سقوط المرية بيد النصارى سنة ٥٤٢
سقوط المرية بيد النصارى سنة ٥٤٢
c. 17 October 1147 CE · c. 17 Jumada I 542 AH
The sack of Almeria (Friday 17 Jumada I 542): the Castilian-Genoese force under Alfonso VII — 'the emperor, son of Alfonso's daughter' — stormed the harbour city and carried off fourteen thousand maidens alone; the hafiz Ibn Hubaysh won his household's freedom by reciting the emperor's pedigree back to Heraclius, and the traditionist al-Rushati was martyred in its fall. The Almohads Abd al-Mu'min's sons recovered it — fighting Christians within and Ibn Mardanish without until he withdrew in shame at fighting men who fought the Christians 1.
At a glance
- Era
- Abbasid Fragmentation
- Region
- al-Andalus & Europe
- Review
- Draft Completeness 1/5 · Help complete it
In time
Overview
Al-Maqqari reports that the enemy entered the city of Almeria by force on Friday the seventeenth of Jumada I 542 AH, and then the Almohads recovered it. 1
The fall
He says that the number of virgins taken captive was counted at fourteen thousand. Al-Rashati, author of "Iqtibas al-Anwar", was martyred in it. 2
He reports from Ibn Habish that he was in the castle on the day of the taking, and mentioned his lineage to the chief of the Romans as descending from Heraclius. The chief said to him: "Go out, you and your family and those with you, free without anything." 3
The recovery
The two sons of the Commander of the Faithful, Abu Hafs and Abu Sa'id, came to it and besieged the Christians, and Ibn Mardanish advanced against them in war. The affair continued until Ibn Mardanish saw shame in fighting them while they fought the Christians, and he left. The Almohads entered the city. 3
Connections
- Had participant
- الرشاطي المري· ابن حبيش الحافظ· ابن مردنيش صاحب شرق الأندلس
People and things also explored
ابن حوط الله الأنصاري· الرشاطي المري· ابن حبيش الحافظ· ابن مردنيش صاحب شرق الأندلس· The Weepers (al-bakka'un)· The army of hardship (jaysh al-usra)· Staying behind from the Tabuk expedition· The plot of Amir ibn al-Tufayl and Arbad ibn Qays
Sources
- Nafh al-Tib min Ghusn al-Andalus al-Ratib — al-Maqqari, p. 466-467
- Nafh al-Tib min Ghusn al-Andalus al-Ratib — al-Maqqari, p. 466
- Nafh al-Tib min Ghusn al-Andalus al-Ratib — al-Maqqari, p. 467
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “سقوط المرية بيد النصارى سنة ٥٤٢”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/fall-of-almeria-542/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed 2026-10-17.