Crown of Aragon

gigatos | March 30, 2022

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Summary

Under the term Crown of Aragon (Spanish Corona de Aragón, Aragonese Corona d”Aragón, Catalan Corona d”Aragó), dominions of different constitution are summarized, which were ruled by the kings of Aragon in personal union between 1137 and 1516 or 1714. They included the kingdoms of Aragon, Majorca, Valencia, Sicily, Sardinia, Corsica and Naples, the duchies of Athens and Neopatria, the marquisate of Provence, the counties of Barcelona, Roussillon and Cerdanya and the lordship of Montpellier.

The rulers of the Crown of Aragon and of Spain enumerated and still enumerate in their titles a large number of dominions. However, these enumerations corresponded or corresponded only partially to the real dominions.

From 1516 to 1707, the individual dominions of the Crown of Aragon were part of the dominion of the Crown of Spain. The states as such and a large part of their legal traditions (usatges) and special rights (fueros) remained intact.

King Alfonso I of Aragon and Navarre died childless in 1134. In his will, he left his kingdoms to the Order of the Knights Templar, the Order of Saint John, and the Order of the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem. The nobility of Aragon did not recognize the will, since it disregarded the customary law of the land, and asked Ramiro, the younger brother of the deceased king, to take over the reign. This brother was a Benedictine monk and had just been elected bishop of Barbastro-Roda (though not yet consecrated). In order to avoid imminent warlike conflicts over the crown, Ramiro decided to take over the dominion and marry Agnes of Aquitaine (Spanish: Inés de Poitou), contrary to his religious vows. The bride, who was about 30 years old, had been a widow for eight years and already had three sons.

On June 29, 1136, the daughter Petronella was born. In 1137 Ramiro concluded a marriage contract with Raimund Berengar IV, Count of Barcelona, for his daughter. At that time the bride was one year old and the groom 24. The contract stipulated that Raimund Berengar should take over the regency of the Kingdom of Aragon for Queen Petronella. The regent had the title of Prince of Aragon and Count of Barcelona. The nobility of Aragon agreed with this solution. King Ramiro returned to his religious life, but kept the title “King of Aragon”. He died in 1157, and his wife Agnes of Aquitaine retired to Fontevraud Abbey in France, where she died in 1159.The kingdom of Queen Petronella, at the time Raimund Berengar assumed the regency (1137), consisted of the counties of Aragon, Sobrarbe and Ribagorza. It had an area of 28,607 km². The domain of the Count of Barcelona consisted of the counties of Barcelona, Girona, Osona, Besalú and Cerdanya. These counties had a combined area of 16,362 km². The dominions did not have common borders, but were separated from each other by the counties of Urgell and Pallars or the Almoravid Empire. Different languages were spoken in the dominions. Different laws prevailed. There were no common institutions.

In August 1151 the wedding took place between the then 15-year-old Petronella and 38-year-old Raimund Berengar IV. In 1157 the son Alfonso was born.

After the death of Raimund Berengar in 1162, a Regency Council, which included Queen Petronella, took over the regency for the then five-year-old Alfonso. From the assumption of government by Alfonso II in 1174, the Kingdom of Aragon and the domain of the Counts of Barcelona were ruled in personal union under the term “Crown of Aragon”.

In the course of time, the territory of the Crown of Aragon changed, on the one hand, through the annexation of lands to existing dominions and, on the other hand, through the acquisition of new states. But there were also losses due to hereditary divisions and diplomatic or military failures.

On December 14, 1319, in Taragona, James II established that the kingdoms of Aragon and Valencia and the county of Barcelona should remain together forever under the same ruler.This “indivisibility” was guaranteed again by Alfonso IV after his coronation.

Also read, civilizations – Mataram Sultanate

German Königreich Aragonien, Spanish Reino de Aragón, Aragonesisch Reino d”Aragón, Catalan Regne d”Aragó, Basque Aragoiko Erresuma

The Kingdom of Aragon developed from a county of the Spanish Marches. Alfonso I of Aragon, who was also King of Pamplona, extended the territory of the kingdom southward into Almoravid territory. Of particular importance was the capture of Saragossa.In 1137, the kingdom consisted of the counties of Aragon, Sobrarbe and Ribagorza. Raimund Berengar was able to expand the territory of the kingdom to the south around Lower Aragon. Whether the newly conquered dominions were part of the Kingdom of Aragon or the Principality of Catalonia, or separately independent, was occasionally not clear. The boundaries that the kingdom had with the dominions of the Counts of Barcelona (that is, Catalonia) were redefined in the various wills of James I at each birth or death of a son. They remained largely constant after his death in 1276. The assignment to the Kingdom of Aragon or to the Principality of Catalonia was significant in terms of which legal system was valid or in which Cortes the local estates were represented. Whereby the legal systems were not necessarily congruent with the dominions, e.g. the county of Ribagorza had its own legal system, which did not coincide with either the legal system of Catalonia or that of Aragon.

German Grafschaft Aragonien, Spanish Condado de Aragón, Catalan Comtat d”Aragó, Aragonesisch Condato d”Aragón, Basque Aragoiko konderria

The County of Aragon developed from the County of Jaca, which was part of the Spanish Marches. For a long time, the territory belonged to the Kingdom of Navarre. After a division of inheritance, Ramiro I established the independent Kingdom of Aragon in 1035.

Spanish Condado de Ribagorza, Aragonese Condato de Ribagorza, Catalan Comtat de Ribagorça, Basque Ribagortzako konderria

Since the reign of King Ramiro I of Aragon, Ribagorza was an integral part of the Kingdom of Aragon. The title of Count of Ribagorza was not held separately. It was not until the division of his inheritance by James II of Aragon that the younger son Peter received the title of Count of Ribagorza in 1322. At the same time, the county remained under the suzerainty of the Kings of Aragon. After the death of Peter”s grandson, Alfonso de Aragón y Eiximenis, the title fell to the future King John II of Aragon in 1425. John granted the title of Count of Ribagorza to his son Ferdinand. The latter, after his coronation as King of Sicily, laid aside the title, so that the title could be given anew to Ferdinand”s half-brother Alfonso of Aragon and Escobar. He bequeathed the county to his son John II of Ribagorza, who was born out of wedlock.

Principality of Catalonia

German Fürstentum Katalonien, Spanish Principado de Cataluña, Catalan Principat de Catalunya, Aragonese Prencipato de Catalunya, French Principauté de Catalogne

The name “Cataluña” or in Latin “Cathalonia” appeared in the will of King Alfonso II of Aragon as a term designating the outskirts of the domain of the Counts of Barcelona. Only later did the meaning expand to include the territory it designates today. In 1137, the territory of the Count of Barcelona consisted of the counties of Barcelona, Girona, Osona, Besalú and Cerdanya.

The Counts of Barcelona retained the title “Count of Barcelona” despite considerable extensions of their dominions. At times, other titles were used in official pronouncements that referred to Catalan dominions. The title Prince of Catalonia was not used by the Kings of Aragon or the Counts of Barcelona. In contrast, the Cortes of Catalonia used the term “Principate” (principality) for the territory from which their members came. Maps also began to refer to this area as the Principality of Catalonia.

German Grafschaft Barcelona, Spanish Condado de Barcelona, Catalan Comtat de Barcelona, Aragonese Condato de Barcelona

The County of Barcelona was one of the counties established by the Franks in the Spanish Mark. Wilfried I ruled over various counties of the Spanish Marches at the end of the 9th century. He was the last ruler established by Frankish kings. His heirs divided the various counties differently over time. However, the counties of Barcelona, Osona and Girona remained together and formed the core of Catalonia.

Spanish Condado de Besalú, Catalan Comtat de Besalú

The county of Besalú was part of the Spanish Mark. At the end of the 9th century, it belonged to the dominions of Count Wilfried I. It was ruled by a collateral line of the House of Barcelona from the year 897. After Count Bernard III died childless in 1111, his father-in-law, Raimund Berengar III of Barcelona inherited the county. It subsequently remained united with the County of Barcelona.

Spanish Marquesado de Tortosa, Catalan Marquesat Tortosa,

Tortosa became an independent Taifa kingdom after the disintegration of the Caliphate of Cordoba. At the beginning of the 12th century, the area belonged to the Almoravid Empire.Pope Eugene III had called for a Second Crusade in March 1146. He also called for a fight against the Moors on the Iberian Peninsula. He equated this fight with the fight for the Holy Land. As part of this crusade, Raimund Berengar IV, with the help of Genoese crusaders, conquered the marquisate of Tortosa in 1148.

Tortosa was initially neither part of the Kingdom of Aragon nor of the County of Barcelona, but an independent marquisate. Raimund Berengar IV took the title of Marqués de Tortosa.

Spanish Marquesado Lérida, Catalan Marquesat Lleida

The area around Lleida was for a long time independent Taifa kingdom, at times under the same government as Saragossa. The Kings of Aragon, the Counts of Urgell and the Counts of Barcelona tried to conquer the area as early as the 11th century. In the process, they brought individual cities into their possession. Pope Paschalis II dissuaded Peter I from the plan to participate in the Crusade of 1101 to Jerusalem. It was more important for him to fight against the Moors in Spain and conquer Lleida. Peter I died in 1104, after unsuccessfully breaking the siege of Saragossa in 1102. Lleida was conquered in 1149 by Raimund Berengar IV in a crusading action. Similar to Tortosa, the area around Lleida was not included in other dominions, but was ruled as its own independent marquisate in personal union by Raimund Berengar IV, who held, among other titles, that of Marquès de Lleida. With the separate titling according to the different dominions, it was intended to show that neither Tortosa nor Lleida were to be seen as extensions of the Kingdom of Aragon or the County of Barcelona, but were evaluated as separate entities like Barcelona and Aragon.

In November 1255, James I decreed that the same law should apply in the Marquisate of Lleida as in Saragossa.

After the border settlements in Jacob”s will, the Marquisate of Lleida belonged to the Principality of Catalonia. The Principality of Catalonia thus reached approximately the extension of the present Autonomous Community of Catalonia.

Spanish Condado de Urgel, Catalan Comtat d”Urgell, Aragonese Condato d”Urchel

The original territory of the County of Urgell was part of the Spanish Marches in the 9th century. From the 9th century, the Counts of Urgell ruled as independent sovereigns. They expanded the county by conquering lands that previously belonged to the Almoravid domain.

In his will, Count Ermengol VIII of Urgell appointed his daughter Aurembiaix as heiress. According to the opinion in Catalonia at that time, the 13-year-old girl could not inherit the county. Therefore, Ponce de Cabrera, who was married to an aunt of Aurembiaix, tried to become Count of Urgell. In order to fend off this claim, the mother of Aurembiaix, Elvira de Subirats, called King Peter II of Aragon for help. The latter designated Urgell as part of his domain, which he passed on to Aurembiaix as a fief. In July 1229, Aurembiaix married the Portuguese Infante Peter of Portugal. When Aurembiaix died in September 1231, her widower exchanged his claims to the county of Urgell for a lordship over Mallorca. James I since then held the titles of King of Aragon and Mallorca, Count of Barcelona and Urgell, Lord of Montpellier.

In the Treaty of Tárrega, in 1236, James I installed Ponce de Cabrera as the new Count of Urgell. The dominion passed down in the family until 1314, when Teresa d”Entença, heiress to the county of Urgell, married Alfonso IV, later King of Aragon. After Teresa”s death, Alfonso ruled the county as a separate dominion to his other dominions in personal union. At Alfonso”s death, his second-born son James I of Urgell (Jaime I de Urgell) inherited the county. In 1413, James II of Urgell refused to recognize the arbitration award of Caspe, which declared Ferdinand I ruler of the realms of the Crown of Aragon. An armed revolt led by him failed. James was captured and his possessions confiscated in favor of the Crown of Aragon. The county of Urgell became part of the Principality of Catalonia.

Spanish Condado de Ampurias, Catalan Comtat d”Empúries,French Comté d”Empúries

The county of Empúries was part of the Spanish Marche in the 8th century. In the 10th century, the county was temporarily united with the county of Roussillon. From the 11th to the beginning of the 14th century Empúries was an independent county with a total area of about 1199 km². This became part of the Crown of Aragon in 1325 through an exchange of territories.The county was ruled at times by various collateral lines of the ruling house of the Crown of Aragon under the suzerainty of the Kings of Aragon.Some parts of the county were separated when the Duchy of Girona was created.The county of Empúries belonged to the Principality of Catalonia.

Spanish Pallars Jussá, Catalan Pallars Jussà, Aragonese Pallars Chusán, Basque Pallars Jussàspanish Pallars Sobirá, Catalan Pallars Sobirà, Aragonese Pallars Sobirán, Basque Pallars Sobirà

Since the end of the 9th century there was an independent county of Pallars. At the beginning of the 11th century, the county was divided into the county of Pallars Jussà and the county of Pallars Sobirà.

The Counts of Pallars Jussà were vassals of the Kings of Aragon in the 12th century. The last heiress of the county gave the dominion to Alfonso II in 1190. The county became part of the Principality of Catalonia.

At least since the year 1083, the Counts of Pallars Sobirà were vassals of the Kings of Aragon.

German Grafschaft Roussillon, Spanish Condado de Rosellón, Catalan Comtat del Rosselló, French Comté de Roussillon, Occitan Comtat de Rosselhon

Roussillon was one of the counties of the Spanish Marches in the 9th century. It developed into a county ruled by the descendants of Bello of Carcassonne. Girard II, the last Count of Roussillon from the family of Belló of Carcassonne, died childless in 1172. He bequeathed the county to King Alfonso II of Aragon. Immediately after Girard II”s death, Alfonso went to Perpignan to receive the people”s oath of allegiance. In 1209 Alfonso gave the county to his brother Sancho as a fief. He bequeathed it to his son Nuño Sanchez. On his death in 1242, the fief reverted to the Crown of Aragon.

After the death of the Infante Fernando, James I of Aragon amended his will in 1258 so that the Infante James should receive the Kingdom of Majorca together with the dominion over Montpellier and the counties of Roussillon, Cotlliure, Conflent, Vallespir and Cerdanya. The provisions of the will were put into effect at the death of James I on July 27, 1276.

Peter IV stipulated that the Kingdom of Mallorca with the adjacent islands and the lands of Roussillon and Cerdanya should not be separated from the Kingdom of Aragon and Valencia and the County of Barcelona “in any way, ever, at any time” (por ninguna manera, ni jamás por ningún tiempo).

In 1463, during the reign of Louis XI, France conquered the county of Roussillon. In the Treaty of Barcelona of September 19, 1493, Ferdinand II was able to agree the return to the Crown of Aragon.

In the Peace of the Pyrenees, concluded on November 7, 1659 between Louis XIV of France and Philip IV of Spain, Spain ceded to France Roussillon with its capital Perpignan and the parts of the county of Cerdanya lying north of the Pyrenees.

The county of Roussillon was a direct dominion of the Crown of Aragon from 1242. It was temporarily under the government of the Kings of Majorca. The county of Roussillon belonged to France temporarily and permanently from 1659.

In 1117 Raimund Berengar III, the father of Raimund Berengar IV, inherited the county of Cerdanya, which included the county of Berga and the county of Conflent. At the death of Raimund Berengar IV in 1162, the counties of Roussillon and Cerdanya passed to a collateral line of the House of Barcelona. After the extinction of this collateral line, the dominion reverted to the Crown of Aragon under James I in 1241.

By his will, James I divided the dominions of the Crown of Aragon among his sons. In the process, the lands of the Crown of Mallorca – the Kingdom of Mallorca, the counties of Roussillon and Cerdanya, and the Lordship of Montpellier – passed to the younger son, James, in 1276. In the following period, the lands of the Crown of Mallorca were ruled by the collateral line of the House of Barcelona, founded by James II of Mallorca (1243-1311).

On June 29, 1343, Peter IV invaded the counties of Roussillon and Cerdanya. The counties of Roussillon, Conflent and Cerdanya were again directly under the Crown of Aragon.In 1462, the Treaty of Bayona was concluded between Louis XI of France and John II of Aragon. In this treaty, John II pledged the counties of Roussillon and Cerdanya to the King of France in exchange for the delivery of arms, money and a military operation.

Louis XI of France took the county of Roussillon from John II of Aragon by invasion in 1463. In the Treaty of Barcelona of January 19, 1463, Ferdinand II and Louis XI agreed to return the counties of Roussillon and Cerdanya to the Crown of Aragon. In the Treaty of the Pyrenees, in 1659, it was finally agreed to hand over the parts north of the Pyrenees, including the county of Cerdanya, to France.

Spanish Ducado

The Duchy of Girona was created in 1351 by King Peter IV of Aragon. For this purpose, he combined the counties of Girona, Besalú, Empúries and Osona, which belonged to the core of the dominion of the Counts of Barcelona, into one dominion.

In the future, the duchy was to be under the rule of the respective heir to the throne and, upon his death or the assumption of the crown of Aragon by the title holder, revert to the crown to be reassigned. When the later Alfonso V was enfeoffed by his father Ferdinand I, the duchy was upgraded to a principality.

Also read, biographies – Afonso I of Kongo

Kingdom of Valencia

German Königreich Valencia, Spanish Reino de Valencia, Catalan Regne de València, Aragonese Reino de Valencia

The Kingdom of Valencia was an inseparable part of the Crown of Aragon from the middle of the 13th century.

Also read, biographies – Pierre Reverdy

Kingdom of Mallorca

German Königreich Mallorca, Spanish Reino de Mallorca, Catalan Regne de Mallorca, Aragonese Reino de Mallorca, Italian Regno di Maiorca, French Royaume de Majorque

The Balearic Islands were conquered at the beginning of the 10th century by troops of the Emirate of Cordoba. At the beginning of the 12th century, Pisa”s fleet attacked Mallorca on several occasions in order to create trading bases here.An attack by the Genoese was directed against Menorca in 1146.

In September 1229, a fleet composed of ships from different cities of the Crown of Aragon reached the Balearic Islands. On December 31, 1229, Jacob”s troops were able to capture the city of Palma. In March 1230, the last resistance was broken even on land. James I granted various rights to the participants of the conquest, among others, tax exemption on the island. The island of Menorca also submitted to Jacob”s rule in the middle of 1231. However, the incorporation of Menorca into the Crown of Aragon did not practically take place at that time. An agreement was made with the Moorish inhabitants, which stipulated that neither Christians nor Jews were allowed to live on the island.An actual inclusion of this island took place only after the occupation in 1287.

In September 1231, James I gave the Balearic Islands as a fief to Peter of Portugal, with the condition that he conquer the islands of Ibiza and Formentera within the next two years. The enfeoffment was made in exchange for the lordship of the County of Urgell, which Peter had inherited from his wife Aurembiaix.Peter of Portugal conquered Ibiza and Formentera by 1235, but exchanged his rights in the Balearic Islands for possessions in the Kingdom of Valencia.

Peter IV wanted to end the government of Mallorca by the collateral line of the House of Barcelona in 1341. He had James III accused of various transgressions of his rights before the Cortes of Barcelona. In May 1343 he besieged Palma de Mallorca. On June 1, 1343, after a high mass in the Cathedral of Palma de Mallorca, he proclaimed his new succession of titles: King of Aragon, of Valencia, of Mallorca, of Cerdanya and Corsica, Count of Barcelona. From June 4, the population was sworn in him. The representatives of the other islands were invited to come to Palma to be sworn in as well.

Peter IV ordered that the Kingdom of Mallorca with the islands belonging to it, as well as the lands of Rousillon and Cerdanya, should never again be separated from the Kingdom of Aragon, the Kingdom of Valencia and the County of Barcelona.

Kingdom of Sicily

German Königreich Sizilien, Spanish Reino de Sicilia, Catalan Regne de Sicília, Aragonese Reino de Secilia, Italian Regno di Sicilia, French Royaume de Sicile

Since the foundation of the Kingdom of Sicily by Roger II in 1130, the Kingdom of Sicily consisted of the island of Sicily and the Principality of Taranto, the Duchy of Apulia and the County of Calabria on the Italian peninsula. It remained an independent kingdom even after the conquest by Emperor Henry IV. It did not become part of the Holy Roman Empire, but was considered a separate possession of the emperor.

Relations between Sicily and the Crown of Aragon began in 1262 with the marriage of Constance of Sicily and the then Crown Prince, later King Peter III of Aragon. Constance was the daughter of Manfred, the son of Emperor Frederick II. Manfred had himself crowned King of Sicily in August 1258. Because Manfred refused to recognize the Pope as his liege lord, he was banned in 1259 and his kingdom was interdicted. On August 28, 1265, Pope Clement IV enfeoffed Charles of Anjou, brother of Louis IX, King of France, with the Kingdom of Sicily. In the Battle of Benevento on February 26, 1266, Charles” army was able to defeat Manfred”s army. Manfred himself was killed in the battle. Charles was able to conquer the rest of Sicily without much resistance.

Representatives of the city of Palermo asked King Peter III of Aragon to take over the government of the Kingdom of Sicily as the husband of Constance of Sicily. On August 30, 1282, Peter III landed in Trapani. He went to Palermo, had himself crowned king there and took the title of King of Sicily. The conquest of the island succeeded quite quickly, as Peter”s troops were supported by the population. On October 2, 1282, Peter III reached Messina.

On January 13, 1283, Peter III was excommunicated by Pope Martin IV on the grounds that he had illegally occupied a fief of the Holy See. In March 1283, the Pope also withdrew King Peter III of Aragon”s dominion over the lands of the Crown of Aragon and awarded them to Charles of Valois, then the 13-year-old fourth son of the French King Philip III. In addition, Pope Martin IV called for a holy war against the Crown of Aragon. This war is today called the Aragonese Crusade.

This crusade was led primarily by French troops under the command of Philip III. James II of Mallorca was Count of Roussillon and Cerdanya, counties that the French troops passed on their way to Aragon

At the death of Peter III, the rule over the lands of the Crown of Aragon passed to Alfonso III. His brother James II crowned himself King of Sicily, Duke of Apulia and Prince of Capua. When Alfonso III died in February 1291, James II demanded to rule over the previous lands of the Crown of Aragon, but also over Sicily. He installed his younger brother Frederick in Sicily as his deputy.

In the Treaty of Anagni, the relations between the Holy See (Boniface VIII), the Kingdom of France (Philip IV), the Crown of Aragon (James II) and the Kingdom of Sicily (Charles II of Anjou) were to be clarified. For this purpose, a meeting was held at the papal residence in Anagni. In the treaty signed by the parties in June 1295, the contracting parties agreed, among other things:

The reaction in Sicily was that the brother of James II, who actually ruled as his deputy in Sicily, crowned himself King of Sicily in 1296 in Palermo as Frederick II. This assumption of power was not recognized by the parties to the Treaty of Anagni. However, the attempts to expel Frederick II from Sicily were unsuccessful. In the Treaty of Caltabellotta, the old Kingdom of Sicily was divided into the mainland part ruled by Charles II of Anjou (now called the Kingdom of Naples) and the island under the rule of Frederick II (also called Trinacria). Subsequently, the collateral line of the House of Barcelona, founded by Frederick, ruled over the island of Sicily.

The heir of King Frederick III of Sicily was his 15-year-old daughter Mary of Sicily in 1377. The affairs of state were taken over by a group of members of the Sicilian nobility. In 1392, Martin, the brother of King John I of Aragon, had Mary brought to Barcelona to be married to Martin (called the Younger), who was 14 years younger. The latter thus officially became co-regent. Martin (called the Elder), the father of Martin the Younger, moved to Sicily in 1392 with his daughter-in-law and son to practically take over the government there as Vicarius. He did not give up his position even when he returned to Aragon in 1396 to succeed his brother as King of Aragon. Thus, the Kingdom of Sicily was practically rejoined to the Crown of Aragon from 1396. Mary died in 1401, and Martin continued to rule as King of Sicily under the strong influence of his father. He married Blanka of Navarre in 1402. The marriage remained childless. After the death of King Martin I of Sicily in 1409, his father Martin I of Aragon also officially resumed rule as Martin II of Sicily in personal union with the Crown of Aragon.

Shortly before the Aragonese heir to the throne Ferdinand married the Castilian heiress Isabella, his father John II appointed him King of Sicily. Ferdinand was crowned King of Sicily on June 19, 1468, in the Cathedral of Saragossa. This formally separated the Kingdom of Sicily from the Crown of Aragon. However, since Ferdinand”s appointment as “lugarteniente” (deputy of the king) was confirmed at the same time, there was practically no real separation in the period from 1468 until the death of King John II.

The Kingdom of Sicily remained linked to the Crown of Aragon or to the Crown of Spain until the Peace of Utrecht in 1713.

Kingdom of Naples

German Königreich Neapel, Spanish Reino de Nápoles, Catalan Regne de Nàpols, Aragonese Reino de Nápols, Basque Napoliko Erresuma, Italian Regno di Napoli, French Royaume de Naples

Traditionally, the Kingdom of Sicily consisted of the island of Sicily, the Kingdom of Sicily beyond (“Regno di Sicilia ulteriore”) and the part lying on the peninsula, the Kingdom of Sicily on this side (“Regno di Sicilia citeriore”). After the disputes between the House of Anjou and the Crown of Aragon in the 13th century, the parts were under different dominions at the beginning of the 14th century. The Treaty of Caltabellotta took this into account. The treaty divided the ancient kingdom of Sicily into island and mainland parts. The island, the Kingdom of Trinacria went to Frederick II of Sicily, the mainland part, the Mezzogiorno to Charles II. The treaty legalized the actual ownership. The Kingdom of Naples at that time included approximately the present regions of Abruzzo, Molise, Campania, Apulia, Basilicata and Calabria.

While on the island until 1381 the side line of the House of Barcelona, founded by Frederick II of Sicily.

Since Alfonso V had no legitimate children, his brother John II. succeeded him as ruler over the lands of the Crown of Aragon. The necessity of legitimate birth existed in principle only for the takeover of inherited dominions of the testator. The kings of Aragon were free to dispose of territories they had conquered or gained themselves, according to Aragonese law. Alfonso V had gained the Kingdom of Naples, the mainland part of the former Kingdom of Sicily. In contrast to the island part, he could bequeath it to his son Ferdinand. Ferdinand was recognized as legitimate by Pope Eugene IV in 1440. Also his appointment Duke of Calabria, usually title of heir to the throne of the Kingdom of Naples, was confirmed by the Pope in 1443.So from 1458 Naples was ruled by the Neapolitan collateral line of the House of Barcelona

Kingdom of Sardinia

German Königreich Sardinien, Spanish Reino de Cerdeña, Catalan Regne de Sardenya, Aragonese Reino de Cerdenya, Italian Regno di Sardegna, French Royaume de Sardaigne

In exchange for the rights to rule over Sicily, Pope Boniface VIII, in the Treaty of Anagni in 1296, enfeoffed James II of Aragon with the rule over the Kingdom of Sardinia and the Kingdom of Corsica. In April 1303, James II requested a rescript from the Pope asking the Genoese not to oppose the rule of the Crown of Aragon in Sardinia. At the Assembly of the Catalan Cortes in Girona in 1321, the Crown Prince Alfonso, later Alfonso IV, was charged with the conquest of the islands of Corsica and Sardinia. King Sancho of Mallorca, as a fief of the Kings of Aragon, undertook to participate in the campaign with 20 galleys. James then held cortes for Aragon and Valencia to obtain their consent and the necessary funds from them as well.

In the middle of 1323, a fleet of the Crown of Aragon, which had gathered in the port of Mahón, left for Sardinia. After fighting throughout the year, the troops of the Crown of Aragon were able to take the fortress of Cagliari in July 1324 as the last place of resistance. An agreement was concluded between Pisa and the Crown of Aragon that granted merchants from Pisa in the island of Sardinia and the other countries of the Crown of Aragon the same rights that merchants from the countries of the Crown of Aragon enjoyed in Pisa.

Although various revolts repeatedly challenged the rule of the Crown of Aragon in Sardinia, Sardinia remained the dominion of the Crown of Aragon or the Crown of Spain from the conclusion of the Conquest in 1324 until the Treaties of London, concluded on August 2, 1718.

Also read, biographies – Yermak Timofeyevich

Kingdom of Corsica

(German Königreich Korsika, Spanish Reino de Córcega , Catalan Regne de Còrsega, Aragonese Reino de Corcega, Italian Regno di Corsica, French Royaume de Corse)

Since James II, the kings of the Crown of Aragon held the title of King of Corsica. However, the title means absolutely nothing. In the Treaty of Anagni, concluded in June 1296, Pope Boniface VIII. James II with the rule over Corsica. At that time the island was firmly in the hands of the Pisans or Genoese. Various attempts at conquest by the Crown of Aragon failed. Alfonso V managed to truly rule Corsica for a few months in 1420.

Corsica was practically never part of the territory of the Crown of Aragon.

Also read, biographies – Jannis Kounellis

County Provence

German Grafschaft Provence, Spanish Provenza, Catalan Comtat Provença, Aragonese Provenza, Italian Provenza, French Comté Provence

Provence existed as a county since the beginning of the 10th century. In 965, the dominion was divided into the Marquisate of Provence and the County of Provence. The last countess from the House of Provence Dulcia of Gévaudan married Count Raimund Berengar III of Barcelona. From February 1113 Raimund Berengar III was Count of Provence. From 1125 he held the title of Marqués de Provenza. With the rule over Provence was connected the rule over the county of Gévaudan, the vice-county of Carladès and some smaller dominions.On the death of Count Raimund Berengar III in 1131, his second son Berengar Raimund I inherited the rule over Provence, Gévaudan and Carladès. The dominion was continued in the collateral line of the House of Barcelona.

After the death of Raimund Berengar III of Provence in 1166, the main line of the House of Barcelona once again took over the government of the County of Provence with King Alfonso II of Aragon. After the death of King Alfonso II, the County of Provence was inherited by his second son Alfonso. The dominion was inherited in the collateral line of the House of Barcelona. Through the marriage of the heiress Beatrix of Provence with Charles I of Anjou, Provence passed to a collateral line of the House of Anjou.

Thus, Provence was a dominion of the Crown of Aragon only in the years 1166 to 1196, during the reign of Alfonso II.

Montpellier dominion

The dominion over Montpellier had the dynasty of Guillermo since the year 985. In 1204, the heiress of Montpellier, Maria, married King Peter II of Aragon. The latter subsequently also held the title of Lord of Montpellier (“Señor de Montpellier”). In the division of the inheritance after the death of James I, the lordship of Montpellier, together with the lordship of the Kingdom of Majorca and the counties of Roussillon and Cerdanya, passed to James II of Majorca. In 1349, James III of Mallorca sold the dominion of Montpellier to King Philip IV of France.

The Lordship of Montpellier was part of the Crown of Aragon from 1204 to 1276.

Also read, biographies – Charles the Bold

Duchies of Athens and Neopatria

German Herzogtum Athen, Spanish Ducado de Atenas, Catalan Ducat d”Atenes, Aragonese Ducato d”Atenas, French Duché d”Athènes, Greek Δουκάτο των Αθηνών

(German Herzogtum Neopatria, Spanish Ducado de Neopatria, Catalan Ducat de Neopàtria, Aragonese Ducato de Neopatria , French Duché de Néopatrie, Greek Δουκάτο Νέων Πατρών).

When in 1205, after the conquest of Constantinople by the Crusader army, the Byzantine Empire disintegrated, Otto de la Roche, as Lord of Athens, established a Crusader state. The rule of the Duchy of Athens changed frequently in the following period. After the Battle of Kephissos in March 1311, the Catalan Company took power in the duchy. In 1312, the mercenary army handed over the duchy to Frederick II of Sicily. The latter appointed his son Manfred as Duke of Athens. He sent Berenguer Estañol de Ampurias to Athens as a representative (Vicario General) for Manfred, who was 5 years old at the time. After his death, Alfonso Fadrique de Aragón, an illegitimate son of Frederick, took over the regency of the Duchy of Athens on behalf of the titular dukes Manfred (1312-1317) and William II (1317-1338). Alfonso was able to expand the sphere of power of the Sicilian princes. In 1319, the Duchy of Neopatria was created from various conquered lands, which was considered a separate dominion of the Dukes of Athens. The deputy function in the Greek duchies passed from Alfonso Fadrique de Aragón successively to his sons Pedro Fadrique and Jaime Fadrique, and from the latter to the grandson Luis Fadrique.

The sister of Frederick III of Sicily, Eleanor of Sicily married Peter IV of Aragon in 1349. On the death of Frederick III in 1377, Peter IV. laid claim to the duchies. At first, Mary the daughter of Frederick III officially took over the rule of the duchies of Athens and Neopatrias. In May 1380 the representatives of the Athenian ruling class offered Peter IV the rule over Athens. In September 1380, Pedro IV thanked the previous representative Luis Fadrique and gave him several castles that the latter had conquered and ordered him to hand over the government to the new deputy, Viscount Rocaberti.In 1385, Nerio I. Acciaiuoli attacked Athens with an army of mercenaries. The battles dragged on for several years. In 1388 John I gave up the Duchy of Athens. In 1390, the Duchy of Neopatrias was also finally abandoned. The titles Duke of Athens and Neopatria remained part of the titulary of the Crown of Aragon.

The Duchies of Athens and Neopatia were ruled by the Sicilian collateral line of the House of Barcelona from 1312. Only between 1380 and 1385 they were part of the Crown of Aragon. Neither the Kings of Aragon nor any other person of the Iberian Peninsula ever exercised actual power in these territories.

Kingdom of Navarre

German Königreich Navarra , Spanish Reino de Navarra, Basque Nafarroako Erresuma, Catalan Regne de Navarra, Aragonese Reino de Navarra, French Royaume de Navarre

Until the middle of the 12th century, the term King of Pamplona was common for the ruler of the territory later called the Kingdom of Navarre.

Alfonso I (el Batallador) was King of Navarre and of Aragon. At his death, the dominion of Navarre passed to García IV, and the dominion of Aragon to Ramiro II. The kingdoms were subsequently ruled separately.

In 1420, John, Duke of Peñafiel, later King John II of Aragon, married Blanka of Navarre, widow of Martin I of Sicily. When Blanka succeeded her father as Queen of Navarre in 1425, John became King of Navarre de Iure uxoris. Although he should have handed over his reign to their common son Charles of Viana upon the death of his first wife in 1441, he refused to do so. Even when he took over the reigns of the Crown of Aragon after the death of his brother Alfonso V of Aragon, he continued to be King of Navarre as well. So, in fact, between 1458 and 1479 there was a personal union between the Kingdom of Navarre and the Crown of Aragon.After the death of King John II, the rule in the Kingdom of Navarre passed to Eleanor of Navarre. However, Eleanor died only three weeks later. She was succeeded by her grandson Francis Phoebus in 1479-1483 and by her granddaughter Catherine of Navarre in 1483-1512. In 1512, Ferdinand II began the conquest of Navarre. He based his claims to govern the kingdom on the one hand on the claims of his father John II and on the other hand on the claims of his second wife Germaine de Foix. After the conquest of the part of Navarre south of the Pyrenees in 1512, Ferdinand also held the title of King of Navarre. However, since the conquest of Navarre was achieved primarily by Castilian troops, Ferdinand annexed Navarre to the realms of the Crown of Castile. In the War of the Spanish Succession, Navarre was on the side of King Philip V, who therefore confirmed Navarre”s special rights.

The Kingdom of Navarre was never considered a permanent part of the Crown of Aragon and, except for the temporary illegal rule by John II, was not governed by the rulers of the Crown of Aragon.

Also read, biographies – Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

Domains of the Crown of Aragon in the current title of Kings of Spain

According to Article 56(2) of the Spanish Constitution of 1978, the Head of State may use, in addition to the title Rey de España (King of Spain), the titles traditionally due to the Crown.

Since the beginning of the 19th century, the kings of Spain have listed in their “título grande o largo,” their detailed title, all the titles whose territories their predecessors ruled or to which they believed they were entitled. The model is considered to be the detailed title of King Charles IV, as reproduced in the Royal Collection of Laws published in 1805. This title also includes the titles of the Crown of Aragon:

Charles by the Grace of God King of Castile, of León, of Aragon, of Both Sicily, of Jerusalem, of Navarre, of Granada, of Toledo, of Valencia, of Galicia, of Majorca, of Menorca, of Seville, of Sardinia, of Cordoba, of Corsica, of Murcia, of Jaén, of Algarve, of Algeciras, of Gibraltar, of the Canary Islands, East and West Indies, islands and mainland in the Atlantic Ocean; Archduke of Austria; Duke of Burgundy, Brabant and Milan; Count of Habsburg, Flanders, Tyrol and Barcelona; Lord of Biscay and Molina.

Also read, uncategorized-en – Andreas Papandreou

People

In the lands of the Crown of Aragon there was no unified state people. The population saw itself as Aragonese, Catalan, Sicilian, and so on. This resulted from the history of the countries with different traditions and legal systems. Especially the different languages were a dividing element; moreover, the linguistic borders did not always coincide with the political borders. People who came from one realm of the Crown of Aragon were considered foreigners in all other realms of the Crown of Aragon. The traditional rights of each kingdom also included that positions in the administration, in courts or in the higher clergy were to be filled exclusively by persons coming from that very kingdom.Mudéjares and Jews had their own jurisdiction and local administrations until the beginning of modern times. The Mudéjares, who at times made up about two-thirds of the population of Valencia, spoke Arabic, a language they mostly continued to use even as Moriscos. The use of Arabic was banned in 1567.

Also read, biographies – George Petrie (antiquarian)

King

The person of the ruler and his family were the only links between the individual states and peoples of the Crown of Aragon. To strengthen this link, it was customary for family members to be appointed as representatives of the king and for dominions to be granted as fiefs to collateral lines of the ruling house.

The position of the ruler, his rights and duties towards the estates, as well as the jurisdiction and administration exercised by the ruler, differed considerably in the realms of the Crown of Aragon.

The exclusion of women from the official assumption of government did not mean, however, that women could not perform all the ruler”s functions as deputies (lugarteniente), even over a longer period of time. The government, however, always took place in the name of the king.

The regularities in the assumption of government of the new ruler differed in the kingdoms of the Crown of Aragon and had to be made individually in each case, mostly within these kingdoms. While in Aragon and Sicily the kings were occasionally crowned, in Catalonia (county of Barcelona) and Valencia the assumption of government began only with a swearing-in ceremony.

The first king of Aragon of whom a solemn coronation is known was Peter II. The coronation by Pope Innocent III took place in 1204, about six years after the king”s accession to power, in the monastery of San Pancrazio prope Transriberim in Rome.

Peter III was the first king of Aragon to be crowned in the Cathedral of Zaragoza. The Archbishop of Tarragona performed the ceremony in November of the year 1276, according to the Pontifical.

The relationship between the Kingdom of Aragon and the Holy See was very tense at the beginning of the reign of King Alfonso III. The late King Peter III had been excommunicated. Pope Martin IV had transferred the lands of the Crown of Aragon as a papal fief to Charles I of Valois the younger son of the French King Philip III. Nevertheless, on Easter Sunday of 1286, Alfonso III was crowned in the Cathedral of Saragossa according to the Pontifical of the Roman Rite. The episcopal see of Saragossa was vacant between 1280 and 1289. The Archbishop of Tarragona, who should have performed the coronation, was absent because he could not attend due to excommunication. The coronation was therefore performed by Jaime Sarroca, Bishop of Huesca, an uncle of the king.Since the coronation of King Alfonso III, the mutual oath has been an integral part of the ritual in the Kingdom of Aragon.

The coronation of James II”s son King Alfonso IV in 1328 for the first time did not proceed according to the pontifical. The activity of the Archbishops of Zaragoza, Toledo and Tarragona and the Bishops of Valencia, Lleida and Huesca, who were present, was limited to anointing the new king and blessing the royal insignia. To make it clear that he was not receiving the crown as a vassal from a representative of the Holy See, Alfonso IV crowned himself. Kings Peter IV in 1336, Martin I in 1399 and Ferdinand I in 1412 also crowned themselves respectively. In 1353 Peter IV had a “Ceremonial de consagración y coronación de los reyes de Aragón”, (Ceremonial of the blessing and coronation of the kings of Aragon) written down.

The coronation of King Ferdinand I was the last ecclesiastical celebration of a coronation of a king of Aragon. The following kings began their reigns by taking an oath in the Cathedral of Saragossa before the Justicia de Aragón, in which they promised to respect the Fueros.

Since the foundation of the Kingdom of Sicily by Roger II in 1130, the Kingdom of Sicily consisted of the island of Sicily and, on the Italian peninsula, the Principality of Taranto, the Duchy of Apulia and the County of Calabria. Even after the conquest by Emperor Henry IV, it remained as an independent kingdom and did not become part of the Holy Roman Empire. It was considered a separate possession of the emperor.Traditionally, the kings of Sicily were crowned in the Palermo.

The advisors to the kings of Aragon were not unanimous in answering the question of whether a king who had already been anointed and crowned once in a ceremony (e.g., of Sicily) could be crowned king (e.g., of Aragon) a second time in a ceremony. Therefore, double coronations were avoided. King Martin I asked Pope Benedict XIII to solve the problem.

An exception was the coronation of King Peter III, who had been crowned King of Aragon in 1276 by the Archbishop of Tarragona in the Cathedral of Saragossa. The Holy See considered the Kingdom of Sicily a fief given to Charles of Anjou. He had been crowned King of Sicily by the Pope in Lateran in 1266. After an uprising in Sicily (Sicilian Vespers) directed against Charles of Anjou, Peter landed in Sicily on August 30, 1282, and was crowned King of Sicily on September 4 in Palermo Cathedral. With the coronation, Peter wanted to visibly express that he did not see himself as a vassal of the Pope in Sicily either, but as an independent king accepted by the people of Sicily.

On the occasion of his impending marriage to the Castilian princess of Asturias, Isabella, the father of the groom, John II, transferred the kingdom of Sicily to his son Ferdinand, so that Ferdinand would have a higher title than Isabella. The then 16-year-old Prince of Girona was crowned King of Sicily on June 19, 1468, in the Cathedral of Saragossa.Ferdinand was never crowned King of Aragon or King of Castile.

Even though the monarchs of Aragon received the crown according to the law of descent, they did not receive it (according to the Cortes) from their predecessor, but from the Kingdom itself. It was the Kingdom that conferred its power to the King according to the ancestral law. This origin of power was recognized by the royal oath. Through the ceremony, the contract-like relations (pactismo) between the king and the kingdom became visible.

According to tradition, the King of Aragon took his oath at the beginning of his reign in the Cathedral of Zaragoza, in the presence of one deputy from each of the four chambers of the Cortes and three deputies from the city. While taking the oath, the King knelt before the Justicia de Aragón. The King promised himself to abide by the ancestral rights and customs of the land and to ensure their observance in the country. The basis of these rights was the Privilegio General de Aragón which the Cortes had wrested from Peter III in 1283. The Privilegio General, similar to the Magna Carta, established the liberties of the subjects, especially the nobility. Only after the oath had been administered could the king perform official acts with legal force. The lack of an oath meant, for example, that although Joan of Castile was Queen of Aragon, no official acts could be performed by her or in her name. When Philip IV appointed a viceroy for Catalonia shortly after taking office, the Diputación del General del Principado de Cataluña refused to recognize the appointment, saying that the king could not perform any official acts before being sworn in.

After the swearing-in ceremony in Zaragoza, the mutual oath-taking ceremony between the Count of Barcelona and the Cortes of Catalonia took place in Barcelona. This ceremony usually took place in the presence of all the members of the Catalan Cortes in the Palacio Real Mayor de Barcelona. Afterwards, the King and the Cortes then attended a mass in the Cathedral.

In Valencia, James I was the first king to take an oath before the Cortes, promising to respect the rights and customs of the land (on April 7, 1261). In Valencia, the swearing in of kings was to take place in the Cathedral of Valencia before the assembled Cortes within a month of the king taking office. For this occasion, the Cortes had to be convened in Valencia.

The rule of the Crown of Aragon over territories far from Zaragoza, Barcelona and Valencia, and the use of the heirs to the throne as deputies of the king in these lands, meant that from the end of the 14th century it was increasingly common for the heir to the throne to have a long journey to take his oath in each of the tribal kingdoms of the crown. After 1516, this delay in taking the oath was often tacitly accepted by the Cortes or the Diputaciones Generales, and acts of government by the king who had not yet been sworn in were recognized as legal.

Also read, biographies – Charles IX of France

Queen

Some queens of Aragon were crowned in a solemn ceremony, usually a few days after the coronation of the king. The coronation of the queen had its own liturgy. Several queens played an important role as deputies of their husband.

During the second stay of her husband Alfonso V in Italy, from 1432 until his death in 1458, Mary of Castile was initially deputy in all the dominions of the Crown of Aragon in the Iberian Peninsula. In Catalonia, Mary ruled as deputy from 1432 to 1458, convening and presiding over the Cortes, concluding treaties with foreign powers, and taking great care of the judicial system.

When they came to rule, the kings of Aragon were usually of age. In the case of Alfonso II, who was not of age, a Regency Council was appointed. According to the will of his father Alfonso II, Peter II was to be under the guardianship of his mother, Queen Sancha of Castile, until he was 20 years old. Although the year of birth of Peter II is not exactly known, it is assumed that the guardianship hardly lasted longer than a year. The Council of Regency appointed for James I did not include his mother Mary of Montpellier. Only Mary Anne of Austria was regent of Spain from 1665 to 1675 during the minority of her son Charles II.

Not even a quarter of the queens were from Aragon or Catalonia. Nevertheless, they were considered nationals by marriage and were accepted as deputies of the king almost without exception. They exercised the deputy function mostly for all the lands of the Crown of Aragon rarely only to a part of these lands.

When the king opened the Cortes, the queen usually participated in the ceremony. In some cases, queens presided over the sessions of individual chambers of the Cortes when the king was busy presiding over the session of another chamber in the same place.

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Heir to the throne

In 1228, James I had to reckon with the fact that Pope Gregory IX would declare his marriage to Eleanor of Castile null and void. In order to create clear conditions for the succession to the throne of his son Alfonso of Aragon, he had the members of the Cortes swear an oath to the newly born crown prince as his successor.

It became a firm custom that the heirs to the throne in the individual territories of the Crown of Aragon were sometimes sworn in by the respective Cortes before they reached majority, and the Cortes administered the oath of allegiance to them. The oaths taken by both parties were renewed when they came of age. An act whose importance increased as the heirs to the throne became more involved in the rule and independently assumed duties in government, administration and jurisdiction. In doing so, they often acted not only as representatives of the absent king, but also in his presence.

To finance their expenses, the crown princes were initially granted the revenues of various dominions. The creation of the Duchy of Girona ensured the maintenance of the crown princes” own court.

The sons of kings who were not first in line to the throne by birth were often given dominion over individual counties as vassals of their father or brother. They were often appointed as general deputies of the king or as deputies in individual subkingdoms.

Also read, biographies – Henry V of England

Royal administration

A separation of powers according to today”s standards did not yet exist at the time of the Crown of Aragon. Therefore, administration included legislative, executive and judicial bodies. At the level of the provincial administrations, not only the names of the offices differed in the individual realms of the Crown, but also the areas of responsibility, in some cases considerably.

Because of the different traditions and legal systems of the individual kingdoms of the Crown of Aragon, there were no central institutions. Each of the kingdoms of the Crown of Aragon had its own administrative institutions that were appointed and controlled either by the sovereign, by the Cortes or by local popular assemblies. The Fueros of each realm of the Crown of Aragon stipulated that administrative and judicial positions could only be filled by people who came from that realm. This was justified by the fact that foreigners were hardly familiar with the law in force here, the traditional principles of the law and the customs of the country. The legal bases of the Inquisition”s activity were uniform and independent of local law in the realms of the Crown of Aragon as well as in Castile.

Lugarteniente general is a designation used in the 14th and 15th centuries by the Crown of Aragon. Since the countries of the Crown of Aragon had separate administrative systems, the Lugartenientes Generales (General Deputies), even if they were one and the same person, were appointed individually for the different countries. The deputies had to take an oath before the respective Cortes, in which they committed themselves to respect the laws, privileges and liberties that applied in the respective countries. In Aragon, the oath was taken in the Cathedral of Zaragoza before the Justicia de Aragón, in the presence of at least four members of the Cortes and three members of the City Council.

The term viceroy (Catalan Virrei, Spanish Virrey) was initially used only for the kingdoms of Sicily and Sardinia. It was not until the end of the 15th century that it also referred to the king”s deputies in Aragon, Catalonia and Valencia. The viceroys were always designated for a single country of the Crown of Aragon. The office of viceroy was initially also entrusted to members of the royal family. The Viceroys did not act on the basis of their own decisions, as the Lugartientes did, but according to the King”s instructions. The liaison between the king and the individual realms of the Crown of Aragon and also their viceroys was the Aragon Council (Spanish Cosejo de Aragón, Catalan Consell d”Aragó), or the Consejo de Italia (Catalan Consell d”Itàlia). The viceroys were not appointed for life.

Philip V”s administrative reforms, with the Decretos de Nueva Planta in 1716, replaced the office of Viceroy with that of Capitán General and that of President of the Supreme Court.

The Consejo Real Catalan Consell Reial de la Corona d”Aragó was, since the 13th century, a personal advisory body of the king, which gathered the holders of the most important court offices: The Canciller (comparable to the Chancellor), the Mayordomo (comparable to the Court Marshal), the Camarero (comparable to the Chamberlain), the Maestre racional (comparable to the Chancellor of the Exchequer) and the supreme military commanders.

Under Peter IV, the Consejo Real became a permanent body that met regularly under the presidency of the canciller. The Consejo Real did not have fixed powers it advised the King on matters of royal marriage policy and the sending of ambassadors, in the editing of the texts of decrees and laws and in the planning of military installations A large part of the Consejo Real”s functions passed to the Consejo de Aragón in 1494.

The Cancillería real aragonesa Catalan Cancelleria Reial (Royal Aragonese Chancery) was created in the 13th century. Its task was to draw up, certify and archive official documents for the individual dominions of the Crown of Aragon. The canciller (chancellor) was also the president of the Consejo Real. He was a member of the high clergy, usually a bishop who often found it difficult to leave his diocese to accompany the king in his ambulatory court. Therefore, the actual leadership was in the hands of the Vicecanciller (Vice Chancellor). The vicecanciller was a layman and a trained lawyer. From 1357 onwards, the Cancillería real temporarily had three vice-chancellors, one to take care of the affairs of the Kingdom of Aragon, one for the Principality of Catalonia, the Kingdoms of Mallorca, Sardinia and Corsica, and one for the Kingdom of Valencia.

The documents were initially issued in Latin, Aragonese and Catalan. Over time, more and more documents were issued only in Catalan. During the reigns of Kings Peter II and Alfonso III in the 13th century, the Cancillería also employed Arab and Jewish scribes. Another task of the Cancillería real aragonesa was to make copies of the collections of laws of the different countries of the Crown of Aragon and to update them after the meetings of the Cortes.

When the Consejo de Aragón was created, the Vice-Chancellor assumed the presidency and the leading position in the jurisdiction there.

In the course of their reigns, the Catholic Monarchs reshaped the administrations of their countries inherited from their predecessors. They created central councils for individual topics of their policies, which prepared decisions and conducted communication with the executive bodies in the individual countries and the kings. In 1494, Ferdinand created the Sacro Consejo Supremo de la Corona de Aragón, or Consejo de Aragón (Aragon Council) for short. The Consejo had its permanent seat in Madrid.

The composition changed from time to time. In principle, however, the chairman, the vice chancellor, was a trained lawyer who came from one of the countries of the Crown of Aragon. The Protonotario or Secretario (Secretary) prepared the meetings and recorded the decisions. Of the six regentes (councilors), two were from each of Aragon, Valencia and Catalonia or Mallorca. Other members of the Consejo de Aragón were the abogado fiscal (public prosecutor) and the tesorero general (treasurer).

As part of the centralization of the state administration by the Decretos de Nueva Planta under Philip V, the Consejo Supremo de la Corona de Aragón was dissolved.

The Audiencias reales (Catalan Reial audiència ) (Royal Courts) were the respective highest courts within the lands of the Crown of Aragon. They acted in the name of the king. The presidency was generally held by the king or his deputy, although they rarely exercised it. The Audiencias were attached to the Cancillería during the 14th century. From the end of the 15th century, they existed independently of other institutions. The Audiencias of Aragon and Catalonia were established by resolutions of the respective Cortes in 1492. The Audiencia of Valencia was created by royal decree in 1507.There were no audiencias in Mallorca and Sardinia until the reign of King Philip II of Spain (Philip I of Aragon).

With the establishment of the Audiencias, a collegial body of jurists existed in each realm to assist the viceroy in his activities. The Audiencias were not only courts, but were also considered royal councils of the respective realm, which were supposed to advise the viceroys not only in legal but also in political matters.From 1564, the Audiencias reales consisted of one chamber for civil cases and one for criminal cases, each of which had five judges.

In the domain of the Crown of Aragon on the Iberian Peninsula, papal inquisition tribunals had been established between 1249 and 1478. The Inquisition tribunals were appointed by the Pope for individual dioceses. These inquisitions in the lands of the Crown of Aragon were not part of the royal administration until 1483.

Tomás de Torquemada was Inquisitor General of Castile and President of the Consejo de la Suprema y General Inquisición, the Spanish Inquisition. With his appointment also as Inquisitor General of Aragon, Castile and Valencia and the transfer of powers to the Consejo de la Suprema y General Inquisición, for the first time in history an institution was created whose activity extended not only over the different lands of the Crown of Aragon, but also over Castile. The Cortes of Aragon, Catalonia and Valencia felt that their rights had been infringed by the abolition of the local papal tribunals of the Inquisition and the introduction of an Inquisition controlled from Castile and supervised by the King. The Cortes had no influence in the selection of the inquisitors. The most important functional posts were also filled by foreigners. The argument against foreigners in administrative and judicial positions was that they did not know the Fueros and Usatges and could not use them as a basis for their actions. However, the Fueros and Usatges played no role in the Inquisition. Another objection to the activity of the Inquisition was that in the lands of the Crown of Aragon, torture was not allowed in judicial proceedings due to the Privilegio General de Aragón.

Also read, biographies – Umberto Boccioni

The Cortes in the Realms of the Crown of Aragon

Assemblies of members of the nobility, some of which were called by the king, but which also gathered on their own initiative, had taken place in Aragon on various occasions. In 1134, one of these assemblies called on the brother of the late King Alfonso I, the Benedictine monk Ramiro, to take over the rule of Aragon. This request of the noble assembly was the basis for the union of the first dominions of the Crown of Aragon in a personal union.Which assemblies of the Middle Ages can really be called Cortes is controversial. O”Callghan assumes that an assembly was called a cortes when representatives of the clergy, nobility and urban bourgeoisie of an entire country, invited by the sovereign, participated in it.

There never existed an institution Cortes of the Crown of Aragon. In the realms of the Crown of Aragon, there were separate Cortes in the Kingdom of Aragon, the Principality of Catalonia and the Kingdom of Valencia. They were usually convened as Cortes Particulares in cities within their respective dominions. However, even when the Cortes of Aragon, Catalonia and Valencia were convened as Cortes Generales (United Cortes of the Crown of Aragon), apart from the opening and closing assemblies, the working sessions were not held together, but only simultaneously in the same place or the immediate vicinity of a town. This meant that, since the individual chambers (brassos) of the Cortes also met separately, the Cortes held simultaneous working sessions at ten venues. When Cortes Generales were convened in one place, the sessions for two of the three Cortes were held abroad. Monzón, in Aragon, not far from the border with Catalonia, was considered a neutral place accepted by all parties for the holding of Cortes Generales.

(Aragonese Cortz d”Aragón)The assembly that Alfonso II convened in Saragossa in 1164 is considered the first meeting of Cortes in Aragon.

Unlike all the other Cortes in the Iberian Peninsula, in the Cortes of Aragon there were four representative chambers (called brazos=arms). These were the Chamber of the Clergy, the Chamber of the High Nobility, the Chamber of the Lower Nobility and the Chamber of the Representation of the Cities.

The King or his deputy presided over the meetings. In addition, the Justicia de Aragón was present at the meetings, as well as members of the royal administration. Foreigners were members if they held an appropriate dominion in Aragon. Although occasionally queens presided over the Cortes as representatives of the king, women, even if they were lords of a corresponding dominion, could not participate as members. From 1387 onward, they could have their interests represented by deputies.

The importance of the Cortes depended very much on the situation in which the king found himself. If the king”s position was weakened by wars, military conflicts with the nobility or by absence, the cortes took advantage of the situation to establish or extend their rights to have a say, but also more generally the rights of the population vis-à-vis the sovereign.At the end of the 12th century, the office of Justicia de Aragón was created. An office whose holder was initially able to settle disputes between individual members or different groups of the nobility due to his personal prestige. The custom developed that the Justicia de Aragón was elected by the Cortes and appointed by the King. When the kings were inaugurated, the Justicia stood for the kingdom, to which the king pledged his allegiance by taking an oath. The subsequent oath of allegiance to the King contained the restriction that it was only valid if the King kept his oath. The office of Justicia, elected by the Cortes, existed only in Aragon.

In 1238, King Peter III granted the Cortes and the nobility a variety of rights of freedom and participation through the Privilegio General de Aragón. In 1364, when Peter IV needed money to finance a war against Castile, he agreed that the administration of an export and import tax of the Impuesto de las Generalidades, newly created for Aragon, should be controlled by a commission of the Cortes, the Diputación del General del Reino de Aragón. This commission developed over time into an effective institution that looked after the interests of the Cortes outside of session time.

The Cortes of Aragon, the Diputación del General de Aragón and the Office of the Justicia de Aragón were abolished by the Decretos de Nueva Planta of Philip V. In the Cortes de los Reinos de España in the 18th century, six cities of Aragon were represented.

(Catalan Corts Catalanes)

The Corts Catalanes can be traced back to the early 13th century. Their importance throughout history went far beyond that of a parliament that, by virtue of its fiscal sovereignty, denied or authorized funds to the sovereign. The peculiarity of the relationship between the rulers of the Crown of Aragon and the various Cortes lies in the fact that the rule of the Kings of Aragon and Valencia and the Counts of Barcelona was not an absolute monarchy, but the Cortes claimed extensive rights of co-determination. In Aragon and Catalonia, the Cortes shared legislative power with the sovereign and thus formed a counterweight to the power of the king. This is referred to as “pactismo” a covenant system in the Aragon-Catalonia form of government. By “pactismo” is understood the negotiated agreement of the ruler with the social classes of the nobility, the clergy and the city patriciate represented in the Cortes.

The ruler”s revenues from his own domains in Catalonia were small. In 1392, only 13 percent of the landed property and 22 percent of the population were directly under the government of the Count of Barcelona. The rest was under the rule and jurisdiction of feudal nobles. In order to finance war campaigns or the construction of defenses, Catalan rulers had to obtain additional funds from the Cortes.The Villafranca Resolution, accepted by John II in 1461, severely limited the monarch”s power by subjecting the royal administration to greater control by the Diputació del General.

By one of the Decretos de Nueva Planta, Philip V abolished the Corts de Catalunya as an institution. Some towns of Catalonia were later represented in the Cortes of Castile.

(Valencian Corts Valencianes)

While before the conquest of Valencia, newly acquired territories within the framework of the Reconquista were listed in the title as independent dominions, in the longer term their general administration was attached to that of the Kingdom of Aragon or that of the County of Barcelona (Catalonia) according to the origin of the new settlers. This also applied to participation in the Cortes. This was different after the conquest of Valencia. Jacob founded his own independent kingdom of Valencia. With its own administration and its own Cortes.

A right that James I granted to the Cortes of Valencia as early as 1261 was the duty of his successors to come to Valencia in the first month of their reign to swear that they would respect the laws and rights of the kingdom.

A Diputación del General del Reino de Valencia was also founded in the Kingdom of Valencia to monitor the revenues from the export and import tax Impuesto de las Generalidades. Its political importance, however, remained far behind that of the Principality of Catalonia.

In the Kingdom of Valencia, the Cortes disappeared after 1645, without being officially abolished by the fact that they were no longer convened by the King.

Also read, biographies – Andrea Mantegna

Diputaciones Generales

At the end of the 13th to the middle of the 14th century, the Cortes in Aragon, Catalonia and Valencia respectively established Diputaciones Generales, institutions whose task was to regulate the collection and use of an export and import tax of the Impuesto de las Generalidades. This tax had to be paid by all the estates. The Diputaciones, usually called Generalidad, developed differently in the individual dominions into independent authorities accountable to the Cortes. Since the generalidades were active not only in the territories directly under the king but also in the dominions of the nobles, their powers went beyond those of royal financial administration.

The number of members of the Generalidades varied in the different realms of the Crown of Aragon. As the duties of the Generalidades increased over time, so did the number of their members and the administrative staff. The members belonged to all three (in Aragon all four) houses of the Cortes. The presidency was held by a member of the Curia. From the 15th century at the latest, the generalidades also served between the sessions of the Cortes. In this way, a permanent representation of the Cortes was created, which not only took care of the taxes, but also controlled the execution of the Cortes” decisions. Later on, the importance of the Generalidades lay in the fact that they were active during the periods of interregnum, that is, during the periods when the Cortes were not convened.

Diputación del General del Reino de Aragón (kurz: Generalidad von Aragonien) (aragonesisch Deputación Cheneral d”Aragón)

The institution, originally founded for the administration of taxes, soon assumed responsibility in Aragon for closely related matters such as economic promotion, health policy, the preservation of urban peace and the defense of the kingdom.Initially, four, later eight Diputados were elected by the Assembly of the Cortes, belonging to the different estates. From 1423 the Diputación consisted of sixteen members. In 1436, a building was erected in Zaragoza for the administration and archives, which by then existed.

Diputación del General del Principado de Cataluña (short Generalidad of Catalonia) (Catalan Diputació del General del Principat de Catalunya)

The Generalidad developed, especially in Catalonia, into one of the first parliamentary responsible governments in the world, whose twelve delegates and twelve auditors were first responsible for collecting and administering the taxes approved by the Cortes, and later brought the entire politics of Catalonia under its control. From 1400, the Generalidad resided in its own building. The basis of the governmental power was an agreement (pactum unionis) between the king and the equal estates of the realm.Ferdinand II tried to reduce the importance of the Generalidad by abolishing in 1481, with the consent of the Cortes, in the Constitució de l”Observança, the election of the members. They were now chosen by lot.

In the course of the 17th century, the Cortes were convened less and less frequently. Therefore, the Generalidad took a leading role in defending the king”s claims to power and the Inquisition. The Generalidad took care of the police apparatus and the judiciary, and negotiated to settle disputes with the royal court through ambassadors.

In the 17th century, the Generalidad played a decisive role in an uprising against the king residing in Castile. From a peasant uprising developed a war that today is also known as the Guerra dels Segadors (Reaper”s War) because of its social origins.The actual cause of the anti-Castilian uprising, was the king”s request to the inhabitants of Catalonia to provide troops for a war waged against France. When the Generalidad refused even to feed and house the Castilian troops returning from France, the Viceroy had the Generalidad”s property confiscated. On June 7, 1640, Corpus Christi Day, a large number of agricultural workers arrived in Barcelona. There they not only gave vent to their displeasure with their noble landlords, but called for a general uprising. In the course of this unrest, the Viceroy was assassinated. The Generalidad diverted the direction of what was actually a social uprising and declared independence from the Spanish King Philip IV, placing Catalonia under the authority of the French King Louis XIII.

It soon became apparent, however, that the French king wanted to respect Catalan freedoms even less than Philip IV. In 1651, the Catalans capitulated to the Spanish king. The status of the Cortes and the Generalidad, as well as Catalonia”s special rights, were nominally restored, albeit with restrictions. However, the activity of Catalan institutions was undermined by the king”s failure to convene the Cortes. In 1659, the Peace of the Pyrenees ceded Roussillon and parts of the county of Cerdanya to France.

In mid-January 1716, Catalonia lost all the special rights that the previous rulers had promised by oath to the Cortes by one of the Decretos de Nueva Planta. The Cortes, the Generalidad and the Council of the City of Barcelona were abolished as institutions.

Diputación del General del Reino de Valencia (short Generalidad of Valencia) (Valencian Diputació del General del Regne de València)

In Valencia, the Generalidad was established in 1363. However, it was not a permanent body until 1414. During the period of the first Cortes convened by King Martin, which lasted from 1401 to 1407, a commission composed of 32 people (comisión de los treinta y dos) was set up to carry out various tasks between the meetings of the Cortes. This commission was composed of eight members from each of the three estates and another eight members appointed by the King. During the Cortes, which lasted intermittently for six years, it was in charge of tasks that in other countries of the Crown of Aragon were carried out by the Generalidades.

In 1414, the Generalidad was also decided in Valencia as a permanent institution, but much more focused than in other countries of the Crown of Aragon on its task, monitoring the collection and use of the Impuesto de la Generalidad.In 1421, construction began on a building that became the seat of the Generalidad.

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