Battle of Pancorbo ( 816 ) The Battle of Pancorbo was a battle that took place in the year 816 between a Moorish army from the Emirate of Cordoba sent by Al - Hakam I and under the control of Abd al - Karim ibn Abd al - Wahid ibn Mugit and the forces loyal to Francia under the control of Balask al - Yalasqi . The battle was fought when the Muslim forces attempted to cross the pass at Pancorbo . The battle resulted in a Muslim victory and was instrumental in the Basque revolt and the establishment of Íñigo Arista of Pamplona as a major player in the contemporary Iberian political scene . Context . The Emirate of Cordoba was engulfed in conflict as Al - Hakam I fought against the pretensions of his uncles Sulaymán and Abd - Al · lah ibn Abd - ar - Rahman who had rebelled against the Cordoban establishment with the death of Hisham I of Córdoba . The disorder in the Emirate was exploited by the Franks who in 798 , convened an assembly under William of Gellone for the purpose of assisting Alfonso II of Asturias and Bahlul Ibn Marzuq against the Cordoban Emirate . Their goal was to coordinate operations to take Al - Tagr al - Ala ( Marca Superior ) in the name of Louis the Pious . However , for some reason that didn´t happen , and the Kingdom of Asturias launched attacks upon Lisbon in 797 , Velasco took over Pamplona in 798 , but William of Orange and Louis the Pious launched an expedition to conquer Barcelona later in 801 . The Arabs , commanded by Muawiya ibn al - Hàkam , son of Emir Al - Hakam I , attacked Álava and the Kingdom of Castile in 801 , crossing the River Ebro and the pass of las Conchas . They were surprised by Velasco , a Basque commander in control of troops from all over the Christian kingdoms , possible sent by Sancho I of Gascony . The surprise Christian attack occurred at La Puebla de Arganzón and resulted in a complete rout of the Muslim forces under Muawiya ibn al - Hàkam who was obliged to return to Cordoba ( Qurtuba ) after most of his best commanders and a large part of his army were wiped out . In 803 , Basque troops and members of the Banu Qasi attacked and took control of Tutila , capturing Yusuf ibn Amrús , although the city and its municipality were later retaken for Cordoba by Amrús ibn Yússuf . By 806 , Pamplona and the western Basque territories fell again in the hands of a Frankish vassal , Velasco ( or Belasko , " Balask al - Yalasqi " ) , who had rebelled against the Cordoban wali in the Basque stronghold ( 798 ) . He was Charlemagne ' s man in the Basque territories extending up to the boundaries of Alfonso II ' s realm . Meanwhile , in 812 Seguin was appointed " dux Wasconum " in Bordeaux , but soon after the spread of news of Charlemagne ' s death , the Basques stirred . The Battle . Abd al - Karim ibn Abd al - Wahid ibn Mugit directed the incursion of 816 into the Kingdom of Pamplona . There the Muslim forces pillaged the valley of Orón . Balask al - Yalasqi , the lord of Pamplona pleaded for assistance from the Kingdom of Asturias . On the Basque - Asturian side another two leaders are cited besides Velasco and Alfonso : Alfonso ' s maternal uncle Garcia ibn Lubb ( = ' son of Lupus ' ) and Saltan , " the best knight of pagans " . The battle lasted for thirteen days of non - stop combat during which , the Basques planned their defense in rough fords of rivers and ravines , blocking access with logs , trenches and pits dug with their own weapons , that Muslims could not get through . Finally , the Christian - Basque forces took the offensive and tried to cross the river but the Muslims had sealed off the crossing and massacred them with swords and lances . The major part of the victims died after falling off of the cliffs surrounding the battleground . With the subsequent rains , the Christians were found ill prepared after all their defensive works had been destroyed . The Basque - Asturians vassals of Charlemagne were forced to withdraw . However , the Muslims were equally in a difficult situation and despite victorious much of their army deserted the field . Consequences . The defeat of the army of Asturian - Basque Frankish vassals sparked a general revolt by the Basques against the Frankish crown and established Íñigo Arista of Pamplona as a major Basque power player in the region .