OTTOMAN CORSAIRS IN THE WESTERN ... - Bilkent University

1.2. Reconquista and its aftermath
In January 1492, the last Muslim state in the Iberian Peninsula vanished as a
result of a treaty of surrender between the last Muslim ruler of Granada Abu Abdullah (r.
1482-1492) 45 and the Catholic kings, Isabella and Fernando. The remnants of the once
powerful Muslim State in the region had already been weakened by the internal strives
which the cunning Fernando did not hesitate to take advantage of. One of the
contenders, Abu Abdullah appeared as the agent of Spain in the dynastic struggle. In
1487 Malaga was captured by the Spaniards, only to be followed by the total submission
of Abu Abdullah in 1489. Nevertheless, due to the unrest among the population, he
reversed his policy whose repercussions sealed the fate of the last Muslim kingdom in
Iberian Peninsula. Fortunately for Muslims, the treaty between the people of Granada
and the Catholic Kings allowed a certain level of tolerance (the right to retain property,
free practice of religion, the acceptance of Islamic jurisdiction, etc.). The same year, it
would be decided to expel the Jews from the peninsula if they choose to reject
conversion. Nonetheless, Muslims did not suffer the same fate at first since they were
granted religious freedom. Unlike Jews, the Muslim community in the Peninsula made
up a large community whose economic importance was blatant. Furthermore, they were
spread throughout both kingdoms. Thus, instead of expulsion, a policy of conversion
would be followed. 46 Conversion was a goal of the Church; thus a campaign for the
conversion was launched as a natural consequence. However, at the beginning, this was
done with educational and evangelistic means. Faced by a severe resistance by the local
45 Boabdil in Spanish sources.
46 Andrew Hess, “The Moriscos: An Ottoman Fifth Column is the Sixteenth-Century Spain”, American
Historical Review, LXXIV (October 1968), pp. 3-4.
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