| Siege of al-Dāmūs | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theReconquista (Aragonese conquest of Valencia) andAlmohad wars in the Iberian Peninsula | |||||||||
 The castle at Ademuz. | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
 Crown of Aragon.svg) Knights Hospitaller Knights Templar | Almohad Caliphate | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
Peter II of Aragon Pedro de Montagut | Unknown | ||||||||
Thesiege of al-Dāmūs was a battle of theReconquista that occurred in the year 1210. The forces of theKingdom of Aragon, together with auxiliary forces of theKnights Templar andKnights Hospitaller, were pitted against the defending forces of theAlmohades. TheChristian forces defeated theMuslim defenders. This battle was significant because in taking the castle atAdemuz, the Christian forces riled their Muslim opponents to initiate a grand offensive that would eventually culminate in theBattle of Las Navas de Tolosa. This offensive, in turn, marked the end of theIslamic domination of the region and the beginning of Christian rule in the province.
In 1210, theAlmohad Empire, who controlled theBalearic Islands (conquered in 1203), launched a great incursion into theCatalan coast led byAbubola the Elder.[1][2] The Muslim forces, being the combined forces from theMaghreb andAl-Andalus, disembarked and began pillaging the countryside seizing much booty and captives in the process.
In March 1210, in response to the Almohad incursion, KingPeter II of Aragon, who was at the time in the city ofMonzón, gathered an army to attack the Moors of theTaifa of Valencia.[3] Within the objectives of this campaign layAl-Dāmūs (Spanish:Ademuz), one of the fortresses that formed the defensive net of theTuria River.
In the middle of 1210,Al-Dāmūs was conquered byPeter II of Aragon with the help of theKnights Hospitaller and theKnights Templar.
Among the knights who participated in the campaign were
The offensive continued until the Christian forces finally took theCastle of Serreilla.[5]
Pedro del Pomar was charged by KingPeter II of Aragon to repopulate all the lands won by the conquest with Christians from the surrounding kingdoms.[6]
The loss ofAdemuz and the devastation caused by the campaign, troubled theAlmohades so much that they sent a delegation of nobles fromSharq al-Andalus toMarrakech to begMuhammad al-Nasir for reinforcements. This was one of the motivating factors that led to the launch of the Muslim expedition that would culminate in theBattle of Las Navas de Tolosa in 1212. This would in turn end the supremacy ofAl-Andalus in theIberian Peninsula.[1]
The fortress fell intoAlmohad hands later in 1210 in an offensive that also recapturedCastielfabib, but failed to reachMoya.[7]
