Battle of Valdejunquera
The battle of Valdejunquera took place on July 26th 920 between the armies of the Emir of Al-Andalus Abd ar-Rahman III. and of King Ordoño II of León .
prehistory
In the early 10th century, the Kingdom of Asturias-León reached a height of power. The border with the Moors on the river Dorum ( Duero ) was fortified, in the west the city of Coimbra was taken in 878 , in central Spain the cities of Zamora , Simancas and Toro (893-900). In the east, under the government of García I of León (910-914), San Esteban de Gormaz were fortified and Osma repopulated.
Under the government of Ordoños II (914–924) there was an aggressive policy towards the emirate; so attacks were carried out against Évora and Mérida . The Moorish governor was forced to buy the withdrawal of the Leonese. In cooperation with the ally Navarre , successful attacks were also carried out along the Ebro .
This advance in the no man's land on the Dorum plain was possible because the emirate of Al-Andalus was in deep crisis at the end of the 9th century. The Emir Abd ar-Rahman III. (912–961), however, put down the uprisings in Andalusia between 913 and 914 and was now able to devote himself directly to the northern Christian kingdoms.
The battle
There were several raids by the Arabs. The aim of these was not to conquer territories, but to weaken the strategic centers of the outposts of Asturias-Leon and Navarre. In the "Campaign of Muez", the army of the Emir of Cordoba marched on Caracuel and destroyed the cities of San Esteban de Gomaz, Osuna and Clunia . Then the Moors moved on to Burgos , Tudela and Calahorra .
The King of Navarre was in Arnedo with his army and there united his troops with those of the Kingdom of León. Ordoño II was still waiting for the troops of the Counts of Castile. However, these did not appear. The Moors set up camp in Viguera . The Christian army set up camp in Muez in the Valdejunquera valley, about 25 km southeast of Pamplona . On July 26th 920 the battle broke out. The Christian army was defeated, the bishops of Tui and Salamanca were taken prisoner. The survivors withdrew to the forts of Muez and Viguera. However, the two forts were also conquered by the Moors and all prisoners were executed. The Moorish army then withdrew to Córdoba .
Because the Counts of Castile Ordoño II did not come to the rescue, he had them imprisoned and executed.