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Reconquista
MoorandChristianBattle

Moorish and Christian Reconquista battle, taken from the Cantigas de Santa María
Date 711–1492 (781 years)
Location
Iberian Peninsula
Result All Iberian Muslim territories taken by Christian kingdoms
Alhambra Decree
Forced conversions of Muslims in Spain
Belligerents

The Reconquista (a Spanish and Portuguese word for "Reconquest"; Arabic: الاسترداد, "Recapturing") was a period of 800 years in the Middle Ages during which the several Christian kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula expanded themselves (grew) by fighting the Muslim states of al-Andalus (Arabic الأندلس), the Muslim states on the Iberian Peninsula, and pushing them out of the peninsula.

The Reconquista began shortly after the Islamic conquest. Much of the ideology of the Reconquista was common to most Crusading: soldiers from all Christendom travelled to Spain to fight the Muslims as an act of Christian repentance.

The Reconquista came to an end on the 2 January 1492 with the capture of Granada. The last Muslim ruler of Granada surrendered (gave up) his kingdom to Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile, the Catholic kings (los Reyes Católicos). This event marked the end of Muslim rule in Iberia.

Images for kids

  • Cantigas battle

    Depiction of battle, taken from the Cantigas de Santa Maria

  • ChristianAndMuslimPlayingChess-cropped2

    One of the arguments challenging the concept of Reconquista is that for the majority of the 781 years of Islamic rule in Iberia, Muslims and Christians coexisted and were not at war with each other.

  • Almohad1200

    The Islamic Almohad dynasty and surrounding states, including the Christian Kingdoms of Portugal, Leon, Castile, Navarre, and the Crown of Aragon, c. 1200.

  • Al Andalus - 2

    The Caliphate of Córdoba in the early 10th century

  • Spain Reconquista cities

    Reconquista of the main towns (per year)

  • Painting of Santiago Matamoros

    Saint James the Great depicted as Saint James the Moor-slayer. Legend of the Reconquista

  • Alfonso VI reconquista Toledo

    Ceramic of the conquest of Toledo by Alfonso VI

  • Jaume I, Cantigas de Santa Maria, s.XIII

    The Moors request permission from James I of Aragon

  • GeraldoGeraldesSemPavor

    Statue of Geraldo Geraldes Sem Pavor or Gerald the Fearless. A Portuguese folk hero with the head of a Moor

  • Batalla del Puig por Marzal de Sas (1410-20)

    The Battle of the Puig at El Puig de Santa Maria in 1237

  • Capture de Séville par Ferdinand III

    Capture of Seville by Ferdinand III of Castile (painted by Francisco Pacheco)

  • La Rendición de Granada - Pradilla

    The Surrender of Granada by Francisco Pradilla Ortiz

  • Batalla de las Navas de Tolosa, por Francisco van Halen

    The Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa (1212), an important turning point of the Reconquista

  • Higueruela

    Forces of Muhammed IX, Nasrid Sultan of Granada, at the Battle of La Higueruela, 1431

  • Itin mertola

    Old Mosque in Mértola, Portugal, converted into a church.

  • Filà mora Al-Hagamba-Muza Moros i Cristians Pego

    Moros y Cristianos festival in Pego, Alicante, 2016

  • Assault-on-Asilah

    The Portuguese forces, personally commanded by King Afonso V, in the conquest of Asilah, Morocco, 1471, from the Pastrana Tapestries.

  • Día de la Toma (no a la Toma)

    An army parade in Granada attended by far-right sympathisers who are waving the Francoist flags (2 January 2016)

See also

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