Islam enters Spain — The Birth of Al-Andalus
711 CE · The Umayyad Caliphate
Tariq ibn Ziyad crosses the Strait of Gibraltar into the Iberian Peninsula with 7,000 troops. He defeats the Visigoth king Rodrigo at the Battle of Guadalete and within 7 years, Muslims control most of Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is named after him (Jabal al-Tariq). This begins 781 years of Islamic civilisation in Europe.