CORDOVA, a city of Andalusia, the capital of the kingdom of that name, and long the metropolis of the empire of the Moors in Spain. It is situated in a most delightful spot, being on the southern declivity of the Sierra Morena, which protects it from the cold winds of the north and the east; and it is also on the right bank of the Guadalquivir, whose waters are used for irrigating the rich plain that surrounds it. The most striking remains of the Moorish magnificence are now visible in the enormous cathedral which was formerly the principal Mahomedan mosque. This edifice was finished by the Moors about the year 800, and was then nearly a square building, being 420 by 510 feet. The roof was not high, being but thirty-five feet from the floor. It was supported by numerous marble columns, according to some descriptions amounting to 1000, according to others to 780, which formed nineteen aisles from east to west, and twenty-nine from north to south, according to the description of that accurate and minute antiquarian Morales. There were gates covered with bronze, embossed in a most curious and expensive manner. Four thousand seven hundred lamps were lighted in this mosque every night, and the oil used in them was mixed with the wood of aloes, with ambergris, and other expensive perfumes. The Arabian monarch of the race Ommiades, who reigned in this capital, and who possessed enormous revenues, seems to have most profusely lavished them in the decorations of Cordova. At the death of Abdelrahman, this city is said to have contained within its walls two hundred thousand houses, six hundred mosques, nine hundred baths, and numerous public libraries; whilst on the bank of the Guadalquivir, under the power of that monarch, there were eight cities, three hundred towns, and twelve thousand populous villages. The twelve caliphs, his successors, gradually declined in power, and with it the wealth and population of the country decreased, till the period when the seat of the Moorish government was transferred in 1013 to the city of Granada.
The mosque, now become a Christian church, is diminished in size, by having a part which served the Mahomedans for the ablutions which their ritual prescribed, converted into a kind of garden, which is planted with orange trees and cypresses, and has three beautiful fountains. This garden, and the portico, supported by pillars, is five hundred and ten feet in length. The lowness of the roof forms a striking contrast with the lofty arches which support the roofs of the other cathedrals in Spain, whether of Gothic or of more recent erection. The originality of the style of the building is destroyed by the addition of a modern lofty tower, and the building being surrounded with houses, the beauty is hid; so that it now rather exhibits the extravagant expenditure, than the taste, of the period in which it was erected. It is, however, the most curious monument of the extraordinary race who for seven centuries ruled in Spain, and exhibited during that period a degree of knowledge, civilization, and taste, which had no equal among the Christian nations of Europe.
Before the Moors entered Spain, Cordova was a city of considerable importance. Under the Roman government it was well known by the name of Corduba, and was strongly fortified. The remains of the Roman walls are still to be seen, in the same imperishable state as when that people abandoned them.
At present Cordova does not contain more than thirty thousand inhabitants, who depend in some degree on manufactures, but much more on agriculture. The country around it is highly diversified; and the hills forming the lower range of the Sierra Morena send forth abundance of limpid streams. These hills are covered with pines and evergreen oaks; whilst the valleys are covered with olive trees or cultivated corn-fields. The farm-houses are built within inclosures, and surrounded with orchards of orange and pomegranate trees. The cultivators are, however, generally in indigent circumstances, and pay the rent by a proportion of the produce. On the more gentle risings there are vineyards, from which some indifferent wine is produced; but many of them are used for producing vinegar, and some for making brandy.
The principal buildings of the city are the bishop's palace and the holy office, both of which, though not elegant, are very extensive. An orphan-house is more modern, and built in a better style, and is adorned with a cupola that displays considerable architectural taste. A bridge of sixteen arches across the Guadalquivir, built by the Moors, and well preserved, is the only access to the southern part of the province; and it is defended by a tower which, when the Moors constructed it, must have been a sufficient defence, but it is now of no other use than as a toll-house. This province is famous for its breed of horses; and the royal stables, as well as the army, draw their best supplies from the vicinity of this city.