Melek of Granada; but after his successful attack on Algeciras in 1344
he was encouraged to try his fortune again at Gibraltar. In 1349 he
invested the rock, but the siege (fifth siege) was brought to an
untimely close by his death from the plague in February, 1350. The
next or sixth siege resulted simply in the transference of the coveted
position from the hands of the King of Morocco to those of Yussef III.
of Granada; and the seventh, undertaken by the Spanish Count of
Niebla, Enrico de Guzman, proved fatal to the besieger and his forces.
In 1462, however, success attended the efforts of Alphonso de Arcos
(eighth siege), and in August the rock passed once more under
Christian sway. The Duke of Medina Sidonia, a powerful grandee who had
assisted in its capture, was anxious to get possession of the
fortress, and though Henry IV. at first managed to maintain the claims
of the crown, the duke ultimately made good his ambition by force of
arms (ninth siege), and in 1469 the king was constrained to declare
his son and his heirs perpetual governors of Gibraltar. In 1479
Ferdinand and Isabella made the second duke Marquis of Gibraltar, and
in 1492 the third duke, Don Juan, was reluctantly allowed to retain
the fortress. At length, in 1501, Garcilaso de la Vega was ordered to
take possession of the place in the king's name, and it was formally
incorporated with the domains of the crown. After Ferdinand and
Isabella were both dead the duke, Don Juan, tried in 1506 to recover
possession, and added a tenth to the list of sieges. Thirty-four years
afterward the garrison had to defend itself against a much more
formidable attack (eleventh siege)--the pirates of Algiers having
determined to recover the rock for Mahomet and themselves. The
conflict was severe, but resulted in the repulse of the besiegers.
After this the Spaniards made great efforts to strengthen the place,
and they succeeded so well that throughout Europe Gibraltar was
regarded as impregnable.