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The Gardens of Generalife |
Seemingly at odds with the the architecture of The Alhambra's Royal Palace is the Palacio de Carlos V; it was started in 1526 and is the work of
Pedro Machuca, a former pupil of Michelangelo. On his death in 1550 the
building responsibility was passed to Mahuca’s son, Luis, who continued
until 1568 when the Moriscos rebelled against being taxed to fund the
build. No further work was done until 1923 when Leopoldo Torres Balbás
restarted the programme, which continues to this day.
The
Palacio and surrounding gardens of Generalife were originally
constructed between 1302 and 1309, during the reign of Muhammed III, as
a summer garden for relaxing in. The Koran describes paradise as a
leafy shaded garden, with plenty of running water thus providing
inspiration for the gardens. The delightful walled garden
known as the Patio de los Cipreses (the Patio of the Cypresses also
referred to as the Patio of the Sultana) is rumoured to have been the
meeting place of Sultana Zoraya and her lover, Hamet, the doomed chief
of the Abencerrajes. Nearby is the Camino de las Cascadas (Walk of the
Cascades), which consists of a staircase with water flowing down
leading to the Summer Palace.
Although the
original garden was constructed in the fourteenth century, the present
day labyrinth design commenced in 1931 and was extended further in
1951, under the direction of the architect, Francisco Prieto Moreno. It
was completed in 1952 with an amphitheatre constructed to host the
International Festival of Music and Dance of Granada, an extremely
popular event which continues to be held every July.
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