Great preparations were made throughout Castile and Aragon for the prosecution of the war, but the army actually assembled before Loja on July 1--16,000 men--fell far short of Ferdinand’s requirements and expectations. The town was ably defended by one of the bravest Moorish chieftains, Ali Atar, who repulsed the Christians with severe loss. The King of Aragon narrowly escaped with his life, and was compelled to beat a retreat. Abu-l-Hassan swept the country as far as the Rio Frio. Such a success, if it had been followed up, might have turned the scale in favour of the Moors. But at Granada, treason always followed closely on the heels of victory. Years before, a beautiful Christian captive, Doña Isabel de Solis, daughter of the Governor of Martos, had been added to the Sultan’s harem. Under the name of Zoraya, in the course of time, she bore him a son, Abu Abdullah, and rose to the rank of favourite Sultana.[C] Now, jealous, it is said, of a Greek slave, or perhaps antagonised by the first Sultana, Ayesha, she fomented a conspiracy against her aged lord, and was imprisoned with her son in the Alhambra. Thence they contrived to escape, and, exciting the populace in their favour, obliged Abu-l-Hassan to seek refuge at Malaga. Abu Abdullah, better known as Boabdil, or el Chico (the little), reigned in his stead, but Baza, Guadix, and other eastern towns remained faithful to their old allegiance. These dissensions among the Moors, though ultimately benefiting the Spaniards, contributed indirectly to one of the most serious disasters that befell the latter during the campaign. For an expedition against Malaga, headed by the Marquis of Cadiz and the Grandmaster of Santiago, while threading its way through the passes of the Ajarquia, was attacked by the lieutenants of the old lion, Abu-l-Hassan, and cut to pieces. Eight hundred Spaniards were left dead on the field. Boabdil, emulous of the glory his father had acquired, marched out of Granada with 9700 men, and gave battle to the enemy under the Count of Cabra, near Lucena. The Moors were totally defeated, their bravest general, Ali Atar, was slain, and Boabdil himself captured by a private soldier, named Martin Hurtado.