1.3 - Almoravids Dynasty in Marrakesh

After the collapse of the Umayyad caliphate in Cordoba, Andalusia crumbled into many states, as we described above, and people in each state have their own king. Some of them were Arabs and some were Berbers. The first of these kings was Abu al-Qasim Muhammad Ibn Abbad (434/1013-464/1042), who was a judge from the Yemeni tribe of Lakhm. His tribe were living in Seville, and he took over the rule in it and called himself al-Muatadid.

During the reign of al-Muatadid, the Almoravids began in Maghrib as a reformist movement founded by Abdullah Ibn Yasin, and soon he led a jihadist movement to spread religion. They began spreading in the south and then the rest of western Sahara. Under Yusuf Ibn Tashefin, Morocco and western Algeria were conquered and they built the city of Marrakesh as their capital.

After the death of al-Muatadid, his son, al-Qasim Abu Omar, took over the government and called himself al-Muatamid, in whose reign Seville became a strong center and the capital of culture, and many cities entered into its sovereignty. He continued to extend his control over the countries of Andalusia and his kingdom extended to include the city of Murcia in the east.

However, after several battles with the Christians, al-Muatamid lost Tulaytula, so he took refuge with Ibn Tashefin as his last solution to rescue his kingdom. Ibn Tashefin, who used to call himself as Amir al-Mominin: the Prince of Muslims, answered him, so he returned to Andalusia with pleasure, and he did not know that this was indeed his end.