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The city of Granada has a history as rich as any in Europe and considerably more varied than many. With plenty of evidence remaining in the province from neolithic times, the earliest settlements – by native Iberians – are considered to date from between 1,500 and 2,000 BC and the city itself when first settled by the native tribes had the name “llybr”.
Subsequently, the area and the city changed hands at quite frequent intervals between emerging civilisations. The Phoenicians had settled mainly on the coast in around 1,000 BC but also had a settlement in Granada itself but were subsequently ousted by the Carthaginians – both from the coastal settlements and from Granada in around 550 BC. The Carthaginians were great traders and developed the commerce the Phoenicians had started – leading to them establishing a settlement more akin to a city in Granada, which they called Elybirge. |
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In around 200 BC, the Romans conquered the Carthaginians and colonised the whole of the Iberian Peninsula. Under the Romans, the name of the emerging town was changed to Ilberis, although it remained relatively insignificant. The Romans, also great traders within and outside the Roman Empire, saw little merit in looking to the West and possibly the greatest significance of Spain in the Roman days was that it was as Governor here that figures such as Pompey and Julius Caesar came to note in Roman power play.
As the Roman Empire crumbled, the Romans struggled to maintain their base and part of their deal for Visigoth support included them handing the Iberian peninsula over to them, along with the major part of Gaul – now France. The Visigoths came to Granada in the 5th century AD and under their control Granada began to rise in both size and importance – this being the first time at which it was used as a significant military base. It was during this period also, that a community of Jews became established in one part of the town and they named that Garnata al-yahut – bringing the name very much closer to the name with which we are now familiar. |
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Cuesta Pilar Alto, 18260 Illora, Granada, Andalucia, Spain.
| Tel. +34 6076 86982 or +34 6076 86615 | In UK: 0870 3060381
E-mail: stay@casaillora.com
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