The Conquerors and the Formation of Al-Andalus ٭

The conquest of al-Andalus took place when the transformations in the Islamic empire implemented by the Marwānid branch of the Umayyads were at their highest peak. Mūsā ibn Nuṣayr, the major actor in the conquest, had strong links with the Umayyads of Damascus. What the sources suggest is that the most common form of conquest was capitulation and pacts with the conquered. The patronate (walāʼ) bonds established between the conquerors and the vanquished played a major role in the formation of the post-conquest societies.