WAR OF GRANADA.--UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPT ON LOJA.--DEFEAT IN THE AXARQUIA.
1482-1483.
Unsuccessful Attempt on Loja.--Revolution in Granada.--Expedition to the
Axarquia.--Military Array.--Moorish Preparations.--Bloody Conflict among
the Mountains.--The Spaniards force a Passage.--The Marquis of Cadiz
Escapes.
Loja stands not many leagues from Albania, on the banks of the Xenil,
which rolls its clear current through a valley luxuriant with vineyards
and olive-gardens; but the city is deeply intrenched among hills of so
rugged an aspect, that it has been led not inappropriately to assume as
the motto on its arms, "A flower among thorns." Under the Moors, it was
defended by a strong fortress, while the Xenil, circumscribing it like a
deep moat upon the south, formed an excellent protection against the
approaches of a besieging army; since the river was fordable only in one
place, and traversed by a single bridge, which might be easily commanded
by the city. In addition to these advantages, the king of Granada, taking
warning from the fate of Alhama, had strengthened its garrison with three
thousand of his choicest troops, under the command of a skilful and
experienced warrior, named Ali Atar. [1]
In the mean while, the efforts of the Spanish sovereigns to procure
supplies adequate to the undertaking against Loja had not been crowned
with success. The cities and districts, of which the requisitions had been
made, had discovered the tardiness usual in such unwieldy bodies, and
their interest, moreover, was considerably impaired by their distance from
the theatre of action. Ferdinand on mustering his army, towards the latter
part of June, found that it did not exceed four thousand horse and twelve
thousand, or indeed, according to some accounts, eight thousand foot; most
of them raw militia, who, poorly provided with military stores and
artillery, formed a force obviously inadequate to the magnitude of his
enterprise. Some of his counsellors would have persuaded him, from these
considerations, to turn his arms against some weaker and more assailable
point than Loja. But Ferdinand burned with a desire for distinction in the
new war, and suffered his ardor for once to get the better of his
prudence. The distrust felt by the leaders seems to have infected the
lower ranks, who drew the most unfavorable prognostics from the dejected
mien of those who bore the royal standard to the cathedral of Cordova, in
order to receive the benediction of the church before entering on the
expedition. [2]
Ferdinand, crossing the Xenil at Ecija, arrived again on its banks before
Loja, on the 1st of July. The army encamped among the hills, whose deep
ravines obstructed communication between its different quarters; while the
level plains below were intersected by numerous canals, equally
unfavorable to the manoeuvres of the men-at-arms. The duke of Villa
Hermosa, the king's brother, and captain-general of the hermandad, an
officer of large experience, would have persuaded Ferdinand to attempt, by
throwing bridges across the river lower down the stream, to approach the
city on the other side. But his counsel was overruled by the Castilian
officers, to whom the location of the camp had been intrusted, and who
neglected, according to Zurita, to advise with the Andalusian chiefs,
although far better instructed than themselves in Moorish warfare. [3]
A large detachment of the army was ordered to occupy a lofty eminence, at
some distance, called the Heights of Albohacen, and to fortify it with
such few pieces of ordnance as they had, with the view of annoying the
city. This commission was intrusted to the marquises of Cadiz and Villena,
and the grand-master of Calatrava; which last nobleman had brought to the
field about four hundred horse and a large body of infantry from the
places belonging to his order in Andalusia. Before the intrenchment could
be fully completed, Ali Atar, discerning the importance of this commanding
station, made a sortie from the town, for the purpose of dislodging his
enemies. The latter poured out from their works to encounter him; but the
Moslem general, scarcely waiting to receive the shock, wheeled his
squadrons round, and began a precipitate retreat. The Spaniards eagerly
pursued; but, when they had been drawn to a sufficient distance from the
redoubt, a party of Moorish _ginetes_, or light cavalry, who had crossed
the river unobserved during the night and lain in ambush, after the wily
fashion of Arabian tactics, darted from their place of concealment, and,
galloping into the deserted camp, plundered it of its contents, including
the lombards, or small pieces of artillery, with which it was garnished.
The Castilians, too late perceiving their error, halted from the pursuit,
and returned with as much speed as possible to the defence of their camp.
Ali Atar, turning also, hung close on their rear, so that, when the
Christians arrived at the summit of the hill, they found themselves hemmed
in between the two divisions of the Moorish army. A brisk action now
ensued, and lasted nearly an hour; when the advance of reinforcements from
the main body of the Spanish army, which had been delayed by distance and
impediments on the road, compelled the Moors to a prompt but orderly
retreat into their own city. The Christians sustained a heavy loss,
particularly in the death of Rodrigo Tellez Giron, grand-master of
Calatrava. He was hit by two arrows, the last of which, penetrating the
joints of his harness beneath his sword-arm, as he was in the act of
raising it, inflicted on him a mortal wound, of which he expired in a few
hours, says an old cronicler, after having confessed, and performed the
last duties of a good and faithful Christian. Although scarcely twenty-
four years of age, this cavalier had given proofs of such signal prowess,
that he was esteemed one of the best knights of Castile; and his death
threw a general gloom over the army. [4]
Ferdinand now became convinced of the unsuitableness of a position, which
neither admitted of easy communication between the different quarters of
his own camp, nor enabled him to intercept the supplies daily passing into
that of his enemy. Other inconveniences also pressed on him. His men were
so badly provided with the necessary utensils for dressing their food,
that they were obliged either to devour it raw, or only half cooked. Most
of them being new recruits, unaccustomed to the privations of war, and
many exhausted by a wearisome length of march before joining the army,
they began openly to murmur, and even to desert in great numbers.
Ferdinand therefore resolved to fall back as far as Rio Frio, and await
there patiently the arrival of such fresh reinforcements as might put him
in condition to enforce a more rigorous blockade.
Orders were accordingly issued to the cavaliers occupying the Heights of
Albohacen to break up their camp, and fall back on the main body of the
army. This was executed on the following morning before dawn, being the
4th of July. No sooner did the Moors of Loja perceive their enemy
abandoning his strong position, than they sallied forth in considerable
force to take possession of it. Ferdinand's men, who had not been advised
of the proposed manoeuvre, no sooner beheld the Moorish array brightening
the crest of the mountain, and their own countrymen rapidly descending,
than they imagined that these latter had been surprised in their
intrenchments during the night, and were now flying before the enemy. An
alarm instantly spread through the whole camp. Instead of standing to
their defence, each one thought only of saving himself by as speedy a
flight as possible. In vain did Ferdinand, riding along their broken
files, endeavor to reanimate their spirits and restore order. He might as
easily have calmed the winds, as the disorder of a panic-struck mob,
unschooled by discipline or experience. Ali Atar's practised eye speedily
discerned the confusion which prevailed through the Christian camp.
Without delay, he rushed forth impetuously at the head of his whole array
from the gates of Loja, and converted into a real danger what had before
been only an imaginary one. [5]
At this perilous moment, nothing but Ferdinand's coolness could have saved
the army from total destruction. Putting himself at the head of the royal
guard, and accompanied by a gallant band of cavaliers, who held honor
dearer than life, he made such a determined stand against the Moorish
advance, that Ali Atar was compelled to pause in his career. A furious
struggle ensued betwixt this devoted little band and the whole strength of
the Moslem army. Ferdinand was repeatedly exposed to imminent peril. On
one occasion he was indebted for his safety to the marquis of Cadiz, who,
charging at the head of about sixty lances, broke the deep ranks of the
Moorish column, and, compelling it to recoil, succeeded in rescuing his
sovereign. In this adventure, he narrowly escaped with his own life, his
horse being shot under him, at the very moment when he had lost his lance
in the body of a Moor. Never did the Spanish chivalry shed its blood more
freely. The constable, count de Haro, received three wounds in the face.
The duke of Medina Celi was unhorsed and brought to the ground, and saved
with difficulty by his own men; and the count of Tendilla, whose
encampment lay nearest the city, received several severe blows, and would
have fallen into the hands of the enemy, had it not been for the timely
aid of his friend, the young count of Zuñiga.
The Moors, finding it so difficult to make an impression on this iron band
of warriors, began at length to slacken their efforts, and finally allowed
Ferdinand to draw off the remnant of his forces without further
opposition. The king continued his retreat without halting, as far as the
romantic site of the Peña de los Enamorados, about seven leagues distant
from Loja; and, abandoning all thoughts of offensive operations for the
present, soon after returned to Cordova. Muley Abul Hacen arrived the
following day with a powerful reinforcement from Granada, and swept the
country as far as Rio Frio. Had he come but a few hours sooner, there
would have been few Spaniards left to tell the tale of the rout of Loja.
[6]
The loss of the Christians must have been very considerable, including the
greater part of the baggage and the artillery. It occasioned deep
mortification to the queen; but, though a severe, it proved a salutary
lesson. It showed the importance of more extensive preparations for a war,
which must of necessity be a war of posts; and it taught the nation to
entertain greater respect for an enemy, who, whatever might be his natural
strength, must become formidable when armed with the energy of despair.
At this juncture, a division among the Moors themselves did more for the
Christians, than any successes of their own. This division grew out of the
vicious system of polygamy, which sows the seeds of discord among those,
whom nature and our own happier institutions unite most closely. The old
king of Granada had become so deeply enamored of a Greek slave, that the
Sultana Zoraya, jealous lest the offspring of her rival should supplant
her own in the succession, secretly contrived to stir up a spirit of
discontent with her husband's government. The king, becoming acquainted
with her intrigues, caused her to be imprisoned in the fortress of the
Alhambra. But the sultana, binding together the scarfs and veils belonging
to herself and attendants, succeeded, by means of this perilous
conveyance, in making her escape, together with her children, from the
upper apartments of the tower in which she was lodged. She was received
with joy by her own faction. The insurrection soon spread among the
populace, who, yielding to the impulses of nature, are readily roused by a
tale of oppression; and the number was still further swelled by many of
higher rank, who had various causes of disgust with the oppressive
government of Abul Hacen. [7] The strong fortress of the Alhambra,
however, remained faithful to him. A war now burst forth in the capital
which deluged its streets with the blood of its citizens. At length the
sultana triumphed; Abul Hacen was expelled from Granada, and sought a
refuge in Malaga, which, with Baza, Guadix, and some other places of
importance, still adhered to him; while Granada, and by far the larger
portion of the kingdom, proclaimed the authority of his elder son, Abu
Abdallah, or Boabdil, as he is usually called by the Castilian writers.
The Spanish sovereigns viewed with no small interest these proceedings of
the Moors, who were thus wantonly fighting the battles of their enemies.
All proffers of assistance on their part, however, being warily rejected
by both factions, notwithstanding the mutual hatred of each other, they
could only await with patience the termination of a struggle, which,
whatever might be its results in other respects, could not fail to open
the way for the success of their own arms. [8]
No military operations worthy of notice occurred during the remainder of
the campaign, except occasional _cavalgadas_ or inroads, on both
sides, which, after the usual unsparing devastation, swept away whole
herds of cattle, and human beings, the wretched cultivators of the soil.
The quantity of booty frequently carried off on such occasions, amounting,
according to the testimony of both Christian and Moorish writers, to
twenty, thirty, and even fifty thousand head of cattle, shows the
fruitfulness and abundant pasturage in the southern regions of the
Peninsula. The loss inflicted by these terrible forays fell, eventually,
most heavily on Granada, in consequence of her scanty territory and
insulated position, which cut her off from all foreign resources.
Towards the latter end of October, the court passed from Cordova to
Madrid, with the intention of remaining there the ensuing winter. Madrid,
it may be observed, however, was so far from being recognized as the
capital of the monarchy at this time, that it was inferior to several
other cities in wealth and population, and was even less frequented than
some others, as Valladolid for example as a royal residence.
On the 1st of July, while the court was at Cordova, died Alfonso de
Carillo, the factious archbishop of Toledo, who contributed more than any
other to raise Isabella to the throne, and who, with the same arm, had
wellnigh hurled her from it. He passed the close of his life in retirement
and disgrace at his town of Alcalá de Henares, where he devoted himself to
science, especially to alchymy; in which illusory pursuit he is said to
have squandered his princely revenues with such prodigality, as to leave
them encumbered with a heavy debt. He was succeeded in the primacy by his
ancient rival, Don Pedro Gonzalez de Mendoza, cardinal of Spain; a prelate
whose enlarged and sagacious views gained him deserved ascendency in the
councils of his sovereigns. [9]
The importance of their domestic concerns did not prevent Ferdinand and
Isabella from giving a vigilant attention to what was passing abroad. The
conflicting relations growing out of the feudal system occupied most
princes, till the close of the fifteenth century, too closely at home to
allow them often to turn their eyes beyond the borders of their own
territories. This system was indeed now rapidly melting away. But Louis
the Eleventh may perhaps be regarded as the first monarch, who showed
anything like an extended interest in European politics. He informed
himself of the interior proceedings of most of the neighboring courts, by
means of secret agents whom he pensioned there. Ferdinand obtained a
similar result by the more honorable expedient of resident embassies, a
practice which he is said to have introduced, [10] and which, while it has
greatly facilitated commercial intercourse, has served to perpetuate
friendly relations between different countries, by accustoming them to
settle their differences by negotiation rather than the sword.
The position of the Italian states, at this period, whose petty feuds
seemed to blind them to the invasion which menaced them from the Ottoman
empire, was such as to excite a lively interest throughout Christendom,
and especially in Ferdinand, as sovereign of Sicily. He succeeded, by
means of his ambassadors at the papal court, in opening a negotiation
between the belligerents, and in finally adjusting the terms of a general
pacification, signed December 12th, 1482. The Spanish court, in
consequence of its friendly mediation on this occasion, received three
several embassies with suitable acknowledgments, on the part of the pope
Sixtus the Fourth, the college of cardinals, and the city of Rome; and
certain marks of distinction were conferred by his Holiness on the
Castilian envoys, not enjoyed by those of any other potentate. This event
is worthy of notice as the first instance of Ferdinand's interference in
the politics of Italy, in which at a later period he was destined to act
so prominent a part. [11]
The affairs of Navarre at this time were such as to engage still more
deeply the attention of the Spanish sovereigns. The crown of that kingdom
had devolved, on the death of Leonora, the guilty sister of Ferdinand, on
her grandchild, Francis Phoebus, whose mother, Magdeleine of France, held
the reins of government during her son's minority. [12] The near
relationship of this princess to Louis the Eleventh, gave that monarch an
absolute influence in the councils of Navarre. He made use of this to
bring about a marriage between the young king, Francis Phoebus, and Joanna
Beltraneja, Isabella's former competitor for the crown of Castile,
notwithstanding this princess had long since taken the veil in the convent
of Santa Clara at Coimbra. It is not easy to unravel the tortuous politics
of King Louis. The Spanish writers impute to him the design of enabling
Joanna by this alliance to establish her pretensions to the Castilian
throne, or at least to give such employment to its present proprietors, as
should effectually prevent them from disturbing him in the possession of
Roussillon. However this may be, his intrigues with Portugal were
disclosed to Ferdinand by certain nobles of that court, with whom he was
in secret correspondence. The Spanish sovereigns, in order to counteract
this scheme, offered the hand of their own daughter Joanna, afterwards
mother of Charles the Fifth, to the king of Navarre. But all negotiations
relative to this matter were eventually defeated by the sudden death of
this young prince, not without strong suspicions of poison. He was
succeeded on the throne by his sister Catharine. Propositions were then
made by Ferdinand and Isabella, for the marriage of this princess, then
thirteen years of age, with their infant son John, heir apparent of their
united monarchies. [13] Such an alliance, which would bring under one
government nations corresponding in origin, language, general habits, and
local interests, presented great and obvious advantages. It was however
evaded by the queen dowager, who still acted as regent, on the pretext of
disparity of age in the parties. Information being soon after received
that Louis the Eleventh was taking measures to make himself master of the
strong places in Navarre, Isabella transferred her residence to the
frontier town of Logroño, prepared to resist by arms, if necessary, the
occupation of that country by her insidious and powerful neighbor. The
death of the king of France, which occurred not long after, fortunately
relieved the sovereigns from apprehensions of any immediate annoyance on
that quarter. [14]
Amid their manifold concerns, Ferdinand and Isabella kept their thoughts
anxiously bent on their great enterprise, the conquest of Granada. At a
congress general of the deputies of the hermandad, held at Pinto, at the
commencement of the present year, 1483, with the view of reforming certain
abuses in that institution, a liberal grant was made of eight thousand
men, and sixteen thousand beasts of burden, for the purpose of conveying
supplies to the garrison in Alhama. But the sovereigns experienced great
embarrassment from the want of funds. There is probably no period in which
the princes of Europe felt so sensibly their own penury, as at the close
of the fifteenth century; when, the demesnes of the crown having been very
generally wasted by the lavishness or imbecility of its proprietors, no
substitute had as yet been found in that searching and well-arranged
system of taxation which prevails at the present day. The Spanish
sovereigns, notwithstanding the economy which they had introduced into the
finances, felt the pressure of these embarrassments, peculiarly, at the
present juncture. The maintenance of the royal guard and of the vast
national police of the hermandad, the incessant military operations of the
late campaign, together with the equipment of a navy, not merely for war,
but for maritime discovery, were so many copious drains of the exchequer.
[15] Under these circumstances, they obtained from the pope a grant of
one hundred thousand ducats, to be raised out of the ecclesiastical
revenues in Castile and Aragon. A bull of crusade was also published by
his Holiness, containing numerous indulgences for such as should bear arms
against the infidel, as well as those who should prefer to commute their
military service for the payment of a sum of money. In addition to these
resources, the government was enabled on its own credit, justified by the
punctuality with which it had redeemed its past engagements, to negotiate
considerable loans with several wealthy individuals. [16]
With these funds the sovereigns entered into extensive arrangements for
the ensuing campaign; causing cannon, after the rude construction of that
age, to be fabricated at Huesca, and a large quantity of stone balls, then
principally used, to be manufactured in the Sierra de Constantina; while
the magazines were carefully provided with ammunition and military stores.
An event not unworthy of notice is recorded by Pulgar, as happening about
this time. A common soldier, named John de Corral, contrived, under false
pretences, to obtain from the king of Granada a number of Christian
captives, together with a large sum of money, with which he escaped into
Andalusia. The man was apprehended by the warden of the frontier of Jaen;
and, the transaction being reported to the sovereigns, they compelled an
entire restitution of the money, and consented to such a ransom for the
liberated Christians as the king of Granada should demand. This act of
justice, it should be remembered, occurred in an age when the church
itself stood ready to sanction any breach of faith, however glaring,
towards heretics and infidels. [17]
While the court was detained in the north, tidings were received of a
reverse sustained by the Spanish arms, which plunged the nation in sorrow
far deeper than that occasioned by the rout at Loja. Don Alonso de
Cardenas, grand-master of St. James, an old and confidential servant of
the crown, had been intrusted with the defence of the frontier of Ecija.
While on this station, he was strongly urged to make a descent on the
environs of Malaga, by his _adalides_ or scouts, men who, being for
the most part Moorish deserters or renegadoes, were employed by the border
chiefs to reconnoitre the enemy's country, or to guide them in their
marauding expeditions. [18] The district around Malaga was famous under
the Saracens for its silk manufactures, of which it annually made large
exports to other parts of Europe. It was to be approached by traversing a
savage sierra, or chain of mountains, called the Axarquia, whose margin
occasionally afforded good pasturage, and was sprinkled over with Moorish
villages. After threading its defiles, it was proposed to return by an
open road that turned the southern extremity of the sierra along the sea-
shore. There was little to be apprehended, it was stated, from pursuit,
since Malaga was almost wholly unprovided with cavalry. [19]
The grand-master, falling in with the proposition, communicated it to the
principal chiefs on the borders; among others, to Don Pedro Henriquez,
adelantado of Andalusia, Don Juan de Silva, count of Cifuentes, Don Alonso
de Aguilar, and the marquis of Cadiz. These nobleman, collecting their
retainers, repaired to Antequera, where the ranks were quickly swelled by
recruits from Cordova, Seville, Xerez, and other cities of Andalusia,
whose chivalry always readily answered the summons to an expedition over
the border. [20]
In the mean while, however, the marquis of Cadiz had received such
intelligence from his own _adalides_, as led him to doubt the expediency
of a march through intricate defiles, inhabited by a poor and hardy
peasantry; and he strongly advised to direct the expedition against
the neighboring town of Almojia. But in this he was overruled by the
grand-master and the other partners of his enterprise; many of whom, with
the rash confidence of youth, were excited rather than intimidated by the
prospect of danger.
On Wednesday, the 19th of March, this gallant little army marched forth
from the gates of Antequera. The van was intrusted to the adelantado
Henriquez and Don Alonso de Aguilar. The centre divisions were led by the
marquis of Cadiz and the count of Cifuentes, and the rear-guard by the
grand-master of St. James. The number of foot, which is uncertain, appears
to have been considerably less than that of the horse, which amounted to
about three thousand, containing the flower of Andalusian knighthood,
together with the array of St. James, the most opulent and powerful of the
Spanish military orders. Never, says an Aragonese historian, had there
been seen in these times a more splendid body of chivalry; and such was
their confidence, he adds, that they deemed themselves invincible by any
force which the Moslems could bring against them. The leaders took care
not to encumber the movements of the army with artillery, camp equipage,
or even much forage and provisions, for which they trusted to the invaded
territory. A number of persons, however, followed in the train, who,
influenced by desire rather of gain than of glory, had come provided with
money, as well as commissions from their friends, for the purchase of rich
spoil, whether of slaves, stuffs, or jewels, which they expected would be
won by the good swords of their comrades, as in Alhama. [21]
After travelling with little intermission through the night, the army
entered the winding defiles of the Axarquia; where their progress was
necessarily so much impeded by the character of the ground, that most of
the inhabitants of the villages, through which they passed, had
opportunity to escape with the greater part of their effects to the
inaccessible fastnesses of the mountains. The Spaniards, after plundering
the deserted hamlets of whatever remained, as well as of the few
stragglers, whether men or cattle, found still lingering about them, set
them on fire. In this way they advanced, marking their line of march with
the usual devastation that accompanied these ferocious forays, until the
columns of smoke and fire, which rose above the hill-tops, announced to
the people of Malaga the near approach of an enemy.
The old king Muley Abul Hacen, who lay at this time in the city, with a
numerous and well-appointed body of horse, contrary to the reports of the
adalides, would have rushed forth at once at their head, had he not been
dissuaded from it by his younger brother Abdallah, who is better known in
history by the name of El Zagal, or "the Valiant;" an Arabic epithet,
given him by his countrymen to distinguish him from his nephew, the ruling
king of Granada. To this prince Abul Hacen intrusted the command of the
corps of picked cavalry, with instructions to penetrate at once into the
lower level of the sierra, and encounter the Christians entangled in its
passes; while another division, consisting chiefly of arquebusiers and
archers, should turn the enemy's flank by gaining the heights under which
he was defiling. This last corps was placed under the direction of Reduan
Benegas, a chief of Christian lineage, according to Bernaldez, and who may
perhaps be identified with the Reduan that, in the later Moorish ballads,
seems to be shadowed forth as the personification of love and heroism.
[22]
The Castilian army in the mean time went forward with a buoyant and
reckless confidence, and with very little subordination. The divisions
occupying the advance and centre, disappointed in their expectations of
booty, had quitted the line of march, and dispersed in small parties in
search of plunder over the adjacent country; and some of the high-mettled
young cavaliers had the audacity to ride up in defiance to the very walls
of Malaga. The grand master of St. James was the only leader who kept his
columns unbroken, and marched forward in order of battle. Things were in
this state, when the Moorish cavalry under El Zagal, suddenly emerging
from one of the mountain passes, appeared before the astonished rear-guard
of the Christians. The Moors spurred on to the assault, but the well-
disciplined chivalry of St. James remained unshaken. In the fierce
struggle which ensued, the Andalusians became embarrassed by the
narrowness of the ground on which they were engaged, which afforded no
scope for the manoeuvres of cavalry; while the Moors, trained to the wild
tactics of mountain warfare, went through their usual evolutions,
retreating and returning to the charge with a celerity that sorely
distressed their opponents and at length threw them into some disorder.
The grand master, in consequence, despatched a message to the marquis of
Cadiz, requesting his support. The latter, putting himself at the head of
such of his scattered forces as he could hastily muster, readily obeyed
the summons. Discerning on his approach the real source of the grand
master's embarrassment, he succeeded in changing the field of action by
drawing off the Moors to an open reach of the valley, which allowed free
play to the movements of the Andalusian horse, when the combined squadrons
pressed so hard on the Moslems, that they were soon compelled to take
refuge within the depths of their own mountains. [23]
In the mean while, the scattered troops of the advance, alarmed by the
report of the action, gradually assembled under their respective banners,
and fell back upon the rear. A council of war was then called. All further
progress seemed to be effectually intercepted. The country was everywhere
in arms. The most that now could be hoped, was, that they might be
suffered to retire unmolested with such plunder as they had already
acquired. Two routes lay open for this purpose. The one winding along the
sea-shore, wide and level, but circuitous, and swept through the whole
range of its narrow entrance by the fortress of Malaga. This determined
them unhappily to prefer the other route, being that by which they had
penetrated the Axarquia, or rather a shorter cut, by which the adalides
undertook to conduct them through its mazes. [24]
The little army commenced its retrograde movement with undiminished
spirit. But it was now embarrassed with the transportation of its plunder,
and by the increasing difficulties of the sierra, which, as they ascended
its sides, was matted over with impenetrable thickets, and broken up by
formidable ravines or channels, cut deep into the soil by the mountain
torrents. The Moors were now seen mustering in considerable numbers along
the heights, and, as they were expert marksmen, being trained by early and
assiduous practice, the shots from their arquebuses and cross-bows
frequently found some assailable point in the harness of the Spanish men-
at-arms. At length, the army, through the treachery or ignorance of the
guides, was suddenly brought to a halt by arriving in a deep glen or
enclosure, whose rocky sides rose with such boldness as to be scarcely
practicable for infantry, much less for horse. To add to their distresses,
daylight, without which they could scarcely hope to extricate themselves,
was fast fading away. [25]
In this extremity no other alternative seemed to remain, than to attempt
to regain the route from which they had departed. As all other
considerations were now subordinate to those of personal safety, it was
agreed to abandon the spoil acquired at so much hazard, which greatly
retarded their movements. As they painfully retraced their steps, the
darkness of the night was partially dispelled by numerous fires, which
blazed along the hill-tops, and which showed the figures of their enemies
flitting to and fro like so many spectres. It seemed, says Bernaldez, as
if ten thousand torches were glancing along the mountains. At length, the
whole body, faint with fatigue and hunger, reached the borders of a little
stream, which flowed through a valley, whose avenues, as well as the
rugged heights by which it was commanded, were already occupied by the
enemy, who poured down mingled volleys of shot, stones, and arrows on the
heads of the Christians. The compact mass presented by the latter afforded
a sure mark to the artillery of the Moors; while they, from their
scattered position, as well as from the defences afforded by the nature of
the ground, were exposed to little annoyance in return. In addition to
lighter missiles, the Moors occasionally dislodged large fragments of
rock, which, rolling with tremendous violence down the declivities of the
hills, spread frightful desolation through the Christian ranks. [26]
The dismay occasioned by these scenes, occurring amidst the darkness of
night, and heightened by the shrill war-cries of the Moors, which rose
around them on every quarter, seems to have completely bewildered the
Spaniards, even their leaders. It was the misfortune of the expedition,
that there was but little concert between the several commanders, or, at
least, that there was no one so pre-eminent above the rest as to assume
authority at this awful moment. So far, it would seem, from attempting
escape, they continued in their perilous position, uncertain what course
to take, until midnight; when at length, after having seen their best and
bravest followers fall thick around them, they determined at all hazards
to force a passage across the sierra in the face of the enemy. "Better
lose our lives," said the grand master of St. James, addressing his men,
"in cutting a way through the foe, than be butchered without resistance,
like cattle in the shambles." [27]
The marquis of Cadiz, guided by a trusty adalid, and accompanied by sixty
or seventy lances, was fortunate enough to gain a circuitous route less
vigilantly guarded by the enemy, whose attention was drawn to the
movements of the main body of the Castilian army. By means of this path,
the marquis, with his little band, succeeded, after a painful march, in
which his good steed sunk under him oppressed with wounds and fatigue, in
reaching a valley at some distance from the scene of action, where he
determined to wait the coming up of his friends, who he confidently
expected would follow on his track. [28]
But the grand master and his associates, missing this track in the
darkness of the night, or perhaps preferring another, breasted the sierra
in a part where it proved extremely difficult of ascent. At every step the
loosened earth gave way under the pressure of the foot, and, the infantry
endeavoring to support themselves by clinging to the tails and manes of
the horses, the jaded animals, borne down with the weight, rolled headlong
with their riders on the ranks below, or were precipitated down the sides
of the numerous ravines. The Moors, all the while, avoiding a close
encounter, contented themselves with discharging on the heads of their
opponents an uninterrupted shower of missiles of every description.
[29]
It was not until the following morning, that the Castilians, having
surmounted the crest of the eminence, began the descent into the opposite
valley, which they had the mortification to observe was commanded on every
point by their vigilant adversary, who seemed now in their eyes to possess
the powers of ubiquity. As the light broke upon the troops, it revealed
the whole extent of their melancholy condition. How different from the
magnificent array which, but two days previous, marched forth with such
high and confident hopes from the gates of Antequera! their ranks thinned,
their bright arms defaced and broken, their banners rent in pieces, or
lost,--as had been that of St. James, together with its gallant
_alferez_, Diego Becerra, in the terrible passage of the preceding
night,--their countenances aghast with terror, fatigue, and famine.
Despair now was in every eye, all subordination was at an end. No one,
says Pulgar, heeded any longer the call of the trumpet, or the wave of the
banner. Each sought only his own safety, without regard to his comrade.
Some threw away their arms; hoping by this means to facilitate their
escape, while in fact it only left them more defenceless against the
shafts of their enemies. Some, oppressed with fatigue and terror, fell
down and died without so much as receiving a wound. The panic was such
that, in more than one instance, two or three Moorish soldiers were known
to capture thrice their own number of Spaniards. Some, losing their way,
strayed back to Malaga and were made prisoners by females of the city, who
overtook them in the fields. Others escaped to Alhama or other distant
places, after wandering seven or eight days among the mountains,
sustaining life on such wild herbs and berries as they could find, and
lying close during the day. A greater number succeeded in reaching
Antequera, and, among these, most of the leaders of the expedition. The
grand master of St. James, the adelantado Henriquez, and Don Alonso de
Aguilar effected their escape by scaling so perilous a part of the sierra
that their pursuers cared not to follow. The count de Cifuentes was less
fortunate. [30] That nobleman's division was said to have suffered more
severely than any other. On the morning after the bloody passage of the
mountain, he found himself suddenly cut off from his followers, and
surrounded by six Moorish cavaliers, against whom he was defending himself
with desperate courage, when their leader, Reduan Benegas, struck with the
inequality of the combat, broke in, exclaiming, "Hold, this is unworthy of
good knights." The assailants sunk back abashed by the rebuke, and left
the count to their commander. A close encounter then took place between
the two chiefs; but the strength of the Spaniard was no longer equal to
his spirit, and, after a brief resistance, he was forced to surrender to
his generous enemy. [31]
The marquis of Cadiz had better fortune. After waiting till dawn for the
coming up of his friends, he concluded that they had extricated themselves
by a different route. He resolved to provide for his own safety and that
of his followers, and, being supplied with a fresh horse, accomplished his
escape, after traversing the wildest passages of the Axarquia for the
distance of four leagues, and got into Antequera with but little
interruption from the enemy. But, although he secured his personal safety,
the misfortunes of the day fell heavily on his house; for two of his
brothers were cut down by his side, and a third brother, with a nephew,
fell into the hands of the enemy. [32]
The amount of slain in the two days' actions is admitted by the Spanish
writers to have exceeded eight hundred, with double that number of
prisoners. The Moorish force is said to have been small, and its loss
comparatively trifling. The numerical estimates of the Spanish historians,
as usual, appear extremely loose; and the narrative of their enemies is
too meagre in this portion of their annals to allow any opportunity of
verification. There is no reason, however, to believe them in any degree
exaggerated.
The best blood of Andalusia was shed on this occasion. Among the slain,
Bernaldez reckons two hundred and fifty, and Pulgar four hundred persons
of quality, with thirty commanders of the military fraternity of St.
James. There was scarcely a family in the south, but had to mourn the loss
of some one of its members by death or captivity; and the distress was not
a little aggravated by the uncertainty which hung over the fate of the
absent, as to whether they had fallen in the field, or were still
wandering in the wilderness, or were pining away existence in the dungeons
of Malaga and Granada. [33]
Some imputed the failure of the expedition to treachery in the adalides,
some to want of concert among the commanders. The worthy Curate of Los
Palacios concludes his narrative of the disaster in the following manner.
"The number of the Moors was small, who inflicted this grievous defeat on
the Christians. It was, indeed, clearly miraculous, and we may discern in
it the special interposition of Providence, justly offended with the
greater part of those that engaged in the expedition; who, instead of
confessing, partaking the sacrament, and making their testaments, as
becomes good Christians, and men that are to bear arms in defence of the
Holy Catholic faith, acknowledged that they did not bring with them
suitable dispositions, but, with little regard to God's service, were
influenced by covetousness and love of ungodly gain." [34]
FOOTNOTES
[1] Estrada, Poblacion de España, tom. ii. pp. 242, 243.--Zurita, Anales,
tom. iv. fol. 317.--Cardonne, Hist. d'Afrique et d'Espagne, tom. iii. p.
261.
[2] Bernaldez, Reyes Católicos, MS., cap. 58.--Mariana, Hist. de España,
tom. ii, pp. 249, 250.--Cardonne, Hist. d'Afrique et d'Espagne, tom. iii.
pp. 259, 260.
[3] L. Marineo, Cosas Memorables, fol. 173.--Pulgar, Reyes Católicos, p.
187.--Zurita, Anales, tom. iv. fol. 316, 317.
[4] Rades y Andrada, Las Tres Ordenes, fol. 80, 81.--L. Marineo, Cosas
Memorables, fol. 173.--Lebrija, Rerum Gestarum Decades, ii. lib. 1, cap.
7.--Conde, Dominacion de los Arabes, tom. iii. p. 214.--Carbajal, Anales,
MS., año 1482.
[5] Pulgar, Reyes Católicos, pp. 189-191.--Bernaldez, Reyes Católicos,
MS., cap. 58.--Conde, Dominacion de los Arabes, tom. iii. pp. 214-217.--
Cardonne, Hist. d'Afrique et d'Espagne, tom. iii. pp. 260, 261.
[6] Bernaldez, Reyes Católicos, MS., cap. 58.--Conde, Dominacion de los
Arabes, tom. iii. pp. 214-217.--Pulgar, Reyes Católicos, ubi supra.--
Lebrija, Rerum Gestarum Decades, ii. lib. 1, cap. 7.--The _Peña de los
Enamorados_ received its name from a tragical incident in Moorish
history. A Christian slave succeeded in inspiring the daughter of his
master, a wealthy Mussulman of Granada, with a passion for himself. The
two lovers, after some time, fearful of the detection of their intrigue,
resolved to mate their escape into the Spanish territory. Before they
could effect their purpose, however, they were hotly pursued by the
damsel's father at the head of a party of Moorish horsemen, and overtaken
near a precipice which rises between Archidona and Antequera. The
unfortunate fugitives, who had scrambled to the summit of the rocks,
finding all further escape impracticable, after tenderly embracing each
other threw themselves headlong from the dizzy heights, preferring this
dreadful death to falling into the hands of their vindictive pursuers. The
spot consecrated as the scene of this tragic incident has received the
name of _Rock of the Lovers_. The legend is prettily told by Mariana,
(Hist. de España, tom. ii. pp. 253, 254,) who concludes with the pithy
reflection, that "such constancy would have been truly admirable, had it
been shown in defence of the true faith, rather than in the gratification
of lawless appetite."
[7] Conde, Dominacion de los Arabes, tom. iii. pp. 214-217.--Cardonne,
Hist. d'Afrique et d'Espagne, tom. iii. pp. 262, 263.--Marmol, Rebelion de
Moriscos, lib, 1, cap. 12.--Bernaldez states that great umbrage was taken
at the influence which the king of Granada allowed a person of Christian
lineage, named Venegas, to exercise over him. Pulgar hints at the bloody
massacre of the Abencerrages, which, without any better authority that I
know of, forms the burden of many an ancient ballad, and has lost nothing
of its romantic coloring under the hand of Cinés Perez de Hyta.
[8] Cardonne, Hist. d'Afrique et d'Espagne, ubi supra.--Conde, Dominacion
de los Arabes, ubi supra.
Boabdil was surnamed "el Chico," _the Little_, by the Spanish writers, to
distinguish him from an uncle of the same name; and "el Zogoybi," _the
Unfortunate_, by the Moors, indicating that he was the last of his race
destined to wear the diadem of Granada. The Arabs, with great felicity,
frequently select names significant of some quality in the objects they
represent. Examples of this may be readily found in the southern regions
of the Peninsula, where the Moors lingered the longest. The etymology of
Gibraltar, Gebal Tarik, _Mount of Tarik_, is well known. Thus, Algeziras
comes from an Arabic word which signifies _an island_: Alpuxarras comes
from a term signifying _herbage_ or _pasturage_: Arrecife from another,
signifying _causeway_ or _high road_, etc. The Arabic word _wad_ stands
for _river_. This without much violence has been changed into _guad_, and
enters into the names of many of the southern streams; for example,
Guadalquivir, _great river_, Guadiana, _narrow_ or _little river_,
Guadalete, etc. In the same manner the term Medina, _Arabicè_ "city,"
has been retained as a prefix to the names of many of the Spanish towns,
as Medina Celi, Medina del Campo, etc. See Conde's notes to El Nubiense,
Description de España, passim.
[9] Salazar de Mendoza, Crón. del Gran Cardenal, p. 181.--Pulgar, Claros
Varones, tit. 20.--Carbajal, Anales, MS., año 1483.--Aleson, Annales de
Navarra, tom. v. p. 11, ed. 1766.--Peter Martyr, Opus Epist., epist. 158.
[10] Fred. Marslaar, De Leg. 2, 11.--M. de Wicquefort derives the word
_ambassadeur_ (anciently in English _ambassador_) from the Spanish word
_embiar_, "to send." See Rights of Embassadors, translated by Digby
(London, 1740,) book 1, chap. 1.
[11] Sismondi, Républiques Italiennes, tom. xi. cap. 88.--Pulgar, Reyes
Católicos, pp. 195-198.--Zurita, Anales, tom iv. fol. 218.
[12] Aleson, Annales de Navarra, lib. 34, cap. 1.--Histoire du Royaume de
Navarre, p. 558. Leonora's son, Gaston de Foix, prince of Viana, was slain
by an accidental wound from a lance, at a tourney at Lisbon, in 1469. By
the princess Magdeleine, his wife, sister of Louis XI, he left two
children, a son and daughter, each of whom in turn succeeded to the crown
of Navarre. Francis Phoebus ascended the throne on the demise of his
grandmother Leonora, in 1479. He was distinguished by his personal graces
and beauty, and especially by the golden lustre of his hair, from which,
according to Aleson, he derived his cognomen of Phoebus. As it was an
ancestral name, however, such an etymology may be thought somewhat
fanciful.
[13] Ferdinand and Isabella had at this time four children; the infant Don
John, four years and a half old, but who did not live to come to the
succession, and the infantas Isabella, Joanna, and Maria; the last, born
at Cordova during the summer of 1482.
[14] Aleson, Annales de Navarra, lib. 34, cap. 2; lib. 35, cap. 1.--
Histoire du Royaume de Navarre, pp. 578, 579.--La Clède, Hist. de
Portugal, tom. iii. pp. 438-441.--Pulgar, Reyes Católicos, p. 199.--
Mariana, Hist. de España, tom. ii. p. 551.
[15] Lebrija, Rerum Gestarum Decades, ii. lib. 2, cap. 1.
Besides the armada in the Mediterranean, a fleet under Pedro de Vera was
prosecuting a voyage of discovery and conquest to the Canaries at this
time.
[16] Pulgar, Reyes Católicos, p. 199.--Mariana, tom. ii. p. 551.--
Coleccion de Cédulas y Otros Documentos, (Madrid, 1829,) tom. iii. no. 25.
For this important collection, a few copies of which, only, were printed
for distribution, at the expense of the Spanish government, I am indebted
to the politeness of Don A. Calderon de la Barca.
[17] Bernaldez, Reyes Católicos, MS., cap. 58.--Pulgar, Reyes Católicos,
p. 202.
Juan de Corral imposed on the king of Granada by means of certain
credentials, which he had obtained from the Spanish sovereigns without any
privity on their part to his fraudulent intentions. The story is told in a
very blind manner by Pulgar.
It may not be amiss to mention here a doughty feat performed by another
Castilian envoy, of much higher rank, Don Juan de Vera. This knight, while
conversing with certain Moorish cavaliers in the Alhambra, was so much
scandalized by the freedom with which one of them treated the immaculate
conception, that he gave the circumcised dog the lie, and smote him a
sharp blow on the head with his sword. Ferdinand, say Bernaldez, who tells
the story, was much gratified with the exploit, and recompensed the good
knight with many honors.
[18] The _adalid_ was a guide, or scout, whose business it was to
make himself acquainted with the enemy's country, and to guide the
invaders into it. Much dispute has arisen respecting the authority and
functions of this officer. Some writers regard him as an independent
leader, or commander; and the Dictionary of the Academy defines the term
_adalid_ by these very words. The Siete Partidas, however, explains
at length the peculiar duties of this officer, conformably to the account
I have given. (Ed. de la Real Acad. (Madrid, 1807,) part. 2, tit. 2, leyes
1-4.) Bernaldez, Pulgar, and the other chroniclers of the Granadine war,
repeatedly notice him in this connection. When he is spoken of as a
captain, or leader, as he sometimes is in these and other ancient records,
his authority, I suspect, is intended to be limited to the persons who
aided him in the execution of his peculiar office.--It was common for the
great chiefs, who lived on the borders, to maintain in their pay a number
of these _adalides_, to inform them of the fitting time and place for
making a foray. The post, as may well be believed, was one of great trust
and personal hazard.
[19] Pulgar, Reyes Católicos, p. 203.--L. Marineo, Cosas Memorables, fol.
173.--Zurita, Anales, tom. iv. fol. 320.
[20] Oviedo, Quincuagenas, MS., bat. 1, quinc. 1, dial. 36.--Lebrija,
Rerum Gestarum Decades, ii. lib. 2, cap. 2.
The title of _adelantado_ implies in its etymology one preferred or
placed before others. The office is of great antiquity; some have derived
it from the reign of St. Ferdinand in the thirteenth century, but Mendoza
proves its existence at a far earlier period. The adelantado was possessed
of very extensive judicial authority in the province or district in which
he presided, and in war was invested with supreme military command. His
functions, however, as well as the territories over which he ruled, have
varied at different periods. An adelantado seems to have been generally
established over a border province, as Andalusia for example. Marina
discusses the civil authority of this officer, in his Teoría, tom. ii.
cap. 23. See also Salazar de Mendoza, Dignidades, lib. 2, cap. 15.
[21] Bernaldez, Reyes Católicos, MS., cap. 60.--Rades y Andrada, Las Tres
Ordenes, fol. 71.--Zurita, Anales, tom. iv. fol. 320.--Zuñiga, Annales de
Sevilla, fol. 395.--Lebrija, Rerum Gestarum Decades, ii. lib. 2, cap. 2.--
Oviedo, Quincuagenas, MS., bat. 1, quinc. 1, dial. 36.
[22] Conde, Dominacion de los Arabes, tom. iii. p. 217.--Cardonne, Hist.
d'Afrique et d'Espagne, tom. iii. pp. 264-267.--Bernaldez, Reyes
Católicos, MS., cap. 60.
[23] Conde, Dominacion de los Arabes, tom. iii. p. 217.--Pulgar, Reyes
Católicos, p. 204.--Rades y Andrada, Las Tres Ordenes, fol. 71, 72.
[24] Mariana, Hist. de España, tom. ii. pp. 552, 553.--Pulgar, Reyes
Católicos, p. 205.--Zurita, Anales, tom. iv. fol. 321.
[25] Pulgar, Reyes Católicos, p. 205.--Garibay, Compendio, tom. ii. p.
636.
[26] Bernaldez, Reyes Católicos, MS., cap. 60.--Pulgar, Reyes Católicos,
ubi supra.--Cardonne, Hist. d'Afrique et d'Espagne, tom. iii. pp. 264-267.
[27] Pulgar, Reyes Católicos, p. 206.--Rades y Andrada, Las Tres Ordenes,
fol. 71, 72.
[28] Pulgar, Reyes Católicos, loc. cit.--Bernaldez, Reyes Católicos, MS.,
cap. 60.
[29] Pulgar, Reyes Católicos, p. 206. Mr. Irving, in his "Conquest of
Granada," states that the scene of the greatest slaughter in this rout is
still known to the inhabitants of the Axarquia by the name of _La Cuesta
de la Matanza_, or "The Hill of the Massacre."
[30] Oviedo, who devotes one of his dialogues to this nobleman, says of
him, "Fue una de las buenas lanzos de nuestra España en su tiempo; y muy
sabio y prudente caballero. Hallose en grandes cargos y negocios de paz y
de guerra." Quincuagenas, MS., bat. 1, quinc. 1, dial. 36.
[31] Conde, Dominacion de los Arabes, tom. iii, p. 218.--Zurita, Anales,
tom. iv. fol. 321.--Carbajal, Anales, MS., año 1483.--Pulgar, Reyes
Católicos, ubi supra.--Bernaldez, Reyes Católicos, MS., cap. 60.--
Cardonne, Hist. d'Afrique et d'Espagne, tom. iii. pp. 266, 267.--The
count, according to Oviedo, remained a long while a prisoner in Granada,
until he was ransomed by the payment of several thousand doblas of gold.
Quincuagenas, MS., bat. 1, quinc. 1, dial 36.
[32] Bernaldez, Reyes Católicos, MS., cap. 60.--Marmol says that three
brothers and two nephews of the marquis, whose names he gives, were all
slain. Rebelion de Moriscos, lib. 1, cap. 12.
[33] Zuñiga, Annales de Sevilla, fol. 395.--Bernaldez, Reyes Católicos,
MS., ubi supra.--Pulgar, Reyes Católicos, p. 206.--Oviedo, Quincuagenas,
MS., bat. 1, quinc. 1, dial. 38.--Marmol, Rebelion de Moriscos, lib. 1,
cap. 12.
[34] Reyes Católicos, MS., cap. 60. Pulgar has devoted a large space to
the unfortunate expedition to the Axarquia. His intimacy with the
principal persons of the court enabled him, no doubt, to verify most of
the particulars which he records. The Curate of Los Palacios, from the
proximity of his residence to the theatre of action, may be supposed also
to have had ample means for obtaining the requisite information. Yet their
several accounts, although not strictly contradictory, it is not always
easy to reconcile with one another. The narratives of complex military
operations are not likely to be simplified under the hands of monkish
bookmen. I have endeavored to make out a connected tissue from a
comparison of the Moslem with the Castilian authorities. But here the
meagreness of the Moslem annals compels us to lament the premature death
of Conde. It can hardly be expected, indeed, that the Moors should have
dwelt with much amplification on this humiliating period. But there can be
little doubt, that far more copious memorials of theirs than any now
published, exist in the Spanish libraries; and it were much to be wished
that some Oriental scholar would supply Conde's deficiency, by exploring
these authentic records of what may be deemed, as far as Christian Spain
is concerned, the most glorious portion of her history.