- The Spanish occupation by the Moors began in 711 AD when an African army, under their leader Tariq ibn-Ziyad, crossed the Strait of Gibraltar from northern Africa and invaded the Iberian peninsula.
A European scholar sympathetic to the Spaniards remembered the conquest in this way:
''The reins of their horses were as fire, their faces black as pitch, their eyes shone like burning candles, their horses were swift as leopards and the riders fiercer than a wolf in a sheepfold at night . . . The noble Goths [the German rulers of Spain] were broken in an hour, quicker than tongue can tell. Oh luckless Spain!''
Quoted in Edward Scobie, ''The Moors and Portugal's Global Expansion'', in Golden Age of the Moor, ed Ivan Van Sertima, US, Transaction Publishers, 1992, p.336
- British historian Basil Davidson wrote that there were no lands in the 8th century "more admired by its neighbours, or more comfortable to live in, than a rich African civilization which took shape in Spain".
- Education was universal in Moorish Spain, available to all, while in Christian Europe ninety-nine percent of the population were illiterate, and even kings could neither read nor write. At that time, Europe had only two universities, the Moors had seventeen great universities! These were located in Almeria, Cordova, Granada, Juen, Malaga, Seville, and Toledo.
- The Moors introduced paper to Europe and Arabic numerals, which replaced the clumsy Roman system.
- The Moorish rulers lived in sumptuous palaces, while the monarchs of Germany, France, and England dwelt in big barns, with no windows and no chimneys, and with only a hole in the roof for the exit of smoke. One such Moorish palace ‘Alhambra' in Granada is one of Spain's architectural masterpieces. Alhambra was the seat of Muslim rulers from the 13th century to the end of the 15th century. The Alhambra is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- It was through Africa that the new knowledge of China, India, and Arabia reached Europe. The Moors brought the Compass from China into Europe.
- At its height, Córdova, the heart of Moorish territory in Spain, was the most modern city in Europe. The streets were well-paved, with raised sidewalks for pedestrians. During the night, ten miles of streets were well illuminated by lamps. (This was hundreds of years before there was a paved street in Paris or a street lamp in London.) Cordova had 900 public baths - we are told that a poor Moor would go without bread rather than soap!
http://www.blackhistorystudies.com/resources/resources/15-facts-on-the-moors-in-spain/
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''Although generations of Spanish rulers have tried to expunge this era from the historical record, recent archeology and scholarship now shed fresh light on the Moors who flourished in Al-Andalus for more than 700 years – from 711 AD until 1492. The Moorish advances in mathematics, astronomy, art, and agriculture helped propel Europe out of the Dark Ages and into the Renaissance.''
http://atlantablackstar.com/2013/10/07/when-black-men-ruled-the-world-moors/
THE REST OF EUROPE
- The original “knights” of England were Black! --including the knights of King Arthur’s Round Table! That’s why they were called “knights” after the night or darkness of their skin.
- An African king named Gormund ruled Ireland during the Anglo-Saxon period in England reports the medieval historian Geoffrey of Monmouth.
- Halfdan the Black was the first Africoid king to unite Norway.
- When the British Isles were invaded by the Vikings some of these Norse raiders were Africoid. In fact, different varieties of ‘Viking’ Africans lived in Scandinavia during the middle ages and are frequently mentioned in Viking sagas.
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