The muslim troops were been guided by "Tariq", take advantage of the social and political unorganization of the time to cross the Gibraltar channel and to defeat the Visigoth king of Guadalete during the summer of the year 711.
The systemathic ocupation of the Iberican peninsula took place since 712 and was executed by "Musaibn Nusayr".

The relation between the different areas of visigothic domain were very divided by conflicts between landowner, wich explain the quick invation made by the moorish and the limited opposition that they found on their way in.

It was between the years 712 and 714 that the Moorish invaded Zaragoza and devastated the nordeast of the inlannd (Huesca, Lleida, Girona and Barcelona), it was in this late city were they found more resistance.

That meant the totall or partical destruction of some villages and the getaway of its population toward the north (basically toward the Pyrenees and hard to search areas).
Between the 717 and 718 the "valí" Al-Hurr and his troops did new incursions over the Tarracon lands, were all of the poblation that resisted the invaders were obligated with the payments of tributes.

Not many years latter (720) the Moorish finally crossed the Pyrenees and invaded Narbona, Carcasona, Nimes, and the rest of the "Septiminia" (The seventh province), the last independent Gothic province.

The Francs organized themself to stop this progresive expansion of the Moorish, who formed fronts from both sides and that had the intention to conquer all Europe.
The batlle of "Poitiers" is the symbol that marked the change.
The "Pipinadas", (The king "Pipino el Breve" was a franc king and father of Carlo Magno) Carlo Magno and his son, "Luis the Piadoso", began to recover territory. The Francs establish many garrison in the Pyrenees of Navarra and Aragón, and the Count of Tolosa took posetion of the "Pallars" and "La Ribagorça". Few years after when all those conquered places by the Carlovingian forces were lost, the expantion stoped.

It was formed then an "Hispanic frontier" to limit the Carlo Magno empire, it is what today is known as the "Old Catalonia", (south of the Pyrenees). The annalist refert to this area the name of "Hispanic mark" to refer to all the land belonging to the Hispanic territory.
*Mark means frontier.

Text By Eduard Juncosa