Suspicions and tensions between the Moriscos and the Christians have been high for some time.

While some Moriscos do hold influence and power, and they have some allies such as the nobility of Valencia and Aragon who depend on them as a cheap labor force, their overall political and economic heft in Spain is low.

The Christian population constantly suspects the Moriscos of not being sincere in their Christianity.

As the Moriscos had in 1492 been forced to choose between conversion and exile, many indeed hold little loyalty to either the crown or the church.

Several revolts had broken out, the most notable being the 1568–1573 revolt against an edict of Philip II's banning Arabic, Arabic names, and requiring Moriscos to give up their children to be educated by priests.

After the suppression of the revolt, Philip had ordered the dispersal of the Moriscos of Granada to other areas, expecting that this would break down the Morisco community and facilitate their assimilation into the Christian population.

This may have happened to a degree to Granada's Moriscos, but not in Valencia or Aragon, where genuine crypto-Muslim enclaves still exist.

Spain had recognized the loss of more than half of her holdings in the Low Countries to the Protestant Dutch Republic at around the same time as the Morisco Revolt.

The ruling class already thought of Spain as the defender of Catholic Christendom, and this defeat had helped lead to a radicalization of thinking and a desire to strike a blow to regain Spain's honor.

Some critiques of Spain from Protestant countries include insults of the Spanish as corrupted by the Muslims and pseudo-Muslims among them, which some of the nobility may take personally.

The situation further deteriorates in the early 1600s: a recession strikes in 1604 as the amount of gold and treasure in Spain's American holdings falls.

The reduction in the standard of living leads to increased tension between the Christians and the Moriscos for precious jobs.

There are approximately three hundred and twenty-five thousand Moriscos in Spain in 1609 out of a total population of eight and a half million, concentrated in the former kingdoms of Aragon, where they constitute twenty percent of the population, and ...

...the Valencia area specifically, where they are thirty-three percentf the total population.

In addition, the Moorish population growth is somewhat higher than that of the Christian population; in Valencia, the Morisco population has an estimated 69.7% growth rate compared to 44.7% for the Old Christians.

The rich and those who live in the cities are mostly Christians, while the Moriscos occupy the outlying countryside and the poor suburbs.

There is practically universal agreement in Spain that Islam is a threat that should be crushed.

However, it is not clear how that should apply to the Moriscos, who are officially Christian.

Some clerics such as Fray Luis de Aliaga, a royal councilor, supports giving time to the Moriscos to assimilate and become full Christians, an option lightly supported also by the Catholic Church in Rome.

The most dedicated defenders of the Moriscos are the Valencian and Aragonese nobility, as their self-interest is involved.

These nobles benefit the most from the poor and cheap workforce that the Moriscos provide.

Opposing this view are a variety of notables and classes of people.

Clerics against Aliaga include Jaime Bleda, the most prominent member of the Inquisition in Valencia.

Bleda had made several early proposals to King Philip III to banish or otherwise end the Morisco problem; he had even recommended genocide.

At first, these entreaties were without success.

The Duke of Lerma, King Philip III's chief financial officer, had in 1596 accused the Moriscos of collaboration with the Muslim Barbary pirates, a charge that had dogged them for years.

Still, while many in the population held to this, others considered that this threat had long since passed.

The Council of Aragon, in opposing any punitive measures, had written that even if they wished to betray Spain, the Moriscos were in no position to do so "for they possess neither arms, nor supplies, nor fortified positions, nor a base for the Turkish fleet."

Nothing came of it at the time, but the Duke of Lerma continues his in his antipathy toward the Moriscos.

Among the populace itself, the Valencian peasantry has the most interest in the matter.

They view the Moriscos with resentment and consider them economic and social rivals.

This had bubbled over before in 1520, when in the Revolt of the Brotherhoods, the citizenry of Valencia had revolted against not only their nobles but also the Muslim mudéjars.

The rebels had killed many, and forced the mass baptism and conversion of the remainder of the Muslim population, which had created the Moriscos of Valencia.

Spain’s Philip III is no longer willing to deal with the problem of assimilating the Moriscos.

Evidence of their continued political and religious infidelity leads to a royal order for deportation on April 9, 1609.

At the instigation of the Duke of Lerma and the Viceroy of Valencia, Archbishop Juan de Ribera, the King expels the Moriscos from Valencia.

The archbishop adds an idea to make the plan more persuasive to the king: the king can confiscate the assets and properties of the Moorish population, thereby providing a dramatic one-time boost to the royal coffers.

Ribera also encourages the king to enslave the Moriscos for work in galleys, mines, and abroad as he can do so "without any scruples of conscience," but this proposal is rejected.

Spanish authorities, knowing that exiling so many will be problematic, decides to start with Valencia, where the Morisco population is greatest.

Preparations are taken in the strictest secrecy.

Starting in September, tercio battalions arrive from Italy, taking took up positions in the main ports of Valencia: Alfaques, Dénia, and ...

Alicante.

On September 22, the Moriscos are ordered to depart "under the pain of death and confiscation, without trial or sentence... to take with them no money, bullion, jewels or bills of exchange... just what they could carry."

Adult Moriscos are often assumed to be covert Muslims (i.e., crypto-Muslims), but the arrangements for expulsion of their children presents Catholic Spain with a dilemma.

As the children have all been baptized, the government cannot legally or morally transport them to Muslim lands.

Some authorities propose that children should be forcibly separated from their parents, but sheer numbers show his to be impractical.

Consequently, the official destination of the expellees is generally stated to be France (more specifically, Marseille).

The first of the exiles are taken on September 30 to the ports, where, as a final insult, they are forced to pay their own fare for the trip.

The initial groups of Moriscos are transported to North Africa, where in some cases they are attacked as invaders by the people of the recipient countries.

In other cases, small revolts have broken out on the ships, causing some of the exiles to be slain in battle with the crew.

This causes fears in the Morisco population remaining in Valencia, and on October 20 there is a rebellion against the expulsion.

The rebels number six thousand and hold the remote valley of Ayora and Muela de Cortes.

The Morisco rebels, defeated by November, are sent to the ports for expulsion.