The Alhambra in Spain - One of Europe's Top Tourist Attractions

Located in Granada, Spain, the Alhambra is a historical palace and fortress complex built on a beautiful mountain. It is considered to be the most important as well as the best conserved Arabian palace of its epoch. The Alhambra is the last and the greatest Moorish palace in Europe. It is one of Europe's top attractions with thousands of visitors visiting the place everyday.


The Alhambra consists of four sights clustered together atop a hill - Charles V's Palace, Alcazaba (empty old fort with tower and views), Palacios Nazaries (exquisite Moorish palace), and Generalife (fancy gardens). The complex has two entrance doors - the Puerta de las Armas in the north and the Puerta de la Jjusticia in the south. The Alhambra is a regarded as a world heritage site by UNESCO.


The fortress was constructed in 889 and later it was converted into a royal palace in 1333 by Yusuf I, Sultan of Granada. The Islamic palaces of Alhambra were built for the last Muslim rulers in Spain and its court of the Nasrid dynasty. Some portions of the complex were used by Christian rulers after the reconquest in 1492. The Palace of Charles V was built in 1527 within the Nasrid fortifications and was used as a residence for Charles V, a Holy Roman Emperor.


However, the Alhambra remained uninhabited for several hundred years. It was rediscovered during the 19th century and was restored to its current form. Today, the Alhambra is one of the most beautiful buildings in Spain, featuring some particularly intricate internal art work. It is one of Spain's major tourist attractions, exhibiting the country's most significant and well known Arab-Islamic architecture, together with 16th-century and later Christian building and garden interventions.

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