Photo:1
Photo:2
Photo:3
Photo:4
Photo:1 Photo:2 Photo:3 Photo:4 |
| Major dates | |
| 2>
The Reconquista, 790-1300
Main article: Timeline of the Muslim presence in the Iberian peninsula
711: The Muslim conquest of Iberia begins.
718: Moorish Islamic rule is at its widest extent, covering almost all of the Iberian Peninsula, the Pyrenees, and part of today's southern France.
722:Battle of Covadonga in the north-west of Iberia. The Christian Reconquista begins.
739: Moorish garrison driven out of Galicia by Asturian-Galician forces.
800: The Franks complete the reconquest of all of today's southern French territory and the Pyrenees and establish the Spanish March.
801: The Franks reconquer Barcelona.
914: Completion of the reconquest of the north-west. Muslims briefly retake Barcelona.
1085: Toledo reconquered by Castilian forces.
1147: Siege of Lisbon. Forces from the Second Crusade and the Reconquista expel the Moorish forces from the city.
1236: Half of Iberia has been reconquered by the Christians. Cadiz seized by Castilian forces attacking from the sea.
1249: King Afonso III of Portugal takes Faro (in the Algarve), ending the Portuguese part of the Reconquista in 1250.[3] The Emirate of Granada remains the only Muslim state in Iberia.
1300s and 1400s: Marinid Muslims seize control of some towns on the southern coast but are soon driven out.
1492: Treaty of Granada completes the Reconquista.
[edit] Tags:Covadonga,Lisbon,Christian,Muslim,Iberian Peninsula,Moorish,Battle Of Covadonga,Pyrenees,Emirate Of Granada,Timeline Of The Muslim Presence In The Iberian Peninsula,Spanish March,Barcelona,Emirate,Granada, | |
| Early Christianity | |
| 3>
This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (December 2009)
Arian Christianity, a sect which had been condemned as heretical by the Catholic Church and largely been eliminated in Europe, found a safe haven in the Iberian peninsula. The Visigoths had traditionally been Arian Christians, and it was the official religion of the Spanish Visigothic Kingdom until the conversion of Visigothic King Reccared I in 587 nominally eliminated it. However, because the Visigothic Monarchy (now Catholic) was detached from the public (Arian), the Arian undercurrent remained[citation needed].
After a quick succession of battles in the 8th century the Franks created a series of feudal counties which would later form the Principality of Catalonia and the kingdom of Aragon. Possibly the emirate's largest failing was the inability to eradicate resistance of Christians in the Basque country and the Cantabrian mountains. The two resistances (in Basque Navarre and Cantabrian Asturias), despite their extremely small size, demonstrated an ability to maintain independence. The Moors made the same failing as the Visigoths and the early Romans, namely the inability to finish off rebel hideouts.
Because the Umayyad rulers based in Córdoba were unable to extend their power into Frankish territory, they decided to consolidate their power within the Iberian peninsula. Therefore, Muslim forces made periodic incursions into Asturias. Indeed, an earlier attempt to conquer the area might have succeeded, but now the momentum was turning. The prime reasons the Emirate did not invade earlier were that it suffered from poor industrial capacity, and the Umayyads believed the Asturian forces posed a minor threat.
722 saw one of the first Asturian victories. In the late summer, a Muslim army overran much of Pelayo's territory, forcing him to retreat deep into the mountains. Pelayo and a few hundred men retired into a narrow valley at Covadonga. There, they could defend against a broad frontal attack. From here, Pelayo's forces routed the Muslim army, inspiring local villagers to take up arms. Despite further attempts, the Muslims were unable to conquer Pelayo's mountain stronghold. Pelayo's victory at Covadonga is hailed by some as the first stage of the Reconquista.
During the first decades, Asturian control over the different areas of the kingdom was still weak, and for this reason it had to be continually strengthened through matrimonial alliances with other powerful families from the north of the Iberian Peninsula. Thus, "Ermesinda, Pelayo's daughter, was married to Alfonso, Peter of Cantabria's son. Alphonse's children, Froila and Adosinda, married Munia, a Basque from Alava, and Silo, a local chief from the area of Pravia, respectively." (quote from 'The making of medieval Spain')
After Pelayo's death in 737, his son Fafila was elected king. Fafila, according to the chronicles, was killed by a bear during a trial of courage.
Pelayo's dynasty in Asturias survived for centuries and gradually expanded the kingdom's boundaries until all of northwest Iberia was included by roughly 775. However, credit is due not to him but to his successors. Alfonso I (king from 739-757) managed to conquer Galicia and an area of what was to be Leon. The reign of Alfonso II from (791-842) saw further expansion of the kingdom to the south, almost as far as Lisbon.
It was not until Alfonso II that the kingdom was firmly established with Alfonso's recognition as king of Asturias by Charlemagne and the Pope. During his reign, the holy bones of St. James the Great were declared to have been found in Galicia, at Santiago de Compostela. Pilgrims from all over Europe opened a channel of communication between the isolated Asturias and the Carolingian lands and beyond.
[edit] Tags:Visigoths,Visigothic Kingdom,Moors,Charlemagne,Cite,References Or Sources,Reliable Sources,Challenged,Arian Christianity,Heretical,Catholic Church,Reccared I,Aragon,Catalonia,Navarre,Pope,Vic,Asturias,Gothic, | |
| Islamic conquest | |
| 3>
Further information: Umayyad conquest of Hispania and Battle of Guadalete
From 711 to 756, the Moors (mainly North African Berber warriors) swept over the Iberian Peninsula coming mostly from Morocco across the Strait of Gibraltar, conquering nearly all of it and establishing a foothold north of the Pyrenees in Narbonne. They put down local rebellions and established the Emirate of Córdoba. At no point did the Islamic armies exceed 60,000 men.[4] This established Islamic rule in the peninsula that was to last for almost 800 years.
[edit] Tags:Battle Of Guadalete,Berber,Strait Of Gibraltar,Narbonne, | |
| Franks invade | |
| 3>
Main article: Marca Hispanica
The takeover of Al-Andalus by Abd ar-Rahman I was not unopposed. Certain local wālis decided to oppose him, but instead of appealing to the distant Caliph, they decided to enlist the Franks, their Christian opponents.
According to Ali ibn al-Athir, a Kurdish historian of the 12th century, Charlemagne received the envoys of Sulayman al-Arabi, Husayn, and Abu Taur at the Diet of Paderborn in 777. These rulers of Zaragoza, Girona, Barcelona, and Huesca were enemies of Abd ar-Rahman I, and in return for Frankish military aid against him offered their homage and allegiance.
Charlemagne, seeing an opportunity of conquest and annexation of new territories, agreed upon an expedition and crossed the Pyrenees in 778. Near the city of Zaragoza Charlemagne received the homage of Sulayman al-Arabi. However the city, under the leadership of Husayn, closed its gates and refused to submit. Unable to conquer the city by force, Charlemagne decided to retreat. On the way home the rearguard of the army was ambushed and destroyed at the Battle of Roncevaux Pass. The Song of Roland, a highly romanticized account of this battle, would later become one of the most famous chansons de geste of the Middle Ages.
Charlemagne decided to organize a regional subkingdom in order to secure the southern border of his Carolingian Empire. In 781 his three year-old son Louis was crowned king of Aquitaine and was nominally in charge of Spanish March.
Around 788 Abd ar-Rahman I died, and was succeeded by Hisham I. In 792 Hisham proclaimed a jihad, advancing in 793 against the Kingdom of Asturias and the Franks. In the end his efforts were turned back by William of Gellone, Count of Toulouse.
Barcelona, a major city, became a potential target for the Franks in 797, as its governor Zeid rebelled against the Umayyad emir of Córdoba. An army of the emir managed to recapture it in 799 but Louis, at the head of an army, crossed the Pyrenees and besieged the city for two years until the city finally capitulated on December 28, 801.
The main passes were Roncesvalles, Somport and Junquera. Charlemagne established in them the counties of Pamplona, Aragon and Catalonia (which was itself formed from a number of small counties, Pallars, Gerona, and Urgell being the most prominent) respectively.
Four states appeared: the kingdom of Pamplona (later known as Navarre) and the counties of Aragon, Sobrarbe and Ribagorza. Navarre emerged as a kingdom around Pamplona, its capital, and controlled Roncesvalles pass. Its first king was Iñigo Arista. He expanded his domains up to the Bay of Biscay and conquered a small number of towns beyond the Pyrenees, but never directly attacked the Carolingian armies, as he was in theory their vassal. It was not until Queen Ximena in the 9th century that Pamplona was officially recognised as an independent kingdom by the Pope. Aragon, founded in 809 by Aznar Galíndez, grew around Jaca and the high valleys of the Aragon River, protecting the old Roman road. By the end of the 10th century, Aragon was annexed by Navarre. Sobrarbe and Ribagorza were small counties and had little significance to the progress of the Reconquista.
The Catalan counties protected the eastern Pyrenees passes and shores. They were under the direct control of the Frankish kings and were the last remains of the Iberian Marches. Catalonia included not only the southern Pyrenees counties of Girona, Pallars, Urgell, Vic and Andorra but also some which were on the northern side of the mountains, such as Perpignan and Foix.
In the late 9th century under Count Wilfred, Barcelona became the de facto capital of the region. It controlled the other counties' policies in a union, which led in 948 to the independence of Barcelona under Count Borrel II, who declared that the new dynasty in France (the Capets) were not the legitimate rulers of France nor, as a result, of his county.
These states were small and with the exception of Navarre did not have the same capacity for expansion as Asturias had. Their mountainous geography rendered them relatively safe from attack but also made launching attacks against a united and strong Al-Andalus impractical. In consequence, these states' borders remained stable for two centuries.
[edit] Tags:Middle Ages,Kingdom Of Asturias,Marca Hispanica,Vassal,Al-andalus,Wālis,Ali Ibn Al-athir,Sulayman Al-arabi,Abu Taur,Zaragoza,Girona,Huesca,Husayn,Battle Of Roncevaux Pass,The Song Of Roland,Chansons De Geste,Carolingian Empire,Louis,Aquitaine,Hisham I,Jihad,William Of Gellone,Roncesvalles,Somport,Junquera,Pamplona,Pallars,Gerona,Urgell,Sobrarbe,Ribagorza,Iñigo Arista,Bay Of Biscay,Queen Ximena,Aznar Galíndez, | |
| Islamic rule | |
| 3>
Main articles: Berbers and Islam and Berber Revolt
After the establishment of a local Emirate, Caliph Al-Walid I, ruler of the Umayyad caliphate, removed many of the successful Muslim commanders. Tariq ibn Ziyad, the first governor of the newly conquered province of Al-Andalus, was recalled to Damascus and replaced with Musa bin Nusair, who had been his former superior. Musa's son, Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa, apparently married Egilona, Roderic's widow, and established his regional government in Seville. He was suspected of being under the influence of his wife, accused of wanting to convert to Christianity, and of planning a secessionist rebellion. Apparently a concerned Al-Walid I ordered Abd al-Aziz's assassination. Caliph Al-Walid I died in 715 and was succeeded by his brother Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik. Sulayman seems to have punished the surviving Musa bin Nusair, who very soon died during a pilgrimage in 716. In the end Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa's cousin, Ayyub ibn Habib al-Lakhmi became the emir of Al-Andalus.
The conquering generals were necessarily acting very independently, due to deficient methods of communication. Successful generals in the field — and in a very distant province to boot — would also quickly gain the loyalty of their officers and warriors and their ambitions were probably always watched by certain circles of the distant government with a certain degree of concern and suspicion. Old rivalries and perhaps even full-fledged conspiracies between rival generals may have had influence over this development. In the end, the old successful generals were replaced by a younger generation considered more loyal by the government in Damascus.
There was a serious weakness among the Muslim conquerors. Ethnic tensions existed between the Berbers and the Arabs. The Berbers were the indigenous inhabitants of North Africa who had been recently converted to Islam and had provided the bulk of the manpower for the invading Islamic armies. However they felt the Arabs discriminated against them. This latent internal conflict would jeopardize Muslim unity.
After the Islamic Moorish conquest of the majority of the Iberian Peninsula in 711 Arian Christianity was devastated[citation needed][dubious – discuss]. The Moorish success and establishment of Al-Andalus left the Visigothic kingdom stuck between Moors in the south and the Carolingian empire (Franks) in the north, which led to the quick destruction of the last remaining Visigothic province in the north of the peninsula at the hands of the Franks. The emirate chose to press forward into Gaul. At the Battle of Tours in 732 the Moors were defeated. This was the high water mark of the Islamic conquests in Europe and the expansion of Al-Andalus. A slow decline in the Moorish reach, taking eight centuries, began.
[edit] Tags:Islamic Conquest, | |
| Military culture in medieval Iberia | |
| 2>
Forces of Muhammed IX, Nasrid Sultan of Granada, at the Battle of La Higueruela, 1431
In a situation of constant conflict, warfare and daily life were strongly interlinked during this period. Small, lightly equipped armies reflected how the society had to be on the alert at all times. These forces were capable of moving long distances in short times, allowing a quick return home after sacking a target. Battles which took place were mainly between clans, expelling intruder armies or sacking expeditions.
The cultural context of the Christian Kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula was different than that of the rest of Continental Europe in the Middle Ages, due to contact with the Moorish culture and the isolation provided by the Pyrenees. These cultural differences implied the use of doctrines, equipment, and tactics markedly different from those found in the rest of Europe during this period.
Medieval Iberian armies mainly comprised two types of forces: cavalry (mostly nobles, but including commoner knights from 10th century on) and infantry, or peones (peasants). Infantry only went to war if needed, which was not common.
Iberian cavalry tactics involved knights approaching the enemy and throwing javelins, before withdrawing to a safe distance before commencing another assault. Once the enemy formation was sufficiently weakened, the knights charged with thrusting spears (lances did not arrive in Hispania until the 11th century). There were three types of knights: royal knights, noble knights (caballeros hidalgos) and commoner knights (caballeros villanos). Royal knights were mainly nobles with a close relationship with the king, and thus claimed a direct Gothic inheritance. Royal knights were equipped in the same manner as their Gothic predecessors — braceplate, kite shield, a long sword (designed to fight from the horse) and as well as the javelins and spears, a Visigothic axe. Noble knights came from the ranks of the infanzones or lower nobles, whereas the commoner knights were not noble, but were wealthy enough to afford a horse. Uniquely in Europe, these horsemen comprised a militia cavalry force with no feudal links, being under the sole control of the king or the count of Castile because of the "charters" (or fueros). See "Repopulating Hispania — the origin of fueros", below. Both noble and common knights wore leather armour and carried javelins, spears and round-tasselled shields (influenced by Moorish shields), as well as a sword.
The peones were peasants who went to battle in service of their feudal lord. Poorly equipped, with bows and arrows, spears and short swords, they were mainly used as auxiliary troops. Their function in battle was to contain the enemy troops until the cavalry arrived and to block the enemy infantry from charging the knights.
Typically armour was made of leather, with iron scales; full coats of chain mail were extremely rare and horse barding completely unknown. Head protections consisted of a round helmet with nose protector (influenced by the designs used by Vikings who attacked during the 8th and 9th centuries) and a chain mail headpiece. Shields were often round or kidney-shaped, except for the kite-shaped designs used by the royal knights. Usually adorned with geometric designs, crosses or tassels, shields were made out of wood and had a leather cover.
Steel swords were the most common weapon. The cavalry used long double-edged swords and the infantry short, single-edged ones. Guards were either semicircular or straight, but always highly ornamented with geometrical patterns. The spears and javelins were up to 1.5 metres long and had an iron tip. The double-axe, made of iron and 30 cm long and possessing an extremely sharp edge, was designed to be equally useful as a thrown weapon or in close combat. Maces and hammers were not common, but some specimens have remained, and are thought to have been used by members of the cavalry.
Finally, mercenaries were an important factor, as many kings did not have enough soldiers available. Norsemen, Flemish spearmen, Frankish knights, Moorish mounted archers and Berber light cavalry were the main types of mercenary available and used in the conflict.
This style of warfare remained dominant in the Iberian Peninsula until the late 11th century, when couched lance tactics entered from France and replaced the traditional horse javelin-shot techniques. In the 12th and 13th centuries, soldiers typically carried a sword, a lance, a javelin, and either bow and arrows or crossbow and darts. Armor consisted of a coat of mail over a quilted jacket, extending at least to the knees, a helmet or iron cap, and braces protecting the arms and thighs, either metal or leather. Shields were round or triangular, made of wood, covered with leather, and protected by an iron band; the shields of knights and nobles would bear the family's coat of arms. Knights rode in both the Muslim style, a la jineta (i.e. the equivalent of a modern jockey's seat), a short stirrup strap and bended knees allowed for better control and speed, or in the French style, a la brida, a long stirrup strap allowed for more security in the saddle (i.e. the equivalent of the modern cavalry seat, which is more secure). Horses were occasionally fitted with a coat of mail as well.
[edit] Tags: | |
| Beginning the Reconquista | |
| 2>
Main articles: Battle of Covadonga, Battle of Toulouse (721), and Battle of Tours
Around 718 Pelagius (or Pelayo in modern Spanish), a Visigothic noble, began a rebellion against Munuza, a local Muslim governor. One of his most important allies was Duke Pedro of Cantabria.
The main part of the Moorish forces was off invading southern France; under the command of Al-Samh ibn Malik al-Khawlani, emir of Al-Andalus, it had crossed the Pyrenees and overrun Septimania. This invasion was defeated in 721 by Odo the Great, the Duke of Aquitaine, in the Battle of Toulouse, and the commander Al-Samh was mortally wounded.
A drastic increase of taxes by the new emir Anbasa ibn Suhaym Al-Kalbi provoked several rebellions in Al-Andalus, which a series of succeeding weak emirs were unable to suppress. Around 722 a military expedition was sent into the north to suppress Pelayo's rebellion, but his forces prevailed in the Battle of Covadonga.
This battle, at the time probably considered little more than a skirmish, would be considered by later Christian historians as the starting point of the Reconquista. Pelayo's victory secured his independent rule over the local area. The date and circumstances of this battle are very unclear. Among the possibilities are that the rebellion of Pelayo unfolded precisely because the greater part of the Muslim forces were gathering for the invasion of France, that it unfolded during this invasion, or even a bit later as the battered and weakened expedition returned and all available garrisons and reinforcements were probably recalled to bolster the army for a reinvasion.
Meanwhile Odo had married his daughter to Uthman ibn Naissa, a Berber and the Wāli - deputy governor of Septimania, fostering yet another rebellion. However, a major punitive expedition led by Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi, the latest emir of Al-Andalus, defeated and killed Uthman. Abdul Rahman later managed to defeat Odo in the Battle of the River Garonne in 732. A desperate Odo turned to his rival Charles Martel, who decisively beat the Muslims at the Battle of Tours in 732, killing Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi.
Meanwhile Pelayo began raiding the city of León, the main city in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula. He was crowned king and successfully established the small Kingdom of Asturias. He also established a royal dynasty, marrying his son and heir Favila to Duke Pedro's daughter.
[edit] Tags:Pelagius,Septimania, | |
| Expansion into the Crusades and military orders | |
| 2>
In the High Middle Ages, the fight against the Moors in the Iberian Peninsula became linked to the fight of the whole of Christendom. The Reconquista was originally a mere war of conquest. It only later underwent a significant shift in meaning toward a religiously justified war of liberation (see the Augustinian concept of a Just War). The papacy and the influential Abbey of Cluny in Burgundy not only justified the acts of war but actively encouraged Christian knights to seek armed confrontation with Moorish "infidels" instead of with each other. From the 11th century onwards indulgences were granted: In 1064 Pope Alexander II allegedly promised the participants of an expedition against Barbastro (Tagr al-Andalus, Aragon) a collective indulgence 30 years before Pope Urban II called the First Crusade. The legitimacy of such a letter establishing a grant of indulgence has been disputed at length by historians, notably by Ferreiro. Papal interest in Christio-Muslim relations in the peninsular are not without precedent - Popes Leo IV (847-855), John VIII (872-882) and John XIX (1024–33) are all known to have displayed substantial interest in the region. Whilst there is little evidence to invalidate the letter as a whole, both the recipient(s) Tags:Barbastro, | |
zote monety click here click here click here click here |