Cordoba, a city with a remarkable history associated with the heyday of Muslim presence in Andalusia, has a treasured place in the hearts of Muslims around the world.
Cordoba lies on the Guadalquivir, a river in southern Spain. It is believed to have been founded by Carthaginians, according to Al-Maurid's Modern Encyclopedia. The Romans and the Visigoths dominated it before the Arabs from 711 to 1236 ruled it.
According to G. Hilal and M. Subeih's, Cordoba in Islamic History, a decree of the second Roman Caesar to build cities in the Iberian Peninsula sent four senior emissaries charged with implementing the imperial writ. Four cities were consequently built and
named after the four vicegerents: Cordoba, Seville, Mérida and Saragossa.
Cordoba developed into a cosmopolitan city as the Umayyad, whose state in the east fell to the Abbasids, came to establish a new state in Andalusia at the hands of Abdul Rahman Al-Dakhil, alias Sakr Quraish (hawk of Quraish).
Cordoba reached its golden age in the era of Abdul Rahman Al-Nasser, the first Umayyad Caliph in Andalusia, when the city was made the official capital. As the seat of the Caliph of Muslims in the western part of the world, Cordoba became the greatest European city and a center of culture at the time. As the renowned capital of Spain, it was a Mecca for rulers and ambassadors offering tokens of loyalty and allegiance. Up to the eleventh century, the Western Roman Empire was more of a protectorate of the Islamic
state, during which time Cordoba's architectural and cultural glory made it rival other great cities of the Muslim world like Cairo, Damascus, Baghdad and Kairawan. No wonder the Europeans called it the "Jewel of the World".
The Umayyad set out to develop Andalusia in general, with particular emphasis on their capital Cordoba. The endeavor was reflected in various aspects of life. In agriculture, for instance, waterways and canals were dug, and new kinds of trees and fruits were introduced for the first time to Andalusia. In the field of industry, there were 1,300 artisans in Cordoba alone, which was famous for its silks and weaponry.
Architecture as a lasting memory over the ages was accorded special attention in Cordoba. Abdul Rahman Al-Dakhil had an alcazar (palace) built as the official seat of government, in addition to the grand mosque. Abdul Rahman II was equally interested in architecture. In the era of Abdul Rahman III, Cordoba had developed into no less than five distinct cities. According to Al-Maqarri, great-fortified walls separated the five divisions from each other. Each was a self-sufficient city in its own right, complete with public baths, markets and the crafts necessary for its population. All in all, there were 28 neighborhoods, 300 public baths and 3,000 mosques in Cordoba, which had an overall population of 500,000 in the era of Abdul Rahman III.
The grand mosque is one of Cordoba's most important surviving monuments. The
foundation stone was laid in the era of Al-Dakhil, and the structure was completed in the era of his son Hisham I. Subsequent Caliphs who added more area, or introduced further changes to the interior design to accentuate its splendor expanded the mosque. As a result, the mosque grew to an area of 330 x 230 ziraas (ziraa: a Arabic unit of length measuring 58 cm). It had a service staff of 300 persons. It became an august educational
institution, which attracted learners - Muslims and Christians alike - from east and west. But the fall of Cordoba to Ferdinand III in 1236 (634 by Hegira calendar) ushered the demise of everything related to Islam in Andalusia. The mosque was converted into a cathedral, although the original name survives to the present day.
One of the main features of Cordoba in its prime was a bridge across the Guadalquivir, which was known in Arabic as Qantarat al-Dahr (the bridge of eternity). It used to measure 80 x 20 ziraas, and was 60 ziraas high. It stood over a pier of splendid stone and columns, and there were three mills over the embankment, each powered by four water wheels, according to Al-Idrissi.
Exquisite natural beauty and fine weather were other main features of Cordoba, which had various parks including Al-Rassafa, created in the northwestern part of the city in the era of Al-Dakhil, and Fahs Al-Suradaq.
Famous alcazars of Cordoba are Al-Imara (seat of government), Al-Rassafa, Dimashq (Damascus) and Al-Rawda.
The Muslim Caliphs were great cultural patrons, who invested the capital Cordoba with a sophisticated cosmopolitan significance. Rare books and manuscripts were housed by various libraries in the city. In the era of Al-Nasser, the main library of Cordoba had a huge title index of forty-four 20-page sections. Averroës is known to have said - in a debate with Abu Bakr Ibn Zahr - that the books of deceased scholars of Seville are usually taken to Cordoba to be sold, while the instruments of deceased musicians of
Cordoba are usually taken to be sold in Seville. He judged Cordoba to be the city with the largest number of books in the world.
A perfect educational system was established in Cordoba so much so that in time the entire population came to be literate. The city was notable for its scholars and poets, many of whom belonged to the government or the house of the ruling dynasty like Caliph Al-Hakam, poet Abu Abdul Malik ibn Marwan the grandson of Abdul Rahman III, Caliph Al-Mustaeen Billah, Vizier Abul Ghaira ibn Hazm the cousin of the philosopher of Cordoba Muhammad ibn Hazm, Vizier Abdul Malik ibn Jahwar and Vizier Al-Mushafi. There were hundreds of scholars in various fields of knowledge like Ibn Tufail, Ibn Baja and Averroës (philosophy), Abu Abdullah Al-Qurtubi (Islamic theology), Abul
Walid Al-Baji and Abul Hassan Ali ibn Al-Qattan Al-Qurtubi (Hadith, i.e., tradition of Prophet Muhammad of Islam), Munzir ibn Saeed the chief justice of Cordoba, Ziryab the musician, ibn Abd Rabbih and many others. Women too had a significant cultural role in Cordoba. Wallada, daughter of Caliph Al-Mustakfi was a poet and had her own famous literary saloon.
Another woman poet and author was Maryam bint Ya'qoub. Aisha bint Ahmed was the governess and tutor of the children of Al-Mansour ibn Abi Amer, the most
famous and powerful Umayyad vizier in Andalusia.
In spite of the decline, which later befell the Andalusian Moorish states in political, economic and military terms, cultural life inversely grew even richer as the states engaged in rivalry to attract scholars and poets of various interests and leanings. In this context, Cordoba always had the upper hand in cultural terms. Its fall later on was the beginning of the end of the glorious days of Muslims in Andalusia.
