In Europe, during the Middle Ages, the largest European cultural center between the 9th and 11th centuries was in the Iberian Peninsula. In it, three antagonistic religions coexisted distributed throughout the peninsular territory, to the north a series of small Christian kingdoms and, in the rest of the territory (around 80%), there was Al-Andalus, where Muslims, Jews, and Christians lived together. From the eleventh century, the historical processes, changes and transformations, both social and political, caused the caliphate to disappear, giving rise to thirty-nine small kingdoms known as Taifa kingdoms. Thus, the Christian kingdoms of the north will extend to the south, conquering new territories that will bring enrichment and prestige throughout European Christianity, since they were enemies in religion. Of this advance, caused over time and never from an attack, the only one that will survive, for two more centuries, will be the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada, which will remain as a fossil element of what Al-Andalus was, but in his two centuries of life he had a dazzling role.
This item belongs to Selim Balouati, who has sent it to us so that we can publish it on his behalf. All credits belong to himself.
The birth of a Kingdom (1212 – 1246)
The configuration of the Nasrid Kingdom began to take shape after the battle of Las Navas de Tolosa, in Úbeda (1212), where the Almohad force was defeated by the Christians of the north of the peninsula. After the disaster, a power vacuum is produced that will be fought between Ibn Hud and Muhammad Ibn al-Ahmar. The first, Ibn Hud, revolted against the Almohads after the defeat at Las Navas de Tolosa, the second, al-Ahmar, in turn revolted against Ibn Hud. Al-Ahmar was lord of the Taifa de Arjona and quickly settled in Baza, Jaén and Guadix. The same tactic will be used by his rival with a continuous advance, occupying the areas without Almohad control in the southeast of the peninsula.
This rivalry comes to an end with the taking of Córdoba in 1236, by Castile. This will reaffirm Muhammad as the most capable when it comes to leading the remaining territorial loopholes of Al Andalus, thus condemning Ibn Hud, who will meet his death in Almería. It will be the death of Ibn Hud that will put an end to the idea of continuing Al Andalus, since his political ideology was to counteract the Castilian advance with the support of the Moorish population, uniting the territories previously under Almohad control and reestablishing Al Andalus again. With Muhammad, the idea of recovering what was lost disappears to make way for a new Muslim kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula, without expansion aspirations and seeking a balance in the form of peace that would allow it to resist against its thriving Castilian neighbor.
The solution to prevent the advance and the continuous sieges that occurred was the negotiation of a pact with Fernando III of Castile, in this way the Pact of Jaén was born (1246). The first conditions would be the vassalage of the new kingdom and the payment of an annual fee to outcasts, while the borders between the two kingdoms were established. Thus, definitively, the Nasrid Kingdom is configured with its capital in Granada and forms a geographical triangle with Almería and Málaga. The borders: to the north, the Christian cities of Jaén and Córdoba, to the east Murcia and to the west Seville.
Nasrid political history could be divided into three stages according to the three centuries in which the kingdom moved. Following Rachel Arié (Arié, 2004), three differences can be seen in these centuries: in the 13th century it would be the formation, the 14th the development and finally the 15th the decline and disappearance. If we had to cite a protagonist from the first century, it would be Muhammad I, since the first ten years of the kingdom were not easy for Muhammad, who had to overcome a series of external threats and play a diplomatic role between the kingdoms of North Africa and the Spanish.
In the latter case, it was aggravated by the accession to the throne of Alfonso X (1221-1284), since he advanced southward reaching Jerez, and he also had interests in North Africa, which is why he constantly goes to the Granada monarch so that ceded the strait and Tarifa for its naval bases, something that was not granted due to the risk involved, so the Castilians launched themselves for Cádiz. As we can see, Alfonso X was a constant problem for the kingdom and its interests, causing situations of constant danger. These first ten years were convulsive for the Nasrids, in any border territory the expectation was rising due to the uncertainty that existed because territories fell easily before the Castilian bellicosity that seemed to have no end.
The following years that followed were always surrounded by border fights that were constant and by Mudejar conspiracies, since it will be there where the Nasrid Kingdom will see its stronghold to harm its Castilian neighbor. The political and border reality of Granada was to develop diplomatic friendships with the North African and peninsular kingdoms, being a capital issue for the survival and strength of its state policy. There will be a period that could be called exceptional of fifty years of peace, between 1350 and 1406, since Castile at that time was in an internal and external conflict but this time with the Crown of Aragon (The Castilian-Aragonese war of 1356-1369 ), thus giving the Nasrid Kingdom a break.
Last confrontation (1482-1492)
We are now entering what would be the end of the Nasrid Kingdom, in its last heartbeat cut off by its executioner who will be its natural enemy, Castile. The new Castilian-Aragonese dynastic union is born in a Europe that enters a historical period different from the previous Modern Age, in which there is no ideological room for a Hispanic-Muslim kingdom in European territory, even more so, when Constantinople falls into Ottoman hands ( 1453) and became the number one enemy of Catholicism, threatening the western “Mare Nostrum”. Being a Catholic defines in the first moments of the Modern Age an identity subjugated to a series of political guidelines that are spun in Rome, whose beginning will be to eliminate the religious enemy, the Muslim, in this case the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada. The contest will take place for almost ten years, because in Castile it was known that the conquest would not be easy, but for this they had several aces in their hands. First, there were good strategists such as Fernando de Aragón and Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba, both with great leadership skills whose hands led the powerful Castilian army. In addition to this, the war had the character of a crusade, so it entailed external support beyond the Pyrenees and, as a final push, an internal rebel: the famous Boabdil, who would be the key to the city of Granada. As we can see, Castilla had the wind in his favor.
Now let’s move on to the Granada issue. The same state with a much smaller population than its peninsular neighbors could not by itself launch a military offensive, nor even consider an open war. So their war would be a war of attrition behind the walls and defensive posts in their important squares. External help was something that was lacking, since there were military groups from North Africa but they would only serve to delay what the decline announced. The internal situation of the Maghreb states was one of internal rupture and total political disorder, for which the aid would never be strong enough even to propose a possible defense that would lead to a peace agreement.
The start date is considered to be 1282, although it is really in 81, since the Nasrids were aware of the intentions of the Catholic kings and in a show of strength they took over the city of Zahara (Cádiz). The Castilian response was a tough fight to take over the city of Alhama, two months after the conquest of Zahara, but the Castilians received another important defeat in Loja.
However, once again the Nasrid succession policy acts as a negative element and, after the uprising of the famous Boabdil against his father, he flees to Malaga dividing the Nasrid Kingdom. Boabdil’s father, the also famous Muley Hacén, fights against his son to return to the throne. That is to say, during 1482-1483 Boabdil reigns; during the 1483-1485 queen Muley Hacén.
What happens next is a Castilian advance through Cadiz, where important cities such as Marbella, Fuengirola, and Ronda surrender through a long struggle. But once the Castilians arrive in Malaga, they are defeated by the third protagonist, Muhammad XII al-Zagal. This victory together with the campaign in Almería, which pacifies the area and ends with those who were related to Castile and Boabdil, Al-Zagal gains popularity nicknamed “the brave”. The poor health of his brother Muley Hacén made al-Zagal take the throne and reign from 1485-1487. A division occurs among the Nasrids, because the defeats make Boabdil supporters, who guarantees that if he reaches the throne the war will cease with the peace already negotiated, this is what gives Boabdil wings, in addition to the fact that he came with Castilian support. Al-Zagal finds himself with two open fronts: the Castilian one and that of his nephew Boabdil, when he is in Vélez fighting against the Castilians, Boabdil takes advantage and takes Granada.
Finally, Boabdil gets what he always wanted but with the misfortune of being the last Sultan of Granada. The Castilians continued advancing without pause until they reached Almería, where al-Zagal was, who surrendered everything he had. In fact, Almería did not resist. al-Zagal would finally leave the Iberian Peninsula seeing that the situation had no possible solution. Emissaries are sent from Granada requesting help, both military and economic, to everyone who could, including Jerusalem so that they ask the Catholic kings to put an end to their advance, said help never came, beyond pious in the form of galleys to transport the population to other safer territories. Finally, after a series of formulations and negotiations in clauses, of which it was known that the majority would not be respected, Granada capitulated on November 25, 1491.
As we can see, Granada was practically cornered and without any strength against the Castilian enemy to even survive. The internal fights were for Granada like a poison for a sick person, causing the decline to accelerate in such a way that the surrender clause of Granada was not even respected a year before what was signed.
The capitulation ends up putting an end to everything that the independent caliphate of Córdoba meant, which acquired an identity outside everything that had to do with the East but without losing its essence, all of it was already part of the past, which meant that stage ends with the Nasrid Sultanate of Granada. A past of splendor without equal in Europe with a character and vigor that remains today in the majestic constructions that persist and receive so many visitors to appreciate the East in Europe.
Previously a taifa, so…