West door of the Mezquita de Córdoba

The site was originally a small temple of Christian Visigoth origin. When Muslims conquered Spain in 711, the church was first divided into Muslim and Christian halves. This sharing arrangement of the site lasted until 784, when the Christian half was purchased by the Emir 'Abd al-Rahman I, who then proceeded to demolish the original structure and build the grand mosque of Cordoba on its ground. Córdoba returned to Christian rule in 1236 during the Reconquista, and the building was converted to a Roman Catholic church, culminating in the insertion of a Renaissance cathedral nave in the 16th century.
The structure is regarded as one of the most accomplished monuments of Moorish architecture. It is a World Heritage site and regarded (following a recent court case) as a wonder of architecture that 'belongs' to everyone in the world.