The Last and Most Developed Naṣrid Palace in the Alhambra: The Alijares and Its Country Estate (Fourteenth Century)

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe country estate (al-munya, almunia in Spanish) of the Alijares occupied grounds near the Alhambra and the Generalife, although it was higher up. It was constructed at the peak of the Naṣrid dynasty's splendour, during the last stage of the reign of Muḥammad V (r.1354–1359 / 1362–1391), after he had finished the Palace of the Lions.The Alijares formed the last link in the chain in the stylistic development of the palaces of al-Andalus. When its founder decided on the features of the Alijares, he was in search of something that was completely innovative, as he had already undertaken work in the medinas of Granada and in the Alhambra that turned out to be a transformation of the architectural forms so far developed.Life in the palace and the al-munya was cut short by sizeable earthquake in 1431, which coincided with a hard Castilian military campaign against the Kingdom of Granada. The consequences of the allegiance formed after the Naṣrid defeat hindered the reconstruction of the Alijares, and so the royal buildings above the Royal Water Channel (Acequia Real) of the Alhambra were abandoned. Although time has erased many of the traces of the palace and its al-munya, we have extensive knowledge of its main architectural features, thanks to an analysis of all the available sources.