse and ragged garments, and uncleanllness of person, were considered an insult to the elegance and decorum of the Moslem court. Supposing his condition to be the result of poverty, the Caliph privately sent him a purse, but the an- chorite promptly distributed its contents to the poor. Then Abd-al-Rahman, struck with admira- tion for so bold and uncompromising a character, declared that he would receive him were he clothed only in a bag. Upon this occasion no jot of the usual splendour and pompous ceremonial of the court was omit- ted, and supercilious courtiers crowded the royal pavilion, awaiting with hardly suppressed amuse- la CORDOVA ment the appearance of the uncouth monk, who was expected to be struck with confusion at his own sorry figure, and overawed by the unaccus- tomed magnificence of his surroundings. But John of Gorza regarded with disdain the splendours of the luxurious palace; to him they were despised as temptations of the devil. His dignity was even proof against the magical lightening of the mar- vellous fountain; and Abd-al-Rahman was so greatly pleased with his bearing and self-possession that, later, he accorded him the unusual honour of a private audience. Even more grotesque than John of Gorza was the corpulent figure of Sancho the Fat, whose loss of his throne, that of Leon, had actually resulted from his physical inability to bestride a horse. Although Sancho's grandmother, Toto, Queen of Navarre, had been a most Inveterate enemy of the Moslems, she advised him, when driven to take refuge with her, to apply to a celebrated physician of Cordova who, it was thought, could restore him to his former lightness and agility. Prolonged negotiations with the Caliph, and the cession of a number of fortresses were necessary before safe conduct was secured. Then an invita- tion was rceived which enabled both Toto and Sancho to pay a visit to Cordova for consultatioa with the famous physician. Crowds of the curi- ous attended the passage of the Northern mon- 13 BUILDERS OF SPAIN archs through the Moslem territory, and a bril- liant reception awaited them at Cordova, where Sancho was soon relieved of his superfluous flesh. His visit was further profitable, in that he suc- ceeded in arranging a treaty with Abd-al-Rahman, by which the latter agreed to assist him in the recovery of his kingdom from the usurper Ordofio. Within a few months, therefore, a scarcely recognizable Sancho set out from Cordova at the head of a Moslem army, to which were soon added those of his own followers who joined him on the frontier. These united forces speedily de- throned Ordofio and replaced him by Sancho. But later, when Sancho's power was firmly re- established, he ignored the favours which had been showered upon him, and refused to fulfill his treaty obligations with Abd-al-Rahman. Then Ordofio is found taking refuge at Cordova, where, although a royal palace was assigned him, and ceremonial courtesies accorded, he was neverthe- less regarded with secret contempt. But Ordoiio spent the remainder of his life in Cordova, and died there. The reign of Al-Hakem II., although it occu- pied only fifteen years, is crowded with the splen- dours of a prolonged and far-reaching prosperity, coupled with the lustre of a refined and scholarly court. The imposing ceremonials of the preced-. CORDOVA ing reign were repeated with increasing magnifi- cence; those attending the accession of Al-Hakem fairly exhausting the descriptive powers, even of Arabian historians. Medina Az Zahra was en- larged and further embellished, and became the usual residence of the Caliph. But Al-Hakem's chief renown lies in his enlight- ened patronage of literature and the fine arts, and In his superb addition to the great mosque. Al-Hakem was a born bibliophile, with a passion for first editions and rare and beautiful bindings and illuminations.^ Moreover, his love of books 1 We are told that Al-Hakem sent agents all over Europe and the East to purchase rare or curious books; letters in his own royal hand were dispatched to every author of reputation asking for copies of that author's works; and, when purchase was not possible, desirable books were ordered transcribed. It must be re- membered, of course, in comparing this library with modern ones, that many volumes of script are required to represent the same number of words contained in one volume of print. In Al-Hakem's library each book was necessarily divided into many volumes. It should also be remembered that the value per volume, aside from the literary worth, was infinitely greater than that of a printed book to-day. The monetary value of Al-Hakem's library brings us to the unbounded prosperity of the Spanish Moslems, and their enormous wealth at this period. During the reigns of Abd-al-Rahman III. and Al-Hakera II. the royal revenues reached six million pounds sterling, fifteen fold greater than that of William the Conqueror, who flourished a century later. Besides the capitation tax on Jews and Christians, the kings of Cordova received one-tenth of all prod- 15 BUILDERS OF SPAIN was not exhausted in their accumulation. He not only collected, Illuminated, and bound his books, but he read them. Indeed, he Is credited with the superhuman task of having read all his four hun- dred thousand volumes, each volume of his vast library, according to Al-Akbar, bearing an Inscrip- tion In Al-Hakem's own writing, giving the name of the author, his tribe, the dates of his birth and death, and anecdotes of his life and work de- rived from the reading of other authors. As a his- torian, Al-Hakem achieved an enviable reputation, for It Is asserted that whatever he related In his voluminous history of Andalus (Andalusia) "might be confidently believed to be a fact." One day, desiring converse with one of the learned faquirs of Cordova, Al Hakem dispatched a eunuch to summon his attendance at the royal palace. The great scholar was found engaged In expounding certain abstruse points of science and law to a body of students In one of the smaller mosques of Cordova. " O, Faquir," said the eunuch. Interrupting the learned discourse, "the Commander of the Faithful (may God prolong uce and one-fifth of the spoils of war, but the most conspicuous por- tion of their revenues was drawn from the mines, whose entire output was the royal prerogative. The mineral wealth of Spain has always been far famed, and many mines, originally opened and worked by the Phoenicians, yielded vast sums under Moorish management. Also with the improved methods of agriculture in- troduced by the Arabs, the fruitfulness of the soil was multiplied many times over. i6 CORDOVA his life!) wishes to see thee, and he is waiting to see thee; so make haste, quick, quick/' " I hear the Sultan's orders," said the Faquir, "and would willingly obey, were it not that I am prevented. Go back to thy master and mine (may God pour his favours upon him!) and tell him how thou hast found me in one of the houses of God (may His name be exalted!), surrounded by a number of students, to whom I am recounting traditions respecting his uncle (the Prophet). Tell him that these students are attentively listening to my words and profiting by my lessons, and It be- hooves me not to Interrupt the subject upon which I am lecturing to them until the sitting be at an end, and the hour come for dismissing them/' Either the humour of the situation, or Al- Hakem's reverence for learning, procured royal tolerance, even applause, for the opinionated stickler for the dignity of learning. When the latter required the opening of a long unused gate as more convenient for his entrance into the royal palace, Al-Hakem smilingly yielded to the whims of the old scholar, even going himself to meet him at the gate. In the minds of many, the honour done the Faquir increased the glory of the Caliph; bat there were not wanting those to whom it indicated a lowering of the royal dig- nity, and with whom it sensibly weakened his high office. 17 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Together with his learning, Al-Hakem was deeply religious. He always read public prayers every Friday In the great mosque; and he at- tempted to reform many abuses which had long been flagrant In the community. His efforts to correct the prevailing vice of drunkenness began with the wholesale order to root up every vine in the kingdom. But vine-growing was a valuable Industry and, like many another ruler, Al-Hakem was compelled to revoke a mandate which threat- ened to interfere with commercial Interests. Scarcely second in Importance to his prodigious library, was the work of Al-Hakem upon the great mosque. With the increasing population of the capital, the chief shrine of the faith, which every good Mussulman must visit at least once a week, had long been inadequate for the accom- modation of the vast throngs which constantly crowded Its precincts. Its enlargement, determined upon by Al-Hakem Immediately upon his acces- sion, was accomplished by an extension to the south, whereby a depth of about a dozen columns was added to the sanctuary. The addition con- tinued the style and arrangement of the earlier work, but it necessitated the destruction of the old MIrab, erected by Hlxem L, and called for the construction of a new one, which, like the first, It was proposed to build at the extremity of the continuation of the main aisle. j8 CORDOVA While the work was in progress, the question arose as to whether the position of the old MIrab correctly Indicated the direction of Mecca. It had pointed due south, and now new lights In mathe- matics and astronomy declared that the true direc- tion of Mecca lay a little to the east. Discussion ran high, and even threatened a schism among the faithful. Then the aged Faquir, for whom the Caliph had shown so great a degree of re- spect, decided the matter according to the same old rule of precedent, still the decisive factor in most religious disputations. "Have not our fath- ers, the Imans before thee, the doctors and all good Mussulmans from the time of the conquest up to the present day, directed their looks to the south? Is it not preferable to follow the exam- ple of others and be saved, than to perish by separating from the track?" "By Allah," the Caliph replied, "thou sayest right. I also am for following the example of our fathers," and so It was ordered, the new MIrab continuing In Its traditionary position. By this time the Roman ruins which had earlier served for quarries were largely exhausted, so the materials for Al-Hakem's work were quarried In Merida. Following the custom which still largely prevails, stone for floors, columns, and walls was simply blocked out before It was put in place, and the carving and other ornamentation left until after 19 BUILDERS OF SPAIN the building was erected. As in earlier efforts, Byzantine workmen were put in charge of the fabric, and, with practically limitless resources placed at their disposal, the decorative detail was begun with an elaboration of design and a deli- cacy of finish which still render this the shrine of shrines in Spain. The horseshoe arch of the new Mirab is to-day considered the finest piece of mosaic in existence. It is formed of glass, flint, and metals, in dark rich colours, whose sur- face is polished until the work has the bloom and brilliance of a peacock's wing. Below the arch, and flanking the portal, are carved panels whose beauty of design and perfection of execu- tion have rarely been excelled. But, although inexhaustible means were at hand for the completion of the work as begun, time was found to be wanting. Al-Hakem's reign was only fifteen years, and many of the arches of his addition to the great mosque are still borne by columns whose capitals remain as blocked out in the rough. The Mirab was completed, also the curious and elaborately cusped arches which mark its approach. But the remainder of the work, with the exception of a few highly ornamented capitals, does not equal the earlier portion of the mosque. The Mirab Itself, with its superb portal, and Its roof carved out of a single block of white marble 20 ill Cii ^Li^^iMj limltlesc? the decorntive c .Ink of Mirab, Mosque, Ccrdova <\ to be wanti he gi 01 a tfa its superb p^ e block CORDOVA in the form of a shell, is the supreme effort of Saracenic art in the peninsula; but already, in the arches surrounding its portal, a note of decadence is sounded. Utterly without structural significance, these arches are curious rather than beautiful; and their bizarre forms, coupled with the elabora- tion of ornamental detail, at least suggest the growing influence of native workmen. Such fan- tastic lines could only be tolerated in a building like this, where structural dignity is nowhere at- tempted; yet even here the weak, distorted lines are almost an offence. The pulpit, or desk, placed by Al-Hakem in his Mirab, was a fitting ornament for the shrine It occupied, and a suitable repository for the Oth- manic Koran. It was built on wheels, and nine steps ascended to it. Ivory and the most precious woods entered into its workmanship. One writer says there were in it thirty-six thousand pieces of wood, fastened together with gold and silver nails; and it was further incrusted in places with pre- cious stones. The construction of this pulpit oc- cupied eight artists seven years. It was still in existence in the sixteenth century, but was then broken up, and its materials used in the construc- tion of an altar. The Othmanic Koran, brought into Spain by the Omeyad caliphs, is commonly supposed to have been written by Othman, and was thought ai BUILDERS OF SPAIN to be stained by his blood. This Caliph, the third in succession from the Prophet, was assas- sinated while engaged in public prayers at Da- mascus, and he Is said to have clasped the book to his wounded breast as he lay dying. Even Al-Makkari finds little authority for this legend, but the Inestimable value of the volume in the eyes of all Mussulmans was unquestioned, and the history of its earlier and later wanderings is a subject of careful and laboured writing by many authorities. Al-Makkari opines that it was last acquired by the Sultan of Tlemcen, whose suc- cessor possibly preserves It to-day among his treasures. In the court of the enlarged mosque, four reser- voirs for water were erected by Al-Hakem. These were for purification, and replaced the single earlier one. That had been supplied by water drawn by beasts from a neighbouring well, whereas the new ones were fed by a canal which brought fresh water from the mountains. Of these new reser- voirs, the two large ones were for men, and the two small ones for women. Were there more devout men than women In Moslem Cordova? or did they stand In greater need of ablutions? Several almshouses were also built by Al-Hakem against the walls of the great mosque, and alto- gether he Is said to have expended one hundred and sixty thousand gold dinars upon the work of 22 CORDOVA Its extension, elaboration, and improvement; and all within the short space of fifteen years. During the latter days of Al-Hakem, a young student of law In the University of Cordova, Mahomet-al-Amlr, began to attract notice, not only among his associates, but In the palace Itself. There he made himself especially pleasing to the Sultana, the mother of the young Prince Hlxem. And within a few days of the accession of the chlld-callph (Hlxem was only nine at his father's death), Al-Amir was bold enough to express a presentiment that one day he should rule the Moslem kingdom of Spain. Mahomet-al-AmIr gave voice to his boastful prediction In a wine shop where a group of fel- low-students were chatting over their cups, and he concluded his pre-vlslon of Impending greatness by promising to grant, when he should come into power, what was most eagerly desired by each of his companion^. After a burst of derisive laugh- ter, one scoffingly chose to be Governor of Mal- aga, another, Inspector of Markets, and a third, Prefect of Cordova. But the fourth, choking with Indignation, burst forth: "Wretched boaster! Thou the ruler of Andaluz I Thy insufferable ar- rogance Is an insult to the majesty of the Cali- phate! The favour that I would demand of thee would be that the first act of thy vaunted author- ity should have me stripped naked, smeared with 23 BUILDERS OF SPAIN honey that the flies and bees should sting me, placed upon a donkey with my face to the tall, and so paraded through the streets of Cordova." It was not many years before the young Ma- homet, soon known from his military ability by his popular title, Al-Mansur (meaning Victor of God), was in a position to grant the wishes of his friends expressed In this Idle hour, and each one down to the smallest detail was carried out. A very Richelieu, Al-Mansur employed every per- sonage at the court as a stepping-stone to his advancement, flinging each aside, even the Sul- tana-mother, when they could no longer serve his purpose. One by one those who stood in his path were removed, either by Intrigue or assas- sination, and the young Caliph never even emerged from the nursery-like seclusion of his childhood. It Is possible that Hlxem may have been lacking in natural powers from infancy, but whatever his gifts or want of them, he was never permitted a normal development, and after a few years he was almost forgotten. Al-Mansur constantly used the young Caliph's signature, which was easily procurable, and once it seemed necessary to parade Hixem's shrunken figure and wizened face, prematurely aged by a life of dissipation, through the streets of Cordova. The people had believed him dead, and Al-Man- sur, to retain his power, must expose this pitiable 24 i ■ Arabesque from Mirah. Panel of Portal, Mosque. Cordova. CORDOVA shadow of royalty. Was it really Hixem? We may never know, and after this exhibition he made no further appearance In Cordovan history, except as a name to quarrel over or to conjure with. For twenty-five years Al-Mansur upheld the al- ready falling fortunes of the Moslem kingdom of Cordova. His title, Victor of God, was earned by many brilliant victories In the field, some in Africa, but more often against the Christians In the North. Once his victorious army returned to Cordova followed by a train of Christian captives from far-off Santiago. Upon their backs was the burden of the rich booty of that desecrated shrine; and later the bells which had led the service of the Christian altar were Inverted and used as lamps In the great mosque. But Al-Mansur's armies were largely, if not entirely, composed of Christian captives, with Christian and Berber mer- cenaries. As the pay was double that from other rulers, such large numbers flocked to his standard that only picked men were accepted. But al- though the result was the finest body of troops In Europe, It was also one whose bigotry and rapac- ity were to prove the chief menace to the perma- nence of the Western Caliphate. But Cordova still kept on her luxurious way. There are historians who tell of another suburban villa, called Az-Zahira, erected and lived in by Al-Mansur, which even surpassed the extent and 25 BUILDERS OF SPAIN splendour of Medina Az Zahra. Although twelve miles from Cordova, its gardens extended to the very walls of the city. Here the dictator, who placed his effigy by the side of that of the Caliph upon the coins of the realm, conducted Its admin- istration, and received embassies with all the pomp and ceremonial of a real Caliph. Twice the Af- rican King, ZeyrI, visited the court of Medina Az Zahira, each time bringing curious gifts. Among them were a number of extraordinary animals, a musk bull, a gnu, and a bird that could speak both Arabic and Berber, the latter doubtless a parrot. Hearing of the magnificence of the Moslem dictator, the King of Navarre sent a friendly em- bassy, whose especial mission was to report upon the actual resources of the Caliphate. Al-Mansur was Informed as to the purpose of the visit, and laid his plans accordingly. He caused a large lake within his gardens to be planted with water lilies. Then two hundred pounds of gold and silver were cast Into small pieces of money. These were secreted In the lilies the night before the reception of the embassy, which had been ap- pointed at dawn. The ambassadors iipon their arrival found Al- Mansur In a great hall of his palace, seated In a balcony overlooking the lake. Exactly at sunrise, one thousand of the Slavonian guard marched In 26 CORDOVA and took up their positions on each side of Al- Mansur's throne. Five hundred were dressed in robes of gold tissue and carried golden trays, and five hundred, in silver tissue, carried silver trays. The strangers were much Im- pressed by their rich apparel and admirable training. But their amazement became boundless when, as the first sunbeams struck the lake, the guard marched to Its borders and began to gather the fruitage of the opening lilies. Those with golden trays plucked the silver pieces, and those with silver trays, the golden; and when all the lilies had been despoiled they returned and poured the coins In a shining heap at the feet of Al- Mansur. It was easy then to arrange a most advantageous truce with the well-nigh speechless embassy, who, upon their return, advised the King of Navarre : " Do not make war upon these people, for, by the Lord! we have seen the earth yielding them Its hidden treasures." Of the many measures resorted to by Al-Man- sur to bolster up his perilous position, the burn- ing of the scientific works In Al-Hakem*s library, a sop thrown to the growing Importunity of Berber bigotry, was the most costly act of his reign, and the further enlargement of the great mosque, under- taken to restore his falling credit with the power- ful priesthood, the only effort of permanent Im- portance. But, although eight aisles were added 27 BUILDERS OF SPAIN 1 to the entire length of the mosque on the east, Al-Mansur's addition contributed nothing whatever to Its consequence beyond Increase of size. The extension Is irregularly set out, capitals are commonplace, a few of the arches are pointed, and all the materials are Inferior. Altogether, In com- parison with the earlier work, it Is slipshod. The bare prolongation of the aisles, however, must be recognized as a factor of significance in the Im- presslveness of the entire structure. Indeed as seen to-day, despoiled of so much of Its beauty of finish, its chief fascination lies In the endless and constantly changing vistas produced by twenty- nine aisles running one way and nineteen the other. What It was when its twelve hundred polished columns supported a roof whose beams were richly coloured and picked out with gold, when its illumi- nation was effected by over twelve thousand lights, must, alas I be left to the imagination. These lights were tiny flames from bronze and silver lamps and candelabra; but their endless profusion, multi- plied by reflection in long rows of gleaming columns, with the bewildering perspectives of springing arches, must have produced an effect of almost inconceivable beauty. The new Maksurah added to the mosque by Al-Mansur may be regarded as the final archi- tectural effort of the Caliphate of Cordova. It is described as one of the most magnificent struc- 28 CORDOVA tures ever built by man. With doors of pure gold, a floor of silver, lapis lazuli columns, and the richest of mosaic and carving, It appears to have been a marvel, and Its destruction a supreme loss; but the character of the work of this period, which has been preserved, creates grave doubts of Its artistic value. The enclosure of this Maksurah IS now covered with stucco arabesques in Alham- bralc designs, a work of the fourteenth century. With the death of Al-Mansur, Is closed the last bright period of Cordovan history. In- trigues, murders. Insurrections, and revolutions fill the few years Immediately following with the dis- order of quickly succeeding horrors of bloodshed and desolation. Within a dozen years as many as six kings attempted to usurp the tottering throne: and before half that period had elapsed, Cordova had been despoiled of half her beauty, and her prosperity had been ruined. The devastation of the rich suburbs, with the destruction of the fa- mous villas of Medina Az Zahira, and Medina Az Zahra, was the result of fratricidal strife. Only seven years after the death of Its builder, the palace of Al-Mansur was razed to the ground, and Its treasures destroyed, by an Omeyad prince who overthrew and crucified, one after the other, two of the brothers of Al-Mansur, who attempted to succeed him. Not many years later, Medina Az Zahra was sacked, every living person In It being 29 BUILDERS OF SPAIN first put to the sword, and Its walls levelled to the ground, by an army of savage Berbers, in the pay of another aspirant to the throne. During the domination of the African kings, only a quasl-importance remained to Cordova, and no shadow of the prosperity, so quickly de- stroyed, ever returned. With its conquest by St. Ferdinand (1235), the fate of the already broken-down city was sealed. After a stubborn and protracted resistance, the terms of capitula- tion granted only life, and liberty of departure, to the Moslem Inhabitants. So large a number abandoned their homes that the city was prac- tically depopulated before Ferdinand's entry. Only here and there curious eyes from behind lattices watched the march of the victorious army, which, after unfurling the standard of Leon and Castile from the highest tower of the fortifica- tions, took Its way to the great mosque, where the cross at once replaced the crescent above the chief shrine. i~ The most precious treasure of the great mosque, the Othmanic Koran, had been carried away to Africa by the Almohade kings, a loss regarded by the superstitious as removing the last warrant of the security of Moslem power in Spain. The pattern of the splendid pavement was already worn, and marbles and mosaics were dulled, yet the vast In* terlor, whose precincts, after two hundred and 30 CORDOVA fifty years of exclusion, were now, for the first time, desecrated by Christian feet, still presented a strange beauty to unaccustomed eyes. To the rough soldiery fresh from the sombre North, mosaics, tapestries, and hangings of golden Cor- dovan leather still glowed with a riot of oriental colour, while the bewildering and unexpected vistas of labyrinthine aisles surprised and startled at every turn. But wonder and superstitious awe soon gave way to profane jests, followed by the desecration and abuse of a splendour the rude bar- barians were totally unable to enjoy. St. Ferdinand at once ordered the purification and consecration to Christian uses of this chief shrine of Western Islamism, and the site conse- crated for two thousand years to religious use, reverted once more to the service of the Christian faith. A few years later, an Arabian poet se- cretly entered the re-consecrated mosque-church at night. He found it strewn with green branches of myrtle; the noise of thundering bells resounded in his ears; the glare of innumerable lamps daz- zled his eyes. Every one of those present, he wrote, " had banished mirth from their counte- nances, and expelled from their minds all agree- able ideas; and, when they directed their steps toward the marble font, it was merely to take a few sips of water from the hollow of their hands. When the priest rose with the wine cup in his 31 BUILDERS OF SPAIN hand, the fragrance of its contents captivated his senses, and when he (the priest ) tasted the liquor, Its sweetness and flavour seemed to overpower him." " By the Lord of mercy," wrote the poet, "this mansion of God is pervaded with the smell of fermented red wine, so pleasant to the youth. It was to a girl (the Virgin) that their prayers were addressed; it was to her that they put on their gay tunics, Instead of humiliating themselves before the Almighty." Even before the entry of Ferdinand, the royal Alcazar adjoining the great mosque had become a dismantled ruin. At the beginning of the four- teenth century, some effort was made by Alfonso XI. to rebuild it, and this fourteenth-century Alcazar Nuevo now serves as a prison. In Its gardens the curious will find a few broken walls, and the location of once luxurious baths. Else- where In Cordova occasional fragments of Sara- cenic decoration are seen incorporated in newer walls. But to-day, in the once magnificent city, the sole relic of importance of the labours of the Byzantine workmen who contributed the larger proportion of its . material splendour, is the now defaced and desecrated mosque. To-day the richly ornamented ceiling of the once splendid fabric is hidden by plaster domes; Its arches are daubed with a wash or paint in dls- 32 CORDOVA tressing stripes of red and white; its columns are dull and defaced; and, crowning misfortune of all, Its long vistas are blocked by a huge Coro, to make way for which some misguided Christian architects removed several hundred precious columns. But, even defaced as It is, there re- mains a strange and fantastic charm In the old mosque. The long vistas of its still countless columns and doubled arches still suggest and re- create In the imagination a vision of its early beauty. Everywhere was the splendour of oriental colour; In the bronze of Its furnishings and the gold of Its roof, In the soft fabrics whose richly blended tones clothed long stretches of walls, and were caught and continued in the flowing robes of an endless procession of worshippers: but, most of all In the glorious shrine toward which all faces were turned, now as then the most pre- cious work ever produced by Saracenic art; a memorial to the Inspiration of Arabian genius, and a monument to the splendour of Arabian power in Spain. 33 Chapter XIV. SEVILLE ** ^ "X" THEN a learned man dies In Seville, ^y%/ and his heirs desire to sell his library, they generally send It to Cordova. When a musician dies in Cordova, and his In- struments are to be sold, It Is the custom to send them to Seville.'* So wrote a wise faquir of the Arabs; and so Seville has remained all through her history, a city given up to the playing of musical instruments, to dancing, and to song. The statellness of Spanish dignity may be found in Andalusia, as In Castile; yet in Seville it is carried with a lightness which half conceals its lofty decorum. Seville, as well as Toledo, is dis- tinctively Spanish, and it also bears to a striking degree the Impress of Saracenic civilization; but no stronger contrast may be Imagined than that lying between the battered fortifications of the Northern city, and the light sunny squares of the Southern one. In Seville, stucco walls are washed with clouded tones of white and blue and pink, and terra-cotta roofs of ruddy corrugated tiles are crowded into a perfect jumble of angles, from whose crevices spring golden bunches of feathery wild mustard. A few strenuous or disastrous 34 SEVILLE pages mark the history of Seville, but they have left little impression, or rather their wounds have been healed by the softness of the Sevllllan cli- mate, the fertility of the Sevllllan soil, and the brightness of the Sevllllan spirit; and to-day, as always, Seville is the gayest city in Spain. Following the usual Spanish custom, the legen- dary history of Seville begins with the coming of Hercules. Upon that memorable voyage when the Greek hero reached the end of the world (the straits of Gibraltar), he first built Gades (Cadiz), and there, while pasturing the flocks of Gades upon the broad plain of the Guadalquivir, he founded the city of Seville, and built there a temple. It is said that this fable of Hercules, and others of Bacchus, refer to early settlements of Chaldeans and Phoenicians, and that the name Seville was originally the Phoenician Sephela, meaning plain. The Greeks made it Ispola; the Romans Hispalls; and the Arabs Ishblllah; from which the transition is easily accomplished to Se- ville (Sa veel ya). But all is pure tradition until the entry into Seville, 45 B. C, of Julius Caesar. That the town was already a flourishing one, is proved by the fact that its subjugation was considered of suffi- cient Importance to be Inscribed In the Roman calendar; and the immediate and marked favour shown to Seville by the conqueror, so rapidly ad- 35 BUILDERS OF SPAIN vanced Its prosperity that It quickly became the chief city of southern Spain. Caesar gave the town his own name, together with that of the empire, Julia Romulea, and declared It the capital of a province, Baetlca. Under the emperors, Se- ville became so opulent that a license was granted It to coin money In the town, a most marked and special privilege; and the Roman ruins, still pre- served In and about Seville, Indicate the high de- gree of prosperity attained, as well as the Imperial favour with which the city was regarded. Already as early as 200 B. C. the Roman town of Italica, a few miles from Seville, on the site of an early Iberic settlement, had been founded by Sclpio Afrlcanus. At first Intended as a refuge or asylum for soldiers wounded In the campaigns against the Carthaginians, Italica finally attained considerable Importance, doubtless rivalling Julia Romulea In the number and beauty of Its monu- ments. This consequence was largely augmented by the birth In Italica, of both Trajan and Ha- drian; but with Its gradual decay, said to have been caused largely by a change In the bed of the Guadalquivir, Italica, sometimes called Old Se- ville, became little more than a quarry, from whence were dragged materials for the building of the newer city. Until the end of the third century, Seville was pagan, and perhaps the best proof of its early 36 SEVILLE Phoenician colonization is the interminglement of Phoenician paganism with that of Rome. The chief goddess worshipped, Salambo, was a sort of Phoenician Venus, whose cult originated in Baby- lonia and spread thence to Egypt, but which never reached farther west than Seville. The festival of this deity was celebrated each year in July, when her loss of Adonis was commemorated by a great procession; the people following her image borne upon the shoulders of noble women clad in mourning, and weeping. In the year 287, as the procession wound through the narrow Sevillian streets, two young girls, Justa and Rufina, en- gaged in selling earthenware vases, refused to do reverence to the goddess. They were newly con- verted to Christianity, and this, their first public avowal of their faith, so incensed the crowd of devotees that they were put to death. The first Christian martyrs of Seville, Justa and Rufina early became its patron saints, an honour they still retain. Although Seville enjoyed for only a brief period the distinction of being the Visigothic capital of Spain, it always remained the chief southern city in their peninsular empire, and its great metropol- itans frequently lifted Seville to a leading part in the affairs of the kingdom. No one of the Visi- gothic kings left so profound and lasting an im- pression upon the history of Spain as the power- 37 BUILDERS OF SPAIN ful Archbishop, Leandro, who established its Cathol- icism; and without his gentler brother, Isidro, a wide and Irreparable gap would be left In the lit- erature of the peninsula. Once, when a court was set up In Seville for the unstable Ermlnlglld and his intractable wife Ingunda, Leandro almost re- covered for the city its earlier pre-eminence. But for the superior military ability of the sturdy old King, Leovlglld, it might again have become the VIsigothic capital of Spain. But Leandro's great triumph came with the conversion of Recared, and until the death of Isidro, who, in 600, suc- ceeded Leandro as Archbishop of Seville, the see occupied a position fully equal to that of Toledo. Like Toledo, Seville remained a Roman or semi-Roman city during all the VIsigothic period. The old pagan temple of Venus Salambo, con- verted Into, or replaced during the Roman period, by the Christian church of St. Vincent, Is believed to have served as the cathedral church of Seville until the Moslem conquest; and the Roman Prae- torium, some of whose walls are thought to be incorporated In those of the present Alcazar, was doubtless the royal residence of the earlier VIsi- gothic kings. For the rest, there are accounts of temples, aqueducts, walls, and towers; and Se- ville still preserves the portico of one Roman temple, some portions of Roman aqueducts, and a few columns, broken statues, and tombs. But, 38 SEVILLE as in Toledo, decay had doubtless set in before the Moslem invasion, and much of the beauty de- scribed as found there by Arab writers may be attributed to a natural luxuriance of vegetation, or to the desire to boast of the riches of con- quest. Why Tarik passed Seville by on his victorious march into the north, we are nowhere informed, but its conquest was left to the Arab general, Musa. Possibly the Berber leader had been in- formed of internal dissensions which are said to have led to its surrender without resistance. At any rate the task of its reduction was an easy one, and the Moslem conqueror, enamoured of the beauty of its situation and the fertility of its soil, immediately designated Seville as the capital of Moslem Spain. It was in Seville, therefore, that Musa assembled the captives and the booty, taken in the conquest of the peninsula by both himself and Tarik, preparatory to their transport to Damascus. The spoil of palaces and the plunder of churches was loaded Into ponderous vehicles, which were doubtless drawn by the hundreds of Visigothic captives, who, with the treasure, were later to be presented to the Caliph. One Is left to wonder how the clumsy vehicles were trans- ported across the straits; also why the plunder was not loaded Into boats at Seville, which was a port for sea-going vessels of moderate draught. But 39 BUILDERS OF SPAIN the Moslems never took kindly to the sea and, like many moderns, possibly desired to make their crossing as short as possible. According to a long-accepted tradition, the wid- owed queen of King Roderick, the African princess Egllona, was found by Musa In Seville. This famous beauty preserved her freedom and her vast wealth by a timely submission to Moslem authority. And a little later, as the wife of that most engaging young prince, Abd-al-AssIz (whom his father, Musa, left as emir of the new province), Egllona once more became Queen of Spain. Many are the tales told of the growing ascend- ency of Egllona over Abd-al-AssIz, and of her ambition which finally wrought his ruin. Her stronger personality made Itself felt even In the councils of the Divan, which soon began to show marked favour to the Christian Spaniards. Early regarded with jealous suspicion by the Arab fol- lowers of Abd-al-AssIz, Egllona finally got herself detested by an attempt to introduce the cere- monials of the Gothic court Into the more demo- cratic household of the Moslem emir. The free and independent Arabs had no mind to prostrate themselves before a mere governor, and when it was whispered that Abd-al-AssIz, to please his proud Sultana, was wearing, in private, the crown of King Roderick, his doom was sealed. These and many other stories, whether authen- 40 SEVILLE tic or not, indicate what is doubtless true, that Egllona aspired to an independent sovereignty for her Moslem husband. It Is even possible that her desires were not Inspired by ambition alone, but that she was wise enough to foresee what was inevitable and actually came to pass fifty years later; that in the very nature of the case Spain could not remain a dependency of the Eastern Arabian Empire. But Egllona, like many another, paid the pen- alty of living before her time. Swift messengers carried charges to the Caliph, and as swiftly re- turned with orders for the Immediate execution of Abd-al-Assiz. The warrant caused the keenest distress to some of those charged with Its execu- tion, who happened to be friends of the family of Musa. Moreover, the army was known to be devotedly attached to the young Emir, both of which facts testify to the warm personal charm of Abd-al-Assiz. Some difficulty, therefore, was found In finding an executioner. But the com- mand of the Caliph was imperative, and Abd-al- Assiz was assassinated while upon his knees en- gaged in reciting morning prayers in the mosque of his summer palace outside of Seville. Thus perished a prince of whom not one evil report has been preserved, and with his death, Egllona van- ishes from history. Possibly she may have shared his fate. 4^ BUILDERS OF SPAIN A few of the rapidly succeeding emirs kept their courts at Seville, but constant turmoil marks even these periods of distinction, and with the foundation of the kingdom of Cordova, Seville sank to the secondary position which she was to occupy for nearly three hundred years. During these years occasional attempts were made to establish Independence, and now and then a tem- porary success was achieved. But revolt and in- subordination always ended with victory for the arms of the Caliph, and the re-Incorporatlon of Seville Into the kingdom dominated by Cordova. Accurate or detailed accounts of the material growth of Seville during this period are wanting, and few, If any, of the monuments of the time are preserved to-day. But, like Toledo and Cor- dova, the beauty of Seville Is extolled by Arabian poets In the most extravagant phrases, and every- thing tends to prove that It rivalled the northern cities In riches and splendour. The Arab population of Seville was drawn from Emesa in Syria. As the banner of Emesa fol- lowed that of Damascus In the procession at Medina, Its Inhabitants ranked second among the followers of the Prophet. But as a people they were light and frivolous, given to indolence and pleasure; and the dissipation and luxury which they Introduced Into Seville contributed not a little to Its reputation for brightness and gayety. 42 SEVILLE The city Is described as one of the handsomest In the world. Its chief glory was the river, usually known as the WadI Keblr (great river), grad- ually changed Into Guadalquivir; but also as the WadI Kortubah (the river of Cordova). The Guadalquivir was navigable for what were then considered large vessels, but It was also always crowded with pleasure boats. Its banks were cov- ered with fruit trees forming a " sort of canopy over It, so that one might sail on It sheltered from the rays of the sun, and listening to the charming melody of the singing birds." The journey along Its banks Is described as equally pleasant, and we are told " that one might easily travel for a distance of thirty miles through clus- ters of buildings and farmhouses, high towers, and strong castles, forming a continuous city." Op- posite Seville the river was bridged by a string of boats fastened together by chains. Another lover of the great river describes both banks of the Guadalquivir as covered with pleas- ure gardens, orchards, vines, and yew trees, all In such profusion that It Is doubted If any other river in the world could compete with It. Then this enthusiastic scribe drops into verse. "The breeze falls playfully on the river, and lifting up the skirts of Its robe agitates the sur- face of Its waters; the stream, resisting the out- rage, hastens down to revenge it." 43 BUILDERS OF SPAIN "The ring-dove laughs on its bank from the excess of his love, and the whole scene is covered with a veil of tranquillity and peace." As the olive flourished with marked luxuriance in the surrounding country, the chief article of traffic in Seville was olive oil. A hilly district called Axarafe was especially prolific, and there, Arab writers tell us, olive and' fig trees were planted so thickly as to afford continuous shade, on the hottest summer day, to the passing trav- eller. It is claimed for this region that it sur- passed in beauty and fertility every other spot on the face of the earth; that its hamlets and vil- lages were superior to those of other countries in extent and commodiousness, as well as In the fine designs and ornament of their homes, which, from their continual whitewashing,^ are compared to " stars in a sky of olive trees." A travelled Sevillian, upon being asked to com- pare Seville with Cairo and Bagdad, replied: "Axarafe is a forest without wild beasts; its river a Nile without crocodiles." And an elo- quent poet exclaimed: " Seville is a young bride ; her husband is Abbas.2 Her diadem Axarafe; her necklace the river." Seville is further praised for the mildness of .Its 1 Probably tinted with pink, blue or yellow, as to-day. 2 The Sultan then reigning. 44 Giralda, Seville. SEVILLE climate, the purity of Its air, Its fine buildings, good streets, abundance of provisions, and com- modities of all sorts. Indeed so overflowing were Its markets that It became a common saying In Andalusia: *' If thou seekest for birds' milk, by Allah! thou shalt find It In Seville." The houses of Seville- were provided with run- ning water, their spacious courts were planted with fruit trees, and, as a last refinement of lux- ury, the beautiful palaces built on Roman ruins are said to have been warmed In winter and cooled In summer by scented air brought In pipes from beds of flowers. Al-Makkari describes the inhabitants of this paradise as the merriest people on earth, always singing, playing on various Instruments, and drink- ing wine. Musical instruments of all sorts, he tells us, were not only to be procured at any time in Seville, but were also manufactured there with the greatest skill. "There wilt thou find," he writes, *'the khiyal, the kerbehh,^ the oud,^ the rotteh, the rahah,^ the kanun,^ the munis the kaunerah, the ghinar, the zalemi, the shakurah,'^ 3 Kerbehh, probably a kind of timbrel, also called a sieve from its similitude of form to that utensil. * Oud, a kind of lute. " Rabab, a kind of viol, modern Spanish arrabel, a small viol with three strings, chiefly used by shepherds. ® Kanun, Persian for a kind of dulcimer. ■^ Shakurah, a lute. 45 BUILDERS OF SPAIN the nurdh^ and the hok*^^ Many of these were found in other cities of "Andalus/' but nowhere In such numbers as in Seville. Even without these extravagant praises of the Arab poets, a high place among Spanish cities must have been given to Seville. The fertility of Its surrounding districts almost vied with that of the vega of Granada, while as a commercial cen- tre, Its location gave Seville an Importance second to no city in the peninsula. Its port was accessi- ble to ships from any part of the world then known, and it was the natural outlet for the fer- tile southwestern plains of Spain. The markets of Seville, therefore, became the exchange where the lucious products of Andalusia were bartered for the rich treasures of the Orient. But with all Its beauty and luxury, the busi- ness of Seville was soon largely left to its Jewish and Mozarabic population. With their passion- ate love of freedom and disdain for the traffic of cities, the noble Arab chiefs gradually retired to their extensive estates in the surrounding hills; visiting Seville only to maintain their control over It, or for devotions in its great mosque, obliga- tory upon all good Moslems every Friday. Seville itself, therefore, was more and more 8 Nurah, a lute. ® Bok, a clarionet. . The nature of the other instruments mentioned is either unknown or uncertain. 46 SEVILLE given up to a subject population. Among them the Jews were not only all-powerful in commerce, but soon took a high rank 'In Intellectual pursuits; producing scholars, scientists, poets, and even poetesses, of brilliant powers and attainments. When the Jewish poet, Ben Sahl, who was noted for the tenderness of his strain, was drowned at sea, another very happily observed that, "The Pearl had only returned to Its shell." A most gifted SevUlIana was the Jewess Miriam, who taught rhetoric, poetry, and literature, and whose piety and amiability are said to have rendered her an ornament to her sex, as well as a bright star In the learned and polished society of Seville. The chief activities of Seville, however, were commercial, and with Its growth In prosperity and wealth, and consequent Increase of power, col- lisions with the domineering absentee Arab nobles became more and more frequent. At length the strife assumed such proportions that the Arabs called In the assistance of semi-savage Berber bandits, who were always to be found roving and ravaging the c6untry. In the end, the entire region was swept by these hordes of outlaws, and the Mozarabe population of Seville was practi- cally annihilated. Memories of the horrors of this scourge are still to be found In the traditions and minstrelsy of Seville. During the ninth century, another grievous vls- 47 BUILDERS OF SPAIN itation was an invasion of Norman barbarians who, after effecting landings and Inflicting heavy damages on the coasts of the Asturias, and in Lis- bon, reached Cadiz and ascended the Guadalquivir. The fierce aspect of these Northern vikings every- where spread terror before them. It was not un- til rumours of a national uprising, which threat- ened to cut off their retreat, reached their ears that they were to forced to take to their ships. In the meantime, however, the suburbs of Se- ville had been occupied and sacked, and the splendid new mosque in the city destroyed. The date of the erection of this mosque is uncertain; of its style and appearance we are only told that it occupied the site of the earlier Roman church of St. Vincente, and that it was modelled after the one at Cordova. After the reimpositlon of the yoke of Cordova by Abd-al-Rahman III., Seville remained fairly submissive to the Omeyad caliphs until the over- throw of that house. Then, however, she was one of the first among the cities of the peninsula to assert her independence, and so great was her power and wealth, that Seville soon aspired to nothing less than the succession to the position earlier held by Cordova; an ambition very nearly fulfilled. The princes under whom Seville rose to such a high degree of power were of the house of Abbad, whose dynasty was founded by a su- preme judge of Seville, Mahomet Abul Kasin. 48 SEVILLE The most powerful of these kinglets, Motamld IL, as already narrated, accomplished the ruin of his house; but before that was brought to pass, he had exhausted most of the possibilities of life. A poet of no mean repute, and a patron of learn- ing second to few in the history of Moslem Spain, Motamld was also fierce and sensual; over- riding all ties or obligations in the pursuit of his ambitions, and revelling in perfidies and cruelties which are happily seldom paralleled. The rulers of Ronda were suspected by Mota- mld of treachery. They were therefore invited to send, upon a friendly mission, a large embassy to the court at Seville. A party of sixty horse- men, splendidly mounted and richly equipped, were soon at the gates. There they were wel- comed with every mark of esteem, and at once conducted to apartments furnished with the most sumptuous appointments, chief among which were the luxurious baths so highly esteemed by all Mos- lem peoples. With true hospitality, the visitors were left to the enjoyment of their ablutions. But long before the stains of travel were re- moved, the ambassadors began to feel uncomfort- ably warm. An effort was made to open windows or doors, but all were found sealed and even walled up, and the next day sixty steaming corpses were taken out of these royal guest chambers. Although himself an Arab, Motamld at one 49 BUILDERS OF SPAIN time planned to murder at one blow all the Arabs in Seville, thinking thus to frustrate an imagi- nary plot against his life. The wholesale assassi- nation was planned to take place In the chief mosque on Friday, when It was usually crowded. But a warning was given, and the empty temple admonished the King, not only that his plot was betrayed, but that he had needlessly created a new crop of enemies. A gruesome decoration of the royal palace was the rows of sealed jars in which Motamid pre- served the skulls of his vanquished enemies. One writer asserts that the value of these skulls was enhanced by setting them with jewels; diamonds flashed from eye sockets, and diadems of precious stones encircled the temples. Motamld's garden, also, was embellished with the same ghastly trophies; rows of skulls polished to a snowy whiteness being made to serve as pots for the growth of flowers, each skull bearing upon a label the name and offence of Its owner. Al- Makkari tells us that there was nothing Mota- mid liked so much as to look at this enclosure, and that he used to spend the greater part of his time In gazing at It, but he also observes that the tyrant would sometimes weep and feel compassion for his victims. After an unsuccessful campaign against the Christians, even the crafty Motamid was for the 50 SEVILLE moment nonplussed by the demand of Ferdinand IL, of Leon, as one of the conditions of peace, for the delivery of the relics of Sts. Justa and Rufina. The Moslem King had no desire to keep the precious bones. But where was he to find them I For over three hundred years no one had given them a thought, and here was an embassy armed to the teeth, headed by two powerful bishops, who were charged not to return without them. The difficulty was finally solved in the good old way. A miraculous vision was vouch- safed to one of the bishops, in which he was per- suaded that the bones of St. Isidore possessed far more national importance than those of the SevIUIan tutelars. Then, the whereabouts of St. Isidore's bones being revealed by a divine odour, the embassy was sent upon its way rejoicing. It is said that MotamId made a great show of sorrow at being compelled to part with so pre- cious a treasure, and that, in token of his great esteem for the saintly bishop, he covered the bier of the departing relics with a magnificent robe. We are also told that the journey of the precious bones Into the north was constantly accompanied by miracles. Each day when the embassy desired to set out. It was found Impossible to lift the bier from the place where it had rested during the night until the Inhabitants had agreed to 51 BUILDERS OF SPAIN found a church there. Thus, as has been clev- erly said, was quickly accomplished what is now-a- days the work of the prolonged and organized labours of a Church-Building Society. The appearance of the young King, Alfonso VI., of Leon and Castile, before the walls of Seville, at the head of the largest Christian army that had ever menaced the city, was the signal for widespread dismay. As usual, the city was totally unprepared for attack and, with no practical defences, was absolutely at the mercy of the Christian army. But curiously enough, the passion of a royal chess player for his game saved the day. Among the possessions of Motamid was a most marvellous chess board. It was constructed of sandal and other precious woods, mounted in solid gold, and set with precious stones. Armed with this costly toy, a clever diplomat of the Mos- lem court paid a visit to the Christian camp. There, as though by accident, Alfonso was per- mitted to catch a glimpse of the jewelled board. As the Christian King had recently learned the game and was proud of his skill In playing it, he at once challenged the Moslem, also a famous player, to a contest; the game to be played on the costly board, which was to be forfeit to the winner. But the Moslem, although willing to run the risk of losing his board, desired also 52 SEVILLE ' ^ to have a chance to win something, and stipulated that, If the game fell to him, his first request should be granted. Naturally, Alfonso at once refused so Insidious a proposal, but the Arab con- tinued to dangle the glittering bauble, with ^the temptation of a really great game, before the eyes of the young monarch. The lure finally proved too strong to be resisted, and the con- test was begun. Both players were soon' absorbed In their play, the swarthy, white-turbaned Arab with his serious mien, and the keener visaged but less subtile Visi- gothlc King; each equally oblivious, as they sat in the door of the royal tent, to the bustle of the vast army, and even heedless of the beauty of the broad plains surrounding the white walls of the beleaguered city whose fate hung upon the issue of their game. As the contest proceeded, it soon became apparent that Alfonso was no match for his more practiced antagonist. Indeed, it was the Arabs who had introduced chess Into Spain, and who had inherited skill in Its tactics for hundreds of years. With his defeat, the Christian King had the additional mortification of listening to a request, which he was already pledged to grant, demanding his unconditional evacuation of Andalusia. For a moment there was danger that Alfonso would disregard his oath, but a promise of double tribute finally eased 53 BUILDERS OF SPAIN the strained situation, and Seville was delivered, for the time, from the danger of Christian conquest. Although so weakly defended by Motamid, Seville, under him, was raised to a marked degree of prosperity. With a population of four hun- dred thousand, with streets paved and lighted, and with splendid monuments which doubtless vied with those of Cordova, but of which, alas, we have only descriptions preserved to us, Seville reached the zenith of her power In the subjuga- tion of the earlier Moslem capital. But there was no solid foundation for wide or long-con- tinued domination. Not only Alfonso of Leon and Castile, but other Christian kings, were a growing menace which might not again be bought off with a garne of chess. Finally, awakened to the danger of his situa- tion, Motamid called together representatives from his subject cities, with the result that an appeal for aid was sent across the straits to the already famous African conqueror, Yussef-al- Tashfin. With the memory of their own not long distant conquest. It seems Incredible that only two votes were cast against this most dangerous proceeding. The history of the Almoravldan leader Tashfin was well known In Andalusia. Al Raxld, the son of Motamid, with prophetic wls- 54 SEVILLE dom, protested: "This Tashfin, who has sub- dued all that he pleased, will serve us as he has already served the people of Mauritania, he will expel us from our country. " " Anything " replied his father, " rather than that Andalusia should become the prey of the Christians. I would rather become a driver of Tashfin^s camels than reign dependent on these Christian dogs." For a time a measure of success crowned the efforts of the allied Moslem armies, but It was very soon demonstrated that there could be no real unity between the half-barbarous Africans and their more civilized Spanish brethren. After a successful expedition Into the north, Tashfin with some of his followers returned to Seville as the guests of Motamld. There their cupidity was aroused by the splendour of the Moslem court, and their disdain by Its weakness and effeminacy. Perceiving that his unguarded attitude had awak- ened suspicion, Yussef suddenly took his de- parture, while Motamld, at last alive to this new danger, appealed to Alfonso of Leon and Castile; and, as before narrated, even sealed an alliance with that Prince by the gift of his daughter In marriage. But the Africans were already at the gates of Seville, and Motamld, caught nerve- less after a long debauch, was forced to yield 55 BUILDERS OF SPAIN up his sovereignty and the balance of power In Moslem Spain to Tashfin, who became the first of the Almoravldan kings. On the principle that any change from the rul^* of the now execrated Motamid must be for the better, the Almoravldan governors were at first welcomed. But their oppressions and, even more, their barbarities, soon rendered them equally de- tested, and after fifty years of misgovernment, Se- ville was treasonably delivered Into the hands of their successors, the Almohades. The latter were scarcely less barbarous than the rulers they had supplanted, and like them they ruled their Span- ish kingdom from Africa. But one Almohadan king, Yussef I., who ascended the throne in 1190, was possessed of most uncommon abilities as well as an excellent education. Moreover, what was of most Importance to Spain, he resided for a time In Seville. Yussef I. Immediately set about Improving his Andalusian capital: and whether or not earlier monuments had been destroyed, or had only fallen into decay during the century of disorder which had preceded him, nothing of Importance In Se- ville to-day dates earlier than this reign. Al- though Yussef is said to have spent but a year in Seville, a perfectly astounding list of public works Is credited to him. Possibly some were only begun, but even so, the bare undertaking of 56 SEVILLE so much indicates an amazing activity. The old Roman aqueduct was repaired and enlarged. A bridge of boats was built across the Guadal- quivir; probably likewise a rebuilding of an earlier work. Walls which also served as quays, were constructed to confine the river within Its banks. These quays were provided with stairways for the loading and unloading of merchandise, and with warehouses and places of exchange. Walls were built for the defence of the city, which was also guarded by towers. Of the latter, the only one of great importance remaining is the well-known Torre del Oro, which long united the defences of the Alcazar with those of the city. But more pretentious than all other public works begun by Yussef were the new great mosque with its lofty tower, and a new Alcazar. The mosque occupied the site of the earlier one destroyed by the Normans, and like it, is said to have been modelled after the famous mosque of Cordova. Its dimensions were four hundred and fourteen feet by two hundred and seventy. The entire enclosure, which Included the court, was surrounded by a wall crowned by stepped battlements. As African battlements were weathered. It is not improbable that some por- tions of the earlier walls, with their original eastern battlements, had been preserved and were now re-used. The battlements were painted many 57 BUILDERS OF SPAIN colours Instead of being all red, as at Cordova, or white, as at the Alhambra. The court was set out with orange trees and furnished with foun- tains. The mosque Itself Is said to have been built with columns from pagan temples, and em- bellished with arabesque decorations, alabastar lat- tices, bronze lamps, and doors inlaid with rare woods or covered with metal plates. Much of the above and other details of de- scription given of the Sevlllian mosque are pure surmise. Furthermore, while its general form was much the same as the famous mosque at Cor- dova, It Is most probable that the Sevillian fab- ric displayed a much freer use of brick and stucco. Both materials were essentially African, and the tower of this Berber mosque at Seville, which, except for Its upper stage, has survived, owes its chief beauty to panels of arabesques In relief, executed In brick work, of the utmost dis- tinction of style and elegance of finish. As already pointed out, this minaret or tower, now called the Giralda, Is the most Impor- tant monument left in Spain of the middle Mos- lem period, and after a study of Its design and workmanship, one is inclined to question the repu- tation of the Berbers as a rude and barbarous people. With a base fifty feet square, the Gi- ralda Is built to a height of eighty-seven feet with smooth blocks of warmly tinted yellowish 58 SEVILLE stone polished until the rosy surface shines like glass. Above this solid foundation the construc- tion Is of brick of a similar tone, but given an exquisite relief of light and shade by the afore- said panels of arabesques. The balconied ajimiez windows are set in such panels and flanked by others. The lines of the traceries In each panel rise from the arches of low arcades and, inter- lacing above, produce flat decorative designs of striking grace and elegance. To-day these designs derive all their beauty from their effects of light and shade, but, as In the case of the Parthenon, and now, also, with that of the Gothic Cathedrals, we are taught that much of the early splendour of the Giralda was due to brilliant colour. As In the decoration of the Al- hambra, the reliefs of these Impanelled arabesques were yellow or gold, against a background of scarlet and blue. And when to this brilliance of de- sign was added a crown of battlements, doubtless painted like those of the wall below in many colours; when this structure was surmounted by another smaller tower ornamented in a like man- ner, from whose apex rose an upright gilded bar sustaining four bronze globes of diminishing size, the largest twenty feet in diameter, all not only plated with gold, but deeply grooved to re- flect the light; then, indeed, the splendour of this minaret must have been bewildering, and well 59 BUILDERS OF SPAIN calculated to overpower the dazzled eyes of a stranger approaching it for the first time. In form and construction, the Giralda strongly resembles the now fallen Campanile at Venice, and doubtless both originally followed Byzantine models. The walls of the Sevlllian tower are nine feet in thickness at the base, and grow thicker as they ascend. The ascent is made by thirty-five ramps built between an outer and in- ner wall. The tower was completed, in the twelfth century, as originally designed, by Abu Layth, a Sicilian architect and engineer, under whose supervision the gilded bar with its four daz- zling globes was raised to its place at the apex of the pinnacle, a feat which may even yet com- mand a high degree of respect. Under the Almohade kings, the royal palace at Seville became a group of palaces known as the Alcazares, all surrounded by a wall built on a triangle, whose apex was covered by the Torre del Oro. Within this enclosure were extensive gardens, and some of the various buildings are believed to have incorporated remains of the old palace of the Roman governor. The splendour of many of the halls and pavilions within this enclosure may be surmised from the beauty of the Giralda, as well as from written descriptions. But these African kings also made It strong. Un- der them the Alcazares became the stronghold of Seville, and Seville one of the best fortified 60 SEVILLE cities of Europe. The need of such defences was rapidly assuming a vital importance, for the kings of Castile were fast advancing into the south, and when the Moslem King of the new kingdom of Granada, as his only hope of self-preserva- tion, yielded vassalage to the Christian King, Fer- dinand, the desperate situation of Seville was re- vealed. But this time Seville was prepared to make a stubborn resistance, and with her strong defences and vast wealth, much might be hoped for. Realizing the difficulties of the undertaking. King Ferdinand began his operations by a complete devastation of the surrounding country. For leagues in every direction the view was obscured by the smoke of burning homes and orchards, and in the end every leaf was trampled into the earth. An appeal for Moslem aid was sent to Africa, and twenty galleys attempted to ascend the Guadalquivir for the relief of the beleaguered city, but they were met by a Christian squadron, and, in the battle which resulted, the latter were victorious. It was Christian rather than Moslem ships, therefore, which finally appeared before the walls of Seville. The arrival of these vessels completed the blockade, whose Inflexible purpose was already in- dicated by the substantial quarters erected for the Castillan army. As the double wall and moat which surrounded Seville were sufficiently strong 6i BUILDERS OF SPAIN to repel almost any possible mediaeval means of attack, few offensive operations were at first at- tempted; the chief efforts of the besiegers being directed to the prevention of the entry of sup- plies. Only the bridge of boats, which still served to connect Seville with the suburb of Triana on the opposite bank, remained to render the block- ade occasionally Ineffective. Its destruction, there- fore, was early determined upon by the Cas- tUIans. The first attempt was made by means of fire rafts which were floated down the stream, but they drifted ashore before they struck the bridge. Then boats laden with stone were floated against it, and these finally broke the connecting chains, and sent the loosened fragments of the bridge swinging- against the banks. But the loss of the bridge appeared to have little effect upon the stubborn spirit of the deter- mined city, and month after month the siege dragged on. The CastUIan army was reinforced by Christian cavaliers from all over Spain, and even from elsewhere In Europe; for warfare against the Moslems In Spain had everywhere become a Crusade. Then there were subject Mos- lem princes who were compelled to serve under Ferdinand. Among them was Mahomet-al- Hamar of Granada with the five hundred horse- men demanded by his terms of vassalage. At length, tiring of inaction, the besiegers con- 62 SEVILLE structed huge catapults for the projection of enor- mous masses of stone, and tall movable towers, by means of which an effort was made to gain a foothold on the walls. Both armies were ac- quainted with the secret of Greek fire, and many of these ponderous engines were attacked by it and destroyed before they had performed any actual service. We are also told of a machine for shooting arrows which was a sort of gatling gun. By means of It, one hundred arrows could be shot at once, and with such force that they penetrated steel armour. The stout walls of Seville were soon battered and defaced, but their actual strength was still practically unimpaired when, at the end of seven- teen months, hunger compelled Its capitulation. The terms were much the same as those granted to Toledo and Cordova, and promised freedom and retention of property to all Moslems who wished to remain subject to the crown of Castile. The chief hardship was the surrender of the great mosque with Its minaret, the latter the pride of all Moslem hearts. Rather than allow it to become an ornament to a Christian city, it was proposed to destroy it. But Ferdinand had no mind to lose the most glorious monument of his victory, and sent word that If a single stone of the tower were disturbed he would massacre every Moslem In Seville. 63 BUILDERS OF SPAIN As a fitting climax to the long siege, the entry of the conquering army was made imposing and spectacular, the Castlllan King being attended by a long list of princes and grandees. At the gate of the city he was met by a deputation which de- livered the key of Seville. This key, which is still preserved. Is the smaller one of the two now to be seen in the treasury of the cathedral. Aside, from Its historic interest, It Is valuable as a work of Saracenic art, but the cufic characters which cover its wards have never been satisfac- torily interpreted. As In Cordova, the entry of Ferdinand found the city practically deserted. Three hundred thousand Moslems, it is esti- mated, had already taken their departure. The conquerors at once made their way to the great mosque, which was immediately purified and con- secrated to Christian worship, and in the (days following, the same ceremonies were cele- brated In a large number of smaller mosques. Evidence of the Importance of Seville is found in the fact that St. Ferdinand at once made it the capital of his now largely augmented king- dom of Castile. Thither he removed his court, and there he took up his residence in the Al- cazar-Citadel, whose stout walls had so long de- fied his arms. In Seville, as elsewhere, Ferdi- nand engaged in that persecution of heretics which gave him his best-known title, that of saint, and 64 SEVILLE there he spent the final four years of his great reign. With the approach of death, the deeply religious mind of the King found solace In the practice of the most extreme rigours, and the end found him kneeling upon the bare earth with a rope around his neck. Thus, In the attitude of a convict, he received the last sacrament. Rarely has Seville witnessed a more magnifi- cent pageant than the funeral of St. Ferdinand. Among other deputations sent to do him honour, were a hundred Moslem nobles from Granada. They were clad In the deepest mourning, and bore lighted tapers. The body was borne to the great mosque-cathedral; and In the fabric which has since replaced It, the remains of St. Ferdi- nand still occupy the centre of the chief shrine. Although the Moslems accepted their defeat as final, and made no attempt to retake Seville, the city did not lack excitement during the early years of Christian rule. The people being turbu- lent as ever among themselves, there was always a party arrayed against the reigning king. Some- times, also, his seat was contested by his broth- ers, and once at least by a son and heir, who found waiting for the natural course of events far too tedious. This undutiful prince, Sancho, who finally became Sancho the Brave, even en- listed the assistance of a Moslem army from Africa in open warfare against his father, Al- 65 BUILDERS OF SPAIN fonso X. But Seville stood by Alfonso and fought for him, and In return, Alfonso granted the city the badge which still remains the chief figure In her coat of arms. El nodo, as It Is called, Is usually rendered, "No 8 Do," the 8 representing a hank of yarn, which. In Spanish, is Madeja. The entire figure reads, No m'ha deja do, " It has not deserted me." As elsewhere, the Christian occupation entailed a rudeness of life whose result was the early de- facement of Moslem monuments. Even as early as the visit of Mahomet II., of Granada, the delicate bloom of Saracenic art had been largely tarnished. The situation of Seville rendered Its absolute ruin well-nigh Impossible, but Its prosperity had re- ceived a heavy blow, and until the fourteenth century, little. If any, effort was made toward supplying the places of Moslem buildings, which, when not wantonly destroyed, were allowed to crumble to decay. It was not until the reign of Pedro the Cruel that repairs of any moment were undertaken in connection with the old Alcazares, and then it was found necessary to Import workmen from Granada. The result was the rebuilding of the portion of the palace which Is preserved to-day. Some of the work, notably a few of the capi- tals, Is evidently re-used from the earlier struc- ture, and Is exquisite In form and detail. Much 66 Alcazar, Seville. Patio de las Munecas. (Court of the Dolls.) SEVILLE of the effort was of great magnificence, but coarsened Imitation of Alhambralc designs abound, and, In general, the result lacks the delicacy and refinement of the Granadlne palace. Thus rebuilt, the Alcazar became the home of one of the most enigmatic characters In Spanish history. Pedro himself, with his wild furies, cruel persecutions, and strange freaks of mild- ness and justice, Is sufficiently perplexing, but In the background Is always the pale Inscrutable face of Maria de Padllla. Did she more love or fear the tyrant who, among his equals, softened only to her? Was she jealous when her royal lover married and deserted within a day the Portu- guese beauty Juana de Castro? or when In a cold fury of passion he burned the Invincible Urraca Osorlo In the streets of Seville? The real queen, pretty Blanche of Bourbon, played no part of Importance either in the life of Pedro or his favourite. Endowed by history with something of the mysterious charm of the Mona Lisa, Maria de Padllla attracts and repels by turns. Were Pedro's periods of gentleness the result of her influence? and how did she, alone, maintain a permanent place in his life? Few among Span- ish women would better repay study, and, as must necessarily follow with one who shared the life of Pedro, the history of Maria de Padllla is crowded with sinister events and startling scenes. 67 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Throiigh her lattice the proud favourite might have watched Pedro playing the host at a banquet given in honour of the renegade Granadlne usurper, Abu Said, and his followers. The oc- casion was expected to serve the King and his Moslem guest as an opportunity to concert meas- ures for their mutual benefit, and finally to re- place Abu Said upon the throne of Granada. But Pedro, glancing from under lowered brows at the resplendent uniforms and magnificent jewels of his visitors, suddenly summoned the guard. The terror-stricken Moslems were seized, searched, and plundered, and then thrown Into prison. Two days later a sorry procession passed through the streets of Seville, headed by the prince Abu Said, who, in mockery of his pre- tensions, was dressed in royal robes and seated upon an ass. In a plain outside the city, all were fastened to stakes, and Pedro himself, with a sword thrust, dispatched the chief victim, while his courtiers amused themselves with the suffer- ings of the others. Literally pecks of jewels, many of fabulous value, were said to have been secured by Pedro through this act of perfidy. One famous ruby, or garnet, known as the Belax of the Red King, has become historic; for when Pedro bought the assistance, in his wars against his brother Henry of Trastamara, of Edw^ard 68 SEVILLE of England, the Black Prince, the splendid gem formed part payment for the service, and to-day It adorns one of the royal crowns in London Tower. One day Don Fadrlque came riding Into the court of the Alcazar. It was a foolhardy pro- ceeding thus to place himself In Pedro's power, for everyone knew that the King had grown sus- picious of his half brother. The young Prince went at once to Pedro's apartments, where he was given a grudging reception. From there a visit was paid to Maria de Padllla. There, It Is possible, he may have received a hint of his danger, for he made an attempt to reach the en- trance, but as he was passing through the corridor near to the King's apartment, Pedro called through the wicket In his door to the guard, " Kill Don Fad- rlque, kill the Master of Santiago ! " Don Fadrlque attempted to save himself, and his followers hear- ing the noise of the struggle, ran to his assistance. All were soon overpowered, and one last victim was even pursued to the presence of Maria de Padllla by Pedro himself, who plucked him from behind Dona Beatrice, Maria's daugh- ter, and handed him over to the guard. Then, returning through the corridor where Don Fad- rlque lay, Pedro discovered that he still breathed, and the King's own dagger finished the business. Pedro set up a throne of justice in one of the pavilions of the Alcazar, where, after the Mos- 69 BUILDERS OF SPAIN lem fashion, he heard the complaints of his peo- ple, and often meted out most Impartial justice. Indeed, this strange compound of cruelty and softness made himself greatly beloved by the common people. It was his nobles and courtiers who had reason to fear him; and If there be any truth In the absurd story that the latter dally drank the water from the bath of Maria de Padllla, It was done to curry favour with the King rather than with the favourite. Pedro made the most strenuous efforts, which were finally crowned with success, to have the son of Maria de Padllla declared his successor. The decree was speedily set aside, or rather, was disregarded after Pedro's death. But through the marriages of Maria's two daughters with two brothers of the Black Prince, John of Gaunt and Edmund, Duke of York, the blood of the Span- ish King and his mistress still mingles with that of the kings of England. After Pedro, the CastUIan court drifted more Into the north, and, although Juan 11. added something to the Alcazar, Seville, except In the estimation of SevUlIans, steadily lost In Importance. But before Juan's work was begun on the Alcazar, the clergy and people had determined upon the erection of a new cathedral. The magnificent Gothic cathedrals of Toledo and Burgos had both been founded In the thirteenth century by 70 SEVILLE St. Ferdinand; and It seems most remarkable that he attempted nothing of the kind In the city whose conquest was regarded as the crowning glory of his career, and of sufficient Importance to make It his capital. But for over two hundred years, the old mosque, with its court of oranges, Its foun- tains, and Its tower, was made to serve. Addi- tions, from time to time, together with deface- ment and decay, had greatly changed Its aspect, but It was not until 1401 that its condition seemed to demand a new structure. Then, how- ever, a glow of enthusiasm for the work prom- ised to make amends for the long delay. It was declared to be the desire of the clergy and peo- ple of Seville, to build a cathedral so large and so beautiful that they should be deemed mad to have attempted it. The first stone of the new structure was laid in 1402, and, as the fabric grew, the old mosque was pulled down to make way for it. The new building was to be Gothic, but the lines of the old foundations were followed. This not only gave the new fabric an enormous size, but even greater proportionate width than that of the cathedral at Toledo. At present there Is no au- thoritative architectural treatise on Seville cathe- dral. Even the dimensions do not appear to be anywhere correctly stated. Street omits it alto- gether from his work on Spain, Intimating that 71 BUILDERS OF SPAIN he did not consider it worth a journey into the south, and, although Ferguson calls it one of the grandest mediaeval cathedrals, he dismisses it with but few lines. To-day the church, with Its offices, stands com- paratively free, and the vast pile may be viewed from all points. Yet, save as a mountainous mass of stone, the exterior of Seville cathedral is neither interesting nor Impressive. Its effect of great height is counteracted by its width, as well as by the altitude of the aisles, which so nearly equals that of the nave that the spread of the buttresses for the support of the latter is almost horizontal. The general form of the structure is that of a huge oblong block. The square east end is entirely covered by an enormous Renaissance chapel, and the Court of Oranges, preserved from the old mosque, the GIralda, the Sagrario, the Chapter House, and the Sacrlsta Mayor, suc- cessfully hide the most of the remaining lower walls of the church proper. The fagade, a work of the nineteenth century, is meagre and unim- pressive. But once the observer is inside the church, the impression of vastness is overwhelming. It is all so high, and each detail is so huge. Whether this effect of size would be even more magnifi- cent If the great Coro, which fills the centre of 72 T^^ Fiezv across J isles, Cathedral, Seville. !S over i:^^l m "^ffl i.^^^H m L Jilt J ■ m r iif 1 |-^^| H: jm 1 H 9 1 I'^Wm 1 ^^h; ikHHl^^l ■i ' tlii en t| 1 i^^K Wi 4 k m HI ■•^■- SEVILLE the edifice, were knocked out, or whether that opening up of the nave would result In a dis- tressing barrenness. It Is difficult to say, but it is possible that the blocking up of the nave is a saving grace to the church at Seville, at least. The double aisles of Seville cathedral so nearly equal the nave In width and height, that it prac- tically has five naves. The enormous piers have the slightest of capitals, and, owing to the alti- tude of the aisles, there Is necessarily no triforlum gallery. There Is, therefore, an utter lack of that variety of proportion which Is the greatest beauty of the Gothic style, and the effect of the splendour of size Is measurably lessened through want of proper comparison. Gothic harmony of proportion Is best attained at Amiens, ^® where the length and height of the nave are approxi- mately the same as at Seville, but where the breadth Is about half that of the Spanish ex- ample. Moreover, the aisles at Amiens are only a little more than half as wide and high as the nave. Yet with all its barrenness from mere size, Seville cathedral presents marked purity of con- structive lines, and most of the detail Is simple and dignified. The windows are comparatively small, but are filled with good tracery, mostly ^^ See " French Cathedrals and Chateaux," by the author of this volume. 73 BUILDERS OF SPAIN flamboyant, and with glass of striking brilliance and beauty. Mouldings and vaulting ribs are simple rolls and hollows, except In the bays at the crossing. There, not only are the mouldings ornamented with fine cutting of leaf forms, but the groins are filled with the most elaborate tracery. Here again, is the over-elaboration of the Spanish workman, and, while much of the result Is rich. Its continuation all over the vast vault, which was doubtless the Intention, could only have resulted, as did the sham tracery at Milan, In belittling the noble simplicity to which the main lines of the cathedral owe a large measure of their dignity and beauty. After her accession, upon the occasion of her first visit to Seville, Isabella I. received a most royal and magnificent reception. Fetes, tourneys, tilts with reeds, and all the other exercises of Castlllan chivalry occupied a number of days. Then the energetic Queen set about that reforma- tion of abuses which had been the chief reason for her coming. She set up her court in the large salon of the Alcazar, probably the salon of Maria de Padilla, where she herself presided over the administration of justice. A throne was raised on a platform, covered with cloth of gold, and every Friday the Queen was found there, surrounded by her council and the local judges. 74 3 VJX • V nnd V: :-c le mou '".->, out >nrnfe Vaults at Crossing. Cathedral, S»»vii;^ f the c the occasic sabelia u covered witii cloth oi ' Oueen was f' ■- ^ and ^he SEVILLE So vigorous were her measures, and so many were the offenders brought to justice, that sus- pected persons began to take flight. It Is esti- mated that within two months four thousand escaped Into the neighbouring Moslem provinces; and the people of Seville finally begged her to desist, lest she depopulate the city. Isabella finally consented to forgive all delinquents except heretics. Then she completed the pacification of Seville, by forcing a sort of armed neutrality be- tween the belligerent families of Guzman and Ponce de Leon, whose feuds had long been a source of strife In Andalusia. It was finally, secretly and at night, that the Marquis of Cadiz, of the house of Ponce de Leon, made his way Into Seville and to the apartment of the Queen In the Alcazar, where he tendered her his sub- mission and his promise of loyal service. A year later. In 1478, Prince Juan, the only son and heir of Ferdinand and Isabella, was born at Seville, and there he was presented for bap- tism, a ceremony described as one of the most splendid ever celebrated In Seville. Again, in 1490, the great Queen and her fam- ily were at Seville for the festivities by which was celebrated the betrothal of the Infanta Isa- bella with Alonzo, the heir to the throne of Portugal. It was April, and Seville in April Is lovely beyond description. Don Sllveira ap- 75 BUILDERS OF SPAIN peared as the proxy of the Prince, and the cere- mony of the betrothal was followed by splendid fetes and tourneys. Lists were enclosed on the banks of the Guadalquivir some distance from the city. They were surrounded by galleries hung with silk and cloth of gold, and protected from the heat of the sun by canopies richly em- broidered with the armorial bearings of the grandees of Castile. The Infanta Isabella sat in the midst, surrounded by all the rank and beauty of the court, and attended by seventy noble ladies and a hundred pages of the royal household. The cavaliers of Spain thronged to the tournament, and King Ferdinand himself en- tered the lists, where he broke several lances. At the close of the tilts there was music, and danc- ing in which the ladies took part. They made a fine show in all their bravery, and, as an evi- dence of extreme gaiety, we are told that the festivities lasted into the evening. As early as 1480, Seville had been made one of the chief centres of the Inquisition, and it is not at all improbable that the above festivities were completed by the gruesome spectacle of an auto de fe. The burning of heretics was for hun- dreds of years an important part of most courtly functions in Spain. Like grace before meat, it served as the religious part of all ceremonials of importance, and nowhere were the fires of perse- 76 SEVILLE cutlon kindled with greater zeal than In Seville. During the first ten months of the establishment of the tribunal, nearly three hundred persons were burned; moreover, the bones of many, con- victed after death, were torn from their graves to be consumed. It was soon found necessary to erect a stone platform at the burning place, outside the city walls, and for three hundred years thousands of victims were offered up an- nually at Its stakes. On Palm Sunday, 1493, Columbus reached Seville on his return from his first momentous voyage into the distant and unknown West. Crowds thronged the streets, to catch a glimpse of the venturesome explorer and hear the strange story of his discoveries. Ten years later the monopoly of trade with the new world had been granted to Seville. The board which held its control was assigned offices in the old Alcazar, which was also turned into a depot or warehouse for all merchandise in transport. With these ad- vantages the wealth of the city multiplied enor- mously, and It was not long before the fever of money-getting, by way of adventure and emigra- tion, threatened to depopulate the city, at least of Its male inhabitants. The enormous amount of silver brought into Spain through the port of Seville during the years succeeding the discovery of America Is almost beyond belief. As its ex- 77 BUILDERS OF SPAIN port was soon forbidden, the metal was largely turned Into plate, of which some of the Spanish grandees were finally burdened with thousands of pieces. But the possession of precious metal alone never guaranteed prosperity, and, even with her monopoly of the richest trade In the world, the fortunes of Seville, together with those of the rest of Spain, soon began to decline. Charles V. occasionally occupied the old Al- cazar, and celebrated his marriage there. He also added a gallery over the chief patio; and the extensive gardens, as now seen, were laid out under his direction. Much of their quaint stiff- ness of arrangement Is attractive, but here again, In the arcaded terrace which bounds the enclosure on the east, is an overdone rustic ornamentation which is truly Spanish. Somewhat better are the portions of the really fine Plateresque Ayunta- mlento, or City Hall, which are ascribed to the Emperor; but the Chapel Royal In the same style, which he added to the cathedral, Is hopelessly vulgar. Philip II. waited for years to come to Seville, and, although when he finally paid It a visit. In 1570, he remained only two weeks, he was given a royal welcome. We are told that the city also subscribed one hundred thousand ducats toward the expenses of Philip's fourth marriage — all this for a King whose bigotry dealt the last blow to 78 SEVILLE the prosperity of Seville! In the craze for Im- ported gold, Industries were neglected, and even the silting up of the bed of the great river was unheeded until Seville's value as a port was prac- tically ruined. But It was the expulsion of the Morlscoes from Andalusia, largely accom- plished during the reign of Philip II., which com- pleted the financial ruin of Seville. It Is quite In harmony with the lightness and gaiety of the Sevilllan temper that In this hour of her deepest gloom and disaster she gave bIrtK to the Spanish drama. Lope de Rueda Is still called the Father of the Spanish Theatre, and from 1560 to 1590, his plays were acted In the streets of Seville. It was during those years that Cervantes occupied the office of tax collector In Seville, where he doubtless witnessed many of these rude performances. They were rendered upon a half dozen boards elevated upon benches, and with blankets for drop curtain and back- ground. Beginning with Rueda and Cervantes, Se- ville entered upon a notable era of literary ac- tivity, one of whose chief centres was the Casa Pllatos, the sixteenth-century residence of the Dukes of Alcala. Various reasons are given for the name of this palace, the most common one being Its reproduction of the plan of the residence of Pilate at Jerusalem. It presents a mixture of 79 BUILDERS OF SPAIN the Saracenic, Gothic, and Renaissance styles, but to-day It Is chiefly famous for the unrivalled beauty and quantity of Its glazed tiles. Some of the Moresque Iron work Is, also, of extreme ele- gance of design and finish. Both here and at the residence of one Pacheco, a Canon of the cathedral, were frequently assembled the growing numbers of those literary and artistic lights whose names now ring the most proudly In the annals of Seville. Chief among them was the great Velasquez, who married Pacheco's daughter; and only second to this most Spanish of all the gifted sons of Spain, was Murlllo, whose works give fuller expression to the softer, the more devo- tional side of the Spanish character. As early as 1395, six years before the new cathedral was determined upon, the minaret crowning the old mosque tower had been thrown down by an earthquake, and It Is but another evidence of the weakened temper of the times that no determined effort was made to replace It for nearly two hundred years. The tower itself, except for the gradual loss of Its early colour, appears to have been quite unharmed, and, in 1568, It was decided to carry It one hundred feet higher and crown the structure with a new pinnacle. The result is the Renaissance gallery and minaret that we see to-day. While the general style and Plateresque de- 80 SEVILLE tails of both gallery and minaret are entirely out of harmony with the Saracenic work below, the harmonious proportions of the entire structure, together with Its exquisite detail, render it to- day one of the most beautiful towers In Europe. Within recent years its form has been followed in the tower of the Madison Square Garden in New York, but there no attempt has been made to reproduce any of the Saracenic detail. The lower walls are left plain, and ornamentation is practically confined to the gallery, which follows very closely the Sevllllan model. By so doing, in Its entirety, the New York tower is left a purely Renaissance structure, which was probably the builder's Intention. Uniformity of style is an admirable aim In Itself, and the tower at Madison Square Is a beautiful structure, but to those who have seen the other, it must always appear bare and cold. As the New York tower is topped by Saint Gaudens* lovely Diana, so now the Giralda is crowned by a bronze figure of Faith. This gigantic figure, weighing two hundred thousand eight hundred pounds. Is poised as a weather vane which turns with the slightest breeze; hence, the name given to the tower, Giralda, from Girar, to revolve. The elevation of the enor- mous figure to Its position on the bronze globe upon which it stands, more than parallels the 8i BUILDERS OF SPAIN feat of the earlier placing of the bronze bar with Its four globes. In 1504, after a phenomenal thunder storm '■which seemed to threaten the GIralda, It was placed under the especial care of Sts. Justa and Rufina. It would seem, then, that the twenty-five bells, which were hung In Its gallery after the rebuilding, might have been dispensed with. The primary service of bells In Christian countries was to scare away the devil, a work now sup- posed to be adequately performed for the GIralda by her saints. But even with this possible din of brazen metal, Sts. Justa and Rufina have never been permitted to relax their vigilance. Even to-day, they alone, among Sevllllan saints, are not represented In the procession of Holy Week, lest In so doing their attention may be dis- tracted from the care of the splendid tower, still the most glorious monument of Seville. During the years since Its foundation, the vast cathedral has demanded constant eflfort. Number- less chapels have been erected, and extensive re- pairs have frequently been necessitated by earth- quakes; all this besides the endless labours upon the fabric Itself, which even yet remains Incom- plete. Much of the result Is grandiose and bar- ren, or coarse and overdone, but save for the GIralda and the old mosque wall, which still sur- rounds the Court of Oranges, Seville cathedral Is pre-eminently Christian In style. 82 SEVILLE The same may hardly be said of any other of the churches of Seville, in whose construction Saracenic details, arches, and even towers, are constantly found. Much of the result is unde- niably picturesque, but the general aspect of most Sevillian monuments to-day is bizarre and flimsy. An artist may delight in their tinted stucco walls, built at all angles, in which are set occasional bits of coloured tiles; or even in the brick or stone of more pretentious efforts, with their inter- mingling of Gothic, Renaissance, and Saracenic details; but an architect with a sense of organ- ism or propriety, may find little pleasure or profit in Seville. Save only the Giralda, the city of her Saracenic builders has vanished, and in its stead Is the pretentious, often incongruous, Seville, by which the Christian Spaniards have sought to replace it. But true to her ancient character, the aspect of the city still is light and gay; and, given the blue of her sky, and the luxuriance of her soil, with the brightness of the Sevillian spirit, this chief city of Andalusia must always possess a beauty and a charm strikingly Individual, and inferior to few of the medlseval cities of Europe. 83 Chapter XV GRANADA IN the last days of Ramadan, in the year 1238, the newly elected King, Mahomet- al-Hamar, arrived under the walls of Granada. It was evening, and the royal caval- cade encamped in the vega, deferring their entry until the following morning. Then Al-Hamar, dressed in a tunic of the striped stuff called mllaf, the sleeves of which were opened at the sides, placed himself at the head of his escort, and, amid the acclamations of the people, entered into the city. Toward sunset he rode up to- ward the castle, and when he reached the gate of the castle the voice of the muezzin was heard in the distance calling the people to the prayer of the setting sun; upon which, without going any further, Al-Hamar went into the mirab of the mosque and recited the first chapter of the Koran. Then he went into the castle of Badis, preceded by men bearing wax tapers. The city thus taken possession of "by Al- Hamar first comes Into notice soon after the Moslem conquest, with Its cession, by the Arabs, to the Jews, who were exiled to It from the 84 The Jlhambra and Granada. From the Albayzin. lie, an« GRANADA neighbouring city of Elvira. In the earliest times, the hill now given up to the Alhambra was oc- cupied by an Iberian settlement called Karnattah. With the coming of a numerous Hebrew popu- lation, the name became Karnattah Al-yahoud, or Granada of the Jews, by which it appears that Karnattah, like Granada, means Pomegranate. After the advent of the Jews, Granada grew rapidly in power; but, until the eleventh century, it continued to be dominated by Elvira, where the Arab emirs maintained their seat of power. With the fall of the kingdom of Cordova, the emirs of Elvira, like those of most of the Mos- lem provinces of Spain, set up an Independent sovereignty, founding the dynasty of the Zirites. As the prosperity of Granada increased, that of Elvira diminished, and the second sovereign of the house of Zirites, Habus, removed his court to the more thriving city, although for many years longer the kingdom was to be known as the kingdom of Elvira. The accession of dignity thus conferred upon Granada marks the beginning of a troublous epoch, but an epoch during which the city was to gain constantly In population and beauty, and finally to spread down Into the vega. Already, before the removal of the court from Elvira, the first of the ZIrite kings had considerably strengthened Granada. But it was Habus who 85 BUILDERS OF SPAIN began Its rebuilding. According to some author- Itles, Elvira was ruined at this time for the pur- pose of furnishing materials for the construction of the Important works now begun in the new capital. The chief work began by Habus was the building, or more probably the rebuilding, of a citadel upon the spur of the Alhambra plateau which commands the vega. This Kassabah (the modern Alcazaba) was completed by Badls, the successor of Habus; and Badls erected many other great works. The hill of the Alhambra Is, In a measure, separated from the mountain back of It by a ravine or gorge, and the top of its elongated plateau, which was the location of the primitive Iberic settlement, and still, under the first of the Zirlte kings, was the heart of Gra- nada, was entirely surrounded by Badls with a stout wall. We are also told that Badls erected another Kassabah extending down to the Darro, which Indicates thus early the growth of the city around the foot of the mountain. Accounts of mosques, markets, baths, and other public works give evidence of the thrift of Its citizens, among whom the Hebrews continued to maintain, not only a numerical importance, but at times a mental ascendency as well. But, although Granada was subject to frequent outbreaks of intestine strife, and pretty constant 86 GRANADA border warfare, occasioned by the jealousy or Intrigues of neighbouring principalities, she was left practically defenceless against a powerful In- vasion such as that under the Almoravidan leader, TashfIn, who crossed the mountains and advanced upon the city In 1090. Capitulation was at once recognized as the only course possible, and Abdallah, the son of Badls, hoping thereby to secure better terms, threw himself upon the gen- erosity of Tashfin. He rode out into the vega, as though to receive a guest, but the splen- dour of the cavalcade by which he sought to honour Tashfin, the silks, jewels, embroideries, and burnished armour, only aroused the cupidity of the rude Berber soldiery. Abdallah was placed In chains, his escort despoiled, and Tashfin made a triumphal entry Into the town. The Almoravidan period, during which the treasonable intrigues of the Christian and Moza- rabe population were followed by the persecu- tion and deportation of those peoples, left Granada with the smallest proportionate native population In Spain. The places of the exiles were rapidly filled by African or Berber colon- ists, and from this time the Berber influence was strong in Granada. Within a few years, a sec- ond host of African barbarians, under Almohade leaders, appeared in the fertile vega. As be- fore, Granada was chiefly valued for Its rich 87 BUILDERS OF SPAIN booty; and, until the establishment of an inde- pendent sovereignty under Mahomet-al-Hamar, disorders and frequent revolutions mark the his- tory of the town. Yet its thrifty Jewish population, together with the almost inexhaustible resources of the tribu- tary region, rendered Granada continually pros- perous. One of the chiefs of the Almoravides thus apostrophizes her: "Spain is like a shield, the armhole of which is Granada; let us but hold the straps tight, and the shield will never drop from our arm." Many new buildings and addi- tional fortifications had embellished and strength- ened the city under the Almohade princes; and now (In 1238), as the capital of the new king- dom founded by Mahomet-al-Hamar, Granada was recognized as the third city in Moslem Spain, inferior only to Cordova and Seville. Still dominated by the old Kassabah, the town not only had spread out at its base like a fan, but had crossed the Darro and climbed the lower slope of the hill which rises upon the opposite side of its narrow gorge. The chief gate, the Puerta Elvira, stood not far from the Alcazar of Badls. But another splendid palace had been erected over on the banks of the Xenll.^ This palace, 1 A mountain torrent which rushes down the other slope of the mountain spur, drained on one side by the Darro, and crowned by the Alhambra. 88 GRANADA called the Kasru-s-sid (the palace of the Lord), had been the work of one of the Almohade princes, and added another to the royal abodes from which Al-Hamar might have chosen his residence. But we read that the new King un- hesitatingly directed his steps to the Kassabah, and that the throne of the new kingdom was at once set In the castle of Badis. There are authorities which tell of a sumptu- ous palace back of the Kassabah, on the site of the present palace of the Alhambra, already built before the coming of Al-Hamar. Its walls are described as hung with tapestry and the finest silk, and blazing with jewels. Within Its vaults are said to have been heaps of precious stones, piles of gold and silver plate, weapons of mar- vellous workmanship, vessels of porcelain and rock crystal, and quantities of chains, bracelets, necklaces, and amulets. But as to the truth of these marvellous tales, we may only say with the pious Arab chroniclers, ** God only knows." By most historians, Mahomet-al-Hamar is credited with laying the foundations of the first palace on the site of the present Alhambra. It Is thought to have been begun during the early years of his reign, and that enough of It was completed before his death for him to reside In it. The name Alhambra Is sometimes thought to have been derived from that of the builder. 89 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Al-ahmer, or Al-Hamar, means red man, and Mahomet-al-Hamar is thought to have been of a ruddy type: furthermore, Kal'at Al-hamra in- dicates red castle. But, as early as the ninth century, the fortifications of the hill are mentioned by an Arab writer as Torres Bermejas (red towers), and it seems probable that both that name and Kal'at Al-hamra were derived from the red soil of the mountain, and from the ruddy stone used in the walls erected upon it. During the reign of Mahomet-al-Hamar, gen- erally known as Mahomet I., the rapid growth of the city of Granada so largely increased its extent that entire suburbs were added to It. The most notable was that on the hill which rises opposite the Alhambra, across the narrow ravine of the Darro, whose Inhabitants were refugees from Baeza; hence its name Albayzin. New fortifications for the augmented city early became necessary, and Mahomet erected a new citadel within the town, connecting It with his palace by means of a stout wall flanked at in- tervals by strong square towers. Hospitals, col- leges, aqueducts, mosques, baths, bazaars, and markets sprang up as if by magic. Many books and works of art, saved from the wreck of Cor- dova, found their way to Granada, and almost at once the latter city succeeded to the position 90 Exterior Viezv of Walls and Toivers, Alhambra. GRANADA earlier occupied by the Omeyad capital, becoming the centre of Saracenic civilization In Spain. After the fashion of oriental sovereigns, Ma- homet I. early set up his seat of justice In a gate of his palace, which even to-day Is known as the Puerta de Justiciar and the paternal care displayed In the welfare of his subjects was only equalled by the diplomatic skill with which the King maintained his always difficult relations with the Christian kings of Castile. Within six years of the foundation of his king- dom, Mahomet-al-Hamar found It necessary to enter Into an alliance with Ferdinand III. (St. Ferdinand), which placed the Moslem King In practical vassalage to the Christian sovereign. By this treaty Mahomet agreed to attend the Chris- tian cortes, pay an annual tribute, and render military service In time of war. As Christian warfare was almost entirely directed against Mos- lem foes, the latter condition was not only re- garded as exceedingly humiliating, but became in- creasingly difficult of fulfillment. A few years later when five hundred horsemen were de- manded by Ferdinand to assist In the conquest of Seville, Mahomet responded loyally^ but his fol- lowers fretted at being forced to fight with their natural foes against their Moslem brethren; and It was easy to see that Seville subdued, meant but 91 BUILDERS OF SPAIN another step In the Christian advance which must end In the extinction of their own kingdom. Many of the later kings of Granada refused to pay this tribute; and not a few of the Chris- tian kings were unable to enforce it. But other anomalous situations were produced by the fre- quent alliance of disaffected factions In either king- dom with the ruler of the other; as, for Instance, when the mutinous son of a CastUIan king took the field with the King of Granada against his outraged father, while the latter, the Christian King, found himself obliged to ally himself with an African army, originally Invited Into Spain to join the Granadlne army against him. A later curious mIx-up occurred when the traitorous brothers of Alfonso X. appealed to the Grana- dlne King for aid. Mahomet managed to secure an asylum for one in Africa, and receive the other at his own court; while at the same time he succeeded, In the treaty then arranged with Alfonso, In securing favourable terms for Granada. The Castillan prince, Don Fllipe, was still a guest at the court of Granada when Mahomet L came to his death by a fall from his horse, and the exile had already formed a warm friend- ship with the young prince who succeeded as Mahomet II. This King was gifted with scholarly tastes, and abilities of no mean order. 92 GRANADA He was a famous linguist, and a polished cour- tier. Through the affection he bore Don Fillpe, he was easily persuaded to accompany him to Seville, where the Moslem King was expected to use his friendly efforts to patch up a reconcilia- tion between his friend and the brother from whom he had been estranged. Mahomet suc- ceeded in his task, and achieved a high reputa- tion at Seville as a refined and courtly cavalier, but he returned to Granada saddened by the loss of material advantages In the position of his king- dom. The trick by which he was undone is said to be quite characteristic of the more un- scrupulous methods of the Christians and the unsuspicious courtesy of the Moslem kings of this period. But, we are told, that In his later dealings with foreign princes, Mahomet learned to employ more of craft and subtlety. During- the reign of Mahomet II. and that of his son, Mahomet III., the kingdom of Gra- nada was firmly established, and the city Itself vastly improved. With the enormous booty which frequently fell to the arms of Granada, Important public works were undertaken, and the palace of the Alhambra was enlarged and beau- tified. But of greater importance, for the mo- ment, was the erection of the great mosque, and the chief public bath of the city. By a decree whose Irony Is best appreciated to-day, the bath 93 BUILDERS OF SPAIN was supported by a tax largely levied upon the Christians, whose repugnance to the custom of bathing was only equalled by their ardour for the purely symbolic rite of baptism. The great mosque was established upon the site now occupied by the Sagrarlo of the Cathe- dral. Although preserved until the sixteenth cen- tury, information with regard to this mosque is meagre and confusing. One writer describes It as a structure of eleven aisles, strongly resembling the great mosque at Cordova, embellished with magnificent columns of marble and jasper, and with an ornamentation of fretted silver and bril- liant mosaics. Another (Contreras) writes, " It was square beneath the roof, and divided Into four naves by four orders of columns of jasper. From the capitals of each two columns sprang four arches. The celling was in the form of media naranja (half orange) cupolas, elegantly worked.'' This account, which closes with a few re- marks relative to the portals, and certain his- torical events, doubtless describes the mosque in its latter days when, like the mosque of Cordova, the conquering Christians had laid '* improving " hands upon it. There seems to be no doubt, however, of its jasper columns and elaborate orna- mentation, and it is quite possible that the four arches springing from each pair of capitals, In- 94 GRANADA dicates, as at Cordova, the introduction of two sets of superimposed arches. The close of the reign of Mahomet III. Is marked by the intestine disorders and court intrigues which render the remainder of the his- tory of Granada a long-drawn-out series of melo- dramas. Historians find Mahomet III. either too good or too wicked to retain the loyalty of his subjects; and the chief vizier of the King was even more obnoxious. Probably the unpopular- ity of both was largely due to the Intrigues of Al-Nazer, the uncle of the King, who wished to usurp the throne. One day a mob surged through the streets of Granada, and, after sacking the palace of an odious vizier, that official was tracked to the Alhambra, where, in the very presence of the King, he was literally hacked to pieces. Mahomet was then ordered to resign his throne. As death was the alternative, he at once abdicated and retired to the fortress of Almun- ecar. Al-Nazer, who then usurped the throne, was possessed of a noble presence and brilliant pow- ers. He is credited with administrative ability of the first order, and was a munificent patron of literature and the fine arts. Gifted with a genius for mechanics, he himself produced a most marvellous clock, which surprised and delighted all who saw it. But a throne secured by force 95 BUILDERS OF SPAIN IS an uneasy one, and Al-Nazer soon found himself menaced by an Intrigue similar to the one by which he himself had profited; his nephew, Ismall-al-Ferag, secretly conspiring against him. Fortunately for the King, the treason was dis- covered and Al-Ferag caught and sent into exile. But about that time Al-Nazer fell ill, and a report that he was dying or dead was conveyed to Mahomet, who, after five years of imprison- ment, was quite ready, were It ever so desperate, to head a rising in his own favour. Escorted by a few faithful friends, to whose ranks were rallied constantly Increasing numbers as he ap- proached his capital, Mahomet entered the gate of Granada. Everywhere he saw signs of re- joicing; flowers and green branches strewed the streets, and silks and tapestries were hung from doors and windows. Were his people indeed so happy over his return? But before many blocks were traversed. It transpired that Al-Nazer had recovered, and that these festal decorations were in his honour. Nothing remained for Mahomet but to profess the most profound happiness In the miraculous restoration of Al-Nazer, about whose health he had come all the way from Almunecar to inquire. Al-Nazer expressed the proper amount of gratitude for his predecessor's solicitude, but he took care that Mahomet was returned in se- curity to his prison at Almunecar, and that his 96 GRANADA captivity was shared by all those who had par- ticipated in the recent anxiety as to the state of the royal health. But while dealing with these internal disorders, the success of a Castilian army In the siege of a few border cities considerably lessened Al-Nazer's popularity and prestige, and a second Intrigue, fo- mented by Ismall-al-Ferag, ended in an advance of the latter upon the capital, at the head of a formidable army. Then Al-Nazer, In his ex- tremity, appealed for aid to the regents of Cas- tile, the Infantes Don Pedro and Don Juan. With the readiness of the times to fight any- where and for any cause, the latter joyfully re- sponded, and soon appeared in the vega of Granada at the head of an army In whose ranks were found the very flower of Christian chivalry. On the slope of the Sierra Elvira they encoun- tered the forces of Al-Ferag, and there the Cas- tilian army was literally cut to pieces. No less than twenty-five princes of the blood, among them the regents, Don Pedro and Don Juan, lost their lives In this action, and the booty taken by Is- mail was enormous. The bodies of the two In- fantes, found under the debris of the battle, were made Into gruesome effigies by stuffing the skins with cotton. Then they were hung up over the chief gate of Granada, where they remained for many years. 97 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Before entering the capital, Ismail found it wise to augment his reputation by the subjugation of a few frontier towns. Both Baeza and Mar- tos were quickly reduced, their defences being ren- dered valueless by gunpowder, possibly its first use in the peninsula. Then the victorious army retraced its steps to Granada, where Ismail made a triumphal entry. The fickle city poured forth its entire population to greet the conqueror. The streets were carpeted with flowers. Rich hangings of tapestries and cloth of gold were suspended from windows and balconies. Vast throngs in gala dress lined the way. Jews in yellow gab- erdines, pilgrims from Mecca clad in green, cavaliers in burnished armour, gaily dressed peas- ants from the mountains and vega, and in every balcony ladies in rich silks and glittering jewels; all made up a show of joyous festivity which seemed to assure this second usurper a long and happy reign. But the last act in this opera bouffe was not long delayed. Among the captives taken at Mar- tos was a Christian girl of striking beauty, who had been rescued, by the young Prince Mahomet, (a cousin of the new King) from death at the hands of the rude soldiery. Now Mahomet had not only saved her life, but had fallen passion- ately in love with the girl, and when, upon hearing of her beauty, the King ordered her re- 98 GRANADA moval to the royal harem, the young Prince, smarting under the Injustice, and exasperated by his loss, plotted a quick revenge. Within a few hours others were found suffering from like out- rages who were only too willing to join In the conspiracy. The adherence of the captain of the royal guard was secured, and that very day, as Ismail walked In his garden with his vizier, the dagger of Mahomet put an end to his life and reign. But so far, and even for many years longer, these palace Intrigues produced little effect upon the actual life of the city. They furnished the excitement provided by a play, supplying the gos- sips of the market with subjects for scandal and material for agitation; but the real life of Granada, and Its material prosperity, moved steadily on. The manufacture of silk early reached so high a degree of perfection that a considerable portion of the chief bazaar was re- served for silk merchants alone, and agents from all the great ports of Europe were found there, purchasing these fabrics for their home markets. Moslem industry and Jewish traffic soon placed luxuries practically unknown to CastUian nobles within the reach of the poorest citizens of Gra- nada, while the courts of Moslem princes were luxurious beyond belief. The personal appoint- ments surrounding Yussef Abul Hegiag (Yussef 99 BUILDERS OF SPAIN I.), as he sallied forth from the gates of Gra- nada upon the campaign which ended In the Mos- lem disaster of Salado, are described as superb. His pavilion was of blue and crimson silk, pro- fusely embroidered. Globes of silver surmounted the stakes which upheld It, and the armour and weapons of his numerous guard glittered with jewels. So large a booty was taken by the Christians after their great victory over this army, that the value of gold and silver bullion Is said to have been lessened one-sixth throughout both Spain and France. But again we repeat, " God only knows." This defeat was a bitter blow to the Mos- lem forces, and one from which Granada never fully recovered; but so highly did Yussef regard his foe, Alfonso XL, that when a few years later the latter died of the plague, the entire court at Granada was ordered into mourning. A ruler who could display so great a degree of chivalry toward the author of his most grievous overthrow might be expected to prove a wise and beneficent administrator of the affairs of his own kingdom, and during this reign Granada made rapid ad- vance in both material and Intellectual pursuits. Abuses of religious regulations and civil law were reformed; the city was everywhere improved and embellished; and royal patronage was extended to lOO Little Mosque, Alhainbra. Looking toward the Generalife. GRANADA all departments of scientific endeavour. One fa- mous botanist, Belthar, travelled over every acces- sible country of the world, as then known. In pur- suit of knowledge In botany, medicine, and natural science. A scientific school was also established at Granada In which the most eminent men In the city publicly taught any who desired to attend. Never was Granada so prosperous or so thickly populated as at this time. Seventy thousand fires (hearthstones, or families), or four hundred and twenty thousand souls, are estimated by Mendoza as the number of Its inhabitants. This phenom- enal growth, since the foundation of its inde- pendence under Mahomet-al-Hamar, barely a hun- dred years before, had spread down into the vega, leaving the Alhambra plateau to the citadel, the royal palace, and the offices of the govern- ment. Like Medina Az Zahra at Cordova, the Alhambra had now become a royal city, known as Medina Alhambra, and under Yussef I. it attained Its greatest splendour. Additions to the royal abode had doubtless been made by most of the sovereigns since Ma- homet I., but so extensive and lavish were the improvements made by Yussef, that the labours of other builders are entirely overshadowed, and, in fact, count for little in Its final beauty, which was almost entirely due to Yussef I. A faint shadow of this loveliness has been preserved In lOI BUILDERS OF SPAIN the fragment of the Alhambra palace whIcK has escaped the rough handling of succeeding cen- turies. From what is left, some idea may be gained of its early perfection, but to-day its ex- tent during the height of Granada's prosperity may only be conjectured. It is probable that a large proportion of the enclosure, still surrounded by the wall of Badls, was filled with the detached or semi-detached buildings of the harem, the residences of officials, the quarters of the royal guard, and most splen- did of all, the royal mosque. Of all this we have left only two important courts and one superb hall, with the smaller apartments and arcades which surround them, and a few isolated towers. These constitute to-day, however, the most consid- erable and important remains, in Spain, of the domestic architecture of the Moslem period. They represent, also, the last period of Saracenic architectual development in the peninsula, the period in which the influence of Byzantium had become merely a tradition, and that of the African Berbers paramount. Even under the Al- moravide viceroys, as already pointed out, Berber colonization had rendered the African peoples pre- dominant in the principality of Granada, and, during the entire history of the kingdom, con- stantly recurring alliances preserved a close inter- communication, and produced a marked similarity 102 Salofi of the Abencerrajes, Alhambra. stalactite Pendentives. .sicl. 10- GRANADA of results In the development of Moslem culture on both sides of the straits. In their brick-work the Berbers attained con- siderable constructive dignity, but what is left to us of the Alhambra presents practically nothing in that direction,* its beauty and value lying solely in its elaboration of exquisite ornament, which, together with Its matchless situation, and the consummate art displayed In Its arrangement, still endows the Alhambra with a delicate beauty and a romantic interest attached. In an equal de- gree, to no other palace In Europe. The walls of the Alhambra towers are built of concrete, overlaid with cream-coloured stucco, left, on the exterior, perfectly plain. Interior walls are likewise of concrete or brick, and are also hidden, but by a veneer of surface ornamentation — the lower portions by a mosaic dado of glazed tiles, the upper, by fine stucco moulded or carved into a delicate relief of arabesques. Slender columns of marble support arcades In which every variety of arches appear; round, pointed, horseshoe, and combinations of all three forms. All arches are of stucco, some moulded Into stalactite fringes, but the larger proportion have the edges of their soffits delicately engrailed, while the middle por- tion Is sunken and subjected to various schemes of ornamental treatment. The more Important of the original ceilings were stalactite domes, of 103 BUILDERS OF SPAIN which only two small ones remain. The stalactite dome In the Hall of the Ambassadors has been replaced by an artesonado of arbor vltae, Inlaid with mother-of-pearl. Roofs are of coloured tiles, the original roofs being probably blue and white; now other and more garish colours are found. Window and door openings, like the arcades, ap- pear in all varieties of arch forms. The former are usually found in pairs, under an enclosing arch which appears only on the Interior, exteriors being absolutely without ornament, merely holes cut In the wall. But in the interior, these ajimiez windows are not only so placed as to command the most entrancing views of valley and moun- tains, but In themselves are architectural features of the most exquisite beauty. It is, however, to the arabesque decoration spread all over Its walls, that the Alhambra, as a work of art, owes its chief Importance and In- terest. The variety and elegance of Its ornament render It a veritable school of decorative design, and, to the student, an endless delight. Among the first evidences of refinement of feeling to strike the eye of the observer, is the distinction between the designs used in' the tiles of the dado and those of the walls above. In the former are found geometrical figures, produced by combina- tions of squares, angles, and circles, which impart the appearance of solidity required for the satls- 104 GRANADA faction of the eye In all basic work. In the lat- ter, the upper walls, although similar motives often form the fundamental figures, the designs are unified, or combined, by the use of the most refined and subtle curves. Furthermore, ornament is never Introduced at random, and figures never stare out of their surroundings. Each motive is given Its correct value in the entire scheme, but each may be traced to its root; for all lines of foliage flow from a parent stem. Moreover, flowing lines never offend by abrupt transitions, but are always tangential to each other. In no school of art Is the close study of nature more apparent than In this work of the Moors. Like all architectural decoration which is truly architectural,^ it Is highly conventional, but the idealized forms follow in every detail those of plant life. The primary division of the space to be decorated Into approximately equal areas; the equal distribution of intermediate lines; the subtle curves, and their flow from a single stem, may be found in every motive. Then, too, the use of living forms imparts a vigour to these Moorish arabesques which is their crowning ex- cellence, and has long rendered them models for schools of decorative art. The use of inscriptions as a decorative feature 2 See Gothic Sculpture in " French Cathedrals and Chateaux," by the author of this book. 105 BUILDERS OF SPAIN IS common to all Moslem peoples. They were usually verses from the Koran, pious phrases, prov- lerbs, or sentences and poems In praise of the buUd- / ers or owners of the building upon which they were found. In the Alhambra, Inscriptions are written both in Cufic and Italic characters, and the former are so symmetrical as to read both ways. In all cases they are wrought with a purity of line and perfection of proportion which render them in the highest degree decorative. Continuous bands of Inscriptions divide wall spaces Into panels, and surround doors and win- dows. Occasionally, sentences Indicate usage, as In the case of the niches, cut In the thickness of the walls, of portals, whose Inscriptions signify that they were intended to contain water-bottles. In the treatment of capitals, the Moors who built the Alhambra palace displayed the utmost delicacy of feeling. The transition from the round column to the always square abacus Is man- aged with the simplest modelling — a slight round- ing of all angles — leaving an essentially square capital. In the best treatment this shape Is over- laid, In very slight relief, with the most ele- mentary of leaf forms whose stems rise from the neck of the column. The stalactite capitals are curious rather than beautiful, yet the purity of the general form Is retained, and the slender columns of the Alhambra are further ornamented, 106 GRANADA just below the capitals, by a number of roll mouldings. These mouldings constitute a base for the spring of the decoration of the latter, and add a play of light and shade which forms an admirable transition from columns to capitals. Like all primitive peoples, the Moors used colour to assist In the development of decorative forms, and, as in their decorative designs, the use of colour was derived from a study of the laws of nature. In plant life every change of form is marked by a change of colour, which assists in producing distinctness. The ancients, inspired by nature, always defined the constructive outlines of their buildings with colour, adding an apparent additional height, length, breadth, or bulk, by its judicious application. In ornaments in relief, the use of colour is of paramount importance, setting out certain figures and reducing the value of others. As to choice of colour, it has been pointed out by leading authorities that, during the early and best periods of their art, the Egyptians and Greeks, as well as the Arabs and Moors, used a largely preponderating proportion of the primary colours, red, yellow, and blue. It is also found that In their arrangement of colour all followed certain fixed principles found in nature, where the primary colours commonly appear in the upper parts of objects, and the secondary or tertiary be- 107 BUILDERS OF SPAIN low. In plants, the reds, yellows, and blues are found In the flowers; the secondary green below, with the tertiary brown of the earth below that; and the vast extent of the background of blue sky hints at once of the necessary preponderance of this primary colour in a harmonious colour arrangement. In accordance with these natural laws, the stucco arabesques of the upper walls of the Alhambra were coloured red, blue, and yellow. The red, being the strongest colour, was placed In the depths of the relief, the yellow or gold on the surface, and the blue between. Each colour was sharply separated from the next by a white line, or by the form of the relief; and. In the colouring of the various diapers, the blue was always found to cover the largest area. As left by the Moors, the secondary colours, purple, green,^ and orange, appear In the Alhambra only In the mosaic dados, whose brilliant tones and lustrous surface add an effect of hardness to already vigorous decorative designs. It is thought probable that a final splendour was added to this show of bright colour by gild- ing the columns. If so covered, the polished sur- faces of these shafts furnished the high lights of s Where traces of green are now found in the upper walls, they are either a mistaken restoration, or the metallic pigment left from an original blue. io8 Window of Lindaraja, Alhamhra. Looking into Garden of Lindaraja. GRANADA a colour scheme whose harmonious brilliance has never been equalled in Western art, and, in the East, only by those peoples from whom the Arabs derived their culture, or to whom they gave it. As left to-day, the earliest portion of the palace of the Alhambra, the Tower of Comarcs, in which Is the Hall of the Ambassadors, was built by Mahomet I. As to how much was accom- plished by his successors before Yussef I. we may only conjecture. But to Yussef is attributed the gates of Justlcia and Vino, the Hall of the Two Sisters, and the Baths; also the redecorating, re- gilding, and repainting of the entire palace. With its much greater extent under Yussef, one does not wonder that the source of the vast wealth re- quired for the work should have been vulgarly attributed to magic. After a time this belief grew Into the legend that Yussef was a magician, who had sold himself to the devil for means to em* hellish his palace. In consequence of this bargain the entire fortress was said to have been laid under a spell, to be broken only when the hand upon the outer arch of the Puerta de Justlcia should reach down and grasp the key upon the inner one, when the entire pile would tumble to the ground and vanish. The very common cus- tom among Moslem peoples, of placing a hand over their doors, where it is supposed to avert the baleful effects of the evil eye, suggests a far 109 BUILDERS OF SPAIN more probable reason for Its use over the chief portal of the Alhambra; but If a belief in magic were ever warranted by conditions, such was surely found In the falry-like beauty of the en- chanted palace to which that portal gave access. The mosque of the Alhambra occupied a site at the eastern end of the enclosure, near what Is now the parish church of San Francisco; but, al- though It was still In existence, In 1812, at the time of the occupation of the fortress by the French, no traces of It now remain. It was In this mosque that the wise and good king, Yussef I., met his tragic death. Here, as he was per- forming the last prostration of his public prayer, a madman rushed upon him with a Khanjar, or Yataghan, with which he inflicted a mortal wound. The King was carried senseless to the palace, where he soon expired, while the assassin was given up to the Infuriated mob which mur- dered him and burned his body. It Is pleasing to record that besides their anger at his un- timely taking off, the fickle Granadines sincerely mourned the death of Yussef. no Garden of Lindaraja, Alhambra. Chapter XVI GRANADA— Continued WITH the accession of Mahomet V., the son of Yussef I., is opened up another characteristic Granadine mel- odrama; the players upon the stage being the young King, Mahomet; one of his numerous step- mothers, with her son Ismail; and the crafty and resolute brother-in-law of the latter, Abu Said. Upon the death of Yussef, one of his royal wid- ows, whose name is not given, retired, with her son Ismail, to a splendid palace near the Al- hambra, whose use was the gift of the generous young King; and here plots were matured for his overthrow. Abu Said had been one of the pillars of the throne, but the conspirators soon gained his adherence, probably by means of the rich treasure which the mother of Ismail is credited with having abstracted from the royal vaults upon her removal from the Alhambra. It was five years before the treason was ripe. Then one night a hundred picked men scaled the walls of the Alhambra. At a given signal they fell upon the sentinels, whom they quickly over- powered, after which they rushed on through the passages of the palace, where all they met were III BUILDERS OF SPAIN put to the sword. One account says that Ma- homet's escape resulted from his chance absence for the night, which he was spending at the pal- ace of Generallfe. Another, that the cupidity of the assailants tempted them to linger too long gathering the rich booty by which they were sur- rounded, ere they made their way to the royal apartments. In either case the monarch Is said to have made his way out of the city, clad in woman's clothing provided by a favourite slave, through a secret subterranean passage. While Mahomet fled in safety to Gaudix, and later took a journey to Africa, where he was regally entertained by the King of Fez, Ismail enjoyed a brief period of royal authority. Then came the young King's murder by Abu Said, who. In turn, followed his crime by usurpation of the throne. For a time Abu Said's high-handed measures maintained his sudden assumption of power, but growing discontent, together with the Intrigues of the friends of Mahomet, soon warned him of the uncertainty of his position. He then determined to ally himself with the Castllian King, Pedro the Cruel. As a preliminary sop to that monarch, large numbers of Christian captives were liberated and sent home loaded with rich gifts. In this manner a safe-conduct was secured from Pedro, after which Abu Said, with a numerous escort, set out for Seville, from whence he hoped 112 GRANADA to return at the head of an allied army whose power was expected to overawe the refractory Granadlnes. But Abu Said and his retinue made the fatal mistake of appearing at the court of Pedro re- splendent In silks and Inlaid armour, and decked out with a magnificent array of jewels. The Christian King found these rich trappings and habiliments so much to his taste that It became convenient to forget the safe-conduct earlier signed by his hand; and, as told In the story of Seville, their possession was secured, together with the fervent gratitude of the now restored Ma- homet, by the execution of Abu Said and his en- tire escort. The last act of the play opens with Mahomet V. making a royal entry into his cap- ital, where he once more ascended the throne from which he had been driven In such undignified haste. And in the final scene, the Granadlne King received from the treacherous Pedro the head of Abu Said, in return for which royal gift he at once dispatched to Seville twenty-five of the best horses Granada afforded, all richly caparisoned, as many scimitars adorned with precious stones, and all the unransomed Christian captives remaining in his possession. Although Mahomet V. named his elder son, Yussef, as his successor, the throne was seized by a younger son, who became Mahomet VL 113 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Yussef, who was a prince of quiet tastes, accepted with philosophic resignation his displacement and subsequent exile to the castle of Salobrena; pos- sibly he even preferred the quiet enjoyment of this estate to the occupation of an unsteady throne. But Mahomet was not destined long to enjoy his ill-gotten power. He was attacked by a sudden and severe illness which soon gave indi- cation of a fatal termination. Rapid measures were then taken by the dying King to ensure the succession to his son. The righteous claims of Yussef being the chief danger, a messenger was dispatched to the alcalde of Salobrena, command- ing the immediate execution of Yussef, and the return of his head by the hand of him who car- ried the warrant. The alcalde was found with his royal prisoner, for whom he had conceived a warm affection, en- gaged In a game of chess; and the consternation upon his face as he perused the fatal order at once revealed its portent to the intended victim. But even at this crisis Yussef maintained his composure, merely requesting a few hours' respite In which to take leave of his family. As the messenger's head was endangered by delay, his opposition forced from the alcalde a reluctant denial of Yussef's request, but he was finally pre- vailed upon to allow the completion of the game. The play, therefore, proceeded; Yussef calmly 114 GRANADA contesting point after point, and even rallying his stricken opponent upon his distracted movements of jewelled knights and bishops. As the last move was being made, two horsemen gal- loped up at full speed. Mahomet was dead, and these messengers came to kiss the hand of Yus- sef, as Yussef III., King of Granada. The prestige of the Moslem state In the af- fairs of Spain was beginning to weaken, and only a precarious peace was maintained with the growing power of the kings of Castile; but life at Granada was never more sumptuous or more lavish. Not only Granada, but her tributary cities, were engaged in industries whose products ex- celled those of any other quarter of Europe. Baeza produced the finest silks, and Albacete, weapons which still rank with those of Toledo in keenness of steel and elegance of workmanship. Other towns were famous for furniture of ebony and sandalwood inlaid with mother-of-pearl and ivory, filigree, jewellery, bronzes, embossed and gilded leather, paper made from flax and cotton, mats of palm and esparto which were soft and flexible and dyed brilliant colours; and Granada herself produced silks and brocades, fine woollens, a famous coral-coloured pottery flecked with gold, enamels, and mosaics curiously wrought and fused with precious metals. All these products were found in profusion in the great bazaars of 115 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Granada and in the tiny shops which lined her narrow streets. So much of material splendour naturally gave rise to marked brilliance of court life. The famous plaza — the Blb-al-Rambla (the gate of the river), so called because It opened upon the now vaulted-over Darro — is said to have been the scene of some of the most splendid tourna- ments ever held In Europe. Christian cavaliers, of whom there were at all times a number resid- ing in Granada, repaired to these lists to settle private quarrels or to try their skill with their Moslem hosts. Under the dignified patronage of the Grana- dlne kings were observed all courtly formali- ties then exercised elsewhere in European cap- itals. Heralds trumpeted the entrance of knights into the lists and the beginning of all contests, and nowhere was found a more lavish distribution of rewards; all presented with the graceful and stately ceremonies, in whose formalities none were more punctilious or more accomplished than the nobles of Granada. The houses surrounding the plaza were always richly decked for such occa- sions; balconies and windows being hung with tapestries, silks, and cloth of gold; and every balcony and window was occupied by groups of beautiful women, whom the custom of the Anda- lusian Moslems allowed to appear unveiled. Ar- ii6 GRANADA rayed in richly coloured silks, and decked witH gleaming jewels, these dark-eyed hourls added greatly to the brilliance of the scene. A spacious elevated balcony was reserved for the King, who was surrounded by the officials of his court, the royal guards, and long rows of black eunuchs, all In resplendent uniforms. Under the courtly and polished Yussef III., blood was rarely shed by the contestants, yet the combats were made as brilliant and exciting as possible within the limits Imposed. It Is claimed that, at this time, Granada num- bered half a million Inhabitants; that her walls measured seven miles In circumference; that there were fourteen thousand minarets, cupolas, and towers rising from her mosques, gardens, and vil- las; that one hundred and thirty mills might have been found In the valley of the Darro; and that there were seventeen suburbs and nine royal vil- las. The largest of the suburbs was the Albay- zln, whose houses numbered ten thousand. The Alhambra was by far the most extensive and Im- portant of the royal villas, and the Alhambra and the Generallfe are the only ones of which any Important portions remain. The name of the latter, Generallfe, is a cor- ruption from the Arabic, Jennatu-1-arif, which is usually translated to mean "the garden of the architect." But a more probable suggestion is that it 117 BUILDERS OF SPAIN preserves the name of the original builder, who Is thought to have been one of the early kings or governors of Granada. During the early years of the fourteenth century, the Generallfe was much enlarged and embellished, and as its situa- tion is higher and more retired than the Alham- bra, it was used by the kings of Granada as a summer palace. The manner of construction and style of decoration employed in the Generalife are similar to those of the Alhambra, and while it never vied with the latter in extent or mag- nificence, the beauty of its situation, with the lux- uriance of its gardens, endowed it with a charm probably lacking within the more crowded pre- cincts of the Alhambra enclosure. Even with the little of its early beauty pre- served to-day, the Generalife, with Its rose-em- bowered gallery, mossy old garden, and superb views, Is an abode such as one dreams of. What it was In the days of Its glory we may well Imagine. With its carved and painted arches still unbroken, and when one might have looked down upon the picturesque mass of Medina Al- hambra; and, beyond and below, upon the wide sweep of Granada's encircling wall with its hun- dreds of towers and twenty great gates, enclosing mosques and villas, springing minarets and cu- polas, slender towers with galleries and coupled windows; and when, even as to-day, the back- ii8 GRANADA ground of the picture was the green slope of the jagged and snow-crowned Sierras, turned to pur- ple and rose each day by the rays of the setting sun; then the picture, still one of the fairest In the world, must have been the glory of every true son of Granada. By the side of the great mosque in Granada was the University, at this time the chief centre of Moslem scholarship In the peninsula. Its portals were flanked by huge carved llons,^ but Its apart- ments were left entirely devoid of ornament, which, it was thought, would prove distracting to the student. But this edifice furnishes the sole example in Granada of such restraint. The mosque in the Albayzin quarter was regarded a[s one of the most splendid In the kingdom, and almost rivalled the great mosque in the centre of the city, while that of Medina Alhambra is de- scribed as of regal magnificence. Columns of jasper, porphyry, Numidlan marble, and alabaster; carved stucco inlaid with onyx and lazullte; orna- ments of carved silver; and lamps of shell, mother-of-pearl, and bronze, with shades of rose-coloured silk; all enumerated in descriptions of this latter mosque, make up a picture of sumptuous magnificence truly oriental in its at- mosphere. 1 Another instance of late disregard of the early precepts of the faith. 119 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Added to the enervating influence of such ma- terial splendour was the enfeebling effect of a de- gree of creature comfort almost modern. Houses were warmed during the winter by a system of earthen pipes not unlike a modern furnace, and greater warmth was provided when desired, by metal globes filled with burning charcoal, which could be rolled on the floors. Protection from summer heat was afforded by walls of great thick- ness; awnings were spread from balconies or stretched across streets; and fresh cool water from the mountains sang in running streams or gushed from fountains on every hand. Mahomet VII. ascended the throne of Granada three times, twice, after short periods of exile, being welcomed back with extravagant bursts of joy by the fickle populace which had earlier driven him forth with equally frantic expressions of hostility. But a third overthrow finally con- signed him to a prison and oblivion, while two claimants remained to contest the succession; and for a number of years the Icingdom suffered a divided sway. Othman held the capital, but Is- mail was entrenched at Montefrio, and while they wasted the country in fratricidal strife, leaving the frontier practically undefended, a number of border towns and the important port of Gibraltar were seized by the King of Castile. Finally the unpopularity of Othman resulted in -120 Court of Lions, Alhambra. GRANADA his overthrow and the supremacy of Ismail, and in 1466 the death of Ismail, with the accession of his son, Mulay Abul Hassen, opens up the complicated plot of the last melodrama In the annals of the Moslem kingdom of Granada. For a time Abul Hassen displayed marked courage and ability. When the envoys of Ferdi- nand and Isabella waited upon him in his superb audience chamber In the Hall of Ambassadors, demanding arrears of tribute, he dared return the defiant reply : " Tell your sovereigns that the kings who used to pay tribute to the Castlllan crown are dead. Our mint at present coins noth- ing but blades of scimitars and heads of lances." But Abul Hassen had no staying power, and was no match for the Catholic sovereigns whose quiet determination Is expressed In Ferdinand's response: " I will pick the seeds of this pomegranate one by one." Then, too, as Al Makkarl remarks, "the Moslem empire went on decaying," and many were the signs and portents which Indicated its ap- proaching ruin. Not the least of these omens of 111 was the taking down of the old weathercock from the top of the old Kassabah of Badls. Gay- angos says that the site of this palace Is now occu- pied by the Casa del Carbon. The removal of the vane, long regarded as a talisman, was occasioned by repairs, but to the fearful, its loss caused grave anxiety. 121 BUILDERS OF SPAIN. After several campaigns against the Christians, in which " the llghtenlngs of victory had shone in his favour," Abul Hassen celebrated his early tri- umphs by a grand military review at Granada. He caused his architects to erect for him a plat- form outside his castle of Alhambra, and for a month the troops ceased not in passing daily be- fore him. The soldiers were clad in silken robes and armour of polished steel. Their swords, spears, and shields were richly embossed in gold and silver, and they were mounted on fleet steeds. But one day, when the King was seated as usual under his pavilion, and the entire vicinity was crowded with spectators gathered to witness the pageant of the passing troops, God permitted a sudden rainfall, which came down in such tor- rents that the Darro overflowed its banks. "Such was the fury of the storm that trees, houses, bridges, walls, and mills were swept away. So frightful an inundation had never be- fore been experienced in that country," and, the historian tells us, "the people naturally re- garded it as a harbinger of the dreadful calami- ties which awaited the Moslems in just chastise- ment for their perversity and their sins." The opening of the final campaigns in that "right gentle war" — the conquest of Granada — was the work of Abul Hassen. Upon the princi- ple of doing unto your neighbour what he would 122 GRANADA like to do to you, and doing it first, Abul Hassen no sooner learned that the Most Catholic Sov- ereigns had settled the affairs of their own king- doms, and were free to undertake those of the Moslem state, than he set out with an army bent upon those border hostilities to which Moslem- Christian warfare had long been reduced. But Abul Hassen's reduction of Zahara was soon more than counterbalanced by the Christian seiz- ure of the very Important frontier stronghold of Alhama. The recapture of that valuable post was at once undertaken by the Granadlne army, and very possibly might have been accomplished, but Abul Hassen was recalled to his capital by news of a conspiracy to dethrone him; and thenceforth the chief perils which beset the Gran- adine kingdom were found within its own borders rather than without. The leaders of the harem intrigue with which this act of the play begins, were the Sultana Ayesha and a Christian maiden whom the Mos- lems had named Zoraya — "The Morning Star." From the condition of a captive, the latter had risen to the position of favourite wife of Abul Hassen, and the exaltation of her rival had aroused a bitter jealousy in the breast of Ayesha. Both women were the mothers of sons, and each was soon enmeshed in intrigues to secure the suc- cession for her own. A faction known as the 123 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Zegrls supported the claims of Zoraya, and an- other, called the Abencerrages, those of Ayesha. The name of Zoraya's son Is of no moment, but the son of Ayesha was Abu Abdillah, better known as Boabdil. One of the chief episodes In this turbulent drama was the murder, within the palace of the Alhambra, of a large number of the Abencer- rages. But accounts of its date, and even of its instigator, are confused and contradictory. It is most probable, however, that the summary ex- ecution was at the order of Abul Hassen; and, whether It occasioned or followed the conspiracy which recalled the King from the siege of Al- hama, its horrors, added to the loss of that stronghold, resulted In a sensible decline of his popularity with the fickle Granadines. But for the moment Abul Hassen dominated the situation. Ayesha and Boabdil were Impris- oned In the tower of Comares, and with the turbulent Abencerrages cowed and crippled by the massacre of their leaders, the weary King retired for a season of rest and relaxation In the pleas- ures of his palace. Within a few days, how- ever, word was brought of the escape of Boabdil, who had been let down from a window by his mother, by means of a rope made of the veils of her attendant women. With the usual skepticism of an older mind 124 GRANADA regarding the powers of the young, Abul Hassen treated the loss of his prisoner as of little con- sequence. What was his chagrin, therefore, when, a few days later, shouts of " Long live King Abu Abdillah" reached his startled ears from the streets af Granada, where Boabdil was being paraded at the head of a triumphal pro- cession. The young Prince was already In pos- session of the Albayzln, and when Abul Hassen, thinking to quell the Insurrection by his mere presence, marched out of the gates of the Al- hambra, he was received with shouts of derision, and that night was obliged to flee from the city to save his life. The next lifting of the curtain shows Boabdil in possession of the Alhambra, and Abul Hassen endeavouring to regain his popularity by a cam- paign against the Christians. The success which attended the ventures of the elder King at last forced Bobadll, likewise, In order to maintain his already waning favour with the people, to take the field against the same foe. But Boabdil em- barked upon his campaign with all the pomp and circumstance of a holiday parade, and not only did he suffer a crushing defeat at the hands of the Christians, but he himself was taken prisoner. Release was procured for the young King by the payment of a heavy ransom and the promise of vassalage, but Boabdil's return to Granada found 125 BUILDERS OF SPAIN his outraged father once more seated upon the throne. Again the Prince, aided by his energetic mother, managed to gain possession of the Albayzln, from which dally assaults were delivered upon the Al- hambra; but after the waste of much precious blood, Boabdil was forced to retire, leaving the victory for the time In the hands of Abul Has- sen. But at best the hold of Abul Hassen was Insecure, and after a few years, during which his power was sensibly reduced by the advance of Christian arms and the continued Intrigues of Boabdil, the aged King, now nearly blind, was induced to abdicate in favour of his brother, Al- Zagal. Al-Zagal had long held a kind of suzerainty over Malaga, and had already distinguished him- self In campaigns against the Christians, as well as in hostilities against his ungrateful nephew. As a proof of his warlike prowess and zeal for the faith, when he made his triumphant entry into Granada, the saddles of Al-Zagal and his escort were decorated with the dangling heads of a hundred Christians whom they had slaughtered on their way from Malaga. He was greeted with wild enthusiasm, the streets ringing with the shouts which welcomed his arrival and greeted the signs of his exploits. At the same moment Abul Hassen was being led by his slaves to a 126 GRANADA litter in which, by quiet and unfrequented streets, he was carried out of a little-used gate, and away to his retreat in a secluded valley of the Sierras. There his last few days were spent, and there the lonely peak of Mulay Hassen marks the place of his sepulchre. But the plots of Boabdil and his still active mother left Al-Zagal but a short period of peace- ful enjoyment of his new authority. Before many days Boabdil was once more entrenched in the Al- bayzin, and the next act shows an attempt at united rule, with Granada as the common resi- dence of both sovereigns. This arrangement, which infringed upon Boabdil's obligations as a vassal of the Catholic Sovereigns, called down upon his head the wrath of Ferdinand, and pre- cipitated the final triangular hostilities in which the complete overthrow of Moslem power was to be accomplished. Boabdil was quickly forced to disavow the alliance with Al-Zagal, and Ferdi- nand's pretext for the ensuing campaigns was the succour of his vasssal. Public opinion, however, compelled Boabdil, as well as Al-Zagal, to take the field against the Christian advance, and dur- ing the turbulent years of the final campaigns, that recreant Prince was constantly forced into an attitude of apology, either with Ferdinand by way of explanation of his opposition, or with his subjects, in justification of the suspicious 127 BUILDERS OF SPAIN half-heartedness Indicated by his continued non- success. The defeat of Al-Zagal, and the successive re- duction by Christian armies of Ronda, Loja, Malaga, and of the entire list of tributary Moslem cities, as well as the decisive siege of Granada, has been told once for all by Washington Irving. In the final scene, Granada Is found blockaded by the army of Ferdinand and Isabella. For seven months the work of supplying the city with food had become more and' more difficult. It was now winter, and, instead of departing as was ex- pected, the enemy had actually built a town of bricks and mortar. In It the Christian King and Queen had set up a court; and while the Grana- dines were starving and the surrounding country was devastated of every leaf and bud, the besieg- ers were supplied with all necessaries and many luxuries by the Indefatigable Isabella, whose able management of the commissariat contributed even more than the military ability of Ferdinand to the success of their joint campaign. The ceremony of conferring the honour of knighthood by King Ferdinand upon his son, the young Infante Juan, then twelve years of age, was a pretty Incident of the siege. After the boy prince had been invested with his new dignity, he, in turn, knighted a number of his young compan- ions, delighting all who saw him with his childish 128 GRANADA grace and beauty. Isabella, who at all times sur- rounded her royal dignity with marked personal splendour, was regally arrayed for the occasion, and with her ladles rendered it a gala court func- tion. Among the knights In the Castilian army, none was more gifted or more universally beloved than Gonsalvo, already known as " The Prince of the Youth," but later to become " El Gran Capi- tan." More than once he was employed in secret missions to the unstable Boabdil, and much of the final business of the capitulation of the town was arranged by him. Another Intrepid spirit was the daring cavalier, Herman Perez del Pulgar, who broke the tedium of the long siege by the foolhardy exploit which is still told as one of its most memorable incidents. With fifty followers he set out to enter Granada and set fire to it. By way of a sewer, the daring band succeeded in gaining admission to the city. Meeting no one in the silent streets, they made their way to the great mosque. There Pulgar, in a spirit of bra- vado, after inscribing the words " Ave Maria " on a piece of paper, pinned it to the door with a dagger. The company then proceeded to the Silk Market, where fagots were laid to start a blaze. At the last moment it was discovered that the tinder had been left at the mosque, and while trying to strike fire with swords and flints, they 129 BUILDERS OF SPAIN alarmed the patrol, who were quickly In pursuit. The venturesome CastUIans barely escaped with their lives. Within the city, where hunger was found to be a most unpleasant guest, discontent and law- lessness threatened first one and then another of those who were considered responsible for the ruin of the state. The nobles and chief citizens, whose homes were threatened by the rabble with pillage, finally took refuge In the Alhambra, where a council was held to decide upon the course to be pursued. One single voice called for death rather than surrender, but there was no response, and the one Intrepid Mussulman silently withdrew, took horse, and was heard of no more. After his departure Boabdil rose and spoke these feeble words : " 111 fate has shed Its baneful in- fluence over the Kingdom, and has unnerved us all. What resource is left us? The storm has destroyed all." Then Abul Kasim, the governor of the city, was deputed to visit the Christian camp and open negotiations for surrender. In the agreement of capitulation there were sixty-seven articles, all of which were remarkably favourable to the Mos- lems. The assurance of religious freedom was so full and complete, that a Christian who laughed at a Mussulman could be punished. With a wis- dom born of experience, the Granadlnes endeav- 130 GRANADA oured to render these stipulations binding by a Papal guarantee, but the commissioners are thought to have been bribed to omit even that doubtful warrant from the papers finally signed. The entry of the Christian army into Granada was made as brilliant and Imposing as the sig- nificance of the occasion demanded. This con- quest completed the labours of over seven hun- dred and fifty years. Once more Christian banners might float over the entire peninsula, and the army which had accomplished the work could afford a most distinguished celebration. The en- tire vega was gay with banners, and brilliant with the burnished armour of hundreds of Christian knights. Although It was January, the sunshine of happiness warmed every heart and shone In every fac,e, while the gay strains of martial music floated up to the towers of the silent city. With a blare of trumpets, and the sound of a tri- umphal march, the joyous procession, led by the King and Queen In their most resplendent robes of state, swept forward. As the conquest was consummated In the name of Castile, Isabella wore her crown and carried a sceptre. Although resplendent In uniforms of many col- oured silks, with damascened armour glittering with jewels, far surpassing the splendour of the knights of Castile and Aragon, It was yet a mel- ancholy little band of horsemen which came down 131 BUILDERS OF SPAIN to meet them from the opening city gates. When Boabdil came opposite King Ferdinand, he made a movement to dismount and kiss the hand of his conqueror, but the Spanish King was generous enough to stay him and receive the salute upon his sleeve. The keys of the city were then sur- rendered to Ferdinand, who passed them into the hands of Isabella. She In turn gave them to Prince Juan, who handed them to the Cardinal- Archbishop, presumably for his blessing, and by him they were finally delivered to the Conde de Tendllla, who was thus appointed Governor of Granada. Up through the gates and narrow streets swept the triumphant procession. Boabdil had made his sorrowful exit from the Alhambra through the gate of Slete Suelos (now blocked up), but the Christian King and Queen made their way up to the chief portal, the Puerta de Justlcla. There the celebration of mass was the proper signal for the working of the magic charm of the hand and key, as In truth It proved, for the ruin of the Moorish palace dates from that day and hour. In the Plaza de los Algibes (the Place of the Cisterns) the heralds proclaimed the new authority of Castile, while the banners of the Christian army were flung to the breeze from every tower, and the Grand Cardinal raised a golden cross from the topmost pinnacle. 132 Puerta de Justicia, Alhambra. »■ '»t-/lli^ GRANADA Ferdinand and Isabella set up their thrones in the splendid Hall of Ambassadors, but they did not remain long in Granada. Affairs in the north required their presence, and fortresses, pal- aces, and mosques were soon turned over to monks and soldiers. The Conde de Tendilla oc- cupied the Alhambra as his official residence, but much of the enclosure was at once turned into barracks for the rude Castllian soldiery. As the inscriptions which formed a part of its ornamenta- tion were largely religious, their effacement, to- gether with much of the other decoration, by means of plaster and whitewash, speedily became an act of piety, and the rude habits of the north, still half-barbaric, quickly completed the destruc- tion of the delicate beauty of the abode of the Moslem kings. For a few years Granada was left in peace and quiet to recover from the drain of prolonged war- fare. Under the mild rule of Tendilla, she soon regained a great degree of her former prosperity; and the liberal influence of a tolerant archbishop, Talevera, which rendered him beloved of Moslem and Christian alike, bade fair to accomplish the peaceful union of the two peoples. But no sooner was the strenuous new primate, Ximenes, free to turn his attention to the conver- sion of heretics, than the gentle measures of Tale- vera were declared weak and far too slow. Many 133 BUILDERS OF SPAIN of the articles of Granada's capitulation had long been violated, but the tact of Tendilla, and the popularity of the "Holy Faquir of the Chris- tians'* (the name given Talevera by the Mos- lems), had prevented an outbreak. Now, how- ever, more vigorous measures, which were to test even their powers of intervention, were to be in- augurated. In the last year of the fifteenth century Xlmenes himself came to Granada. For a time, his stern asceticism and unflinching purpose car- ried all before him. At first, bribes were freely used by means of which the nominal conversion of many leading Moslems was effected. Xlmenes even Invaded the most distinctively Moslem quar- ter, the Albayzln, and within Its chief mosque, at once reconsecrated to Christianity, thousands of alleged penitents were baptized. Most of these converts had little conception of the meaning of their new vows; and to many they were merely a matter of form by which it was hoped to main- tain peaceful relations with the government. But once they were taken, new responsibilities were fixed upon the unhappy Morlscoes, who, upon the slightest suspicion of Insincerity, were now amena- ble to the machinery of the Inquisition. The business of the informer soon became most profit- able, and the imprisonment and burning of here- tics rapidly grew Into an every-day occurrence. 134 GRANADA But to the fervent zeal of Xlmenes, this was only the beginning. Arabic literature appeared to be a source of strength to unconverted Moslems. Absolutely without notice, therefore, a diligent search was made throughout the entire city. Ev- ery house was subjected to investigation, and every manuscript which could be found was seized, carried to the Bib-al-Rambla, and there burned. The number of the volumes destroyed is estimated from five thousand to a million; it is said that probably half the latter figure would not be excessive.^ Doubtless many were copies of the Koran, but there were also original treatises upon scientific and historical subjects, and transla- tions from the classics, which would be invaluable to-day. The artistic beauty and worth of illumi- nated manuscripts and jewelled bindings must also be taken into account. This, added to their in- trinsic value, renders the conflagration one of the costliest in history. This famous auto de fe, it must also be remembered, was not the work of an unlettered barbarian, but of one of the best known scholars of his age — one who at that very time was engaged upon one of the most stupen- dous literary works ever produced by Spain — the Complutensian Polyglot Bible — and who was also the founder of one of its most celebrated univer- sities — Alcala. 2 Manuscript books, each volume counted as a book. BUILDERS OF SPAIN Naturally it was not long before the country- was in a blaze of rebellion, and Ximenes, instead of adopting conciliatory measures, procured a de- cree from the Spanish sovereigns whose terms left the Moriscoes only a choice of baptism or death. Then the entire population rose, and only the strength of the palace in which the Archbishop resided saved him from the fury of the mob which attacked it. He was Implored to flee to the Alhambra, but the ardent prelate disdained the weakness of flight, and for the time the pacifica- tion of the people was accomplished by the pop- ular Tendilla and the well-beloved Talevera. The latter quieted the most turbulent quarter of the Albayzin by appearing in it attended only by his chaplain. His benignant face and kindly presence at once brought the angry people to his feet, where they knelt and kissed the hem of his gar- ment. Then the Count of Tendilla appeared, likewise unattended, and later he testified to his confidence in the Moslems by leaving his wife and son with them as hostages during the negotia- tions for a peaceful settlement which he conducted with the King and Queen. Such was the beginning of the struggle which endured for seventy-five years, which was only ended when its Moslem population was driven from Grana*da and its prosperity permanently ruined. First among the striking incidents of the 136 GRANADA conflict was the early return of the determined Ximenes to the scene of his too strenuous labours. Although his stay was short, and his measures more moderate than before, fifty thousand con- verts are claimed as its result. The brevity of the visit was occasioned by the serious illness of the prelate. When his life was despaired of by the regular practitioners, he was induced to apply for relief to a Moorish woman whose skill was a mixture of Arab science with the uncanny cere- monies of the witch and gipsy. Under her treat- ment the Archbishop's recovery was very rapid, and so, strangely enough, the great prelate owed the remaining years of his life to a member of the race which had suffered his most relentless persecution. Twenty-five years later, Charles V. paid a visit to Granada. Although its entire population was now, under compulsion, nominally Christian, the Morlscoes were constantly under suspicion. The chief purpose of the royal visit, therefore, was an investigation of reported irregularities. The tribunal was entirely composed of high digni- taries of the church, and the Morlscoes were not permitted to be heard In their own defence. The final result was the publication of new and most grievous edicts, two of which required the sup- pression of family names, and forbade the use of warm baths, the latter a luxury especially 137 BUILDERS OE SPAIN prized by the Moriscoes. Upon the payment of large sums, many of these atrocious decrees were suspended for a few years, a fact which strongly suggests that the entire persecution was inspired by the emptiness of the royal purse. At any rate, after the money was spent, the enforcement of the new laws was placed in the hands of officials of the Inquisition, and once more the burning of heretics was a daily occurrence in the Bib-al- Rambla. In the final revolt, which was the result of a renewed persecution under Philip II., a secret or- ganization which spread all over Andalusia was effected by the Moriscoes. In Granada was found an Omeyad prince who was chosen leader by the most desperate of the oppressed people. In a house In the Albayzin, not a stone's throw from the palace of the Inquisition, this Mulay Mahomet was Invested according to all the ancient ceremonies with the dignity of the Moslem king- ship of Andalusia. Already possessing an un- savoury reputation, Mulay Mahomet was endowed with no qualifications for leadership except the name he bore, and a dashing bravery which scrupled at nothing. In the Sierras to the south, he was soon at the head of a desperate band whose early successes caused a panic among the Christians in Granada. At first many took refuge in the Alhambra; then gath<-ring courage, they 138 GRANADA rose against the Moriscoes in the city. The bet- ter class of the latter had never supported Mulay Mahomet, but, after Ineffectually barricading themselves In their houses, many perished at the hands of an Infuriated mob. The reprisals at last assumed the proportions of a war, and Philip sent Don Juan of Austria to put an end to the disturbance. Despite his able leadership the first engagements were favourable to the forces of Mulay Mahomet. Then a tu- mult arose In Granada with a demand for the absolute expulsion of the Moriscoes. At a signal, thousands of Christian soldiers appeared In the Albayzln, and literally drove the persecuted people into their mosques. From thence, on the fol- lowing morning, all the males between the ages of ten and sixty years, with hands tied behind them, were led to a place outside the walls where sentence of banishment was pronounced against them and their kindred. Within a few days eleven thousand of the wealthiest and most in- dustrious citizens of Granada were marched out of Its gates, while their property was parcelled out among their persecutors. The mountain warfare dragged on for nearly three years, and before this last desperate uprising was put down, Mulay Mahomet was succeeded In command by his cousin, Al-Abu. In the end Al-Abu was betrayed by a traitor in his own 139 BUILDERS OF SPAIN camp, and killed in the struggle which followed an attempt to take him alive. Then the body of this last Morisco King was strapped upon the back of a mule and carried to Granada. There his lifeless form, dressed In scarlet and gold, wearing upon Its head the turban of the caliphs, and held upright by a wooden framework, was paraded on the back of a mule through throngs of jeering people, from the Bib-al-Rambla to the foot of the Alhambra hill. Then the dignitaries who presided over the ghastly function caused the head to be cut off and placed in an Iron cage which was later affixed above the battlements of the gate which looked across the vega toward the Sierras. The body was left to be hacked to pieces by children who finally burned it. Thus was closed the savage persecution of the Moslems in Andalusia, whose final struggle had cost the Spanish army sixty thousand men. The province was now declared free of its Morisco population, and its religious unification at last accomplished; but its rich and luxuriant terri- tory was turned into a desert, and the prosperity of Granada hopelessly and permanently ruined. Moreover, the beauty of the city was already greatly impaired. Everywhere delicate Moslem ornament was defaced or covered with whitewash; fountains, for which the Christians had little use, were broken; mosques were mutilated and turned 140 GRANADA Into churches; and the once clean streets were piled with refuse. With so much of disorder during this early period of Christian rule, little Christian rebuild- ing was possible. Only one work of importance, a new cathedral, was attempted, and that dragged along for over a hundred years. After the con- quest, the chief mosque had been at once re- consecrated and made the seat of a bishop. The first accession of importance came to this mosque- cathedral from the will of Isabella, which pro- vided for a mortuary chapel for herself and her family, to be erected adjoining it. The death of Isabella occurred in June, 1504, but it was not until December that, after a long and difficult journey from the north, in which almost unparalleled storms were encountered, the remains of the Queen reached Granada. For a time they were deposited in the Franciscan mon- astery which had already replaced the mosque of the Alhambra. It was two years before work on the mortuary chapel was begun, and thirteen years were required for Its completion. Then the bodies of both Ferdinand and Isabella were placed in its vaults. Even as originally built, this Chapel Royal in the late Gothic style, was excessively rich, and its enlargement, with addi- tional Renaissance decoration by Charles V., has left it one of the most magnificent mausoleums 141 BUILDERS OF SPAIN in existence. In It he also placed the tombs of his parents, Juana and Philip. Two alabaster sepulchres, exquisitely ornamented, stand above the vaults in which the actual leaden coffins are placed. One bears the effigies of Ferdinand and Isabella, and the other those of Juana and Philip. Both are screened by an iron Reja, one of the most superb in Spain, and face an altar resplendent with carved and gilded marble and bronze. It was Charles V. who undertook the erection of the new cathedral built beside the old mosque and splendid mausoleum. This work was begun in 1529, and In the history of Renaissance build- ing in Spain, it is one of the earliest and most important monuments. Beginning with a ground plan which starts out to be Gothic, certain pecul- iarities were at once developed which remain unique In this example. The most of the later work Is a somewhat feeble attempt to follow the Roman style, and rather meagre results were doubtless owing to increasing poverty of resources. But, although there Is much to be criticised In the completed fabric, the Impressiveness of Its main lines Is undeniable. The nave, forty feet in width, is flanked by double aisles, and at the altar end the entire width of the church expands into an enor- mous apse surmounted by a superb dome, under which. In the centre of the great circle, Is placed the high altar. Magnificent in itself, both in line 142 The dlhambra and Palace of Charles V . Birds-eye View GRANADA and construction, this soaring apse, as approached through the splendid arch which leads to it from the nave, becomes almost spectacular. The sys- tem of vaulting ribs in the curving aisles of the choir Is similar to that at Toledo, and, if it were not for the blocking up of the nave by the Coro, the vista from the entrance would be un- rivalled In grandeur of effect. This cathedral Is claimed to have been com- pleted In 1639, but the old mosque still served as its Sagrario and parish church until 1661, when It was torn down to be replaced by the present Renaissance structure. In It are preserved the tombs of the gentle Talevara, and of the valor- ous Pulgar, the latter claimed to occupy the exact spot where the hero upon the night of his famous exploit so boldly affixed his defiant " Ave Maria.** For his new palace within the Alhambra en- closure, Charles V. Imported builders from Italy, and their effort, as seen In the still unfinished structure, Is upon the whole an admirable example of the Tuscan Renaissance. The circular court within the square palace Is unique, and much of the detail is pure and harmonious. But by the side of the delicate Moorish work with which It Is placed in such close juxtaposition the carved orna- mentation of Its facade appears heavy, yet, as in the case of the Christian Coro erected within the mosque at Cordova, It Is difficult to judge dis- 143 BUILDERS OF SPAIN passionately a work for which so much of Sara- cenic labour was destroyed. Authorities are not agreed as to what buildings of the Alhambra occupied the site of this palace of Charles V. One suggestion of a winter palace carries an air of probability, but whatever It was, in this place any work of Moslem builders must have been more grateful to modern eyes than this Incongru- ous example of modern Italian. Another portion of the Moorish palace, the angle between the garden of Daraxa and the Tower of Comares, was "modernized" by Charles V. The gallery overlooking the Darro, which connects these now barren apartments with the tower chamber now known as the Queen's boudoir, was likewise the work of Charles. Both the gallery and the tower command the most superb views to be seen from any part of the palace, and they also form its most picturesque external feature; but in the interior walls are covered with Renaissance ornament now defaced, but which even In Its best days was poor and meretricious as compared with the splendour of Saracenic work. In the room which Charles turned into a chapel, the Incon- gruous misuse of Moorish ornament, with the introduction of some Renaissance details, gives evidence once more of the native barbarisms of Spanish taste. Elsewhere In Granada and its immediate vicin- 144 W3S * Gnllerx oJJOhiulc: J\, Allidmhiu. tliV.V-'ll- > the >arbansms ot GRANADA ity may be found a number of monasteries, churches, and public buildings, some of which were begun during the early years of the reconquest, but which dragged along even more meagrely than the cathedral. Among them the sacristy of the Carthusian convent, three-fourths of a mile to the north of the town, erected in the eighteenth century, is the most astonishing piece of Churri- gueresque decoration accomplished in that most amazing period. Its interior is simply abandoned to coarse and debased ornament of coloured mar- bles. As a curiosity, this interior ranks high, but that such a barbarous concatenation of lines and figures could be conceived and executed, serves as but another illustration of the extravagant and fantastic taste of the people who produced it. The later history of Granada presents nothing of development, and little of incident. Philip V. paid a visit to It, and accomplished the further defacement of the Alhambra. The soldiers of Napoleon, who occupied as barracks what was left of the old palace, almost completed Its destruction; and In later years It was not until the coming of Isabella II., In 1862, that the beauty of the old ruin began to be realized. Since that date all Spain has awakened to the value of the civilization which religious bigotry expelled from the peninsula, and efforts are now everywhere made to preserve and restore its superb monu- H5 BUILDERS OF SPAIN ments. In the Alhambra much has been accom- plished, but except as a favourite haunt for tour- ists, Granada still counts for little or nothing in the affairs of Spain. With the expulsion of her Moslem builders, the active life and virile power of the city became extinct. 146 « I Royal Palace, Madrid. Chapter XVII MADRID THE Puerta del Sol at Madrid is the most fascinating public plaza In Europe. This, not from Its buildings, which are mediocre, nor from Its monuments, of which there are none; but from the varied and vivid life which flows constantly through It. As with this chief plaza, so also with the city; there Is little to see, either picturesque or beautiful; there are no great models of architecture; and, save only the canvases of Spain's two great painters, little of artistic value. With the exception of a few chance glimpses, the historical Interest of Madrid barely begins with the sixteenth century. Yet within her four hundred years this last cap- ital of Spain has lived fast and hard. In each stirring chapter there Is the throb of a quick vi- tality, and even to-day Madrid thrills with a life that, whatever else It may be. Is never tedious or slow. As with most other Spanish cities a fabulous antiquity Is claimed for Madrid. By some, Its founder Is said to have been a Latin prince, Ogno Blanor, whose father was the king TIberIno, but whose mother was more famous for her knowl- 147 BUILDERS OF SPAIN edge of the black arts than for purity of birth. It is also claimed that Madrid is In the very heart of Europe: for Is It not less than three leagues from the little village of Pinto, called In Latin Punctum, reckoned, at least by all good Spaniards, to be In the very centre of the continent? But It Is not until the tenth century that Mad- rid appears In authentic history. Then It was made a fortified outpost of Toledo, which It re- mained until. In 1083, as a necessary preliminary to the conquest of that stronghold. It was cap- tured by Alfonso VI. From that date, Madrid saw her share of the troubles which, for four hundred years, kept Castile In a ferment. The old Moorish Alcazar, overhanging the Manzan- ares, was rebuilt by Henry IV., and It was within the granite walls he erected that Henry assembled the nobles of Castile to swear allegiance to La Beltraneja. Occasional visits of the court might be noted during the reign of Isabella, but we hear little of Madrid until Xlmenes found It useful during the troubles following the death of Ferdinand. Thither the Cardinal-Primate at once removed the young Prince Ferdinand, a rising in whose favour was feared. There, orders from Charles, sent from Flanders, were received, calling for his im- mediate proclamation as King of Spain. It was easy enough to Issue the proclamation, but quite 148 MADRID another matter to prevail upon the Spaniards to acknowledge as King a prince whom they had never seen, a fact realized by no one more fully than Ximenes. But with his usual energy, the spirited Archbishop set himself to Its accom- plishment. All the nobles and grandees In the vicinity were called together, and the demands of their young sovereign laid before them. Opposition was at once aroused. There were murmurs against en- croachments upon their privileges, and Infringe- ments of the rights of poor Juana. Allegiance to her, whether she were mad or not, must come first! Then the Primate took a high stand. He informed the arrogant nobles that they were not called together to deliberate, but to obey; that their King did not ask them for advice, but for submission. " This day," he added, " Charles shall be proclaimed King in Madrid, and I doubt not that the other cities of Spain will follow its example." Whatever Charles did for himself jn later years, in the beginning he undoubtedly owed his Spanish throne to the vigorous meas- ures of Ximenes at this time. His proclamation at Madrid may have had something to do with Charles' later fondness for the place, but It is to its healthfulness that the royal favour Is usually attributed. In the early years of the sixteenth century, when Charles 149 BUILDERS OF SPAIN first saw It, the population numbered only three thousand, but the town was surrounded by forests which, with Its elevation, contributed, it was thought, to a marked dryness and salubrity. At any rate the Emperor found greater comfort In Madrid than elsewhere, and so its importance was founded. For another fifty years, however, the court con- tinued more or less migratory, but with the acces- sion of Philip II. a more settled residence be- came, not only advisable, but necessary. The choice of Madrid Is usually attributed to Philip's pious regard for the predilection of his father. But there were other reasons which doubtless car- ried much weight. The great work of the unifi- cation of the nation was well begun, but the jeal- ousies of rival states were even yet a source of weakness. At this juncture, therefore, the selec- tion of a new city to be the capital of Spain, one quite free from traditions, must strike even the casual reader as eminently wise. In 1560, therefore, the straggling Moorish vil- lage was declared the '' Unica Corte^ and so Madrid became the last of a long list of capitals of Spain. The Sevllllans declare — Quien no ha visto Sevilla, No ha visto maravilla. — The Gran- adlnes claim — Quien no ha visto Granada, No ha visto nada. But the Madrlleiios may still proudly reply — Solo Madrid es Corte, 150 MADRID In spite of this vast accession of importance, Madrid gained In practically nothing except size, until the reigns of the Bourbon kings. Charles and the Philips II., III., IV., took possession of the old Alcazar-fortress, rebuilt It somewhat, and added rambling wings; but their splendid new palaces were the hunting boxes and other resorts outside the city, and of public buildings within Its limits we hear practically nothing. The need of a cathedral In his new capital was early urged upon Philip II., who piously subscribed a large sum toward Its foundation; but In the end the vast Escorlal absorbed all his resources, and for the time the cathedral project had to be aban- doned. Later kings possessed far less of inclina- tion for the work as well as Increasingly scanty revenues; and it was not until 1885 that the long- talked-of cathedral was even begun. Added to this lack of royal interest In the Improvement of the capital was the discourage- ment of private enterprise by Insupportable taxa- tion. As late as the end of the seventeenth cen- tury, the first stories of all houses raised In the city belonged to the King unless he could be bought off. Such a tax was absolutely ruinous to the subject, but even the enormous Income It af- forded was so far Insufficient for the needs of the crown that the city was further Injured by the cutting down of all the forests in Its nelghbour- 151 BUILDERS OF SPAIN hood. The result was the destruction of what lit- tle beauty the city had possessed, and even worse, the loss of the early healthful and agreeable qual- ities of its climate. It followed, therefore, that, while Philip II. exhausted his treasury in the completion of the useless Escorial, and Philip IV. expended all his time and revenues in surrounding his royal per- son with formal and senseless splendour, Madrid, until the last century, remained flimsy in construc- tion, absolutely unkempt, and destitute of de- fences. Toward the close of the seventeenth century Madame d'Aulnoy thus describes her en- try into Madrid: "The first thing that I ob- served was that the city was not enclosed either by a wall or ditch. The gates, as one may say, are only made fast by a latch. All those which I have already seen are broken. There is not any place of defence, neither castle nor, in a word, anything which might not be forced by the throwing of oranges or lemons." "The streets," she continues, " are long and even, and of a good width, but there is no place worse paved; let one go as softly as possible, yet one is almost jumbled and shaken to pieces; there are more ditches and dirty places than in any city in the world; the horses go up to their bellies, and the coaches up to the middle, so that the mud dashes all upon you, and your clothes are spoiled unless 152 MADRID you pull up the glasses or draw the curtains, and very often the water comes into the coaches at the bottom of the boots which are open." Of the royal palace the observing French- woman writes: "The palace Is built of very white stone, two pavilions complete the front, but the rest Is not so regular. Behind It are two square courts; the first is adorned with two large terrace w^alks which are raised upon high arches and are beautified with balusters and statues. The statues of women had red paint on their cheeks and shoulders. There is a large plaza in front of the palace, but no person of what quality soever Is allowed to enter the court In a coach. After walking through five porches, you come to a stair- case which is extremely large. The royal apart- ments are furnished with excellent pictures, admir- able tapestries, and fine statues, but many of the rooms are quite dark. Some have no windows whatever, and are only light when the doors are opened. Even those with windows are badly lighted, as the openings are so small. This is partially to keep out the sun and heat, but also because glass is so very dear. Many private houses are entirely without glass, but the scarcity of It In the royal palace is frequently hidden from without by the lattices." "The gardens," she concludes, "are small and poor." This was the palace whose gloomy atmosphere 153 BUILDERS OF SPAIN chilled, one after another, the unhappy queens of the solemn Hapsburg kings. Here Philip III. himself Is actually said to have died of the rigid etiquette spread like a pall over the pompous court. The official whose duty It was to remove the brazier of burning charcoal from the royal apartment being out of town, no one else could with propriety touch it, consequently the King was overheated, and a fever resulted which caused his death. It was in this palace that Velasquez was lodged and permitted to set up his studio, which for years became the King's favourite retreat. A pri- vate passage connected it with his apart- ments, and there Philip IV. spent hours with the painter whose genius has immortalized his reign. The numberless portraits left of Philip may Indi- cate nothing more than a childish weakness for the reproduction of his own features, but many things give the Impression of a real liking for the painter himself, and no man at the heavy court received higher honours. The little palace of Buen Retiro, presented by the Duke of Olivares to Philip IV., is described by Madame d'Aulnoy as square, with four pa- vilions and four huge apartments. In the centre was a court In which were flowers, fountains, and statues. "The building," she observes, "has the fault of being too low. The rooms are large 154 MADRID and adorned with paintings." The "paintings" were many of the most splendid works of Ve- lasquez, removed thither during the lifetime of Philip IV. One wonders, therefore, that Ma- dame did not speak further of them, but she goes on to say: "Everything shines with gold and lively colours; and the theatre, which is very large, Is also well set out with carving and gild- ing. The boxes arc so large that fifteen may sit without Inconvenience; all have lattice windows, and the King's box is richly gilt. There is neither a gallery nor an amphitheatre, and those who do not occupy boxes sit on benches or on the floor." The chief decoration of the park which sur- rounded this palace was the famous statue of Philip IV., executed In bronze by the Florentine sculptor, Tacca. His work, now in the Plaza Orlente, Is still chiefly remarkable for the equilib- rium preserved, with so great a weight of metal, in the rearing horse. The statue occupied a po- sition on one side of the terrace at Buen Retlro. The park, which was a good league in compass, was diversified by a canal, and a square pond, where the King had small gondolas painted and gilded. Eleswhere were grottos, cataracts, ponds, fountains, trees, meadows, and even fields. Besides the glory lent to Buen Retlro by the art of Velasquez, it was there that some of the 155 BUILDERS OF SPAIN comedies of Calderon and Lope de Vega were first performed, but a large proportion of the di- versions of the improvident court were puerile and senselessly extravagant. Millions were squan- dered upon masques and sham fights which were scarcely even amusing, and whose purpose was nothing more than the passing of time, the glorification of the King, and the waste of money. This useless expenditure, long considered essential to the dignity of the grandees of Spain, reached Its greatest excess during the reigns of the later Hapsburg kings. A French ambassador, whose ball had been disgraced by the fact that the champagne came to an end before the entertain- ment was over, made a visit of ceremony to a famous Spanish duchess, who read him the Span- ish opinion of his thrifty hospitality, by sending out palls of the sparkling beverage for his horses. Such was the temper of the King and the court, while the country was plunged deeper and deeper into the slough of bankruptcy. The Prado, or meadow, lying between the Buen Retiro and the city, was not yet laid out into the fine street that we see to-day, but there was some sort of a drive along its level stretch, and there It was arranged that Charles I. of Eng- land should have his first glimpse of the Infanta Maria, sister of Philip IV., whom he had come Into Spain to woo. Charles, then only Prince of 156 MADRID Wales, was accompanied by the Duke of Buck- ingham. Their journey, which had been made in- cognito, had been by way of Paris, and the young Prince doubtless made an Immediate and disparag- ing comparison of the blond Maria with the more piquant style of the Princess Henrietta, daughter of Henry IV., with whom he had already fallen in love in the French capital. But the matrimonial negotiations in Madrid were not allowed to flag because of Charles' personal inclination elsewhere. It was Philip's lack of in- terest in the alliance which finally brought it to naught. For the time, however, Charles was given the position of an accepted suitor. He was lodged in the Alcazar, and fetes and boar hunts at the hunting box of Pardo, a few leagues from Madrid, were arranged to do him honour. A bull fight In the old Plaza Mayor formed the climax of these festivities. The King himself took part in the sport of the arena, and Charles was allowed to sit so near his aflianced bride that they were separated only by an iron railing. This was considered a marked concession from the rigid rules of Spanish etiquette. The Plaza Mayor had been built by Philip III., and, although partially burned and rebuilt in 1 63 1, It remains to-day one of the few his- toric squares in Madrid. In size It is consider- able, but the houses which surround It, whose 157 BUILDERS OF SPAIN fronts are built over open arcades, are pretentious rather than Imposing, and make little claim to architectural merit. But, even until the reign of Isabella II., this plaza was the usual scene of bull fights and public festas. The essential features of bull fights In the days of Philip IV. were similar to those of to-day, but the ceremonials were far more elaborate, and all arrangements more gorgeous and costly. All the house fronts on the Plaza Mayor were arranged, above the arcades. Into boxes or balconies with glass doors. For royal festas these boxes were hired by the King or the city, and given out to dignitaries or officials according to degree. The King's balcony stood out prominently on one side. It was richly gilt, hung with velvet and gold curtains, and had a canopy over it. The balconies of ambassadors were opposite, and were distinguished by hangings of crimson velvet with the arms of the country represented by each am- bassador embroidered upon them. Upon either side were placed city officials, judges, grandees, and titulados, according to degree, and all boxes were hung with rich stuffs, tapestries, silks, and velvets, with raised work in gold. For all these i guests the King made a collation, given in bas- kets " to women as well as to men." It consisted of dried fruits, sweetmeats, and water cooled with ice, and there were, besides, souvenir presents of 158 MADRID gloves, fans, ribbons, pastiles, silk stockings, and garters. It Is said that these feasts often cost above one hundred thousand crowns. For the rest of the people, scaffolds were erected from the level of the pavement up to the height of the first story of the houses, except under the King's balcony, which was left for his guard. Upon their arrival, persons of quality rode Into the arena in coaches, and made several turns around, cavaliers saluting the ladies in the boxes, who appeared without mantles or veils, dressed in their finest, and decked with all their jewels. The King made his entry last. His coach was preceded by five or six others, occupied by gen- tlemen and pages of the chamber. Immediately in front of His Majesty's was a coach of honour, empty, and the royal coach was surrounded by footmen, guards, and pages. All were bare- headed, and the pages were in black and , without swords. When all the people were in their places the arena was watered from tanks or little carts. Then, all things being ready, the captain of the guard and other officers, mounted on very fine horses, entered at the head of the Spanish, Ger- man, and Burgundlan guards. They were clothed in yellow velvet or satin, which was the livery of the King, trimmed with tufted crimson galoon mixed with gold and silver. After marching sev- 159 BUILDERS OF SPAIN eral times around the arena, these guards took their places under the King's balcony, where, standing close together, they made a kind of fence. Sometimes the bulls attacked them, yet they were not permitted to draw back and might only present the points of their halberds. The guard being set, six alguazils, or door- keepers,^ entered the square, each holding a white rod. They rode fine horses, harnessed after the Moorish fashion, and covered with little bells. These alguazils were habited In white and wore plumes; it was their business to escort the knights who were to fight the bulls. As they were not allowed on any account to leave the arena, their post was one of considerable danger. When the King was ready, the alguazils came under his bal- cony, and the key to the stable where the bulls were kept was tossed to them. Then, while trum- pets, timbrels, drums, and bagpipes made a great noise, the trembling alguazils went to open the doors which admitted the bulls. As it was usual for the bulls to look behind the doors and kill the man stationed there to close them, both he and the alguazils, who were not furnished with weapons of defence, exercised the greatest care and expedition in getting out of the way. After the entry of the bull, the sport was much the same as it is to-day, except that noble cav- aliers took the place now filled by professional 1 60 MADRID matadors, and that both the bulls and the horses were of a better breed. Broken limbs and even loss of life were the common results of all bull fights, but were never allowed to interfere with the completion of the programme, which was only stopped by the King's order. Until it was plundered and destroyed by the French, the old church of Atocha was one of the chief centres of fashionable life in Madrid. It was a favourite social rendezvous, especially on Saturday afternoons at four o'clock, when the royal family were always in attendance, a custom still preserved in the new church. Atocha was also the frequent scene of historic ceremonials. When the news came from Paris that the suit 'of the last degenerate Hapsburg, Charles II., for Mademoiselle d'Orleans was granted, a Te Deum was sung in Our Lady of Atocha. The witless young King went In a coach of green oilcloth. Before and behind him marched twenty halber- diers clothed In yellow, with truss breeches like pages. The courtiers, of whom there was a large number, followed in coaches. Windows and streets were crowded with people shouting " Viva el Rey ! Viva la Reina ! " In the evening the houses were illuminated with great wax candles, two In each balcony, and two In each window. Everywhere were bonfires, and a festa, which, Madame d'Aulnoy remarks, was i6i BUILDERS OF SPAIN miscalled a masquerade, was held In the palace. '*The cavaliers who took part in it," she says, *' marched from the gates of the city through streets strewn with fresh sand." Each cavalier had a great many footmen. They themselves were clothed in black with coloured tabby sleeves embroidered with silk and bugles, small hats but- toned up with diamonds and with plumes of feathers, rich scarfs and many jewels. Over all they wore coats and great collars. The footmen were in cloth of gold and silver, and went by their masters' sides with flambeaux. '* The cavaliers marched four in rank, each also holding a flambeaux, and they went all over the city attended with trumpets, bagpipes, and flutes; and when they came to the palace, which was Il- luminated, and the court covered with sand, they took several turns, and ran and pushed against one another with design to throw each other down with their tricks. Prince Alexander of Parma, who is of prodigious bigness, fell down, and the fall of him made as great a noise as the tumbling down of a moderately high hill." With all their extravagance and profligacy, the Madrileiios have always been a remarkably tem- perate people. ' Drunkenness was considered so despicable that a man once Intoxicated was never afterwards available as a witness In a court of justice, and the taunt borracho, or drunken, could 162 MADRID only be avenged with murder. The feasting upon the above occasion, In which garlics, leeks, and onions played so important a part that they perfumed the air, was, therefore, topped off by such a copious drinking of His Majesty's health in water that the sarcastic Frenchwoman char- acterizes It as a debauch. The water supply of Madrid was most uncertain, owing to droughts, yet the quality of the water when plentiful was extraordinarily good and light, which may account for its popularity as a beverage. A part of the celebration of the marriage of Charles II. was an Auto de Fe In the Plaza Mayor. A theatre fifty feet long, and as high as the balcony of the King, was erected In the great square. On the right side, looking from the King's balcony, was an amphitheatre of twenty- five or thirty steps for the council of the Inqui- sition and other councils. On the left, another amphitheatre for the criminals. In the middle were two cages for the criminals during the read- ing of sentences, and near them chairs for the readers of judgment and for the preacher. The ceremonies began with a procession from St. Mary's Church. A hundred charcoal men with pikes and muskets marched before, because they provided the wood for the burning of the con- demned. Next came the Dominicans carrying a white cross; then the standard of the Inquisition, 163 BUILDERS OF SPAIN which was carried by the Duke of Medina Cell, a hereditary privilege In that family. The stand- ard, made of red damask, had on one side a naked sword In a crown of laurel, and on the other the arms of Spain. Behind it came a green cross wrapped about with crape, and after that a great number of grandees and other persons, with black and white crosses on black cloaks. This procession passed by the palace and went to the plaza the evening of the day before the burn- ing, and the people spent the day there in sing- ing psalms. In the morning the King and all spectators were In their places by seven o'clock. Upon the right of the King was the Queen, and upon his left the Queen-mother, Marianne, now, since the death of Don Juan, permitted to return to the court. The remainder of His Majesty's balcony was taken up by the Queen's ladies of honour. Other balconies were reserved, as at the royal bull fights, for ambassadors, grandees, and officials, and there were also scaffolds erected for the peo- ple. At eight, the procession marched again, fol- lowed by men bearing pasteboard effigies as large as life. Some represented those who had died in prison. The bones of these were carried In cof- fins which had flames painted on them. Others depicted those who had escaped, but had been condemned for contumacy. After these figures 164 MADRID had been placed at the end of the theatre, the sentence was pronounced and the criminals exe- cuted. In 1700, the old Alcazar was given up to the intrigues which surrounded the deathbed of the last degenerate Hapsburg King, and with the passing of Carlos II. a new order of things was inaugurated in Madrid. Even the days of the old palace were numbered, for on Christmas night, in 1734, it caught fire and was burned to the ground. By this time Philip V. was in his dotage, but he was not too feeble to embrace at once and with enthusiasm, a project for a mag- nificent new palace. Already the French servants of the King had attempted some Improvements in the shabby Spanish capital, but here was an opportunity for something monumental. The first design for the new palace, produced by an Italian architect Imported for the work, was so thoroughly in harmony with the King's ambition that It proved Impracticable and had to be greatly modified. In the end, although begun by Philip, the work was carried on by another architect, and the palace was first occupied by Charles III. We are told that Charles added largely to the last design, and as seen to-day the palace Is one of the most Imposing In Europe. With this beginning, the Bourbon kings prac- tically rebuilt Madrid, and most of the large and 165 BUILDERS OF SPAIN pretentious structures found in* the SpanisH capital to-day were left by them. Like the vast palace, the other buildings of this period are mostly in the Renaissance style; furthermore, as was to be expected, they show the strong influence of French models, but as the Spanish imitations are mostly enfeebled copies of the heavy period of Louis XIV., Madrid presents mostly long rows of pretentious stucco houses, with ponderous and usually ugly public buildings, whose Spanishness appears in an exaggeration of the vastness, the monotony, or the heaviness of the French style. Of them all to-day, the royal palace remains, in size, materials, and construction, the most splen- did structure in Madrid. In style and in some of its proportions, it Is much criticised, but al- though many details are somewhat meagre, and it is sometimes found monotonous, the vast pile has immense solidity, which, with dignified lines, ren- ders it stately and imposing. During the two hundred years of Bourbon rule, Madrid was the storm centre of intrigues and re- bellions which kept Spain in a ferment. With few defences, the Spanish capital was easily taken by any besieging army, but the sturdy spirit of Spanish Independence rendered it quite another matter to hold it. The Archduke Charles, who contested the throne with Philip V., advanced upon Madrid, i66 MADRID and even occupied * it. But the Madrlleiios had accepted Philip, and In some way he had won their loyal devotion. Charles, therefore, soon found himself compelled to retire. Again, when Napoleon decoyed the royal fam- ily of Charles IV. out of Spain, and presented the kingdom to his brother, the city was roused to a perfect fury. Any adequate resistance to the army of Murat, then quartered In Madrid, was Impossible. Yet the people rose en masse, shedding rivers of blood In their resistance to foreign rule, and although, for the time, the French troops were not dislodged, In the end Jerome was also obliged to withdraw. The date of the first rising against the French Is still held sacred by patriotic Madrllenos, and Its heroism Is honoured by a great monument in the promenade of the Prado. After the restoration of Ferdinand VII., the in- creasing weakness of the throne kept Madrid In a continual ferment. Leader after leader won ex- travagant popularity, and, latei^ sudden disgrace. Few of the Spanish politicians of the early nine- teenth century but were obliged to spend some portion of their careers in hiding, and many lost their lives. The French left the palace of Buen Retiro in ruins, but the royal palace In the city had grown more and more magnificent. To-day few pal- 167 BUILDERS OE SPAIN aces in Europe equal it In splendour of furnish- ing. The grand staircase was rightly famous be- fore Napoleon apostrophized it, for Its size and the stately sweep of Its lines. The throne room is vast in extent and resplendent with hangings of silk and velvet and a gorgeously painted ceiling; and the chapel, which is classical in style, is showily painted with coarse and overdone dec- oration. During her earlier years in this palace, Isabella II. was as popular as she later became detested. An attempt, soon after her marriage, to assas- sinate her, at the head of the great staircase, roused a madness of enthusiasm for her. The Queen had just left the royal chapel, and with her was a nurse carrying her infant daughter. Her rich robes well became her tall figure and regal car- riage, but tier eyes were fastened upon the face of her child, always the object of her strong devo- tion. As she reached the staircase a beggar ap- proached and presented a petition. The Queen extended her hand to take it and the next mo- ment was staggering from a dagger thrust. The wound proved slight, but when next the Queen went out, the streets were black with people shouting for joy over her miraculous escape, while bells were rung, bands played, and special services of thanksgiving were held In the churches. Only a few years later a messenger from i68 MADRID Espartero, the leader of the faction then in power, waited upon Isabella at the palace. So weakened was her authority that this emissary, General Salazar, was the bearer of a paper con- taining conditions to which she must yield If she would retain her throne. The most mortifying of the stipulations was that which demanded the dismissal, without exception, of all the members of the royal household. Isabella appeared con- founded by the contents of the paper, whereupon General Salazar broke out into a severe denunci- ation of her private conduct. Isabella, cut to the quick, proudly replied: "I have never been spoken to in this way." Whereupon her accuser retorted: "I have no doubt of It. It is not often that truth has been spoken in this pal- ace.'' It was the beginning of the end for Isa- bella, and it was not long before the splendid palace began to open Its doors to the brief reigns of her successors. The tale of the revolutions which kept Madrid in a constant turmoil during the following years would fill volumes, but they produced little effect upon the aspect of the city. From a dirty broken-down village, it had become a clean, light, and well-kept capital. Charles III. had not only completed the magnificent palace, but had laid out the splendid Prado. The street of Alcala had been made a street of palaces, and Its junc- 169 BUILDERS OF SPAIN tion with the Prado marked by a great triumphal arch. All this and much more, yet with all the vast ex- tent of many of its buildings and a grandiose effect of solidity, Madrid to-day lacks distinction and dignity. Like the seething life of its streets, Madrid is theatrical. Its showy palaces and public buildings, the work of splendour-loving kings who were only half Spanish, and Its pri- vate houses built of stucco, Indicate little more than a love of superficial display — the last ex- hausted expression of the Iberic egoism which has been the final and determining factor in all the history of the peninsula. 170 Chapter XVIII THE NORTHERN FRONTIER SANTIAGO, LEON THE series of dramatic legends which open up the story of the Christian kingdoms of the North have provided Spain with many of her most popular heroes. Accounts are shadowy and much mixed with su- pernatural marvels, and there are historians who deny that there ever was a Pelayo, a Bernardo del Carpio, or even a Cid. But we have a right to claim that a few, at least, of the prodi- gies ascribed to these early heroes have some foundation of fact. Either Pelayo, or some other Gothic noble, made a last stand against the Mos- lems at the cave of Covadonga, and from that impregnable position hurled down upon their as- sailants great trees and stones which turned the enemy back, and left the desperate Visigoths in possession of the mountain fastnesses where they were to regain a degree of their early virility. It must be admitted that the story of Bernardo del Carpio has some marks of artificiality, but it Is also so thoroughly in harmony with many tales which are accepted, that we may transcribe it as a fair sample of them all. 171 BUILDERS OF SPAIN The tale begins with Alfonso II., El Casto (The Chaste), of the house of Pelayo, who, at the close of the eighth century, was lord or king of the Asturlas. Alfonso was not only a celibate himself, but he desired his family to share the lonely joys of his condition. His sister Xlmena, however, had other views, and was privately mar- ried to her lover. Count Sancho Diaz. When the marriage was discovered by the King, a son had been born to the pair. Alfonso promptly Im- prisoned Sancho and Xlmena, and carried off the child. For many years the unhappy lovers lan- guished in captivity, separately no doubt, and, it Is said, Sancho's eyes were put out; while the boy, Bernardo, was brought up at court, and soon came to be regarded as his uncle's heir. Indeed he was popularly supposed to be Alfonso's son, a belief in which Bernardo shared. Early instructed In all martial pursuits, in time Bernardo not only came to be famous for his knightly prowess, but was the chief prop of the throne. Then we come to one of the many ac- counts of the invasion of Spain by Charlemagne; and here we are told that Alfonso invited the Franklsh King into Spain, and even gave him a friendly reception in the Asturlas. But later, when the Franklsh army was recognized as a menace to all the peninsula and was driven to re- treat, it was Bernardo who led the pursuit into 17a SANTIAGO, LEON the valley of Roncesvalles, where, as a highly coloured finish to the tale, he engaged Roland in a hand-to-hand combat, and finally squeezed the Prankish hero to death In his arms. But whatever the deed, Bernardo is believed to have delivered the Asturlas and the now ageing Alfonso from some peril which had threatened the kingdom; and the return of the young Prince, when the country was at his feet, was the psycho- logical moment for him to learn, from an old nurse, the secret of his birth and the unhappy condition of his father. As we hear nothing of Xlmena, It Is to be supposed that she had died. But Sancho was still In prison, and Bernardo hotly demanded his release. Alfonso refused, and Ber- nardo retaliated by joining the Moslems against his uncle. Finally, the old King was brought to terms; but, after the cessation of hostilities, when the reconciled uncle and nephew rode out to meet the delivered Sancho, It was the lifeless body of his father that Bernardo received, the poor victim having been put to death by the order of the Implacable Alfonso. With Bernardo's return to the Moslems, he disappears from history. If such it may be called. One of the chief historical facts of importance during the reign of Alfonso was the foundation of the shrine and city of Santiago. Burke points out that to offset the Mecca established by Abd- 173, BUILDERS OF SPAIN al-Rahman at Cordova, a shrine and a national saint among the Christians had become a necessity; and who more suitable than St. James, who, with St. Paul, is claimed to have begun the conversion of the peninsula. At any rate, some time during the early years of the ninth century, a pious bishop was led by a miraculous light into a wood in Galicia, not far from the coast; and there he discovered a body which, it was divinely revealed to him, was that of St. James (Sant lago). The establishment of a shrine was soon accomplished, and the name, Santiago de Campostella, cele- brated both its saint and the miracle which led to its founding. Following the marvels connected with the foun- dation of the shrine of St. James Is the tale of the miraculous Christian victory of Clavijo. By many historians, not Spanish, the battle of Clavijo Is regarded as entirely fictitious. But to the mediaeval Spaniard fighting against the Infidel, nothing more potent could have been contrived than the story of the desperate plight of a Chris- tian army, and the opportune appearance of the Apostle on a milk-white charger, a flashing sword In one hand and a white banner bearing a blood- red cross In the other. The cry with which the relnvlgorated army is said to have followed the angelic leader, Santiago y derra Espana, has ever since that day been the battle cry of Spain. 174 SANTIAGO, LEON Alfonso El Casto seems to have held a sort of suzerainty over Galicia, and under his succes- sors the power of the Asturias was gradually ex- tended. Ordono I. conquered Leon, and under his son, Alfonso IIL, El Magno, the residence of the court was at times removed thither from the old and semi-sacred city of Oviedo.^ The rule of the Asturias now embraced the most of north- western Spain, and Alfonso IIL made hostile forays against the Moslems, fa,r into the south. But, with the strange inconsistency of the times, this King sent his sons to be educated in the Mos- lem schools of Cordova, a recognition of the su- perior educational advantages of Cordova, as compared with those of the Asturias, which dis- plays more discrimination than discretion. But neither of those qualities is to be discovered In Alfonso's division of his kingdom, before his death, between his three sons. Of the three, Garcia inherited Leon, into which kingdom the Asturias appears to have been merged, and from this time the city of Leon be- came Its permanent capital. Fifty years later, Ordono IIL, of Leon, married Uracca, a daugh- ter of his powerful vassal, Fernando Gonzalez, Count of Castile. But Fernando aspired to Inde- pendence, and In the ensuing intrigues he was 1 The sacred relics carried away from Toledo (see page 227, Vol. I.) were deposited at Oviedo. 175 BUILDERS OF SPAIN guided entirely by the interests of Castile, regard- less of family ties. He was soon In correspond- ence with Sancho, a rebellious brother of his royal son-in-law, upon which Ordoiio promptly re- pudiated his wife, who was immediately married by Sancho. A little later the suspiciously opportune Ueath of Ordoiio allowed Sancho a peaceful ac- cession to the throne. But Sancho, as King, ap- pears to have been quite as objectionable to Fer- nando as Ordoiio had been, and was soon driven from his kingdom by an Intrigue which replaced him by another Ordofio. This enforced holiday gave Sancho the opportunity, as related In an earlier chapter, to visit a celebrated physician at Cordova,^ for treatment for excessive corpulency. But his return at the head of a Moslem army, which recovered his throne for him and sent the usurping Ordofio to Cordova, resulted in nothing better than the acquisition of another enemy for Leon, and Instead of a duel between Leon and Castile, there were three-cornered hostilities In which Cordova lent a hand. The foregoing story has been given more as an illustration of what was constantly happening than for Its own importance; and may be taken as an epitome of most of the early history of these northern kingdoms. A hundred years later, both Castile on the east and Gallcia on the west, 2 See page 13, Vol. II. 176 SANTIAGO, LEON were measurably independent, but the failure of male heirs to the kings of Leon left the succes- sion to that throne to Doiia Sancha, whose mar- riage to Ferdinand L, of Castile, united Leon and Castile. The union of the most of northwestern Spain under Ferdinand and Sancha, and Ferdi- nand's partition of his kingdom, at his death, be- tween three sons and two daughters, have already been outlined,^ and, together with later events, will be found more in detail in connection with the three cities which, from this date, assume the most importace in this region. In Santiago, Leon, and Burgos, the capitals of Galicia, Leon, and Old Castile, may be seen three splendid and historic cathedrals. Of the three, only Burgos may be visited to-day with any de- gree of convenience or comfort, and Santiago is practically inaccessible to the modern traveller. But the pious pilgrims of the middle ages were not so easily dismayed. The discovery, as already irelated, of the sacred relics of St. James in the northwest corner of Spain soon turned the faces of thousands of devotees toward the shrine at once erected, and to which the town built up around It owes its sole importance. The gifts of pilgrims, many of whom were royal, together with a com tax, which was not abolished unti) 3 See page 119, Vol. I. 177 BUILDERS OF SPAIN 1835, soon poured enormous wealth Into Santi- ago, and from a group of huts it quickly In- creased to a city of importance. Alfonso El Casto is said to have built the first shrine, doubtless a rude affair, but under Alfonso III. a Romanesque basilica was erected which Is described as very magnificent. This church re- mained in existence only a little more than a hun- dred years, being destroyed by Al-Mansur, the warrior vizier of Cordova, who, in 997, made a hostile incursion Into this far-off corner of Spain. Much booty was carried away by the Moslems, possibly was the lure of the expedition, but, strange to say, the shrine itself was respected. For it some temporary shelter must have been im- provised which was made to serve for nearly a hundred years; the next church, which is the present structure, not having been begun until 1082. It was under Bishop Gelmirez, the founder of this church, that Santiago was made an arch- bishopric, and the splendour of the new struc- ture was either the cause or the result of that honour. It is a basilica whose ground plan is a cross with fully developed transepts. As seen to- day, the building so strongly resembles the church of St. Sernin at Toulouse as jto be called a direct copy of it. St. Sernin was a church of shrines, claiming to have the relics of as many as seven 178 SANTIAGO, LEON apostles, among them a duplicate body of St. James. But, although a very rich and Important church, even its multiplicity of attractions never made It so popular a point for pilgrimage as Santiago. So many relics may have entailed doubts of their authenticity. The dimensions of the two churches differ a little, the nave at Santiago being one bay shorter, and the transepts one bay longer than the French church. Santiago, also, has only one aisle on each side of the nave, while St. Sernin has two; but the general style of the entire structure and certain peculiarities are almost Identical, and must have been Intentional from the beginning. In both churches the nave Is roofed with barrel vaults, and the aisles with cross vaults; both have the unusual arrangement of two doors at each end of the transept; and triforium galleries, evi- dently Intended for processions, entirely surround the naves and transepts. The heavy round arches leading into the aisles and triforium at Santiago are plain and stilted; there Is no clerestory and, as a consequence, the church Is very dark, possibly was kept so to ren- der the service more mysteriously impressive, and the illumination of the shrine more effective. The early details of the church are Romanesque, and many of them are superb. In fact, the west portal, rightly called La Gloria, Is one of the 179 BUILDERS OF SPAIN most magnificent In Europe. This portal, as well as the entire structure, has been admirably studied and Illustrated by Street, and nowhere do we find a greater splendour of carving, or work more fully Impregnated with the Spanish spirit. The forms are more Byzantine than Romanesque, and more Spanish than French, and the result has somewhat the effect of stiff old brocade. High roads were built leading to Santiago from both France and Spain, and many of the kings of northern Europe, as well as most of the peninsular sovereigns, found their way thither. Among these royal visitors, Mariana tells us, was Louis VII. (The Young), of France, whose jour- ney Into Spain, he further remarks, was under- taken to assure himself of the legitimacy of his Queen. But, as Is not unusual, the garrulous old historian has mixed his people and his dates a triflei, and here he must have intended Louisi VIII., whose Queen was Blanche of Castile. Moreover, It must have been Alfonso IX. of Castile, Instead of Alfonso X. (as given by Marl- ana), who, with his sons, met the French King at Burgos and escorted him to Santiago. With so popular a shrine, it naturally followed that the cathedral and Its neighbourhood became. In time, congeries of additions and buildings, erected for the accommodation or exploitation of pilgrims, and that these structures, as well as 1 80 SANTIAGO, LEON later work on the church itself, should represent pretty much all the styles which prevailed in Europe between the twelfth and seventeenth cen- turies. The result Is a medley of styles, but a profusion of details and treasure whose richness Is scarcely exceeded In Spain. Leon Is one of the most ancient towns In Spain. Here was the most strongly fortified northern outpost of the Romans against the native tribes whom they had driven Into the wilds of the Pyre- nees: and the Impregnability of Roman walls, which were twenty-five feet thick, enabled Leon to withstand the Visigoths until the reign of Leo- vlglld. By some the name Leon Is said to have been a corruption of the Roman Legio, by which the town had earlier been known, but It seems far more probable that the new name was given in honour of Its Gothic conqueror. The city was highly prized by later Gothic kings, and its fortifications were considered so valuable that, in the general order for the dismantling of tributary cities, the walls of Leon were spared. But in spite of Gothic leniency and her stout walls, Leon offered little resistance to the Mos- lem invaders, and for a few years the town served them, too, as a frontier stronghold. The Visigoths made early and frequent attempts to re- gain It, but they were obliged to recapture It i8i BUILDERS OF SPAIN twice before they were able to hold It, and Its permanent reconquest was not effected until 850. Then Ordono I. not only took Leon, but made it the first of those advanced Christian defences toward the south which finally dotted all the pla- teau of Castile and gave It a name. The first bishop's seat In northern Spain was set up at Leon, but his cathedral was built outside the old walls, and of It we know very little. We are told, however, that Ordoiio built his palace within the town on the site of the present cathe- dral; and, a little later, that an abbot of the King converted the old Roman baths of the pal- ace Into a church with three naves. This basilica became the second cathedral of Leon, and during the next hundred years, according to the standard of the times. It was called very magnificent. The same Moslem Invasion which destroyed the old cathedral at Santiago, left Leon little more than a heap of ruins. Indeed, Al-Mansur is said to have ebctermlnated Its population. He made no attempt, however, to hold any of his conquests, and the rebuilding of Leon by the Christians was at once begun. This reconstruc- tion dates from the close of the tenth century, and within one hundred and fifty years Leon reached the culmination of Its Importance. We read of a Convocation of Notables, assembled at Leon in 1020, which effected a revision of the Z82 ■1 dotted all the pla- Alcazar (Old Castle), Segovia. becan SANTIAGO, LEON old Gothic laws. And In 1090, another Council authorized the substitution of the Latin alphabet for the old Gothic letters. But the most Important event for Leon in this eleventh century, was the marriage of her Queen, Sancha, with Ferdinand of Castile, which united the two kingdoms. Then the two sovereigns not only conquered the most of the neighbouring Christian kingdoms, but Ferdinand led his armies against the Moslems as far as Valencia. Except intimidation of the foe, these distant expeditions served little purpose, however, and Ferdinand's only tangible results were the bones of the good Bishop Isidore which, as already related, he found at Seville. The story of the church building operations along the route into the north, caused by the impossibility, after each night's rest, of moving the relics until a church had been prom- ised, has also been narrated; and the last of those edifices is found at Leon where the sacred bones found a final resting place. Besides the importance conferred upon the splendid Romanesque church of St. Isidore at Leon by the possession of the saint's bones, the edifice almost at once became the sepulchre of the Leonese kings. At one time the Pantheon, built In the cloisters, contained the bones of eight generations of kings and queens; but they were scattered and the tombs desecrated by French sol- 183 BUILDERS OF SPAIN diers during the Peninsular War. Like the cathe- dral at Santiago, the interior of the church of St. Isidore Is heavy, and, save the simplest of mouldings and some curiously out of place Sara- cenic cusping, Is quite plain. The exterior, like- wise, is extremely simple and solid, and the little ornament found is of the purest period of the Romanesque. The reception of the relics of St. Isidore at Leon was signalized by Ferdinand's announce- ment of the partition of his kingdom among his five children at his death. As already related, Castile was given to Sancho, Leon to Alfonso, and Gallcia to Garcia; while two frontier cities, Toro and Zamora, were placed in the hands of his daughters, Elvira and Uracca. To give the women of the family the task of holding the most exposed posts In the kingdom, was quite in keep- ing with the fatuity of its division, but in the hostilities which broke out immediately after the death of Ferdinand, the sisters defended their in- heritances with quite as much valour as their more pugnacious brothers. Sancho immediately made war upon Alfonso, and with Sancho was the Cid. The war dragged on for seven years. Then it was agreed that the next engagement should be regarded as final, and that to the victor the kingdoms of both should belong. In the battle which followed, Alfonso 184 SANTIAGO, LEON won a decisive triumph, but he foolishly trusted his brother's honour, with the result that the next day, when utterly unprepared to resist, his unsus- pecting army was overwhelmed. Although Sancho was only too eager to profit by it, the treachery has always been attributed to the Cid, and for the time its success was quite worthy of the plot- ter. Not only was the Leonese army defeated, but Alfonso was captured and hurried into a monastery where he was forced to take orders. But the world had grown somewhat since the enforced encloistering of Wamba, and compulsory vows could no longer hold a Visigothic king, especially a young and ardent one. Al- fonso's escape and flight to Toledo, where he was made an honoured guest, have already been narrated. Here we need only follow the further career of Sancho and the Cid, whose victorious campaigns speedily reduced Galicia and Toro. Only Uracca, in her fortress at Zamora, stood out against them, and, while investing it, Sancho was treacherously slain, probably at the instigation of some member of his long-suffering family. Then Alfonso, (1073) as Alfonso VI. of Leon and Castile, took possession of the reunited kingdom of his father. But the reign of Alfonso VI. was not to prove auspicious for Leon, nor were those of his suc- cessors for nearly a hundred and fifty years. The 185 BUILDERS OF SPAIN union with Castile first divided Leon's honours with the Castlllan capital, Burgos; and a dozen years later, Alfonso's conquest of Toledo and re- moval of his court thither, deprived both northern cities of much of their importance. Then the death of Alfonso without male heirs left the sovereignty in the hands of his daughter, Uracca, who proved a scourge to her country and her age. She was married to Alfonso (El Batalla- dor) of Aragon, but her lovers were many, and at least two of them joined In the strife which harried the kingdom during her lifetime. In which the chief contestants were Alfonso, the husband, and Alfonso, the son, of the faithless Queen. Alfonso, the son of Uracca, became the Vllth of that name on the throne of Leon and Castile, and his successes against the Moslems gave ex- cuse for the title of Emperor, which he assumed, but at his death the kingdoms once more were divided; Castile being bequeathed to his son Sancho, and Leon to Ferdinand. More or less of war was the result for another fifty years, when another effort was made to patch up a peace by the marriage of Berenguela, the granddaughter of Sancho, to Alfonso, the grandson of Ferdi- nand. The marriage appears to have been un- usually happy until the Pope, Innocent III., dis- covered that the pair were cousins and, what was of more importance, that they had neglected to i86 SANTIAGO, LEON procure a dispensation. The union was at once declared void. One son, Ferdinand, had already been born to them, and for six years the royal lovers fought the excommunication and Interdict which were the powerful weapons of the Papacy. The children were declared legitimate, yet the separation of the parents was Inexorably de- manded; and to save the country from ruin, Ber- enguela was finally sent back to Castile. As the young Infante Ferdinand was recog- nized as his father's heir, he was left at Leon. But within a short time the death of Berenguela's brother left her heiress to the throne of Castile. With an unselfishness rare In those days, and a wisdom uncommon at any time, Berenguela seized her opportunity. Ferdinand was at once invited to pay a visit to his mother, and her abdication in his favour quickly followed his arrival. But Berenguela's nobility and statesmanship were not paralleled by like qualities in her one time hus- band, who we now find making war upon the mother and son. Even for those days this was going a little too far, and for very shame Al- fonso was finally obliged to desist. During his earlier years, therefore, young Ferdinand was King of Castile; then at the death of his father he inherited Leon, when, as Ferdinand III., he, for the last time, united those oft-divided king- doms of northwestern Spain. 187 BUILDERS OF SPAIN The date of the foundation of the present cathedral at Leon, the third in the history of the See, is usually given as during the early years of the thirteenth century, but the evidence of the fabric itself indicates that not much of impor- tance could have been accomplished before about 1250. We may assume, therefore, that it was one of the works undertaken by King Ferdinand III. ( 1 230-1252). But why he should have placed so important a monument at Leon, which was more and more deserted, instead of in his new capital at Seville,* must remain a mys- tery. From its very foundation the importance of this cathedral is evident, and no church in Spain was so clearly modelled after those of a few years earlier in the He de France. The result Is a very noble structure, but here, in proportion as it is not Span- ish, it loses in interest. As an example of exotic influence, however, one could not do better than study Leon, and the student is at once reminded of Reims, whose ground plan is similar; of Amiens, the treatment of whose nave walls and chevet is strongly suggested; while the influence of a number of the earlier Gothic churches of France may be seen In the fagade; and the most marked feature at Leon, Its lightness, may be 4 As related elsewhere, it was Ferdinand III.^ (St. Ferdinand) ■who effected the reconquest of Cordova and Seville. 188 Cutkedr^ifjueon. West Front. SANTIAGO, LEON traced step by step with the similar effort at Beauvais. As at Beauvais, so at Leon, the great height of the nave with the extreme slenderness of piers and vaulting ribs, was at the expense of stability. Almost as soon as the building was completed additional supports had to be built in; and not only has a recent rebuilding of one arm of the transept been necessary, but much of the fabric elsewhere is in need of strengthening and restora- tion. But, like Beauvais, the lantern-like effect of these walls is of great beauty, and when the win- dows w^ere filled with superb old glass (stored away during restorations), whose colours are de- scribed as of remarkable depth and brilliancy, splendid liquid reds and vivid greens, the final charm was added to a glorious edifice, one quite worthy of the soaring pride of the Leonese. The east end is even more French in effect than the fagade, and here one is strongly reminded of Le Mans, but, as we shall see at Barcelona, there is no roof visible. The aisles are less choked up with chapels than those of most Span- ish churches, and the decorative detail, in style, and in choice and arrangement of subject, Is very French. The tracery, which is simple and good. Is entirely geometric, but the great size of the windows, with the tenuity of the bars, rendered necessary the insertion of iron teeth, by 189 BUILDERS OF SPAIN which alone could they have been held together even as long as this. The use of iron In this manner Is held by most critics of architecture to be indefensible. In buildings of this character the stone should be adequate to its own work. A third lion at Leon is the Plateresque con- vent of San Marcos. The original structure on this site dates only a little later than the cathe- dral. It was established here on the direct route to the shrine of their saint, by the knights of Sant lago, and for centuries was the constant resort of pilgrims bound thither. The present building on the old foundation is of the sixteenth centliry, and Is one of the masterpieces of its period. With a magnificent fagade of splendid stone, and some of its Interior decorations comparable to those of the Loggia of Raphael, one Is again left to wonder why so much splendour was squan- dered on so forsaken a city. But while the deser- tion of the court, and even the slow current of Spanish progress were leaving Leon high and dry, the tide of pilgrims to Santiago was never greater than during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.* The rebuilding of the Convent Hospital, necessi- tated by the ruinous condition of the old pile, was one of the many pious works proposed by 5 In the single year of 1434, 2460 pilgrims are recorded from England alone. 190 Sx\NTIAGO, LEON Ferdinand and Isabella, who made the first dona- tion for the new Convent. It was not begun, however, until the reign of Charles V., and even then progress appears to have been very slow. Later, certain changes In the order of St. lago stopped work altogether, and finally left the building Incomplete. But even the fragment Is regarded as one of the most beautiful monuments of the Plateresque style In Spain. Some remnants of her old walls, the ruins of a few really splendid palaces, and an abun- dance of local colour, complete the list of Leon's tangible attractions. They are not many, yet the three great monuments described rank with the finest in Spain, and, with the memories of her early power, are surely sufficient warrant for the arrogance of her lordly old hidalgos. If the world has passed her by, so much the worse for the world; for the lions of Leon still share with the castles of Castile the position of honour on the shield of Spain, and the blood of her kings mingles with that of most of the royal houses of Europe to-day. 191 Chapter XIX OLD CASTILE BURGOS, SALAMANCA, VALLADOLID AMONG the legendary founders of Burgos, we hear once more of Hercules and the grandsons of Noah, but In reality the city was not begun until the ninth century. Then, owing to the fact that Its situation com- mands the natural Spanish outlet of the western pass across the Pyrenees, Burgos quickly became an Important centre. From the beginning, Burgos dominated the region, later developed Into the kingdom of Old Castile, but which was early trib- utary to Leon. In 950, as already related, the governor of Castile was Fernando Gonzalez, a leader not long content to yield allegiance to any petty state, and under him was founded the In- dependence of Castile. Fernando changed his title to Count, which later became King; and the union of his descendants with those of the kings of Leon, founded the royal house, some branch of which has ever since ruled In Spain. Scarcely second to Fernando among the great sons of Castile was that most martial and en- terprising figure of Spanish mediaeval life, al- ready Introduced In the history of several different cities, Rodrlgo, or Ruy Diaz, but whose Moslem 192 BURGOS, SALAMANCA, VALLADOLID title, Said or Cid, is more universally recognized. Only the earlier years of the great freebooter be- long to Burgos. His service under Sancho, al- ready narrated, was not the best of passports to the favour of Sancho's brother and successor, Al- fonso, and as will be seen, the departure of the CId from Burgos soon became expedient If not necessary. But the city Is no less proud of him; and among her chief curiosities to-day are some of his bones and the coffer, which, filled with sand Instead of with treasure, as represented to certain Jewish money-lenders, served to secure the large loan required for one of his campaigns. After the death of Sancho at Zamora, Alfonso VI. was elected to the sovereignty of Castile, but as a necessary preliminary to that, to Alfonso, most desirable consummation, the CId, at the time the most powerful noble in Castile, compelled the young King, before an assembly of peers and nota- bles at Burgos, to make public disavowal of com- plicity In his brother's murder. For the time Al- fonso hid his resentment: he even gave his cousin, Ximena, In marriage to the author of his humili- ation. The marriage of Ximena and the Cid was celebrated In the royal castle up on the hill, and every apparent evidence was given of royal favour. But Alfonso never forgave the last in- dignity, and It Is said that he finally drove the CId from his dominions. 193 BUILDERS OF SPAIN The remainder of the story of the CId crops out in connection with every city in the north of Spain, and in many of those of the south. A few of the tales have already been told, and many are doubtless legendary, but all illustrate the per- fect impartiality with which he pledged his serv- ices wherever his personal interest dictated. Sometimes he fought with Christians and some- times with Moslems, and, added to his military prowess, was the superlative talent for Intrigue and treachery whose early exercise procured for him the enmity of Alfonso. With so few of the cardinal virtues, the great popularity of the Cid is a little difficult to un- derstand. With perfect sang-froid^ he despoiled and betrayed every master he engaged to serve, yet he has long been the national hero of Spain. The largeness of his schemes and the plcturesque- ness of his methods must always have made a strong appeal to the popular fancy; and Burke further suggests that the Cid's boldness was al- ways against arbitrary regal power — that in his absolute freedom he was an early personification of democracy. To be sure, he had no altruistic notions of freedom for other people, but as an apostle of democracy, he does not stand alone in that, and a comparison with the kings of his day will often be found to the advantage of the Cid. Then, too, he occasionally displayed a jus- 194 BURGOS, SALAMANCA, VALLADOLID tice and generosity as highhanded as his treacher- ies. But, without doubt, his crowning attraction has always been his universal success. After the removal of the capital to Toledo, and by way of atonement to Burgos for depriv- ing her of the court,^ Alfonso established there an Episcopal See. Ten years earlier he had founded a new church, which now became the seat of the Bishop, and for a hundred and fifty years it continued to serve in that capacity. The • court was still occasionally in residence at Burgos, and the situation of the town must always pre- serve a degree of Its Importance, but the loss of official distinction was a blow from which it never recovered. It is the occasional consequence lent by the passage of diplomatic embassies Into or out of Spain which furnishes most of the later historic Interest of Burgos, and no city in the peninsula was more frequently graced by the wedding fes- tivities which began or concluded the ceremonials of royal nuptials. Here Spanish Infantas were met by the proxies through whom they were wed- ded to foreign kings, and by whom they were escorted to their new kingdoms; and here many queens of Spain first saw their royal husbands. 1 This jealousy continued until the fourteenth century, when Alfonso XI. attempted to lessen it by permitting Burgos to speak first in the Castilian Cortes, saying that he himself would speak for Toledo. 195 BUILDERS OF SPAIN Something over a hundred years after the founding of her first cathedral, Alfonso VIII. came to Burgos to welcome his bride, Eleanor Plantagenet, one of the noblest queens ever brought Into Spain. The internal peace of the kingdom during her lifetime, as well as the noble qualities of her daughter, the heroic Berenguela, are largely ascribed to Eleanor. Ten years after their marriage. King Alfonsq and Queen Eleanor came to Burgos to found a monastery In her honour, and If we may judge by results, the Queen had In her employ an Eng- lish architect. The site chosen was the garden of an earlier villa, just outside the city, whose name, Las Huelgas, meaning rest, was continued for the convent. From the foundation, the privileges and emol- uments of this convent were very great, and in time It came to be one of the most Important in Spain. The Inmates were all of noble birth, none other being admitted, and many of the Ab- besses were royal. Three hundred towns and vil- lagers acknowledged the authority of these Ab- besses, whose dignity was second only to that of the Queen, and we are told that the rental of the estates belonging to Las Huelgas often exceeded that of the estates of the crown. As the nuns are still very strictly enclolstered, it Is Impossible to-day to see much of the buildings. 196 BURGOS, SALAMANCA, VALLADOLID Glimpses may be had through gratings and over walls of the early work of the English Queen, and one is admitted to the church, which was erected by Eleanor's grandson, St. Ferdinand, but for the rest one must depend upon descriptions. Both the glimpses and descriptions indicate the very striking English character of the work, but interesting as they are, the historical associations of Las Huelgas are even greater. Almost at once this convent became the place of burial of the kings and queens of Castile, and the tombs of many of them are still to be found in the Chapel Royal. In the choir Is the famous banner carried by Alfonso VIIL at the battle of Tolosa, and more curious, though less thrilling, is the old statue of Sant lago In the chapel of that saint. The arms are provided with springs, so arranged as to give the accolade to candidates for knighthood in that order: thus, we are told, was avoided the reception of the dignity from a mere man. As the possession of this statue in- dicates. Las Huelgas was the place most fre- quently chosen for such ceremonies, and most of the Christian kings of Spain, as well as not a few from elsewhere, after spending the night be- fore the altar In vigil over their arms, were knighted here. The convent also furnished a most convenient place outside the walls of Burgos for the reception of royal brides. There a necessary 197 \ BUILDERS OF SPAIN rest might be had, and the splendid toilet for the royal entry Into the city could be made. Queen Berenguela found a wife for her son, King Ferdinand, in Princess Beatrice of Suabia, and in 1221 (12 19 is also given) the ceremo- nies of her reception and espousal were celebrated at Burgos. Among the preliminaries was the knighting of the young King at Las Huelgas; and in this connection it is interesting to record a similar ceremony forty years later, when the candidate for knighthood was Edward I., of England, and the royal bride who awaited him in the old castle up on the hill was the lovely Eleanor of Castile, daughter of Ferdinand, and great-granddaughter of Eleanor Plantagenet. But among the shows of the earlier wedding was one of more importance to Burgos than the knighting of Berenguela's son, namely, the foun- dation of a new cathedral in honour of the new Queen. The new church appears to have replaced the older one of Alfonso, and at the laying of the corner-stone we first hear of the Bishop, Maurice by name, who. It has long been thought, was an Englishman in the service of Queen Beatrice, and first brought into Spain in her train. Recent authorities claim, however, that Bishop Maurice was a Spaniard who had been sent by the King into Germany to arrange the marriage and escort the bride into Spain. The mission is 198 could rice eiebrate; Cathciirdl, Burgos. West rront. ot ttie >^ BURGOS, SALAMANCA, VALLADOLID said to have occupied two years, a period In which the ardour of the royal bridegroom might have been expected to cool somewhat; but, If we may judge from his later work, the Bishop If Spanish, not only took an English name, but travelled rather extensively on the continent. The general plan of the cathedral, and many of Its details, are attributed to Bishop Maurice, and his tomb Is to-day the most Imposing monu- ment In the heart of the great structure. But al- though the substratum of the church, and Its gen- eral character, are doubtless the work of Bishop Maurice, It will readily be admitted that, even without him, the cathedral at Burgos must have been largely Influenced by Northern styles. If not Bishop Maurice, then, as at Leon, some other builder would doubtless have laid Its foundations after the fashion of the Northern Gothic. The grow- ing Isolation of Leon has left her cathedral a fairly pure example of an early period; but at Bur- gos, the continued Importance of the town, and especially the character of that Importance — that of a stopping place for travellers crossing the Pyrenees — has resulted In many additions to the original structure, and these, with much overlay of ornament, represent pretty much all the later styles, not only of northern Europe, but of Spain. The early church designed by Bishop Maurice was a simple cruciform structure of moderate size. 199 BUILDERS OF SPAIN But to this have been added a great number of chapels and a two-story cloister, with the result that the ground plan of the pile to-day is the most elaborate and confusing in Spain. The chapels are of different dates and styles, and early walls have been much rebuilt and redecorated. Then, In 1539, the original crossing fell, and the present lantern is the work of the thirty years following that catastrophe. The spires are about a century earlier than the lantern, but the present west portals are of the end of the eighteenth cen- tury, when all the old Gothic work was removed and a few meagre classic details introduced as a beginning toward a remodelling of the entire fagade. The location of the cathedral renders almost impossible any satisfactory view of it. It Is set Into the side of a hill so steep that entrance to the south transept Is only attained after ascending a long flight of steps, and the north transept por- tal has a stairway of about equal length inside the church by which the ground on the other side is reached. Furthermore, the hillside is so built up as to prohibit any distant view except over the tops of houses. From the street on the north, however, one may get a close view of the spires and lantern. These features, which are similar In style, are extremely picturesque, but they are really more 200 BURGOS, SALAMANCA, VALLADOLID effective seen from a distance. Observed too close at hand, the decorative forms, which reach the extreme of elaboration, are somewhat coarse. Those of the towers, especially, are inclined to be thick and blunted. Yet, in spite of its heaviness, all the openwork of these spires is supported by iron. The general form of the towers and spires is likewise much to be criticised. The proportions are not good, too much of their height being given to the towers and too little to the spires, and the juncture of the two parts is clumsy. The perfect arrangement is found in the south spire at Chartres,- a comparison with which reveals at once the faults at Burgos. Here the balustrade at the top of the towers serves to separate, rather than unite, the two features, and the lines of the spires are hopelessly ruined by the open galleries so near the top, and the blunt finials. The lan- tern at the crossing is somewhat more refined, but all this work shows the over-elaboration of an in- ferior age. The most beautiful exterior feature of the church to-day is the portal, called De la Pellegria, at the east angle of the north transept. There are few more elegant examples of the Plateresque period in Spain, and its delicate pur- ity is in refreshing contrast, both to the opulence above and the meagreness of the west portals. 2 See "French Cathedrals and Chateaux," by the author of the present work. 201 BUILDERS OE SPAIN In the interior, the purity of early lines and simplicity of early work is everywhere overlaid with late Gothic, Plateresque, or Churrigueresque ornament. The result is extremely rich, but the effect, except in the fundamental lines of the building, is scarcely Gothic. The tracery In the triforium is mostly early and simple Gothic, merely foliated circles cut in the tympanums, but the great piers which support the lantern are cov- ered with a relief of Plateresque designs, and the interior of the lantern itself, which is finished at the top with a star, is quite as elaborately deco- rated, with both late Gothic and Plateresque de- signs, as Its exterior. The work on the great piers is very lovely, but it is strangely out of character with the massiveness of effect required, and usually found, at this point In Gothic churches. Of the many chapels, that of the Constable Velasco and his wife is the most important. It was erected at the close of the fifteenth century, and Is said to be the work of a German architect. In the decoration of this chapel, as was pointed out In the beginning of this book, the Timit of elaboration in Gothic architectural carving was reached. One must marvel at the skill which could cut lines so slender in brittle stone, but such extreme tenuity must always be condemned as out of character In llthic work. The enormous he- 20Z Ciitliedtal, Biitgu: View across Transept. BURGOS, SALAMANCA, VALLADOLID raldic shields on the walls are partially supported by figures of men whose lower limbs are those of goats. These composite stone creatures are frequently found In the north of Spain, but be- yond the name — wild men — we failed to find any explanation of their meaning. The choir stalls are of the Renaissance period and richly carved, but elsewhere in the Coro and Capllla Mayor there Is little to demand especial attention. At the back of the high altar Is one of the worst fricassees of marble, In a general mixture of late Gothic, Plateresque, and Chur- rigueresque styles, to be found even In Spain. The cloisters, however, are a joy. The upper story is quite plain, and even the lower walk has the effect of simplicity; but all the lines are lovely, and the carved leaf mouldings which decorate the wall arches, no two of them alike, have the purity and simplicity of the best Gothic period. Of a little later date than the cathedral, and showing very clearly Its Influence, are the parish churches of St. Nicholas, St. Estaban, and San Gil. Each has some especial feature of note: St. Nicholas, an enormous and marvellously carved Retablo; St. Estaban, a fine late Gothic gallery; and San Gil, a curious and Interesting old pul- pit. The latter Is of Iron, the traceries cut out of two plates and laid one over the other. The 203 BUILDERS OF SPAIN work was then gilded, and the result is extremely good. The old castle of the counts of Castile crowned the hill which still dominates the town. It was primarily a fortress, but In the course of time it became a very magnificent palace as well. Begin- ning with Queen Beatrice, It sheltered all the royal brides who passed this way. Here also, Pedro the Cruel was born, and during the struggle, which centred in this region, with his brother, Henry of Trastemara, Pedro several times occu- pied Burgos with his army, when the old citadel served as his headquarters. Henry had secured the alliance of France (where Pedro's treatment of his Queen, Blanche of Bourbon, was bitterly, resented), and Aragon, which was generally ready to take up arms against Castile. But with Pedro w^as an English army under Edward the Black Prince. The brilliant services of the English Prince finally won for Pedro what appeared to be a decisive victory, after which the allied armies fell back upon Burgos. But with the Castillan army Inside the walls, and the English allies en- camped outside, Pedro found It convenient to for- get all the promises, made to Edward, of humane treatment for his prisoners; he even failed to pay any part of the money earlier promised for English succour. Edward remonstrated In vain, and Pedro finally fled to Seville, abandon- 204 BURGOS, SALAMANCA, VALLADOLID ing his allies to die of hunger or disease, or to find their way as best they could across the Pyrenees. It must be a matter of some surprise that when Queen Isabella erected tombs for her parents and brother at Burgos, she chose another mon- astery than Las Huelgas. This convent, the Cartuja de Mirailores, two miles the other side of Burgos from Las Huelgas, was originally a pal- ace of Henry III. It was given to the Carthusians by Juan II. (the father of Queen Isabella). Then it was destroyed by fire and its rebuilding was begun by Henry IV. Nowhere, however, do we find indica- tion of anything like the importance of the earlier sepulchre of Castillan kings, and to-day, except for one overdone altarplece. It Is the most barren of monasteries. But the tombs are among the richest in the world. That of King Juan and Queen Isabella is In the form of a star, with re- cumbent figures of the pair. That of the young Prince, Alfonso, whose death gave the throne to Isabella, is a wall panel with a kneeling figure of the Prince In a niche. Both tombs are evidently of the same- period ao the Chapel of the Con- stable, possibly were the work of the same hand. Of the latest Gothic, the lace-like character of the carving Is even more extreme than that of the chapel. But In small monuments of this kind, delicacy is more admissible than in more dlstlnc- 205 BUILDERS OF SPAIN tlvely architectural ornament, and if lavish la- bour were ever Its own justification, It Is found in the frost-like tracery of the tomb of Alfonso. The old fifteenth-century gateway of Burgos, the Puerta Sta. Maria, was largely rebuilt in the Italian style by Charles V. Prominent In its deco- rations are figures of Fernando Gonzalez and the Cid. Among the old houses, none have a greater Interest than the sixteenth-century palace of the Constable Velasco. From the rope or cor- don which surrounds the main portal, this house Is now called the Casa del Cordon. The afore- said rope is curiously coiled in places Into spirals, and forms a most remarkable architectural deco- ration. Its use here, however, is heraldic. The rope Itself is the cordon of a Teutonic order in- herited by some member of the noble house of the Constable, and over the portal it encloses the arms of the families of Mendoza, Velasco, and Figura, together with those of the kings of Cas- tile, with all of whom the house of the Constable Velasco had Inter-married. One of the most unfortunate of the royal brides who came to the old castle up on the hill was Marguerite of Austria, who came into Spain to wed Prince Juan, the well-beloved son of Fer- dinand and Isabella. This princess had earlier been betrothed to Charles VIII., of France, but after eight years spent at Amboise, on the Loire, ao6 Chapel of the. Constable. Cathedral Burgos. BURGOS, SALAMANCA, VALLADOLID Charles found another alliance more to his mind, and she was sent back to her father, Maximilian. The Spanish marriage promised more of happi- ness, as well as greater honour, for young Juan was a Prince of great personal charm, besides being probably the best match in Europe. But his death within a year, followed almost Imme- diately by that of her Infant son, must have filled to the brim Marguerite's cup of bitterness. The death of Prince Juan was the first great sorrow of Queen Isabella, as well as the source of many of the later complications In the Spanish succes- sion. In 1506, Philip I. and the melancholy Juana were staying in this old castle. A splendid ban- quet was prepared for the gratification of the Prince, whose temper always seemed to stand in need of placatlon. But after the feast the young King was taken violently 111, and his death within a few days deprived poor Juana of the last of her feeble wits. Over-indulgence or over-exercise were given as the probable causes of Philip's death, but there were not wanting whispered sug- gestions of poison. Juana bore her loss with the stony immobility which she never afterwards entirely lost. She had the body removed at once to the great hall of the Constable's palace, where for one night It was enthroned with great magnificence on a cata- 2Q7 BUILDERS OF SPAIN falque of cloth of gold, with robes of rich bro- cades and ermine. The head was covered with a splendid jewelled cap, and on the breast blazed a magnificent cross. In the morning the body was stripped of Its finery, and after embalming, was placed In the leaden casket, from which, for the remainder of her life, Juana never willingly parted. For a time, an attempt was made to separate her from It by taking It to MIraflores, but Juana, distraught with fear of losing her dead, one day demanded that the casket be broken open. Then stripping the cere cloths from the head, she spent herself In an ecstasy of kisses and caresses, nor could she be prevailed upon to desist until promised that she should see It thenceforth whenever she wished. After leaving Burgos at this time, Juana could never be pre- vailed upon to return there. After the picturesque ceremony of his abdication at Brussels, Charles V. landed In Spain at Lando, from whence he journeyed to Burgos. He was sometimes carried In a chair, sometimes in a horse litter, but he advanced with the greatest difficulty, suffering pain at every step. Some of the near-by Spanish nobility repaired to Burgos to pay court to their earlier sovereign, but they were so few and their service so negligent that Charles remarked it. Even the usually dutiful Philip was remiss at this time; for the suffer- 208 Stairway inside Portal, North Transept, (Scala d'Oro), Cathedral, Burgos. Alte: usually BURGOS, SALAMANCA, VALLADOLID ing King was detained some weeks at Burgos, waiting for the first payment of the pension stipu- lated at his abdication, without which he was un- able to pay his bills and proceed. Philip IV., a lad of eleven, was brought to Burgos, in 1615, to meet his bride, Elizabeth of Bourbon. When warned of her approach, the little Infante with the King, his father, rode a league out of the city to meet her, and we are told that the Prince was so dazzled by her beauty that he could only gaze speechless upon her. The next day the old city was resplendent In honour of the future Queen, and Elizabeth made her entry into the town on a white palfrey with a silver sad- dle and housings of velvet and pearls. Carlos II. was not so gallant when he came to Burgos to receive the first victim chosen to share his shaking throne. The wedding was sup- posed to take place at Burgos, but when Marie Louise arrived at Quintinapalla, a wretched ham- let a few miles from Burgos, where she was obliged to spend the night, it was discovered that the Spanish escort proposed to have the ceremony there, and *that the French attendants of the Princess were to be debarred from being present. Each party at once flew Into a passion, and a courier was sent galloping to Burgos, where the half-witted King was awaiting his bride. In the end the wedding took place in the poor room 209 BUILDERS OF SPAIN where Marie Louise had spent the night, but her French servants were In attendance and saw to it that she was properly married to the Spanish King. An Impromptu dinner followed the cere- mony, after which the royal pair, In a big coach, floundered over vile roads Into Burgos. The next day the Queen stole out to Las Huelgas, from whence, dressed In the Spanish fashion, she made her royal entry on horseback, and for three days the town was given up to masquerades, plays, and bull fights. The state apartments of the old castle were destroyed by fire in 1736, but the fortress re- mained the chief defence of Burgos for another three-quarters of a century. At the beginning of the French occupation of Spain, Napoleon was able to seize Burgos, and from 1808 to 18 13 he made it his headquarters. In 18 12, Wellington laid siege to it, but, although heroic efforts were made, reports of French reinforcements compelled the English to retreat. A year later, when the French evacuated the peninsula, the castle was mined by them to be blown up when they should have left the town. But the mines were pre- maturely fired and three hundred French were caught In the ruins. Several streets and a num- ber of scattered buildings were destroyed by the shock, and, to a lover of old glass, not the least lamentable result of the havoc was the breaking 210 I UL d thf masque - !!l hirh- Apse and ZJupola, Old Cathedral, Salamanca. Tower of New Cathedral in Background. bpaui, - BURGOS, SALAMANCA, VALLADOLID of all the fine old windows in the cathedral. To- day even the ruins of the old castle have been removed, and one of the most historic sites in northern Spain is now a scarred and barren hill- side. • • • • • As the history of Salamanca presents little of importance, her chief interest to-day lies in a few really fine old monuments. Of these the chief lions are two Cathedrals, an old and new, and a famous University; although to these might be added an old Roman bridge, a few lesser churches, the tower of an old Castilian castle, and a num- ber of Renaissance palaces. The Romans made Salamanca a military sta- tion, and built her a bridge on the old RomaiT road. The Goths patronized the town, and with other cities on this debatable southern frontier of Old Castile, Salamanca bore her part in the strife between Christians and Moslems; yet no fame came to her until the foundation of her Uni- versity. The establishment of a Master School at Salamanca occurred in 12 15, and only thirty years later, mention was made of the Foundation at Salamanaca as one of the four great universities of the world. The order of their importance, as given by the council of Leon, was Oxford, Sala- manaca, Bologna, Paris; but there were those who placed Paris first. 2111 BUILDERS OF SPAIN The University was especially favoured by St. Ferdinand and his scholarly son, Alfonso X., and, in the fourteenth century, ten thousand students were claimed. These are said to have gathered from all parts of the world, and many of them, after study here, became famous teachers else- where. There were many different schools, whose students were distinguished by capes of different colours. White Indicated theology, red — civilians, green — lawyers, and yellow — medicine. These col- ours now survive In the tassels worn on the stu- dents' caps. The twentieth-century woman who prides her- self on the achievement of higher education for her sex, must lower her crest before Salamanca; for here In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries were found, not only women students, but women professors. The chair of Classical Latlnlty was at one time occupied by a woman; moreover, we are told that the great Queen Isabella chose a woman to Instruct her In Latin. As may be Imagined, Ferdinand and Isabella made large grants to this University, and the Gothic Plateresque fagade, erected by them, whose delicate beauty furnishes one of the most charm- ing examples of that style in Spain, Is the most splendid single feature of the rambling and heter- ogeneous buildings to-day. Busts of the King and Queen occupy a central position In the scheme of 212 University, Salamanca. (Plateresque Ornament) Detail of Fagade. ^■.'t:,«^g^?^'2^ii BURGOS, SALAMANCA, VALLADOLID decoration which Is spread all over a great panel above the portals. The design and execution are of great delicacy and beauty, and the result is one of the loveliest works of the period. An- other exquisite bit Is the late Gothic cornice in a neighbouring court; and in one of the hallways is a Renaissance stairway which Is superb. Across a narrow street from the University are the two cathedrals, curiously built side by side, and In some ways the earlier one Is one of the most Interesting buildings In Europe. It Is be- lieved to have been founded within a few years of the foundation of the cathedral at Toledo, and, as with the latter church, the builder was a Frenchman. At Salamanca the builder was also a bishop, and no less a personage than the friend and confessor of the CId. The work was probably begun before the close of the eleventh century, and the lower walls and most of the detail are pure Romanesque, although some of the vaulting is ribbed In what appears to be an early attempt to Introduce Gothic vault- ing. But the crowning glory of this church Is the cupola, which is one of the most successful solutions ever achieved of the difficult problem of a satisfactory covering at the Intersection of nave and transepts.^ This cupola is best described as a Gothic dome 8 See illustration. 213 BUILDERS OF SPAIN supported over open arches by a drum and pen- dentlves. The exterior form is octagonal, al- though the two-story drum is made to look square by the addition of round turrets, which fill the angles of the square opening to be covered, and at the same time act as buttresses to counteract the thrust of the Inner vault.* The proportions of parts are wholly admirable, and the contrast between the round turrets and the angular gables which crown the windows of the cardinal sides of the lantern, with the variety in size and treatment of the openings, combine to produce that delicate balance of parts which Is the hall-mark of the purest art. The decorative treatment Is likewise beyond praise, showing at the same time a rich- ness and a restraint found only in the best work of the best periods. The Interior drum is round, and likewise di- vided by two orders of pilasters into two stages. Round arches In the lower stage, and trefoUed ones in the upper, fill the spaces between the pi- lasters, and the pilasters support ribs which carry the vault up to a point. The \yIndows found in the arches of each of the cardinal sides of the cupola, one in the lower stage, and three in the upper, admit sufficient light to produce the most 4 It will be seen that only the exterior of Trinity tower, Boston, •was modelled upon this at Salamanca, and that only its general style was imitated. I ■I Renaissance Stairzvay, Uf' Salamanca. 2x4 BURGOS, SALAMANCA, VALLADOLID effective possible illumination of the lantern itself and the church below. Indeed, this lighting is one of the chief successes of the lantern, as will be quickly realized by comparing with it the in- terior gloom of the great Gothic dome of Bru- nelleschi at Florence. When, in the sixteenth century, a new cathedral was projected at Salamanca, there was a pro- longed discussion as to whether or not the old one should be destroyed to make way for it. We must give thanks that the destruction was voted down, but why it was found necessary to take an irregular slice off the north side of the old structure, no one has ever attempted to explain.. The new church is a fair example of the Gothic of its period in Spain. In size, height, and open- ness, it is really superb, but all the details are thin and poor; and the constant repetition of the same features, with the frequent introduction of curious, rather than harmonious, lines and motives, imparts a poverty-stricken look to an edifice which ought to be magnificent. The church of St. Domlnick has a very remark- able and really splendid portal. In elaboration it exceeds the fagade of the University, but its de- sign is not so pure. Surrounding the altar of this church is some overdone gilded ornament which is the work of Churrlguerra himself, for that author of most of the gimcrackery in Spain 215 BUILDERS OE SPAIN was a native of Salamanca. It was in the con', vent of St. Domlnick, to which this church be- longs, that Columbus was lodged when he fol- lowed Ferdinand and Isabella to Salamanca to make one of those early appeals for royal aid which fell upon deaf ears. The University Dons, who were even then busily expounding the the- oretical system of Copernicus, gave him scant courtesy, regarding his ideas as the visions of a half-demented dreamer. The Torre del Clavero, although small, is an excellent example of a mediaeval Castilian keep. The form of the turrets and the manner in which they are made to crown the structure, seem to be peculiar to Castile. As points of lookout and de- fence, they appear to be admirable, and they are certainly most picturesque. With the curious Casa de las Conchas, a house whose walls are spotted all over at regular inter- vals with shells, and two or three Renaissance palaces, the list of Salamanca's monumental attrac- tions is concluded, and they are quite sufficient to warrant a visit, even without the addition of great historic interest. But there is also the charm, not preserved in larger or more famous centres, of a purely Spanish life, which is well worth even the discomforts of a journey to Sala- manca to see. Here, in spite of the life of the University, which is still considerable, as we can tes- 216 v i 1' or re del Clavero, Scdamiinca, BURGOS, SALAMANCA, VALLADOLID tify, having arrived at the opening of a semester, are to be seen ways and costumes which are mediaeval. The vivid colour, pervasive sleepiness, and occasional bursts of passionate life, are dis- tinctly Spanish, and, to a lover of local colour, a never-ending source of interest. In the midst of the same bare brown plain which extends to Salamanca, is Valladolid, one of the most disappointing towns in our experience. After so frequent mention of the city in history, one naturally anticipates a corresponding propor- tion of picturesque remains, and an air, at least, of distinction. But Valladolid, to-day, is hope- lessly commonplace, and the few monuments which one stops there to see, lack the importance we felt we had a right to expect in a city once the capital of Spain, and that at the time of her greatest wealth and power. The interest at Valladolid Is practically confined to her period of political Importance, namely, the thirteenth to the sixteenth century. Of course there are not lacking claims to a great antiquity, but we fail to find much of consequence earlier than the memorable visit of young Prince Ferdi- nand to his mother Berenguela, during which she relinquished her rights in his favour; and. In making him King of Castile, laid the foundation for a united Spain. 217 BUILDERS OE SPAIN One hundred and fifty years later, Pedro the Cruel came here to greet his bride, Blanche of Bourbon. Evidently Pedro did not take sufficient interest in her to go as far as Burgos, and the poor unfortunate might have considered herself lucky had he omitted meeting her at all. There are many stories of kindnesses to the young Queen on the part of the King's brother, Don Fadrique, which at this first meeting aroused the jealousy of Pedro, but we may only echo the pious phrase of the Arabs : " God only knows." It was King Juan II., the father of Queen Isa- bella, who founded the importance of Valladolid by making it the residence of the Castilian court. Many favours were shown the city by Juan, and there are accounts of jousts and tournaments, and even of a great ball, which, strange to say, was danced in the old convent of San Pablo; all of which read most festively in the annals of the city. But it was also at Valladolid that King Juan, in the execution of his minister and one-time favour- ite, the Conde Alvaro de Luna, committed the great crime of his reign. It is not to be im- agined that the favourite was above reproach, but many have far more deserved death than he, and his execution is said to have been the result of a jealous whim of the Queen. Her charges of insults and treason, which procured the fatal 218 t; did not take San Pablo, ValladoUd. Faga^e. ; : ^ . - O irnnmcnts. r; \ BURGOS, SALAMANCA, VALLADOLID order from the King, followed shortly upon the birth of her Infant daughter, when the uxorious Juan could refuse her nothing. The birth of the great Isabella, therefore, was marked by mur- der as cold-blooded as history often records. The execution took place in the same Plaza Mayor in which Berenguela had performed her noble act of renunciation. The next incident to be recorded, the marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella, Is still the city's chief title to fame. But the commonplace building, called the Audlencia, which Is said to have served for that most picturesque and much-described first meeting. Is calculated to dampen even the most extravagant enthusiasm. The covert glances of mutual Inspection of the handsome pair, and the whispered *' Ese es, ese es^^ — That is he, that is he — which pointed out the bridegroom to the waiting bride, is one of the most romantic episodes in history, which It seemed impossible to associate with a modern-looking building now used as a sort of police court. We could only hope that In some way we were misinformed, and that the more interesting structure of our imag- ination had somehow evaded us. The later visits of Ferdinand and Isabella to Valladolld are too numerous to mention. They were great travellers, called in every direction by their work of the unification of the peninsula; and 219 BUILDERS OF SPAIN they seemed to be always stopping In "their faith- ful Valladolld " en route. But only one monu- ment of Importance of this reign remains In Val- Jadolld to-day, and It Is extremely doubtful If there ever was anything else of note. This Is the convent of San Gregorlo, a picture of whose facade is In the first chapter of this book. Al- though there are two or three other buildings In Valladolld which violate fewer of the usually ac- cepted canons of good taste, this fagade remains the most virile bit of work In the city, and the one thing well worth going there to see. The cloisters of San Gregorlo are equally bizarre', but are also coarse and heavy. Two years after the death of Isabella, Colum- bus was found at Valladolld, poor, ill, and for- saken, a heart-rending example of the ingratitude of princes; and there he died In the little house still pointed out as the scene of the end of his tragic life. When Charles V. finally found time to visit his Spanish kingdom, he made his way at once to Valladolld, where, upon a great platform In the Plaza Mayor, he proclaimed a general amnesty to all those who had revolted under the oppres- sions of his Flemish servants. By such means Charles finally succeeded in overcoming his earlier unpopularity. A few months later, a splendid bull fight, in the same Plaza, celebrated the birth 22*^s.^ m --- - - --- -- ^™i r— — ■! f- V .J^*>.' ' 11% ^ r >'MP'.^^^^\ ^. BARCELONA, VALENCIA elgns arose, as If receiving a person of the high- est rank. Bending his knees, he offered to kiss their hands; but there was some hesitation on their part to permit this act of homage. Rais- ing him In the most gracious manner, they or- dered him to seat himself In their presence; a rare honour In this proud and punctilious court. " At their request, he now gave an account of the most striking events of his voyage, and a description of the Islands discovered. When he had finished, the sovereigns sank on their knees, and raising their clasped hands to Heaven, their eyes filled with joy and gratitude, poured forth thanks and praises to God for so great a provi- dence. All present followed their example; a deep and solemn enthusiasm pervaded that splen- did assembly, and prevented all common acclama- tions of triumph. The anthem, Te Deum lau- damns, chanted by the choir of the royal chapel, rose In full body of sacred harmony. Such was the solemn and pious manner In which the bril- liant court of Spain, celebrated this sublime event." Another stately ceremonial at Barcelona was the general assembly, or chapter, of the order of the Golden Fleece, held in 1519,^ by Charles V. 6 It was while in Barcelona at this time that Charles received news of his election to the Imperial throne of Germany, an event which must have contributed not a little to the splendour of the above ceremonial. 261 BUILDERS OF SPAIN in the choir of the cathedral. The stalls of the choir, like those of the chapel of St. George at Windsor with their shields of the Knights of the Garter, still bear upon their backs the arms of the knights of this order. For this occasion the already rich walls were hung with tapestries and velvets, and a number of foreign kings, besides the chief grandees of Spain, and the flower of the nobility of Flanders were in attendance. This mediaeval order of knighthood was founded for the protection of the Church by Philip the Good of Burgundy, from whom Charles was directly descended; and the house of Hapsburg has always inherited its control. The chapter was limited to thirty-one knights, recruited from among the friends or followers of the Hapsburg kings; and their sumptuous costumes and regalia must have made a fine show in the old cathedral at Barce- lona. First there was a long robe of deep red velvet lined with white tafFetas. Over it was a flowing mantle of purple velvet lined with white satin, and richly trimmed with embroidery which sparkled with fire stones and steels. On the white satin hem was embroidered in gold the motto, Je Vay empris. There was a cap of pur- ple velvet embroidered in gold, and shoes and stockings of red. The insignia of the order was a pendant fleece, in gold, with the head and hoofs 262 BARCELONA, VALENCIA hanging. This emblem may have been chosen with some reference to the Greek story of Jason^ but it Is more probable that the Intention was to honour the commerce of the Low Countries, In which wool played so Important a part. The Insignia was usually suspended from a collar of enamelled flint stones and rays. This collar with the pendant fleece Is often found surrounding the arms of Charles V. On his way to his coronation at Brussels, Philip IL made a royal progress which was made as splendid as the Importance of the occasion de- manded, through Aragon and Catalonia. At this time Philip was extremely popular In Spain. He was Spanish born, which his father had not been, and far more Spanish In type than the more German Charles, who had never been greatly be- loved by his Spanish subjects. Marked enthusi- asm, therefore, welcomed the approaching acces- sion of the young King. In the bay of Rosas, a little to the north of Barcelona, Philip was saluted by Andrea Doria, the famous Genoese admiral of the Papal, French, and Imperial navies, with a fleet of fifty-five galleys. The honour extended to Philip at this time, here and elsewhere, marked him as the first among the kings of Europe, a distinction first achieved by Charles V., and enjoyed for possibly a hundred years by his successors in Spain. :?63 BUILDERS OF SPAIN After the turbulence of the War of Succession, the Catalans gave Philip V. a warm welcome when he came to Barcelona to receive their oaths of allegiance. It need scarcely be said that the young King stood greatly In need of funds, and that the Catalans bargained for a full return in the way of privileges before they granted his demands. But this visit to Barcelona was not entirely prosaic, for it was timed by Philip to welcome his bride who came by sea from Naples. The personal charm and really great ability of the young Queen, Marie Louise of Savoy, have al- ready been touched upon, and as Philip likewise pos- sessed many attractions, the pair were soon deeply in love with each other. Preparations were at once under way for the royal progress of the young couple to Madrid, but news of a revolu- tion In Naples, then claimed as a dependence of Spain, demanded the King's presence, and to the bitter grief of both, the Queen had to proceed alone to her new capital. Twice within comparatively modern times, (1705-1808) Barcelona has been taken by a foreign army. The first bombardment and capitulation, was an Incident of the War of the Succession, and the second discomfiture was the outcome of a stratagem planned by Napoleon. In both In- stances the possession of the Castle of Monjulch decided the immediate result, but In neither case 264 BARCELONA, VALENCIA was the foreign occupation of the city a long one. Then, as now and always, the determining factor in the fate of Barcelona, was the Cata- lonian spirit, which brooked no tampering with her rights or her advancement. • • • • • On the East coast, second in importance to Barcelona, is Valencia, the capital and chief city of the province of the same name. It was prob- ably founded by the Phoenicians, and its luxuriant vegetation rendered this region a rich prize to each of the conquerors of Spain; but it was the Moslems who made it the garden of the peninsula. By a system of fertiliza- tion and irrigation which they inaugurated, the soil is still made to yield as many as six crops in one season, and the alfalfa is often mowed as many as fourteen or fifteen times. This amazing luxuriance has given the key- note to the history of Valencia. It is tropical and passionate, and the aspect of its streets is distinctly oriental, while the most striking episode in its history, the lordship of the Cid, which is also one of the most picturesque incidents in the annals of Spain, is in subtle harmony with its romantic atmosphere. The lords of Saragossa had long cast covetous eyes toward the rich southern state, and not the least important of the hostilities conducted for them 265 BUILDERS OF SPAIN by the CId were those which menaced Valencia. The Moslem King of Valencia finally appealed to Alfonso of Castile, with the result that Valencia became subject to the Christian King, agreeing to pay a large subsidy in return for his protection. The death of the Valencian King, in 1085, left the province in Alfonso's hands; and then we find the Christian King conducting a double-faced bit of intrigue quite worthy of the Cid. The King of Saragossa, Moctadir, now appeared as a pur- chaser of Valencia, and, although Alfonso was in receipt from that city of the large sums which were the price of his protection, he accepted with alacrity the one hundred thousand pieces of gold offered by Moctadir. But Valencia was also a most convenient piece of property to offer the abject Yahia, the son and successor of his old friend and host, Al-Mamun,^ in exchange for the more coveted Toledo; and that weak kingling was soon taking his mournful way to the city by the sea, despised alike by the Toledans whom he had abandoned, and the Valencians who saw in him a weak tool of Alfonso. Indeed, the power of Yahia was maintained in Valencia by an army of Castilian mercenaries. With the recall of this army, therefore, by its need elsewhere, Yahia found himself threatened with expulsion by his new subjects, while at the same time the city 7 See Toledo, pages 238-239, Vol. I. 266 BARCELONA, VALENCIA was threatened by Saragossa. In despair he turned to the CId, and the plot moved merrily on. The Cid's response was immediate and quite in character. Upon condition of admission within the walls of Valencia, he promised to support Yahia. But at the same time he sent assurances to both Saragossa and Toledo: to the first that he was acting entirely in the interest of the Mos- lem King; and to the second that the honour of Castile was his first consideration, and that he should hold Valencia subject to Alfonso. Valen- cia was then made headquarters by the enterpris- ing freebooter, for hostilities in various directions, and It was not long before he was in receipt of tribute from nine different cities, aggregating three hundred thousand pieces of gold yearly. But so much power was not safe even in a loyal subject, and the fealty of the CId was certainly open to doubt; so we find Alfonso preparing a monster expedition, whose purpose was its abate- ment, in which he secured the co-operation of both Pisa and Genoa. Then the CId left Va- lencia to defend herself as best she could, while he marched up into Castile, where he laid waste many cities. Alfonso's recall to the defence of his own kingdom left Pisa and Genoa to extri- cate themselves from a hazardous position as best they could, and in the end Valencia was abandoned to the mercy of the CId. 267 BUILDERS OF SPAIN With' the appearance of his army before its walls, the miserable Yahia was murdered by a hostile faction within them, and the city was given up to the horrors of disorder and famine. The siege lasted a year and was conducted with the utmost ferocity, prisoners being burned alive each day within sight of the walls. Desperate appeals were sent In many directions, but relief came not, and with Its conquest the CId pro- claimed himself free and Independent sovereign of Valencia. This occurred In 1094, when the great warrior had only five more years to live. It was the period of Almoravldan Invasion, and African armies appeared from time to time be- neath the walls of Valencia, but during his life- time, and for three years after, they were kept at bay. Then, In 1102, when It was recognized as Impossible longer to hold the place against them, a safe retreat was effected by placing the body of the dead champion on his almost equally famous war-horse, Bableca, which was made to head the procession of evacuation. Such was the terror inspired by the prowess of the hero that even his lifeless body Is said to have caused the Moslems to fall back, opening a path for his followers into the north. A further most striking manifes- tation of the power of a great personality Is found In the fact that the dominion of the Cid, even though so brief and so grievous, still lends 268 BARCELONA, VALENCIA Valencia her chief title to distinction; the city to- day being commonly known as Valencia del CId. The Christian reconquest of Valencia, was ac- complished by Jaime, the Conqueror, who In 1238 made It tributary to Aragon. But as with Catalonia, a good degree of Independence was maintained. Indeed, the three states formed a triangle distinguished by a mutually jealous pres- ervation of Individual rights. Much of the his- tory of Valencia, therefore. Is a repetition of that of the other two states. Charles V., after his bitter experiences at Saragossa and Barcelona, de- clined to go to Valencia. His plea, which was doubtless true, was that he had not time. But as a consequence, the Valenclans refused to recog- nize him. At another time both Valencia and Catalonia were deeply affronted that precedence was given to Saragossa In point of time In the visit of a new king. We hear comparatively little of the Inquisition in Catalonia, but In both Aragon and Valencia it was bitterly resisted. In Saragossa an Inquisi- tor was murdered before the altar of La Seo; and in Valencia the Institution of the Holy Office produced a revolution which cost hundreds of lives. Then, with the nominal Christianizing of the entire population, the tumult died down; and it was not until the purse of Philip III. stood in urgent need of replenishing, that the persecu- 269 BUILDERS OF SPAIN tion of Moors upon suspicion finally ruined Va- lencia. But even after that drain, there remained sufficient of her old spirit for the Cortes to make a stiff fight against what they considered Illegal procedures of Philip IV. In the end, however, the victory lay with the King, who finished the business by destroying the power of the Cortes. A final flare of Valenclan vigour Is found In the bold repulse of the French during the Peninsular War. Like the Saragossans, the Valenclans were totally unprepared, but within a few hours the French had lost two thousand men. Valencia was not worth so heavy a cost, and a retreat was ordered. Within recent years the material pros- perity of Valencia has greatly improved, and to-day the city is a favourite resort for rich Madrilenos, but for many years Its fruitful plains were a dusty desert, and the city broken-down and poor. Except for macadamized streets, the aspect of Valencia to-day Is strikingly mediaeval. The city retains the most of Its old walls and two superb gates. The streets are narrow and eastern, and there are many curious and fine old houses. The three more Important monuments, however, are Gothic, and belong to the Christian period. The first of these Is the cathedral, here, also, called La Seo. The foundation of the structure Is more than thirty years earlier than that of the cathe- 270 BARCELONA, VALENCIA dral at Barcelona, and one of the transepts has a superb Romanesque doorway, enriched with dog- tooth moulding whose purity is not exceeded in England. But the more conspicuous portions of the church are much later in style and date. The general plan is similar to those of most of the churches on this east coast, and here, as at Tarragona, the cupola is placed over the cross- ing. As the octagonal walls of this cupola, with striking enrichments of Gothic windows and tracery, are carried up two full stages above the roof of the church, it forms one of the most conspicuous landmarks of Valencia. In spite of sixteen repetitions of the same feature (two nearly identical windows filling each face) and a certain thinness of style, this cupola has consider- able charm. Much of the lower walls on the exterior are hidden by contiguous houses, and the entire interior of the church is pretty thoroughly overlaid with late and tawdry ornament. Be- yond the features mentioned, therefore, the build- ing does not present much of interest. The second monument of importance is the Campanile, the Michalete or MIguelete, which possibly should be considered a part of the cathe- dral. It is placed against the northwest corner of the west front of that structure. Like the cupola, it Is octagonal, and, curiously enough, it touches the church at one of its own angles. The 271 BUILDERS OF SPAIN eight sides, with buttresses at the angles, are car- ried up, practically without ornament, for three stages, and even In the fourth and final stage the enrichment Is confined to Its top half, where crockets and tracery surround the pointed pedi- ments which enclose the plain slightly pointed windows. The effect Is strange, yet not alto- gether unpleasing, and whatever else the Mlcha- lete may lack, It certainly possesses a marked In- dividuality. The tower takes Its name from the fact that Its bells we're first hung on the feast of St. Michael. The third, and possibly the finest, building In Valencia Is the Gothic Lonja. It Is a superb specimen of late Spanish work In that style, hav- ing also a distinct Individuality In Its composition and details. The main divisions of the fagade display the utmost disregard of symmetry, yet the balance of parts results in great dignity, as well as extreme picturesqueness. The portals are fine, and the splendid row of trefoiled windows which crowns the left end. Is a feature of strik- ing distinction. The unique battlements form a most picturesque finish to this fine old Exchange, and the great Hall within, with Its spirally fluted shafts. Is really magnificent. A few picturesque bridges and the many inter- esting old houses already mentioned, complete the monumental attractions of Valencia. They are 272 BARCELONA, VALENCIA not many, and In comparison with those of other Spanish cities of her one-time rank, they are of only secondary Importance. Her history, like- wise, presents little of moment in the sum total of the affairs of Spain. With a greater degree of Isolation, and a longer Moslem occupation than any other city In Spain, the pervasive atmos- phere of Valencia to-day Is necessarily distinc- tively Saracenic. Yet even here the undercurrent of life has always been Spanish; a fact proved by the city's long preservation of Individuality, and by that last flash of Independence which, even in her period of decay, repelled the army of Napo- leon. It Is true that Spain has not a monopoly of these qualities, but to a greater extent than anywhere else In Europe, IndivIduaHty and Inde- pendence have always been recognized as the dis- tinguishing characteristics of the mass of the pop- ulation, that which clings to the soil. Not only Valencia, but every city In Spain, has been moulded to a greater or less degree by these qualities, and In spite of Roman, Saracenic, and European domination and Influence, It Is this Spanlshness which is the chief charm of the pen- insula to-day. 273 INDEX Abbas, Volume I, 92, 284 Abd-al-Aziz, Volume I, 67; Volume II 40-41 Abdul-Abbas, Volume I, 93 Abd-al-Rahman I., . . . Volume I, 93, 96-99, 229, 283-298 III., .... Volume I, 96, 230; Volume II, 1-14, 48 Abencerrages, Volume II, 123, 124 Abu-Abdillah, See Boabdil Abu Said, Volume II, 68, 111-113 Adonis, Festival of, Volume II, 37 JEgeans, Volume, I, 2 African Kings, The, Volume I, 90, 99-102, 108-110, 247; Vol- ume II, 30, 54-63, 87-131, 225-226 Peoples, Volume I, 2, 3, 4, 5, 108-117 Ajimiez Windows, . . . Volume I, 108; Volume II, 59, 104 Al-Abu, Volume II, 139-140 Alans, Volume I, 26, 204 Albayzin, Volume II, 90, 117, 125, 126, 134, 139 Mosque, Volume II, 119, I34 Alberoni, Cardinal, Volume I, 181 Alcala, University of, . Volume II, 135 Alcantara, Bridge at, Volume I, 21, 23 Bridge of, at Toledo, . . . Volume I, 22, 217, 232, 243 Alexandrian Library, Volume I, 68 Alfonso II. (The Chaste) . . Volume II, 172-173, 175, 178 (El Batallador, of Aragon) . . . Volume II, 186, 227 III. (El Magno) Volume II, 175 VI. (of Leon and Castile) Volume I, 100, loi, 119-121, 238- 241, 243-245, 249, 268; Volume II, 52, 53, 55, 148, 184-186, 193, 266-267 VIII. (of Castile) Volume I, 123, 248; Volume II, 195-197 ^75 INDEX Alfonso IX. (of Leon and Castile) .... Volume I, 121 X. (El Sabio) Volume I, 124, 125, 268; Volume II, 66, 92 Infante (Brother of Isabella I.) . . Volume I, 127, 128 Tomb of, Volume II, 205 XII., Volume I, 194, 195 XIII., Volume I, 195, 196 Al-Hakem I., Volume I, 229-231, 300-304 II., Volume I, 96, 99; Volume II, 14-23 Library of, . . Volume I, 99; Volume II, 15, 16, 27 Alhambra, Volume I, no, in, 162, 256; Volume II, 58, 86, 89, 90, 93, 95, loi-lio, III, 117, 121-122, 130, 132, 136, 138, 143-146 Algibes, Plaza de Los, Volume II, 132 Hall of Ambassadors, .... Volume II, 109, 121, 133 Hall of Two Sisters, Volume II, 109 Mosque of, Volume II, no, 119, 141 Ornament of, Volume II, 104-109 Palace of Charles V., Volume II, 143-144 Puerta de Justicia, Volume II, 91, 109 Siete Suelos, ........ Volume II, 132 de Vino, Volume II, 109 Roofs of, Volume II, 104 Tower of Comares, .... Volume II, 109, 124, 144 Windows, Volume II, 104 Al-Magreb, Volume I, 59 Al-M'akkari, Volume I, 69, 228, 299; Volume II, 2, 22, 45, 50, 121 Al-Mamun, .... Volume I, 120, 238; Volume II, 266 Al-Mansur, . . . Volume I, 96; Volume II, 23-29, 178, 182 Almohades, Volume I, 102, 109; Volume II, 30, 56-63, 87, 88 Almoravides, . Volume I, 102, 109; Volume II, 54-56, 87, 268 Al-Nazer, Volume II, 95-97 Alpine Race, Volume I, 14 Al-Shammas, Volume I, 301 Alva, Duke of, Volume I, 158, 271 276 INDEX Al-Zagal, Volume II, 126-128 Al-Zarah Tarif, Volume I, 62 Amedeo I., Volume I, 193-194 Amelia of Saxony (Queen of Charles III.) . Volume I, 184 America, Volume I, 153, 256 Amiens, Volume II, 7Z, 188 Amru, Volume I, 230-232, 300 Andalusia, Volume I, 46, 93, 166, 169, 285; Volume II, 16, 34, 45, 46, S2>, 55, 83, 138, 140 Andalusians, The, . . Volume I, 122, 123; Volume II, 34. 45 Anne (known as, of Austria; daughter of Philip III.) Volume I, 167 of Austria (4th Queen of Philip II.) . . Volume I, 160 of Neuberg (Queen of Charles II.) . Volume I, 177, 181 Aosta, Duke of. See Amedeo I. Arab Mechanics, Volume I, 75, 114 Philosophers, Volume I, 75, 114 Writers, Volume I, x, 75, 106, 114, 281; Volume II, 43-46 Arabs, Volume I, VII, VIII, 45, 58-89, 90-117, 124, 225; Volume II, 46, 47, 50, 84-87 Syrian, . . . Volume I, 104, 287, 289; Volume II, 42 Arabesques, Volume I, 72, Jz, 87, 247; Volume II, 29, 58, 103, 104-106, 108 Arabia, Volume I, 67, 69, 71 Arabian Empire, Volume I, 58, 90 Aragon, Volume I, 128-130, 139-140, 145, 149; Volume II, 223- 244, 245, 247, 248, 263, 269 Aragonese Plateresque, Volume II, 243-244 Arches, Volume I, 83, 237, 246, 297; Volume II, 20, 94, 95, 103 Composite, .... Volume I, 83, 108; Volume II, 103 Flamboyant, Volume I, 82 Horseshoe, Volume I, 82, 108, 237, 246; Volume II, 20, 103 Pointed, Volume I, 82; Volume II, 103 Round, Volume I, 21, 82; Volume II, 103 INDEX Architecture, Baroque, Volume I, 178, 195 Byzantine, Volume I, 83, 85, 131, 133, 180 Christian, Volume I, 131-132 Churrigueresque, Volume I, 195, 257; Volume II, 222, 241 Churrigueresque Renaissance, .... Volume I, 132 Ecclesiastical, Volume I, 134 Gothic, Volume I, 131, 132, 136, 137, 149-151. 245-2^6, 249- 257, 261, 263; Volume II, 71-74, 79-80, 83, 141, 143, 188-190, 199-203, 205, 213, 215, 241, 249, 25T, 252, 270-272 Greco-Roman, Volume I, 163, 178, 268; Volume II, 221, 242 Greco-Roman Renaissance, Volume I, 132 Plateresque, Volume I, 132, 151, 163, 268; Volume TI, 78, 80, 190, 191, 202 Plateresque-Gothic, . . . Volume I, 132, 150-151, 255 Plateresque-Renaissance, Volume I, 132, 150-151, 255; Vol- ume II, 78, 191 Renaissance, Volume I, 131, 149-151, 161, 162, 263, 264, 268; Volume II, 78, 79-80, 81, 83, 141-143, 166, 203, 251 Roman, ...... Volume I, 21-23, So, 81, 82, 132 Romanesque, Volume I, 131, 136; Volume II, 178, 179, 183- 184, 213, 249, 252, 253, 271 Romano-Byzantine, Volume I, 132 Russian, Volume I, 86 Saracenic, Volume I, 75-89, 107- in, 151, 233-237, 245, 246, 247, 250, 287-288, 289, 291-293, 295-298; Volume II, 5-10, 15, 18-21, 27-29, S7-6o, 66-67, 79-80, 83, 102, 240, 252-253 Secular and Domestic, Volume I, 137, 161-163; Volume II, 103 Spanish, . Volume I, 8, 9, 10, 131-138, 251; Volume II, 74 Visigothic, Volume I, 50, 132 Arfe, Enrique, Volume I, 256 Arians, Volume I^ 27, 28, 45 ^78 INDEX Arianism, Volume I, 27, 33-37 Armour, Arabian, Volume I, 113 Arms of Ferdinand and Isabella, . . . Volume I, 261-262 Leon, Castile, and Aragon, Volume I, 262 Artesonado, Volume II, 104 Assis, Don Francisco d', Volume I, 192, 193 Assyria, Volume I, 71, 77, 82 Asturias, The, Volume I, 48, 118, 119, 120; Volume II, 48, 172, 175 Athanagild, Volume I, 29, 31, 205, 206, 236, 240 Atlas Peoples, Volume I, 6 Augustus, .... Volume I, 18, 283, 196; Volume II, 223 Aulnoy, Madame d', Volume I, 270-278; Volume II, 152-153, Auto de Fe, Volume II, 76, 135, 163, 221 Auvergne, Volume I, 136 Avila, Volume I, 137 Ayesha, Volume II, 123-126 Axarafe, Volume II, 44 Az-Zahira (Cordova), Volume II, 25, 26, 29 Az-Zahra (Cordova), .... Volume II, 4, 9, 10, 15, 29 Baddo, Volume I, 37 Badis, Volume II, 84, 86 Baetica, Volume II, 36 Baeza, Volume I, 104 Bagdad, Volume I, 92, 305 Balearic Isles, Volume I, 129; Volume II, 230 Bantu Peoples, Volume I, 3 Barbara of Braganza (Queen of Ferdinand VI), Volume I, 184 Barcelona, . Voluyne I, 27, 179; Volume II, 234, 246, 247-265 Atarazanas Fortress of, Volume II, 250 Casa Consistorial, Volume II, 250, 251 Casa Disputacion, Volume II, 250-251 Casa Lonja, ..,,... .., ... Volume II, 250-251 INDEX Barcelona, Cathedral (La Seo), . Volume II, 189, 253-257, 262 Cupola, Volume II, 255-256 Roof, Volume II, 254-255 Towers, Volume II, 255 Monjuich, Castle of, Volume II, 250, 264 Palace, Volume II, 251 Sta. Ana, Volume II, 252 Sta, Maria del Mar, Volume II, 257 Sta. Maria del Pino, Volume II, 257 San Pablo, Volume II, 252 San Pedro, Volume II, 252 Basilican Mosques, Volume I, 79 Basilicas, . Volume I, 24, 77, 78, 83, 246; Volume II, 182, 252 Battlements, Flame, Stepped, or Persian, . Volume I, 109, 298 Weathered, .... Volume I, 109; Volume II, 57, 59 Bayonne, . . . Volume I, 188 Beauvais, Volume II, 189 Beithar, Volume II, loi Belax, of Red King, Volume II, 68-69 Belem (Portugal) Convent at, Volume I, 11 Beltraneja, La, See Juana, Ben Sahl, Volume II, 47 Berbers, . Volume I, 2, 6, 59, 60, 91, 95, 98-99, 102, 109, 110, III, 115, 247, 290, 309; Volume II, 27, 30, 47, 87, 102, 103, 224-227 Berenguela (of Castile), . Volume I, 123; Volume II, 186, 196 198, 217, 219 Bernard of Cluny, Volume I, 241 Bernardo del Carpio, Volume II, 171-173 Berruguete, Volume I, 256 Bivar, Rodrigo del, See The Cid Blanche of Bourbon, . Volume I, 125, 258, 259; Volume II, 67 204, 21S Boabdil, Volume II, 124- 131 ;28o INDEX Bonaparte, Joseph, . Volume I, i88, 189 Napoleon, See Napoleon Borgogna Volume I, 256 Bosporus, Volume I, i Boston, Trinity Church, Volume I, 136, 214 Portrait Don Carlos Baltasar at, . . . . Volume I, 173 Bourbons, The, Volume I, 178-196; Volume II, 151, 165, 166-170 Bourbon, Due de, Volume I, 270 Brachycephalic Traits, Volume I, 14 Brick-work, Volume I, no, 237, 246; Volume II, 58, 59, 83, 103, 241-242 Bronze Work, Saracenic, Volume I, 113 Brunelleschi, Volume 215 Brunhilda, Volume I, 29, 30 Buen Retiro (Madrid), . Volume I, 178; Volume II, 154-155, 167 Bull Fights, Volume II, 158-161 Burgos, . Volume I, 120, 128; Volume II, 177, 186, 192-21 1, 218 Cartuja de Miraflores, Volume II, 205, 208 Casa del Cordon, Volume 11, 206 Castle at, . . . Volume II, 193, 204, 206, 207, 210-21 1 Cathedral, Volume I, 136; Volume II, 70, 195, 198-203, 211 Chapel of Constable, Volume I, 11; Volume II, 202- 203, 205 Lantern, Volume II, 200-201 Spires, Volume II, 200-201 Las Huelgas, . Volume I, 122; Volume II, 196-198, 210 Puerta Sta. Maria, Volume II, 206 St. Nicholas, . Volume II, 203 St. Estaban, Volume II, 203 San Gil, Volume II, 203 Burgundy, Volume I, 147, 148 Mary of, Volume I, 147 Philip, the Good, of, Volume II, 262 281 INDEX Burke, Volume II, 173, 194 Byzantine Scholars, Volume I, 73, 74 Workmen, Volume I, 73, 84, 85, 87, 108, 305; Volume II, 5» 9, 32 Byzantium, Volume I, 55, 68; Volume II, 102 Caat, Volume I, 45 Cadiz, Volume I, 17; Volume II, 35, 48 Cairo, Volume I, 89, 292 Calderon, Volume I, 8, 171 ; Volume II, 156 Maria, Volume I, 169 Caliph of the West, Volume II, 10 Calpe, Volume I, 62 Campeador, El. See The Cid. Capilla Mayor, Volume I, 135 Carlists, Volume I, 22, 191 ; Volume II, 249 Carlos, Infante (Son of Philip II.), Volume I, 159, 160, 271; Volume II, 234 Baltasar, Infante, Volume I, 170, 173 Don (Spanish Pretender), Volume I, 191, 192; Volume II, 249 Carpetanians, Volume I, 200 Carpets, Arabian, Volume I, 71, 113, 200, 201 Carrion, Princes of, Volume I, 243 Carthage, . . . Volume I, vii, 15, 16, 103; Volume II, 246 Carthaginians, . . Volume I, 14, 17; Volume II, 36, 246 Castles, Spanish, . . . Volume I, 138; Volume II, 182, 216 Castile, Volume I, 91, 119- 120, 128, 129, 130, 139-140, 145, 149; Volume II, 30, 34, 61, 64, 92, 97, 99, 131, 175-177, 182, 184-187, 192-222, 226, 227, 245, 258, 266-267 Castro, Juana de, Volume II, 67 Catalans, Volume II, 245-265 Catalonia, Volume I, 7, 129, 169; Volume II, 229, 233, 245-265 Catalonian Style (Architecture), .... Volume II, 253 282 INDEX Catherine of Aragon (Daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella) Volume I, 147, 159 Cava, La, Volume I, 45 Celtic Traits, Volume I, 14 Invasion, Volume I, vii, 14 Celtiberians Volume I, 14; Volume II, 223 Celts, Volume I, 13, 14, I5 Central America, Volume I, 2, 12, 13 Ceramics, Museums of, Volume I, 112 Cervantes, Volume I, 8, 171; Volume II, 79 Ceuta, Volume I, 45 Chaldea Volume I, 82 Chaldeans, Volume I, vii, 71 Charlemagne, .... I'olumc I, -35 J Volume II, 172, 225 Charles V.(I. of Spain), Volume I, 22, 148, 149, 152-163, 265-270; Volume II, 78, 137, 142-144, 148-151, 191, 208-209, 220, 233-234, 258, 261-263, 269 II., Volume I, 167, 175-177; Volume II, 161, 163-165, 209-210 III., . . . Volume I, 182, 184-186; Volume II, 165, 169 IV., . . . Volume I, 186-189, 190-192; Volume II, 167 Archduke, of Austria, Volume I, 179, 180; Volume II, 166, 238, 249 I. (England), . . Volume I, 167; Volume II, 156-157 VIII. (France), Volume II, 206 Chartres, Volume II, 201 Chess, Volume II, 55 Chindaswind, Volume I, 118 Choirs, Volume I, I34-I35 Christian Kings, .... Volume I, viii, 100, loi, 1 18-198 Period of, Volume I, viii, 1 18-196 Churriguerra, Volume I, 132, 195, 215 Cid, The, Volume I, 119, 120, 241, 243; Volume II, 171, 184, 192-195, 206, 226, 265-269 283 INDEX Cisneros. See Ximenes. Civilization, Byzantine, Volume I, 107 Saracenic, Volume I, 48, 67-89, 107, 114-117, 233-237; Vol- ume II, 34, 91 Visigothic, Volume I, 51-57, 115 Clara Eugenia, Infanta (Daughter of Philip 11. ), Volume I, 160 Clavijo, Volume II, 174 Clepsydra, Volume I, 234 Clovis, Volume I, 28 Coins, Greek, Volume I, 15 Iberic, Volume I, i6 Columbus, . Volume I, 256; Volume II, 77, 216, 220, 259-261 Columela, Volume I, 25 Complutensian Polyglot Bible, Volume II, 135 Conde, Volume I, 53 Constance of Burgundy, Volume I, 241 Constantinople, Volume I, 59, 73, 84 Emperor of, . . . Volume I, 304-305; Volume II, 5, 10 Constantine, Volume I, 20 Construction, Saracenic (Architecture), . . . Volume I, 80 Contreras, Archbishop, Volume I, 257 Rafael, Volume II, 94 Cordova, Volume I, 64, 78, 89, 93, 96, 99, 100, 103-104, 229, 248, 280-309; Volume II, 1-33, 34, 63, 175, 176 Alcazar at, Volume II, 3, 32 Bridge at, Volume I, 281, 283, 294 Castle of Roderick at, Volume I, 288 Gonsalvo de, . Volume I, 144, 145, 280; Volume II, 129 Kingdom of, Volume I, 90, 96-99, 108, 248, 280-309; Volume II, 1-33, 42, 48, 85 Mosque at. Volume I, 107, 281, 291, 298, 308; Volume II, 9, 15, 18, 27-29, 30-31, 32-33, 57-58, 94-95 Arches of, Volume I, 297-298 Columns of. Volume I, 296, 297; Volume II, 18, 28, 29 284 INDEX Cordova, Maksurah in, Volume II, 28, 29 Mirab, .... Volume I, 296; l^olume II, 18-21 Pulpit, Volume II, 21 Public- Works, Volume I, 287, 299, 300, 306; Volume II, 1-3 Royal Villas, Volume II, 4 Rusafah at, Volume I, 289; Volume II, 3 Scholarship, Volume I, 288-289 Villa Az Zahra, Volume II, 4, 9, 10, 15, 29 Mosque at, Volume II, 7> 8 Wealth of, Volume II, 15-16 Coro Volume I, 135 Corunna, Tower at Volume I, 23 Covadonga, Volume II, 171 Crete, Candia, Volume I, 304 Cristo de la Luz (Toledo), . Volume I, 206, 236-237, 240, 245 Cronica del Rey Rodrigo, Volume I, 222 Cross-fertilization, Volume I, 5 Crowns, Gothic, Volume I, 52-57, 209 Cueva, Beltran de la, Volume I, 128 Cupola. See Dome. Curly Hair, Volume I, 4 Damascus, Volume I, 58, 59, 65, 66, 67, yZy 78, 90, 92, 284, 287, 288, 305; Volume II, 39, 42 Dauphiny, Volume I, 148 " Day of the Foss," Volume I, 231, 232, 300 Design, Saracenic, . Volume I, 72, JZy 247; Volume II, 105-106 Directory (France), Volume I, 187 Dolichocephalic Traits, Volume I, 3, 26 Domes, Volume I, 83-86, 108, 136, 236; Volume II, 94, 142, 213-214 Bulbous, Volume I, 86 Byzantine, Volume I, 84-86 Gothic, Volume II, 213-214 Moslem, Volume I, 85 285 INDEX Domes, Stalactite, . . . Volume I, 87; Volume II, 103-104 Semi-, Volume I, 86 Doria, Andrea, Volume II, 263 Drama, Spanish, Volume II, 79 Eboli, Princess of, Volume II, 236 Edward I. (England), . . . Volume I, 123; Volume II, 198 of England (The Black Prince), Volume I, 125, 126; Vol- ume II, 68-69, 204 Egica, Volume I, 43 Egilona, .... Volume I, 67, 218-221; Volume II, 40-41 Egypt, Volume I, 58, 68, jz, 77, 85, 86 Egyptians, Volume I, 6, 12, 91 Eleanor of Castile, . . . Volume I, 123; Volume II, 198 Plantagenet, , . Volume I, 123; Volume II, I95-I97, 198 Elizabeth of England, . . . Volume I, 159; Volume II, 235 (Isabel) of Bourbon (Qneen of Philip IV.), Volume I, 167. 169, 170, 172, 209 (Isabel) of Valois (Queen of Philip II.), . Volume I, 160 (Isabel) Farnese, . . . Volume I, 181, 182, 184, 186 El Gran Capitan. See Cordova, Gonsalvo de. El Nodo, Volume II, 66 El Transito (Toledo), Volume I, 258 Elvira, Volume II, 85 (Daughter of Fernando I. of Castile), . Volume I, II9 120; Volume II, 184 Ely, Volume I, 261 Emesa, Volume II, 42 Emirs, The, Volume I, 90-95 Emporias, Volume I, 16 England, Volume I, 159 Ephesus, Pottery found in, . . . , . . Volume I, 112 Erminigild, Volume I, 31-35; Volume II, 38 Ervigius, Volume I, 42, 43 286 INDEX Escobedo, Volume II, 236 Escorial, The, Volume I, 163; Volume II, 152 Eugenius (Archbishop), . . . Volume I, 202-203, 207, 270 Euric, Volume I, 204 Fadrique, Don, . Volume I, 125, 258, 259; Volume II, 69, 218 False Arch, Volume I, 84 Ferdinand I., of Aragon, Volume I, 130 V. (The Catholic), Volume I, 106, 128, 130, 137, 139-151, 155, 156, 157, 264; Volume II, 75-76, 121, 127, 128, 131-133, 141, 148, 191, 212, 216, 219-220, 233, 247, 258-261 VI., .* Volume I, 183, 184 VIL, P^olume I, 186- 191 ; Volume II, 167 Infante (Brother of Charles V.), Volume 148, 154, 156; Volume II, 148 Fernanda (Sister of Isabella II.), • • • Volume I, 193, 194 Fernando, Gonzalez (of Castile), Volume II, 175-176, 192, 206 I. (of Castile), . Volume I, 119; Volume II, 177, 183-184 III. (St. Ferdinand), Volume I, 123, 124, 129, 248, 249; Volume II, 30, 31, 32, 61-65, 71, 91, 187, 188, 198, 217, 230 Flanders, Volume I, 153, 156, 212, 270 Florinda, Volume I, 44, 217 France, Volume 131, 133, 145, I49, 161, 169, 177, 179, 187, 270; Volume II, 226, 238-239, 245-247, 248, 249, 270 Franks, Volume I, 26, 28, 50 Fueros, Volume II, 231-232, 251 Gades. See Cadiz. Galesvintha, Volume I, 29 Galiana, Legend of, Volume I, 235 Galicia, Volume I, 119, 120, 265; Volume II, 174, I75, ^77* 184-185 287 INDEX Garcia (Son of Fernando I. of Castile), Volume I, 119, 120; Volume II, 184 Gaul, Volume I, 26, 28 Gaunt, John of, Volume II, 70 Generalife, Volume II, 112, 117, 118 Genoa, Volume II, 267 Gerona, Volume II, 253 Geryon, Volume I, vii Gibel Tarik, Volume I, 62 Gibraltar, Volume I, 45, 62; Volume II, 120 Glass, Coloured, . . Volume I, 162, 251, 254; Volume II, 74 Giralda (Seville), Volume I, no; Volume II, 58-60, 63, 72, 80-82, 83, 242-243 Colour of, Volume II, 59 Minaret, Volume II, 80-82 Statue, Volume II, 81-82 Godoy, Volume I, 186, 187, 188, 191, 192 Golden Fleece, Chapter of, Volume II, 261-263 Order of, Volume II, 261-262 Gorza, John of, Volume II, 11-13 Gosvinda, Volume I, 29, 31, 32, 207 Gothic Code, Volume I, 39 Goya, Volume I, 190, 191 Granada, .... Volume I, 91 ; Volume II, 65, 84-146, 150 Alhambra. See Alhambra. Alcazaba at, Volume II, 85, 88, 89, 121 Bib-al-Rambla, Volume II, 116, 135, 138 Cathedral, Volume II, 141 Chapel Royal, Volume I, 141-142 Sagrario of Volume II, 94. 150 Generalife. See Generalife. Great Mosque, Volume II, 93-95, 141, i4.3 Kassabah. See Alcazaba. 288 INDEX Granada, Kingdom of, Volume I, 90, 103-107, 109-110, 140, 158, 166, 293; Volume II, 61, 68 Luxury at, Volume II, 120 Material Prosperity, Volume II, 99, loi, 115-116, ii7, 14° Puerta Elvira, Volume II, 88 Rapid growth of Volume II, 90 Scientific School in, Volume II, loi Tournaments at, Volume II, 116 University at, Volume II, 119 Greece Volume I, IS, 68 Greeks, Volume I, 2, 14, 305 Guadalajara, Volume I, 100 Palacio del Infantado at, Volume I, li Guadalete, Volume 46, 47, 62, 226 Guadalquivir, . . . Fo/wm^ I, 289; Fo/r^m^ II, 43-44, 48, 61 Guadiana, Volume I, 23 Guarrazar, Volume I, 52, 53, S6, 229 Guesclin, Bertrand du, Volume I, 125, 126 Habus, Volume II, 85-86 Hadrian, Volume I, 18, 36 Hannibal, Volume I, 200, 201 Hausa Peoples, Volume I, 3, 6 Hegiag, Yussef Abul. See Yussef I. Hegira, The, Volume I, 80 Henrietta (of France), Volume II, I57 Henry 11. (Trastamara), Volume I, 125-127; Volume II, 68,204 IV. (El Impotente), Volume I, 118, 127, 128, 255; Volume II, 148, 205 II. (England), Volume I, 123 VIII. (England), Volume I, 147 II. (France) Volume I, 160 289 INDEX Henry IV. (of France), Volume I, 40, 159, 167, 173; Volume II, 157, 230 Heraldry, Spanish, . . Volume I, 261 ; Volume II, 191, 263 Hercules, Legend of, Volume I, 222-225 Hernandez, Gonsalvo. See Cordova, Gonsalvo da. Herrera, Volume I, 163, 268 Heterogenity in Spain, Volume I, 4 Hildesheim, Volume I, 53 Hispalis. See Sephela. Hixem I., Volume I, 293-300, 308 II., Volume I, 96, 97 HI., Volume II, 23-25 Holland, Volume I, 148 Homogenity in Spain, Volume I, 4, 5 Honorius, Volume I, 19 Hospital, Sta. Cruz (Toledo), . . . Volume I, 150, 263-264 Huesca, Volume I, 105 Hume, • . . . . Volume I, 6, 139 Hyacinth, Volume I, 53 Iberians, Volume I, i, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 12, 14, 26, 199, 200, 279, 282; Volume II, 36, 85-86 Ildefonso, Bishop of Toledo, . . Volume I, 49, 209-212, 273 Chapel of, Volume I, 255, 256 He de France, Volume I, 50; Volume II, 188 India, Volume I, 2, 9, 12, 13 Indians, Volume II, 259 Industrial Arts, Volume I, IS, IH-115, 130-131, 162, 163-164; Volume II, 115 Saracenic, Volume I, 71, 96, iii, 115 Infantado, Duke of, Volume I, 269 Ingunda, Fo/wm^ I, 31, 32; Fo^Mm^ II, 38 Inquisition, The, Volume I, 141, I45, I54, I57, 185; Volume II, 76-77, 134-140, 163-165, 237, 258, 269 290 INDEX Iron-work, Volume I, 113, 263; Volume II, 80 Irving, Washington, . . Volume I, 107-108; Volume II, 128 Isabella, Empress (Queen of Charles V.), Volume I, 154, 155, 268 Of Portugal (Mother of Isabella I.), . . Volume I, 127 I. (The Catholic), Volume I, 106, 126, 127, 128, 130, 137, I39- 151, 155, 156, 173, 191, 260-265; Volume II, 74, 75 128, 129, 131-133, 141, 148, 191, 205, 206, 207, 212, 216, 219-220, 233, 247, 258-261 Infanta (Daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella), Volume I, 146, 147; Volume II, 75-76 II., . . Volume I, 191-193; Volume II, 145, 158, 168-169 Ishbiliah. See Sephela. Ishmail-al-Ferag, Volume II, 96-99 Isidro, Bishop of Seville, . Volume I, 49; Volume II, 38, 51, 183, ^84 St. Church of, at Leon, . . . Volume II, 51-52, 183-184 Ispola. See Sephela. Italians, Volume I, 2 Italica, Volume I, 18, 23, 36 Italy, Volume I, 19, 74, 130, 145, 149, I55, 161, 168; Volume II, 231 Ivories, Carved, Volume I, 113 Jaen, Volume I, 104-105; Volume II, 10 Jaime I., of Aragon (El Conquistador), Volume I, 129; Volume II, 228-231, 233, 250, 269 James I. (England), Volume I, 167 Jeanne of Navarre, Volume I, 159 Jewel Work, Volume I, 52 Jews, Volume I, 38, 39, 43, 44, 61, 74, 94, 95, 98, 115-117, 124, 198, 227, 245, 248; Volume II, 46, 47, 84-85, 86, 88, 98, 99 Juan II., . . . Volume I, 127, 259, 268; Volume II, 70, 218 Tomb of, Volume II, 205 291 INDEX Juan, Infante (Son of Ferdinand and Isabella), Volume I, 146; Volume II, 75, 128-129, 132, 206, 207, 260 Don (of Austria, son of Charles V.), Volume I, 158; Vol- ume II, 139, 235-236 Don (of Austria, son of Philip IV.), Volume I, 169, 172, 176; Volume II, 164 Juana, of Portugal, Volume I, 128 (Crazy Jane, Daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella), Volume I, 147, 148, 264-266; Volume II, 141-142, 149, 207- 208, 233 (La Beltraneja), Volume I, 128, 139, 261; Volume II, 14S Julian, Count, Volume I, 44, 45 Julia Romulea, Volume II, 36 Julius Caesar, Volume I, 17; Volume II, 35, 36 Justa, St., Volume II, 37, 51. 82 Kabyls, Volume I, 3, 6 Kairouan Volume I, 287 Mosque of Okbar at, Volume I, 89, 292 Kal' at Al-hamra, Volume II, 90 Karnattah, Volume II, 85 Kiblah. See Mirab. Koran, Volume I, 70 Othmanic, Volume II, 21-22, 30 Lafuente, Volume I, 283 Languedoc, Volume I, 148 Layard, Volume I, 112 Layth, Abu, Volume II, 60 Leandro (Archbishop), . . . Volume I, 32; Volume II, 38 Leather, Cordovan, Volume I, 114 Le Mans, Volume II, 189 Lepanto, Volume II, 235 292 INDEX Leocadia, St., Volume I, 203, 209, 210, 270 Leopold I. (of Austria), Volume I, 170-171, i77 Leon, Volume II, I77, 181-191 Cathedral at, Volume I, 136; Volume II, 182, 188-190, 199, 254 Old Cathedral at, Volume II, 182 Kingdom of, Volume I, 119, 120; Volume II, 30, 51, I75-I77, 184-192 San Marcos, Volume II, 190-191 Leovigild, Volume I, 30-36, 207; Volume II, 38 Lerma, Duke of, .... Volume I, 165; Volume II, 221-222 Levi, Samuel, Volume I, 258 Lisbon, Volume II, 48 Literature, Arabic, Volume I, 69, 70, 72, 74, 116 Gothic, Volume I, 49 Greek, Volume I, 73 Roman, Volume I, 24-25, 73 Spanish, Volume I, 8, 123 Liturgy, Gothic, Volume I, 242, 243 Mozarabe. See Liturgy, Gothic. London, Royal Gallery at, Volume I, 172 Lope de Vega, Volume I, 171 " Las Meninas," Volume I, 174 Louis Xin. (France), . . . Volume I, 167; Volume II, 248 XIV. (France), . Volume I, 168, 173, 177; Volume II, 248 XVL (France), Volume I, 187 Philippe (France), Volume I, 193, 195 Louvre, Volume I, 16, 173 Lucan, Volume I, 25 Luna, Alvaro de, Volume I, 127, 259, 260; Volume, II, 218-219 Tomb of, Volume I, 259, 260 Lusitania, Volume I, 64 Maadites, Volume I, 93 INDEX Madrid, Volume loo, i8o, 185, 186, 195; Volume II, 147-170, 236, 238, 240 Atocha, Church of, Volume II, 161 Alcazar at, ... . Volume 11, 148, 151, 153, 157, 165 Buen Retiro. See Buen Retire. Cathedral, Volume II, 151 Impoverishment of, Volume II, 151-152 Plaza Mayor, Volume II, 157, 158, 163 Plaza Oriente, Volume II, 155 Prado Museum, Volume I, 171, 172, 174 Salon del, Volume II, 156, 167, 169 Puerta del Sol, Volume II, 147 Royal Armory at, Volume I, 52 Royal Palace at, ... . Volume II, 165-166, 167-168 Unica Corte, Volume II, 150 Water Supply, Volume II, 163 Mahomet, Volume I, 58, 59, 68-71, 98, 290 Al-Hamar, Volume I, 104, 105; Volume II, 62, 84, 88- 92, TGI Abdul-Kasin, Volume II, 49 I. See Mahomet Al-Hamar. II., Volume II, 92-93 III., ' . . . Volume II, 93-06 v., Volume II, 11 1, 113 VL, Volume II, 113-115 VII., Volume II, 120 Majorca, Volume I, 130 Maksurah, Volume I, 79 Malaga, Volume II, 126-127 Malikites, Volume I, 299-304 Marcus Aurelius, Volume I, 18, 19 Marguerite of Austria (Daughter of Alaximilian), Volume I, 146, 21C6-207 Of Austria (Queen of Philip III.), . . . Volume I, 167 294 INDEX Marguerite, Infanta (Daughter of Philip IV.), Volume I, 174 Maria (Daughter of Philip III.), Volume I, 167 Christina of Austria (2nd Queen of Alfonso XII.), Volume I, 195 Mariana, . . Volume I, vii, 32, 213, 291; Volume II, 180 Marianne of Austria, Volume I, 170, 171, 174-177, 272, 274-278; Volume II, 164 Maria Theresa, Infanta, Volume I, 170, 171, 173, 174; Volume II, 248 de Guzman, Volume I, 125 Marie Christine of Naples (Queen of Ferdinand VII.), Volume I, 191, 192, 193 Louise of Orleans (Queen of Charles II.), Volume I, 176, 177; Volume II, 161, 209-210 Louise of Savoy (Queen of Philip V.), Volume I, 179, 180^ 182, 183; Volume II, 264 Louise of Parma (Queen of Charles IV.), Volume I, 186, 192 Mary Tudor, Volume I, 159 Maurice, Archbishop (of Burgos), . . . Volume II, 198-199 Mauritania, Volume I, 108; Volume II, 55 Mauritanians. See Moors, Maximilian of Austria, Volume I, 146, 147, 149 in. (Hungary), Volume I, 167 Mazarin, Volume I, 168 Mecca, . . . Volume I, 70, 76, 77, 78, 79; Volume II, 19, 98 Medicis, Catherine de, . . . Volume I, 160; Volume II, 235 Medina (Syria), Volume I, 58; Volume II, 42 Sidonia, Duke of, Volume I, 169 Mediterranean Race, Volume I, i, 2, 3, 60 Mendoza, Cardinal, . . . Volume I, 143, 144, 255, 256, 263 Mercedes (Queen of Alfonso XII.), . . Volume I, 194, 195 Merida, Volume I, 23, 64, 293; Volume U, ig Milan, Cathedral at, ... . Volume I, 250; Volume II, 74 295 INDEX Milan, San Lorenzo, Volume I, 84 Mimber, Volume I, 79 Minaret, Volume I, 76, 80 At Cordova, Volume II, 9 At Seville, Volume I, no; Volume II, 10 Minarets, North Africa, Volume I, no Minstrelsy, Catalonian, Volume II, 257 Mirab, Volume I, 76, 78 At Cordova, Volume I, 296 Miradero (Toledo), Volume I, 214 Montfort, Simon of, ....... . Volume II, 229 Montpellier, Volume II, 229 Montpensier, Due de, Volume I, 192, 193, 194 Moors, Volume I, vii, viii, 45, 47, 58-89, 225 Moriscos, . Volume I, 158, 166; Volume II, 134, 137-140, 270 Mosaic, Mineral, . . Volume I, 87, iii; Volume II, 20, 115 Moslem Conquest. Volume I, 41, 226-229, 282; Volume II, 39, 84, 181 Period, Volume I, viii, 90-117, 229-237, 282-309; Volume II, 1-30, 39-63. 84-131, 246 Mosque, at Cordova. See Cordova. At Seville. See Seville. Mosques, Volume I, 76-89 Motamid, Volume I, 100, loi ; Vohime II, 49-56 Mozarabes, Volume I, 95; Volume II, 46, 47 Mt. Zagros, Volume I, 82 Mulay Abul Hassen, Volume II, 121-127 Mahomet, Volume II, 138-139 Murillo, Volume I, 8; Volume II, 80 Murcia Volume I, 9i» 129, 293 Murviedo, Volume I, 23 Musa-ben-Nosier, . . Volume I, 59-67; Volume II, 39f 40> 41 Must-Arab. See Mozarabes. 296 INDEX Narbonne, Volume, I, 296, 299 Naples, Volume I, 182, 184; Volume II, 264 Capodimonte at, Volume I, 185 Napoleon, Volume I, 187-189, 279; Volume II, 145, 167, 168, 210, 239, 264, 273 Nassir, Volume I, 307 Navarre, Volume I, 129 ; Volume II, 226, 229 King of, Volume II, 26-27 Navas de Tolosa, Volume I, 103, 121, 123, 248; Volume II, 197 Naves, Volume I, S3 Netherlands, Persecutions in, Volume I, 158 ; Volume II, 235-236 New York, Madison Square Tower, .... Volume II, 81 Nicea, Creed of, Volume I, 27, 204 Nimrud Volume I, 82 Normans, Invasion of, Volume II, 48 Northern Frontier, The, Volume II, 171-191 Numantia, Siege of, Volume I, 189 Numidians, Volume I, 2 Obeydallah, Volume I, 303-304 Oceanica Volume I, 2, 12, 13 Olivares, Duke of, Volume I, 167-169, 178 Omeya, Volume I, 92, 96, 99, 281, 284 Omeyad Dynasty, Fall of. Volume I, 96-99, 284; Volume II, 48 Oppas, Volume I, 44 Orelia, Volume I, 47 Ornament, Volume I, 9, 10, 108, in, 133; Volume II, 19, 20, 103-109, 199, 201-202 Ball-flower, Volume I, 254 Churrigueresque, Volume I, I95, 257; Volume II, 145, 202 Dog-tooth, . . . Volume I, 254; Volume II, 250, 271 Gothic, Volume I, ii, 162, 202 Greek, Volume I, 16 Plateresque, .... Volume I, 268; Volume II, 202 297 INDEX Ornament, Renaissance, . Volume I, 150, 162; Volume II, 144 Romanesque, Volume I, 11 Saracenic, Volume I, 72, 73, 77, 81, 247; Volume II, 20-21, 32, 33, 140, 144, 250 Inscriptions, . Volume 11, 105-106 Use of Colour, Volume II, 59, 107-109 Spanish, Volume I, 12, 13; Volume II, 21 Stalactite, .... Volume I, 87; Volume II, 103, 106 Orthodox Church. See Roman Church. Osorio, Uracca, Volume II, 67 Ostro-Goths, . Volume I, 26 Othman, . . . . Volume II, 21-22 Otho, Emperor, Volume II, 11 Oviedo, .... Volume I, 118, 132, 212; Volume II, 175 Sta. Maria Naranco, Volume I, 133 Pacheo, Maria de, Volume I, 266, 267 Padilla, Don Juan de, Volume I, 265, 266 Maria de, . . . . Volume I, 125; Volume II, 67-70 Daughters of, Volume II, 70 Salon of, Volume II, 74 Palafox, Volume II, 239 Palermo, Volume I, 299 Painters, Spanish, Volume I, 8, 155 Paris, Cluny Museum at, Volume I, 52, 209 Cathedral at, Volume I, 251, 253 Pedro I. (El Cruel), Volume I, 125, 126, 142, 258, 259; Volume II, 66-70, 112, 113, 204, 218 III. (Aragon), Volume II, 232 IV. (Aragon), Volume II, 232-233 Pelayo, Volume I, 118; Volume IT, 171 Pendentives, Volume I, 84 Peninsular War, Volume I, 188, 189, 279; Volume II, 145, 167, 183-184, 210-21 I, 238-240, 270 298 INDEX Perez, Antonio, Volume II, 234-237 Persia, Volume I, 58, 68, 77, 82, 84, 86, 87 Petronilla, Volume II, 24J7 Petrus Petri, Volume I, 249 Philip I. (Husband of Crazy Jane), Volume I, 147, 148, 264; Volume II, 141-142, 207-208 IL, Volume I, 152-164, 165, 166, 168, 175, 244, 268, 270-271 ; Volume II, 78-79, 138-139, 150-151, 152, 208-9, 221, 234-237, 263 III., Volume I, 161, 165-168; Volume II, 151, 154 I57, 269 IV., Volume I, 165, 167-178; Volume II, 151, 152, I54, I55- 156, 157, 158, 209, 238, 248, 27c V. (Bourbon), Volume I, 177, 179-183, 184, 191; Volume II, 145, 165, 166, 167, 238, 249, 264 Duke of Parma, Volume I, 182 Phoenicia, Volume 1, vii, 15; Volume II, 35, Z7 Phoenicians, Volume I, 14; Volume II, 246, 265 Pillars of Hercules, Volume I, I Pisa (Spanish Historian) Volume I, 206 Pisa, Volume II, 267 Pomponius Mela Volume I, 25 Portugal, Volume I, 7, 15.- 4i, 47, Uo, I39, i47, 168, 169; Vol- ume II, 75, 245 Belem, Convent at, Volume I, il Pottery, Celtic, Volume I, 15 Greek, Volume I, 16 Saracenic, . . . Volume I, 112, 113; Volume II, 115 Pre-Roman Period, Volume I, 14 Prim, Volume I, 193 Printing Presses, Volume II, 257 Prophet, The. See Mahomet. Protestantism, Volume I, 154 Provence, Volume I, 26, 28, 51, 52, 56, 148, 296; Volume II, 229 Provencals, Volume I, 2 299 INDEX Puerta del Cambon (Toledo), Volume I, 212 de Visagra (Toledo), Volume I, 244, 270 del Sol. (Toledo), Volume I, 246 Lodada (Toledo), Volume I, 245 Pulgar, Herman Perez del, . . . Volume II, 129-130, 143 Pyrenees, Volume I, i, 28, 130, 132; Volume II, 192, 199, 226 Quintillian, Volume I, 25 Rada, Rodrigo de, . . . Volume I, 121, 123, 248, 250, 255 Ramon Berenguer III., Volume II, 247 Recared I., Volume I, 30, 31, 35-40, 207, 208, 241; Volume II, 38 Recesvinthus, Volume I, 41, 209, 210 Reims, Volume II, 188 Rejas, Volume I, 135 Renaissance, The, Volume I, 74 Republic, Volume I, 194 Retablo, . ^ Volume I, 135 Riano, Volume I, 16, 54 Richardson, Volume I, 136 Richelieu, Volume I, 168 Ripley Volume I, 3 Roderick, . . Volume I, 44-48, 217-227, 288; Volume II, 40 Rojas, Volume I, 218 Cardinal, Volume I, 256 Rome, Volume I, vii, viii, 7, 17-25, 55, 56, 59, 82, 103, 200, 201 ; Volume II, 246 Romans, The, . . Volume I, 14, 17-25, 81 ; Volume II, 181 Roman Period, Volume I, viii, 7, 17-25, 201-204, 281; Volume II, 35-37, 181 Church, . . . Volume I, 27, 28, 29, 32, 33, 35, 37, 38, 40 Monuments, Volume I, 50, 89, 201, 202, 281, 291; Volume II, 26, 38, 211, 249 300 INDEX Ronda, Volume II, 49, i^ Roofs, Construction of, Volume I, 133 Rueda, Lope de, Volume II, 79 Denis (France) Church of, . . . Volume I, 252, 253 Gaudens, Volume II, 81 Gregory of Tours, . Volume I, 32 Isidore, Volume I, 123 James, . Volume I, 20, 202; Volume II, 174, 177, I79, 228 Juste, St., Volume I, 156 Paul, Volume I, 20, 202 Peter, Volume I, 202 Rufina, St., Volume II, 37, 51, 82 Sophia, Church of, Volume I, 83-85 Vincent, . . Volume I, 24; Volume II, 223-224, 228, 239 Saguntum, Volume I, 16, 202 Salado, Volume II, 100 Salamanca, Volume II, 211-217 Casa de las Conchas, Volume II, 216 Cathedral (New), Volume II, 213, 215 (Old), . . . Volume I, 136; Volume II, 213-215 Church of St. Dominick, Volume I, 11; Volume II, 215-216 Roman Bridge, Volume II, 211 Torre del Clave ro, Volume II, 216 University, Volume II, 211-213, 216 Facade of, . . Volume I, 150; Volume II, 212, 213 Stairway, Volume II, 213 Salic Law, Volume I, 191 Salvatierra, Volume I, 122 Sancho, The Fat, Volume II, 13, 14, 176 (Son of Fernando I. of Castile), Volume I, 119, 120, 238; Volume II, 184-185, 193 (The Brave), Volume II, 65 San Juan de los Reyes (Toledo), . . Volume I, 150, 261-263 301 INDEX Santiago de Campostella, . Volume II, 173-174, 177-181, igo Cathedral at, Volume II, 178-180 Saragossa, Volume I, 100, 129, 279, 293; Volume II, 223-244, 265-267, 269 Aljaferia, Volume II, 243-244 Architecture, Volume II, 240 Old Cathedral, Volume I, 24; Volume II, 232, 240-242, 269 El Pilar, Volume II, 229, 239, 240, 242 La Seo. See Cathedral. The Maid of, Volume II, 239 Torre Nueva, Volume II, 239, 242-243 Sardinia, . Volume I, 130 Savoy, Volume I, 148 Schiller, Volume I, 160 Scipio Africanus, Volume I, 17; Volume II, 36 Segovia, Volume I, 23, 142 Sephela, Volume II, 35 Seneca, Volume I, 25 Seville, Volume I, 15, 18, 24, 27, 32, 64, 67, 100, loi, 102, 164, 229, 248, 283; Volume II, 34-83, 91, 93, 112-113, ISO Alcazar at, Volume I, 258; Volume II, 38, 50, 57, 60, 66- 67, 69-70, 74, 75, 77, 78 Ayuntamiento, Volume II, 78 Bridge of Boats, Volume II, 43, 57, 62 Casa Pilatos, Volume II, 79-80 Cathedral at, . Volume I, 250; Volume II, 38, 70-74, 82 Chapel Royal, Volume II, 78 Court of Oranges, . . ... Volume II, 72, 82 Giralda at. See Giralda. Mosque at, ... . Volume II, 46-48, 50, 57, 58, 63 Musical Instruments of, ... . Volume II, 34, 45, 46 Prosperity of, Volume II, 54 Quays, Volume II, 57 St. Vincent, Church of, Volume II, 38, 48 302 INDEX Seville, Torre del Oro, Volume II, 57, 60 Walls at, Volume II, 57, 63 Siam, Volume I, 12 V Sicily, Volume I, 130, I45> 168; Volume II, 231 Sidi Okbar, Volume I, 89 Sierra Elvira, Battle of, Volume II, 97 Siete Partidas, Volume I, 124 Silk, Manufacture of, . . Volume I, 112; Volume II, 99, US Silver Plate, Volume II, 78 Sisibert, King, Volume I, 208-209 Solomon, Table of, Volume I, 64-66 Spain, Unification of, Volume I, 140, 141, 157 Spanish Pride, Volume I, 4, 8 Squinches, Volume I, 84 Squinch Construction, Volume I, 86 Street, Volume I, 261; Volume II, 180 Stuart, Mary, Volume II, 235 Stucco, Volume I, 81, 86, no, 247; Volume II, 29, 58, 83, 103, 166 Suevi, Volume I, 26, 204 Sumptuary Laws, Volume I, 163 Syria, Volume I, 53, 58, 72, 81, 85, 89, 305 Tagus, Volume I, 21, 29 Talevera, Archbishop, .... Volume II, 133-134, I37, 143 Talavera de la Reyna, Volume I, 64 Tamil-speaking peoples, . . . . Volume I, 2, 12, 13 Tarik-ben-Zeyed, . Volume I, 62-66, 226-229; Volume II, 39 Tarragona, Volume I, 23, 202; Volume II, 246, 253, 255, 256, 271 Tarub, Volume I, 307 Tashfin, Yusef ben, . . Volume I, loi ; Volume II, 54-56, 87 Tavera, Cardinal, Volume I, 256, 270 Tendilla, Conde de, . . . . Volume II, 132-134, 136, 140 INDEX Teutonic Peoples, Volume I, 2, 26, 50 Textiles, Volume I, 71, 112 Theodofred, Duke of Cordova, .... Volume I, 43, 288 Theodomir, Volume I, 225 Theodosia, Volume I, 31, 207 Tiles, Encaustic, Volume I, 88, iii, 247; Volume II, 80, 103, 104, 242 Titian, Volume I, 154, I55, i59 Tlemcen, Sultan of, Volume II, 22 Toledo, Volume I, 27, 29, 36, 38, 41, 50, 52, 64, 65, 100, 119, 120, 143, 197-279, 286; Volume II, 39, 42, 63, 143, 148, 186, 195 Alcazar at, Volume I, 162, 235-236, 244, 258, 259, 265, 267- 270, 276, 278, 279 Cathedral at. Volume I, 136, 207, 208, 210, 211, 241, 249- 258, 272-274, 293; Volume II, 70 Cathedral, Capilla Mayor, . Volume I, 11, 253, 255, 256 Chapel of Ildefonso, Volume I, 255 of San Bias, Volume I, 255 of Santiago, Volume I, 259 of Sta. Lucia, Volume I, 254 Coro, Volume I, 253, 255, 256, 257 Custodia, Volume I, 256, 273 Glass, Volume I, 254 Ground-plan, Volume I, 251 Ornament, Volume I, 253-258 Proportions, Volume I, 252 Sala Capitular, Volume I, 254 Trasparente Volume I, 257 Vaults, Volume I, 252, 253 Cristo de laLuz, . . Volume I, 206, 236, 237, 240, 245 de la Vega, Church of, Volume I, 212 EI Transito, Volume I, 258 Hospital Sta. Cruz, Volume I, 150, 263-264 304 INDEX Toledo, Legends of, Volume I, 197, 198 Miradero, Volume I, 214 Plaza de Zocodover, .... Volume I, 215, 242, 272 Puerta del Cambon, Volume I, 212 Lodada, . . Volume I, 245 del Sol, Volume I, 246 de Visagra, Volume I, 244, 270 Roman Praetorium, Volume I, 206, 213, 263 San Juan de los Reyes, . . . Volume I, 150, 261-263 San Martino, Bridge of, ... . Volume I, 217, 255 Roman, Volume I, 245 Servando, Castle of, Volume I, 243 St. Leocadia, Church of, Volume I, 208-212 Sta. Maria la Blanca, Volume I, 246 Taller del Moro, Volume I, 236 Tournament at, Volume I, 219-221 Treasure taken at, Volume I, 228-229 Via Sacra, Volume I, 240, 244 Wall of Alfonso VI., Volume I, 244 Wamba, Volume I, 214, 216 Torb, .... Volume I, 119, 120, 261; Volume II, 184-185 Torquemada, Cardinal, Volume I, 142 (Inquisitor General), Volume I, 142, 143 Torre de la Barca, Arch of Volume I, 23 Torres Bermejas, Volume II, 90 Toulouse, St. Sernin at, Volume II, 178, 179 Trajan, Volume I, 18; Volume II, 36 Trascoro, Volume I, 135 Triana, Volume II, 62 Tuscan (style), . . . Volume I, 162; Volume II, 143-144 Uracca (Daughter of Fernando I. of Castile), Volume I, 119 Ursins, Princess des, Volume I, 179-181, 183 INDEX Villena, Marques de, Volume I, 270 Visigoths, Volume I, vii,.viii, 26-57, 9i> 93, 94, 116-117, 166, 204- 120; Volume II, 184 Valencia, Volume I, 239, 243; Volume II, 183, 224, 226, 251, 265-273 Cathedral (La Seo), Volume II, 270-271 Cupola, Volume II, 271 Tower (Michelete), .... Volume II, 271-272 Kingdom of, Volume I, 129, 166, 239, 243, 293; Volume II, 230, 233, 245 Lonja, Volume II, 272 Valladolid, . . . Volume I, 127, 265; Volume II, 217-222 Cathedral, Volume II, 221 San Gregorio, .... Volume I, 11; Volume II, 220 Sta. Maria La Antigua, Volume II, 222 San Pablo, Volume II, 222 University, Volume II, 222 Vandals, ' . . . . Volume I, vii, 204 Vaults, . . Volume I, 133, 135, 136; Volume II, 213, 252, 253 Velasquez, Volume I, 8, 171-174, 177; Volume II, 80, 154, 155 Venus Salambo, Volume I, 24 Victoria of England (Queen of Alfonso XIII.), Volume I, 195 227, 282; Volume II, 2, 37, 39, 171, 181-182, 211, 231, 245, 246 Visigothic Period, Volume I, viii, 26-57, 204-227, 282; Volume II, 37-39, 181 Visi-Goths, Volume I, 26 Vittoria, Volume I, 189 Wadi Kebir. See Guadalquivir. Kortubah. See Guadalquivir. Wamba, Volume I, 40-43, 50, 213-216, 227 Palace of, Volume I, 214-216 Statue of, Volume I, 216 306 INDEX Wamba, Wall of (Toledo), Volume I, 214-216 War of Succession, Volume I, 177; Volume II, 166, 238, 249, 264 Wallia, Volume I, 27 Walls, Volume I, 137, 214, 216, 244 Wellesley, Sir Arthur. See Wellington. Wellington, Duke of, . . . Volume I, 189; Volume II, 210 Wiesbaden, Volume I, 55 Windsor, Chapel of St. George, Volume II, 262 Witiza, Volume I, 43, 44 Wood Carvers, Flemish, Volume I, 162 Xeres de la Frontera, Volume I, 46, 48 Ximenes, Volume I, 143, 144, 152, 255, 256, 263; Volume II, 133-137, 148, 149 Yahia, Volume I, 238, 243; Volume II, 266-268 Yemanites, Volume I, 92 York, Edmund, Duke of, Volum.e II, 70 Yussef I. (Almohadan King), Volume II, 56 I. (Granada), Volume II, loo-ioi, 109-110 III. (Granada), Volume II, 113-117 Zahra, Sultana, Volume II, 4, 5, 8 Zamora, . . . Volume I, 119, 120, 136; Volume II, 184-185 Zenil, Volume II, 88 Zirites, Dynasty of, Volume II, 85 Ziryab, Volume I, 306, 307 Zocodover, Plaza de (Toledo), . Volume I, 215, 242, 264, 272 Zoraya, Volume II, 123-124 307 14 DAY USE RETURN TO DESK FROM WHICH BORROWED This book is due on the last date stamped below, or on the date to which renewed. Renewed books are subject to immediate recall. Ml 11A986 mmm ffs - 5 -75 AFH 2 a \l^l iRMomir Ff3 75 MAY 2 3 1967 HCMOffllT fE3 - 5 -75 AWR 21 i9f^9°"^''"° BEMLUBUONF WFEKAfT I.^ AUG 1 8 1909 WiNlER FEB i 1070 .NOV 1 6 P£8Ko MAR 2 6 19 77 1969 '■^ C;i MAR 9 7? FEB 1 2 1970 JUN 20 1977 DEC 8 ^ F3 10 1971 gfC'DEwvt 2QW01/78 ^^/X (7^ ^UN 1 n 4%f I n fi^Si^T^^^^^^'^Z General Library '(D6ifui'S)^7'l (ioiversgr^ofCalifornia