But Alfonso had to give his attention to other affairs besides the intolerance of the Church. He troubled himself but little about the decision of the great council in Rome and the autograph letter of the Pope, and retained his Jewish advisers. He was just then revolving in his mind a plan of invading the kingdom of Toledo. In order to accomplish this he had to isolate its governor from the neighboring princes of his faith and race, and to be assured of their neutrality or their co-operation with himself. For that, however, he required his Jewish diplomatists, and could not entertain the idea of satisfying the importunities of the Pope. By an alliance with the noble and valiant king of Seville, Al-Mutamed Ibn-Abbad, in all probability effected by Jewish agents, Alfonso conquered the old and important town of Toledo (1085), the first bulwark of the Spanish Mahometans against the aggressive power of the Christians. The victor of Toledo assured to the Jews of this town and the territory appertaining to it, all the liberties which they had enjoyed under the Mahometan rulers. The last unfortunate Mahometan king of Toledo, Yachya Alkader, who had to take refuge in Valencia, had a Jewish confidant in his suite, who remained faithful to him long after his death, whilst his nearest friends betrayed him. Alfonso did not rest satisfied with the possession of Toledo, which was again elevated to the rank of capital, but wished to make use of the disagreements and petty jealousies of the Mahometan princes for the purpose of making fresh conquests. First of all he determined to attack the territory of the king of Seville, who also ruled over Cordova. He therefore suddenly dropped the mask of friendship, and made demands of Al-Mutamed, such as this noble prince could not in honor concede. With the perilous mission of revealing the true state of affairs to the king of Seville, and of facing him in a firm and defiant attitude, Alfonso entrusted his Jewish councillor of state, Isaac Ibn-Shalbib, instructing him not to pay any regard to the requirements of courtesy. Five hundred Christian knights accompanied Alfonso's Jewish messenger to the court of Seville, in order to lend dignity to his embassy. This commission cost Ibn-Shalbib his life. Acting in the spirit of his master, he spoke in terms so positive, and insisted so unflinchingly on the fulfilment of the demand he was charged to make, that Al-Mutamed fell into a violent passion, and transgressed the law protecting the person of an ambassador, had Ibn-Shalbib killed, nailed to a gibbet, and his followers imprisoned.