Conquest of Tarifa

The conquest of Tarifa was a military operation in 1292 led by the Crown of Castile with Genoese, Aragonese and Granadan support, in which the city of Tarifa was conquered, then held by the Marinids.

Conquest of Tarifa
Part of the Battle of the Strait during the Reconquista
Conquest of Tarifa by Sancho IV the Brave (19th-century Spanish engraving)
Date 1292 Location Tarifa Result Christian victory
Belligerents
Crown of Castile Crown of Aragon Republic of Genoa	Marinid Sultanate
Commanders and leaders
Sancho IV of Castile Benedetto I Zaccaria	Abu Yaqub
Strength
More than 30 galleys[1] Surroundings of 8,000 horsemen[2]	3,000[3]
Casualties and losses
Unknown	Unknown

History

The siege of the city, which had maintained a key strategic importance far away from the Middle Ages for the different powers of the zone,^[4] consisted of a combined attack of land and naval forces. Since the previous year, Tarifa had been subjected to a naval blockade to prevent the supply of supplies.^[5] The naval contingent, led by the Genoese admiral Benedetto I Zaccaria, was composed of a fleet of Genoese, Castilian and Aragonese ships (the latter sub-commanded by Berenguer de Montoliú).^[6] Sancho IV of Castile also provided logistical assistance from the Emirate of Granada.^[7] The land siege started in July 1292, after the arrival of Sancho IV.^[8]

The forces of Sancho IV entered the city on October 14, 1292.^[9]

According to Miguel Ángel Ladero Quesada [es], the conquest of the city was the most decisive Christian advance in two centuries of conflict in the area of the Strait of Gibraltar.^[10]