Tales of the Alhambra

This book was so instrumental in reintroducing western audiences to The Alhambra that a plaque now marks the rooms in which Irving stayed while working on some of the book.
Originally visiting Granada as research for another book, Washington Irving immediately fell in love with "a most picturesque and beautiful city, situated in one of the loveliest landscapes that I have ever seen." Thanks to his celebrity status his request to access the palace was granted and inspired him to write Tales of the Alhambra. Combining description, myth, and the stories of real historical events, Irving paints pictures of this incredible place.
This edition is based on the author's own revised edition and is complete and unabridged with all of the drawings and page illustrations of the original edition.

Washington Irving (1783 - 1859) was an American short story writer, essayist, biographer, historian and diplomat of the early 19th century. He is best known for his short stories "Rip Van Winkle" (1819) and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" (1820), both of which appear in his book The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. His historical works include biographies of George Washington, Oliver Goldsmith, Muhammad and several histories of 15th-century Spain dealing with subjects such as Christopher Columbus, the Moors and the Alhambra. Irving served as the U.S. ambassador to Spain from 1842 to 1846. Irving made his literary debut in 1802 with a series of observational letters to the Morning Chronicle, written under the pseudonym Jonathan Oldstyle. After moving to England for the family business in 1815, he achieved international fame with the publication of The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. in 1819-20.