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The Muslim architecture
of Seville in Andalusia, a legacy of Islamic conquest
by James Mayfield (Chairman, European Heritage Library)
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this Article • About
the Author • Bibliography/Sources
This is a gallery of resplendent
examples of the distinct Arabo-Moorish architecture of the
southern Spanish autonomous
province of Andalusia. Its artwork, culture, and dialect
are distinct from the remaining autonomous provinces of Spain,
such as the Basque Country, Galicia, and Catalonia.
The nation that is now Spain
was dominated by Muslims for 700 years, starting with the
obliteration of the Catholic Visigothic Empire by invading
armies from Morocco in the 8th century. Most of the remainder
of Iberia (the Spanish peninsula) was spared Islamic rule
due to the intervention of smaller Spanish principalities,
the Portuguese, and the Frankish Empire. The southern marches
remained firmly entrenched in the dominion of al-Andalus (hence
the modern provincial name Andalusia) until the 11th
century. See our video on this
inter-religious conflict in Spanish history. This early period
of Islamic occupation had greater interest in income from
taxation of non-Muslims (jizyah) than fostering the propagation
of Islam, and was unusual among Muslim polities for its liberality
towards non-Muslim minorities. Al-Andalus became famous for
creating some of the most magnificent works of architectural
art in the world. See our map
of Islamic conquest in Europe for more information.
This era of unusual tolerance
was short-lived, and after 1040, invading legions from Morocco
destroyed this Muslim polity in Andalusia and established
the Almoravid and Almohad dynasties. These two regimes increasingly
imposed strict Islamic rule that greatly discriminated against
Jews and Christians at the same time as it sought to purify
the adultertation of Islam of which the caliphate of al-Andalus
(Cordoba) was guilty. Christian churches were burnt and replaced
by mosques, and al-Andalus became a far more conservative
and intolerant place. The capital of this Islamist Almohad
caliphate was Seville. It was against this era of foreign
Islamic occupation that the native Iberian Christian powers
was finally able to unite and initiate the Reconquista (reconquest
of Iberia). By 1492, the occupying Muslim armies were expelled
along with the unification of Spain under Ferdinand and Isabella.
Nearly all the Muslims and Jews of Spain were expelled and
suffered intense discrimination that greatly contrasted the
irreligious liberality of Islamic al-Andalus (Cordoba) but
very closely paralleled the brutally anti-Christian Islamic
rule of the Almohad Muslims. The Almohad capital of Seville
additionally became the Spanish capital. In Seville today,
many of the churches were built over the foundations of destroyed
mosques, which in turn were built over the ruins of destroyed
Christian churches. The main cathedral of Seville, the most
resplendent, even retains a minaret from the old mosque.
Andalusia today expresses
an eclectic architecture blending elements of the era of Islamic
occupation and native Spanish culture. Early cathedrals built
during the Reconquista (shown below) blatantly bear only Christian
and Spanish artistic designs that eschewed any association
with the occupying Moors. Later, as al-Andalus became firmly
incorporated into unified Christian Spain, the region began
to express its own cultural composite of Arab and Spanish
architecture as is blatantly evident today throughout modern
Seville and Andalusia. The royal palace of the Almohad kings,
the Royal Alcazar, can be toured in near-flawless condition.
After the Muslims were expelled, the Spanish royal house often
resided in the Alcazar. The Qur'anic calligraphy was retained,
including the Shahadah ("la-illaha illa Allah, Muhammadan
rasulallah"/there is only one God, Muhammad is his Prophet).
The pamphlets of the palace emphasize that most of the foundations
were built by the Muslim Almohads, but most of the intricate
artwork of this magnificent palace was built not by Muslims,
but by native Spaniards after the Reconquista.
My photo of the achitecture of the southern Spanish autonomous
province of Andalusia has its own distinct architecture that
blends Castilian and Arabo-Moorish characteristics (Click
to enlarge)
One of the most ornate and elaborate of all cathedrals of
Spain, it was built during the expulsion of occupying Muslims
during the Reconquista. It was built over the foundation of
a mosque, and its minaret was kept almost unchanged (Click
to enlarge)
The front of the resplendent cathedral. Castilian, non-Moorish
architecture was emphasized during the Reconquista. With Andalusia's
historical evolution, however, the Spaniards of this region
returned to a composite of the two architectural forms (Click
to enlarge)
The minaret of the former mosque was kept, and is abnormally
large since it was intended to allow two horses to ride to
the top to deliver the prayer-call (adhan) (click
to enlarge)
A view of the massive Christian cathedral alongside the minaret
of the felled mosque (click to enlarge)
The promenade and royal gardens of the former Islamist Almohad
khalifa (click to enlarge)
The royal palace of the Almohads is surpisingly large and
ornate. The original Arabic and Qur'anic calligraphy was retained
even after the Christian expulsion of the occupying Muslims
(click to enlarge)
A close-up of the calligraphy, with many ayah (verses) from
the Qur'an (click to enlarge)
The literature of the complex emphasizes that most of the
foundations were produced by the Muslims, but most of the
remaining artistic material (as seen especially in this room)
was produced after the Muslims were gone by the Spaniards
(click to enlarge)
The dome in the center of the Royal Alcazar, truly radiant.
Most of the intricate artwork was done by the Spaniards (click
to enlarge)
The Toro de Oro, a very wide watch tower built during the
Islamic period of Andalusia. Its function has been debated.
Some emphasize its purposes for security, others claim that
it was used to monitor the morality and dress of the passing
population. This seems rather retrojective, however. (click
to enlarge)
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ABOUT
THE AUTHOR:
James Mayfield is a historian
and the Chairman of the European Heritage Library. I have
a Cum Laude BA in History with a Minor in Germanic Studies
(language and history), am presently working for my Masters
in History, and plan to immediately progress to my PhD Doctorate.
I have a special academic interest in Europe's diverse ethnic
identities, languages, and cultures, and the political struggles
of native European and immigrant minority identities. See
my staff entry for more information.
BIBLIOGRAPHY/SOURCES
USED:
-personal photos and observations
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