Seville, like a great part of Spain, was for centuries an Islamic territory. The Arabs introduced medicine, science, music, hygiene, cultivation techniques, culture and art, adding a great richness which has stayed in our heritage.

The Visigoths call the Muslims

After the fall of the Roman Empire, Hispania and with it Hispalis, was conquered by a diverse number of Germanic peoples, but finally it was the Visigoths who settled in this area. After various internal crises, one of the ruling Visigoths reached out to the Muslims living on the other side of the strait, to ask for help defeating their enemy with whom they were competing for power. However, just like with the Romans, once in the Andalusian Territory the Muslims decided to stay.

Thereby starting the period in which the whole territory received the name ‘Al-Andalus’.  However, we shouldn’t think that during the five centuries of Muslim population in Seville history stayed constant and lineal. Although Islam was the common denominator, there were various different monarchies and dynasties that passed through Seville and the rest of the Andalusian territories. The Muslims arrived to the peninsula in 711, giving people the choice whether they wanted to convert to Islam or continue with their religion in exchange for a tax.  The converts received the name of Muladis and the Christians were called Mozarabs.

Cordoba, capital of the Umayyad Dynasty

Meanwhile in the Arabian Peninsula, the Umayyad Dynasty, which until now had governed, was assassinated by its enemy: the Abbasid dynasty. Only one member survived, Abd al-Rahman, who was then a young man, but this didn’t stop him from undertaking an escape through the Muslim territories gathering supporters. After years of travelling through the Islamic lands, he had travelled so far that finally he ended up crossing the Strait of Gibraltar and he settled in Al-Andalus. Here he proclaimed himself Emir with the name Abd al-Rahman I and named Cordoba his capital. The period, known as the ‘Emirate of Cordoba’ (756-929), is characterised by being a kingdom that was politically and administratively independent from Bagdad, but still being subject it in matters of faith. It would be later, with Abd al-Rahman III, when its religious independence was brought about and this started a new period with the name Caliphate of Cordoba (929-1031), in which the government was not only the political rulers but also the religious leaders.

However, very little remains are left from this time in Seville, given that the passing of time has impeded their conservation. The most striking is probably the vestiges of the Salvador Church, as it was constructed as the most important mosque in the city. We also have records of the construction of part of the Alcazar, although the remains weren’t saved. Because of this, it’s a good idea to go to the nearby city of Cordoba which lived this period in all its splendour. 

The Taifa Kingdoms

The Caliphate ended owing to internal disputes, and Seville changed, like the other territories, into an independent kingdom. These were called the Taifa Kingdoms. Now there was a king for each city. The most loved and famous of all is the King Al Mutamid, called ‘the Poet King’. With him Seville lived its highest peak of development and period of splendour. The Alcazar’s palace grounds grew and the city filled with artists and writers, propagating a cultured and refined atmosphere. Al Mutamid has remained in the collective memory of the city and has given rise to various Sevillian legends owing mostly to his love story with the slave (and later wife) Itimad.

Almoravids and Almohads

However, on the other side of the border the Christians had become strong, and Al Mutamid needed to ask for help from the Berber peoples from the north of Africa to defend its domain. This was something which, not strangely, worked against them. The chosen community was the Almoravids, known for their puritanism in Islam, who after they defeated the Christians decided to expel Al Mutamid and stay in these lands, making Seville their main city. However, a little time later Al Andalus was taken from them not by the Christians but by another Berber group, the Almohads, who remained here and Seville continued as the capital. The result of which was that the Almohads left behind most of the remains from the Arabic period that we have in Seville. At hand of King Abu Yaacub they built the Bridge of Boats, the courtyard of Plaster of the Alcazar, the main Mosque -now the Cathedral– and its minaret -the current Giralda-. It was also the Almohads who constructed the walls of the city what we preserve today, as well as the famous Golden Tower.

Our inheritance from the Arabs was large, we have been left with names such as Guadalquivir or the intricate architecture of the neighbourhood of Santa Cruz, inventions like irrigation, gastronomy, musical instruments and words in our language.

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Image source: Flickr. Mal B