Dar al-Horra is a Nasrid palace located in the Albaicín district of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. It was built in the 14th century on the site of an earlier 11th-century Zirid palace, which was the first residence of the founder of the Nasrid dynasty, Muhammad I, before he moved to the Sabika mountain.
It is located on top of what was once the al-Qasba Qadima, or Old Alcazaba, the initial nucleus of Muslim Granada, next to the walls of this fortified quarter. It was built on the remains of the old Royal Palace built in the time of the Zirid king Badis ben Habus, part of the foundations of which can still be seen today at the base of the north wall of the present building. Its Arabic name means House of the Lady. This palace was once the residence of Aixa, queen and mother of Boabdil. The king later lived here with Isabel de Solís, who was previously a Christian slave who captivated the king, making her his second wife. After the conquest of Granada by the Catholic Monarchs, it was ceded to Hernando de Zafra. Later, it was integrated into the enclosure of the monastery of Santa Isabel la Real, until it was acquired by the State in the late 20th century.
The palace has two storeys and a tower, and is organised around a courtyard with two galleries on the lower sides, both with three arches, the central one higher than the lateral ones. The arches are semicircular, rounded and angled, and the columns that support them are cylindrical, with typical Nasrid capitals, very similar to those of the Patio de los Leones in the Alhambra. The courtyard has a small square pool in its centre. There are paintings on the ceiling of the lower room. The main feature of the upper room is the belvedere, which is also the most recognisable element from the outside. Its ceiling is made up of a pair-and-knuckle truss. Over the course of history it has undergone several modifications, the most notable being the replacement of one of its bays with a small Mudejar nave, built as a provisional church for the monastery. Nevertheless, a large part of the palace and its original decorations have survived in a good state of preservation.
Article obtained from Wikipedia article Wikipedia in his version of 08/08/2022, by various authors under the license Licencia de Documentación Libre GNU.
