Islamic Rule in Spain

While the Umayyads ruled only briefly in the Middle East, they kept power longer in Spain. In 711, after Muslim forces had defeated Byzantine armies across North Africa, they successfully invaded Spain from the south. They designated Córdoba as their capital for Spain.

Battle of Tours The Islamic military was turned back in 732 when it lost the Battle of Tours against Frankish forces. This defeat, rare for Islamic armies during the 700s, marked the limit of rapid Islamic expansion into Western Europe. Most of the continent remained Christian, but Muslims ruled Spain for the next seven centuries. (Connect: In a paragraph, compare the status of women in Chinese society to the status of women in Islamic society in the period 1200 to 1450.)

Prosperity Under Islam Like the Abbasids in Baghdad, the Umayyad rulers in Córdoba created a climate of toleration, with Muslims, Christians, and Jews coexisting peacefully. They also promoted trade, allowing Chinese and Southeast Asian products to enter into Spain and thus into the rest of Europe. Many of the goods in this trade traveled aboard ships called dhows. These ships, first developed in India or China, had long, thin hulls that made them excellent for carrying goods, though less useful for conducting warfare.

Cultural and Scholarly Transfers The Islamic state in Spain, known as al-Andalus, became a center of learning. Córdoba had the largest library in the world at the time. Among the famous scholars from Spain was Ibn Rushd, known in Europe as Averroes (12th century). He wrote influential works on law, secular philosophy, and the natural sciences.

The Muslims, Christians, and Jews living in al-Andalus—all “people of the book” as Muslims regarded them—not only tolerated one another but also influenced one another. For example, Ibn Rushd’s commentaries on Aristotle influenced the Jewish philosopher Maimonides (c. 1135–c. 1204). Maimonides developed a synthesis of Aristotle’s reasoning and biblical interpretation. He, in turn, influenced Christian philosophers, including St. Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274). Islamic scholarship and scientific innovations, along with the knowledge transferred from India and China, laid the groundwork for the Renaissance and Scientific Revolution in Europe. For example, making paper, a technology developed in China and taught to Europeans by Muslims, was vital to spreading ideas in Europe.