历史

The roots of the University of Granada go back to 1349, when Sultan Yusuf I created the Madrasah of Granada, a building which remained in use until 1499-1500, when it was taken by the Catholic Monarchs of Spain. As a consequence, the Madrasah's library was destroyed in a fire, damaging written legacy of the Moorish civilisation of the time. Once the Arab university had disappeared, the building was then donated to local government use by King Ferdinand II of Aragon. The city of Granada would not have a university again until 1526, thanks to the patronage of Charles V. Since its origins, the city of Granada was successively influenced by the cultures of the Iberians, the Ancient Romans and then, later on, the Jews and the Muslims. The city was capital of the Nasrid Kingdom, the Moorish civilisation of the time. Granada was also the last city in the Iberian Peninsula to be taken by the Catholic Monarchs, in 1492, effectively driving the Moorish rulers out of Spain. The conquering forces at first obeyed the rules laid down by the monarchy with regard to the city. However, from 1499 onwards, there was increasing unrest, which culminated in a revolt instigated by Cardinal Cisneros who took advantage of the situation by burning libraries, thus trying to kill off Moorish culture and force the Moors to convert to Christianity. This highly tense situation of cultural pillaging was put to an end by Charles V.

The city of Granada

The UGR occupies premises dotted throughout the urban centre, making Granada a truly university city. There are 270,000 inhabitants, of which over 80,000 are university students. Historically Granada was the last stronghold of Islam in Western Europe and it still contains examples of Islamic architecture, such as the Alhambra and the Palacio de Generalife. Granada is also a city of the Renaissance - the Hospital Real and the Cathedral are examples of Granada's well-preserved historical heritage.

The city lies in a privileged location, between the Mediterranean coast and the mountains of Sierra Nevada. The city is a 35 minute drive from the beaches of Motril, 75 minutes from the city of Malaga and 30 minutes from the Sierra Nevada Ski Station (3,400 metres above sea level). The University of Granada has campuses in the cities of Ceuta and Melilla; Spanish territories situated on the North-African coast, with a multi-cultural population.

Famous alumni

• Manuel Seijas Lozano
• Nicolás Salmerón y Alonso, President of the I Republic of Spain.
• Fernando de los Ríos Urruti, prominent politician during the II Republic of Spain.
• Federico García Lorca, man of letters from the Spanish Generation of '27
• Frederick Forsyth, British author.
• Juan Francisco Casas, Spanish artist.
• Francisco de Paula Martínez de la Rosa, Spanish statesman and dramatist.

External links

• Official site of the University of Granada
• Center of Modern Languages Site
• English language magazine for the region
• Reviews written by international students on iAgora