- published: 03 Jun 2010
- views: 5882
The Kingdom of Toledo (Spanish: Reino de Toledo), was a realm in the Iberian Peninsula, created after Alfonso VI of León's capture of Toledo in 1085. It continued in existence until 1833; its region currently is within Spain.
In April 1065 Emir Al-Muqtadir of Zaragoza besieged Barbastro, aided by 500 Sevillian knights. The governor, Count Ermengol II of Urgel, was killed in a sortie, and a few days later the city fell, whereupon the Spanish and French garrison was put to the sword, thus bringing an end to Pope Alexander II's crusade against the Moors of Spain.
At around the same time Emir Al-Muqtadir broke off relationships with Castile, and Ferdinand I lead a punitive expedition into Zaragoza - taking Alquezar - and then into Valencia. Despite being a tributary of Castile, emir Al-Mamun of Toledo lead a force in support of his son-in-law Emir Abd al-Malik. Mamun subsequently dethroned Abd al-Malik and incorporated Valencia into the Kingdom of Toledo. Ferdinand fell dangerously ill and retired from the field. Ferdinand died in December 1065, and his empire was divided between his three sons: Sancho II in Castile, Alfonso VI in León, and García in Galicia.
Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (c. 1043 – 1099) was a Castilian nobleman and military leader in medieval Spain. He was called El Cid (the Lord) by the Moors and El Campeador (the Outstanding Warrior) by Christians. He was born in Vivar, a town near the city of Burgos. After his death, he became the legendary national hero of Castile, and the protagonist of Cantar de Mio Cid, a medieval Spanish epic poem.
Born a member of the minor nobility, El Cid was brought up at the court of King Ferdinand the Great and served in the household of Ferdinand's son Sancho. He rose to become commander and the royal standard-bearer (armiger regis) of Castile upon Sancho's ascension in 1065. He went on to lead the Castilian military campaigns against Sancho's brothers, the rulers of the kingdoms of Leon and Galicia as well as against the Muslim kingdoms in Al-Andalus. He became famous for his military prowess in these campaigns, and helped enlarge Castilian territory at the expense of the Muslims while driving Sancho's brothers from their thrones. This, however, ended up putting him in a difficult position when suddenly, in 1072, Sancho was murdered and with no legitimate issue leaving his recently ousted brother, Alfonso, as his only heir and ruler of the reunified empire. Although El Cid continued to serve the crown in the person of Alfonso, who was now Emperor of Spain, he lost his status in court and was held in suspicion. Finally, in 1081, he was ordered into exile.