Life
Yusuf was the son of Abd al-Mu'min, the first caliph of the Almohad dynasty. Originally hailing from North Africa, Yusuf and his bloodline were descended from the Zenata Berbers. Like a number of Almohad rulers, Yusuf favored the Zahirite or literalist school of Muslim jurisprudence and was a religious scholar in his own right. He was said to have memorized Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, two collections of the prophet Muhammad's statements considered canonical in Sunni Islam, by heart, and was a patron of the theologians of his era. Respected men of letters such as Ibn Rushd and Ibn Tufayl were entertained at his court.
In 1170 he invaded Iberia, conquering al-Andalus and ravaging Valencia and Catalonia. The following year he established himself in Seville. He ordered the construction of numerous buildings, such as the Alcazar, the Buhaira palace and the fortress of Alcalá de Guadaíra.
Abu Ya'qub Yusuf was defeated by Afonso I of Portugal at the Siege of Santarém (1184), in which he died, his body was sent from Seville to Tinmel where he was buried.
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