History of the Moors of Spain Part 12

_Kaled, surnamed the Sword of G.o.d, &c._

The feats of arms ascribed by historians to Kaled resemble those of a hero of romance. He was at first the enemy of the great Arabian leader, and vanquished that commander in the conflict of _Aheh_, the only battle which Mohammed ever lost. Having afterward become a zealous Mussulman, he subjugated such parts of the Mohammedan dominions as had revolted after the death of the Prophet, opposed the armies of Heraclius, conquered Syria, Palestine, and a part of Persia, and came off victor in numerous single combats in which he was at different times engaged: always challenging to an encounter of this kind the general of the hostile army. The following anecdote will ill.u.s.trate his character. Kaled besieged the city of Bostra. The Greek governor, named Romain, under pretence of making a sortie, pa.s.sed the walls with his troops, and arranged them in order of battle in front of the Mussulman army. At the moment when he should have given the signal for the onset, the valiant Greek demanded an interview with Kaled. The two commanders, therefore, advanced into the centre of the s.p.a.ce which separated the opposing armies. Romain declared to the Saracen general that he had determined not only to deliver the city to him, but to embrace the religion of the crescent; he at the same time expressed a fear that his soldiers, among whom he was by no means popular, intended to take his life, and intreated Kaled to protect him against their vengeance.

"The best thing you can do," replied the Moslem leader, "is immediately to accept a challenge to a single combat with me. Such an exhibition of courage will gain for you the respect of your troops, and we can treat together afterward!"

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At these words, without waiting for a reply from the governor, the champion of Islamism drew his cimeter and attacked the unfortunate Romain, who defended himself with a trembling hand. At each blow inflicted by the redoubtable follower of the Prophet, Remain cried out, "Do you then wish to kill me?" "No," replied the Mussulman; "my only object is, to load you with honour; the more you are beaten, the more esteem you will acquire!" At last, when he had nearly deprived the poor Greek of life, Kaled gave up the contest, and shortly after took possession of the city: when he next saw the pusillanimous governor, he politely inquired after his health.

C, page 30.

_The warlike tribes of the Bereberes, &c._

The name of the portion of Africa called _Barbary_ is derived from the Bereberes. This people regarded themselves, with much appearance of truth, as the descendants of those Arabs who originally came into the country with Malek Yarfric, and who are often confounded with the ancient Numidians. Their language, which differs from that of every other people, is, in the opinion of some authors, a corruption of the Punic or Carthaginian. Divided into tribes and wandering among the mountains, this peculiar race still exists in the kingdom of Morocco.

The Bereberes were never allied with the Moors, for whom they always entertained a feeling of enmity. Though at present under the dominion of the kings of Morocco as their religious head, they brave his displeasure and authority at will. They are formidable in consequence of their numbers, courage, and indomitable spirit of independence; and still preserve unimpaired the peculiar simplicity of their ancient manners and habits.

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D, page 34.

_Tarik, one of the most renowned captains of his time, &c._

Tarik landed at the dot of the Calpe Mountain, and took the city of Herculia, to which the Arabs gave the name of _Djebel Tarik_, of which we have made Gibraltar.

E, page 38.

_During the remainder of the Caliphate of Yezid II., &c._

This caliph, the ninth of the Ommiades, ended his existence in a manner that at least merits pity. He was amusing himself one day with throwing grapes at his favourite female slave, who caught them in her mouth. This fruit, it must be remembered, is much larger in Syria than in Europe. Unfortunately, one of the grapes pa.s.sed into the throat of the slave and instantly suffocated her. The despairing Yezid would not permit the interment of this dearest object of his affections, and watched incessantly beside the corpse for eight successive days. Being compelled at last, by the condition of the body, to separate himself from it, he died of grief, entreating, as he expired, that his remains might be interred in the same tomb with his beloved Hubabah.

SECOND EPOCH.

A, page 46.

_He was soon after a.s.sa.s.sinated, &c._

Three Karagites (a name applied to a pre-eminently fanatical sect of Mussulmans), beholding the disorders created in the Arabian empire by the contentions of Ali, Moavias, and {209} Amrou, believed that they should perform a service that would be acceptable to G.o.d, and restore peace to their country, by simultaneously a.s.sa.s.sinating the three rivals. One of them repaired to Damascus, and wounded the usurper Moavias in the back; but the wound did not prove mortal. The confederate charged with the murder of Amrou, stabbed, by mistake, one of the friends of that rebel. The third, who had undertaken to despatch Ali, struck him as he was about to enter the mosque, and the virtuous caliph was the only one who fell a victim to the design of the a.s.sa.s.sins.

B, page 48.

_Mervan II., the last caliph of the race, &c._

This Ommiade was surnamed _Alhemar_, that is to say, _The a.s.s_: an appellation which, in the East, is considered highly honourable, from the singular regard there entertained for that patient and indefatigable animal. Ariosto derived his touching episode of Isabella of Gallicia from the history of this prince. Mervan, being at one time in Egypt, became enamoured of a religious recluse whom he chanced to see there, and endeavoured to persuade her to break her monastic vows.

Effectually to relieve herself from his persecutions, the young devotee promised him an ointment which would render him invulnerable, and volunteered to prove its efficacy on her own person. After having anointed her neck with the mixture, she requested the caliph to test the keenness of his cimeter on it, which the barbarian did; and the result may be easily imagined.

C, page 48.

_The names of Haroun al Raschid, &c._

Haroun al Raschid (which signifies Haroun the Just) was {210} greatly renowned in the East. He undoubtedly, in part, owed his fame, as well as his surname, to the protection he afforded to men of letters. His military exploits and his love of science prove this caliph to have been no ordinary man; but then the glory of his achievements was tarnished by his cruelty to the Barmacides. These were a distinguished tribe or family, descended from the ancient kings of Persia. They had rendered the most signal services to the successive caliphs, and won the respect and affection of the whole empire. Giaffar Barmacide, who was considered the most virtuous of Mussulmans and the most eminent author of the age, was the vizier of Haroun. He entertained a pa.s.sionate regard for Aba.s.sa, the beautiful and accomplished sister of the caliph, and the princess reciprocated his affection; but the sovereign made the most unreasonable opposition to the celebration of their nuptials. This they effected, however, without his knowledge; and for some time Haroun remained ignorant of the union of the lovers.

But, at the end of some years, the caliph made a pilgrimage to Mecca, to which city, the more effectually to secure the inviolability of his secret, the Bermacide had sent his infant son to be reared. There the representative of the Prophet, through the instrumentality of a perfidious slave, became acquainted with all the circ.u.mstances of the deception that had been practised on him. It would be difficult to believe the account of what followed, but that the facts were so well authenticated throughout Asia. Haroun caused his sister to be thrown into a well, commanded that Giaffar should lose his head, and ordered every relative of the unfortunate Bermacide to be put to death. The father of the vizier, a venerable old man, respected throughout the empire, which he had long governed, met his fate with the most heroic firmness. Before he expired, he wrote these {211} words to the sanguinary despot: "_The accused departs first; the accuser will shortly follow. Both will appear in the presence of a Judge whom no arguments can deceive!_"

The implacable Haroun carried his vengeance so far as to forbid that any one should mention the names of his hapless victims. One of his subjects, named Mundir, had the courage to brave this edict, and publicly to p.r.o.nounce the eulogy of the beloved Bermacides.

The tyrant commanded that the offending Mussulman should appear before him, and threatened him with punishment for what he had done.

"You can silence me only by inflicting death upon me!" replied Mundir: "that you have the power of doing; but you cannot extinguish the grat.i.tude entertained by the whole empire for those virtuous ministers: even the ruins you have made of the monuments which they erected, speak of their fame in spite of you!" It is said that the monarch was touched by the words of this fearless defender of the dead, and that he commanded a golden plate to be presented to him.

Such was the famous caliph who bore the name of _the Just_. Almamon, his son, received no surname; but he deserved to be ranked with the wisest and the most virtuous of men. Some idea of his character may be formed from the following anecdote. It is recorded of him, that his viziers urged him to punish with death one of his relations who had taken arms against him, and caused himself to be proclaimed caliph.

Almamon, however, rejected this sanguinary counsel, saying at the same time, "Alas! if they who have injured me, knew how much pleasure I experience in forgiving my enemies, they would hasten to appear before me to confess their faults!" This excellent prince was the munificent {212} patron of science and the arts, and his reign formed the most brilliant epoch of the glorious days of the Arabs.

D, page 54.

_Wars with the kings of Leon, and incursions into Catalonia, &c._

Historians do not agree concerning the precise period when Charlemagne entered Spain. It would appear, however, that it was during the reign of Abderamus that the emperor crossed the Pyrenees, took Pampeluna and Saragossa, and was attacked, during his retreat, in the defiles of Roncevaux, a place rendered famous in romantic literature by the death of Roland.

E, page 59.

_A government that properly respected the rights of the people, &c._

The ancient laws of Aragon, known under the name of _Fore de Sobarbe_, limited the power of the sovereign by creating a balance for it in that of the _ricos Hombres_, and of a magistrate who bore the name of Justice.

F, page 60.

_The celebrated school, &c._

The musical school, founded at Cordova by Ali-Zeriab, produced the famous Moussali, who was regarded by the Orientals as the greatest musician of his time. The music of the Moors did not consist, like ours, in the concord of different instruments, but simply in soft and tender airs, which the musicians sung to the accompaniment of the lute.

Sometimes several voices and lutes executed the same air in unison.

This simple style of music satisfied a people who were {213} such pa.s.sionate lovers of poetry, that their first desire, when listening to a singer, was to hear the words he uttered.

Moussali, who was the pupil of Ali-Zeriab at Cordova, became afterward, in consequence of his musical talents, the favourite of Haroun al Raschid, the celebrated caliph of the East. It is related that this prince, in consequence of a misunderstanding with one of his favourite wives, fell into such a slate of melancholy that fears were entertained for his life. Giaffar, the Bermacide, at that time the princ.i.p.al vizier of the caliph, entreated the poet Abbas-ben-Ahnaf to compose some verses on the subject of this quarrel. He did so, and they were sung in the presence of the prince by Moussali; and the royal lover was so softened by the sentiments of the poet and the melody of the musician, that he immediately flew to the feet of his fair enslaver, and a reconciliation took place between the disconsolate monarch and the offended beauty. The grateful slave sent twenty thousand drachms of gold to the poet and Moussali, and Haroun added forty thousand more to her gift.

G, page 66.

_The statue of the beautiful Zahra, &c._

Mohammed, to discourage idolatry, forbade his followers, in the Koran, to make images in any form; but this injunction was very imperfectly observed. The Oriental caliphs adopted the custom of stamping their coins with an impression of their own features, as is proved by specimens still existing in the collections of the curious. On one side of these was represented the head of the reigning caliph, and on the other appeared his name, with some pa.s.sages from the Alcoran. In the palaces of Bagdad, Cordova and Grenada, figures of animals, and sculpture of various kinds, both in gold and marble, abounded.