|
Castles In Navarre
The castles in Spain were built mainly for the country's defense, particularly with respect to fortification. During the Middle Ages, northern Christian kingdoms had to secure their borders with their Muslim southern neighbours, thus forcing both Christian and Muslim kings to grant border fiefs to their liege noblemen so as to keep and maintain defensive fortresses. When the Reconquista advanced, those border castles lost their initial purpose, and, as in the rest of medieval Europe, they were used as noble residences and fief-keeps. Sporadic threats of war maintained their initial military purposes as enemy invasions were common. In some locations, such as the Basque country, fiefdoms did not exist as such, and noble families could not afford nor did they need huge fortresses, giving rise to many tower houses. In Muslim Spain many castle-palaces were built: the petty ''taifa'' kingdoms that arose after the fall of the Caliphate of Córdoba were militarily weak thus castles bega ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alcázar De Segovia, Situado En La Ciudad Vieja De Segovia
An alcázar, from Arabic ''al-Qasr'', is a type of Islamic castle or palace in the Iberian Peninsula (also known as al-Andalus) built during Muslim rule between the 8th and 15th centuries. They functioned as homes and regional capitals for governmental figures throughout the Umayyad Caliphate, Umayyad caliphate and later, for Christian rulers following the Spanish Reconquista. The term alcázar is also used for many medieval castles built by Christians on earlier Roman, Visigothic or Islamic fortifications and is frequently used as a synonym for ''castillo'' or castle. Terminology The Spanish language, Spanish word ''alcázar'' (pronounced Help:IPA/Spanish, [alˈkaθaɾ]) derives from the Arabic word القصر ''al-qaṣr'' "the fort, castle, or palace," that in turn derives from the Latin word ''Castrum'' ("fortress", "military camp"). Similar words exist in Galician language, Galician (''alcázar'', pronounced Help:IPA/Galician, [alˈkaθɐɾ]), Portuguese language, Portugues ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
