Key learning points

1. Cordoba was part of Al Andalus, Muslim Spain, when it was captured by the exiled Umayyad prince Abd al-Rahman.
2. Although ruled by the Abbasid’s rivals, Cordoba had many similarities to Baghdad.
3. It was a centre for art and learning, known for its jewellery made from Chinese jade as well as its great colleges.
4. Christian and Jewish scholars were encouraged to visit Baghdad; in Cordoba Christians and Jews worshipped freely.
5. Cordoba’s mosques mirrored Visigothic, Roman and Syrian styles, in contrast with Baghdad’s Persian influences.

Common misconception

Keywords

• Al Andalus - Al-Andalus was the Muslim-ruled area of the Iberian Peninsula, including modern-day Gibraltar, Portugal, Spain, and Southern France

• Abd al-Rahman - Abd al-Rahman was the founder and first emir of the Emirate of Córdoba, ruling from 756 to 788 CE

• Emir - an emir is a ruler or king in Islamic countries

• Emirate - an emirate is a region or territory ruled by a leader called an emir

• Visigoth - the Visigoths were a Germanic tribe of Goths from regions in what is now Eastern Europe. They settled in what is now Spain and Portugal in the 5th century CE