page_title: Ismail I of Granada
section_title: Consolidation
hierarchical_section_title: Ismail I of Granada / Reign / Consolidation
caption_attribution_description: English: Mirador de Ismail (Generalife) - Granada, Spain.
context_page_description: Abu'l-Walid Ismail I ibn Faraj was the fifth Nasrid ruler of the Emirate of Granada on the Iberian Peninsula from 1314 to 1325. A grandson of Muhammad II on the side of his mother Fatima, he was the first of the lineage of sultans now known as the al-dawla al-isma'iliyya al-nasriyya. Historians characterise him as an effective ruler who improved the emirate's position with military victories during his reign.
  He claimed the throne during the reign of his maternal uncle, Sultan Nasr, after a rebellion started by his father Abu Said Faraj. Their forces defeated the unpopular Nasr and Ismail was proclaimed sultan in the Alhambra in February 1314. He spent the early years of his reign fighting Nasr, who attempted to regain the throne from his base in Guadix, where he was initially allowed to rule as governor. Nasr enlisted the help of Castile, which then secured a papal authorisation for a crusade against Ismail. The war continued with intermittent truces and reached its climax in the Battle of the Vega on 25 June 1319, which resulted in a complete victory for Ismail's forces, led by Uthman ibn Abi al-Ula, over Castile.
context_section_description: The death of the two Castilian regents at the Battle of the Vega and the thorough defeat of their forces effectively ended the Castilian threat to Ismail's throne. With Castile's court in disarray, the Hermandad General de Andalucía – a regional confederation of frontier towns – acted to negotiate with Granada. An eight-year truce was agreed between the hermandad and Ismail at Baena on 18 June 1320, and effectively ended Castile's support for Nasr. Each town of the hermandad sent representatives to sign the treaty and pledged to accept a new regent only if he or she accepted the treaty. James II of Aragon, who also received papal authorisation and funds for a crusade against Granada, initially rebuked the hermandad for making a treaty which he stated was a "disservice to God" and not authorised by the crown, but finally made a treaty with Ismail in May 1321, to last for five years. Ismail also negotiated peace with Don Juan Manuel, acting as the leader of Murcia, part of the Castilian realms which separated Granada and Aragon. The terms include a provision that Granada could use Murcian territory in case of war against Aragon, in which case Murcia must not warn Aragon of its troops' movement. However, peace between Granada and Aragon held and their truce was renewed in 1326. Nasr died without heir in Guadix in 1322, and Ismail reunited the territories formally under his control with the emirate. Nasr's death meant Ismail's rule was now uncontested and paved the way for a new lineage of sultans beginning with him.
  Despite the treaty at Baena, some other truces between Granada and Castile expired, and conflict restarted. A Castilian fleet under Alfonso Jofré Tenorio defeated Granada in a naval battle, and according to Christian records captured 1,200 Muslims who were shipped to Seville. Meanwhile, emboldened by the end of the threat from Nasr and the lack of leadership in the Castilian court, Ismail crossed the land border with Castile in order to strengthen his control over the frontiers and recapture border fortresses. In July 1324 he recaptured Baza, near Guadix. In either 1324 or 1325, he took Orce, Huéscar, and Galera, and used cannons during one of the sieges (see below).  Ismail ordered the rebuilding of defences in the conquered places, and worked on the moat of Huéscar with his own hands. Poems celebrating some of Ismail's military accomplishments were written in the Dar al-Mamlaka al-Saida (Happy House of the Kingdom) in the Generalife of the Alhambra. Ismail's last campaign was the siege of Martos, from 22 June to 6 July 1325. During the assault Ismail lost control of his troops, who proceeded to sack the city and massacred its inhabitants. The resulting atrocities were roundly condemned by Muslim chroniclers.
caption: A poem in honour of Ismail carved in the Palace of the Generalife
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