The Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba , officially known by its ecclesiastical name, the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption is the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Córdoba dedicated to the Assumption of Mary and located in the Spanish region of Andalusia. Due to its status as a former Islamic place of worship, it is also known as the Great Mosque of Córdoba , or the Mezquita. The structure is regarded as one of the most accomplished monuments of Moorish architecture built by the European Moors.
According to traditional accounts, the Catholic basilica of Vincent of Lérins was built by the Visigoths during the rule of the Visigothic Kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula; they officially converted to Nicene Christianity in 586 and the kingdom fell in 711.During the Umayyad conquest of Hispania, the basilica was originally divided in half for Christian and Muslim worship in 711. In 784, Abd al-Rahman I ordered the conversion of the church into a mosque and further construction, which was considerably expanded by later Muslim rulers.The Grand Mosque of Córdoba was seized in 1236 during the Reconquista and converted to a church, culminating in the insertion of a Renaissance cathedral nave in the 16th century.
