Cold Open

It’s the night of February 28th, 1482, outside Alhama in the Emirate of Granada, in the south of what is now Spain.

Juan Ortega de Prado signals to his men and creeps forward through the darkness. His small squad of soldiers is divided into pairs - each carrying a ladder between them.

The night is cold and clear and their breath leaves a trail of fog behind them, silver in the moonlight - but that’s the only indication of their advance. Juan and his men move silently through the scrubland surrounding the city, and those guarding Alhama have no idea what’s coming.

For more than seven centuries the Iberian Peninsula has been split between two opposing forces: Christianity and Islam. Once, Muslim rulers controlled almost the entire area. But Christian counterattacks have gradually pushed them back. Now, only one Islamic kingdom remains: the Emirate of Granada, in the far south. And now, even they must face a Christian attack. A Spanish army has the city surrounded. But rather than risk a costly mass assault, the Spanish general has decided to send in a small squad to infiltrate the city by night and open the gates from within.

When Juan and his soldiers reach the imposing walls, they spread out and gently place their ladders against the stone.

Juan goes up first and when he reaches the top of the ladder, he slides his sword from its scabbard and slowly raises his head above the battlements.

A single guard dozes at his station. So, Juan smiles. Their stealthy advance has worked. He gestures for the men waiting below to climb their ladders, and then he scrambles over the battlements as quietly as he can.

He claps a gloved hand over the startled sentry’s mouth and then presses his blade to his neck. Juan hisses in the man’s ear, demanding to know the direction of the gatehouse. After the sentry points the way… Juan then kills him so he can’t raise the alarm.

As the man’s body drops to the floor, the rest of Juan’s soldiers emerge from the darkness to join him on the top. When they’re all assembled, Juan signals the way. It’s time to open the gates.

After only a few minutes of fierce fighting, Juan Ortega de Prado and his men will succeed in opening the gates for the rest of the Spanish Army. The city of Alhama will soon fall. But its capture will be just the beginning of a new conflict, a crusade that will last almost a decade and end with the surrender of the last Muslim ruler in Spain on January 2nd, 1492.

Introduction

From Noiser and Airship, I’m Lindsay Graham and this is History Daily.

History is made every day. On this podcast—every day—we tell the true stories of the people and events that shaped our world.

Today is January 2nd, 1492: The End of Islamic Spain.

Act One: Crusade

It’s October 19th, 1469, in the chapel of the royal palace in the Spanish city of Valladolid, almost 13 years before the fall of Alhama.

18-year-old Princess Isabella of Castile waits by the altar, smiling nervously at the Archbishop of Toledo. Both Isabella and the archbishop have been waiting in the cold silence of the chapel for some time. There’s one person still to arrive—and they can’t go forward with the service without him. Isabella is about to get married—and the person missing is her future husband, the 17-year-old Prince Ferdinand of Aragon.

Eventually, the door opens, and Ferdinand strides into the chapel. Isabella glances shyly at him as he takes his place by her side. Isabella and Ferdinand barely know each other—they only met for the first time a few days ago. But no one cares if the two young royals even like each other, because this is not a love match. This is a marriage for diplomacy.

750 years ago, Europe was invaded by the Umayyad Caliphate. The Europeans called these Muslim newcomers the “Moors”, and they conquered almost the entire Iberian Peninsula—the landmass that includes modern-day Portugal and Spain. They called the land Al-Andalus. But Christian armies then counterattacked and gradually regained control of most of the peninsula, pushing the Moors back and setting up Catholic monarchs to rule in their place. And today, centuries later, two of those Christian kingdoms are to be united. Ferdinand is the King of Aragon’s eldest son, and Isabella is next in line to the throne of Castile. Their marriage will eventually merge the two kingdoms into the most powerful state on the Iberian Peninsula.

The archbishop clears his throat and begins the wedding ceremony. First, he unfurls a scroll and reads a Papal decree. Since Isabella and Ferdinand are second cousins, they need special permission from the Pope to marry. This decree seems to give them the go-ahead, but Isabella knows a secret—the text the archbishop is reading is fake.

The Pope does not want Aragon and Castile to be joined. A powerful united Spain could eventually threaten his own standing in Europe. So, he refused to grant Ferdinand and Isabella permission to marry. Their families had no intention of letting that stop them however, and decided to forge the Pope’s decree instead.

The Archbishop of Toledo either doesn’t notice the forgery or chooses to ignore it. And no one else in the chapel interrupts to question the decree’s validity. Isabella and Ferdinand soon exchange rings and make their vows. The first part of the grand plan to unite Spain has been completed.

Five years later, in 1474, the King of Castile dies, and Isabella assumes the throne. In the early part of her reign, she sees off an invasion by the King of neighboring Portugal who tries to steal her crown. And she starts mending her relationship with the Catholic Church which was damaged following her secret marriage. Then, in 1479, her husband Ferdinand’s father dies, and the thrones of Castile and Aragon are effectively united as planned. A new nation is born: Spain.

But this new country has an old problem. The southern part of the Iberian Peninsula is still an Islamic kingdom. For years, the Emirate of Granada has been a thorn in the side of the Christian kings and queens of Castile and Aragon. Full-blown war has been avoided, but tit-for-tat raids and skirmishes have continued all along the contested border between kingdoms.

In late 1481, the Emir of Granada orders his troops across the border on another raid. They attack Zahara in the mountains of southern Castile, seizing the town and enslaving its entire Christian population.

This attack is a provocation too far. Christians across Europe demand revenge for the sack of Zahara —and Queen Isabella has to respond. A few weeks later, a Spanish army invades Granada. Their target is Alhama, a fortress city that occupies an important strategic position between the capital of Granada and the port of Malaga on the coast.

To hide their presence, the Spanish generals have their forces move by night. And when they reach Alhama, the Muslim troops stationed there are taken by surprise, and the city quickly falls.

Isabella’s troops will then use the fortress as a staging post for a full-scale invasion of Granada. A new crusade is about to begin. But now the Islamic kingdom knows the Spanish are coming, and the road to victory will become much more difficult before the war for Granada is finally decided by cunning, bloodshed—and treachery.

Act Two: Siege

It’s December 1489 outside the city of Baza, seven years after the Spanish launched their invasion of the Emirate of Granada.

Queen Isabella, now 38 years old, peers out of her carriage as it shakes down a muddy mountain track. She is accompanied by a sprawling convoy of lords and ladies, as well as musicians who signal the Queen’s approach with the call of trumpets, clarions, and drums.

Ahead, Isabella can see the countless tents and fluttering banners of the Spanish army camp. And beyond it, framed by mountains in the distance, is the besieged city of Baza. It’s been surrounded for months but is yet to fall to Spanish troops, and many in the camp are beginning to doubt, it ever will.

To the frustration of Isabella and her husband Ferdinand, the fall of Alhama in 1482 did not lead to a collapse of Muslim forces elsewhere in Granada. The Spanish advance through the Emirate was slow until they received an unexpected advantage. A Muslim prince known to the Spanish as Boabdil rebelled against his father, and Granada descended into civil war. The Spanish were quick to take advantage of their divided enemy. And in 1483, they defeated a large Muslim force and captured Boabdil himself.

But Isabella and Ferdinand didn’t execute Boabdil. Instead, they offered him a deal. They promised to release him, support his attempt to seize the throne of Granada and allow him to keep the territory around the capital. All they asked in return was his help in conquering the rest of the emirate.

Boabdil had little choice but to agree, and since his release from Spanish captivity, he has seemed true to his word. Two years ago in 1487, the Spanish laid siege to the port of Malaga. Boabdil ensured that no aid was allowed to reach the besieged garrison, and after three months, the city surrendered.

Emboldened, the Spanish then moved on to Baza. Again Boabdil blocked the rescue effort from reaching the city. But the garrison inside Baza still refused to surrender. Now, Queen Isabella herself has decided to see what’s causing the delay.

When she questions her commanders, Isabella discovers that they think Baza still has ample supplies of food and weaponry. Spanish attempts to end the siege early by attacking the city have failed with great loss of life. And now, with winter causing hardship in the camp, Isabella’s generals advise her to lift the siege and retreat.

But Isabella has no intention of giving up. With Boabdil successfully keeping Muslim relief forces away, she knows it's just a matter of time before the city surrenders. She just has to keep her own troops motivated enough to continue the siege. So, she refuses to hide away in her tent. And instead, makes regular inspections of the troops, making it clear to her soldiers that she is here to lead the Crusade in person. Her presence strengthens the resolve of the Spanish army. But her appearance in camp doesn’t just change the atmosphere there. Word of her presence on the frontline also reaches Baza. Inside the city, the defending garrison begins to lose hope. They thought they could outlast the Spanish. But now that Isabella has staked her personal authority on the success of the siege, they realize the Spanish are here to stay.

Over the next few weeks, the garrison’s resistance withers. And eventually, the ruler of the city agrees to negotiate a settlement. Baza surrenders and the Spanish take control with a minimum of violence.

But the fall of Baza isn’t just a Spanish success. The ruler of the city was also Boabdil’s last rival for power in Granada. With his capture, Boabdil gains full control of the Islamic kingdom. But thanks to the Spanish campaign, the Emirate of Granada has shrunk considerably over the past few years. It now comprises little more than the city of Granada itself and a few surrounding territories.

It’s made clear to Boabdil that if he wants to keep even this much-reduced kingdom, he will have to remain a vassal of Isabella and Ferdinand forever. But Boabdil soon grows unhappy, believing that Isabella and Ferdinand have gone back on their word, and that the land they promised to him is instead being occupied and administered by the Spanish.

In early 1491, Boabdil will rebel against his former allies and try to take back lands he believes are his. But he’ll stand little chance against the might of Spain. After Alhama, Malaga, and Baza, soon it will be the great city of Granada that will fall.

Act Three: Victory

It’s January 2nd, 1492, at a river crossing outside the city of Granada, two years after the Spanish army captured Baza.

Queen Isabella of Castile sits on a horse beside her husband, King Ferdinand of Aragon. Dressed in their most magnificent robes, they look on with regal superiority as their defeated enemies march out of the city in a slow procession. Their heads are bent, their clothes are threadbare, and some of them are so emaciated they can barely walk. After an eight-month siege, the people of Granada have come to surrender.

When Boabdil rose up against his former Christian allies, he knew he would need help if his tiny emirate was to survive. He sent messages pleading for aid from other Muslim leaders in Africa and Arabia. But no help came. And after the people of Granada began to starve, Boabdil had no choice but to give up and negotiate a peace. And today, the gates of Granada have been opened to the Spanish conquerors, and Isabella and Ferdinand are on hand to celebrate their final victory over the Moors.

And when the procession comes closer, Isabella spots Boabdil. He dismounts from his horse and bows before the Spanish monarchs. The city is theirs.

And after the official surrender, Isabella and Ferdinand ride into Granada and head straight for the sprawling splendor of the Alhambra Palace. Isabella enters the Hall of Kings with her hand resting gently on the arm of her husband. She gazes in wonder at the intricate plasterwork on every wall and surface. For 250 years, this palace has been home of the Emirs of Granada. Now, it belongs to Isabella and Ferdinand.

The final remnants of Islamic Spain will soon all be swept away. Granada will be incorporated into the kingdom of Castile. Its citizens will be forcibly converted to Christianity. And the last Emir, Boabdil, will spend the rest of his life in exile. More than 750 years after the Umayyad Caliphate seized control of the Iberian Peninsula, the Christian reconquest will be complete after Granada surrendered to Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand, the first monarchs of unified Spain, on January 2nd, 1492.

Outro

Next on History Daily. January 3rd, 1777. General George Washington snatches victory from the jaws of defeat at the Battle of Princeton.

From Noiser and Airship, this is History Daily, hosted, edited, and executive produced by me, Lindsay Graham.

Audio editing by Muhammad Shahzaib.

Sound design by Matthew Filler.

Music by Thrumm.

This episode is written and researched by Owen Long.

Edited by Scott Reeves.

Managing producer, Emily Burke.

Executive Producers are William Simpson for Airship, and Pascal Hughes for Noiser.