e hills with its palaces and towers. Queen Isabella expressed a
desire for a nearer view of the city, whose beauty was renowned
throughout the world, and the courteous Marques of Cadiz proposed to
give her this perilous gratification.

"On the morning of June the 18th, a magnificent and powerful train
issued from the Christian camp. The advanced guard was composed of
legions of cavalry, heavily armed, looking like moving masses of
polished steel. Then came the king and queen, with the prince and
princesses, and the ladies of the court, surrounded by the royal
body-guard, sumptuously arrayed, composed of the sons of the most
illustrious houses of Spain; after these was the rear-guard, a
powerful force of horse and foot; for the flower of the army
sallied forth that day. The Moors gazed with fearful admiration at
this glorious pageant, wherein the pomp of the court was mingled
with the terrors of the camp. It moved along in radiant line,
across the vega, to the melodious thunders of martial music, while
banner and plume, and silken scarf, and rich brocade, gave a gay
and gorgeous relief to the grim visage of iron war that lurked
beneath.

"The army moved towards the hamlet of Zubia, built on the skirts of
the mountain to the left of Granada, and commanding a view of the
Alhambra, and the most beautiful quarter of the city. As they
approached the hamlet, the Marques of Villena, the Count Urena, and
Don Alonzo de Aguilar filed off with their battalions, and were
soon seen glittering along the side of the mountain above the
village. In the mean time the Marques of Cadiz, the Count de
Tendilla, the Count de Cabra, and Don Alonzo Fernandez, senior of
Alcaudrete and Montemayor, drew up their forces in battle array on
the plain below the hamlet, presenting a living barrier of loyal
chivalry between the sovereigns and the city.

"Thus securely guarded, the royal party alighted, and, entering one
of the houses of the hamlet, which had been prepared for their
reception, enjoyed a full view of the city from its terraced roof.
The ladies of the court gazed with delight at the red towers of the
Alhambra, rising from amid shady groves, anticipating the time when
the Catholic sovereigns should be enthroned within its walls, and
its courts shine with the splendor of Spanish