Description

Granada is a deceptive city, concealing a layered past and a complex character. The last Muslim capital in Western Europe, over the centuries it has captured the hearts and imagination of its inhabitants, and featured in countless myths and legends. Yet historical evidence reveals real tales from Granada that are even more fascinating: a romantic epic of secrets and follies, victory and failure, poetry and art.City of Illusions brings together Granada's many stories--the archaeological forger, the renegade French general, the garrotted liberal heroine, and the Jewish poet and right hand of two Muslim rulers. From the founding dynasty to the building of the Alhambra, to the Reconquista, French occupation and Spanish Civil War, this is the history of Granada from its eleventh-century origins to the present day.Granada's historical narrative has long been fought over, recreated, idealised or buried. Elegant and deeply researched, this book sets the record straight, delving into the true story of a beautiful city, with all its quirks, mysteries, intrigues and triumphs.

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