Architecture·Abbasid
Construction of the Alhambra Begins
- Date
- 1238 CE635 AH788 years ago
- Place
- Granada, Spain
- People
- Muhammad I ibn Nasr, Yusuf I, Muhammad V
Muhammad I ibn Nasr, founder of the Nasrid dynasty, began building the Alhambra on a hill above Granada in 1238 CE. The complex was planned as a fortress and palace city. Later Nasrid rulers, including Yusuf I and Muhammad V, added the best-known palaces and gardens in the fourteenth century. Granada was the last Muslim state in Iberia until its surrender in 1492.
Why it matters
The Alhambra is one of the finest surviving examples of Islamic architecture in Europe and a record of Nasrid rule.