He said, “I must meet this man in single combat.”
So the king ordered the knight to accept the duel, adding, “He is the bravest Christian of his age.”

ʿAbd Allah then set off for Ruta, and the Christian rode after him, fully armed, whereas Ibn Hamushk wore neither coat of mail nor helmet. He took his spear and ṭāriqa (buckler) from his page, advanced toward the Christian, and the two of them charged one another again and again. Ibn Hamushk struck him on the buckler, and—by Allah’s help—the knight’s girth snapped; horse and rider crashed to the ground. Ibn Hamushk thrust at him and killed him, while the king watched from afar. The Christians were about to rush Ibn Hamushk, but the king restrained them. Ibn Hamushk’s page dismounted, stripped the fallen knight, took his horse, and rode off without so much as glancing in our direction. I do not know which amazed me more: the king’s sense of fairness, or Ibn Hamushk—how he left without even stopping by us!

Ibn Rudhmir then kept Zaragoza under siege (1) for a long time, capturing many of its forts. When the commander Abū ʿAbd Allah Muḥammad ibn Ghalbun saw what the Christians had done to those lands, he rose up in Durqa, Qalʿat Ayyūb, and Malina. He gathered forces, confronted Ibn Rudhmir, and Abū Bakr ibn Tiflūt took Zaragoza, ensconcing himself in its palace to enjoy its pleasures.

As for Ibn Ghalbun, he governed well, acted justly, fought jihad, and supplied the troops. I met him—an exceptionally tall man. By constant border raids he remained a thorn in Ibn Rudhmir’s throat. On one occasion they faced each other, each with a thousand cavalry. The battle grew fierce and prolonged. Ibn Ghalbun finally charged Ibn Rudhmir, unhorsed him, and would have killed him had his companions not defended him, so he escaped. They fled, and the accursed one survived with only about two hundred men (2).

As for Ibn Tiflūt, he corresponded with Ibn Ghalbun and deceived him until he made it seem advisable for him to visit the Commander of the Muslims, ʿAlī ibn