Yesterday, our visit to Seville Cathedral provided illustrations of opulence on an outrageous scale... wasting of wealth in the face of a poor population... the church showing little regard for its Christian principles.
As you know, conquistadors returning from a holiday of rape and pillage in the Americas... were required to provide the church with one-third of the loot... one-third for the king... and keep one-third for themselves. Today, we visited Alcázar... the oldest Royal Palace in Europe still in use by the monarchy... expecting to see similar illustrations of wanton indulgence... but found a story that was unexpected.
Alcázar was built on a site initially developed by the Romans... used by the Visigoths (but not changed in any material way) and let to run into ruin... and then cleared by the Moors for the site of their mosque. Alcázar is a royal palace originally built as a Moorish fort. No other Muslim building in Spain has been so well preserved. When the catholic kings regained control in 1247, its embattled enclosure became the dwelling of Ferdinand I, and was rebuilt by Peter of Castile (Peter I) (1353–64), who employed Granadans and Muslim subjects of his own (mudejares) as its architects. The rebuild was faithful to retaining the beauty of the preceding structure.
Our surprise was the cooperation that the catholic kings sought and received from Muslims and Jews in the 14th century. Just over 100 years later, Ferdinand and Isabella found it necessary to expel or decapitate these same people because of their heretic beliefs.
Peter I, on the other hand, found them more trustworthy than the members of his court. In Alcázar, he had secret escape routes built because his mother (amongst others) was attempting to organise his early demise.
One of the principal features of the Alcázar is the Hall of Ambassadors where Christopher Columbus signed his contacts with Ferdinand and Isabella.
Peter I has gone down in history as 'Peter the Cruel'... because he executed a couple of his court who had been undertaking a bit of Racial Cleansing... slaughtering Jews and Arabs in their principality. How cruel is that? The peasants loved him... the nobility thought of him as a traitor to their cause.
Subsequent catholic kings were also sensitive in expanding Alcázar in a manner sensitive to its Islamic origins. Charles V, who made such a hash-job in extending Alhambra (in Granada) added a floor to Alcázar... and did a great job. This area contains accommodation used by the current royals when staying in Seville.
Islamic gardens surround the Palace... and still reflect their Islamist origins.
There is so much in Seville... in our humble opinion, topping the attractions offered by either Córdoba or Granada... a big statement, I know.
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