Spain Timeline 711 CE- 1013 CE (Muslim Spain)
 
 

 
-711 Moors lead by Tariq invade Spain and defeat Visigoths at the battle of Guadalete

             
(These tools of war are inscribed with Islamic writings assuring the wearer of a place in the divine afterlife.)
 

-722 Chrisitans defeat Moors at Covadonga
 
-732 The Moorish advance into France is halted by Charles Martel at Poiters.
 
-744 Christians under Alphonso I of Asturias take León
 
-756 Abd al Rahman I proclaims independent emirate in Córdoba
 
-778 Charlemagne’s forces defeated by Basques at Roncesvalles

(Charlemagne)

 
-785 Building of great mosque at Córdoba begins, it is completed in 976
 
-800 Tomb of St. James (Santiago, patron saint of the Reconquest) is said to have been discovered at Santiago de Compestela
 
-822 Abd al Rahman II begins 30-year rule marked by patronage of the arts and culture

(Astrolabe, a navigation tool was one of the new technologies introduced by the Moors.)
 

-905 Emergent Navarra becomes Christian kingdom under Sancho I
 
-913 Christian capital is established at León
 
-936 Building of Medina Azahara palace starts near Córdoba
 
-976 Al Mansur a military dictator usurps caliphal powers and sacks Barcelona
 
-1010 Medina Azahara sacked by Berbers
 
-1013 Caliphate of Córdoba breaks up.  Many taifas (independent Moorish kingdoms) spring up.
 
-The Moorish presence in Spain persisted in Spain until the early 1500’s.  The three hundred years they maintained control of the majority of Spain was characterized by the incorporation of new technology and art into Spanish culture.
         

(The immense beauty of Islamic art can be seen in this tiny stag, it is an example of one of the few representational artistic items found. This photo of one of the walls in the Alhambra is more common of the Islamic art found in Spain.  The water wheel on the right is one of the main innovations the Moors brought to Spain, allowing for new types of crops to be grown, and agriculture to become more efficient.)