Question

What impact did the Frankish leader Charles Martel have on Christian Europe's relations with Muslim Spain in the eighth century?

A. He negotiated a clear border between Spain and France.

B. He stopped the Muslim advance from Spain into France.

C. He welcomed ambassadors and scholars from Moorish Spain.

D. He established a Christian kingdom in a corner of northern Spain.

Answer 1

To me, the biggest and most important impact that Martel had on his relationship with Muslim Spain that makes sense was (B).

The reason was that the Muslim advance through Western Europe via Spain was largely unstoppable. Until Charles Martel, who was a strategic genius in his own right, there was a huge possibility that they would have gone on through the Franks and demolished what was left of Christendom in the West. Because of Martel's actions at the Battle of Tours despite being outnumbered, he broke the spearhead of the Muslim advance and forever secured the West against their armies.