Visitors to Andalusia are usually attracted by specific ancient sites: the huge Cordova Mosque, impressive Alhambra palaces, the Grand Mosque minaret in Seville, and do not care to visit other places which are not less important. They forget that Portugal, like Spain, houses many Arab-Islamic Andalusian antiquities. This fact was behind the idea of being unconventional in dealing with the history of Andalusia through exploring new places and going on a journey from Gibraltar in Spain s farthest south to the north of the Portuguese capital Lisbon, or Andalusia s western region, as it was called, visiting the main cities and towns on our way, in a single account of two countries.

Heading west

The basic itinerary of the Spanish Poruguese journey was very ambitious and clear-cut: to follow in the footsteps of commander Abdul Aziz bin Moussa, a famous Muslim conqueror of Andalusia and its first ruler after the departure of his father Moussa bin Nosseir with Tariq bin Ziad to Damascus.

A pressing question is: Why Abdul Aziz? The answer is that he was the first military commander to enter present-day Portugal, the state which was founded following the weakness of Almohads in Andalusia.

Our plan faced basic problems in terms of the journey period which was just one week long, but it needed a month to complete successfully. Another problem involved the route which bin Moussa followed as reported by contradictory historical sources, one of which says that he stared from Seville after quelling a rebellion after his father left for Toledo and captured Lisbon, Santarem and other towns. Other sources reported a different route. We decided to stick to the areas on which most sources agree and add other key places, such as Badajoz. This means that my colleague the photographer and I partly followed in bin Moussa s footsteps and partly a route of our own choice.

Gibraltar

Our journey started at Gibraltar through the entry and exit gates previously passed through by conquerors and the vanquished. The breath of air of the place mixed with drops of the salt sea recalled a foggy scene of Spain from the top of Tangier mountains in the mid-1990s easily seen by the naked eye when it is fairly clear.

The sight of car queues at Gibraltar s checkpoints and passport control with the British flag hovering above was eye-cathing. I couldn t help commenting: This is Spanish land captured by the British as were Moroccan Ceuta and Mellila by the Spanish... Tit for tat!

We were equipped for the journey with a small car that runs on paved and dust roads, two light bags, a detailed map, a book of the names of places in Spanish and Portuguesa and a state-of-the-art GPS. Our first destination was Seville.

Tariq bin Ziad set foot on Andalusian land in May AD711 near the rock that now carries his name. Subseuent battles and conquests led to the collapse of the Gothic king Lazari and capture of his capital Toledo. The following year Tariq was joined by the wali of Morocco and direct commander Moussa bin Nosseir, who followed a different route and captured important places, such as Seville and Merida, and they met at Toledo, in the heart of Andalusia, where they stayed for some time, then continued conquests of Saragossa, Larda and other places.

Seville

We left Gibraltar on our way to Seville. On the express way there were road signs of main and small cities and towns, including Marabella, Malaga, Cordova, Granada, and finally Seville, which we reached after an over five hours drive. It was sunset, and the first thing we experienced there was gentle breeze and a fragrant odour of orchards. Seville was beautiful even at night, except for its warmer weather. The first thing we had to do was to find a place to stay in near the Grand Mosque tall minaret built by Almohad caliph Abu Yaqub Yusuf. After a five-hour search we found a place near Gudalquivir River, the cathedral, the important archaeological site, and King Philip s palace, built on the ruins of the palace of the king of Seville Almoetamid bin Abbad.

Due to its proximity to Morocco and easy arrival of reinforcements, Abdul Aziz bin Moussa made Seville the capital of Andadlusia at the beginning of its Islamic age. Four years later, the capital moved to Cordova, and before the end of the Umayyad dynasty in Andalusia, Caliph Abdul Rahman III (Alnasser) moved the capital to Alzahraa.

When Almansour seized power from the Umayyad caliph Hisham Almoayyad he founded a new capital, Alzahira, and after the collapse of the Umayyad dynasty and start of the age of princelings Seville flourished under the Abbadis, who made it a city of arts philosophy, architecture, poetry as well as fun When Almoravids and Almohads regained what was left of Adalusia, they made Seville their capital.

Before I opened the car door to go to the minaret I felt that I stepped on something soft, which was actually a small size orange. I found out that the place was filled with intact and damaged oranges. As I put some oranges in the garbage bin I was disgused at such wasage of God s bounties, bearing in mind Tomatina annual festival at Valencia where its inhabitants throw tomatoes at one another on the last Wednesday of August.

Alcazar is nearby. This word is similar in pronunciation to the Arabic word Alqasr , meaning the palace. The palace was built on the ruins of the palace of Almoetamid bin Abbad. At first sight, because it is deeply influenced by the Andalusian style, the palace looks as if it had been built in the age of Arab kings, but it was actually built by a Christian king. Before leaving Seville, we got a look at Guadalquivir River and the Golden Tower, which was used as a watch tower and still preserve its Arab Islamic style.

I recalled the orange story as I found tens of fallen oranges on the way to the minaret, and I was told that those were the trees of wild oranges most probably not fit for human consumption.

Merida-Badajoz

The road to Badajoz passed through Merida, both on Spanish territory. Merida is a small quiet town on Ana river. The only Islamic antiquities there are huge forts built by Umayyad prince Abdul Rahman II. Merida rebelled against him several times, the last of which he crushed himself and secured its allegiance. We arrived at Badajoz afer a short trip.

The story of Badajoz, which was founded by the Muslims, is rather strange. It was founded by Abdul Rahman bin Marwan Aljiliqi, who came from a Christian family and whose grandfather was a wali of Merida. Though a favourite of the central authority he led a mutiny against it and faced Cordova s princes, particularly when their grip of power was weaker and made an agreement with them under which he and his sons ruled Badajoz in a certain area on he western bank of Ana river, but the powerful caliph Abdul Rahman III recaptured and returned it to the central authority in Cordova.

Badojoz flourished under the Aftas rule during the age of princelings as a city which encouraged scholars in all fields. When the ambitious king of Castille Alfonso VI raided against rival Andalusian kingdoms and annexed Toledo to his rule, Omar Almutawakil bin Alaftas and other Muslim kings invited Muslims prince Yusuf bin Tashfin to liberate Badajoz from Christian rule. The Zulaqa plain, where the famous battle between the Castille and Almoravid Andalusian armies took place was also there.

Badajoz kashbah, one of the largest in Spain, was built in two stages: First, by its founder Abdul Rahman bin Marwan Aljiliqi, second, the biggest, by Almohads, after Badajoz became a fortified borderline city repelling attacks by northern Christian kingdoms.

Badajoz was our final destination in Spain after which we proceeded to the Porruguese capital Lisbon. Moving from one country to another in the European Union is a very easy matter, but it is particularly significant to me as I dream of moving among Arab countries without border posts and passports. I had a previous experience, when I moved from Alsace, in northern France, to a border village in southern Germany and all I found was a flag on a wall showing that I entered German territory, but the road from Sanish to Portugal did not have any sovereign signs, and only our mobile phones showing Portugal s symbol indicated that we entered another country.

Lisbon

The capital of Portugal, Lisbon, was among the cities that fell under Muslim rule in the early stage of conquest. According to many sources, its conqueror was Abdul Aziz bin Moussa, others report that it was his father; however, the former sources seem more reliable as the route Abdul Aziz followed is nearer to that area.

Lisbon was one of the largest cities in western Andalusia in the Middle Ages. The old part, Elfama, (from Arabic Elhama ), was full of thermal springs and Arab baths in the past. The parts of Lisbon we walked around were not different in terms of buildings from Spanish cities, and as it is the national capital it is a cosmopolitan city with particular African and former Portuguese colonies presence. Lisbon and Madrid were rivals in colonialism and geographical discoveries including Vasco da Gama s expedition around the Cape of Good Hope. This human mix reflects Portugal s colonial past.

Elfama is full of narrow cobbled streets and colour houses on the balconies of which the washing is hung out. Lisbon s trees are heavily tree-lined. We walked long distances by day without feeling sun heat because of densely-leaved trees. The country s economic conditions are reflected in those sitting on the ground and sleeping rough or seats for rest. We also saw a group of squatters in one of the main squares in circles with vehicles around them packed with clothes, shoes and other valuable things.

Lisbon and the Norman invasion

Lisbon witnessed the first attack by the Normans, or Vikings, who are a mixture of Scandinavian peoples Danish, Norwegian and Swedish. They invaded and settled in many areas in Europe, including the Iberian peninsula. They captured Normandy, in northern France, as surrendered by Charles III. The Normans followed a surprise attack tactic with small, swift boats from river mouths to cities where they committed acts of looting and sabotage.

The Norman attack against Andalusia was not their first, but during the Muslim rule they launched raids twice: during the reign of Prince Alhakam bin Hisham bin Abdul Rahman Aldakhil, and that of his son Abdul Rahman against Lisbon, as previously mentioned. They launched subsequent raids against Cadirz, Seville, and up to Cordova on horseback, but they withdrew soon after as their main target was spoils. Among the Muslim antiquities in Seville stands the Golden Tower on Guadalquivir River, which was built as a permanent watch tower in anticipation of any Norman or other attacks.

As Cordova was earlier inadequately prepared for such attacks, Prince Abdul Rahman took all necessary precautions by building forts, watch towers and a wall round Seville. He also set up a naval force which became a huge fleet later to protect the peninsula and all coastal cities from any attack. Once again the Normans attempted to invade Seville, but they suffered unexpected heavy losses which discouraged them from attacking Andalusian territories for a long time.

The walls of a castle overlooking Lisbon can be clearly seen from Elfama area. The fortress was built by the Muslims to defend the city against attacks. Known as St. George Castle today it is not less important than other Arab and Muslim antiquities in Andalusia.

Santarem, a sad memory of Almohads

A small town on Taja river north west of Lisbon, with scattered houses on a low mountain range, Santarem did not make us feel it was much important as we approached it.

Santarem (Gothic name Santa Erina) was among the cities and towns captured by Abdul Aziz bin Moussa. It had its heyday under the Aftas dynasty, who made it their seat of government, and it bore the brunt of facing the northern Christian kingdoms. Attempting to capture Badajoz, Alfonso VI did capture Santarem, Lisbon and Quria, but the Zulaqa battle stopped him.

The kingdom of Badajoz was thus partitioned by Spain and Portugal; Alzulaqa and Badajoz in the former, the seat of government in the latter. The state of confusion and vacuum resulting from the absence of Almohads led to the rise of the Christian kingdom of Portugal in western Andalusia, which played the same role of the kingdom of Castile against eastern and central Andalusia.

Santarem was the scene of a military diaster for Almohad armies after it became a Portuguese assault base against the western areas still under Muslim rule. Caliph Abu Yaqub Yusuf called for a military campaign against the Portuguese and mobilized a 200,000 strong army of Arabs and Berbers. Santarem was the target of land assault because it presented the most threat to the northern border. He also planned a naval blockade of Lisbon so that it and the entire kingdom of Portugal might fall Fighting took place between Almohads and the Portuguese, who took shelter behind the walls of Santarem and continued for days with signs of victory for the Muslims until something unexpected happened. An order of Abu Yaqub was misunderstood; instead of troop repositioning round Santarem, the Almohad army withdrew all night leaving the commander s tent in place, making him an easy target for the Portuguese Abu Yaqub and his companions fought bravely but he received a fatal stab and fled and died a few days later. That loss reinforced Portugal s presence and created a new, unexpected reality.

During the age of the princelings Lisbon was among the areas under Aftas rule, and in the twilight years of Almohad rule this town fell to king Alfonso of Portugal in AD 1147. Since then, Lisbon has been a heavily fortified city, particularly following the Norman invasion during the reign of Prince Abul Rhman II.

Further journeys to follow

As we were leaving Santarem we reflected on the memories of that long journey, remembering that the history of Andalusia is not just Spain but includes Portugal as well, and even that part of Spanish history is not confined to Cardova, Granda and Seville. There are other places worth visiting, such as Toledo, Badajoz, Ronda, Mursia, Valencia and Saragossa. Despite their impressive architectural style, Alhambra palaces to me are no more than a memory of a period of shame and weakness of the Muslim rule in Granada which became the first and last destination of migrants from the Islamic bases which fell one after another.

Thus we ended our journey, looking forward to further longer, better planned and luckier journeys in the future to other less popular Andalusian places.

(Translated by Dr Shaaban Afifi)