s army against the combined
forces of Tariq and the partisans of Witiza. A fierce battle took place
in the plain of Barbata on the little river of Guadaleta (north of
Medina Sidonia), in which Roderic was completely routed. The spoils of
the victors were immense, especially in horses, but the king himself had
disappeared. Fearing lest he should have escaped to Toledo and should
there fit out another army, the partisans of Witiza insisted that Tariq
should march immediately against the capital. Tariq complied with their
wishes, notwithstanding the express command of Musa b. Nosair that he
should not venture too far into the country, and the protests of Julian.
Having made himself master of Ecija and having despatched a detachment
under Moghith against Cordova, Tariq took Mentesa (Villanueva de la
Fuente) and marched upon Toledo, which he soon conquered. At the same
time Moghith took Cordova. But, notwithstanding these successes, Tariq
knew that his situation was most critical. King Roderic, who had escaped
to Lusitania, and the noble Goths, who had fled from Toledo, would
certainly not be slow in making efforts to regain what they had lost. He
therefore sent a message in all haste to Musa, entreating him to come
speedily. Musa, though angered by the disobedience of Tariq, hastened to
the rescue and embarked in April 712 with 18,000 men, among them many
noble Arabs, and began, advised by Julian, a methodical campaign, with
the purpose of establishing and securing a line of communication between
the sea and Toledo. After having taken Seville, Carmona and Merida, he
marched from the latter place by the Via Romana to Salamanca, after
having ordered Tariq to rejoin him in order to encounter king Roderic.
Not far from Tamames the king was defeated and killed. King Alphonso the
Great found his tombstone at Viseo with the inscription, "Hic requiescit
Rodericus rex Gothorum." After this battle Musa reconquered Toledo,
which, after the departure of Tariq, had recovered its independence, and
entered the capital in triumph. Already, before the expedition to
Salamanca, he had perceived that the sons of Witiza had neither military
nor political ability. He therefore proclaimed the caliph of Damascus as
sole ruler of the whole peninsula. The Gothic princes must content
themselves with honours and apanages, in which they readily acquiesced.
In the same year 93 (A.D. 712) Musa struck Moslem coins with Latin
inscriptions. Musa then continue