NEW YORK (continued 3)

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.

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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.

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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.

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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!"

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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.

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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.