diff options
| -rw-r--r-- | .gitattributes | 3 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 22337-8.txt | 6956 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 22337-8.zip | bin | 0 -> 143707 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 22337.txt | 6956 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 22337.zip | bin | 0 -> 143668 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | LICENSE.txt | 11 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | README.md | 2 |
7 files changed, 13928 insertions, 0 deletions
diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/22337-8.txt b/22337-8.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..efc6688 --- /dev/null +++ b/22337-8.txt @@ -0,0 +1,6956 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of History of the Moors of Spain, by M. Florian + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: History of the Moors of Spain + +Author: M. Florian + +Release Date: August 16, 2007 [EBook #22337] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORY OF THE MOORS OF SPAIN *** + + + + +Produced by Al Haines + + + + + + + + + + +HISTORY + +OF THE + +MOORS OF SPAIN + + + +TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH ORIGINAL OF + +M. FLORIAN. + + + +TO WHICH IS ADDED, + +A BRIEF NOTICE OF ISLAMISM + + + + +NEW YORK + +HARPER & BROTHERS, PUBLISHERS, + +329 & 331 PEARL STREET, + +FRANKLIN SQUARE + + + + +[Transcriber's note: Page numbers in this book are indicated by numbers +enclosed in curly braces, e.g. {99}. They have been located where page +breaks occurred in the original book, in accordance with Project +Gutenberg's FAQ-V-99.] + +[Transcriber's note: This book contains a number of variations in the +spelling of some words/names, e.g. Haccham/Hacchem, Gengis/Zengis +(Khan), etc.] + + + + +Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1840 by + +Harper & Brothers, + +In the Clerk's Office of the Southern District of New York + + + + +{v} + +PUBLISHERS' ADVERTISEMENT. + +We are accustomed to look upon the followers of the Arabian Prophet as +little better than barbarians, remarkable chiefly for ignorance, +cruelty, and a blind and persecuting spirit of fanaticism. As it +regards the character of the Mohammedans at the present day, and, +indeed, their moral and intellectual condition for the last two +centuries, there is no great error in this opinion. But they are a +degenerated race. There has been a period of great brilliancy in their +history, when they were distinguished for their love of knowledge, and +the successful cultivation of science and the arts; nor is it too much +to say, that to them Christian Europe is indebted for the generous +impulse which led to the revival of learning in the thirteenth and +fourteenth centuries. Of the various nations of the great Moslem +family, none were more {vi} renowned in arts, as well as arms, than the +Moorish conquerors of Spain, whose history is contained in the +following pages. The French original of this work has long enjoyed a +deservedly high reputation; and the translation here offered is by an +American lady, whose literary taste and acquirements well qualified her +for the task. + +A sketch of Mohammedan history, &c., from Rev. S. Greene's Life of +Mohammed, has been appended at the close of the volume, to present to +the reader a comprehensive view of that very remarkable people, of whom +the Moors of Spain formed so distinguished a branch. + +H. & B. + +New York, October, 1840. + + + + +{vii} + +CONTENTS + + + FIRST EPOCH + + PAGE + + The Origin of the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 + The Arabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 + The Birth of Mohammed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 + Religion of Mohammed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 + The Progress of Islamism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 + Victories of the Mussulmans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 + New Conquests of the Mohammedans . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 + The Moors become Mussulmans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 + Condition of Spain under the Goths . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 + Conquest of Spain by the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 + The Viceroys of Spain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 + Insurrection of Prince Pelagius . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 + Abderamus attempts the Conquest of France . . . . . . . . 39 + He penetrates as far as the Loire . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 + The Battle of Tours . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 + Civil Wars distract Spain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 + + + SECOND EPOCH. + + The Kings of Cordova become the Caliphs of the West . . . 45 + The Asiatic Mussulmans divide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 + The Dynasty of the Ommiades lose the Caliphate . . . . . . 48 + Horrible Massacre of the Ommiades . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 + An Ommiade Prince repairs to Spain . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 + Abderamus, the first Caliph of the West . . . . . . . . . 53 +{viii} + Reign of Abderamus I. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 + Religion and Fêtes of the Moors of Spain . . . . . . . . . 55 + Civil Wars arise among the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 + The Reigns of Hacchem I. and of Abdelazis . . . . . . . . 58 + Reign of Abderamus II. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 + Condition of the Fine Arts at Cordova . . . . . . . . . . 60 + Anecdote of Abderamus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 + Reigns of Mohammed, Almouzir, and Abdalla . . . . . . . . 62 + Reign of Abderamus III. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 + Embassy from a Greek Emperor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 + Magnificence and Gallantry of the Moors . . . . . . . . . 64 + Description of the City and Palace of Zahra . . . . . . . 65 + Wealth of the Caliphs of Cordova . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 + The Fine Arts cultivated at Cordova . . . . . . . . . . . 71 + Reign of El Hacchem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 + Laws of the Moors, and their Mode of administering Justice 75 + Authority possessed by Fathers and old Men . . . . . . . . 77 + An Illustration of the Magnanimity of El Hakkam . . . . . 78 + Reign of Hacchem III. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 + Successful Rule of Mohammed Almonzir as Hadjeb under + the imbecile Hacchem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 + Disorders at Cordova . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 + End of the Caliphate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 + + + THIRD EPOCH. + + The principal Kingdoms erected from the Ruins of the + Caliphate of the West . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 + Condition of Christian Spain at this Juncture . . . . . . 88 + The Kingdom of Toledo; its Termination . . . . . . . . 87, 88 + Success of the Christians . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 + The Cid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 + The Kingdom of Seville . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 + The Dynasty of the Almoravides hold Supremacy in Africa . 92 +{ix} + Conquests of the Almoravides in Spain . . . . . . . . . . 93 + French Princes repair to Spain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94 + Extinction of the Kingdom of Saragossa . . . . . . . . . . 95 + Foundation of the Kingdom of Portugal . . . . . . . . . . 95 + State of the Fine Arts among the Moors at this Period . . 97 + Abenzoar and Averroes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 + Dissensions between the Moors and Christians . . . . . . . 98 + The Africans, under Mohammed _the Green_, land in Spain . 100 + Battle of Toloza . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102-104 + Tactics of the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 + The discomfited Mohammed returns to Africa . . . . . . . . 109 + Extent of the Territories still retained by the Moors + in Spain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110 + St. Ferdinand and Jaques I. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111 + Valencia is attacked by the Aragonians . . . . . . . . . . 113 + Siege of Cordova . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114 + Surrender of Valencia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 + + + FOURTH EPOCH. + + The Kings of Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118 + The Condition of the Moors; their Despondency . . . . . . 118 + Mohammed Alhamar; his Character and Influence with his + Countrymen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 + He founds the Kingdom of Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120 + Description of the City of Grenada and its _Vega_ . . . . 121 + Extent and Resources of this Kingdom . . . . . . . . . . . 123 + Reign of Mohammed Alhamar I. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 + The Moorish Sovereign becomes the Vassal of the King + of Castile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 + Ferdinand III. besieges Seville . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 + The Taking of Seville . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126 + Revenues of the Kings of Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127 + Military Forces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129 + Cavalry of the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129 +{x} + Disturbances in Castile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133 + Reign of Mohammed II. El Fakik . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133 + He forms a League with the King of Morocco . . . . . . . . 134 + Misfortunes of Alphonso of Castile . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 + Interview between Alphonso and the Sovereign of Morocco . 134 + State of Learning and the Fine Arts under Mohammed al + Mumenim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 + Description of the Alhambra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137 + The Court of Lions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140 + The Generalif . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145 + Mohammed III. El Hama, or _the Blind_, ascends the Throne + of Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147 + Troubles in Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149 + Reign of Mohammed IV. Abenazar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149 + Reign of Ismael . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149 + Reign of Mohammed V. and of Joseph I. . . . . . . . . . . 152 + The Battle of Salado . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152 + Successive Reigns of Mohammed VI. and Mohammed VII. . . . 154 + Horrible Crime of Peter the Cruel of Castile . . . . . . . 150 + Condition of Spain--of Europe in general . . . . . . 156, 157 + Mohammed VI. reassumes the Crown . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 + Reign of Mohammed VIII. Abouhadjad . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 + Favourite Literary and Scientific Pursuits of the Moors + under the munificent Rule of Abouhadjad . . . . . . . . 160 + Universal prevalence of a Taste for Fiction + among the Arabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161 + Music and Gallantry of the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162 + The mixture of Refinement and Ferocity in the Character + of the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166 + Description of the Women of Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . 169 + The national Costume of both Sexes . . . . . . . . . . . . 170 + Moorish Customs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171 + Folly of the Grand-master of Alcantara . . . . . . . . . . 172 + The Result of his Expedition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174 + Dreadful Death of Joseph II. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 + Mohammed IX. usurps the Throne . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 + Singular Escape of a condemned Prince . . . . . . . . . . 176 +{xi} + Generous Disposition of Joseph III. . . . . . . . . . . . 176 + Disturbed Condition of the Kingdom after his Death . . . . 177 + A rapid Succession of Rulers . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177, 178 + Reign of Ismael II. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178 + The Miseries of War most severely felt by the Cultivator + of the Soil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179 + Mulei-Hassem succeeds Ismael II. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179 + Marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella . . . . . . . . . . . . 180 + The respective Characters of these Sovereigns . . . . . . 181 + They declare War against the Grenadians . . . . . . . . . 182 + Statesmen and Soldiers of the Spanish Court . . . . . . . 182 + Stern Reply of the Grenadian King . . . . . . . . . . . . 183 + Alhama is Surprised . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 + Civil War is kindled in Grenada by the Feuds of the + Royal Family . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 + Boabdil is proclaimed King . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185 + Cause of the ambitious hopes of Zagal . . . . . . . . . . 185 + Boabdil is taken Prisoner by the Spaniards . . . . . . . . 186 + The politic Spanish Rulers restore Boabdil to Liberty . . 187 + The Moors become their own Destroyers . . . . . . . . . . 187 + Death of Mulei-Hassem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187 + Boabdil and his Uncle divide the Relics of Grenada + between them . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188 + Baseness of Zagal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188 + Boabdil reigns alone at Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188 + Ferdinand lays Siege to the City of Grenada . . . . . . . 189 + Condition of the City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189 + The Spanish Camp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191 + Isabella repairs to the Camp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191 + She builds a City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192 + Surrender of Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194 + Departure of Boabdil from the City . . . . . . . . . . . . 194 + The entrance of the Spanish Conquerors into the City . . . 195 + Summary of the Causes of the Ruin of the Moors . . . . . . 196 + Characteristics of the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197 +{xii} + Anecdote illustrative of their Observance of the Laws + of Hospitality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198 + Christian Persecution of the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . 199 + Revolts of the Moors, and their Results . . . . . . . . . 199 + Final Expulsion of the Moors from Spain . . . . . . . . . 201 + Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203 + + A Brief Account of the Rise and Decline of the + Mohammedan Empire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227 + Chapter I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229 + Chapter II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243 + Chapter III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266 + + + + +{xiii} + +INTRODUCTION. + +The name of the Moors of Spain recalls recollections of gallantry and +refinement, and of the triumphs of arts and arms. But, though thus +celebrated, not much is generally known of the history of that +remarkable people. + +The fragments of their annals, scattered among the writings of the +Spanish and Arabian authors, furnish little else than accounts of +murdered kings, national dissensions, civil wars, and unceasing +contests with their neighbours. Yet, mingled with these melancholy +recitals, individual instances of goodness, justice, and magnanimity +occasionally present themselves. These traits, too, strike us more +forcibly than those of a similar description with which we meet in +perusing the histories of other nations; perhaps in {xiv} consequence +of the peculiar colouring of originality lent them by their Oriental +characteristics; or perhaps because, in contrast with numerous examples +of barbarity, a noble action, an eloquent discourse, or a touching +expression, acquire an unusual charm. + +It is not my intention to write the history of the Moors in minute +detail, but merely to retrace their principal revolutions, and attempt +a faithful sketch of their national character and manners. + +The Spanish historians, whom I have carefully consulted in aid of this +design, have been of but little assistance to me in my efforts. +Careful to give a very prominent place in their extremely complicated +narratives to the various sovereigns of Asturia, Navarre, Aragon, and +Castile, they advert to the Moors only when their wars with the +Christians inseparably mingle the interests of the two nations; but +they never allude to the government, customs, or laws of the enemies of +their faith. + +{xv} + +The translations from the Arabian writers to which I have had recourse, +throw little more light upon the subject of my researches than the +productions of Spanish authors. Blinded by fanaticism and national +pride, they expatiate with complacency on the warlike achievements of +their countrymen, without even adverting to the reverses that attended +their arms, and pass over whole dynasties without the slightest notice +or comment. + +Some of our _savans_ have, in several very estimable works, united the +information to be collected from these Spanish and Arabian histories, +with such additional particulars as they were able to derive from their +own personal observations. + +I have drawn materials from all these sources, and have, in addition, +sought for descriptions of the manners of the Moors in the Spanish and +ancient Castilian romances, and in manuscripts and memoirs obtained +from Madrid. + +It is after these long and laborious researches {xvi} that I venture to +offer a brief history of a people who bore so little resemblance to any +other; who had their national vices and virtues, as well as their +characteristic physiognomy; and who so long united the bravery, +generosity, and chivalry of the Europeans, with the excitable +temperament and strong passions of the Orientals. + +To render the order of time more intelligible, and the more clearly to +elucidate facts, this historical sketch will be divided in four +principal Epochs. + +The _first_ will extend from the commencement of the Conquests of the +Arabs to the Establishment of the Dynasty of the Ommiade princes at +Cordova: the _second_ will include the reigns of the Caliphs of the +West: in the _third_ will be related all that can now be ascertained +concerning the various small kingdoms erected from the ruins of the +Caliphate of Cordova: and the _fourth_ will comprehend a narration of +the prominent events in the lives of the successive sovereigns of the +Kingdom of Grenada, until the {xvii} period of the final expulsion of +the Mussulmans from that country. + +Care has been taken to compare the dates according to the Mohammedan +method of computing time, with the periods fixed by the ordinary mode +of arrangement. Some of the Spanish historians, Garabai for instance, +do not agree with the Arabian chronologists in relation to the years of +the Hegira. I have thought proper to follow the Arabian authorities, +and have adopted, with occasional corrections, the chronological +arrangements of M. Cardonne, whose personal assurance I possess, that +he attaches high importance to his calculations on this subject. I +have thus reason to hope that this little work will serve to elucidate +many points hitherto doubtful in relation to this matter. + +The proper names of the Moors vary even more in the different +authorities than their statements respecting the date of events, either +in consequence of the difficulty of pronouncing them, or from ignorance +of their proper {xviii} orthography. In instances of this character I +have always given the preference to such as appeared to be most +generally adopted, and were, at the same time, most harmonious in sound. + + + + +{19} + +A HISTORY OF THE MOORS OF SPAIN. + + +FIRST EPOCH. + +THE CONQUESTS OF THE ARABS OR MOORS. + +_Extending from the end of the Sixth Century to the middle of the +Eighth._ + + +The primitive Moors were the inhabitants of the vast portion of Africa +bounded on the east by Egypt, on the north by the Mediterranean, on the +west by the Atlantic, and on the south by the deserts of Barbary. + +The origin of the Moors, or Mauritanians, is, like that of most other +ancient nations, obscure, and the information we possess concerning +their early history confusedly mingled with fables. The fact, however, +appears to be established, that Asiatic emigrations were, from the +earliest times, made into Africa. In addition to this, the {20} +historians of remote ages speak of a certain Meleck Yarfrick, king of +Arabia Felix, who conducted a people called _Sabaei_[1] into Libya, +made himself master of that country, established his followers there, +and gave it the name of Africa. It is from these Sabians or _Sabaei_ +that the principal Moorish tribes pretend to trace their descent. The +derivation of the name Moors[2] is also supposed, in some degree, to +confirm the impression that they came originally from Asia. + +But, without enlarging upon these ancient statements, let it suffice to +say, that nearly certain ground exists for the belief that the original +Moors were Arabians. In confirmation of this impression, we find that, +during every period of the existence of their race, the descendants of +the primitive inhabitants of Mauritania have, like the Arabs, been +divided into distinct tribes, and, like them, have pursued a wild and +wandering mode of existence. + +The Moors of Africa are known in ancient {21} history under the name of +Nomades, Numidae or Numidians, Getulae, and Massyli. They were by +turns the subjects, the enemies, or the allies of the Carthaginians, +and with them they fell under the dominion of the Romans. + +After several unsuccessful revolts, to which they were instigated by +their fiery, restless, and inconstant temper, the Moors were at length +subjugated by the Vandals, A.D. 427. + +A century afterward these people were conquered by Belisarius: but the +Greeks were in their turn subdued by the Arabs, who then proceeded to +achieve the conquest of Mauritania. + +As, from the period when that event occurred, the Mauritanians or +Moors, who were thus suddenly converted to Mohammedanism, have +frequently been confounded with the _native Arabians_, it will be +proper to say a few words concerning that extraordinary people: a +people who, after occupying for so many centuries an insignificant +place among the nations of the earth, rapidly rendered themselves +masters of the greater part of the known world. + +The Arabs are, beyond question, one of the most ancient races of men in +existence;[3] and {22} have, of all others, perhaps, best preserved +their national independence, and their distinctive character and +manners. Divided from the most remote times into tribes that either +wandered in the desert or were collected together in cities, and +obedient to chiefs who in the same person united the warrior and the +magistrate, they have never been subjected to foreign domination. The +Persians, the Romans, and the Macedonians vainly attempted to subdue +them: they only shattered their weapons in fragments against the rocks +of the Nabatheans.[4] Proud of an origin which he traced back even to +the patriarchs of olden time, exulting in his successful defence of his +liberty and his rights, the Arab, from the midst of his deserts, +regarded the rest of mankind as consisting of mere bands of slaves, +changing masters as chance or {23} convenience directed. Brave, +temperate, and indefatigable, inured from infancy to the severest toil, +fearing neither thirst, hunger, nor death itself--these were a people +by whose assistance a leader suitably endowed could render himself +master of the world. Mohammed appeared:[5] to him nature had accorded +the requisite qualifications for executing such a design. Courageous, +sagacious, eloquent, polished, possessed in an eminent degree of the +powers which both awe and delight mankind, Mohammed would have been a +great man had he belonged to the most enlightened age--among an +ignorant and fanatical people he became a prophet. + +Until Mohammed arose among them, the Arab tribes, surrounded by Jews, +Christians, and idolaters, had entertained a superstitious faith, +compounded of the religious belief of their various neighbours and that +of the ancient Sabaei. They fully credited the existence of genii, +demons, and witchcraft, adored the stars, and offered idolatrous +sacrifices. But Mohammed--after having devoted many years to profound +and solitary meditation upon the new dogmas he designed to establish; +after having either convinced {24} or won to his interests the +principal individuals of his own family,[6] possessing pre-eminent +consequence among their countrymen--suddenly began to preach a new +religion, opposed to all those with which the Arabs were hitherto +familiar, and whose principles were well-adapted to inflame the ardent +temper of that excitable people. + +Children of Ishmael, said the Prophet to them, I bring you the faith +that was professed by your father Abraham, by Noah, and by all the +patriarchs. There is but one God, the Sovereign Ruler of all worlds: +he is called THE MERCIFUL; worship Him alone. Be beneficent towards +orphans, slaves, captives, and the poor: be just to all men--justice is +the sister of piety. Pray and bestow alms. You will be rewarded in +Heaven, by being permitted to dwell perpetually in delicious gardens, +where limpid waters will for ever flow, and where each one of you will +eternally enjoy the companionship of women who will be ever beautiful, +ever youthful, ever devoted to you alone. Courageously combat both the +unbelieving and the impious. Oppose them until they {25} embrace +Islamism[7] or render you tribute. Every soldier who dies in battle +will share the treasures of God; nor can the coward prolong his life; +for the moment when he is destined to be smitten by the angel of death +is written in the Book of the Eternal. + +Such precepts, announced in majestic and highly figurative language, +embellished with the charms of verse, and presented by a warrior, +prophet, poet, and legislator, professing to be the representative of +an angel, to the most susceptible people in the world--to a people +possessing a passion alike for the marvellous and the voluptuous, for +heroism and for poetry--could scarcely fail to find disciples. +Converts rapidly crowded around Mohammed, and their numbers were soon +augmented by persecution. His enemies obliged the Prophet to fly from +his native Mecca and take refuge in Medina. This flight was the epoch +of his glory and of the Hegira of the Mussulmans. It occurred A.D. 622. + +From this moment Islamism spread like a torrent over the Arabias and +Ethiopia. In vain did the Jewish and idolatrous tribes attempt to +maintain their ancient faith; in vain did Mecca {26} arm her soldiers +against the destroyers of her gods; Mohammed, sword in hand, dispersed +their armies, seized upon their cities, and won the affections of the +people whom he subdued, by his clemency, his genius, and his +fascinating address. + +A legislator, a pontiff, the chief of all the Arab tribes, the +commander of an invincible army, respected by the Asiatic sovereigns, +adored by a powerful nation, and surrounded by captains who had become +heroes in serving under him, Mohammed was on the point of marching +against Heraclius, when his designs were for ever interrupted by the +termination of his existence. This event took place at Medina, A.D. +632, Hegira 2, and was the effect of poison, which had, some time +before, been administered to this extraordinary man by a Jewess of +Rhaibar. + +The death of the Prophet arrested neither the progress of his religion +nor the triumphs of the Moslem arms. + +Abubeker, the father-in-law of Mohammed, became his successor, and +assumed the title of _Caliph_, which simply signifies _vicar_. During +his reign the Saracens penetrated into Syria, dispersed the armies of +Heraclius, and took the {27} city of Damascus, the siege of which will +be for ever celebrated in consequence of the almost superhuman exploits +of the famous Kaled, surnamed the _Sword of God_.[8] + +Notwithstanding these successive victories, and the enormous amount of +booty thus taken from the enemy and committed to his keeping, Abubeker +appropriated to his own particular use a sum scarcely equivalent to +forty cents a day. + +Omar, the successor of Abubeker, commanded Kaled to march against +Jerusalem. That city soon became the prize of the Arabs; Syria and +Palestine were subdued; the Turks and the Persians demanded peace; +Heraclius fled from Antioch; and all Asia trembled before Omar and the +terrible Mussulmans. + +Modest, in spite of the triumphs that everywhere attended them, and +attributing their success to God alone, these Moslems preserved +unaltered their austere manners, their frugality, their severe +discipline, and their reverence for poverty, though surrounded by the +most corrupt of the nations of the earth, and exposed to the seductive +influences of the delicious climates and the luxurious pleasures of +some of the richest and most {28} beautiful countries in the world. +During the sacking of a city, the most eager and impetuous soldier +would be instantly arrested in the work of pillage by the word of his +chief, and would, with the strictest fidelity, deliver up the booty he +had obtained, that it might be deposited in the general treasury. Even +the most independent and magnificent of the heroic chiefs would hasten, +in accordance with the directions of the caliph, to take the command of +an army, and would become successively generals, private soldiers, or +ambassadors, in obedience to his slightest wish. In fine, Omar +himself--Omar, the richest, the greatest, the most puissant of the +monarchs of Asia, set forward upon a journey to Jerusalem; mounted upon +a red camel, which bore a sack of barley, one of rice, a well-filled +water-skin, and a wooden vase. Thus equipped, the caliph travelled +through the midst of conquered nations, who crowded around his path at +every step, entreating his blessing and praying him to adjudge their +quarrels. At last he joined his army, and, inculcating precepts of +simplicity, valour, and humility upon the soldiers, he made his +entrance into the Holy City, liberated such of its former Christian +possessors as had become {29} the captives of his people, and commanded +the preservation of the churches. Then remounting his camel, the +representative of the Prophet returned to Medina, to perform the duties +of the high-priest of his religion. + +The Mussulmans now advanced towards Egypt. That country was soon +subdued. Alexandrea was taken by Amrou, one of the most distinguished +generals of Omar. It was then that the famous library was destroyed, +whose loss still excites the profound regrets of the learned. The +Arabians, though such enthusiastic admirers of their national poetry, +despised the literature of all the rest of the world. Amrou caused the +library of the Ptolemies to be burned, yet this same Amrou was +nevertheless celebrated for his poetical effusions. He entertained the +sincerest affection and respect for the celebrated John the Grammarian, +to whom, but for the opposing order of the caliph, he would have given +this valuable collection of books. It was Amrou, too, who caused the +execution of a design worthy of the best age of Rome, that of +connecting the Red Sea with the Mediterranean by means of a navigable +canal, at a point where the waters of the Nile might be diverted from +{30} their course for its supply. This canal, so useful to Egypt, and +so important to the commerce of both Europe and Asia, was accomplished +in a few months. The Turks, in more modern times, have suffered it to +be destroyed. + +Amrou continued to advance into Africa, while the other Arabian +commanders passed the Euphrates and conquered the Persians. But Omar +was already no more, and Othman occupied his place. + +It was during the reign of this caliph that the Saracens, banishing for +ever its enfeebled Greek masters, conquered Mauritania, or the country +of the Moors of Africa, A.D. 647, Heg. 27. + +The invaders met with serious resistance only from the warlike tribes +of the Bereberes.[9] That bold and pastoral people, the descendants of +the ancient inhabitants of Numidia, and preserving, even to this day, a +species of independence, intrenched as they are in the Atlas Mountains, +long and successfully resisted the conquerors of the Moors. A Moslem +general named Akba finally succeeded in subjugating them, and in +compelling them to adopt the laws and faith of his country. + +{31} + +After that achievement Akba carried his arms to the extreme western +point of Africa, the ocean alone resisting him in his progress. There, +inspired by courage and devotion with feelings of the highest +enthusiasm, he forced his horse into the waves, and, drawing his sabre, +cried, "God of Mohammed, thou beholdest that, but for the element which +arrests me, I would have proceeded in search of unknown nations, whom I +would have forced to adore thy name!" + +Until this epoch, the Moors, under the successive dominion of the +Carthaginians, the Romans, the Vandals, and the Greeks, had taken but +little interest in the affairs of their different masters. + +Wandering in the deserts, they occupied themselves chiefly with the +care of their flocks; paid the arbitrary imposts levied upon them, +sometimes passively enduring the oppression of their rulers, and +sometimes essaying to break their chains; taking refuge, after each +defeat of their efforts, in the Atlas Mountains, or in the interior of +their country. + +Their religion was a mixture of Christianity and idolatry; their +manners those of the enslaved Nomades: rude, ignorant, and wretched, +{32} their condition was the prototype of what it now is under the +tyrants of Morocco. + +But the presence of the Arabs rapidly produced a great change among +these people. A common origin with that of their new masters, together +with similarity of language and temperament, contributed to bind the +conquered to their conquerors. + +The announcement of a religion which had been preached by a descendant +of Ishmael, whom the Moors regarded as their father; the rapid +conquests of the Mussulmans, who were already masters of half of Asia +and a large portion of Africa, and who threatened to enslave the world, +aroused the excitable imaginations of the Moors, and restored to their +national character all its passionate energy. They embraced the dogmas +of Mohammed with transport; they united with the Arabs, volunteered to +serve under the Moslem banners, and suddenly became simultaneously +enamoured with Islamism and with glory. + +This reunion, which doubled the military strength of the two united +nations, was disturbed for some time by the revolt of the Bereberes, +who never yielded their liberty under any circumstances. + +{33} + +The reigning caliph, Valid the First, despatched into Egypt +Moussa-ben-Nazir, a judicious and valiant commander, at the head of a +hundred thousand men, A.D. 708, Heg. 89. + +Moussa defeated the Bereberes, restored quiet in Mauritania, and seized +upon Tangier, which belonged to the Goths of Spain. + +Master of an immense region of country, of a redoubtable army, and of a +people who considered his supremacy as essential to their well-being, +the Saracen general from this period contemplated carrying his arms +into Spain. + +That beautiful kingdom, after having been successively under the yoke +of the Carthaginians and the Romans, had finally become the prey of the +Barbarians. The Alains, the Suevi, and the Vandals had divided its +provinces among them; but Euric, one of the Visigoths, who entered the +country from the south of Gaul, had, towards the end of the fifth +century, gained possession of the whole of Spain, and transmitted it to +his descendants. + +The softness of the climate, together with the effects of wealth and +luxury, gradually enfeebled these conquerors, creating vices from which +they had been previously free, and depriving {34} them of the warlike +qualities to which alone they had been indebted for their success. Of +the kings who succeeded Euric, some were Arians and others Catholics, +who abandoned their authority to the control of bishops, and occupied a +throne shaken to its centre by internal disturbances. Roderick, the +last of these Gothic sovereigns, polluted the throne by his vices; and +both history and tradition accuse him of the basest crimes. Indeed, in +the instance of nearly all these tyrants, their vices either directly +occasioned, or were made the pretext of their final ruin. + +The fact is well established, that Count Julian and his brother Oppas, +archbishop of Toledo, both of them distinguished and influential men, +favoured the irruption of the Moors into Spain. + +Tarik, one of the most renowned captains of his time,[10] was sent into +Spain by Moussa. He had at first but few troops; but he was not by +this prevented from defeating the large army that, by command of +Roderick, the last Gothic king, opposed his course. + +Subsequently, having received re-enforcements {35} from Africa, Tarik +vanquished Roderick himself at the battle of Xeres, where that +unfortunate monarch perished during the general flight in which the +conflict terminated, A.D. 714, Heg. 96. + +After this battle, the Mohammedan general, profiting by his victory, +penetrated into Estremadura, Andalusia, and the two Castiles, and took +possession of the city of Toledo. Being soon after joined by Moussa, +whose jealousy of the glory his lieutenant was so rapidly acquiring +prompted him to hasten to his side, these two remarkable commanders, +dividing their troops into several corps, achieved, in a few months, +the conquest of the whole of Spain. + +It should be observed, that these Moors, whom several historians have +represented as bloodthirsty barbarians, did not deprive the people whom +they had subjugated either of their faith, their churches, or the +administrators of their laws. They exacted from the Spaniards only the +tribute they had been accustomed to pay their kings. One cannot but +question the existence of the ferocity that is ascribed to them, when +it is remembered that the greater part of the Spanish cities submitted +to the invaders {36} without making the least attempt at resistance; +that the Christians readily united themselves with the Moors; that the +inhabitants of Toledo desired to assume the name of _Musarabs_; and +that Queen Egilona, the widow of Roderick, the last of the Gothic +sovereigns, publicly espoused, with the united consent of the two +nations, Abdelazis the son of Moussa. + +Moussa, whom the success of Tarik had greatly exasperated, wishing to +remove a lieutenant whose achievements eclipsed his own, preferred an +accusation against him to the caliph. Valid recalled them both, but +refused to adjudge their difference, and suffered them to die at court +from chagrin at seeing themselves forgotten. + +Abdelazis, the husband of Egilona, became governor of Spain A.D. 718, +Heg. 100, but did not long survive his elevation. Alahor, who +succeeded him, carried his arms into Gaul, subdued the Warbonnais, and +was preparing to push his conquests still farther, when he learned that +Pelagius, a prince of the blood-royal of the Visigoths, had taken +refuge in the mountains of Asturia with a handful of devoted followers; +that with them he dared to brave the conquerors of Spain, and had +formed the bold design of {37} attempting to rid himself of their yoke. +Alahor sent some troops against him. Pelagius, intrenched with his +little army in the mountain gorges, twice gave battle to the +Mussulmans, seized upon several castles, and, reanimating the spirits +of the Christians, whose courage had been almost extinguished by so +long a succession of reverses, taught the astonished Spaniards that the +Moors were not invincible. + +The insurrection of Pelagius occasioned the recall of Alahor by the +Caliph Omar II. Elzemah, his successor, was of opinion that the most +certain means of repressing revolts among a people is to render them +prosperous and contented. He therefore devoted himself to the wise and +humane government of Spain; to the regulation of imposts, until then +quite arbitrary; and to quieting the discontents of the soldiery, and +establishing their pay at a fixed rate. A lover of the fine arts, +which the Arabs began from that time to cultivate, Elzemah embellished +Cordova, which was his capital, and attracted thither the _savans_ of +the age. He was himself the author of a book containing a description +of the cities, rivers, provinces, and ports of Spain, of the metals, +mines, and quarries it {38} possesses; and, in short, of almost every +object of interest either in science or government. + +But little disturbed by the insurrectionary movements of Pelagius, +whose power was confined to the possession of some inaccessible +mountain fortresses, Elzemah did not attempt to force him from his +strongholds, but, impelled by the ardent desire of extending the +Moorish conquests into France, with which the governors of Spain were +ever inflamed, he passed the Pyrenees, and perished in a battle fought +against Eudes, duke of Aquitania, A.D. 722, Heg. 104. + +During the remainder of the Caliphate of Yezid II.,[11] several +governors followed each other in rapid succession after the death of +Elzemah.[12] None of their actions merit recital, but, during this +period, the brave Pelagius aggrandized his petty state, advancing into +the mountains of Leon, and, in addition, making himself master of +several towns. + +This hero, whose invincible daring roused the Asturians and Cantabrians +to struggle for liberty, laid the foundations of that powerful monarchy +{39} whose warriors afterward pursued the Moors even to the rocks of +the Atlas. + +The Moslems, who dreamed only of new conquests, made no considerable +efforts against Pelagius: they were confident of checking his rebellion +with the utmost ease when they should have accomplished the subjugation +of the French dominions; and that desire alone fired the ardent soul of +the new governor Abdalrahman, or, as he is commonly called, Abderamus. + +His love of glory, his valour, his genius, and, above all, his +immeasurable ambition, made the Mussulman governor regard this conquest +as one that could be easily effected; but he himself was destined to be +the vanquished. + +Charles Martel, the son of Pepin d'Heristel, and the grandfather of +Charlemagne, whose exploits effaced the recollection of those of his +father, and whose fame was not eclipsed by that of his grandson, was at +this time mayor of the palace, under the last princes of the first +race; or, rather, Charles was the real monarch of the French and German +nations. + +Eudes, duke of Aquitania, the possessor of Gascony and Guienne, had +long maintained a quarrel with the French hero. Unable longer, {40} +without assistance, to resist his foe, he sought an alliance with a +Moor named Munuza, who was the governor of Catalonia and the secret +enemy of Abderamus. These two powerful vassals, both discontented with +their respective sovereigns, and inspired as much by fear as dislike, +united themselves in the closest bonds, in despite of the difference in +their religious faith. The Christian duke did not hesitate to give his +daughter in marriage to his Mohammedan ally, and the Princess Numerance +espoused the Moorish Munuza, as Queen Egilona had espoused the Moorish +Abdelazis. + +Abderamus, when informed of this alliance, immediately divined the +motives which had induced it. He soon assembled an army, penetrated +with rapidity into Catalonia, and attacked Munuza, who was wounded in a +fruitless endeavour to fly, and afterward perished by his own hand. +His captive wife was conducted into the presence of the victorious +governor Abderamus, struck with her beauty, sent the fair Numerance as +a present to the Caliph Haccham, whose regard she elicited; and thus, +by a singular chance, a princess of Gascony became an inmate of the +seraglio of a sovereign of Damascus. + +{41} + +Not content with having so signally punished Munuza, Abderamus crossed +the Pyrenees, traversed Navarre, entered Guienne, and besieged and took +the City of Bordeaux. Eudes attempted, at the head of an army, to +arrest his progress, but was repelled in a decisive engagement. +Everything yielded to the Mussulman arms: Abderamus pursued his route, +ravaged Perigord, Saintonge, and Poitou, appeared in triumph in +Touraine, and paused only when within view of the streaming ensigns of +Charles Martel. + +Charles came to this rencounter followed by the forces of France, +Asturia, and Bourgogne, and attended by the veteran warriors whom he +was accustomed to lead to victory. The Duke of Aquitania was also in +the camp. Charles forgot his private injuries in the contemplation of +the common danger: this danger was pressing: the fate of France and +Germany--indeed, of the whole of Christendom, depended on the event of +the approaching conflict. + +Abderamus was a rival worthy of the son of Pepin. Flushed, like him, +with the proud recollection of numerous victories; at the head of an +innumerable army; surrounded by experienced captains, who had been the +frequent {42} witnesses of his martial triumphs; and long inspired with +the warmest hopes of finally adding to the dominion of Islamism the +only country belonging to the ancient Roman empire that still remained +unsubdued by the Saracens, the Moorish leader met his brave foe, upon +equal terms, on the battle-field of Tours, A.D. 733, Heg. 114. + +The action was long and bloody. Abderamus was slain; and this +dispiriting loss, without doubt, decided the defeat of his army.[13] +Historians assert that more than three hundred thousand men perished. +This statement is probably exaggerated; but it is certainly true, that +the Moors, who had thus penetrated into the midst of France, were +relentlessly pursued after their defeat, and were many of them unable +to escape from the army of the victors and the vengeance of the people. + +This memorable battle, of which we possess no details, saved France +from the yoke of the Arabs, and effectually arrested their spreading +dominion. + +Once again, subsequent to this reverse, the Moors attempted to +penetrate into France, and {43} succeeded in seizing upon Avignon; but +Charles Martel defeated them anew, retook the captured city, drove them +from Narbonne, and deprived them forever of the hope with which they +had so often flattered themselves. + +After the death of Abderamus, Spain was torn by dissensions between the +two governors[14] named successively by the Caliph. A third pretender +arrived from Africa. A fourth added himself to the list;[15] factions +multiplied; the different parties often had recourse to arms; chiefs +were assassinated, cities taken, and provinces ravaged. + +The details of these events are variously related by different +historians, but possess little interest in the narrations of any. + +These civil wars lasted nearly twenty years. The Christians, who had +retired into Asturia, profited by them to the utmost. Alphonso I., the +son-in-law and successor of Pelagius, imitated the career of that hero. +He seized upon a part of Galicia and Leon, repulsed the Mussulman +troops who were sent to oppose him, and rendered himself master of +several towns. + +The Moors, occupied by their domestic {44} quarrels, neglected to +arrest the progress of Alphonso, and from that time the growth of a +miniature kingdom commenced, whose interests were inimical to those of +the Saracens in Spain. + +After many crimes and combats, a certain _Joseph_ had succeeded in +triumphing over his different rivals, and was at last reigning supreme +in Cordova, when there occurred a memorable event in the East, which +was destined greatly to affect the condition of Spain. + +From that period, A.D. 749, Heg. 134, commences the second epoch of the +empire of the Moors of Spain, which makes it necessary to revert +briefly to the history of the Eastern caliphs. + + + +[1] The _Sabaei_, according to the best ancient authorities, were the +inhabitants of the extensive Arabian kingdom of _Saba_.--_Translator_. + +[2] The term Moors, according to Bochart, comes from a Hebrew word, +_Mahuran_, which signifies Western. + +[3] It is scarcely necessary to remind the reader that these _Children +of the Desert_ are supposed to be the lineal descendants of Ishmael, +the wandering, outcast son of the patriarch Abraham and the much-abused +Hagar.--_Translator_. + +[4] The primitive name of the Arabs, from _Nabathaea_, an appellation +for their country which is probably derived from _Nabath_, the son of +Ishmael. The capital city of Nabathaea was that _Petra_, of whose +present appearance and condition our eminent countryman, Stephens, has +given his readers so graphic a sketch in his "Travels," +&c.--_Translator_. + +[5] A.D. 569. + +[6] The Coheshirites, the guardians of the Temple of the Caaba at Mecca. + +[7] See Note A, page 203. + +[8] See Note B, page 206. + +[9] See note C, page 207. + +[10] See note D, page 208. + +[11] See Note E, page 308. + +[12] Ambeza, Azra, Jahiah, Osman, Hazifa, Hacchem, and Mohammed. + +[13] It was in this battle that Charles acquired the title of _Martel_, +or the _Hammer_. + +[14] Abdoulmelek and Akbe. + +[15] Aboulattar and Tevaba. + + + + +{45} + +SECOND EPOCH. + +THE KINGS OF CORDOVA BECOME THE CALIPHS OF THE WEST. + +_Extending from the middle of the Eighth to the commencement of the +Eleventh Century._ + + +We have seen that, under their first three caliphs, Abubeker, Omar, and +Othman, the Arabian conquerors of Syria, Persia, and Africa preserved +their ancient manners, their simplicity of character, their obedience to +the successors of the Prophet, and their contempt for luxury and wealth: +but what people could continue to withstand the influence of such an +accumulation of prosperity? These resistless conquerors turned their +weapons against each other: they forgot the virtues which had rendered +them invincible, and assisted by their dissensions in dismembering the +empire that their valour had created. + +The disastrous effects of the baneful spirit that had thus insidiously +supplanted the original principles of union, moderation, and prudence, by +which, as a nation, the Moslems had been {46} actuated, were first +manifested in the assassination of the Caliph Othman. + +Ali, the friend, companion, and adopted son of the Prophet, whose +courage, achievements, and relationship to Mohammed, as the husband of +his only daughter, had rendered him so dear to the Mussulmans, was +announced as the successor of Othman. + +But Moavias, the governor of Syria, refused to recognise the authority of +Ali, and, under the guidance of the sagacious Amrou, the conqueror of +Egypt, caused himself to be proclaimed Caliph of Damascus. Upon this, +the Arabians divided: those of Medina sustaining Ali, and those of Syria +Moavias. The first took the name of _Alides_, the others styled +themselves _Ommiades_, deriving their denomination from the grandfather +of Moavias. Such was the origin of the famous schism which still +separates the Turks and Persians. + +Though Ali succeeded in vanquishing Moavias in the field, he did not +avail himself judiciously of the advantage afforded him by his victory. +He was soon after assassinated,[1] and the spirit and courage of his +party vanished with the {47} occurrence of that event. The sons of Ali +made efforts to reanimate the ardour of his partisans, but in vain. + +Thus, in the midst of broils, revolts, and civil wars, the Ommiades still +remained in possession of the Caliphate of Damascus.[2] It was during the +reign of one of these princes, Valid the First, that the Arabian +conquests extended in the East to the banks of the Ganges, and in the +West to the shores of the Atlantic. The Ommiades, however, were for the +most part feeble, but they were sustained by able commanders, and the +{48} ancient valour of the Moslem soldiers was not yet degenerated. + +After the Ommiades had maintained their empire for the space of +ninety-three years, Mervan II.,[3] the last caliph of the race, was +deprived of his throne and his life[4] through the instrumentality of +Abdalla, a chief of the tribe of the Abbassides, who were, like the +Ommiades, near relatives of Mohammed. + +Aboul-Abbas, the nephew of Abdalla, supplanted the former caliph. With +him commenced the dynasty of the Abbassides, so celebrated in the East +for their love of science and their connexion with the names of Haroun Al +Raschid, Almamon, and the Bermasides.[5] + +The Abbassides retained the caliphate during five successive +centuries.[6] At the termination of {49} that period, they were +despoiled of their power by the Tartar posterity of Gengis Khan, after +{50} having witnessed the establishment of a race of Egyptian caliphs +named _Fatimites_, the pretended descendants of Fatima, the daughter of +Mohammed. + +Thus was the Eastern empire of the Arabs eventually destroyed: the +descendants of Ishmael returned to the country from which they had +originally sprung, and gradually reverted to nearly the same condition as +that in which they existed when the Prophet arose among them. {51} These +events, from the founding of the dynasty of the Abbassides, have been +anticipated in point of time in the relation, because henceforth the +history of Spain is no longer intermingled with that of the East. + +After having dwelt briefly upon an event intimately connected as well +with the establishment of the Abbassides upon the Moslem throne as with +the history of Spain, we will enter continuously upon the main subject of +our work. + +To return, then, for a moment, to the downfall of the Ommiade caliphs. + +When the cruel Abdalla had placed his nephew, Aboul-Abbas, on the throne +of the Caliphs of Damascus, he formed the horrible design of +exterminating the Ommiades. These princes were very numerous. With the +Arabs, among whom polygamy is permitted, and where numerous offspring are +regarded as the peculiar gift of Heaven, it is not unusual to find +several thousand individuals belonging to the same family. + +Abdalla, despairing of effecting the destruction of the race of his +enemies, dispersed as they were by terror, published a general amnesty to +all the Ommiades who should present themselves before him on a certain +day. Those ill-fated {52} people, confiding in the fulfilment of his +solemn promises, hastened to seek safety at the feet of Abdalla. The +monster, when they were all assembled, caused his soldiers to surround +them, and then commanded them all to be butchered in his presence. After +this frightful massacre, Abdalla ordered the bloody bodies to be ranged +side by side in close order, and then to be covered with boards spread +with Persian carpets. Upon this horrible table he caused a magnificent +feast to be served to his officers. One shudders at the perusal of such +details, but they serve to portray the character of this Oriental +conqueror. + +A solitary Ommiade escaped the miserable fate of his brethren; a prince +named Abderamus. A fugitive wanderer, he reached Egypt, and concealed +himself in the solitary recesses of its inhospitable deserts. + +The Moors of Spain, faithful to the Ommiades, though their governor +Joseph had recognised the authority of the Abbassides, had no sooner +learned that there existed in Egypt a scion of the illustrious family to +which they still retained their attachment, than they secretly sent +deputies to offer him their crown. Abderamus foresaw the {53} obstacles +with which he would be compelled to struggle, but, guided by the impulses +of a soul whose native greatness had been strengthened and purified by +adversity, he did not hesitate to accept the proposal of the Moors. + +The Ommiade prince arrived in the Peninsula A.D. 755, Heg. 138. He +speedily gained the hearts of his new subjects, assembled an army, took +possession of Seville, and, soon after, marched towards Cordova, the +capital of Mussulman Spain. Joseph, in the name of the Abbassides, +vainly attempted to oppose his progress. The governor was vanquished and +Cordova taken, together with several other cities. + +Abderamus was now not only the acknowledged king of Spain, but was +proclaimed _Caliph of the West_ A.D. 759, Heg. 142. + +During the supremacy of the Ommiades in the empire of the East, Spain had +continued to be ruled by governors sent thither from Asia by those +sovereigns; but it was now permanently separated from the great Arabian +empire, and elevated into a powerful and independent state, acknowledging +no farther allegiance to the Asiatic caliphs either in civil or religious +matters. Thus was the control hitherto exercised over the {54} affairs +of Spain by the Oriental caliphs forever wrested from them by the last +surviving individual of that royal race whom Abdalla had endeavoured to +exterminate. + +Abderamus the First established the seat of his new greatness at Cordova. +He was not long allowed peacefully to enjoy it, however. Revolts +instigated by the Abbassides, incursions into Catalonia by the French, +and wars with the kings of Leon,[7] incessantly demanded his attention; +but his courage and activity gained the ascendency even over such +numerous enemies. He maintained his throne with honour, and merited his +beautiful surname of _The Just_. + +Abderamus cultivated and cherished the fine arts, even in the midst of +the difficulties and dangers by which he was surrounded. It was he who +first established schools at Cordova for the study of astronomy, +mathematics, medicine, and grammar. He was also a poet, and was +considered the most eloquent man of his age. + +This first Caliph of the West adorned and fortified his capital, erected +a superb palace, which he surrounded by beautiful gardens, and commenced +the construction of a grand mosque, the {55} remains of which continue +even at this day to excite the admiration of the traveller. This +monument of magnificence was completed during the reign of Hacchem, the +son and successor of Abderamus. It is thought that the Spaniards have +not preserved more than one half of the original structure, yet it is now +six hundred feet long and two hundred wide, and is supported by more than +three hundred columns of alabaster, jasper, and marble. Formerly there +were twenty-four doors of entrance, composed of bronze covered with +sculptures of gold; and nearly five thousand lamps nightly served to +illuminate this magnificent edifice. + +In this mosque the caliphs of Cordova each Friday conducted the worship +of the people, that being the day consecrated to religion by the precepts +of Mohammed. Thither all the Mussulmans of Spain made pilgrimages, as +those of the East resorted to the temple at Mecca. There they +celebrated, with great solemnity, the fête of the great and the lesser +Beiram, which corresponds with the Passover of the Jews; that of the +Newyear, and that of Miloud, or the anniversary of the birth of Mohammed. +Each of these festivals lasted for eight days. During that time {56} all +labour ceased, the people sent presents to each other, exchanged visits, +and offered sacrifices. Disunited families, forgetting their +differences, pledged themselves to future concord, and consummated their +renewed amity by delivering themselves up to the enjoyment of every +pleasure permitted by the laws of the Koran. + +At night the city was illuminated, the streets were festooned with +flowers, and the promenades and public places resounded with the melody +of various musical instruments. + +The more worthily to celebrate the occasion, alms were lavishly +distributed by the wealthy, and the benedictions of the poor mingled with +the songs of rejoicing that everywhere ascended around them. + +Abderamus, having imbibed with his Oriental education a fondness for +these splendid fêtes, first introduced a taste for them into Spain. +Uniting, in his character of caliph, the civil and the sacerdotal +authority in his own person, he regulated the religious ceremonies on +such occasions, and caused them to be celebrated with all the pomp and +magnificence displayed under similar circumstances by the sovereigns of +Damascus. + +Though the caliph of Cordova was the enemy {57} of the Christians, and +numbered many of them among his subjects, he refrained from persecuting +them, but deprived the bishoprics of their religious heads and the +churches of their priests, and encouraged marriages between the Moors and +Spaniards. By these means the sagacious Moslem inflicted more injury +upon the true religion than could have been effected by the most rigorous +severity. + +Under the reign of Abderamus, the successors of Pelagius, still retaining +possession of Asturia, though weakened by the internal dissensions that +already began to prevail among them, were forced to submit to the payment +of the humiliating tribute of a hundred young females, Abderamus refusing +to grant them peace except at this price. + +Master of entire Spain, from Catalonia to the two seas, the first caliph +died A.D. 788, Heg. 172, after a glorious reign of thirty years, leaving +the crown to his son Hacchem, the third of his eleven sons. + +After the death of Abderamus the empire was disturbed by revolts, and by +wars between the new caliph and his brothers, his uncles, or other +princes of the royal blood. These civil wars {58} were inevitable under +a despotic government, where not even the order of succession to the +throne was regulated by law. To be an aspirant to the supreme authority +of the state, it was sufficient to belong to the royal race; and as each +of the caliphs, almost without exception, left numerous sons, all these +princes became the head of a faction, every one of them established +himself in some city, and, declaring himself its sovereign, took up arms +in opposition to the authority of the caliph. From this arose the +innumerable petty states that were created, annihilated, and raised again +with each change of sovereigns. Thus also originated the many instances +of conquered, deposed, or murdered kings, that make the history of the +Moors of Spain so difficult of methodical arrangement and so monotonous +in the perusal. + +Hacchem, and, after him, his son Abdelazis-el-Hacchem retained possession +of the caliphate notwithstanding these unceasing dissensions. The former +finished the beautiful mosque commenced by his father, and carried his +arms into France, in which kingdom his generals penetrated as far as +Narbonne. The latter, Abdelazis-el-Hacchem less fortunate than his +predecessor, did not {59} succeed in opposing the Spaniards and his +refractory subjects with unvarying success. His existence terminated in +the midst of national difficulties, and his son Abderamus became his +successor. + +Abderamus II. was a great monarch, notwithstanding the fact that, during +his reign, the power of the Christians began to balance that of the Moors. + +The Christians had taken advantage of the continual divisions which +prevailed among their former conquerors. Alphonso the Chaste, king of +Asturia, a valiant and politic monarch, had extended his dominions and +refused to pay the tribute of the hundred young maidens. Ramir, the +successor of Alphonso, maintained this independence, and several times +defeated the Mussulmans. Navarre became a kingdom, and Aragon had its +independent sovereigns, and was so fortunate as to possess a government +that properly respected the rights of the people.[8] The governors of +Catalonia, until then subjected to the kings of France, took advantage of +the feebleness of Louis le Debonnaire to render themselves independent. +In fine, all the north of Spain declared itself in opposition to the +Moors, {60} and the south became a prey to the irruptions of the Normans. + +Abderamus defended himself against all these adversaries, and obtained, +by his warlike talents, the surname of _Elmonzaffer_, which signifies +_the Victorious_. And, though constantly occupied by the cares of +government and of successive wars, this monarch afforded encouragement to +the fine arts, embellished his capital by a new mosque, and caused to be +erected a superb aqueduct, from which water was carried in leaden pipes +throughout the city in the utmost abundance. + +Abderamus possessed a soul capable of enjoying the most refined and +elevated pleasures. He attracted to his court poets and philosophers, +with whose society he frequently delighted himself; thus cultivating in +his own person the talents he encouraged in others. He invited from the +East the famous musician Ali-Zeriab, who established himself in Spain +through the beneficence of the caliph, and originated the celebrated +school[9] whose pupils afterward afforded such delight to the Oriental +world. + +The natural ferocity of the Moslems yielded to the influence of the +chivalrous example of {61} the caliph, and Cordova became, under the +dominion of Abderamus, the home of taste and pleasure, as well as the +chosen abode of science and the arts. + +A single anecdote will serve to illustrate the tenderness and generosity +that so strongly characterized this illustrious descendant of the +Ommiades. + +One day a favourite female slave left her master's presence in high +displeasure, and, retiring to her apartment, vowed that, sooner than open +the door for the admittance of Abderamus, she would suffer it to be +walled up. The chief eunuch, alarmed at this discourse, which he +regarded as almost blasphemous, hastened to prostrate himself before the +Prince of Believers, and to communicate to him the horrible purpose of +the rebellious slave. Abderamus smiled at the resolution of the offended +beauty, and commanded the eunuch to cause a wall composed of pieces of +coin to be erected before the door of her retreat, and avowed his +intention not to pass this barrier until the fair slave should have +voluntarily demolished it, by possessing herself of the materials of +which it was formed. The {62} historian[10] adds, that the same evening +the caliph entered the apartments of the appeased favourite without +opposition. + +This prince left forty-five sons and nearly as many daughters. Mohammed, +the eldest of his sons, succeeded him, A.D. 852, Heg. 238. The reigns of +Mohammed and his successors, Almanzor and Abdalla, offer to the historian +nothing for a period of fifty years but details of an uninterrupted +continuation of troubles, civil wars, and revolts, by which the governors +of the principal cities sought to render themselves independent. + +Alphonso the Great, king of Asturia, profited by these dissensions the +more effectually to confirm his own power. The Normans, from another +side, ravaged Andalusia anew. Toledo, frequently punished, but ever +rebellious, often possessed local sovereigns. Saragossa imitated the +example of Toledo. The authority of the caliphs was weakened, and their +empire, convulsed in every part, seemed on the point of dissolution, when +Abderamus III., the nephew of Abdalla, ascended the throne of Cordova, +and restored for some time its pristine splendour and power, A.D. 912, +Heg. 300. + +{63} + +This monarch, whose name, so dear to the Moslems, seemed to be an +auspicious omen, took the title of _Emir-al-Mumenin_, which signifies +_Prince of true Believers_. + +Victory attended the commencement of his reign; the rebels, whom his +predecessors had been unable to reduce to submission, were defeated; +factions were dissipated, and peace and order re-established. + +Being attacked by the Christians soon after he had assumed the crown, +Abderamus applied for assistance to the Moors of Africa. He maintained +long wars against the kings of Leon and the counts of Castile, who +wrested Madrid, then a place of comparative insignificance, from him, +A.D. 931, Heg. 319. Often attacked and sometimes overcome, but always +great and redoubtable notwithstanding occasional reverses, Abderamus knew +how to repair his losses, and avail himself to the utmost of his good +fortune. A profound statesman, and a brave and skilful commander, he +fomented divisions among the Spanish princes, carried his arms frequently +into the very centre of their states, and, having established a navy, +seized, in addition, upon Ceuta and Seldjemessa on the African coast. + +{64} + +Notwithstanding the incessant wars which occupied him during the whole of +his reign, the enormous expense to which he was subjected by the +maintenance of his armies and his naval force, and the purchase of +military assistance from Africa, Emir-al-Mumenim supported a luxury and +splendour at his court, the details of which would seem to be the mere +creations of the imagination, were they not attested by every historian +of the time. + +The contemporary Greek emperor, Constantine XI., wishing to oppose an +enemy capable of resisting their power, to the Abbassides of Bagdad, sent +ambassadors to Cordova to form an alliance with Abderamus. + +The Caliph of the West, flattered that Christians should come from so +distant a part of the world to request his support, signalized the +occasion by the display of a gorgeous pomp which rivalled that of the +most splendid Asiatic courts. He sent a suit of attendants to receive +the ambassadors at Jean. Numerous corps of cavalry, magnificently +mounted and attired, awaited their approach to Cordova, and a still more +brilliant display of infantry lined the avenues to the palace. The +courts were covered with the most {65} superb Persian and Egyptian +carpets, and the walls hung with cloth of gold. The caliph, blazing with +brilliants, and seated on a dazzling throne, surrounded by his family, +his viziers, and a numerous train of courtiers, received the Greek envoys +in a hall in which all his treasures were displayed. The _Hadjeb_, a +dignitary whose office among the Moors corresponded to that of the +ancient French _mayors of the palace_, introduced the ambassadors. They +prostrated themselves before Abderamus in amazement at the splendour of +this array, and presented to the Moorish sovereign the letter of +Constantine, written on blue parchment and enclosed in a box of gold. +The caliph signed the treaty, loaded the imperial messengers with +presents, and ordered that a numerous suite should accompany them even to +the walls of Constantinople. + +Abderamus III., though unceasingly occupied either by war or politics, +was all his life enamoured of one of his wives named Zahra.[11] He built +a city for her two miles distant from Cordova, which he named Zahra. + +This place is now destroyed. It was situated {66} at the base of a high +mountain, from which flowed numerous perpetual streams, whose waters ran +in all directions through the streets of the city, diffusing health and +coolness in their course, and forming ever-flowing fountains in the +centre of the public places. The houses, each built after the same +model, were surmounted by terraces and surrounded by gardens adorned with +groves of orange, laurel, and lime, and in which the myrtle, the rose, +and the jasmine mingled in pleasing confusion with all the varied +productions of that sunny and delicious clime. The statue of the +beautiful Zahra[12] was conspicuously placed over the principal gate of +this City of Love. + +But the attractions of the city were totally eclipsed by those of the +fairy-like palace of the favourite. Abderamus, as the ally of their +Imperial master, demanded the assistance of the most accomplished of the +Greek architects; and the sovereign of Constantinople, which was at that +time the chosen home of the fine arts, eagerly complied with his desires, +and sent the caliph, in addition, forty columns of granite of the rarest +and most beautiful workmanship. Independent {67} of these magnificent +columns, there were employed in the construction of this palace more than +twelve hundred others, formed of Spanish and Italian marble. The walls +of the apartment named the _Saloon of the Caliphate_, were covered with +ornaments of gold; and from the mouths of several animals, composed of +the same metal, gushed jets of water that fell into an alabaster +fountain, above which was suspended the famous pearl that the Emperor Leo +had presented to the caliph as a treasure of inestimable value. In the +pavilion where the mistress of this enchanting abode usually passed the +evening with the royal Moor, the ceiling was composed of gold and +burnished steel, incrusted with precious stones. And in the resplendent +light reflected from these brilliant ornaments by a hundred crystal +lustres, flashed the waters of a fountain, formed like a sheaf of grain, +from polished silver, whose delicate spray was received again by the +alabaster basin from whose centre it sprung. + +The reader might hesitate to believe these recitals; might suppose +himself perusing Oriental tales, or that the author was indebted for his +history to the _Thousand and One Nights_, were {68} not the facts here +detailed attested by the Arabian writers, and corroborated by foreign +authors of unquestionable veracity. It is true that the architectural +magnificence, the splendid pageantry, the pomp of power that +characterized the reign of this illustrious Saracenic king, resembled +nothing with which we are now familiar; but the incredulous questioners +of their former existence might be asked whether, had the pyramids of +Egypt been destroyed by an earthquake, they would now credit historians +who should give us the exact dimensions of those stupendous structures? + +The writers from whom are derived the details that have been given +concerning the court of the Spanish Mussulmans, mention also the sums +expended in the erection of the palace and city of Zahra. The cost +amounted annually to three hundred thousand dinars of gold,[13] and +twenty-five years hardly sufficed for the completion of this princely +monument of chivalrous devotion. + +{69} + +To these enormous expenditures should be added the maintenance of a +seraglio, in which the women, the slaves, and the black and white eunuchs +amounted to the number of six thousand persons. The officers of the +court, and the horses destined for their use, were in equally lavish +proportion. The royal guard alone was composed of twelve thousand +cavaliers. + +When it is remembered, that, from being continually at war with the +Spanish princes, Abderamus was obliged to keep numerous armies +incessantly on foot, to support a naval force, frequently to hire +stipendiaries from Africa, and to fortify and preserve in a state of +defence the ever-endangered fortresses on his frontiers, it is hardly +possible to comprehend how his revenues sufficed for the supply of such +immense and varied demands. But his resources were equally immense and +varied; and the sovereign of Cordova was perhaps the richest and most +powerful monarch then in Europe.[14] + +He held possession of Portugal, Andalusia, the Kingdom of Grenada, +Mercia, Valencia, and the greater part of New-Castile, the most beautiful +and fertile countries of Spain. + +{70} + +These provinces were at that time extremely populous, and the Moors had +attained the highest perfection in agriculture. Historians assure us, +that there existed on the shores of the Guadalquiver twelve thousand +villages; and that a traveller could not proceed through the country +without encountering some hamlet every quarter of an hour. There existed +in the dominions of the caliph eighty great cities, three hundred of the +second order, and an infinite number of smaller towns. Cordova, the +capital of the kingdom, enclosed within its walls two hundred thousand +houses and nine hundred public baths. + +All this prosperity was reversed by the expulsion of the Moors from the +Peninsula. The reason is apparent: the Moorish conquerors of Spain did +not persecute their vanquished foes; the Spaniards, when they had subdued +the Moors, oppressed and banished them. + +The revenues of the caliphs of Cordova are represented to have amounted +annually to twelve millions and forty-five thousand dinars of gold.[15] +Independent of this income in money, many imposts were paid in the +products of the soil; and among an industrious agricultural {71} +population, possessed of the most fertile country in the world, this +rural wealth was incalculable. The gold and silver mines, known in Spain +from the earliest times, were another source of wealth. Commerce, too, +enriched alike the sovereign and the people. The commerce of the Moors +was carried on in many articles: silks, oils, sugar, cochineal, iron, +wool (which was at that time extremely valuable), ambergris, yellow +amber, loadstone, antimony, isinglass, rock-crystal, sulphur, saffron, +ginger, the product of the coral-beds on the coast of Andalusia, of the +pearl fisheries on that of Catalonia, and rubies, of which they had +discovered two localities, one at Malaga and another at Beja. These +valuable articles were, either before or after being wrought, transported +to Egypt or other parts of Africa, and to the East. The emperors of +Constantinople, always allied from necessity to the caliphs of Cordova, +favoured these commercial enterprises, and, by their countenance, +assisted in enlarging, to a vast extent, the field of their operations; +while the neighbourhood of Africa, Italy, and France contributed also to +their prosperity. + +The arts, which are the children of commerce, and support the existence +of their parent, added {72} a new splendour to the brilliant reign of +Abderamus. The superb palaces he erected, the delicious gardens he +created, and the magnificent fêtes he instituted, drew to his court from +all parts architects and artists of every description. Cordova was the +home of industry and the asylum of the sciences. Celebrated schools of +geometry, astronomy, chymistry, and medicine were established +there--schools which, a century afterward, produced such men as Averroes +and Abenzoar. So distinguished were the learned Moorish poets, +philosophers, and physicians, that Alphonso the Great, king of Asturia, +wishing to confide the care of his son Ordogno to teachers capable of +conducting the education of a prince, appointed him two Arabian +preceptors, notwithstanding the difference of religious faith, and the +hatred entertained by the Christians towards the Mussulmans. And one of +the successors of Alphonso, Sancho the Great, king of Leon, being +attacked by a disease which it was supposed would prove fatal in its +effects, went unhesitatingly to Cordova, claimed the hospitality of his +national enemy, and placed himself under the care of the Mohammedan +physicians, who eventually succeeded in curing the malady of the +Christian king. + +{73} + +This singular fact does as much honour to the skill of the learned +Saracens as to the magnanimity of the caliph and the trusting confidence +of Sancho. + +Such was the condition of the caliphate of Cordova under the dominion of +Abderamus III. He occupied the throne fifty years, and we have seen with +what degree of honour to himself and benefit to his people. Perhaps +nothing will better illustrate the superiority of this prince to monarchs +generally than the following fragment, which was found, traced by his own +hand, among his papers after his death. + +"Fifty years have passed away since I became caliph. Riches, honours, +pleasures, I have enjoyed them all: I am satiated with them all. Rival +kings respect me, fear, and envy me. All that the heart of man can +desire. Heaven has lavishly bestowed on me. In this long period of +seeming felicity I have estimated the number of days during which I have +enjoyed _perfect happiness_: they amount to _fourteen_! Mortals, learn +to appreciate greatness, the world, and human life!" + +The successor of this monarch was his eldest {74} son, Aboul-Abbas El +Hakkam, who assumed, like his father, the title of _Emir-al-Mumenim_. + +The coronation of El Hakkam was celebrated with great pomp in the city of +Zahra. The new caliph there received the oath of fidelity from the +chiefs of the scythe guard, a numerous and redoubtable corps, composed of +strangers, which Abderamus III. had formed. The brothers and relations +of El Hakkam, the viziers and their chief, the _Hadjeb_, the white and +black eunuchs, the archers and cuirassiers of the guard, all swore +obedience to the monarch. These ceremonies were followed by the funeral +honours of Abderamus, whose body was carried to Cordova, and there +deposited in the tomb of his ancestors. + +Aboul-Abbas El Hakkam, equally wise with his father, but less warlike +than he, enjoyed greater tranquillity during his reign. His was the +dominion of justice and peace. The success and vigilance of Abderamus +had extinguished, for a time, the spirit of revolt, and prepared the way +for the continued possession of these great national blessings. + +Divided among themselves, the Christian kings entertained no designs of +disturbing their infidel neighbours. + +{75} + +The truce that existed between the Mussulmans and Castile and Leon was +broken but once during the life of El Hacchem. The caliph then commanded +his army in person, and completed a glorious campaign, taking several +cities from the Spaniards, and convincing them, by his achievements, of +the policy of future adherence to the terms of their treaty with their +Saracen opponents. + +During the remainder of his reign the Moorish sovereign applied himself +wholly to promoting the happiness of his subjects, to the cultivation of +science, to the collection of an extensive library, and, above all, to +enforcing a strict observance of the laws. + +The laws of the Moors were few and simple. It does not appear that there +existed among them any civil laws apart from those incorporated with +their religious code. Jurisprudence was reduced to the application of +the principles contained in the Koran. The caliph, as the supreme head +of their religion, possessed the power of interpreting these principles; +but even he would not have ventured to violate them. At least as often +as once a week, he publicly gave audience to his subjects, listened to +their {76} complaints, examined the guilty, and, without quitting the +tribunal, caused punishment to be immediately inflicted. The governors +placed by the sovereign over the different cities and provinces, +commanded the military force belonging to each, collected the public +revenues, superintended the administration of the police, and adjudged +the offences committed within their respective governments. Public +officers well versed in the laws discharged the functions of notaries, +and gave a juridical form to records relating to the possession of +property. When any lawsuits arose, magistrates called _cadis_, whose +authority was respected both by the king and the people, could alone +decide them. These suits were speedily determined; lawyers and attorneys +were unknown, and there was no expense nor chicanery connected with them. +Each party pleaded his cause in person, and the decrees of the cadi were +immediately executed. + +Criminal jurisprudence was scarcely more complicated. The Moors almost +invariably resorted to the _punishment of retaliation_ prescribed by the +founder of their religion. In truth, the wealthy were permitted to +exonerate themselves from the charge of bloodshed by the aid {77} of +money; but it was necessary that the relations of the deceased should +consent to this: the caliph himself would not have ventured to withhold +the head of one of his own sons who had been guilty of homicide, if its +delivery had been inexorably insisted upon. + +This simple code would not have sufficed had not the unlimited authority +exercised by fathers over their children, and husbands over their wives, +supplied the deficiencies of the laws. With regard to this implicit +obedience on the part of a family to the will of its chief, the Moors +preserved the ancient patriarchal customs of their ancestors. Every +father possessed, under his own roof, rights nearly equal to those of the +caliph. He decided, without appeal, the quarrels of his wives and those +of his sons: he punished with severity the slightest faults, and even +possessed the power of punishing certain crimes with death. Age alone +conferred this supremacy. An old man was always an object of reverence. +His presence arrested disorders: the most haughty young man cast down his +eyes at meeting him, and listened patiently to his reproofs. In short, +the possessor of a white beard {78} was everywhere invested with the +authority of a magistrate. + +This authority, which was more powerful among the Moors than that of +their laws, long subsisted unimpaired at Cordova. That the wise Hacchem +did nothing to enfeeble it, may be judged from the following illustration. + +A poor woman of Zahra possessed a small field contiguous to the gardens +of the caliph. El Hacchem, wishing to erect a pavilion there, directed +that the owner should be requested to dispose of it to him. But the +woman refused every remuneration that was offered her, and declared that +she would never sell the heritage of her ancestry. The king was, +doubtless, not informed of the obstinacy of this woman; but the +superintendent of the palace gardens, a minister worthy of a despotic +sovereign, forcibly seized upon the field, and the pavilion was built. +The poor woman hastened in despair to Cordova, to relate the story of her +misfortune to the Cadi Bechir, and to consult him respecting the course +she should pursue. The cadi thought that the Prince of true Believers +had no more right than any other man to possess himself by violence of +the property of another; and he endeavoured to {79} discover some means +of recalling to his recollection a truth which the best of rulers will +sometimes forget. + +One day, as the Moorish sovereign was surrounded by his court in the +beautiful pavilion built on the ground belonging to the poor woman, the +Cadi Bechir presented himself before him, seated on an ass, and carrying +in his hand a large sack. The astonished caliph demanded his errand. +"Prince of the Faithful!" replied Bechir, "I come to ask permission of +thee to fill this sack with the earth upon which thou standest." The +caliph cheerfully consented to this desire, and the cadi filled his sack +with the earth. He then left it standing, and, approaching his +sovereign, entreated him to crown his goodness by aiding him in loading +his ass with its burden. El Hacchem, amused by the request, yielded to +it, and attempted to raise the sack. Scarcely able to move it, he let it +fall again, and, laughing, complained of its enormous weight. "Prince of +Believers!" said Bechir then, with impressive gravity, "this sack, which +thou findest so heavy, contains, nevertheless, but a small portion of the +field thou hast usurped from one of thy subjects; how wilt thou sustain +the weight {80} of this entire field when thou shalt appear in the +presence of the Great Judge charged with this iniquity?" The caliph, +struck with this address, embraced the cadi, thanked him, acknowledged +his fault, and immediately restored to the poor woman the field of which +she had been despoiled, together with the pavilion and everything it +contained. + +The praise due to a despotic sovereign capable of such an action, is +inferior only to that which should be accorded to the cadi who induced +him to perform it. + +After reigning twelve years, El Hakkam died, A.D. 976, Heg. 366. His son +Hacchem succeeded him. + +This prince was an infant when he ascended the throne, and his +intellectual immaturity continued through life. During and after his +minority, a celebrated Moor named Mohammed Almanzor, being invested with +the important office of _Hadjeb_, governed the state with wisdom and +success. + +Almanzor united to the talents of a statesman the genius of a great +commander. He was the most formidable and fatal enemy with whom the +Christians had yet been obliged to contend. He {81} ruled the Moorish +empire twenty-six years under the name of the indolent Hacchem. More +than fifty different times he carried the terrors of war into Castile or +Asturia: he took and sacked the cities of Barcelona and Leon, and +advanced even to Compostella, destroying its famous church and carrying +the spoils to Cordova. + +The genius and influence of Mohammed temporarily restored the Moors to +their ancient strength and energy, and forced the whole Peninsula to +respect the rights of his feeble master, who, like another Sardanapalus, +dreamed away his life in the enjoyment of effeminate and debasing +pleasures.[16] + +But this was the last ray of unclouded splendour that shone upon the +empire of the Ommiades in Spain. The kings of Leon and Navarre, and the +Count of Castile, united their forces for the purpose of opposing the +redoubtable Almanzor. + +The opposing armies met near Medina-Celi. The conflict was long and +sanguinary, and the victory doubtful. The Moors, after the termination +of the combat, took to flight, terrified by the fearful loss they had +sustained; and {82} Almanzor, whom fifty years of uninterrupted military +success had persuaded that he was invincible, died of grief at this first +mortifying reverse. + +With this great man expired the good fortune of the Saracens of Spain. +From the period of his death, the Spaniards continued to increase their +own prosperity by the gradual ruin of the Moors. + +The sons of the hadjeb Almanzor successively replaced their illustrious +father; but, in inheriting his power, they did not inherit his talents. +Factions were again created. One of the relations of the caliph took up +arms against him, and possessed himself of the person of the monarch, +A.D. 1005, Heg. 596; and, though the rebellious prince dared not +sacrifice the life of Hacchem, he imprisoned him, and spread a report of +his death. + +This news reaching Africa, an Ommiade prince hastened thence to Spain +with an army, under pretext of avenging the death of Hacchem. The Count +of Castile formed an alliance with this stranger, and civil war was +kindled in Cordova. It soon spread throughout Spain, and the Christian +princes availed themselves of its disastrous effects to repossess +themselves of the cities of {83} which they had been deprived during the +supremacy of Almanzor. + +The imbecile Hacchem, negotiating and trifling alike with all parties, +was finally replaced on the throne, but was soon after forced again to +renounce it to save his life. + +After this event a multitude of conspirators[17] were in turn proclaimed +caliph, and in turn deposed, poisoned, or otherwise murdered. Almundir, +the last lingering branch of the race of the Ommiades, was bold enough to +claim the restoration of the rights of his family, even amid the tumult +of conflicting parties. His friends represented to him the dangers he +was about to encounter. "Should I reign but one day," replied lie, "and +expire on the next, I would not murmur at my fate!" But the desire of +the prince, even to this extent, was not gratified; he was assassinated +without obtaining possession of the caliphate. + +Usurpers of momentary authority followed. Jalmar-ben-Mohammed was the +last in order. His death terminated the empire of the Caliphs {84} of +the West, which had been possessed by the dynasty of the Ommiades for the +period of three centuries, A.D. 1027, Heg. 416. + +With the extinction of this line of princes vanished the power and the +glory of Cordova. + +The governors of the different cities, who had hitherto been the vassals +of the court of Cordova, profiting by the anarchy that prevailed, erected +themselves into independent sovereigns--That city was therefore no longer +the capital of a kingdom, though it still retained the religious +supremacy which it derived from its mosque. + +Enfeebled by divisions and subjected to such diversity of rule, the +Mussulmans were no longer able successfully to resist the encroachments +of the Spaniards. The Third Epoch of their history, therefore, will +present nothing but a narrative of their rapid decline. + + + +[1] See Note A, page 208. + +[2] The dynasty of the Ommiades, whose capital, as M. Florian informs us, +was Damascus, is most familiarly known in history as that of the _Caliphs +of Syria_; and the Abbassides, who succeeded them upon the throne of +Islam, are usually designated as the _Caliphs of Bagdad_, which city they +built, and there established the seat of their regal power and +magnificence. It may be observed, in connexion with this subject, that +though the authority of the Caliphs of Damascus continued to be disputed +and resisted after the death of Ali, yet with that event terminated the +temporary division of the civil and sacerdotal power which had been at +first occasioned by their usurpation of sovereignty. The political +supremacy of the party of Ali ceased with his existence, and the +authority that had belonged to the immediate successors of Mohammed long +continued to centre in the family of the Ommiade princes.--_Trans_. + +[3] See Note B, page 209. + +[4] A.D. 752, Heg. 134. + +[5] See Note C, page 209. + +[6] It was under the government of the Abbassides that the empire of the +East possessed that superiority in wealth, magnificence, and learning for +which it was once so celebrated. Under the sway of the Caliphs of +Bagdad, the Mohammedans became as much renowned for their attainments in +the higher branches of science as in the elegant and useful arts. To +them the civilized world is indebted for the revival of the exact and +physical sciences, and the discovery or restoration of most of the arts +that afterward lent such beneficial aid to the progress of European +literature and refinement. The far-famed capital of the Abbassides was +adorned with every attraction that the most unbounded wealth could +secure, or the most consummate art perfect. There taste and power had +combined exquisite luxury with unparalleled splendour, and there all that +imagination could suggest to fascinate the senses or enrapture the mind, +was realized. These princes of Islam, by their unbounded liberality, +attracted the learning and genius of other countries to their brilliant +court, several of them were the ardent lovers of science as well as the +munificent patrons of its devotees. Thus Bagdad became the favoured and +genial home of letters and the arts; and luxury and the pursuit of +pleasure were ennobled by a graceful union with the more elevated +enjoyments of cultivated intellect and refined taste. Nor were these +beneficent influences confined to the Mohammedan court, or to the period +of time when they were so powerfully exercised. The Moslem sovereigns +gave laws to a wide realm in arts as well as arms; and if the whole of +Europe did not acknowledge their political superiority, in the world of +science their supremacy was everywhere undisputed. That, like the +gradually enlarging circles made by a pebble thrown into calm water, +continued to spread farther and farther, until it reached the most +distant shores, and communicated a generous impulse to nations long sunk +in intellectual night. + + * * * * * * * * + +Such was the celebrated empire of the Abbassides in its halcyon days of +undiminished power--such the beautiful City of Peace, the favoured home +of imperial magnificence, ere the despoiling Tartar had profaned its +loveliness and destroyed its grandeur. Yet, when we look beneath the +brilliant exterior of these Oriental scenes and characters, we discover, +under the splendour and elegance by which the eyes of the world were so +long dazzled, the corruption and licentiousness of a government +containing within itself the seeds of its own insecurity and ultimate +destruction. We behold the absence of all fixed principles of +legislation; we frequently find absolute monarchs guided solely by +passion or caprice in the administration of arbitrary laws, and swaying +the destinies of a people who, as a whole, were far from deriving any +substantial advantage from the wealth and greatness of their despotic +rulers. We are thus led to observe the evils that necessarily result +from a want of those principles of vital religion, without which mere +human learning is so inadequate to discipline the passions or direct the +reason, and of those just and equal laws, the supremacy of which can +alone secure the happiness of a people or the permanency of political +institutions.--_Trans_. + +[7] See note D, page 212. + +[8] See note E, page 218. + +[9] See note F, page 313. + +[10] Cardonne, in his History of Spain. + +[11] This word signifies, in the Arabic, _Flower_, or _Ornament of the +World_. + +[12] See Note G, page 213. + +[13] The _dinar_ is estimated by M. Florian to be equal to at least _ten +livres_. According to that computation, the aggregate cost of the palace +and city of Zahra would amount to considerably more than $14,000,000. +_Trans_. + +[14] See note H, page 214. + +[15] About $22,500,000. + +[16] See Note I, page 214. + +[17] Mahadi, Suleiman, Ali, Abderamus IV., Casim, Jahiah, Hacchem III., +Mohammed, Abderamus V., Jahiah II., Hacchem IV., and Jalmar-ben-Mohammed. + + + + +{85} + +THIRD EPOCH. + +CONTAINING AN ACCOUNT OF THE PRINCIPAL KINGDOMS THAT SPRANG FROM THE +RUINS OF THE CALIPHATE. + +_Extending from the Commencement of the Eleventh to the Middle of the +Thirteenth Century._ + + +At the commencement of the eleventh century, when the throne of Cordova +was daily stained by the blood of some new usurper, the governors of +the different cities, as has been already remarked, had assumed the +title of kings. Toledo, Saragossa, Seville, Valencia, Lisbon, Huesca, +and several other places of inferior importance, each possessed +independent sovereigns. + +The history of these numerous kingdoms would be nearly as fatiguing to +the reader as to the writer. It presents, for the space of two hundred +years, nothing but accounts of repeated massacres, of fortresses taken +and retaken, of pillages and seditions, of occasional instances of +heroic conduct, but far more numerous crimes. Passing rapidly over two +centuries of {86} misfortunes, let it suffice to contemplate the +termination of these petty Moorish sovereignties. + +Christian Spain, in the mean time, presented nearly the same picture as +that exhibited by the portion of the Peninsula still in possession of +the Mohammedans. The kings of Leon, Navarre, Castile, and Aragon were +almost always relatives, and sometimes brothers; but they were not, for +that reason, the less sanguinary in their designs towards each other. +Difference of religion did not prevent them from uniting with the +Moors, the more effectually to oppress other Christians, or other Moors +with whom they chanced to be at enmity. Thus, in a battle which +occurred A.D. 1010 between two Mussulman leaders, there were found +among the slain a count of Urgel and three bishops of Catalonia.[1] +And the King of Leon, Alphonso V., gave his sister Theresa in marriage +to Abdalla, the Moorish king of Toledo, to convert him into an ally +against Castile. + +Among the Christians, as among the Moors, crimes were multiplied; civil +wars of both a local and general nature at the same time distracted +Spain, and the unhappy people expiated with {87} their property and +their lives the iniquities of their rulers. + +While thus regarding a long succession of melancholy events, it is +agreeable to find a king of Toledo called Almamon, and Benabad, the +Mussulman king of Seville, affording an asylum at their courts, the one +to Alphonso, the young king of Leon, and the other to the unfortunate +Garcias, king of Galicia, both of whom had been driven from their +kingdoms by their brother Sancho, of Castile, A.D. 1071 Heg. 465. +Sancho pursued his brothers as though they had been his most implacable +enemies; and the Moorish monarchs, the natural enemies of all the +Christians, received these two fugitive princes as brothers. Almamon, +especially, lavished the most affectionate attention upon the +unfortunate Alphonso: he endeavoured to entertain him at Toledo with +such varied pleasures as should banish regret for the loss of a throne: +he gave him an income, and, in short, treated the prince as though he +had been a near and beloved relative. When the death of the cruel +Sancho (A.D. 1072, Heg. 466) had rendered Alphonso king of Leon and +Castile, the generous Almamon, who now had the person of the king of +his enemies in his {88} power, accompanied the prince to the frontiers +of his kingdom, loaded him with presents and caresses, and, at parting, +offered the free use of his troops and treasures to his late guest. + +While Almamon lived, Alphonso IV. never forgot his obligations to his +benefactor. He maintained peace with him, aided him in his campaigns +against the King of Seville, and even entered into a treaty with +Hacchem, the son and successor of his ally. But, after a brief reign, +Hacchem left the throne of Toledo to his youthful brother Jahiah. That +prince oppressed the Christians, who were very numerous in his city; +and they secretly implored Alphonso to make war upon Jahiah. The +memory of Almamon long caused the Spanish monarch to hesitate in +relation to this subject. Gratitude impelled him not to listen to the +suggestions of ambition and the prayers of his countrymen; but the +arguments of gratitude proved the least strong, and Alphonso encamped +before Toledo. + +After a long and celebrated siege, to which several French and other +foreign warriors eagerly hastened, Toledo finally capitulated, A.D. +1085, Heg. 478. + +The conqueror allowed the sons of Almamon {89} to go and reign at +Valencia, and engaged by an oath to preserve the mosques from +destruction. He could not, however, prevent the Christians from +speedily violating this promise. + +Such was the end of the Moorish kingdom of Toledo. This ancient +capital of the Goths had belonged to the Arabs three hundred and +eighty-two years. + +Several other less important cities now submitted to the Christian +yoke. The kings of Aragon and Navarre, and the Count of Barcelona, +incessantly harassed and besieged the petty Mussulman princes who still +remained in the north of Spain. The attacks of the kings of Castile +and Leon afforded sufficient occupation for those of the south, +effectually to prevent their rendering any assistance to their +brethren. Above all, the Cid, the famous Cid, flew from one part of +Spain to another, at the head of the invincible band with whom his fame +had surrounded him, everywhere achieving victories for the Christians, +and even lending the aid of his arms to the Moors when they were +internally divided, but always securing success to the party he +favoured. + +This hero, one of the most truly admirable of those whom history has +celebrated, since in his {90} character were united the most exalted +virtue and the highest qualities of the soldier; this simple Castilian +cavalier, upon whom his reputation alone bestowed the control of +armies, became master of several cities, assisted the King of Aragon to +seize upon Huesca, and conquered the kingdom of Valencia without any +other assistance than that of his men-at-arms. Equal in power with his +sovereign, of whose treatment he frequently had reason to complain, and +envied and persecuted by the jealous courtiers, the Cid never forgot +for a moment that he was the subject of the King of Castile. Banished +from court, and even exiled from his estates, he hastened, with his +brave companions, to attack and conquer the Moors, and to send those of +them whom he vanquished to render homage to the king who had deprived +him of his rights. + +Being soon recalled to the presence of Alphonso, in consequence of the +king's needing his military aid, the Cid left the scenes of his martial +triumphs, and, without demanding reparation for the injuries he had +sustained, returned to defend his persecutors; ever ready, while in +disgrace, to forget everything in the performance of his duty to his +king, and equally ready, when enjoying {91} the favour of the +sovereign, to displease him, if it should be necessary to do so, by +advocating the cause of truth and justice.[2] + +While the prowess of the Cid maintained the contest, the Christians had +the advantage; but a few years after his death, which occurred in the +year 1099 and the 492d of the Hegira, the Moors of Andalusia changed +masters, and became, for a time, more formidable than ever to their +Spanish foes. + +After the fall of Toledo, Seville had increased in power. The +sovereigns of that city were also masters of ancient Cordova, and +possessed, in addition, Estremadura and a part of Portugal. Benabad, +king of Seville, one of the most estimable princes of his age, was now +the only one of its enemies capable of disturbing the safety of +Castile. Alphonso IV., desirous of allying himself with this powerful +Moor, demanded his daughter in marriage. His proposal was acceded to, +and the Castilian monarch received several towns as the dowry of the +Moorish princess; but this extraordinary union, which seemed to ensure +peace between the two nations, nevertheless soon became either the +cause or the pretext of renewed contests. + +{92} + +Africa, after having been separated from the vast empire of the Caliphs +of the East by the Fatimite caliphs, and being, during three centuries +of civil war, the prey of a succession of conquerors more ferocious and +sanguinary than the lions of their deserts,[3] was now subjected to the +family of the _Almoravides_, a powerful tribe of Egyptian origin. +Joseph-ben-Tessefin, the second prince of this dynasty, founded the +kingdom and city of Morocco. + +Endowed with some warlike talents, proud of his power, and burning to +augment it, Joseph regarded with a covetous eye the beautiful European +provinces which had formerly been conquered by the Mussulmans of Africa. + +Some historians assert that the King of Castile, Alphonso IV., and his +father-in-law Benabad, king of Seville, having formed the project of +dividing Spain between them, committed the capital error of summoning +the Moors of Africa to their assistance in this grand design. But +others, founding their assertions upon more plausible reasoning, say +that the petty Mussulman kings, who were the neighbours or tributaries +of Benabad, justly alarmed at his alliance with a {93} Christian king, +solicited the support of the Almoravide. + +But, be that as it may, the ambitious Joseph eagerly availed himself of +the fortunate pretext presented by the invitation he had received, and +crossed the Mediterranean at the head of an army. He hastened to +attack Alphonso, and succeeded in overcoming him in a battle that took +place between them, A.D. 1097, Heg. 490. Then turning his arms against +Benabad, Joseph took Cordova, besieged Seville, and was preparing for +the assault of that city, when the virtuous Benabad, sacrificing his +crown and even his liberty to save his subjects from the horrors that +threatened them, delivered himself up, together with his family of a +hundred children, to the disposal of the Almoravide. + +The barbarous African, dreading the influence of a monarch whose +virtues had rendered him so justly dear to his people, sent him to end +his days in an African prison, where his daughters were obliged to +support their father and brothers by the labour of their hands. + +The unfortunate Benabad lived six years after the commencement of his +imprisonment, regretting his lost throne only for the sake of his {94} +people, and beguiling the period of his protracted leisure by the +composition of several poems which are still in existence. In them he +attempts to console his daughters under their heavy afflictions, +recalls the remembrance of his vanished greatness, and offers himself +as a warning and example to kings who shall presume to trust too +confidently to the unchanging continuance of the favours of fortune. + +Joseph-ben-Tessefin, after he had thus become master of Seville and +Cordova, soon succeeded in subjugating the other petty Mussulman +states; and the Moors, united under a single monarch as powerful as +Joseph, threatened again to occupy the important position they had +sustained during the supremacy of their caliphs. The Spanish princes, +alarmed at this prospect, suspended their individual quarrels, and +joined Alphonso in resisting the Africans. + +At this particular juncture, a fanatical love of religion and glory +induced many European warriors to take up arms against the infidels. +Raymond of Bourgogne, and his kinsman Henry, both French princes of the +blood, Raymond of Saint-Gilles, count of Toulouse, with some other +cavaliers from among their vassals, crossed the {95} Pyrenees with +their retainers, and fought under the banners of the King of Castile. +Thus assisted, that sovereign put the Egyptian commander to flight, and +compelled him, soon afterward, to recross the Mediterranean. + +The grateful Alphonso gave his daughters as a recompense to the +distinguished Frenchmen who had lent him the aid of their arms. The +eldest, Urraca, espoused Raymond of Bourgogne, and their son afterward +inherited the kingdom of Castile. Theresa became the wife of Henry, +and brought him as a dowry all the land he had thus far conquered or +should hereafter conquer in Portugal: from thence originated that +kingdom. Elvira was given to Raymond, count of Toulouse, who carried +her with him to the Holy Land, where he gained some possessions by his +valour. + +Excited by these illustrious examples, other French cavaliers resorted +soon after to the standard of the King of _Aragon_, Alphonso I., who +made himself master of Saragossa, and for ever destroyed that ancient +kingdom of the Moors, A.D. 1118, Heg. 512. + +The son of Henry of Bourgogne, Alphonso I. king of Portugal, a prince +renowned for his {96} bravery, availed himself of the presence of a +combined fleet of English, Flemings, and Germans, who had anchored in +the harbour of that city on their way to the Holy Land, to lay siege to +Lisbon. He carried that place by assault, in spite of its great +strength, and made it the capital of his kingdom, A.D. 1147, Heg. 541. + +During this period the kings of Castile and Navarre were extending +their conquests in Andalusia. + +The Moors were attacked on all sides, and their cities were everywhere +compelled to surrender, now that they were no longer materially aided +by the Almoravides. Those African princes were at this time +sufficiently occupied at home in opposing some new sectaries, the +principal of whom, under pretext of reinitiating the people in a +knowledge of the pure doctrines of Mohammed, opened for themselves a +path to the throne, and, after many struggles, ended by effectually +driving the family of the Almoravides from its possession. The new +conquerors, becoming by these means masters of Morocco and Fez, +destroyed, according to the African custom, every individual of the +supplanted race, and founded a new dynasty, which is known under {97} +the name of the _Almohades_, A.D. 1149, Heg. 543. + +In the midst of these divisions, these wars and combats, the fine arts +still continued to be cultivated at Cordova. And though they were no +longer in the flourishing condition in which they were maintained +during the reigns of the several caliphs who bore the cherished name of +Abderamus, yet the schools of philosophy, poetry, and medicine had +continued to exist. These schools produced, in the twelfth century, +several distinguished men, among the most celebrated of whom were the +learned Abenzoar and the famous Averroes. The former, equally profound +in medicine, pharmacy, and surgery, lived, it is said, to the age of +one hundred and thirty-five years. Some estimable works which he +produced are still extant. Averroes was also a physician, but he was +more of a philosopher, poet, lawyer, and commentator. He acquired a +reputation so profound, that passing centuries have only served more +firmly to establish it. The disposition made by this remarkable man of +his time during the different periods of his existence, will illustrate +his mental character. In his youth he was the passionate votary of +{98} pleasure and poetry: in more mature age he burned the verses he +had previously composed, studied the principles of legislation, and +discharged the duties of a judicial officer: having advanced still +farther in life, he abandoned these occupations for the pursuit of +medicine, in which he attained very great eminence: at last philosophy +alone supplied the place of every earlier taste, and wholly engrossed +his attention for the remainder of his life. It was Averroes who first +created among the Moors a taste for Greek literature. He translated +the works of Aristotle into Arabic, and wrote commentaries upon them. +He also published several other works upon philosophy and medicine, and +possessed the united glory of having both enlightened and benefited +mankind.[4] + +As Africa, distracted by the long war of the Almoravides and the +Almohades, was unable to offer any opposition to the progress of the +Christians in Spain, these last, availing themselves of this condition +of affairs, continued to extend their conquests in Andalusia. If the +Spanish princes had been less disunited, and had acted in concert +against the infidels, they would have been able {99} at this period to +deprive the Mussulmans of their entire dominions in the Peninsula. But +these ever-contending princes had no sooner taken a Moorish city than +they began to dispute among themselves about its possession. + +The newly-created kingdom of Portugal, established by the military +powers of Alphonso, was soon at war with that of Leon.[5] Aragon and +Castile, after many bloody quarrels, united in a league against +Navarre. Sancho VIII., the sovereign of that little state, was forced +to resort to Africa for assistance, and implore the aid of the +Almohades. But they, being but recently established on the throne of +Morocco, were still employed in exterminating the dismembered fragments +of the party of the Almoravides, and could not, in spite of their eager +desire to do so, establish any claim to their assumed rights in Spain. +Nevertheless, two kings of the race of the Almohades, both named +Joseph, passed the Mediterranean more than once with numerous armies. +The one was successfully opposed by the Portuguese, and did not survive +his final defeat; the other was more fortunate, and succeeded in +vanquishing the Castilians, but {100} was soon after obliged to accept +a truce and return in haste to Morocco, to which new disturbances +recalled him, A.D. 1195, Heg. 591. + +But these useless victories, these ill-sustained efforts, did not +permanently disable either the Mussulmans or the Christians. On both +sides, the vanquished parties soon re-entered the field, in utter +neglect of the treaties into which they might ever so recently have +entered. The sovereigns of Morocco, though regarded as the kings of +Andalusia, nevertheless possessed only a precarious authority in that +country, which was always disputed when they were absent, and +acknowledged only when necessity forced the Mussulman inhabitants to +have recourse to their protection. + +At last Mohammed _El Nazir_, the fourth prince of the dynasty of the +Almohades, to whom the Spaniards gave the name of the Green, from the +colour of his turban, finding himself in quiet possession of the +Moorish empire of Africa, resolved to assemble all his forces, to lead +them into Spain, and to renew in that country the ancient conquests of +Tarik and Moussa. A holy war was proclaimed, A.D. 1211, Heg. 608, and +an innumerable army {101} crowded around the ensigns of Mohammed, left +the shores of Africa under the guidance of that monarch, and safely +arrived in Andalusia. There their numbers were nearly doubled by the +Spanish Moors, whom hatred to the very name of Christian, arising from +the vivid remembrance of accumulated injuries, induced to join the +bands of El Nazir. + +The sanguine Mohammed promised an easy triumph to his followers, +together with the certainty of rendering themselves masters of all that +their ancestors had formerly possessed; and, burning to commence the +contest, he immediately advanced towards Castile at the head of his +formidable army, which, according to the reports of historians, +amounted to more than six hundred thousand men. + +The king of Castile, Alphonso the Noble, informed of the warlike +preparations of the King of Morocco, implored the assistance of the +Christian princes of Europe. Pope Innocent III. proclaimed a crusade +and granted indulgences most lavishly. Rodrique, archbishop of Toledo, +made in person a voyage to Rome, to solicit the aid of the sovereign +pontiff; and, returning homeward through France, preached to the people +{102} on his route, and induced many cavaliers to proceed at the head +of bands of recruits to Spain, and join the opponents of the Mussulmans. + +The general rendezvous was at Toledo, at which point there were soon +collected more than sixty thousand crusaders from Italy and France, who +united themselves with the soldiers of Castile. The King of Aragon, +Peter II., the same who afterward perished in the war of the Albigense, +led his valiant army to the place of meeting, and Sancho VIII., king of +Navarre, was not backward in presenting himself at the head of his +brave subjects. The Portuguese had recently lost their king, but they +despatched their best warriors to Toledo. In short, all Spain flew to +arms. There was general union for the promotion of mutual safety; for +never, since the time of King Rodrique, had the Christians been placed +in such imminent danger. + +It was at the foot of the Sierra Morena, at a place named _Las Navas de +Toloza_, that the three Spanish princes encountered the Moors, A.D. +1212, Heg. 609. + +Mohammed El Nazir had taken possession of the mountain gorges through +which it had been the intention of the Christians to approach {103} his +camp. The adroit African thus designed, either to force his opponents +to turn back, which would expose them to the danger of a failure of +provisions, or to overwhelm them in the pass if they should attempt to +enter it. Upon discovering this circumstance, a council was called by +the embarrassed Christian leaders. Alphonso was desirous of attempting +the passage, but the kings of Navarre and Aragon advised a retreat. In +the midst of this dilemma, a shepherd presented himself before them, +and offered to conduct them through a defile of the mountain, with +which he was familiar. This proposal, which was the salvation of their +army, was eagerly accepted, and the shepherd guided the Catholic +sovereigns through difficult paths and across rocks and torrents, +until, with their followers, they finally succeeded in attaining the +summit of the mountain. + +There, suddenly presenting themselves before the eyes of the astonished +Moors, they were engaged for the space of two days in preparing +themselves for the conflict, by prayer, confession, and the solemn +reception of the holy sacrament Their leaders set an example to the +soldiers in this zealous devotion; and the prelates and {104} +ecclesiastics, of whom there were a great number in the camp, after +having absolved these devout warriors, prepared to accompany them into +the midst of the conflict. + +Upon the third day, the sixteenth of July, in the year twelve hundred +and twelve, the Christian army was drawn up in battle array. The +troops were formed into three divisions, each commanded by a king. +Alphonso was in the centre, at the head of his Castilians and the +chevaliers of the newly-instituted orders of Saint James and Calatrava; +Rodrique, archbishop of Toledo, the eyewitness and historian of this +great battle, advanced by the side of Alphonso, preceded by a large +cross, the principal ensign of the army; Sancho and his Navarrois +formed the right, while Peter and his subjects occupied the left. The +French crusaders, now reduced to a small number by the desertion of +many of their companions, who had been unable to endure the scorching +heat of the climate, marched in the van of the other troops, under the +command of Arnault, archbishop of Narbonne. + +Thus disposed, the Christians descended towards the valley which +separated them from their enemies. + +{105} + +The Moors, according to their ancient custom, everywhere displayed +their innumerable soldiers, without order or arrangement. An admirable +cavalry, to the number of a hundred thousand men, composed their +principal strength: the rest of their army was made up of a crowd of +ill-armed and imperfectly trained foot-soldiers. Mohammed, stationed +on a height, from which he could command a view of his whole army, was +encompassed by a defence made of chains of iron, guarded by the +choicest of his cavaliers on foot. Standing in the midst of this +enclosure, with the Koran in one hand and an unsheathed sabre in the +other, the Saracen commander was visible to all his troops, of whom the +bravest squadrons occupied the four sides of the hill. + +The Castilians directed their first efforts towards this elevation. At +first they drove back the Moors, but, repulsed in their turn, they +recoiled in disorder and began to retreat. Alphonso flew here and +there, attempting to rally their broken ranks, "Archbishop," said he to +the prelate who everywhere accompanied him, preceded by the grand +standard of the Cross, "Archbishop, here are we destined to die!" "Not +{106} so, sire," replied the ecclesiastic; "we are destined here to +live and conquer!" At that moment the brave canon who carried the +chief ensign threw himself with it into the midst of the infidels; the +prelate and the king followed him, and the Castilian soldiers rushed +forward to protect their sovereign and their sacred standard. The +already victorious kings of Aragon and Navarre now advanced at the head +of their wings to unite in the attack upon the height. The Moors were +assaulted at all points: they bravely resisted their opponents; but the +Christians crowded upon them--the Aragonais, the Navarrois, and the +Castilians endeavouring mutually to surpass each other in courage and +daring. The brave King of Navarre, making a path for himself through +the midst of its defenders, reached the enclosure, and struck and broke +the chains by which the Moorish commander was surrounded.[6] Mohammed +took to flight on beholding this catastrophe; and his soldiers, no +longer beholding their king, lost both hope and courage. They gave way +in all directions, and fled before the Christians. Thousands of the +Mussulmans fell beneath the {107} weapons of their pursuers, while the +Archbishop of Toledo, with the other ecclesiastics, surrounding the +victorious sovereigns, chanted a _Te Deum_ on the field of battle. + +Thus was gained the famous battle of Toloza, of which some details have +been given in consequence of its great importance, and in illustration +of the military tactics of the Moors. With them the arts of war +consisted solely in mingling with the enemy, and fighting, each one for +himself, until either the strongest or the bravest of the two parties +remained masters of the field. + +The Spaniards possessed but little more military skill than their +Moslem neighbours; but their infantry, at least, could attack and +resist in mass, while the discipline of that of the Saracens amounted +to scarcely anything. On the other hand, again, the cavalry of the +Moors was admirably trained. The cavaliers who composed it belonged to +the principal families in the kingdom, and possessed excellent horses, +in the art of managing which they had been trained from childhood. +Their mode of combat was to rush forward with the rapidity of light, +strike with the sabre or the lance, fly away as quickly, and then wheel +suddenly and return again to the {108} encounter. Thus they often +succeeded in recalling victory to their standard when she seemed just +about to desert them. The Christians, covered as they were with iron, +had in some respects the advantage of these knights, whose persons were +protected only by a breastplate and headpiece of steel. The Moorish +foot-soldiers were nearly naked, and armed only with a wretched pike. +It is easy to perceive that, when involved in the _mêlée_, and, above +all, during a route, vast numbers of them must have perished. This, +too, renders less incredible the seemingly extravagant accounts given +by historians of their losses in the field. They assert, for example, +that, at the battle of Toloza, the Christians killed two hundred +thousand Moors, while they lost themselves but fifteen hundred +soldiers. Even when these assertions are estimated at their true +value, it remains certain that the infidels sustained an immense loss; +and this important defeat, which is still celebrated yearly at Toledo +by a solemn fête, long deprived the kings of Morocco of all hope of +subjugating the Spaniards. + +The victory of Toloza was followed by more fatal consequences to the +unfortunate Mohammed than to the Moors of Andalusia; for the {109} +latter retired to their cities, defended them by means of the remains +of the African army, and successfully resisted the Spanish princes, who +succeeded in taking but few of their strong places, and, speedily +dissolving their league, separated for their respective kingdoms. But +Mohammed, despised by his subjects after his defeat, and assailed by +the treachery of his nearest relations, lost all authority in Spain, +and beheld the principal Moors, whom he had now no power to control, +again forming little states, the independence of which they were +prepared to assert by force of arms.[7] The discomfited El Nazir +consequently returned to Africa, where he soon after died of chagrin. + +With Mohammed the Green vanished the good fortune of the Almohades. +The princes of that house, who followed El Nazir in rapid succession, +purchased their royal prerogatives at the expense of continual +unhappiness and danger, and were finally driven from the throne. The +empire of Morocco was then divided, and three new dynasties were +established; that of Fez, of Tunis, and of Tremecen. These three +powerful and rival sovereignties greatly multiplied the {110} +conflicts, crimes, and atrocities, the narration of which alone +constitutes the history of Africa. + +About this period some dissensions arose in Castile, which, together +with the part assumed by the King of Aragon in the war of the Albigense +in France, allowed the Moors time to breathe. The Moslems were still +masters of the kingdoms of Valencia, Murcia, Grenada, and Andalusia, +with part of Algarva and the Balearic Isles, which last, until that +time, had continued to be but little known to the Christians of the +Continent. + +These states were divided between several sovereigns, the principal of +whom was Benhoud, a descendant of the ancient kings of Saragossa, a +sagacious monarch and a great commander, who by his genius and courage +had obtained dominion over all the southeastern part of Spain. Next to +Benhoud in rank, the most important of these Mohammedan princes were +the kings of Seville and Valentia. The barbarian who reigned at +Majorca was a mere piratical chief, whose enmity was formidable only to +the inhabitants of the neighbouring coast of Catalonia. + +Such was the condition of Moorish Spain, {111} when two young heroes +seated themselves, nearly at the same time, on the thrones of the two +principal Christian states; and, after having allayed the commotions +created during the period of their minority, directed their +concentrated efforts against the Mussulmans, A.D. 1224, Heg. 621. + +These princes, who were mutually desirous to emulate each other in +fame, but were never rivals in interest, both consecrated their lives +to the extirpation of the inflexible enemies of their native land. One +of these sovereigns was Jacques I., king of Aragon (a son of the Peter +of Aragon who distinguished himself on the field of Toloza), who united +to the courage, grace, and energy of his father, a greater degree of +genius and success than fell to the lot of that sovereign. The other +was Ferdinand III., king of Castile and Leon, a discerning, courageous, +and enterprising monarch, whom the Romish Church has numbered with its +saints, and history ranks among its great men. + +This prince was the nephew of Blanche of Castile, queen of France, and +cousin-german of St. Lewis,[8] whom he nearly resembled in his {112} +piety, his bravery, and the wise laws he framed for the benefit of his +subjects. + +Ferdinand carried his arms first into Andalusia. When he entered the +territories of the infidels, he received the homage of several Moorish +princes, who came to acknowledge themselves his vassals. As he +proceeded, he seized upon a great number of places, and, among others, +the town of Alhambra, whose frightened inhabitants retired to Grenada, +and established themselves in a portion of that city, which thus +obtained the name by which it was afterward so much celebrated. + +Jacques of Aragon, on his part, set sail with an army for the Balearic +Isles. Though impeded in his progress by contrary winds, he succeeded +at last in reaching Majorca, on the shore of which island he defeated +the Moorish force that attempted to oppose his landing, and then +marched towards their capital and laid siege to it. + +The chivalrous Jacques, who, when danger was to be encountered, always +took precedence of even his bravest officers and most daring soldiers, +was, as usual, the first to mount the walls in the assault upon this +city. It was carried, {113} notwithstanding its great strength, the +Mussulman king driven from the throne, and this new crown permanently +incorporated with that of Aragon, A.D. 1229, Heg. 627. + +Jacques had long been meditating a most important conquest. Valencia, +after the death of the Cid, had again fallen into the hands of the +Moors. This beautiful and fertile province, where nature seemed to +delight herself by covering anew with fruit and flowers the soil that +man had so often deluged with blood, was now under the dominion of +Zeith, a brother of Mohammed El Nazir, the African king who was +vanquished at Toloza by the Christians. A powerful faction, inimical +to the power of Zeith, wished to place upon the throne a prince named +Zean. The two competitors appealed to arms to decide their respective +claims. The King of Aragon espoused the cause of Zeith, and, under +pretext of marching to his assistance, advanced into the kingdom of +Valencia, several times defeated Zean, seized upon his strong places, +and, with the active intrepidity that rendered him so formidable a foe, +invested the capital of his enemy, A.D. 1234, Heg. 632. + +Thus pressed by the sovereign of Aragon, {114} Zean implored the aid of +Benhoud, the most puissant of the kings of Andalusia. But Benhoud was +at this time occupied in resisting the encroachments of Ferdinand. The +Castilians, under the conduct of that valiant prince, had made new +progress against the Moors. After possessing themselves of a great +number of other cities, they had now laid siege to ancient Cordova. + +Benhoud had been often vanquished, but always retained the affections +of a people who regarded him as their last support. He had again +collected an army, and, though possessed with an equally earnest desire +to relieve both Cordova and Valencia, was about to march towards the +latter, from a belief that he was most likely to be there successful, +when his life was treacherously terminated by one of his lieutenants. + +The Catholic kings were by this means delivered from the opposition of +the only man who was capable of impeding the accomplishment of their +wishes. + +The death of Benhoud deprived the inhabitants of Cordova of all courage +and hope. Until then they had defended themselves with {115} equal +courage and constancy; but they offered to capitulate upon receiving +intelligence of this disastrous event.[9] + +The Christians made the most rigorous use of their victory, granting +only life and liberty of departure to the unfortunate disciples of the +Prophet. An innumerable host of these wretched people came forth from +their former homes, weeping, and despoiled of all their possessions. +Slowly they left the superb city which had been for more than five +hundred and twenty years the principal seat of their national +greatness, their luxurious magnificence, their cherished religion, and +their favourite literature and fine arts. + +Often did these desolate exiles pause on their way, and turn their +despairing eyes once again towards the towering palaces, the splendid +temples, the beautiful gardens, that five centuries of lavish expense +and toilsome effort had served to adorn and perfect, only to become the +spoil of the enemies of their faith and their race. + +The Catholic soldiers who were now the occupants of these enchanting +abodes, were so far from appreciating their loveliness and value, {116} +that they preferred rather to destroy than inhabit them; and Ferdinand +soon found himself the possessor of a deserted city. He was therefore +compelled to attract inhabitants to Cordova from other parts of his +dominions, by the offer of extraordinary immunities. But, +notwithstanding the privileges thus accorded them, the Spaniards +murmured at leaving their arid rocks and barren fields, to dwell in the +palaces of caliphs and amid nature's most luxuriant scenes. + +The grand mosque of Abderamus was converted into a cathedral, and +Cordova became the residence of a bishop and canons, but it was never +restored to the faintest shadow of its former splendour. + +Not long after the fall of Cordova, Valencia also submitted to the +Christian yoke. Zean, besides being assailed externally by the force +of the intrepid Jacques, had, in addition, to oppose within his walls +the faction of Zeith, whom he had dethroned. The king of Tunis, too, +had been unsuccessful in an attempt to send a fleet to the relief of +Valencia: it at once took to flight on the appearance of the vessels of +Jacques. Abandoned by the whole world, disheartened by the fate of +Cordova, and betrayed {117} by the party of his competitor, Zean +offered to become the vassal of the crown of Aragon, and to pay a +tribute in acknowledgment of his vassalage; but the Christian monarch +was inflexible, and would accede to no terms that did not include a +stipulation to surrender the city. + +Fifty thousand Moors, bearing their treasures with them, accompanied +the departure of their sovereign from Valencia. Jacques had pledged +his royal word to protect the rich booty which they so highly valued +from the cupidity of his soldiers, and he faithfully performed his +promise. + +After the destruction of the two powerful kingdoms of Andalusia and +Valencia, there seemed to exist no Moorish power capable of arresting +the progress of the Spanish arms. That of Seville, which alone +remained, was already menaced by the victorious Ferdinand. But, just +at this period, a new state rose suddenly into importance, which +maintained a high degree of celebrity for two hundred years, and long +prevented the final ruin of the Moors. + + + +[1] See note A, page 216. + +[2] See note B, page 216. + +[3] See note C, page 218. + +[4] See Note D, page 220. + +[5] A.D. 1178. + +[6] See Note E, page 221. + +[7] A.D. 1213, Heg. 610. + +[8] See Note F, page 231. + +[9] A.D. 1236, Heg. 634. + + + + +{118} + +FOURTH EPOCH. + +THE KINGS OF GRENADA. + +_Extending from the middle of the Thirteenth Century to the period of +the Total Expulsion of the Moors from Spain, A.D. 1493._ + + +The unprecedented success of the Spaniards, and, above all, the loss of +Cordova, spread consternation among the Moors. That ardent and +superstitious people, who were ever equally ready to cherish delusive +hopes, and to yield to despondency when those anticipations were +disappointed, looked upon their empire as ruined the moment the +Christian cross surmounted the pinnacle of their grand mosque, and the +banner of Castile waved over the walls of their ancient capital--those +walls on which the standards of the Caliphs of the West and of their +Prophet had for centuries floated in triumph. + +Notwithstanding this national dejection, however, Seville, Grenada, +Murcia, and the kingdom of Algarva still belonged to the Mussulmans. +They possessed all the seaports, and the {119} whole maritime coast of +the south of Spain. Their enormous population, and great national +wealth and industry, also secured to them immense resources; but +Cordova, the holy city, the rival of Mecca in the West--Cordova was in +the possession of the Christians, and the Moors believed that all was +lost. + +But the hopes of these despairing followers of Islam were rekindled by +the almost magical influence of a single individual, a scion of the +tribe of the _Alhamars_, named Mohammed Aboussaid, who came originally +from the celebrated Arabian city of Couffa. + +Several historians, who speak of Mohammed under the title of _Mohammed +Alhamar_, assure us that he commenced his career as a simple shepherd, +and that, having afterward borne arms, he aspired to the attainment of +royal power in consequence of his martial exploits. Such an incident +is not extraordinary among the Arabs, where all who are not descended +either from the family of the Prophet or from the royal race, +possessing none of the privileges of birth, are esteemed solely +according to their personal merits. + +But, be that as it may, Mohammed Aboussaid {120} possessed sufficient +intellectual powers to reanimate the expiring courage of the vanquished +Moslems. He assembled an army in the city of Arjona, and, well knowing +the peculiar character of the nation that he wished to control, +proceeded to gain over to his interests a _santon_, a species of +religious character highly venerated among the Moors. This oracular +individual publicly predicted to the people of Algarva that Mohammed +Alhamar was destined speedily to become their king. Accordingly, he +was soon proclaimed by the inhabitants, and several other cities +followed the example thus set them. + +Mohammed now filled the place of Benhoud, to whom he possessed similar +talents for government; and, feeling the necessity of selecting a city +to replace Cordova in the affections of the Moors, to become the sacred +asylum of their religion, and the centring point for their military +strength, he founded a new kingdom, and made the city of Grenada its +capital, A.D. 1236, Heg. 634. + +This city, powerful from the remotest times, and supposed to be the +ancient Illiberis of the Romans, was built upon two hills, not far +distant from the Sierra Nevada, a chain of {121} mountains whose +summits are covered with perpetual snow. The town was traversed by the +river Darra, and the waters of the Xenil bathed its walls. Each of the +two hills was crowned by a fortress: on the one was that of the +Alhambra, and on the other that of the Albayzin. These strongholds +were either of them sufficient in extent to accommodate forty thousand +men within their walls. The fugitives from the city of Alhambra, as +has already been stated, had given the name of their former home to the +new quarter that they peopled; and the Moors who had been driven from +Baeca when Ferdinand III. became master of that place, had established +themselves, in a similar manner, in the quarter of the Albayzin. + +This city had also received many exiles from Valencia, Cordova, and +other places which the Mussulmans had deserted. + +With a population whose numbers were daily augmented, Grenada, at the +period of which we now speak, was more than three leagues in circuit, +surrounded by impregnable ramparts; defended by many strong towers, and +by a brave and numerous people, whose military prowess seemed to ensure +their safety and independence. + +{122} + +Various were the advantages that combined in giving to Grenada the +supremacy she had assumed. Her location was one of the most agreeable +and beautiful in the world, and rendered her mistress of a country on +which nature had lavished her choicest gifts. The famous _vega_, or +plain, by which the city was surrounded, was thirty leagues in length +and eight in breadth. It was terminated on the north by the mountains +of Elvira and the Sierra Nevada, and enclosed on the remaining sides by +hills clothed with the verdure of the olive, the mulberry, the lemon, +and the vine. + +This enchanting plain was watered by five small rivers[1] and an +infinite number of gushing springs, whose streams wandered in graceful +meanderings through meadows of perpetual verdure, through forests of +oak and plantations of grain, flax, and sugar-cane, or burst forth in +the midst of gardens, and orchards, and orange-groves. + +All the rich, and beautiful, and varied productions of the soil +required but little attention in their culture. The earth was +continually {123} covered with vegetation, in myriads of changing +forms, and never knew the repose of winter. + +During the heat of summer, the mountain breezes spread a refreshing +coolness through the air of this lovely vega, and preserved the early +brilliancy and beauty of the flowers, that were ever mingled in +delightful confusion with the varied fruits of a tropical region. + +On this celebrated plain, whose charms no description can embellish; on +this enchanting vega, where nature seemed to have exhausted her efforts +in lavishing all that the heart of man could desire or his imagination +conceive, more blood has been shed than on any other spot in the world. +There--where, during two centuries of unceasing warfare, whose baleful +effects extended from generation to generation, from city to city, and +from man to man--there does not exist a single isolated portion of +earth where the trees have not been wantonly destroyed, the villages +reduced to ashes, and the desolated fields strewn with the mingled +corses of slaughtered Moors and Christians. + +Independent of this _vega_, which was of such inestimable value to +Grenada, fourteen great cities and more than one hundred of smaller +{124} size, together with a prodigious number of towns, were embraced +within the boundaries of this fine kingdom. + +The extent of Grenada, from Gibraltar (which was not taken by the +Christians until long after this period) to the city of Lorca, was more +than eighty leagues. It was thirty leagues in breadth from Cambril to +the Mediterranean. + +The mountain, by which the kingdom of Grenada was intersected, produced +gold, silver, granite, amethysts, and various kinds of marble. + +Among these mountains, those of the Alpuxaries alone formed a province, +and yielded the monarch of Grenada more precious treasures than their +mines could furnish--active and athletic men, who became either hardy +and industrious husbandmen, or faithful and indefatigable soldiers. + +In addition to all this, the ports of Almeria, Malaga, and Algeziras +received into their harbours the vessels of both Europe and Africa, and +became places of deposite for the commerce of the Mediterranean and the +Atlantic. + +Such, at its birth, was the kingdom of Grenada, and such it long +continued. Mohammed Alhamar, from the period of its establishment, +{125} made useless efforts to unite all the remaining dominions of the +Mussulmans of Spain under one sceptre, as the only means of +successfully resisting the encroachments of the Christians. But the +little kingdom of Murcia and that of Algarva were each governed by +separate princes, who persisted in maintaining their independence. +This was the cause of their ruin, for they thus became more readily the +prey of the Spaniards. + +Alhamar signalized the commencement of his reign by military +achievements. In the year 1242, Heg. 640, he gained some important +advantages over the troops of Ferdinand. But repeated revolts in the +capital and disturbances in other parts of his new empire, eventually +compelled Mohammed to conclude a dishonourable peace with the King of +Castile. He agreed to do homage for his crown to the Castilian +sovereign, to put the strong place of Jaen into his hands, to pay him a +tribute, and to furnish him with auxiliary troops for any wars in which +he should engage. On these conditions Ferdinand acknowledged him King +of Grenada, and even aided him in subduing his rebellious subjects. + +The sagacious Ferdinand thus established a {126} truce with Grenada, +that he might the more effectually concentrate his forces against +Seville, which he had long entertained hopes of conquering. + +The important city of Seville was no longer under the dominion of a +king, but formed a kind of republic, governed by military magistrates. +Its situation at no great distance from the mouth of the Guadalquivir, +its commerce, its population, the mildness of the climate, and the +fertility of the environs, rendered Seville one of the most flourishing +cities of Spain. + +Ferdinand, foreseeing a long resistance, commenced the campaign by +seizing upon all the neighbouring towns. + +Finally, he laid siege to Seville itself, and his fleet, stationed at +the mouth of the Guadalquivir, closed the door to any assistance which +might be sent from Africa in aid of the beleaguered city. + +The siege was long and bloody. The Sevillians were numerous and well +skilled in the arts of war, and their ally, the King of Algarva, +harassed the besiegers unceasingly. Notwithstanding the extreme +bravery displayed by the Christians in their assaults, and the scarcity +of {127} provisions which began to be felt within the walls, the city, +after an investment of a whole year, still refused to surrender. + +Ferdinand then summoned the King of Grenada to come, in accordance with +their treaty, and serve under his banners. Alhamar was forced to obey, +and soon presented himself in the Christian camp at the head of a +brilliant army. The inhabitants of Seville lost all hope after this +occurrence, and surrendered to the Castilian monarch. The King of +Grenada returned to his own dominions with the humiliating glory of +having contributed, by his assistance, to the ruin of his countrymen. + +Ferdinand, with more piety than policy, banished the infidels from +Seville. One hundred thousand of that unfortunate people left the +city, to seek an exile's home in Africa or in the provinces of Grenada. + +The kingdom of Grenada now became the sole and last asylum of the +Spanish Moslems. The little kingdom of Algarva was soon obliged to +receive the yoke of Portugal, and Murcia, in consequence of its +separation from Grenada, became the prey of the Castilians. + +{128} + +During the life of Ferdinand III., nothing occurred to interrupt the +good understanding that existed between that monarch and Mohammed +Alhamar. + +The King of Grenada wisely took advantage of this peaceful period more +effectually to confirm himself in the possession of his crown, and to +make preparations for a renewal of hostilities against the Christians, +who would not, he foresaw, long remain his friends. + +Mohammed, by this means, ultimately found himself in a condition that +would enable him long to defend his power and dominions. He was master +of a country of great extent, and he possessed considerable revenues, +the amount of which it is now difficult correctly to estimate, in +consequence of the ignorance which prevails on the subject of the +peculiar financial system of the Moors, and the different sources from +which the public treasury was supplied. Every husbandman, for example, +paid the seventh part of the produce of his fields to his sovereign; +his flocks even were not exempted from this exaction. The royal domain +comprised numerous valuable farms; and, as agriculture was carried to +the highest degree of perfection, the revenues from {129} these, in so +luxuriant a country, must have amounted to a very large sum. The +annual income of the sovereign was augmented by various taxes levied on +the sale, marking, and passage from one point to another of all kinds +of cattle. The laws bestowed on the king the inheritance of such of +his subjects as died childless, and gave him, in addition, a portion in +the estates of other deceased persons. He also possessed, as has been +already shown, mines of gold, silver, and precious stones; and though +the Moors were but little skilled in the art of mining, still there was +no country in Europe in which gold and silver were more common than +among them. + +The commerce carried on in their beautiful silks, and in a great +variety of other productions; their contiguity to the Mediterranean and +Atlantic; their activity, industry, and astonishing population; their +superior knowledge of the science of agriculture; the sobriety natural +to all the inhabitants of Spain; and that peculiar property of a +southern climate, by which much is produced from the soil, while very +little suffices for the maintenance of its possessor; all these, united +with their other national {130} advantages, will furnish some idea of +the great power and resources of this singular people. + +Their standing military force--it can scarcely be said in times of +peace, for they rarely knew the blessings of that state--amounted to +nearly a hundred thousand men; and this army, in case of necessity, +could easily be increased to double that number. The single city of +Grenada could furnish fifty thousand soldiers. Indeed, every Moor +would readily become a soldier to oppose the Christians. The +difference of faith rendered these wars sacred in their eyes; and the +mutual hatred entertained by these two almost equally superstitious +nations never failed to arm, when necessary, every individual of both +sides, even from children to old men. + +Independent of the numerous and brave, but ill-disciplined troops, who +would assemble for a campaign, and afterward return to their homes +without occasioning any expense to the state, the Moorish monarch +maintained a considerable corps of cavaliers, who were dispersed along +the frontiers, particularly in the directions of Murcia and Jaen, those +parts of the country being most exposed to the repeated incursions of +the Spaniards. Upon each of these cavaliers the king {131} bestowed +for life a small habitation, with sufficient adjoining ground for his +own maintenance, and that of his family and horse. This method of +keeping soldiers in service, while it occasioned no expense to the +public treasury, served to attach them more firmly to their country, by +identifying their interests with hers; and it held out to them the +strongest motives faithfully to defend their charge, inasmuch as their +patrimony was always first exposed to the ravages of the enemy. + +At a time when the art of war had not reached the perfection it has now +attained, and when large bodies of troops were not kept continually +assembled and exercised, the system of stationing this peculiar guard +along the frontiers was of admirable effect. + +The knights who composed this unrivalled cavalry were mounted on +African or Andalusian chargers, whose merits in the field are so +well-known, and were accustomed from infancy to their management; +treating them with the tenderest care, and regarding them as their +inseparable companions: by these means they acquired that remarkable +superiority for which the Moorish cavalry is still so celebrated. + +{132} + +These redoubtable squadrons, whose velocity of movement was unequalled; +who would, almost at the same moment, charge in mass, break into +detached troops, scatter, rally, fly off, and again form in line; these +cavaliers, whose voice, whose slightest gesture, whose very thoughts, +so to speak, were intelligible to their docile and sagacious steeds, +and who were able to recover a lance or sabre that had fallen to the +earth while in full gallop, constituted the principal military force of +the Moors. Their infantry was of little value; and their ill-fortified +towns, surrounded only by walls and moats, and defended by this +worthless infantry, could offer but an imperfect resistance to that of +the Spaniards, which began already to deserve the reputation it +afterward so well sustained in Italy, under Gonzalvo, the Great Captain. + +After the death of St. Ferdinand, his son Alphonso the Sage[2] mounted +the throne, A.D. 1252, Heg. 650. The first care of Mohammed Alhamar +after this event was to go in person to Toledo, followed by a brilliant +retinue, to renew the treaty of alliance, or, rather, of dependance, by +which he was united to Ferdinand. {133} The new king of Castile +remitted on this occasion a part of the tribute to which the Moors had +been subjected. + +But this peace was not of long continuance; and the two contending +nations now recommenced the war with nearly equal advantages. + +An incident is related as having occurred during this war, which +reflects equal honour on the humanity of the Moors and the courage of +the Spaniards. It refers to Garcias Gomes, governor of the city of +Xeres. He was besieged by the Grenadians, and his garrison nearly +destroyed, but still he refused to surrender; and, standing on the +ramparts covered with blood, and literally bristling with arrows, he +sustained alone the onset of the assailants. The Moors, on seeing him +in this situation, agreed, with one accord, to spare the life of so +brave a man. Garcias then threw himself from the walls upon some iron +hooks; but he was rescued alive in spite of his efforts to prevent it, +treated with respect by his captors, and, after his wounds were healed, +dismissed with presents. + +Alhamar could not prevent Alphonso from adding the kingdom of Murcia to +his dominions; and the fortunes of war compelled him to obtain {134} +peace by submitting anew to the payment of tribute to the Catholic +sovereign, A.D. 1266, Heg. 665. + +But some dissensions which soon after arose between the Castilian +monarch and some of the grandees of his kingdom, inspired the Grenadian +king with the hope of repairing the loss he had sustained. The brother +of Alphonso, together with several noblemen belonging to the principal +Castilian families, retired to Grenada in open defiance of the +authority of the Spanish monarch, and materially aided Mohammed Alhamar +in repressing the insurrectionary movements of two of his rebellious +subjects, who were countenanced in their attempts by the Christians. + +But, just at this juncture, the wise and politic King of Grenada died, +leaving the throne that he had acquired and preserved by his talents to +his son Mohammed II., El Fakik, A.D. 1273, Heg. 672. + +The new Mussulman king, who took the title of _Emir al Mumenim_, +adopted in all respects the policy of his father. He took every +advantage in his power of the discord which reigned at the Castilian +court, and of the ineffectual voyages undertaken by Alphonso in the +hope of {135} being elected emperor.[3] Finally, during the absence of +his enemy, Mohammed formed an offensive league with Jacob, the king of +Morocco, a prince of the race of the _Merines_, the conquerors and +successors of the Almohades. The Grenadian sovereign ceded to his +African ally the two important places of Tariffe and Algeziras, on +condition of his crossing the Mediterranean to the Peninsula. + +Jacob, in accordance with this agreement, arrived in Spain, at the head +of an army, in the year 1275 (the 675th of the Hegira); and the two +Moorish leaders, by acting in concert, gained some important advantages. + +But the criminal revolt of Sancho, the Infant of Castile, against his +father Alphonso the Sage, soon afterward divided these Mussulman +monarchs. The King of Grenada took the part of the rebellious son, +while Alphonso, reduced to extremity by the abandonment of his +subjects, implored the assistance of the King of Morocco. Jacob +recrossed the sea with his troops, and met Alphonso at Zara. At that +celebrated interview, the unfortunate Castilian wished to concede the +place of honour to the king, who was there as {136} his defender. "It +belongs to you," said Jacob to him, "because you are unfortunate! I +came here to avenge a cause which should be that of every father. I +came here to aid you in punishing an ingrate, who, though he received +life from you, would still deprive you of your crown. When I shall +have fulfilled this duty, and you are again prosperous and happy, I +will once more become your enemy, and contest every point of precedence +with you." + +The soul of the Christian prince was not sufficiently noble, however, +to prompt him to confide himself to the monarch who had uttered these +sentiments, and he escaped from the camp. Alphonso died soon after +this event, disinheriting his guilty son before he expired, A.D. 1284, +Heg. 683. + +Sancho[4] reigned in his father's stead, however, notwithstanding this +prohibition, and international troubles convulsed Castile anew. + +Mohammed seized this moment to enter Andalusia. He gained several +battles, and took some important places in that kingdom, and thus +victoriously terminated a long and glorious reign, A.D. 1302, Heg. 703. + +{137} + +This Mohammed _Emir al Mumenim_, the principal political events of +whose life have now been briefly narrated, was a munificent patron of +the fine arts. He added their charms to the attractions of a court +which poets, philosophers, and astronomers alike contributed to render +celebrated. + +As an illustration of the scientific superiority that the Moors still +maintained over the Spaniards, the fact may be mentioned that Alphonso +the Sage, king of Castile, availed himself, in the arrangement of his +astronomical tables (still known as the _Alphonsine Tables_), of the +assistance of some contemporary Moslem _savans_. + +Grenada began by this time to replace Cordova. Architecture, above +all, made great advances. It was during the reign of Mohammed II. that +the famous palace of the Alhambra was commenced, a part of which still +remains to astonish travellers, whom its name alone suffices to attract +to Grenada. + +To prove to what a height of perfection the Moors had succeeded in +carrying the art, then so little known to Europeans, of uniting the +magnificent and the luxurious, a few details may perhaps be pardoned +concerning this {138} singular edifice, and as an illustration, also, +of the particular manners and customs of the Moors. + +The Alhambra, as has been said, was at first only a vast fortress, +standing upon one of the two hills enclosed within the city of Grenada. +This hill, though environed on every side by the waters either of the +Darra or the Xenil, was defended, in addition, by a double enclosure of +walls. It was on the summit of this elevation, which overlooked the +whole city, and from which one might behold the most beautiful prospect +in the world, in the midst of an esplanade covered with trees and +fountains, that Mohammed selected the site of his palace. + +Nothing with which we are familiar in architecture can give us a +correct idea of that of the Moors. They piled up buildings without +order, symmetry, or any attention to the external appearance they would +present. All their cares were bestowed upon the interior of their +structures. There they exhausted all the resources of taste and +magnificence, to combine in their apartments the requisites for +luxurious indulgence with the charms of nature in her most enchanting +forms. There, in saloons adorned with the most beautiful marble, and +paved with a {139} brilliant imitation of porcelain, couches, covered +with stuffs of gold or silver, were arranged near _jets d'eau_, whose +waters glanced upward towards the vaulted roof, and spread a delicious +coolness through an atmosphere embalmed by the delicate odours arising +from exquisite vases of precious perfumes, mingled with the fragrant +breath of the myrtle, jasmine, orange, and other sweet-scented flowers +that adorned the apartments. + +The beautiful palace of the Alhambra, as it now exists at Grenada,[5] +presents no _façade_. It is approached through a charming avenue, +which is constantly intersected by rivulets, whose streams wander in +graceful curves amid groups of trees. The entrance is through a large +square tower, which formerly bore the name of the _Hall of Judgment_. +A religious inscription announces that it was there that the king +administered justice after the ancient manner of the Hebrew and other +Oriental nations. Several buildings, {140} which once adjoined this +tower were destroyed in more recent times, to give place to a +magnificent palace erected by Charles V., a description of which is not +necessary to our subject. Upon penetrating on the northern side into +the ancient palace of the Moorish kings, one feels as if suddenly +transported to the regions of fairyland. The first court is an oblong +square, surrounded on each side by a gallery in the form of an arcade, +the walls and ceiling of which are covered with Mosaic work, festoons, +arabesque paintings, gilding, and carving in stucco, of the most +admirable workmanship. All the plain spaces between these various +ornaments are filled with passages transcribed from the Alkoran, or by +inscriptions of a similar character to the following, which will +suffice to create some idea of the figurative style of Moorish +composition. + +"Oh Nazir! thou wert born the master of a throne, and, like the star +that announces the approach of day, thou art refulgent with a +brilliancy that belongs to thee alone! Thine arm is the rampart of a +nation; thy justice an all-pervading luminary. Thou canst, by thy +valour, subdue those who have given companions to {141} God! Thy +numerous people are thy children, and thou renderest them all happy by +thy goodness. The bright stars of the firmament shine lovingly upon +thee, and the glorious light of the sun beams upon thee with affection. +The stately cedar, the proud monarch of the forest, bows his lofty head +at thy approach, and is again uplifted by thy puissant hand!" + +In the midst of this court, which is paved with white marble, is a long +basin always filled with running water of sufficient depth for bathing. +It is bordered on each side by beds of flowers, and surrounded by walks +lined with orange-trees. The place was called the _Mesuar_, and served +as the common bathing-place of those who were attached to the service +of the palace. + +From thence one passes into the celebrated _Court of Lions_. It is a +hundred feet in length and fifty in breadth. A colonnade of white +marble supports the gallery that runs around the whole. These columns, +standing sometimes two and sometimes three together, are of slender +proportions and fantastic design; but their lightness and grace afford +pleasure to the eye of the wondering beholder. The walls, and, above +all, the ceiling of the circular gallery, are covered {142} with +embellishments of gold, azure, and stucco, wrought into arabesques, +with an exquisite delicacy of execution that the most skilful modern +workmen would find it difficult to rival. In the midst of these +ornaments of ever-changing variety and beauty are inscribed passages +from the Koran, such as the following, which all good Mussulmans are +required frequently to repeat: _God is great: God alone is supreme: +There is no god but God: Celestial enjoyment, gratifications of the +heart, delights of the soul to all those who believe_. + +At either extremity of the Court of Lions are placed, within the +interior space enclosed by the gallery, and, like it, supported by +marble columns, two elegant cupolas of fifteen or sixteen feet in +circumference. These graceful domes form a covering for beautiful +_jets d'eau_. In the centre of the lengthened square, a superb +alabaster vase, six feet in diameter, is supported in an elevated +position in the midst of a vast basin by the forms of twelve lions +sculptured from white marble. This vessel, which is believed to have +been modelled after the design of the "molten sea" of the Temple of +Solomon, is again surmounted by a smaller vase, from which shoot {143} +forth innumerable tiny cascades, which together present the form of a +great sheaf; and, falling again from one vase into another, and from +these into the large basin beneath, create a perpetual flow, whose +volume is increased by the floods of limpid water which gush in a +continual stream from the mouth of each of the marble lions. + +This fountain, like each of the others, is adorned with inscriptions; +for the Moors ever took pleasure in mingling the eloquence of poetry +with the graces of sculpture. To us their conceptions appear singular +and their expressions exaggerated; but our manners are so opposite to +theirs; the period of their existence as a nation is so far removed, +and we know so little of the genius of their language, that we have, +perhaps, no right to judge the literature of the Moors by the severe +rules of modern criticism. And, indeed, the specimens we possess of +the French and Spanish poetry of the thirteenth and fourteenth +centuries are, many of them, little superior to the verses engraven on +the Fountain of Lions, of which the following, is a translation.[6] + +{144} + +"Oh thou who beholdest these lions! dost thou not perceive that they +need only to breathe to possess the perfection of nature! Oh Mohammed! +Oh potent sovereign! God originated and prolonged thy existence, that +thou mightest be inspired with the genius to conceive and accomplish +these novel and beautiful embellishments! Thy soul is adorned by the +most ennobling qualities of humanity. This enchanting spot pictures +thy admirable virtues. Like the lion, thou art terrible in combat; and +nothing can be more justly compared to the bountiful and unceasing +profusion of the limpid waters which gush from the bosom of this +fountain, and fill the air with glittering and brilliant particles, +than the liberal hand of Mohammed." + +We will not attempt a description in detail of such other portions of +the palace of the Alhambra as still exist. Some of these served as +halls of audience or of justice; others enclosed the baths of the king, +the queen, and their children. Sleeping apartments still remain, where +the couches were disposed either in alcoves, or upon platforms covered +with the peculiar pavement {145} already alluded to; but always near a +fountain, the unceasing murmur of whose dreamy voice might sooth the +occupants to repose. + +In the music saloon of this once luxurious royal abode are four +elevated galleries, which, ere the glory of the Alhambra had passed +away, were often filled by Moorish musicians, the delightful strains of +whose varied instruments enchanted the court of Grenada. Then the fair +and the brave reclined in graceful groups in the centre of the +apartment, upon rich Oriental carpets, surrounding the alabaster +fountain, whose balmy breath diffused refreshing coolness, and whose +softly gurgling sounds mingled with the gentle music which was ever the +accompaniment of repose and enjoyment. + +In an apartment which was at the same time the oratory and +dressing-room of the queen of this magnificent residence, there still +exists a slab of marble, pierced with an infinite number of small +apertures, to admit the exhalations of the perfumes that were +incessantly burning beneath the lofty ceiling. From this part of the +palace, too, the views are exquisitely beautiful. The windows and +doors opening from it are so arranged, that the most agreeable +prospects, the {146} mellowest and most pleasing effects of light, +perpetually fall upon the delighted eyes of those within, while balmy +breezes constantly renew the delicious coolness of the air that +breathes through this enchanting retreat. + +Upon leaving the marble halls and lofty towers of the Alhambra, one +discerns, on the side of a neighbouring mountain, the famous garden of +the _Generalif_, which signifies, in the Moorish tongue, the _Home of +Love_. In this garden was the palace to which the kings of Grenada +repaired to pass the season of spring. It was built in a style similar +to that of the Alhambra: the same gorgeous splendour, the same costly +magnificence reigned there. The edifice is now destroyed; but the +picturesque situation, the ever-varied and ever-charming landscape, the +limpid fountains, the sparkling _jets d'eau_, and tumbling waterfalls +of the _Generalif_, are still left to excite admiration. + +The terraces of this garden are in the form of an amphitheatre, and the +lingering remains of their once beautiful Mosaic pavements are still to +be seen. The walks are now darkly umbrageous, from the interwoven +branches of gigantic cypresses and aged myrtles, beneath whose {147} +grateful shades the kings and queens of Grenada have so often wandered. +Then blooming groves and forests of fruit-trees were agreeably +intermingled with graceful domes and marble pavilions: then the sweet +perfume of the countless flowers that mingled their varied dyes in +delightful confusion, floated in the soft air. Then the delicate +tendrils of the vine clasped the supporting branches of the orange, and +both together hung the mingled gold and purple of their clustering +fruits over the bright waters that from marble founts + + "Gushed up to sun and air!" + +Then valour and beauty strayed side by side, beneath embowering +branches, the fire of the one attempered to gentleness by the softer +graces of the other, and the souls of both elevated and purified by +nature's holy and resistless influences. + +But now the luxuriant vine lies prostrate, its climbing trunk and +clinging tendrils rudely torn from their once firm support: even the +voice of the fountain no longer warbles in the same gladsome tone as of +yore; the mouldering fragments of the polished column and sculptured +dome are now strewed on the earth; the sighing of the gentle breeze no +longer awake: is the soft breath {148} of responding flowers; the +loveliness and the glory of the _Home of Love_ are vanished away for +ever; and the crumbling stones of the tesselated pavements echo naught +but the lingering footfall of the solitary stranger, who wanders +thither to enjoy those mournful charms of which the destroyer cannot +divest a spot that must ever appeal so strongly to the vision and the +heart, to the memory and the imagination. + +It is painful to quit the Alhambra and the Generalif, to return to the +ravages, incursions, and sanguinary quarrels of the Moors and +Christians. + +It was the fate of Mohammed III. (surnamed the Blind) to be obliged at +the same time to repress the rebellious movements of his own subjects +and repel the invasions of his Catholic neighbours. Compelled by the +infirmity from which he derived his appellation to choose a prime +minister, he bestowed that important post upon Farady, the husband of +his sister, a judicious statesman and a brave soldier, who for some +time prosperously continued the war against the Castilians, and finally +concluded it by an honourable peace. + +But the courtiers, jealous of the glory and {149} envious of the +good-fortune of the favourite, formed a conspiracy against his master, +and instigated revolts among the people. To complete his calamities, +foreign war again broke forth; the King of Castile, Ferdinand IV., +surnamed _the Summoned_,[7] united with the King of Aragon in attacking +the Grenadians.[8] + +Gibraltar was taken by the Castilians, and the conqueror expelled its +Moorish inhabitants from its walls. Among the unfortunate exiles who +departed from the city was an old man, who, perceiving Ferdinand, +approached him, leaning on his staff: "King of Castile," he said to +him, "what injury have I done to thee or thine? Thy great-grandfather +Ferdinand drove me from my native Seville: I sought an asylum at Xeres; +thy grandfather Alphonso banished me from thence: retiring within the +walls of Tariffe,[9] thy father Sancho exiled me from that city. At +last I came to find a grave at the extremity of Spain, on the shore of +Gibraltar; but thy hatred hath pursued me even here: tell me now of one +place on earth where I can die unmolested by the Christians!" + +{150} + +"Cross the sea!" replied the Spanish prince; and he caused the aged +petitioner to be conveyed to Africa. + +Vanquished by the Aragonians, harassed by the Castilians, and alarmed +by the seditious proceedings which the grandees of his court were +encouraging among his own subjects, the King of Grenada and his prime +minister were forced to conclude a shameful peace. + +The intestine storm, whose gathering had long disturbed the domestic +security of the kingdom, soon after burst forth. Mohammed Abenazar, +brother to Mohammed the Blind, and the head of the conspiracy, seized +the unfortunate monarch, put him to death, and assumed his place, A.D. +1310, Heg. 710. + +But the usurper himself was soon driven from his throne by Farady, the +ancient minister, who, not daring to appropriate the crown to himself, +placed it on the head of his son Ismael, the nephew of Mohammed the +Blind, through his mother, the sister of that monarch. + +This event took place A.D. 1313, Heg. 713. From that period the royal +family of Grenada was divided into two branches, which were ever after +at enmity with each other; the one, called {151} the _Alhamar_, +included the descendants of the first king through the males of the +line, and the other, named _Farady_, was that of such of his offspring +as were the children of the female branches of the royal race. + +The Castilians, whose interests were always promoted by cherishing +dissensions among their Moorish neighbours, lent their countenance to +Abenazar, who had taken refuge in the city of Grenada. The Infant Don +Pedro, uncle to the youthful King of Castile, Alphonso _the Avenger_, +as he was surnamed, took the field against Ismael, and several times +gave battle to the followers of the Crescent. Then joining his forces +to those of another Infant named Don Juan, the two friends carried fire +and sword to the very ramparts of Grenada. The infidel warriors did +not venture to sally from their walls to repel the invaders; but when, +loaded with booty, the Christians had commenced their return to +Castile; Ismael followed on their route with his army, and, soon +overtaking his ruthless foes, fell suddenly upon their rear. It was +now the 26th of June,[10] and the time chosen by the Mussulmans for the +attack was the hottest hour of a {152} burning day. The two Spanish +princes made such violent efforts to reorganize their scattered bands +and to recover their lost authority, that, exhausted at last by thirst +and fatigue, they both fell dead without having received a wound. + +The dismayed and exhausted Spaniards could now no longer offer any +resistance to their furious enemies. They betook themselves to flight, +leaving their baggage, with the bodies of the two unfortunate Infants, +on the field of battle. Ismael caused the remains of these princes to +be conveyed to Grenada and deposited in coffins covered with cloth of +gold: he then restored them to the Castilians, after having bestowed on +them the most distinguished funeral honours.[11] + +This victory was rapidly followed by the conquest of several cities and +the establishment of an honourable truce. But Ismael did not live to +enjoy the fruits of his success: being enamoured of a young Spanish +captive, who had fallen, in the division of the spoils, to the share of +one of his officers, the king so far forgot the laws of justice and +honour as to possess himself {153} by force of the beautiful slave. +Such an insult among the followers of Islam can only be expiated by +blood: the monarch was assassinated by his exasperated officer. His +son Mohammed V. mounted the throne in his stead, A.D. 1322, Heg. 722. + +The reign of Mohammed V. and that of his successor Joseph I., both of +whom perished in the same manner (being murdered in their palace), +present nothing during thirty years but an unbroken series of ravages, +seditions, and combats. + +At the request of the Grenadians, Abil-Hassan, king of Morocco, of the +dynasty of the _Merinis_, landed in Spain at the head of innumerable +troops, with whom he joined the army of Joseph. The kings of Castile +and Portugal unitedly gave battle to this immense army on the shores of +Salado, not far from the city of Tariffe. This encounter, equally +celebrated with the victory of Toloza in the history of Spain, +terminated in the defeat of the Moors. Abil-Hassan returned hastily to +Morocco, to conceal within his own dominions his chagrin at its +unexpected and disastrous issue. + +The strong place of Algeziras, the bulwark of {154} Grenada, and the +magazine in which was deposited the necessary supplies received by that +kingdom from Africa, was besieged by the Castilians A.D. 1342, Heg. +742. Several French, English, and Navarrois cavaliers resorted on this +occasion to the camp of the beleaguering army. The Mussulmans availed +themselves of the use of cannon in the defence of their city; and this +is the first time that the employment of that description of ordnance +is spoken of in history. We are told that it was used at the battle of +Cressy by the English; but that event did not take place until four +years after the date of the present siege. It is, then, to the Spanish +Moors that we owe, not the discovery of gunpowder (for that is +attributed by some to the Chinese, by others to a German monk named +Schwartz, and by others again to Roger Bacon, an Englishman), but the +terrible invention of artillery. It is at least certain, that the +Moors planted the first cannon of which we have any account. But, in +spite of the advantages it thus possessed, Algeziras was taken by the +Christians, A.D. 1344, Heg. 745. + +About ten years after this event, the unfortunate Joseph, who had been +so often attacked by {155} foreign enemies, met his death from the +hands of his own subjects. + +It may have been remarked by the reader, that no established law +regulated the regal succession among the Moors. Yet, notwithstanding +the perpetual conspiracies and intrigues which rendered the possession +of the crown so insecure and of such uncertain duration, a prince of +the royal race always occupied the throne. We have seen Grenada +divided, since the violent termination of the reign of Ismael, between +the factions of the _Alhamar_ and the _Farady_, and the former deposed +by the latter, who always regarded the Alhamars as usurpers. This +unhappy contest was the source of numberless disorders, conspiracies, +and assassinations. + +The monarch next in order to Joseph I. on the throne of Grenada was his +uncle, a Farady prince named Mohammed VI., and called _the Old_, in +consequence of his succeeding at a somewhat advanced period of life. + +Mohammed the Red, a scion of the Alhamar race, drove his cousin, +Mohammed the Old, from the throne, A.D. 1360, Heg. 762, and retained it +for some years, through the protection of the King of Aragon. + +{156} + +Peter the Cruel, then king of Castile, espoused the cause of the +banished Farady, supported his claims by warlike arguments, and so +closely pressed Mohammed the Alhamar, that he adopted the resolution of +repairing to Seville, and abandoning himself to the magnanimity of his +royal foe. + +Mohammed arrived at the court of Seville accompanied by a suite +composed of his most faithful friends, and bearing with him vast +treasures. He presented himself with noble confidence in the presence +of the monarch. "King of Castile!" said he to Peter, "the blood alike +of Christian and Moor has too long flowed in my contest with the +Farady. You protect my rival; yet it is you whom I select to adjudge +our quarrel. Examine my claims and those of my enemy, and pronounce +who shall be the sovereign of Grenada. If you decide in favour of the +Farady, I demand only to be conducted to Africa; if you accord the +preference to me, receive the homage that I have come to render you for +my crown!" + +The astonished Peter lavished honours upon the Mussulman king, and +caused him to be seated at his side during the magnificent feast by +{157} which he signalized the occasion. But, when the Alhamar retired +from the entertainment, he was seized and thrown into prison. From +thence he was afterward conducted through the streets of the city, +seated, half naked, upon an ass, and led to a field termed the +_Tablada_, where thirty-seven of his devoted followers were deprived of +their heads in his presence. The execrable Peter, envying the +executioner the pleasure of shedding his blood, then thrust through the +unfortunate King of Grenada with his own lance. The dying sovereign +uttered only these words as he expired, "Oh Peter, Peter, what a deed +for a cavalier!" + +By a very extraordinary fatality, every throne in Spain was at this +period occupied by princes whose characters were blackened by the most +atrocious crimes. Peter the Cruel, the Nero of Castile, assassinated +the kings who confided themselves to his protection, put to death his +wife Blanche of Bourbon, and, in short, daily imbrued his hands in the +blood of his relatives or friends. Peter IV. of Aragon, less violent +than the Castilian, but equally unfeeling and even more perfidious, +despoiled one of his brothers of his kingdom, commanded another to be +{158} put to death, and delivered his ancient preceptor to the +executioners. Peter I., king of Portugal, the lover of the celebrated +Inez de Castro,[12] whose ferocity was doubtless excited and increased +by the cruelty that had been exercised against his mistress, tore out +the hearts of the murderers of Inez, and poisoned a sister with whom he +was displeased. Finally, the contemporary King of Navarre was that +Charles the Bad, whose name alone is sufficient still to cause a +shudder. All Spain groaned beneath the iron rule of these monsters of +cruelty, and was inundated by the blood of their victims. If it be +remembered that, at the same time, France had become a prey to the +horrors which followed the imprisonment of King John; that England +witnessed the commencement of the troubled reign of Richard II.; that +Italy was delivered up to the contentions of the rival factions of the +Guelfs and Ghibelines, and beheld two occupants at the same time upon +the papal throne; that two emperors disputed the right to the imperial +crown of Germany; and that Timurlane ravaged Asia from the territories +of the Usheks to the borders of India, it will not be disputed {159} +that the history of the world records the annals of no more unhappy +epoch in its affairs. + +Grenada was at last tranquil after the crime of Peter the Cruel. +Mohammed the Old, or the Farady, being now freed from the rival claims +of his competitor, remounted the throne without opposition. + +Mohammed was the only ally of the King of Castile who remained faithful +to that inhuman monster up to the period of his death. Peter was at +last the victim of a crime similar to those of which he had so often +himself been guilty: his illegitimate brother, Henry de Transtamare, +deprived him of his crown and his life, A.D. 1369, Heg. 771. + +The King of Grenada made peace with the new sovereign of Castile, +maintained it for several years, and finally left his kingdom in a +flourishing condition to his son Mohammed VIII., Abouhadjad, called by +the Spanish historians Mohammed Gaudix. + +This prince commenced his reign A.D. 1379, Heg. 782. He was the best +and wisest of the Spanish Mohammedan kings. Intent only upon promoting +the happiness of his people, he was desirous of securing to them the +enjoyment of {160} that foreign and domestic peace to which they had so +long been almost utter strangers. The more effectually to ensure this, +Abouhadjad commenced his reign with fortifying his towns, raising a +strong army, and allying himself with the King of Tunis, whose daughter +Cadiga he espoused. When well prepared for war, the Moorish sovereign +sent ambassadors to the King of Castile, to solicit his friendship. +Don Juan, the son and successor of Henry de Transtamare, being +sufficiently occupied by his quarrels with Portugal and England, +readily signed a treaty with the royal follower of the Crescent; and +Abouhadjad, on his part, kept it unbroken. Secured from the inroads of +the Christians, this wise monarch now occupied himself in promoting the +increase of agriculture and commerce: he likewise diminished the rates +of imposts, and soon found his income increased in consequence of this +judicious measure. Beloved by a people whom he rendered happy, +respected by foreign neighbours whom he had no reason to fear, and +possessed of an amiable wife, who alone engaged his affections, this +excellent Mussulman prince spent the wealth and leisure that he could +with propriety devote to such objects, in {161} adorning his capital, +in cherishing the fine arts, and in cultivating architecture and +poetry. Several monuments of his munificence existed at Grenada, and +at Gaudix, a city in favour of which he entertained strong +predilections. His court was the favoured abode of genius and elegance. + +The Moors of Spain still possessed poets, physicians, painters, +sculptors, academies, and universities. And these were all liberally +encouraged and endowed by Mohammed Gaudix. + +Most of the productions of the Grenadian authors of this period +perished at the final conquest of their country;[13] but some of them +have been preserved, and still exist in the library of the Escurial. +They chiefly treat of grammar, astrology (then greatly esteemed), and, +above all, of theology, a study in which the Moors excelled. That +people, naturally gifted with discriminating minds and ardent +imaginations, produced many distinguished theologians, who may easily +be supposed to have introduced into Europe the unfortunate scholastic +taste for subtle questions and disputes, which once rendered so +celebrated, men whose names and achievements have since sunk for ever +into oblivion. The {162} pretended secrets of the cabal, of alchymy, +of judicial astronomy, of the divining rod, and all the accounts, +formerly so common, of sorcerers, magicians, and enchanters, are +derived from these descendants of the Arabs. They were a superstitious +race from the remotest times; and it is probable that to their +residence in Spain, and their long intercourse with the Spaniards, is +owing that love for the marvellous, and that well-deserved reputation +for superstitious credulity, with which philosophy still reproaches a +sprightly and intellectual nation, upon whom nature has bestowed the +germes of the best qualities that adorn humanity. + +A kind of literature which was common among these Saracens, and for +which the Spaniards were indebted to them, was that of novels or +romances. The Arabs were ever, as they still are, passionate lovers of +story-telling. As well in the tents of the wild Bedouin as in the +palaces of the East, alike under the gilded domes and peasant roofs of +Grenada, this taste prevailed. Everywhere they assembled nightly to +listen to romantic narratives of love and valour. Everywhere they +listened in silent attention, or wept from sympathetic interest in the +fate {163} of those whose adventures formed the subject of the tale. +The Grenadians joined with this passion for exciting incident, a taste +for music and singing. Their poets imbodied in verse these favourite +recitals of love and war. Musicians were employed in composing +suitable airs for them, and they were thus sung by the youthful Moors +with all the enthusiasm that passion, poetry, and dulcet harmony can +unitedly inspire. From this national custom are derived the multitude +of Spanish romances, translated or imitated from the Arabic, which, in +a simple and sometimes touching style, recount the fierce combats of +the Moors and Christians, the fatal quarrels of jealous and haughty +rivals, or the tender conversation of lovers. They describe with great +exactness everything relating to the peculiar manners and amusements of +this interesting and extinguished nation: their fêtes, their games of +the ring and of canes, and their bull-fights, the latter of which they +adopted from the Spaniards, are all portrayed. Thus we learn that +their war-like equipments consisted of a large cimeter, a slender +lance, a short coat of mail, and a light leathern buckler. We have +descriptions of superb horses, with their richly-jewelled and {164} +embroidered housings sweeping the earth in ample folds, and of the +devises emblazoned on the arms of the graceful Moorish cavaliers. +These last consisted frequently of a heart pierced by an arrow, or +perhaps of a star guiding a vessel, or of the first letter of the name +of the fair recipients of their vows of love. We learn, too, that +their colours each bore a peculiar signification: yellow and black +expressed grief; green, hope; blue, jealousy; violet and flame colour, +passionate love. + +The following abridged translation of one of these little compositions +will produce a more correct idea of them in the mind of the reader than +any description could convey.[14] + + + GONZULO AND ZELINDA. + + A MOORISH ROMANCE. + + In a transport of jealousy and pride, + Zelinda spurned her lover from her side! +{165} + His cruel doom Gonzulo heard + With bosom wrung; and disappeared! + But the fair maid soon deeply felt + The torturing wound herself had dealt; + As glides the snow from mountain crest, + So fled resentment from her breast. + + They tell her that the Moor's proud heart + Is pierced by grief's most poisoned dart, + And that he'd doffed, when flying from her side, + The tender colours that were once his pride; + That green, of hope the cherished emblem gay, + To sorrow's mournful hues had given way. + A badge of crape his lance's point now wears, + A blackened crown his shield as emblem bears! + +{166} + + To proffer gifts with different meaning fraught, + Zelinda now her errant lover sought: + The blue of jealousy she had united + With all the hues most dear to lovers plighted; + A violet gem, entwined with gold, + Gleamed mid a broidered turban's fold, + And every silken riband that she bore, + Of lovely innocence the symbol wore. + + Zelinda reached the soft retreat + Where Gonzulo his fate must meet! + O'erwhelmed with doubt, the dark-eyed maid + Reclined beneath a myrtle shade, + And sent a faithful page to guide + Her banished lover to her side. + Gonzulo scarce the message would receive, + For wo had taught his heart to disbelieve! + +{167} + + But soon he flew, on wing of love, + To seek Zelinda's chosen grove. + Then tearful glances of regret + By words of tenderness were met; + And ne'er did guardian nymphs record + More ardent vows than there were poured! + 'Twas thus triumphant love repaired + The cruel wrongs that each had shared! + + +The delicate and peculiar gallantry, which rendered the Moors of +Grenada famous throughout Europe, formed a singular contrast to the +ferocity that is so natural to all nations of African origin. These +Islamites, whose chief glory it was dexterously to deprive their +enemies of their heads, attach them to their saddle-bows, and afterward +display them as trophies on the {168} battlements of their towers or at +the entrance of their palaces; these restless and ungovernable +warriors, who were ever ready to revolt against their rulers, to depose +or to murder them, were the most tender, the most devoted, the most +ardent of lovers. Their wives, though their domestic position was +little superior to that of slaves, became, when they were beloved, the +absolute sovereigns, the supreme divinities of those whose hearts they +possessed. It was to please these idolized beings that the Moorish +cavaliers sought distinction in the field; it was to shine in their +eyes that they lavished their treasures and their lives--that they +mutually endeavoured to eclipse each other in deeds of arms, in the +splendour of their warlike exploits, and the Oriental magnificence of +their fêtes. + +It cannot now be determined whether the Moors derived this +extraordinary union of softness and cruelty, of delicacy and +barbarity--this generous rivalry in courage and in constancy from the +Spaniards, or whether the Spaniards acquired these characteristics from +the Moors. But when it is remembered that they do not belong to the +Asiatic Arabs, from whom these gallant knights originally sprang; that +they are {169} found, even in a less degree, if possible, among these +followers of Mohammed in that portion of Africa where their conquests +have naturalized them; and, that after their departure from Spain, the +Grenadians lost every trace of the peculiarly interesting and +chivalrous qualities by which they had previously been so remarkably +distinguished, there is some ground for the opinion that it was to the +Spaniards that their Moslem neighbours were indebted for the existence +of these national attributes. In truth, before the invasion of Spain +by the Arabs, the courts of the Gothic kings had already offered +knightly examples of a similar spirit. And after that event we find +the cavaliers of Leon, Navarre, and Castile equally renowned for their +achievements in war and their romantic devotion to the fair sex. The +mere name of _the Cid_ awakens in the mind recollections alike of +tenderness and bravery. It should be remembered, too, that, long after +the expulsion of the Moors from the Peninsula, the Spaniards maintained +a reputation for gallantry far superior to that of the French, some +portion of the spirit of which, though extinct among every other +European nation, still lingers in Spain. + +{170} + +But, be this point decided as it may, it is not to be disputed that the +daughters of Grenada merited the devotion which they inspired: they +were perhaps the most fascinating women in the world. We find in the +narrative of a Moorish historian, who wrote at Grenada during the reign +of Mohammed the Old, the following description of his countrywomen: + +"Their beauty is remarkable; but the loveliness which strikes the +beholder at first sight afterward receives its principal charm from the +grace and gentleness of their manners. In stature they are above the +middle height, and of delicate and slender proportions. Their long +black hair descends to the earth. Their teeth embellish with the +whiteness of alabaster, vermillion lips, which perpetually smile with a +bewitching air. The constant use which they make of the most exquisite +perfumes, gives a freshness and brilliancy to their complexions +possessed by no other Mohammedan women. Their walking, their dancing, +their every movement, is distinguished by a graceful softness, an ease, +a lightness, which surpasses all their other charms. Their +conversation is lively and sensible, and their fine intellects are +{171} constantly displayed in brilliant wit or judicious sentiments." + +The dress of these elegant females was composed, as that of the Turkish +women still is, of a long tunic of linen confined by a cincture, of a +_doliman_ or Turkish dress with close sleeves, of wide trousers and +Morocco slippers. The materials of their clothing were of the finest +fabric, and were usually woven in stripes: they were embroidered with +gold and silver, and profusely spangled with jewels. Their waving +tresses floated over their shoulders; and a small cap, adorned with the +richest gems, supported an embroidered veil, which fell nearly to the +feet. The men were clothed in a similar manner: with them were carried +in the girdle the purse, the handkerchief, and the poniard: a white, +and sometimes a coloured, turban covered the head; and over the Turkish +doliman they wore in summer a wide and flowing white robe, and in +winter the _albornos_ or African mantle. The only change made in their +dress by the Moorish cavaliers when preparing for battle was the +addition of a coat of mail, and an iron lining within their turbans. + +It was the custom of the Grenadians to repair {172} every year, during +the autumn, to the charming villas by which the city was surrounded. +There they yielded themselves up to the pursuit of pleasure. The chase +and the dance, music and feasting, occupied every hour. + +The manners of those who participated in these national dances were in +a high degree unreserved, as was the language of the songs and ballads +in which they joined. Were it not for the contradictions in the human +character, one might be surprised at this want of delicacy in a people +who were capable of so much refinement of feeling. But, in general, +nations of Oriental origin possess but little reserve in their manners: +they have more of passion than sentiment, more of jealousy than +delicacy in their haughty and excitable natures. + +In giving these details, we have perhaps trespassed too long on the +period of calm repose enjoyed by the kingdom of Grenada during the +reign of Abouhadjad. That excellent sovereign, after having filled the +throne for thirteen years, left his flourishing dominions to his son +Joseph, who succeeded him without opposition, A.D. 1392, Heg. 795. + +Joseph II. was desirous, in imitation of the {173} course pursued by +his father, of maintaining the truce with the Christians. It was, +however, soon disturbed by a fanatical hermit, who persuaded the +Grand-master of Alcantara, Martin de Barbuda, a Portuguese, that he had +been selected by Heaven as the chosen instrument for expelling the +infidels from Spain. He promised the credulous Martin, in the name of +God, that he should succeed in conquering the enemies of the Cross, and +in carrying the city of Grenada by assault, without the loss of a +single soldier. The infatuated grand-master, convinced of the +certainty of the fulfilment of this promise, immediately sent +ambassadors to Joseph, with orders to declare to that sovereign, in his +name, that, since the religion of Mohammed was false and detestable, +and that of Jesus Christ the only true and saving faith, he, Martin de +Barbuda, defied the King of Grenada to a combat of two hundred +Mussulmans against one hundred Christians, upon condition that the +vanquished nation should instantly adopt the faith of the conquerors. + +The reception these ambassadors met with may be easily imagined. +Joseph could scarcely restrain the indignation of his people. The +{174} envoys, driven contemptuously away, returned to the presence of +the grand-master, who, surprised at receiving no response to his +proposal, soon assembled a thousand foot-soldiers and three hundred +cavaliers, and hastened to the conquest of Grenada under the guidance +of the prophetic hermit. + +The King of Castile, Henry III., who desired to preserve peace with the +followers of the Prophet at the commencement of a reign during which +his own dominions were but ill at rest, was no sooner informed of the +enterprise of Barbuda, than he sent him positive orders not to cross +the frontiers; but that dignitary replying that he ought to obey the +commands of Jehovah rather than those of any earthly master, proceeded +on his way. The governors of the different cities through which he +passed on his route endeavoured, though vainly, to arrest his progress; +but the people overwhelmed him with homage, and everywhere added to the +number of his forces. + +The army of the grand-master amounted to six thousand men, when, in +A.D. 1394, Heg. 798, he entered the country which his folly taught him +to regard as already in his possession. In attacking the first castle +at which he {175} arrived, three soldiers were killed and their +fanatical commander himself wounded. Surprised beyond measure at +beholding his own blood flow and three soldiers fall, he summoned the +anchorite into his presence, and sedately demanded what this meant, +after his express promise that not a single champion of the true faith +should perish. The fanatic replied, that the word he had pledged +extended only to regular battles. Barbuda complained no more, and +presently perceived the approach of a Moorish army composed of fifty +thousand men. The conflict soon commenced: the grand-master and his +three hundred mounted followers perished in the field, after having +performed prodigies of valour. The remainder of the Spanish army were +either taken prisoners or put to flight; and the silence of historians +respecting the hermit, leads to the opinion that he was not among the +last to seek safety at a distance from the scene of action. + +This foolish enterprise did not interrupt the good understanding +subsisting between the two nations. The King of Castile disavowed all +approval of the conduct of Martin de Barbuda, and Joseph long continued +to reign with honour and tranquillity. But he was at last poisoned, +{176} it is said, by a magnificent robe which he received from his +secret enemy, the King of Fez through the ambassadors of that +sovereign. Historians assert that this garment was impregnated with a +terrible poison, which caused the death of the unfortunate Joseph by +the most horrible torments. The peculiar effects it produced was that +of detaching the flesh from the bones, the misery of the wretched +sufferer enduring for the protracted period of thirty days. + +Mohammed IX., the second son of this hapless monarch, who, even during +the lifetime of his father, had excited commotions in the realm, +usurped the crown that of right belonged to his elder brother Joseph, +whom he caused to be confined in prison. + +Mohammed was courageous, and possessed some talents for war. Allied +with the King of Tunis, who joined his fleet with that of Grenada, he +broke the truce maintained with Castile during the two preceding +reigns, and at first gained some advantages over his adversaries, but +the Infant Don Ferdinand, the uncle and tutor of the young king John +II., was not long in avenging the cause of Spain. + +Mohammed IX. died in the year 1408, {177} Heg. 811. When the expiring +monarch became conscious that his end was rapidly approaching, desirous +of securing the crown to his son, he sent one of his principal officers +to the prison of his brother Joseph, with orders to cut off the head of +the royal occupant. The officer found Joseph engaged in a game of +chess with an iman:[15] he sorrowfully announced the mournful +commission with which he was charged. The prince, without manifesting +any emotion at the communication, only demanded time to conclude his +game; and the officer could not refuse this slight favour. While the +philosophical Mussulman continued to play, a second messenger arrived, +bearing the news of the death of the usurper, and of the proclamation +of Joseph as his successor to the throne. + +The people of Grenada were happy under the rule of the good King Joseph +III. So far was he from avenging himself upon those who had aided his +brother in depriving him of his rights, that he lavished favours and +offices on them, and educated the son of Mohammed in the same manner as +his own children. When his councillors blamed him for a degree of +indulgence {178} which they regarded as hazardous, "Allow me," replied +the sovereign, "to deprive my enemies of all excuse for having +preferred my younger brother to me!" + +This excellent prince was often obliged to take arms against the +Christians. He was so unfortunate as to lose some cities, but he +preserved the respect and affection of his subjects, and died lamented +by the whole kingdom, after a reign of fifteen years, A.D. 1423, Heg. +927. + +After the death of Joseph the state was distracted by civil wars. +Mohammed X. Abenazar, or the _Left-handed_, the son and successor of +that benevolent king, was banished from the throne by Mohammed XI. _El +Zugair_, or the Little, who preserved his ill-gotten power but two +years. The Abencerrages, a powerful tribe[16] at Grenada, +re-established Mohammed the Left-handed in his former place, and his +competitor perished on the scaffold. + +About four years after the death of Joseph, the Spaniards renewed their +inroads into Grenada, and carried fire and sword to the very gates of +the capital. All the neighbouring fields were devastated; the crops +were burned and the {179} villages destroyed. John II., who then +reigned in Castile, wishing to add to the miseries he had already +occasioned these unhappy people the still greater misfortune of civil +war, instigated the proclamation at Grenada of a certain Joseph +Alliamar, a grandson of that Mohammed the Red so basely assassinated at +Seville by Peter the Cruel. + +All the discontented spirits in the kingdom joined the faction of +Joseph Alhamar; and the Zegris, a powerful tribe, who were at enmity +with the Abencerrages, lent their aid to the usurper. Mohammed +Abenazar was again driven from the capital, A.D. 1432, Heg. 836, and +Joseph IV. Alhamar possessed his dominions six months. At the +termination of that time he expired. + +Mohammed the Left-handed once more resumed his royal seat; but, after +thirteen years of misfortune, this unhappy prince was again deposed for +the third time, and imprisoned by one of his nephews, named Mohammed +XII. the Osmin, who was himself afterward dethroned[17] by his own +brother Ismael, and ended his days {180} in the same dungeon in which +his uncle Mohammed Abenazar had languished. + +All these revolutions did not prevent the Christian and Moorish +governors who commanded on their respective frontiers from making +incessant irruptions into the enemy's country. Sometimes a little +troop of cavalry or infantry surprised a village, massacred the +inhabitants, pillaged their houses, and carried away their flocks. +Sometimes an army suddenly appeared in a fertile plain, devastated the +fields, uprooted the vines, felled the trees, besieged and took some +town or fortress, and retired with their booty. This kind of warfare +was ruinous, most of all, to the unfortunate cultivator of the soil. +The Grenadian dominions suffered so much during the reign of Ismael +II., that the king was compelled to cause immense forests to be cleared +for the support of his capital, which then drew scarcely any supplies +from the vast and fertile _vega_ which had been so often desolated by +the Spaniards. + +Ismael II. left the crown to his son Mulei-Hassem, a young and highly +courageous prince, who, profiting by the disastrous condition of +Castile under the deplorable reign of Henry IV. the {181} Impotent, +carried his arms into the centre of Andalusia. The success that marked +the commencement of the reign of this sovereign, together with his +talents and warlike ardour, tempted the Moors to believe that they +might yet recover their former greatness. But the occurrence at this +juncture of a great and unlooked-for event, arrested the victorious +progress of Mulei-Hassam, and prepared the way for the total ruin of +his kingdom. + +Isabella of Castile, the sister of Henry the Impotent, notwithstanding +the opposition of her brother and the intervention of almost +insurmountable obstacles, espoused Ferdinand the Catholic, the king of +Sicily, and heir presumptive of the kingdom of Aragon.[18] This +marriage, by uniting the two most powerful monarchs of Spain, gave a +fatal blow to the prosperity of the Moors, which they had been able to +maintain, even in the degree in which it now existed, only through the +divisions which had hitherto perpetually prevailed among their +Christian opponents. + +Either of the two enemies, now unitedly arrayed against them, had been +singly sufficient {182} to overwhelm the Mussulmans. Ferdinand was +alike politic, able, and adroit. He was pliant, and, at the same time, +firm; cautious to a degree sometimes amounting to pusillanimity; +cunning even to falsehood, and endowed in an extraordinary degree with +the power of discerning at a single glance all the various means of +attaining a particular end. Isabella was of a prouder and more noble +nature; endowed with heroic courage and the most unyielding constancy +of purpose, she was admirably qualified for the pursuit and +accomplishment of any enterprise to which she might direct the energies +of her powerful mind. The exalted endowments of one of these royal +personages have been employed to ennoble the character of the other. +Ferdinand often played the part of a weak, perfidious woman, +negotiating only to deceive; whereas Isabella was always the +high-souled sovereign, advancing openly to her purposes, and marching +directly to honourable conflict and generous triumph. + +No sooner had these distinguished individuals secured possession of +their respective kingdoms, suppressed all domestic disturbances, and +effected peaceful arrangements with foreign powers, {183} than they +mutually resolved to concentrate all their efforts for the annihilation +of the Mohammedan dominion in Spain. + +This century seemed destined to be marked by the glory of the +Spaniards. In addition to the immense advantages afforded them by the +union of their forces, Ferdinand and Isabella were surrounded by the +wisest and most experienced advisers. The celebrated Cardinal Ximenes, +at one time a simple monk, was now at the head of their councils; and +that able minister "_led_," as he himself averred, "_all Spain by his +girdle!_" The civil wars with which the Peninsula had been so long +disturbed, had created among the Christian powers a host of brave +soldiers and excellent commanders. Among the latter were particularly +distinguished the Count de Cabra, the Marquis of Cadiz, and the famous +Gonzalvo of Cordova, whose just claim to the surname of _the Great +Captain_, given him by his countrymen, the lapse of time has only +served to confirm. The public treasury, which had been exhausted by +the lavish prodigality of Henry, was soon replenished by the rigid +economy of Isabella, aided by a bull from the pope, permitting the +royal appropriation of the {184} ecclesiastical revenues. The troops +were numerous and admirably disciplined, and the emulation which +existed between the Castilians and Aragonians redoubled the valour of +both. Everything, in short, prognosticated the downfall of the last +remaining throne of the Moors. + +Its royal champion, Mulei-Hassem, was not dismayed, however, even by +such an accumulation of danger. He was the first to break the truce, +by taking forcible possession of the city of Zahra, A.D. 1481, Heg. +886. Ferdinand despatched ambassadors to the Moslem court to complain +of this breach of faith; with orders, at the same time, to demand the +ancient tribute which had been paid by the kings of Grenada to the +sovereigns of Castile. + +"I know," replied Mulei-Hassem, when the envoys of the Spanish prince +had delivered their message, "I know that some of my predecessors +rendered you tribute in pieces of gold; but _this_ is the only metal +now coined in the national mint of Grenada!" And, as he spoke, the +stern and haughty monarch presented the head of his lance to the +Spanish ambassadors. + +The army of Ferdinand first marched upon Alhamar, a very strong +fortress in the {185} neighbourhood of Grenada, and particularly famous +for the magnificent baths with which it had been embellished by the +Moorish kings. The place was taken by surprise, and thus a war was +lighted up that was destined to be extinguished only with the last +expiring sigh of Grenada. + +Victory seemed at first to be equally poised between the two contending +powers. The King of Grenada possessed ample resources in troops, +artillery, and treasure. He might have long maintained the contest, +but for an act of imprudence which precipitated him into an abyss of +misfortune from which he was never afterward able to extricate himself. + +The wife of Mulei-Hassem, named Aixa, belonged, before her marriage +with the king, to one of the most important of the Grenadian tribes. +The offspring of this marriage was a son named Boabdil, whose right it +was to succeed to his father's throne. But the reckless Mulei +repudiated his wife at the instance of a Christian slave, of whom he +became enamoured, and who governed the doting monarch at will. This +act of cruelty and injustice was the signal for civil war. The injured +Aixa, in concert with her son, excited her relatives and friends, {186} +and a large number of the inhabitants of the capital, to throw off +their allegiance to their sovereign. + +Mulei-Hassem was eventually driven from the city, and Boabdil assumed +the title of king. Thus father and son were involved in a contest for +the possession of a crown, of which Ferdinand was seeking to deprive +them both. + +To add to the misfortunes which were already fast crushing this +distracted and miserable country beneath their weight, another aspirant +to the throne presented himself, in the person of a brother of +Mulei-Hassem named Zagel. This prince, at the head of a band of +Moorish adventurers, had succeeded in obtaining some important +advantages over the Spaniards in the defiles of Malaga, A.D. 1483, Heg. +888. + +His achievements having won for him the hearts of his countrymen, Zagel +now conceived the design of dethroning his brother and nephew, and of +appropriating the dominions of both to himself. Thus a third faction +arose to increase the dissensions of the state. + +Boabdil still held insecure possession of the capital; and, desirous of +attempting some action, the brilliancy of which would reanimate the +{187} hopes and confidence of a party that was ready to abandon him, he +sallied forth at the head of a small force, with the intention of +surprising Lucena, a city belonging to the Castilians. + +But the ill-fated Boabdil was made a prisoner in this expedition. + +He was the first Moorish king who had ever been a captive to the +Spaniards. Ferdinand lavished on him the attentions due to misfortune, +and caused him to be conducted to Cordova, attended by an escort. + +The old king, Mulei-Hassem, seized this opportunity to repossess +himself of the crown of which his rebellious son had deprived him, and, +in spite of the party of Zagel, he again became master of his capital. +But the restored monarch could oppose but a feeble resistance to the +progress of the Spaniards, who were rapidly reducing his cities and +advancing nearer to his devoted capital. Within the walls of that city +the wretched inhabitants were madly warring against one another, as if +unconscious of the destruction that was fast approaching them from +without. To increase the sanguinary feuds which already so surely +presaged their destruction, the Catholic sovereigns had become the +{188} allies of the captive Boabdil, engaging to assist him in his +efforts against his father on condition that he should pay them a +tribute of twelve thousand crowns of gold, acknowledge himself their +vassal, and deliver certain strong places into their hands. The base +Boabdil acceded to everything; and, aided by the politic Spanish +princes, hastened again to take arms against his father. + +The kingdom of Grenada was now converted into one wide field of +carnage, where Mulei-Hassem, Boabdil, and Zagel were furiously +contending for the mournful relics of their country. + +The Spaniards, in the mean time, marched rapidly from one conquest to +another, sometimes under pretext of sustaining their ally Boabdil, and +often in open defiance of the treaty they had formed with that prince; +but always carefully feeding the fire of discord, while they were +despoiling each of the three rival parties, and leaving to the +vanquished inhabitants their laws, their customs, and the free exercise +of their religion. + +In the midst of these frightful scenes of calamity and crime, old +Mulei-Hassem died, either worn out by grief and misfortune, or through +{189} the agency of his ambitious brother. This event occurred A.D. +1485, Heg. 890. + +Ferdinand had now rendered himself master of all the western part of +the kingdom of Grenada, and Boabdil agreed to divide with Zagel the +remnant of this desolated state. The city of Grenada was retained by +Boabdil, while Gaudix and Almeria fell to the share of Zagel. The war +was not the less vigorously prosecuted in consequence of this +arrangement; and the unprincipled Zagel, doubting his ability long to +retain the cities in his possession, sold them to King Ferdinand in +consideration of an annual pension. + +By virtue of this treaty, the Catholic sovereigns took possession of +the purchased cities; and the traitor Zagel even lent the aid of his +arms to the Christian army, the more speedily to overthrow the royal +power of his nephew, and thereby terminate the existence of his +expiring country. + +All that now remained to the Mussulmans was the single city of Grenada. +There Boabdil still reigned; and, exasperated by misfortune, he vented +his rage and despair in acts of barbarous cruelty towards its wretched +inhabitants. + +{190} + +Ferdinand and Isabella, disregarding the conditions of their pretended +alliance with this now powerless prince, summoned him to surrender his +capital, in compliance, as they said, with the terms of a secret +treaty, which they affirmed had been concluded between them. Boabdil +protested against this perfidious conduct. But there was no time +allowed for complaint: he must successfully defend himself, or cease to +reign. The Moorish prince adopted, therefore, to say the least, the +most heroic alternative; and resolved to defend to the last what +remained to him of his once beautiful and flourishing country. + +The Spanish sovereign, at the head of an army of sixty thousand men, +the flower and chivalry of the united kingdoms of Castile and Aragon, +laid siege to Grenada on the 9th of May, 1491, and in the 897th year of +the Hegira. + +This great city, as has been already mentioned, was defended by strong +ramparts, flanked by a multitude of towers, and by numerous other +fortifications, built one above the other. Notwithstanding the civil +wars which had inundated it with blood, Grenada still enclosed within +its walls more than two hundred thousand {191} inhabitants. Every +brave Moorish cavalier who still remained true to his country, its +religion, and its laws, had here taken refuge. Despair redoubled their +strength in this last desperate struggle; and had these fierce and +intrepid warriors been guided by a more worthy chief than Boabdil, +their noble constancy might still have saved them; but this weak and +ferocious monarch hesitated not, on the slightest suspicion, to consign +his most faithful defenders to the axe of the executioner. Thus he +became daily more and more an object of hatred and contempt to the +Grenadians, by whom he was surnamed _Zogoybi_; that is to say, _the +Little King_. The different tribes now grew dissatisfied and +dispirited, especially the numerous and powerful tribe of the +Abencerrages. The alfaquis and the imans, also, loudly predicted the +approaching downfall of the Moorish empire; and nothing upheld the +sinking courage of the people against the pressure of a foreign foe and +the tyranny of their own rulers but their unconquerable horror of the +Spanish yoke. + +The Catholic soldiers, on the other hand, elated by their past success, +regarded themselves as invincible, and never for a moment doubted the +{192} certainty of their triumph. They were commanded, also, by +leaders to whom they were devotedly attached: Ponce de Leon, marquis of +Cadiz, Henry de Guzman, duke of Medina, Mendoza, Aguillar, Villena, and +Gonzalvo of Cordova, together with many other famous captains, +accompanied their victorious king. Isabella, too, whose virtues +excited the highest respect, and whose affability and grace won for her +the affectionate regard of all, had repaired to the camp of her husband +with the Infant and the Infantas, and attended by the most brilliant +court in Europe. This politic princess, though naturally grave and +serious, wisely accommodated herself to the existing circumstances. +She mingled fêtes and amusements with warlike toil: jousts and +tournaments delighted at intervals the war-worn soldiery; and dances, +games, and illuminations filled up the delicious summer evenings. + +Queen Isabella was the animating genius that directed everything; a +gracious word from her was a sufficient recompense for the most gallant +achievement; and her look alone had power to transform the meanest +soldier into a hero. + +Abundance reigned in the Christian camp; {193} while joy and hope +animated every heart. But within the beleaguered city, mutual +distrust, universal consternation, and the prospect of inevitable +destruction, had damped the courage and almost annihilated the hopes of +the wretched inhabitants. + +The siege, nevertheless, lasted for nine months. The cautious +commander of the Christian army did not attempt to carry by assault a +place so admirably fortified. After having laid waste the environs, +therefore, he waited patiently until famine should deliver the city +into his hands. Satisfied with battering the ramparts and repelling +the frequent sorties of the Moors, he never engaged in any decisive +action, but daily hemmed in more closely the chafed lion that could not +now escape his toils. + +Accident one night set fire to the pavilion of Isabella, and the +spreading conflagration consumed every tent in the camp. But Boabdil +derived no advantage from this disaster. The queen directed that a +city should supply the place of the ruined camp, to convince the +enemies of the cross that the siege would never be raised until Grenada +should come into possession of the conquering Spaniards. This great +and {194} extraordinary design, so worthy the genius of Isabella, was +executed in eighty days. The Christian camp thus became a walled city; +and Santa Fe still exists as a monument of the piety and perseverance +of the heroic Queen of Castile. + +At last, oppressed by famine, less frequently successful than at first +in the partial engagements that were constantly taking place under the +walls, and abandoned by Africa, from which there were no attempts made +to relieve them, the Moors now felt the necessity of a surrender. + +Gonzalvo of Cordova was empowered by the conquerors to arrange the +articles of capitulation. These provided that the people of Grenada +should recognise Ferdinand and Isabella, and their royal successors, as +their rightful sovereigns; that all their Christian captives should be +released without ransom; that the Moors should continue to be governed +by their own laws; should retain their national customs, their judges, +half the number of their mosques, and the free exercise of their faith; +that they should be permitted either to keep or sell their property, +and to retire to Africa, or to any other country they might choose, +while, at the same time, they should not be compelled to leave their +{195} native land. It was also agreed that Boabdil should have +assigned to him a rich and ample domain in the Alpuxares, of which he +should possess the entire command. + +Such were the terms of capitulation, and but ill were they observed by +the Spaniards. Boabdil fulfilled his part of the stipulations some +days before the time specified, in consequence of being informed that +his people, roused by the representations of the imans, wished to break +off the negotiations, and to bury themselves beneath the ruins of the +city rather than suffer their desolate and deserted homes to be +profaned by the intruding foot of the spoiler. + +The wretched Moslem prince hastened therefore to deliver the keys of +the city, and of the fortresses of the Albazin and the Alhambra, into +the hands of Ferdinand. + +Entering no more, after this mournful ceremony, within the walls where +he no longer retained any authority, Boabdil took his melancholy +journey, accompanied by his family and a small number of followers, to +the petty dominions which were now all that remained to him of the once +powerful and extensive empire of his ancestors. + +{196} + +When the cavalcade reached an eminence from which the towers of Grenada +might still be discerned, the wretched exile turned his last sad +regards upon the distant city, amid ill-suppressed tears and groans. +"_You do well_," said Aixa, his mother, "_to weep like a woman for the +throne you could not defend like a man!_" + +But the now powerless Boabdil could not long endure existence as a +subject in a country where he had reigned as a sovereign: he crossed +the Mediterranean to Africa, and there he ended his days on the +battle-field. + +Ferdinand and Isabella made their public entrance into Grenada on the +1st of January, 1492, through double ranks of soldiers, and amid the +thunder of artillery. The city seemed deserted; the inhabitants fled +from the presence of the conquerors, and concealed their tears and +their despair within the innermost recesses of their habitations. + +The royal victors repaired first to the grand mosque, which was +consecrated as a Christian church, and where they rendered thanks to +God for the brilliant success that had crowned their arms. While the +sovereigns fulfilled this pious duty, the Count de Tendilla, the new +governor {197} of Grenada, elevated the triumphant cross, and the +standards of Castile and St. James, on the highest towers of the +Alhambra. + +Thus fell this famous city, and thus perished the power of the Moors of +Spain, after an existence of seven hundred and eighty-two years from +the first conquest of the country by Tarik. + +It may now be proper briefly to remark upon the principal causes of the +extinction of the national independence of the kingdom of Grenada. + +The first of these arose from the peculiar character of the Moors: from +that spirit of inconstancy, that love of novelty, and that unceasing +inquietude, which prompted them to such frequent change of their +rulers; which multiplied factions among them, and constantly convulsed +the empire with internal discords, expending its strength and power in +dissensions at home, and thus leaving it defenceless against foreign +enemies. The Moors may also be reproached with an extravagant fondness +for architectural magnificence, splendid fêtes, and other expensive +entertainments, which aided in exhausting the national treasury at +times when protracted warfare scarcely ever permitted this most fertile +region of the earth to reproduce the {198} crops the Spaniards had +destroyed. But, more than all, they were a people without an +established code of laws, that only permanent basis of the prosperity +of nations. And then, too, a despotic form of government, which +deprives men of patriotism, induced each individual to regard his +virtues and attainments merely as affording the means of personal +consideration, and not, as they should be considered, the property of +his country. + +These grave defects in the national character of the Moors were +redeemed by many excellent qualities, which even the Spaniards admitted +them to possess. In battle they were no less brave and prudent than +their Christian antagonists, though inferior in skill and discipline. +They excelled them, however, in the art of attack. Adversity never +long overwhelmed them; they saw in misfortune the will of Heaven, and +without a murmur submitted to it. Their favourite dogma of fatalism +doubtless contributed to this result. Fervently devoted to the laws of +Mohammed, they obeyed with great exactness his humane injunctions +respecting almsgiving:[19] they bestowed on the poor not only food and +{199} money, but a portion of their grain, fruit, and flocks, and of +every kind of merchandise. In the towns and throughout the country, +the indigent sick were collected, attended, and nursed with the most +assiduous care. Hospitality, so sacred from the remotest time among +the Arabs, was not less carefully observed among the people of Grenada, +who seemed to take peculiar pleasure in its exercise. The following +touching anecdote is told in illustration of the powerful influence of +this principle. A stranger, bathed in blood, sought refuge from the +officers of justice under the roof of an aged Moor. The old man +concealed him in his house. But he had scarcely done so before a guard +arrived to demand possession of the murderer, and, at the same time, to +deliver to the horror-stricken Mussulman the dead body of his son, whom +the stranger had just assassinated. Still the aged father would not +give up his guest. When the guard, however, were gone, he entreated +the assassin to leave him. "_Depart from me_," he cried, "_that I may +be at liberty to pursue thee!_" + +These Moslems were but little known to the historians by whom they have +been so often calumniated. Polished, enthusiastic, hospitable, {200} +brave, and chivalrous, but haughty, passionate, inconstant, and +vindictive, their unfortunate fate entitles them, at least, to +compassion and sympathy, while their virtues may well excite respect +and interest. + +After their final defeat, many of the followers of the Prophet retired +to Africa. Those who remained in Grenada suffered greatly from the +persecution and oppression to which they were subjected by their new +masters. The article in their last treaty with the Spaniards, which +formally ensured their religious freedom, was grossly violated by the +Catholics, who compelled the Mussulmans to abjure their national faith +by force, terror, and every other unworthy means. + +At last, outraged beyond endurance by this want of good faith, and +wrought to desperation by the cruelties they were compelled to endure, +in the year 1500 the Moors attempted to revolt against their +oppressors. Their efforts were, however, unavailing: Ferdinand marched +in person against them, repressed by force of arms the struggles of a +people whom he designated as rebels, and, sword in hand, administered +the rite of baptism to more than fifty thousand captive Moslems. + +{201} + +The successors of Ferdinand, Charles V. and especially Philip II., +continued to harass the Moors.[20] The Inquisition was established in +the city of Grenada, and all the terrors of that dreaded institution +were added to gentler means for the conversion of the infidels to +Christianity. Their children were taken from them to be educated in +accordance with the precepts of that religion whose Adorable Founder +enjoined peace, mercy, and forbearance upon his followers, and forbade +the practice of injustice and cruelty in every form. + +Yielding to the promptings of despair, this crushed and wretched +remnant of a once powerful and glorious nation again flew to arms in +the year 1569, and executed the most terrible vengeance upon the +Catholic priesthood. Mohammed-ben-Ommah, the new king whom they chose +to direct their destinies, and who was {202} said to have sprung from +the cherished race of the Ommiades, several times gave battle to his +opponents in the mountains of the Alpuxares, where he sustained the +cause of his injured countrymen for the space of two years. At the end +of that time he was assassinated by his own people. His successor +shared the same fate, and the Mussulmans were again compelled to submit +to a yoke their revolt had rendered even more intolerable than before. + +Finally, King Philip III. totally banished the Moors from Spain. The +depopulation thus produced inflicted a wound upon that kingdom, from +the effects of which it has never since recovered. + +More than one hundred and fifty thousand of this persecuted race took +refuge in France, where Henry IV. received them with great humanity. A +small number also concealed themselves in the recesses of the +Alpuxares; but the greatest part of the expatriated Islamites sought a +home in Africa. There their descendants still drag out a miserable +existence under the despotic rule of the sovereigns of Morocco, and +unceasingly pray that they may be restored to their beloved Grenada. + + + +[1] The Darra, Xenil, Dilar, Vagro, and Monachil. + +[2] See note A, page 222. + +[3] See note B, page 222. + +[4] See note C, page 222. + +[5] It should be borne in mind, that the description given by M. +Florian of the remains of the once gorgeous splendours of this palace +was written nearly half a century ago; and that time, and the yet more +ruthless destroyer man, may have wrought great changes since that +period amid the ruins of the Alhambra.--_Trans._ + +[6] The translator has adopted the literal French version of this +inscription, given in a note by M. Florian, from the impression that +the spirit of the original would thus be better preserved than by +attempting to render into rhyme his poetical interpretation. + +[7] See Note D, page 223. + +[8] See note E, page 224. + +[9] A.D. 1302, Heg. 703. + +[10] A.D. 1319, Heg. 719. + +[11] The mountains of Grenada, in the neighbourhood of which this +action took place, have, ever since that event, borne the name of LA +SIERRA DE LOS INFANTES. + +[12] See Note F, page 224. + +[13] See Note G, page 225. + +[14] The translator ventures to offer an imitation of M. Florian's +French version of this Moorish ballad, and appends the Spanish original +with which he presents his readers. + + GANZUL Y ZELINDA. + + ROMANCE MORO. + + En el tiempo que Zelinda + Cerro ayrada la ventana + A la disculpa a los zelos + Que el Moro Ganzul le daya, + Confusa y arrepentida + De averse fingido ayrada, + For verle y desagravialle, + El corazon se le abraza; + Que en el villano de amor + Es mui cierta la mudanza, etc. + + Y como supo que el Moro + Rompio furioso la lanca, etc. + Y que la librea verde + Avia trocado en leonada; + Saco luego una marlota + De tufetan roxo y plata, + Un bizarro capellar + De tela de oro morada, etc. + + Con une bonete cubierto + De zaphires y esparaldas, + Que publican zelos muertos, + Y vivas las esperancos, + Con una nevada toça; + Que el color de la veleta + Tambien publica bononça + Informandose primero. + + A donde Ganzul estava, + A una caza de plazer + Aquella tarde le llama + Y diziendole a Ganzul. + Que Zelinda le aguardava, + Al page le pregunto + Tres vezes si so burlava; + Que son malaas de creer + Las nuevas mui desseadas, etc. + Hollola en un jardin, + Entre mosquetta y jasmine, etc. + + Viendose Moro con ella, + A penas los ojos alça; + Zelinda le asio la mano, + Un poco roxa y turbada; + Y al fin de infinitas guexas + Que en tales passes se passan, + Vistio se las ricas presas + Con las manos de su dama, etc. + +[15] Mohammedan priest. + +[16] See Note H, page 225. + +[17] A.D. 1453, Heg. 857. + +[18] A.D. 1469, Heg. 874. + +[19] See Note I, page 226. + +[20] The edicts of Charles V., which were renewed and rendered more +severe by Philip II., directed an entire change in the peculiar +domestic habits and manners of the Moors, prescribed their adoption of +the Spanish costume and language, forbade their women to wear veils, +interdicted the use of the oath and the celebration of their national +dances, and ordered that all their children from the age of five to +fifteen should be registered, that they might be sent to Catholic +Schools. + + + + +{203} + +NOTES. + + +FIRST EPOCH. + +A, page 25. + +_Until they embrace Islamism, &c._ + +The word _Islamism_ is derived from _islam_, which signifies +_consecration to God_. + +The brief synopsis given in the text of the principles of the +Mohammedan religion, is literally rendered by the author from several +different chapters of the Koran. These precepts are there to be found +almost lost amid a mass of absurdities, repetitions, and incoherent +rhapsodies. Yet, throughout the entire work, there are occasionally +bright gleams of fervid eloquence or pure morality. Mohammed never +speaks on his own authority; he pretends always to be prompted by the +angel Gabriel, who repeats to him the commands of the Most High: the +Prophet does but listen and repeat them. The angelic messenger has +taken care to enter into a multitude of details, not only in relation +to religion, but also to legislation and government. And thus it +happens that the Koran is regarded by the Mussulmans as their standard, +no less for civil than for moral law. One half of this book is written +in verse, and the remainder in poetical prose. Mohammed possessed +great poetical talent; an endowment so highly esteemed by his +countrymen, that they were in the habit of assembling at Mecca to +pronounce judgment on the different poems affixed {204} by their +respective authors to the walls of the temple of tie Caaba; and the +individual in whose favour the popular voice decided was crowned with +great solemnity. When the second chapter of the Koran, _Labia ebn +rabia_, appeared on the walls, the most famous poet of the time, who +had previously posted up a rival production of his own, tore it down, +and acknowledged himself conquered by the Prophet. + +Mohammed was not altogether the monster of cruelty so many authors +represent him to have been. He often displayed much humanity towards +offenders who were in his power, and even forgave personal injuries. +One of the most unrelenting of his enemies, named Caab, on whose head a +price had been set, had the audacity suddenly to appear in the mosque +at Medina while Mohammed was preaching to the multitude. Caab recited +some verses which he had composed in honour of the Prophet. Mohammed +listened to them with pleasure, embraced the poet, and invested him +with his own mantle. This precious garment was afterward bought by one +of the caliphs of the East, from the family of Caab, for the sum of +twenty thousand drachms, and became the pride of those Asiatic +sovereigns, who wore it only on the occasion of some solemn festival. + +The last moments of Mohammed would seem to prove that he was far from +possessing an ignoble mind. Feeling his end approaching, he repaired +to the mosque, supported by his friend Ali. Mounting the tribune, he +made a prayer, and then, turning to the assembly, uttered these words: +"Mussulmans, I am about to die. No one, therefore, need any longer +fear me; if I have struck any one among you, here is my breast, let him +strike me in return: if I have wrongfully taken the property of any +one, here is my purse, let him remunerate himself: if I have humbled +any one, let him now {205} spurn me: I surrender myself to the justice +of my countrymen!" The people sobbed aloud: one individual alone +demanded three drachms of the dying Prophet, who instantly discharged +the debt with interest. After this he took an affectionate leave of +the brave Medinians who had so faithfully defended him, gave liberty to +his slaves, and ordered the arrangements for his funeral. His last +interview with his wife and daughter, and Omar and Ali, his friends and +disciples, was marked by much tenderness. Sorrow and lamentation were +universal throughout Arabia on this occasion; and his daughter Fatima +died of grief for his loss. + +The respect and veneration entertained by his followers for Mohammed is +almost inconceivable. Their doctors have gravely asserted in their +writings that the world was created for him; that the first thing made +was light, and that that light became the substance of the soul of +Mohammed, etc. Some of them have maintained that the Alcoran was +uncreated, while others have adopted a contrary opinion; and out of +these discordant views have arisen numerous sects, and even wars that +have deluged Asia with blood. + +The life of Mohammed was terminated by poison, which had been +administered to him some years before by a Jewess named Zainab, whose +brother had been slain by Ali. This woman, to avenge the death of her +brother, poisoned some roasted lamb which she served up for the +Prophet. Scarcely had he put a morsel of it into his mouth, when, +instantly rejecting it, he exclaimed that the meat was poisoned. +Notwithstanding the prompt use of antidotes, the injurious consequences +were so severe, that he suffered from them during the remainder of his +life, and died four years after, in the sixty-third year of his age. + + +{206} + +B, page 27. + +_Kaled, surnamed the Sword of God, &c._ + +The feats of arms ascribed by historians to Kaled resemble those of a +hero of romance. He was at first the enemy of the great Arabian +leader, and vanquished that commander in the conflict of _Aheh_, the +only battle which Mohammed ever lost. Having afterward become a +zealous Mussulman, he subjugated such parts of the Mohammedan dominions +as had revolted after the death of the Prophet, opposed the armies of +Heraclius, conquered Syria, Palestine, and a part of Persia, and came +off victor in numerous single combats in which he was at different +times engaged: always challenging to an encounter of this kind the +general of the hostile army. The following anecdote will illustrate +his character. Kaled besieged the city of Bostra. The Greek governor, +named Romain, under pretence of making a sortie, passed the walls with +his troops, and arranged them in order of battle in front of the +Mussulman army. At the moment when he should have given the signal for +the onset, the valiant Greek demanded an interview with Kaled. The two +commanders, therefore, advanced into the centre of the space which +separated the opposing armies. Romain declared to the Saracen general +that he had determined not only to deliver the city to him, but to +embrace the religion of the crescent; he at the same time expressed a +fear that his soldiers, among whom he was by no means popular, intended +to take his life, and intreated Kaled to protect him against their +vengeance. + +"The best thing you can do," replied the Moslem leader, "is immediately +to accept a challenge to a single combat with me. Such an exhibition +of courage will gain for you the respect of your troops, and we can +treat together afterward!" + +{207} + +At these words, without waiting for a reply from the governor, the +champion of Islamism drew his cimeter and attacked the unfortunate +Romain, who defended himself with a trembling hand. At each blow +inflicted by the redoubtable follower of the Prophet, Remain cried out, +"Do you then wish to kill me?" "No," replied the Mussulman; "my only +object is, to load you with honour; the more you are beaten, the more +esteem you will acquire!" At last, when he had nearly deprived the +poor Greek of life, Kaled gave up the contest, and shortly after took +possession of the city: when he next saw the pusillanimous governor, he +politely inquired after his health. + + +C, page 30. + +_The warlike tribes of the Bereberes, &c._ + +The name of the portion of Africa called _Barbary_ is derived from the +Bereberes. This people regarded themselves, with much appearance of +truth, as the descendants of those Arabs who originally came into the +country with Malek Yarfric, and who are often confounded with the +ancient Numidians. Their language, which differs from that of every +other people, is, in the opinion of some authors, a corruption of the +Punic or Carthaginian. Divided into tribes and wandering among the +mountains, this peculiar race still exists in the kingdom of Morocco. +The Bereberes were never allied with the Moors, for whom they always +entertained a feeling of enmity. Though at present under the dominion +of the kings of Morocco as their religious head, they brave his +displeasure and authority at will. They are formidable in consequence +of their numbers, courage, and indomitable spirit of independence; and +still preserve unimpaired the peculiar simplicity of their ancient +manners and habits. + + +{208} + +D, page 34. + +_Tarik, one of the most renowned captains of his time, &c._ + +Tarik landed at the dot of the Calpe Mountain, and took the city of +Herculia, to which the Arabs gave the name of _Djebel Tarik_, of which +we have made Gibraltar. + + +E, page 38. + +_During the remainder of the Caliphate of Yezid II., &c._ + +This caliph, the ninth of the Ommiades, ended his existence in a manner +that at least merits pity. He was amusing himself one day with +throwing grapes at his favourite female slave, who caught them in her +mouth. This fruit, it must be remembered, is much larger in Syria than +in Europe. Unfortunately, one of the grapes passed into the throat of +the slave and instantly suffocated her. The despairing Yezid would not +permit the interment of this dearest object of his affections, and +watched incessantly beside the corpse for eight successive days. Being +compelled at last, by the condition of the body, to separate himself +from it, he died of grief, entreating, as he expired, that his remains +might be interred in the same tomb with his beloved Hubabah. + + +SECOND EPOCH. + +A, page 46. + +_He was soon after assassinated, &c._ + +Three Karagites (a name applied to a pre-eminently fanatical sect of +Mussulmans), beholding the disorders created in the Arabian empire by +the contentions of Ali, Moavias, and {209} Amrou, believed that they +should perform a service that would be acceptable to God, and restore +peace to their country, by simultaneously assassinating the three +rivals. One of them repaired to Damascus, and wounded the usurper +Moavias in the back; but the wound did not prove mortal. The +confederate charged with the murder of Amrou, stabbed, by mistake, one +of the friends of that rebel. The third, who had undertaken to +despatch Ali, struck him as he was about to enter the mosque, and the +virtuous caliph was the only one who fell a victim to the design of the +assassins. + + +B, page 48. + +_Mervan II., the last caliph of the race, &c._ + +This Ommiade was surnamed _Alhemar_, that is to say, _The Ass_: an +appellation which, in the East, is considered highly honourable, from +the singular regard there entertained for that patient and +indefatigable animal. Ariosto derived his touching episode of Isabella +of Gallicia from the history of this prince. Mervan, being at one time +in Egypt, became enamoured of a religious recluse whom he chanced to +see there, and endeavoured to persuade her to break her monastic vows. +Effectually to relieve herself from his persecutions, the young devotee +promised him an ointment which would render him invulnerable, and +volunteered to prove its efficacy on her own person. After having +anointed her neck with the mixture, she requested the caliph to test +the keenness of his cimeter on it, which the barbarian did; and the +result may be easily imagined. + + +C, page 48. + +_The names of Haroun al Raschid, &c._ + +Haroun al Raschid (which signifies Haroun the Just) was {210} greatly +renowned in the East. He undoubtedly, in part, owed his fame, as well +as his surname, to the protection he afforded to men of letters. His +military exploits and his love of science prove this caliph to have +been no ordinary man; but then the glory of his achievements was +tarnished by his cruelty to the Barmacides. These were a distinguished +tribe or family, descended from the ancient kings of Persia. They had +rendered the most signal services to the successive caliphs, and won +the respect and affection of the whole empire. Giaffar Barmacide, who +was considered the most virtuous of Mussulmans and the most eminent +author of the age, was the vizier of Haroun. He entertained a +passionate regard for Abassa, the beautiful and accomplished sister of +the caliph, and the princess reciprocated his affection; but the +sovereign made the most unreasonable opposition to the celebration of +their nuptials. This they effected, however, without his knowledge; +and for some time Haroun remained ignorant of the union of the lovers. +But, at the end of some years, the caliph made a pilgrimage to Mecca, +to which city, the more effectually to secure the inviolability of his +secret, the Bermacide had sent his infant son to be reared. There the +representative of the Prophet, through the instrumentality of a +perfidious slave, became acquainted with all the circumstances of the +deception that had been practised on him. It would be difficult to +believe the account of what followed, but that the facts were so well +authenticated throughout Asia. Haroun caused his sister to be thrown +into a well, commanded that Giaffar should lose his head, and ordered +every relative of the unfortunate Bermacide to be put to death. The +father of the vizier, a venerable old man, respected throughout the +empire, which he had long governed, met his fate with the most heroic +firmness. Before he expired, he wrote these {211} words to the +sanguinary despot: "_The accused departs first; the accuser will +shortly follow. Both will appear in the presence of a Judge whom no +arguments can deceive!_" + +The implacable Haroun carried his vengeance so far as to forbid that +any one should mention the names of his hapless victims. One of his +subjects, named Mundir, had the courage to brave this edict, and +publicly to pronounce the eulogy of the beloved Bermacides. + +The tyrant commanded that the offending Mussulman should appear before +him, and threatened him with punishment for what he had done. + +"You can silence me only by inflicting death upon me!" replied Mundir: +"that you have the power of doing; but you cannot extinguish the +gratitude entertained by the whole empire for those virtuous ministers: +even the ruins you have made of the monuments which they erected, speak +of their fame in spite of you!" It is said that the monarch was +touched by the words of this fearless defender of the dead, and that he +commanded a golden plate to be presented to him. + +Such was the famous caliph who bore the name of _the Just_. Almamon, +his son, received no surname; but he deserved to be ranked with the +wisest and the most virtuous of men. Some idea of his character may be +formed from the following anecdote. It is recorded of him, that his +viziers urged him to punish with death one of his relations who had +taken arms against him, and caused himself to be proclaimed caliph. +Almamon, however, rejected this sanguinary counsel, saying at the same +time, "Alas! if they who have injured me, knew how much pleasure I +experience in forgiving my enemies, they would hasten to appear before +me to confess their faults!" This excellent prince was the munificent +{212} patron of science and the arts, and his reign formed the most +brilliant epoch of the glorious days of the Arabs. + + +D, page 54. + +_Wars with the kings of Leon, and incursions into Catalonia, &c._ + +Historians do not agree concerning the precise period when Charlemagne +entered Spain. It would appear, however, that it was during the reign +of Abderamus that the emperor crossed the Pyrenees, took Pampeluna and +Saragossa, and was attacked, during his retreat, in the defiles of +Roncevaux, a place rendered famous in romantic literature by the death +of Roland. + + +E, page 59. + +_A government that properly respected the rights of the people, &c._ + +The ancient laws of Aragon, known under the name of _Fore de Sobarbe_, +limited the power of the sovereign by creating a balance for it in that +of the _ricos Hombres_, and of a magistrate who bore the name of +Justice. + + +F, page 60. + +_The celebrated school, &c._ + +The musical school, founded at Cordova by Ali-Zeriab, produced the +famous Moussali, who was regarded by the Orientals as the greatest +musician of his time. The music of the Moors did not consist, like +ours, in the concord of different instruments, but simply in soft and +tender airs, which the musicians sung to the accompaniment of the lute. +Sometimes several voices and lutes executed the same air in unison. +This simple style of music satisfied a people who were {213} such +passionate lovers of poetry, that their first desire, when listening to +a singer, was to hear the words he uttered. + +Moussali, who was the pupil of Ali-Zeriab at Cordova, became afterward, +in consequence of his musical talents, the favourite of Haroun al +Raschid, the celebrated caliph of the East. It is related that this +prince, in consequence of a misunderstanding with one of his favourite +wives, fell into such a slate of melancholy that fears were entertained +for his life. Giaffar, the Bermacide, at that time the principal +vizier of the caliph, entreated the poet Abbas-ben-Ahnaf to compose +some verses on the subject of this quarrel. He did so, and they were +sung in the presence of the prince by Moussali; and the royal lover was +so softened by the sentiments of the poet and the melody of the +musician, that he immediately flew to the feet of his fair enslaver, +and a reconciliation took place between the disconsolate monarch and +the offended beauty. The grateful slave sent twenty thousand drachms +of gold to the poet and Moussali, and Haroun added forty thousand more +to her gift. + + +G, page 66. + +_The statue of the beautiful Zahra, &c._ + +Mohammed, to discourage idolatry, forbade his followers, in the Koran, +to make images in any form; but this injunction was very imperfectly +observed. The Oriental caliphs adopted the custom of stamping their +coins with an impression of their own features, as is proved by +specimens still existing in the collections of the curious. On one +side of these was represented the head of the reigning caliph, and on +the other appeared his name, with some passages from the Alcoran. In +the palaces of Bagdad, Cordova and Grenada, figures of animals, and +sculpture of various kinds, both in gold and marble, abounded. + + +{214} + +H, page 69. + +_The richest and most powerful, &c._ + +Some conception of the opulence of the caliphs of the West, during the +palmy days of their prosperity, may be formed from the value of the +gifts presented to Abderamus III. by one of his subjects, +Abdoumalek-ben-Chien, on the occasion of his being appointed to the +dignity of chief vizier. The articles composing this present are thus +enumerated: Four hundred pounds of virgin gold; four hundred and twenty +thousand sequins, in the form of ingots of silver; four hundred and +twenty pounds of the wood of aloes; five hundred ounces of ambergris; +three hundred ounces of camphor; thirty pieces of silk and cloth of +gold; ten robes of the sable fur of Korassan; one hundred others, of +less valuable fur; forty-eight flowing housings for steeds; a thousand +bucklers; a hundred thousand arrows; gold tissues, from Bagdad; four +thousand pounds of silk; thirty Persian carpets; eight hundred suits of +armour for war horses; fifteen Arabian coursers for the caliph; a +hundred for the use of his officers; twenty mules, saddled and +caparisoned; forty youths and twenty young maidens, of rare beauty. + + +I, page 81. + +About this time occurred the famous adventure of the seven sons of +Lara, so celebrated in Spanish history and romance, and of which, as in +some degree connected with Moorish history, we may briefly narrate the +particulars. + +These young warriors were brothers, the sons of Gonzalvo Gustos, a near +relative of the first counts of Castile, and lords of Salas de Lara. +Ruy Velasquez, brother-in-law of Gonzalvo Gustos, instigated by his +wife, who pretended to {215} have some cause of offence against the +youngest of the seven brothers, meditated the execution of a horrible +scheme for their destruction. Ho commenced by sending their father +Gonzalvo on an embassy to the court of Cordova, making him, at the same +time, the bearer of letters, in which he prayed the caliph to put the +envoy to death, as the enemy of the crescent and its followers. The +Mussulman sovereign, being unwilling to commit so barbarous an act, +contented himself with retaining Gonzalvo as a prisoner. In the mean +time, the perfidious Velasquez, under pretence of conducting an attack +against the Moors, led his nephews into the midst of an ambuscade, +where, overpowered by numbers, they all perished, after a most heroic +defence, accompanied by circumstances which render their end truly +affecting. The barbarous uncle sent the gory heads of the murdered +youths to the royal palace of Cordova, and caused them to be presented +to the unhappy father, in a golden dish covered with a veil. No sooner +did Gonzalvo behold the ghastly contents of the dish, than he fell to +the earth, deprived of sense. The Caliph of the West, filled with +indignation at the demoniac cruelty of Velasquez, restored his captive +to liberty. But the foe of his race was too powerful to permit the +childless Gonzalvo to avenge the murder of his offspring. He +attempted, indeed, to do so; but old age had deprived him of his former +strength and vigour. With his wife, therefore, he mourned in solitude +over the untimely fate of his sons, and entreated Heaven to permit him +to follow them to the tomb: but a champion of his cause unexpectedly +arose in the person of an illegitimate son of Gonzalvo's at the Moorish +court. When this boy had attained the age of twelve years, he was +informed of his parentage by his mother, who was the sister of the +sovereign of Cordova, and of the wrongs which his father had suffered. + +{216} + +The heroic youth, who bore the name of _Mendarra Gonzalvo_, resolved to +become the avenger of his brothers. Hastening to execute his purpose, +he left Cordova, challenged Valasquez, and slew him. Cutting off the +head of his father's foe, he sought with his burden the presence of the +old man, demanded to be acknowledged as his son, and admitted into the +Christian church. The wife of Gonzalvo joyfully consented to receive +the brave Mendarra as her son, and he was solemnly adopted by the +venerable pair. The wife of Velasquez, who, it will be remembered, had +instigated the ferocious uncle to his murderous deed, was stoned to +death and afterward burned. It is from this valiant Mendarra Gonzalvo +that the Mauriques de Lara, one of the most important Spanish families, +seek to trace their descent. + + +THIRD EPOCH. + +A, page 86. + +_Three bishops of Catalonia, &c._ + +These three bishops of Catalonia, who died fighting for the Mussulmans +at the battle of Albakara, which took place in the year 1010, were +Arnaulpha, bishop of Vic; Accia, bishop of Barcelona; and Othon, bishop +of Girona. + + +B, page 91. + +_And equally ready, when enjoying the favour of the sovereign, to +displease him, if it should be necessary to do so, &c._ + +RODRIGUE DIAS DE BIVAR, surnamed _the Cid_, so well known by his +affection for Chimena and his duel with the Count Gormas, has been the +subject of many poems, novels {217} and romances in the Spanish tongue. +Without crediting all the extraordinary adventures ascribed to this +hero by his countrymen, it is proved by the testimony of reputable +historians, that the Cid was not only the bravest and most dreaded +warrior of his time, but one of the most virtuous and generous of men. +De Bivar was already famed for his exploits while Castile was still +under the dominion of Ferdinand I. When the successor of that monarch, +Sancho II., endeavoured to despoil his sister Uraque of the city of +Zamora, this champion of the oppressed, with noble firmness, +represented to the king that he was about being guilty of an act of +injustice, by which he would violate, at the same time, the laws of +honour and the ties of blood. The offended Sancho exiled the Cid, but +was soon after obliged by necessity to recall him. When the +treacherous assassination of Sancho, while encamped before Zamora, +entitled his brother Alphonso to the throne, the Castilians were +anxious that their new sovereign should disavow, by a solemn oath, +having had any agency in the murder of his brother. No one dared +demand of the king to take this oath except the Cid, who constrained +him to pronounce it aloud at the same altar where his coronation was +celebrated; adding, at the same time, the most fearful maledictions +against perjury. Alphonso never forgave the liberty thus taken with +him, and soon after banished the Spanish hero from court, under +pretence of his having trespassed on the territories of an ally of +Castile, the King of Toledo, into whose dominions the Cid had +inadvertently pursued some fugitives from justice. + +The period of his exile became the most glorious epoch in the history +of the Chevalier de Bivar: it was then that he achieved so many +triumphs over the Moors, aided solely by the brave companions in arms +whom his reputation drew to his standard. After a time Alphonso +recalled the Cid, and {218} received him into apparent favour; but +Rodrigo was too candid long to enjoy the royal smiles. Banished from +court anew, he hastened to accomplish the conquest of Valencia; and +master of that strong city, with many others, and of a territory of +great extent, to make the Cid a monarch it was only necessary that he +himself should desire it. But the noble Spaniard never for a moment +indulged the wish, and ever continued the faithful subject of the +ungrateful and often-offending Alphonso. + +This celebrated hero died at Valencia A.D. 1099, crowned with years and +honours. He had but one son, and of him he was early deprived by +death. The two daughters of the Cid espoused princes of the house of +Navarre; and, through a long succession of alliances, formed at length +the root whence is derived the present royal race of Bourbons. + + +C, page 92. + +_More ferocious and sanguinary than the lions of their deserts, &c._ + +The history of Africa, during the period referred to in the text, is +but a narrative of one continued succession of the most atrocious +murders. Were we to judge of humanity by these sanguinary annals, we +should be tempted to believe, that, of all ferocious animals, man is +the most bloodthirsty and cruel. + +Amid the multitude of these African tyrants, there was one, of the race +of the _Aglhebites_, named _Abon Ishak_, who was particularly +distinguished for the demoniac barbarity of his character. Having +butchered eight of his brothers, he next indulged his horrid thirst for +blood in the sacrifice of his own offspring. The mother of this +monster succeeded with difficulty in preserving from his fury a part of +his family. One {219} day, while dining with Ishak, upon his +expressing some feeling of momentary regret that he had no more +children, his mother tremblingly ventured to confess that she had +preserved the lives of six of his daughters. The sanguinary wretch +appeared softened, and expressed a desire to see them. When they were +summoned to his presence, their youth and loveliness touched the +ferocious father; and while Ishak lavished caresses upon his innocent +children, his mother retired, with tears of joy, to render thanks to +Heaven for this apparent change in the temper of her son. An hour +afterward, a eunuch brought her, by order of the emperor, the heads of +the young princesses. + +It would be easy to cite other parallel deeds, attested by historians, +which were perpetrated by this execrable monster. Suffice it to say, +he escaped the violent death due to such a life, and long maintained +his hateful rule. + +Time has not softened the sanguinary ferocity, which seems like an +inherent vice produced by the climate of Africa. Mulei-Abdalla, the +father of Sidi Mohammed, the recent king of Morocco, renewed these +scenes of horror. One day, while crossing a river, he was on the point +of drowning, when one of his negroes succeeded in rescuing him from the +waves. The slave expressed his delight at having had the good fortune +to serve his master. His words were heard by Abdalla, who, drawing his +cimeter, and crying, "Behold an infidel, who supposes that God required +his assistance in preserving the life of an emperor," instantly struck +off the head of his preserver. + +This same monarch had a confidential domestic who had been long in his +service, and for whom the savage Abdalla appeared to entertain some +affection. In a moment of good-nature he entreated this aged servant +to accept two thousand ducats at his hand and leave his service, lest +he should be {220} seized with an irrepressible desire to kill him, as +he had so many others. The old man clung to the feet of the king, +refused the two thousand ducats, and assured him that he preferred +perishing by his hand rather than abandon so beloved a master. Mulei, +with some hesitation, consented to retain his aged servant. Some days +afterward, impelled by that thirst for blood whose impulses were +sometimes uncontrollable, and without the slightest provocation to the +deed, the fiendish despot struck the unfortunate man dead at his feet, +saying, at the same moment, that he had been a fool not to accept his +permission to leave him. + +It is painful to relate these shocking details; but they present a true +picture of the character of these African sovereigns, while they +inspire us with a horror of tyranny, and a veneration for the +restraints of civilization and law, so indispensable to the well-being +of every community. + + +D, page 98. + +_And possessed the united glory of having both enlightened, &c._ + +Averroes belonged to one of the first families in Cordova. His version +of the writings of Aristotle was translated into Latin, and was for a +long time the only translation of the works of that author. The other +productions of Averroes are still esteemed by the learned. He is +justly regarded as the chief of the Arabic philosophers: a class of men +not numerous in a nation abounding in prophets and conquerors. The +principles he entertained exposed him to much persecution. His +indifference to the religious creed of his countrymen excited the +enmity of the imans or priests against him, and afforded a pretext for +the animosity of all whom his genius inspired with envy. He was +accused of heresy before the {221} Emperor of Morocco; and the +punishment decreed against him was, that he should do homage at the +door of the mosque, while every true Mussulman who came thither to pray +for his conversion should spit in his face. He submitted patiently to +the humiliating infliction, merely repeating the words _Moriatur anima +mea morte philosophorum_ (_Let me die the death of a philosopher_). + + +E, page 106. + +_And broke the chains, &c._ + +This King of Navarre was Sancho VIII., surnamed _the Strong_. It was +in commemoration of the chains broken by him at the battle of Toloza +that Sancho added the chains of gold to the arms of Navarre, which are +still to be seen on the field of gules. + + +F, page 111. + +_Cousin-german of St. Lewis, &c._ + +Blanche, the mother of St. Lewis, was the daughter of Alphonso the +Noble of Castile. She had a sister named Beringira, who became the +wife of the King of Leon, and the mother of Ferdinand III. Several +historians, among others Mariana and Garibai, maintain that Blanche was +older than Beringira. If it were so, St. Lewis was the rightful heir +to the throne of Castile. France long asserted the pretensions thus +created. It is surprising that historians have not settled this +disputed point. One thing, however, is certain: the claims of +Ferdinand, sustained as they were by the partiality of the Castilians, +prevailed over those of his cousin. + + +{222} + +FOURTH EPOCH. + +A, page 132. + +_Alphonso the Sage, &c._ + +Alphonso the Sage was a great astronomer: his _Alphonsine Tables_ prove +that the happiness of his people occupied his attention as much, at +least, as his literary pursuits. It is in this collection that this +remarkable sentence occurs--remarkable when it is considered that it +expresses the sentiments of a monarch of the thirteenth century: "_The +despot uproots the tree: the wise sovereign prunes it._" + + +B, page 135. + +_In the hope of being elected emperor, &c._ + +ALPHONSO THE SAGE was elected Emperor of Germany in the year twelve +hundred and fifty-seven: but he was at too great a distance from that +country, and too much occupied at home, to be able to support his +claims to the imperial throne. Sixteen years afterward, however, he +made a voyage to Lyons, where Pope Gregory X. then was, to advocate his +rights before that dignitary. But the sovereign pontiff decided in +favour of Rodolph of Hapsburg, a scion of the house of Austria. + + +C, page 136. + +_Sancho reigned in his father's stead, &c._ + +This Sancho, surnamed _the Brave_, who took up arms against his father +and afterward obtained his throne, was the second son of Alphonso the +Sage. His elder brother, Ferdinand de la Cerda, a mild and virtuous +prince, died in the {223} flower of his age, leaving two infant sons, +the offspring of his marriage with Blanche, the daughter of St. Lewis +of France. It was to deprive these children of their reversionary +right to the crown of Castile that the ambitious Sancho made war upon +his father. He succeeded in his criminal designs; but the princes of +La Cerda, protected by France and Aragon, rallied around them all the +malecontents of Castile, and the claims they were thus enabled to +support long formed a pretext or occasion for the most bloody +dissensions. + + +D, page 149. + +_Ferdinand IV., surnamed the Summoned, &c._ + +Ferdinand IV., the son and successor of Sancho the Brave, was still in +his infancy when he succeeded to the throne. His minority was +overshadowed by impending clouds; but the power and influence of Queen +Mary, his mother, enabled her eventually to dissipate the dangers which +threatened the safety of her son. This prince obtained his appellation +of _the Summoned_ from the following circumstance. Actuated by +feelings of strong indignation, Ferdinand commanded that two brothers, +named Carvajal, who had been accused, but not convicted, of the crime +of assassination, should be precipitated from a rocky precipice. Both +the supposed criminals, in their last moments, asserted their innocence +of the crime alleged against them, appealed to Heaven and the laws to +verify the truth of their protestations, and summoned the passionate +Ferdinand to appear before the Great Judge of all men at the end of +thirty days. At the precise time thus indicated, the Castilian king, +who was marching against the Moors, retired for repose after dinner, +and was found dead upon his couch. The Spaniards attributed this +sudden death to the effects of Divine justice. It had been well if the +{224} monarchs who succeeded Ferdinand, Peter the Cruel in particular, +had been convinced of the truth of this sentiment. + + +E, page 149. + +_Retiring within the walls of Tariffe, &c._ + +After Sancho the Brave became master of Tariffe, it was besieged by the +Africans. It was during this siege that Alphonso de Guzman, the +Spanish governor of the city, exhibited an example of invincible +firmness and self-command, of which none but parents can form a just +estimate. The son of De Guzman was taken prisoner during a sortie. +The Africans conducted their captive to the walls, and threatened the +governor with his immolation unless the city should be immediately +surrendered. The undaunted Spaniard replied only by hurling a poniard +at his enemies, and retired from the battlements. In a moment loud +cries burst from the garrison. Hastily demanding the cause of this +alarm, the unhappy father was told that the Africans had put to death +his son. "God be praised," said he, "I thought that the city had been +taken!" + + +F, page 158. + +_The celebrated Inez de Castro, &c._ + +The passion of Peter the Cruel for Inez de Castro was carried to such +excess as, perhaps, in some degree, to account for the atrocity of his +revenge upon her murderers. These were three distinguished Portuguese +lords, who themselves stabbed the unfortunate Inez in the arms of her +women. Peter, who, at the time this barbarous deed was committed, had +not yet attained regal power, seemed from that period to lose all +command of himself: from being gentle and virtuous, he became ferocious +and almost insane. He openly rebelled against his father, carried fire +and sword into those {225} parts of the kingdom in which the domains of +the assassins of Inez were situated, and, when he afterward came into +possession of the crown, insisted that the King of Castile should +deliver up Gonzales and Coello, two of the guilty noblemen, who had +taken refuge at his court. Thus master of the persons of two of his +victims (the third had fled into France, where he died), Peter +subjected them to the most dreadful tortures. He caused their hearts +to be torn out while they were yet living, and assisted himself at this +horrible sacrifice. After thus glutting his vengeance, the +inconsolable lover exhumed the body of his murdered mistress, clothed +it in magnificent habiliments, and, placing his crown upon the livid +and revolting brow, proclaimed Inez de Castro queen of Portugal; +compelling, at the same time, the grandees of his court to do homage to +the insensible remains which he had invested with the attributes of +royalty. + + +G, page 161. + +_Most of the productions of the Grenadian authors, &c._ + +After the surrender of Grenada, Cardinal Ximenes caused every copy of +the Koran of which he could obtain possession to be burned. The +ignorant and superstitious soldiery mistook for that work everything +written in the Arabic language, and committed to the flames a multitude +of compositions both in prose and verse. + + +H, page 178. + +_The Abencerrages, &c._ + +The inhabitants of Grenada, and, indeed, the whole Moorish people, were +divided into tribes, composed of the different branches of the same +family. Some of these tribes were more numerous and important than +others: but two distinct {226} races were never united together, nor +was one of them ever divided. At the head of each of these tribes was +a chief who was descended in a direct male line from the original +founder of the family. In the city of Grenada there existed thirty-two +considerable tribes. The most important of these were the +Abencerrages, the Zegris, the Alcenabez, the Almorades, the Vanegas, +the Gomeles, the Abidbars, the Gauzuls, the Abenamars, the Aliatars, +the Reduans, the Aldoradins, etc. These separate races were, many of +them, at enmity with each other; and their animosity being perpetuated +from one generation to another, gave rise to the frequent civil wars +which were attended with such disastrous consequences to the nation at +large. + + +I, page 198 + +_His humane injunctions respecting almsgiving, &c._ + +Almsgiving is one of the leading principles of the Mohammedan religion. +It was enjoined upon the followers of the Prophet by a variety of +allegories, among which is the following: "The sovereign Judge shall, +at the last great day, entwine him who has not bestowed alms with a +frightful serpent, whose envenomed sting shall for ever pierce the +avaricious hand that never opened for the relief of the unfortunate!" + + + + +{227} + +A BRIEF ACCOUNT + +OF THE + +RISE AND DECLINE + +OF THE + +MOHAMMEDAN EMPIRE; + + +THE LITERATURE, SCIENCE, AND RELIGION OF THE ARABS; + +AND THE PRESENT CONDITION OF MOHAMMEDANISM + + + + +{229} + +A + +BRIEF ACCOUNT + +OF THE + +MOHAMMEDAN EMPIRE. + +CHAPTER I. + +Extent of the Arabian Empire.--Causes which led to that +extent.--Continuance of Mohammedanism.--Decay of the Empire.--What led +to it.--Spain revolts and sets up a separate +Caliph.--Africa.--Egypt.--Bagdad.--Fall of the House of the Abbassides. + + +The first battle in which the Arabs tried their power against the +disciplined forces of the Roman empire was the battle of Muta. Though +on that occasion they were successful, the most sanguine could not have +ventured to predict that, before the close of a century, their empire +would become more extensive than any that had ever before existed. Yet +such was the fact. It overthrew the power of the Romans, and rendered +the successors of the Prophet the mightiest and most absolute +sovereigns on earth. + +Under the last monarch of the Ommiade race, {230} the Arabian empire, +excepting only an obscure part of Africa, of little account, embraced a +compact territory equal to six months' march of a caravan in length and +four in breadth, with innumerable tributary and dependant states. In +the exercise of their power, the caliphs were fettered neither by +popular rights, the votes of a senate, nor constitutional laws: the +Koran was, indeed, their professed rule of action; but, inasmuch as +they alone were its interpreters, their will was in all cases law. The +loss of Spain to the empire was more than made up by conquests in +India, Tartary, and European Turkey. Samarcand and Timbuctoo studied +with equal devotion the language and religion of the Koran, and at the +temple of Mecca the Moor and the Indian met as brother pilgrims. +Throughout the countries west of the Tigris, the language of Arabia +became the vehicle of popular intercourse; and, although in Persia, +Tartary, and Hindostan the native dialects continued in common use, the +Arabic was also there the sacred tongue. + +We will advert to some of the causes which led to this astonishing +success. The leading article of the Mohammedan faith, the unity of +God, harmonized with what Jews and Christians universally believed. +Mohammed propounded this doctrine, by excluding the Deity of Jesus +Christ, so as {231} to fall in with the views of the greater number of +the Christian sectaries. He moreover enjoined practices which, in the +then corrupt state of religion, were beginning widely to prevail. To +the untutored mind of the desert wanderer, his doctrine would thus +possess all the attractiveness he might have heard ascribed to +Christianity, while his being of the same country would secure for him +the greater attention. Systems in which truth and error have been +combined are by no means unwillingly received, especially by those who +are already superstitious and fanatical, and such was pre-eminently the +character of the Arabians. Mohammed's religious, moral, and juridical +system was in general accordance with Asiatic opinions; it provided a +paradise exactly suited to the imagination and taste of the Orientals; +and, as the superstitious are always more powerfully influenced by that +which awakens apprehension and appeals to fear than by what enkindles +hope, his hell contributed even more than his heaven to multiply +disciples. + +Still, had no resort been had to arms, the Mohammedan faith would in +all probability have been confined to the deserts of Arabia. The whole +of Asia was at that time in a state of unprecedented military +inactivity, and opportunity was thus afforded for the success of his +enterprise. Empires {232} were tottering and powerless; political +wisdom had almost disappeared; and to military talents and courage the +Arabs alone could make any pretensions. Previous contentions between +the Persian and Byzantine empires had entirely destroyed what little +remains of internal vigour those governments might otherwise have +possessed. Civil revolts, tyranny, extortion, sensuality, and sloth, +had annihilated the ambition of universal rule which the Greek and +Roman governments had once cherished; and their provinces, neglected or +oppressed, became an easy prey to the Moslem power. + +The nations were the more rapidly subdued, since to the indomitable +ferocity of the desert wanderer the Saracens added those other features +which complete a warlike character. They despised death, and were +self-denying and energetic to a degree far beyond the soldiers of +civilized countries, while they were scarcely less familiar with the +military art. The lieutenants of the caliphs soon vied with the Roman +generals in skill; and it is by no means difficult to explain their +almost uniform superiority, when we bear in mind the character of the +armies they respectively commanded. Terror, moreover, is epidemic; and +a force already successful commonly finds its victorious progress +greatly aided by the prevailing notion of its prowess. Thus we have +witnessed, {233} in the wars of more disciplined troops, the tremendous +effect of a name alone. + +It may be added, also, that the Saracen success is greatly attributable +to that ardent and impetuous spirit of religious enthusiasm with which +they fought. They deemed their cause the cause of God; heaven, they +were persuaded, was engaged in their behalf; every one who fell in +their wars was a martyr; and cowardice was tantamount to apostacy. + +The religious ardour of the Crusaders, in the eleventh and twelfth +centuries, to exterminate Mohammedanism, did not exceed, if it even +equalled, that of the Arab soldiers by whom that system had been +originally propagated. Whatever secular principles and ambition +influenced them, they took credit for fighting in the support of truth +and virtue. The sword and the Koran were equally the companions and +the instruments of their wars. "The circumstance," says Paley, in his +admirable exhibition of the Evidences of Christianity,[1] "that +Mohammed's conquests should carry his religion along with them, will +excite little surprise when we know the conditions which he proposed to +the vanquished: death or conversion was the only choice offered to +idolaters. To the Jews and Christians was left the somewhat milder +{234} alternative of subjection and tribute if they persisted in their +own religion, or of an equal participation of the rights and liberties, +the honours and privileges of the faithful if they embraced the +religion of their conquerors." + +Literature, in the days of Mohammed, was as little regarded as was pure +and practical Christianity. His followers everywhere met with an +ignorant and easily deluded people. Both the monuments of science and +the means of freedom had been abolished by the barbarians of the North. +Philosophy and the liberal arts found no patrons among indolent and +luxurious emperors and nobles. Superstition, therefore, naturally took +possession of the minds of men, and, as neither fears nor hopes were +moderated by knowledge, idle, preposterous, and unnecessary ceremonies +easily obtained currency. Mohammed merely changed one set of +ceremonies for another; and in this there was little difficulty, since, +in the almost universal darkness of mankind, terror and credulity +everywhere prevailed. + +The continuance of the religion of Mohammed in countries after the Arab +dominion over them had ceased, may be also easily accounted for. +"Everything in Asia is a matter of regulation; and freedom of opinion +being but little permitted or encouraged in the despotic governments of +the {235} East, Mohammedanism, when once received, became stationary. +The human code is mingled with the divine, and the ideas of change and +profanation are inseparable. As the unsettling of the political and +social fabric might ensue from a change of modes of faith, all classes +of men are interested in preserving the national religion." [2] +Besides this, in their own nature religious doctrines are more +permanent in their hold than forms of civil government: it may be +questioned, for in stance, whether, whatever civil changes Scotland +might undergo, Presbyterianism would ever cease to be the prevalent +faith of its inhabitants. A people may, with the overthrow of usurped +civil power, return to their ancient religion, whatever it is: but when +once a religion has become, so to speak, indigenous, it is likely to be +permanent. Such is the religion of the Koran both in Asia and Africa. + +The elements of political weakness and decay soon began to be developed +in the chief seat of the Saracen empire. In the earliest days of the +caliphate, after the accession of the Ommiade dynasty, the princes of +Damascus were regarded as the heads of the Moslem faith; while the +governors of Arabia successively obtained, as to civil rule, their +independence. To this the widely-extended wars in which the caliphs +were engaged no doubt {236} contributed. Other provinces followed the +example; and, as the empire enlarged, the remoteness and degeneracy of +the Syrian court encouraged the governors to assume to themselves +everything except the name of king, and to render their dignities +hereditary. All the provinces were nominally connected with the empire +by the payment of tribute; but means were easily devised to withhold +this, under pretence of prosecuting the wars of the caliph, though +really to strengthen his rebellious deputies against him. If in this +we discover a want of efficiency in the government, we need not be +surprised: the systems of the Macedonian hero and of the Roman +conquerors were equally defective; and perhaps we should attribute such +deficiency to a wise and beneficent arrangement of Providence, which, +that oppression may never become permanent and universal, permits not +any empire for a very long time to hold dominion over countries +dissimilar in their habits and character and independent of each other. + +To the establishment of these separate states, the luxury and +effeminacy of the court at Damascus in no small degree contributed. In +the early periods of the caliphate, simplicity and charity chiefly +distinguished their rulers; but, as the wealth and power of the +Saracens increased, they imitated the splendour and magnificence of the +monarchs of Persia {237} and Greece. Abulfeda says of the court in the +year 917: "The Caliph Moctadi's whole army, both horse and foot, were +under arms, which together made a body of one hundred and sixty +thousand men. His state officers stood near him in the most splendid +apparel, their belts shining with gold and gems. Near them were seven +thousand black and white eunuchs. The porters or doorkeepers were in +number seven hundred. Barges and boats, with the most superb +decorations, were swimming on the Tigris. Nor was the palace itself +less splendid, in which were hung thirty-eight thousand pieces of +tapestry, twelve thousand five hundred of which were of silk +embroidered with gold. The carpets on the floor were twenty-two +thousand. A hundred lions were brought out, with a keeper to each +lion. Among the other spectacles of rare and stupendous luxury was a +tree of gold and silver, which opened itself into eighteen larger +branches, upon which and the other smaller branches sat birds of every +sort, made also of gold and silver. The tree glittered with leaves of +the same metals; and while its branches, through machinery, appeared to +move of themselves, the several birds upon them warbled their natural +notes." + +When, moreover, decline had once commenced, its progress was +accelerated by the means taken {238} to arrest it. After the regular +troops had been corrupted by faction, the caliphs, for the defence of +their person and government, formed a militia; but the soldiers +composing this force, not unfrequently foreigners, soon governed with a +military despotism similar to that of the janizaries of Turkey, the +Mamelukes of Egypt, or the praetorian guards of Rome; and, in addition +to these causes of decay, a furious spirit of sectarianism tore asunder +the very strength and heart of the empire. The colossal power of the +successors of Mohammed, suddenly towering to its awful height, almost +as suddenly fell, as if to yield more perfect confirmation of the +truth, that all earthly things are destined to pass away, while the +word of the living God abideth for ever. + +Spain, as has been seen, was the first distant province of the Arabian +empire which succeeded in separating itself and setting up an +independent caliph. As this country had been brought under the Moslem +yoke by means chiefly furnished from the northern states of Africa, its +independence was likely to produce a corresponding effect upon those +states. They were governed in the name of the Bagdad caliphs; but for +nearly a century they had been growing into independence, under rulers +usually known, from the name of their progenitor, as the Aglabite +dynasty. Early in the ninth century, {239} the throne of Mauritania, +Massilia, and Carthage was seized by Obeidollah, whose successors +assumed the title of Mihidi, or directors of the faithful. The +districts of Fez and Tangiers, which had been already wrested from the +princes of Bagdad by the real or pretended posterity of Ali, were soon +brought under his dominion; and, before the end of the tenth century, +all acknowledgment of the Abbassidan rule was obliterated by the +suppression of public prayers for the princes of that race. A +succession of changes distracted the country for some five centuries +afterward; but, about the year 1516, the descendants of Mohammed were +raised to the throne of Morocco, which has been transmitted, without +interruption, in the same line, to its present possessors. Moez, the +last of the African princes of the house of Obeidollah, who seems to +have depended for his dominion more on his prowess than on his supposed +descent from Mohammed,[3] transferred his court to Grand Cairo, a city +which he had built in Egypt after his conquest of that country. Africa +was to be held as a fief of this new empire. Large tracts of Syria and +the whole of Palestine acknowledged the {240} supremacy of his +descendants, commonly known as Fatimites, from their supposed +relationship to Ali, and to Fatima, the Prophet's daughter. They +possessed also the sovereignty of the Holy Land; against them, +therefore, the crusades of Europe were chiefly directed. During these +formidable wars the caliphs of Egypt sought assistance from those of +Bagdad; and Noureddin, a prince of that empire, protected them against +their Western assailants. The weakness of Egypt, however, came thus to +be known to the crafty and powerful caliphs of Bagdad, and in a short +time its Asiatic dominions were seized upon by Noureddin and Saladin. +As Adhed, the last caliph of Egypt, was dying in the mosque of Cairo, +these generals proclaimed Morthadi, the thirty-third caliph of Bagdad, +as his successor. Saladin, whose name, from his activity, courage, and +success against the crusaders, is better known to the readers of +European history than that of almost any other Mohammedan prince, soon +made himself master of Egypt; but his successors could not maintain the +power he had acquired. The country is now governed by the celebrated +Mohammed Ali, nominally as viceroy of the Turkish emperor, though he is +in reality a sovereign and independent prince. + +The caliphs of the house of Abbas, having built the city of Bagdad soon +after their accession to the {241} throne, transferred thither their +court and the seat of power. For five centuries they reigned there +with various degrees of authority; but foreign wars and domestic +revolts gradually dissolved the empire, and their dominion at length +passed away. Badhi, the twentieth caliph of the race, was "the last," +says Abulfeda, "who harangued the people from the pulpit; who passed +the cheerful hour of leisure with men of learning and taste; whose +expenses, resources, and treasures, whose table and magnificence, had +any resemblance to those of the ancient caliphs." "During the next +three centuries," says a modern historian of the Arabian empire, "the +successors of Mohammed swayed a feeble sceptre. Sometimes their state +was so degraded that they were confined in their palaces like +prisoners, and occasionally were almost reduced to the want of +corporeal subsistence. The tragic scenes of fallen royalty at length +were closed; for, towards the middle of the seventh century of the +Hegira, the metropolis of Islamism fell into the hands of Houlagou +Khan, the grandson of Zenghis Khan, and emperor of the Moguls and +Tartars, who reigned at that period with absolute and unmixed despotism +over every nation of the East. The caliph Mostasem, the thirty-seventh +of his house, was murdered under circumstances of peculiar barbarity, +and the caliphate of Bagdad {242} expired. Though the dignity and +sovereignty of the caliphs were lost by this fatal event, and the soul +which animated the form had fled, yet the name existed for three +centuries longer in the eighteen descendants of Mostanser Billah, a +son, or pretended son, of Daker, the last but one of this race of +princes. + +"Mostanser Billah and his successors, to the number of eighteen, were +called the second dynasty of the Abbassides, and were spiritual chiefs +of the Mohammedan religion, but without the slightest vestige of +temporal authority. When Selim, emperor of the Turks, conquered Egypt +and destroyed the power of the Mamelukes, he carried the caliph, whom +he found there a prisoner, to Constantinople, and accepted from him a +renunciation of his ecclesiastical supremacy. On the death of the +caliph, the family of the Abbassides, once so illustrious, and which +had borne the title of caliph for almost eight hundred years, sunk with +him from obscurity into oblivion." [4] + + + +[1] Vol. ii., Section 3. + +[2] Mills, p. 179. + +[3] When it was demanded of Moez from what branch of Mohammed's family +he drew his title, "This," said he, showing his cimeter, "is my +pedigree; and these," throwing gold among his soldiers, "are my +children." + +[4] Mill's History, 160. + + + + +{243} + +CHAPTER II. + +Literature and Science of the Arabs.--Their Facilities for Literary and +Scientific Pursuits.--Patronage of Literature by the Princes of the +House of Abbas.--Almamoun.--Arabian Schools.--Eloquence.--Poetry.--The +Arabian Tales.--History.--Geography.--Speculative +Sciences.--Astrology.--Mathematical Knowledge of the +Arabs.--Astronomy.--Architecture.--The Fine +Arts.--Agriculture.--Medicine.--Chymistry.--Our obligations to Arab +Literature. + + +The early followers of the Arabian prophet were only enthusiastic +military adventurers, subduing in their wide and rapid progress most of +the nations of the then known world. The lust of power, and successful +military enterprise, are commonly unfavourable to the cultivation of +the liberal arts, so that a conquering people usually exhibit but +little taste for science or literature. The Goths and the Huns, for +instance, were among the most implacable foes of knowledge. Nor did +the early Arabs regard it with more favour. Mohammed found his +countrymen sunk in the deepest barbarism: he was incapable of any +direct effort to raise them; and, from the ruthless destruction of the +Alexandrean library by Omar, one of his earliest successors, they +appear not to have been in a much {244} better condition after the +close than at the commencement of his eventful career. + +Their settlement in the countries they had subdued, the unlimited +resources which their wide-spread conquests placed within their reach, +and probably the leisure which their almost universal dominion +afforded, speedily led to a change in their character in relation to +literary pursuits, of which the more enlightened nations of the West +are still reaping the advantage. It was about the middle of the +seventh century that Omar committed the famous library of Alexandrea to +the flames: before the end of the eighth, literature began to enjoy the +munificent patronage of the caliphs of the Abbassidan race, who +superinduced upon the stern fanaticism of the followers of the Prophet +the softening influences of learning; and, by an anomaly in the history +of mankind, the most valuable lessons in science and the arts have been +received from a people who pursued with relentless hostility the +religion and liberties of every other nation. + +The Greeks were the most distinguished patrons of literature and +science. Among them philosophy found its earliest home, and the arts +are commonly supposed to have sprung up chiefly under their fostering +care, though modern researches have shown that much of their knowledge +was derived from still more ancient sources. Their {245} philosophy, +though greatly improved by them, was borrowed from the mysteries of the +Egyptian priests and the Persian magi. Their system of the universe, +which made the nearest approach to the more correct discoveries of +modern times, was previously known to the learned Hindus; and it may +admit of question whether their whole mythology, allowing for the +additions which a chastened and vivid imagination would make to it, had +not its prototype in some Asiatic religio-philosophical system. A +learned writer on the erudition of the Asiatics says, that the whole of +the theology of the Greeks, and part of the philosophy of modern +scientific research, may be found in the Hindu Vedas. He adds, "That +most subtile spirit which Newton suspected to pervade natural bodies, +and to lie concealed in them so as to cause attraction and repulsion, +the emission, reflection, and refraction of light, electricity, +calefaction, sensation, and muscular motion, is described by the Hindus +as a fifth element, endued with those very powers; and the Vedas abound +with allusions to a force universally attractive, which they chiefly +attribute to the sun." The extension, therefore, of the Arabian +victories over the Eastern world, and their entire command, after the +overthrow of the Greek empire, of the resources possessed by that +people, {246} gave them access to all the literary stores then in +existence. + +It has been said, and probably not without good reason, that Mohammed +himself saw and felt the importance of literary distinction. Among the +sayings attributed to him, the following has been considered as +evincing his sense of the value of learning: "A mind without erudition +is like a body without a soul. Glory consists not in wealth, but in +knowledge;" and, as the Koran affords abundant proof, he was by no +means unmindful of that mental cultivation, of which the means were +within his reach. His immediate followers, occupied only with the +ideas of conquest and conversion, despised equally the religion and +learning of the nations they subdued; but when the age of rapine and +violence yielded at length to comparative security and quiet, and the +fair and splendid city of the Oriental caliphs arose, the Muses were +courted from their ancient temples, and by the milder and more graceful +achievements of literature and science, efforts were made to expiate +the guilt of former conquest, and to shed a purer lustre over the +Mohammedan name. + +Almansor, the second of the dynasty of the Abbassides, whose reign +commenced A.D. 754, and lasted twenty-one years, was among the first of +the Arab princes to foster learning and the arts. {247} Jurisprudence +and astronomy were the principal subjects of his study, which, however, +through the instruction of a Greek physician in his court, he extended +to the art of healing, and probably to those kindred arts with which, +in all ages and countries, medical science has been connected. What +progress was made by himself or his subjects, we cannot now ascertain. +His two immediate successors seem not to have trodden in his steps, +though it is probable they did not undo what he had done; for the next +caliph, Haroun al Raschid, is renowned as one of the most munificent +patrons that literature ever enjoyed. He was fond of poetry and music: +he is said to have constantly surrounded himself with a great number of +learned men; and to him the Arabs were deeply indebted for the progress +in knowledge which they were enabled to make. Every mosque in his +dominions had a school attached to it by his order; and, as if his love +of learning were superior even to his hereditary faith, he readily +tolerated men of science who refused to yield to the bold pretensions +of the Prophet. A Nestorian Christian presided over his schools, and +directed the academical studies of his subjects. His successor +imitated his wise and generous course; and thus knowledge extended from +the capital to the most distant extremities of the empire. + +{248} + +But it was during the reign of Almamoun, the seventh of the Abbassidan +princes, A.D. 813-833, that literature flourished most among the Arabs. +Learned men, professors of the Christian faith, had multiplied at +Bagdad under the tolerant reigns of his predecessors, and they were now +liberally encouraged to unfold their ample stores of knowledge. The +copious language of Arabia was employed to communicate whatever that of +the Greeks had hitherto concealed, though, with a barbarism for which +it is difficult to account, many of the original works were destroyed +as soon as translations of them were made. Almamoun in his youth had +associated with the most eminent scholars of Greece, Persia, and +Chaldea; and he now invited them to his court. Bagdad was resorted to +by poets, philosophers, and mathematicians, from every country and of +every creed. Armenia, Syria, and Egypt were explored by his agents for +literary treasures, which were amassed with infinite care, and +presented at the foot of the throne as the richest and most acceptable +tribute that conquered provinces could render. Camels, hitherto +employed exclusively in traffic, were seen entering the royal city +laden with Hebrew, Persian, and Grecian manuscripts. The court assumed +the appearance rather of an academy than of a council guiding the +affairs of a luxurious and warlike {249} government, and all classes +were encouraged to apply themselves to the acquisition of knowledge +with a zeal commensurate to the advantages thus afforded. "I chose," +said Almamoun, when remonstrated with for appointing a learned +Christian to an office of no small influence over the intellectual +pursuits of his people, "I chose this learned man, not to be my guide +in religious affairs, but to be my teacher of science; and it is well +known that the wisest men are to be found among the Jews and +Christians." [1] + +Under such favourable auspices, it is not to be wondered at that the +Saracens became a literary people. The caliphs of the West and of +Africa imitated their brethren of the East. "At one period, six +thousand professors and pupils cultivated liberal studies in the +college of Bagdad. Twenty schools made Grand Cairo a chief seat of +letters; and the talents of the students were exercised in the perusal +of the royal library, which consisted of one hundred thousand +manuscripts. The African writers dwell with pride and satisfaction on +the literary institutions which adorned the towns on the northern coast +of their sandy plain. The sun of science arose even in Africa, and the +manners of the Moorish savage were softened by philosophy. {250} Their +brethren in Europe amassed numerous and magnificent collections; two +hundred and eighty thousand volumes were in Cordova, and more than +seventy libraries were open to public curiosity in the kingdom of +Andalusia." + +We know but little of the internal government of the Arabian schools, +or of the studies actually pursued. Aristotle, no doubt, was the great +master to whom, in philosophy, all deference was paid. The Prophet had +prescribed their religion. Their schools were of two kinds, or rather +classes; the one comprehending the inferior institutions, in which +elementary branches of instruction, such as reading, writing, and +religious doctrine were chiefly attended to; the other, called +_Madras_, mostly connected with the mosques, as were all the schools of +the former class, included those institutions in which the higher +departments of knowledge were explored. Here grammar, logic, theology, +and jurisprudence were studied. The management of each school was +confided to a principal of known ability, and not always, a Mohammedan. +The professors lectured on the several sciences; and the pupils, if not +in every department, of which there is some doubt, certainly in that of +medicine, were publicly examined, and diplomas were given under the +hand of the chief physician. + +Of elegant composition, the Koran was {251} universally esteemed the +model. Hence it was studied with the most diligent care by all who +sought to distinguish themselves in the art of eloquence, one of the +leading acquirements of Arab scholars. Subordinate to this pre-eminent +composition, their schools of oratory boasted of models scarcely +inferior to the celebrated orators of antiquity. Malek and Sharaif, +the one for pathos, the other for brilliancy, are the chief of these. +Horaiai was esteemed as the compeer of Demosthenes and Cicero. +Bedreddin, of Grenada, was their "torch of eloquence;" and Sekaki +obtained the honourable designation of the Arabian Quinctilian. + +The ancient Arabs were much inclined to poetry. The wild, romantic +scenery of the land they inhabited, the sacred recollections of their +earliest history, the life they led, everything around them, +contributed to poetic inspiration. After the revival of letters, this +art was cultivated with enthusiasm. The heroic measures of Ferdousi, +the didactic verses of Sadi, and the lyric strains of Hafiz, even +through the medium of imperfect translations, discover animated +descriptions, bold metaphors, and striking expressions, that at once +delight and surprise us. In splendour, if not in strength, the poets +of the courts of Haroun and Almamoun, or those of the Ommiades of +Spain, have, perhaps, in no age been excelled. In this art, as among +other {252} people, so among the Arabs, the fair sex have distinguished +themselves. Valadata, Aysha, Labana, Safia, and others, have obtained +the highest encomiums. + +So great is the number of Arabian poets, that Abul Abbas, a son of +Motassem, who wrote an abridgment of their lives in the ninth century, +numbers one hundred and thirty. Other authors have occupied +twenty-four, thirty, and one no less than fifty volumes, in recording +their history. + +The Arabs, however, are entirely without epic poetry, so important a +department of the art; nor have they anything that may be properly +ranked as dramatic composition. Sophocles, Euripides, Terence, and +Seneca, the classic models of Greece and Rome, they despised as timid, +constrained, and cold; and under whatever obligation to these ancient +nations the Arabs may have been in other departments of literature, +they owe them nothing, or next to nothing, in this. Their poetry was +original and local; their figures and comparisons were strictly their +own. To understand and properly appreciate them, we must have a +knowledge of the productions of their country, and of the character, +institutions, and manners of its inhabitants. The muse delights in +illustrations and figures borrowed from pastoral life; that of Judea +revels among the roses of Sharon, the verdant slopes of {253} Carmel, +and the glory of Lebanon; while the Arab muse selects for her ornaments +the pearls of Omar, the musk of Hadramaut, the groves and nightingales +of Aden, and the spicy odours of Yemen. If these appear to us +fantastic, it must be remembered they are borrowed from objects and +scenes to which we are almost utter strangers. + +Who is not familiar with the Alif lita wa lilin, or the thousand and +one tales, commonly known as the Arabian Nights' Entertainment? Some +have questioned whether they are an original work, or a translation +from the Indian or Persian, made in the Augustan age of Arab +literature: a doubt certainly not warranted by any want of exactness in +their description of Arabian life and manners. They seem to have been +originally the legends of itinerant story-tellers, a class of persons +still very numerous in every part of the Mohammedan world. The scenes +they unfold, true to nature; the simplicity displayed in their +characters, their beauty and their moral instruction, appeal +irresistibly to the hearts of all; while the learned concede to them +the merit of more perfectly describing the manners of the singular +people from whom they sprung, than the works of any traveller, however +accomplished and indefatigable. + +Of history the ancient Arabs were strangely negligent; but, by the more +modern, this {254} department of knowledge has been cultivated with +greater care and success. Annals, chronicles, and memoirs, almost +numberless, are extant among them: kingdoms, provinces, and towns are +described, and their history is narrated in volumes, a bare catalogue +of which would extend to a wearisome length. They abound, however, +more in the fanciful than in the substantial and correct. Of this, the +titles of some of the most approved works of this kind may be taken as +specimens: A Chronology of the Caliphs of Spain and Africa is +denominated "A Silken Vest, embroidered with the Needle;" a History of +Grenada, "A Specimen of the Full Moon;" Ibu Abbas and Abu Bakri are +authors of historical collections, entitled respectively, "Mines of +Silver," and "Pearls and picked-up Flowers." Yet some of their +writers, as Ibn Katibi, are chiefly remarkable for the extent and +accuracy of their historical knowledge; and some of their works are +exceedingly voluminous. A full history of Spain occupied six authors +in succession, and cost the labour of one hundred and fifteen years to +complete. Their biography was not confined to men. Ibn Zaid and Abul +Mondar wrote a genealogical history of distinguished horses; and +Alasucco and Abdolmalec performed the same service for camels worthy of +being had in remembrance. Encyclopaedias and gazetteers, {255} with +dictionaries of the sciences and other similar works, occupied Arabian +pens long before they came into vogue among more modern literati. +Every species of composition, indeed, and almost every subject, in one +age or another, have engaged the attention of learned Mohammedans. + +Geography they did not so well understand, their means of acquiring +knowledge on this subject being exceedingly limited. Yet their public +libraries could boast of globes, voyages, and itineraries, the +productions of men who travelled to acquire geographical information. +With statistics and political economy they had but an imperfect +acquaintance; yet so early as the reign of Omar II. we find a work +devoted to these subjects, giving an account of the provinces and +cities of Spain, with its rivers, ports, and harbours; of the climate, +soil, mountains, plants, and minerals of that country; with its +imports, and the manner in which its several productions, natural and +artificial, might be manufactured and applied to the best advantage. +Money, weights, and measures, with whatever else political economy may +be understood to include, were also subjects which employed their +ingenious speculations, and, in some cases, their laborious research. + +The speculative sciences, scarcely less than polite literature, +flourished among the Arabs. {256} Indeed, what superstitious, +enthusiastic people has ever neglected these? Their ardour in the more +dignified of these pursuits was badly regulated; subtleties were +preferred to important practical truths; and, frequently, the more +ingenious the sophism, constructed after the rules of Aristotle, the +more welcome was it to men who rendered to that philosopher a homage +almost idolatrous. The later Arabs, and the Turks of the present day, +pay no little attention to astrology, though it is strongly prohibited +by their Prophet. This science was universally employed by the +idolaters, against whom his denunciations are scarcely less inveterate +than are those of the inspired volume; and doubtless he apprehended +that its prevalence would hazard the integrity, if not the very +existence, of his own system of religion. For many ages, therefore, it +was discountenanced; but, at length, the habit of consulting the stars +on important public occasions became frequent, and was attended with as +much anxiety and as many absurd ceremonies as disgraced the nations of +antiquity. Among the modern Mohammedans, no dignity of state is +conferred; no public edifice is founded, except at a time recommended +by astrologers. These pretenders to knowledge are supported by persons +of rank; and in vain do the more enlightened part of the community +exclaim that astrology is a false {257} science. "Do not think," said +a prime minister, who had been consulting a soothsayer as to the time +of putting on a new dress, "that I am such a fool as to put faith in +all this nonsense; but I must not make my family unhappy by refusing to +comply with forms which some of them deem of consequence." + +After these references to the polite literature of the Arabs, it will +be expected that they should have paid attention to the natural +sciences. They were not, indeed, discoverers and inventors, but they +considerably improved upon what they acquired in their extensive +intercourse with other nations; and, as forming the link which unites +ancient and modern letters, they are entitled to our respect and +gratitude. We derive our mathematics from them; and to them, also, we +owe much of our astronomical knowledge. Almamoun, by a liberal reward, +sought to engage in his service a famous mathematician of +Constantinople; and Ibn Korrah enriched the stores of his country in +this department with translations of Archimedes and the conics of +Apollonius. Some have said that, on the revival of European literature +in the fifteenth century, mathematical science was found nearly in the +state in which it had been left by Euclid; and the justly celebrated +Brucker contends, that the Arabs made no progress whatever in this +{258} most important branch of knowledge; later writers, however, and +particularly Montucia, the author of the Histoire des Mathematiques, +have done ample justice to their researches. Numerical characters, +without which our study of the exact sciences were almost in vain, +beyond all doubt came to us from the Arabs: not that they invented +them--it is probable they were originally words, perhaps Hindu words, +expressing the quantities they respectively represent, but abbreviated +and brought to their present convenient form by the followers of the +Prophet. Trigonometry and algebra are both indebted to their genius. +The sines of the one of these sciences instead of the more ancient +chord, and the representatives of quantities in the other, descend +through the Arabs to us, if they did not at first invent them. +Original works on spherical trigonometry are among the productions of +Ibn Musa and Geber, the former of whom is accounted the inventor of the +solution of equations of the second degree. The University of Leyden +still retains a manuscript treatise on the algebra of cubic equations, +by Omar ibn Ibrahim; and Casiri, who, preserved and classed 1851 +manuscripts, even after a fire had destroyed the magnificent collection +or the Escurial, informs us, that the principles and praises of +algebraic science were sung in an elaborate poem by Alcassem, a native +of Grenada. {259} These departments of knowledge were studied by the +Arabs as early as the eighth and ninth centuries. + +Astronomy, the science of a pastoral people, and eminently so in +regions with an almost cloudless sky, like the East, was studied with +great eagerness by Arabian philosophers. Almamoun, who has been before +mentioned, was ardently devoted to it: at his cost the necessary +instruments of observation were provided, and a complete digest of the +science was made. The land where, many ages before, this science had +been successfully studied by the Chaldeans, was in his power, and upon +its ample plains a degree of the earth's circle was repeatedly +measured, so as to determine the whole circumference of the globe to be +twenty-four thousand miles. The obliquity of the ecliptic they settled +at twenty-three degrees and a half: the annual movement of the +equinoxes and the duration of the tropical year were brought to within +a very little of the exact observations of modern times, the slight +error they admitted resulting from the preference they gave to the +system of Ptolemy. Albathani, or, as his name has been Latinized, +Albatenius, in the ninth century, after continuing his observations for +forty years, drew up tables, known as the Sabean tables, which, though +not now in very high repute because of more accurate calculations, +{260} were for a long time justly esteemed. Other Arabian astronomers +have rendered considerable service to this science. Mohammedanism did +not, like ancient paganism, adore the stars; but its disciples studied +them with a diligence, without which, perhaps, Newton, Flamstead, and +Halley had observed and calculated almost in vain. + +Architecture was an art in which the Arabs greatly excelled; their wide +extension gave them command of whatever was worthy of observation, and +their vast revenues afforded the most abundant means of indulging a +taste thus called into exercise. The history of Arabian architecture +comprises a period of about eight centuries, including its rise, +progress, and decay: their building materials were mostly obtained from +the ruined structures and cities that fell into their hands; and if no +one particular style was followed by them, it was because they +successfully studied most of the styles then known. On their buildings +but little external art was bestowed; all their pains were exhausted on +the interior, where no expense wag spared that could promote luxurious +ease and personal comfort. Their walls and ceilings were highly +embellished, and the light was mostly admitted in such manner as, by +excluding all external objects, to confine the admiration of the +spectator to the beauties produced within. With the art {261} of +preserving their structures from decay they must have had an adequate +acquaintance. Their stucco composition may still be found as hard as +stone, without a crack or flaw: the floors and ceilings of the +Alhambra, the ancient palace of Grenada, have been comparatively +uninjured by the neglect and dilapidation of nearly seven centuries; +while their paint retains its colour so bright and rich as to be +occasionally mistaken for mother-of-pearl. Sir Christopher Wren +derives the Gothic architecture from the Mohammedans; and the crescent +arch, a symbol of one of the deities anciently worshipped throughout +the heathen world, was first adopted by the Arabs of Syria, and +invariably used in all the edifices erected during the supremacy of the +Ommiades. The succeeding dynasty declined following this model; but, +during the reign of the house of Moawiyah, in Spain, it was imitated +from the Atlantic to the Pyrenees. + +The fine arts, painting, and sculpture, were not so much cultivated +among the early Mohammedans: they were thought to involve a breach of +the divine law. In this particular they agreed with the Jews. +Subsequently, however, these scruples were, by degrees, overcome; that +style of embellishment denominated Arabesque, which rejects figures of +men and animals, being first adopted, and afterward sculpture, more +nearly resembling {262} that of modern times. The Alhambra, or palace +of that suburb, had its lions, its ornamented tiles, and its paintings. +Abdalrahman III. placed a statue of his favourite mistress over the +palace he erected for her abode. Music was ardently cultivated. At +first, in the desert, its strains were rude and simple; subsequently, +the professors of the art were as much cherished, honoured, and +rewarded, as were the poets in the courts of the Arab sovereigns. Many +were celebrated for their skill in this art, especially Isaac +Almouseli. Al Farabi has been denominated the Arabian Orpheus: by his +astonishing command of the lute, he could produce laughter, or tears, +or sleep in his auditors at pleasure. He wrote a considerable work on +music, which is preserved in the Escurial. Abul Faragi is also a +famous writer among the Mohammedans on this subject. To them we are +indebted for the invention of the lute, which they accounted more +perfect than any other instrument; the use, also, of many of our modern +instruments, as the organ, flute, harp, tabor, and mandoline, was +common among them. Some say that the national instrument of the +Scottish highlander is taken from them. + +In many of the useful arts of modern days the Arabs were proficients; +as agriculture, gardening, metallurgy, and the preparing of leather. +The {263} names Morocco and Cordovan are still applied, in this latter +art, to leather prepared after the Arabian method. They manufactured +and dyed silk and cotton, made paper, were acquainted with the use of +gunpowder, and have claims to the honour of inventing the mariner's +compass. But perhaps there is no art in which their knowledge is so +much a subject of curious inquiry as medicine. Their country was +salubrious, their habits simple, and their indulgences few; so that +large opportunities of practically studying the art, at least among the +Arabs of earlier date, would not occur. Anatomy, except that of the +brute creation, was shut up from their study by the prejudices of their +creed; yet they excelled in medical skill. Hareth ibn Kaldar, an +eminent practitioner settled at Mecca, was honoured with the +conversation and applause of Mohammed. Honain was an eminent Arab +physician in the middle of the sixth century; Messue, the celebrated +preceptor of Almamoun, belonged to this profession; and a host of +others adorn the early annals of the Saracens. Al Rhagi, or Ullages, +as commonly called, and Abdallah ibn Sina, or Avicenna, are names to +which, for centuries, deference was paid by professors of the healing +art throughout Europe, though it would not be difficult to show that +their doctrines and practice must have been beyond measure absurd. +They {264} administered gold, and silver, and precious stones to purify +the blood. + +Of chymistry, so far as it relates to medicine, the Arabs may be +considered as the inventors; and botany, in the same connexion, they +cultivated with great success. Geber, in the eighth century, is known +as their principal chymical writer; he is said to have composed five +hundred volumes, almost every one of which is lost. The early +nomenclature of the science indicates how much it owes to this people. +Alcohol, alembic, alkali, aludel, and other similar terms, are +evidently of Arabic origin; nor should it be forgotten that the +characters used for drugs, essences, extracts, and medicines, the +import of which is now almost entirely unknown (and which are +consequently invested, in vulgar estimation, with occult powers), are +all to be traced to the same source. + +It may be impossible now to estimate accurately the extent of our +obligations to Arabian literature. An empire so widely spread, by the +encouragement it gave to letters, must have had a beneficial influence +on almost every country. Europeans, whether subject to its sway or +only contemplating it from a distance, copied or emulated the example. +Gerbert, who subsequently occupied the papal chair as Silvester II., +acquired the Arabic method of computation during his travels in Spain, +{265} previously to his elevation. Leonardo, a Pisan merchant, +obtained a knowledge of the same art in his intercourse with the +Mohammedans on the coast of Africa; and by him it was introduced into +his own native republic, from whence it was soon communicated to the +Western World. In the city of Salernum, a port of Italy, Mussulmans +and Christians so intermixed as to communicate insensibly the +literature of the Saracens to the Italians, and in the schools of that +city students were collected from every quarter of Europe. Arabic +books, by command of Charlemagne, were translated into Latin for the +use of learned men throughout his vast empire; and, without +exaggerating the merits of the followers of the Prophet, it may be +admitted that we are indebted to them for the revival of the exact and +physical sciences, and for many of those useful arts and inventions +that have totally changed the aspect of European literature, and are +still contributing to the civilization, freedom, and best interests of +man. + + + +[1] Abulferage, p. 160. + + + + +{266} + +CHAPTER III. + +The present Condition of Mohammedanism.--In Turkey.--The Doctrines +believed there.--Their Forms of +Devotion.--Lustrations.--Prayer.--Mohammedan Sabbath.--Fast of +Ramadan.--Meccan Pilgrimage.--Proselytism.--Mohammedan +Hierarchy.--Islamism in Tartary.--In Hindustan.--In China.--In +Persia.--In Africa.--In the Indian Archipelago.--The Sooffees.--The +Wahabees. + + +The present condition of the Mohammedan faith, with some account of the +standing it maintains in the world, will not be deemed an inappropriate +subject for the closing pages of this volume. Its votaries have long +ceased to spread alarm through the nations by their victorious and +devastating progress; the fire of its fanaticism is almost extinct; +nevertheless, its doctrines prevail over a larger number of mankind +than any other system of false religion: they are professed in nations +and countries remote from each other, and having no other mutual +resemblance than that involved in their common superstition. In Spain, +indeed, Christianity has triumphed over Islamism; and in the +inhospitable regions of Siberia, a part of the ancient Tartary, its +advance has been somewhat checked; but in middle and lower Asia, and in +Africa, the {267} number of Mohammed's followers has increased. We +cannot state with accuracy the number either of Mohammedan or of +nominal Christians; but, looking at religion geographically, while +Christianity has almost entire dominion in Europe, in Asia Islamism is +the dominant faith: in America the cross is rapidly becoming the symbol +of faith throughout both its vast continents; but in Africa the +crescent waves to the almost entire exclusion of every other emblem. + +It is in Turkey that Mohammedanism exists at the present day in its +most perfect form. To this country, therefore, our attention shall be +first directed. + +Constantinople, anciently called Byzantium, and the countries over +which the Greek emperors residing in that city reigned, were subdued by +the powerful caliphs of Bagdad, while those of Spain and the West were +endeavouring to push their conquests over the fairest portions of +Europe. The situation of Constantinople and the surrounding empire lay +especially open to the Eastern Mohammedans, whose warlike incursions +were incessant. Tartars from Asia overran the empire. Othman, in the +early part of the thirteenth century, laid the foundation of Turkish +greatness. Orchan, Amurathi and Bajazet, his successors, amid both +foreign and domestic wars, greatly contributed to its {268} +establishment and increase. The children of the last of these +conquerors threw the empire into a frightful state of distraction by +their unnatural quarrels, till, at last, the youngest of them, named +after the Prophet, restored its integrity, and established something +like domestic tranquillity. Under a grandson of his, Mohammed II., +whom Bayle describes as one of the greatest men recorded in history, +the Morea was subjugated, and the Greek empire, so long shaken by +internal dissensions, and tottering to dissolution by its luxury, was +trampled in the dust by the Moslem conquerors. Constantinople at last +yielded to their power, and a palace for the victor was erected on the +very spot which Constantine had chosen for his magnificent abode. + +From this time to that of Solyman the Magnificent, to whom the Turks +owe their laws and police, the empire continued to prosper, but +immediately afterward its decline commenced. Letters and science have +made but little progress among that people, and their sultans have +possessed none of the martial enterprise and energy of their early +predecessors; still the faith of Mohammed has maintained, and down to +this day continues to maintain, a hold which it enjoys in almost no +other country. + +The Turks generally repose the most implicit faith in the two leading +articles of the Mohammedan {269} creed, that there is but one God, and +that Mohammed is his Prophet; and since, in the opinion of the Moslems, +a simple assent to these doctrines comprises all that is valuable in +religion, and will be surely followed by the possession of heaven, +either immediately or remotely, it is readily conceivable that +infidelity will be exceedingly rare. In religious matters, the heart +opposes not so much what is to be believed as what is to be done. + +Minor points of their theology have been from time to time disputed, +but these may be regarded as generally settled. Predestination is one +of the chief dogmas on which the faith of the Turk is as firmly fixed +as on the most momentous article in his creed. Fatalism was the great +engine employed by Mohammed in establishing his religion; and among the +Turks this doctrine is received as regulating their destiny, +controlling all events, and determining the results of every +individual's actions; thus unnerving the soul for generous and manly +enterprise, and casting a lethargy on the whole nation. In everything +the operations of reason are checked, and even made to wait for the +imagined manifestations of Deity. According to the creed of the Turks, +not only is everything foreknown to God, but everything is +predetermined, and brought about by his direct and immediate agency. + +{270} + +The Turk is keen and wise in his ordinary transactions: in promoting +his own interests, he knows how to exercise the powers of his mind, +but, when difficulty or doubt overtakes him, he makes no effort. The +thick cloud of his misfortunes is suffered to remain; his troubles are +yielded to with sullen indifference; he considers it impious to oppose +the determinations of the Most High. To all improvement, such a +doctrine is a decided and invincible foe; in some circumstances, +however, it appears to have its advantages. Does a Mohammedan suffer +by calamity? Is he plundered or ruined? He does not fruitlessly +bewail his lot. His answer to all murmuring suggestions is, "It was +written;" and to the most unexpected transition from opulence to +poverty, he submits without a sigh. The approach of death does not +disturb his tranquillity; he makes his ablution, repeats his prayers, +professes his belief in God and his Prophet, and in a last appeal to +the aid of affection, he says to his child, "turn my head towards +Mecca," and calmly expires. + +A people's religion is traced in their established and common forms of +devotion, and none are more attentive to these than the Turks. To +neglect any ceremony which their religion prescribes, is deemed a mark +either of inferior understanding or of depraved character. Public +decorum is {271} everywhere observed; and though both moral and +religious precepts are violated with impunity and without remorse, they +are always spoken of with great respect. A Mohammedan is never ashamed +to defend his faith; and of his sincerity and firmness, the earnestness +of his vindication may be taken as sufficient proof: he not +unfrequently interrupts the progress of conversation by repeating his +religious formula. In the Turkish towns, travellers are incessantly +met with the cry of Allah Ackbar; and by Mussulmans, who would be +esteemed pious, the divine name is as frequently repeated as if +reverent and devout thoughts were habitually uppermost in their minds. + +Purifications are constantly, and with great strictness, performed by +the Mussulmans of every country, but especially by those of Turkey. +Their professed object is to render the body fit for the decorous +performance of religious duties; no act being praiseworthy or +acceptable, in their estimation, unless the person of the performer be +in a condition of purity. Some have thought, but without sufficient +grounds, that these external purifications are believed to supersede an +inward cleansing of the heart. Fountains placed round their mosques, +and numerous baths in every city, enable the devout to perform their +five prayers daily, during which, if they chance to receive pollution +{272} from anything accidentally coming in contact with them, their +devotions are suspended till the offensive inconvenience is removed by +water or other means. + +At the appointed hour, the Maazeens or criers, with their faces towards +Mecca, their eyes closed, and their hands upraised, pace the little +galleries of the minarets or towers of the mosques, and proclaim in +Arabic, the Moslem language of devotion, that the season of prayer has +arrived. Instantly, every one, whatever may be his rank or employment, +gives himself up to it. Ministers of state suspend the most important +affairs, and prostrate themselves on the floor; the tradesman forgets +his dealings, and transforms his shop into a place of devotion; and the +student lays aside his books, to go through his accustomed +supplications. "Never to fail in his prayers" is the highest +commendation a Turk can receive; and so prejudicial is the suspicion of +irreligion, that even libertines dare not disregard the notices of the +Maazeen. The mosques, like chapels in Catholic countries, are always +open, and two or three times every day prayers are offered within their +walls. It has often been remarked, that the devotions of Christians +might acquire something valuable from the gravity, the decorum, and the +apparently intense occupation of mind in Turkish worship. The Jews +trod {273} their holy place barefoot: the Turks, on the contrary, keep +on their boots and shoes. Christians uncover their heads in prayer; +the Moslems seldom lay aside their turbans; but for hours they will +remain prostrate, or standing in one position, as if absorbed in the +most intense abstraction. They have neither altars, pictures, nor +statues in their places of worship. Verses of the Koran, the names and +personal descriptions of their Prophet, of Ali and his two sons, Hassan +and Hosein, with other Moslem saints, are sometimes inscribed in +letters of gold on their walls. All distinctions of rank and +profession are forgotten when they pray. Persons of every class, on +the first sound of the accustomed cry, cast themselves on the ground, +and thus declare their belief in the equality of mankind, in the sight +of the great Father of all. + +The Mohammedans of Turkey have a Sabbath, for which the Jewish or +Christian may be supposed to have furnished the model. Friday is their +day of rest, which commences on the preceding evening, when the +illuminated minarets and colonnades of the mosques give to their cities +the appearance of a festival. At noon, on Friday, all business is +suspended, the mosques are filled, and prayers are read by the +appointed officers, accompanied by the prostrations of the people. +Discourses are likewise frequently delivered on {274} practical points +in their theology; and sometimes, in the ardour of excitement, +political corruption and courtly depravity are fiercely assailed. A +voluptuous sultan has been known, under the effect of these discourses, +to tear himself from the soft indulgences of his harem and court, to +lead his martial subjects to war and victory on the plains of their +enemies. As soon as the public religious services are concluded, all +return to their ordinary pursuits; the day, however, is strictly +observed by all classes in the manner prescribed by law, it being a +received maxim that he who, without legitimate cause, absents himself +from public devotion on three successive Fridays, abjures his religion. +It is worthy of observation, that the prayers of the Turks consist +chiefly of adoration, of confessions of the Divine attributes and the +nothingness of man, and of homage and gratitude to the Supreme Being. +A Turk must not pray for the frail and perishable blessings of this +life; the health of the sultan, the prosperity of his country, and +divisions and wars among the Christians alone excepted. The legitimate +object of prayer they hold to be spiritual gifts, and happiness in a +future state of being. + +No one of their religious institutions is more strictly observed by the +Turks than the fast of Ramadan. He who violates it is reckoned either +{275} an infidel or an apostate; and if two witnesses establish his +offence, he is deemed to have incurred the severest penalty of the law. +Abstinence from food, and even from the use of perfumes, from sunrise +to sunset, is enjoined. The rich pass the hours in meditation and +prayer, the grandees sleep away their time, but the labouring man, +pursuing his daily toil, most heavily feels its rigour. "When the +month of Ramadan happens in the extremities of the seasons, the +prescribed abstinence is almost intolerable, and is more severe than +the practice of any moral duty, even to the most vicious and depraved +of mankind." During the day all traffic is suspended; but in the +evening, and till late at night, it is actively carried on in the +streets, shops, and bazars, most splendidly illuminated. From sunset +to sunrise, revelry and excess are indulged in. Every night there is a +feast among the great officers of the court: the reserve of the Turkish +character is laid aside, and friends and relations cement their union +by mutual intercourse. Sumptuous banquets and convivial hilarity are +universal; and, were not women everywhere excluded from the tables of +the men, the pleasure of the festivals would amply compensate the +rigorous self-denial of their fasts. + +The pilgrimage to Mecca is with the Turks more a matter of form than of +reality. Its {276} importance as a part of the Moslem ritual is +admitted, and apparently felt, but the number of pilgrims annually +decreases. The sultan, having dominion over the country through which +the pilgrims must pass, preserves the public ways leading to the +venerated city; the best soldiers of his empire are charged with the +protection of the caravans, which are sometimes numerous; but of his +own subjects, properly so called, few comparatively accompany them; +they are made up of devotees from a greater distance. The sultan, no +doubt, encourages the pilgrimage as much on commercial as on religious +grounds. The Koran has determined it to be very proper to intermingle +commerce and religion: "It shall be no crime in you," it says, "if ye +seek an increase from your Lord by trading during the pilgrimage." +Accordingly, articles of easy carriage and ready sale are brought by +the pilgrims from every country. The productions and manufactures of +India thus find their way into other parts of Asia and throughout +Africa. The muslins and chintses of Bengal and the Deccan, the shawls +of Cashmere, the pepper of Malabar, the diamonds of Golconda, the +pearls of Kilkau, the cinnamon of Ceylon, and the spices of the +Moluccas, are made to yield advantage to the Ottoman empire, and the +luxury of its subjects is sustained by contributions from the most +distant nations. + +{277} + +Mohammedans of the present day, at least those of Turkey, are less +anxious to make proselytes than were those of a former age. Those of +India and Africa may, to some extent, still retain the sentiment, that +to convert infidels is an ordinance of God, and must be observed by the +faithful in all ages; but in Turkey little desire of this kind is felt, +chiefly because, by a refinement of uncharitableness, the conversion of +the world is deemed unworthy of their endeavours. Now and then a +devout Moslem, instigated by zeal or personal attachment, may offer up +this prayer for a Jew or a Christian: "Great God, enlighten this +infidel, and graciously dispose his heart to embrace thy holy +religion;" and perhaps to a youth, esteemed for his talents or +knowledge, the language of persuasion may occasionally be addressed +with an air of gentleness and urbanity; but the zeal of the missionary +is in such cases commonly subject to what are conceived to be the rules +of good breeding, and a vague reply or silence is regarded as an +indication that the subject is disagreeable, and should not be +continued. A Mussulman may pray for the conversion of infidels, but, +till they are converted, no blessing may be supplicated in their +behalf. "Their death is eternal, why pray for them?" is the language +of the Mohammedan creed: do not {278} "defile your feet by passing over +the graves of men who are enemies of God and of his Prophet." + +Of the Mohammedan hierarchy, some idea may be obtained from the form it +assumes in Turkey. The Koran is considered the treasure of all laws, +divine and human, and the caliphs as the depositaries of this treasure; +so that they are at once the pontiffs, legislators, and judges of the +people, and their office combines all authority, whether sacerdotal, +regal, or judicial. To the grand sultan titles are given, styling him +the vicar, or the shadow of God. The several powers which pertain to +him in this august capacity are delegated to a body of learned men, +called the Oulema. In this body three descriptions of officers are +included: the ministers of religion, called the Imams; the expounders +of the law, called the Muftis; and the ministers of justice, called the +Cadis. The ministers of religion are divided into chief and inferior, +the former of whom only belong to the Oulema. Both classes are made up +of Sheiks, or ordinary preachers; the Khatibs, readers or deacons; the +Imams, a title comprising those who perform the service of the mosque +on ordinary days, and those to whom pertain the ceremonies of +circumcision, marriage, and burial; the Maazeens, or criers, who +announce the hours of prayer; and the Cayuns, or common attendants of +the mosque. The {279} idea of this classification was, perhaps, taken +from the Mosaic priesthood; the Khatib being the Aaron, and the next +four the several orders of the Levites, with their servants or helpers. +The imperial temples have one Sheik, one Khatib, from two to four +Imams, twelve Maazeens, and twenty Cayuns, among whom, except in a few +of the chief mosques of Constantinople, the Khatibs have the +pre-eminence. All these ministers are subject to the civil magistrate, +who is looked upon as a sort of diocesan, and who may perform at any +time all the sacerdotal functions. The ministers of religion are not +distinguishable from other people; they mix in the same society, engage +in similar pursuits, and affect no greater austerity than marks the +behaviour of Mussulmans generally. Their influence depends entirely on +their reputation for learning and talents, for gravity and correct +moral conduct; their employment is, for the most part, very simple, as +chanting aloud the public service, and performing such offices as every +master of a family may discharge. As Mohammedanism acknowledges no +sacrifices, it appoints no priests; the duties performed by the +ministers of religion being seemingly devolved on them more as a matter +of convenience than on account of any sacredness attaching to their +order. + +The vast country to which the general name of {280} Tartary has been +given, is that from whence Mohammedanism has gone forth to the East, +the West, and the South. In Thibet, the Grand Lama and various +national idols hold divided empire with the Prophet; and in the +inhospitable regions of Siberia, the churches of Greece and Russia have +successfully promulgated the Christian doctrines; while the +Circassians, with some other Tartar races, are almost without religion. +In the Crimea, the people are Mussulmans, as rigid and devoted as the +Turks; and over the vast tract called by modern geographers Independent +Tartary, the crescent triumphantly waves. From these regions sprung, +in the earlier ages of Mohammedan conquest, those vast empires which, +in the East, comprise so large a number of the professors of the faith +of Islam. The first sovereign of this country, to whom the title of +sultan was awarded early in the tenth century, conducted several +expeditions into Hindustan, and secured the homage of many of the +cities. The ancient Indian superstition was in a great measure +overturned by his victorious arms. Long and fierce contests ensued: +the princes of the subdued provinces, often throwing off their forced +allegiance, endeavoured to regain their independence and re-establish +their ancient faith, till, at length, the great Timurlane, having +overrun the country with his legions, received at Agra the title {281} +of Emperor of Hindustan. Scarcely, however, had two centuries and a +half rolled away, when his successors fell in their turn under the +Persian power; and the empire he established was weakened, and +ultimately destroyed. As the result of these conquests, Mohammedanism +prevailed to a great extent, but rather nominally than really, among +the millions of India: it was the religion of the court and government; +but, either from indifference or timidity in the Moslem conquerors, the +ancient idols still held extensive influence, and were at length +gradually restored. In the twelfth century, Benares, the ancient seat +of Brahminical learning and of Hindu idolatry, fell into the hands of +the conqueror, who destroyed its numerous objects of popular adoration. +Yet, soon afterward, the religious character of the place was restored, +and the demolished idols were replaced by others, that were as eagerly +resorted to as had been their predecessors. To this consecrated +metropolis, a pilgrimage was regarded by the millions of India as +imperatively commanded, and as necessary as was a visit to Mecca by the +Mohammedans; and the weakness or the policy of its Moslem conquerors +did not long withhold from them this valued privilege; the government +of the city was committed to the Hindus, and their conquerors, in the +plenitude of their bigotry, pride, and power, never {282} thought of +suffering their own magistrates to exercise authority within its walls. +Thus Mohammedanism is the religion, not of the ancient inhabitants of +India, but of the descendants of the millions of Tartars, Persians, and +Arabians who, at various periods, have left their native seats to +participate in the riches of these far-famed plains. The north and +northwestern parts are filled with them, and from thence they have +wandered over the whole of that vast country. Perhaps their numbers +may now amount to nearly twenty millions, among whom, however, though +they are mostly of foreign extraction, are many converts from Hinduism. +They form separate communities, amalgamating in some parts of the +country, and living as sociably with Hindus as the differences in their +respective faiths will permit. Hindu princes have at times paid their +devotions at Mohammedan shrines, and observed their feasts; while +Mohammedans have relaxed somewhat the strictness of their observances, +and manifested an inclination to conform, as far as possible, to their +Hindu neighbours. Some five centuries ago, the Borahs, a people who +once occupied the kingdom of Guzerat, were converted _en masse_ to +Islamism. The Arab traders to the coasts of Malabar have always been +exceedingly earnest in their endeavours to convert the natives, in +which they have {283} been greatly aided by the facility with which +they have been allowed to purchase the children of the poorer classes, +to educate them in the principles of their faith, and also by the +frequency with which the inhabitants of those districts lose caste. +This badge of the Hindu faith is often forfeited by the people mixing +with those of other countries, and when it is lost they easily become +Moslems. + +It has been maintained that the native inhabitants of India are +absolutely unchangeable in their sacred, domestic, and political +institutions, and, at first sight, there would appear to be much to +warrant such an opinion; but the history of many of them, and +especially of the Sikhs, who inhabit the provinces of the Panjab, +between the rivers Jumna and Indus, may be alleged as proofs to the +contrary. Still, in the religion of the Sikhs, Mohammedan fable and +Hindu absurdity are mixed; its founder wishing to unite both these +prevalent systems in one. He had been educated in a part of the +country where these two religions appeared to touch each other, if not +commingle, and he was no stranger to the violent animosity existing +between their respective professors; he sought, therefore, to blend the +jarring elements of both in peaceful union. The Hindu was required to +abandon his idols, and to worship the one Supreme Deity whom his +religion acknowledged; while the Mohammedan {284} was to abstain from +such practices (especially the killing of cows) as were offensive to +the superstition of the Hindus. This plan so far prevailed, that, +without acknowledging the Prophet, the Sikhs became more Mohammedans +than Hindus; and though the institutions of Brahma are not admitted +among them, they insult and persecute true Moslems more fiercely and +cruelly than any other people. They compel them to eat that which is +forbidden by their law; animals which they account unclean are +frequently thrown into their places of public assembly, and they are +prohibited from proclaiming the hour of prayer to the faithful. + +China is one of those countries to which Mohammedanism was carried by +the hordes of Tartary. From the scrupulous jealousy with which this +vast empire is guarded from observation, it is difficult to say to what +extent the Mohammedan faith, or, indeed, any other, prevails among its +numberless inhabitants; but, beyond question, it is tolerated. + +The irruption of the Saracens into China under Walid can scarcely be +termed a conquest. Subsequently, the successors of Zenghis Khan seated +themselves on the throne of Pekin, and opened the country to an +intercourse with all nations. The commercial Arabs had visited the +ports and cities in the south of China; and, now that access to the +{285} capital was unrestrained, multitudes of them repaired thither. +They acquired the language, and adopted the dress and manners of the +people, to whom also they rendered valuable aid in adjusting their +chronology, and making the necessary calculations for their calendar. +Intercourse with the Chinese made the Mohammedans desirous of effecting +their conversion, the means adopted for which were both wise and +humane. Deserted children were taken under their protection, and +educated in Islamism; while in other ways they sought to commend +themselves to confidence, and their religion to respect, by alleviating +the wretchedness induced by a cruel superstition. The Mohammedans of +China seem to partake of the mild and quiet character of the +inhabitants generally, and are therefore tolerated; though there have +been some exceptions to this encomium. About sixty years ago they were +instrumental in promoting an unsuccessful rebellion, and the Emperor +Kien Long, after suppressing it, ordered one hundred thousand of them +to be put to death. + +Persia, from an early period, has been almost entirely a Mohammedan +country. On its conquest by the Saracens, the religion of Zoroaster, +which had till then prevailed, was nearly abolished. Those who +persevered in retaining it were obliged to flee to the mountains or to +the western parts {286} of India, where their old forms of worship +still linger. In the disputes which ensued on the death of Mohammed +concerning the caliphate, the Persians espoused the cause of Ali, the +Prophet's son-in-law, and to his memory they are still attached. "May +this arrow go to the heart of Omar," is a frequent expression among +them in drawing a bow; and not long since, when Mr. Malcolm, during his +travels in Persia, was praising Omar, the antagonist of Ali, as the +greatest of the caliphs, a Persian, overcome by the justice of his +observations, yet still adhering to his rooted prejudices, replied, +"This is all very true, but he was a dog after all." + +Here Mohammedanism exists in a less rigorous form than in Turkey. Its +ceremonies are observed by those who are little disposed to practice +its moral code: they say their prayers at the appointed season, and +make a show of devotion to prevent their being suspected of irreligion; +but the people generally are little concerned about the pilgrimage to +Mecca, and other matters on which, in the Koran, much stress is laid. +They choose rather to resort to the tomb of Ali, and to that of his son +Hosein, whose name is reverenced among them with a feeling approaching +to adoration. + +In Africa, Mohammedanism has very widely prevailed. Algiers, Tunis, +Tripoli, all the northern parts of this continent, acknowledge its +sway. {287} From Arabia and Egypt it spread west and south nearly to +the great rivers. It is the established religion of Morocco; and in +Western Barbary and several kingdoms of the interior the Arabic +language is spoken, the Koran believed, and the Prophet almost +worshipped. The Senegal, up to the small Moorish state of Gedumah, is +the line of division between the Mohammedans and the Negroes: from +thence the line passes eastward of north, through Nigritia and Nubia to +the Nile. As yet, however, it is but indistinctly marked, it being +doubtful whether Timbuctoo is a Mohammedan or Negro town. The courts +of Bornou and Cassina are Mohammedan, but a majority of their subjects +are pagans. Islamism in these vast territories is in an exceedingly +degenerate state when compared with either its first development in the +Arabian desert, or with what now obtains in Turkey. It is said that +but little more than its exclusive persecuting spirit remains: the +Oriental lustrations are almost unknown, Mohammedan temperance is +neglected, and the great doctrine of the unity of God is confounded +with, or supplanted by, the polytheism of the native inhabitants. The +Mussulman is more depraved than the pagan; so that, while travellers +frequently mention the hospitality they received from the latter, by +the former they were constantly insulted and annoyed on account of +{288} their religion. In no quarter of the world does the faith of the +Prophet wear so frightful an aspect as in Africa. + +The region from which Mohammedanism first sprung has not remained in +all respects faithful to the precepts of the Prophet. In Mecca and +Medina, indeed, his name and system are held in the profoundest +veneration; and no wonder, since both these cities are mainly supported +by the superstitious observances enjoined in the Koran; but the +Bedouins are as licentious in their religion as in their policy and +habits. On the Turkish frontiers they keep up an appearance of respect +for the name of the Prophet and his doctrines; but, in answer to all +reproaches for their unfaithfulness, they say in words worthy a better +taught and more civilized race, "The religion of Mohammed could never +have been intended for us. We have no water in the desert. How, then, +can we make the prescribed ablutions? We have no money. How, then, +can we give alms? The fast of Ramadan is a useless command to persons +who fast all the year round; and, if God be everywhere, why should we +go to Mecca to adore him?" + +From the southernmost part of Hindustan, Mohammedanism made its way to +the Malayan peninsula; to Sumatra, Java, Borneo, the Manillas, and the +Celebes: Goram, one of the Spice Islands, is {289} its eastern +boundary. In the interior of these islands it prevails less than on +the shores. To these remote regions Islamism has been carried more by +the commercial than the military enterprise of its votaries. What is +its present condition there, it is difficult, perhaps impossible, +accurately to ascertain. In Java it was the established religion; but, +when the Dutch settled that island early in the seventeenth century, +many of the natives were converted. Little respect is paid by the +Javans of the present day either to their ancient paganism, or to +Mohammedanism which took its place; though some of the forms of the +latter are still in force, and its institutions are said to be gaining +ground. + +The reader of Mohammedan history will meet with the terms Sooffee and +Wahabee, as designating certain divisions of the disciples of the +religion of the Prophet. It will not, therefore, be inappropriate to +close with a brief account of these respective sects. + +Sooffee is a term originating in Persia, meaning enthusiasts or +mystics, or persons distinguished by extraordinary sanctity. The +object of the Sooffee is to attain a divine beatitude, which he +describes as consisting in absorption into the essence of Deity. The +soul, according to his doctrine, is an emanation from God, partaking of +his nature; just {290} as the rays of light are emanations from the +sun, and of the same nature with the source, from whence they are +derived. The creature and the Creator are of one substance. No one +can become a Sooffee without strictly conforming to the established +religion, and practising every social virtue; and when, by this means, +he has gained a habit of devotion, he may exchange what they style +practical for spiritual worship, and abandon the observance of all +religious forms and ceremonies. He at length becomes inspired, arrives +at truth, drops his corporeal veil, and mixes again with that glorious +essence from which he has been partially and for a time separated. The +life of the Sooffees of Persia, though generally austere, is not +rendered miserable, like that of the visionary devotees of Hinduism, by +the practice of dreadful severities, their most celebrated teachers +have been famed for knowledge and devotion. The Persians are a poetic +people, and the very genius of Sooffeeism is poetry. Its raptures are +the raptures of inspiration; its hopes are those of a highly sensitive +and excited imagination; its writers in the sweetest strains celebrate +the Divine love, which pervades all nature: everything, from the very +highest to the lowest, seeking and tending towards union with Deity as +its object of supreme desire. They inculcate forbearance, +abstemiousness, and {291} universal benevolence. They are unqualified +predestinarians. The emanating principle, or the soul, proceeding from +God, can do nothing, they say, without his will, nor refuse to do +anything which he instigates. Some of them, consequently, deny the +existence of evil; and the doctrine of rewards and punishments is +superseded by their idea of re-absorption into the Divine essence. The +free opinions of this class of enthusiasts subvert the doctrines of +Islamism, yet they pay an outward respect to them; they unsettle the +existing belief, without providing an intelligible substitute; they +admit the divine mission of the Prophet, but explain away the dogmas he +uttered; and while they affect to yield him honour as a person raised +up by God, to induce moral order in the world, they boast their own +direct and familiar intercourse with Deity, and claim, on that account, +unqualified obedience in all that relates to spiritual interests. + +The similarity of Sooffeeism to the ancient Pythagorean and Platonic +doctrines will occur to every one at all acquainted with the religion +and philosophy of antiquity. It as closely resembles some of the +distinguishing tenets of the Brahminical faith. In fact, it seems as +if designed, in conjunction with the refined theology of ancient, and +the sublime visions of modern idolaters, to teach us that, without +Divine guidance, the loftiest human {292} conceptions on subjects +connected with God and religion invariably err; the ignorant and the +instructed are equally wrong; "the world by wisdom knows not God." + +The Wahabees are a modern sect of Mohammedan reformers, whose efforts +have considerably changed the aspect of the religion of the Prophet. +Perhaps to them may be owing much of that rigid adherence to Mohammedan +doctrine and practice which prevails in those parts where their +influence has been felt. They are the followers of Abdol Wahab, who +commenced his career in the region where, during the lifetime of the +Prophet, Moseilama had threatened a considerable division among his +followers. Wahab was an ambitious fanatic, who aimed, nevertheless, at +reforming the national religion. He was aided by powerful princes of +the province of Nejed; and, within a short time, the tenets he +maintained spread throughout the peninsula. His fundamental principle, +like that of Mohammed, was the unity of God. The Koran he regarded as +divine, rejecting all the glosses which ignorance and infatuation had +put upon it, and holding in utter contempt all the traditions and tales +concerning its author, which the devout of every generation had eagerly +received. The reverence, approaching to adoration, which the Arabs +were wont to pay to the name of Mohammed, all visits to his tomb, and +all {293} regard to the tombs and relics of Arab saints, he denounced; +and the costly ornaments with which a mistaken piety had enriched these +sacred spots, he thought might be appropriated to ordinary purposes. +Wahab would not suffer the common oath of, by Mohammed, or by Ali, to +be used among his followers, on the very rational ground that an oath +is an appeal to a witness of our secret thoughts, and who can know +these but God? The title of Lord, generally given to the Prophet by +his followers, Wahab rejected as impious. He was commonly mentioned by +this zealous reformer and his adherents by his simple name, without the +addition of "our Lord, the Prophet of God." All who deviated in any +degree from the plain sense of the Koran, either in belief or practice, +were infidels in their esteem; upon whom, therefore, according to its +directions, war might be made. Thus was the martial spirit of the +early Saracens again called into exercise; and with the ardour that +characterized the days of the immediate successors of the Prophet, they +were prepared at once to assail the consciences and the property of men +not exactly of their own faith. + +At the call of their leader, they assembled first in the plain of +Draaiya, some 400 miles east of Medina, armed and provided at their own +expense for war. Bagdad and Mecca in vain attempted to {294} suppress +them; the seraglio itself was filled with their formidable war-cry; the +sultan trembled on his throne; and the caravans from Syria suspended +their usual journeys. The imperial city suffered from their ravages in +its usual supplies of coffee; and the terror of their name was widely +spreading among devout Mohammedans of every country, for they had +violated the shrines of saints, and levelled to the ground the chapels +at Mecca, which devotion had consecrated to the memory of the Prophet +and his family. At the commencement of the present century, however, +Mecca was recovered from them by the Turkish arms, and the plague, with +the smallpox, breaking out just at this time among the followers of +Wahab, probably saved the mighty fabric of Islamism. These reverses +did not quench, however, the ardour of the Wahabees. Their leader had +been assassinated, but his son, already distinguished for his prudence +and valour, succeeded him in the command. Medina fell beneath his +power, and from thence to the Persian Gulf he seemed likely to reign +lord paramount. In 1805 he was able to impose a heavy tax on the +caravan of pilgrims from Damascus to the Holy City, and declared that +thenceforth it should consist of pilgrims alone, without the pride and +pomp of a religious procession. Soon afterward they again entered +Mecca, and immediately threatened with destruction every {295} sacred +relic; but they did not put their threats into execution. Various +conflicts between them and the orthodox Mohammedans have since ensued, +the general result of which has been to break the martial and fanatical +spirit of the Wahabees, and to re-establish the power of the grand +sultan in cities and districts where it had been placed in jeopardy. +They are still, indeed, dreaded as plunderers, but no great national +convulsion has resulted from their efforts. + +Some writers regret the suppression of this once powerful sect of +Mohammedans, believing that, if continued, they would have been +instrumental in overthrowing the Moslem faith, and making way for a +purer religion; but for ourselves, we see little occasion for these +regrets. The Wahabees must not be supposed more favourable to a pure +faith than are those by whom they have been overthrown. If they must +be regarded as reformers, they only attempted to correct a few absurd +and scandalous practices: the impious and abominable dogmas of the +Koran they left untouched; or, if they touched them, it was only to +enforce their observance with greater rigour. Their creed was even +more sanguinary and intolerant than that of the ancient Mohammedans, +and probably the continuance of their power would have been nothing +more than the continuance of injustice, cruelty, and {296} persecution. +We do not look for the overthrow of Mohammedanism by such means. One +system of error may sometimes destroy another, but the pure faith, +which blesses a miserable world by directing men in the path of safety, +knowledge, and happiness, will extend only as the sacred volume is +diffused, and as that holy influence from God accompanies it by which +the understanding is illuminated and the heart renewed. Fanaticism is +no auxiliary of the religion of the Bible; it neither prepares its way +nor accelerates its progress. Violence and war are utterly rejected by +this divine system, as alien from its spirit and character. "My +kingdom," says its founder, "is not of this world: if my kingdom were +of this world, then would my servants fight; but now is my kingdom not +from hence." + + + + +THE END. + + + + + + + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's History of the Moors of Spain, by M. Florian + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORY OF THE MOORS OF SPAIN *** + +***** This file should be named 22337-8.txt or 22337-8.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + https://www.gutenberg.org/2/2/3/3/22337/ + +Produced by Al Haines + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project +Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you +charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you +do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the +rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose +such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and +research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do +practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is +subject to the trademark license, especially commercial +redistribution. + + + +*** START: FULL LICENSE *** + +THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE +PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK + +To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free +distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work +(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project +Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project +Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at +https://gutenberg.org/license). + + +Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic works + +1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to +and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property +(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all +the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy +all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. +If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the +terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or +entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. + +1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be +used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who +agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few +things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works +even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See +paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement +and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. See paragraph 1.E below. + +1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" +or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the +collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an +individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are +located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from +copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative +works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg +are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project +Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by +freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of +this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with +the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by +keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project +Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. + +1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern +what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in +a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check +the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement +before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or +creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project +Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning +the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United +States. + +1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: + +1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate +access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently +whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the +phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project +Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, +copied or distributed: + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + +1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived +from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is +posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied +and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees +or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work +with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the +work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 +through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the +Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or +1.E.9. + +1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted +with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution +must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional +terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked +to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the +permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. + +1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this +work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. + +1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this +electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without +prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with +active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project +Gutenberg-tm License. + +1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, +compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any +word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or +distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than +"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version +posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), +you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a +copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon +request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other +form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. + +1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, +performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works +unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. + +1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing +access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided +that + +- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from + the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method + you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is + owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he + has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the + Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments + must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you + prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax + returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and + sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the + address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to + the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." + +- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies + you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he + does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm + License. You must require such a user to return or + destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium + and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of + Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any + money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the + electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days + of receipt of the work. + +- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free + distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set +forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from +both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael +Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the +Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. + +1.F. + +1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable +effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread +public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm +collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain +"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or +corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual +property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a +computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by +your equipment. + +1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right +of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project +Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all +liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal +fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT +LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE +PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE +TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE +LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR +INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH +DAMAGE. + +1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a +defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can +receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a +written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you +received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with +your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with +the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a +refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity +providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to +receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy +is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further +opportunities to fix the problem. + +1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth +in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER +WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO +WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. + +1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied +warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. +If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the +law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be +interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by +the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any +provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. + +1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the +trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone +providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance +with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, +promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, +harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, +that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do +or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm +work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any +Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. + + +Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm + +Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of +electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers +including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists +because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from +people in all walks of life. + +Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the +assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's +goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will +remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure +and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. +To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 +and the Foundation web page at https://www.pglaf.org. + + +Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive +Foundation + +The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit +501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the +state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal +Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification +number is 64-6221541. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at +https://pglaf.org/fundraising. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent +permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. + +The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. +Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered +throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at +809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email +business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact +information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official +page at https://pglaf.org + +For additional contact information: + Dr. Gregory B. Newby + Chief Executive and Director + gbnewby@pglaf.org + + +Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation + +Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide +spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of +increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be +freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest +array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations +($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt +status with the IRS. + +The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating +charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United +States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a +considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up +with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations +where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To +SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any +particular state visit https://pglaf.org + +While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we +have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition +against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who +approach us with offers to donate. + +International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make +any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from +outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. + +Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation +methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other +ways including including checks, online payments and credit card +donations. To donate, please visit: https://pglaf.org/donate + + +Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. + +Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm +concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared +with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project +Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. + + +Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. +unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + https://www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. diff --git a/22337-8.zip b/22337-8.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..eb476e3 --- /dev/null +++ b/22337-8.zip diff --git a/22337.txt b/22337.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..94bac56 --- /dev/null +++ b/22337.txt @@ -0,0 +1,6956 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of History of the Moors of Spain, by M. Florian + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: History of the Moors of Spain + +Author: M. Florian + +Release Date: August 16, 2007 [EBook #22337] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORY OF THE MOORS OF SPAIN *** + + + + +Produced by Al Haines + + + + + + + + + + +HISTORY + +OF THE + +MOORS OF SPAIN + + + +TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH ORIGINAL OF + +M. FLORIAN. + + + +TO WHICH IS ADDED, + +A BRIEF NOTICE OF ISLAMISM + + + + +NEW YORK + +HARPER & BROTHERS, PUBLISHERS, + +329 & 331 PEARL STREET, + +FRANKLIN SQUARE + + + + +[Transcriber's note: Page numbers in this book are indicated by numbers +enclosed in curly braces, e.g. {99}. They have been located where page +breaks occurred in the original book, in accordance with Project +Gutenberg's FAQ-V-99.] + +[Transcriber's note: This book contains a number of variations in the +spelling of some words/names, e.g. Haccham/Hacchem, Gengis/Zengis +(Khan), etc.] + + + + +Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1840 by + +Harper & Brothers, + +In the Clerk's Office of the Southern District of New York + + + + +{v} + +PUBLISHERS' ADVERTISEMENT. + +We are accustomed to look upon the followers of the Arabian Prophet as +little better than barbarians, remarkable chiefly for ignorance, +cruelty, and a blind and persecuting spirit of fanaticism. As it +regards the character of the Mohammedans at the present day, and, +indeed, their moral and intellectual condition for the last two +centuries, there is no great error in this opinion. But they are a +degenerated race. There has been a period of great brilliancy in their +history, when they were distinguished for their love of knowledge, and +the successful cultivation of science and the arts; nor is it too much +to say, that to them Christian Europe is indebted for the generous +impulse which led to the revival of learning in the thirteenth and +fourteenth centuries. Of the various nations of the great Moslem +family, none were more {vi} renowned in arts, as well as arms, than the +Moorish conquerors of Spain, whose history is contained in the +following pages. The French original of this work has long enjoyed a +deservedly high reputation; and the translation here offered is by an +American lady, whose literary taste and acquirements well qualified her +for the task. + +A sketch of Mohammedan history, &c., from Rev. S. Greene's Life of +Mohammed, has been appended at the close of the volume, to present to +the reader a comprehensive view of that very remarkable people, of whom +the Moors of Spain formed so distinguished a branch. + +H. & B. + +New York, October, 1840. + + + + +{vii} + +CONTENTS + + + FIRST EPOCH + + PAGE + + The Origin of the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 + The Arabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 + The Birth of Mohammed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 + Religion of Mohammed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 + The Progress of Islamism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 + Victories of the Mussulmans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 + New Conquests of the Mohammedans . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 + The Moors become Mussulmans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 + Condition of Spain under the Goths . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 + Conquest of Spain by the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 + The Viceroys of Spain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 + Insurrection of Prince Pelagius . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 + Abderamus attempts the Conquest of France . . . . . . . . 39 + He penetrates as far as the Loire . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 + The Battle of Tours . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 + Civil Wars distract Spain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 + + + SECOND EPOCH. + + The Kings of Cordova become the Caliphs of the West . . . 45 + The Asiatic Mussulmans divide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 + The Dynasty of the Ommiades lose the Caliphate . . . . . . 48 + Horrible Massacre of the Ommiades . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 + An Ommiade Prince repairs to Spain . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 + Abderamus, the first Caliph of the West . . . . . . . . . 53 +{viii} + Reign of Abderamus I. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 + Religion and Fetes of the Moors of Spain . . . . . . . . . 55 + Civil Wars arise among the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 + The Reigns of Hacchem I. and of Abdelazis . . . . . . . . 58 + Reign of Abderamus II. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 + Condition of the Fine Arts at Cordova . . . . . . . . . . 60 + Anecdote of Abderamus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 + Reigns of Mohammed, Almouzir, and Abdalla . . . . . . . . 62 + Reign of Abderamus III. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 + Embassy from a Greek Emperor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 + Magnificence and Gallantry of the Moors . . . . . . . . . 64 + Description of the City and Palace of Zahra . . . . . . . 65 + Wealth of the Caliphs of Cordova . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 + The Fine Arts cultivated at Cordova . . . . . . . . . . . 71 + Reign of El Hacchem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 + Laws of the Moors, and their Mode of administering Justice 75 + Authority possessed by Fathers and old Men . . . . . . . . 77 + An Illustration of the Magnanimity of El Hakkam . . . . . 78 + Reign of Hacchem III. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 + Successful Rule of Mohammed Almonzir as Hadjeb under + the imbecile Hacchem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 + Disorders at Cordova . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 + End of the Caliphate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 + + + THIRD EPOCH. + + The principal Kingdoms erected from the Ruins of the + Caliphate of the West . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 + Condition of Christian Spain at this Juncture . . . . . . 88 + The Kingdom of Toledo; its Termination . . . . . . . . 87, 88 + Success of the Christians . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 + The Cid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 + The Kingdom of Seville . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 + The Dynasty of the Almoravides hold Supremacy in Africa . 92 +{ix} + Conquests of the Almoravides in Spain . . . . . . . . . . 93 + French Princes repair to Spain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94 + Extinction of the Kingdom of Saragossa . . . . . . . . . . 95 + Foundation of the Kingdom of Portugal . . . . . . . . . . 95 + State of the Fine Arts among the Moors at this Period . . 97 + Abenzoar and Averroes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 + Dissensions between the Moors and Christians . . . . . . . 98 + The Africans, under Mohammed _the Green_, land in Spain . 100 + Battle of Toloza . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102-104 + Tactics of the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 + The discomfited Mohammed returns to Africa . . . . . . . . 109 + Extent of the Territories still retained by the Moors + in Spain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110 + St. Ferdinand and Jaques I. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111 + Valencia is attacked by the Aragonians . . . . . . . . . . 113 + Siege of Cordova . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114 + Surrender of Valencia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 + + + FOURTH EPOCH. + + The Kings of Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118 + The Condition of the Moors; their Despondency . . . . . . 118 + Mohammed Alhamar; his Character and Influence with his + Countrymen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119 + He founds the Kingdom of Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120 + Description of the City of Grenada and its _Vega_ . . . . 121 + Extent and Resources of this Kingdom . . . . . . . . . . . 123 + Reign of Mohammed Alhamar I. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 + The Moorish Sovereign becomes the Vassal of the King + of Castile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124 + Ferdinand III. besieges Seville . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125 + The Taking of Seville . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126 + Revenues of the Kings of Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127 + Military Forces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129 + Cavalry of the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129 +{x} + Disturbances in Castile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133 + Reign of Mohammed II. El Fakik . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133 + He forms a League with the King of Morocco . . . . . . . . 134 + Misfortunes of Alphonso of Castile . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 + Interview between Alphonso and the Sovereign of Morocco . 134 + State of Learning and the Fine Arts under Mohammed al + Mumenim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136 + Description of the Alhambra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137 + The Court of Lions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140 + The Generalif . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145 + Mohammed III. El Hama, or _the Blind_, ascends the Throne + of Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147 + Troubles in Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149 + Reign of Mohammed IV. Abenazar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149 + Reign of Ismael . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149 + Reign of Mohammed V. and of Joseph I. . . . . . . . . . . 152 + The Battle of Salado . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152 + Successive Reigns of Mohammed VI. and Mohammed VII. . . . 154 + Horrible Crime of Peter the Cruel of Castile . . . . . . . 150 + Condition of Spain--of Europe in general . . . . . . 156, 157 + Mohammed VI. reassumes the Crown . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 + Reign of Mohammed VIII. Abouhadjad . . . . . . . . . . . . 158 + Favourite Literary and Scientific Pursuits of the Moors + under the munificent Rule of Abouhadjad . . . . . . . . 160 + Universal prevalence of a Taste for Fiction + among the Arabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161 + Music and Gallantry of the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162 + The mixture of Refinement and Ferocity in the Character + of the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166 + Description of the Women of Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . 169 + The national Costume of both Sexes . . . . . . . . . . . . 170 + Moorish Customs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171 + Folly of the Grand-master of Alcantara . . . . . . . . . . 172 + The Result of his Expedition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174 + Dreadful Death of Joseph II. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 + Mohammed IX. usurps the Throne . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 + Singular Escape of a condemned Prince . . . . . . . . . . 176 +{xi} + Generous Disposition of Joseph III. . . . . . . . . . . . 176 + Disturbed Condition of the Kingdom after his Death . . . . 177 + A rapid Succession of Rulers . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177, 178 + Reign of Ismael II. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178 + The Miseries of War most severely felt by the Cultivator + of the Soil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179 + Mulei-Hassem succeeds Ismael II. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179 + Marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella . . . . . . . . . . . . 180 + The respective Characters of these Sovereigns . . . . . . 181 + They declare War against the Grenadians . . . . . . . . . 182 + Statesmen and Soldiers of the Spanish Court . . . . . . . 182 + Stern Reply of the Grenadian King . . . . . . . . . . . . 183 + Alhama is Surprised . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 + Civil War is kindled in Grenada by the Feuds of the + Royal Family . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184 + Boabdil is proclaimed King . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185 + Cause of the ambitious hopes of Zagal . . . . . . . . . . 185 + Boabdil is taken Prisoner by the Spaniards . . . . . . . . 186 + The politic Spanish Rulers restore Boabdil to Liberty . . 187 + The Moors become their own Destroyers . . . . . . . . . . 187 + Death of Mulei-Hassem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187 + Boabdil and his Uncle divide the Relics of Grenada + between them . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188 + Baseness of Zagal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188 + Boabdil reigns alone at Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188 + Ferdinand lays Siege to the City of Grenada . . . . . . . 189 + Condition of the City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189 + The Spanish Camp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191 + Isabella repairs to the Camp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191 + She builds a City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192 + Surrender of Grenada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194 + Departure of Boabdil from the City . . . . . . . . . . . . 194 + The entrance of the Spanish Conquerors into the City . . . 195 + Summary of the Causes of the Ruin of the Moors . . . . . . 196 + Characteristics of the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197 +{xii} + Anecdote illustrative of their Observance of the Laws + of Hospitality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198 + Christian Persecution of the Moors . . . . . . . . . . . . 199 + Revolts of the Moors, and their Results . . . . . . . . . 199 + Final Expulsion of the Moors from Spain . . . . . . . . . 201 + Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203 + + A Brief Account of the Rise and Decline of the + Mohammedan Empire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227 + Chapter I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229 + Chapter II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243 + Chapter III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266 + + + + +{xiii} + +INTRODUCTION. + +The name of the Moors of Spain recalls recollections of gallantry and +refinement, and of the triumphs of arts and arms. But, though thus +celebrated, not much is generally known of the history of that +remarkable people. + +The fragments of their annals, scattered among the writings of the +Spanish and Arabian authors, furnish little else than accounts of +murdered kings, national dissensions, civil wars, and unceasing +contests with their neighbours. Yet, mingled with these melancholy +recitals, individual instances of goodness, justice, and magnanimity +occasionally present themselves. These traits, too, strike us more +forcibly than those of a similar description with which we meet in +perusing the histories of other nations; perhaps in {xiv} consequence +of the peculiar colouring of originality lent them by their Oriental +characteristics; or perhaps because, in contrast with numerous examples +of barbarity, a noble action, an eloquent discourse, or a touching +expression, acquire an unusual charm. + +It is not my intention to write the history of the Moors in minute +detail, but merely to retrace their principal revolutions, and attempt +a faithful sketch of their national character and manners. + +The Spanish historians, whom I have carefully consulted in aid of this +design, have been of but little assistance to me in my efforts. +Careful to give a very prominent place in their extremely complicated +narratives to the various sovereigns of Asturia, Navarre, Aragon, and +Castile, they advert to the Moors only when their wars with the +Christians inseparably mingle the interests of the two nations; but +they never allude to the government, customs, or laws of the enemies of +their faith. + +{xv} + +The translations from the Arabian writers to which I have had recourse, +throw little more light upon the subject of my researches than the +productions of Spanish authors. Blinded by fanaticism and national +pride, they expatiate with complacency on the warlike achievements of +their countrymen, without even adverting to the reverses that attended +their arms, and pass over whole dynasties without the slightest notice +or comment. + +Some of our _savans_ have, in several very estimable works, united the +information to be collected from these Spanish and Arabian histories, +with such additional particulars as they were able to derive from their +own personal observations. + +I have drawn materials from all these sources, and have, in addition, +sought for descriptions of the manners of the Moors in the Spanish and +ancient Castilian romances, and in manuscripts and memoirs obtained +from Madrid. + +It is after these long and laborious researches {xvi} that I venture to +offer a brief history of a people who bore so little resemblance to any +other; who had their national vices and virtues, as well as their +characteristic physiognomy; and who so long united the bravery, +generosity, and chivalry of the Europeans, with the excitable +temperament and strong passions of the Orientals. + +To render the order of time more intelligible, and the more clearly to +elucidate facts, this historical sketch will be divided in four +principal Epochs. + +The _first_ will extend from the commencement of the Conquests of the +Arabs to the Establishment of the Dynasty of the Ommiade princes at +Cordova: the _second_ will include the reigns of the Caliphs of the +West: in the _third_ will be related all that can now be ascertained +concerning the various small kingdoms erected from the ruins of the +Caliphate of Cordova: and the _fourth_ will comprehend a narration of +the prominent events in the lives of the successive sovereigns of the +Kingdom of Grenada, until the {xvii} period of the final expulsion of +the Mussulmans from that country. + +Care has been taken to compare the dates according to the Mohammedan +method of computing time, with the periods fixed by the ordinary mode +of arrangement. Some of the Spanish historians, Garabai for instance, +do not agree with the Arabian chronologists in relation to the years of +the Hegira. I have thought proper to follow the Arabian authorities, +and have adopted, with occasional corrections, the chronological +arrangements of M. Cardonne, whose personal assurance I possess, that +he attaches high importance to his calculations on this subject. I +have thus reason to hope that this little work will serve to elucidate +many points hitherto doubtful in relation to this matter. + +The proper names of the Moors vary even more in the different +authorities than their statements respecting the date of events, either +in consequence of the difficulty of pronouncing them, or from ignorance +of their proper {xviii} orthography. In instances of this character I +have always given the preference to such as appeared to be most +generally adopted, and were, at the same time, most harmonious in sound. + + + + +{19} + +A HISTORY OF THE MOORS OF SPAIN. + + +FIRST EPOCH. + +THE CONQUESTS OF THE ARABS OR MOORS. + +_Extending from the end of the Sixth Century to the middle of the +Eighth._ + + +The primitive Moors were the inhabitants of the vast portion of Africa +bounded on the east by Egypt, on the north by the Mediterranean, on the +west by the Atlantic, and on the south by the deserts of Barbary. + +The origin of the Moors, or Mauritanians, is, like that of most other +ancient nations, obscure, and the information we possess concerning +their early history confusedly mingled with fables. The fact, however, +appears to be established, that Asiatic emigrations were, from the +earliest times, made into Africa. In addition to this, the {20} +historians of remote ages speak of a certain Meleck Yarfrick, king of +Arabia Felix, who conducted a people called _Sabaei_[1] into Libya, +made himself master of that country, established his followers there, +and gave it the name of Africa. It is from these Sabians or _Sabaei_ +that the principal Moorish tribes pretend to trace their descent. The +derivation of the name Moors[2] is also supposed, in some degree, to +confirm the impression that they came originally from Asia. + +But, without enlarging upon these ancient statements, let it suffice to +say, that nearly certain ground exists for the belief that the original +Moors were Arabians. In confirmation of this impression, we find that, +during every period of the existence of their race, the descendants of +the primitive inhabitants of Mauritania have, like the Arabs, been +divided into distinct tribes, and, like them, have pursued a wild and +wandering mode of existence. + +The Moors of Africa are known in ancient {21} history under the name of +Nomades, Numidae or Numidians, Getulae, and Massyli. They were by +turns the subjects, the enemies, or the allies of the Carthaginians, +and with them they fell under the dominion of the Romans. + +After several unsuccessful revolts, to which they were instigated by +their fiery, restless, and inconstant temper, the Moors were at length +subjugated by the Vandals, A.D. 427. + +A century afterward these people were conquered by Belisarius: but the +Greeks were in their turn subdued by the Arabs, who then proceeded to +achieve the conquest of Mauritania. + +As, from the period when that event occurred, the Mauritanians or +Moors, who were thus suddenly converted to Mohammedanism, have +frequently been confounded with the _native Arabians_, it will be +proper to say a few words concerning that extraordinary people: a +people who, after occupying for so many centuries an insignificant +place among the nations of the earth, rapidly rendered themselves +masters of the greater part of the known world. + +The Arabs are, beyond question, one of the most ancient races of men in +existence;[3] and {22} have, of all others, perhaps, best preserved +their national independence, and their distinctive character and +manners. Divided from the most remote times into tribes that either +wandered in the desert or were collected together in cities, and +obedient to chiefs who in the same person united the warrior and the +magistrate, they have never been subjected to foreign domination. The +Persians, the Romans, and the Macedonians vainly attempted to subdue +them: they only shattered their weapons in fragments against the rocks +of the Nabatheans.[4] Proud of an origin which he traced back even to +the patriarchs of olden time, exulting in his successful defence of his +liberty and his rights, the Arab, from the midst of his deserts, +regarded the rest of mankind as consisting of mere bands of slaves, +changing masters as chance or {23} convenience directed. Brave, +temperate, and indefatigable, inured from infancy to the severest toil, +fearing neither thirst, hunger, nor death itself--these were a people +by whose assistance a leader suitably endowed could render himself +master of the world. Mohammed appeared:[5] to him nature had accorded +the requisite qualifications for executing such a design. Courageous, +sagacious, eloquent, polished, possessed in an eminent degree of the +powers which both awe and delight mankind, Mohammed would have been a +great man had he belonged to the most enlightened age--among an +ignorant and fanatical people he became a prophet. + +Until Mohammed arose among them, the Arab tribes, surrounded by Jews, +Christians, and idolaters, had entertained a superstitious faith, +compounded of the religious belief of their various neighbours and that +of the ancient Sabaei. They fully credited the existence of genii, +demons, and witchcraft, adored the stars, and offered idolatrous +sacrifices. But Mohammed--after having devoted many years to profound +and solitary meditation upon the new dogmas he designed to establish; +after having either convinced {24} or won to his interests the +principal individuals of his own family,[6] possessing pre-eminent +consequence among their countrymen--suddenly began to preach a new +religion, opposed to all those with which the Arabs were hitherto +familiar, and whose principles were well-adapted to inflame the ardent +temper of that excitable people. + +Children of Ishmael, said the Prophet to them, I bring you the faith +that was professed by your father Abraham, by Noah, and by all the +patriarchs. There is but one God, the Sovereign Ruler of all worlds: +he is called THE MERCIFUL; worship Him alone. Be beneficent towards +orphans, slaves, captives, and the poor: be just to all men--justice is +the sister of piety. Pray and bestow alms. You will be rewarded in +Heaven, by being permitted to dwell perpetually in delicious gardens, +where limpid waters will for ever flow, and where each one of you will +eternally enjoy the companionship of women who will be ever beautiful, +ever youthful, ever devoted to you alone. Courageously combat both the +unbelieving and the impious. Oppose them until they {25} embrace +Islamism[7] or render you tribute. Every soldier who dies in battle +will share the treasures of God; nor can the coward prolong his life; +for the moment when he is destined to be smitten by the angel of death +is written in the Book of the Eternal. + +Such precepts, announced in majestic and highly figurative language, +embellished with the charms of verse, and presented by a warrior, +prophet, poet, and legislator, professing to be the representative of +an angel, to the most susceptible people in the world--to a people +possessing a passion alike for the marvellous and the voluptuous, for +heroism and for poetry--could scarcely fail to find disciples. +Converts rapidly crowded around Mohammed, and their numbers were soon +augmented by persecution. His enemies obliged the Prophet to fly from +his native Mecca and take refuge in Medina. This flight was the epoch +of his glory and of the Hegira of the Mussulmans. It occurred A.D. 622. + +From this moment Islamism spread like a torrent over the Arabias and +Ethiopia. In vain did the Jewish and idolatrous tribes attempt to +maintain their ancient faith; in vain did Mecca {26} arm her soldiers +against the destroyers of her gods; Mohammed, sword in hand, dispersed +their armies, seized upon their cities, and won the affections of the +people whom he subdued, by his clemency, his genius, and his +fascinating address. + +A legislator, a pontiff, the chief of all the Arab tribes, the +commander of an invincible army, respected by the Asiatic sovereigns, +adored by a powerful nation, and surrounded by captains who had become +heroes in serving under him, Mohammed was on the point of marching +against Heraclius, when his designs were for ever interrupted by the +termination of his existence. This event took place at Medina, A.D. +632, Hegira 2, and was the effect of poison, which had, some time +before, been administered to this extraordinary man by a Jewess of +Rhaibar. + +The death of the Prophet arrested neither the progress of his religion +nor the triumphs of the Moslem arms. + +Abubeker, the father-in-law of Mohammed, became his successor, and +assumed the title of _Caliph_, which simply signifies _vicar_. During +his reign the Saracens penetrated into Syria, dispersed the armies of +Heraclius, and took the {27} city of Damascus, the siege of which will +be for ever celebrated in consequence of the almost superhuman exploits +of the famous Kaled, surnamed the _Sword of God_.[8] + +Notwithstanding these successive victories, and the enormous amount of +booty thus taken from the enemy and committed to his keeping, Abubeker +appropriated to his own particular use a sum scarcely equivalent to +forty cents a day. + +Omar, the successor of Abubeker, commanded Kaled to march against +Jerusalem. That city soon became the prize of the Arabs; Syria and +Palestine were subdued; the Turks and the Persians demanded peace; +Heraclius fled from Antioch; and all Asia trembled before Omar and the +terrible Mussulmans. + +Modest, in spite of the triumphs that everywhere attended them, and +attributing their success to God alone, these Moslems preserved +unaltered their austere manners, their frugality, their severe +discipline, and their reverence for poverty, though surrounded by the +most corrupt of the nations of the earth, and exposed to the seductive +influences of the delicious climates and the luxurious pleasures of +some of the richest and most {28} beautiful countries in the world. +During the sacking of a city, the most eager and impetuous soldier +would be instantly arrested in the work of pillage by the word of his +chief, and would, with the strictest fidelity, deliver up the booty he +had obtained, that it might be deposited in the general treasury. Even +the most independent and magnificent of the heroic chiefs would hasten, +in accordance with the directions of the caliph, to take the command of +an army, and would become successively generals, private soldiers, or +ambassadors, in obedience to his slightest wish. In fine, Omar +himself--Omar, the richest, the greatest, the most puissant of the +monarchs of Asia, set forward upon a journey to Jerusalem; mounted upon +a red camel, which bore a sack of barley, one of rice, a well-filled +water-skin, and a wooden vase. Thus equipped, the caliph travelled +through the midst of conquered nations, who crowded around his path at +every step, entreating his blessing and praying him to adjudge their +quarrels. At last he joined his army, and, inculcating precepts of +simplicity, valour, and humility upon the soldiers, he made his +entrance into the Holy City, liberated such of its former Christian +possessors as had become {29} the captives of his people, and commanded +the preservation of the churches. Then remounting his camel, the +representative of the Prophet returned to Medina, to perform the duties +of the high-priest of his religion. + +The Mussulmans now advanced towards Egypt. That country was soon +subdued. Alexandrea was taken by Amrou, one of the most distinguished +generals of Omar. It was then that the famous library was destroyed, +whose loss still excites the profound regrets of the learned. The +Arabians, though such enthusiastic admirers of their national poetry, +despised the literature of all the rest of the world. Amrou caused the +library of the Ptolemies to be burned, yet this same Amrou was +nevertheless celebrated for his poetical effusions. He entertained the +sincerest affection and respect for the celebrated John the Grammarian, +to whom, but for the opposing order of the caliph, he would have given +this valuable collection of books. It was Amrou, too, who caused the +execution of a design worthy of the best age of Rome, that of +connecting the Red Sea with the Mediterranean by means of a navigable +canal, at a point where the waters of the Nile might be diverted from +{30} their course for its supply. This canal, so useful to Egypt, and +so important to the commerce of both Europe and Asia, was accomplished +in a few months. The Turks, in more modern times, have suffered it to +be destroyed. + +Amrou continued to advance into Africa, while the other Arabian +commanders passed the Euphrates and conquered the Persians. But Omar +was already no more, and Othman occupied his place. + +It was during the reign of this caliph that the Saracens, banishing for +ever its enfeebled Greek masters, conquered Mauritania, or the country +of the Moors of Africa, A.D. 647, Heg. 27. + +The invaders met with serious resistance only from the warlike tribes +of the Bereberes.[9] That bold and pastoral people, the descendants of +the ancient inhabitants of Numidia, and preserving, even to this day, a +species of independence, intrenched as they are in the Atlas Mountains, +long and successfully resisted the conquerors of the Moors. A Moslem +general named Akba finally succeeded in subjugating them, and in +compelling them to adopt the laws and faith of his country. + +{31} + +After that achievement Akba carried his arms to the extreme western +point of Africa, the ocean alone resisting him in his progress. There, +inspired by courage and devotion with feelings of the highest +enthusiasm, he forced his horse into the waves, and, drawing his sabre, +cried, "God of Mohammed, thou beholdest that, but for the element which +arrests me, I would have proceeded in search of unknown nations, whom I +would have forced to adore thy name!" + +Until this epoch, the Moors, under the successive dominion of the +Carthaginians, the Romans, the Vandals, and the Greeks, had taken but +little interest in the affairs of their different masters. + +Wandering in the deserts, they occupied themselves chiefly with the +care of their flocks; paid the arbitrary imposts levied upon them, +sometimes passively enduring the oppression of their rulers, and +sometimes essaying to break their chains; taking refuge, after each +defeat of their efforts, in the Atlas Mountains, or in the interior of +their country. + +Their religion was a mixture of Christianity and idolatry; their +manners those of the enslaved Nomades: rude, ignorant, and wretched, +{32} their condition was the prototype of what it now is under the +tyrants of Morocco. + +But the presence of the Arabs rapidly produced a great change among +these people. A common origin with that of their new masters, together +with similarity of language and temperament, contributed to bind the +conquered to their conquerors. + +The announcement of a religion which had been preached by a descendant +of Ishmael, whom the Moors regarded as their father; the rapid +conquests of the Mussulmans, who were already masters of half of Asia +and a large portion of Africa, and who threatened to enslave the world, +aroused the excitable imaginations of the Moors, and restored to their +national character all its passionate energy. They embraced the dogmas +of Mohammed with transport; they united with the Arabs, volunteered to +serve under the Moslem banners, and suddenly became simultaneously +enamoured with Islamism and with glory. + +This reunion, which doubled the military strength of the two united +nations, was disturbed for some time by the revolt of the Bereberes, +who never yielded their liberty under any circumstances. + +{33} + +The reigning caliph, Valid the First, despatched into Egypt +Moussa-ben-Nazir, a judicious and valiant commander, at the head of a +hundred thousand men, A.D. 708, Heg. 89. + +Moussa defeated the Bereberes, restored quiet in Mauritania, and seized +upon Tangier, which belonged to the Goths of Spain. + +Master of an immense region of country, of a redoubtable army, and of a +people who considered his supremacy as essential to their well-being, +the Saracen general from this period contemplated carrying his arms +into Spain. + +That beautiful kingdom, after having been successively under the yoke +of the Carthaginians and the Romans, had finally become the prey of the +Barbarians. The Alains, the Suevi, and the Vandals had divided its +provinces among them; but Euric, one of the Visigoths, who entered the +country from the south of Gaul, had, towards the end of the fifth +century, gained possession of the whole of Spain, and transmitted it to +his descendants. + +The softness of the climate, together with the effects of wealth and +luxury, gradually enfeebled these conquerors, creating vices from which +they had been previously free, and depriving {34} them of the warlike +qualities to which alone they had been indebted for their success. Of +the kings who succeeded Euric, some were Arians and others Catholics, +who abandoned their authority to the control of bishops, and occupied a +throne shaken to its centre by internal disturbances. Roderick, the +last of these Gothic sovereigns, polluted the throne by his vices; and +both history and tradition accuse him of the basest crimes. Indeed, in +the instance of nearly all these tyrants, their vices either directly +occasioned, or were made the pretext of their final ruin. + +The fact is well established, that Count Julian and his brother Oppas, +archbishop of Toledo, both of them distinguished and influential men, +favoured the irruption of the Moors into Spain. + +Tarik, one of the most renowned captains of his time,[10] was sent into +Spain by Moussa. He had at first but few troops; but he was not by +this prevented from defeating the large army that, by command of +Roderick, the last Gothic king, opposed his course. + +Subsequently, having received re-enforcements {35} from Africa, Tarik +vanquished Roderick himself at the battle of Xeres, where that +unfortunate monarch perished during the general flight in which the +conflict terminated, A.D. 714, Heg. 96. + +After this battle, the Mohammedan general, profiting by his victory, +penetrated into Estremadura, Andalusia, and the two Castiles, and took +possession of the city of Toledo. Being soon after joined by Moussa, +whose jealousy of the glory his lieutenant was so rapidly acquiring +prompted him to hasten to his side, these two remarkable commanders, +dividing their troops into several corps, achieved, in a few months, +the conquest of the whole of Spain. + +It should be observed, that these Moors, whom several historians have +represented as bloodthirsty barbarians, did not deprive the people whom +they had subjugated either of their faith, their churches, or the +administrators of their laws. They exacted from the Spaniards only the +tribute they had been accustomed to pay their kings. One cannot but +question the existence of the ferocity that is ascribed to them, when +it is remembered that the greater part of the Spanish cities submitted +to the invaders {36} without making the least attempt at resistance; +that the Christians readily united themselves with the Moors; that the +inhabitants of Toledo desired to assume the name of _Musarabs_; and +that Queen Egilona, the widow of Roderick, the last of the Gothic +sovereigns, publicly espoused, with the united consent of the two +nations, Abdelazis the son of Moussa. + +Moussa, whom the success of Tarik had greatly exasperated, wishing to +remove a lieutenant whose achievements eclipsed his own, preferred an +accusation against him to the caliph. Valid recalled them both, but +refused to adjudge their difference, and suffered them to die at court +from chagrin at seeing themselves forgotten. + +Abdelazis, the husband of Egilona, became governor of Spain A.D. 718, +Heg. 100, but did not long survive his elevation. Alahor, who +succeeded him, carried his arms into Gaul, subdued the Warbonnais, and +was preparing to push his conquests still farther, when he learned that +Pelagius, a prince of the blood-royal of the Visigoths, had taken +refuge in the mountains of Asturia with a handful of devoted followers; +that with them he dared to brave the conquerors of Spain, and had +formed the bold design of {37} attempting to rid himself of their yoke. +Alahor sent some troops against him. Pelagius, intrenched with his +little army in the mountain gorges, twice gave battle to the +Mussulmans, seized upon several castles, and, reanimating the spirits +of the Christians, whose courage had been almost extinguished by so +long a succession of reverses, taught the astonished Spaniards that the +Moors were not invincible. + +The insurrection of Pelagius occasioned the recall of Alahor by the +Caliph Omar II. Elzemah, his successor, was of opinion that the most +certain means of repressing revolts among a people is to render them +prosperous and contented. He therefore devoted himself to the wise and +humane government of Spain; to the regulation of imposts, until then +quite arbitrary; and to quieting the discontents of the soldiery, and +establishing their pay at a fixed rate. A lover of the fine arts, +which the Arabs began from that time to cultivate, Elzemah embellished +Cordova, which was his capital, and attracted thither the _savans_ of +the age. He was himself the author of a book containing a description +of the cities, rivers, provinces, and ports of Spain, of the metals, +mines, and quarries it {38} possesses; and, in short, of almost every +object of interest either in science or government. + +But little disturbed by the insurrectionary movements of Pelagius, +whose power was confined to the possession of some inaccessible +mountain fortresses, Elzemah did not attempt to force him from his +strongholds, but, impelled by the ardent desire of extending the +Moorish conquests into France, with which the governors of Spain were +ever inflamed, he passed the Pyrenees, and perished in a battle fought +against Eudes, duke of Aquitania, A.D. 722, Heg. 104. + +During the remainder of the Caliphate of Yezid II.,[11] several +governors followed each other in rapid succession after the death of +Elzemah.[12] None of their actions merit recital, but, during this +period, the brave Pelagius aggrandized his petty state, advancing into +the mountains of Leon, and, in addition, making himself master of +several towns. + +This hero, whose invincible daring roused the Asturians and Cantabrians +to struggle for liberty, laid the foundations of that powerful monarchy +{39} whose warriors afterward pursued the Moors even to the rocks of +the Atlas. + +The Moslems, who dreamed only of new conquests, made no considerable +efforts against Pelagius: they were confident of checking his rebellion +with the utmost ease when they should have accomplished the subjugation +of the French dominions; and that desire alone fired the ardent soul of +the new governor Abdalrahman, or, as he is commonly called, Abderamus. + +His love of glory, his valour, his genius, and, above all, his +immeasurable ambition, made the Mussulman governor regard this conquest +as one that could be easily effected; but he himself was destined to be +the vanquished. + +Charles Martel, the son of Pepin d'Heristel, and the grandfather of +Charlemagne, whose exploits effaced the recollection of those of his +father, and whose fame was not eclipsed by that of his grandson, was at +this time mayor of the palace, under the last princes of the first +race; or, rather, Charles was the real monarch of the French and German +nations. + +Eudes, duke of Aquitania, the possessor of Gascony and Guienne, had +long maintained a quarrel with the French hero. Unable longer, {40} +without assistance, to resist his foe, he sought an alliance with a +Moor named Munuza, who was the governor of Catalonia and the secret +enemy of Abderamus. These two powerful vassals, both discontented with +their respective sovereigns, and inspired as much by fear as dislike, +united themselves in the closest bonds, in despite of the difference in +their religious faith. The Christian duke did not hesitate to give his +daughter in marriage to his Mohammedan ally, and the Princess Numerance +espoused the Moorish Munuza, as Queen Egilona had espoused the Moorish +Abdelazis. + +Abderamus, when informed of this alliance, immediately divined the +motives which had induced it. He soon assembled an army, penetrated +with rapidity into Catalonia, and attacked Munuza, who was wounded in a +fruitless endeavour to fly, and afterward perished by his own hand. +His captive wife was conducted into the presence of the victorious +governor Abderamus, struck with her beauty, sent the fair Numerance as +a present to the Caliph Haccham, whose regard she elicited; and thus, +by a singular chance, a princess of Gascony became an inmate of the +seraglio of a sovereign of Damascus. + +{41} + +Not content with having so signally punished Munuza, Abderamus crossed +the Pyrenees, traversed Navarre, entered Guienne, and besieged and took +the City of Bordeaux. Eudes attempted, at the head of an army, to +arrest his progress, but was repelled in a decisive engagement. +Everything yielded to the Mussulman arms: Abderamus pursued his route, +ravaged Perigord, Saintonge, and Poitou, appeared in triumph in +Touraine, and paused only when within view of the streaming ensigns of +Charles Martel. + +Charles came to this rencounter followed by the forces of France, +Asturia, and Bourgogne, and attended by the veteran warriors whom he +was accustomed to lead to victory. The Duke of Aquitania was also in +the camp. Charles forgot his private injuries in the contemplation of +the common danger: this danger was pressing: the fate of France and +Germany--indeed, of the whole of Christendom, depended on the event of +the approaching conflict. + +Abderamus was a rival worthy of the son of Pepin. Flushed, like him, +with the proud recollection of numerous victories; at the head of an +innumerable army; surrounded by experienced captains, who had been the +frequent {42} witnesses of his martial triumphs; and long inspired with +the warmest hopes of finally adding to the dominion of Islamism the +only country belonging to the ancient Roman empire that still remained +unsubdued by the Saracens, the Moorish leader met his brave foe, upon +equal terms, on the battle-field of Tours, A.D. 733, Heg. 114. + +The action was long and bloody. Abderamus was slain; and this +dispiriting loss, without doubt, decided the defeat of his army.[13] +Historians assert that more than three hundred thousand men perished. +This statement is probably exaggerated; but it is certainly true, that +the Moors, who had thus penetrated into the midst of France, were +relentlessly pursued after their defeat, and were many of them unable +to escape from the army of the victors and the vengeance of the people. + +This memorable battle, of which we possess no details, saved France +from the yoke of the Arabs, and effectually arrested their spreading +dominion. + +Once again, subsequent to this reverse, the Moors attempted to +penetrate into France, and {43} succeeded in seizing upon Avignon; but +Charles Martel defeated them anew, retook the captured city, drove them +from Narbonne, and deprived them forever of the hope with which they +had so often flattered themselves. + +After the death of Abderamus, Spain was torn by dissensions between the +two governors[14] named successively by the Caliph. A third pretender +arrived from Africa. A fourth added himself to the list;[15] factions +multiplied; the different parties often had recourse to arms; chiefs +were assassinated, cities taken, and provinces ravaged. + +The details of these events are variously related by different +historians, but possess little interest in the narrations of any. + +These civil wars lasted nearly twenty years. The Christians, who had +retired into Asturia, profited by them to the utmost. Alphonso I., the +son-in-law and successor of Pelagius, imitated the career of that hero. +He seized upon a part of Galicia and Leon, repulsed the Mussulman +troops who were sent to oppose him, and rendered himself master of +several towns. + +The Moors, occupied by their domestic {44} quarrels, neglected to +arrest the progress of Alphonso, and from that time the growth of a +miniature kingdom commenced, whose interests were inimical to those of +the Saracens in Spain. + +After many crimes and combats, a certain _Joseph_ had succeeded in +triumphing over his different rivals, and was at last reigning supreme +in Cordova, when there occurred a memorable event in the East, which +was destined greatly to affect the condition of Spain. + +From that period, A.D. 749, Heg. 134, commences the second epoch of the +empire of the Moors of Spain, which makes it necessary to revert +briefly to the history of the Eastern caliphs. + + + +[1] The _Sabaei_, according to the best ancient authorities, were the +inhabitants of the extensive Arabian kingdom of _Saba_.--_Translator_. + +[2] The term Moors, according to Bochart, comes from a Hebrew word, +_Mahuran_, which signifies Western. + +[3] It is scarcely necessary to remind the reader that these _Children +of the Desert_ are supposed to be the lineal descendants of Ishmael, +the wandering, outcast son of the patriarch Abraham and the much-abused +Hagar.--_Translator_. + +[4] The primitive name of the Arabs, from _Nabathaea_, an appellation +for their country which is probably derived from _Nabath_, the son of +Ishmael. The capital city of Nabathaea was that _Petra_, of whose +present appearance and condition our eminent countryman, Stephens, has +given his readers so graphic a sketch in his "Travels," +&c.--_Translator_. + +[5] A.D. 569. + +[6] The Coheshirites, the guardians of the Temple of the Caaba at Mecca. + +[7] See Note A, page 203. + +[8] See Note B, page 206. + +[9] See note C, page 207. + +[10] See note D, page 208. + +[11] See Note E, page 308. + +[12] Ambeza, Azra, Jahiah, Osman, Hazifa, Hacchem, and Mohammed. + +[13] It was in this battle that Charles acquired the title of _Martel_, +or the _Hammer_. + +[14] Abdoulmelek and Akbe. + +[15] Aboulattar and Tevaba. + + + + +{45} + +SECOND EPOCH. + +THE KINGS OF CORDOVA BECOME THE CALIPHS OF THE WEST. + +_Extending from the middle of the Eighth to the commencement of the +Eleventh Century._ + + +We have seen that, under their first three caliphs, Abubeker, Omar, and +Othman, the Arabian conquerors of Syria, Persia, and Africa preserved +their ancient manners, their simplicity of character, their obedience to +the successors of the Prophet, and their contempt for luxury and wealth: +but what people could continue to withstand the influence of such an +accumulation of prosperity? These resistless conquerors turned their +weapons against each other: they forgot the virtues which had rendered +them invincible, and assisted by their dissensions in dismembering the +empire that their valour had created. + +The disastrous effects of the baneful spirit that had thus insidiously +supplanted the original principles of union, moderation, and prudence, by +which, as a nation, the Moslems had been {46} actuated, were first +manifested in the assassination of the Caliph Othman. + +Ali, the friend, companion, and adopted son of the Prophet, whose +courage, achievements, and relationship to Mohammed, as the husband of +his only daughter, had rendered him so dear to the Mussulmans, was +announced as the successor of Othman. + +But Moavias, the governor of Syria, refused to recognise the authority of +Ali, and, under the guidance of the sagacious Amrou, the conqueror of +Egypt, caused himself to be proclaimed Caliph of Damascus. Upon this, +the Arabians divided: those of Medina sustaining Ali, and those of Syria +Moavias. The first took the name of _Alides_, the others styled +themselves _Ommiades_, deriving their denomination from the grandfather +of Moavias. Such was the origin of the famous schism which still +separates the Turks and Persians. + +Though Ali succeeded in vanquishing Moavias in the field, he did not +avail himself judiciously of the advantage afforded him by his victory. +He was soon after assassinated,[1] and the spirit and courage of his +party vanished with the {47} occurrence of that event. The sons of Ali +made efforts to reanimate the ardour of his partisans, but in vain. + +Thus, in the midst of broils, revolts, and civil wars, the Ommiades still +remained in possession of the Caliphate of Damascus.[2] It was during the +reign of one of these princes, Valid the First, that the Arabian +conquests extended in the East to the banks of the Ganges, and in the +West to the shores of the Atlantic. The Ommiades, however, were for the +most part feeble, but they were sustained by able commanders, and the +{48} ancient valour of the Moslem soldiers was not yet degenerated. + +After the Ommiades had maintained their empire for the space of +ninety-three years, Mervan II.,[3] the last caliph of the race, was +deprived of his throne and his life[4] through the instrumentality of +Abdalla, a chief of the tribe of the Abbassides, who were, like the +Ommiades, near relatives of Mohammed. + +Aboul-Abbas, the nephew of Abdalla, supplanted the former caliph. With +him commenced the dynasty of the Abbassides, so celebrated in the East +for their love of science and their connexion with the names of Haroun Al +Raschid, Almamon, and the Bermasides.[5] + +The Abbassides retained the caliphate during five successive +centuries.[6] At the termination of {49} that period, they were +despoiled of their power by the Tartar posterity of Gengis Khan, after +{50} having witnessed the establishment of a race of Egyptian caliphs +named _Fatimites_, the pretended descendants of Fatima, the daughter of +Mohammed. + +Thus was the Eastern empire of the Arabs eventually destroyed: the +descendants of Ishmael returned to the country from which they had +originally sprung, and gradually reverted to nearly the same condition as +that in which they existed when the Prophet arose among them. {51} These +events, from the founding of the dynasty of the Abbassides, have been +anticipated in point of time in the relation, because henceforth the +history of Spain is no longer intermingled with that of the East. + +After having dwelt briefly upon an event intimately connected as well +with the establishment of the Abbassides upon the Moslem throne as with +the history of Spain, we will enter continuously upon the main subject of +our work. + +To return, then, for a moment, to the downfall of the Ommiade caliphs. + +When the cruel Abdalla had placed his nephew, Aboul-Abbas, on the throne +of the Caliphs of Damascus, he formed the horrible design of +exterminating the Ommiades. These princes were very numerous. With the +Arabs, among whom polygamy is permitted, and where numerous offspring are +regarded as the peculiar gift of Heaven, it is not unusual to find +several thousand individuals belonging to the same family. + +Abdalla, despairing of effecting the destruction of the race of his +enemies, dispersed as they were by terror, published a general amnesty to +all the Ommiades who should present themselves before him on a certain +day. Those ill-fated {52} people, confiding in the fulfilment of his +solemn promises, hastened to seek safety at the feet of Abdalla. The +monster, when they were all assembled, caused his soldiers to surround +them, and then commanded them all to be butchered in his presence. After +this frightful massacre, Abdalla ordered the bloody bodies to be ranged +side by side in close order, and then to be covered with boards spread +with Persian carpets. Upon this horrible table he caused a magnificent +feast to be served to his officers. One shudders at the perusal of such +details, but they serve to portray the character of this Oriental +conqueror. + +A solitary Ommiade escaped the miserable fate of his brethren; a prince +named Abderamus. A fugitive wanderer, he reached Egypt, and concealed +himself in the solitary recesses of its inhospitable deserts. + +The Moors of Spain, faithful to the Ommiades, though their governor +Joseph had recognised the authority of the Abbassides, had no sooner +learned that there existed in Egypt a scion of the illustrious family to +which they still retained their attachment, than they secretly sent +deputies to offer him their crown. Abderamus foresaw the {53} obstacles +with which he would be compelled to struggle, but, guided by the impulses +of a soul whose native greatness had been strengthened and purified by +adversity, he did not hesitate to accept the proposal of the Moors. + +The Ommiade prince arrived in the Peninsula A.D. 755, Heg. 138. He +speedily gained the hearts of his new subjects, assembled an army, took +possession of Seville, and, soon after, marched towards Cordova, the +capital of Mussulman Spain. Joseph, in the name of the Abbassides, +vainly attempted to oppose his progress. The governor was vanquished and +Cordova taken, together with several other cities. + +Abderamus was now not only the acknowledged king of Spain, but was +proclaimed _Caliph of the West_ A.D. 759, Heg. 142. + +During the supremacy of the Ommiades in the empire of the East, Spain had +continued to be ruled by governors sent thither from Asia by those +sovereigns; but it was now permanently separated from the great Arabian +empire, and elevated into a powerful and independent state, acknowledging +no farther allegiance to the Asiatic caliphs either in civil or religious +matters. Thus was the control hitherto exercised over the {54} affairs +of Spain by the Oriental caliphs forever wrested from them by the last +surviving individual of that royal race whom Abdalla had endeavoured to +exterminate. + +Abderamus the First established the seat of his new greatness at Cordova. +He was not long allowed peacefully to enjoy it, however. Revolts +instigated by the Abbassides, incursions into Catalonia by the French, +and wars with the kings of Leon,[7] incessantly demanded his attention; +but his courage and activity gained the ascendency even over such +numerous enemies. He maintained his throne with honour, and merited his +beautiful surname of _The Just_. + +Abderamus cultivated and cherished the fine arts, even in the midst of +the difficulties and dangers by which he was surrounded. It was he who +first established schools at Cordova for the study of astronomy, +mathematics, medicine, and grammar. He was also a poet, and was +considered the most eloquent man of his age. + +This first Caliph of the West adorned and fortified his capital, erected +a superb palace, which he surrounded by beautiful gardens, and commenced +the construction of a grand mosque, the {55} remains of which continue +even at this day to excite the admiration of the traveller. This +monument of magnificence was completed during the reign of Hacchem, the +son and successor of Abderamus. It is thought that the Spaniards have +not preserved more than one half of the original structure, yet it is now +six hundred feet long and two hundred wide, and is supported by more than +three hundred columns of alabaster, jasper, and marble. Formerly there +were twenty-four doors of entrance, composed of bronze covered with +sculptures of gold; and nearly five thousand lamps nightly served to +illuminate this magnificent edifice. + +In this mosque the caliphs of Cordova each Friday conducted the worship +of the people, that being the day consecrated to religion by the precepts +of Mohammed. Thither all the Mussulmans of Spain made pilgrimages, as +those of the East resorted to the temple at Mecca. There they +celebrated, with great solemnity, the fete of the great and the lesser +Beiram, which corresponds with the Passover of the Jews; that of the +Newyear, and that of Miloud, or the anniversary of the birth of Mohammed. +Each of these festivals lasted for eight days. During that time {56} all +labour ceased, the people sent presents to each other, exchanged visits, +and offered sacrifices. Disunited families, forgetting their +differences, pledged themselves to future concord, and consummated their +renewed amity by delivering themselves up to the enjoyment of every +pleasure permitted by the laws of the Koran. + +At night the city was illuminated, the streets were festooned with +flowers, and the promenades and public places resounded with the melody +of various musical instruments. + +The more worthily to celebrate the occasion, alms were lavishly +distributed by the wealthy, and the benedictions of the poor mingled with +the songs of rejoicing that everywhere ascended around them. + +Abderamus, having imbibed with his Oriental education a fondness for +these splendid fetes, first introduced a taste for them into Spain. +Uniting, in his character of caliph, the civil and the sacerdotal +authority in his own person, he regulated the religious ceremonies on +such occasions, and caused them to be celebrated with all the pomp and +magnificence displayed under similar circumstances by the sovereigns of +Damascus. + +Though the caliph of Cordova was the enemy {57} of the Christians, and +numbered many of them among his subjects, he refrained from persecuting +them, but deprived the bishoprics of their religious heads and the +churches of their priests, and encouraged marriages between the Moors and +Spaniards. By these means the sagacious Moslem inflicted more injury +upon the true religion than could have been effected by the most rigorous +severity. + +Under the reign of Abderamus, the successors of Pelagius, still retaining +possession of Asturia, though weakened by the internal dissensions that +already began to prevail among them, were forced to submit to the payment +of the humiliating tribute of a hundred young females, Abderamus refusing +to grant them peace except at this price. + +Master of entire Spain, from Catalonia to the two seas, the first caliph +died A.D. 788, Heg. 172, after a glorious reign of thirty years, leaving +the crown to his son Hacchem, the third of his eleven sons. + +After the death of Abderamus the empire was disturbed by revolts, and by +wars between the new caliph and his brothers, his uncles, or other +princes of the royal blood. These civil wars {58} were inevitable under +a despotic government, where not even the order of succession to the +throne was regulated by law. To be an aspirant to the supreme authority +of the state, it was sufficient to belong to the royal race; and as each +of the caliphs, almost without exception, left numerous sons, all these +princes became the head of a faction, every one of them established +himself in some city, and, declaring himself its sovereign, took up arms +in opposition to the authority of the caliph. From this arose the +innumerable petty states that were created, annihilated, and raised again +with each change of sovereigns. Thus also originated the many instances +of conquered, deposed, or murdered kings, that make the history of the +Moors of Spain so difficult of methodical arrangement and so monotonous +in the perusal. + +Hacchem, and, after him, his son Abdelazis-el-Hacchem retained possession +of the caliphate notwithstanding these unceasing dissensions. The former +finished the beautiful mosque commenced by his father, and carried his +arms into France, in which kingdom his generals penetrated as far as +Narbonne. The latter, Abdelazis-el-Hacchem less fortunate than his +predecessor, did not {59} succeed in opposing the Spaniards and his +refractory subjects with unvarying success. His existence terminated in +the midst of national difficulties, and his son Abderamus became his +successor. + +Abderamus II. was a great monarch, notwithstanding the fact that, during +his reign, the power of the Christians began to balance that of the Moors. + +The Christians had taken advantage of the continual divisions which +prevailed among their former conquerors. Alphonso the Chaste, king of +Asturia, a valiant and politic monarch, had extended his dominions and +refused to pay the tribute of the hundred young maidens. Ramir, the +successor of Alphonso, maintained this independence, and several times +defeated the Mussulmans. Navarre became a kingdom, and Aragon had its +independent sovereigns, and was so fortunate as to possess a government +that properly respected the rights of the people.[8] The governors of +Catalonia, until then subjected to the kings of France, took advantage of +the feebleness of Louis le Debonnaire to render themselves independent. +In fine, all the north of Spain declared itself in opposition to the +Moors, {60} and the south became a prey to the irruptions of the Normans. + +Abderamus defended himself against all these adversaries, and obtained, +by his warlike talents, the surname of _Elmonzaffer_, which signifies +_the Victorious_. And, though constantly occupied by the cares of +government and of successive wars, this monarch afforded encouragement to +the fine arts, embellished his capital by a new mosque, and caused to be +erected a superb aqueduct, from which water was carried in leaden pipes +throughout the city in the utmost abundance. + +Abderamus possessed a soul capable of enjoying the most refined and +elevated pleasures. He attracted to his court poets and philosophers, +with whose society he frequently delighted himself; thus cultivating in +his own person the talents he encouraged in others. He invited from the +East the famous musician Ali-Zeriab, who established himself in Spain +through the beneficence of the caliph, and originated the celebrated +school[9] whose pupils afterward afforded such delight to the Oriental +world. + +The natural ferocity of the Moslems yielded to the influence of the +chivalrous example of {61} the caliph, and Cordova became, under the +dominion of Abderamus, the home of taste and pleasure, as well as the +chosen abode of science and the arts. + +A single anecdote will serve to illustrate the tenderness and generosity +that so strongly characterized this illustrious descendant of the +Ommiades. + +One day a favourite female slave left her master's presence in high +displeasure, and, retiring to her apartment, vowed that, sooner than open +the door for the admittance of Abderamus, she would suffer it to be +walled up. The chief eunuch, alarmed at this discourse, which he +regarded as almost blasphemous, hastened to prostrate himself before the +Prince of Believers, and to communicate to him the horrible purpose of +the rebellious slave. Abderamus smiled at the resolution of the offended +beauty, and commanded the eunuch to cause a wall composed of pieces of +coin to be erected before the door of her retreat, and avowed his +intention not to pass this barrier until the fair slave should have +voluntarily demolished it, by possessing herself of the materials of +which it was formed. The {62} historian[10] adds, that the same evening +the caliph entered the apartments of the appeased favourite without +opposition. + +This prince left forty-five sons and nearly as many daughters. Mohammed, +the eldest of his sons, succeeded him, A.D. 852, Heg. 238. The reigns of +Mohammed and his successors, Almanzor and Abdalla, offer to the historian +nothing for a period of fifty years but details of an uninterrupted +continuation of troubles, civil wars, and revolts, by which the governors +of the principal cities sought to render themselves independent. + +Alphonso the Great, king of Asturia, profited by these dissensions the +more effectually to confirm his own power. The Normans, from another +side, ravaged Andalusia anew. Toledo, frequently punished, but ever +rebellious, often possessed local sovereigns. Saragossa imitated the +example of Toledo. The authority of the caliphs was weakened, and their +empire, convulsed in every part, seemed on the point of dissolution, when +Abderamus III., the nephew of Abdalla, ascended the throne of Cordova, +and restored for some time its pristine splendour and power, A.D. 912, +Heg. 300. + +{63} + +This monarch, whose name, so dear to the Moslems, seemed to be an +auspicious omen, took the title of _Emir-al-Mumenin_, which signifies +_Prince of true Believers_. + +Victory attended the commencement of his reign; the rebels, whom his +predecessors had been unable to reduce to submission, were defeated; +factions were dissipated, and peace and order re-established. + +Being attacked by the Christians soon after he had assumed the crown, +Abderamus applied for assistance to the Moors of Africa. He maintained +long wars against the kings of Leon and the counts of Castile, who +wrested Madrid, then a place of comparative insignificance, from him, +A.D. 931, Heg. 319. Often attacked and sometimes overcome, but always +great and redoubtable notwithstanding occasional reverses, Abderamus knew +how to repair his losses, and avail himself to the utmost of his good +fortune. A profound statesman, and a brave and skilful commander, he +fomented divisions among the Spanish princes, carried his arms frequently +into the very centre of their states, and, having established a navy, +seized, in addition, upon Ceuta and Seldjemessa on the African coast. + +{64} + +Notwithstanding the incessant wars which occupied him during the whole of +his reign, the enormous expense to which he was subjected by the +maintenance of his armies and his naval force, and the purchase of +military assistance from Africa, Emir-al-Mumenim supported a luxury and +splendour at his court, the details of which would seem to be the mere +creations of the imagination, were they not attested by every historian +of the time. + +The contemporary Greek emperor, Constantine XI., wishing to oppose an +enemy capable of resisting their power, to the Abbassides of Bagdad, sent +ambassadors to Cordova to form an alliance with Abderamus. + +The Caliph of the West, flattered that Christians should come from so +distant a part of the world to request his support, signalized the +occasion by the display of a gorgeous pomp which rivalled that of the +most splendid Asiatic courts. He sent a suit of attendants to receive +the ambassadors at Jean. Numerous corps of cavalry, magnificently +mounted and attired, awaited their approach to Cordova, and a still more +brilliant display of infantry lined the avenues to the palace. The +courts were covered with the most {65} superb Persian and Egyptian +carpets, and the walls hung with cloth of gold. The caliph, blazing with +brilliants, and seated on a dazzling throne, surrounded by his family, +his viziers, and a numerous train of courtiers, received the Greek envoys +in a hall in which all his treasures were displayed. The _Hadjeb_, a +dignitary whose office among the Moors corresponded to that of the +ancient French _mayors of the palace_, introduced the ambassadors. They +prostrated themselves before Abderamus in amazement at the splendour of +this array, and presented to the Moorish sovereign the letter of +Constantine, written on blue parchment and enclosed in a box of gold. +The caliph signed the treaty, loaded the imperial messengers with +presents, and ordered that a numerous suite should accompany them even to +the walls of Constantinople. + +Abderamus III., though unceasingly occupied either by war or politics, +was all his life enamoured of one of his wives named Zahra.[11] He built +a city for her two miles distant from Cordova, which he named Zahra. + +This place is now destroyed. It was situated {66} at the base of a high +mountain, from which flowed numerous perpetual streams, whose waters ran +in all directions through the streets of the city, diffusing health and +coolness in their course, and forming ever-flowing fountains in the +centre of the public places. The houses, each built after the same +model, were surmounted by terraces and surrounded by gardens adorned with +groves of orange, laurel, and lime, and in which the myrtle, the rose, +and the jasmine mingled in pleasing confusion with all the varied +productions of that sunny and delicious clime. The statue of the +beautiful Zahra[12] was conspicuously placed over the principal gate of +this City of Love. + +But the attractions of the city were totally eclipsed by those of the +fairy-like palace of the favourite. Abderamus, as the ally of their +Imperial master, demanded the assistance of the most accomplished of the +Greek architects; and the sovereign of Constantinople, which was at that +time the chosen home of the fine arts, eagerly complied with his desires, +and sent the caliph, in addition, forty columns of granite of the rarest +and most beautiful workmanship. Independent {67} of these magnificent +columns, there were employed in the construction of this palace more than +twelve hundred others, formed of Spanish and Italian marble. The walls +of the apartment named the _Saloon of the Caliphate_, were covered with +ornaments of gold; and from the mouths of several animals, composed of +the same metal, gushed jets of water that fell into an alabaster +fountain, above which was suspended the famous pearl that the Emperor Leo +had presented to the caliph as a treasure of inestimable value. In the +pavilion where the mistress of this enchanting abode usually passed the +evening with the royal Moor, the ceiling was composed of gold and +burnished steel, incrusted with precious stones. And in the resplendent +light reflected from these brilliant ornaments by a hundred crystal +lustres, flashed the waters of a fountain, formed like a sheaf of grain, +from polished silver, whose delicate spray was received again by the +alabaster basin from whose centre it sprung. + +The reader might hesitate to believe these recitals; might suppose +himself perusing Oriental tales, or that the author was indebted for his +history to the _Thousand and One Nights_, were {68} not the facts here +detailed attested by the Arabian writers, and corroborated by foreign +authors of unquestionable veracity. It is true that the architectural +magnificence, the splendid pageantry, the pomp of power that +characterized the reign of this illustrious Saracenic king, resembled +nothing with which we are now familiar; but the incredulous questioners +of their former existence might be asked whether, had the pyramids of +Egypt been destroyed by an earthquake, they would now credit historians +who should give us the exact dimensions of those stupendous structures? + +The writers from whom are derived the details that have been given +concerning the court of the Spanish Mussulmans, mention also the sums +expended in the erection of the palace and city of Zahra. The cost +amounted annually to three hundred thousand dinars of gold,[13] and +twenty-five years hardly sufficed for the completion of this princely +monument of chivalrous devotion. + +{69} + +To these enormous expenditures should be added the maintenance of a +seraglio, in which the women, the slaves, and the black and white eunuchs +amounted to the number of six thousand persons. The officers of the +court, and the horses destined for their use, were in equally lavish +proportion. The royal guard alone was composed of twelve thousand +cavaliers. + +When it is remembered, that, from being continually at war with the +Spanish princes, Abderamus was obliged to keep numerous armies +incessantly on foot, to support a naval force, frequently to hire +stipendiaries from Africa, and to fortify and preserve in a state of +defence the ever-endangered fortresses on his frontiers, it is hardly +possible to comprehend how his revenues sufficed for the supply of such +immense and varied demands. But his resources were equally immense and +varied; and the sovereign of Cordova was perhaps the richest and most +powerful monarch then in Europe.[14] + +He held possession of Portugal, Andalusia, the Kingdom of Grenada, +Mercia, Valencia, and the greater part of New-Castile, the most beautiful +and fertile countries of Spain. + +{70} + +These provinces were at that time extremely populous, and the Moors had +attained the highest perfection in agriculture. Historians assure us, +that there existed on the shores of the Guadalquiver twelve thousand +villages; and that a traveller could not proceed through the country +without encountering some hamlet every quarter of an hour. There existed +in the dominions of the caliph eighty great cities, three hundred of the +second order, and an infinite number of smaller towns. Cordova, the +capital of the kingdom, enclosed within its walls two hundred thousand +houses and nine hundred public baths. + +All this prosperity was reversed by the expulsion of the Moors from the +Peninsula. The reason is apparent: the Moorish conquerors of Spain did +not persecute their vanquished foes; the Spaniards, when they had subdued +the Moors, oppressed and banished them. + +The revenues of the caliphs of Cordova are represented to have amounted +annually to twelve millions and forty-five thousand dinars of gold.[15] +Independent of this income in money, many imposts were paid in the +products of the soil; and among an industrious agricultural {71} +population, possessed of the most fertile country in the world, this +rural wealth was incalculable. The gold and silver mines, known in Spain +from the earliest times, were another source of wealth. Commerce, too, +enriched alike the sovereign and the people. The commerce of the Moors +was carried on in many articles: silks, oils, sugar, cochineal, iron, +wool (which was at that time extremely valuable), ambergris, yellow +amber, loadstone, antimony, isinglass, rock-crystal, sulphur, saffron, +ginger, the product of the coral-beds on the coast of Andalusia, of the +pearl fisheries on that of Catalonia, and rubies, of which they had +discovered two localities, one at Malaga and another at Beja. These +valuable articles were, either before or after being wrought, transported +to Egypt or other parts of Africa, and to the East. The emperors of +Constantinople, always allied from necessity to the caliphs of Cordova, +favoured these commercial enterprises, and, by their countenance, +assisted in enlarging, to a vast extent, the field of their operations; +while the neighbourhood of Africa, Italy, and France contributed also to +their prosperity. + +The arts, which are the children of commerce, and support the existence +of their parent, added {72} a new splendour to the brilliant reign of +Abderamus. The superb palaces he erected, the delicious gardens he +created, and the magnificent fetes he instituted, drew to his court from +all parts architects and artists of every description. Cordova was the +home of industry and the asylum of the sciences. Celebrated schools of +geometry, astronomy, chymistry, and medicine were established +there--schools which, a century afterward, produced such men as Averroes +and Abenzoar. So distinguished were the learned Moorish poets, +philosophers, and physicians, that Alphonso the Great, king of Asturia, +wishing to confide the care of his son Ordogno to teachers capable of +conducting the education of a prince, appointed him two Arabian +preceptors, notwithstanding the difference of religious faith, and the +hatred entertained by the Christians towards the Mussulmans. And one of +the successors of Alphonso, Sancho the Great, king of Leon, being +attacked by a disease which it was supposed would prove fatal in its +effects, went unhesitatingly to Cordova, claimed the hospitality of his +national enemy, and placed himself under the care of the Mohammedan +physicians, who eventually succeeded in curing the malady of the +Christian king. + +{73} + +This singular fact does as much honour to the skill of the learned +Saracens as to the magnanimity of the caliph and the trusting confidence +of Sancho. + +Such was the condition of the caliphate of Cordova under the dominion of +Abderamus III. He occupied the throne fifty years, and we have seen with +what degree of honour to himself and benefit to his people. Perhaps +nothing will better illustrate the superiority of this prince to monarchs +generally than the following fragment, which was found, traced by his own +hand, among his papers after his death. + +"Fifty years have passed away since I became caliph. Riches, honours, +pleasures, I have enjoyed them all: I am satiated with them all. Rival +kings respect me, fear, and envy me. All that the heart of man can +desire. Heaven has lavishly bestowed on me. In this long period of +seeming felicity I have estimated the number of days during which I have +enjoyed _perfect happiness_: they amount to _fourteen_! Mortals, learn +to appreciate greatness, the world, and human life!" + +The successor of this monarch was his eldest {74} son, Aboul-Abbas El +Hakkam, who assumed, like his father, the title of _Emir-al-Mumenim_. + +The coronation of El Hakkam was celebrated with great pomp in the city of +Zahra. The new caliph there received the oath of fidelity from the +chiefs of the scythe guard, a numerous and redoubtable corps, composed of +strangers, which Abderamus III. had formed. The brothers and relations +of El Hakkam, the viziers and their chief, the _Hadjeb_, the white and +black eunuchs, the archers and cuirassiers of the guard, all swore +obedience to the monarch. These ceremonies were followed by the funeral +honours of Abderamus, whose body was carried to Cordova, and there +deposited in the tomb of his ancestors. + +Aboul-Abbas El Hakkam, equally wise with his father, but less warlike +than he, enjoyed greater tranquillity during his reign. His was the +dominion of justice and peace. The success and vigilance of Abderamus +had extinguished, for a time, the spirit of revolt, and prepared the way +for the continued possession of these great national blessings. + +Divided among themselves, the Christian kings entertained no designs of +disturbing their infidel neighbours. + +{75} + +The truce that existed between the Mussulmans and Castile and Leon was +broken but once during the life of El Hacchem. The caliph then commanded +his army in person, and completed a glorious campaign, taking several +cities from the Spaniards, and convincing them, by his achievements, of +the policy of future adherence to the terms of their treaty with their +Saracen opponents. + +During the remainder of his reign the Moorish sovereign applied himself +wholly to promoting the happiness of his subjects, to the cultivation of +science, to the collection of an extensive library, and, above all, to +enforcing a strict observance of the laws. + +The laws of the Moors were few and simple. It does not appear that there +existed among them any civil laws apart from those incorporated with +their religious code. Jurisprudence was reduced to the application of +the principles contained in the Koran. The caliph, as the supreme head +of their religion, possessed the power of interpreting these principles; +but even he would not have ventured to violate them. At least as often +as once a week, he publicly gave audience to his subjects, listened to +their {76} complaints, examined the guilty, and, without quitting the +tribunal, caused punishment to be immediately inflicted. The governors +placed by the sovereign over the different cities and provinces, +commanded the military force belonging to each, collected the public +revenues, superintended the administration of the police, and adjudged +the offences committed within their respective governments. Public +officers well versed in the laws discharged the functions of notaries, +and gave a juridical form to records relating to the possession of +property. When any lawsuits arose, magistrates called _cadis_, whose +authority was respected both by the king and the people, could alone +decide them. These suits were speedily determined; lawyers and attorneys +were unknown, and there was no expense nor chicanery connected with them. +Each party pleaded his cause in person, and the decrees of the cadi were +immediately executed. + +Criminal jurisprudence was scarcely more complicated. The Moors almost +invariably resorted to the _punishment of retaliation_ prescribed by the +founder of their religion. In truth, the wealthy were permitted to +exonerate themselves from the charge of bloodshed by the aid {77} of +money; but it was necessary that the relations of the deceased should +consent to this: the caliph himself would not have ventured to withhold +the head of one of his own sons who had been guilty of homicide, if its +delivery had been inexorably insisted upon. + +This simple code would not have sufficed had not the unlimited authority +exercised by fathers over their children, and husbands over their wives, +supplied the deficiencies of the laws. With regard to this implicit +obedience on the part of a family to the will of its chief, the Moors +preserved the ancient patriarchal customs of their ancestors. Every +father possessed, under his own roof, rights nearly equal to those of the +caliph. He decided, without appeal, the quarrels of his wives and those +of his sons: he punished with severity the slightest faults, and even +possessed the power of punishing certain crimes with death. Age alone +conferred this supremacy. An old man was always an object of reverence. +His presence arrested disorders: the most haughty young man cast down his +eyes at meeting him, and listened patiently to his reproofs. In short, +the possessor of a white beard {78} was everywhere invested with the +authority of a magistrate. + +This authority, which was more powerful among the Moors than that of +their laws, long subsisted unimpaired at Cordova. That the wise Hacchem +did nothing to enfeeble it, may be judged from the following illustration. + +A poor woman of Zahra possessed a small field contiguous to the gardens +of the caliph. El Hacchem, wishing to erect a pavilion there, directed +that the owner should be requested to dispose of it to him. But the +woman refused every remuneration that was offered her, and declared that +she would never sell the heritage of her ancestry. The king was, +doubtless, not informed of the obstinacy of this woman; but the +superintendent of the palace gardens, a minister worthy of a despotic +sovereign, forcibly seized upon the field, and the pavilion was built. +The poor woman hastened in despair to Cordova, to relate the story of her +misfortune to the Cadi Bechir, and to consult him respecting the course +she should pursue. The cadi thought that the Prince of true Believers +had no more right than any other man to possess himself by violence of +the property of another; and he endeavoured to {79} discover some means +of recalling to his recollection a truth which the best of rulers will +sometimes forget. + +One day, as the Moorish sovereign was surrounded by his court in the +beautiful pavilion built on the ground belonging to the poor woman, the +Cadi Bechir presented himself before him, seated on an ass, and carrying +in his hand a large sack. The astonished caliph demanded his errand. +"Prince of the Faithful!" replied Bechir, "I come to ask permission of +thee to fill this sack with the earth upon which thou standest." The +caliph cheerfully consented to this desire, and the cadi filled his sack +with the earth. He then left it standing, and, approaching his +sovereign, entreated him to crown his goodness by aiding him in loading +his ass with its burden. El Hacchem, amused by the request, yielded to +it, and attempted to raise the sack. Scarcely able to move it, he let it +fall again, and, laughing, complained of its enormous weight. "Prince of +Believers!" said Bechir then, with impressive gravity, "this sack, which +thou findest so heavy, contains, nevertheless, but a small portion of the +field thou hast usurped from one of thy subjects; how wilt thou sustain +the weight {80} of this entire field when thou shalt appear in the +presence of the Great Judge charged with this iniquity?" The caliph, +struck with this address, embraced the cadi, thanked him, acknowledged +his fault, and immediately restored to the poor woman the field of which +she had been despoiled, together with the pavilion and everything it +contained. + +The praise due to a despotic sovereign capable of such an action, is +inferior only to that which should be accorded to the cadi who induced +him to perform it. + +After reigning twelve years, El Hakkam died, A.D. 976, Heg. 366. His son +Hacchem succeeded him. + +This prince was an infant when he ascended the throne, and his +intellectual immaturity continued through life. During and after his +minority, a celebrated Moor named Mohammed Almanzor, being invested with +the important office of _Hadjeb_, governed the state with wisdom and +success. + +Almanzor united to the talents of a statesman the genius of a great +commander. He was the most formidable and fatal enemy with whom the +Christians had yet been obliged to contend. He {81} ruled the Moorish +empire twenty-six years under the name of the indolent Hacchem. More +than fifty different times he carried the terrors of war into Castile or +Asturia: he took and sacked the cities of Barcelona and Leon, and +advanced even to Compostella, destroying its famous church and carrying +the spoils to Cordova. + +The genius and influence of Mohammed temporarily restored the Moors to +their ancient strength and energy, and forced the whole Peninsula to +respect the rights of his feeble master, who, like another Sardanapalus, +dreamed away his life in the enjoyment of effeminate and debasing +pleasures.[16] + +But this was the last ray of unclouded splendour that shone upon the +empire of the Ommiades in Spain. The kings of Leon and Navarre, and the +Count of Castile, united their forces for the purpose of opposing the +redoubtable Almanzor. + +The opposing armies met near Medina-Celi. The conflict was long and +sanguinary, and the victory doubtful. The Moors, after the termination +of the combat, took to flight, terrified by the fearful loss they had +sustained; and {82} Almanzor, whom fifty years of uninterrupted military +success had persuaded that he was invincible, died of grief at this first +mortifying reverse. + +With this great man expired the good fortune of the Saracens of Spain. +From the period of his death, the Spaniards continued to increase their +own prosperity by the gradual ruin of the Moors. + +The sons of the hadjeb Almanzor successively replaced their illustrious +father; but, in inheriting his power, they did not inherit his talents. +Factions were again created. One of the relations of the caliph took up +arms against him, and possessed himself of the person of the monarch, +A.D. 1005, Heg. 596; and, though the rebellious prince dared not +sacrifice the life of Hacchem, he imprisoned him, and spread a report of +his death. + +This news reaching Africa, an Ommiade prince hastened thence to Spain +with an army, under pretext of avenging the death of Hacchem. The Count +of Castile formed an alliance with this stranger, and civil war was +kindled in Cordova. It soon spread throughout Spain, and the Christian +princes availed themselves of its disastrous effects to repossess +themselves of the cities of {83} which they had been deprived during the +supremacy of Almanzor. + +The imbecile Hacchem, negotiating and trifling alike with all parties, +was finally replaced on the throne, but was soon after forced again to +renounce it to save his life. + +After this event a multitude of conspirators[17] were in turn proclaimed +caliph, and in turn deposed, poisoned, or otherwise murdered. Almundir, +the last lingering branch of the race of the Ommiades, was bold enough to +claim the restoration of the rights of his family, even amid the tumult +of conflicting parties. His friends represented to him the dangers he +was about to encounter. "Should I reign but one day," replied lie, "and +expire on the next, I would not murmur at my fate!" But the desire of +the prince, even to this extent, was not gratified; he was assassinated +without obtaining possession of the caliphate. + +Usurpers of momentary authority followed. Jalmar-ben-Mohammed was the +last in order. His death terminated the empire of the Caliphs {84} of +the West, which had been possessed by the dynasty of the Ommiades for the +period of three centuries, A.D. 1027, Heg. 416. + +With the extinction of this line of princes vanished the power and the +glory of Cordova. + +The governors of the different cities, who had hitherto been the vassals +of the court of Cordova, profiting by the anarchy that prevailed, erected +themselves into independent sovereigns--That city was therefore no longer +the capital of a kingdom, though it still retained the religious +supremacy which it derived from its mosque. + +Enfeebled by divisions and subjected to such diversity of rule, the +Mussulmans were no longer able successfully to resist the encroachments +of the Spaniards. The Third Epoch of their history, therefore, will +present nothing but a narrative of their rapid decline. + + + +[1] See Note A, page 208. + +[2] The dynasty of the Ommiades, whose capital, as M. Florian informs us, +was Damascus, is most familiarly known in history as that of the _Caliphs +of Syria_; and the Abbassides, who succeeded them upon the throne of +Islam, are usually designated as the _Caliphs of Bagdad_, which city they +built, and there established the seat of their regal power and +magnificence. It may be observed, in connexion with this subject, that +though the authority of the Caliphs of Damascus continued to be disputed +and resisted after the death of Ali, yet with that event terminated the +temporary division of the civil and sacerdotal power which had been at +first occasioned by their usurpation of sovereignty. The political +supremacy of the party of Ali ceased with his existence, and the +authority that had belonged to the immediate successors of Mohammed long +continued to centre in the family of the Ommiade princes.--_Trans_. + +[3] See Note B, page 209. + +[4] A.D. 752, Heg. 134. + +[5] See Note C, page 209. + +[6] It was under the government of the Abbassides that the empire of the +East possessed that superiority in wealth, magnificence, and learning for +which it was once so celebrated. Under the sway of the Caliphs of +Bagdad, the Mohammedans became as much renowned for their attainments in +the higher branches of science as in the elegant and useful arts. To +them the civilized world is indebted for the revival of the exact and +physical sciences, and the discovery or restoration of most of the arts +that afterward lent such beneficial aid to the progress of European +literature and refinement. The far-famed capital of the Abbassides was +adorned with every attraction that the most unbounded wealth could +secure, or the most consummate art perfect. There taste and power had +combined exquisite luxury with unparalleled splendour, and there all that +imagination could suggest to fascinate the senses or enrapture the mind, +was realized. These princes of Islam, by their unbounded liberality, +attracted the learning and genius of other countries to their brilliant +court, several of them were the ardent lovers of science as well as the +munificent patrons of its devotees. Thus Bagdad became the favoured and +genial home of letters and the arts; and luxury and the pursuit of +pleasure were ennobled by a graceful union with the more elevated +enjoyments of cultivated intellect and refined taste. Nor were these +beneficent influences confined to the Mohammedan court, or to the period +of time when they were so powerfully exercised. The Moslem sovereigns +gave laws to a wide realm in arts as well as arms; and if the whole of +Europe did not acknowledge their political superiority, in the world of +science their supremacy was everywhere undisputed. That, like the +gradually enlarging circles made by a pebble thrown into calm water, +continued to spread farther and farther, until it reached the most +distant shores, and communicated a generous impulse to nations long sunk +in intellectual night. + + * * * * * * * * + +Such was the celebrated empire of the Abbassides in its halcyon days of +undiminished power--such the beautiful City of Peace, the favoured home +of imperial magnificence, ere the despoiling Tartar had profaned its +loveliness and destroyed its grandeur. Yet, when we look beneath the +brilliant exterior of these Oriental scenes and characters, we discover, +under the splendour and elegance by which the eyes of the world were so +long dazzled, the corruption and licentiousness of a government +containing within itself the seeds of its own insecurity and ultimate +destruction. We behold the absence of all fixed principles of +legislation; we frequently find absolute monarchs guided solely by +passion or caprice in the administration of arbitrary laws, and swaying +the destinies of a people who, as a whole, were far from deriving any +substantial advantage from the wealth and greatness of their despotic +rulers. We are thus led to observe the evils that necessarily result +from a want of those principles of vital religion, without which mere +human learning is so inadequate to discipline the passions or direct the +reason, and of those just and equal laws, the supremacy of which can +alone secure the happiness of a people or the permanency of political +institutions.--_Trans_. + +[7] See note D, page 212. + +[8] See note E, page 218. + +[9] See note F, page 313. + +[10] Cardonne, in his History of Spain. + +[11] This word signifies, in the Arabic, _Flower_, or _Ornament of the +World_. + +[12] See Note G, page 213. + +[13] The _dinar_ is estimated by M. Florian to be equal to at least _ten +livres_. According to that computation, the aggregate cost of the palace +and city of Zahra would amount to considerably more than $14,000,000. +_Trans_. + +[14] See note H, page 214. + +[15] About $22,500,000. + +[16] See Note I, page 214. + +[17] Mahadi, Suleiman, Ali, Abderamus IV., Casim, Jahiah, Hacchem III., +Mohammed, Abderamus V., Jahiah II., Hacchem IV., and Jalmar-ben-Mohammed. + + + + +{85} + +THIRD EPOCH. + +CONTAINING AN ACCOUNT OF THE PRINCIPAL KINGDOMS THAT SPRANG FROM THE +RUINS OF THE CALIPHATE. + +_Extending from the Commencement of the Eleventh to the Middle of the +Thirteenth Century._ + + +At the commencement of the eleventh century, when the throne of Cordova +was daily stained by the blood of some new usurper, the governors of +the different cities, as has been already remarked, had assumed the +title of kings. Toledo, Saragossa, Seville, Valencia, Lisbon, Huesca, +and several other places of inferior importance, each possessed +independent sovereigns. + +The history of these numerous kingdoms would be nearly as fatiguing to +the reader as to the writer. It presents, for the space of two hundred +years, nothing but accounts of repeated massacres, of fortresses taken +and retaken, of pillages and seditions, of occasional instances of +heroic conduct, but far more numerous crimes. Passing rapidly over two +centuries of {86} misfortunes, let it suffice to contemplate the +termination of these petty Moorish sovereignties. + +Christian Spain, in the mean time, presented nearly the same picture as +that exhibited by the portion of the Peninsula still in possession of +the Mohammedans. The kings of Leon, Navarre, Castile, and Aragon were +almost always relatives, and sometimes brothers; but they were not, for +that reason, the less sanguinary in their designs towards each other. +Difference of religion did not prevent them from uniting with the +Moors, the more effectually to oppress other Christians, or other Moors +with whom they chanced to be at enmity. Thus, in a battle which +occurred A.D. 1010 between two Mussulman leaders, there were found +among the slain a count of Urgel and three bishops of Catalonia.[1] +And the King of Leon, Alphonso V., gave his sister Theresa in marriage +to Abdalla, the Moorish king of Toledo, to convert him into an ally +against Castile. + +Among the Christians, as among the Moors, crimes were multiplied; civil +wars of both a local and general nature at the same time distracted +Spain, and the unhappy people expiated with {87} their property and +their lives the iniquities of their rulers. + +While thus regarding a long succession of melancholy events, it is +agreeable to find a king of Toledo called Almamon, and Benabad, the +Mussulman king of Seville, affording an asylum at their courts, the one +to Alphonso, the young king of Leon, and the other to the unfortunate +Garcias, king of Galicia, both of whom had been driven from their +kingdoms by their brother Sancho, of Castile, A.D. 1071 Heg. 465. +Sancho pursued his brothers as though they had been his most implacable +enemies; and the Moorish monarchs, the natural enemies of all the +Christians, received these two fugitive princes as brothers. Almamon, +especially, lavished the most affectionate attention upon the +unfortunate Alphonso: he endeavoured to entertain him at Toledo with +such varied pleasures as should banish regret for the loss of a throne: +he gave him an income, and, in short, treated the prince as though he +had been a near and beloved relative. When the death of the cruel +Sancho (A.D. 1072, Heg. 466) had rendered Alphonso king of Leon and +Castile, the generous Almamon, who now had the person of the king of +his enemies in his {88} power, accompanied the prince to the frontiers +of his kingdom, loaded him with presents and caresses, and, at parting, +offered the free use of his troops and treasures to his late guest. + +While Almamon lived, Alphonso IV. never forgot his obligations to his +benefactor. He maintained peace with him, aided him in his campaigns +against the King of Seville, and even entered into a treaty with +Hacchem, the son and successor of his ally. But, after a brief reign, +Hacchem left the throne of Toledo to his youthful brother Jahiah. That +prince oppressed the Christians, who were very numerous in his city; +and they secretly implored Alphonso to make war upon Jahiah. The +memory of Almamon long caused the Spanish monarch to hesitate in +relation to this subject. Gratitude impelled him not to listen to the +suggestions of ambition and the prayers of his countrymen; but the +arguments of gratitude proved the least strong, and Alphonso encamped +before Toledo. + +After a long and celebrated siege, to which several French and other +foreign warriors eagerly hastened, Toledo finally capitulated, A.D. +1085, Heg. 478. + +The conqueror allowed the sons of Almamon {89} to go and reign at +Valencia, and engaged by an oath to preserve the mosques from +destruction. He could not, however, prevent the Christians from +speedily violating this promise. + +Such was the end of the Moorish kingdom of Toledo. This ancient +capital of the Goths had belonged to the Arabs three hundred and +eighty-two years. + +Several other less important cities now submitted to the Christian +yoke. The kings of Aragon and Navarre, and the Count of Barcelona, +incessantly harassed and besieged the petty Mussulman princes who still +remained in the north of Spain. The attacks of the kings of Castile +and Leon afforded sufficient occupation for those of the south, +effectually to prevent their rendering any assistance to their +brethren. Above all, the Cid, the famous Cid, flew from one part of +Spain to another, at the head of the invincible band with whom his fame +had surrounded him, everywhere achieving victories for the Christians, +and even lending the aid of his arms to the Moors when they were +internally divided, but always securing success to the party he +favoured. + +This hero, one of the most truly admirable of those whom history has +celebrated, since in his {90} character were united the most exalted +virtue and the highest qualities of the soldier; this simple Castilian +cavalier, upon whom his reputation alone bestowed the control of +armies, became master of several cities, assisted the King of Aragon to +seize upon Huesca, and conquered the kingdom of Valencia without any +other assistance than that of his men-at-arms. Equal in power with his +sovereign, of whose treatment he frequently had reason to complain, and +envied and persecuted by the jealous courtiers, the Cid never forgot +for a moment that he was the subject of the King of Castile. Banished +from court, and even exiled from his estates, he hastened, with his +brave companions, to attack and conquer the Moors, and to send those of +them whom he vanquished to render homage to the king who had deprived +him of his rights. + +Being soon recalled to the presence of Alphonso, in consequence of the +king's needing his military aid, the Cid left the scenes of his martial +triumphs, and, without demanding reparation for the injuries he had +sustained, returned to defend his persecutors; ever ready, while in +disgrace, to forget everything in the performance of his duty to his +king, and equally ready, when enjoying {91} the favour of the +sovereign, to displease him, if it should be necessary to do so, by +advocating the cause of truth and justice.[2] + +While the prowess of the Cid maintained the contest, the Christians had +the advantage; but a few years after his death, which occurred in the +year 1099 and the 492d of the Hegira, the Moors of Andalusia changed +masters, and became, for a time, more formidable than ever to their +Spanish foes. + +After the fall of Toledo, Seville had increased in power. The +sovereigns of that city were also masters of ancient Cordova, and +possessed, in addition, Estremadura and a part of Portugal. Benabad, +king of Seville, one of the most estimable princes of his age, was now +the only one of its enemies capable of disturbing the safety of +Castile. Alphonso IV., desirous of allying himself with this powerful +Moor, demanded his daughter in marriage. His proposal was acceded to, +and the Castilian monarch received several towns as the dowry of the +Moorish princess; but this extraordinary union, which seemed to ensure +peace between the two nations, nevertheless soon became either the +cause or the pretext of renewed contests. + +{92} + +Africa, after having been separated from the vast empire of the Caliphs +of the East by the Fatimite caliphs, and being, during three centuries +of civil war, the prey of a succession of conquerors more ferocious and +sanguinary than the lions of their deserts,[3] was now subjected to the +family of the _Almoravides_, a powerful tribe of Egyptian origin. +Joseph-ben-Tessefin, the second prince of this dynasty, founded the +kingdom and city of Morocco. + +Endowed with some warlike talents, proud of his power, and burning to +augment it, Joseph regarded with a covetous eye the beautiful European +provinces which had formerly been conquered by the Mussulmans of Africa. + +Some historians assert that the King of Castile, Alphonso IV., and his +father-in-law Benabad, king of Seville, having formed the project of +dividing Spain between them, committed the capital error of summoning +the Moors of Africa to their assistance in this grand design. But +others, founding their assertions upon more plausible reasoning, say +that the petty Mussulman kings, who were the neighbours or tributaries +of Benabad, justly alarmed at his alliance with a {93} Christian king, +solicited the support of the Almoravide. + +But, be that as it may, the ambitious Joseph eagerly availed himself of +the fortunate pretext presented by the invitation he had received, and +crossed the Mediterranean at the head of an army. He hastened to +attack Alphonso, and succeeded in overcoming him in a battle that took +place between them, A.D. 1097, Heg. 490. Then turning his arms against +Benabad, Joseph took Cordova, besieged Seville, and was preparing for +the assault of that city, when the virtuous Benabad, sacrificing his +crown and even his liberty to save his subjects from the horrors that +threatened them, delivered himself up, together with his family of a +hundred children, to the disposal of the Almoravide. + +The barbarous African, dreading the influence of a monarch whose +virtues had rendered him so justly dear to his people, sent him to end +his days in an African prison, where his daughters were obliged to +support their father and brothers by the labour of their hands. + +The unfortunate Benabad lived six years after the commencement of his +imprisonment, regretting his lost throne only for the sake of his {94} +people, and beguiling the period of his protracted leisure by the +composition of several poems which are still in existence. In them he +attempts to console his daughters under their heavy afflictions, +recalls the remembrance of his vanished greatness, and offers himself +as a warning and example to kings who shall presume to trust too +confidently to the unchanging continuance of the favours of fortune. + +Joseph-ben-Tessefin, after he had thus become master of Seville and +Cordova, soon succeeded in subjugating the other petty Mussulman +states; and the Moors, united under a single monarch as powerful as +Joseph, threatened again to occupy the important position they had +sustained during the supremacy of their caliphs. The Spanish princes, +alarmed at this prospect, suspended their individual quarrels, and +joined Alphonso in resisting the Africans. + +At this particular juncture, a fanatical love of religion and glory +induced many European warriors to take up arms against the infidels. +Raymond of Bourgogne, and his kinsman Henry, both French princes of the +blood, Raymond of Saint-Gilles, count of Toulouse, with some other +cavaliers from among their vassals, crossed the {95} Pyrenees with +their retainers, and fought under the banners of the King of Castile. +Thus assisted, that sovereign put the Egyptian commander to flight, and +compelled him, soon afterward, to recross the Mediterranean. + +The grateful Alphonso gave his daughters as a recompense to the +distinguished Frenchmen who had lent him the aid of their arms. The +eldest, Urraca, espoused Raymond of Bourgogne, and their son afterward +inherited the kingdom of Castile. Theresa became the wife of Henry, +and brought him as a dowry all the land he had thus far conquered or +should hereafter conquer in Portugal: from thence originated that +kingdom. Elvira was given to Raymond, count of Toulouse, who carried +her with him to the Holy Land, where he gained some possessions by his +valour. + +Excited by these illustrious examples, other French cavaliers resorted +soon after to the standard of the King of _Aragon_, Alphonso I., who +made himself master of Saragossa, and for ever destroyed that ancient +kingdom of the Moors, A.D. 1118, Heg. 512. + +The son of Henry of Bourgogne, Alphonso I. king of Portugal, a prince +renowned for his {96} bravery, availed himself of the presence of a +combined fleet of English, Flemings, and Germans, who had anchored in +the harbour of that city on their way to the Holy Land, to lay siege to +Lisbon. He carried that place by assault, in spite of its great +strength, and made it the capital of his kingdom, A.D. 1147, Heg. 541. + +During this period the kings of Castile and Navarre were extending +their conquests in Andalusia. + +The Moors were attacked on all sides, and their cities were everywhere +compelled to surrender, now that they were no longer materially aided +by the Almoravides. Those African princes were at this time +sufficiently occupied at home in opposing some new sectaries, the +principal of whom, under pretext of reinitiating the people in a +knowledge of the pure doctrines of Mohammed, opened for themselves a +path to the throne, and, after many struggles, ended by effectually +driving the family of the Almoravides from its possession. The new +conquerors, becoming by these means masters of Morocco and Fez, +destroyed, according to the African custom, every individual of the +supplanted race, and founded a new dynasty, which is known under {97} +the name of the _Almohades_, A.D. 1149, Heg. 543. + +In the midst of these divisions, these wars and combats, the fine arts +still continued to be cultivated at Cordova. And though they were no +longer in the flourishing condition in which they were maintained +during the reigns of the several caliphs who bore the cherished name of +Abderamus, yet the schools of philosophy, poetry, and medicine had +continued to exist. These schools produced, in the twelfth century, +several distinguished men, among the most celebrated of whom were the +learned Abenzoar and the famous Averroes. The former, equally profound +in medicine, pharmacy, and surgery, lived, it is said, to the age of +one hundred and thirty-five years. Some estimable works which he +produced are still extant. Averroes was also a physician, but he was +more of a philosopher, poet, lawyer, and commentator. He acquired a +reputation so profound, that passing centuries have only served more +firmly to establish it. The disposition made by this remarkable man of +his time during the different periods of his existence, will illustrate +his mental character. In his youth he was the passionate votary of +{98} pleasure and poetry: in more mature age he burned the verses he +had previously composed, studied the principles of legislation, and +discharged the duties of a judicial officer: having advanced still +farther in life, he abandoned these occupations for the pursuit of +medicine, in which he attained very great eminence: at last philosophy +alone supplied the place of every earlier taste, and wholly engrossed +his attention for the remainder of his life. It was Averroes who first +created among the Moors a taste for Greek literature. He translated +the works of Aristotle into Arabic, and wrote commentaries upon them. +He also published several other works upon philosophy and medicine, and +possessed the united glory of having both enlightened and benefited +mankind.[4] + +As Africa, distracted by the long war of the Almoravides and the +Almohades, was unable to offer any opposition to the progress of the +Christians in Spain, these last, availing themselves of this condition +of affairs, continued to extend their conquests in Andalusia. If the +Spanish princes had been less disunited, and had acted in concert +against the infidels, they would have been able {99} at this period to +deprive the Mussulmans of their entire dominions in the Peninsula. But +these ever-contending princes had no sooner taken a Moorish city than +they began to dispute among themselves about its possession. + +The newly-created kingdom of Portugal, established by the military +powers of Alphonso, was soon at war with that of Leon.[5] Aragon and +Castile, after many bloody quarrels, united in a league against +Navarre. Sancho VIII., the sovereign of that little state, was forced +to resort to Africa for assistance, and implore the aid of the +Almohades. But they, being but recently established on the throne of +Morocco, were still employed in exterminating the dismembered fragments +of the party of the Almoravides, and could not, in spite of their eager +desire to do so, establish any claim to their assumed rights in Spain. +Nevertheless, two kings of the race of the Almohades, both named +Joseph, passed the Mediterranean more than once with numerous armies. +The one was successfully opposed by the Portuguese, and did not survive +his final defeat; the other was more fortunate, and succeeded in +vanquishing the Castilians, but {100} was soon after obliged to accept +a truce and return in haste to Morocco, to which new disturbances +recalled him, A.D. 1195, Heg. 591. + +But these useless victories, these ill-sustained efforts, did not +permanently disable either the Mussulmans or the Christians. On both +sides, the vanquished parties soon re-entered the field, in utter +neglect of the treaties into which they might ever so recently have +entered. The sovereigns of Morocco, though regarded as the kings of +Andalusia, nevertheless possessed only a precarious authority in that +country, which was always disputed when they were absent, and +acknowledged only when necessity forced the Mussulman inhabitants to +have recourse to their protection. + +At last Mohammed _El Nazir_, the fourth prince of the dynasty of the +Almohades, to whom the Spaniards gave the name of the Green, from the +colour of his turban, finding himself in quiet possession of the +Moorish empire of Africa, resolved to assemble all his forces, to lead +them into Spain, and to renew in that country the ancient conquests of +Tarik and Moussa. A holy war was proclaimed, A.D. 1211, Heg. 608, and +an innumerable army {101} crowded around the ensigns of Mohammed, left +the shores of Africa under the guidance of that monarch, and safely +arrived in Andalusia. There their numbers were nearly doubled by the +Spanish Moors, whom hatred to the very name of Christian, arising from +the vivid remembrance of accumulated injuries, induced to join the +bands of El Nazir. + +The sanguine Mohammed promised an easy triumph to his followers, +together with the certainty of rendering themselves masters of all that +their ancestors had formerly possessed; and, burning to commence the +contest, he immediately advanced towards Castile at the head of his +formidable army, which, according to the reports of historians, +amounted to more than six hundred thousand men. + +The king of Castile, Alphonso the Noble, informed of the warlike +preparations of the King of Morocco, implored the assistance of the +Christian princes of Europe. Pope Innocent III. proclaimed a crusade +and granted indulgences most lavishly. Rodrique, archbishop of Toledo, +made in person a voyage to Rome, to solicit the aid of the sovereign +pontiff; and, returning homeward through France, preached to the people +{102} on his route, and induced many cavaliers to proceed at the head +of bands of recruits to Spain, and join the opponents of the Mussulmans. + +The general rendezvous was at Toledo, at which point there were soon +collected more than sixty thousand crusaders from Italy and France, who +united themselves with the soldiers of Castile. The King of Aragon, +Peter II., the same who afterward perished in the war of the Albigense, +led his valiant army to the place of meeting, and Sancho VIII., king of +Navarre, was not backward in presenting himself at the head of his +brave subjects. The Portuguese had recently lost their king, but they +despatched their best warriors to Toledo. In short, all Spain flew to +arms. There was general union for the promotion of mutual safety; for +never, since the time of King Rodrique, had the Christians been placed +in such imminent danger. + +It was at the foot of the Sierra Morena, at a place named _Las Navas de +Toloza_, that the three Spanish princes encountered the Moors, A.D. +1212, Heg. 609. + +Mohammed El Nazir had taken possession of the mountain gorges through +which it had been the intention of the Christians to approach {103} his +camp. The adroit African thus designed, either to force his opponents +to turn back, which would expose them to the danger of a failure of +provisions, or to overwhelm them in the pass if they should attempt to +enter it. Upon discovering this circumstance, a council was called by +the embarrassed Christian leaders. Alphonso was desirous of attempting +the passage, but the kings of Navarre and Aragon advised a retreat. In +the midst of this dilemma, a shepherd presented himself before them, +and offered to conduct them through a defile of the mountain, with +which he was familiar. This proposal, which was the salvation of their +army, was eagerly accepted, and the shepherd guided the Catholic +sovereigns through difficult paths and across rocks and torrents, +until, with their followers, they finally succeeded in attaining the +summit of the mountain. + +There, suddenly presenting themselves before the eyes of the astonished +Moors, they were engaged for the space of two days in preparing +themselves for the conflict, by prayer, confession, and the solemn +reception of the holy sacrament Their leaders set an example to the +soldiers in this zealous devotion; and the prelates and {104} +ecclesiastics, of whom there were a great number in the camp, after +having absolved these devout warriors, prepared to accompany them into +the midst of the conflict. + +Upon the third day, the sixteenth of July, in the year twelve hundred +and twelve, the Christian army was drawn up in battle array. The +troops were formed into three divisions, each commanded by a king. +Alphonso was in the centre, at the head of his Castilians and the +chevaliers of the newly-instituted orders of Saint James and Calatrava; +Rodrique, archbishop of Toledo, the eyewitness and historian of this +great battle, advanced by the side of Alphonso, preceded by a large +cross, the principal ensign of the army; Sancho and his Navarrois +formed the right, while Peter and his subjects occupied the left. The +French crusaders, now reduced to a small number by the desertion of +many of their companions, who had been unable to endure the scorching +heat of the climate, marched in the van of the other troops, under the +command of Arnault, archbishop of Narbonne. + +Thus disposed, the Christians descended towards the valley which +separated them from their enemies. + +{105} + +The Moors, according to their ancient custom, everywhere displayed +their innumerable soldiers, without order or arrangement. An admirable +cavalry, to the number of a hundred thousand men, composed their +principal strength: the rest of their army was made up of a crowd of +ill-armed and imperfectly trained foot-soldiers. Mohammed, stationed +on a height, from which he could command a view of his whole army, was +encompassed by a defence made of chains of iron, guarded by the +choicest of his cavaliers on foot. Standing in the midst of this +enclosure, with the Koran in one hand and an unsheathed sabre in the +other, the Saracen commander was visible to all his troops, of whom the +bravest squadrons occupied the four sides of the hill. + +The Castilians directed their first efforts towards this elevation. At +first they drove back the Moors, but, repulsed in their turn, they +recoiled in disorder and began to retreat. Alphonso flew here and +there, attempting to rally their broken ranks, "Archbishop," said he to +the prelate who everywhere accompanied him, preceded by the grand +standard of the Cross, "Archbishop, here are we destined to die!" "Not +{106} so, sire," replied the ecclesiastic; "we are destined here to +live and conquer!" At that moment the brave canon who carried the +chief ensign threw himself with it into the midst of the infidels; the +prelate and the king followed him, and the Castilian soldiers rushed +forward to protect their sovereign and their sacred standard. The +already victorious kings of Aragon and Navarre now advanced at the head +of their wings to unite in the attack upon the height. The Moors were +assaulted at all points: they bravely resisted their opponents; but the +Christians crowded upon them--the Aragonais, the Navarrois, and the +Castilians endeavouring mutually to surpass each other in courage and +daring. The brave King of Navarre, making a path for himself through +the midst of its defenders, reached the enclosure, and struck and broke +the chains by which the Moorish commander was surrounded.[6] Mohammed +took to flight on beholding this catastrophe; and his soldiers, no +longer beholding their king, lost both hope and courage. They gave way +in all directions, and fled before the Christians. Thousands of the +Mussulmans fell beneath the {107} weapons of their pursuers, while the +Archbishop of Toledo, with the other ecclesiastics, surrounding the +victorious sovereigns, chanted a _Te Deum_ on the field of battle. + +Thus was gained the famous battle of Toloza, of which some details have +been given in consequence of its great importance, and in illustration +of the military tactics of the Moors. With them the arts of war +consisted solely in mingling with the enemy, and fighting, each one for +himself, until either the strongest or the bravest of the two parties +remained masters of the field. + +The Spaniards possessed but little more military skill than their +Moslem neighbours; but their infantry, at least, could attack and +resist in mass, while the discipline of that of the Saracens amounted +to scarcely anything. On the other hand, again, the cavalry of the +Moors was admirably trained. The cavaliers who composed it belonged to +the principal families in the kingdom, and possessed excellent horses, +in the art of managing which they had been trained from childhood. +Their mode of combat was to rush forward with the rapidity of light, +strike with the sabre or the lance, fly away as quickly, and then wheel +suddenly and return again to the {108} encounter. Thus they often +succeeded in recalling victory to their standard when she seemed just +about to desert them. The Christians, covered as they were with iron, +had in some respects the advantage of these knights, whose persons were +protected only by a breastplate and headpiece of steel. The Moorish +foot-soldiers were nearly naked, and armed only with a wretched pike. +It is easy to perceive that, when involved in the _melee_, and, above +all, during a route, vast numbers of them must have perished. This, +too, renders less incredible the seemingly extravagant accounts given +by historians of their losses in the field. They assert, for example, +that, at the battle of Toloza, the Christians killed two hundred +thousand Moors, while they lost themselves but fifteen hundred +soldiers. Even when these assertions are estimated at their true +value, it remains certain that the infidels sustained an immense loss; +and this important defeat, which is still celebrated yearly at Toledo +by a solemn fete, long deprived the kings of Morocco of all hope of +subjugating the Spaniards. + +The victory of Toloza was followed by more fatal consequences to the +unfortunate Mohammed than to the Moors of Andalusia; for the {109} +latter retired to their cities, defended them by means of the remains +of the African army, and successfully resisted the Spanish princes, who +succeeded in taking but few of their strong places, and, speedily +dissolving their league, separated for their respective kingdoms. But +Mohammed, despised by his subjects after his defeat, and assailed by +the treachery of his nearest relations, lost all authority in Spain, +and beheld the principal Moors, whom he had now no power to control, +again forming little states, the independence of which they were +prepared to assert by force of arms.[7] The discomfited El Nazir +consequently returned to Africa, where he soon after died of chagrin. + +With Mohammed the Green vanished the good fortune of the Almohades. +The princes of that house, who followed El Nazir in rapid succession, +purchased their royal prerogatives at the expense of continual +unhappiness and danger, and were finally driven from the throne. The +empire of Morocco was then divided, and three new dynasties were +established; that of Fez, of Tunis, and of Tremecen. These three +powerful and rival sovereignties greatly multiplied the {110} +conflicts, crimes, and atrocities, the narration of which alone +constitutes the history of Africa. + +About this period some dissensions arose in Castile, which, together +with the part assumed by the King of Aragon in the war of the Albigense +in France, allowed the Moors time to breathe. The Moslems were still +masters of the kingdoms of Valencia, Murcia, Grenada, and Andalusia, +with part of Algarva and the Balearic Isles, which last, until that +time, had continued to be but little known to the Christians of the +Continent. + +These states were divided between several sovereigns, the principal of +whom was Benhoud, a descendant of the ancient kings of Saragossa, a +sagacious monarch and a great commander, who by his genius and courage +had obtained dominion over all the southeastern part of Spain. Next to +Benhoud in rank, the most important of these Mohammedan princes were +the kings of Seville and Valentia. The barbarian who reigned at +Majorca was a mere piratical chief, whose enmity was formidable only to +the inhabitants of the neighbouring coast of Catalonia. + +Such was the condition of Moorish Spain, {111} when two young heroes +seated themselves, nearly at the same time, on the thrones of the two +principal Christian states; and, after having allayed the commotions +created during the period of their minority, directed their +concentrated efforts against the Mussulmans, A.D. 1224, Heg. 621. + +These princes, who were mutually desirous to emulate each other in +fame, but were never rivals in interest, both consecrated their lives +to the extirpation of the inflexible enemies of their native land. One +of these sovereigns was Jacques I., king of Aragon (a son of the Peter +of Aragon who distinguished himself on the field of Toloza), who united +to the courage, grace, and energy of his father, a greater degree of +genius and success than fell to the lot of that sovereign. The other +was Ferdinand III., king of Castile and Leon, a discerning, courageous, +and enterprising monarch, whom the Romish Church has numbered with its +saints, and history ranks among its great men. + +This prince was the nephew of Blanche of Castile, queen of France, and +cousin-german of St. Lewis,[8] whom he nearly resembled in his {112} +piety, his bravery, and the wise laws he framed for the benefit of his +subjects. + +Ferdinand carried his arms first into Andalusia. When he entered the +territories of the infidels, he received the homage of several Moorish +princes, who came to acknowledge themselves his vassals. As he +proceeded, he seized upon a great number of places, and, among others, +the town of Alhambra, whose frightened inhabitants retired to Grenada, +and established themselves in a portion of that city, which thus +obtained the name by which it was afterward so much celebrated. + +Jacques of Aragon, on his part, set sail with an army for the Balearic +Isles. Though impeded in his progress by contrary winds, he succeeded +at last in reaching Majorca, on the shore of which island he defeated +the Moorish force that attempted to oppose his landing, and then +marched towards their capital and laid siege to it. + +The chivalrous Jacques, who, when danger was to be encountered, always +took precedence of even his bravest officers and most daring soldiers, +was, as usual, the first to mount the walls in the assault upon this +city. It was carried, {113} notwithstanding its great strength, the +Mussulman king driven from the throne, and this new crown permanently +incorporated with that of Aragon, A.D. 1229, Heg. 627. + +Jacques had long been meditating a most important conquest. Valencia, +after the death of the Cid, had again fallen into the hands of the +Moors. This beautiful and fertile province, where nature seemed to +delight herself by covering anew with fruit and flowers the soil that +man had so often deluged with blood, was now under the dominion of +Zeith, a brother of Mohammed El Nazir, the African king who was +vanquished at Toloza by the Christians. A powerful faction, inimical +to the power of Zeith, wished to place upon the throne a prince named +Zean. The two competitors appealed to arms to decide their respective +claims. The King of Aragon espoused the cause of Zeith, and, under +pretext of marching to his assistance, advanced into the kingdom of +Valencia, several times defeated Zean, seized upon his strong places, +and, with the active intrepidity that rendered him so formidable a foe, +invested the capital of his enemy, A.D. 1234, Heg. 632. + +Thus pressed by the sovereign of Aragon, {114} Zean implored the aid of +Benhoud, the most puissant of the kings of Andalusia. But Benhoud was +at this time occupied in resisting the encroachments of Ferdinand. The +Castilians, under the conduct of that valiant prince, had made new +progress against the Moors. After possessing themselves of a great +number of other cities, they had now laid siege to ancient Cordova. + +Benhoud had been often vanquished, but always retained the affections +of a people who regarded him as their last support. He had again +collected an army, and, though possessed with an equally earnest desire +to relieve both Cordova and Valencia, was about to march towards the +latter, from a belief that he was most likely to be there successful, +when his life was treacherously terminated by one of his lieutenants. + +The Catholic kings were by this means delivered from the opposition of +the only man who was capable of impeding the accomplishment of their +wishes. + +The death of Benhoud deprived the inhabitants of Cordova of all courage +and hope. Until then they had defended themselves with {115} equal +courage and constancy; but they offered to capitulate upon receiving +intelligence of this disastrous event.[9] + +The Christians made the most rigorous use of their victory, granting +only life and liberty of departure to the unfortunate disciples of the +Prophet. An innumerable host of these wretched people came forth from +their former homes, weeping, and despoiled of all their possessions. +Slowly they left the superb city which had been for more than five +hundred and twenty years the principal seat of their national +greatness, their luxurious magnificence, their cherished religion, and +their favourite literature and fine arts. + +Often did these desolate exiles pause on their way, and turn their +despairing eyes once again towards the towering palaces, the splendid +temples, the beautiful gardens, that five centuries of lavish expense +and toilsome effort had served to adorn and perfect, only to become the +spoil of the enemies of their faith and their race. + +The Catholic soldiers who were now the occupants of these enchanting +abodes, were so far from appreciating their loveliness and value, {116} +that they preferred rather to destroy than inhabit them; and Ferdinand +soon found himself the possessor of a deserted city. He was therefore +compelled to attract inhabitants to Cordova from other parts of his +dominions, by the offer of extraordinary immunities. But, +notwithstanding the privileges thus accorded them, the Spaniards +murmured at leaving their arid rocks and barren fields, to dwell in the +palaces of caliphs and amid nature's most luxuriant scenes. + +The grand mosque of Abderamus was converted into a cathedral, and +Cordova became the residence of a bishop and canons, but it was never +restored to the faintest shadow of its former splendour. + +Not long after the fall of Cordova, Valencia also submitted to the +Christian yoke. Zean, besides being assailed externally by the force +of the intrepid Jacques, had, in addition, to oppose within his walls +the faction of Zeith, whom he had dethroned. The king of Tunis, too, +had been unsuccessful in an attempt to send a fleet to the relief of +Valencia: it at once took to flight on the appearance of the vessels of +Jacques. Abandoned by the whole world, disheartened by the fate of +Cordova, and betrayed {117} by the party of his competitor, Zean +offered to become the vassal of the crown of Aragon, and to pay a +tribute in acknowledgment of his vassalage; but the Christian monarch +was inflexible, and would accede to no terms that did not include a +stipulation to surrender the city. + +Fifty thousand Moors, bearing their treasures with them, accompanied +the departure of their sovereign from Valencia. Jacques had pledged +his royal word to protect the rich booty which they so highly valued +from the cupidity of his soldiers, and he faithfully performed his +promise. + +After the destruction of the two powerful kingdoms of Andalusia and +Valencia, there seemed to exist no Moorish power capable of arresting +the progress of the Spanish arms. That of Seville, which alone +remained, was already menaced by the victorious Ferdinand. But, just +at this period, a new state rose suddenly into importance, which +maintained a high degree of celebrity for two hundred years, and long +prevented the final ruin of the Moors. + + + +[1] See note A, page 216. + +[2] See note B, page 216. + +[3] See note C, page 218. + +[4] See Note D, page 220. + +[5] A.D. 1178. + +[6] See Note E, page 221. + +[7] A.D. 1213, Heg. 610. + +[8] See Note F, page 231. + +[9] A.D. 1236, Heg. 634. + + + + +{118} + +FOURTH EPOCH. + +THE KINGS OF GRENADA. + +_Extending from the middle of the Thirteenth Century to the period of +the Total Expulsion of the Moors from Spain, A.D. 1493._ + + +The unprecedented success of the Spaniards, and, above all, the loss of +Cordova, spread consternation among the Moors. That ardent and +superstitious people, who were ever equally ready to cherish delusive +hopes, and to yield to despondency when those anticipations were +disappointed, looked upon their empire as ruined the moment the +Christian cross surmounted the pinnacle of their grand mosque, and the +banner of Castile waved over the walls of their ancient capital--those +walls on which the standards of the Caliphs of the West and of their +Prophet had for centuries floated in triumph. + +Notwithstanding this national dejection, however, Seville, Grenada, +Murcia, and the kingdom of Algarva still belonged to the Mussulmans. +They possessed all the seaports, and the {119} whole maritime coast of +the south of Spain. Their enormous population, and great national +wealth and industry, also secured to them immense resources; but +Cordova, the holy city, the rival of Mecca in the West--Cordova was in +the possession of the Christians, and the Moors believed that all was +lost. + +But the hopes of these despairing followers of Islam were rekindled by +the almost magical influence of a single individual, a scion of the +tribe of the _Alhamars_, named Mohammed Aboussaid, who came originally +from the celebrated Arabian city of Couffa. + +Several historians, who speak of Mohammed under the title of _Mohammed +Alhamar_, assure us that he commenced his career as a simple shepherd, +and that, having afterward borne arms, he aspired to the attainment of +royal power in consequence of his martial exploits. Such an incident +is not extraordinary among the Arabs, where all who are not descended +either from the family of the Prophet or from the royal race, +possessing none of the privileges of birth, are esteemed solely +according to their personal merits. + +But, be that as it may, Mohammed Aboussaid {120} possessed sufficient +intellectual powers to reanimate the expiring courage of the vanquished +Moslems. He assembled an army in the city of Arjona, and, well knowing +the peculiar character of the nation that he wished to control, +proceeded to gain over to his interests a _santon_, a species of +religious character highly venerated among the Moors. This oracular +individual publicly predicted to the people of Algarva that Mohammed +Alhamar was destined speedily to become their king. Accordingly, he +was soon proclaimed by the inhabitants, and several other cities +followed the example thus set them. + +Mohammed now filled the place of Benhoud, to whom he possessed similar +talents for government; and, feeling the necessity of selecting a city +to replace Cordova in the affections of the Moors, to become the sacred +asylum of their religion, and the centring point for their military +strength, he founded a new kingdom, and made the city of Grenada its +capital, A.D. 1236, Heg. 634. + +This city, powerful from the remotest times, and supposed to be the +ancient Illiberis of the Romans, was built upon two hills, not far +distant from the Sierra Nevada, a chain of {121} mountains whose +summits are covered with perpetual snow. The town was traversed by the +river Darra, and the waters of the Xenil bathed its walls. Each of the +two hills was crowned by a fortress: on the one was that of the +Alhambra, and on the other that of the Albayzin. These strongholds +were either of them sufficient in extent to accommodate forty thousand +men within their walls. The fugitives from the city of Alhambra, as +has already been stated, had given the name of their former home to the +new quarter that they peopled; and the Moors who had been driven from +Baeca when Ferdinand III. became master of that place, had established +themselves, in a similar manner, in the quarter of the Albayzin. + +This city had also received many exiles from Valencia, Cordova, and +other places which the Mussulmans had deserted. + +With a population whose numbers were daily augmented, Grenada, at the +period of which we now speak, was more than three leagues in circuit, +surrounded by impregnable ramparts; defended by many strong towers, and +by a brave and numerous people, whose military prowess seemed to ensure +their safety and independence. + +{122} + +Various were the advantages that combined in giving to Grenada the +supremacy she had assumed. Her location was one of the most agreeable +and beautiful in the world, and rendered her mistress of a country on +which nature had lavished her choicest gifts. The famous _vega_, or +plain, by which the city was surrounded, was thirty leagues in length +and eight in breadth. It was terminated on the north by the mountains +of Elvira and the Sierra Nevada, and enclosed on the remaining sides by +hills clothed with the verdure of the olive, the mulberry, the lemon, +and the vine. + +This enchanting plain was watered by five small rivers[1] and an +infinite number of gushing springs, whose streams wandered in graceful +meanderings through meadows of perpetual verdure, through forests of +oak and plantations of grain, flax, and sugar-cane, or burst forth in +the midst of gardens, and orchards, and orange-groves. + +All the rich, and beautiful, and varied productions of the soil +required but little attention in their culture. The earth was +continually {123} covered with vegetation, in myriads of changing +forms, and never knew the repose of winter. + +During the heat of summer, the mountain breezes spread a refreshing +coolness through the air of this lovely vega, and preserved the early +brilliancy and beauty of the flowers, that were ever mingled in +delightful confusion with the varied fruits of a tropical region. + +On this celebrated plain, whose charms no description can embellish; on +this enchanting vega, where nature seemed to have exhausted her efforts +in lavishing all that the heart of man could desire or his imagination +conceive, more blood has been shed than on any other spot in the world. +There--where, during two centuries of unceasing warfare, whose baleful +effects extended from generation to generation, from city to city, and +from man to man--there does not exist a single isolated portion of +earth where the trees have not been wantonly destroyed, the villages +reduced to ashes, and the desolated fields strewn with the mingled +corses of slaughtered Moors and Christians. + +Independent of this _vega_, which was of such inestimable value to +Grenada, fourteen great cities and more than one hundred of smaller +{124} size, together with a prodigious number of towns, were embraced +within the boundaries of this fine kingdom. + +The extent of Grenada, from Gibraltar (which was not taken by the +Christians until long after this period) to the city of Lorca, was more +than eighty leagues. It was thirty leagues in breadth from Cambril to +the Mediterranean. + +The mountain, by which the kingdom of Grenada was intersected, produced +gold, silver, granite, amethysts, and various kinds of marble. + +Among these mountains, those of the Alpuxaries alone formed a province, +and yielded the monarch of Grenada more precious treasures than their +mines could furnish--active and athletic men, who became either hardy +and industrious husbandmen, or faithful and indefatigable soldiers. + +In addition to all this, the ports of Almeria, Malaga, and Algeziras +received into their harbours the vessels of both Europe and Africa, and +became places of deposite for the commerce of the Mediterranean and the +Atlantic. + +Such, at its birth, was the kingdom of Grenada, and such it long +continued. Mohammed Alhamar, from the period of its establishment, +{125} made useless efforts to unite all the remaining dominions of the +Mussulmans of Spain under one sceptre, as the only means of +successfully resisting the encroachments of the Christians. But the +little kingdom of Murcia and that of Algarva were each governed by +separate princes, who persisted in maintaining their independence. +This was the cause of their ruin, for they thus became more readily the +prey of the Spaniards. + +Alhamar signalized the commencement of his reign by military +achievements. In the year 1242, Heg. 640, he gained some important +advantages over the troops of Ferdinand. But repeated revolts in the +capital and disturbances in other parts of his new empire, eventually +compelled Mohammed to conclude a dishonourable peace with the King of +Castile. He agreed to do homage for his crown to the Castilian +sovereign, to put the strong place of Jaen into his hands, to pay him a +tribute, and to furnish him with auxiliary troops for any wars in which +he should engage. On these conditions Ferdinand acknowledged him King +of Grenada, and even aided him in subduing his rebellious subjects. + +The sagacious Ferdinand thus established a {126} truce with Grenada, +that he might the more effectually concentrate his forces against +Seville, which he had long entertained hopes of conquering. + +The important city of Seville was no longer under the dominion of a +king, but formed a kind of republic, governed by military magistrates. +Its situation at no great distance from the mouth of the Guadalquivir, +its commerce, its population, the mildness of the climate, and the +fertility of the environs, rendered Seville one of the most flourishing +cities of Spain. + +Ferdinand, foreseeing a long resistance, commenced the campaign by +seizing upon all the neighbouring towns. + +Finally, he laid siege to Seville itself, and his fleet, stationed at +the mouth of the Guadalquivir, closed the door to any assistance which +might be sent from Africa in aid of the beleaguered city. + +The siege was long and bloody. The Sevillians were numerous and well +skilled in the arts of war, and their ally, the King of Algarva, +harassed the besiegers unceasingly. Notwithstanding the extreme +bravery displayed by the Christians in their assaults, and the scarcity +of {127} provisions which began to be felt within the walls, the city, +after an investment of a whole year, still refused to surrender. + +Ferdinand then summoned the King of Grenada to come, in accordance with +their treaty, and serve under his banners. Alhamar was forced to obey, +and soon presented himself in the Christian camp at the head of a +brilliant army. The inhabitants of Seville lost all hope after this +occurrence, and surrendered to the Castilian monarch. The King of +Grenada returned to his own dominions with the humiliating glory of +having contributed, by his assistance, to the ruin of his countrymen. + +Ferdinand, with more piety than policy, banished the infidels from +Seville. One hundred thousand of that unfortunate people left the +city, to seek an exile's home in Africa or in the provinces of Grenada. + +The kingdom of Grenada now became the sole and last asylum of the +Spanish Moslems. The little kingdom of Algarva was soon obliged to +receive the yoke of Portugal, and Murcia, in consequence of its +separation from Grenada, became the prey of the Castilians. + +{128} + +During the life of Ferdinand III., nothing occurred to interrupt the +good understanding that existed between that monarch and Mohammed +Alhamar. + +The King of Grenada wisely took advantage of this peaceful period more +effectually to confirm himself in the possession of his crown, and to +make preparations for a renewal of hostilities against the Christians, +who would not, he foresaw, long remain his friends. + +Mohammed, by this means, ultimately found himself in a condition that +would enable him long to defend his power and dominions. He was master +of a country of great extent, and he possessed considerable revenues, +the amount of which it is now difficult correctly to estimate, in +consequence of the ignorance which prevails on the subject of the +peculiar financial system of the Moors, and the different sources from +which the public treasury was supplied. Every husbandman, for example, +paid the seventh part of the produce of his fields to his sovereign; +his flocks even were not exempted from this exaction. The royal domain +comprised numerous valuable farms; and, as agriculture was carried to +the highest degree of perfection, the revenues from {129} these, in so +luxuriant a country, must have amounted to a very large sum. The +annual income of the sovereign was augmented by various taxes levied on +the sale, marking, and passage from one point to another of all kinds +of cattle. The laws bestowed on the king the inheritance of such of +his subjects as died childless, and gave him, in addition, a portion in +the estates of other deceased persons. He also possessed, as has been +already shown, mines of gold, silver, and precious stones; and though +the Moors were but little skilled in the art of mining, still there was +no country in Europe in which gold and silver were more common than +among them. + +The commerce carried on in their beautiful silks, and in a great +variety of other productions; their contiguity to the Mediterranean and +Atlantic; their activity, industry, and astonishing population; their +superior knowledge of the science of agriculture; the sobriety natural +to all the inhabitants of Spain; and that peculiar property of a +southern climate, by which much is produced from the soil, while very +little suffices for the maintenance of its possessor; all these, united +with their other national {130} advantages, will furnish some idea of +the great power and resources of this singular people. + +Their standing military force--it can scarcely be said in times of +peace, for they rarely knew the blessings of that state--amounted to +nearly a hundred thousand men; and this army, in case of necessity, +could easily be increased to double that number. The single city of +Grenada could furnish fifty thousand soldiers. Indeed, every Moor +would readily become a soldier to oppose the Christians. The +difference of faith rendered these wars sacred in their eyes; and the +mutual hatred entertained by these two almost equally superstitious +nations never failed to arm, when necessary, every individual of both +sides, even from children to old men. + +Independent of the numerous and brave, but ill-disciplined troops, who +would assemble for a campaign, and afterward return to their homes +without occasioning any expense to the state, the Moorish monarch +maintained a considerable corps of cavaliers, who were dispersed along +the frontiers, particularly in the directions of Murcia and Jaen, those +parts of the country being most exposed to the repeated incursions of +the Spaniards. Upon each of these cavaliers the king {131} bestowed +for life a small habitation, with sufficient adjoining ground for his +own maintenance, and that of his family and horse. This method of +keeping soldiers in service, while it occasioned no expense to the +public treasury, served to attach them more firmly to their country, by +identifying their interests with hers; and it held out to them the +strongest motives faithfully to defend their charge, inasmuch as their +patrimony was always first exposed to the ravages of the enemy. + +At a time when the art of war had not reached the perfection it has now +attained, and when large bodies of troops were not kept continually +assembled and exercised, the system of stationing this peculiar guard +along the frontiers was of admirable effect. + +The knights who composed this unrivalled cavalry were mounted on +African or Andalusian chargers, whose merits in the field are so +well-known, and were accustomed from infancy to their management; +treating them with the tenderest care, and regarding them as their +inseparable companions: by these means they acquired that remarkable +superiority for which the Moorish cavalry is still so celebrated. + +{132} + +These redoubtable squadrons, whose velocity of movement was unequalled; +who would, almost at the same moment, charge in mass, break into +detached troops, scatter, rally, fly off, and again form in line; these +cavaliers, whose voice, whose slightest gesture, whose very thoughts, +so to speak, were intelligible to their docile and sagacious steeds, +and who were able to recover a lance or sabre that had fallen to the +earth while in full gallop, constituted the principal military force of +the Moors. Their infantry was of little value; and their ill-fortified +towns, surrounded only by walls and moats, and defended by this +worthless infantry, could offer but an imperfect resistance to that of +the Spaniards, which began already to deserve the reputation it +afterward so well sustained in Italy, under Gonzalvo, the Great Captain. + +After the death of St. Ferdinand, his son Alphonso the Sage[2] mounted +the throne, A.D. 1252, Heg. 650. The first care of Mohammed Alhamar +after this event was to go in person to Toledo, followed by a brilliant +retinue, to renew the treaty of alliance, or, rather, of dependance, by +which he was united to Ferdinand. {133} The new king of Castile +remitted on this occasion a part of the tribute to which the Moors had +been subjected. + +But this peace was not of long continuance; and the two contending +nations now recommenced the war with nearly equal advantages. + +An incident is related as having occurred during this war, which +reflects equal honour on the humanity of the Moors and the courage of +the Spaniards. It refers to Garcias Gomes, governor of the city of +Xeres. He was besieged by the Grenadians, and his garrison nearly +destroyed, but still he refused to surrender; and, standing on the +ramparts covered with blood, and literally bristling with arrows, he +sustained alone the onset of the assailants. The Moors, on seeing him +in this situation, agreed, with one accord, to spare the life of so +brave a man. Garcias then threw himself from the walls upon some iron +hooks; but he was rescued alive in spite of his efforts to prevent it, +treated with respect by his captors, and, after his wounds were healed, +dismissed with presents. + +Alhamar could not prevent Alphonso from adding the kingdom of Murcia to +his dominions; and the fortunes of war compelled him to obtain {134} +peace by submitting anew to the payment of tribute to the Catholic +sovereign, A.D. 1266, Heg. 665. + +But some dissensions which soon after arose between the Castilian +monarch and some of the grandees of his kingdom, inspired the Grenadian +king with the hope of repairing the loss he had sustained. The brother +of Alphonso, together with several noblemen belonging to the principal +Castilian families, retired to Grenada in open defiance of the +authority of the Spanish monarch, and materially aided Mohammed Alhamar +in repressing the insurrectionary movements of two of his rebellious +subjects, who were countenanced in their attempts by the Christians. + +But, just at this juncture, the wise and politic King of Grenada died, +leaving the throne that he had acquired and preserved by his talents to +his son Mohammed II., El Fakik, A.D. 1273, Heg. 672. + +The new Mussulman king, who took the title of _Emir al Mumenim_, +adopted in all respects the policy of his father. He took every +advantage in his power of the discord which reigned at the Castilian +court, and of the ineffectual voyages undertaken by Alphonso in the +hope of {135} being elected emperor.[3] Finally, during the absence of +his enemy, Mohammed formed an offensive league with Jacob, the king of +Morocco, a prince of the race of the _Merines_, the conquerors and +successors of the Almohades. The Grenadian sovereign ceded to his +African ally the two important places of Tariffe and Algeziras, on +condition of his crossing the Mediterranean to the Peninsula. + +Jacob, in accordance with this agreement, arrived in Spain, at the head +of an army, in the year 1275 (the 675th of the Hegira); and the two +Moorish leaders, by acting in concert, gained some important advantages. + +But the criminal revolt of Sancho, the Infant of Castile, against his +father Alphonso the Sage, soon afterward divided these Mussulman +monarchs. The King of Grenada took the part of the rebellious son, +while Alphonso, reduced to extremity by the abandonment of his +subjects, implored the assistance of the King of Morocco. Jacob +recrossed the sea with his troops, and met Alphonso at Zara. At that +celebrated interview, the unfortunate Castilian wished to concede the +place of honour to the king, who was there as {136} his defender. "It +belongs to you," said Jacob to him, "because you are unfortunate! I +came here to avenge a cause which should be that of every father. I +came here to aid you in punishing an ingrate, who, though he received +life from you, would still deprive you of your crown. When I shall +have fulfilled this duty, and you are again prosperous and happy, I +will once more become your enemy, and contest every point of precedence +with you." + +The soul of the Christian prince was not sufficiently noble, however, +to prompt him to confide himself to the monarch who had uttered these +sentiments, and he escaped from the camp. Alphonso died soon after +this event, disinheriting his guilty son before he expired, A.D. 1284, +Heg. 683. + +Sancho[4] reigned in his father's stead, however, notwithstanding this +prohibition, and international troubles convulsed Castile anew. + +Mohammed seized this moment to enter Andalusia. He gained several +battles, and took some important places in that kingdom, and thus +victoriously terminated a long and glorious reign, A.D. 1302, Heg. 703. + +{137} + +This Mohammed _Emir al Mumenim_, the principal political events of +whose life have now been briefly narrated, was a munificent patron of +the fine arts. He added their charms to the attractions of a court +which poets, philosophers, and astronomers alike contributed to render +celebrated. + +As an illustration of the scientific superiority that the Moors still +maintained over the Spaniards, the fact may be mentioned that Alphonso +the Sage, king of Castile, availed himself, in the arrangement of his +astronomical tables (still known as the _Alphonsine Tables_), of the +assistance of some contemporary Moslem _savans_. + +Grenada began by this time to replace Cordova. Architecture, above +all, made great advances. It was during the reign of Mohammed II. that +the famous palace of the Alhambra was commenced, a part of which still +remains to astonish travellers, whom its name alone suffices to attract +to Grenada. + +To prove to what a height of perfection the Moors had succeeded in +carrying the art, then so little known to Europeans, of uniting the +magnificent and the luxurious, a few details may perhaps be pardoned +concerning this {138} singular edifice, and as an illustration, also, +of the particular manners and customs of the Moors. + +The Alhambra, as has been said, was at first only a vast fortress, +standing upon one of the two hills enclosed within the city of Grenada. +This hill, though environed on every side by the waters either of the +Darra or the Xenil, was defended, in addition, by a double enclosure of +walls. It was on the summit of this elevation, which overlooked the +whole city, and from which one might behold the most beautiful prospect +in the world, in the midst of an esplanade covered with trees and +fountains, that Mohammed selected the site of his palace. + +Nothing with which we are familiar in architecture can give us a +correct idea of that of the Moors. They piled up buildings without +order, symmetry, or any attention to the external appearance they would +present. All their cares were bestowed upon the interior of their +structures. There they exhausted all the resources of taste and +magnificence, to combine in their apartments the requisites for +luxurious indulgence with the charms of nature in her most enchanting +forms. There, in saloons adorned with the most beautiful marble, and +paved with a {139} brilliant imitation of porcelain, couches, covered +with stuffs of gold or silver, were arranged near _jets d'eau_, whose +waters glanced upward towards the vaulted roof, and spread a delicious +coolness through an atmosphere embalmed by the delicate odours arising +from exquisite vases of precious perfumes, mingled with the fragrant +breath of the myrtle, jasmine, orange, and other sweet-scented flowers +that adorned the apartments. + +The beautiful palace of the Alhambra, as it now exists at Grenada,[5] +presents no _facade_. It is approached through a charming avenue, +which is constantly intersected by rivulets, whose streams wander in +graceful curves amid groups of trees. The entrance is through a large +square tower, which formerly bore the name of the _Hall of Judgment_. +A religious inscription announces that it was there that the king +administered justice after the ancient manner of the Hebrew and other +Oriental nations. Several buildings, {140} which once adjoined this +tower were destroyed in more recent times, to give place to a +magnificent palace erected by Charles V., a description of which is not +necessary to our subject. Upon penetrating on the northern side into +the ancient palace of the Moorish kings, one feels as if suddenly +transported to the regions of fairyland. The first court is an oblong +square, surrounded on each side by a gallery in the form of an arcade, +the walls and ceiling of which are covered with Mosaic work, festoons, +arabesque paintings, gilding, and carving in stucco, of the most +admirable workmanship. All the plain spaces between these various +ornaments are filled with passages transcribed from the Alkoran, or by +inscriptions of a similar character to the following, which will +suffice to create some idea of the figurative style of Moorish +composition. + +"Oh Nazir! thou wert born the master of a throne, and, like the star +that announces the approach of day, thou art refulgent with a +brilliancy that belongs to thee alone! Thine arm is the rampart of a +nation; thy justice an all-pervading luminary. Thou canst, by thy +valour, subdue those who have given companions to {141} God! Thy +numerous people are thy children, and thou renderest them all happy by +thy goodness. The bright stars of the firmament shine lovingly upon +thee, and the glorious light of the sun beams upon thee with affection. +The stately cedar, the proud monarch of the forest, bows his lofty head +at thy approach, and is again uplifted by thy puissant hand!" + +In the midst of this court, which is paved with white marble, is a long +basin always filled with running water of sufficient depth for bathing. +It is bordered on each side by beds of flowers, and surrounded by walks +lined with orange-trees. The place was called the _Mesuar_, and served +as the common bathing-place of those who were attached to the service +of the palace. + +From thence one passes into the celebrated _Court of Lions_. It is a +hundred feet in length and fifty in breadth. A colonnade of white +marble supports the gallery that runs around the whole. These columns, +standing sometimes two and sometimes three together, are of slender +proportions and fantastic design; but their lightness and grace afford +pleasure to the eye of the wondering beholder. The walls, and, above +all, the ceiling of the circular gallery, are covered {142} with +embellishments of gold, azure, and stucco, wrought into arabesques, +with an exquisite delicacy of execution that the most skilful modern +workmen would find it difficult to rival. In the midst of these +ornaments of ever-changing variety and beauty are inscribed passages +from the Koran, such as the following, which all good Mussulmans are +required frequently to repeat: _God is great: God alone is supreme: +There is no god but God: Celestial enjoyment, gratifications of the +heart, delights of the soul to all those who believe_. + +At either extremity of the Court of Lions are placed, within the +interior space enclosed by the gallery, and, like it, supported by +marble columns, two elegant cupolas of fifteen or sixteen feet in +circumference. These graceful domes form a covering for beautiful +_jets d'eau_. In the centre of the lengthened square, a superb +alabaster vase, six feet in diameter, is supported in an elevated +position in the midst of a vast basin by the forms of twelve lions +sculptured from white marble. This vessel, which is believed to have +been modelled after the design of the "molten sea" of the Temple of +Solomon, is again surmounted by a smaller vase, from which shoot {143} +forth innumerable tiny cascades, which together present the form of a +great sheaf; and, falling again from one vase into another, and from +these into the large basin beneath, create a perpetual flow, whose +volume is increased by the floods of limpid water which gush in a +continual stream from the mouth of each of the marble lions. + +This fountain, like each of the others, is adorned with inscriptions; +for the Moors ever took pleasure in mingling the eloquence of poetry +with the graces of sculpture. To us their conceptions appear singular +and their expressions exaggerated; but our manners are so opposite to +theirs; the period of their existence as a nation is so far removed, +and we know so little of the genius of their language, that we have, +perhaps, no right to judge the literature of the Moors by the severe +rules of modern criticism. And, indeed, the specimens we possess of +the French and Spanish poetry of the thirteenth and fourteenth +centuries are, many of them, little superior to the verses engraven on +the Fountain of Lions, of which the following, is a translation.[6] + +{144} + +"Oh thou who beholdest these lions! dost thou not perceive that they +need only to breathe to possess the perfection of nature! Oh Mohammed! +Oh potent sovereign! God originated and prolonged thy existence, that +thou mightest be inspired with the genius to conceive and accomplish +these novel and beautiful embellishments! Thy soul is adorned by the +most ennobling qualities of humanity. This enchanting spot pictures +thy admirable virtues. Like the lion, thou art terrible in combat; and +nothing can be more justly compared to the bountiful and unceasing +profusion of the limpid waters which gush from the bosom of this +fountain, and fill the air with glittering and brilliant particles, +than the liberal hand of Mohammed." + +We will not attempt a description in detail of such other portions of +the palace of the Alhambra as still exist. Some of these served as +halls of audience or of justice; others enclosed the baths of the king, +the queen, and their children. Sleeping apartments still remain, where +the couches were disposed either in alcoves, or upon platforms covered +with the peculiar pavement {145} already alluded to; but always near a +fountain, the unceasing murmur of whose dreamy voice might sooth the +occupants to repose. + +In the music saloon of this once luxurious royal abode are four +elevated galleries, which, ere the glory of the Alhambra had passed +away, were often filled by Moorish musicians, the delightful strains of +whose varied instruments enchanted the court of Grenada. Then the fair +and the brave reclined in graceful groups in the centre of the +apartment, upon rich Oriental carpets, surrounding the alabaster +fountain, whose balmy breath diffused refreshing coolness, and whose +softly gurgling sounds mingled with the gentle music which was ever the +accompaniment of repose and enjoyment. + +In an apartment which was at the same time the oratory and +dressing-room of the queen of this magnificent residence, there still +exists a slab of marble, pierced with an infinite number of small +apertures, to admit the exhalations of the perfumes that were +incessantly burning beneath the lofty ceiling. From this part of the +palace, too, the views are exquisitely beautiful. The windows and +doors opening from it are so arranged, that the most agreeable +prospects, the {146} mellowest and most pleasing effects of light, +perpetually fall upon the delighted eyes of those within, while balmy +breezes constantly renew the delicious coolness of the air that +breathes through this enchanting retreat. + +Upon leaving the marble halls and lofty towers of the Alhambra, one +discerns, on the side of a neighbouring mountain, the famous garden of +the _Generalif_, which signifies, in the Moorish tongue, the _Home of +Love_. In this garden was the palace to which the kings of Grenada +repaired to pass the season of spring. It was built in a style similar +to that of the Alhambra: the same gorgeous splendour, the same costly +magnificence reigned there. The edifice is now destroyed; but the +picturesque situation, the ever-varied and ever-charming landscape, the +limpid fountains, the sparkling _jets d'eau_, and tumbling waterfalls +of the _Generalif_, are still left to excite admiration. + +The terraces of this garden are in the form of an amphitheatre, and the +lingering remains of their once beautiful Mosaic pavements are still to +be seen. The walks are now darkly umbrageous, from the interwoven +branches of gigantic cypresses and aged myrtles, beneath whose {147} +grateful shades the kings and queens of Grenada have so often wandered. +Then blooming groves and forests of fruit-trees were agreeably +intermingled with graceful domes and marble pavilions: then the sweet +perfume of the countless flowers that mingled their varied dyes in +delightful confusion, floated in the soft air. Then the delicate +tendrils of the vine clasped the supporting branches of the orange, and +both together hung the mingled gold and purple of their clustering +fruits over the bright waters that from marble founts + + "Gushed up to sun and air!" + +Then valour and beauty strayed side by side, beneath embowering +branches, the fire of the one attempered to gentleness by the softer +graces of the other, and the souls of both elevated and purified by +nature's holy and resistless influences. + +But now the luxuriant vine lies prostrate, its climbing trunk and +clinging tendrils rudely torn from their once firm support: even the +voice of the fountain no longer warbles in the same gladsome tone as of +yore; the mouldering fragments of the polished column and sculptured +dome are now strewed on the earth; the sighing of the gentle breeze no +longer awake: is the soft breath {148} of responding flowers; the +loveliness and the glory of the _Home of Love_ are vanished away for +ever; and the crumbling stones of the tesselated pavements echo naught +but the lingering footfall of the solitary stranger, who wanders +thither to enjoy those mournful charms of which the destroyer cannot +divest a spot that must ever appeal so strongly to the vision and the +heart, to the memory and the imagination. + +It is painful to quit the Alhambra and the Generalif, to return to the +ravages, incursions, and sanguinary quarrels of the Moors and +Christians. + +It was the fate of Mohammed III. (surnamed the Blind) to be obliged at +the same time to repress the rebellious movements of his own subjects +and repel the invasions of his Catholic neighbours. Compelled by the +infirmity from which he derived his appellation to choose a prime +minister, he bestowed that important post upon Farady, the husband of +his sister, a judicious statesman and a brave soldier, who for some +time prosperously continued the war against the Castilians, and finally +concluded it by an honourable peace. + +But the courtiers, jealous of the glory and {149} envious of the +good-fortune of the favourite, formed a conspiracy against his master, +and instigated revolts among the people. To complete his calamities, +foreign war again broke forth; the King of Castile, Ferdinand IV., +surnamed _the Summoned_,[7] united with the King of Aragon in attacking +the Grenadians.[8] + +Gibraltar was taken by the Castilians, and the conqueror expelled its +Moorish inhabitants from its walls. Among the unfortunate exiles who +departed from the city was an old man, who, perceiving Ferdinand, +approached him, leaning on his staff: "King of Castile," he said to +him, "what injury have I done to thee or thine? Thy great-grandfather +Ferdinand drove me from my native Seville: I sought an asylum at Xeres; +thy grandfather Alphonso banished me from thence: retiring within the +walls of Tariffe,[9] thy father Sancho exiled me from that city. At +last I came to find a grave at the extremity of Spain, on the shore of +Gibraltar; but thy hatred hath pursued me even here: tell me now of one +place on earth where I can die unmolested by the Christians!" + +{150} + +"Cross the sea!" replied the Spanish prince; and he caused the aged +petitioner to be conveyed to Africa. + +Vanquished by the Aragonians, harassed by the Castilians, and alarmed +by the seditious proceedings which the grandees of his court were +encouraging among his own subjects, the King of Grenada and his prime +minister were forced to conclude a shameful peace. + +The intestine storm, whose gathering had long disturbed the domestic +security of the kingdom, soon after burst forth. Mohammed Abenazar, +brother to Mohammed the Blind, and the head of the conspiracy, seized +the unfortunate monarch, put him to death, and assumed his place, A.D. +1310, Heg. 710. + +But the usurper himself was soon driven from his throne by Farady, the +ancient minister, who, not daring to appropriate the crown to himself, +placed it on the head of his son Ismael, the nephew of Mohammed the +Blind, through his mother, the sister of that monarch. + +This event took place A.D. 1313, Heg. 713. From that period the royal +family of Grenada was divided into two branches, which were ever after +at enmity with each other; the one, called {151} the _Alhamar_, +included the descendants of the first king through the males of the +line, and the other, named _Farady_, was that of such of his offspring +as were the children of the female branches of the royal race. + +The Castilians, whose interests were always promoted by cherishing +dissensions among their Moorish neighbours, lent their countenance to +Abenazar, who had taken refuge in the city of Grenada. The Infant Don +Pedro, uncle to the youthful King of Castile, Alphonso _the Avenger_, +as he was surnamed, took the field against Ismael, and several times +gave battle to the followers of the Crescent. Then joining his forces +to those of another Infant named Don Juan, the two friends carried fire +and sword to the very ramparts of Grenada. The infidel warriors did +not venture to sally from their walls to repel the invaders; but when, +loaded with booty, the Christians had commenced their return to +Castile; Ismael followed on their route with his army, and, soon +overtaking his ruthless foes, fell suddenly upon their rear. It was +now the 26th of June,[10] and the time chosen by the Mussulmans for the +attack was the hottest hour of a {152} burning day. The two Spanish +princes made such violent efforts to reorganize their scattered bands +and to recover their lost authority, that, exhausted at last by thirst +and fatigue, they both fell dead without having received a wound. + +The dismayed and exhausted Spaniards could now no longer offer any +resistance to their furious enemies. They betook themselves to flight, +leaving their baggage, with the bodies of the two unfortunate Infants, +on the field of battle. Ismael caused the remains of these princes to +be conveyed to Grenada and deposited in coffins covered with cloth of +gold: he then restored them to the Castilians, after having bestowed on +them the most distinguished funeral honours.[11] + +This victory was rapidly followed by the conquest of several cities and +the establishment of an honourable truce. But Ismael did not live to +enjoy the fruits of his success: being enamoured of a young Spanish +captive, who had fallen, in the division of the spoils, to the share of +one of his officers, the king so far forgot the laws of justice and +honour as to possess himself {153} by force of the beautiful slave. +Such an insult among the followers of Islam can only be expiated by +blood: the monarch was assassinated by his exasperated officer. His +son Mohammed V. mounted the throne in his stead, A.D. 1322, Heg. 722. + +The reign of Mohammed V. and that of his successor Joseph I., both of +whom perished in the same manner (being murdered in their palace), +present nothing during thirty years but an unbroken series of ravages, +seditions, and combats. + +At the request of the Grenadians, Abil-Hassan, king of Morocco, of the +dynasty of the _Merinis_, landed in Spain at the head of innumerable +troops, with whom he joined the army of Joseph. The kings of Castile +and Portugal unitedly gave battle to this immense army on the shores of +Salado, not far from the city of Tariffe. This encounter, equally +celebrated with the victory of Toloza in the history of Spain, +terminated in the defeat of the Moors. Abil-Hassan returned hastily to +Morocco, to conceal within his own dominions his chagrin at its +unexpected and disastrous issue. + +The strong place of Algeziras, the bulwark of {154} Grenada, and the +magazine in which was deposited the necessary supplies received by that +kingdom from Africa, was besieged by the Castilians A.D. 1342, Heg. +742. Several French, English, and Navarrois cavaliers resorted on this +occasion to the camp of the beleaguering army. The Mussulmans availed +themselves of the use of cannon in the defence of their city; and this +is the first time that the employment of that description of ordnance +is spoken of in history. We are told that it was used at the battle of +Cressy by the English; but that event did not take place until four +years after the date of the present siege. It is, then, to the Spanish +Moors that we owe, not the discovery of gunpowder (for that is +attributed by some to the Chinese, by others to a German monk named +Schwartz, and by others again to Roger Bacon, an Englishman), but the +terrible invention of artillery. It is at least certain, that the +Moors planted the first cannon of which we have any account. But, in +spite of the advantages it thus possessed, Algeziras was taken by the +Christians, A.D. 1344, Heg. 745. + +About ten years after this event, the unfortunate Joseph, who had been +so often attacked by {155} foreign enemies, met his death from the +hands of his own subjects. + +It may have been remarked by the reader, that no established law +regulated the regal succession among the Moors. Yet, notwithstanding +the perpetual conspiracies and intrigues which rendered the possession +of the crown so insecure and of such uncertain duration, a prince of +the royal race always occupied the throne. We have seen Grenada +divided, since the violent termination of the reign of Ismael, between +the factions of the _Alhamar_ and the _Farady_, and the former deposed +by the latter, who always regarded the Alhamars as usurpers. This +unhappy contest was the source of numberless disorders, conspiracies, +and assassinations. + +The monarch next in order to Joseph I. on the throne of Grenada was his +uncle, a Farady prince named Mohammed VI., and called _the Old_, in +consequence of his succeeding at a somewhat advanced period of life. + +Mohammed the Red, a scion of the Alhamar race, drove his cousin, +Mohammed the Old, from the throne, A.D. 1360, Heg. 762, and retained it +for some years, through the protection of the King of Aragon. + +{156} + +Peter the Cruel, then king of Castile, espoused the cause of the +banished Farady, supported his claims by warlike arguments, and so +closely pressed Mohammed the Alhamar, that he adopted the resolution of +repairing to Seville, and abandoning himself to the magnanimity of his +royal foe. + +Mohammed arrived at the court of Seville accompanied by a suite +composed of his most faithful friends, and bearing with him vast +treasures. He presented himself with noble confidence in the presence +of the monarch. "King of Castile!" said he to Peter, "the blood alike +of Christian and Moor has too long flowed in my contest with the +Farady. You protect my rival; yet it is you whom I select to adjudge +our quarrel. Examine my claims and those of my enemy, and pronounce +who shall be the sovereign of Grenada. If you decide in favour of the +Farady, I demand only to be conducted to Africa; if you accord the +preference to me, receive the homage that I have come to render you for +my crown!" + +The astonished Peter lavished honours upon the Mussulman king, and +caused him to be seated at his side during the magnificent feast by +{157} which he signalized the occasion. But, when the Alhamar retired +from the entertainment, he was seized and thrown into prison. From +thence he was afterward conducted through the streets of the city, +seated, half naked, upon an ass, and led to a field termed the +_Tablada_, where thirty-seven of his devoted followers were deprived of +their heads in his presence. The execrable Peter, envying the +executioner the pleasure of shedding his blood, then thrust through the +unfortunate King of Grenada with his own lance. The dying sovereign +uttered only these words as he expired, "Oh Peter, Peter, what a deed +for a cavalier!" + +By a very extraordinary fatality, every throne in Spain was at this +period occupied by princes whose characters were blackened by the most +atrocious crimes. Peter the Cruel, the Nero of Castile, assassinated +the kings who confided themselves to his protection, put to death his +wife Blanche of Bourbon, and, in short, daily imbrued his hands in the +blood of his relatives or friends. Peter IV. of Aragon, less violent +than the Castilian, but equally unfeeling and even more perfidious, +despoiled one of his brothers of his kingdom, commanded another to be +{158} put to death, and delivered his ancient preceptor to the +executioners. Peter I., king of Portugal, the lover of the celebrated +Inez de Castro,[12] whose ferocity was doubtless excited and increased +by the cruelty that had been exercised against his mistress, tore out +the hearts of the murderers of Inez, and poisoned a sister with whom he +was displeased. Finally, the contemporary King of Navarre was that +Charles the Bad, whose name alone is sufficient still to cause a +shudder. All Spain groaned beneath the iron rule of these monsters of +cruelty, and was inundated by the blood of their victims. If it be +remembered that, at the same time, France had become a prey to the +horrors which followed the imprisonment of King John; that England +witnessed the commencement of the troubled reign of Richard II.; that +Italy was delivered up to the contentions of the rival factions of the +Guelfs and Ghibelines, and beheld two occupants at the same time upon +the papal throne; that two emperors disputed the right to the imperial +crown of Germany; and that Timurlane ravaged Asia from the territories +of the Usheks to the borders of India, it will not be disputed {159} +that the history of the world records the annals of no more unhappy +epoch in its affairs. + +Grenada was at last tranquil after the crime of Peter the Cruel. +Mohammed the Old, or the Farady, being now freed from the rival claims +of his competitor, remounted the throne without opposition. + +Mohammed was the only ally of the King of Castile who remained faithful +to that inhuman monster up to the period of his death. Peter was at +last the victim of a crime similar to those of which he had so often +himself been guilty: his illegitimate brother, Henry de Transtamare, +deprived him of his crown and his life, A.D. 1369, Heg. 771. + +The King of Grenada made peace with the new sovereign of Castile, +maintained it for several years, and finally left his kingdom in a +flourishing condition to his son Mohammed VIII., Abouhadjad, called by +the Spanish historians Mohammed Gaudix. + +This prince commenced his reign A.D. 1379, Heg. 782. He was the best +and wisest of the Spanish Mohammedan kings. Intent only upon promoting +the happiness of his people, he was desirous of securing to them the +enjoyment of {160} that foreign and domestic peace to which they had so +long been almost utter strangers. The more effectually to ensure this, +Abouhadjad commenced his reign with fortifying his towns, raising a +strong army, and allying himself with the King of Tunis, whose daughter +Cadiga he espoused. When well prepared for war, the Moorish sovereign +sent ambassadors to the King of Castile, to solicit his friendship. +Don Juan, the son and successor of Henry de Transtamare, being +sufficiently occupied by his quarrels with Portugal and England, +readily signed a treaty with the royal follower of the Crescent; and +Abouhadjad, on his part, kept it unbroken. Secured from the inroads of +the Christians, this wise monarch now occupied himself in promoting the +increase of agriculture and commerce: he likewise diminished the rates +of imposts, and soon found his income increased in consequence of this +judicious measure. Beloved by a people whom he rendered happy, +respected by foreign neighbours whom he had no reason to fear, and +possessed of an amiable wife, who alone engaged his affections, this +excellent Mussulman prince spent the wealth and leisure that he could +with propriety devote to such objects, in {161} adorning his capital, +in cherishing the fine arts, and in cultivating architecture and +poetry. Several monuments of his munificence existed at Grenada, and +at Gaudix, a city in favour of which he entertained strong +predilections. His court was the favoured abode of genius and elegance. + +The Moors of Spain still possessed poets, physicians, painters, +sculptors, academies, and universities. And these were all liberally +encouraged and endowed by Mohammed Gaudix. + +Most of the productions of the Grenadian authors of this period +perished at the final conquest of their country;[13] but some of them +have been preserved, and still exist in the library of the Escurial. +They chiefly treat of grammar, astrology (then greatly esteemed), and, +above all, of theology, a study in which the Moors excelled. That +people, naturally gifted with discriminating minds and ardent +imaginations, produced many distinguished theologians, who may easily +be supposed to have introduced into Europe the unfortunate scholastic +taste for subtle questions and disputes, which once rendered so +celebrated, men whose names and achievements have since sunk for ever +into oblivion. The {162} pretended secrets of the cabal, of alchymy, +of judicial astronomy, of the divining rod, and all the accounts, +formerly so common, of sorcerers, magicians, and enchanters, are +derived from these descendants of the Arabs. They were a superstitious +race from the remotest times; and it is probable that to their +residence in Spain, and their long intercourse with the Spaniards, is +owing that love for the marvellous, and that well-deserved reputation +for superstitious credulity, with which philosophy still reproaches a +sprightly and intellectual nation, upon whom nature has bestowed the +germes of the best qualities that adorn humanity. + +A kind of literature which was common among these Saracens, and for +which the Spaniards were indebted to them, was that of novels or +romances. The Arabs were ever, as they still are, passionate lovers of +story-telling. As well in the tents of the wild Bedouin as in the +palaces of the East, alike under the gilded domes and peasant roofs of +Grenada, this taste prevailed. Everywhere they assembled nightly to +listen to romantic narratives of love and valour. Everywhere they +listened in silent attention, or wept from sympathetic interest in the +fate {163} of those whose adventures formed the subject of the tale. +The Grenadians joined with this passion for exciting incident, a taste +for music and singing. Their poets imbodied in verse these favourite +recitals of love and war. Musicians were employed in composing +suitable airs for them, and they were thus sung by the youthful Moors +with all the enthusiasm that passion, poetry, and dulcet harmony can +unitedly inspire. From this national custom are derived the multitude +of Spanish romances, translated or imitated from the Arabic, which, in +a simple and sometimes touching style, recount the fierce combats of +the Moors and Christians, the fatal quarrels of jealous and haughty +rivals, or the tender conversation of lovers. They describe with great +exactness everything relating to the peculiar manners and amusements of +this interesting and extinguished nation: their fetes, their games of +the ring and of canes, and their bull-fights, the latter of which they +adopted from the Spaniards, are all portrayed. Thus we learn that +their war-like equipments consisted of a large cimeter, a slender +lance, a short coat of mail, and a light leathern buckler. We have +descriptions of superb horses, with their richly-jewelled and {164} +embroidered housings sweeping the earth in ample folds, and of the +devises emblazoned on the arms of the graceful Moorish cavaliers. +These last consisted frequently of a heart pierced by an arrow, or +perhaps of a star guiding a vessel, or of the first letter of the name +of the fair recipients of their vows of love. We learn, too, that +their colours each bore a peculiar signification: yellow and black +expressed grief; green, hope; blue, jealousy; violet and flame colour, +passionate love. + +The following abridged translation of one of these little compositions +will produce a more correct idea of them in the mind of the reader than +any description could convey.[14] + + + GONZULO AND ZELINDA. + + A MOORISH ROMANCE. + + In a transport of jealousy and pride, + Zelinda spurned her lover from her side! +{165} + His cruel doom Gonzulo heard + With bosom wrung; and disappeared! + But the fair maid soon deeply felt + The torturing wound herself had dealt; + As glides the snow from mountain crest, + So fled resentment from her breast. + + They tell her that the Moor's proud heart + Is pierced by grief's most poisoned dart, + And that he'd doffed, when flying from her side, + The tender colours that were once his pride; + That green, of hope the cherished emblem gay, + To sorrow's mournful hues had given way. + A badge of crape his lance's point now wears, + A blackened crown his shield as emblem bears! + +{166} + + To proffer gifts with different meaning fraught, + Zelinda now her errant lover sought: + The blue of jealousy she had united + With all the hues most dear to lovers plighted; + A violet gem, entwined with gold, + Gleamed mid a broidered turban's fold, + And every silken riband that she bore, + Of lovely innocence the symbol wore. + + Zelinda reached the soft retreat + Where Gonzulo his fate must meet! + O'erwhelmed with doubt, the dark-eyed maid + Reclined beneath a myrtle shade, + And sent a faithful page to guide + Her banished lover to her side. + Gonzulo scarce the message would receive, + For wo had taught his heart to disbelieve! + +{167} + + But soon he flew, on wing of love, + To seek Zelinda's chosen grove. + Then tearful glances of regret + By words of tenderness were met; + And ne'er did guardian nymphs record + More ardent vows than there were poured! + 'Twas thus triumphant love repaired + The cruel wrongs that each had shared! + + +The delicate and peculiar gallantry, which rendered the Moors of +Grenada famous throughout Europe, formed a singular contrast to the +ferocity that is so natural to all nations of African origin. These +Islamites, whose chief glory it was dexterously to deprive their +enemies of their heads, attach them to their saddle-bows, and afterward +display them as trophies on the {168} battlements of their towers or at +the entrance of their palaces; these restless and ungovernable +warriors, who were ever ready to revolt against their rulers, to depose +or to murder them, were the most tender, the most devoted, the most +ardent of lovers. Their wives, though their domestic position was +little superior to that of slaves, became, when they were beloved, the +absolute sovereigns, the supreme divinities of those whose hearts they +possessed. It was to please these idolized beings that the Moorish +cavaliers sought distinction in the field; it was to shine in their +eyes that they lavished their treasures and their lives--that they +mutually endeavoured to eclipse each other in deeds of arms, in the +splendour of their warlike exploits, and the Oriental magnificence of +their fetes. + +It cannot now be determined whether the Moors derived this +extraordinary union of softness and cruelty, of delicacy and +barbarity--this generous rivalry in courage and in constancy from the +Spaniards, or whether the Spaniards acquired these characteristics from +the Moors. But when it is remembered that they do not belong to the +Asiatic Arabs, from whom these gallant knights originally sprang; that +they are {169} found, even in a less degree, if possible, among these +followers of Mohammed in that portion of Africa where their conquests +have naturalized them; and, that after their departure from Spain, the +Grenadians lost every trace of the peculiarly interesting and +chivalrous qualities by which they had previously been so remarkably +distinguished, there is some ground for the opinion that it was to the +Spaniards that their Moslem neighbours were indebted for the existence +of these national attributes. In truth, before the invasion of Spain +by the Arabs, the courts of the Gothic kings had already offered +knightly examples of a similar spirit. And after that event we find +the cavaliers of Leon, Navarre, and Castile equally renowned for their +achievements in war and their romantic devotion to the fair sex. The +mere name of _the Cid_ awakens in the mind recollections alike of +tenderness and bravery. It should be remembered, too, that, long after +the expulsion of the Moors from the Peninsula, the Spaniards maintained +a reputation for gallantry far superior to that of the French, some +portion of the spirit of which, though extinct among every other +European nation, still lingers in Spain. + +{170} + +But, be this point decided as it may, it is not to be disputed that the +daughters of Grenada merited the devotion which they inspired: they +were perhaps the most fascinating women in the world. We find in the +narrative of a Moorish historian, who wrote at Grenada during the reign +of Mohammed the Old, the following description of his countrywomen: + +"Their beauty is remarkable; but the loveliness which strikes the +beholder at first sight afterward receives its principal charm from the +grace and gentleness of their manners. In stature they are above the +middle height, and of delicate and slender proportions. Their long +black hair descends to the earth. Their teeth embellish with the +whiteness of alabaster, vermillion lips, which perpetually smile with a +bewitching air. The constant use which they make of the most exquisite +perfumes, gives a freshness and brilliancy to their complexions +possessed by no other Mohammedan women. Their walking, their dancing, +their every movement, is distinguished by a graceful softness, an ease, +a lightness, which surpasses all their other charms. Their +conversation is lively and sensible, and their fine intellects are +{171} constantly displayed in brilliant wit or judicious sentiments." + +The dress of these elegant females was composed, as that of the Turkish +women still is, of a long tunic of linen confined by a cincture, of a +_doliman_ or Turkish dress with close sleeves, of wide trousers and +Morocco slippers. The materials of their clothing were of the finest +fabric, and were usually woven in stripes: they were embroidered with +gold and silver, and profusely spangled with jewels. Their waving +tresses floated over their shoulders; and a small cap, adorned with the +richest gems, supported an embroidered veil, which fell nearly to the +feet. The men were clothed in a similar manner: with them were carried +in the girdle the purse, the handkerchief, and the poniard: a white, +and sometimes a coloured, turban covered the head; and over the Turkish +doliman they wore in summer a wide and flowing white robe, and in +winter the _albornos_ or African mantle. The only change made in their +dress by the Moorish cavaliers when preparing for battle was the +addition of a coat of mail, and an iron lining within their turbans. + +It was the custom of the Grenadians to repair {172} every year, during +the autumn, to the charming villas by which the city was surrounded. +There they yielded themselves up to the pursuit of pleasure. The chase +and the dance, music and feasting, occupied every hour. + +The manners of those who participated in these national dances were in +a high degree unreserved, as was the language of the songs and ballads +in which they joined. Were it not for the contradictions in the human +character, one might be surprised at this want of delicacy in a people +who were capable of so much refinement of feeling. But, in general, +nations of Oriental origin possess but little reserve in their manners: +they have more of passion than sentiment, more of jealousy than +delicacy in their haughty and excitable natures. + +In giving these details, we have perhaps trespassed too long on the +period of calm repose enjoyed by the kingdom of Grenada during the +reign of Abouhadjad. That excellent sovereign, after having filled the +throne for thirteen years, left his flourishing dominions to his son +Joseph, who succeeded him without opposition, A.D. 1392, Heg. 795. + +Joseph II. was desirous, in imitation of the {173} course pursued by +his father, of maintaining the truce with the Christians. It was, +however, soon disturbed by a fanatical hermit, who persuaded the +Grand-master of Alcantara, Martin de Barbuda, a Portuguese, that he had +been selected by Heaven as the chosen instrument for expelling the +infidels from Spain. He promised the credulous Martin, in the name of +God, that he should succeed in conquering the enemies of the Cross, and +in carrying the city of Grenada by assault, without the loss of a +single soldier. The infatuated grand-master, convinced of the +certainty of the fulfilment of this promise, immediately sent +ambassadors to Joseph, with orders to declare to that sovereign, in his +name, that, since the religion of Mohammed was false and detestable, +and that of Jesus Christ the only true and saving faith, he, Martin de +Barbuda, defied the King of Grenada to a combat of two hundred +Mussulmans against one hundred Christians, upon condition that the +vanquished nation should instantly adopt the faith of the conquerors. + +The reception these ambassadors met with may be easily imagined. +Joseph could scarcely restrain the indignation of his people. The +{174} envoys, driven contemptuously away, returned to the presence of +the grand-master, who, surprised at receiving no response to his +proposal, soon assembled a thousand foot-soldiers and three hundred +cavaliers, and hastened to the conquest of Grenada under the guidance +of the prophetic hermit. + +The King of Castile, Henry III., who desired to preserve peace with the +followers of the Prophet at the commencement of a reign during which +his own dominions were but ill at rest, was no sooner informed of the +enterprise of Barbuda, than he sent him positive orders not to cross +the frontiers; but that dignitary replying that he ought to obey the +commands of Jehovah rather than those of any earthly master, proceeded +on his way. The governors of the different cities through which he +passed on his route endeavoured, though vainly, to arrest his progress; +but the people overwhelmed him with homage, and everywhere added to the +number of his forces. + +The army of the grand-master amounted to six thousand men, when, in +A.D. 1394, Heg. 798, he entered the country which his folly taught him +to regard as already in his possession. In attacking the first castle +at which he {175} arrived, three soldiers were killed and their +fanatical commander himself wounded. Surprised beyond measure at +beholding his own blood flow and three soldiers fall, he summoned the +anchorite into his presence, and sedately demanded what this meant, +after his express promise that not a single champion of the true faith +should perish. The fanatic replied, that the word he had pledged +extended only to regular battles. Barbuda complained no more, and +presently perceived the approach of a Moorish army composed of fifty +thousand men. The conflict soon commenced: the grand-master and his +three hundred mounted followers perished in the field, after having +performed prodigies of valour. The remainder of the Spanish army were +either taken prisoners or put to flight; and the silence of historians +respecting the hermit, leads to the opinion that he was not among the +last to seek safety at a distance from the scene of action. + +This foolish enterprise did not interrupt the good understanding +subsisting between the two nations. The King of Castile disavowed all +approval of the conduct of Martin de Barbuda, and Joseph long continued +to reign with honour and tranquillity. But he was at last poisoned, +{176} it is said, by a magnificent robe which he received from his +secret enemy, the King of Fez through the ambassadors of that +sovereign. Historians assert that this garment was impregnated with a +terrible poison, which caused the death of the unfortunate Joseph by +the most horrible torments. The peculiar effects it produced was that +of detaching the flesh from the bones, the misery of the wretched +sufferer enduring for the protracted period of thirty days. + +Mohammed IX., the second son of this hapless monarch, who, even during +the lifetime of his father, had excited commotions in the realm, +usurped the crown that of right belonged to his elder brother Joseph, +whom he caused to be confined in prison. + +Mohammed was courageous, and possessed some talents for war. Allied +with the King of Tunis, who joined his fleet with that of Grenada, he +broke the truce maintained with Castile during the two preceding +reigns, and at first gained some advantages over his adversaries, but +the Infant Don Ferdinand, the uncle and tutor of the young king John +II., was not long in avenging the cause of Spain. + +Mohammed IX. died in the year 1408, {177} Heg. 811. When the expiring +monarch became conscious that his end was rapidly approaching, desirous +of securing the crown to his son, he sent one of his principal officers +to the prison of his brother Joseph, with orders to cut off the head of +the royal occupant. The officer found Joseph engaged in a game of +chess with an iman:[15] he sorrowfully announced the mournful +commission with which he was charged. The prince, without manifesting +any emotion at the communication, only demanded time to conclude his +game; and the officer could not refuse this slight favour. While the +philosophical Mussulman continued to play, a second messenger arrived, +bearing the news of the death of the usurper, and of the proclamation +of Joseph as his successor to the throne. + +The people of Grenada were happy under the rule of the good King Joseph +III. So far was he from avenging himself upon those who had aided his +brother in depriving him of his rights, that he lavished favours and +offices on them, and educated the son of Mohammed in the same manner as +his own children. When his councillors blamed him for a degree of +indulgence {178} which they regarded as hazardous, "Allow me," replied +the sovereign, "to deprive my enemies of all excuse for having +preferred my younger brother to me!" + +This excellent prince was often obliged to take arms against the +Christians. He was so unfortunate as to lose some cities, but he +preserved the respect and affection of his subjects, and died lamented +by the whole kingdom, after a reign of fifteen years, A.D. 1423, Heg. +927. + +After the death of Joseph the state was distracted by civil wars. +Mohammed X. Abenazar, or the _Left-handed_, the son and successor of +that benevolent king, was banished from the throne by Mohammed XI. _El +Zugair_, or the Little, who preserved his ill-gotten power but two +years. The Abencerrages, a powerful tribe[16] at Grenada, +re-established Mohammed the Left-handed in his former place, and his +competitor perished on the scaffold. + +About four years after the death of Joseph, the Spaniards renewed their +inroads into Grenada, and carried fire and sword to the very gates of +the capital. All the neighbouring fields were devastated; the crops +were burned and the {179} villages destroyed. John II., who then +reigned in Castile, wishing to add to the miseries he had already +occasioned these unhappy people the still greater misfortune of civil +war, instigated the proclamation at Grenada of a certain Joseph +Alliamar, a grandson of that Mohammed the Red so basely assassinated at +Seville by Peter the Cruel. + +All the discontented spirits in the kingdom joined the faction of +Joseph Alhamar; and the Zegris, a powerful tribe, who were at enmity +with the Abencerrages, lent their aid to the usurper. Mohammed +Abenazar was again driven from the capital, A.D. 1432, Heg. 836, and +Joseph IV. Alhamar possessed his dominions six months. At the +termination of that time he expired. + +Mohammed the Left-handed once more resumed his royal seat; but, after +thirteen years of misfortune, this unhappy prince was again deposed for +the third time, and imprisoned by one of his nephews, named Mohammed +XII. the Osmin, who was himself afterward dethroned[17] by his own +brother Ismael, and ended his days {180} in the same dungeon in which +his uncle Mohammed Abenazar had languished. + +All these revolutions did not prevent the Christian and Moorish +governors who commanded on their respective frontiers from making +incessant irruptions into the enemy's country. Sometimes a little +troop of cavalry or infantry surprised a village, massacred the +inhabitants, pillaged their houses, and carried away their flocks. +Sometimes an army suddenly appeared in a fertile plain, devastated the +fields, uprooted the vines, felled the trees, besieged and took some +town or fortress, and retired with their booty. This kind of warfare +was ruinous, most of all, to the unfortunate cultivator of the soil. +The Grenadian dominions suffered so much during the reign of Ismael +II., that the king was compelled to cause immense forests to be cleared +for the support of his capital, which then drew scarcely any supplies +from the vast and fertile _vega_ which had been so often desolated by +the Spaniards. + +Ismael II. left the crown to his son Mulei-Hassem, a young and highly +courageous prince, who, profiting by the disastrous condition of +Castile under the deplorable reign of Henry IV. the {181} Impotent, +carried his arms into the centre of Andalusia. The success that marked +the commencement of the reign of this sovereign, together with his +talents and warlike ardour, tempted the Moors to believe that they +might yet recover their former greatness. But the occurrence at this +juncture of a great and unlooked-for event, arrested the victorious +progress of Mulei-Hassam, and prepared the way for the total ruin of +his kingdom. + +Isabella of Castile, the sister of Henry the Impotent, notwithstanding +the opposition of her brother and the intervention of almost +insurmountable obstacles, espoused Ferdinand the Catholic, the king of +Sicily, and heir presumptive of the kingdom of Aragon.[18] This +marriage, by uniting the two most powerful monarchs of Spain, gave a +fatal blow to the prosperity of the Moors, which they had been able to +maintain, even in the degree in which it now existed, only through the +divisions which had hitherto perpetually prevailed among their +Christian opponents. + +Either of the two enemies, now unitedly arrayed against them, had been +singly sufficient {182} to overwhelm the Mussulmans. Ferdinand was +alike politic, able, and adroit. He was pliant, and, at the same time, +firm; cautious to a degree sometimes amounting to pusillanimity; +cunning even to falsehood, and endowed in an extraordinary degree with +the power of discerning at a single glance all the various means of +attaining a particular end. Isabella was of a prouder and more noble +nature; endowed with heroic courage and the most unyielding constancy +of purpose, she was admirably qualified for the pursuit and +accomplishment of any enterprise to which she might direct the energies +of her powerful mind. The exalted endowments of one of these royal +personages have been employed to ennoble the character of the other. +Ferdinand often played the part of a weak, perfidious woman, +negotiating only to deceive; whereas Isabella was always the +high-souled sovereign, advancing openly to her purposes, and marching +directly to honourable conflict and generous triumph. + +No sooner had these distinguished individuals secured possession of +their respective kingdoms, suppressed all domestic disturbances, and +effected peaceful arrangements with foreign powers, {183} than they +mutually resolved to concentrate all their efforts for the annihilation +of the Mohammedan dominion in Spain. + +This century seemed destined to be marked by the glory of the +Spaniards. In addition to the immense advantages afforded them by the +union of their forces, Ferdinand and Isabella were surrounded by the +wisest and most experienced advisers. The celebrated Cardinal Ximenes, +at one time a simple monk, was now at the head of their councils; and +that able minister "_led_," as he himself averred, "_all Spain by his +girdle!_" The civil wars with which the Peninsula had been so long +disturbed, had created among the Christian powers a host of brave +soldiers and excellent commanders. Among the latter were particularly +distinguished the Count de Cabra, the Marquis of Cadiz, and the famous +Gonzalvo of Cordova, whose just claim to the surname of _the Great +Captain_, given him by his countrymen, the lapse of time has only +served to confirm. The public treasury, which had been exhausted by +the lavish prodigality of Henry, was soon replenished by the rigid +economy of Isabella, aided by a bull from the pope, permitting the +royal appropriation of the {184} ecclesiastical revenues. The troops +were numerous and admirably disciplined, and the emulation which +existed between the Castilians and Aragonians redoubled the valour of +both. Everything, in short, prognosticated the downfall of the last +remaining throne of the Moors. + +Its royal champion, Mulei-Hassem, was not dismayed, however, even by +such an accumulation of danger. He was the first to break the truce, +by taking forcible possession of the city of Zahra, A.D. 1481, Heg. +886. Ferdinand despatched ambassadors to the Moslem court to complain +of this breach of faith; with orders, at the same time, to demand the +ancient tribute which had been paid by the kings of Grenada to the +sovereigns of Castile. + +"I know," replied Mulei-Hassem, when the envoys of the Spanish prince +had delivered their message, "I know that some of my predecessors +rendered you tribute in pieces of gold; but _this_ is the only metal +now coined in the national mint of Grenada!" And, as he spoke, the +stern and haughty monarch presented the head of his lance to the +Spanish ambassadors. + +The army of Ferdinand first marched upon Alhamar, a very strong +fortress in the {185} neighbourhood of Grenada, and particularly famous +for the magnificent baths with which it had been embellished by the +Moorish kings. The place was taken by surprise, and thus a war was +lighted up that was destined to be extinguished only with the last +expiring sigh of Grenada. + +Victory seemed at first to be equally poised between the two contending +powers. The King of Grenada possessed ample resources in troops, +artillery, and treasure. He might have long maintained the contest, +but for an act of imprudence which precipitated him into an abyss of +misfortune from which he was never afterward able to extricate himself. + +The wife of Mulei-Hassem, named Aixa, belonged, before her marriage +with the king, to one of the most important of the Grenadian tribes. +The offspring of this marriage was a son named Boabdil, whose right it +was to succeed to his father's throne. But the reckless Mulei +repudiated his wife at the instance of a Christian slave, of whom he +became enamoured, and who governed the doting monarch at will. This +act of cruelty and injustice was the signal for civil war. The injured +Aixa, in concert with her son, excited her relatives and friends, {186} +and a large number of the inhabitants of the capital, to throw off +their allegiance to their sovereign. + +Mulei-Hassem was eventually driven from the city, and Boabdil assumed +the title of king. Thus father and son were involved in a contest for +the possession of a crown, of which Ferdinand was seeking to deprive +them both. + +To add to the misfortunes which were already fast crushing this +distracted and miserable country beneath their weight, another aspirant +to the throne presented himself, in the person of a brother of +Mulei-Hassem named Zagel. This prince, at the head of a band of +Moorish adventurers, had succeeded in obtaining some important +advantages over the Spaniards in the defiles of Malaga, A.D. 1483, Heg. +888. + +His achievements having won for him the hearts of his countrymen, Zagel +now conceived the design of dethroning his brother and nephew, and of +appropriating the dominions of both to himself. Thus a third faction +arose to increase the dissensions of the state. + +Boabdil still held insecure possession of the capital; and, desirous of +attempting some action, the brilliancy of which would reanimate the +{187} hopes and confidence of a party that was ready to abandon him, he +sallied forth at the head of a small force, with the intention of +surprising Lucena, a city belonging to the Castilians. + +But the ill-fated Boabdil was made a prisoner in this expedition. + +He was the first Moorish king who had ever been a captive to the +Spaniards. Ferdinand lavished on him the attentions due to misfortune, +and caused him to be conducted to Cordova, attended by an escort. + +The old king, Mulei-Hassem, seized this opportunity to repossess +himself of the crown of which his rebellious son had deprived him, and, +in spite of the party of Zagel, he again became master of his capital. +But the restored monarch could oppose but a feeble resistance to the +progress of the Spaniards, who were rapidly reducing his cities and +advancing nearer to his devoted capital. Within the walls of that city +the wretched inhabitants were madly warring against one another, as if +unconscious of the destruction that was fast approaching them from +without. To increase the sanguinary feuds which already so surely +presaged their destruction, the Catholic sovereigns had become the +{188} allies of the captive Boabdil, engaging to assist him in his +efforts against his father on condition that he should pay them a +tribute of twelve thousand crowns of gold, acknowledge himself their +vassal, and deliver certain strong places into their hands. The base +Boabdil acceded to everything; and, aided by the politic Spanish +princes, hastened again to take arms against his father. + +The kingdom of Grenada was now converted into one wide field of +carnage, where Mulei-Hassem, Boabdil, and Zagel were furiously +contending for the mournful relics of their country. + +The Spaniards, in the mean time, marched rapidly from one conquest to +another, sometimes under pretext of sustaining their ally Boabdil, and +often in open defiance of the treaty they had formed with that prince; +but always carefully feeding the fire of discord, while they were +despoiling each of the three rival parties, and leaving to the +vanquished inhabitants their laws, their customs, and the free exercise +of their religion. + +In the midst of these frightful scenes of calamity and crime, old +Mulei-Hassem died, either worn out by grief and misfortune, or through +{189} the agency of his ambitious brother. This event occurred A.D. +1485, Heg. 890. + +Ferdinand had now rendered himself master of all the western part of +the kingdom of Grenada, and Boabdil agreed to divide with Zagel the +remnant of this desolated state. The city of Grenada was retained by +Boabdil, while Gaudix and Almeria fell to the share of Zagel. The war +was not the less vigorously prosecuted in consequence of this +arrangement; and the unprincipled Zagel, doubting his ability long to +retain the cities in his possession, sold them to King Ferdinand in +consideration of an annual pension. + +By virtue of this treaty, the Catholic sovereigns took possession of +the purchased cities; and the traitor Zagel even lent the aid of his +arms to the Christian army, the more speedily to overthrow the royal +power of his nephew, and thereby terminate the existence of his +expiring country. + +All that now remained to the Mussulmans was the single city of Grenada. +There Boabdil still reigned; and, exasperated by misfortune, he vented +his rage and despair in acts of barbarous cruelty towards its wretched +inhabitants. + +{190} + +Ferdinand and Isabella, disregarding the conditions of their pretended +alliance with this now powerless prince, summoned him to surrender his +capital, in compliance, as they said, with the terms of a secret +treaty, which they affirmed had been concluded between them. Boabdil +protested against this perfidious conduct. But there was no time +allowed for complaint: he must successfully defend himself, or cease to +reign. The Moorish prince adopted, therefore, to say the least, the +most heroic alternative; and resolved to defend to the last what +remained to him of his once beautiful and flourishing country. + +The Spanish sovereign, at the head of an army of sixty thousand men, +the flower and chivalry of the united kingdoms of Castile and Aragon, +laid siege to Grenada on the 9th of May, 1491, and in the 897th year of +the Hegira. + +This great city, as has been already mentioned, was defended by strong +ramparts, flanked by a multitude of towers, and by numerous other +fortifications, built one above the other. Notwithstanding the civil +wars which had inundated it with blood, Grenada still enclosed within +its walls more than two hundred thousand {191} inhabitants. Every +brave Moorish cavalier who still remained true to his country, its +religion, and its laws, had here taken refuge. Despair redoubled their +strength in this last desperate struggle; and had these fierce and +intrepid warriors been guided by a more worthy chief than Boabdil, +their noble constancy might still have saved them; but this weak and +ferocious monarch hesitated not, on the slightest suspicion, to consign +his most faithful defenders to the axe of the executioner. Thus he +became daily more and more an object of hatred and contempt to the +Grenadians, by whom he was surnamed _Zogoybi_; that is to say, _the +Little King_. The different tribes now grew dissatisfied and +dispirited, especially the numerous and powerful tribe of the +Abencerrages. The alfaquis and the imans, also, loudly predicted the +approaching downfall of the Moorish empire; and nothing upheld the +sinking courage of the people against the pressure of a foreign foe and +the tyranny of their own rulers but their unconquerable horror of the +Spanish yoke. + +The Catholic soldiers, on the other hand, elated by their past success, +regarded themselves as invincible, and never for a moment doubted the +{192} certainty of their triumph. They were commanded, also, by +leaders to whom they were devotedly attached: Ponce de Leon, marquis of +Cadiz, Henry de Guzman, duke of Medina, Mendoza, Aguillar, Villena, and +Gonzalvo of Cordova, together with many other famous captains, +accompanied their victorious king. Isabella, too, whose virtues +excited the highest respect, and whose affability and grace won for her +the affectionate regard of all, had repaired to the camp of her husband +with the Infant and the Infantas, and attended by the most brilliant +court in Europe. This politic princess, though naturally grave and +serious, wisely accommodated herself to the existing circumstances. +She mingled fetes and amusements with warlike toil: jousts and +tournaments delighted at intervals the war-worn soldiery; and dances, +games, and illuminations filled up the delicious summer evenings. + +Queen Isabella was the animating genius that directed everything; a +gracious word from her was a sufficient recompense for the most gallant +achievement; and her look alone had power to transform the meanest +soldier into a hero. + +Abundance reigned in the Christian camp; {193} while joy and hope +animated every heart. But within the beleaguered city, mutual +distrust, universal consternation, and the prospect of inevitable +destruction, had damped the courage and almost annihilated the hopes of +the wretched inhabitants. + +The siege, nevertheless, lasted for nine months. The cautious +commander of the Christian army did not attempt to carry by assault a +place so admirably fortified. After having laid waste the environs, +therefore, he waited patiently until famine should deliver the city +into his hands. Satisfied with battering the ramparts and repelling +the frequent sorties of the Moors, he never engaged in any decisive +action, but daily hemmed in more closely the chafed lion that could not +now escape his toils. + +Accident one night set fire to the pavilion of Isabella, and the +spreading conflagration consumed every tent in the camp. But Boabdil +derived no advantage from this disaster. The queen directed that a +city should supply the place of the ruined camp, to convince the +enemies of the cross that the siege would never be raised until Grenada +should come into possession of the conquering Spaniards. This great +and {194} extraordinary design, so worthy the genius of Isabella, was +executed in eighty days. The Christian camp thus became a walled city; +and Santa Fe still exists as a monument of the piety and perseverance +of the heroic Queen of Castile. + +At last, oppressed by famine, less frequently successful than at first +in the partial engagements that were constantly taking place under the +walls, and abandoned by Africa, from which there were no attempts made +to relieve them, the Moors now felt the necessity of a surrender. + +Gonzalvo of Cordova was empowered by the conquerors to arrange the +articles of capitulation. These provided that the people of Grenada +should recognise Ferdinand and Isabella, and their royal successors, as +their rightful sovereigns; that all their Christian captives should be +released without ransom; that the Moors should continue to be governed +by their own laws; should retain their national customs, their judges, +half the number of their mosques, and the free exercise of their faith; +that they should be permitted either to keep or sell their property, +and to retire to Africa, or to any other country they might choose, +while, at the same time, they should not be compelled to leave their +{195} native land. It was also agreed that Boabdil should have +assigned to him a rich and ample domain in the Alpuxares, of which he +should possess the entire command. + +Such were the terms of capitulation, and but ill were they observed by +the Spaniards. Boabdil fulfilled his part of the stipulations some +days before the time specified, in consequence of being informed that +his people, roused by the representations of the imans, wished to break +off the negotiations, and to bury themselves beneath the ruins of the +city rather than suffer their desolate and deserted homes to be +profaned by the intruding foot of the spoiler. + +The wretched Moslem prince hastened therefore to deliver the keys of +the city, and of the fortresses of the Albazin and the Alhambra, into +the hands of Ferdinand. + +Entering no more, after this mournful ceremony, within the walls where +he no longer retained any authority, Boabdil took his melancholy +journey, accompanied by his family and a small number of followers, to +the petty dominions which were now all that remained to him of the once +powerful and extensive empire of his ancestors. + +{196} + +When the cavalcade reached an eminence from which the towers of Grenada +might still be discerned, the wretched exile turned his last sad +regards upon the distant city, amid ill-suppressed tears and groans. +"_You do well_," said Aixa, his mother, "_to weep like a woman for the +throne you could not defend like a man!_" + +But the now powerless Boabdil could not long endure existence as a +subject in a country where he had reigned as a sovereign: he crossed +the Mediterranean to Africa, and there he ended his days on the +battle-field. + +Ferdinand and Isabella made their public entrance into Grenada on the +1st of January, 1492, through double ranks of soldiers, and amid the +thunder of artillery. The city seemed deserted; the inhabitants fled +from the presence of the conquerors, and concealed their tears and +their despair within the innermost recesses of their habitations. + +The royal victors repaired first to the grand mosque, which was +consecrated as a Christian church, and where they rendered thanks to +God for the brilliant success that had crowned their arms. While the +sovereigns fulfilled this pious duty, the Count de Tendilla, the new +governor {197} of Grenada, elevated the triumphant cross, and the +standards of Castile and St. James, on the highest towers of the +Alhambra. + +Thus fell this famous city, and thus perished the power of the Moors of +Spain, after an existence of seven hundred and eighty-two years from +the first conquest of the country by Tarik. + +It may now be proper briefly to remark upon the principal causes of the +extinction of the national independence of the kingdom of Grenada. + +The first of these arose from the peculiar character of the Moors: from +that spirit of inconstancy, that love of novelty, and that unceasing +inquietude, which prompted them to such frequent change of their +rulers; which multiplied factions among them, and constantly convulsed +the empire with internal discords, expending its strength and power in +dissensions at home, and thus leaving it defenceless against foreign +enemies. The Moors may also be reproached with an extravagant fondness +for architectural magnificence, splendid fetes, and other expensive +entertainments, which aided in exhausting the national treasury at +times when protracted warfare scarcely ever permitted this most fertile +region of the earth to reproduce the {198} crops the Spaniards had +destroyed. But, more than all, they were a people without an +established code of laws, that only permanent basis of the prosperity +of nations. And then, too, a despotic form of government, which +deprives men of patriotism, induced each individual to regard his +virtues and attainments merely as affording the means of personal +consideration, and not, as they should be considered, the property of +his country. + +These grave defects in the national character of the Moors were +redeemed by many excellent qualities, which even the Spaniards admitted +them to possess. In battle they were no less brave and prudent than +their Christian antagonists, though inferior in skill and discipline. +They excelled them, however, in the art of attack. Adversity never +long overwhelmed them; they saw in misfortune the will of Heaven, and +without a murmur submitted to it. Their favourite dogma of fatalism +doubtless contributed to this result. Fervently devoted to the laws of +Mohammed, they obeyed with great exactness his humane injunctions +respecting almsgiving:[19] they bestowed on the poor not only food and +{199} money, but a portion of their grain, fruit, and flocks, and of +every kind of merchandise. In the towns and throughout the country, +the indigent sick were collected, attended, and nursed with the most +assiduous care. Hospitality, so sacred from the remotest time among +the Arabs, was not less carefully observed among the people of Grenada, +who seemed to take peculiar pleasure in its exercise. The following +touching anecdote is told in illustration of the powerful influence of +this principle. A stranger, bathed in blood, sought refuge from the +officers of justice under the roof of an aged Moor. The old man +concealed him in his house. But he had scarcely done so before a guard +arrived to demand possession of the murderer, and, at the same time, to +deliver to the horror-stricken Mussulman the dead body of his son, whom +the stranger had just assassinated. Still the aged father would not +give up his guest. When the guard, however, were gone, he entreated +the assassin to leave him. "_Depart from me_," he cried, "_that I may +be at liberty to pursue thee!_" + +These Moslems were but little known to the historians by whom they have +been so often calumniated. Polished, enthusiastic, hospitable, {200} +brave, and chivalrous, but haughty, passionate, inconstant, and +vindictive, their unfortunate fate entitles them, at least, to +compassion and sympathy, while their virtues may well excite respect +and interest. + +After their final defeat, many of the followers of the Prophet retired +to Africa. Those who remained in Grenada suffered greatly from the +persecution and oppression to which they were subjected by their new +masters. The article in their last treaty with the Spaniards, which +formally ensured their religious freedom, was grossly violated by the +Catholics, who compelled the Mussulmans to abjure their national faith +by force, terror, and every other unworthy means. + +At last, outraged beyond endurance by this want of good faith, and +wrought to desperation by the cruelties they were compelled to endure, +in the year 1500 the Moors attempted to revolt against their +oppressors. Their efforts were, however, unavailing: Ferdinand marched +in person against them, repressed by force of arms the struggles of a +people whom he designated as rebels, and, sword in hand, administered +the rite of baptism to more than fifty thousand captive Moslems. + +{201} + +The successors of Ferdinand, Charles V. and especially Philip II., +continued to harass the Moors.[20] The Inquisition was established in +the city of Grenada, and all the terrors of that dreaded institution +were added to gentler means for the conversion of the infidels to +Christianity. Their children were taken from them to be educated in +accordance with the precepts of that religion whose Adorable Founder +enjoined peace, mercy, and forbearance upon his followers, and forbade +the practice of injustice and cruelty in every form. + +Yielding to the promptings of despair, this crushed and wretched +remnant of a once powerful and glorious nation again flew to arms in +the year 1569, and executed the most terrible vengeance upon the +Catholic priesthood. Mohammed-ben-Ommah, the new king whom they chose +to direct their destinies, and who was {202} said to have sprung from +the cherished race of the Ommiades, several times gave battle to his +opponents in the mountains of the Alpuxares, where he sustained the +cause of his injured countrymen for the space of two years. At the end +of that time he was assassinated by his own people. His successor +shared the same fate, and the Mussulmans were again compelled to submit +to a yoke their revolt had rendered even more intolerable than before. + +Finally, King Philip III. totally banished the Moors from Spain. The +depopulation thus produced inflicted a wound upon that kingdom, from +the effects of which it has never since recovered. + +More than one hundred and fifty thousand of this persecuted race took +refuge in France, where Henry IV. received them with great humanity. A +small number also concealed themselves in the recesses of the +Alpuxares; but the greatest part of the expatriated Islamites sought a +home in Africa. There their descendants still drag out a miserable +existence under the despotic rule of the sovereigns of Morocco, and +unceasingly pray that they may be restored to their beloved Grenada. + + + +[1] The Darra, Xenil, Dilar, Vagro, and Monachil. + +[2] See note A, page 222. + +[3] See note B, page 222. + +[4] See note C, page 222. + +[5] It should be borne in mind, that the description given by M. +Florian of the remains of the once gorgeous splendours of this palace +was written nearly half a century ago; and that time, and the yet more +ruthless destroyer man, may have wrought great changes since that +period amid the ruins of the Alhambra.--_Trans._ + +[6] The translator has adopted the literal French version of this +inscription, given in a note by M. Florian, from the impression that +the spirit of the original would thus be better preserved than by +attempting to render into rhyme his poetical interpretation. + +[7] See Note D, page 223. + +[8] See note E, page 224. + +[9] A.D. 1302, Heg. 703. + +[10] A.D. 1319, Heg. 719. + +[11] The mountains of Grenada, in the neighbourhood of which this +action took place, have, ever since that event, borne the name of LA +SIERRA DE LOS INFANTES. + +[12] See Note F, page 224. + +[13] See Note G, page 225. + +[14] The translator ventures to offer an imitation of M. Florian's +French version of this Moorish ballad, and appends the Spanish original +with which he presents his readers. + + GANZUL Y ZELINDA. + + ROMANCE MORO. + + En el tiempo que Zelinda + Cerro ayrada la ventana + A la disculpa a los zelos + Que el Moro Ganzul le daya, + Confusa y arrepentida + De averse fingido ayrada, + For verle y desagravialle, + El corazon se le abraza; + Que en el villano de amor + Es mui cierta la mudanza, etc. + + Y como supo que el Moro + Rompio furioso la lanca, etc. + Y que la librea verde + Avia trocado en leonada; + Saco luego una marlota + De tufetan roxo y plata, + Un bizarro capellar + De tela de oro morada, etc. + + Con une bonete cubierto + De zaphires y esparaldas, + Que publican zelos muertos, + Y vivas las esperancos, + Con una nevada toca; + Que el color de la veleta + Tambien publica bononca + Informandose primero. + + A donde Ganzul estava, + A una caza de plazer + Aquella tarde le llama + Y diziendole a Ganzul. + Que Zelinda le aguardava, + Al page le pregunto + Tres vezes si so burlava; + Que son malaas de creer + Las nuevas mui desseadas, etc. + Hollola en un jardin, + Entre mosquetta y jasmine, etc. + + Viendose Moro con ella, + A penas los ojos alca; + Zelinda le asio la mano, + Un poco roxa y turbada; + Y al fin de infinitas guexas + Que en tales passes se passan, + Vistio se las ricas presas + Con las manos de su dama, etc. + +[15] Mohammedan priest. + +[16] See Note H, page 225. + +[17] A.D. 1453, Heg. 857. + +[18] A.D. 1469, Heg. 874. + +[19] See Note I, page 226. + +[20] The edicts of Charles V., which were renewed and rendered more +severe by Philip II., directed an entire change in the peculiar +domestic habits and manners of the Moors, prescribed their adoption of +the Spanish costume and language, forbade their women to wear veils, +interdicted the use of the oath and the celebration of their national +dances, and ordered that all their children from the age of five to +fifteen should be registered, that they might be sent to Catholic +Schools. + + + + +{203} + +NOTES. + + +FIRST EPOCH. + +A, page 25. + +_Until they embrace Islamism, &c._ + +The word _Islamism_ is derived from _islam_, which signifies +_consecration to God_. + +The brief synopsis given in the text of the principles of the +Mohammedan religion, is literally rendered by the author from several +different chapters of the Koran. These precepts are there to be found +almost lost amid a mass of absurdities, repetitions, and incoherent +rhapsodies. Yet, throughout the entire work, there are occasionally +bright gleams of fervid eloquence or pure morality. Mohammed never +speaks on his own authority; he pretends always to be prompted by the +angel Gabriel, who repeats to him the commands of the Most High: the +Prophet does but listen and repeat them. The angelic messenger has +taken care to enter into a multitude of details, not only in relation +to religion, but also to legislation and government. And thus it +happens that the Koran is regarded by the Mussulmans as their standard, +no less for civil than for moral law. One half of this book is written +in verse, and the remainder in poetical prose. Mohammed possessed +great poetical talent; an endowment so highly esteemed by his +countrymen, that they were in the habit of assembling at Mecca to +pronounce judgment on the different poems affixed {204} by their +respective authors to the walls of the temple of tie Caaba; and the +individual in whose favour the popular voice decided was crowned with +great solemnity. When the second chapter of the Koran, _Labia ebn +rabia_, appeared on the walls, the most famous poet of the time, who +had previously posted up a rival production of his own, tore it down, +and acknowledged himself conquered by the Prophet. + +Mohammed was not altogether the monster of cruelty so many authors +represent him to have been. He often displayed much humanity towards +offenders who were in his power, and even forgave personal injuries. +One of the most unrelenting of his enemies, named Caab, on whose head a +price had been set, had the audacity suddenly to appear in the mosque +at Medina while Mohammed was preaching to the multitude. Caab recited +some verses which he had composed in honour of the Prophet. Mohammed +listened to them with pleasure, embraced the poet, and invested him +with his own mantle. This precious garment was afterward bought by one +of the caliphs of the East, from the family of Caab, for the sum of +twenty thousand drachms, and became the pride of those Asiatic +sovereigns, who wore it only on the occasion of some solemn festival. + +The last moments of Mohammed would seem to prove that he was far from +possessing an ignoble mind. Feeling his end approaching, he repaired +to the mosque, supported by his friend Ali. Mounting the tribune, he +made a prayer, and then, turning to the assembly, uttered these words: +"Mussulmans, I am about to die. No one, therefore, need any longer +fear me; if I have struck any one among you, here is my breast, let him +strike me in return: if I have wrongfully taken the property of any +one, here is my purse, let him remunerate himself: if I have humbled +any one, let him now {205} spurn me: I surrender myself to the justice +of my countrymen!" The people sobbed aloud: one individual alone +demanded three drachms of the dying Prophet, who instantly discharged +the debt with interest. After this he took an affectionate leave of +the brave Medinians who had so faithfully defended him, gave liberty to +his slaves, and ordered the arrangements for his funeral. His last +interview with his wife and daughter, and Omar and Ali, his friends and +disciples, was marked by much tenderness. Sorrow and lamentation were +universal throughout Arabia on this occasion; and his daughter Fatima +died of grief for his loss. + +The respect and veneration entertained by his followers for Mohammed is +almost inconceivable. Their doctors have gravely asserted in their +writings that the world was created for him; that the first thing made +was light, and that that light became the substance of the soul of +Mohammed, etc. Some of them have maintained that the Alcoran was +uncreated, while others have adopted a contrary opinion; and out of +these discordant views have arisen numerous sects, and even wars that +have deluged Asia with blood. + +The life of Mohammed was terminated by poison, which had been +administered to him some years before by a Jewess named Zainab, whose +brother had been slain by Ali. This woman, to avenge the death of her +brother, poisoned some roasted lamb which she served up for the +Prophet. Scarcely had he put a morsel of it into his mouth, when, +instantly rejecting it, he exclaimed that the meat was poisoned. +Notwithstanding the prompt use of antidotes, the injurious consequences +were so severe, that he suffered from them during the remainder of his +life, and died four years after, in the sixty-third year of his age. + + +{206} + +B, page 27. + +_Kaled, surnamed the Sword of God, &c._ + +The feats of arms ascribed by historians to Kaled resemble those of a +hero of romance. He was at first the enemy of the great Arabian +leader, and vanquished that commander in the conflict of _Aheh_, the +only battle which Mohammed ever lost. Having afterward become a +zealous Mussulman, he subjugated such parts of the Mohammedan dominions +as had revolted after the death of the Prophet, opposed the armies of +Heraclius, conquered Syria, Palestine, and a part of Persia, and came +off victor in numerous single combats in which he was at different +times engaged: always challenging to an encounter of this kind the +general of the hostile army. The following anecdote will illustrate +his character. Kaled besieged the city of Bostra. The Greek governor, +named Romain, under pretence of making a sortie, passed the walls with +his troops, and arranged them in order of battle in front of the +Mussulman army. At the moment when he should have given the signal for +the onset, the valiant Greek demanded an interview with Kaled. The two +commanders, therefore, advanced into the centre of the space which +separated the opposing armies. Romain declared to the Saracen general +that he had determined not only to deliver the city to him, but to +embrace the religion of the crescent; he at the same time expressed a +fear that his soldiers, among whom he was by no means popular, intended +to take his life, and intreated Kaled to protect him against their +vengeance. + +"The best thing you can do," replied the Moslem leader, "is immediately +to accept a challenge to a single combat with me. Such an exhibition +of courage will gain for you the respect of your troops, and we can +treat together afterward!" + +{207} + +At these words, without waiting for a reply from the governor, the +champion of Islamism drew his cimeter and attacked the unfortunate +Romain, who defended himself with a trembling hand. At each blow +inflicted by the redoubtable follower of the Prophet, Remain cried out, +"Do you then wish to kill me?" "No," replied the Mussulman; "my only +object is, to load you with honour; the more you are beaten, the more +esteem you will acquire!" At last, when he had nearly deprived the +poor Greek of life, Kaled gave up the contest, and shortly after took +possession of the city: when he next saw the pusillanimous governor, he +politely inquired after his health. + + +C, page 30. + +_The warlike tribes of the Bereberes, &c._ + +The name of the portion of Africa called _Barbary_ is derived from the +Bereberes. This people regarded themselves, with much appearance of +truth, as the descendants of those Arabs who originally came into the +country with Malek Yarfric, and who are often confounded with the +ancient Numidians. Their language, which differs from that of every +other people, is, in the opinion of some authors, a corruption of the +Punic or Carthaginian. Divided into tribes and wandering among the +mountains, this peculiar race still exists in the kingdom of Morocco. +The Bereberes were never allied with the Moors, for whom they always +entertained a feeling of enmity. Though at present under the dominion +of the kings of Morocco as their religious head, they brave his +displeasure and authority at will. They are formidable in consequence +of their numbers, courage, and indomitable spirit of independence; and +still preserve unimpaired the peculiar simplicity of their ancient +manners and habits. + + +{208} + +D, page 34. + +_Tarik, one of the most renowned captains of his time, &c._ + +Tarik landed at the dot of the Calpe Mountain, and took the city of +Herculia, to which the Arabs gave the name of _Djebel Tarik_, of which +we have made Gibraltar. + + +E, page 38. + +_During the remainder of the Caliphate of Yezid II., &c._ + +This caliph, the ninth of the Ommiades, ended his existence in a manner +that at least merits pity. He was amusing himself one day with +throwing grapes at his favourite female slave, who caught them in her +mouth. This fruit, it must be remembered, is much larger in Syria than +in Europe. Unfortunately, one of the grapes passed into the throat of +the slave and instantly suffocated her. The despairing Yezid would not +permit the interment of this dearest object of his affections, and +watched incessantly beside the corpse for eight successive days. Being +compelled at last, by the condition of the body, to separate himself +from it, he died of grief, entreating, as he expired, that his remains +might be interred in the same tomb with his beloved Hubabah. + + +SECOND EPOCH. + +A, page 46. + +_He was soon after assassinated, &c._ + +Three Karagites (a name applied to a pre-eminently fanatical sect of +Mussulmans), beholding the disorders created in the Arabian empire by +the contentions of Ali, Moavias, and {209} Amrou, believed that they +should perform a service that would be acceptable to God, and restore +peace to their country, by simultaneously assassinating the three +rivals. One of them repaired to Damascus, and wounded the usurper +Moavias in the back; but the wound did not prove mortal. The +confederate charged with the murder of Amrou, stabbed, by mistake, one +of the friends of that rebel. The third, who had undertaken to +despatch Ali, struck him as he was about to enter the mosque, and the +virtuous caliph was the only one who fell a victim to the design of the +assassins. + + +B, page 48. + +_Mervan II., the last caliph of the race, &c._ + +This Ommiade was surnamed _Alhemar_, that is to say, _The Ass_: an +appellation which, in the East, is considered highly honourable, from +the singular regard there entertained for that patient and +indefatigable animal. Ariosto derived his touching episode of Isabella +of Gallicia from the history of this prince. Mervan, being at one time +in Egypt, became enamoured of a religious recluse whom he chanced to +see there, and endeavoured to persuade her to break her monastic vows. +Effectually to relieve herself from his persecutions, the young devotee +promised him an ointment which would render him invulnerable, and +volunteered to prove its efficacy on her own person. After having +anointed her neck with the mixture, she requested the caliph to test +the keenness of his cimeter on it, which the barbarian did; and the +result may be easily imagined. + + +C, page 48. + +_The names of Haroun al Raschid, &c._ + +Haroun al Raschid (which signifies Haroun the Just) was {210} greatly +renowned in the East. He undoubtedly, in part, owed his fame, as well +as his surname, to the protection he afforded to men of letters. His +military exploits and his love of science prove this caliph to have +been no ordinary man; but then the glory of his achievements was +tarnished by his cruelty to the Barmacides. These were a distinguished +tribe or family, descended from the ancient kings of Persia. They had +rendered the most signal services to the successive caliphs, and won +the respect and affection of the whole empire. Giaffar Barmacide, who +was considered the most virtuous of Mussulmans and the most eminent +author of the age, was the vizier of Haroun. He entertained a +passionate regard for Abassa, the beautiful and accomplished sister of +the caliph, and the princess reciprocated his affection; but the +sovereign made the most unreasonable opposition to the celebration of +their nuptials. This they effected, however, without his knowledge; +and for some time Haroun remained ignorant of the union of the lovers. +But, at the end of some years, the caliph made a pilgrimage to Mecca, +to which city, the more effectually to secure the inviolability of his +secret, the Bermacide had sent his infant son to be reared. There the +representative of the Prophet, through the instrumentality of a +perfidious slave, became acquainted with all the circumstances of the +deception that had been practised on him. It would be difficult to +believe the account of what followed, but that the facts were so well +authenticated throughout Asia. Haroun caused his sister to be thrown +into a well, commanded that Giaffar should lose his head, and ordered +every relative of the unfortunate Bermacide to be put to death. The +father of the vizier, a venerable old man, respected throughout the +empire, which he had long governed, met his fate with the most heroic +firmness. Before he expired, he wrote these {211} words to the +sanguinary despot: "_The accused departs first; the accuser will +shortly follow. Both will appear in the presence of a Judge whom no +arguments can deceive!_" + +The implacable Haroun carried his vengeance so far as to forbid that +any one should mention the names of his hapless victims. One of his +subjects, named Mundir, had the courage to brave this edict, and +publicly to pronounce the eulogy of the beloved Bermacides. + +The tyrant commanded that the offending Mussulman should appear before +him, and threatened him with punishment for what he had done. + +"You can silence me only by inflicting death upon me!" replied Mundir: +"that you have the power of doing; but you cannot extinguish the +gratitude entertained by the whole empire for those virtuous ministers: +even the ruins you have made of the monuments which they erected, speak +of their fame in spite of you!" It is said that the monarch was +touched by the words of this fearless defender of the dead, and that he +commanded a golden plate to be presented to him. + +Such was the famous caliph who bore the name of _the Just_. Almamon, +his son, received no surname; but he deserved to be ranked with the +wisest and the most virtuous of men. Some idea of his character may be +formed from the following anecdote. It is recorded of him, that his +viziers urged him to punish with death one of his relations who had +taken arms against him, and caused himself to be proclaimed caliph. +Almamon, however, rejected this sanguinary counsel, saying at the same +time, "Alas! if they who have injured me, knew how much pleasure I +experience in forgiving my enemies, they would hasten to appear before +me to confess their faults!" This excellent prince was the munificent +{212} patron of science and the arts, and his reign formed the most +brilliant epoch of the glorious days of the Arabs. + + +D, page 54. + +_Wars with the kings of Leon, and incursions into Catalonia, &c._ + +Historians do not agree concerning the precise period when Charlemagne +entered Spain. It would appear, however, that it was during the reign +of Abderamus that the emperor crossed the Pyrenees, took Pampeluna and +Saragossa, and was attacked, during his retreat, in the defiles of +Roncevaux, a place rendered famous in romantic literature by the death +of Roland. + + +E, page 59. + +_A government that properly respected the rights of the people, &c._ + +The ancient laws of Aragon, known under the name of _Fore de Sobarbe_, +limited the power of the sovereign by creating a balance for it in that +of the _ricos Hombres_, and of a magistrate who bore the name of +Justice. + + +F, page 60. + +_The celebrated school, &c._ + +The musical school, founded at Cordova by Ali-Zeriab, produced the +famous Moussali, who was regarded by the Orientals as the greatest +musician of his time. The music of the Moors did not consist, like +ours, in the concord of different instruments, but simply in soft and +tender airs, which the musicians sung to the accompaniment of the lute. +Sometimes several voices and lutes executed the same air in unison. +This simple style of music satisfied a people who were {213} such +passionate lovers of poetry, that their first desire, when listening to +a singer, was to hear the words he uttered. + +Moussali, who was the pupil of Ali-Zeriab at Cordova, became afterward, +in consequence of his musical talents, the favourite of Haroun al +Raschid, the celebrated caliph of the East. It is related that this +prince, in consequence of a misunderstanding with one of his favourite +wives, fell into such a slate of melancholy that fears were entertained +for his life. Giaffar, the Bermacide, at that time the principal +vizier of the caliph, entreated the poet Abbas-ben-Ahnaf to compose +some verses on the subject of this quarrel. He did so, and they were +sung in the presence of the prince by Moussali; and the royal lover was +so softened by the sentiments of the poet and the melody of the +musician, that he immediately flew to the feet of his fair enslaver, +and a reconciliation took place between the disconsolate monarch and +the offended beauty. The grateful slave sent twenty thousand drachms +of gold to the poet and Moussali, and Haroun added forty thousand more +to her gift. + + +G, page 66. + +_The statue of the beautiful Zahra, &c._ + +Mohammed, to discourage idolatry, forbade his followers, in the Koran, +to make images in any form; but this injunction was very imperfectly +observed. The Oriental caliphs adopted the custom of stamping their +coins with an impression of their own features, as is proved by +specimens still existing in the collections of the curious. On one +side of these was represented the head of the reigning caliph, and on +the other appeared his name, with some passages from the Alcoran. In +the palaces of Bagdad, Cordova and Grenada, figures of animals, and +sculpture of various kinds, both in gold and marble, abounded. + + +{214} + +H, page 69. + +_The richest and most powerful, &c._ + +Some conception of the opulence of the caliphs of the West, during the +palmy days of their prosperity, may be formed from the value of the +gifts presented to Abderamus III. by one of his subjects, +Abdoumalek-ben-Chien, on the occasion of his being appointed to the +dignity of chief vizier. The articles composing this present are thus +enumerated: Four hundred pounds of virgin gold; four hundred and twenty +thousand sequins, in the form of ingots of silver; four hundred and +twenty pounds of the wood of aloes; five hundred ounces of ambergris; +three hundred ounces of camphor; thirty pieces of silk and cloth of +gold; ten robes of the sable fur of Korassan; one hundred others, of +less valuable fur; forty-eight flowing housings for steeds; a thousand +bucklers; a hundred thousand arrows; gold tissues, from Bagdad; four +thousand pounds of silk; thirty Persian carpets; eight hundred suits of +armour for war horses; fifteen Arabian coursers for the caliph; a +hundred for the use of his officers; twenty mules, saddled and +caparisoned; forty youths and twenty young maidens, of rare beauty. + + +I, page 81. + +About this time occurred the famous adventure of the seven sons of +Lara, so celebrated in Spanish history and romance, and of which, as in +some degree connected with Moorish history, we may briefly narrate the +particulars. + +These young warriors were brothers, the sons of Gonzalvo Gustos, a near +relative of the first counts of Castile, and lords of Salas de Lara. +Ruy Velasquez, brother-in-law of Gonzalvo Gustos, instigated by his +wife, who pretended to {215} have some cause of offence against the +youngest of the seven brothers, meditated the execution of a horrible +scheme for their destruction. Ho commenced by sending their father +Gonzalvo on an embassy to the court of Cordova, making him, at the same +time, the bearer of letters, in which he prayed the caliph to put the +envoy to death, as the enemy of the crescent and its followers. The +Mussulman sovereign, being unwilling to commit so barbarous an act, +contented himself with retaining Gonzalvo as a prisoner. In the mean +time, the perfidious Velasquez, under pretence of conducting an attack +against the Moors, led his nephews into the midst of an ambuscade, +where, overpowered by numbers, they all perished, after a most heroic +defence, accompanied by circumstances which render their end truly +affecting. The barbarous uncle sent the gory heads of the murdered +youths to the royal palace of Cordova, and caused them to be presented +to the unhappy father, in a golden dish covered with a veil. No sooner +did Gonzalvo behold the ghastly contents of the dish, than he fell to +the earth, deprived of sense. The Caliph of the West, filled with +indignation at the demoniac cruelty of Velasquez, restored his captive +to liberty. But the foe of his race was too powerful to permit the +childless Gonzalvo to avenge the murder of his offspring. He +attempted, indeed, to do so; but old age had deprived him of his former +strength and vigour. With his wife, therefore, he mourned in solitude +over the untimely fate of his sons, and entreated Heaven to permit him +to follow them to the tomb: but a champion of his cause unexpectedly +arose in the person of an illegitimate son of Gonzalvo's at the Moorish +court. When this boy had attained the age of twelve years, he was +informed of his parentage by his mother, who was the sister of the +sovereign of Cordova, and of the wrongs which his father had suffered. + +{216} + +The heroic youth, who bore the name of _Mendarra Gonzalvo_, resolved to +become the avenger of his brothers. Hastening to execute his purpose, +he left Cordova, challenged Valasquez, and slew him. Cutting off the +head of his father's foe, he sought with his burden the presence of the +old man, demanded to be acknowledged as his son, and admitted into the +Christian church. The wife of Gonzalvo joyfully consented to receive +the brave Mendarra as her son, and he was solemnly adopted by the +venerable pair. The wife of Velasquez, who, it will be remembered, had +instigated the ferocious uncle to his murderous deed, was stoned to +death and afterward burned. It is from this valiant Mendarra Gonzalvo +that the Mauriques de Lara, one of the most important Spanish families, +seek to trace their descent. + + +THIRD EPOCH. + +A, page 86. + +_Three bishops of Catalonia, &c._ + +These three bishops of Catalonia, who died fighting for the Mussulmans +at the battle of Albakara, which took place in the year 1010, were +Arnaulpha, bishop of Vic; Accia, bishop of Barcelona; and Othon, bishop +of Girona. + + +B, page 91. + +_And equally ready, when enjoying the favour of the sovereign, to +displease him, if it should be necessary to do so, &c._ + +RODRIGUE DIAS DE BIVAR, surnamed _the Cid_, so well known by his +affection for Chimena and his duel with the Count Gormas, has been the +subject of many poems, novels {217} and romances in the Spanish tongue. +Without crediting all the extraordinary adventures ascribed to this +hero by his countrymen, it is proved by the testimony of reputable +historians, that the Cid was not only the bravest and most dreaded +warrior of his time, but one of the most virtuous and generous of men. +De Bivar was already famed for his exploits while Castile was still +under the dominion of Ferdinand I. When the successor of that monarch, +Sancho II., endeavoured to despoil his sister Uraque of the city of +Zamora, this champion of the oppressed, with noble firmness, +represented to the king that he was about being guilty of an act of +injustice, by which he would violate, at the same time, the laws of +honour and the ties of blood. The offended Sancho exiled the Cid, but +was soon after obliged by necessity to recall him. When the +treacherous assassination of Sancho, while encamped before Zamora, +entitled his brother Alphonso to the throne, the Castilians were +anxious that their new sovereign should disavow, by a solemn oath, +having had any agency in the murder of his brother. No one dared +demand of the king to take this oath except the Cid, who constrained +him to pronounce it aloud at the same altar where his coronation was +celebrated; adding, at the same time, the most fearful maledictions +against perjury. Alphonso never forgave the liberty thus taken with +him, and soon after banished the Spanish hero from court, under +pretence of his having trespassed on the territories of an ally of +Castile, the King of Toledo, into whose dominions the Cid had +inadvertently pursued some fugitives from justice. + +The period of his exile became the most glorious epoch in the history +of the Chevalier de Bivar: it was then that he achieved so many +triumphs over the Moors, aided solely by the brave companions in arms +whom his reputation drew to his standard. After a time Alphonso +recalled the Cid, and {218} received him into apparent favour; but +Rodrigo was too candid long to enjoy the royal smiles. Banished from +court anew, he hastened to accomplish the conquest of Valencia; and +master of that strong city, with many others, and of a territory of +great extent, to make the Cid a monarch it was only necessary that he +himself should desire it. But the noble Spaniard never for a moment +indulged the wish, and ever continued the faithful subject of the +ungrateful and often-offending Alphonso. + +This celebrated hero died at Valencia A.D. 1099, crowned with years and +honours. He had but one son, and of him he was early deprived by +death. The two daughters of the Cid espoused princes of the house of +Navarre; and, through a long succession of alliances, formed at length +the root whence is derived the present royal race of Bourbons. + + +C, page 92. + +_More ferocious and sanguinary than the lions of their deserts, &c._ + +The history of Africa, during the period referred to in the text, is +but a narrative of one continued succession of the most atrocious +murders. Were we to judge of humanity by these sanguinary annals, we +should be tempted to believe, that, of all ferocious animals, man is +the most bloodthirsty and cruel. + +Amid the multitude of these African tyrants, there was one, of the race +of the _Aglhebites_, named _Abon Ishak_, who was particularly +distinguished for the demoniac barbarity of his character. Having +butchered eight of his brothers, he next indulged his horrid thirst for +blood in the sacrifice of his own offspring. The mother of this +monster succeeded with difficulty in preserving from his fury a part of +his family. One {219} day, while dining with Ishak, upon his +expressing some feeling of momentary regret that he had no more +children, his mother tremblingly ventured to confess that she had +preserved the lives of six of his daughters. The sanguinary wretch +appeared softened, and expressed a desire to see them. When they were +summoned to his presence, their youth and loveliness touched the +ferocious father; and while Ishak lavished caresses upon his innocent +children, his mother retired, with tears of joy, to render thanks to +Heaven for this apparent change in the temper of her son. An hour +afterward, a eunuch brought her, by order of the emperor, the heads of +the young princesses. + +It would be easy to cite other parallel deeds, attested by historians, +which were perpetrated by this execrable monster. Suffice it to say, +he escaped the violent death due to such a life, and long maintained +his hateful rule. + +Time has not softened the sanguinary ferocity, which seems like an +inherent vice produced by the climate of Africa. Mulei-Abdalla, the +father of Sidi Mohammed, the recent king of Morocco, renewed these +scenes of horror. One day, while crossing a river, he was on the point +of drowning, when one of his negroes succeeded in rescuing him from the +waves. The slave expressed his delight at having had the good fortune +to serve his master. His words were heard by Abdalla, who, drawing his +cimeter, and crying, "Behold an infidel, who supposes that God required +his assistance in preserving the life of an emperor," instantly struck +off the head of his preserver. + +This same monarch had a confidential domestic who had been long in his +service, and for whom the savage Abdalla appeared to entertain some +affection. In a moment of good-nature he entreated this aged servant +to accept two thousand ducats at his hand and leave his service, lest +he should be {220} seized with an irrepressible desire to kill him, as +he had so many others. The old man clung to the feet of the king, +refused the two thousand ducats, and assured him that he preferred +perishing by his hand rather than abandon so beloved a master. Mulei, +with some hesitation, consented to retain his aged servant. Some days +afterward, impelled by that thirst for blood whose impulses were +sometimes uncontrollable, and without the slightest provocation to the +deed, the fiendish despot struck the unfortunate man dead at his feet, +saying, at the same moment, that he had been a fool not to accept his +permission to leave him. + +It is painful to relate these shocking details; but they present a true +picture of the character of these African sovereigns, while they +inspire us with a horror of tyranny, and a veneration for the +restraints of civilization and law, so indispensable to the well-being +of every community. + + +D, page 98. + +_And possessed the united glory of having both enlightened, &c._ + +Averroes belonged to one of the first families in Cordova. His version +of the writings of Aristotle was translated into Latin, and was for a +long time the only translation of the works of that author. The other +productions of Averroes are still esteemed by the learned. He is +justly regarded as the chief of the Arabic philosophers: a class of men +not numerous in a nation abounding in prophets and conquerors. The +principles he entertained exposed him to much persecution. His +indifference to the religious creed of his countrymen excited the +enmity of the imans or priests against him, and afforded a pretext for +the animosity of all whom his genius inspired with envy. He was +accused of heresy before the {221} Emperor of Morocco; and the +punishment decreed against him was, that he should do homage at the +door of the mosque, while every true Mussulman who came thither to pray +for his conversion should spit in his face. He submitted patiently to +the humiliating infliction, merely repeating the words _Moriatur anima +mea morte philosophorum_ (_Let me die the death of a philosopher_). + + +E, page 106. + +_And broke the chains, &c._ + +This King of Navarre was Sancho VIII., surnamed _the Strong_. It was +in commemoration of the chains broken by him at the battle of Toloza +that Sancho added the chains of gold to the arms of Navarre, which are +still to be seen on the field of gules. + + +F, page 111. + +_Cousin-german of St. Lewis, &c._ + +Blanche, the mother of St. Lewis, was the daughter of Alphonso the +Noble of Castile. She had a sister named Beringira, who became the +wife of the King of Leon, and the mother of Ferdinand III. Several +historians, among others Mariana and Garibai, maintain that Blanche was +older than Beringira. If it were so, St. Lewis was the rightful heir +to the throne of Castile. France long asserted the pretensions thus +created. It is surprising that historians have not settled this +disputed point. One thing, however, is certain: the claims of +Ferdinand, sustained as they were by the partiality of the Castilians, +prevailed over those of his cousin. + + +{222} + +FOURTH EPOCH. + +A, page 132. + +_Alphonso the Sage, &c._ + +Alphonso the Sage was a great astronomer: his _Alphonsine Tables_ prove +that the happiness of his people occupied his attention as much, at +least, as his literary pursuits. It is in this collection that this +remarkable sentence occurs--remarkable when it is considered that it +expresses the sentiments of a monarch of the thirteenth century: "_The +despot uproots the tree: the wise sovereign prunes it._" + + +B, page 135. + +_In the hope of being elected emperor, &c._ + +ALPHONSO THE SAGE was elected Emperor of Germany in the year twelve +hundred and fifty-seven: but he was at too great a distance from that +country, and too much occupied at home, to be able to support his +claims to the imperial throne. Sixteen years afterward, however, he +made a voyage to Lyons, where Pope Gregory X. then was, to advocate his +rights before that dignitary. But the sovereign pontiff decided in +favour of Rodolph of Hapsburg, a scion of the house of Austria. + + +C, page 136. + +_Sancho reigned in his father's stead, &c._ + +This Sancho, surnamed _the Brave_, who took up arms against his father +and afterward obtained his throne, was the second son of Alphonso the +Sage. His elder brother, Ferdinand de la Cerda, a mild and virtuous +prince, died in the {223} flower of his age, leaving two infant sons, +the offspring of his marriage with Blanche, the daughter of St. Lewis +of France. It was to deprive these children of their reversionary +right to the crown of Castile that the ambitious Sancho made war upon +his father. He succeeded in his criminal designs; but the princes of +La Cerda, protected by France and Aragon, rallied around them all the +malecontents of Castile, and the claims they were thus enabled to +support long formed a pretext or occasion for the most bloody +dissensions. + + +D, page 149. + +_Ferdinand IV., surnamed the Summoned, &c._ + +Ferdinand IV., the son and successor of Sancho the Brave, was still in +his infancy when he succeeded to the throne. His minority was +overshadowed by impending clouds; but the power and influence of Queen +Mary, his mother, enabled her eventually to dissipate the dangers which +threatened the safety of her son. This prince obtained his appellation +of _the Summoned_ from the following circumstance. Actuated by +feelings of strong indignation, Ferdinand commanded that two brothers, +named Carvajal, who had been accused, but not convicted, of the crime +of assassination, should be precipitated from a rocky precipice. Both +the supposed criminals, in their last moments, asserted their innocence +of the crime alleged against them, appealed to Heaven and the laws to +verify the truth of their protestations, and summoned the passionate +Ferdinand to appear before the Great Judge of all men at the end of +thirty days. At the precise time thus indicated, the Castilian king, +who was marching against the Moors, retired for repose after dinner, +and was found dead upon his couch. The Spaniards attributed this +sudden death to the effects of Divine justice. It had been well if the +{224} monarchs who succeeded Ferdinand, Peter the Cruel in particular, +had been convinced of the truth of this sentiment. + + +E, page 149. + +_Retiring within the walls of Tariffe, &c._ + +After Sancho the Brave became master of Tariffe, it was besieged by the +Africans. It was during this siege that Alphonso de Guzman, the +Spanish governor of the city, exhibited an example of invincible +firmness and self-command, of which none but parents can form a just +estimate. The son of De Guzman was taken prisoner during a sortie. +The Africans conducted their captive to the walls, and threatened the +governor with his immolation unless the city should be immediately +surrendered. The undaunted Spaniard replied only by hurling a poniard +at his enemies, and retired from the battlements. In a moment loud +cries burst from the garrison. Hastily demanding the cause of this +alarm, the unhappy father was told that the Africans had put to death +his son. "God be praised," said he, "I thought that the city had been +taken!" + + +F, page 158. + +_The celebrated Inez de Castro, &c._ + +The passion of Peter the Cruel for Inez de Castro was carried to such +excess as, perhaps, in some degree, to account for the atrocity of his +revenge upon her murderers. These were three distinguished Portuguese +lords, who themselves stabbed the unfortunate Inez in the arms of her +women. Peter, who, at the time this barbarous deed was committed, had +not yet attained regal power, seemed from that period to lose all +command of himself: from being gentle and virtuous, he became ferocious +and almost insane. He openly rebelled against his father, carried fire +and sword into those {225} parts of the kingdom in which the domains of +the assassins of Inez were situated, and, when he afterward came into +possession of the crown, insisted that the King of Castile should +deliver up Gonzales and Coello, two of the guilty noblemen, who had +taken refuge at his court. Thus master of the persons of two of his +victims (the third had fled into France, where he died), Peter +subjected them to the most dreadful tortures. He caused their hearts +to be torn out while they were yet living, and assisted himself at this +horrible sacrifice. After thus glutting his vengeance, the +inconsolable lover exhumed the body of his murdered mistress, clothed +it in magnificent habiliments, and, placing his crown upon the livid +and revolting brow, proclaimed Inez de Castro queen of Portugal; +compelling, at the same time, the grandees of his court to do homage to +the insensible remains which he had invested with the attributes of +royalty. + + +G, page 161. + +_Most of the productions of the Grenadian authors, &c._ + +After the surrender of Grenada, Cardinal Ximenes caused every copy of +the Koran of which he could obtain possession to be burned. The +ignorant and superstitious soldiery mistook for that work everything +written in the Arabic language, and committed to the flames a multitude +of compositions both in prose and verse. + + +H, page 178. + +_The Abencerrages, &c._ + +The inhabitants of Grenada, and, indeed, the whole Moorish people, were +divided into tribes, composed of the different branches of the same +family. Some of these tribes were more numerous and important than +others: but two distinct {226} races were never united together, nor +was one of them ever divided. At the head of each of these tribes was +a chief who was descended in a direct male line from the original +founder of the family. In the city of Grenada there existed thirty-two +considerable tribes. The most important of these were the +Abencerrages, the Zegris, the Alcenabez, the Almorades, the Vanegas, +the Gomeles, the Abidbars, the Gauzuls, the Abenamars, the Aliatars, +the Reduans, the Aldoradins, etc. These separate races were, many of +them, at enmity with each other; and their animosity being perpetuated +from one generation to another, gave rise to the frequent civil wars +which were attended with such disastrous consequences to the nation at +large. + + +I, page 198 + +_His humane injunctions respecting almsgiving, &c._ + +Almsgiving is one of the leading principles of the Mohammedan religion. +It was enjoined upon the followers of the Prophet by a variety of +allegories, among which is the following: "The sovereign Judge shall, +at the last great day, entwine him who has not bestowed alms with a +frightful serpent, whose envenomed sting shall for ever pierce the +avaricious hand that never opened for the relief of the unfortunate!" + + + + +{227} + +A BRIEF ACCOUNT + +OF THE + +RISE AND DECLINE + +OF THE + +MOHAMMEDAN EMPIRE; + + +THE LITERATURE, SCIENCE, AND RELIGION OF THE ARABS; + +AND THE PRESENT CONDITION OF MOHAMMEDANISM + + + + +{229} + +A + +BRIEF ACCOUNT + +OF THE + +MOHAMMEDAN EMPIRE. + +CHAPTER I. + +Extent of the Arabian Empire.--Causes which led to that +extent.--Continuance of Mohammedanism.--Decay of the Empire.--What led +to it.--Spain revolts and sets up a separate +Caliph.--Africa.--Egypt.--Bagdad.--Fall of the House of the Abbassides. + + +The first battle in which the Arabs tried their power against the +disciplined forces of the Roman empire was the battle of Muta. Though +on that occasion they were successful, the most sanguine could not have +ventured to predict that, before the close of a century, their empire +would become more extensive than any that had ever before existed. Yet +such was the fact. It overthrew the power of the Romans, and rendered +the successors of the Prophet the mightiest and most absolute +sovereigns on earth. + +Under the last monarch of the Ommiade race, {230} the Arabian empire, +excepting only an obscure part of Africa, of little account, embraced a +compact territory equal to six months' march of a caravan in length and +four in breadth, with innumerable tributary and dependant states. In +the exercise of their power, the caliphs were fettered neither by +popular rights, the votes of a senate, nor constitutional laws: the +Koran was, indeed, their professed rule of action; but, inasmuch as +they alone were its interpreters, their will was in all cases law. The +loss of Spain to the empire was more than made up by conquests in +India, Tartary, and European Turkey. Samarcand and Timbuctoo studied +with equal devotion the language and religion of the Koran, and at the +temple of Mecca the Moor and the Indian met as brother pilgrims. +Throughout the countries west of the Tigris, the language of Arabia +became the vehicle of popular intercourse; and, although in Persia, +Tartary, and Hindostan the native dialects continued in common use, the +Arabic was also there the sacred tongue. + +We will advert to some of the causes which led to this astonishing +success. The leading article of the Mohammedan faith, the unity of +God, harmonized with what Jews and Christians universally believed. +Mohammed propounded this doctrine, by excluding the Deity of Jesus +Christ, so as {231} to fall in with the views of the greater number of +the Christian sectaries. He moreover enjoined practices which, in the +then corrupt state of religion, were beginning widely to prevail. To +the untutored mind of the desert wanderer, his doctrine would thus +possess all the attractiveness he might have heard ascribed to +Christianity, while his being of the same country would secure for him +the greater attention. Systems in which truth and error have been +combined are by no means unwillingly received, especially by those who +are already superstitious and fanatical, and such was pre-eminently the +character of the Arabians. Mohammed's religious, moral, and juridical +system was in general accordance with Asiatic opinions; it provided a +paradise exactly suited to the imagination and taste of the Orientals; +and, as the superstitious are always more powerfully influenced by that +which awakens apprehension and appeals to fear than by what enkindles +hope, his hell contributed even more than his heaven to multiply +disciples. + +Still, had no resort been had to arms, the Mohammedan faith would in +all probability have been confined to the deserts of Arabia. The whole +of Asia was at that time in a state of unprecedented military +inactivity, and opportunity was thus afforded for the success of his +enterprise. Empires {232} were tottering and powerless; political +wisdom had almost disappeared; and to military talents and courage the +Arabs alone could make any pretensions. Previous contentions between +the Persian and Byzantine empires had entirely destroyed what little +remains of internal vigour those governments might otherwise have +possessed. Civil revolts, tyranny, extortion, sensuality, and sloth, +had annihilated the ambition of universal rule which the Greek and +Roman governments had once cherished; and their provinces, neglected or +oppressed, became an easy prey to the Moslem power. + +The nations were the more rapidly subdued, since to the indomitable +ferocity of the desert wanderer the Saracens added those other features +which complete a warlike character. They despised death, and were +self-denying and energetic to a degree far beyond the soldiers of +civilized countries, while they were scarcely less familiar with the +military art. The lieutenants of the caliphs soon vied with the Roman +generals in skill; and it is by no means difficult to explain their +almost uniform superiority, when we bear in mind the character of the +armies they respectively commanded. Terror, moreover, is epidemic; and +a force already successful commonly finds its victorious progress +greatly aided by the prevailing notion of its prowess. Thus we have +witnessed, {233} in the wars of more disciplined troops, the tremendous +effect of a name alone. + +It may be added, also, that the Saracen success is greatly attributable +to that ardent and impetuous spirit of religious enthusiasm with which +they fought. They deemed their cause the cause of God; heaven, they +were persuaded, was engaged in their behalf; every one who fell in +their wars was a martyr; and cowardice was tantamount to apostacy. + +The religious ardour of the Crusaders, in the eleventh and twelfth +centuries, to exterminate Mohammedanism, did not exceed, if it even +equalled, that of the Arab soldiers by whom that system had been +originally propagated. Whatever secular principles and ambition +influenced them, they took credit for fighting in the support of truth +and virtue. The sword and the Koran were equally the companions and +the instruments of their wars. "The circumstance," says Paley, in his +admirable exhibition of the Evidences of Christianity,[1] "that +Mohammed's conquests should carry his religion along with them, will +excite little surprise when we know the conditions which he proposed to +the vanquished: death or conversion was the only choice offered to +idolaters. To the Jews and Christians was left the somewhat milder +{234} alternative of subjection and tribute if they persisted in their +own religion, or of an equal participation of the rights and liberties, +the honours and privileges of the faithful if they embraced the +religion of their conquerors." + +Literature, in the days of Mohammed, was as little regarded as was pure +and practical Christianity. His followers everywhere met with an +ignorant and easily deluded people. Both the monuments of science and +the means of freedom had been abolished by the barbarians of the North. +Philosophy and the liberal arts found no patrons among indolent and +luxurious emperors and nobles. Superstition, therefore, naturally took +possession of the minds of men, and, as neither fears nor hopes were +moderated by knowledge, idle, preposterous, and unnecessary ceremonies +easily obtained currency. Mohammed merely changed one set of +ceremonies for another; and in this there was little difficulty, since, +in the almost universal darkness of mankind, terror and credulity +everywhere prevailed. + +The continuance of the religion of Mohammed in countries after the Arab +dominion over them had ceased, may be also easily accounted for. +"Everything in Asia is a matter of regulation; and freedom of opinion +being but little permitted or encouraged in the despotic governments of +the {235} East, Mohammedanism, when once received, became stationary. +The human code is mingled with the divine, and the ideas of change and +profanation are inseparable. As the unsettling of the political and +social fabric might ensue from a change of modes of faith, all classes +of men are interested in preserving the national religion." [2] +Besides this, in their own nature religious doctrines are more +permanent in their hold than forms of civil government: it may be +questioned, for in stance, whether, whatever civil changes Scotland +might undergo, Presbyterianism would ever cease to be the prevalent +faith of its inhabitants. A people may, with the overthrow of usurped +civil power, return to their ancient religion, whatever it is: but when +once a religion has become, so to speak, indigenous, it is likely to be +permanent. Such is the religion of the Koran both in Asia and Africa. + +The elements of political weakness and decay soon began to be developed +in the chief seat of the Saracen empire. In the earliest days of the +caliphate, after the accession of the Ommiade dynasty, the princes of +Damascus were regarded as the heads of the Moslem faith; while the +governors of Arabia successively obtained, as to civil rule, their +independence. To this the widely-extended wars in which the caliphs +were engaged no doubt {236} contributed. Other provinces followed the +example; and, as the empire enlarged, the remoteness and degeneracy of +the Syrian court encouraged the governors to assume to themselves +everything except the name of king, and to render their dignities +hereditary. All the provinces were nominally connected with the empire +by the payment of tribute; but means were easily devised to withhold +this, under pretence of prosecuting the wars of the caliph, though +really to strengthen his rebellious deputies against him. If in this +we discover a want of efficiency in the government, we need not be +surprised: the systems of the Macedonian hero and of the Roman +conquerors were equally defective; and perhaps we should attribute such +deficiency to a wise and beneficent arrangement of Providence, which, +that oppression may never become permanent and universal, permits not +any empire for a very long time to hold dominion over countries +dissimilar in their habits and character and independent of each other. + +To the establishment of these separate states, the luxury and +effeminacy of the court at Damascus in no small degree contributed. In +the early periods of the caliphate, simplicity and charity chiefly +distinguished their rulers; but, as the wealth and power of the +Saracens increased, they imitated the splendour and magnificence of the +monarchs of Persia {237} and Greece. Abulfeda says of the court in the +year 917: "The Caliph Moctadi's whole army, both horse and foot, were +under arms, which together made a body of one hundred and sixty +thousand men. His state officers stood near him in the most splendid +apparel, their belts shining with gold and gems. Near them were seven +thousand black and white eunuchs. The porters or doorkeepers were in +number seven hundred. Barges and boats, with the most superb +decorations, were swimming on the Tigris. Nor was the palace itself +less splendid, in which were hung thirty-eight thousand pieces of +tapestry, twelve thousand five hundred of which were of silk +embroidered with gold. The carpets on the floor were twenty-two +thousand. A hundred lions were brought out, with a keeper to each +lion. Among the other spectacles of rare and stupendous luxury was a +tree of gold and silver, which opened itself into eighteen larger +branches, upon which and the other smaller branches sat birds of every +sort, made also of gold and silver. The tree glittered with leaves of +the same metals; and while its branches, through machinery, appeared to +move of themselves, the several birds upon them warbled their natural +notes." + +When, moreover, decline had once commenced, its progress was +accelerated by the means taken {238} to arrest it. After the regular +troops had been corrupted by faction, the caliphs, for the defence of +their person and government, formed a militia; but the soldiers +composing this force, not unfrequently foreigners, soon governed with a +military despotism similar to that of the janizaries of Turkey, the +Mamelukes of Egypt, or the praetorian guards of Rome; and, in addition +to these causes of decay, a furious spirit of sectarianism tore asunder +the very strength and heart of the empire. The colossal power of the +successors of Mohammed, suddenly towering to its awful height, almost +as suddenly fell, as if to yield more perfect confirmation of the +truth, that all earthly things are destined to pass away, while the +word of the living God abideth for ever. + +Spain, as has been seen, was the first distant province of the Arabian +empire which succeeded in separating itself and setting up an +independent caliph. As this country had been brought under the Moslem +yoke by means chiefly furnished from the northern states of Africa, its +independence was likely to produce a corresponding effect upon those +states. They were governed in the name of the Bagdad caliphs; but for +nearly a century they had been growing into independence, under rulers +usually known, from the name of their progenitor, as the Aglabite +dynasty. Early in the ninth century, {239} the throne of Mauritania, +Massilia, and Carthage was seized by Obeidollah, whose successors +assumed the title of Mihidi, or directors of the faithful. The +districts of Fez and Tangiers, which had been already wrested from the +princes of Bagdad by the real or pretended posterity of Ali, were soon +brought under his dominion; and, before the end of the tenth century, +all acknowledgment of the Abbassidan rule was obliterated by the +suppression of public prayers for the princes of that race. A +succession of changes distracted the country for some five centuries +afterward; but, about the year 1516, the descendants of Mohammed were +raised to the throne of Morocco, which has been transmitted, without +interruption, in the same line, to its present possessors. Moez, the +last of the African princes of the house of Obeidollah, who seems to +have depended for his dominion more on his prowess than on his supposed +descent from Mohammed,[3] transferred his court to Grand Cairo, a city +which he had built in Egypt after his conquest of that country. Africa +was to be held as a fief of this new empire. Large tracts of Syria and +the whole of Palestine acknowledged the {240} supremacy of his +descendants, commonly known as Fatimites, from their supposed +relationship to Ali, and to Fatima, the Prophet's daughter. They +possessed also the sovereignty of the Holy Land; against them, +therefore, the crusades of Europe were chiefly directed. During these +formidable wars the caliphs of Egypt sought assistance from those of +Bagdad; and Noureddin, a prince of that empire, protected them against +their Western assailants. The weakness of Egypt, however, came thus to +be known to the crafty and powerful caliphs of Bagdad, and in a short +time its Asiatic dominions were seized upon by Noureddin and Saladin. +As Adhed, the last caliph of Egypt, was dying in the mosque of Cairo, +these generals proclaimed Morthadi, the thirty-third caliph of Bagdad, +as his successor. Saladin, whose name, from his activity, courage, and +success against the crusaders, is better known to the readers of +European history than that of almost any other Mohammedan prince, soon +made himself master of Egypt; but his successors could not maintain the +power he had acquired. The country is now governed by the celebrated +Mohammed Ali, nominally as viceroy of the Turkish emperor, though he is +in reality a sovereign and independent prince. + +The caliphs of the house of Abbas, having built the city of Bagdad soon +after their accession to the {241} throne, transferred thither their +court and the seat of power. For five centuries they reigned there +with various degrees of authority; but foreign wars and domestic +revolts gradually dissolved the empire, and their dominion at length +passed away. Badhi, the twentieth caliph of the race, was "the last," +says Abulfeda, "who harangued the people from the pulpit; who passed +the cheerful hour of leisure with men of learning and taste; whose +expenses, resources, and treasures, whose table and magnificence, had +any resemblance to those of the ancient caliphs." "During the next +three centuries," says a modern historian of the Arabian empire, "the +successors of Mohammed swayed a feeble sceptre. Sometimes their state +was so degraded that they were confined in their palaces like +prisoners, and occasionally were almost reduced to the want of +corporeal subsistence. The tragic scenes of fallen royalty at length +were closed; for, towards the middle of the seventh century of the +Hegira, the metropolis of Islamism fell into the hands of Houlagou +Khan, the grandson of Zenghis Khan, and emperor of the Moguls and +Tartars, who reigned at that period with absolute and unmixed despotism +over every nation of the East. The caliph Mostasem, the thirty-seventh +of his house, was murdered under circumstances of peculiar barbarity, +and the caliphate of Bagdad {242} expired. Though the dignity and +sovereignty of the caliphs were lost by this fatal event, and the soul +which animated the form had fled, yet the name existed for three +centuries longer in the eighteen descendants of Mostanser Billah, a +son, or pretended son, of Daker, the last but one of this race of +princes. + +"Mostanser Billah and his successors, to the number of eighteen, were +called the second dynasty of the Abbassides, and were spiritual chiefs +of the Mohammedan religion, but without the slightest vestige of +temporal authority. When Selim, emperor of the Turks, conquered Egypt +and destroyed the power of the Mamelukes, he carried the caliph, whom +he found there a prisoner, to Constantinople, and accepted from him a +renunciation of his ecclesiastical supremacy. On the death of the +caliph, the family of the Abbassides, once so illustrious, and which +had borne the title of caliph for almost eight hundred years, sunk with +him from obscurity into oblivion." [4] + + + +[1] Vol. ii., Section 3. + +[2] Mills, p. 179. + +[3] When it was demanded of Moez from what branch of Mohammed's family +he drew his title, "This," said he, showing his cimeter, "is my +pedigree; and these," throwing gold among his soldiers, "are my +children." + +[4] Mill's History, 160. + + + + +{243} + +CHAPTER II. + +Literature and Science of the Arabs.--Their Facilities for Literary and +Scientific Pursuits.--Patronage of Literature by the Princes of the +House of Abbas.--Almamoun.--Arabian Schools.--Eloquence.--Poetry.--The +Arabian Tales.--History.--Geography.--Speculative +Sciences.--Astrology.--Mathematical Knowledge of the +Arabs.--Astronomy.--Architecture.--The Fine +Arts.--Agriculture.--Medicine.--Chymistry.--Our obligations to Arab +Literature. + + +The early followers of the Arabian prophet were only enthusiastic +military adventurers, subduing in their wide and rapid progress most of +the nations of the then known world. The lust of power, and successful +military enterprise, are commonly unfavourable to the cultivation of +the liberal arts, so that a conquering people usually exhibit but +little taste for science or literature. The Goths and the Huns, for +instance, were among the most implacable foes of knowledge. Nor did +the early Arabs regard it with more favour. Mohammed found his +countrymen sunk in the deepest barbarism: he was incapable of any +direct effort to raise them; and, from the ruthless destruction of the +Alexandrean library by Omar, one of his earliest successors, they +appear not to have been in a much {244} better condition after the +close than at the commencement of his eventful career. + +Their settlement in the countries they had subdued, the unlimited +resources which their wide-spread conquests placed within their reach, +and probably the leisure which their almost universal dominion +afforded, speedily led to a change in their character in relation to +literary pursuits, of which the more enlightened nations of the West +are still reaping the advantage. It was about the middle of the +seventh century that Omar committed the famous library of Alexandrea to +the flames: before the end of the eighth, literature began to enjoy the +munificent patronage of the caliphs of the Abbassidan race, who +superinduced upon the stern fanaticism of the followers of the Prophet +the softening influences of learning; and, by an anomaly in the history +of mankind, the most valuable lessons in science and the arts have been +received from a people who pursued with relentless hostility the +religion and liberties of every other nation. + +The Greeks were the most distinguished patrons of literature and +science. Among them philosophy found its earliest home, and the arts +are commonly supposed to have sprung up chiefly under their fostering +care, though modern researches have shown that much of their knowledge +was derived from still more ancient sources. Their {245} philosophy, +though greatly improved by them, was borrowed from the mysteries of the +Egyptian priests and the Persian magi. Their system of the universe, +which made the nearest approach to the more correct discoveries of +modern times, was previously known to the learned Hindus; and it may +admit of question whether their whole mythology, allowing for the +additions which a chastened and vivid imagination would make to it, had +not its prototype in some Asiatic religio-philosophical system. A +learned writer on the erudition of the Asiatics says, that the whole of +the theology of the Greeks, and part of the philosophy of modern +scientific research, may be found in the Hindu Vedas. He adds, "That +most subtile spirit which Newton suspected to pervade natural bodies, +and to lie concealed in them so as to cause attraction and repulsion, +the emission, reflection, and refraction of light, electricity, +calefaction, sensation, and muscular motion, is described by the Hindus +as a fifth element, endued with those very powers; and the Vedas abound +with allusions to a force universally attractive, which they chiefly +attribute to the sun." The extension, therefore, of the Arabian +victories over the Eastern world, and their entire command, after the +overthrow of the Greek empire, of the resources possessed by that +people, {246} gave them access to all the literary stores then in +existence. + +It has been said, and probably not without good reason, that Mohammed +himself saw and felt the importance of literary distinction. Among the +sayings attributed to him, the following has been considered as +evincing his sense of the value of learning: "A mind without erudition +is like a body without a soul. Glory consists not in wealth, but in +knowledge;" and, as the Koran affords abundant proof, he was by no +means unmindful of that mental cultivation, of which the means were +within his reach. His immediate followers, occupied only with the +ideas of conquest and conversion, despised equally the religion and +learning of the nations they subdued; but when the age of rapine and +violence yielded at length to comparative security and quiet, and the +fair and splendid city of the Oriental caliphs arose, the Muses were +courted from their ancient temples, and by the milder and more graceful +achievements of literature and science, efforts were made to expiate +the guilt of former conquest, and to shed a purer lustre over the +Mohammedan name. + +Almansor, the second of the dynasty of the Abbassides, whose reign +commenced A.D. 754, and lasted twenty-one years, was among the first of +the Arab princes to foster learning and the arts. {247} Jurisprudence +and astronomy were the principal subjects of his study, which, however, +through the instruction of a Greek physician in his court, he extended +to the art of healing, and probably to those kindred arts with which, +in all ages and countries, medical science has been connected. What +progress was made by himself or his subjects, we cannot now ascertain. +His two immediate successors seem not to have trodden in his steps, +though it is probable they did not undo what he had done; for the next +caliph, Haroun al Raschid, is renowned as one of the most munificent +patrons that literature ever enjoyed. He was fond of poetry and music: +he is said to have constantly surrounded himself with a great number of +learned men; and to him the Arabs were deeply indebted for the progress +in knowledge which they were enabled to make. Every mosque in his +dominions had a school attached to it by his order; and, as if his love +of learning were superior even to his hereditary faith, he readily +tolerated men of science who refused to yield to the bold pretensions +of the Prophet. A Nestorian Christian presided over his schools, and +directed the academical studies of his subjects. His successor +imitated his wise and generous course; and thus knowledge extended from +the capital to the most distant extremities of the empire. + +{248} + +But it was during the reign of Almamoun, the seventh of the Abbassidan +princes, A.D. 813-833, that literature flourished most among the Arabs. +Learned men, professors of the Christian faith, had multiplied at +Bagdad under the tolerant reigns of his predecessors, and they were now +liberally encouraged to unfold their ample stores of knowledge. The +copious language of Arabia was employed to communicate whatever that of +the Greeks had hitherto concealed, though, with a barbarism for which +it is difficult to account, many of the original works were destroyed +as soon as translations of them were made. Almamoun in his youth had +associated with the most eminent scholars of Greece, Persia, and +Chaldea; and he now invited them to his court. Bagdad was resorted to +by poets, philosophers, and mathematicians, from every country and of +every creed. Armenia, Syria, and Egypt were explored by his agents for +literary treasures, which were amassed with infinite care, and +presented at the foot of the throne as the richest and most acceptable +tribute that conquered provinces could render. Camels, hitherto +employed exclusively in traffic, were seen entering the royal city +laden with Hebrew, Persian, and Grecian manuscripts. The court assumed +the appearance rather of an academy than of a council guiding the +affairs of a luxurious and warlike {249} government, and all classes +were encouraged to apply themselves to the acquisition of knowledge +with a zeal commensurate to the advantages thus afforded. "I chose," +said Almamoun, when remonstrated with for appointing a learned +Christian to an office of no small influence over the intellectual +pursuits of his people, "I chose this learned man, not to be my guide +in religious affairs, but to be my teacher of science; and it is well +known that the wisest men are to be found among the Jews and +Christians." [1] + +Under such favourable auspices, it is not to be wondered at that the +Saracens became a literary people. The caliphs of the West and of +Africa imitated their brethren of the East. "At one period, six +thousand professors and pupils cultivated liberal studies in the +college of Bagdad. Twenty schools made Grand Cairo a chief seat of +letters; and the talents of the students were exercised in the perusal +of the royal library, which consisted of one hundred thousand +manuscripts. The African writers dwell with pride and satisfaction on +the literary institutions which adorned the towns on the northern coast +of their sandy plain. The sun of science arose even in Africa, and the +manners of the Moorish savage were softened by philosophy. {250} Their +brethren in Europe amassed numerous and magnificent collections; two +hundred and eighty thousand volumes were in Cordova, and more than +seventy libraries were open to public curiosity in the kingdom of +Andalusia." + +We know but little of the internal government of the Arabian schools, +or of the studies actually pursued. Aristotle, no doubt, was the great +master to whom, in philosophy, all deference was paid. The Prophet had +prescribed their religion. Their schools were of two kinds, or rather +classes; the one comprehending the inferior institutions, in which +elementary branches of instruction, such as reading, writing, and +religious doctrine were chiefly attended to; the other, called +_Madras_, mostly connected with the mosques, as were all the schools of +the former class, included those institutions in which the higher +departments of knowledge were explored. Here grammar, logic, theology, +and jurisprudence were studied. The management of each school was +confided to a principal of known ability, and not always, a Mohammedan. +The professors lectured on the several sciences; and the pupils, if not +in every department, of which there is some doubt, certainly in that of +medicine, were publicly examined, and diplomas were given under the +hand of the chief physician. + +Of elegant composition, the Koran was {251} universally esteemed the +model. Hence it was studied with the most diligent care by all who +sought to distinguish themselves in the art of eloquence, one of the +leading acquirements of Arab scholars. Subordinate to this pre-eminent +composition, their schools of oratory boasted of models scarcely +inferior to the celebrated orators of antiquity. Malek and Sharaif, +the one for pathos, the other for brilliancy, are the chief of these. +Horaiai was esteemed as the compeer of Demosthenes and Cicero. +Bedreddin, of Grenada, was their "torch of eloquence;" and Sekaki +obtained the honourable designation of the Arabian Quinctilian. + +The ancient Arabs were much inclined to poetry. The wild, romantic +scenery of the land they inhabited, the sacred recollections of their +earliest history, the life they led, everything around them, +contributed to poetic inspiration. After the revival of letters, this +art was cultivated with enthusiasm. The heroic measures of Ferdousi, +the didactic verses of Sadi, and the lyric strains of Hafiz, even +through the medium of imperfect translations, discover animated +descriptions, bold metaphors, and striking expressions, that at once +delight and surprise us. In splendour, if not in strength, the poets +of the courts of Haroun and Almamoun, or those of the Ommiades of +Spain, have, perhaps, in no age been excelled. In this art, as among +other {252} people, so among the Arabs, the fair sex have distinguished +themselves. Valadata, Aysha, Labana, Safia, and others, have obtained +the highest encomiums. + +So great is the number of Arabian poets, that Abul Abbas, a son of +Motassem, who wrote an abridgment of their lives in the ninth century, +numbers one hundred and thirty. Other authors have occupied +twenty-four, thirty, and one no less than fifty volumes, in recording +their history. + +The Arabs, however, are entirely without epic poetry, so important a +department of the art; nor have they anything that may be properly +ranked as dramatic composition. Sophocles, Euripides, Terence, and +Seneca, the classic models of Greece and Rome, they despised as timid, +constrained, and cold; and under whatever obligation to these ancient +nations the Arabs may have been in other departments of literature, +they owe them nothing, or next to nothing, in this. Their poetry was +original and local; their figures and comparisons were strictly their +own. To understand and properly appreciate them, we must have a +knowledge of the productions of their country, and of the character, +institutions, and manners of its inhabitants. The muse delights in +illustrations and figures borrowed from pastoral life; that of Judea +revels among the roses of Sharon, the verdant slopes of {253} Carmel, +and the glory of Lebanon; while the Arab muse selects for her ornaments +the pearls of Omar, the musk of Hadramaut, the groves and nightingales +of Aden, and the spicy odours of Yemen. If these appear to us +fantastic, it must be remembered they are borrowed from objects and +scenes to which we are almost utter strangers. + +Who is not familiar with the Alif lita wa lilin, or the thousand and +one tales, commonly known as the Arabian Nights' Entertainment? Some +have questioned whether they are an original work, or a translation +from the Indian or Persian, made in the Augustan age of Arab +literature: a doubt certainly not warranted by any want of exactness in +their description of Arabian life and manners. They seem to have been +originally the legends of itinerant story-tellers, a class of persons +still very numerous in every part of the Mohammedan world. The scenes +they unfold, true to nature; the simplicity displayed in their +characters, their beauty and their moral instruction, appeal +irresistibly to the hearts of all; while the learned concede to them +the merit of more perfectly describing the manners of the singular +people from whom they sprung, than the works of any traveller, however +accomplished and indefatigable. + +Of history the ancient Arabs were strangely negligent; but, by the more +modern, this {254} department of knowledge has been cultivated with +greater care and success. Annals, chronicles, and memoirs, almost +numberless, are extant among them: kingdoms, provinces, and towns are +described, and their history is narrated in volumes, a bare catalogue +of which would extend to a wearisome length. They abound, however, +more in the fanciful than in the substantial and correct. Of this, the +titles of some of the most approved works of this kind may be taken as +specimens: A Chronology of the Caliphs of Spain and Africa is +denominated "A Silken Vest, embroidered with the Needle;" a History of +Grenada, "A Specimen of the Full Moon;" Ibu Abbas and Abu Bakri are +authors of historical collections, entitled respectively, "Mines of +Silver," and "Pearls and picked-up Flowers." Yet some of their +writers, as Ibn Katibi, are chiefly remarkable for the extent and +accuracy of their historical knowledge; and some of their works are +exceedingly voluminous. A full history of Spain occupied six authors +in succession, and cost the labour of one hundred and fifteen years to +complete. Their biography was not confined to men. Ibn Zaid and Abul +Mondar wrote a genealogical history of distinguished horses; and +Alasucco and Abdolmalec performed the same service for camels worthy of +being had in remembrance. Encyclopaedias and gazetteers, {255} with +dictionaries of the sciences and other similar works, occupied Arabian +pens long before they came into vogue among more modern literati. +Every species of composition, indeed, and almost every subject, in one +age or another, have engaged the attention of learned Mohammedans. + +Geography they did not so well understand, their means of acquiring +knowledge on this subject being exceedingly limited. Yet their public +libraries could boast of globes, voyages, and itineraries, the +productions of men who travelled to acquire geographical information. +With statistics and political economy they had but an imperfect +acquaintance; yet so early as the reign of Omar II. we find a work +devoted to these subjects, giving an account of the provinces and +cities of Spain, with its rivers, ports, and harbours; of the climate, +soil, mountains, plants, and minerals of that country; with its +imports, and the manner in which its several productions, natural and +artificial, might be manufactured and applied to the best advantage. +Money, weights, and measures, with whatever else political economy may +be understood to include, were also subjects which employed their +ingenious speculations, and, in some cases, their laborious research. + +The speculative sciences, scarcely less than polite literature, +flourished among the Arabs. {256} Indeed, what superstitious, +enthusiastic people has ever neglected these? Their ardour in the more +dignified of these pursuits was badly regulated; subtleties were +preferred to important practical truths; and, frequently, the more +ingenious the sophism, constructed after the rules of Aristotle, the +more welcome was it to men who rendered to that philosopher a homage +almost idolatrous. The later Arabs, and the Turks of the present day, +pay no little attention to astrology, though it is strongly prohibited +by their Prophet. This science was universally employed by the +idolaters, against whom his denunciations are scarcely less inveterate +than are those of the inspired volume; and doubtless he apprehended +that its prevalence would hazard the integrity, if not the very +existence, of his own system of religion. For many ages, therefore, it +was discountenanced; but, at length, the habit of consulting the stars +on important public occasions became frequent, and was attended with as +much anxiety and as many absurd ceremonies as disgraced the nations of +antiquity. Among the modern Mohammedans, no dignity of state is +conferred; no public edifice is founded, except at a time recommended +by astrologers. These pretenders to knowledge are supported by persons +of rank; and in vain do the more enlightened part of the community +exclaim that astrology is a false {257} science. "Do not think," said +a prime minister, who had been consulting a soothsayer as to the time +of putting on a new dress, "that I am such a fool as to put faith in +all this nonsense; but I must not make my family unhappy by refusing to +comply with forms which some of them deem of consequence." + +After these references to the polite literature of the Arabs, it will +be expected that they should have paid attention to the natural +sciences. They were not, indeed, discoverers and inventors, but they +considerably improved upon what they acquired in their extensive +intercourse with other nations; and, as forming the link which unites +ancient and modern letters, they are entitled to our respect and +gratitude. We derive our mathematics from them; and to them, also, we +owe much of our astronomical knowledge. Almamoun, by a liberal reward, +sought to engage in his service a famous mathematician of +Constantinople; and Ibn Korrah enriched the stores of his country in +this department with translations of Archimedes and the conics of +Apollonius. Some have said that, on the revival of European literature +in the fifteenth century, mathematical science was found nearly in the +state in which it had been left by Euclid; and the justly celebrated +Brucker contends, that the Arabs made no progress whatever in this +{258} most important branch of knowledge; later writers, however, and +particularly Montucia, the author of the Histoire des Mathematiques, +have done ample justice to their researches. Numerical characters, +without which our study of the exact sciences were almost in vain, +beyond all doubt came to us from the Arabs: not that they invented +them--it is probable they were originally words, perhaps Hindu words, +expressing the quantities they respectively represent, but abbreviated +and brought to their present convenient form by the followers of the +Prophet. Trigonometry and algebra are both indebted to their genius. +The sines of the one of these sciences instead of the more ancient +chord, and the representatives of quantities in the other, descend +through the Arabs to us, if they did not at first invent them. +Original works on spherical trigonometry are among the productions of +Ibn Musa and Geber, the former of whom is accounted the inventor of the +solution of equations of the second degree. The University of Leyden +still retains a manuscript treatise on the algebra of cubic equations, +by Omar ibn Ibrahim; and Casiri, who, preserved and classed 1851 +manuscripts, even after a fire had destroyed the magnificent collection +or the Escurial, informs us, that the principles and praises of +algebraic science were sung in an elaborate poem by Alcassem, a native +of Grenada. {259} These departments of knowledge were studied by the +Arabs as early as the eighth and ninth centuries. + +Astronomy, the science of a pastoral people, and eminently so in +regions with an almost cloudless sky, like the East, was studied with +great eagerness by Arabian philosophers. Almamoun, who has been before +mentioned, was ardently devoted to it: at his cost the necessary +instruments of observation were provided, and a complete digest of the +science was made. The land where, many ages before, this science had +been successfully studied by the Chaldeans, was in his power, and upon +its ample plains a degree of the earth's circle was repeatedly +measured, so as to determine the whole circumference of the globe to be +twenty-four thousand miles. The obliquity of the ecliptic they settled +at twenty-three degrees and a half: the annual movement of the +equinoxes and the duration of the tropical year were brought to within +a very little of the exact observations of modern times, the slight +error they admitted resulting from the preference they gave to the +system of Ptolemy. Albathani, or, as his name has been Latinized, +Albatenius, in the ninth century, after continuing his observations for +forty years, drew up tables, known as the Sabean tables, which, though +not now in very high repute because of more accurate calculations, +{260} were for a long time justly esteemed. Other Arabian astronomers +have rendered considerable service to this science. Mohammedanism did +not, like ancient paganism, adore the stars; but its disciples studied +them with a diligence, without which, perhaps, Newton, Flamstead, and +Halley had observed and calculated almost in vain. + +Architecture was an art in which the Arabs greatly excelled; their wide +extension gave them command of whatever was worthy of observation, and +their vast revenues afforded the most abundant means of indulging a +taste thus called into exercise. The history of Arabian architecture +comprises a period of about eight centuries, including its rise, +progress, and decay: their building materials were mostly obtained from +the ruined structures and cities that fell into their hands; and if no +one particular style was followed by them, it was because they +successfully studied most of the styles then known. On their buildings +but little external art was bestowed; all their pains were exhausted on +the interior, where no expense wag spared that could promote luxurious +ease and personal comfort. Their walls and ceilings were highly +embellished, and the light was mostly admitted in such manner as, by +excluding all external objects, to confine the admiration of the +spectator to the beauties produced within. With the art {261} of +preserving their structures from decay they must have had an adequate +acquaintance. Their stucco composition may still be found as hard as +stone, without a crack or flaw: the floors and ceilings of the +Alhambra, the ancient palace of Grenada, have been comparatively +uninjured by the neglect and dilapidation of nearly seven centuries; +while their paint retains its colour so bright and rich as to be +occasionally mistaken for mother-of-pearl. Sir Christopher Wren +derives the Gothic architecture from the Mohammedans; and the crescent +arch, a symbol of one of the deities anciently worshipped throughout +the heathen world, was first adopted by the Arabs of Syria, and +invariably used in all the edifices erected during the supremacy of the +Ommiades. The succeeding dynasty declined following this model; but, +during the reign of the house of Moawiyah, in Spain, it was imitated +from the Atlantic to the Pyrenees. + +The fine arts, painting, and sculpture, were not so much cultivated +among the early Mohammedans: they were thought to involve a breach of +the divine law. In this particular they agreed with the Jews. +Subsequently, however, these scruples were, by degrees, overcome; that +style of embellishment denominated Arabesque, which rejects figures of +men and animals, being first adopted, and afterward sculpture, more +nearly resembling {262} that of modern times. The Alhambra, or palace +of that suburb, had its lions, its ornamented tiles, and its paintings. +Abdalrahman III. placed a statue of his favourite mistress over the +palace he erected for her abode. Music was ardently cultivated. At +first, in the desert, its strains were rude and simple; subsequently, +the professors of the art were as much cherished, honoured, and +rewarded, as were the poets in the courts of the Arab sovereigns. Many +were celebrated for their skill in this art, especially Isaac +Almouseli. Al Farabi has been denominated the Arabian Orpheus: by his +astonishing command of the lute, he could produce laughter, or tears, +or sleep in his auditors at pleasure. He wrote a considerable work on +music, which is preserved in the Escurial. Abul Faragi is also a +famous writer among the Mohammedans on this subject. To them we are +indebted for the invention of the lute, which they accounted more +perfect than any other instrument; the use, also, of many of our modern +instruments, as the organ, flute, harp, tabor, and mandoline, was +common among them. Some say that the national instrument of the +Scottish highlander is taken from them. + +In many of the useful arts of modern days the Arabs were proficients; +as agriculture, gardening, metallurgy, and the preparing of leather. +The {263} names Morocco and Cordovan are still applied, in this latter +art, to leather prepared after the Arabian method. They manufactured +and dyed silk and cotton, made paper, were acquainted with the use of +gunpowder, and have claims to the honour of inventing the mariner's +compass. But perhaps there is no art in which their knowledge is so +much a subject of curious inquiry as medicine. Their country was +salubrious, their habits simple, and their indulgences few; so that +large opportunities of practically studying the art, at least among the +Arabs of earlier date, would not occur. Anatomy, except that of the +brute creation, was shut up from their study by the prejudices of their +creed; yet they excelled in medical skill. Hareth ibn Kaldar, an +eminent practitioner settled at Mecca, was honoured with the +conversation and applause of Mohammed. Honain was an eminent Arab +physician in the middle of the sixth century; Messue, the celebrated +preceptor of Almamoun, belonged to this profession; and a host of +others adorn the early annals of the Saracens. Al Rhagi, or Ullages, +as commonly called, and Abdallah ibn Sina, or Avicenna, are names to +which, for centuries, deference was paid by professors of the healing +art throughout Europe, though it would not be difficult to show that +their doctrines and practice must have been beyond measure absurd. +They {264} administered gold, and silver, and precious stones to purify +the blood. + +Of chymistry, so far as it relates to medicine, the Arabs may be +considered as the inventors; and botany, in the same connexion, they +cultivated with great success. Geber, in the eighth century, is known +as their principal chymical writer; he is said to have composed five +hundred volumes, almost every one of which is lost. The early +nomenclature of the science indicates how much it owes to this people. +Alcohol, alembic, alkali, aludel, and other similar terms, are +evidently of Arabic origin; nor should it be forgotten that the +characters used for drugs, essences, extracts, and medicines, the +import of which is now almost entirely unknown (and which are +consequently invested, in vulgar estimation, with occult powers), are +all to be traced to the same source. + +It may be impossible now to estimate accurately the extent of our +obligations to Arabian literature. An empire so widely spread, by the +encouragement it gave to letters, must have had a beneficial influence +on almost every country. Europeans, whether subject to its sway or +only contemplating it from a distance, copied or emulated the example. +Gerbert, who subsequently occupied the papal chair as Silvester II., +acquired the Arabic method of computation during his travels in Spain, +{265} previously to his elevation. Leonardo, a Pisan merchant, +obtained a knowledge of the same art in his intercourse with the +Mohammedans on the coast of Africa; and by him it was introduced into +his own native republic, from whence it was soon communicated to the +Western World. In the city of Salernum, a port of Italy, Mussulmans +and Christians so intermixed as to communicate insensibly the +literature of the Saracens to the Italians, and in the schools of that +city students were collected from every quarter of Europe. Arabic +books, by command of Charlemagne, were translated into Latin for the +use of learned men throughout his vast empire; and, without +exaggerating the merits of the followers of the Prophet, it may be +admitted that we are indebted to them for the revival of the exact and +physical sciences, and for many of those useful arts and inventions +that have totally changed the aspect of European literature, and are +still contributing to the civilization, freedom, and best interests of +man. + + + +[1] Abulferage, p. 160. + + + + +{266} + +CHAPTER III. + +The present Condition of Mohammedanism.--In Turkey.--The Doctrines +believed there.--Their Forms of +Devotion.--Lustrations.--Prayer.--Mohammedan Sabbath.--Fast of +Ramadan.--Meccan Pilgrimage.--Proselytism.--Mohammedan +Hierarchy.--Islamism in Tartary.--In Hindustan.--In China.--In +Persia.--In Africa.--In the Indian Archipelago.--The Sooffees.--The +Wahabees. + + +The present condition of the Mohammedan faith, with some account of the +standing it maintains in the world, will not be deemed an inappropriate +subject for the closing pages of this volume. Its votaries have long +ceased to spread alarm through the nations by their victorious and +devastating progress; the fire of its fanaticism is almost extinct; +nevertheless, its doctrines prevail over a larger number of mankind +than any other system of false religion: they are professed in nations +and countries remote from each other, and having no other mutual +resemblance than that involved in their common superstition. In Spain, +indeed, Christianity has triumphed over Islamism; and in the +inhospitable regions of Siberia, a part of the ancient Tartary, its +advance has been somewhat checked; but in middle and lower Asia, and in +Africa, the {267} number of Mohammed's followers has increased. We +cannot state with accuracy the number either of Mohammedan or of +nominal Christians; but, looking at religion geographically, while +Christianity has almost entire dominion in Europe, in Asia Islamism is +the dominant faith: in America the cross is rapidly becoming the symbol +of faith throughout both its vast continents; but in Africa the +crescent waves to the almost entire exclusion of every other emblem. + +It is in Turkey that Mohammedanism exists at the present day in its +most perfect form. To this country, therefore, our attention shall be +first directed. + +Constantinople, anciently called Byzantium, and the countries over +which the Greek emperors residing in that city reigned, were subdued by +the powerful caliphs of Bagdad, while those of Spain and the West were +endeavouring to push their conquests over the fairest portions of +Europe. The situation of Constantinople and the surrounding empire lay +especially open to the Eastern Mohammedans, whose warlike incursions +were incessant. Tartars from Asia overran the empire. Othman, in the +early part of the thirteenth century, laid the foundation of Turkish +greatness. Orchan, Amurathi and Bajazet, his successors, amid both +foreign and domestic wars, greatly contributed to its {268} +establishment and increase. The children of the last of these +conquerors threw the empire into a frightful state of distraction by +their unnatural quarrels, till, at last, the youngest of them, named +after the Prophet, restored its integrity, and established something +like domestic tranquillity. Under a grandson of his, Mohammed II., +whom Bayle describes as one of the greatest men recorded in history, +the Morea was subjugated, and the Greek empire, so long shaken by +internal dissensions, and tottering to dissolution by its luxury, was +trampled in the dust by the Moslem conquerors. Constantinople at last +yielded to their power, and a palace for the victor was erected on the +very spot which Constantine had chosen for his magnificent abode. + +From this time to that of Solyman the Magnificent, to whom the Turks +owe their laws and police, the empire continued to prosper, but +immediately afterward its decline commenced. Letters and science have +made but little progress among that people, and their sultans have +possessed none of the martial enterprise and energy of their early +predecessors; still the faith of Mohammed has maintained, and down to +this day continues to maintain, a hold which it enjoys in almost no +other country. + +The Turks generally repose the most implicit faith in the two leading +articles of the Mohammedan {269} creed, that there is but one God, and +that Mohammed is his Prophet; and since, in the opinion of the Moslems, +a simple assent to these doctrines comprises all that is valuable in +religion, and will be surely followed by the possession of heaven, +either immediately or remotely, it is readily conceivable that +infidelity will be exceedingly rare. In religious matters, the heart +opposes not so much what is to be believed as what is to be done. + +Minor points of their theology have been from time to time disputed, +but these may be regarded as generally settled. Predestination is one +of the chief dogmas on which the faith of the Turk is as firmly fixed +as on the most momentous article in his creed. Fatalism was the great +engine employed by Mohammed in establishing his religion; and among the +Turks this doctrine is received as regulating their destiny, +controlling all events, and determining the results of every +individual's actions; thus unnerving the soul for generous and manly +enterprise, and casting a lethargy on the whole nation. In everything +the operations of reason are checked, and even made to wait for the +imagined manifestations of Deity. According to the creed of the Turks, +not only is everything foreknown to God, but everything is +predetermined, and brought about by his direct and immediate agency. + +{270} + +The Turk is keen and wise in his ordinary transactions: in promoting +his own interests, he knows how to exercise the powers of his mind, +but, when difficulty or doubt overtakes him, he makes no effort. The +thick cloud of his misfortunes is suffered to remain; his troubles are +yielded to with sullen indifference; he considers it impious to oppose +the determinations of the Most High. To all improvement, such a +doctrine is a decided and invincible foe; in some circumstances, +however, it appears to have its advantages. Does a Mohammedan suffer +by calamity? Is he plundered or ruined? He does not fruitlessly +bewail his lot. His answer to all murmuring suggestions is, "It was +written;" and to the most unexpected transition from opulence to +poverty, he submits without a sigh. The approach of death does not +disturb his tranquillity; he makes his ablution, repeats his prayers, +professes his belief in God and his Prophet, and in a last appeal to +the aid of affection, he says to his child, "turn my head towards +Mecca," and calmly expires. + +A people's religion is traced in their established and common forms of +devotion, and none are more attentive to these than the Turks. To +neglect any ceremony which their religion prescribes, is deemed a mark +either of inferior understanding or of depraved character. Public +decorum is {271} everywhere observed; and though both moral and +religious precepts are violated with impunity and without remorse, they +are always spoken of with great respect. A Mohammedan is never ashamed +to defend his faith; and of his sincerity and firmness, the earnestness +of his vindication may be taken as sufficient proof: he not +unfrequently interrupts the progress of conversation by repeating his +religious formula. In the Turkish towns, travellers are incessantly +met with the cry of Allah Ackbar; and by Mussulmans, who would be +esteemed pious, the divine name is as frequently repeated as if +reverent and devout thoughts were habitually uppermost in their minds. + +Purifications are constantly, and with great strictness, performed by +the Mussulmans of every country, but especially by those of Turkey. +Their professed object is to render the body fit for the decorous +performance of religious duties; no act being praiseworthy or +acceptable, in their estimation, unless the person of the performer be +in a condition of purity. Some have thought, but without sufficient +grounds, that these external purifications are believed to supersede an +inward cleansing of the heart. Fountains placed round their mosques, +and numerous baths in every city, enable the devout to perform their +five prayers daily, during which, if they chance to receive pollution +{272} from anything accidentally coming in contact with them, their +devotions are suspended till the offensive inconvenience is removed by +water or other means. + +At the appointed hour, the Maazeens or criers, with their faces towards +Mecca, their eyes closed, and their hands upraised, pace the little +galleries of the minarets or towers of the mosques, and proclaim in +Arabic, the Moslem language of devotion, that the season of prayer has +arrived. Instantly, every one, whatever may be his rank or employment, +gives himself up to it. Ministers of state suspend the most important +affairs, and prostrate themselves on the floor; the tradesman forgets +his dealings, and transforms his shop into a place of devotion; and the +student lays aside his books, to go through his accustomed +supplications. "Never to fail in his prayers" is the highest +commendation a Turk can receive; and so prejudicial is the suspicion of +irreligion, that even libertines dare not disregard the notices of the +Maazeen. The mosques, like chapels in Catholic countries, are always +open, and two or three times every day prayers are offered within their +walls. It has often been remarked, that the devotions of Christians +might acquire something valuable from the gravity, the decorum, and the +apparently intense occupation of mind in Turkish worship. The Jews +trod {273} their holy place barefoot: the Turks, on the contrary, keep +on their boots and shoes. Christians uncover their heads in prayer; +the Moslems seldom lay aside their turbans; but for hours they will +remain prostrate, or standing in one position, as if absorbed in the +most intense abstraction. They have neither altars, pictures, nor +statues in their places of worship. Verses of the Koran, the names and +personal descriptions of their Prophet, of Ali and his two sons, Hassan +and Hosein, with other Moslem saints, are sometimes inscribed in +letters of gold on their walls. All distinctions of rank and +profession are forgotten when they pray. Persons of every class, on +the first sound of the accustomed cry, cast themselves on the ground, +and thus declare their belief in the equality of mankind, in the sight +of the great Father of all. + +The Mohammedans of Turkey have a Sabbath, for which the Jewish or +Christian may be supposed to have furnished the model. Friday is their +day of rest, which commences on the preceding evening, when the +illuminated minarets and colonnades of the mosques give to their cities +the appearance of a festival. At noon, on Friday, all business is +suspended, the mosques are filled, and prayers are read by the +appointed officers, accompanied by the prostrations of the people. +Discourses are likewise frequently delivered on {274} practical points +in their theology; and sometimes, in the ardour of excitement, +political corruption and courtly depravity are fiercely assailed. A +voluptuous sultan has been known, under the effect of these discourses, +to tear himself from the soft indulgences of his harem and court, to +lead his martial subjects to war and victory on the plains of their +enemies. As soon as the public religious services are concluded, all +return to their ordinary pursuits; the day, however, is strictly +observed by all classes in the manner prescribed by law, it being a +received maxim that he who, without legitimate cause, absents himself +from public devotion on three successive Fridays, abjures his religion. +It is worthy of observation, that the prayers of the Turks consist +chiefly of adoration, of confessions of the Divine attributes and the +nothingness of man, and of homage and gratitude to the Supreme Being. +A Turk must not pray for the frail and perishable blessings of this +life; the health of the sultan, the prosperity of his country, and +divisions and wars among the Christians alone excepted. The legitimate +object of prayer they hold to be spiritual gifts, and happiness in a +future state of being. + +No one of their religious institutions is more strictly observed by the +Turks than the fast of Ramadan. He who violates it is reckoned either +{275} an infidel or an apostate; and if two witnesses establish his +offence, he is deemed to have incurred the severest penalty of the law. +Abstinence from food, and even from the use of perfumes, from sunrise +to sunset, is enjoined. The rich pass the hours in meditation and +prayer, the grandees sleep away their time, but the labouring man, +pursuing his daily toil, most heavily feels its rigour. "When the +month of Ramadan happens in the extremities of the seasons, the +prescribed abstinence is almost intolerable, and is more severe than +the practice of any moral duty, even to the most vicious and depraved +of mankind." During the day all traffic is suspended; but in the +evening, and till late at night, it is actively carried on in the +streets, shops, and bazars, most splendidly illuminated. From sunset +to sunrise, revelry and excess are indulged in. Every night there is a +feast among the great officers of the court: the reserve of the Turkish +character is laid aside, and friends and relations cement their union +by mutual intercourse. Sumptuous banquets and convivial hilarity are +universal; and, were not women everywhere excluded from the tables of +the men, the pleasure of the festivals would amply compensate the +rigorous self-denial of their fasts. + +The pilgrimage to Mecca is with the Turks more a matter of form than of +reality. Its {276} importance as a part of the Moslem ritual is +admitted, and apparently felt, but the number of pilgrims annually +decreases. The sultan, having dominion over the country through which +the pilgrims must pass, preserves the public ways leading to the +venerated city; the best soldiers of his empire are charged with the +protection of the caravans, which are sometimes numerous; but of his +own subjects, properly so called, few comparatively accompany them; +they are made up of devotees from a greater distance. The sultan, no +doubt, encourages the pilgrimage as much on commercial as on religious +grounds. The Koran has determined it to be very proper to intermingle +commerce and religion: "It shall be no crime in you," it says, "if ye +seek an increase from your Lord by trading during the pilgrimage." +Accordingly, articles of easy carriage and ready sale are brought by +the pilgrims from every country. The productions and manufactures of +India thus find their way into other parts of Asia and throughout +Africa. The muslins and chintses of Bengal and the Deccan, the shawls +of Cashmere, the pepper of Malabar, the diamonds of Golconda, the +pearls of Kilkau, the cinnamon of Ceylon, and the spices of the +Moluccas, are made to yield advantage to the Ottoman empire, and the +luxury of its subjects is sustained by contributions from the most +distant nations. + +{277} + +Mohammedans of the present day, at least those of Turkey, are less +anxious to make proselytes than were those of a former age. Those of +India and Africa may, to some extent, still retain the sentiment, that +to convert infidels is an ordinance of God, and must be observed by the +faithful in all ages; but in Turkey little desire of this kind is felt, +chiefly because, by a refinement of uncharitableness, the conversion of +the world is deemed unworthy of their endeavours. Now and then a +devout Moslem, instigated by zeal or personal attachment, may offer up +this prayer for a Jew or a Christian: "Great God, enlighten this +infidel, and graciously dispose his heart to embrace thy holy +religion;" and perhaps to a youth, esteemed for his talents or +knowledge, the language of persuasion may occasionally be addressed +with an air of gentleness and urbanity; but the zeal of the missionary +is in such cases commonly subject to what are conceived to be the rules +of good breeding, and a vague reply or silence is regarded as an +indication that the subject is disagreeable, and should not be +continued. A Mussulman may pray for the conversion of infidels, but, +till they are converted, no blessing may be supplicated in their +behalf. "Their death is eternal, why pray for them?" is the language +of the Mohammedan creed: do not {278} "defile your feet by passing over +the graves of men who are enemies of God and of his Prophet." + +Of the Mohammedan hierarchy, some idea may be obtained from the form it +assumes in Turkey. The Koran is considered the treasure of all laws, +divine and human, and the caliphs as the depositaries of this treasure; +so that they are at once the pontiffs, legislators, and judges of the +people, and their office combines all authority, whether sacerdotal, +regal, or judicial. To the grand sultan titles are given, styling him +the vicar, or the shadow of God. The several powers which pertain to +him in this august capacity are delegated to a body of learned men, +called the Oulema. In this body three descriptions of officers are +included: the ministers of religion, called the Imams; the expounders +of the law, called the Muftis; and the ministers of justice, called the +Cadis. The ministers of religion are divided into chief and inferior, +the former of whom only belong to the Oulema. Both classes are made up +of Sheiks, or ordinary preachers; the Khatibs, readers or deacons; the +Imams, a title comprising those who perform the service of the mosque +on ordinary days, and those to whom pertain the ceremonies of +circumcision, marriage, and burial; the Maazeens, or criers, who +announce the hours of prayer; and the Cayuns, or common attendants of +the mosque. The {279} idea of this classification was, perhaps, taken +from the Mosaic priesthood; the Khatib being the Aaron, and the next +four the several orders of the Levites, with their servants or helpers. +The imperial temples have one Sheik, one Khatib, from two to four +Imams, twelve Maazeens, and twenty Cayuns, among whom, except in a few +of the chief mosques of Constantinople, the Khatibs have the +pre-eminence. All these ministers are subject to the civil magistrate, +who is looked upon as a sort of diocesan, and who may perform at any +time all the sacerdotal functions. The ministers of religion are not +distinguishable from other people; they mix in the same society, engage +in similar pursuits, and affect no greater austerity than marks the +behaviour of Mussulmans generally. Their influence depends entirely on +their reputation for learning and talents, for gravity and correct +moral conduct; their employment is, for the most part, very simple, as +chanting aloud the public service, and performing such offices as every +master of a family may discharge. As Mohammedanism acknowledges no +sacrifices, it appoints no priests; the duties performed by the +ministers of religion being seemingly devolved on them more as a matter +of convenience than on account of any sacredness attaching to their +order. + +The vast country to which the general name of {280} Tartary has been +given, is that from whence Mohammedanism has gone forth to the East, +the West, and the South. In Thibet, the Grand Lama and various +national idols hold divided empire with the Prophet; and in the +inhospitable regions of Siberia, the churches of Greece and Russia have +successfully promulgated the Christian doctrines; while the +Circassians, with some other Tartar races, are almost without religion. +In the Crimea, the people are Mussulmans, as rigid and devoted as the +Turks; and over the vast tract called by modern geographers Independent +Tartary, the crescent triumphantly waves. From these regions sprung, +in the earlier ages of Mohammedan conquest, those vast empires which, +in the East, comprise so large a number of the professors of the faith +of Islam. The first sovereign of this country, to whom the title of +sultan was awarded early in the tenth century, conducted several +expeditions into Hindustan, and secured the homage of many of the +cities. The ancient Indian superstition was in a great measure +overturned by his victorious arms. Long and fierce contests ensued: +the princes of the subdued provinces, often throwing off their forced +allegiance, endeavoured to regain their independence and re-establish +their ancient faith, till, at length, the great Timurlane, having +overrun the country with his legions, received at Agra the title {281} +of Emperor of Hindustan. Scarcely, however, had two centuries and a +half rolled away, when his successors fell in their turn under the +Persian power; and the empire he established was weakened, and +ultimately destroyed. As the result of these conquests, Mohammedanism +prevailed to a great extent, but rather nominally than really, among +the millions of India: it was the religion of the court and government; +but, either from indifference or timidity in the Moslem conquerors, the +ancient idols still held extensive influence, and were at length +gradually restored. In the twelfth century, Benares, the ancient seat +of Brahminical learning and of Hindu idolatry, fell into the hands of +the conqueror, who destroyed its numerous objects of popular adoration. +Yet, soon afterward, the religious character of the place was restored, +and the demolished idols were replaced by others, that were as eagerly +resorted to as had been their predecessors. To this consecrated +metropolis, a pilgrimage was regarded by the millions of India as +imperatively commanded, and as necessary as was a visit to Mecca by the +Mohammedans; and the weakness or the policy of its Moslem conquerors +did not long withhold from them this valued privilege; the government +of the city was committed to the Hindus, and their conquerors, in the +plenitude of their bigotry, pride, and power, never {282} thought of +suffering their own magistrates to exercise authority within its walls. +Thus Mohammedanism is the religion, not of the ancient inhabitants of +India, but of the descendants of the millions of Tartars, Persians, and +Arabians who, at various periods, have left their native seats to +participate in the riches of these far-famed plains. The north and +northwestern parts are filled with them, and from thence they have +wandered over the whole of that vast country. Perhaps their numbers +may now amount to nearly twenty millions, among whom, however, though +they are mostly of foreign extraction, are many converts from Hinduism. +They form separate communities, amalgamating in some parts of the +country, and living as sociably with Hindus as the differences in their +respective faiths will permit. Hindu princes have at times paid their +devotions at Mohammedan shrines, and observed their feasts; while +Mohammedans have relaxed somewhat the strictness of their observances, +and manifested an inclination to conform, as far as possible, to their +Hindu neighbours. Some five centuries ago, the Borahs, a people who +once occupied the kingdom of Guzerat, were converted _en masse_ to +Islamism. The Arab traders to the coasts of Malabar have always been +exceedingly earnest in their endeavours to convert the natives, in +which they have {283} been greatly aided by the facility with which +they have been allowed to purchase the children of the poorer classes, +to educate them in the principles of their faith, and also by the +frequency with which the inhabitants of those districts lose caste. +This badge of the Hindu faith is often forfeited by the people mixing +with those of other countries, and when it is lost they easily become +Moslems. + +It has been maintained that the native inhabitants of India are +absolutely unchangeable in their sacred, domestic, and political +institutions, and, at first sight, there would appear to be much to +warrant such an opinion; but the history of many of them, and +especially of the Sikhs, who inhabit the provinces of the Panjab, +between the rivers Jumna and Indus, may be alleged as proofs to the +contrary. Still, in the religion of the Sikhs, Mohammedan fable and +Hindu absurdity are mixed; its founder wishing to unite both these +prevalent systems in one. He had been educated in a part of the +country where these two religions appeared to touch each other, if not +commingle, and he was no stranger to the violent animosity existing +between their respective professors; he sought, therefore, to blend the +jarring elements of both in peaceful union. The Hindu was required to +abandon his idols, and to worship the one Supreme Deity whom his +religion acknowledged; while the Mohammedan {284} was to abstain from +such practices (especially the killing of cows) as were offensive to +the superstition of the Hindus. This plan so far prevailed, that, +without acknowledging the Prophet, the Sikhs became more Mohammedans +than Hindus; and though the institutions of Brahma are not admitted +among them, they insult and persecute true Moslems more fiercely and +cruelly than any other people. They compel them to eat that which is +forbidden by their law; animals which they account unclean are +frequently thrown into their places of public assembly, and they are +prohibited from proclaiming the hour of prayer to the faithful. + +China is one of those countries to which Mohammedanism was carried by +the hordes of Tartary. From the scrupulous jealousy with which this +vast empire is guarded from observation, it is difficult to say to what +extent the Mohammedan faith, or, indeed, any other, prevails among its +numberless inhabitants; but, beyond question, it is tolerated. + +The irruption of the Saracens into China under Walid can scarcely be +termed a conquest. Subsequently, the successors of Zenghis Khan seated +themselves on the throne of Pekin, and opened the country to an +intercourse with all nations. The commercial Arabs had visited the +ports and cities in the south of China; and, now that access to the +{285} capital was unrestrained, multitudes of them repaired thither. +They acquired the language, and adopted the dress and manners of the +people, to whom also they rendered valuable aid in adjusting their +chronology, and making the necessary calculations for their calendar. +Intercourse with the Chinese made the Mohammedans desirous of effecting +their conversion, the means adopted for which were both wise and +humane. Deserted children were taken under their protection, and +educated in Islamism; while in other ways they sought to commend +themselves to confidence, and their religion to respect, by alleviating +the wretchedness induced by a cruel superstition. The Mohammedans of +China seem to partake of the mild and quiet character of the +inhabitants generally, and are therefore tolerated; though there have +been some exceptions to this encomium. About sixty years ago they were +instrumental in promoting an unsuccessful rebellion, and the Emperor +Kien Long, after suppressing it, ordered one hundred thousand of them +to be put to death. + +Persia, from an early period, has been almost entirely a Mohammedan +country. On its conquest by the Saracens, the religion of Zoroaster, +which had till then prevailed, was nearly abolished. Those who +persevered in retaining it were obliged to flee to the mountains or to +the western parts {286} of India, where their old forms of worship +still linger. In the disputes which ensued on the death of Mohammed +concerning the caliphate, the Persians espoused the cause of Ali, the +Prophet's son-in-law, and to his memory they are still attached. "May +this arrow go to the heart of Omar," is a frequent expression among +them in drawing a bow; and not long since, when Mr. Malcolm, during his +travels in Persia, was praising Omar, the antagonist of Ali, as the +greatest of the caliphs, a Persian, overcome by the justice of his +observations, yet still adhering to his rooted prejudices, replied, +"This is all very true, but he was a dog after all." + +Here Mohammedanism exists in a less rigorous form than in Turkey. Its +ceremonies are observed by those who are little disposed to practice +its moral code: they say their prayers at the appointed season, and +make a show of devotion to prevent their being suspected of irreligion; +but the people generally are little concerned about the pilgrimage to +Mecca, and other matters on which, in the Koran, much stress is laid. +They choose rather to resort to the tomb of Ali, and to that of his son +Hosein, whose name is reverenced among them with a feeling approaching +to adoration. + +In Africa, Mohammedanism has very widely prevailed. Algiers, Tunis, +Tripoli, all the northern parts of this continent, acknowledge its +sway. {287} From Arabia and Egypt it spread west and south nearly to +the great rivers. It is the established religion of Morocco; and in +Western Barbary and several kingdoms of the interior the Arabic +language is spoken, the Koran believed, and the Prophet almost +worshipped. The Senegal, up to the small Moorish state of Gedumah, is +the line of division between the Mohammedans and the Negroes: from +thence the line passes eastward of north, through Nigritia and Nubia to +the Nile. As yet, however, it is but indistinctly marked, it being +doubtful whether Timbuctoo is a Mohammedan or Negro town. The courts +of Bornou and Cassina are Mohammedan, but a majority of their subjects +are pagans. Islamism in these vast territories is in an exceedingly +degenerate state when compared with either its first development in the +Arabian desert, or with what now obtains in Turkey. It is said that +but little more than its exclusive persecuting spirit remains: the +Oriental lustrations are almost unknown, Mohammedan temperance is +neglected, and the great doctrine of the unity of God is confounded +with, or supplanted by, the polytheism of the native inhabitants. The +Mussulman is more depraved than the pagan; so that, while travellers +frequently mention the hospitality they received from the latter, by +the former they were constantly insulted and annoyed on account of +{288} their religion. In no quarter of the world does the faith of the +Prophet wear so frightful an aspect as in Africa. + +The region from which Mohammedanism first sprung has not remained in +all respects faithful to the precepts of the Prophet. In Mecca and +Medina, indeed, his name and system are held in the profoundest +veneration; and no wonder, since both these cities are mainly supported +by the superstitious observances enjoined in the Koran; but the +Bedouins are as licentious in their religion as in their policy and +habits. On the Turkish frontiers they keep up an appearance of respect +for the name of the Prophet and his doctrines; but, in answer to all +reproaches for their unfaithfulness, they say in words worthy a better +taught and more civilized race, "The religion of Mohammed could never +have been intended for us. We have no water in the desert. How, then, +can we make the prescribed ablutions? We have no money. How, then, +can we give alms? The fast of Ramadan is a useless command to persons +who fast all the year round; and, if God be everywhere, why should we +go to Mecca to adore him?" + +From the southernmost part of Hindustan, Mohammedanism made its way to +the Malayan peninsula; to Sumatra, Java, Borneo, the Manillas, and the +Celebes: Goram, one of the Spice Islands, is {289} its eastern +boundary. In the interior of these islands it prevails less than on +the shores. To these remote regions Islamism has been carried more by +the commercial than the military enterprise of its votaries. What is +its present condition there, it is difficult, perhaps impossible, +accurately to ascertain. In Java it was the established religion; but, +when the Dutch settled that island early in the seventeenth century, +many of the natives were converted. Little respect is paid by the +Javans of the present day either to their ancient paganism, or to +Mohammedanism which took its place; though some of the forms of the +latter are still in force, and its institutions are said to be gaining +ground. + +The reader of Mohammedan history will meet with the terms Sooffee and +Wahabee, as designating certain divisions of the disciples of the +religion of the Prophet. It will not, therefore, be inappropriate to +close with a brief account of these respective sects. + +Sooffee is a term originating in Persia, meaning enthusiasts or +mystics, or persons distinguished by extraordinary sanctity. The +object of the Sooffee is to attain a divine beatitude, which he +describes as consisting in absorption into the essence of Deity. The +soul, according to his doctrine, is an emanation from God, partaking of +his nature; just {290} as the rays of light are emanations from the +sun, and of the same nature with the source, from whence they are +derived. The creature and the Creator are of one substance. No one +can become a Sooffee without strictly conforming to the established +religion, and practising every social virtue; and when, by this means, +he has gained a habit of devotion, he may exchange what they style +practical for spiritual worship, and abandon the observance of all +religious forms and ceremonies. He at length becomes inspired, arrives +at truth, drops his corporeal veil, and mixes again with that glorious +essence from which he has been partially and for a time separated. The +life of the Sooffees of Persia, though generally austere, is not +rendered miserable, like that of the visionary devotees of Hinduism, by +the practice of dreadful severities, their most celebrated teachers +have been famed for knowledge and devotion. The Persians are a poetic +people, and the very genius of Sooffeeism is poetry. Its raptures are +the raptures of inspiration; its hopes are those of a highly sensitive +and excited imagination; its writers in the sweetest strains celebrate +the Divine love, which pervades all nature: everything, from the very +highest to the lowest, seeking and tending towards union with Deity as +its object of supreme desire. They inculcate forbearance, +abstemiousness, and {291} universal benevolence. They are unqualified +predestinarians. The emanating principle, or the soul, proceeding from +God, can do nothing, they say, without his will, nor refuse to do +anything which he instigates. Some of them, consequently, deny the +existence of evil; and the doctrine of rewards and punishments is +superseded by their idea of re-absorption into the Divine essence. The +free opinions of this class of enthusiasts subvert the doctrines of +Islamism, yet they pay an outward respect to them; they unsettle the +existing belief, without providing an intelligible substitute; they +admit the divine mission of the Prophet, but explain away the dogmas he +uttered; and while they affect to yield him honour as a person raised +up by God, to induce moral order in the world, they boast their own +direct and familiar intercourse with Deity, and claim, on that account, +unqualified obedience in all that relates to spiritual interests. + +The similarity of Sooffeeism to the ancient Pythagorean and Platonic +doctrines will occur to every one at all acquainted with the religion +and philosophy of antiquity. It as closely resembles some of the +distinguishing tenets of the Brahminical faith. In fact, it seems as +if designed, in conjunction with the refined theology of ancient, and +the sublime visions of modern idolaters, to teach us that, without +Divine guidance, the loftiest human {292} conceptions on subjects +connected with God and religion invariably err; the ignorant and the +instructed are equally wrong; "the world by wisdom knows not God." + +The Wahabees are a modern sect of Mohammedan reformers, whose efforts +have considerably changed the aspect of the religion of the Prophet. +Perhaps to them may be owing much of that rigid adherence to Mohammedan +doctrine and practice which prevails in those parts where their +influence has been felt. They are the followers of Abdol Wahab, who +commenced his career in the region where, during the lifetime of the +Prophet, Moseilama had threatened a considerable division among his +followers. Wahab was an ambitious fanatic, who aimed, nevertheless, at +reforming the national religion. He was aided by powerful princes of +the province of Nejed; and, within a short time, the tenets he +maintained spread throughout the peninsula. His fundamental principle, +like that of Mohammed, was the unity of God. The Koran he regarded as +divine, rejecting all the glosses which ignorance and infatuation had +put upon it, and holding in utter contempt all the traditions and tales +concerning its author, which the devout of every generation had eagerly +received. The reverence, approaching to adoration, which the Arabs +were wont to pay to the name of Mohammed, all visits to his tomb, and +all {293} regard to the tombs and relics of Arab saints, he denounced; +and the costly ornaments with which a mistaken piety had enriched these +sacred spots, he thought might be appropriated to ordinary purposes. +Wahab would not suffer the common oath of, by Mohammed, or by Ali, to +be used among his followers, on the very rational ground that an oath +is an appeal to a witness of our secret thoughts, and who can know +these but God? The title of Lord, generally given to the Prophet by +his followers, Wahab rejected as impious. He was commonly mentioned by +this zealous reformer and his adherents by his simple name, without the +addition of "our Lord, the Prophet of God." All who deviated in any +degree from the plain sense of the Koran, either in belief or practice, +were infidels in their esteem; upon whom, therefore, according to its +directions, war might be made. Thus was the martial spirit of the +early Saracens again called into exercise; and with the ardour that +characterized the days of the immediate successors of the Prophet, they +were prepared at once to assail the consciences and the property of men +not exactly of their own faith. + +At the call of their leader, they assembled first in the plain of +Draaiya, some 400 miles east of Medina, armed and provided at their own +expense for war. Bagdad and Mecca in vain attempted to {294} suppress +them; the seraglio itself was filled with their formidable war-cry; the +sultan trembled on his throne; and the caravans from Syria suspended +their usual journeys. The imperial city suffered from their ravages in +its usual supplies of coffee; and the terror of their name was widely +spreading among devout Mohammedans of every country, for they had +violated the shrines of saints, and levelled to the ground the chapels +at Mecca, which devotion had consecrated to the memory of the Prophet +and his family. At the commencement of the present century, however, +Mecca was recovered from them by the Turkish arms, and the plague, with +the smallpox, breaking out just at this time among the followers of +Wahab, probably saved the mighty fabric of Islamism. These reverses +did not quench, however, the ardour of the Wahabees. Their leader had +been assassinated, but his son, already distinguished for his prudence +and valour, succeeded him in the command. Medina fell beneath his +power, and from thence to the Persian Gulf he seemed likely to reign +lord paramount. In 1805 he was able to impose a heavy tax on the +caravan of pilgrims from Damascus to the Holy City, and declared that +thenceforth it should consist of pilgrims alone, without the pride and +pomp of a religious procession. Soon afterward they again entered +Mecca, and immediately threatened with destruction every {295} sacred +relic; but they did not put their threats into execution. Various +conflicts between them and the orthodox Mohammedans have since ensued, +the general result of which has been to break the martial and fanatical +spirit of the Wahabees, and to re-establish the power of the grand +sultan in cities and districts where it had been placed in jeopardy. +They are still, indeed, dreaded as plunderers, but no great national +convulsion has resulted from their efforts. + +Some writers regret the suppression of this once powerful sect of +Mohammedans, believing that, if continued, they would have been +instrumental in overthrowing the Moslem faith, and making way for a +purer religion; but for ourselves, we see little occasion for these +regrets. The Wahabees must not be supposed more favourable to a pure +faith than are those by whom they have been overthrown. If they must +be regarded as reformers, they only attempted to correct a few absurd +and scandalous practices: the impious and abominable dogmas of the +Koran they left untouched; or, if they touched them, it was only to +enforce their observance with greater rigour. Their creed was even +more sanguinary and intolerant than that of the ancient Mohammedans, +and probably the continuance of their power would have been nothing +more than the continuance of injustice, cruelty, and {296} persecution. +We do not look for the overthrow of Mohammedanism by such means. One +system of error may sometimes destroy another, but the pure faith, +which blesses a miserable world by directing men in the path of safety, +knowledge, and happiness, will extend only as the sacred volume is +diffused, and as that holy influence from God accompanies it by which +the understanding is illuminated and the heart renewed. Fanaticism is +no auxiliary of the religion of the Bible; it neither prepares its way +nor accelerates its progress. Violence and war are utterly rejected by +this divine system, as alien from its spirit and character. "My +kingdom," says its founder, "is not of this world: if my kingdom were +of this world, then would my servants fight; but now is my kingdom not +from hence." + + + + +THE END. + + + + + + + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's History of the Moors of Spain, by M. Florian + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORY OF THE MOORS OF SPAIN *** + +***** This file should be named 22337.txt or 22337.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + https://www.gutenberg.org/2/2/3/3/22337/ + +Produced by Al Haines + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project +Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you +charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you +do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the +rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose +such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and +research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do +practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is +subject to the trademark license, especially commercial +redistribution. + + + +*** START: FULL LICENSE *** + +THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE +PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK + +To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free +distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work +(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project +Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project +Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at +https://gutenberg.org/license). + + +Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic works + +1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to +and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property +(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all +the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy +all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. +If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the +terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or +entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. + +1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be +used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who +agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few +things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works +even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See +paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement +and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. See paragraph 1.E below. + +1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" +or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the +collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an +individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are +located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from +copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative +works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg +are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project +Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by +freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of +this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with +the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by +keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project +Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. + +1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern +what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in +a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check +the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement +before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or +creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project +Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning +the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United +States. + +1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: + +1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate +access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently +whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the +phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project +Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, +copied or distributed: + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + +1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived +from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is +posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied +and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees +or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work +with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the +work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 +through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the +Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or +1.E.9. + +1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted +with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution +must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional +terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked +to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the +permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. + +1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this +work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. + +1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this +electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without +prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with +active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project +Gutenberg-tm License. + +1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, +compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any +word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or +distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than +"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version +posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), +you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a +copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon +request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other +form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. + +1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, +performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works +unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. + +1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing +access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided +that + +- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from + the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method + you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is + owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he + has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the + Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments + must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you + prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax + returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and + sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the + address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to + the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." + +- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies + you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he + does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm + License. You must require such a user to return or + destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium + and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of + Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any + money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the + electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days + of receipt of the work. + +- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free + distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set +forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from +both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael +Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the +Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. + +1.F. + +1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable +effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread +public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm +collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain +"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or +corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual +property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a +computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by +your equipment. + +1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right +of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project +Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all +liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal +fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT +LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE +PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE +TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE +LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR +INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH +DAMAGE. + +1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a +defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can +receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a +written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you +received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with +your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with +the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a +refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity +providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to +receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy +is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further +opportunities to fix the problem. + +1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth +in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER +WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO +WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. + +1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied +warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. +If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the +law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be +interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by +the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any +provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. + +1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the +trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone +providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance +with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, +promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, +harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, +that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do +or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm +work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any +Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. + + +Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm + +Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of +electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers +including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists +because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from +people in all walks of life. + +Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the +assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's +goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will +remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure +and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. +To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 +and the Foundation web page at https://www.pglaf.org. + + +Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive +Foundation + +The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit +501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the +state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal +Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification +number is 64-6221541. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at +https://pglaf.org/fundraising. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent +permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. + +The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. +Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered +throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at +809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email +business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact +information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official +page at https://pglaf.org + +For additional contact information: + Dr. Gregory B. Newby + Chief Executive and Director + gbnewby@pglaf.org + + +Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation + +Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide +spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of +increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be +freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest +array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations +($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt +status with the IRS. + +The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating +charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United +States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a +considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up +with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations +where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To +SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any +particular state visit https://pglaf.org + +While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we +have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition +against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who +approach us with offers to donate. + +International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make +any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from +outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. + +Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation +methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other +ways including including checks, online payments and credit card +donations. To donate, please visit: https://pglaf.org/donate + + +Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. + +Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm +concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared +with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project +Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. + + +Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. +unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + https://www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. diff --git a/22337.zip b/22337.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..3338752 --- /dev/null +++ b/22337.zip diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..f61cc7e --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #22337 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/22337) |