Muhammad III of Granada

Muhammad III of Granada.
Muhammad III (1257–1314) was the Nasrid ruler of the Emirate of Granada in Al-Andalus on the Iberian Peninsula from 1302 until 1309. He built upon the military successes of his father Muhammad II against Castile, and expanded Granada's territory by capturing Bedmar in 1303. A treaty with Castile the following year recognised Granada's conquests in return for Muhammad's pledge of fealty and tribute to King Ferdinand IV. In 1306, Muhammad conquered Ceuta in North Africa, putting Granada in control of both sides of the Strait of Gibraltar. He built the Alhambra's Great Mosque (destroyed in the sixteenth century by Philip II), a nearby public bathhouse and the Partal Palace (pictured). Poor sight eventually forced him to rely heavily on his advisors, especially Ibn al-Hakim al-Rundi, his vizier, who became the de facto ruler. Muhammad was deposed in a palace coup when Granada was on the verge of a new war against Castile, Aragon, and the Marinids.