On 2 January 1492 Muhammad XII, known as Boabdil, handed the keys of the Alhambra to Ferdinand and Isabella, the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, after a ten-year war and a siege of Granada. It was the last Muslim state in the Iberian Peninsula, ending nearly 800 years of Islamic rule in al-Andalus. Under the terms of surrender, Muslims could keep their religion, but this was broken within a decade. In March 1492, the monarchs ordered all Jews who refused baptism to leave Spain. Isabella received Christopher Columbus a few months later and agreed to fund his voyage.
Before and after
- 1 November 1491Birth of Ignatius of Loyola
- 31 December 1491Birth of Jacques Cartier
- 1492European colonization of the Americas
- from 1492 to 1681Spanish Golden Age
- 2 January 1492The fall of Granada ends Muslim rule in Spain
- 31 March 1492Alhambra Decree
- from 1493 to 1593Hundred Years' Croatian–Ottoman War
- 1493Askia Muhammad I takes power and builds the Songhai Empire
- from 24 September 1493 to 13 July 1898Spanish colonization of the Americas
More in Wars, politics & history
- from 1209 to 1229Albigensian Crusade
- 1212Children's Crusade
- from 1213 to 1221Fifth Crusade
- from 1248 to 1254Seventh Crusade
- 30 March 1282Sicilian Vespers
- 8 May 1429Joan of Arc relieves Orleans
The era
This moment belongs to the Medieval world (500 CE to 1500 CE), kingdoms, faiths and trade routes. You can also browse everything in the 15th century.