The Reconquista began not as a religious crusade but rather as a matter of political expansion. By the 11th century the pope supported some of the campaigns against the Moors. The Hospitaller and Templar knights fought in Spain, and Spanish military orders were also formed. The Second Crusade had a branch focused on Iberia. However, the Reconquista was not explicitly religious until after the power of the Muslims in Spain had been broken.
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