Tariq bin Ziyad

He was born around 50 (670). He belongs to the Nefzâve or Zenâte tribe of Berber origin; It is stated that he was taken prisoner during the Maghreb conquests. There are also opinions that he comes from a tribe that originated in Hamadan (Iran) and migrated to North Africa, or that he is of Arab origin. He is attributed to the Leys or Sadif tribe because he is considered a freedman of these tribes. With his târik ability, the Umayyads' North African governor Musa b. It caught Nusayr's attention. Some time after becoming a Muslim, Musa b. He was freed by Nusayr and performed important services as the commander of the pioneer troops in the conquests in North Africa. Musa b. He served as the commander of one of Nusayr's armies that conquered Tangier. During the siege of the city of Sebte (Ceuta) under the rule of Count Julianos, Musa b. He was in Nusayr's entourage. The city of Tangier, which was captured in 89 (708), was taken by Musa b. He was appointed governor by Nusayr and remained in this position until he was sent to Andalusia.

Since Julianos, Count of Sebte, was angry with the Visigoth King Rodrigo for various reasons, he sent Musa b. He appealed to Nusayr and encouraged him to conquer Spain. In 91 (710) Musa b. Tarîf b., who was sent to Southern Spain by Nusayr. The success of the 500-man unit under the command of Malik in the expedition and their return with plenty of booty encouraged the Muslims in the conquest of Andalusia. Thereupon, Musa b. Nusayr, Târık b. He appointed Ziyad as the commander of the troops that would go to Andalusia. The majority of the army, consisting of 7000 people, consisted of Berbers. Târık, who reached the Calpe region in the southernmost part of Spain by ships from Sebte, established his headquarters in Gibraltar (Gibraltar), which was to be named after him after the conquest (5 Rajab 92 / 28 April 711). Tariq b. The incident of Ziyad burning the ships in order to prevent the mujahideen from returning and encouraging them to wage jihad is controversial. While there are those who accept that this happened, there are also those who claim that it is fake. It is also said that not all of the ships, but a few of them were burned symbolically.

After his first trial expedition, Tariq headed north because his target was the city of Cordoba. At that time, the Visigothic King Rodrigo was fighting against the Franks who were attacking some cities in Northern Spain. Since there was a distance of about 1000 miles between the cities of Cordoba and Arbûne (Narbonne), where Rodrigo was located, Tariq did not encounter any significant resistance at first and advanced towards the north. He defeated Rodrigo's nephew Bencio, who appeared before him several times. Thereupon Rodrigo gathered a large army. Historians give various figures for the number of soldiers of this army, between 40,000 and 100,000. Târık, Musa b. He wrote a letter to Nusayr and asked for help. Moses also sent a relief force of 5000 people. The two armies faced each other in the Lekke valley (Rio Guadalete) near the city of Şezûne (Sedona). Tariq made a speech against the army here (Ibn Qutayba, p. 237-238; Makkari, I, 240-242). At the end of the eight-day war between the two armies, the Visigoth army suffered a heavy defeat (5 Shawwal 92 / 26 July 711). Regarding the fate of the Visigoth King Rodrigo, it is stated that he was killed, disappeared and lost track of him, drowned in the river, etc. Different transplants are available.

After the war, Musa b. In the letter he sent to Tariq, Nusayr stated that he was endangering the Islamic army by entering the interior regions of Spain without his order and ordered him not to move further from where he was until he arrived. However, Tariq did not listen to Musa's order and, following the advice of Count Julianos, divided his army into units to send to different cities. While the commanders appointed by Târık captured Malaga (Mâleka), Elvira (İlbîre) and Córdoba (Cordoba) in a short time, he conquered the city of Ecija (Istijce) and then marched on Toledo (Tuleytula), the capital of the Visigoths, and captured the city without encountering any significant resistance. . Then, located behind a mountainous region and Hz. He headed to the city called Medinetulmaide because he captured a table here, attributed to Solomon and said to have 360 legs. Tariq later captured the city of Emaye (Amaya), obtained a significant amount of booty, and returned to Tuleytula in 93 (712). Tariq b. Ziyâd's work in Andalusia with Musa b. The route that Nusayr followed during his conquests before his arrival was determined as follows: Gibraltar, Cezîretülhadrâ, Barbat (Lekke) valley, Şezûne, Mevrûr, Karmûne (Carmona), İşbîliye (Sevilla), İsticce, Cordoba, Mâleka, Granada (Granada), İlbîre, Tüdmir (Teodomiro), Cebbân, Tuleytula and Medînetülmâide. Some of the cities mentioned here were visited by Musa b., who came to Andalusia a year later. It was captured by Nusayr.

In 93 (712) Musa b. Nusayr went to Andalusia with an army of 18,000 people and conquered the cities of Sevilla, Carmona, Niebla (Leble), Mérida (Mâride) and Târık b. He met with Ziyad in Toledo. It is stated that during this meeting, Moses scolded Tariq for not listening to his own orders and acting independently. On the other hand, it is reported that Tariq treated Moses with respect and wanted to please him. Musa b. Nusayr took the spoils he captured from Tariq and Hz. He asked for the table said to belong to Solomon; Tariq handed over the table and all the spoils to Moses. Musa b. Nusayr's anger towards Tariq did not last long and the two commanders continued their conquest activities towards the north of Spain in two directions. The following year, the regions of Leon (Liyûn), Galicia (Cillîkıye) and the cities of Lérida (Lâride), Barcelona (Berşelûne), Saragossa (Sarakusta) were captured. Thus, Muslims reached the lands of France for the first time in Islamic history.

As a result of the conquests of Musa and Tariq, almost all of Spain was captured. The capture of all of Spain, except for Asturias, a small region in the north, in a short period of three years and the advancement of Islamic armies into France is an important development in terms of Islamic conquest policy. Nearing the completion of the conquests, Caliph Velid b. Abd al-Malik's envoy, Mugīs al-Rūmī, brought the caliph's letter asking for Mūsā and Tariq to return to Damascus. When Moses took it easy and continued his conquests, a second messenger came with the same order. Thereupon, Musa and Tariq left Andalusia in 95 (714) with many spoils and returned to Damascus. They met with Caliph Walid in his last days and handed over the spoils. Târık b., who was a capable, astute and brave commander and also a powerful orator. There is no information in the sources about Ziyâd's next life. It is stated that since he did not receive the attention he expected from the caliphs, he spent the rest of his life in a secluded place without taking any duty and died in 102 (720).