Conquest of Al-Andalus (Spain)

The conquest of Al-Andalus was one of the most rapid territorial acquisitions in Islamic history. Tariq ibn Ziyad, a freed slave who had risen to command in North Africa, crossed the Strait of Gibraltar with approximately 7,000 Berber and Arab troops. At the Battle of Guadalete (Wadi Laka) in July 711, the Visigothic army of King Roderic was decisively defeated; Roderic himself died in the battle. With Visigothic power broken in a single engagement, Tariq advanced rapidly through the peninsula. His superior, Musa ibn Nusayr, crossed with a larger force to consolidate and extend the conquest. Within three years, Muslim forces controlled most of the Iberian Peninsula. The famous speech attributed to Tariq — burning the boats and telling his men 'The sea is behind you and the enemy before you' — captures the spirit of the enterprise. Al-Andalus went on to become one of the great civilisations of the medieval world, with Córdoba as its jewel.