Al-Andalus
Muslim-ruled Iberia from the Umayyad conquest of 711 to the fall of the Emirate of Granada in 1492, including the Caliphate of Córdoba, the taifas and the Almoravid, Almohad and Nasrid states.
Category: States, Places
- 711 – 718Umayyad army defeats the Visigoths at Guadalete and conquers most of Iberia
A Muslim army under Tariq ibn Ziyad crosses from North Africa in 711 and defeats and kills the Visigothic king Roderic at Guadalete. Most of the peninsula comes under Umayyad rule by about 718, and al-Andalus begins.
- c. 722Pelayo's Asturians defeat an Umayyad force at Covadonga
A small Asturian force led by Pelayo defeats an Umayyad detachment in the Picos de Europa. Traditionally the start of the Kingdom of Asturias and of the Reconquista, though its size and date (718 or 722) are uncertain.
- 961Al-Hakam II builds a great library at Córdoba
Caliph al-Hakam II (r. 961-976) collects books at Córdoba from Damascus, Baghdad, Cairo and elsewhere. Accounts claim over 600,000 volumes and a 44-volume catalogue, figures only reported, not verified. After his death Almanzor is said to have destroyed "ancient science" books.
- 1031The Caliphate of Córdoba collapses into the taifa kingdoms
The last Umayyad caliph, Hisham III, is deposed in 1031 and the Caliphate of Córdoba splits into small taifa states. Their rivalry lets the Christian kingdoms of the north demand tribute and, later, take territory.
- 1085Alfonso VI of León and Castile captures Toledo
Alfonso VI takes the taifa city of Toledo, the old Visigothic capital, in 1085. It is the first great Christian gain in central Iberia and prompts the taifa kings to ask the Almoravids of North Africa for help.
- October 23, 1086Almoravids defeat Alfonso VI of Castile at Sagrajas
Called in by the taifa kings, Yusuf ibn Tashfin's Almoravid army defeats Alfonso VI near Badajoz on 23 October 1086. The Almoravids do not follow up at once, but in 1091 they end the taifa period and rule al-Andalus.
- c. 1126Toledo becomes a translation centre
After Toledo falls in 1085, Archbishop Raymond (1126-51) starts translation work there. Gerard of Cremona arrives in 1167 and renders Aristotle's Posterior Analytics and Physics; Michael Scot translates Averroes and the History of Animals (1220). Jews and Mozarabs help.
- 1169Averroes begins his commentaries on Aristotle
In 1169 Ibn Tufayl introduces Averroes (1126-1198) to the Almohad caliph Abu Yaqub Yusuf, who asks him to explain Aristotle. His commentaries follow. In the Latin West he becomes known as "the Commentator". He is also appointed qadi of Seville that year.
- 1178Averroes answers al-Ghazali
In 1178 Averroes writes On the Harmony of Religions and Philosophy, arguing that Islam and philosophy are compatible. In 1180 his Incoherence of the Incoherence answers al-Ghazali, defending the philosophers passage by passage as a dialogue.
- 1195Averroes is condemned and his books burned
In 1195 a tribunal at Córdoba condemns Averroes's teachings, orders his works burned and banishes him to Lucena. He is later recalled to Marrakesh and restored to favour, and dies there in 1198.
- July 16, 1212Christian kings defeat the Almohads at Las Navas de Tolosa
On 16 July 1212 a coalition of Castile, Aragon, Navarre and Portugal defeats the Almohad caliph al-Nasir in the Sierra Morena. The Almohads' power in Iberia collapses, opening Andalusia to Castilian conquest.
- 1236Ferdinand III of Castile conquers Córdoba
Ferdinand III of Castile takes Córdoba, the former capital of the Umayyad caliphate, in 1236. The conquest is followed by much of the Guadalquivir valley and by Granada's submission as a Castilian vassal.
- 1238James I of Aragon conquers Valencia
James I of Aragon takes the city of Valencia, the last taifa of the east coast, in 1238, ending Muslim rule in the Valencia region. Settlers from Aragon and Catalonia follow.
- 1248Ferdinand III of Castile conquers Seville
After a siege Seville falls to Ferdinand III of Castile in 1248, taking the largest city of al-Andalus. Only the Nasrid Emirate of Granada remains under Muslim rule in the peninsula.
- c. 1482 – January 1492The Granada War: Castile and Aragon against the Emirate of Granada
Ferdinand and Isabella's war against the Nasrid Emirate of Granada begins around 1482 (some sources say 1481) and ends with Granada's surrender on 2 January 1492.
- January 1492Boabdil surrenders Granada to Ferdinand and Isabella
Muhammad XII (Boabdil) hands Granada and the Alhambra to the Catholic Monarchs in January 1492, ending Muslim rule in Iberia after almost 800 years. Most sources give 2 January, one gives 1 January.