ion of catholic missionaries, designed to guide them into their new way of life. This effort was largely a failure as provided that the moriscos went to Christian mass and looked to be practising their new religion, then little more was asked of them. The majority of moriscos retained their old faith in spite of Phillip’s efforts.It wasn’t until the 1560s that Phillip decided that his policy would have to be changed. A section of the Christian clergy were angry that the moriscos abided in name only and insisted that action needed to be taken. There was a higher military incentive to remove the presence of the moriscos, however. While the battle in the Mediterranean between the Spanish and the Turks raged on, it was feared that the moriscos could become ‘an enemy within’. It was deemed possible that the moriscos would support a Turkish incursion, particularly from North Africa. There was also a chance that they would join with Protestants in Southern France in any attack on Spain itself. Phillip was extremely concerned about Turkish power and agreed that any possibility of a Turkish-morisco alliance would have to be quashed. It is for these reasons that Phillip took the decision to take a sterner approach on the moriscos in Granada.This new policy began in 1567. The morisocs were completely forbidden to practice any of their own customs including language and dress. They were to suffer severe economic hardships as a result. This brought them to revolt in Granada in 1568. The government was completely unprepared as it was fighting the war in the Netherlands. There was no plan on how to curb the uprising and many paid with their lives. The moriscos eventually lost in 1570.Phillip’s next policy was to spread the moriscos throughout the Christian population to try to prevent any future hostilities. This met with adverse effects as ‘old’ Christians became angrier at the moriscos turnin...
