Cordoba

Early in the 8th century, Visigothic Spain was conquered by the Arabs and became the independent caliphate of Al Andalus with its capital at Cordoba. The city quickly rose to become one of the finest in Europe, rivalled only by Baghdad and Constantinople for its wealth and splendour. Cordoba was a centre of culture and learning where the arts and sciences flourished; by the 10th century it was described as the ‘Jewel of the World’ because of its schools, libraries and mosques. In 785 the Emir Abd al Rahman built his great mosque, which remains as testimony to the glory of Muslim Spain; the mosque is square in plan, with an outer courtyard and an interior hall divided by parallel arcades supported on slender columns. In the 10th century, one of the rulers of Cordoba built a pleasure-city outside its walls known as Medina al Zahara; this is now an archaeological site, where the remains give an impression of buildings adorned with luxurious and costly materials.