length the Moors, fighting desperately against superior numbers, who were awed and dispirited, drove them to Xerez; and on the banks of the Guadalette, the fabled Lethe, Roderic made a last and desperate stand, and after sundry battles for near eight days, he was finally conquered. The king, by some, was supposed to have fallen in this contest; but it has been satisfactorily shown that he escaped to Portugal, where he died in obscurity. Tariff marched with his triumphant forces, and possessed himself of Seville, and finally of all Andalusia and Estramadura. "The success which attended this expedition, induced Moussa, a warrior no less distinguished, to form a junction with Tariff with auxiliary troops; and these two generals, with their army, separated, and shortly after overrun and captured all Spain. To the Christians, the Moors held out the hand f fellowship and protection; they guaranted to them the free observance of their religion, and the possession of their chapels; may, so mild and beneficial was their rule, that the queen of Roderic openly espoused the son of Moussa, thus uniting the Christian and Moslem interést. "Spain, divided in command between Moussa and Tariff, begat a strong jealousy on the part of the former, as he had ever viewed Tariff in the light of a subordinate officer. The Caliph Valid, fearing the efhct of this jealousy, recalled them both to Africa, where they died neglected. "The son of Moussa, who had espoused Egilona, the wife of king Roderic, and who was left in command of Spain, dying shortly after, Alabor, a warlike chief, succeeded him, who scoured the country, and even crossed the Pyrenees into Frauce. "A rebellion broke out in the north, which was headed by Pelagus, a descendant of the Gothic princes, and who was so successful in his predatory warfare, as to induce the Caliph Omar II. to send Elzemagh, a very distinguished officer, to take command in Spain. The Caliph, with a discernment worthy an enlightened prince, soon discovered, that Spain would never be tranquil, without efforts were made to soften the habits, and ameliorate the condition of the people; and this he determined to effect by the introduction of arts and sciences, and which laid the foundation of that glory which was so conspicuous during the government of the Moors in Spain. Cordova was erected into a capital, and embellished with splendid palaces. Men of talents were invited to court, and Elzemagh himself, setting the example, wrote a topographical history of Spain, with a detailed account of its resources, mines, minerals, forests, and rivers, The brave Pelagus, and his partizan followers, still held the Asturias, and could not be dislodged; in fact, the Moors, disregarding his rebellion, seemed desirous of conquering Gaul, and Elzemagh was killed in one of the battles near Narbonne. "Spain still changed her rulers, until the year 731, when Abderame, a Moorish chief of the highest acquirements, ambition, and bravery, took command in Spain. He form+ ed an alliance with the French Duke of Aquitaine, who had quarrelled with his sovereign, Charles Martel, and married his daughter; marched instantly against Muniza, governor of Catalonia, whose forces ho destroyed, and whose wife, a lady of exquisite beauty, he sent to the Caliph Backman. Urged by his ambitious views, Abderame was disposed to show how firm his power was fixed in Spain; he crossed the Pyrenees; captured Bourdeaux; scoured the French provinces, and came suddenly in sight of Charles Martel, who, with all the forces of France and Germany united, had pitched his camp at Tours. All Europe was interested in the result, and the Christian forces were to make one great, and probably last effort, for dominion. The battle was fought near Tours; 300,000 men were destroyed, and Abderame was killed, which secured the victory to the French. This was in 733, and the defeat of the Moors gave rise to a variety of factions in Spain, which, for many years, rendered their power uncertain and precarious. In Asia, the utmost confusion existed between the rival tribes of the Omiades, the Abbassides, and the Barnacedes; which gave rise to innumerable revolutions, which even Haroun al Rachid could not subdue, and which, eventually, destroyed all belonging to the tribe of the Omiades, except one, called Abderame. This adventurer, possessing ta lents of the highest order, concealed himself in the deserts of Arabia, and finally found means to get to Africa. The Moors in Spain, although governed by a chief favourable to the tribe of the Abbassides, were still attached to the Omiades; and, on hearing of the arrival of Abderame in Africa, they in vited him to accept the crown. One strong link has consolidated the chain of Mahometan power, and given so much strength and vigour to their operations, that is, the eligibility of any Mussulman to the crown. cessful chief wielded the sceptre, and this stimulated every adventurer to deeds of he roism. Abderame accepted the invitation; and, in 755, he landed in Spain, on the banks of the Guadalette, where he assembled an army. For four years, the Abbassides, under the command of Yusef, dis puted the possession of Spain; at length, the arms of Abderame were crowned with success. He conquered Cordova, and every important city; tranquilized the commotions between the tribes; was crowned king of Spain, and the first Caliph of the Moors; thus cutting asunder the ligament which bound the Arabs of Asia, and the Moors of Spain. The suc "That fine country, for the first time, had a monarch worthy of reigning; he was the most brave and accomplished man of his age; he patronized the fine arts; establish ed, at Cordova, schools for the study of As- still continued to confederate against the tronomy, Mathematics, Medicine, Poetry, Moors: but Abderame was always fortuLanguages, Music, and Painting. He erect nate; the was a prince yet greater than his ed the superb Mosque, now used as a Ca grandfather; and in his time, arts and scithedral, and a number of noble palaces and ences flourished triumphantly. Mousali, the gardens; he encouraged marriages between great Moorish musician, lived during his the Moors and Spaniards, and tolerated all reign; his execution on the lute has never religions. The Jews, in his time, erected an been surpassed. Abderame after a extensive university at Cordova, and pos- reign of thirty years, and left his crown to sessed an equality of rights. That city was the eldest of his forty-five sons, Mahomet; the seat of science, and the abode of distin- and for the space of sixty years, Spain was guished men; happiness and content were a scene of troubles, of war and conquests, seen in every face. The riches of Abderame so that the dominion of the Caliphs was have never been equalled. He governed verging to a close, when Abderame III, Portugal and all the fine provinces of Spain; in 912, mounted the throne. He was a warand historians assure us, that 12,000 villages rior and a politician; and, in a short time, were built on the borders of the Guadalqui- every thing flourished. He subdued his enever. He owned eighty important cities, and mies; restored peace to Spain, lavished three hundred large towns. Cordova con- gifts, with profusion, on the seminaries of tained 200,000 houses, and 900 public baths. learning; was the richest sovereign in EnThe revenue was calculated at the immense rope; and, after a reign of fifty years, he' sum of twelve millions, forty-five thousand died, leaving a written paper, in which he dinars of gold, rear five hundred millions of stated, that with all his wealth, conquest, dollars. Commerce, at that period, poured glory, and honour, he had enjoyed but its riches in the lap of Spain. Oil, silk, su- fourteen happy days! The successor of A5 gar, cochineal, iron, wool, amber, amber- derame III, was his eldest son, Hacken." gris, loadstone, antimony, sulphur, ginger, Without possessing the splendid talents of spices, coral, pearls, and the produce of the his father, he was a wise and politic prince ; mines, found their way to Asia and Africa. liberal, just, and humane. He established Cordova was the focus of arts and sciences; a code of laws, and continued to patronize chemistry and astronomy were at their acme; the arts; but it was not Hackem that reign-" every thing denoted splendour, peace, ed; he was in infancy when he ascended talents, and happiness. Spain, Spain! if the throne; it was his prime minister, the misfortunes, brought on by ignorance and justly celebrated and illustrious Almanzo fanaticism, by indolence and tyranny, have the pride and glory of the Moslem race; not deadened your sensibilities; if damned and who, for twenty-six years, reigned, uncustom has not brazed it so, that it be proof der the nominal sway of Hackem. Never and bulwark against sense,' the recollection had the Christian powers in Spain an ere of what you were a thousand years ago, in my to contend with so fierce and inflexible, barbarous ages, must drive you mad! the so commanding and successful, as Almancomparison must be agony! Arouse your- zor. He fought fifty-two battles in Castle, self! shake off your indolence! and give the Asturias, and Leon; and razed to the your prejudices to the winds! Raze your in- earth the famous chapel of St. James, of quisitions to the ground; turn your monas- Compostella, a splendid monument of yeakteries into seminaries of learning; place ness; but this fierce zeal against the Cbrisyour priests within the handles of a plough; tians, this impolitic war against faith, laid tolerate all religions; call back the Moors the foundation of his ruin. The S Spaniards and the Jews, who gave you character and were driven to desperation; they assembled wealth; declare your provinces in South all their forces; and, at Medina Coeli, in America sovereign and independent; and 998, they totally overcame the Moors, in a establish a profitable commerce with them, desperate battle; and the hitherto victorious founded on equal and exact justice; invite Almanzor not being able to sustain the shock,' to your court the learned of every clime; died with grief at the reverse of fortune, and let industry, science, and the arts be en- with him perished the glory of the Caliphs. couraged et honour and good faith pre- Hackem, in the midst of civil dissentions, vail; and you may yet obtain a distinguish was taken prisoner by a relative of the Caed rank among the governments of the liphs, but was rescued by forces from Afriearth. ca, and reinstated on the throne. The im-` ` portant victory, achieved by the Spaniards at Medina Cœli, gave them new energies. Spain was distracted with commotions; the Moors were divided into small parties, headed by several pretenders to the crown, and were cut up in detail. Hackem abdicated; and, in 1027, terminated the reign of the Omiades in Spain, after possessing that country, with glory, for three hundred years. Then arose a long list of usurpers; who, for two centuries, held that country in confu Abderame died in 788, after a reign of thirty years, full of glory; and the crown devolved on his third son, Hackem. Family disputes, and contested claims among numerous children, arising from the Moslem custom of polygamy, kept Spain in eternal dissentions, and Hackem died, full of trouble, in the year 822, and was succeeded by his son, Abderame II. The Normans invaded Spain. Arragon and Navarre became separate kingdoms; the Christians sion and disorder. The Christians them selves were divided by jealousy and sus picion; crimes were committed with impus nity; and licentiousness reigned throughout the kingdoms. Anarchy and confusion would have destroyed both Christian and Moslem power, when at length, a bright star of glory arose in Spain-a hero, which that country cannot too often boast of; this was Cid, the illustrious and brave Cid, the flower of chivalry, the most amiable and estimable of men, whom history has im mortalized, and romance represented in brilliant and true colours. This cavalier was called Rodrigo Diar de Bivar; but was sur named the Cid, or Chief; and he first commenced his operations by gathering and heading a species of Guerillas. He had fought in the Moorish ranks, when they were allied to Castile, of which crown he was a subject. Banished by his sovereign, he forgot not his allegiance to his country; he fought against the Moors, and sent his prisoners to Alphonso, who had banished him. His mind rose superior to petty or grovelling animosities; he felt no anger against his enemies; cherished no sentiments of revenge against his oppressors. At length his services produced his recall, and restoration to favour. His frankness and open, manly conduct, joined to his love of truth, once more offended Alphonso, and Cid was once more banished. He marched with his troops forthwith, and took Valentia by storm; for banishment to him was the signal for new acts of valour. He could have wrested the crown from the king of Castile, and held it without fear; but he was a patriot, and he died at an advanced age, crowned with glory. He left only one son; who, in a duel for a paltry cause, lost his life. His two daughters were wedded to the princes of the house of Navarre. These were the ancestors of the Bourbon race, of Ferdinand VII, and Louis XVIII: and it is the brightest jewel in their crowns, that the Cid, the gallant Cid, who was not a sovereign, and who had no ambition for a sceptre, was their ancestor. "With the death of the Cid, once more rose the power of the Mussulmen. The disputes of the various tribes in Africa, gave rise to the power of the Almoravides, originally from Egypt. Joseph, or as he was commonly called, Jusef ben Tessefin, of that race, reigned for a while in Barbary; he possessed himself of Mauritania, and founded the empire of Morocco; and, in a moment of tranquillity, like the Caliph Valid, he cast his eye towards Spain, which, at that period, was jointly in the power of Christians and Moors; and, in 1097, he crossed the Mediterranean, stormed Seville, captured Cordova, and threatened the annihilation of Christian power in that country. Religion, or holy zeal, that powerful link in the chain of confederacies, that potent charm, which, in that particular age, whetted the sabre, and aroused the energies of Christendom, 6507-351 came to their relief and Alphonso of Cas "After this period, the powers of Navarre prodnées, joined by sixty thousand French and Italians, were in the field? The Moors had the advantage in numbers, the Chris tians in arms and discipline. They met near the Sierra Morena, at a place called Toloza. The Arab chief possessed himself, as he thought, of all the defiles and passes. A Spanish guide led the army through rocks and difficult passages across the mountains, when the whole force appeared before the astonished Arabs. A battle was now unavoidable, and two days were spent by the allies in prayers and confessions. Wort 41 "I have ever considered the battle of Toloza the greatest that ever was fought in Spain, and one in which they acquired more glory than in any subsequent campaign. The Mussulmen, from the heights, broken hearts they despoiled them of their wealth, razed their palaces, schools, and gardens, did turned the magnificent mosque of Abderame into a cathedral. The Moors had one consolation left: Valentia was still in their power-they had recaptured that fine province after the death of the Cid, but this consolation was short-lived. James of Ar ragon, after a long siege, captured the prin cipal towns, and thus Andalusia and Valen tia, with the exception of Seville, fell into the hands of the Christians. This was a fatal blow to the power of the Mussulmen; yet they had hope and courage, which their superstition kept alive, and one effort was made, this was, the es tablishment of the kingdom, and building the city of Grenada. A Chieftain, named Mahomet Abousaid, from the borders of the Red Sea, endowed with courage and per severance, collected all the scattered tribes and established the capital of Grenada. This city, embellished with the most splendid pa laces, and built on a plain, the most fruitful and rich that imagination can possibly conceive, was a rival of Cordova. This fertile plain for ages was the seat of war; the soff was covered with bones, and drenched with blood; alternate successes, of Christian and Moorish arms, rendered it the theatre or bloody scenes, sieges, and conquests. Terdinand concluded a treaty with the king of Grenada, and marched with his troops to invest Seville, which, after a siege of six months, and several gallant actions, capitulated in 1243. Nothing could equal the splendour of Grenada, in the first century of its erection; and the palace of the Albam bra, which still exists, to indicate its former magnificence, has never been equalled for riches of decoration, and beauty of archit tecture. "From 1948, to 1349 the Mussulmen power in Spain was supported by occasion al successes and victories. The reverses which their arms sustained, they repaired by constant activity and perseverance they were still superior, in talents and poLicy, to the Spaniards; and more mild, tole |