Granada History - Alhambra, Arab Conquest and Catholic Monarchs

Legend says that Granada is named after a daughter of Noah or of Hercules called "Granata" though documented history of Granada quotes this name before the Arab conquest as the Jewish Quarter of "Garnata.


In the year 306, was held the Council of Elvira, first in Spain. The three populations that existed during the Muslim invasion (Elvira, and Qastilla Garnata) depended on the Caliphate of Cordoba.

Late invasion in 1237 ended Zirid dynasty and finished the Constitution of the Kingdom of Granada, which remained as the last Muslim stronghold until 1492.

In the XIV century during the reigns of Yusuf I and Muhammad V, Granada lived its maximum splendor. During this time were built the Alhambra and Generalife.

On January 2, 1492, Granada is conquered by the Catholic Monarchs. Also in Granada, Columbus met with Queen Isabel the Catholic, and won support for the discovery of America.


Begins a new era in the history of Granada, splendor of Christian culture, and even more with the coming of the Emperor Charles V who built all the major Christian monuments, corresponding with late Gothic and Renaissance.

Return the splendor of Granada in the XVII and XVIII with the great works of Baroque.

There would be a decline in the following centuries, and Granada does not recover until the arrival of Washintong Irving. With the arrival to Granada of Queen Elizabeth II in 1862 Granada Capital starts booming again.

Granada enhances its reputation by works of Garcia Lorca, Juan Ramon Jimenez, Manuel de Falla, Andres Segovia.

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