Al Hambra

Harry has wanted to go to Al-Hambra for ages, but never managed to make it. Why? Becuase you have to book in advance, that goes against his spontaneous nature. We did manage though to get some tickets, in the usually over full castle and grounds and had even more luck because we had good weather. Cold but clear.

The original castle was built in the 11th century by Samuel Ha-Nagid, a Jewish grand vizier of one of Granadas sultans. It was turned into a fortress in the 13th century as the Moors took over, and the castle came into the possession of the Nasrid dynasty. After the Reconquista, when the Christians basically drove the arabs out, or tried in any case, the palace that the Nasrid emirs had built was restored and partially demolised to make way for a new palace for Carlos I, and the mosque was turned into a church. In the 18th century no one was interested in Al-Hambra and it was abandonded, left to go to ruin and only thieves and beggars lived in its grand walls and palace rooms.

When Napolean invaded, he used the palace for barracks and in the ensuing battles the palace was very nearly destroyed. In 1870, the government finaly re-discovered its worth and it was declared a national monument, and the authors of the romantic period all flocked there to live in it, despite its decrepid state. Can you imagine the sort of bohemean artist colony that must have wandered around there gathering wood to burn in monunetal fireplaces??? It was basically ignored by Franco,, and after he died, the Al-hambra was declared a world heritage site and rightly so.

Is there any other place that has such a checkered history?

Al Hambra