Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 1.djvu/610

Rh 572 A L H A L I A new hall, called the Hall of the Shields or Escutcheons, has recently been discovered ; and the palace contains, besides the more important halls already mentioned, ranges of bed-rooms and summer-rooms, a whispering gallery and labyrinth, and vaulted sepulchres. The towers of the fortress have also much of the orna mented character of the palace. Separated from the Alhambra by a ravine lies Generalife, the Garden of the Architect, probably in the first instance an outwork of the fortress, afterwards the summer villa of the sultans of Granada. It is impossible to conclude the description of the Alhambra without remarking how admirably every thing was planned to render this palace the most voluptu ous of all retreats the numerous fountains which cooled the air, the judicious disposition of doors and windows securing a free ventilation, the shady gardens, and the noble views of the hills and plains around. Some idea of the beauty of the original is afforded by the Alhambra Court in the Crystal Palace at Sydenham, imitating the Moorish palace in gorgeousness of colouring, elaborateness of ornamentation, and quaint grace of architectural style. One of the most striking features of the Alhambra is the appliance of poetical conceits and passages from the Koran to enhance and form part of the ornamentation. &quot; There is no God but Allah,&quot; &quot; There is no conqueror but God,&quot; &quot; Glory be given to our Lord,&quot; and other similar inscriptions are everywhere to be observed. (See Mr Owen Jones s Plans, Elevations, and Sections of the Alhambra, 2 vols. fol., 1848.) ALHAZEN (full name, ABU ALI AL-HASAN IBN AL- UASAN), a mathematician of the llth century, was born at Bassora, and died at Cairo in 1038. He is to be dis tinguished from another Alhazen who translated Ptolemy s Almagest in the 10th century. Alhazen having boasted that lie could construct a machine for regulating the inundations cf the Nile, was summoned to Egypt by the caliph Hakem; but, aware of the impracticability of his scheme, and fearing the caliph s anger, he feigned madness until Hakem s death in 1021. Alhazen was, nevertheless, a diligent and success ful student, being the first great discoverer in optics after the time of Ptolemy. His researches were prosecuted under the greatest disadvantages, as he was compelled to eke out a livelihood by copying his own works and selling them. To him, and not to Ptolemy, is due the explanation of the apparent increase of heavenly bodies near the horizon. He correctly attributed the phenomenon to the fact that the eye compares these bodies with intervening terrestrial objects. He taught, previous to Vitello. that vision does not result from the emission of rays from the eye, and wrote also on the refraction of light, especially on atmospheric refraction, showing, e.g., the cause of morning and evening twilight. He solved the problem of finding the point in a convex mirror at which a ray coming from one given point shall be reflected to another given point. As a writer, Alhazen is remarkable for prolixity and scholastic subtilty. Only two of his works have been printed his Treatise on Twilight, and his Thesaurus Opticce. (See Casiri, Bibl. Arab. Hisp. Escur.} ALT, the fourth in order of the caliphs or successors of Mahomet, was born at Mecca, about the year 600 A.D. His father, Abu Taleb, was an uncle of the prophet, and Ali himself was adopted by Mahomet and educated under his care. While he was still a mere boy he dis tinguished himself by being the first to declare his adhesion to the cause of Mahomet, who in return made him his vicegerent, and some years after gave him his daughter Fatima in marriage. Ali proved himself to be a brave and faithful soldier ; and when Mahomet died without male issue, he seemed to have the best claims to become the recognised head of Islamism. Three other companions of Mahomet, however, Abubekr, Omar, and Othman, occupied this position before him, and it was not until 656, after the murder of Othman, that he assumed the title of caliph. Almost the first act of his reign was the suppres sion of a rebellion under Telha and Zobeir, who were instigated by Ayesha, the widow of Mahomet, a bitter enemy of Ali, and hitherto one of the chief hindrances to his advancement to the caliphate. The rebel army was defeated at Kharibah, near Bassorah, the two generals being killed, and Ayesha taken prisoner. Ali s next care was to get rid of the opposition of Moawyah, who had established himself in Syria at the head of a numerous army. A bloody battle took place in the plain of SurFein, near the Euphrates, which seemed at first to be going in favour of Ali ; when suddenly a number of the enemy, fixing copies of the Koran to the points of their spears, exclaimed that &quot; the matter ought to be settled by refer ence to this book, which forbids Mussulmans to shed each other s blood.&quot; On hearing this the superstitious soldiers of Ali refused to fight any longer, and demanded that the matter should be referred to arbitration. Abu Musa waa appointed umpire on the part of Ali, and Amru, one of the shrewdest men in the kingdom, on the part of Moawyah. Amru persuaded Abu Musa that it would be for the advantage of Moslemism that neither candidate should reign ; and also, with a pretence of deference, asked him to give his decision first. Abu Musa, falling into the snare, proclaimed that he deposed both Ali and Moawyah; thereupon Amru declared that he also deposed Ali, but that he invested Moawyah with the caliphate. This treacherous decision greatly injured the cause of Ali, which was still further weakened by the loss of Egypt, Syria, and Persia, including the sacred cities of Mecca and Medina. Ali, however, resolved to make a final effort, and collected a large army for that purpose. He was not destined to see the result of his plans. Three of the fanatic sect of the Karigites made an agreement to assas sinate Ali, Moawyah, and Amru as the authors of dis astrous feuds among the faithful. The only victim of this plot was Ali, who died at Kufa in 661, of the wound in flicted by a poisoned weapon. He had eight wives besides Fatima, and in all, it is said, thirty-three children, one of whom, Hassan, a son of Fatima, succeeded him in the caliphate. Ali is described as a bold, noble, and generous man, &quot; the last and worthiest of the primitive Moslems, who imbibed his religious enthusiasm from companionship with the prophet himself, and who followed to the last the simplicity of his example.&quot; He was also remarkable for learning and wisdom, and there are still extant collections of proverbs, verses, &c., which bear his name, especially the Sentences of Ali, an English translation of which, by William Yule, was published at Edinburgh in 1832. The question of Ali s right to succeed to the caliphate is an article of faith which divided the Mahometan world into two great sects, the Sunnis arid the Shiahs, the former denying and the latter affirming his right. The Turks, consequently, who are usually Sunnis, hold his memory in abhorrence ; whereas the Persians, who are generally Shiahs, venerate him as second only to the prophet, and celebrate the anniversary of his martyrdom. ALI BEY (1728-73), an adventurer, said to have been a native of the Caucasus, and to have been sold about the age of twelve or fourteen for a slave in Cairo. The two Jews who became his masters presented him to Ibrahim, then one of the most influential men in the kingdom. In the family of Ibrahim he received the rudiments of a literary education, and was also instructed in the military art. lie gradually gained the affection of his patron to such a degree that he gave him his freedom, permitted him to marry, and promoted him to the rank of governor of a