al-Kadir (died May 1094) was the Emir of Valencia in Spain during the Reconquista, reigning until his death in 1094. al-Kadir was an unpopular emir, and El Cid succeeded in winning the hearts and minds of the people of Valencia during his siege of the city, leading to the people throwing al-Kadir from the castle walls.
Biography[]
al-Kadir's death
al-Kadir was the emir of Valencia on the eastern coast of Spain under the Almoravids, and he was a Muslim ruler. In 1074, he was captured by Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar alongside emir Yusuf al-Mu'taman ibn Hud of Zaragoza, and the two emirs were brought back to Vivar as captives. Diaz ignored Count Ordonez's orders that the prisoners be brought to Burgos to be hanged, and he released them in exchange for guarantees that they would not go to war with King Sancho II of Castile again; the Moors called Vivar "El Cid" ("the Boss") due to his skill in warfare. However, he assisted in Ordonez's attempt to assassinate El Cid in 1063, but the attempt failed and his assassins were repelled. al-Kadir would later be visited by Emir Ibn Yusuf in 1072, and Ibn Yusuf asked him to hold onto the city, as it would be the location of the disembarkation of Ibn Yusuf's armada of North African Moorish soldiers. In 1092, the city was besieged by El Cid, who was angry at al-Kadir's betrayal. It was starved, and in May 1094 the people of the city rose up against al-Kadir. The emir failed in his attempts to quell the riots with cavalry, and he was cornered on the castle walls. Surrounded, he was picked up by the angry populace and thrown off the walls to his death.