Cordoba was founded by the Romans due to its strategic importance as the highest navigable point of the Guadalquivir River. It became a port city of great importance, used for shipping Spanish olive oil, wine and wheat back to Ancient Rome. In 716 Cordoba was captured by the Muslims, and became the capital of the Moorish kingdom of El-Andalus. In the tenth century Cordoba was one of the largest cities in the world, with a population of maybe up to 500,000 inhabitants.
Cordoba's heyday was during the early Moorish period when it was reputed to be the most splendid city of Europe. The main tourist attraction is the Great Mosque (la Mezquita), built between 785 and 1002 and one of the largest Mosques in all of Islam covering an enclosed area of about four acres. Over the centuries the Moors roofed-over and developed more and more within this complex. La Mezquita contains over 500 marble, granite and alabaster columns. Mixed into the califal styles, one can see the Byzantine and oriental influences, as well as Hispano-Romanic and Visigoth elements throughout the mosque.
When the city was reconquered by the Christians in 1236, the new rulers of the city were so awed by the beauty of the Great Mosque that they left it stand. In the 16th century a Christian cathedral was built in the center of the mosque in the midst of its rows of arches and columns, creating the extraordinary church-mosque we see today.
There are many other things to see in Córdoba, including the Alcazar, or fortress, built by the Christians in 1328; the Calahorra Fort, originally built by the Arabs, which guards Puente Romano (the Roman Bridge), on the far side of the river from the Mezquita; and the ancient Jewish Synagogue, now a museum. Córdoba's medieval quarter, once the home of the Jewish community is called La Juderia, a labyrinth of winding, narrow streets, shady flower-filled courtyards and picturesque squares such as La Plaza del Potro.
Nowadays, Cordoba is also a modern city, with a population of around 325,000, well connected to other Andalusian cities by the high speed train, AVE, linking Cordoba with Sevilla (138 km.) and Madrid (400 km.). Inside the city it is very easy and fast to reach your destination due to an efficient public transport system.
