The Taifa of Seville ( ''Ta'ifat-u Ishbiliyyah'') was an
Arab
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
kingdom which was ruled by the
Abbadid
The Abbadid dynasty or Abbadids ( ar, بنو عباد, Banū ʿAbbādi) was an Arab Muslim dynasty which arose in al-Andalus on the downfall of the Caliphate of Cordoba (756–1031). After the collapse, there were multiple small Muslim states ca ...
dynasty. It was established in 1023 and lasted until 1091, in what is today southern
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
and
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
. It gained independence from the Caliphate of Cordoba and it expanded the territory it ruled in the mid-11th century. The emerging power of
Castile led Seville to ask military assistance from the
Almoravids
The Almoravid dynasty ( ar, المرابطون, translit=Al-Murābiṭūn, lit=those from the ribats) was an imperial Berber Muslim dynasty centered in the territory of present-day Morocco. It established an empire in the 11th century that ...
, who then occupied Seville.
History
The ''
taifa
The ''taifas'' (singular ''taifa'', from ar, طائفة ''ṭā'ifa'', plural طوائف ''ṭawā'if'', a party, band or faction) were the independent Muslim principalities and kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula (modern Portugal and Spain), re ...
'' (principality) began as a small, weakly-defended territory comprising parts of the modern Spanish provinces of
Seville
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...
,
Huelva
Huelva (, ) is a city in southwestern Spain, the capital of the province of Huelva in the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is between two short rias though has an outlying spur including nature reserve on the Gulf of Cádiz coast. The rias ...
, and
Cádiz
Cádiz (, , ) is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the Province of Cádiz, one of eight that make up the autonomous community of Andalusia.
Cádiz, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Western Europe, ...
, but quickly emerged as the most powerful taifa of the time, after its rulers began a policy of expansion.
The first emir of Seville was
Abu al-Qasim
The name Abu al-Qasim or Abu'l-Qasim ( ar, أبو القاسم), meaning ''father of Qasim'', is a kunya or attributive name of Islamic prophet Muhammad, describing him as father to his son Qasim ibn Muhammad. Since then the name has been used by ...
(1023–1042). He was
qadi
A qāḍī ( ar, قاضي, Qāḍī; otherwise transliterated as qazi, cadi, kadi, or kazi) is the magistrate or judge of a '' sharīʿa'' court, who also exercises extrajudicial functions such as mediation, guardianship over orphans and mino ...
of
Seville
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...
and declared independence from the
Caliphate of Córdoba
The Caliphate of Córdoba ( ar, خلافة قرطبة; transliterated ''Khilāfat Qurṭuba''), also known as the Cordoban Caliphate was an Islamic state ruled by the Umayyad dynasty from 929 to 1031. Its territory comprised Iberia and parts o ...
after its downfall in 1031, becoming Abbad I, emir of Seville. His son,
Abbad II al-Mu'tadid
Abu ʿAmr ʿAbbad II al-Muʿtadid (; died 28 February 1069), a member of the Abbadid dynasty, was the second independent emir of Seville (reigned 1042–1069) in Al-Andalus. His father, Abu al-Qasim Muhammad ibn Abbad, had established the Taifa o ...
(1042–1069) who succeeded him, expanded the taifa by conquering
Mertola,
Niebla,
Saltés and Huelva,
Silves Silves may refer to :
Europe
* Silves, Portugal, municipality and former bishopric in Algarve, southern Portugal
** Silves (parish), a civil parish in the municipality of Silves
** Castle of Silves, a medieval castle in civil parish of Silves
...
,
Santa María de Algarve during his reign.
His son,
Muhammad al-Mu'tamid
Al-Mu'tamid Muhammad ibn Abbad al-Lakhmi ( ar, المعتمد محمد ابن عباد بن اسماعيل اللخمي; reigned c. 1069–1091, lived 1040–1095), also known as Abbad III, was the third and last ruler of the Taifa of Sevi ...
(1069–1091), turned Seville into a major centre of Ibero-Muslim culture. He seized Córdoba in 1071, and maintained a precarious hold on the city until 1091 (with a brief interlude in 1075–1078). While his vizier and fellow poet
Ibn Ammar, conquered
Murcia
Murcia (, , ) is a city in south-eastern Spain, the capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of the Region of Murcia, and the seventh largest city in the country. It has a population of 460,349 inhabitants in 2021 (about one ...
.
Nevertheless, the Abbad dynasty felt insecure from Castile's military successes in Aragon, Valencia, and especially from the fall of Toledo in 1085 under the leadership of King
Alfonso VI
Alphons (Latinized ''Alphonsus'', ''Adelphonsus'', or ''Adefonsus'') is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic kingdom in the Iberian peninsula. ...
. Al-Mu'tamid requested assistance from the
Almoravids
The Almoravid dynasty ( ar, المرابطون, translit=Al-Murābiṭūn, lit=those from the ribats) was an imperial Berber Muslim dynasty centered in the territory of present-day Morocco. It established an empire in the 11th century that ...
, a dynasty from present-day Morocco, to fight against the Castilians. The Almoravids established themselves at
Algeciras
Algeciras ( , ) is a municipality of Spain belonging to the province of Cádiz, Andalusia. Located in the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula, near the Strait of Gibraltar, it is the largest city on the Bay of Gibraltar ( es, Bahía de Algeci ...
, and after defeating the Christians at the
Battle of Sagrajas
The Battle of Sagrajas (23 October 1086), also called Zalaca or Zallaqa ( ar, معركة الزلاقة, translit=Maʿrakat az-Zallāqa), was a battle between the Almoravid army led by their King Yusuf ibn Tashfin and an army led by the Ca ...
in 1086, occupied the other Muslim taifas, including Seville itself in 1091. Following this, the Almoravids would go on to occupy and control vast swathes of present-day Spain.
After they ravaged the city, al-Mu'tamid ordered his sons to surrender the royal fortress (the location of the present-day
Alcázar of Seville
The Royal Alcázars of Seville ( es, Reales Alcázares de Sevilla), historically known as al-Qasr al-Muriq (, ''The Verdant Palace'') and commonly known as the Alcázar of Seville (), is a royal palace in Seville, Spain, built for the Christian ...
) in order to save their lives. He was taken prisoner to
Aghmat, where he was executed in 1095.
Besides the intrigues and the eagerness for conquests of the kings, many artists of the time moved to the court of Seville, as the
Almería
Almería (, , ) is a city and municipality of Spain, located in Andalusia. It is the capital of the province of the same name. It lies on southeastern Iberia on the Mediterranean Sea. Caliph Abd al-Rahman III founded the city in 955. The city gr ...
poet
Ibn al-Abbâr and
Abû 'Âmir ibn Maslama had done.
Abû'l-Walîd al-Himyarî made a compilation of literary works of both of them.
Culture
The city used to produce a variety of
lusterware
Lustreware or lusterware (respectively the spellings for British English and American English) is a type of pottery or porcelain with a metallic glaze that gives the effect of iridescence. It is produced by metallic oxides in an overglaze finish ...
from the latter half of the 11th century. Several pieces of lusterware was found from the
Ebro valley
, name_etymology =
, image = Zaragoza shel.JPG
, image_size =
, image_caption = The Ebro River in Zaragoza
, map = SpainEbroBasin.png
, map_size =
, map_caption = The Ebro ...
which indicated decorations found similar to ceramics made in the Taifa of Seville. These ceramics bear inscriptions to two Abbadid princes of Seville, who are identified by their proper names and titles. These production centers were operated under the authority of the Abbadid princes over several decades during the late 11th century.
Symbols
Chronicles mention of a time where the Almoravids fought under a white flag, while Andalusian soldiers like Emir Al-Mu'tamid fought under different green flags with Islamic texts written on them. This is supposedly the origin of the current
Andalusia
Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a ...
n flag, currently used as the autonomous region flag, called
Arbonaida.
See also
*
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, ...
*
History of Islam
The history of Islam concerns the political, social, economic, military, and cultural developments of the Islamic civilization. Most historians believe that Islam originated in Mecca and Medina at the start of the 7th century CE. Muslims r ...
*
History of Spain
The history of Spain dates to contact the pre-Roman peoples of the Mediterranean coast of the Iberian Peninsula made with the Greeks and Phoenicians and the first writing systems known as Paleohispanic scripts were developed. During Classical A ...
*
List of Sunni Muslim dynasties
The following is a list of Sunni Muslim dynasties.
Asia
Middle East Arabian Peninsula
* Banu Wajih (926–965)
*Sharif of Mecca (967–1925)
* Al Uyuniyun (1076–1253)
*Sulaymanids (1063–1174)
*Mahdids (1159–1174)
*Kathiri (Hadhramaut) ( ...
References
External links
Brief history of Seville
{{DEFAULTSORT:Taifa Of Seville
11th century in Al-Andalus
States and territories established in 1023
1023 establishments in Europe
States and territories disestablished in 1091
1091 disestablishments in Europe
Seville
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...