Page:History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella the Catholic Vol. I.djvu/414

CHAPTER VIII. REVIEW OF THE POLITICAL AND INTELLECTUAL CONDITION OF THE SPANISH ARABS PREVIOUS TO THE WAR OF GRANADA. PART I. Early suc- cesses of Mahomet- anism. Conquest of Spain by the Arabs. — Cordovan Empire. — High Civ- ilization and Prosperity. — Its Dismemberment. — Kingdom of Granada. — Luxurious and Chivalrous Character. — Literature of the Spanish Arabs. — Progress in Science. — Historical Merits. — Useful Discoveries. — Poetry and Romance. — Influence on the Spaniards. We have now arrived at the commencement of the famous war of Granada, which terminated in the subversion of the Arabian empire in Spain, after it had subsisted for nearly eight centuries, and with the consequent restoration to the Cas- tilian crown of the fairest portion of its ancient domain. In order to a better understanding of the character of the Spanish Arabs, or Moors, who exercised an important influence on that of their Christian neighbours, the present chapter will be devoted to a consideration of their previous history in the Peninsula, where they probably reached a higher degree of civilization than in any other part of the world. ^ It is not necessary to dwell upon the causes of the brilliant successes of Mahometanism at its out- 1 See Introduction, Section 1, Note 2, of this History.