On April 30, 711 AD, General Tariq ibn Ziyad, a Nafza Berber commander, led approximately 7,000 troops across the Strait of Gibraltar from North Africa into the Iberian Peninsula. This historic landing marked the beginning of the Moorish conquest of Visigothic Spain. The “Rock of Gibraltar” (Jabal ??riq, or “Mountain of Tariq”) bears his name to this day. Over the following months, Tariq’s forces decisively defeated the Visigothic armies, including at the pivotal Battle of Guadalete, leading to the rapid expansion of Islamic rule in what became known as Al-Andalus. This campaign laid the foundation for nearly 800 years of rich Moorish cultural, architectural, and scientific influence in Southern Europe.
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