GRANADA

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Las Lomas
Camping y alojamiento de confianza

Every city has its charm.

Granada has its own and that of all the others

- Antonio Machado -

A bit of history

ORIGINS

The origins of the city of Granada seem mysterious. Many of its corners are shrouded in legends and fables that have turned it into a magical city. The most incredible theories have been developed, from tracing its creation to the biblical Noah, through Hercules, to different Mediterranean civilisations of antiquity.

What is certain is that the origin of the city of Granada goes back to the Iberian tribe of the Turduli, one of the most civilised of the first settlers of the Iberian Peninsula.

The origin of the name Granada dates back to the 11th century, when the Zirids moved the capital of their kingdom from Medina Elvira to Medina Garnata. The etymological meaning of this new name could come from Latin, referring to the pomegranate fruit granatum, or from the Arabic gar-anat, ‘city of pilgrims’.

Conquest of Granada

1492

At the foot of the walls surrounding the city of Granada, the Muslim surrender took place with the handing over of the keys of the city to the Catholic Monarchs by Boabdil. The conditions of capitulation of this event are known as the Capitulations of Granada.

Over a period of 10 years, between 1481 and 1492, the day on which Granada was occupied, both sides, Muslim and Catholic, fought a battle to put an end to Islamic power in the Peninsula for good. Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon would be key to making this happen.

Boabdil was the last Sultan of Granada. He had to live through numerous bloody disputes in order to maintain power in Granada, in addition to the open front with the Catholic Monarchs. Boabdil fought to the end, hoping that they would come to his aid from outside kingdoms, but this was not possible because they were too far away from Granada and, moreover, they were interested in their own affairs.

The sigh of the Arab

The legend

Legend has it that when the Catholic Monarchs settled in the kingdom of Granada in 1492, the last king, Boabdil, had to go into exile. The Catholic Monarchs, meeting no resistance, raised their flag in the Alhambra as a symbol of victory.

Boabdil and his retinue then set off for the Alpujarras in Almería (Laujar de Andarax). Defeated and unable to look back, it is said that at one point, far from the Alhambra, he stopped short on a hill. Precisely the one known today as El Suspiro del Moro (The sigh of the Arab).

From there he turned his gaze towards the city, sighed and burst into tears, longing for the lost land. His mother, Aixa, reprimanded him with a famous phrase:

‘Cry as a woman what you did not know how to defend as a man’.

What to visit

Monasterio de la Cartuja

The Royal Monastery of Nuestra Señora de la Asunción de la Cartuja housed a community of Carthusian monks from its foundation in the 16th century until its exclaustration in 1835. Although it is a mixture of different styles, it represents one of the summits of Spanish Baroque architecture.

It is currently considered an Asset of Cultural Interest and has been declared a Historic-Artistic Monument.

Exuberantly decorated, its most famous spaces are the church, the sacristy, by an unknown author, and the tabernacle, which is the work of the master Francisco Hurtado Izquierdo and has an impressive dome painted by Antonio Palomino. The building houses an important collection of paintings, including those by the Carthusian Juan Sánchez Cotán.

INFO AND BOOKINGS HERE

Capilla Real

The Royal Chapel of Granada is an outstanding historical and religious monument.

It was commissioned by the Catholic Monarchs, Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon, at the end of the 15th century as part of their desire to establish a permanent royal seat in Granada after the conquest of the city in 1492, which marked the end of Muslim rule on the Iberian Peninsula.

The most outstanding pieces inside the temple are the main altarpiece, a masterpiece by Felipe Bigarny, the grille and the crypt with the five lead coffins, burial place of the Catholic Monarchs, as well as some of their closest relatives, such as their daughter Juana I of Castile and her husband Felipe el Hermoso.

It is an outstanding example of the Gothic, Flemish and Renaissance architectural styles, with ornamental elements and sculptures that reflect the artistic and religious wealth of the period.

INFO AND BOOKINGS HERE

Dobla de ORO

Granada preserves Arab remains, including almost complete houses and palaces that are nowadays open to the public for the enjoyment of travellers and locals.

This monumental ensemble has been called the Golden Double, a name derived from the ancient Arabic coins of Granada, and is made up of six Nasrid monuments located in the Albaicín quarter:

Palace of Dar-Al-Horra, House of the Golden Oven, the Bañuelo, House of Chapiz, House of Zafra and Maristan.

They are included with the Alhambra ticket and can be visited on three days: the day before, the same day and the day after the Alhambra visit.

Admission is free on Sundays.

INFO AND OPENING TIMES

Map

Monasterio de San Jerónimo

The Royal Monastery of San Jerónimo is a Renaissance architectural complex consisting of a church and a monastery. It was the first monastery to be built in Granada after the conquest of the city by the Christians and its foundation dates back to before the Catholic Monarchs took the city.

You can visit the Compass, the Processional Cloister, the refectory, the sala de profundis, two chapter rooms, the sacristy and the church.

INFO AND BOOKINGS HERE