The Story of the Nations: PortugalStephens, H. Morse (Henry Morse)
History
The Story of the Nations: Portugal
Stephens, H. Morse (Henry Morse)
Portugal -- History
Ferdinand “the Great” was succeeded in his three kingdoms of Castile,
Leon, and Gallicia, by his three sons, Sancho, Alfonso, and Garcia, the
last of whom received the two counties of Coimbra and Oporto as fiefs
of Gallicia, and maintained Nuno Mendes and Sesnando as his feudatories.
Under them were many feudal barons, who held their lands on condition of
military service. It is fortunately not necessary to enter into the
history of the wars between the sons of Ferdinand; it is enough to say
that the second of them, Alfonso of Leon, eventually united all his
father’s kingdoms in 1073, as Alfonso VI. The successes of the
Christians aroused the stubborn resistance of the Moors; a fresh wave of
fanaticism passed over the Mohammedans of Africa and of the peninsula,
and a new dynasty, that of the Almoravides arose, which subdued the
various emīrs and wālis who had usurped the government of various
portions of the old Ommeyad caliphate, and once more united the Moorish
power. The new dynasty collected great Moslem armies, and in 1086
Yūsuf Ibn Teshfīn routed Alfonso utterly at the battle of Zalaca,
and reconquered the peninsula up to the Ebro. In this battle all the
chivalry of the Moors and Christians was engaged, and among the latter
was Sesnando, Count of Coimbra, followed by his knights. Alfonso tried
to compensate for this defeat and his loss of territory in the east of
his dominions by conquests in the west, and in 1093 he advanced to the
Tagus and took Santarem and Lisbon, and made Sueiro Mendes count of the
new district. But these conquests he did not hold for long; the
Almoravides were in the full flush of success, and their armies were
made almost irresistible by the fresh fanaticism inspired into them.
Their conquests in the east of the peninsula after the battle of Zalaca
were followed by rapid successes in the west. In 1093 Seyr, the general
of the Almoravide caliph Yūsuf, took Evora from the Emīr of
Badajoz; in 1094 he took Badajoz itself, and killed the emīr; and
retaking Lisbon and Santarem forced his way up to the Mondego. To resist
this revival of the Mohammedan power, Alfonso summoned the chivalry of
Christendom to his aid. Among the knights who joined his army eager to
win their spurs, and win dominions for themselves were Count Raymond of
Toulouse and Count Henry of Burgundy. To the former, Alfonso gave his
legitimate daughter Urraca and Gallicia; to the latter, his illegitimate
daughter Theresa, and the counties of Oporto and Coimbra, with the title
of Count of Portugal.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account