The Almohads’ capture of the fortress of Salvatierra in the province of Ciudad Real in September 1211 prompted Alfonso VIII of Castile to organise a campaign for the summer of 1212, with the aim of destroying the Almohads’ military capacity. To support this endeavour, Pope Innocent III issued a bull that converted the campaign into a crusade. This proved decisive, as crusaders from across Europe and knights from various military orders all joined the effort.

On 20 June 1212, three contingents departed from Toledo: troops from Aragon and Catalonia commanded by Peter II of Aragon, Castilians led by King Alfonso VIII, and troops from León and Portugal commanded by Diego López de Haro, Lord of Biscay. They were also joined by “ultramontanes”, supporters of Papal authority. As López de Haro’s troops advanced, they took the castles of Malagón (24 June) and Calatrava (1 July), the latter by way of surrender. However, the lack of plunder and the direction in which the crusade was developing caused unrest among the foreign contingents, most of which decided to return home. 

The Almohad Caliph Muhammad al-Nasir, whose army included troops from the Maghreb region, sub-Saharan Africa and Turkey, ordered his men to leave Jaén in order to head off the Christian forces in the Sierra Morena mountains.

Between 4 and 6 July, Alfonso VIII continued to advance, capturing a number of fortresses (including Alarcos Castle). Following the arrival of Sancho VII of Navarre, all of the Christian armies gathered at the foot of Salvatierra Castle and set off in search of the Almohad forces.  

On 12 July, the vanguard of López de Haro took Puerto del Muradal, and with it Castro Ferral Castle. Two days later, after having their progress blocked at the pass of La Losa, the Christian forces camped at the site known as Mesa del Rey. They engaged the Almohad army in battle on 16 July and emerged victorious, forcing the enemy to withdraw from the fortresses that defended the entrance to the Guadalquivir Valley. On 19 July, the Spanish occupied Baeza and besieged Úbeda the following day, securing its surrender.

Having completed the campaign and secured access to the Guadalquivir Valley, the Christian forces returned to their kingdoms in the north. 

Archaeological excavations appear to confirm some of the locations in which written sources placed the site of the combatants’ camps. The results of the excavations in Mesa del Rey corroborate the presence of a camp occupied by both regular soldiers and senior officers in the Christian army, and different areas of the camp, such as the farrier’s workshop, have also been identified. It has been suggested that Mesa del Rey is the place where the troops of King Alfonso VIII of Castile camped (although it would not have accommodated all of the Christian armies).

Similarly, the many weapons and military items found in the vicinity of Castro Ferral may have been left over from the assault on the castle carried out by the troops of Alfonso VIII. Other artefacts found at the site include everyday objects as well as those related to the castle’s military function, such as cavalry equipment, items of furniture, decorative objects worn on clothing, tools, nails and bolts.

The many artefacts recovered point to the existence of a large concentration of material related to the battle, despite the fact that the entire site was thoroughly ransacked over the course of more than a century.

LEGENDS

“The Shepherd of Las Navas de Tolosa”. In July 1212, as they made their way into the heart of al-Andalus, the Christian forces had to cross the Sierra Morena mountains via the natural pass of La Losa, a narrow gorge at Puerto del Muradal defended by Castro Ferral. Although Alfonso VIII sent López de Haro to take the castle, the pass remained strongly defended. 

A local man who knew this border region came to the Christians’ camp and told them that there was another way through the mountains. True to his word, he led López de Haro and his troops to a high plateau, which has been known as Mesa del Rey ever since. There, the Christian army set up camp and prepared to launch its offensive against the Almohad forces. Thus, on 16 July 1212, a battle took place that opened up a path into al-Andalus for the Christian soldiers. The man who showed them the way was named Martín Halaja: some said he was a shepherd, others said he was a hunter, but the most devout claimed that he was none other than Saint Isidore himself.