WI: Failed Reconquista

What if the Umayyad Caliphate manages to snuff out all Christian resistance in Iberia? How would that effect Europe? Would the Muslims try to invade France more? Would they succeed? Iberian Crusade perhaps?
 
If they take over Iberia, they will move into Septimania and Provence. Being more advanced (and richer!) than Europe, more Viking efforts would be directed their way. Eventually France (maybe not under the Karlings?) would unify, and eventually they would die under the combined weight of France/European effort and internal pressure.

In OTL the Reconquista was an effort that took place over about six centuries, only ever advancing slowly. As soon as Europe overtook the Muslims in technological advancement (1258 would be a good point to base this off), the Arabs would be pushed back. Grenada might last longer, and Spain may be stronger, or possibly weaker in the following centuries. Maybe the rush into America would be delayed a century (England and the Dutch only joined to gain the prestige of New Spain).

- BNC
 
Well, there is reason why the Ummayids didn't even try seriously to take over the christian polities in the norhtern mountains: those lands lacked any economical interests for them. More troubles than profits. Also, they faced internal struggles between arabs and berbers, that led them to defeat at Tours and caused the retreat of the berbers occupying the Duero Valley, allowing the christians to occupy it starting the so-called Reconquista, which is a propaganda concept created a couple of centuries latter by exiled mozarabes (christians in muslim territory) To save the Caliphate of Cordoba you need to avoid the _Fitna, the division in small kingdoms or taifes that gave the upper hand to the christian kingdoms.
 
Asturias wasn't worth it, true. Southern France (ignoring destroyed Aquitaine) would be quite valuable, having been one of Rome's oldest and longest-kept provinces (except for Italy).

The best time that the Umayyads could have invaded Europe after Tours would have been around the time that Charlemagne took power. Knowing Charlemagne, that would not have been an easy thing at all. By the time Francia broke up, the Arabs had started their slow decline.

- BNC
 
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