Conquest of al-Andalus

فتح الأندلس

91? AH

Tabari reports under the year 91 that Musa ibn Nusayr raided al-Andalus and that towns and fortresses were opened at his hands ¹. The index heading 'Conquest of al-Andalus' falls under the year 92 ². According to al-Baladhuri, on the authority of al-Waqidi, Tariq ibn Ziyad, Musa's deputy, raided al-Andalus; he was the first to raid it, in the year 92. Alyan, governor of the strait to al-Andalus, met him, and Tariq granted him safe-conduct on condition that he carry Tariq and his companions to al-Andalus in ships. When they arrived, its people fought them and he conquered it, also in the year 92; its king, they claim, was of the al-Ashban, whose origin was Isfahan. The book notes that the conquest came after a reconnaissance raid led by Tarif ibn Malik in Ramadan 91 AH (July 710 CE), then Tariq ibn Ziyad's crossing in Rajab 92 AH, and that the book rejects the reports that make booty the cause of the conquest ³. The book says that Musa set out from al-Qayrawan in 93 AH and took Carmona, then Seville and Merida; he met Tariq at Toledo in late 94 AH, then reached Galicia and the Asturias; and that al-Walid summoned him to Damascus, where he arrived in 96 AH before al-Walid's death ⁴.

Overview

al-Tabari, in the account for 91 AH, reports that Musa ibn Nusayr raided al-Andalus, and God opened cities and forts through his hands. ¹ al-Tabari's index places the heading "the conquest of al-Andalus" in 92 AH. ²

The reports and the date

On the authority of al-Waqidi, al-Baladhuri relates that Tariq ibn Ziyad, the deputy of Musa, was the first to raid al-Andalus, in 92 AH. Alyan, governor of the strait of al-Andalus, met him, and Tariq granted him safe-conduct on condition that he carry him and his companions in the ships. Then its people fought him and he conquered it. ⁵ The date is therefore disputed between 91 AH and 92 AH.

al-Salabi says that the conquest was preceded by a reconnaissance raid under Tarif ibn Malik in Ramadan 91 AH, then Tariq crossed in Rajab 92 AH, and that the book rejects the reports that make booty the cause of the conquest. ³

Musa ibn Nusayr

al-Salabi says that Musa left Qayrawan in 93 AH and conquered Carmona, then Seville and Merida, met Tariq at Toledo at the end of 94 AH, and then reached Galicia and Asturias. al-Walid summoned him to Damascus, and he arrived there in 96 AH, before al-Walid's death. ⁴

Sources

Tarikh al-Rusul wa'l-Muluk — al-Tabari (ed. Abu al-Fadl Ibrahim) , j.6 p.454

Tarikh al-Rusul wa'l-Muluk — al-Tabari (ed. Abu al-Fadl Ibrahim) , j.6 p.632

The Umayyad State: Factors of Prosperity and Consequences of Collapse — Ali Muhammad al-Sallabi (Part Two, 2005) , p.66-70

The Umayyad State: Factors of Prosperity and Consequences of Collapse — Ali Muhammad al-Sallabi (Part Two, 2005) , p.75-79

Futuh al-Buldan — al-Baladhuri (Mu'assasat al-Ma'arif edition)

Muhammad Qabbani, The Umayyad State from Birth to Fall (Damascus: Dar Wahy al-Qalam, 2006)

The Conquest of Toledo

In the year 93 Musa dismissed Tariq and sent him against Toledo. In al-Baladhuri: Musa ibn Nusayr wrote Tariq ibn Ziyad a harsh letter — for his hazarding the Muslims and presuming on his own judgment in the raid — ordering him not to pass Cordoba; Musa marched to Cordoba of al-Andalus, Tariq appeased him and he was pleased, and Tariq opened the city of Toledo — the kingdom-city of al-Andalus on the Franks' side — seizing there a great table which Musa ibn Nusayr presented to al-Walid ibn Abd al-Malik at Damascus when he returned in year 96, al-Walid being ill.

Conquest of al-Andalus

At a glance

Overview

The reports and the date

Musa ibn Nusayr

Connections

People and things also explored

Sources

The Conquest of Toledo