Toledo - Ancient Capital, Inquisition, Grand Inquisitors

Toledo, Spain. Street scene

Toledo, on the hilltop, with river below. It was the ancient capital of Visigothic Spain, preceding the Moorish Empire. The Moors invaded in the 8th Century. It became the capital of an independent Moorish kingdom 1031-1085, see ://www.questia.com/library/encyclopedia/toledo_city_spain.jsp/ and remains the capital of the province of Toledo.

Toledo remained the capital of Spain after the expulsion of the Moors and until 1560. See ://www.red2000.com/spain/toledo/.

At that time, its influence waned when Phillip II moved his capital to Madrid. See ://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Toledo/. Read this old book account, not clear about the Flemish connection yet, at this New York Times archive piece, "Toledo, The Story of the Ancient and Picturesque City of Spain," November 4, 1899, at ://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9F00E0DC1530E132A25757C0A9679D94689ED7CF

The Questia site, above, also notes that Toledo was the seat of the Grand Inquisitors.

To learn more about them, read their handbook, the 1486 Malleus Maleficarum, or Hammer of Witches, at ://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/mm/. A good index and summary is at ://www.malleusmaleficarum.org/

Read about the Inquisition, from the perspective that includes its impact on the Jews, at ://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/History/Inquisition.html/ In 1242, the Inquisition condemned the Talmud and bonfired thousands of books. The first killings of Jews, however, took place in France some time later. There, mass burnings at the stake.

The Spanish Inquisition superseded the earlier medieval Inquisition. See that Jewish Virtual Library Site. Do we forget our own history.











The Alcazar, or castle fortress, rebuilt many time, Visigothic days to present. See ://www.virtourist.com/europe/toledo/999.htm; and ://www.travelinginspain.com/toledo_alcazar.htm. Do an Images search to see it at the top of the city, at the top of the cliff.



See map at ://www.world-guides.com/images/spain/spain_map.jpg



You can drive into Toledo, but it is dicey. Find a fast spot to stay, anywhere (the distances are small). is no parking at all allowed on most streets - see the above. the lines are for walkers, deliveries only.

Toledo - Sephardic tradition; and the Visigoths. The Moors

Toledo, Spain, city walls

Toledo is listed as a town as early as the 4th Century BC, as a Roman town, conquered by later "Alans" and Visigoths. It became the capital of the Visigoth kingdom., and was taken over by the Moors, or Muslims, in 711. Alfonso VI reconquered in 1085. , see ://www.cyberistan.org/islamic/quote3.html. History compressed.

The city is prominent in the heritage of the Sephardic Jewish tradition. See muweb.millersville.edu/%7Ecolumbus/data/art/TOLEDAN1.ART. With a car and Toledo, get out of it as fast as you can. Streets too narrow. We stayed at the first little hotel we found that offered parking - in the old Jewish quarter. Perfect location. A view, as here, of only the outer wall area is misleading - inside is a large city with tiny streets, twisting all over.

Cathedral, Toledo, Spain

Here is the Cathedral at the end of one of the little streets. Apparently, vistas of great buildings were not important from a distance.

The city is bounded by a bend in the river and cliffs. Jews, Christians, Muslims lived here peacefully for centuries. ://www.spain.info/TourSpain/Arte%20y%20Cultura/Conjuntos%20monumentales/G/TP/0/Ciudad%20Historica%20de%20Toledo.htm?Language=en

How Toledo fell to the Moors, a/k/a Muslims (are Moors the same as the Arabs and Berbers who initially conquered, or is there a difference with the Ottomans, and is "Moor" any number of those after all the intermarriages who were Muslim?)

. The Visigothic Count Julian had sent his daughter to the palace of the Visigothic King Roderick, where - the King had his way. Count Julian, in his anger, told the Moors who were attacking the city how to get up a hidden path to enter the city. They did, and the rest is history. muweb.millersville.edu/%7Ecolumbus/data/spc/RECON-MD.SPK. Revenge. Other versions have the daughter bathing and the King sees her, etc.

Toledo food: see www.red2000.com/spain/toledo/gastro. There is a fine Parador (government sponsored hotel - see post on Paradors) here, but we stayed in the old Jewish quarter instead in order to be right at street level.

Spanish place names (like Toledo, Ohio) in the US: For anyone with family origins in Spain, look at all the places named for Spain. For a listing of the United States place names from Spain: see factmonster.com/spot/spanishnames.