This is a timeline of notable events during the period of Muslim presence in Iberia, starting with the Umayyad conquest in the 8th century.
Conquest (711–756)
711A Muslim force consisting of Arabs and Berbers of about 7,000 soldiers under general Tariq ibn Ziyad, loyal to the Umayyad Caliph Al-Walid I, enters the Iberian peninsula from North Africa. At the Battle of Guadalete, Tariq ibn Ziyad defeats Visigothic king Roderic. 712The Muslim governor of Northern Africa, Musa ibn Nusayr, follows Tariq ibn Ziyad with an army of 5,000 Arabs to make the total of the army 18,000. He takes Medina-Sidonia, Seville and Mértola. 713Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa, Musa ibn Nusair's son, takes Jaén, Murcia, Granada, Sagunto. 714First Umayyad campaigns in the lower Ebro valley and southeast part of the Iberian Peninsula. Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa takes Évora, Santarém and Coimbra. 715Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa is left in charge and makes his capital the city of Seville. The Al-Walid's successor, Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik, orders Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa assassinated. 717Córdoba becomes the capital of Muslim Al-Andalus. 717: Umayyads under al-Hurr ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Thaqafi crossed the Pyrenees for the first time on a reconnaissance mission. 718Pelagius, a Christian Asturian noble and possibly (but not certainly) comrade-in-arms of King Roderic at the Battle of Guadalete, leads the fight against the Umayyads in the Asturian region. 719: The next Umayyad governor, al-Samh, crossed the Pyrenees in 719 and conquered Narbonne (Arbuna to the Arabs) in that year or the following (720). 720Al-Samh set up his capital at Narbonne, which the Moors called Arbūna. He offered the still largely Arian inhabitants generous terms. 721A combined force of Aquitanians and Franks under Duke Odo the Great defeat an Umayyad army at the Battle of Toulouse. 720's: Arab forces soundly based in Narbonne and easily resupplied by sea, started raids. 731Berbers allied of Odo the Great rebel in Cerdanya, but the rebellion is suppressed by Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi. 732The Cordoban army led by Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi defeats an Aquitanian force under Duke Odo the Great on the Garonne next to Bordeaux. Frankish commander Charles Martel and Odo defeat an Umayyad army at the Battle of Tours-Poitiers, killing Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi. 735Umayyads take Arles in the Rhône Valley. 739Berbers revolt in North Africa, thereafter expanding to Iberia. Rebels in North Africa defeat a Syrian force and kill its commander Kulthum. Revolt drives Muslim army out of Galicia. 740Berbers rebel against the ethnically exclusive Arab Umayyad Caliphate and refuse to support them with tax revenues. 741The 10,000 survivors of Kulthum's force arrive in Iberia under a new leader, Talaba ibn Salama. 742Internal conflict in Al-Andalus continues for the next 4 years. 755Abd ar-Rahman I of the Umayyad dynasty flees to Iberia to escape the Abbasids. 756Abd ar-Rahman I defeats Yusuf al-Fihri outside Córdoba.
The Umayyad Emirate of Córdoba (756–929) 756Abd al-Rahman I proclaims himself Emir of Córdoba. 759The Andalusis lose the city of Narbonne, last Muslim stronghold north of the Pyrenees. 764Abd ar-Rahman I takes Toledo from Hisham ibn Urwa. 766Said al-Matari rebels in Seville. 771Syrians under Abd al-Ghaffar rebel against Abd ar-Rahman I, but the latter defeats the Syrians on the river Bembezar in 774. 777Abd ar-Rahman I suppresses an Abbasid-inspired revolt. 778The Franks led by Charlemagne attack Zaragoza, but are forced to withdraw empty-handed. 785Building of the Great Mosque of Córdoba begins on the grounds of a Visigothic church; it is completed in 976. 788Death of Abd ar-Rahman I, founder of the independent Umayyad Emirate of Córdoba. His successor is Hisham I. 791Alfonso II becomes King of Asturias in Oviedo and takes a number of Andalusi strongholds and settles the lands south of the Douro River. 791Battle of the Burbia River, where the Umayyad Cordobans defeat the Asturians. A Muslim force raids into Galicia. 792Hisham I, Emir of Córdoba, calls for a Jihad against the Christians in the Marca Hispanica and Gothia (eastern Pyrenees). 794Asturians defeat the Umayyad Cordobans at the Battle of Lutos. 795An Umayyad force occupies Astorga. 796Al-Hakam I becomes Emir of Córdoba. 798In a raid across western al-Andalus, Alfonso II of Asturias captures and sacks Lisbon, but does not retain it. 799Basques revolt and kill the local Cordoban governor in Pamplona (Mutarrif ibn-Musa). 800Charlemagne takes Barcelona. He is granted the title of "Holy Roman Emperor" by Pope Leo III in order to guarantee his protection of Rome against the invading Lombards. 801William of Gellone and Louis the Pious, Charlemagne's son, take Barcelona from Andalusi lords. 806Frankish conquest of Pamplona. 808Franks fail to take Tortosa. 809An Umayyad prince defeats and executes Tumlus, a Muslim rebel who had seized power in Lisbon some years before. 811Charlemagne fails to take control of Tarragona; "Hispanic March" (designation until 874) established to the south of Barcelona. 813The grave of James the Apostle is 'revealed' near Santiago de Compostela, in Galicia. 816Forces of the Emirate of Córdoba under Abd al-Karim ibn Abd al-Wahid defeat a force loyal to the Kingdom of Francia under Balask al-Yalasqi. 822Abd-ar-Rahman II becomes Emir of Córdoba. 824Basques destroy a Carolingian army at the second Battle of Roncesvalles. Kingdom of Pamplona established. 825Andalusian forces attempt to invade Christian territory from Coimbra and Viseu but are driven back. 827Bernard of Septimania holds Barcelona against Gothic rebels who have Umayyad assistance. 829Another insurrection in Mérida. 839Alfonso II of Asturias commands a military force in the region of Viseu. 844Vikings raid the Galician estuaries, are defeated by Ramiro I, attack Lisbon, and sack Seville, but are shortly afterwards wiped out by a Córdoban relief army. Battle of Clavijo, a fictitious battle between Christians led by Ramiro I of Asturias and Muslims, where St. James is claimed to have aided a Christian Army. 848William, son of Bernard of Septimania, seizes Barcelona. 850859Perfectus, a Christian priest in Andalusi Córdoba, is beheaded after refusing to retract numerous insults hurled at Muhammad. Numerous other priests, monks, and laity would follow. Forty-eight Christian men and women are decapitated for refusing to convert or recurrently blaspheming MuhammadMartyrs of Córdoba. 852Death of Abd at-Rahman II. Muhammad I becomes Emir of Córdoba. 854Afonso Betotes takes Tui. 859Vikings raid the Iberian coast. They capture and ransom King García Íñiguez of Pamplona. 859Ordoño I of Asturias defeats Musa ibn Musa at Albelda. 868Vímara Peres captures Porto and establishes the County of Portugal. 872Count Odoario captures Chaves 873Over the next 25 years Wilfred the Hairy, Count of Barcelona, sets up a Christian principality with a certain degree of independence from the Frankish kings. 878The city of Coimbra is taken from the Moors. Hermenegildo Gutiérrez is made Count of Coimbra. 886Al-Mundhir becomes Emir of Córdoba. Revolts in Al-Andalus continue till 912 888Abdallah ibn Muhammad becomes Emir of Córdoba. 893Zamora is taken for Alfonso III of Asturias. 899Simancas is taken for Alfonso III of Asturias. 900Toro is taken for Alfonso III of Asturias. 905Sancho I of Pamplona usurps the Basque kingdom of Pamplona with the help of Alfonso III of León, Raymond I, Count of Pallars and Ribagorza and the Banu Qasi. 912 Abd al-Rahman III becomes the Emir of Córdoba. Every spring, Emirate troops or those of vassals launch raiding campaigns against the Christian frontier. Osma is taken for the Christians. 913An expedition commanded by Ordoño II of León takes Évora (Talavera) from the Muslims. The capital city of the Kingdom of Asturias is moved from Oviedo to León, becomes Kingdom of León. 916Ordoño II of León is defeated by Emir Abd al-Rahman III in Valdejunquera. 917Battle of San Esteban de Gormaz. Ordoño II defeats an army under Emir Abd al-Rahman III. 919The Muslims again attack the city of San Esteban de Gormaz at the Battle of San Esteban de Gormaz (919) Pope John X recognizes the orthodoxy and legitimacy of the Visigothic Liturgy maintained in the Mozarabic rite. 920Battle of Valdejunquera, where the armies of Abd al-Rahman III defeat the armies of the Kingdom of León. 920Muslim forces under the command of Abd al-Rahman III take the city of San Esteban de Gormaz 920Muslim forces cross the Pyrenees, enter Gascony, and reach as far as the gates of Toulouse. The garrison of Muez is killed. 924The city of Pamplona is destroyed by forces led by Abd al-Rahman III.
The Umayyad Caliphate of Córdoba (929–1009) 929Abd al-Rahman III, faced with the threat of invasion by the Fatimids, proclaims himself Caliph of Córdoba, breaking all ties with the Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad. Under the reign of Abd al-Rahman III Muslim Al-Andalus reaches its greatest height before its slow decline over the next four centuries. 930Over the next 20 years Ramiro II of León, defeats Abd al-Rahman III at Simancas, Osma, and Talavera. 933Battle of Osma where Castilian–Leónese troops, under Fernán González of Castile, defeat the Muslim army of Abd al-Rahman III. 939Battle of Simancas where Ramiro II of León defeats Abd al-Rahman III. The Christians defeat Abd al-Rahman III al-Nāṣir a second time at Alhandega. Madrid is recaptured from Muslim forces. The encounter between the two rulers finally took place in 939, when, at the so-called ditch of Simancas (Shant Mankus), Ramiro II of León severely defeated the Muslims, and Abd al-Rahman III narrowly escapes with his life. After that defeat Abd al-Rahman III resolved never to take personal charge of another expedition. But Madrid is recaptured by Muslims in 940. 953Emperor Otto I sends representatives to Córdoba to ask Caliph Abd al-Rahman III to call off some Muslim raiders who had set themselves up in Alpine passes and are attacking merchant caravans going in and out of Italy. Big Moorish incursion in Galicia. 955Ordoño III of León attacks Lisbon. 961Al-Hakam II becomes Umayyad Caliph of Córdoba. 974A Córdoban expedition under Ibn Tumlus crushes a rebellion in Seville. 976Caliph Al-Hakam II dies, and Al-Mansur takes over in the name of his protégé Hisham II, becoming a military dictator usurping caliphal powers and launching a big number of offensive campaigns against the Christians. The Christians take advantage of the resulting confusion and commence raids into Muslim territory. Al-Mansur sacks Barcelona. 977Al-Mansur volunteers to lead the army against the Christians, and is successful. 978Leonese forces under García Fernández and Ramiro III of León suffer the worst in a string of defeats at San Esteban de Gormaz (Also defeated at Rueda and Torrevicente), eventually leading to the revolt of the Galacian nobles and the abdication of Ramiro in favor of Bermudo II of León. 981Al-Mansur defeats his old friend Ghalib in a confused battle near Atienza. Al-Mansur force includes Berbers, Christian mercenaries, and Andalusian troops from Zaragoza under Man ibn Abd al-Aziz al-Tujibi. Ghalib's force includes Andalusians and a Castilian contingent under the Count García Fernandez. Ghalib is killed in the battle. Al-Mansur subsequently kills off both Ibn al-Andalusi and Man ibn Abd al-Aziz al-Tujibi. 981Ramiro III of León is defeated by Al-Mansur at Rueda at the Battle of Rueda and is obliged to pay tribute to the Caliph of Córdoba. 983After failing in a rebellion in the Maghreb, the Berber Chief Zawi ibn Ziri, of the Tunisian royal family, brings a formidable force of Sanhaja horsemen to join Al-Mansur. However, they are not allowed to cross the straits for many years (sometime 10021008). 985Under Al-Mansur and subsequently his son, Christian cities are subjected to numerous raids. 985Al-Mansur sacks Barcelona.