Toledo: an historical and descriptive account of the "City of generations"

THE SPANISH SERIES TOLEDO
THE SPANISH SERIES EDITED BY ALBERT F. CALVERT

AN HISTORICAL AND DE- SCRIPTIVE ACCOUNT OF THE “CITY OF GENERATIONS,” BY ALBERT F. CALVERT, WITH OVER 500 ILLUSTRATIONS
LONDON: JOHN LANE, THE BODLEY HEAD NEW YORK: JOHN LANE COMPANY MCMVII

Printed by Ballantyne & Co. Limited Tavistock Street, London TO S.A. INFANTA MARIA TERESA IN WHOSE SYMPATHY THE ANCIENT GRANDEUR IS LINKED WITH THE FUTURE GREATNESS OF SPAIN THIS VOLUME WITH AN ASSURANCE OF SINCERE ESTEEM IS DEDICATED
The author would, in the ordinary way, be hard put to it to frame a reasonable apology for compiling a new volume on the subject of the ancient and royal city of Toledo. Artists have reproduced its wonder of imposing and picturesque detail; archæologists have explored its many monuments; historians have discovered in its archives a record which, for many centuries, represents the log-book of Spain. There is no secret, apart from the impenetrable mystery of its origin, which has not been revealed; its chronicle is a well-thumbed volume. The beginnings of Spanish history go no further back than the earliest references we have to the natural stronghold founded on the seven rocks on the banks of the Tagus, and Spanish tradition claims for the citadel an antiquity coeval with the sun and stars. Both the history and the legends have been transcribed in many languages, yet, in a series which is intended to embrace all Spain in its compendious design, the inclusion of the twice-told tale of the “city of generations” carries with it an unquestionable justification.
The ambition of the author has not been to throw fresh light on a well-worn subject, nor to supplement the work of earlier and more erudite writers with new facts or theories, but simply, as in the case of the earlier volumes in this series, to equip the illustrations with a brief, explanatory text. It would be futile to attempt to even outline the story of Toledo in some hundred and fifty pages of letterpress, but I hope it may be found that in this limited space sufficient detail has been given to convey to the reader a general idea of the changing fortunes and unchanging character of the city, which Padilla has described as “the crown of Spain, the light of the world, free from the time of the mighty Goths.”