Muslim Rule In Spain

Introduction:
Spain is the biggest country of Europe. It is a constitutional monarchy with Madrid as its capital. In Muslim history, Spain is also remembered by its two other names, Andulus and Hispania. Muslims ruled Spain with full grace and glory for about eight centuries. It is they who converted it into the most civilized and the most charming land in the world. In 714 A.D. Spain was ruled by a tyrant Christian ruler, Roderick. An oppressed Christian chief, Julian, appeared before Musa bin Nusair, the Muslim governor of North Africa, and complained about the lust, greed and tyranny of King Roderick. Musa felt sympathy for the oppressed Spaniards. He ordered his fame general, Tariq bin Ziyad to conquer Spain and to set the things straight there. General Tariq sailed for Spain with an army of 12,000 men. He anchored at a place around the Spanish coastal areas which later came to be known after his name as Jabal at-Tariq. It is presently called Gibraltar. Soon after landing General Tariq burnt all his ships so that his men may not think of returning or retreating. Due to his dare and determination Tariq defeated a far big and more well-equipped army of Roderick which consisted of more than 1, 00,000 troops. Seated majestically on his splendid throne King Roderick had come to the battlefield with an aroma of great pomp and show. His troops were wearing brand new, glittering uniforms. They were all very well-equipped with all sorts of arms and ammunition. Immediately after his defeat the King fled away from the battle field. That is how the Muslim rule started in Spain in 714 A.D. the Spanish masses heaved a sigh of relief on getting liberated from the yokes of Rodericks tyrannical rule. Some historians have stated that Prophet Muhammad S.A.W had foretold General Tariq in a dream about the victory in Spain.

Architecture of Muslims Spain:

Several dynasties ruled in Spain and each has left historical monuments in the shape of architectural buildings of note such as the Umayyad Caliph, who built the mosque of Cordova. All monuments of religious art in Spain have perished with the exception of one of the earliest and grandest, the great mosque of Cordova. The foundation was laid by Abd-al-Rahman I in 786 on the site of a Christian church which was originally a Roman temple. The main part of the Mosque was completed in 793 by his son Hisham. The Spanish minarets followed the African style, which was of Syrian origin. Additions to the Cordova Mosque were made by Hishams

successor. Twelve hundred and ninety-three columns, a veritable forest, supported its roof-brass lanterns made from Christians bells illuminated the building. One chandelier held a thousand lights; the smallest held twelve, for the decoration of the building. Byzantine craftsmen were employed, as they may have been employed in the Uamayads mosque of Syria. Eighty thousands gold pieces from the spoils of the Goths were spent on the structure by its founder. Enlargements and repairs were made on it down to al-Hajib al-Mansur (977-1000). Today it is a cathedral to the virgin of the Assumption. Of the secular monuments the Alcazar of Seville and the Alhamra of Granada, with their p

Administration:
At A time like present, when honest men are harassed by a monstrous brood of officials, it is a relief to turn to the caliphate of Cordoba, a society governed by one competent and visible autocrat instead of thousands of petty jacks-in-office lurking in the dark anonymity of boards and departments, with no soul to lose and no body to kick. It is however consoling to see an increasing perception that universal suffrage which was so long and so confidently proclaimed a panacea for all human disorder is workable only in a community so small that every member is personally familiar with the officers to whom he entrusts the administration. The Greek inventors of democracy saw its dangers and provided the appropriate safety-value: whenever a city state had outgrown manageable proportions, the excess was spawned off, the redundant member being ceremoniously but firmly sent off to found a new colony, that would be small enough to satisfy that essential condition of democracy; for the Greeks` acute political sense apprehended that an unwieldy community was the dedicated victim of politicians and the slaves of its elected servants. These perils indeed were not wanting in Cordoba, which was as liable to error as any other human assembly; and there were many occasions, particularly in its decline, when agitators took advantage of mob emotions, or a pretorian order conspired to rule. Such diseases of the body politic called for surgical treatment, and this was not seldom applied by a hand: Cordoba never flourished more than when the sovereign wielded undisputed power, and had no scruples about using it. The central administration was housed in the Alcazar at the Bab al-Sudda, the gate that opened on the river and the rasif, a paved gradient leading to the great bridge. This, the principal gate of the palace, was distinguished by a balcony, without its like in the world, on which the sovereign loved to lean; sometimes it served as a penitential residence for an irresponsible prince of the blood. The entrance of the palace was by great folding doors, armoured with iron plates, on one of which was the famous knocker, a brass ring of exquisite workmanship representing a mans head with open mouth, which Hisham had brought back in 793