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Italy: Two of four giant telamones depicting the Moors defeated by Charles V in the 1535 conquest of Tunis, Porta Nuova (New Gate). The gate was originally built in the 15th century and rebuilt in 1584, but subsequently destroyed by fire in 1667 and rebuilt again in 1669, Palermo, Sicily. The gate commemorates the conquest of Tunis by Charles V (1500 - 1558), Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria.
Italy: Two of four giant telamones depicting the Moors defeated by Charles V in the 1535 conquest of Tunis, Porta Nuova (New Gate). The gate was originally built in the 15th century and rebuilt in 1584, but subsequently destroyed by fire in 1667 and rebuilt again in 1669, Palermo, Sicily. The gate commemorates the conquest of Tunis by Charles V (1500 - 1558), Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria.
Spain/Maghreb: 'The Capitulation of Granada'. Oil on canvas painting by Francisco Pradilla Ortiz (1848-1921), 1882.<br/><br/> Abu 'abd-Allah Muhammad XII (c. 1460- c. 1533), known as Boabdil, was the 22nd and last Nasrid ruler of Granada. In 1491, Muhammad XII was summoned by Ferdinand and Isabella to surrender the city of Granada, and on his refusal it was besieged by the Castilians. Eventually, on 2 January, 1492, Granada was surrendered. Boabdil handed the keys of Granada to Ferdinand along the banks of the Genil, marking the end of Arab rule in Spain.
The Catalan Atlas (1375) is the most important Catalan map of the medieval period. It was produced by the Majorcan cartographic school and is attributed to Cresques Abraham, a Jewish book illuminator who was self-described as being a master of the maps of the world as well as compasses. It has been in the royal library of France (now the Bibliotheque nationale de France) since the late 14th century.
From 1861 to 1890 the Munich publishing firm of Braun and Schneider published plates of historic and contemporary costume in their magazine Munchener Bilderbogen.<br/><br/> These plates were eventually collected in book form and published at the turn of the century in Germany and England.
The French Protectorate in Morocco (Arabic: حماية فرنسا في المغرب‎ Himaïet Fransa fi El-Maghreb; French: Protectorat français au Maroc) was established by the Treaty of Fez.<br/><br/> It existed from 1912, when a protectorate was formally established, until Moroccan independence (2 March 1956), and consisted of the area of Morocco between the Corridor of Taza and the Draa River. The establishment of the French protectorate of Morocco followed centuries-long France-Morocco relations.
Musa I (c. 1280 - c. 1337), commonly referred to as Mansa Musa, was the tenth mansa, which translates as 'king of kings' or 'emperor', of the Malian Empire. At the time of Mansa Musa's rise to the throne, the Malian Empire consisted of territory formerly belonging to the Ghana Empire and Melle (Mali) and immediate surrounding areas. Musa held many titles, including Emir of Melle, Lord of the Mines of Wangara, and conqueror of Ghanata, Futa-Jallon, and at least another dozen states. He was the wealthiest West African ruler of his day.<br/><br/> The Catalan Atlas (1375) is the most important Catalan map of the medieval period. It was produced by the Majorcan cartographic school and is attributed to Cresques Abraham, a Jewish book illuminator who was self-described as being a master of the maps of the world as well as compasses. It has been in the royal library of France (now the Bibliothèque nationale de France) since the late 14th century.
Musa I (c. 1280 - c. 1337), commonly referred to as Mansa Musa, was the tenth mansa, which translates as 'king of kings' or 'emperor', of the Malian Empire. At the time of Mansa Musa's rise to the throne, the Malian Empire consisted of territory formerly belonging to the Ghana Empire and Melle (Mali) and immediate surrounding areas. Musa held many titles, including Emir of Melle, Lord of the Mines of Wangara, and conqueror of Ghanata, Futa-Jallon, and at least another dozen states. He was the wealthiest West African ruler of his day.<br/><br/> The Catalan Atlas (1375) is the most important Catalan map of the medieval period. It was produced by the Majorcan cartographic school and is attributed to Cresques Abraham, a Jewish book illuminator who was self-described as being a master of the maps of the world as well as compasses. It has been in the royal library of France (now the Bibliothèque nationale de France) since the late 14th century.
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are discontinuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa Oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke various Berber languages, which together form a branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family.<br/><br/> Photography probably by Lehnert & Landrock: Rudolf Franz Lehnert (Czech) and Ernst Heinrich Landrock (German) had a photographic company based in Tunis, Cairo and Leipzig before World War II. They specialised in somewhat risque Orinetalist images of young Arab and Bedouin women, often dancers.
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are discontinuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa Oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke various Berber languages, which together form a branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family.<br/><br/> Photography probably by Lehnert & Landrock: Rudolf Franz Lehnert (Czech) and Ernst Heinrich Landrock (German) had a photographic company based in Tunis, Cairo and Leipzig before World War II. They specialised in somewhat risque Orinetalist images of young Arab and Bedouin women, often dancers.
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are discontinuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa Oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke various Berber languages, which together form a branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family. Photograph by Lehnert & Landrock: Rudolf Franz Lehnert (Czech) and Ernst Heinrich Landrock (German) had a photographic company based in Tunis, Cairo and Leipzig before World War II. They specialised in somewhat risque Orinetalist images of young Arab and Bedouin women, often dancers.
There have been Muslims in Sri Lanka for well over a thousand years. Trading dhows plied the waters between the Middle East and the island known to Arab sailors - like Sinbad - as Serendib even in pre-Islamic times. The first Muslim merchants and sailors may have landed on its shores during Muhammad's life time. By the 10th century this predominantly Arab community had grown influential enough to control the trade of the south-western ports, whilst the Sinhalese kings generally employed Muslim ministers to direct the state's commercial affairs. In 1157 the king of the neighbouring Maldive Islands was converted to Islam, and in 1238 an embassy to Egypt sent by King Bhuvaneka Bahu I was headed by Sri Lankan Muslims.<br/><br/> From about 1350 onwards the predominantly Arab strain in Sri Lankan Islam began to change as Tamil Muslims from neighbouring South India moved to the island in increasing numbers. By the late 15th century, when Portuguese vessels first arrived in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka's Muslims were truly indigenous to the island, representing a mixture of Sinhalese, Arab and Tamil blood, and speaking Tamil with Arabic overtones, sometimes known as 'Tamil-Arabic'. None of this made any difference to the newly-arrived Portuguese, for whom all Muslims were 'Moors' - the name given to their traditional enemies in Morocco and southern Spain. The name Moro - employed as a derogatory designation by the Portuguese - stuck, and is today 'worn with pride' by Sri Lankan Muslims, in much the same way as the 'Moros' of the southern Philippines.
There have been Muslims in Sri Lanka for well over a thousand years. Trading dhows plied the waters between the Middle East and the island known to Arab sailors - like Sinbad - as Serendib even in pre-Islamic times. The first Muslim merchants and sailors may have landed on its shores during Muhammad's life time. By the 10th century this predominantly Arab community had grown influential enough to control the trade of the south-western ports, whilst the Sinhalese kings generally employed Muslim ministers to direct the state's commercial affairs. In 1157 the king of the neighbouring Maldive Islands was converted to Islam, and in 1238 an embassy to Egypt sent by King Bhuvaneka Bahu I was headed by Sri Lankan Muslims.<br/><br/> From about 1350 onwards the predominantly Arab strain in Sri Lankan Islam began to change as Tamil Muslims from neighbouring South India moved to the island in increasing numbers. By the late 15th century, when Portuguese vessels first arrived in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka's Muslims were truly indigenous to the island, representing a mixture of Sinhalese, Arab and Tamil blood, and speaking Tamil with Arabic overtones, sometimes known as 'Tamil-Arabic'. None of this made any difference to the newly-arrived Portuguese, for whom all Muslims were 'Moors' - the name given to their traditional enemies in Morocco and southern Spain. The name Moro - employed as a derogatory designation by the Portuguese - stuck, and is today 'worn with pride' by Sri Lankan Muslims, in much the same way as the 'Moros' of the southern Philippines.
There have been Muslims in Sri Lanka for well over a thousand years. Trading dhows plied the waters between the Middle East and the island known to Arab sailors - like Sinbad - as Serendib even in pre-Islamic times. The first Muslim merchants and sailors may have landed on its shores during Muhammad's life time. By the 10th century this predominantly Arab community had grown influential enough to control the trade of the south-western ports, whilst the Sinhalese kings generally employed Muslim ministers to direct the state's commercial affairs. In 1157 the king of the neighbouring Maldive Islands was converted to Islam, and in 1238 an embassy to Egypt sent by King Bhuvaneka Bahu I was headed by Sri Lankan Muslims.<br/><br/> From about 1350 onwards the predominantly Arab strain in Sri Lankan Islam began to change as Tamil Muslims from neighbouring South India moved to the island in increasing numbers. By the late 15th century, when Portuguese vessels first arrived in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka's Muslims were truly indigenous to the island, representing a mixture of Sinhalese, Arab and Tamil blood, and speaking Tamil with Arabic overtones, sometimes known as 'Tamil-Arabic'. None of this made any difference to the newly-arrived Portuguese, for whom all Muslims were 'Moors' - the name given to their traditional enemies in Morocco and southern Spain. The name Moro - employed as a derogatory designation by the Portuguese - stuck, and is today 'worn with pride' by Sri Lankan Muslims, in much the same way as the 'Moros' of the southern Philippines.
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are discontinuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa Oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke various Berber languages, which together form a branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family.<br/><br/> Lehnert & Landrock: Rudolf Franz Lehnert (Czech) and Ernst Heinrich Landrock (German) had a photographic company based in Tunis, Cairo and Leipzig before World War II. They specialised in somewhat risque Orinetalist images of young Arab and Bedouin women, often dancers.
The sport of falconry was introduced to Algeria and the Maghreb by the Arabs over 1,000 years ago and was a favorite pastime of royalty and nobility. During the period of Arab expansion into North Africa, cavalry was often mounted on small, agile horses called ‘Berbers’, or ‘Barbs’.
The oud is a pear-shaped stringed instrument commonly used in Middle Eastern music. The modern oud and the European lute both descend from a common ancestor via diverging evolutionary paths. The oud is readily distinguished by its lack of frets and smaller neck.
Known as the 'Nurse's Qur'an', this work was commissioned by Fatima, who had cared for the Zirid prince al-Muizz ibn Badis. The Qur'an was completed in January 1020 and according to the colophon was created in its entirety by Ali ibn Ahmad al-Warraq, then donated by Fatima to the Great Mosque in Kairouan.
During the period of Arab expansion into North Africa, cavalry was often mounted on small, agile horses called ‘Berbers’, or ‘Barbs’. Known for speed, endurance and courage in war, the Barb was an important component of the Arab forces.
Born in Toledo, Spain, Alfonso was the eldest son of Ferdinand III of Castile and Elisabeth of Hohenstaufen, known in Spain as Beatriz de Suabia, through whom he was a cousin of Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor. In the period 1240–1250 he conquered several Muslim strongholds in Al-Andalus alongside his father, such as Murcia, Alicante and Cadiz. In the siege of Niebla (1262) he used cannon to defeat the Muslim defenders. This is the first recorded use of gunpowder for military purposes by Europeans - ironically a technqiue learned from his Muslim opponents.
Kufic is a clean, geometric style of Arabic writing, with a very visible rhythm and a stress on horizontal lines. Vowels are sometimes noted as red dots; consonants are distinguished with small dashes to make the texts more readable. A number of Qur'ans written in this style have been found in the Mosque at Kairouan, in Tunisia. Kufic writing also appears on ancient coins. The Maghribi script and its Andalusi variant are less rigid versions of Kufic, with more curves.
The French Protectorate in Morocco (Arabic: حماية فرنسا في المغرب‎ Himaïet Fransa fi El-Maghreb; French: Protectorat français au Maroc) was established by the Treaty of Fez.<br/><br/> It existed from 1912, when a protectorate was formally established, until Moroccan independence (2 March 1956), and consisted of the area of Morocco between the Corridor of Taza and the Draa River. The establishment of the French protectorate of Morocco followed centuries-long France-Morocco relations.
The panel’s pattern achieves a fine balance between serving as a geometric border and comprising a vegetal ornament with recognizable elements such as pinecones and leaves. The wooden panel perhaps embellished a lintel in a well-to-do private house.
With the exception of the banner heading, then text is written in Maghribi hand, probably in the 13th century in Grenada, the last bastion of Islam in Spain.
Maghribi is a decorative variant of Kufic script that was developed and mainly used in North Africa (the Maghrib) and Muslim Spain. It is often ornamented with diacritical marks in red, green, blue, or yellow, and with gold, as here. The Koran from which this leaf was taken is further distinguished by its high-quality, pink-tinted paper.
Spain / France / Maghreb: Isabel of Bourbon is portrayed on an Andalusian horse. Oil on canvas painting by Diego Velazquez (1599-1660), c. 1635.<br/><br/> Isabella of Bourbon / Elisabeth of France (1602-1644) was Queen Consort of Spain and Portugal, and was married to King Philip V of Spain. She briefly served as regent during the Catalan Revolt in 1640-1642, and once again in 1643-1644.<br/><br/> The Andalusian horse was a crossbreed of the North African Barb and the Spanish horse, which was developed at the Umayyad court in Cordoba and was the preferred mount of many European royals.
The French Protectorate in Morocco (Arabic: حماية فرنسا في المغرب‎ Himaïet Fransa fi El-Maghreb; French: Protectorat français au Maroc) was established by the Treaty of Fez.<br/><br/> It existed from 1912, when a protectorate was formally established, until Moroccan independence (2 March 1956), and consisted of the area of Morocco between the Corridor of Taza and the Draa River. The establishment of the French protectorate of Morocco followed centuries-long France-Morocco relations.
Maghribi script was predominant in North Africa and Muslim Spain from the 11th to 14th centuries. Parchment was typically used for Qur'ans in the Maghreb and Spain long after paper had become the dominant material farther east.
Abu 'abd-Allah Muhammad XII (c. 1460- c. 1533), known as Boabdil, was the 22nd and last Nasrid ruler of Granada. In 1491, Muhammad XII was summoned by Ferdinand and Isabella to surrender the city of Granada, and on his refusal it was besieged by the Castilians. Eventually, on 2 January, 1492, Granada was surrendered. In most sumptuous attire the royal procession moved from Santa Fe to a place a little more than a mile from Granada, where Ferdinand took up his position by the banks of the Genil to receive the keys to the city. Arab rule in Spain was over.
Maghribi is a decorative variant of Kufic script that was developed and mainly used in North Africa (the Maghrib) and Muslim Spain. It is often ornamented with diacritical marks in red, green, blue, or yellow, and with gold, as here. The Koran from which this leaf was taken is further distinguished by its high-quality, pink-tinted paper.
During the period of Arab expansion into North Africa, cavalry was often mounted on small, agile horses called ‘Berbers’, or ‘Barbs’. Known for speed, endurance and courage in war, the Barb was an important component of the Arab forces.
The oud is a pear-shaped stringed instrument commonly used in Middle Eastern music. The modern oud and the European lute both descend from a common ancestor via diverging evolutionary paths. The oud is readily distinguished by its lack of frets and smaller neck.
This early Koran is one of its period’s most famous, especially because of the parchment’s blue color, and the script in gold and verse markers in now-decomposed silver. It is difficult to read the text because the spaces between some of the individual letters and between each word are the same. In order to spread the text uniformly over the page, certain letters were moreover lengthened artificially, a practice called mashq. The Qur'an has variously been ascribed to Iraq, Tunisia, Spain, and Sicily, but several features point to its having been made in Tunisia under the Aghlabids (800-909) or the early Fatimids (909-950).
The Catholic Monarchs (Spanish: los Reyes Católicos) is the collective title used in history for Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon. They were both from the House of Trastámara and were second cousins, being both descended from John I of Castile; they were given a papal dispensation to deal with consanguinity by Sixtus IV. The title of ‘Catholic King and Queen’ was bestowed on them by the Pope Alexander VI in 1496. They married on October 19, 1469, in the city of Valladolid; Isabella was 18 years old and Ferdinand a year younger. Their marriage united both crowns under the same family.
There have been Muslims in Sri Lanka for well over a thousand years. Trading dhows plied the waters between the Middle East and the island known to Arab sailors - like Sinbad - as Serendib even in pre-Islamic times. The first Muslim merchants and sailors may have landed on its shores during Muhammad's life time. By the 10th century this predominantly Arab community had grown influential enough to control the trade of the south-western ports, whilst the Sinhalese kings generally employed Muslim ministers to direct the state's commercial affairs. In 1157 the king of the neighbouring Maldive Islands was converted to Islam, and in 1238 an embassy to Egypt sent by King Bhuvaneka Bahu I was headed by Sri Lankan Muslims.<br/><br/> From about 1350 onwards the predominantly Arab strain in Sri Lankan Islam began to change as Tamil Muslims from neighbouring South India moved to the island in increasing numbers. By the late 15th century, when Portuguese vessels first arrived in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka's Muslims were truly indigenous to the island, representing a mixture of Sinhalese, Arab and Tamil blood, and speaking Tamil with Arabic overtones, sometimes known as 'Tamil-Arabic'. None of this made any difference to the newly-arrived Portuguese, for whom all Muslims were 'Moors' - the name given to their traditional enemies in Morocco and southern Spain. The name Moro - employed as a derogatory designation by the Portuguese - stuck, and is today 'worn with pride' by Sri Lankan Muslims, in much the same way as the 'Moros' of the southern Philippines.
There have been Muslims in Sri Lanka for well over a thousand years. Trading dhows plied the waters between the Middle East and the island known to Arab sailors - like Sinbad - as Serendib even in pre-Islamic times. The first Muslim merchants and sailors may have landed on its shores during Muhammad's life time. By the 10th century this predominantly Arab community had grown influential enough to control the trade of the south-western ports, whilst the Sinhalese kings generally employed Muslim ministers to direct the state's commercial affairs. In 1157 the king of the neighbouring Maldive Islands was converted to Islam, and in 1238 an embassy to Egypt sent by King Bhuvaneka Bahu I was headed by Sri Lankan Muslims.<br/><br/> From about 1350 onwards the predominantly Arab strain in Sri Lankan Islam began to change as Tamil Muslims from neighbouring South India moved to the island in increasing numbers. By the late 15th century, when Portuguese vessels first arrived in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka's Muslims were truly indigenous to the island, representing a mixture of Sinhalese, Arab and Tamil blood, and speaking Tamil with Arabic overtones, sometimes known as 'Tamil-Arabic'. None of this made any difference to the newly-arrived Portuguese, for whom all Muslims were 'Moors' - the name given to their traditional enemies in Morocco and southern Spain. The name Moro - employed as a derogatory designation by the Portuguese - stuck, and is today 'worn with pride' by Sri Lankan Muslims, in much the same way as the 'Moros' of the southern Philippines.
There have been Muslims in Sri Lanka for well over a thousand years. Trading dhows plied the waters between the Middle East and the island known to Arab sailors - like Sinbad - as Serendib even in pre-Islamic times. The first Muslim merchants and sailors may have landed on its shores during Muhammad's life time. By the 10th century this predominantly Arab community had grown influential enough to control the trade of the south-western ports, whilst the Sinhalese kings generally employed Muslim ministers to direct the state's commercial affairs. In 1157 the king of the neighbouring Maldive Islands was converted to Islam, and in 1238 an embassy to Egypt sent by King Bhuvaneka Bahu I was headed by Sri Lankan Muslims.<br/><br/> From about 1350 onwards the predominantly Arab strain in Sri Lankan Islam began to change as Tamil Muslims from neighbouring South India moved to the island in increasing numbers. By the late 15th century, when Portuguese vessels first arrived in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka's Muslims were truly indigenous to the island, representing a mixture of Sinhalese, Arab and Tamil blood, and speaking Tamil with Arabic overtones, sometimes known as 'Tamil-Arabic'. None of this made any difference to the newly-arrived Portuguese, for whom all Muslims were 'Moors' - the name given to their traditional enemies in Morocco and southern Spain. The name Moro - employed as a derogatory designation by the Portuguese - stuck, and is today 'worn with pride' by Sri Lankan Muslims, in much the same way as the 'Moros' of the southern Philippines.
There have been Muslims in Sri Lanka for well over a thousand years. Trading dhows plied the waters between the Middle East and the island known to Arab sailors - like Sinbad - as Serendib even in pre-Islamic times. The first Muslim merchants and sailors may have landed on its shores during Muhammad's life time. By the 10th century this predominantly Arab community had grown influential enough to control the trade of the south-western ports, whilst the Sinhalese kings generally employed Muslim ministers to direct the state's commercial affairs. In 1157 the king of the neighbouring Maldive Islands was converted to Islam, and in 1238 an embassy to Egypt sent by King Bhuvaneka Bahu I was headed by Sri Lankan Muslims.<br/><br/> From about 1350 onwards the predominantly Arab strain in Sri Lankan Islam began to change as Tamil Muslims from neighbouring South India moved to the island in increasing numbers. By the late 15th century, when Portuguese vessels first arrived in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka's Muslims were truly indigenous to the island, representing a mixture of Sinhalese, Arab and Tamil blood, and speaking Tamil with Arabic overtones, sometimes known as 'Tamil-Arabic'. None of this made any difference to the newly-arrived Portuguese, for whom all Muslims were 'Moors' - the name given to their traditional enemies in Morocco and southern Spain. The name Moro - employed as a derogatory designation by the Portuguese - stuck, and is today 'worn with pride' by Sri Lankan Muslims, in much the same way as the 'Moros' of the southern Philippines.
There have been Muslims in Sri Lanka for well over a thousand years. Trading dhows plied the waters between the Middle East and the island known to Arab sailors - like Sinbad - as Serendib even in pre-Islamic times. The first Muslim merchants and sailors may have landed on its shores during Muhammad's life time. By the 10th century this predominantly Arab community had grown influential enough to control the trade of the south-western ports, whilst the Sinhalese kings generally employed Muslim ministers to direct the state's commercial affairs. In 1157 the king of the neighbouring Maldive Islands was converted to Islam, and in 1238 an embassy to Egypt sent by King Bhuvaneka Bahu I was headed by Sri Lankan Muslims.<br/><br/> From about 1350 onwards the predominantly Arab strain in Sri Lankan Islam began to change as Tamil Muslims from neighbouring South India moved to the island in increasing numbers. By the late 15th century, when Portuguese vessels first arrived in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka's Muslims were truly indigenous to the island, representing a mixture of Sinhalese, Arab and Tamil blood, and speaking Tamil with Arabic overtones, sometimes known as 'Tamil-Arabic'. None of this made any difference to the newly-arrived Portuguese, for whom all Muslims were 'Moors' - the name given to their traditional enemies in Morocco and southern Spain. The name Moro - employed as a derogatory designation by the Portuguese - stuck, and is today 'worn with pride' by Sri Lankan Muslims, in much the same way as the 'Moros' of the southern Philippines.
Musa I (c. 1280 - c. 1337), commonly referred to as Mansa Musa, was the tenth mansa, which translates as 'king of kings' or 'emperor', of the Malian Empire. At the time of Mansa Musa's rise to the throne, the Malian Empire consisted of territory formerly belonging to the Ghana Empire and Melle (Mali) and immediate surrounding areas. Musa held many titles, including Emir of Melle, Lord of the Mines of Wangara, and conqueror of Ghanata, Futa-Jallon, and at least another dozen states. He was the wealthiest West African ruler of his day.<br/><br/> The Catalan Atlas (1375) is the most important Catalan map of the medieval period. It was produced by the Majorcan cartographic school and is attributed to Cresques Abraham, a Jewish book illuminator who was self-described as being a master of the maps of the world as well as compasses. It has been in the royal library of France (now the Bibliothèque nationale de France) since the late 14th century.