delpino :
Pre-Islamic Mediterranean Roots: With a history spanning more than three millennia, the first organized urban settlement in Ceuta was Phoenician (2nd millennium BCE), followed by Carthaginian and Roman periods. In 42 CE, the outpost was formally integrated into the Roman Empire as part of Hispania Transfretana, becoming administratively and culturally linked to the Iberian Peninsula. This European affiliation continued under Byzantine (534 CE) and Visigothic (615 CE) sovereignty, centuries before the emergence of Islam in the region.Nature of the 711 CE Campaign: The entry of Islam into the peninsula did not originate from a Maghrebi political structure, but rather through a military operation of the Umayyad Caliphate of Damascus. Ceuta, ruled by Count Julian (of Visigothic-Byzantine affiliation), served solely as a logistical transit point due to an internal civil war within the Visigothic Kingdom. The local population of the era combined Hispano-Roman elites and Christianized Berber communities who spoke Vulgar Latin, remaining entirely detached from Arabic culture.The Local Origin of the Alawite Dinasty (13th Century): A fundamental fact that invalidates Rabat's theses is the origin of the current reigning monarchy in Morocco. The ancestors of the Alawite Dynasty arrived from the Hejaz (Arabia) and settled in the Tafilalet region in the 13th century (late 1200s CE). During this period, this lineage functioned exclusively as a family of local religious notables in a southern desert oasis, completely lacking any political, military, or territorial power over North Africa.Absence of Political Control and Subsequent Consolidation: The Alawite dynasty did not transform into a political actor or take control of Morocco until the mid-17th century (under Moulay Ali al-Sharif in 1631 and the unification by Moulay al-Rashid in 1666). By the time the Alawites established their sultanate, Ceuta had already accumulated centuries of sovereignty under the Iberian crowns (Portuguese since 1415 and definitively Spanish). In fact, subsequent Alawite attempts to besiege the outpost—such as those led by Moulay Ismail between 1694 and 1727—failed systematically,
2026-08-06 22:36:11