During the four centuries following the Reconquest, the city boasted that it was the home of the finest flower of the European aristocracy. Their old mansions have for the most part disappeared, but the name of the most distinguished member of the order is treasured in Cordova and honoured far beyond the limits of Spain. Gonzalo Hernandez de Aguilar y de Cordova, "the Great Captain," is the hero of the city. The principal street is named after him, as indeed one might suppose the town to have been, from the reverence in which he is held. On the whole, he was the greatest soldier this country has produced. With forces hardly superior to those with which Cortes and Pizarro conquered a savage foe, he vanquished the best equipped troops in Christendom and matched his strength successfully against the most brilliant warriors of his day. His reward, it is hardly necessary to say of the servant of a fifteenth-century king, was ingratitude and neglect. When the odious Ferdinand V. demanded from him a statement of his military expenditure, he responded with the famous "Cuentas del Gran Capitan," which silenced even the venal monarch. The statement ran: "200,736 ducats and 9 reals paid to the clergy and the poor who prayed for the victory of the arms of Spain. "100 millions in pikes, bullets, and entrenching tools; 100,000 in powder and cannon-balls, 10,000 ducats in scented gloves to preserve the troops from the odour of the enemies' dead left on the battlefield; 100,000 ducats spent in the repair of the bells completely worn out by every day announcing fresh victories gained over our enemies; 50,000 ducats in 'aguardiente' for the troops, on the eve of battle. A million and a half for the safeguarding prisoners and wounded. "One million for Masses of Thanksgiving, 700,494 ducats for secret service, etc. "And one hundred millions for the patience with which I have listened to the King, who demands an account from the man who has presented him with a kingdom"! This singular balance-sheet sufficiently shows the temper of the grandees of Spain even in the days of the New Monarchy. Cordova has reason to be proud of her eponymous hero. She has not been very fruitful in great men. She has produced no painters of eminence, unless Pablo de Cespedes may be classed among such; but Mme. Dieulafoy reminds us that to Juan de Mena, a native of the place and a courtier of Juan II., Spanish poetry is deeply indebted: