Today's Spain

Andalusia: A Diverse Jewel of Islamic Civilization and the History of Its Tragic Fall

When the pages of history talk about the heyday of Muslim civilization, the region that comes to mind first is Andalusia—the southern part of present-day Spain and Portugal, where Muslim rule extended for eight centuries. This region was not just a kingdom, but also a prime example of intellectual, cultural, and religious coexistence. In Andalusia, Muslims built a society where science, art, literature, music, medicine, mathematics, and philosophical thought flourished. They also peacefully coexisted with the Christian and Jewish communities, creating a rare example of religious liberality rather than religious intolerance.

When the Umayyad general Tariq ibn Ziyad crossed Gibraltar into Spanish soil in 711 AD, the region gradually developed into an Islamic center. After Tariq's conquest, the original form of Muslim rule was established by Abd al-Rahman I, who, after the fall of the Umayyad Caliphate in Damascus, fled and established an independent emirate with Cordoba as its capital. This emirate later transformed into a caliphate—the Caliphate of Qurtuba, under whose rule Andalusia became one of the greatest civilizations in the world.

Cordoba was the largest and richest city in Europe at the time. Even London or Paris still had the rustic appearance of mud and huts, while Cordoba had paved streets, a well-organized drainage system, hundreds of public baths, museums, libraries, numerous mosques, and universities. Cordoba's library contained about 400,000 books—whereas no other European palace had even ten thousand books at that time. This educational excellence of Andalusia was not limited to Muslims. Christians and Jews alike were educated, engaged in science, translated Greek and Latin manuscripts, and published new ideas.

Al-Hakam II, a famous caliph of Andalusia, was so devoted to knowledge that he sponsored thousands of scholars. The famous Madrasa al-Mustansiriya in Cordoba was one of the greatest universities in the world at the time. It offered a wide range of courses in mathematics, astronomy, medicine, linguistics, philosophy, history, geography, and more.

Andalusia was also a cultural canvas—where music, poetry, architecture, and painting flourished. The Al-Zahra Palace, the Al-Hamra in Granada, and the Grand Mosque of Cordoba are not only monuments of beauty, but also symbols of the intellectual splendor of a time. The 'oud' and 'rabab' in music were Andalusian inventions, which later influenced European musical instruments. The 'muwashah' and 'jazal' genres in Andalusian poetry were formed by a combination of Arabic, Berber, Jewish and Romance languages.

The most admirable aspect of Andalusia was its religious tolerance. The Muslim rulers did not force conversion. Instead, they recognized the People of the Book (Jews and Christians) as 'zimmis' and allowed them to practice their own religion and culture. Even the Jews of Andalusia experienced one of the safest and most prosperous periods in history. The famous Jewish philosopher and physician Maimonides grew up in Andalusia. Christians also participated in education and administration. It was a truly pluralistic society.

But when the sun of this wonderful civilization set, the entire Muslim world fell into a cultural catastrophe. The fall of Andalusia was not just a loss of territory, but also an intellectual dream come true. The continuous fragmentation of the Muslim kingdom, internal violence, discord, lust for power and political failure once became an opportunity for the Spanish Christian kings. In the name of the ‘Reconquista’, the Christian kingdoms gradually began to conquer the Muslim kingdoms.

With the fall of Granada in 1492, the last independent Muslim kingdom of Andalusia also disappeared. This was the same year that Columbus discovered America—the beginning of a new era for the West, and the beginning of a silent darkness for the Muslim world. The Spanish Christian monarchy carried out cruel persecutions on Muslims and Jews—forcing them to convert or emigrate. Those who wanted to stay, were subjected to the Inquisition—a terrible religious interrogation and punishment.

Countless libraries were destroyed, books were burned, thousands of scholars, doctors, and philosophers fled the country. Churches were built in Muslim architecture, and a conscious campaign began to destroy the existence of Islam. This destruction was not just the death of a civilization, but the death of an entire human knowledge and a potential model of coexistence.

The fall of Andalusia was a blow to the morale of the Muslim world. Subsequently, Muslim society went into a defensive position. The flow of new thought was stifled, religious materialism rose, and in many places science and culture began to be seen as a threat. It was in this context that Europe began the scientific revolution with the legacy of Muslim civilization in its own hands, while Muslims continued to lag behind.

In today's context, Andalusia is a lesson for us—how religious tolerance, the free flow of knowledge, and cultural diversity enrich a civilization, and how their lack leads to its downfall. If the Muslim world is to regain its former glory, it will have to build an intellectual, liberal, and pluralistic society like Andalusia.