The siege of Al-Dāmūs was a battle of the

Reconquista The ' (Spanish, Portuguese and Galician for "reconquest") is a historiographical construction describing the 781-year period in the history of the Iberian Peninsula between the Umayyad conquest of Hispania in 711 and the fall of the Nasrid ...

that occurred in the year 1210. The forces of the

Kingdom of Aragon The Kingdom of Aragon ( an, Reino d'Aragón, ca, Regne d'Aragó, la, Regnum Aragoniae, es, Reino de Aragón) was a medieval and early modern kingdom on the Iberian Peninsula, corresponding to the modern-day autonomous community of Aragon, ...

, together with auxiliary forces of the

Knights Templar , colors = White mantle with a red cross , colors_label = Attire , march = , mascot = Two knights riding a single horse , equipment ...

and

Knights Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic Church, Catholic Military ord ...

, were pitted against the defending forces of the

Almohades The Almohad Caliphate (; ar, خِلَافَةُ ٱلْمُوَحِّدِينَ or or from ar, ٱلْمُوَحِّدُونَ, translit=al-Muwaḥḥidūn, lit=those who profess the unity of God) was a North African Berber Muslim empire fo ...

. The

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

forces defeated the

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

defenders. This battle was significant because in taking the castle at

Ademuz Ademuz is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in the Comarques of the Valencian Community, ''comarca'' of Rincón de Ademuz in the Valencia (autonomous community), Valencian Community, Spain. The name in Valencian language, Valencian is ''Adem ...

, the Christian forces riled their Muslim opponents to initiate a grand offensive that would eventually culminate in the

Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa The Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa, known in Islamic history as the Battle of Al-Uqab ( ar, معركة العقاب), took place on 16 July 1212 and was an important turning point in the ''Reconquista'' and the medieval history of Spain. The Christ ...

. This offensive, in turn, marked the end of the

Islamic Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the mai ...

domination of the region and the beginning of Christian rule in the province.

Context

In 1210, the

Almohad The Almohad Caliphate (; ar, خِلَافَةُ ٱلْمُوَحِّدِينَ or or from ar, ٱلْمُوَحِّدُونَ, translit=al-Muwaḥḥidūn, lit=those who profess the Tawhid, unity of God) was a North African Berbers, Berber M ...

Empire, who controlled the

Balearic Islands The Balearic Islands ( es, Islas Baleares ; or ca, Illes Balears ) are an archipelago in the Balearic Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula. The archipelago is an autonomous community and a province of Spain; its capital is ...

(conquered in 1203), launched a great incursion into the

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

coast led by Abubola the Elder.Antoni Rovira i Virgili, Història Nacional de Catalunya, volumen IV, pág. 458-9 The Muslim forces, being the combined forces from the

Maghreb The Maghreb (; ar, الْمَغْرِب, al-Maghrib, lit=the west), also known as the Arab Maghreb ( ar, المغرب العربي) and Northwest Africa, is the western part of North Africa and the Arab world. The region includes Algeria, ...

and

Al-Andalus Al-Andalus DIN 31635, translit. ; an, al-Andalus; ast, al-Ándalus; eu, al-Andalus; ber, ⴰⵏⴷⴰⵍⵓⵙ, label=Berber languages, Berber, translit=Andalus; ca, al-Àndalus; gl, al-Andalus; oc, Al Andalús; pt, al-Ândalus; es, ...

, disembarked and began pillaging the countryside seizing much booty and captives in the process. In March 1210, in response to the Almohad incursion, King

Peter II of Aragon Peter II the Catholic (; ) (July 1178 – 12 September 1213) was the King of Aragon and Count of Barcelona from 1196 to 1213. Background Peter was born in Huesca, the son of Alfonso II of Aragon and Sancha of Castile. In 1205 he acknowled ...

, who was at the time in the city of

Monzón Monzón is a small city and municipality in the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. Its population was 17,176 as of 2014. It is in the northeast (specifically the Cinca Medio district of the province of Huesca) and adjoins the rivers Cinca and ...

, gathered an army to attack the Moors of the

Taifa of Valencia The Taifa of Valencia () was a medieval Moorish taifa kingdom which existed, in and around Valencia, Spain during four distinct periods: from 1010 to 1065, from 1075 to 1099, from 1145 to 1147 and last from 1229 to 1238 when it was finally co ...

. Within the objectives of this campaign lay ''Al-Dāmūs'' (Spanish:

), one of the fortresses that formed the defensive net of the

Turia River The Turia or Túria ( ca-valencia, Riu Túria ; es, link=no, Río Turia ; la, Tūria) is a river in Spain, which has its source in the Montes Universales in the mountain ranges of the northwesternmost end of the Sistema Ibérico, Teruel pro ...

Siege

In the middle of 1210, Al-Dāmūs was conquered by

with the help of the

and the

Knights Templar , colors = White mantle with a red cross , colors_label = Attire , march = , mascot = Two knights riding a single horse , equipment ...

. Among the knights who participated in the campaign were Ramón de Castillazuelo,

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Zaragoza Zaragoza, also known in English as Saragossa,''Encyclopædia Britannica'"Zaragoza (conventional Saragossa)" is the capital city of the Zaragoza Province and of the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributari ...

, García de Gúdal, Bishop of Osca, García Frontín I, Bishop of

Tarazona Tarazona is a town and municipality in the Tarazona y el Moncayo comarca, province of Zaragoza, in Aragon, Spain. It is the capital of the Tarazona y el Moncayo Aragonese comarca. It is also the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tarazona. H ...

, Jimeno Cornel, García Romeo, Artal II de Alagón, Blasco Romeo, Pero Sesé, Ato I de Foces, Guillem I de Cervelló, Guillem de Peralta, Arnaldo Palacín, Arnaldo de Alascó, Adam de Alascó, Don Atorella, Sancho de Antillón, Guillem III de Montcada, Guillem Ramon III de Montcada, Seneschal of

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the north ...

, and Guillem d'Òdena. From the Templars was Pedro de Montagut.

Consequences

The offensive continued until the Christian forces finally took the Castle of Serreilla. Pedro del Pomar was charged by King

to repopulate all the lands won by the conquest with Christians from the surrounding kingdoms. The loss of

and the devastation caused by the campaign, troubled the

so much that they sent a delegation of nobles from Xarq al-Ándalus to

Marrakech Marrakesh or Marrakech ( or ; ar, مراكش, murrākuš, ; ber, ⵎⵕⵕⴰⴽⵛ, translit=mṛṛakc}) is the fourth largest city in the Kingdom of Morocco. It is one of the four Imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakes ...

to beg

Muhammad al-Nasir Muhammad al-Nasir (,'' al-Nāṣir li-dīn Allāh Muḥammad ibn al-Manṣūr'', – 1213) was the fourth Almohad Caliph from 1199 until his death. Évariste Lévi-Provençalal-Nāṣir Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition. Brill Online, 2013 ...

for reinforcements. This was one of the motivating factors that led to the launch of the Muslim expedition that would culminate in the

in 1212. This would in turn end the supremacy of

in the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula (), ** * Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica'' ** ** * french: Péninsule Ibérique * mwl, Península Eibérica * eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...

. The fortress fell into

hands later in 1210 in an offensive that also recaptured

Castielfabib Castielfabib is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in the Comarques of the Valencian Community, ''comarca'' of Rincón de Ademuz in the Valencia (autonomous community), Valencian Community, Spain. Geography Known as "the small Albarrací ...

, but failed to reach Moya.

References

* The information and sources of this article were translated from its Spanish equivalent.

Bibliography

* Eslava Blasco, Raúl: ''Ademuz y su patrimonio histórico-artístico''. Ademuz, 2007. {{DEFAULTSORT:Siege of Al-Damus 1210 in Europe Dāmūs Damus Damus Al-Damus Damus Damus 13th century in Aragon Damus 13th century in Al-Andalus Dāmūs

Context

Siege

Consequences

See also

References

Bibliography