FATE OF BOABDIL EL CHICO.
The Chronicle of the Conquest of
Granada is finished: but the reader may
be desirous of knowing the subsequent
fortunes of some of the principal personages.
The unfortunate Boabdil retired
to the valley of Porchena, where a small
but fertile territory had been allotted him;
comprising several towns, with all their
rights and revenues. Great estates had
likewise been bestowed on his vizier,
Jusef Aben Comixa, and his valiant relation
and friend Jusef Venegas, both of
whom resided near him. Were it in the
heart of man, in the enjoyment of present
competence, to forget past splendour,
Boabdil might at length have been happy.
Dwelling in the bosom of a delightful
valley, surrounded by obedient vassals,
devoted friends, and a loving family, he
might have looked back upon his past
career as upon a troubled and terrific
dream; and might have thanked his
stars, that he had at length awaked to
sweet and tranquil security. But the
dethroned prince could never forget, that
he had once been a monarch; and the
remembrance of the regal splendours of
Granada made all present comforts contemptible
in his eyes. No exertions were
spared by Ferdinand and Isabella, to induce
him to embrace the catholic religion:
but he remained true to the faith of his
fathers; and it added not a little to his
humiliation, to live a vassal under Christian
sovereigns.
It is probable, that his residence in
the kingdom was equally irksome to the
politic Ferdinand, who could not feel perfectly
secure in his newly-conquered territories,
while there was one within their
bounds, who might revive pretensions
to the throne. A private bargain was
therefore made, in the year 1496, between
Ferdinand and Jusef Aben Comixa; in
which the latter, as vizier of Boabdil, undertook
to dispose of his master's scanty
territory for eighty thousand ducats of
gold. This, it is affirmed, was done
without the consent or knowledge of
Boabdil; but the vizier probably thought
he was acting for the best. The shrewd
Ferdinand does not appear to have made
any question about the right of the vizier
to make the sale; but paid the money
with secret exultation. Jusef Aben Comixa
loaded the treasure upon mules, and departed
joyfully for the Alpuxarras. He
spread the money in triumph before
Boabdil. "Señor," said he, "I have observed,
that, as long as you live here, you
are exposed to constant peril. The Moors
are rash and irritable. They may make
some sudden insurrection, elevate your
standard as a pretext, and thus overwhelm
you and your friends with utter ruin. I
have observed, also, that you pine away
with grief; being continually reminded
in this country, that you were once its
sovereign, but never more must hope to
reign. I have put an end to these evils.
Your territory is sold. Behold the price
of it. With this gold, you may buy far
greater possessions in Africa, where you
may live in honour and security."
When Boabdil heard these words, he
burst into a sudden transport of rage;
and, drawing his cimeter, would have sacrificed
the officious Jusef on the spot, had
not the attendants interfered, and hurried
the vizier from his presence.
Boabdil was not of a vindictive spirit,
and his anger soon passed away. He
saw, that the evil was done; and he
knew the spirit of the politic Ferdinand
too well, to hope that he would retract
the bargain. Gathering together the
money, therefore, and all his jewels and
precious effects, he departed with his
family and household for a port, where a
vessel had been carefully provided by the
Castilian king to transport them to Africa.
A crowd of his former subjects witnessed
his embarkation. As the sails
were unfurled, and swelled to the breeze,
and the vessel parted from the land, the
spectators would fain have given him a
parting cheering; but the humble state of
their once proud sovereign forced itself
upon their minds, and the ominous surname
of his youth rose involuntarily to
their tongues. "Farewell, Boabdil! Allah
preserve thee, El Zogoybi!" burst
spontaneously from their lips. The unlucky
appellation sank into the heart of
the expatriated monarch; and tears
dimmed his eyes, as the snowy summits
of the mountains of Granada gradually
faded from his view.
He was received with welcome at the
court of his relation, Muley Ahmed, King
of Fez; and resided for many years in
his territories. How he passed his life,
whether repining or resigned, history
does not mention. The last we find recorded
of him is in the year 1526, thirty-four
years after the surrender of Granada,
when he followed the King of Fez to the
field to quell the rebellion of two brothers,
named Xerifes. The armies came in
sight of each other on the banks of Guadiswed,
at the ford of Bacuba. The river
was deep; the banks were high and
broken. For three days the armies remained
firing at each other across the
stream, neither party venturing to attempt
the dangerous ford.
At length the King of Fez divided his
army into three battalions; the first led
on by his son and by Boabdil el Chico.
They boldly dashed across the ford,
scrambled up the opposite bank, and attempted
to keep the enemy employed,
until the other battalions should have
time to cross. The rebel army, however,
attacked them with such fury, that the
son of the King of Fez and several of the
bravest alcaydes were slain upon the spot,
and multitudes driven back into the river,
which was already crowded with passing
troops. A dreadful confusion took place;
the horse trampled upon the foot; the
enemy pressed on them with fearful
slaughter; those who escaped the sword
perished by the stream. The river was
choked by the dead bodies of men and
horses, and by the scattered baggage of
the army. In this scene of horrible carnage
fell Boabdil, truly called El Zogoybi,
or the unlucky: "an instance," says the
ancient chronicler, "of the scornful
caprice of fortune; dying in defence of
the kingdom of another, after wanting
spirit to die in defence of his own."
[131]
Note.—A portrait of Boabdil El Chico
is to be seen in the picture-gallery of the
Generalife. He is represented with a
mild, handsome face, a fair complexion,
and yellow hair. His dress is of yellow
brocade, relieved with black velvet, and
he has a black velvet cap, surmounted
with a crown. In the armoury of Madrid
are two suits of armour, said to have belonged
to him, one of solid steel, with
very little ornament; the morion closed.
From the proportions of these suits of
armour, he must have been of full stature
and vigorous form.
