The conquest of Tarifa was a military operation in 1292 led by the Crown of Castile with Genoese, Aragonese and Granadan support, in which the city of Tarifa was conquered, then held by the Marinids. The city is strategically located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the north side of the Strait of Gibraltar.
History
The siege of the city, which had maintained a key strategic importance far away from the Middle Ages for the different powers of the zone,[1] consisted of a combined attack of land and naval forces. Since the previous year, Tarifa had been subjected to a naval blockade to prevent the arrival of supplies.[2] The naval contingent, led by the Genoese admiral Benedetto I Zaccaria, was composed of a fleet of Genoese, Castilian and Aragonese ships (the latter sub-commanded by Berenguer de Montoliú).[3] Sancho IV of Castile also provided logistical assistance from the Emirate of Granada.[4] The land siege started in July 1292, after the arrival of Sancho IV.[5]
The forces of Sancho IV entered the city on October 14, 1292.[6]
According to Miguel Ángel Ladero Quesada, the conquest of the city was the most decisive Christian advance in two centuries of conflict in the area of the Strait of Gibraltar.[7]