Editing Granada War

{{Era|Timeline}}{{WP-REAL}}
{{Update|''[[Assassin's Creed: Rebellion]]''}}
{{Imageneed}}
{{Quote|... and so, spurred by their desire to see the kingdom of España united by a single faith, the Inquisitors convinced the Queen and King to drive out the remaining Moors. This is why war rages here in Granada.|Raphael Sánchez explaining the war to Ezio Auditore, 1491.|Assassin's Creed II: Discovery|Eliminate the Templar Presence}}
{{War Infobox
|prev = [[Pazzi conspiracy]]
|conc = ''[[Reconquista]]''
|next = Inception of the [[Age of Discovery]]
|image = ACM Granada War.jpg
|begin = February 1482
|end = 2 January 1492
|place = Southern Iberia
|result = *Granada annexed by [[Spain]]
*End of the ''Reconquista''
|battles=*Siege of Málaga
*Siege of Baza
*Siege of Granada
|side1 = [[File:Coat of Arms of the Catholic Monarchs.png|20px|border]] [[Crown of Castile|Castile-Aragon Union]]
----
[[Spanish Rite of the Templar Order|Spanish Templars]]
|side2 = [[File:Flag of Granada.png|20px|border]] [[Emirate of Granada]]
----
[[Spanish Brotherhood of Assassins|Spanish Assassins]]
|side3 = 
|side4 = 
|commanders1 = *[[Isabella I of Castile]]
*[[Ferdinand II of Aragon]]
----
*[[Tomás de Torquemada]]
|commanders2 = *Abu l-Hasan Ali (1481 &ndash; 1485)
*Muhammed XIII (al-Zagal) (1485 &ndash; 1487)
*[[Muhammad XII of Granada]] (1487 &ndash; 1492)<ref name="nb1">Muhammad XII was a contender to the Granada throne from 1483 to 1487. From 1485 to 1490, he fought as a vassal for Castile and Aragon.</ref>
----
*[[Benedicto]]†
|commanders3 = 
|commanders4 = 
}}
The '''Granada War''', conducted by the union of the Crowns of Castile and Aragon against the [[Emirate of Granada]], was the last conflict between the Christian kingdoms and the [[Moors]] of Iberia. It saw the end of the centuries long period of [[Spain|Spanish]] history known as the ''[[Reconquista]]'', as the Christians extinguished the last of the Muslim states in the peninsula in the hopes of unifying it under their religion.

Crippled by internecine conflicts, the Emirate of Granada rapidly collapsed under the advancing Christian forces, such that by 1491, its territory was reduced to only its capital city of [[Granada]]. Defeat by that point seemed inevitable, yet Emir [[Muhammad XII of Granada|Muhammad XII]] refused to surrender thanks to the machinations of one of his advisors, secretly a [[Templar]] spy.

The Templars dreamed of laying claim to the Americas long before its existence became known to the powers of the Old World. To this end, they aspired to prolong the war indefinitely as a means of exhausting the treasury of Castile and depriving the explorer [[Christopher Columbus]] his much needed funds for his own voyage across the [[Atlantic Ocean|Atlantic]].

As a result, the Siege of Granada raged for eight months until the intervention of the [[Assassins|Assassin]] [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze]], who rescued the emir from the trappings of the Templars and persuaded him to at last concede defeat.

==Prelude==
By the late 15th century, the Emirate of Granada had been the last Moorish state in Iberia for more than two centuries.<ref name="Emirate of Granada">{{WP|Emirate of Granada}}</ref> The Christian kingdoms of the region, legacies of the former {{Wiki|Kingdom of Asturias}} that had survived the conquest of Iberia by the {{Wiki|Umayyad Caliphate}}, had in the preceding time not been unified. Much like the myriad of Muslim states that preceded the emirate, these Christian kingdoms were prone to infighting, vying for domination over one another for control of the peninsula.<ref name="Reconquista">''{{WP|Reconquista}}''</ref>

As such, there was a lack of a unified front against the Moors, and the concept of a consolidated campaign to expunge their people from Iberia did not always prevail.<ref name="Reconquista" /> This all changed with the ascendancy of [[Isabella I of Castile|Isabella of Trastámara]] to the throne of [[Castile]] in the aftermath of the {{Wiki|War of Castilian Succession}} in 1479.<ref name="Granada War">{{WP|Granada War}}</ref> With Isabella as Queen of Castile, the Crown of Castile was then unified with the Crown of Aragon through Isabella's marriage to King [[Ferdinand II of Aragon|Ferdinand II]] of [[Aragon]].<ref name="Spielvogel 2018 ch. 12">Spielvogel, Jackson J. (2018) "Recovery and Rebirth: The Age of the Renaissance". ''Western Civilization''. 10th ed. Boston: Cengage Learning, pp. 331–364.</ref> The ''de facto'' reunification of the Christian kingdoms in Iberia heralded the national identity that would become Spain<ref name="Spielvogel 2018 ch. 12" /> and provided them with the power to at last turn their attention onto the Moors.<ref name="Hillgarth 1978">Hillgarth, J. N. (1978) "The Conquest of Granada (1482–92)". ''The Spanish Kingdoms: 1250–1516. Volume II: 1410–1516, Castilian Hegemony''. Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 367–394.</ref>

Led by Grand Inquisitor [[Tomás de Torquemada]], the [[Spanish Inquisition]] seized upon this political development to press its dream of unifying all of Iberia under the Catholic religion. The religiously devout monarchs of Spain were easily swayed, and preparations were made for a dedicated campaign to expel the last vestiges of Muslim elements from the peninsula.<ref name="Eliminate the Templar Presence">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Eliminate the Templar Presence]]</ref>

==War==
{{Dialogue|Raphael|Wars never end abruptly, do they?|Ezio|They never end at all, Sánchez. It just appears that way when the body count is low.|Raphael Sánchez and Ezio Auditore in the aftermath of the Siege of Granada, 1491|Assassin's Creed II: Discovery|Stop the Burning of the City}}
Until 1482, the political relation between Castile and the Emirate of Granada could be described as a low-state of constant warfare. Raids between the two countries across the frontier were frequent though it had hitherto never escalated into full-scale war. In December 1481, a raid conducted by the Christians provoked a Muslim assault on the town of {{Wiki|Zahara de la Sierra|Zahara}} in retaliation. With Spain now looking to start a true war against the Moors, this attack provided just the pretext they desired for their invasion. The Spanish mobilized their forces and swiftly captured {{Wiki|Alhama de Granada|Alhama}}, an act that served as a formal declaration of war.<ref name="Hillgarth 1978" />

===Granadan Civil War===
While Emir {{Wiki|Abu l-Hasan Ali, Sultan of Granada|Abu l-Hasan Ali}} of Granada fought back to stall the Spanish advance,<ref name="Hillgarth 1978" /> his son, the Assassin ally Abu 'Abdallah,<ref name="Find King Muhammad">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Find King Muhammad]]</ref> revolted against him and declared himself the new emir in 1482, styling himself Muhammad XII.<ref name="Hillgarth 1978" /> The Granadan civil war that ensued accelerated the state's destruction, as it failed to lead a unified defence against the invading Christians. When Abu 'Abdallah, known to the Spanish as Boabdil, was captured by the Christians in 1483, his father was able to seize back the kingship. The Spanish, hoping to perpetuate the discord in the enemy ranks, then released Boabdil to serve as their contender to the Granadan throne. As expected, Boabdil continued to vie for the emirate, but he was ousted from the capital city of [[Granada]] by his uncle {{Wiki|Muhammad XIII, Sultan of Granada|Abū 'Abd Allāh Muhammad az-Zaghall}} in 1485, supposedly on behalf of Abu l-Hasan Ali. With his forces in command of the capital, however, az-Zaghall decided to usurp the throne for himself, leading to his brother's death soon afterwards.<ref name="Hillgarth 1978" />

On 7 May 1487, the Spanish laid {{Wiki|Siege of Málaga|siege}} to {{Wiki|Málaga}}, the primary seaport of the emirate, whose capture would deprive them of access to the [[Mediterranean Sea]]. Az-Zaghall, constantly assailed by the forces of his nephew Boabdil, was unable to come to the city's defence, which capitulated on 18 August 1487.<ref name="Hillgarth 1978" /> Under the influence of Torquemada, Ferdinand II had the people of Málaga [[slavery|enslaved]] in retribution for their defence, massacring all who resisted, an atrocity that would drive one of its survivors, the Moorish pit fighter [[Tariq al-Nasr]] to join with the [[Assassins]].<ref>''[[Assassin's Creed: Rebellion]]'' – [[Database: Tariq al-Nasr]]</ref> The loss of Málaga severely crippled the emirate, and Boabdil once again took control of Granada as Muhammad XII, vassal to the Spanish. Over the course of the next few years, the Moors continued to suffer defeat after defeat until finally, after the long siege of {{wiki|Baza, Granada|Baza}}, Az-Zaghall surrendered in 1490, and the war seemed to be at an end.<ref name="Hillgarth 1978" />

===Siege of Granada===
{{Dialogue|Ezio|It sounds like the battle is already won.|Raphael|One would think... but for some reason the Moors continue to fight. Perhaps King Muhammad XII has a death wish.|Ezio Auditore and Raphael Sánchez discussing the war, 1491|Assassin's Creed II: Discovery|Eliminate the Templar Presence}}
This was not to be, however, for Muhammad XII, no longer content with his vassalage to the Spanish, rebelled the next year in 1491. As the Spanish by this point had conquered all of the Emirate of Granada, Muhammad was left with only his capital city as his territory. In spite of this, he refused to submit to the Christian forces, who laid siege to Granada starting from April 1491.<ref name="Hillgarth 1978" />

In the face of such odds, total and utter defeat seemed inevitable, yet Muhammad XII was unyielding,<ref name="Eliminate the Templar Presence" /> thanks to the false counsel of a Templar spy among his circle of advisors.<ref name="Assassinate the Templar Spy">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Assassinate the Templar Spy]]</ref> It was at this stage in the war that the Templars dragged the conflict into their schemes.<ref name="Assassinate the Templar Spy" /><ref name="Report the Spy's Death">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Report the Spy's Death]]</ref> Having learned of a great landmass west of the Atlantic Ocean then unknown to all of Europe,<ref name="Stop the Burning of the City">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Stop the Burning of the City]]</ref> they aspired to take possession of it before any of the world's empires could.<ref name="Report the Spy's Death" /> However, the Italian explorer Christopher Columbus unknowingly threatened this ambition by seeking to sail across the Atlantic himself—a trip that would expose the continent to the European powers.<ref name="Report the Spy's Death" /> After failing to assassinate him in [[Venice]],<ref name="Find Christoffa">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Find Christoffa (1)]]</ref> the Templars sought to forestall his voyage by prolonging the Granada War as long as possible,<ref name="Report the Spy's Death" /> in the hopes that this would deplete the Castilian treasury, thus denying him the funds he desperately needed from Queen Isabella.<ref name="Stop the Burning of the City" /><ref name="Find Christoffa again>''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Find Christoffa (2)]]</ref>

For eight months, the Siege of Granada dragged on, and all the while no chance of victory lay in sight for the last Moorish stronghold.<ref name="Hillgarth 1978" /> The Templars were determined for Muhammad XII not to surrender until the Castilian investment either drove their government to bankruptcy or reduced the city to ashes and rubble.<ref name="Find King Muhammad" /> In late November,<ref name="Hillgarth 1978" /> however, after the Assassins [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze]] and [[Raphael Sánchez]] had [[Mission to Aragon|rescued]] the Assassins of Aragon from the Inquisition,<ref name="Rescue the Assassin">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Rescue the Assassin]]</ref><ref name="Rescue the Captured Assassins">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Rescue the Captured Assassins]]</ref><ref name="Rescue the Last Captured Assassin">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Rescue the Last Captured Assassin]]</ref><ref name="Assassinate Pedro Llorente">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Assassinate Pedro Llorente]]</ref> they proceeded to Granada to investigate reports of Templar activity there.<ref name="Return to Sánchez">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Return to Sánchez]]</ref> It was at a Spanish camp dug deep into the hills on the outskirts of the city that Ezio discovered the Templar spy and overheard his plot to deceive the emir into prolonging the war.<ref name="Assassinate the Templar Spy" /> He assassinated the spy<ref name="Assassinate the Templar Spy" /> before sneaking back to his companions, who deduced the Templars' motivations for their scheme and instructed Ezio to convince Muhammad to finally surrender.<ref name="Report the Spy's Death" />

To infiltrate [[Alhambra]] palace to meet with the emir, Ezio used the secret route through the catacombs favoured by the spy.<ref name="Report the Spy's Death" /><ref name="Enter Granada City">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Enter Granada City]]</ref> In the meantime, the death of their spy had led to the Templars to seize Muhammad XII altogether.<ref name="Find King Muhammad" /> By the time Ezio was nearing the exit into Alhambra's courtyard, night had fallen, and the Spanish had recommenced their assault on Granada.<ref name="Enter Granada City" /> In the midst of this battle, Ezio successfully sneaked into Muhammad XII's throne room, where he found him tied up to the mockery of his Templar captor. None of his [[guards]] were even aware he had been taken hostage. Acting hastily, the Assassin killed the Templar and freed Muhammad, who acknowledged that as much as it would wound his pride, it was time for him to capitulate.<ref name="Find King Muhammad" />

Anxious to end the battle as soon as possible and save the most lives, Ezio did not linger a second further, hurrying to the gates to deliver news of Muhammad's abdication. Though he had to neutralize several Granadan soldiers to do so, he managed to open the gates to the Spanish and alert the armies of the emir's surrender.<ref name="Open the Palace Gates">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Open the Palace Gates]]</ref> The triumphant Spanish army marched into the city in orderly fashion<ref name="Open the Palace Gates" /> but soon devolved into rampant mobs eager to raze the city to the ground, even as Queen Isabella was meeting with Muhammad XII to discuss terms.<ref name="Stop the Burning of the City" /> Raphael concluded that the decay in discipline owed to Templar influence, and Ezio raced to eliminate the soldiers perpetrating the atrocities, killing the guard captain most complicit. Through his efforts, the Assassin saved the city from total destruction.<ref name="Stop the Burning of the City" />

On 25 November 1491,<ref name="Hillgarth 1978" /> Muhammad XII ratified the {{Wiki|Treaty of Granada}} with Queen Isabella I and King Ferdinand II. In contrast to the religious persecution the Catholic Monarchs dealt against their Jewish population, the treaty guaranteed many rights to the Muslims, stipulating religious tolerance and fair treatment,<ref name="Hillgarth 1978" /><ref name="Prescott 1837">Prescott, William Hickling.(1837) "War of Granada—Siege and Surrender of the City of Granada". ''History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella, the Catholic''. In Munro, Wilfred Harold (ed.) (1904) ''The Works of William H. Prescott''. Montezuma ed. London: J.P. Lippincott Company, pp. 227–258.</ref> but served only as a temporary truce, allowing two months for Granada to prepare for the relinquishment of control to Castile.<ref name="Hillgarth 1978" />

===Abduction of Prince Ahmed===
{{Quote|For decades, you have lived in a a land torn apart by religious discord. But soon, thanks to God and the Inquisition, we will purge this disease! The sinners before you, sought to defend the heretic Prince of Granada, the last heathen stronghold in our holy war. And so today before our King and Queen. I swear that we shall wash ourselves clean, in the holy fire of God! Behold God's will!|Tomás de Torquemada, 1492|Assassin's Creed (film)}}
Despite the truce, peace did not find Emir Muhammad XII, for in his possession was [[Aguilar's Apple of Eden|an Apple]] of [[Eden]], an ancient [[Isu]] [[Piece of Eden|artifact]] coveted by the Templars, of whom among them was the Grand Inquisitor Tomás de Torquemada. Without the means to acquire it directly, Torquemada plotted to kidnap Muhammad's son [[Ahmed of Granada|Ahmed]] and use him as ransom for the Apple.<ref name="ACfilm">[[Assassin's Creed (film)|''Assassin's Creed'' (film)]]</ref>

When Prince Ahmed sought refuge among a small village in [[Andalusia]], an army of Templars under the command of [[Ojeda]] tracked him there and captured him. Just as they prepared to transport the prince away on their carriage, they were ambushed by a group of [[Spanish Brotherhood of Assassins|Spanish Assassins]] led by the [[Mentor]] [[Benedicto]]. The Assassins battled for control of the carriage to free the prince, but at the end of a furious pursuit, the Templars were able to not only retain Ahmed but capture all the Assassins along with him.<ref name="ACfilm" />

===Formal capitulation===
On 2 January 1492,<ref name="Hillgarth 1978" /> the day of the scheduled annexation,<ref name="Prescott 1837" /> Torquemada brought Ahmed to the palace vault room of the Alhambra to conduct the ransom.<ref name="ACfilm" /> Fearful for his son's life, Muhammad XII was compliant, handing the chest with the Apple of Eden over to Torquemada. The Templars honoured the deal and passed Ahmed back to his father while the elated Torquemada held up the Apple of Eden and basked in his victory.<ref name="ACfilm" />

It was just then that [[Aguilar de Nerha]] and [[María (Assassin)|María]], the two captured Assassins that managed to escape their group's ''[[auto-da-fé]]'' in [[Seville]], ambushed the Templars. In the ensuing fight, María sacrificed her life when she was taken hostage by Ojeda to prevent Aguilar from compromising their mission to save her. Ultimately, Aguilar managed to kill Ojeda and retrieve the Apple, but Torquemada narrowly escaped with his life when he opened the doors that had prevented Spanish reinforcements from intervening. Nevertheless, the soldiers could not prevent the Assassin from escaping with the Piece of Eden.<ref name="ACfilm" />

In direct violation of the Treaty of Granada, the Inquisition immediately carried out an operation on Granada as soon as Castilian soldiers took control of the city.<ref name="Protect Civilians from Inquisitors">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Protect Civilians from Inquisitors]]</ref> Angered by the generous terms Queen Isabella had offered to Muslims, not least of all that she had spared the emir's life, Torquemada took matters into his own hands by secretly ordering Inquisitor [[Juan de Marillo]] to have his soldiers expel all [[civilians]] who did not pledge allegiance to the Pope and to use whatever means necessary to punish those who resisted.<ref name="Assassinate Juan de Marillo">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Assassinate Juan de Marillo]]</ref> Once again, Ezio responded swiftly, hunting the Inquisition soldiers throughout Granada that threatened the lives of civilians before killing Juan himself in the city catacombs.<ref name="Protect Civilians from Inquisitors" /><ref name="Assassinate Juan de Marillo" />

On the night of Emir Muhammad XII's abdication ceremony, the Templars staged an assassination attempt on the life of Queen Isabella. Alerted to this plot beforehand, the freelance mercenary and former Assassin [[Helene Dufranc]] requested the aid of Ezio, and the two raced to the ceremony just in time to kill the assassins outside.<ref name="Stop the Assassination">''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' – [[Stop the Assassination]]</ref> With Muhammad XII's abdication,<ref name="Stop the Assassination" /> the sovereignty of the last Moorish city of Iberia was formally transferred to the Crown of Castile.<ref name="Hillgarth 1978" /> The Granada War, as well as the ''Reconquista'' of approximately 770 years,<ref name="Spielvogel 2018 ch. 10">Spielvogel, Jackson J. (2018) "The Rise of Kingdoms and the Growth of Church Power". ''Western Civilization''. 10th ed. Boston: Cengage Learning, pp. 267–297.</ref> came to a close.<ref name="Spielvogel 2018 ch. 12" />

==Appearances==
*''[[Assassin's Creed II: Discovery]]'' {{1st}}
*[[Assassin's Creed (film)|''Assassin's Creed'' film]]
*''[[Assassin's Creed: The Official Movie Novelization]]''
*''[[Assassin's Creed: Rebellion]]''
**''[[Horacio's Retribution]]''
**''[[The Art of the Heist]]''
**''[[Kinslayer]]'' {{Mo}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Timeline}}
{{ACIID}}
{{ACfilm}}
{{ACNovelization}}
{{ACRebellion}}
[[Category:Wars]]
[[Category:Assassin-Templar War]]