Siege and fall of Córdoba

The city of Córdoba in al-Andalus, under the rule of Umayyad Caliph Hisham II al-Hakam, was besieged, attacked, and finally conquered by forces under rival Umayyad claimant Sulayman ibn al-Hakam twice: from 1009 to 1010 and from 1010 to 1013. Sulayman's victory, and the massacres and sacking that followed have been linked to the decline and end of Umayyad rule.

Sulayman briefly ruled the city in 1010, but was expelled. Caliph Hisham II al-Hakam was restored with Catalan assistance. From 1011 to 1013, Suleiman's troops engaged in raids on the countryside as well as maintaining a blockade of Córdoba from a base at the Madinat az-Zahra.

In April or May 1013, Córdoba surrendered and was conquered. Historian Richard Fletcher reports that, "Sulayman's Berber followers, who had already wrecked the palace at Madinat az-Zahra, sacked and plundered the city." During the fall of the city, Sulayman's troops looted Córdoba and massacred citizens of the city, including many Jews. Prominent Jews in Córdoba, such as Samuel ibn Naghrela were forced to flee to the city in 1013.