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Medina Azahara (Arabic: المدينهُ الزهراء Madīnat
az-Zahrā, meaning "brilliant town", "beautiful town",
or "the town of Zahra") is the ruins of a vast, fortified Arab Muslim
medieval palace-city built by Abd – ar – Rahman III Al – Nasr, (912–961)
Ummayad Caliph of Cordoba, and located on the western outskirts of Cordoba,
spain. It was an Arab Muslim medieval town and the de-facto capital of Al –
Andalus, or Muslim Spain, as the heart of the administration and government was
within its walls. Built beginning in 936-940, the city included ceremonial
reception halls, mosques, administrative and government offices, gardens, a
mint, workshops, barracks, residences, and baths. Water was supplied through
aqueducts.
The main reason for its construction was politico-ideological: the
dignity of the Caliph required the establishment of a new city, a symbol of his
power, imitating other Eastern Caliphates. Above all, it demonstrated his
superiority over his great rivals, the Fatinids of Ifriqiya in Northern
Africa.] Legend also says it was built as a tribute to the
favourite of the Caliph: Azahara.
The complex was extended during the reign of Abd ar-Rahman III's
son Ak – HakamII (r. 961-976), but after his death soon ceased to be the
main residence of the Caliphs. In 1010 it was sacked in a civil war, and
thereafter abandoned, with many elements re-used elsewhere. Its ruins were
excavated starting from the 1910s. Only about 10 percent of the 112 hectares
have been excavated and restored, but this area includes the central area, with
"two caliphal residences, with associated bath complexes, two aristocratic
residences, and service quarters ... spaces associated with the palace guard;
some large administrative buildings ... the extraordinary court complex
presided over by the reception hall ... the great garden spaces, and just
outside this area, the congregational mosque"
A new museum on the edge of
the site has been built low, with much of the space underground, to minimize
disruption to the views of the landscape from the ruins, which are also
beginning to be affected by modern housing.
Setting of Madinat
az-Zahra
Located 8 miles west of Cordoba in the foothills of the
Sierra Morena, oriented north-to-south on the slopes of Jabal al-Arus, and
facing the valley of the Guadalquivir River, is Madinat az-Zahra, billed
as theVVersailles of the Middle Ages. It was chosen for its outstanding
landscape values, allowing a hierarchical construction program so the city and
the plains beyond its feet were physically and visually dominated by the
buildings of the fortress. There was also a quarry of limestone, used for the
primary construction, though other stones from an area 50km around were also
used. The
city's construction led to a road, water and supply infrastructure partly
preserved until today in the form of remains of roads, quarries, aqueducts and
bridges.
The topography played a decisive role in shaping the city. Taking
full advantage of the uneven terrain, the palace city of Madinat az-Zahra was
distributed in three terraces. Unlike the labyrinthine and chaotic character
typical of Muslim urbanism, the site of the city adopted a rectangular shape
comprising an area of 112 hectares. It extended 1500 m per side from east to
west and about 750 m from north to south, just warped on the north side by the
need to adapt to the difficult topography of the terrain.
Its location in the foothills of Sierra Morena made it possible to
design an urban program in which the location and physical relationships
between the various constructions were expressive of the role of each in the
setting. The palace was located at a higher level, and staggered its buildings
along the side of the mountain in an expression of clear preeminence over the
urban hamlets and the Aljama Mosque spread across the plains below. Following the
terraces, the first corresponds to the residential area of the caliph, next
comes the official area including the houses of the viziers, the guard-room,
administrative offices and gardens. Next is the city proper, with housing,
crafts, and the great mosque of the two lower terraces separated by another
wall in order to isolate the upper palace complex. Archaeological research has
revealed an urban morphology characterized by the existence of large areas of
undeveloped land, which serves to empty the entire southern front of the
fortress, ensuring privacy and maintaining an open, idyllic country landscape.
The only spaces built on the lowest level are two broad bands: the western,
with an urban management orthogon, and the eastern, with less rigid planning.
There were two complexes
outside but close by the city, one a large Villa at the centre of a large
agricultural estate, later given to the state treasurer. The other, Turrunuelos,
was a huge rectangular building, perhaps a barracks.
Palace area
The palace was built where the 1st century Roman aqueduct running
from the Sierra Morena to Cordoba ran, but this was several metres below
the palace, so a new spur was constructed further back to bring permanent
running water to the higher levels. In turn, the section of the old Roman
aqueduct now diverted was used as a main sewer for a highly complex system
of small channels carrying away rain and waste water. Many food and ceramic
remains have been found here.
Gardens of Madinat al-Zahra
TThere were at least three gardens in the city. A small garden, referred to as The Prince's Garden, was located on the upper terrace. This garden was for the use of the nobility, the wealthy, and the powerful; those who frequented the palace itself.
History of Madinat al-Zahra
The city, which flourished for approximately 80 years, was built
by caliph Abd ar – Rahman III of Corodoba starting between 936 and
940. After he had proclaimed himself Caliph in 928, he decided to show his
subjects and the world his power by building a palace-city 5 km from
Córdoba. The largest known city built from scratch in Western Europe, it would
be described by travelers from northern Europe and from the East as a dazzling
series of palaces full of treasures never seen before. Around 1010, Madinat
az-Zahra was sacked during the Civil War that led to the dissolution of
the Caliphate of Cordoba. The raid effectively wiped the city off the map
for a millennium.
Popular legend holds that the Caliph named az-Zahra, or Azahara,
after his favorite concubine, and that a statue of a woman stood over the
entrance. Others, imagining his demanding lover, say that he built this new
city just to please her. The truth, however, has probably more to do with
politics than love. Abd ar-Rahman III ordered the construction of this city at
a time when he had just finished consolidating his political power in the
Iberian Peninsula and was entering into conflict with the Fatmid dynasty
for the control of North Africa. Zahara means 'shining, radiant or blossoming'
in Arabic: the name communicates aspirations of power and status, not romantic
love. Az-Zahra is the most common title for the daughter of the Prophet
Muhammad Fatimah az-Zahra. As such, the Fatimid dynasty of North
Africa adorned many buildings and even towns with her name. A female scholar in
her own right, her title az-Zahra (the brilliant) was given to the oldest
functioning university in the world, the al-Az'har/ al – Azhar university in
Cairo in AD 968, built by the Fatimids. The Umayyads' ambitions in North Africa
could well explain the usage of the name for the new city to rival the
Fatimids' influence there through Islamic/ religious iconography.
In 929 Abd ar-Rahman III declared himself utterly independent, the
true Caliph (Prince of Believers) and descendant of the Umayyad Dynasty, which
had nearly been completely exterminated by the Abbasids in the 9th
century. He brought about a series of political, economic and ideological
measures to impress his legitimacy upon the world. A new capital city, fitting
of his status, was one of those measures. He decided to build the city in 936 and
construction took about forty years. The Mosque on the site was consecrated in
941 and in 947 the government was transferred from Cordoba.
In 2005 it was described by the American newspaper The New York
Times as follows:
Teeming with treasures that dazzled the most jaded traveler or
world—weary aristocrat...Pools of mercury could be shaken to spray beams of
reflected sunlight across marble walls and ceilings of gold... Doors carved of
ivory and ebony led to sprawling gardens full of exotic animals and sculptures
made of amber and pearls...”
What is visible of the ruins of Madinat az-Zahra today is only 10%
of its extent. The 112 hectare-urb was no mere pleasure palace for weekend
excursions, but the effective capital of Al – Andalus, the territory controlled
by the Muslims in the Iberian Peninsula from the beginning of the 8th century
to the middle of the 11th. The magnificent white city, built in steps into the
hillside at the base of the Sierra Morena with the Caliph's palace at the
highest point, was designed to be seen by his subjects and foreign ambassadors
for kilometers. Abd ar-Rahman III moved his entire court to Medina Azahara in
947-48.
With time the entire city was buried, not to be unearthed until
1911. Excavation and restoration continues, depending upon funding by the
Spanish government. The unexcavated portion, however, is threatened by the
illegal construction of housing. According to the New York Times,
"The local government in Córdoba, he said, has failed to enforce a law
passed 10 years ago that expanded protections for the site against
development... Construction companies are putting up houses on the site of the
city, 90 percent of which remains unexcavated."
Artistically, the Medina Azahara played a great role in
formulating a distinct Andalusian Islamic Architecture. Many of its features,
such as basilical royal reception halls (as contrasted with domed ones in the
eastern part of the Islamic World) are here conceived for the first time. Other
features, such as the arranging of the suites of rooms around a central
courtyard or garden, are echoed throughout western Islamic architecture, for
example as late as in the Alhambra. The Mosque of Medina Azahara bears close
resemblance to the Great Mosque of Cordoba; it has been called its "little
sister"
Before coming to power, Al – Mansur Ibn Abi Aamir (called
Almanzor in the west) lived in the suburbs of Cordova. On becoming the Hajib (Chamberlain
to the Caliph) he decided to build a palace city for himself, which, if not
more, was as beautiful as Medina Azahara built by Abd ar Rahman III. The palace
was to be located just opposite to Al-Zahra, which was situated in the west of
Cordova. The foundations of Al-Zahira were laid in 978-979 A.D near river
Guadalquivir. Mansur called his palace Madinah Az-Zahira as well.
Mansur's purpose behind building this palace was to inspire awe
and to have his name written in the pages of history along with the name of the
greatest king of Al – Andalus, Abd-ar-Rahman III. It was a beautiful palace
with extensive gardens around it. It housed the High officials and barracks for
the guards of Al-Mansur.
