Battle of Sagrajas
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Battle of Sagrajas | |||||||
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Part of the Reconquista | |||||||
Battle of Sagrajas | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Kingdom of León Kingdom of Castile Kingdom of Aragon | |||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Alfonso VI Álvar Fáñez Sancho Ramírez of Aragon |
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Strength | |||||||
2,500[2][3] | 7,500[a] | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
2,000[b] | 3,000[c] |
The Battle of Sagrajas (23 October 1086), also called Zalaca or Zallaqah (
Preparations
After
Alfonso VI abandoned the siege of Zaragoza, recalled his troops from
Alfonso VI of León and Castile reached the battleground with some 2,500 men, including 1,500 cavalry, of which 750 were knights, some of whom were Jewish,[8][9][10] but found himself outnumbered. The two leaders exchanged messages before the battle. Yusuf ibn Tashfin is reputed to have offered three choices to the Castilians: convert to Islam, to pay tribute (jizyah), or battle.[11]
Battle
The battle started on Friday at dawn with an attack from Castile. Yusuf ibn Tashfin divided his army into three divisions. The first division was led by Abbad III al-Mu'tamid, the second division was led by Yusuf ibn Tashfin, and the third division consisted of black African warriors with Talwars and long javelins. Abbad III al-Mu'tamid and his division battled with Alfonso VI alone till the afternoon, then Yusuf ibn Tashfin and his division joined the battle and encircled Alfonso VI and his troops. Alfonso's troops panicked and started to lose ground, then Yusuf ordered the third division of his army to attack and finish the battle.
Aftermath
More than half the Castilian army was lost. One source claims that only 500 cavalrymen returned to Castile, although others do not support this low figure, so it seems that most of the nobility survived. The dead included counts Rodrigo Muñoz and Vela Ovéquiz. King Alfonso VI sustained an injury to one leg that caused him to limp for the rest of his life.
Casualties were also heavy on the
The battle was a decisive victory for the Almoravids but their losses meant that it was not possible to follow it up, and Yusuf had to return prematurely to Africa due to the death of his heir. Castile suffered almost no loss of territory and was able to retain the city of Toledo, occupied the previous year. However, the Christian advance was halted for several generations while both sides regrouped.
Notes
Citations
- ^ Dupuy, R. Ernest and Trevor N. Dupuy, The Harper Encyclopedia of Military history, (HarperCollins Publishers, 1993), 324.
- ^ Lewis, David Levering, God's Crucible, (New York: W & W Norton Inc, 2008), 364.
- ^ Bernard F. Reilly, The Contest of Christian and Muslim Spain: 1031-1157, (Wiley-Blackwell, 1996), 88; " To the battle which took place on October 23, 1086, at Zalaca just north of Badajoz, Alfonso brought an army that numbered about 2,500 men...".
- ^ Lewis, God's Crucible, 361, 364; "Yusuf had the advantage of number--probably three times larger than those under Alfonso's command after the arrival of King 'Abd Allah of Granada."
- ^ a b Ronald A. Messier, The Almoravids and the Meanings of Jihad, (ABC-CLIO, 2010), 207.
- ^ O'Callaghan, Joseph F.(1983), 208 and 209
- ^ O'Callaghan, Joseph F.(1983), 209
- ^ France, John, Western Warfare in the Age of the Crusades, 1000–1300, 162.
- ISBN 9780679410652.
- ISBN 9780801444012.
- ^ David Levering Lewis, 364; "Faithful to the precedent set by the prophet Muhammad, Yusuf sent a messenger to offer Alfonso three alternatives; convert to Islam; submit to the protection of Islam; decide their differences on the battlefield.".
- ^ "Ibn Khaldūn – Muslim historian". britannica.com. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
References
- Dupuy, R. Ernest and Trevor N. Dupuy, The Harper Encyclopedia of Military History, HarperCollins Publishers, 1993.
- France, John, Western Warfare in the Age of the Crusades, 1000–1300 (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1999), ISBN 0-8014-8607-6
- Heath, I. (1989). Armies of Feudal Europe 1066–1300 (2nd ed.). Wargames Research Group.
- Kennedy, H. (1996). Muslim Spain and Portugal: A political history of al-Andalus. London: Longman.
- Lewis, David Levering, God's Crucible: Islam and the Making of Europe, 570 to 1215 (New York: W & W Norton Inc, 2008), ISBN 0-393-06472-7.
- Livermore, H. V. (1966) A New History of Portugal. Cambridge University Press.
- Nicolle, D. (1988) El Cid and the Reconquista 1050–1492 (Men-at-Arms 200). Osprey.
- Smith, C. (1989–92) Christians and Moors in Spain, Aris & Phillips