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//** THE LA ALHAMBRA **//


The La Alhambra was a fortress, palace, and a city all made into one. It is located in Granada, Spain. It means red castle or crimson castle because of the entire hill of La Sabica is surrounded by towers and walls. It was originally constructed for military reasons. Alcazaba means fortress, Alcåzar means palace. Medina means city. The cuarto de los means the chamber of lions and was completed with the beautification of the palaces by Muhammed V which is called la casa real. In 1492, the Alhambra was made into a christian court when the city of Granada was captured by the monarchs. There is a carved hand to symbolize defense against evil on top of the first horseshoe arch on the Puerta de la Juslicia which is a gate. The Alhambra is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Spain and draws millions of people to it each year. The actual complete name of the Alhambra is Qal'at al-Hambra meaning The Red Fortress. The Alhambra is strategically placed upon a plateau where you can see the entire city, as well as the meadow Al Vega. In the 18th century the Alhambra had salon's made into dung heaps and taverns filled with thieves and beggars, because it went into neglect. The plateau that serves foundation for the Alhambra is 2430ft in length and is 674ft at its greatest width. During French domination a part of the Alhambra was blown apart and was never repaired until the 19th century. The Alhambra if used today wouldn't be a useful warfare tool as it is an "obsolete" form of protection form of protection. As the La Alhambra is obviously no longer used for military purposes, the La Alhambra is a tourist attraction and since it is, it's protected by law and can never be taken down as is is a national landmark to the people of Granada Spain. The estimated worth of the Alhambra castle is about 234 billion dollars because of the honorable history of it. When built the people of Granada felt safe but as of late it no longer provides a safety net of security to the now quite paranoid people. The Nasrid rulers of Granada constructed the La Alhambra for this reason and would be shamed today if it were no longer in the function they had originally intended it. The reason it glows crimson is because of the "red-rock" it is made with and when the light reflects off of the rock at a certain angle, it appears to be red or crimson. In 1492 the Alhambra had some Christian occupants though surprisingly most inhabitants were muslim. The Alhambra has 13 towers, some of which were home to some of the people. The Alhambra has greatly influenced modern architecture today.

As the La Alhambra is obviously no longer used for military purposes, the La Alhambra is a tourist attraction and since it is, it's protected by law and can never be taken down as is is a national landmark to the people of Granada Spain. The estimated worth of the Alhambra castle is about 234 billion dollars because of the honorable history of it. When built the people of Granada felt safe but as of late it no longer provides a safety net of security to the now quite paranoid people. The Nasrid rulers of Granada constructed the La Alhambra for this reason and would be shamed today if it were no longer in the function they had originally intended it. The reason it glows crimson is because of the "red-rock" it is made with and when the light reflects off of the rock at a certain angle, it appears to be red or crimson. In 1492 the Alhambra had some Christian occupants though surprisingly most inhabitants were muslim. The Alhambra has 13 towers, some of which were home to some of the people. The Alhambra has greatly influenced modern architecture today. Believe it or not the architecture in the castle looks very modern for example, there is a pool that looks like someone added it to the castle even though it was made in the 14th century. The hill of Al-Sabika is where the La Alhambra is located gives it a large immense view of Granada. The Alhambra's upper quarters hold baths, bedrooms, and pools. The Alhambra is often mistaken for a med-evil christian castle though it is actually muslim odd enough to the high christian population of Spain.

The Alhambra's towers were a very important part of the architecture because it has an amazing 13 towers alone. Some towers appear to serve no purpose like the justice tower, above and others were clearly used for a bedroom or corridors. When the Moorish rulers built the Alhambra they did not have many materials and so it is suggested that they wouldn't have wasted construction time and materials to make a pointless tower. Many scholars think the justice tower might have been just a back-up defense while others do think it might have been pointless and just for decoration. A lot of damage was caused to the Alhambra because of an earthquake in 1821 so it is thought that the whole castle might not be there. Castles like these were common in the time period they were built but this kind of castle was not common to Spain. All in all the La Alhambra is a mutl-purpose, history rich, and beautiful piece of architecture. "The City of Granada, History of the Alhambra Andalucia, Southern Spain." Andalucia Information, Tourism & Holiday Destinations, Accommodation, Property, Travel & Culture, Andalucia, Spain. Web. 30 Nov. 2010. .

"TUSPAIN - The Historic Alhambra, Granada." TUSPAIN - Homepage - WELCOME to the Web Magazine for Spain! Web. 30 Nov. 2010. .

"Interesting Facts About Alhambra - Fun Facts About Alhambra Spain." Lifestyle Lounge - Online Lifestyle Magazine - Lifestyle Management Tips. Web. 30 Nov. 2010. .

//004%20Alhambra-desde-la-terraza[1].jpg//. 2009. Photograph. //Https://1abilingue2008.wikispaces.com//. 16 Feb. 2009. Web. 30 Nov. 2010. .//

//"IMG_0533 Pictures from Spain Photos on Webshots."// Travel Photos and Pictures on Webshots//. Web. 30 Nov. 2010. .//

Alshurafa.net//. Web. 30 Nov. 2010. .