emirate · Iberia
Taifa of Seville
Origins
In 1023 the leading families of Seville expelled the Hammudid garrison and entrusted the city to the qadi Abu al-Qasim Muhammad ibn Abbad, of an old Arab family. He ruled in the name of a shadowy pretender, supposedly the vanished caliph Hisham II, which gave the Abbadids a claim to wider authority.
Rule and society
Al-Mutadid (1042-1069) expanded ruthlessly, annexing the Berber and Arab taifas of the south-west, from the Algarve to Ronda. His son al-Mutamid (1069-1091), himself a celebrated poet, added Córdoba in 1070 and Murcia in 1078, with the poet Ibn Ammar as vizier. Seville's olive oil, textiles and river port made it the wealthiest city in the west, though it paid tribute to Castile.
Decline and legacy
After Toledo fell in 1085, al-Mutamid called in the Almoravids, who won at Sagrajas in 1086 but deposed him in 1091. He died in exile at Aghmat in Morocco, and his poems of loss became classics of Arabic literature.
Lineage
On the connections map
Open the full map →Connections (14)
- Taifa of Mértola was conquered by Taifa of Seville1044 CE
- Taifa of Huelva was conquered by Taifa of Seville1051 CE
- Taifa of Santa María del Algarve was conquered by Taifa of Seville1051 CE
- Taifa of Niebla was conquered by Taifa of Seville1053 CE
- Taifa of Algeciras was conquered by Taifa of Seville1058 CE
- Taifa of Silves was conquered by Taifa of Seville1063 CE
- Taifa of Ronda was conquered by Taifa of Seville1065 CE
- Taifa of Morón was conquered by Taifa of Seville1066 CE
- Taifa of Carmona was conquered by Taifa of Seville1067 CE
- Taifa of Seville paid tribute to Kingdom of Castile1067 CE – 1086 CE
- Taifa of Arcos was conquered by Taifa of Seville1068 CE
- Taifa of Córdoba was conquered by Taifa of Seville1069 CE – 1070 CE
- Taifa of Murcia was conquered by Taifa of Seville1078 CE
- Taifa of Seville was conquered by Almoravid Empire1091 CE
Cite this page
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Taifa of Seville. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/taifa-of-seville
- MLA
- “Taifa of Seville.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/taifa-of-seville. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Taifa of Seville.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/taifa-of-seville.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Taifa of Seville’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/taifa-of-seville (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻