Reading: Conquest of Ceuta – Wikipedia
portuguese possessions in Magreb ( 1415–1769 ) The conquest of Ceuta ( portuguese pronunciation : [ ˈsew.tɐ ], spanish pronunciation : [ ˈθeuta ] ) by the Portuguese on 21 August 1415 marks an authoritative step in the begin of the Portuguese Empire in Africa .
history [edit ]
In 711, shortly after the arab conquest of North Africa, the city of Ceuta was used as a staging ground in the Umayyad seduction of Hispania. however, the city was destroyed in 740 and only rebuilt in the ninth century, passing to the Caliphate of Córdoba in the tenth century. In the subsequent centuries it remained under the rule of the Almoravids and Almohads adenine well as respective andalusian Taifas. Prior to its capture by the Portuguese, Ceuta had seen a period of political instability in previous decades, under competing interests from the Marinid Empire and the Kingdom of Granada. [ n. 1 ] The attack on Ceuta besides offered the younger nobility an opportunity to win wealth and glory. The foreman showman of the Ceuta excursion was João Afonso, royal overseer of finance. Ceuta ‘s status opposite the straits of Gibraltar gave it see of one of the chief outlets of the trans-African Sudanese amber trade ; and it could enable Portugal to flank its most dangerous equal, Castile. [ 8 ] The Portuguese fleet captained by King John I of Portugal left Tavira in the Algarve and held a Council of war, while anchored off Punta Carnero, Spain before carrying out the seduction of Ceuta. [ 9 ]
On the good morning of 21 August 1415, John I of Portugal led his sons and their assemble forces in a surprise attack on Ceuta, landing on Playa San Amaro. The conflict itself was about anticlimactic, because the 45,000 men who traveled on 200 portuguese ships caught the defenders of Ceuta off guard. By nightfall the town was captured. On the good morning of 22 August, Ceuta was in portuguese hands. Álvaro Vaz de Almada, 1st Count of Avranches was asked to hoist the flag of Ceuta, which is identical to the sag of Lisbon, but in which the coat of arms of the Kingdom of Portugal was added to the center, a symbol that still stands today. The fleet then returned to Tavira in the Algarve. John ‘s son Henry the Navigator distinguished himself in the battle, being wounded during the conquest. The looting of the city proved to be less profitable than expected for John I ; he ultimately decided to keep the city, in order to pursue far enterprises in the sphere. Under King John ‘s son, Duarte, the colony at Ceuta quickly became a drain on the portuguese treasury. Trans-Sahara caravans journeyed alternatively to Tangier. It was soon realised that without the city of Tangier, monomania of Ceuta was worthless. In 1437, Duarte ‘s brothers Henry and Ferdinand persuaded him to launch an attack on the Marinid sultanate. The resulting attack on Tangier, led by Henry, was a debacle. In the resulting treaty, Henry promised to deliver Ceuta back to the Marinids in return for allowing the portuguese army to depart unmolested. possession of Ceuta would indirectly lead to further portuguese expansion. The main area of portuguese expansion, at this clock time, was the coast of Morocco, where there was texture, cattle, sugar, and textiles, a well as pisces, hides, wax, and beloved. [ 8 ] Ceuta had to endure alone for 43 years, until the position of the city was consolidated with the lease of Ksar es-Seghir ( 1458 ), Arzila and Tangier ( 1471 ).
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The city was recognized as a portuguese possession by the Treaty of Alcáçovas ( 1479 ) and by the Treaty of Tordesilhas ( 1494 ) .
