A comprehensive new survey of Muslim Spain from 711-1502

What made Muslim Spain a unique and successful society? By adopting a multidisciplinary approach within a chronological framework, Richard Hitchcock explores the nature of its powerful legacy in the formation of modern Spain, whilst constantly keeping in view the shifting social patterns caused by the changing balance between town and country, constant military activity, and environmental concerns.

The focus is on the main historical developments in al-Andalus such as the eventual establishment of Islam, the splendour of the Caliphate, the disintegration of central authority, the invasions from North Africa and the continual struggle to retain independence when confronted with the increasingly powerful Kingdoms of Aragon and Castile. There is also wide-ranging discussion of inter-faith relations, and intellectual currents created by a unique synthesis of pluralism and external influences.

Richard Hitchcock is Emeritus Professor of Hispano-Arabic Studies at the University of Exeter. He has written extensively on the history and literature of Muslim Spain, and is author of Mozarabs in Medieval and Early Modern Spain: Identities and Influences (2008).