Relocating Moriscos inland bought coast security at the cost of social polarization

Evidence

The policy of scattering the Granadan Moriscos had two distinct objectives that were not necessarily incompatible, although neither had been thought through properly. The objectives were strategic, on the one hand, and religious and cultural, on the other. The strategic objective was simply to uproot the Granadans, who had given ample proof of the enmity they felt for the Spanish state, and to relocate them as far as possible from the coast of Granada. Algerian and other raiders from across the sea had always hitherto been able to land to foray for booty or, during the years of open conflict, to bring in or take off troops and advisers from the small harbors of the Mediterranean coast. Christian Spain had long maintained a surveillance operation, on the high seas, in inshore waters, and on land, making use of the coastguard and the militias. After 1570, Christians along the coast could feel much safer, now that marauders no longer had ready-made beachheads available. The improvement in military security was obtained at significant social cost: the final polarization of society. — L. P. Harvey, Muslims in Spain, 1500 to 1614, 1103

Categorization

• SEED: A security-vs-social-cohesion tradeoff with a concrete sixteenth-century case: scattering an enemy-adjacent population to deny beachheads, gaining military safety while cementing permanent polarization — a lens for contemporary debates over relocating suspect populations.