Просмотр кода страницы Английская Википедия:Caliphate of Córdoba

{{Английская Википедия/Панель перехода}}
{{Short description|State in Islamic Iberia (929–1031)}}
{{Infobox country
| native_name            = {{native name|ar|خلافة قرطبة}}<br>''Khilāfat Qurṭubah''
| conventional_long_name = Caliphate of Córdoba
| common_name            = Cordoba
| capital                = [[Córdoba, Spain|Córdoba]]
| government_type        = [[Theocracy|Theocratic]] [[monarchy]]
| year_start             = 929
| year_end               = 1031
| event_start            = [[Abd ar-Rahman III]] proclaimed ''[[Caliph]]''<ref>{{cite book |last=Azizur Rahman |first=Syed |title=The Story of Islamic Spain |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iRAsAQAAIAAJ&q=oath+of+allegiance |format=snippet view |access-date=5 September 2010 |year=2001 |publisher=Goodword Books |location=New Delhi |isbn=978-81-87570-57-8 |page=129 |quote=[Emir Abdullah died on] 16 Oct., 912 after 26 years of inglorious rule leaving his fragmented and bankrupt kingdom to his grandson ‘Abd ar-Rahman. The following day, the new sultan received the oath of allegiance at a ceremony held in the "Perfect salon" (al-majils al-kamil) of the Alcazar.}}</ref>
| event_end              = Disintegrated into several independent [[taifa]] kingdoms
| p1                     = Emirate of Córdoba
| s1                     = Taifa of Córdoba
| s2                     = Taifa of Dénia
| s3                     = Taifa of Zaragoza
| s4                     = Taifa of Badajoz
| common_languages       = {{flatlist|
* [[Andalusi Arabic]]
* [[Andalusi Romance]]
* [[Berber languages]]
* [[Hebrew]] ([[Medieval Hebrew]])
|}}
| religion               = {{flatlist|
Official:<br>[[Islam]]

Minority:<br>[[Christianity]], [[Judaism]]
|}}
| image_map              = Califato de Córdoba - 1000-en.svg
| image_map_caption      = Caliphate of Córdoba circa 1000 AD
| stat_year1             = 1000 est.
| stat_area1             = 600000
| stat_pop1              = 10,000,000
| today                  = [[Gibraltar]] ([[UK]])<br>[[Morocco]]<br>[[Portugal]]<br>[[Spain]]
| ref_area1              = <ref name="Taagepera495">{{cite journal|date=September 1997|title=Expansion and Contraction Patterns of Large Polities: Context for Russia|jstor=2600793|journal=[[International Studies Quarterly]]|volume=41|issue=3|page=495|doi=10.1111/0020-8833.00053|last=Taagepera|first=Rein|author-link=Rein Taagepera|url=https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3cn68807|access-date=7 September 2018}}</ref>
| p2                     = Idrisid dynasty
| s5                     = Taifa of Toledo
| s6                     = Taifa of Valencia
| s7                     = Almoravid dynasty
}}
{{Caliphate}}
{{History of the Arab States}}
{{History of al-Andalus}}

The '''Caliphate of Córdoba''' ({{lang-ar|خلافة قرطبة|translit=Khilāfat Qurṭuba}}), also known as the '''Córdoban Caliphate''', was an Arab Islamic state ruled by the [[Umayyad dynasty]] from 929 to 1031. Its territory comprised [[Al-Andalus|Iberia]] and parts of [[North Africa]], with its capital in [[Córdoba, Spain|Córdoba]]. It succeeded the [[Emirate of Córdoba]] upon the self-proclamation of Umayyad [[emir]] [[Abd ar-Rahman III]] as [[caliph]] in January 929.{{sfn|Barton|2004|p=38}} The period was characterized by an expansion of trade and culture, and saw the construction of masterpieces of [[al-Andalus]] architecture.

The caliphate disintegrated in the early 11th century during the [[Fitna of al-Andalus]], a civil war between the descendants of caliph [[Hisham II]] and the successors of his ''[[hajib]]'' (court official), [[Al-Mansur Ibn Abi Aamir|Al-Mansur]]. In 1031, after years of infighting, the caliphate fractured into a number of independent Muslim ''[[taifa]]'' (kingdoms).{{sfn|Chejne|1974|pp=43–49}}

==History==

=== Rise ===
[[Abd ar-Rahman I]] became [[emir of Córdoba]] in 756 after six years in exile after the [[Umayyad]]s lost the position of caliph in [[Damascus]] to the [[Abbasids]] in 750.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Muslim identities : an introduction to Islam|page=108|last=Hughes |first=Aaron W.|isbn=978-0231531924|location=New York |publisher=Columbia University Press |oclc=833763900|year= 2013}}</ref> Intent on regaining power, he defeated the area's existing Islamic rulers and united various local [[fiefdom]]s into an [[emirate]].{{sfn|Barton|2004|p=37}} Raids then increased the emirate's size; the first to go as far as [[Corsica]] occurred in 806.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Medieval maritime warfare|page=111|last=Stanton |first=Charles D.|isbn=978-1473856431|location=Barnsley, South Yorkshire |publisher=Pen & Sword Maritime |oclc=905696269|date = 2015-06-30}}</ref>

The emirate's rulers used the title "[[emir]]" or "[[sultan]]" until the 10th century. In the early 10th century, [[Abd ar-Rahman III]] faced a threatened invasion from North Africa by the [[Fatimid Caliphate]], a rival Shiite Islamic empire based in [[Ifriqiya]]. Since the Fatimids also claimed the [[caliphate]], in response Abd ar-Rahman III claimed the title of caliph himself.{{sfn|Barton|2004|p=38}} Prior to Abd ar-Rahman's proclamation as the caliph, the Umayyads generally recognized the Abbasid caliph of [[Baghdad]] as being the rightful rulers of the Muslim community.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title=A History of Medieval Spain|last=O'Callaghan|first=J. F.|publisher=Cornell University Press|year=1983|location=Ithaca|page=119}}</ref> Even after repulsing the Fatimids, he kept the more prestigious title.{{sfn|Reilly|1993|p=84}} Although his position as caliph was not accepted outside of al-Andalus and its North African affiliates, internally the Spanish Umayyads considered themselves as closer to Muhammad, and thus more legitimate, than the Abbasids.

=== Prosperity ===
The caliphate enjoyed increased prosperity during the 10th century. Abd ar-Rahman III united [[al-Andalus]] and brought the Christian kingdoms of the north under control by force and through diplomacy. Abd ar-Rahman III stopped the Fatimid advance into Morocco and al-Andalus in order to prevent a future invasion. The plan for a Fatimid invasion was thwarted when Abd ar-Rahman III secured [[Melilla]] in 927, [[Ceuta]] in 931, and [[Tangier]] in 951.<ref name=":0" /> In 948, the [[Idrisid dynasty|Idrisid]] emir [[Abul-Aish Ahmad]] recognised the caliphate, although he refused to allow them to occupy Tangier. The Umayyads besieged Tangier in 949 and defeated Abul-Aish, forcing him to retreat. The Umayyads then occupied the rest of northern Morocco.<ref name=":1542">{{Cite book|last=Abun-Nasr|first=Jamil|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jdlKbZ46YYkC&q=A%20history%20of%20the%20Maghrib%20in%20the%20Islamic%20period&pg=PP1|title=A history of the Maghrib in the Islamic period|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1987|isbn=0521337674|location=Cambridge}}</ref>{{Rp|63}} Although another [[Fatimid Caliphate|Fatimid]] invasion of Morocco occurred in 958 under their general, [[Jawhar (general)|Jawhar]]. [[Al-Hasan ibn Kannun|Al-Hassan II]] had to recognise the Fatimids.<ref name=":1542"/>{{Rp|75}} The Umayyads responded by invading Idrisid Morocco in 973 with their general, Ghalib. By 974, Al-Hassan II was taken to Córdoba, and the remaining Idrisids recognised Umayyad rule.<ref name=":1542"/>{{Rp|75}} This period of prosperity was marked by increasing diplomatic relations with Berber tribes in North Africa, Christian kings from the north, and with France, Germany and Constantinople.{{sfn|Chejne|1974|p=35}} The caliphate became very profitable during the reign of Abd ar-Rahman III, by increasing the public revenue to 6,245,000 dinars from Abd ar-Rahman II. The profits made during this time were divided into three parts: the payment of the salaries and maintenance of the army, the preservation of public buildings, and the needs of the caliph.<ref name=":0" /> The death of Abd ar-Rahman III led to the rise of his 46-year-old son, [[Al-Hakam II]], in 961. Al-Hakam II continued his father's policy toward Christian kings and North African rebels. Al-Hakam's reliance on his advisers was greater than his father's because the previous prosperity under Abd ar-Rahman III allowed al-Hakam II to let the caliphate run by itself. This style of rulership suited al-Hakam II since he was more interested in his scholarly and intellectual pursuits than ruling the caliphate. The caliphate was at its intellectual and scholarly peak under al-Hakam II.{{sfn|Chejne|1974|pp=37–38}}<ref name=":2">Catlos, Brain A. (2014). [https://books.google.com/books?id=7Z4WBAAAQBAJ&pg=PT44 ''Infidel Kings and Unholy Wars: Faith, Power, and Violence in the Age of Crusades and Jihad'']. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux. p. 30.</ref>

=== Fall ===
The death of al-Hakam II in 976 marked the beginning of the end of the caliphate. Before his death, al-Hakam named his only son [[Hisham II]] successor. Although the 10-year-old child was ill-equipped to be caliph, [[Al-Mansur Ibn Abi Aamir]] (top adviser to al-Hakam, also known as Almanzor), who had sworn an oath of obedience to Hisham II, pronounced him caliph. In 996, Almanzor sent an invasion force to Morocco. After three months of struggle, his forces retreated to [[Tangier]]. Almanzor then sent a powerful reinforcement under his son Abd al-Malik. The armies clashed near Tangier. The Umayyads would enter [[Fez, Morocco|Fes]] on 13 October 998 once the gates of the city were opened.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Abi Zar|first1=Ibn|title=Annotated Spanish translation: A. Huici Miranda, Rawd el-Qirtas. 2nd edition |publisher=Anubar Ediciones |last2=al-Qirtas|first2=Rawd|year=1964|isbn=84-7013-007-2|volume=1|location=Valencia|language=es}}</ref> Almanzor had great influence over [[Subh (sultana)|Subh]], the mother and regent of Hisham II. Almanzor, along with Subh, isolated Hisham in Córdoba while systematically eradicating opposition to his own rule, allowing [[Berber people|Berbers]] from Africa to migrate to al-Andalus to increase his base of support.{{sfn|Chejne|1974|pp=38–40}} While Hisham II was caliph, he was merely a figurehead.<ref name=":23">{{cite book |last1=Catlos |first1=Brian A. |title=Infidel Kings and Unholy Warriors: Faith, Power, and Violence in the Age of Crusade and Jihad |date=2014 |publisher=Farrar, Straus and Giroux |isbn=978-0-374-71205-1 |page=23 }}</ref> The power nominally held by Caliph Hisham was retained by Almanzor's sons, [[Abd al-Malik al-Muzaffar]], who died in 1008, and [[Abd al-Rahman Sanchuelo]]. However, while Abd al-Rahman was leading a raid on the Christian north, a revolt tore through Córdoba and deposed him, and he was killed when he tried to restore himself to power.{{sfn|Chejne|1974|pp=42–43}}{{sfn|Reilly|1993|pp=87–89}}

The title of caliph became symbolic, without power or influence. The death of [[Abd al-Rahman Sanchuelo]] in 1009 marked the beginning of the [[Fitna of al-Andalus]], with rivals claiming to be the new caliph, violence sweeping the caliphate, and intermittent invasions by the [[Hammudid dynasty]].<ref name=":2" /> Beset by factionalism, the caliphate crumbled in 1031 into a number of independent ''[[Taifa|taifas]]'', including the [[Taifa of Córdoba]], [[Taifa of Seville]] and [[Taifa of Zaragoza]]. The last Córdoban Caliph was [[Hisham III]] (1027–1031).

==Culture==

=== Literature and scholarship ===
Córdoba was the cultural{{sfn|Barton|2004|pp=40–41}} and intellectual centre of al-Andalus, with translations of ancient Greek texts into [[Arabic]], [[Latin]] and [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]]. During the reign of al-Hakam II, the royal library possessed an estimated 400,000 to 500,000 volumes.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{cite web |last=Slamecka |first=Vladimir |date=9 August 2018 |title=Information processing |url=https://www.britannica.com/technology/information-processing |access-date=5 October 2022 |website=Britannica |publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |quote=The Bayt al-Ḥikmah (“House of Wisdom”), founded in AD 830 in Baghdad, contained a public library with a large collection of materials on a wide range of subjects, and the 10th-century library of Caliph al-Ḥakam in Cordova, Spain, boasted more than 400,000 books.}}</ref><ref name=":242">{{Cite book|last=|first=|title=The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2009|isbn=978-0195309911|editor-last=M. Bloom|editor-first=Jonathan|location=|pages=|chapter=Córdoba|editor-last2=S. Blair|editor-first2=Sheila}}</ref> For comparison, the [[Abbey of Saint Gall]] in Switzerland contained just over 100 volumes.<ref name=":2" /> Advances in science, history, geography, philosophy, and language occurred during the Caliphate.{{sfn|Barton|2004|p=42}} Al-Andalus's prosperity and the caliph's patronage attracted travelers, diplomats and scholars. They continued the legacy of figures such as [[Ziryab]] in the 9th century by bringing in new styles of art, music, and literature from the eastern Islamic world.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|last=Catlos|first=Brian A.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xKBfDwAAQBAJ&dq=kingdoms+of+faith&pg=PP1|title=Kingdoms of Faith: A New History of Islamic Spain|publisher=Basic Books|year=2018|isbn=978-0465055876|location=New York}}</ref>{{Rp|page=164}} Córdoba also became a center of culture and high society in its own right. Poets sought the patronage of its court, as with the example of [[Ibn Darraj al-Qastalli|Ibn Darraj al-Qastali]], who served as court poet for Abd al-Rahman III, Al-Hakam II, and Almanzor. Other poets, such as Yusuf al-Ramadi, composed works on nature and love. ''[[Muwashshah]]'', a form of Andalusi vernacular poetry combining [[Andalusi Arabic|vernacular Arabic]] and the [[Mozarabic language|vernacular Romance language]], grew more popular during this period.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|page=165}} Writers also began to compose histories devoted to the Umayyad dynasty of Al-Andalus, such as [[Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn Mūsa al-Rāzī|Ahmad al-Razi]]'s ''History of the Rulers of al-Andalus'' ({{Lang-ar|أخبار ملوك الأندلس|translit=Akhbār mulūk al-Andalus}}). These histories also provided information on the land and its people. Many ideas and myths concerning the history of al-Andalus – including stories about its initial Muslim conquest in the 8th century – began to appear in this period.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|page=|pages=165–166}}

Under Al-Hakam II, promising slave girls were educated according to their aptitudes in [[calligraphy]], [[astronomy]] and [[astrology]], [[medicine]], [[mathematics]], and other sciences.<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xKBfDwAAQBAJ&dq=al-hakam+ii+female+slaves&pg=PA166 | title=Kingdoms of Faith: A New History of Islamic Spain | isbn=9781787380035 | last1=Catlos | first1=Brian A. | date=2018 | publisher=Oxford University Press }}</ref>

Christians and Jews contributed to the intellectual and cultural spheres of al-Andalus, although this required that they publicly respect the higher status of the Arabic language and of the Islamic religion.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|page=166}} [[Hasdai ibn Shaprut]] was one of the most well-known Jewish figures of this time. In addition to serving in the caliph's court and being highly versed in Arabic culture, Hasdai was also a patron of Hebrew scholarship. He was determined to establish the Jewish community of al-Andalus as independent from the Jewish academies of Baghdad and the Middle East, which helped bring about the [[Golden age of Jewish culture in Spain|Golden Age of Jewish culture]] in the region.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|page=|pages=168}} By contrast, Latin culture within Al-Andalus declined as local Christians became increasingly [[Arabization|Arabized]]. The Latin language was retained in liturgy. However, Andalusi Christians did journey to and from the Christian-controlled territories to the north and in the rest of Europe, contributing to the transmission of knowledge from al-Andalus to the rest of Europe.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|page=169|pages=}}

Some upper-class women also had the resources to receive education and participate in high culture in the domains of poetry and even religion.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|page=|pages=166–167}} Examples include 'Aisha ibn Ahmad, who was born from a noble family and wrote poetry, copied the Qur'an, and founded libraries. Lubna, a slave in the service of al-Hakam II, served as one of the caliph's scribes (or secretaries) and a librarian.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|page=166|pages=}}<ref name=":6" /> Although religious domains were still dominated by men, Fatima bint Yahya al-Maghami was a well-known ''[[Faqīh|faqih]]'' (expert on [[Sharia|Islamic law]] and [[Fiqh|jurisprudence]]) who taught both men and women.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|page=|pages=167}}<ref name=":6">{{Cite journal|last1=Sidik|first1=Roziah|last2=Sidek|first2=Mat|last3=Suryani Arshad|first3=Izziah|last4=Abu Bakar|first4=Kaseh|date=2013|title=The Role And Contribution Of Women In Andalusian Muslim Civilization|url=http://www.ajbasweb.com/old/ajbas/2013/March/323-327.pdf|journal=Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences|volume=7|issue=4|pages=323–327}}</ref>

=== Arts ===
The caliph's official workshops, such as those at Madinat al-Zahra, fabricated luxury products for use at court or as gifts for guests, allies, and diplomats, which stimulated artistic production. Many objects produced in the caliph's workshops later made their way into the collections of museums and Christian cathedrals in Europe.<ref name=":3" />{{Rp|page=|pages=139–141}} Among the most famous objects of this period are ivory boxes which are carved with vegetal, [[Figurative art|figurative]], and [[Islamic calligraphy|epigraphic]] motifs. Notable surviving examples include the [[Pyxis of al-Mughira]], the [[Pyxis of Zamora]], and the [[Leyre Casket]].<ref name=":242" /><ref name=":4">{{Cite book|last=|first=|url=https://www.metmuseum.org/art/metpublications/Al_Andalus_The_Art_of_Islamic_Spain|title=Al-Andalus: The Art of Islamic Spain|publisher=The Metropolitan Museum of Art|year=1992|isbn=0870996371|editor-last=Dodds|editor-first=Jerrilynn D.|location=New York|pages=|chapter=}}</ref> The caliphal workshops also produced fine silks, including ''[[tiraz]]'' textiles, ceramics, and leatherwork.<ref name=":242" /><ref name=":4" />{{Rp|pages=41–44}} Metalwork objects were also produced, of which the most famous surviving piece is the so-called "Córdoba Stag", a [[bronze]] fountain spout carved in the form of a [[Deer|stag]] which was made at Madinat al-Zahra and preserved by the [[Archaeological and Ethnological Museum of Córdoba|Archeological Museum of Córdoba]].<!-- This objects might have been moved to the Museum of Madinat al-Zahra, as it was present there in 2015, but it's unclear if this was permanent or a temporary loan. Online sources still say it's in the Archeological and Ethnographical Museum in the city. --> Two other bronze examples of similar craftsmanship, shaped like deers, are kept at the [[National Archaeological Museum (Madrid)|National Archeological Museum in Madrid]] and the [[Museum of Islamic Art, Doha|Islamic Art Museum in Doha]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Cervatillo de Madinat al-Zahra – Obras Singulares – Museo arqueológico y etnológico de Córdoba|url=http://www.museosdeandalucia.es/web/museoarqueologicodecordoba/obras-singulares/-/asset_publisher/GRnu6ntjtLfp/content/cervatillo-de-madinat-al-zahra?redirect=/web/museoarqueologicodecordoba/obras-singulares?p_p_id=101_INSTANCE_GRnu6ntjtLfp&p_p_lifecycle=0&p_p_state=normal&p_p_mode=view&p_p_col_id=column-2&p_p_col_count=1&_101_INSTANCE_GRnu6ntjtLfp_delta=6&_101_INSTANCE_GRnu6ntjtLfp_keywords=&_101_INSTANCE_GRnu6ntjtLfp_advancedSearch=false&_101_INSTANCE_GRnu6ntjtLfp_andOperator=true&p_r_p_564233524_resetCur=false&_101_INSTANCE_GRnu6ntjtLfp_cur=7&inheritRedirect=true|access-date=2021-11-16|website=www.museosdeandalucia.es}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Llorente|first=Margarita Sánchez|title=Fountain spout – Discover Islamic Art – Virtual Museum|url=https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;ISL;es;Mus01;1;en|url-status=live|access-date=2021-11-16|website=Discover Islamic Art – Museum With No Frontiers|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201126235031/http://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;ISL;es;Mus01;1;en |archive-date=2020-11-26 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Qantara – Spout of a fountain in the form of a stag|url=https://www.qantara-med.org/public/show_document.php?do_id=209&lang=en|url-status=live|access-date=2021-11-16|website=Qantara-med|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210419192958/https://www.qantara-med.org/public/show_document.php?do_id=209&lang=en |archive-date=2021-04-19 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Doha Hind|url=https://www.mia.org.qa/en/collections/metalwork/doha-hind|access-date=2021-11-16|website=www.mia.org.qa}}</ref><ref name=":42" />{{Rp|pages=211–212}} While the production of ivory and silk objects largely stopped after the Caliphate's collapse, production in other mediums like leather and ceramic continued in later periods.<ref name=":242" />

Marble was also carved for decorative elements in some buildings, such as wall paneling and window grilles.<ref name=":42">{{Cite book|title=Al-Andalus: The Art of Islamic Spain|publisher=The Metropolitan Museum of Art|year=1992|isbn=0870996371|editor-last=Dodds|editor-first=Jerrilynn D.|location=New York|chapter=}}</ref>{{Rp|pages=46, 242–255}} One of the most prolific types of marble craftsmanship were [[Capital (architecture)|capitals]], which continued the general configuration of Roman [[Corinthian order|Corinthian capitals]] but were deeply carved with [[Arabesque|Islamic vegetal motifs]] (known as ''ataurique'' in [[Spanish language|Spanish]]) in a distinctive style associated with the caliphal period.<ref name=":42" />{{Rp|pages=244–245}} These capitals later became prized [[spolia]] and can be found in later buildings across the region built under the Almoravids and Almohads.<ref name=":5">{{Cite journal|last=Rosser-Owen|first=Mariam|date=2014|title=Andalusi Spolia in Medieval Morocco: "Architectural Politics, Political Architecture"|url=|journal=Medieval Encounters|volume=20|issue=2|pages=152–198|doi=10.1163/15700674-12342164}}</ref> Another notable example is a marble basin, now kept at the [[Dar Si Said|Dar Si Said Museum]] in [[Marrakesh]], which was crafted at Madinat al-Zahra between 1002 and 1007 to serve as an [[Wudu|ablutions]] basin and dedicated to 'Abd al-Malik, the son of al-Mansur, before being shipped to Morocco and re-used in new buildings.<ref>{{Cite web|last=El Khatib-Boujibar|first=Naima|title=Ablutions basin|url=http://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;ISL;ma;Mus01_D;5;en|access-date=June 5, 2020|website=Discover Islamic Art, Museum With No Frontiers}}</ref><ref name=":5" /><ref name=":42" />{{Rp|pages=46, 242–255}}<gallery widths="150" heights="150">
File:Pyxid Al Mughira OA 4068.jpg|The [[Pyxis of al-Mughira]], a carved ivory casket made at Madinat al-Zahra dated to 968
File:Medallón central, Arqueta de Leyre (Museo de Navarra).jpg|Vegetal motifs and figurative imagery carved in ivory on the [[Leyre Casket]], made in 1004–1005
File:Cordoba Stag DSCF6459.jpg|The "Stag of Córdoba", a bronze fountain spout from Madinat al-Zahra (10th century)  
File:Capitel (23753531034).jpg|Example of a marble capital from Madinat al-Zahra, 10th century
File:Dar si said basin DSCF1593.jpg|Marble basin crafted for 'Abd al-Malik (son of al-Mansur) between 1002 and 1007
</gallery>

=== Architecture ===
{{See also|Moorish architecture}}
[[File:Medina_Azahara_010.jpg|left|thumb|The excavated and partly reconstructed remains of [[Medina Azahara|Madinat al-Zahra]], outside Córdoba, Spain (10th century)]]Abd ar-Rahman III marked his political ascendancy with the creation of a vast and lavish palace-city called [[Madinat al-Zahra]] (also spelled and pronounced today as "Medina Azahara"), located just outside Córdoba.<ref name=":12">{{Cite book|last1=Barrucand|first1=Marianne|title=Moorish architecture in Andalusia|last2=Bednorz|first2=Achim|publisher=Taschen|year=1992|isbn=3822876348}}</ref> Construction began in 936–940 and continued in multiple phases throughout his reign and the reign of his son, Al-Hakam II (r. 961–976). The new city included ceremonial reception halls, a [[congregational mosque]], administrative and government offices, aristocratic residences, gardens, a [[Mint (facility)|mint]], workshops, barracks, service quarters, and [[Hammam|baths]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Ruggles|first=D. Fairchild|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=848k_veh0IkC&dq=ruggles+islamic+garden&pg=PP1|title=Islamic Gardens and Landscapes|publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press|year=2008|isbn=978-0812207286|location=Philadelphia|pages=152–153}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Vallejo Triano|first=Antonio|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2Pb1lzB_Y4YC&dq=Al-Andalus%3A+The+Art+of+Islamic+Spain&pg=PR23|title=Revisiting al-Andalus: perspectives on the material culture of Islamic Iberia and beyond|publisher=Brill|year=2007|isbn=978-90-04-16227-3|editor-last=Anderson|editor-first=Glaire D.|pages=3|chapter=Madinat Al-Zahra; Transformation of a Caliphal City|editor-last2=Rosser-Owen|editor-first2=Mariam}}</ref>

[[File:Mihrab de la mezquita de Córdoba (17060237467).jpg|alt=|thumb|The [[mosaic]]-decorated ''[[mihrab]]'' (center) and the [[Interlace (art)|interlacing]] arches of the ''[[Maqsurah|maqsura]]'' in the [[Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba|Great Mosque of Cordoba]], in the extension added by [[al-Hakam II]] after 962]]
He also expanded the courtyard (''[[sahn]]'') of Córdoba's [[Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba|Great Mosque]] and built its first true [[minaret]] (a tower from which the [[Adhan|call to prayer]] was issued). The minaret, with a square floor plan, set another precedent that was followed in the architecture of other mosques in the region. Abd ar Rahman III's cultured successor, al-Hakam II, further expanded the mosque's prayer hall, starting in 962. He endowed it with some of its most significant architectural flourishes and innovations, which included interlacing [[multifoil arch]]es, decorative ribbed [[dome]]s, and a richly-ornamented ''[[mihrab]]'' (niche symbolizing the [[Qibla|direction of prayer]]) with [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]]-influenced gold [[Byzantine mosaics|mosaics]].<ref name=":02">{{Cite book|last=Marçais|first=Georges|title=L'architecture musulmane d'Occident|publisher=Arts et métiers graphiques|year=1954|location=Paris}}</ref><ref name=":12" />

A much smaller but historically notable work from the late caliphate period is the [[Mosque of Cristo de la Luz|Bab al-Mardum Mosque]] (later known as the Church of San Cristo de la Luz) in [[Toledo, Spain|Toledo]], which features a variety of ribbed domes resting on horseshoe arches and an exterior façade with [[Arabic alphabet|Arabic inscriptions]] carved in brick. Other monuments from the Caliphate period in al-Andalus include several of Toledo's old city gates, the [[Almonaster la Real Mosque|former mosque]] (and later monastery) of [[Almonaster la Real]], the [[Castle of Tarifa]], the Castle of [[Baños de la Encina]] (near Seville), the [[Caliphal Baths]] of Córdoba, and, possibly, the [[Arab Baths of Jaén|Baths of Jaen]].<ref name=":12" />

In the 10th century much of northern Morocco also came directly within the sphere of influence of the Córdoban Caliphate, with competition from the Fatimid Caliphate further east.<ref name=":152">{{Cite book|last=Abun-Nasr|first=Jamil|title=A history of the Maghrib in the Islamic period|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1987|isbn=0521337674|location=Cambridge}}</ref> Early contributions to [[Moroccan architecture]] from this period include expansions to the [[University of al-Qarawiyyin|Qarawiyyin]] and [[Mosque of the Andalusians|Andalusiyyin]] mosques in Fes and the addition of their square-shafted minarets, carried out under the sponsorship of Abd ar-Rahman III and following the example of the minaret he built for the Great Mosque of Córdoba.<ref name=":03">{{Cite book|last=Le Tourneau|first=Roger|title=Fès avant le protectorat: étude économique et sociale d'une ville de l'occident musulman|publisher=Société Marocaine de Librairie et d'Édition|year=1949|location=Casablanca}}</ref><ref name=":02" />

==Economy==
[[File:Hisham_II_of_Córdoba_Dinar_94227.jpg|thumb|Córdoban [[dinar]] of Hisham II]]
The economy of the caliphate was diverse and successful, with trade predominating. Muslim trade routes connected al-Andalus with the outside world via the Mediterranean. Industries revitalized during the caliphate included [[textile]]s, [[ceramic]]s, [[glassware]], metalwork, and agriculture. The Arabs introduced crops such as rice, watermelon, banana, eggplant and hard wheat. Fields were irrigated with [[water wheels]]. Some of the most prominent merchants of the caliphate were Jews. Jewish merchants had extensive networks of trade that stretched the length of the Mediterranean Sea. Since there was no international banking system at the time, payments relied on a high level of trust, and this level of trust could only be cemented through personal or family bonds, such as marriage. Jews from al-Andalus, Cairo, and the Levant all intermarried across borders. Therefore, Jewish merchants in the caliphate had counterparts abroad that were willing to do business with them.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|title=Peace Be Upon You: The Story of Muslim, Christian, and Jewish Coexistence|last=Karabell|first=Zachary|publisher=Albert A. Knopf|year=2007|location=New York|page=70}}</ref> The Córdoban economy was also exceptionally active in part due to its robust system of coinage, which was maintained and improved upon form the Abbasid rule.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hébert |first1=Raymond J. |title=The Coinage of Islamic Spain |journal=Islamic Studies |date=1991 |volume=30 |issue=1/2 |pages=113–128 |jstor=20840029 }}</ref>

Córdoba was one of the major centers in the Mediterranean slave trade. This was in part due to its geographical location and in part to its own reliance on the practice. Geographically, Córdoba is in the southern central region of Spain, with access to the sea via the Guadalquivir river.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bennison |first=Amira K. |title=The great caliphs : the golden age of the 'Abbasid Empire |date=2009 |publisher=Yale University Press |isbn=978-0-300-15489-4 |location=New Haven |oclc=593239917 }}{{pn|date=September 2023}}</ref> It used this location to its advantage as its main suppliers of Christian slaves were the Northern European lands and the buyers of these same slaves were in the Muslim lands, regions with which it had already had trade connections. The slave trade in Córdoba also thrived because of the administration's reliance on slaves. These slaves were owned by the caliph and held important positions within the household and the military. Slaves in particular made up a significant portion of the caliphate's army.<ref name=":13">{{Cite book |last=O'Connell |first=Monique |title=The Mediterranean world : from the fall of Rome to the rise of Napoleon |date=2016 |others=Eric Dursteler |isbn=978-1-4214-1901-5 |location=Baltimore |publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press |oclc=921240187 }}{{pn|date=September 2023}}</ref>

==Religion==
[[File:Lamezquitacordoba.jpg|thumb|right|alt=Elaborately carved front of stone building|Exterior of the Great Mosque]]The caliphate had an ethnically, culturally, and religiously diverse society. A minority of ethnic Muslims of Arab descent occupied the priestly and ruling positions, another Muslim minority were primarily soldiers and [[Muwallad|muladi]] converts were found throughout society. Jews comprised about ten percent of the population: little more numerous than the Arabs and about equal in numbers to the Berbers. They were primarily involved in business and intellectual occupations. The Christian minority ([[Mozarabs|Mozarab]]s) professed by and large the [[Visigothic rite]]. The Mozarabs were in a lower strata of society, heavily taxed with few civil rights and culturally influenced by the Muslims. Ethnic Arabs occupied the top of the social hierarchy; Muslims had a higher social standing than Jews, who had a higher social standing than Christians. Christians and Jews were considered ''[[dhimmi]]s'', required to pay [[jizya]] (a protection tax).<ref>{{cite web|title=This day, Mary 15, in Jewish history|url=http://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/cjnconnect/blogs/article_057a78b4-3f44-5375-a20d-a850a62b2194.html|publisher=Cleveland Jewish News|access-date=2014-05-18|archive-date=2014-05-19|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140519165352/http://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/cjnconnect/blogs/article_057a78b4-3f44-5375-a20d-a850a62b2194.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Half of the population in Córdoba is reported to have been Muslim by the 10th century, with an increase to 70 percent by the 11th century. That was due less to local conversion than to Muslim immigration from the rest of the [[Iberian Peninsula]] and [[North Africa]]. Christians saw their status decline from their rule under the Visigoths, meanwhile the status of Jews improved during the Caliphate.  While Jews were persecuted under the Visigoths, Jewish communities benefited from Umayyad rule by obtaining more freedom, affluence and a higher social standing.<ref name=":1" />

==Population==
According to Thomas Glick, "Despite the withdrawal of substantial numbers during the drought and famine of the 750s, fresh Berber migration from North Africa was a constant feature of Andalusi history, increasing in tempo in the tenth century. Hispano-Romans who converted to Islam, numbering six or seven millions, comprised the majority of the population and also occupied the lowest rungs on the social ladder."{{sfn|Glick|2005|p=202}}<ref>"The rate of conversion is slow until the tenth century (less than one-quarter of the eventual total number of converts had been converted); the explosive period coincides closely with the reign of 'Abd al-Rahman III (912–961); the process is completed (eighty percent converted) by around 1100. The curve, moreover, makes possible a reasonable estimate of the religious distribution of the population. Assuming that there were seven million Hispano-Romans in the peninsula in 711 and that the numbers of this segment of the population remained level through the eleventh century (with population growth balancing out Christian migration to the north), then by 912 there would have been approximately 2.8 million indigenous Muslims (muwalladûn) plus Arabs and Berbers. At this point Christians still vastly outnumbered Muslims. By 1100, however, the number of indigenous Muslims would have risen to a majority of 5.6 million." {{harvnb|Glick|2005|pp=23–24}}</ref>  It is also estimated that the capital city held around 450,000 people, making it the second largest city in Europe at the time.<ref name=Chandler>Tertius Chandler, ''Four Thousand Years of Urban Growth: An Historical Census'', [[Lewiston, New York]]: [[Edwin Mellen Press]], 1987. {{ISBN|0-88946-207-0}}.  Figures in main tables are preferentially cited. Part of Chandler's estimates are summarized or modified at [http://irows.ucr.edu/research/citemp/citemtoc.htm The Institute for Research on World-Systems]; [http://geography.about.com/library/weekly/aa011201a.htm ''Largest Cities Through History'' by Matt T. Rosenberg] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160818124242/http://geography.about.com/library/weekly/aa011201a.htm |date=2016-08-18 }}; or [http://www.etext.org/Politics/World.Systems/datasets/citypop/civilizations/citypops_2000BC-1988AD The Etext Archives] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080211233018/http://www.etext.org/Politics/World.Systems/datasets/citypop/civilizations/citypops_2000BC-1988AD |date=2008-02-11 }}.  Chandler defined a city as a continuously built-up area (urban) with suburbs but without farmland inside the municipality.</ref>
==Reforms under Almanzor==
The separation between the temporal power, held by Almanzor, and the spiritual, in the hands of Hisham as Caliph, increased the importance of military force, a symbol – along with the new majesty of the chamberlain's court, rival of that of the caliph himself – of the power of Almanzor, and an instrument to guarantee the payment of taxes.{{Sfn|Echevarría Arsuaga|2011|p=119}}

Almanzor successfully continued the military reforms begun by Al-Hakam{{Sfn|Fernández|1999|p=37}} and his predecessors,{{Sfn|Kennedy|1996|p=117}} covering many aspects.{{Sfn|Echevarría Arsuaga|2011|p=128}} On one hand, he increased the professionalization of the regular army,{{Sfn|Kennedy|1996|p=117}} necessary both to guarantee his military power in the capital and to ensure the availability of forces for his numerous campaigns, one of the sources of his political legitimacy.{{Sfn|Echevarría Arsuaga|2011|p=128}} This policy de-emphasized levies and other non-professional troops, which he replaced with taxes used to support the professional troops{{snd}}often [[saqaliba]]{{Sfn|Kennedy|1996|p=117}} or Maghrebis{{snd}}which freed the natives of al-Andalus from military service.{{Sfn|Fernández|1999|p=15}}{{Sfn|Echevarría Arsuaga|2011|p=128}}{{Sfn|Castellanos Gómez|2002|p=46}} Recruitment of the ''saqaliba'' and Berbers was not new, but Almanzor expanded it.{{Sfn|Kennedy|1996|p=117}}{{Sfn|Bariani|2003|p=126}}{{Sfn|Fletcher|2000|p=95}} On the other hand, he created new units, unlike the regular army of the Caliphate, that were faithful primarily to himself{{Sfn|Bariani|2003|p=126}} and served to control the capital.{{Sfn|Echevarría Arsuaga|2011|p=128}} Emir [[Abd al-Rahman I]] had already used Berbers and the ''saqaliba'' for a permanent army of forty thousand to end the conflicts that hitherto had plagued the emirate.{{Sfn|Dozy|2010|p=239}} At the time of Emir [[Muhammad I of Córdoba|Muhammad I]], the army reached thirty-five to forty thousand combatants, half of them Syrian military contingents.{{Sfn|Cruz Hernández|1992|p=326}} This massive hiring of mercenaries and slaves meant that, according to Christian chroniclers, "ordinarily the Saracen armies amount to 30, 40, 50, or 60,000 men, even when in serious occasions they reach 100, 160, 300 and even 600,000 fighters".{{Sfn|Colmeiro y Penido|1863|p=172}} In fact, it has been argued that, in Almanzor's time, the Cordovan armies could muster six hundred thousand laborers and two hundred thousand horses "drawn from all provinces of the empire".{{Sfn|Colmeiro y Penido|1863|p=173}}

[[File:Mouwahidoune.jpg|thumb|left|Almanzor's troops, as represented in the ''[[Cantigas de Santa Maria]]''. The chamberlain carried out wide-ranging military reforms.]]
In order to eliminate a possible threat to his power and to improve military efficiency, Almanzor abolished the system of tribal units{{Sfn|Fernández|1999|p=14}}{{Sfn|Bariani|2003|p=131}}{{Sfn|Castellanos Gómez|2002|p=45}} that had been in decline due to lack of Arabs and institution of pseudo-feudalism on the frontiers,{{Sfn|Echevarría Arsuaga|2011|p=130}} in which the different tribes each had their own commander and that had caused continuous clashes, and replaced it with mixed units{{Sfn|Bariani|2003|p=134}} without clear loyalty under orders from Administration officials.{{Sfn|Echevarría Arsuaga|2011|p=129}} The nucleus of the new army, however, was formed increasingly by Maghrebi Berber forces.{{Sfn|Castellanos Gómez|2002|p=46}}{{Sfn|Fletcher|2000|p=95}}{{Sfn|Echevarría Arsuaga|2011|p=130}} The ethnic rivalries among Arabs, Berbers and Slavs within the Andalusian army were skillfully used by Almanzor to maintain his own power{{Sfn|Fletcher|2000|p=95}}{{snd}}for example, by ordering that every unit of the army consist of diverse ethnic groups so that they would not unite against him;{{sfn|Vara|2012}} and thus preventing the emergence of possible rivals.{{Sfn|Russell|Carr|1982|p=70}} However, once their centralizing figure disappeared, these units were one of the main causes of the 11th-century civil war called the ''[[Fitna of al-Andalus]]''.{{Sfn|Russell|Carr|1982|p=70}} Berber forces were also joined by contingents of well-paid Christian mercenaries,{{Sfn|Bariani|2003|p=140}} who formed the bulk of Almanzor's personal guard and participated in his campaigns in Christian territories.{{Sfn|Echevarría Arsuaga|2011|p=133}} Almanzor's completion of this reform, begun by his predecessors, fundamentally divided the population into two unequal groups: a large mass of civilian taxpayers and a small professional military caste, generally from outside the peninsula.{{Sfn|Kennedy|1996|p=119}}

The increase in military forces and their partial professionalization led to an increase in financial expenses to sustain them.{{Sfn|Kennedy|1996|p=117}} This represented an additional incentive to carry out campaigns, which produced loot and land with which to pay the troops.{{Sfn|Echevarría Arsuaga|2011|p=133}} These lands, when handed over to the soldiers as payment, were thereafter subject to tribute and ceased to operate under a system of border colonization.{{Sfn|Echevarría Arsuaga|2011|p=134}}{{Sfn|Kennedy|1996|p=118}} The Caliphal army was funded by the taxpaying farmers in exchange for military exemptions, and consisted of local recruits as well as foreign mercenaries – Berber militias, Slav and Black slaves, mercenary Christian companies and [[jihad]]i volunteers.{{Sfn|Ríu Ríu|1988|p=72}} At that time al-Andalus was known as ''Dar Jihad'', or "country of jihad", and attracted many volunteers, and though these were relatively few compared to the total army, their zeal in combat more than compensated for this.{{Sfn|Fletcher|2000|p=77}}

According to modern studies, these mercenary contingents made it possible to increase the total size of the Caliphal army from thirty or fifty thousand troops in the time of Abd al-Rahman III to fifty or ninety thousand.{{Sfn|Cruz Hernández|1992|p=326}}{{Sfn|Fletcher|1991|p=23}}{{Sfn|Fletcher|1999|p=39}} Others, like [[Évariste Lévi-Provençal]], argue that the Cordoban armies in the field with the Almanzor were between thirty-five thousand and seventy or seventy-five thousand soldiers.{{Sfn|Ríu Ríu|1988|p=72}}{{Sfn|Weiner|2001|p=15}} Contemporary figures are contradictory: some accounts claim that their armies numbered two hundred thousand horsemen and six hundred thousand foot soldiers, while others talk about twelve thousand horsemen, three thousand mounted Berbers and two thousand ''sūdān'', African light infantry.{{Sfn|Bariani|2003|p=138}} According to the chronicles, in the campaign that swept [[Astorga, Spain|Astorga]] and [[León, Spain|León]], Almanzor led twelve thousand African and five thousand Al Andalus horsemen, and forty thousand infantry.{{Sfn|Colmeiro y Penido|1863|p=173}} It is also said that, in his last campaigns, he mobilized forty-six thousand horsemen, while another six hundred guarded the train, twenty-six thousand infantry, two hundred scouts or 'police' and one hundred and thirty [[drummer]]s.{{Sfn|Vallvé Bermejo|1992|p=125|ps=: "Normalmente participaban en sus aceifas doce mil hombres de a caballo, inscritos en la escalilla militar y a los que, además de la acostumbrada soldada, se les proporcionaban una caballería con sus arreos, armas, alojamiento, pagas y gratificaciones para diversos gastos, y forraje para las caballerías, según su categoría."}} or that the garrison of Córdoba consisted of 10,500 horsemen and many others kept the northern border in dispersed detachments.{{Sfn|Bariani|2003|p=140}} However, it is much more likely that the leader's armies, even in their most ambitious campaigns, may not have exceeded twenty thousand men.{{Sfn|Bariani|2003|p=140}} It can be argued that until the eleventh century no Muslim army on campaign exceeded thirty thousand troops, while during the eighth century the trans-Pyrenean expeditions totaled ten thousand men and those carried out against Christians in the north of the peninsula were even smaller.{{Sfn|Cruz Hernández|1992|p=326}}

In the time of Emir Al-Hakam I, a palatine guard of 3,000 riders and 2,000 infantry was created, all Slavic slaves.{{Sfn|Arié|1984|p=124}} This proportion between the two types of troops was maintained until Almanzor's reforms. The massive incorporation of North African horsemen relegated the infantry to sieges and fortress garrisons.{{Sfn|Arié|1984|p=137}} This reform led to entire tribes, particularly Berber riders, being moved to the peninsula.{{Sfn|González Batista|2007|p=116}}

The main weapon of the peninsular campaigns, which required speed and surprise, was the light cavalry.{{Sfn|Castellanos Gómez|2002|p=45}} To try to counteract them, the Castilians created the role of "villain knights" – ennobling those free men who were willing to keep a horse to increase the mounted units – through the ''Fuero de Castrojeriz'' of 974.{{Sfn|Castellanos Gómez|2002|p=45}} For similar reasons, the Barcelonan count [[Borrell II, Count of Barcelona|Borrell II]] created the figure of the ''homes of paratge''- who obtained privileged military status by fighting against the Córdobans armed on horseback – after losing their capital in the fall of 985.{{Sfn|Castellanos Gómez|2002|p=93}} In contrast to the prominent role the navy had played in previous decades under Abd al-Rahman III,{{Sfn|De Bordejé Morencos|1992|p=111}} under Almanzor it served only as a means of transporting ground troops,{{Sfn|De Bordejé Morencos|1992|p=113}} such as between the Maghreb and the Iberian Peninsula, or [[Alcácer do Sal]]'s ships in the campaign against [[Santiago de Compostela]] in 997.{{Sfn|De Bordejé Morencos|1992|p=113}}

During this time, military industry flourished in factories around Córdoba.{{Sfn|Fletcher|2000|p=77}} It was said to be able to produce a thousand bows and twenty thousand arrows monthly,{{Sfn|Fletcher|2000|p=77}}{{Sfn|Fletcher|1999|p=39}} and 1300 shields{{Sfn|Fletcher|2000|p=77}} and three thousand campaign stores annually.{{Sfn|Fletcher|2000|p=77}}{{Sfn|Fletcher|1999|p=39}}

As for the fleet, its network of ports was reinforced with a new base in the Atlantic, in Alcácer do Sal, which protected the area of [[Coimbra]], recovered in the 980s, and served as the origin of the units that participated in the campaign against Santiago.{{Sfn|Echevarría Arsuaga|2011|p=134}} On the Mediterranean shore, the naval defense was centered at the base of al-Mariya, now [[Almería]].{{Sfn|Martínez Enamorado|Torremocha Silva|2001|p=146}} The [[Shipyard|dockyards]] of the fleet had been built in [[Tortosa]] in 944.{{Sfn|Vernet Ginés|1979|p=403}}

Initially the maritime defense of the Caliphate was led by Abd al-Rahman ibn Muhammad ibn Rumahis, a veteran admiral who had served Al-Hakam II and was Qadi of [[Province of Granada|Elvira]]{{Sfn|Ballestín|2004|p=153}} and [[Pechina]].{{Sfn|Martínez Enamorado|Torremocha Silva|2001|p=146}} He repulsed raids by ''al-Magus'' (idolaters) or ''al-Urdumaniyun'' ('men of the north', [[Vikings]]),<ref>Crespi, Gabriele (1982). "L'Europe Musulmane". ''Les Formes de la nuit''. No. 2. Saint Léger-Vauban: Zodiaque, p. 55. En francés. {{ISSN|0763-7608}}.</ref> in the west of al-Andalus in mid-971;{{Sfn|Morales Romero|2004|p=195}} at the end of that year, when they tried to invade Al Andalus,{{Sfn|Allen|2002|p=130}} the admiral left Almería and defeated them off the coast of [[Algarve]].{{Sfn|Tapia Garrido|1976|p=166}} In April 973, he transported the army of Ghalib from Algeciras{{Sfn|Martínez Enamorado|Torremocha Silva|2001|p=93}} to subdue the rebellious tribes of the Maghreb and end Fatimid ambitions in that area.{{Sfn|Jiménez Losantos|1999|p=78}} As in 997, when the Al Andalus fleet hit the [[Galicia (Spain)|Galician]] coast, in 985 it had ravaged the [[Catalans]].{{Sfn|Lévi Provençal|1957|p=62}} During the Catalan campaign, [[Gausfred I]], Count of [[County of Empúries|Empurias]] and [[Counts of Roussillon|Roussillon]], tried to gather an army to help the locals but then several flotillas of Berber pirates threatened their coasts, forcing them to stay to defend their lands.{{Sfn|Frers|2008|p=66}}

To ensure control of the military, Almanzor eliminated the main figures who could have opposed his reforms:{{Sfn|Echevarría Arsuaga|2011|p=134}} in addition to the death of Ghalib, the participation of the governor of Zaragoza in the plot of his eldest son served as a justification to replace him{{Sfn|Ballestín|2004|p=152}} with another, more amenable, member of the same clan, the Banu Tujib.{{Sfn|Castellanos Gómez|2002|p=100}}{{Sfn|Echevarría Arsuaga|2011|p=135}} The admiral of the fleet,{{Sfn|Suárez Fernández|1976|p=354}} who maintained a significant budget, was poisoned{{Sfn|Lévi Provençal|1957|p=431}} in January 980{{Sfn|Ballestín|2004|p=154}} and replaced by a man faithful to Almanzor.{{Sfn|Ballestín|2004|p=153}}{{Sfn|Echevarría Arsuaga|2011|p=135}}

As in the Army he encouraged the recruitment of Berbers faithful to him, so in the Administration he favored the ''saqalibas'' to the detriment of native officials, again with the aim of surrounding himself with personnel loyal only to him.{{Sfn|Fernández|1999|p=15}}

Land transport routes were dotted with strongholds,{{Sfn|Fletcher|2000|p=77}} since ancient Al Andalus dignitaries sought to control communications.{{Sfn|Fletcher|1999|p=40}} Messengers were bought in [[Sudan]] and specially trained to handle Almanzor's messages and to transmit the official reports that his foreign ministries wrote about the annual campaigns.{{Sfn|Fletcher|1999|p=40}}

The Caliphate ruled by Almanzor was a rich and powerful state. According to Colmeiro, it is estimated that in a pre-industrial society, for every million inhabitants, ten thousand soldiers could be mustered. Even assuming the chronicles exaggerated tenfold the real numbers – these speak of eight hundred thousand soldiers – the caliphate could have had eight million inhabitants.{{Sfn|Colmeiro y Penido|1863|p=173}} Those who use more bullish criteria estimate between seven{{Sfn|Matés Baco|Agustín González|2006|p=48}} and ten{{Sfn|Ríu Ríu|1988|p=66}} million, but the population was probably much fewer.{{Sfn|Matés Baco|Agustín González|2006|p=48}}{{Sfn|Colmeiro y Penido|1863|p=173}} Traditionally speaking, around the year 1000, the caliphate occupied four hundred thousand square kilometers and was populated by three million souls.{{Sfn|Aizpurúa|2012|p=50}} By comparison, the Iberian Christian states comprised one hundred and sixty thousand square kilometers and half a million people.{{Sfn|Aizpurúa|2012|p=49}} By the 10th century, 75% of the population under the Umayyads had converted to Islam, a number reaching 80% two centuries later.{{Sfn|Marín Guzmán|2006|p=109}} By comparison, at the time of the Muslim invasion, Spain had about four million inhabitants, although there is no shortage of historians who would raise that estimate to seven or eight million.{{Sfn|Marín Guzmán|2006|p=109}}

His realm also had large cities like Córdoba, which surpassed one hundred thousand inhabitants; [[Toledo, Spain|Toledo]], Almería and [[Granada]], which were around thirty thousand; and Zaragoza, [[Valencia]] and [[Málaga]], all above fifteen thousand.{{Sfn|Matés Baco|Agustín González|2006|p=48}} This contrasted sharply with the Christian north of the peninsula, which lacked large urban centers.{{Sfn|Mitre Fernández|1979|p=134}}

==List of caliphs==

{| class="wikitable"
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center;" |'''Caliphs of Córdoba'''
|-
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center;" |'''[[Umayyad dynasty|Umayyad]] Caliphs of Córdoba'''
|-
!Caliph
!Reign
|-
|[[Abd al-Rahman III|ʿAbd al-Rahmān III al-Nāṣir li-Dīn Allāh]]
|16 January 929 – 15 October 961
|-
|[[Al-Hakam II|Al-Ḥakam II al-Mustanṣir bi-llāh]]
|15 October 961 – 16 October 976
|-
|[[Hisham II|Hishām II al-Muʾayyad bi-llāh]]
|16 October 976 – 1009
|-
|[[Muhammad II of Córdoba|Muhammad II al-Mahdī bi'llāh]]
|1009
|-
|[[Sulayman ibn al-Hakam|Sulaymān al-Mustaʿin bi'llāh]]
|1009–1010
|-
|[[Hisham II|Hishām II al-Muʾayyad bi-llāh]]
|1010 – 19 April 1013
|-
|[[Sulayman ibn al-Hakam|Sulaymān al-Mustaʿin bi'llāh]]
|1013–1016
|-
|[[Abd al-Rahman IV|ʿAbd al-Raḥmān IV al-Murtaḍā bi-llāh]]
|1017
|-
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center;" |'''[[Hammudid dynasty|Hammudid]] Caliphs of Córdoba'''
|-
|[[Ali ibn Hammud al-Nasir|ʿAli ibn Ḥammud al-Nāṣir li-Dīn Allāh]]
|1016–1018
|-
|[[Al-Qasim ibn Hammud al-Ma'mu|Al-Ma'mun al-Qāsim ibn Ḥammud]]
|1018–1021
|-
|[[Yahya ibn Ali ibn Hammud al-Mu'tali|Yaḥya ibn ʿAli ibn Ḥammud al-Muʿtali bi-llāh]]
|1021–1023
|-
|[[Al-Qasim ibn Hammud al-Ma'mu|Al-Ma'mun al-Qāsim ibn Ḥammud]]
|1023
|-
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center;" |'''[[Umayyad dynasty|Umayyad]] Caliphs of Córdoba (Restored)'''
|-
|[[Abd al-Rahman V|ʿAbd al-Rahmān V al-Mustaẓhir bi-llāh]]
|1023–1024
|-
|[[Muhammad III of Córdoba|Muhammad III al-Mustakfi bi-llāh]]
|1024–1025
|-
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center;" |'''[[Hammudid dynasty|Hammudid]] Caliphs of Córdoba ([[Interregnum]])'''
|-
|[[Yahya ibn Ali ibn Hammud al-Mu'tali|Yaḥya ibn ʿAli ibn Ḥammud al-Muʿtali bi-llāh]]
|1025–1026
|-
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center;" |'''[[Umayyad dynasty|Umayyad]] Caliphs of Córdoba (Restored)'''
|-
|[[Hisham III of Córdoba|Hisham III al-Muʿtad bi-llāh]]
|1026–1031
|-
| colspan="2" style="text-align:center;" |'''End of the Caliphate'''
|}

==See also==
* [[History of Islam]]
* [[History of Gibraltar]]
* [[History of Algeria]]
* [[History of Portugal]]
* [[History of Morocco]]
* [[History of Spain]]
* [[List of Sunni Muslim dynasties]]
* [[Martyrs of Córdoba]]
* [[Timeline of Septimania]]
* [[Umayyad conquest of Hispania]]

==Notes and references==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
{{refbegin|35em}}
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 |last= Allen
 |first= William Edward David |author2=ʻAbd al-Raḥmān ʻAlī Ḥajjī |editor=Mariano González Campo
 |title= Al-Ghazal y la embajada hispano-musulmana a los vikingos en el siglo IX
 |year= 2002
 |location= Madrid |publisher=Miraguano ediciones
 |isbn= 978-8478132706
 |page=238}}
* {{cite book
 |last= Arié
 |first= Rachel
 |title= Historia de España. España Musulmana: siglos VIII–XV.
 |year= 1984
 |publisher= Tomo III. Labor
 |isbn= 978-8433594235
 |page=558}}
* {{cite book |last1=Ballestín |first1=Xavier |title=Al-Mansur y la dawla 'amiriya: una dinámica de poder y legitimidad en el occidente musulmán medieval |date=2004 |publisher=Edicions Universitat Barcelona |isbn=978-84-475-2772-4 |page=27 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Bariani |first1=Laura |title=Almanzor |date=2003 |publisher=Editorial Nerea, S.A. |isbn=978-84-89569-85-0 |page=28 }}
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 |last1= Martínez Enamorado
 |first1= Virgilio
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 |last= Mitre Fernández
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 |year= 1979
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 |last= Morales Romero
 |first= Eduardo
 |title= Historia de los vikingos en España: ataques e incursiones contra los reinos cristianos y musulmanes de la Península Ibérica en los siglos IX–XI
 |year= 2004
 |location= Madrid |publisher=Miraguano Ediciones
 |isbn= 978-84-7813-270-6
 |page=238}}
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 |last2=Carr| first2=Raymond
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 |year= 1982
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 |page=361}}
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 |first= Luis
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 |year= 1976
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 |year= 1976
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 |page=512}}
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 |first= Joaquín
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 |year= 1992
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 |page=351}}
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 |first= Juan
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 |year= 1979
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 |page=508}}
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{{refend}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite journal |last1=Ambrosio |first1=Beatriz |last2=Hernández |first2=Candela |last3=Novelletto |first3=Andrea |last4=Dugoujon |first4=Jean M. |last5=Rodríguez |first5=Juan N. |last6=Cuesta |first6=Pedro |last7=Fortes-Lima |first7=César |last8=Calderón |first8=Rosario |title=Searching the peopling of the Iberian Peninsula from the perspective of two andalusian subpopulations: a study based on Y-chromosome haplogroups J and E |journal=Collegium Antropologicum |date=December 2010 |volume=34 |issue=4 |pages=1215–1228 |pmid=21874703 }}
* {{cite book |first=Richard |last=Fletcher |title=Moorish Spain |edition= Hardcover |publisher=Orion |year=2001 |isbn=1-84212-605-9 }}
* Guichard, P. (1976). ''Al-Andalus: Estructura antropológica de una sociedad islámica en Occidente''. Barcelona: Barral Editores. {{ISBN|8421120166}}

{{Umayyads |state=autocollapse}}
{{Spanish Kingdoms |state=autocollapse}}
{{Empires|state=collapsed}}
{{Islam topics|state=collapsed}}
{{Authority control}}
{{coord|37|53|N|4|46|W|source:eswiki_type:country|display=title}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cordoba, Caliphate Of}}
[[Category:Caliphate of Córdoba| ]]
[[Category:929 establishments]]
[[Category:Umayyad dynasty]]
[[Category:10th-century establishments in al-Andalus]]
[[Category:1031 disestablishments in Europe]]
[[Category:11th-century disestablishments in al-Andalus]]
[[Category:Former Islamic monarchies in Europe]]
[[Category:Former Arab states]]
[[Category:History of Córdoba, Spain|Caliphate of Cordoba]]
[[Category:Gharb Al-Andalus]]
[[Category:States and territories established in the 920s]]
[[Category:States and territories disestablished in 1031]]
{{Навигационная таблица/Портал/Английская Википедия}}
[[Категория:Английская Википедия]]
[[Категория:Википедия]]
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