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h A t.
HISTORY
OP
THE REIGN OF
FERDINAND AND ISABELLA
VOL. I.
HISTORY
OF
THE REIGN OF
FERDINAND AND ISABELLA,
THE CATHOLIC.
By WILLIAM II . PRESCOTT
Qua surgere regna
Conjugio tali I
Virgil. Mntii. iv. 47.
Crevere vires, famaque el imperi
Porrecla majeslas ab Kuro
Soils ad Occiduum cubilfl.
Jlorat. Carm. ir. IS.
IN THREE VOLUMES.— VOL. I.
TENTH EDITION.
NEW-YORK:
PUBLISHED BY HARPER & BROTHERS
No. 82 Cliff-Street.
184 5.
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1837,
by William H. Prescott,
in the Clerk's office of the District Court for the District of Massachusetts.
TO
THE HONORABLE
WILLIAM PRESCOTT, LL. D v
THE GUIDE OF MY YOUTH,
MY BEST FRIEND IN RIPER YEARS,
THESE VOLUMES,
WITH THE WARMEST FEELINGS OF FILIAL AFFECTION,
ARE RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED.
VOL. I
PREFACE
TO THE FIRST EDITION
English writers have done more for the illus-
tration of Spanish history, than for that of any
other except their own. To say nothing of the
recent general compendium, executed for the " Cab-
inet Cyclopaedia," a work of singular acuteness and
information, we have particular narratives of the
several reigns, in an unbroken series, from the em-
peror Charles the Fifth (the First of Spain) to
Charles the Third, at the close of the last century,
by authors whose names are a sufficient guaranty
for the excellence of their productions. It is singu-
lar, that, with this attention to the modern history
of the Peninsula, there should be no particular ac-
count of the period, which may be considered as
the proper basis of it, — the reign of Ferdinand and
Isabella.
In this reign, the several States, into which the
country had been broken up for ages, were brought
iv PREFACE.
under a common rule ; the kingdom of Naples was
conquered ; America discovered and colonized ; the
ancient empire of the Spanish Arabs subverted ;
the dread tribunal of the Modern Inquisition estab-
lished ; the Jews, who contributed so sensibly to
the wealth and civilization of the country, were ban-
ished ; and, in fine, such changes were introduced
into the interior administration of the monarchy, as
have left a permanent impression on the character
and condition of the nation.
The actors in these events, were every way suited
to their importance. Besides the reigning sove-
reigns, Ferdinand and Isabella, the latter certainly
one of the most interesting personages in history,
we have, in political affairs, that consummate states-
man, Cardinal Ximenes, in military, the " Great
Captain," Gonsalvo de Cordova, and m maritime,
the most successful navigator of any age, Christo-
pher Columbus ; whose entire biographies fall within
the limits of this period. Even such portions of it
as have been incidentally touched by English wri-
ters, as the Italian wars, for example, have been
drawn so exclusively from French and Italian
sources, that they may be said to be untrodden
ground for the historian of Spain.*
* The only histories of this reign by continental writers, with
which I am acquainted, are the "Histoire des Rois Catholiques
TREFACE. v
It must be admitted, however, that an account of
this reign could not have been undertaken at any
preceding period, with any thing like the advantages
at present afforded ; owing to the light which recent
researches of Spanish scholars, in the greater free-
dom of inquiry now enjoyed, have shed on some of
its most interesting and least familiar features. The
most important of the works to which I allude are,
the History of the Inquisition, from official docu-
ments, by its secretary, Llorente; the analysis of
the political institutions of the kingdom, by such
writers as Marina, Sempere, and Capmany; the
literal version, now made for the first time, of the
Spanish-Arab chronicles, by Conde; the collection
of original and unpublished documents, illustrating
the history of Columbus and the early Castilian
navigators, by Navarrete ; and, lastly, the copious
illustrations of Isabella's reign, by Clemencin, the
late lamented secretary of the Royal Academy of
Ferdinand et Isabellc, par l'Abbe Mignot, Paris, 1766," and the " Ge-
schichte der Regierung Ferdinand des Katholischen, von Rupert
Becker, Prag und Leipzig, 1790." Their authors have employed the
most accessible materials only in the compilation ; and, indeed, they
lay claim to no great research, which would seem to be precluded
by the extent of their works, in neither instance exceeding two
volumes duodecimo. They have the merit of exhibiting, in a simple,
perspicuous form, those events, which, lying on the surface, may be
found more or less expanded in most general histories.
v i PREFACE.
History, forming the sixth volume of its valuable
Memoirs.
It was the knowledge of these facilities for doing
justice to this subject, as well as its intrinsic merits,
which led me, ten years since, to select it ; and
surely no subject could be found more suitable for
the pen of an American, than a history of that reign,
under the auspices of which the existence of his
own favored quarter of the globe was first revealed.
As I was conscious that the value of the history
must depend mainly on that of its materials, I have
spared neither pains nor expense, from the first, in
collecting the most authentic. In accomplishing
this, I must acknowledge the services of my friends,
Mr. Alexander H. Everett, then minister plenipo-
tentiary from the United States to the court of Mad-
rid, Mr. Arthur Middleton, secretary of the American
legation, and, above all, Mr. 0. Rich, now American
consul for the Balearic Islands, a gentleman, whose
extensive bibliographical knowledge, and unwearied
researches, during a long residence in the Penin-
sula, have been liberally employed for the benefit
both of his own country and of England. With
such assistance, I flatter myself that I have been
enabled to secure whatever can materially conduce
to the illustration of the period in question, whether
PREFACE. Vjl
in the form of chronicle, memoir, private correspon-
dence, legal codes, or official documents. Among
these are various contemporary manuscripts, covering
the whole ground of the narrative, none of which
have been printed, and some of them but little known
to Spanish scholars. In obtaining copies of these
from the public libraries, I must add, that I have
found facilities under the present liberal government,
which were denied me under the preceding. In ad-
dition to these sources of information, I have availed
myself, in the part of the work occupied with literary
criticism and history, of the library of my friend,
Mr. George Ticknor, who during a visit to Spain,
some years since, collected whatever was rare and
valuable in the literature of the Peninsula. I must
further acknowledge my obligations to the library
of Harvard University, in Cambridge, from whose
rich repository of books relating to our own country
I have derived material aid. And, lastly, I must
not omit to notice the favors of another kind for
which I am indebted to my friend, Mr. William H.
Gardiner, whose judicious counsels have been of
essential benefit to me in the revision of my labors.
In the plan of the work, I have not limited my-
self to a strict chronological narrative of passing
events, but have occasionally paused, at the ex-
VJii PREFACE.
pense, perhaps, of some interest in the story, to
seek such collateral information, as might bring these
events into a clearer view. I have devoted a liberal
portion of the work to the literary progress of the
nation, conceiving this quite as essential a part of
its history as civil and military details. I have occa-
sionally introduced, at the close of the chapters, a
critical notice of the authorities used, that the reader
may form some estimate of their comparative value
and credibility. Finally, I have endeavoured to
present him with such an account of the state of
affairs, both before the accession, and at the demise
of the Catholic sovereigns, as might afford him the
best points of view for surveying the entire results
of their reign.
How far I have succeeded in the execution of
this plan, must be left to the reader's candid judg-
ment. Many errors he may be able to detect. Sure
I am, there can be no one more sensible of my
deficiencies, than myself; although it was not till
after practical experience, that I could fully estimate
the difficulty of obtaining any thing like a faithful
portraiture of a distant age, amidst the shifting hues
and perplexing cross lights of historic testimony.
From one class of errors my subject necessarily
exempts me; those founded on national or party
PREFACE. ix
feeling. I may have been more open to another
fault ; that of too strong a bias in favor of my prin-
cipal actors ; for characters, noble and interesting
in themselves, naturally beget a sort of partiality
akin to friendship, in the historian's mind, accustomed
to the daily contemplation of them. Whatever de-
fects may be charged on the work, I can at least
assure myself, that it is an honest record of a reign
important in itself, new to the reader in an English
dress, and resting on a solid basis of authentic ma-
terials, such as probably could not be met with out
of Spain, nor in it without much difficulty.
I hope I shall be acquitted of egotism, although
I add a few words respecting the peculiar embar-
rassments I have encountered, in composing these
volumes. Soon after my arrangements were made,
early in 1826, for obtaining the necessary materials
from Madrid, I was deprived of the use of my
eyes for all purposes of reading and writing, and
had no prospect of again recovering it. This was
a serious obstacle to the prosecution of a work,
requiring the perusal of a large mass of authorities,
in various languages, the contents of which were
to be carefully collated, and transferred to my own
pages, verified by minute reference.* Thus shut
* " To compile a history from various authors, when they can
only be consulted by other eyes, is not easy, nor possible, but with
VOL. I. b
X PREFACE.
out from one sense, I was driven to rely exclusively
on another, and to make the ear do the work of
the eye. With the assistance of a reader, unin-
itiated, it may be added, in any modern language
but his own, I worked my way through several
venerable Castilian quartos, until I was satisfied
of the practicability of the undertaking. I next
procured the services of one more competent to
aid me in pursuing my historical inquiries. The
process was slow and irksome enough, doubtless,
to both parties, at least till my ear was accommo-
dated to foreign sounds, and an antiquated, often-
times barbarous phraseology, when my progress
became more sensible, and I was cheered with the
prospect of success. It certainly w r ould have been a
far more serious misfortune, to be led thus blindfold
through the pleasant paths of literature ; but my
track stretched, for the most part, across dreary
wastes, where no beauty lurked, to arrest the trav-
eller's eye and charm his senses. After persevering
in this course for some years, my eyes, by the
blessing of Providence, recovered sufficient strength
more skilful and attentive help than can be commonly obtained."
(Johnson's Life of Milton.) This remark of the great critic, which
first engaged my attention in the midst of my embarrassments,
although discouraging at first, in the end stimulated the desire to
overcome them.
PREFACE. XI
to allow me to use them, with tolerable freedom, in
the prosecution of my labors, and in the revision
of all previously written. I hope I shall not be
misunderstood, as stating these circumstances to
deprecate the severity of criticism, since I am in-
clined to think the greater circumspection I have
been compelled to use has left me, on the whole,
less exposed to inaccuracies, than I should have been
in the ordinary mode of composition. But, as I
reflect on the many sober hours I have passed in
wading through black letter tomes, and through
manuscripts whose doubtful orthography and defi-
ance of all punctuation were so many stumbling-
blocks to my amanuensis, it calls up a scene of
whimsical distresses, not usually encountered, on
which the good-natured reader may, perhaps, allow
I have some right, now that I have got the better of
them, to dwell with satisfaction.
I will only remark, in conclusion of this too
prolix discussion about myself, that while making
my tortoise-like progress, I saw what I had fondly
looked upon as my own ground, (having indeed lain
unmolested by any other invader for so many ages,)
suddenly entered, and in part occupied, by one of
my countrymen. I allude to Mr. Irving's " His-
tory of Columbus," and " Chronicle of Granada " ;
Xll PREFACE.
the subjects of which, although covering but a small
part of my whole plan, form certainly two of its
most brilliant portions. Now, alas ! if not devoid
of interest, they are, at least, stripped of the charm
of novelty. For what eye has not been attracted
to the spot, on which the light of that writer's
genius has fallen?
I cannot quit the subject which has so long occu-
pied me, without one glance at the present unhappy
condition of Spain ; who, shorn of her ancient
splendor, humbled by the loss of empire abroad,
and credit at home, is abandoned to all the evils of
anarchy. Yet, deplorable as this condition is, it is
not so bad as the lethargy in which she has been
sunk for ages. Better be hurried forward for a
season on the wings of the tempest, than stagnate
in a deathlike calm, fatal alike to intellectual and
moral progress. The crisis of a revolution, when
old things are passing away, and new ones are not
yet established, is, indeed, fearful. Even the imme-
diate consequences of its achievement are scarcely
less so to a people who have yet to learn by ex-
periment the precise form of institutions best suited
to their wants, and to accommodate their character
to these institutions. Such results must come with
time, however, if the nation be but true to itself.
PREFACE. xiii
And that they will come, sooner or later, to the
Spaniards, surely no one can distrust who is at all
conversant with their earlier history, and has wit-
nessed the examples it affords of heroic virtue,
devoted patriotism, and generous love of freedom;
" Ch6 1' antico valore
non e ancor morto."
Clouds and darkness have, indeed, settled thick
around the throne of the youthful Isabella ; but not
a deeper darkness than that which covered the land
in the first years of her illustrious namesake ; and
we may humbly trust, that the same Providence,
which guided her reign to so prosperous a termina-
tion, may carry the nation safe through its present
perils, and secure to it the greatest of earthly bless-
ings, civil and religious liberty.
November, 1837.
PREFACE
TO THE THIRD ENGLISH EDITION
Since the publication of the First Edition of this
work, it has undergone a careful revision ; and this, aid-
ed by the communications of several intelligent friends,
who have taken an interest in its success, has enabled
me to correct several verbal inaccuracies, and a few
typographical errors, which had been previously over-
looked. While the Second Edition was passing through
the press, I received, also, copies of two valuable Span-
ish works, having relation to the reign of the Catholic
sovereigns, but which, as they appeared during the re-
cent troubles of the Peninsula, had not before come to
my knowledge. For these I am indebted to the polite-
ness of Don Angel Calderon de la Barca, late Spanish
Minister at Washington ; a gentleman, whose frank and
liberal manners, personal accomplishments, and indepen-
dent conduct in public life, have secured for him de-
servedly high consideration in the United States, as well
as in his own country.
I must still farther acknowledge my obligation to Don
Pascual de Gayangos, the learned author of the "Ma-
hommedan Dynasties in Spain," recently published in
London, — a work, which, from its thorough investigation
of original sources, and fine spirit of criticism, must sup-
ply, what has been so long felt as an important desidera-
tum with the student, — the means of forming a perfect
Xvi PREFACE TO THE THIRD ENGLISH EDITION.
acquaintance with the Arabian portion of the Peninsular
annals. There fell into the hands of this gentleman, on
the breaking up of the convents of Saragossa in 1835,
a rich collection of original documents, comprehending,
among other things, the autograph correspondence of
Ferdinand and Isabella, and of the principal persons of
their court. It formed, probably, part of the library of
Geromimo Zurita, — historiographer of Aragon, under
Philip the Second, — who, by virtue of his office, was
intrusted with whatever documents could illustrate the
history of the country. This rare collection was left at
his death to a monastery in his native city. Although
Zurita is one of the principal authorities for the present
work, there are many details of interest in this corres-
pondence, which have passed unnoticed by him, al-
though forming the basis of his conclusions ; and I
have gladly availed myself of the liberality and great
kindness of Senor de Gayangos, who has placed these
manuscripts at my disposal, transcribing such as I have
selected, for the corroboration and further illustration of
my work. The difficulties attending this labor of love
will be better appreciated, when it is understood, that
the original writing is in an antiquated character, which
few Spanish scholars of the present day could compre-
hend, and often in cypher, which requires much patience
and ingenuity to explain. With these various emenda-
tions, it is hoped that the present Edition may be found
more deserving of that favor from the public, which has
been so courteously accorded to the preceding.
March, 1841.
CONTENTS
VOLUME FIRST.
INTRODUCTION.
SECTION I.
Page
View of the Castilian Monarchy before the Fif-
teenth Century ...... xxix
State of Spain at the Middle of the Fifteenth Century . xxx
Early History and Constitution of Castile . . . xxxii
The Visigoths xxxii
Invasion of the Arabs xxxiii
Its Influence on the Condition of the Spaniards . . . xxxvi
Causes of their slow Rcconquest of the Country . . xxxvii
Their ultimate Success certain xxxviii
Their Religious Enthusiasm xxxviii
Influence of their Minstrelsy xl
Their Charity to the Infidel xli
Their Chivalry xlii
Early Importance of the Castilian Towns ... xlv
Their Privileges xlv
Castilian Cortes xlviii
Its great Powers 1
Its Boldness Hi
Hermandades of Castile liii
Wealth of the Cities liv
Period of the highest Power of the Commons . . . lvii
The Nobility lviii
Their Privileges lix
Their great Wealth lx
Their turbulent Spirit lxii
VOL. I. c
XV111
CONTENTS.
The Cavallcros or Knights
The Clergy
Influence of the Papal Court
Corruption of the Clergy
Their rich Possessions , . .
Limited Extent of the Royal Prerogative
Poverty of the Crown
Its Causes
Anecdote of Henry III., of Castile .
Constitutional Writers on Castile
Constitution at the Beginning of the Fifteenth Century
Notice of Marina and Sempere
Page
lxiv
lxvi
lxvi
lxvi
lxviii
lxxi
Ixxiv
Ixxiv
lxxv
lxxvii
lxxix
Ixxix
SECTION II.
Review of the Constitution or Aragon to the
Middle of the Fifteenth Century . lxxxii
Rise of Aragon lxxxii
Foreign Conquests lxxxiv
Code of Soprarbe lxxxvi
The Ricos Hombres lxxxvii
Their Immunities lxxxviii
Their Turbulence xc
Privileges of Union xci
Their Abrogation xc jjj
The Legislature of Aragon xcv
Its Forms of Proceeding xcvii
Its Powers xcviii
The General Privilege xc j x
Judicial Functions of Cortes c j
Preponderance of the Commons cii
The Justice of Aragon c j v
His great Authority cv
Security against its Abuse cv ijj
Independent Execution of it cix
Valencia and Catalonia Cx
Rise and Opulence of Barcelona cx j
Her free Institutions cxiii
Haughty Spirit of the Catalans cxv
Intellectual Culture cxviii
Poetical Academy of Tortosa cx j x
Brief Glory of the Limousin cxxii
Constitutional Writers on Aragon cxxiii
Notices of Btancas, M.irtcl, and Cap:nany . . , cxxuj
CONTENTS.
PART FIRST.
THE PERIOD, WHEN THE DIFFERENT KINGDOMS OF SPAIN
WERE FIRST UNITED UNDER ONE MONARCHY, AND A THOR-
OUGH REFORM WAS INTRODUCED INTO THEIR INTERNAL
ADMINISTRATION; OR THE PERIOD EXHIBITING MOST FULLY
THE DOMESTIC POLICY OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
CHAPTER I.
Tage
State of Castile at the Birth op Isabella. — Reign
of John IT., of Castile . ... . 3
Revolution of Trastamara 4
Accession of John II. 4
Rise of Alvaro de Luna 5
Jealousy of the Nobles 7
Oppression of the Commons ....... 8
Its Consequences 11
Early Literature of Castile 12
Its Encouragement under John II 13
Marquis of Villena 14
Marquis of Santillana \6
John de Mcna 18
His Influence 19
Baena's Cancionero 20
Castilian Literature under John II 22
Decline of Alvaro de Luna 23
His Fall 24
His Death 25
Lamented by John 27
Death of John II 28
Birth of Isabella 28
CHAPTER II.
Condition of Aragon during the Minority of Fer-
dinand. — Reign of John II., of Aragon . . 29
John of Aragon 30
Title of his Son Carlos to Navarre . . . . .30
He takes Arms against his Father 32
Is defeated 33
CONTENTS.
Birth of Ferdinand . ...
Carlos retires to Naples ....
He passes into Sicily
John II. succeeds to the Crown of Aragon
Carlos reconciled with his Father
Is imprisoned . ...
Insurrection of the Catalans
Carlos released
His Death
His Character .....
Tragical Story of Blanche . . .
Ferdinand sworn Heir to the Crown .
Besieged by the Catalans in Gerona
Treaty between France and Aragon .
General Revolt in Catalonia .
Successes of John ....
Crown of Catalonia offered to Ren6 of Anjou
Distress and Embarrassments of John
Popularity of the Duke of Lorraine
Death of the Queen of Aragon .
Improvement in John's Affairs
Siege of Barcelona ....
It surrenders ....
Tiige
33
35
36
37
37
39
40
41
42
43
45
47
48
50
51
52
54
55
56
57
58
60
60
CHAPTER III.
Reign of Henry IV., or Castile. — Civil
Marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella
Popularity of Henry IV.
He disappoints Expectations ....
His dissolute Habits
Oppression of the People
Debasement of the Coin
Character of Pacheco, Marquis of Villena
Character of the Archbishop of Toledo
Interview between Henry IV. and Louis XI.
Disgrace of Villena and the Archbishop of Toledo
League of the Nobles
Deposition of Henry at Avila ....
Division of Parties
Intrigues of the Marquis of Villena
Henry disbands his Forces ....
Proposition for the Marriage of Isabella
War.
63
63
65
66
68
69
70
72
73
74
75
77
79
80
81
82
CONTENTS
xxi
Page
Her early Education 83
Projected Union with the Grand Master of Calatrava . . 84
His sudden Death 86
Battle of Olmedo 86
Civil Anarchy 88
Death and Character of Alfonso 90
His Reign a Usurpation 91
The Crown offered to Isabella ...... 92
She declines it 93
Treaty between Henry and the Confederates ... 93
Isabella acknowledged Heir to the Crown at Toros de Guisando 94
Suitors to Isabella 95
Ferdinand of Aragon 97
Support of Joanna Beltraneja 98
Proposal of the King of Portugal rejected by Isabella . . 99
She accepts Ferdinand 100
Articles of Marriage . 102
Critical Situation of Isabella ....
Ferdinand enters Castile
Private Interview between Ferdinand and Isabella
Their Marriage ........
Notice of the Quincuagenas of Oviedo
103
106
108
110
112
CHAPTER IV.
Factions in Castile. — War between France a
Aragon. — Death of Henry IV., of Castile
Factions in Castile
Ferdinand and Isabella
Civil Anarchy
Revolt of Roussillon from Louis XI.
Gallant Defence of Perpignan .
Ferdinand raises the Siege ....
Treaty between France and Aragon
Isabella's Party gains Strength ....
Interview between Henry IV. and Isabella at Segovia
Second French Invasion of Roussillon
Ferdinand's summary Execution of Justice .
Siege and Reduction of Perpignan .
Perfidy of Louis XI
Illness of Henry IV., of Castile
His Death
Influence of his Reign
114
114
116
117
120
122
122
123
124
126
130
131
133
133
134
134
137
xxu
CONTENTS
Notice of Alonso de Palencia
Notice of Enriquez de Castillo
Page
136
137
CHAPTER V.
Accession of Ferdinand and Isabella
the Succession. — Battle of Toro
Title of Isabella ....
She is proclaimed Queen
Settlement of the Crown .
Partisans of Joanna ....
Alfonso of Portugal supports her Cause
He invades Castile ....
He espouses Joanna ....
Castilian Army
Ferdinand marches against Alfonso .
He challenges him to personal Combat .
Disorderly Retreat of the Castilians .
Appropriation of the Church Plate
Reorganization of the Army
King of Portugal arrives before Zamora
Absurd Position ....
He suddenly decamps ....
Overtaken by Ferdinand
Battle of Toro
The Portuguese routed ....
Isabella's Thanksgiving for the Victory
Submission of the whole Kingdom
The King of Portugal visits France
Returns to Portugal ....
Peace with France ....
Active Measures of Isabella
Treaty of Peace with Portugal .
Joanna takes the Veil . . . .
Death of the King of Portugal
Death of the King of Aragon
War of
139
139
141
143
145
146
148
149
151
151
152
152
155
156
157
158
159
159
160
162
164
165
166
168
169
170
171
173
174
175
CHAPTER VI.
Internal Administration of Castile.
Scheme of Reform for the Government of Castile
Administration of Justice
177
178
178
CONTENTS.
Establishment of the Hcrmandad
Code of the Hcrmandad ....
Ineffectual Opposition of the Nobility
Tumult at Segovia .....
Isabella's Presence of Mind
Isabella visits Seville
Her splendid Reception there
Severe Execution of Justice
Marquis of Cadiz and Duke of Medina Sidonia
Royal Progress through Andalusia
Impartial Execution of the Laws
Reorganization of the Tribunals
King and Queen preside in Courts of Justice
Reestablishment of Order ....
Reform of the Jurisprudence .
Code of Ordcnanc.as Realcs
Schemes for reducing the Nobility .
Revocation of the royal Grants .
Legislative Enactments ....
The Queen's spirited Conduct to the Nobility
Military Orders of Castile
Order of St. Jago
Order of Calatrava ....
Order of Alcantara
Grand-masterships annexed to the Crown
Their Reformation
Usurpations of the Church
Resisted by Cortes
Difference with the Pope . . .
Restoration of Trade
Salutary Enactments of Cortes
Prosperity of the Kingdom ....
Notice of Clemencin ....
XXUI
Page
179
181
181
183
184
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
195
195
196
198
199
201
204
206
209
210
212
213
216
217
218
219
220
223
224
225
228
CHAPTER VII.
Establishment of the Modern Inquisition
Origin of the Ancient Inquisition
Its Introduction into Aragon .....
Restrospective View of the Jews in Spain .
Under the Arabs
Under the Castilians
Persecution of the Jews . . .
Their State at the Accession of Isabella
230
231
232
235
236
238
239
242
XXIV C O N T E N T S .
Page
Charges against them 243
Bigotry of the Age . 245
Its Influence on Isabella 246
Character of her Confessor Torquemada .... 247
Papal Bull authorizing the Inquisition .... 248
Isabella resorts to milder Measures 24!)
Enforces the Papal Bull 250
Inquisition at Seville 250
Proofs of Judaism 251
The sanguinary Proceedings of the Inquisitors . . . 252
Conduct of the Papal Court 254
Final Organization of the Inquisition 255
Forms of Trial 255
Torture 257
Injustice of its Proceedings 259
Autos da Fe 2G0
Convictions under Torquemada 264
Perfidious Policy of Rome 2G7
Notice of Llorente's History of the Inquisition . . . 268
CHAPTER VIII.
Review of the Political and Intellectual Condi-
tion of the Spanish Arabs Previous to the War
of Granada 270
Early Successes of Mahometanism 270
Conquest of Spain 272
Western Caliphate 275
Form of Government 275
Character of the Sovereigns 276
Military Establishment 277
Sumptuous public Works 277
Great Mosque of Cordova 278
Revenues 279
Mineral Wealth of Spain 281
Husbandry and Manufactures 281
Population 282
Character of Alhakem II 284
Intellectual Developement 285
Dismemberment of the Cordovan Empire .... 286
Kingdom of Granada 288
Agriculture and Commerae 290
Resources of the Crown 291
CONTENTS
Luxurious Character of the People
Moorish Gallantry
Chivalry
Unsettled State of Granada
Causes of her successful Resistance
Literature of the Spanish Arabs
Circumstances favorable to it
Provisions for Learning
The actual Results
Averroes
Their Historical Merits .
Useful Discoveries ....
The impulse given by them to Europe
Their elegant Literature
Poetical Character
Influence on the Castilian ....
Circumstances prejudicial to their Reputation
Notices of Casiri, Conde, and Cardonne
XXV
Page
292
294
295
296
297
299
300
301
302
303
304
305
306
306
308
310
311
312
War of Granada
of Alhama ....
Zahara surprised by the Moors .
Description of Alhama .
The Marquis of Cadiz
His Expedition against Alhama
Surprise of the Fortress
Valor of the Citizens
Sally upon the Moors
Desperate Combat ....
Fall of Alhama ....
Consternation of the Moors
The Moors besiege Alhama
Distress of the Garrison . .
The Duke of Medina Sidonia
Marches to relieve Alhama
Raises the Siege . .
Meeting of the two Armies
The Sovereigns at Cordova . '
Alhama invested again by the Moors
Isabella's Firmness
Ferdinand raises the Siege
Vigorous Measures of the Queen
VOL. I. d
CHAPTER IX.
Surprise of Zahara. — Capture
316
317
319
320
322
323
324
324
325
327
328
330
331
333
333
3.'<4
334
335
33h
336
837
339
CONT E NTS.
CHAPTER X.
War of Granada. — Unsuccessful Attempt o
Defeat in the Axarquia
Siege of Lc-ja
Castilian Forces
Encampment before Loja ....
Skirmish with the Enemy ....
Retreat of the Spaniards ....
Revolution in Granada ....
Death of the Archbishop of Toledo
Affairs of Italy
Of Navarre
Resources of the Crown ....
Justice of the Sovereigns .
Expedition to the Axarquia
The military Array
Progress of the Army ....
Moorish Preparations .....
Skirmish among the Mountains
Retreat of the Spaniards ....
Their disastrous Situation ....
They resolve to force a Passage .
Difficulties of the Ascent
Dreadful Slaughter
Marquis of Cadiz escapes
Losses of the Christians ....
\ Loja. —
Page
340
340
341
342
342
345
348
351
352
353
355
35G
357
3G0
3(3
301
3G2
3(53
3G4
3GG
3G7
3G7
3G9
370
CHAPTER XL
War of Granada. — General View
'
e/W
IK V 110
ipvmtx'p
7
^q^Ujh
X-O
>^
INTRODUCTION.
SECTION I.
VIEW OF THE CASTILIAN MONARCHY BEFORE THE FIFTEENTH
CENTURY.
Early History and Constitution of Castile. — Invasion of the Arabs. —
Slow Reconquest of the Country. — Religious Enthusiasm of the
Spaniards. — Influence of their Minstrelsy. — Their Chivalry. — Cas-
tilian Towns. — Cortes. — Its Powers. — Its Boldness. — Wealth of
the Cities. — The Nobility. — Their Privileges and Wealth. —
Knights. — Clergy. — Poverty of the Crown. — Limited extent of
the Prerogative.
For several hundred years after the great Sar- section
acen invasion in the beginning of the eighth cen-
tury, Spain was broken up into a number of small,
but independent states, divided in their interests,
and often in deadly hostility with one another. It
was inhabited by races, the most dissimilar in their
origin, religion, and government, the least impor-
tant of which has exerted a sensible influence on
the character and institutions of its present inhab-
itants. At the close of the fifteenth century, these
various races were blended into one great nation,
under one common rule. Its territorial limits were
widely extended by discovery and conquest. Its
domestic institutions, and even its literature, were
moulded into the form, which, to a considerable ex-
v.\x INTRODUCTION.
i.ntroi). tent, they have maintained to the present day. It
Suae of
H\r,iin !it the
middle of the
lil'ieentl
century
is the object of the present narrative to exhibit the
period, in which these momentous results were ef-
fected ; — the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella.
By the middle of the fifteenth century, the num-
lii-Ieemh' ber of states, into which the country had been
divided, was reduced to four ; Castile, Aragon, Na-
varre, and the Moorish kingdom of Granada. The
last, comprised within nearly the same limits as
the modern province of that name, was all that
remained to the Moslems of their once vast pos-
sessions in the Peninsula. Its concentrated pop-
ulation gave it a degree of strength altogether
disproportioned to the extent of its territory ; and
the profuse magnificence of its court, which rivalled
that of the ancient caliphs, was supported by the
labors of a sober, industrious people, under whom
agriculture and several of the mechanic arts had
reached a degree of excellence, probably unequalled
in any other part of Europe during the Middle
Ages.
The little kingdom of Navarre, embosomed with-
in the Pyrenees, had often attracted the avarice of
neighbouring and more powerful states. But, since
their selfish schemes operated as a mutual check
upon each other, Navarre still continued to maintain
her independence, when all the smaller states in
the Peninsula had been absorbed in the gradually
increasing dominion of Castile and Aragon.
This latter kingdom comprehended the province
of that name, together with Catalonia and Valen-
cia. Under its auspicious climate and free political
\
CASTILE.
xxxi
institutions, its inhabitants displayed an uncommon section
share of intellectual and moral energy. Its long ! —
line of coast opened the way to an extensive and
flourishing commerce; and its enterprising navy in-
demnified the nation for the scantiness of its terri-
tory at home, by the important foreign conquests of
Sardinia, Sicily, Naples, and the Balearic Isles.
The remaining provinces of Leon, Biscay, the
Asturias, Galicia, Old and New Castile, Estrema-
dura, Murcia, and Andalusia, fell to the crown of
Castile, which, thus extending its sway over an
unbroken line of country from the Bay of Biscay to
the Mediterranean, seemed by the magnitude of its
territory, as well as by its antiquity, (for it was there
that the old Gothic monarchy may be said to have
first revived after the great Saracen invasion,) to be
entitled to a preeminence over the other states of
the Peninsula. This claim, indeed, appears to have
been recognised at an early period of her history.
Aragon did homage to Castile for her territory on
the western bank of the Ebro, until the twelfth
century, as did Navarre, Portugal, and, at a later
period, the Moorish kingdom of Granada. 1 And,
when at length the various states of Spain were
consolidated into one monarchy, the capital of Cas-
tile became the capital of the new empire, and
1 Aragon was formally released
from this homage in 1177, and Por-
tugal in 1264. (Mariana, Historia
General deEspaila, (Madrid, 1780,)
lib. 11, cap. 14; lib. 13, cap. 20.)
The king of Granada, Aben Alah-
mar, swore fealty to St. Ferdinand,
in 1215, binding himself to the
payment of an annual rent, to serve
under him with a stipulated number
of his knights in war, and person-
ally attend cortes when summoned ; —
a whimsical stipulation this for a
Mahometan prince. Conde, His-
toria de la Dominacion de los Ara-
bes en Espafia, (Madrid, 1820,
1821,) torn. iii. cap. 30.
xxx ii INTRODUCTION.
introd. her language the language of the court and of lit-
erature.
It will facilitate our inquiry into the circum-
stances which immediately led to these results, if
we briefly glance at the prominent features in the
early history and constitution of the two principal
Christian states, Castile and Aragon, previous to
the fifteenth century. 2
The visi- The Visigoths who overran the Peninsula, in the
goths.
Early histo-
r\ and con-
Miinlion of
Castile.
'b
fifth century, brought with them the same liberal
principles of government which distinguished their
Teutonic brethren. Their crown was declared
elective by a formal legislative act. 3 Laws were
enacted in the great national councils, composed of
prelates and nobility, and not unfrequently ratified
in an assembly of the people. Their code of juris-
prudence, although abounding in frivolous detail,
contained many admirable provisions for the secu-
rity of justice ; and, in the degree of civil liberty
which it accorded to the Roman inhabitants of the
country, far transcended those of most of the other
barbarians of the north. 4 In short, their simple
2 Navarre was too inconsider- 3 See the Canons of the fifth
able, and bore too near a resem- Council of Toledo. Florez, Espana
blance in its government to the Sagrada, (Madrid, 1747 - 1776,)
other Peninsular kingdoms, to re- torn. vi. p. 168.
quire a separate notice; for which, 4 Recesvinto, in order more ef-
indeed, the national writers afford fectually to bring about the consol-
but very scanty materials. The idation of his Gothic and Roman
Moorish empire of Granada, so in- subjects into one nation, abrogated
teresting in itself, and so dissimi- the law prohibiting their intermar-
lar, in all respects, to Christian riage. The terms in which his
Spain, merits particular attention, enactment is conceived, disclose a
I have deferred the consideration far more enlightened policy than
of it, however, to that period of the that pursued either by the Franks
history, which is occupied with its or Lombards. (See the Fuero
subversion. See Part I., Chapter 8. Juzgo, (ed.de la Acad., Madrid,
CASTILE. xxxiii
polity exhibited the germ of some of those insti- section
tutions, which 1 , with other nations, and under hap- ■
pier auspices, have formed the basis of a well-
regulated constitutional liberty. 5
But, while in other countries the principles of a invasion m
' l * the Ar;il>9
free government were slowly and gradually unfold-
ed, their developement was much accelerated in
Spain by an event, which, at the time, seemed to
threaten their total extinction, — the great Saracen
invasion at the beginning of the eighth century.
The religious, as well as the political institutions of
the Arabs, were too dissimilar to those of the con-
quered nation, to allow the former to exercise any
very sensible influence over the latter in these par-
ticulars. In the spirit of toleration, which distin-
guished the early followers of Mahomet, they con-
ceded to such of the Goths, as were willing to
continue among them after the conquest, the free
enjoyment of their religious, as well as of many of
the civil privileges which they possessed under the
1815,) lib. 3, tit. 1, ley 1.) — The plation of these features, which
Visigothic code, Fuero Juzgo, (Fo- brought upon these laws the sweep-
rum Judicum,) originally compiled ing condemnation of Montesquieu,
in Latin, was translated into Span- as " pueriles, gauches, idiotes, —
ish under St. Ferdinand ; a copy of frivoles dans le fond et gigantesques
which version was first printed in dans lc style." Esprit des Loix,
1600, at Madrid. (Los Doctorcs liv. 28, chap. 1.
Asso y Manuel, Instituciones del 5 Some of the local usages, af-
Derecho Civil de Castilla, (Madrid, terwards incorporated in thefueros,
1792.) pp. 6, 7.) A second edi- or charters, of the Castilian cona-
tion, under the supervision of the munities, may probably be derived
Royal Spanish Academy, was pub- from the time of the Visigoths.
lished in 1815. This compilation, The English reader may form a
notwithstanding the apparent rude- good idea of the tenor of the legal
ness and even ferocity of some of institutions of this people and their
its features, may be said to have immediate descendants, from an ar-
formed the basis of all the subse- tide in the sixty-first Number of
quent legislation of Castile. Itwas, the Edinburgh Review, written
doubtless, the exclusive contem- with equal learning and vivacity.
VOL. I. e
XXXiV
INTRODUCTION.
INTROD.
ancient monarchy. 6 Under this liberal dispensa-
tion it cannot be doubted, that many preferred re-
maining in the pleasant regions of their ancestors, to
quitting them for a life of poverty and toil. These,
however, appear to have been chiefly of the lower
order ; 7 and the men of higher rank, or of more
generous sentiments, who refused to accept a nom-
inal and precarious independence at the hands of
their oppressors, escaped from the overwhelming in-
undation into the neighbouring countries of France,
Italy, and Britain, or retreated behind those natural
fortresses of the north, the Asturian hills and the
Pyrenees, whither the victorious Saracen disdained
to pursue them. 8
6 The Christians, in all matters
exclusively relating to themselves,
were governed by their own laws,
(See the Fuero Juzgo, Introd. p.
40,) administered by their own
judges, subject only in capital cases
to an appeal to the Moorish tribu-
nals. Their churches and monas-
teries (ros
CASTILE.
xH
Homer the principal bond which united the Gre-
cian states. 1G Such an opinion may be deemed
somewhat extravagant. It cannot be doubted, how-
ever, that a poem like that of the " Cid," which ap-
peared as early as the twelfth century, 17 by calling
up the most inspiring national recollections in con-
nexion with their favorite hero, must have operated
powerfully on the moral sensibilities of the people.
It is pleasing to observe, in the cordial spirit of Th
these early effusions, little of the ferocious bigotry
which sullied the character of the nation, in after
ages. 18 The Mahometans of this period far excel-
SECTION
I.
eir ehuri-
ty to the in-
fidel.
*6 See Heeren, Politics of An-
cient Greece, translated by Ban-
croft, chap. 7.
l ? The oldest manuscript extant
of this poem, (still preserved at
Bivar, the hero's birth-place,) bears
the date of 1207, or at latest 1307,
for there is some obscurity in the
writing. Its learned editor, San-
chez, has been led by the peculiari-
ties of its orthography, metre, and
idiom, to refer its composition to as
early a date as 1153. (Coleccion
de Poesias Castellanas anteriores
al Siglo XV. (Madrid, 1779-90,)
torn. i. p. 223.)
Some of the late Spanish anti-
quaries have manifested a skepti-
cism in relation to the " Cid," truly
alarming. A volume was publish-
ed at Madrid, in 1792, by Risco,
under the title of " Castilla, o His-
toria de RodrigoDiaz," &c, which
he worthy father ushered into the
world with much solemnity, as a
transcript of an original manuscript
coeval with the time of the "Cid,"
and fortunately discovered by him
in an obscure corner of some Leo-
nese monastery. (Prologo.) Mas-
deu, in an analysis of this precious
document, has been led to scruti-
nize the grounds, on which the re-
VOL. I. f
puted achievements of the " Cid"
have rested from time immemorial,
and concludes with the startling
assertion, that "of Rodrigo Diaz,
el Campeador, we absolutely know
nothing, with any degree of proba-
bility, not even his existence!"
(Hist. Critica, torn. xx. p. 370.)
There are probably few of his
countrymen, that will thus coolly
acquiesce in the annihilation of
their favorite hero, whose exploits
have been the burden of chronicle,
as well as romance, from the
twelfth century down to the pres-
ent day.
They may find a warrant for
their fond credulity, in the dispas-
sionate judgment of one of the
greatest of modern historians, John
Mailer, who, so far from doubting
the existence of the Campeador,
has succeeded, in his own opinion
at least, in clearing from his histo-
ry the ' ' mists of fable and extrav-
agance," in which it has been
shrouded. See his Life of the
Cid, appended to Escobar's " Ro-
rnancero," edited by the learned
and estimable Dr. Julius, of Berlin.
Frankfort, 1828.
18 A modern minstrel inveighs
loudly against this charity of his
xlii
INTRODUCTION.
Their chiv-
alry.
led their enemies in general refinement, and had
carried some branches of intellectual culture to a
height scarcely surpassed by Europeans in later
times. The Christians, therefore, notwithstanding
their political aversion to the Saracens, conceded to
them a degree of respect, which subsided into feel-
ings of a very different complexion, as they them-
selves rose in the scale of civilization. This senti-
ment of respect tempered the ferocity of a warfare,
which, although sufficiently disastrous in its details,
affords examples of a generous courtesy, that would
do honor to the politest ages of Europe. 19 The
Spanish Arabs were accomplished in all knightly
exercises, and their natural fondness for magnifi-
cence, which shed a lustre over the rugged features
ancestors, who devoted their " can-
tos de cigarra," to the glorification
of this " Moorish rabble," instead
of celebrating the prowess of the
Cid, Bernardo, and other worthies
of their own nation. His discour-
tesy, however, is well rebuked by
a more generous brother of the
craft.
" No cs culpa si de los Moros
los valientes hechos cantan.
pues tamo inns resplandecen
nuestras celcbrcs Imzaiias ;
que el encarecer los hechos
del vencido en la batalia,
cngrandece al vencedor,
aunque no harden de el palahra."
Duran, Romanccro de Romances
Moriscos, (Madrid, 1828,) p. 227.
'9 When the empress queen of
Alfonso VII. was besieged in the
castle of Azeca, in 1139, she re-
proached the Moslem cavaliers for
their want of courtesy and courage
in attacking a fortress defended by
a female. They acknowledged the
justice of the rebuke, and only re-
quested that she would condescend
to show herself to them from her
palace ; when the Moorish chival-
ry, after paying their obeisance to
her in the most respectful manner,
instantly raised the siege, and de-
parted. (Ferreras, Histoire G6ne-
rale d'Espagne, traduite pard'Her-
milly, (Paris, 1742-51,) torn. iii.
p. 410.) It was a frequent occur-
rence to restore a noble captive to
liberty without ransom, and even
with costly presents. Thus Alfon-
so XI. sent back to their father
two daughters of a Moorish prince,
who formed part of the spoils of
the battle of Tarifa. (Mariana,
Hist, de Espafia, torn. ii. p. 32.)
When this same Castilian sove-
reign, after a career of almost un-
interrupted victory over the Mos-
lems, died of the plague before
Gibraltar, in 1350, the knights of
Granada put on mourning for him,
saying, that " he was a noble
prince, and one that knew how to
honor his enemies as well as his
friends." Conde, Dominacion de
losArabes, torn. iii. p. 149.
CASTILE.
xliii
of chivalry, easily communicated itself to the Chris-
tian cavaliers. In the intervals of peace, these
latter frequented the courts of the Moorish princes,
and mingled with their adversaries in the compara-
tively peaceful pleasures of the tourney, as in war
they vied with them in feats of Quixotic gallantry. a
The nature of this warfare between two nations,
inhabitants of the same country, yet so dissimilar in
their religious and social institutions, as to be almost
the natural enemies of each other, was extremely
favorable to the exhibition of the characteristic vir-
tues of chivalry. The contiguity of the hostile
parties afforded abundant opportunities for personal
rencounter and bold romantic enterprise. Each
nation had its regular military associations, who
swore to devote their lives to the service of God
and their country, in perpetual war against the infi-
del. 21 The Spanish knight became the true hero
SECTION'
I
20 One of the most extraordinary
achievements, in this way, was
that of the grand master of Alcan-
tara, in 1394, who, after ineffectu-
ally challenging the king of Gra-
nada to meet him in single combat,
or with a force double that of his
own, marched boldly up to the
gates of his capital, where he was
assailed by such an overwhelming
host, that he with all his little
band perished on the field. (Ma-
riana, Hist, de Espana, lib. 19,
cap. 3.) It was over this worthy
compeer of Don Quixote, that the
epitaph was inscribed, " Here lies
one who never knew fear," which
led Charles V. to remark to one of
his courtiers, that " the good knight
could never have tried to snuff a
candle with his fingers."
21 This singular fact, of the ex-
istence of an Arabic military order,
is recorded by Conde. (Domina-
cion de los Arabes, torn. i. p. 619,
note.) The brethren were distin-
guished for the simplicity of their
attire, and their austere and frugal
habits. They were stationed on
the Moorish marches, and were
bound by a vow of perpetual war
against the Christian infidel. As
their existence is traced as far back
as 1030, they may possibly have
suggested the organization of simi-
lar institutions in Christendom,
which they preceded by a century
at least. The loyal historians of
the Spanish military orders, it is
true, would carry that of St. Jago
as far back as the time of Ramiro I.,
in the ninth century ; (Caro de
Torres, Historia de las Ordenes
Militares de Santiago, Calatrava,
xliv INTRODUCTION.
introd^ of romance, wandering over his own land, and even
into the remotest climes, in quest of adventures ;
and, as late as the fifteenth century, we find him in
the courts of England and Burgundy, doing battle
in honor of his mistress, and challenging general
admiration by his uncommon personal intrepidity. 22
This romantic spirit lingered in Castile, long after
the age of chivalry had become extinct in other
parts of Europe, continuing to nourish itself on
those illusions of fancy, which were at length dis-
pelled by the caustic satire of Cervantes.
Thus patriotism, religious loyalty, and a proud
sense of independence, founded on the conscious-
ness of owing their possessions to their personal
valor, became characteristic traits of the Castilians
previously to the sixteenth century, when the op-
pressive policy and fanaticism of the Austrian dynas-
ty contrived to throw into the shade these generous
y Alcantara, (Madrid, 1629,) fol. chivalrous nobles of Castile ; many
2. — Rades y Andrada, Chronica of whom, says the Chronicle of
de las Tres Ordenes y Cavallerias, Juan II., lost their lives from this
(Toledo, 1572,) fol. 4.) but less circumstance, in the splendid tour-
prejudiced critics, as Zurita and ney given in honor of the nuptials
Mariana, are content with dating- it of Blanche of Navarre and Henry,
from the papal bull of Alexander son of John II. (Cronica de 1).
III., 1 175. Juan II., (Valencia, 1779,) p. 411.)
22 In one of the Paston letters, Monstrelet records the adventures
we find the notice of a Spanish of a Spanish cavalier, who " trav-
knight appearing at the court of elled all the way to the court of
Henry VI. , " wyth a Kercheff of Burgundy to seek honor and rev-
Plesaunce iwrapped aboute hys erence " by his feats of arms. His
arme, the gwych Knight," says antagonist was the Lord ofChar-
the writer, " wyl renne a cours gny ; on the second day they fought
wyth asharpe sperefor his sou'eyn with battle-axes, and "the Casti-
lady sake." (Fenn, Original Let- lian attracted general admiration,
ters, (1787,) vol. i. p. 6.) The by his uncommon daring in fight-
practice of using sharp spears, in- ing with his visor up." Chro-
stead of the guarded and blunted niques, (Paris, 1595,) torn. ii. p
weapons usual in the tournament, 109.
seems to have been afiected by the
CASTILE. Xlv
virtues. Glimpses of them, however, might long be section
discenied in the haughty bearing of the Castilian
noble, and in that erect, high-minded peasantry,
whom oppression has not yet been able wholly to
subdue. 23
To the extraordinary position, in which the nation Early im-
J > portance of
was placed, may also be referred the liberal forms ||J^" ti,,Bn
of its political institutions, as well as a more early
developement of them than took place in other
countries of Europe. From the exposure of the
Castilian towns to the predatory incursions of the
Arabs, it became necessary, not only that the}'
should be strongly fortified, but that every citizen
should be trained to bear arms in their defence.
An immense increase of consequence was given to
the burgesses, who thus constituted the most effec-
tive part of the national militia. To this circum-
stance, as well as to the policy of inviting the
settlement of frontier places by the grant of ex-
traordinary privileges to the inhabitants, is to be Their P ri?i.
imputed the early date, as well as liberal character,
of the charters of community in Castile and Leon. 24
23 The Venetian ambassador, by Asso and Manuel and other
Navagiero, speaking- of the man- writers. Ensayo Historico-Criti-
ners of the Castilian nobles, in co, sobre la Antigua Legislation
Charles V.'s time, remarks some- de Castilla, (Madrid, 1808,) pp.
what bluntly, that, " if their power 80-82.) It preceded, by a lonir in-
were equal to their pride, the tcrval, those granted to the bur-
whole world would not be able to gesses in other parts of Europe,
withstand them." Viaggio fatto with the exception, perhaps, of
in Spagna et in Francia, (Vinegia, Italy; where several of the cities,
15G3,) fol. 10. as Milan, Pavia, and Pisa, seem
24 The most ancient of these early in the eleventh century to
regular charters of incorporation, have exercised some of the func-
now extant, was granted by Alfon- tions of independent states. But
so V., in 1020, to the city of Leon the extent of municipal immunities
and its territory. (Marina rejects conceded to, or rather assumed by,
those of an earlier dale, adduced the Italian cities at this early pe-
xlvi INTRODUCTION
introd. These, although varying a good deal in their de-
tails, generally conceded to the citizens the right
of electing their own magistrates for the regulation
of municipal affairs. Judges were appointed by
this body for the administration of civil and criminal
law, subject to an appeal to the royal tribunal. No
person could be affected in life or property, except
by a decision of this municipal court ; and no cause,
while pending before it, could be evoked thence
into the superior tribunal. In order to secure the
barriers of justice more effectually against the vio-
lence of power, so often superior to law in an
imperfect state of society, it was provided in many
of the charters, that no nobles should be permitted
to acquire real property within the limits of the
community ; that no fortress or palace should be
erected by them there ; that such as might reside
within its territory, should be subject to its juris-
diction ; and that any violence, offered by them to
its inhabitants, might be forcibly resisted with
impunity. Ample and inalienable funds were pro-
vided for the maintenance of the municipal func-
tionaries, and for other public expenses. A large
riod, is very equivocal; for their cient precision, the nature of the
indefatigable antiquarian confesses privileges accorded to the inhab-
that all, or nearly all their archives, Hants. — Robertson, who wrote
previous to the time of Frederic I., when the constitutional antiquities
(the latter part of the twelfth cen- of Castile had been but slightly in-
tury,) had perished amid their fre- vestigated, would seem to have
quent civil convulsions. (See the little authority, therefore, for de-
subject in detail, in Muratori, Dis- riving the establishment of com-
sertazioni sopra le Antichita Ita- munities from Raly, and still less
liane, (Napoli, 1752,) dissert. 45.) for tracing their progress through
Acts of enfranchisement became France and Germany to Spain,
frequent in Spain during the elev- See his History of the Reign of
enth century ; several of which are the Emperor Charles V., (London,
preserved, and exhibit, with suffi- 1796,) vol. i. pp. 29, 30
I.
CASTILE.
extent of circumjacent country, embracing frequent- section
\y many towns and villages, was annexed to each
city with the right of jurisdiction over it. All ar-
bitrary tallages were commuted for a certain fixed
and moderate rent. An officer was appointed by
the crown to reside within each community, whose
province it was to superintend the collection of this
tribute, to maintain public order, and to be asso-
ciated with the magistrates of each city in the
command of the forces it was bound to contribute
towards the national defence. Thus while the
inhabitants of the great towns in other parts of
Europe were languishing in feudal servitude, the
members of the Castilian corporations, living under
the protection of their own laws and magistrates in
time of peace, and commanded by their own officers
in war, were in full enjoyment of all the essential
rights and privileges of freemen. 25
It is true, that they were often convulsed by in-
testine feuds ; that the laws were often loosely ad-
ministered by incompetent judges ; and that the
exercise of so many important prerogatives of in-
dependent states inspired them with feelings of
independence, which led to mutual rivalry, and
sometimes to open collision. But with all this,
long after similar immunities in the free cities of
other countries, as Italy for example, 26 had been
25 For this account of the ancient de Castilla, (Nos. 160-196,) and
polity of the Castilian cities, the Teoria de las Cortes, (Madrid,
reader is referred to Sempere, His- 1813, part. 2, cap. 21 - 23,) where
toire des Cortes d'Espagne, (Bor- the meagre outline given above is
deaux, 1815,) and Marina's valu- filled up with copious illustration,
able works, Ensayo Historico-Cri- 26 The independence of the Lorn-
tico sobre la Antigua Legislacion bard cities had been sacrificed, ac-
xlviii
INTRODUCTION.
iNTRoi). sacrificed to the violence of faction or the lust of
power, those of the Castilian cities not only re-
mained unimpaired, but seemed to acquire addi-
tional stability with age. This circumstance is
chiefly imputable to the constancy of the national
legislature, which, until the voice of liberty was
stifled by a military despotism, was ever ready to
interpose its protecting arm in defence of constitu-
tional rights.
The earliest instance on record of popular repre-
sentation in Castile occurred at Burgos, in 1169; 27
nearly a century antecedent to the celebrated Lei-
cester parliament. Each city had but one vote,
whatever might be the number of its represent-
atives. A much greater irregularity, in regard to
the number of cities required to send deputies to
cortes on different occasions, prevailed in Castile,
than ever existed in England ; 28 though, previouslv
Casiilian
Cones.
cording to the admission of their
enthusiastic historian, about the
middle of the thirteenth century.
Sismondi, Ilistoire des Republiques
[taliennes da Moven-Age, (Paris,
1818.) ch. 20.
27 Or in 1100, according to the
Coronica General, (part. 4, fol. 344,
345,) where the fact is mentioned.
Mariana refers this celebration of
cortes to 1170, (Hist, de Espana,
lib. 11, cap. 2 ;) but Ferreras, who
often rectifies the chronological in-
accuracies of his predecessor, fixes
it in 1169. (Hist. d'Espagne, torn,
iii. p. 484.) Neither of these au-
thors notices the presence of the
commons in this assembly ; al-
though the phrase used by the
Chronicle, los cibdadanos, is per-
fectly unequivocal.
^ Capmany, Practica y Estilo
de Celebrar Cortes en Aragon,
Catalufia, y Valencia, (Madrid,
1821,) pp. 230, 231. — Whether
the convocation of the third estate
to the national councils proceeded
from politic calculation in the sove-
reign, or was in a manner forced
on him by the growing power and
importance of the cities, it is now
too late to inquire. It is nearly as
difficult to seHe on what principles
the selection of cities to be repre-
sented depended. Marina asserts,
that every great town and com-
munity was entitled to a seat in
the legislature, from the time of
receiving its municipal charter from
the sovereign, (Teoria, torn. i. p.
138;) and Scmpere agrees, that
this right became general, from
the first, to all who chose to avail
themselves of it. (Hisloire des
Cortes, p. 50.) The right, proba-
bly, was not much insisted on bv
CASTILE. xlix
to the fifteenth century, this does not seem to have section
proceeded from any design of infringing on the —
liberties of the people. The nomination of these
was originally vested in the householders at large,
but was afterwards confined to the municipalities ;
a most mischievous alteration, which subjected their
election eventually to the corrupt influence of the
crown. 29 They assembled in the same chamber
with the higher orders of the nobility and clergy ;
but, on questions of moment, retired to deliberate
by themselves. 30 After the transaction of other
business, their own petitions were presented to the
sovereign, and his assent gave them the validity
of laws. The Castilian commons, by neglecting to
make their money grants depend on correspon-
dent concessions from the crown, relinquished that
powerful check on its operations so beneficially
exerted in the British parliament, but in vain con-
tended for even there, till a much later period than
that. now under consideration. Whatever may have
been the right of the nobility and clergy to attend
in cortes, their sanction was not deemed essential
the smaller and poorer places, some obscurity. (Teoria, torn. i.
which, frpm the charges it involv- cap. 28.) Indeed, there seems to
ed, felt it often, no doubt, less of a have been some irregularity in the
boon than a burden. This, we parliamentary usages themselves,
know, was the case in England. From minutes of a meeting of
29 It was an evil of scarcely less cortes at Toledo, in 1538, too soon
magnitude, that contested elections for any material innovation on the
were settled by the crown. (Cap- ancient practice, we find the three
many, Practica y Estilo, p. 231.) estates sitting in separate cham-
The latter of these practices, and, bers, from the very commencement
indeed, the former to a certain ex- to the close of the session. See
tent, are to be met with in English the account drawn up by the count
history. of Corufia, apud Capmany, Prac-
30 Marina leaves this point in tica y Estilo, pp. 240 et seq.
VOL. I. g
Its sreat
powers
INTRODUCTION.
introd. to the validity of legislative acts; 31 for their pres-
ence was not even required in many assemblies of
the nation which occurred in the fourteenth and
fifteenth centuries. 32 The extraordinary power thus
committed to the commons was, on the whole, un-
favorable to their liberties. It deprived them of
the sympathy and cooperation of the great orders
of the state, whose authority alone could have
enabled them to withstand the encroachments of
arbitrary power, and who, in fact, did eventually
desert them in their utmost need. 33
But, notwithstanding these defects, the popular
branch of the Castilian cortes, very soon after its
admission into that body, assumed functions and
exercised a degree of power on the whole superior
to that enjoyed by it in other European legisla-
tures v It was soon recognised as a fundamental
principle of the constitution, that no tax could be
imposed without its consent; 34 and an express en-
31 This, however, so contrary to avowed policy was altogether sub-
the analogy of other European versive of the constitution,
governments, is expressly contra- 33 During the famous war of the
dieted by the declaration of the Comunidades, under Charles V. For
nobles, at the cortes of Toledo, in the preceding paragraph consult
1538. " Oida csta respuesta se Marina, (Teoria, part. 1, cap. 10,
dijo, que pues S. M. habia dicho 20, 26, 29,) and Capmany. (Prac-
que no cran Cortes ni habia Bra- tica y Estilo, pp. 220-250.) The
zos, no podian tratar cosa alguna, municipalities of Castile seem to
que cllos sin procuradores , y los pro- have reposed but a very limited
ruradorcs sin cllos, no scria valido confidence in their delegates, whom
lo que. hickren.'''' Relacion del they furnished with instructions, to
Conde de Corufia, apud Capmany, which they were bound to conform
Practica y Estilo, p. 247. themselves literally. See Marina,
3 ~ This omission of the privi- Teoria, part. 1, cap. 23.
leged orders was almost uniform 3l The term "fundamental prin-
under Charles V. and his succes- ciple " is fully authorized by the
sors. But it would be unfair to existence of repeated enactments
seek for constitutional precedent in to this effect. Sempere, who ad-
the usages of a government, whose mits the " usage," objects to the
CASTILE.
li
actment to this effect was suffered to remain on the section
statute book, after it had become a dead letter, as -
if to remind the nation of the liberties it had lost. 35
The commons showed a wise solicitude in regard
to the mode of collecting the public revenue, often-
times more onerous to the subject than the tax
itself. They watched carefully over its appropria-
tion to its destined uses. They restrained a too
prodigal expenditure, and ventured more than once
to regulate the economy of the royal household. 36
They kept a vigilant eye on the conduct of public
officers, as well as on the right administration of
justice, and commissions were appointed at their
suggestion for inquiring into its abuses. They en-
tered into negotiation for alliances with foreign
powers, and, by determining the amount of supplies
for the maintenance of troops in time of war, pre-
served a salutary check over military operations. 87
phrase, "fundamental law,'' on John II., Henry III., and Charles
the ground that these acts were V.
specific, not general, in their char- 36 In 1258, they presented a va-
acter. Histoire des Cortes, p. riety of petitions to the king, in
254. relation to his own personal ex-
35 " Los Reyes en nuestros Rey- penditure, as well as that of his
nos progenitores establecieron por courtiers; requiring him to dimin-
leyes, y ordenanc/as fechas en Cor- ish the charges of his table, attire,
tes, que no se echasscn, ni repar- &c. and, bluntly, to " bring his ap-
tiessen ningunos pechos, scruicios, petite within a more reasonable
pedidos, ni monedas, ni otros tribu- compass " ; to all which he readi-
tos nueuos, especial, ni general- ly gave his assent. (Sempere y
mente en todos nuestros Reynos, Guarinos, Historia del Luxo, y de
sin que primeramente sean llama- las Leyes Suntuarias de Espana,
dos a Cortes los procuradores de (Madrid, 1788,) torn. i. pp. 91,
f.odas las Ciudades, y villas de 92.) The English reader is re-
nuestros Reynos, y sean otorgados minded of a very different result,
por los dichos procuradores que a. which attended a similar interpo-
las Cortes vinieren." (Recopilacion sition of the commons in the time
de las Leyes, (Madrid, 1640,) torn, of Richard II., more than a centu-
ii. fol. 124.) This law, passed un- ry later,
der Alfonso XL, was confirmed by 37 Marina claims also the right
iii
INTRODUCTION.
Its boldness.
jixTRou. The nomination of regencies was subject to their
approbation, and they defined the nature of the au-
thority to be intrusted to them. Their consent
was esteemed indispensable to the validity of a title
to the crown, and this prerogative, or at least the
image of it, has continued to survive the wreck of
their ancient liberties. 88 Finally, they more than
once set aside the testamentary provisions of the
sovereigns in regard to the succession. 39
Without going further into detail, enough has
been said to show the high powers claimed by the
commons, previously to the fifteenth century, which,
instead of being confined to ordinary subjects of
legislation, seem, in some instances, to have reached
to the executive duties of the administration. It
would, indeed, show but little acquaintance with
the social condition of the middle ages, to suppose
that the practical exercise of these powers always
corresponded with their theory. We trace repeated
instances, it is true, in which they were claimed
and successfully exerted ; while, on the other hand,
the multiplicity of remedial statutes proves too
of the cortes to be consulted on
questions of war and peace, of
which he adduces several prece-
dents. (Teoria, part. 2, cap. 19,
20.) Their interference in what
is so generally held the peculiar
province of the executive, was per-
haps encouraged hy the sovereign,
with the politic design of relieving
himself of the responsibility of
measures, whose success must de-
pend eventually on their support.
Hallam notices a similar policy of
the crown, under Edward III., in
his view of the English constitu-
tion during the middle ages. View
of the State of Europe during the
Middle Ages, (London, 1819,) vol.
iii. chap. 8.
38 The recognition of the title
of the heir apparent, by a cortes
convoked for that purpose, has con-
tinued to be observed in Castile
down to the present time. Practica
y Estilo, p. 229.
39 For the preceding notice of
the cortes, see Marina, Teoria,
part. 2, cap. 13, 19, 20, 21, 31
35, 37, 38.
CASTILE.
plainly how often the rights of the people were in- section
vaded by the violence of the privileged orders, or
the more artful and systematic usurpations of the
crown. But, far from being intimidated by such
acts, the representatives in cortes were ever ready
to stand forward as the intrepid advocates of con-
stitutional freedom ; and the unqualified boldness
of their language on such occasions, and the con-
sequent concessions of the sovereign, are satisfac-
tory evidence of the real extent of their power,
and show how cordially they must have been sup-
ported by public opinion.
It would be improper to pass by without notice Herman-
\ \ r J tlades of
an anomalous institution peculiar to Castile, which Cas,ile
sought to secure the public tranquillity by means
scarcely compatible themselves with civil subordi-
nation. I refer to the celebrated Hermandad, or
Holy Brotherhood, as the association was some-
times called, a name familiar to most readers in the
lively fictions of Le Sage, though conveying there
no very adequate idea of the extraordinary func-
tions which it assumed at the period under review.
Instead of a regularly organized police, it then con-
sisted of a confederation of the principal cities
bound together by solemn league and covenant, for
the defence of their liberties in seasons of civil
anarchy. Its affairs were conducted by deputies,
who assembled at stated intervals for this purpose,
transacting their business under a common seal,
enacting laws which they were careful to transmit
to the nobles and even the sovereign himself, and
enforcing their measures by an armed force. This
iiv
INTRODUCTION.
INTROD.
Wealih of
the cities.
wild kind of justice, so characteristic of an unset-
tled state of society, repeatedly received the legis-
lative sanction ; and, however formidable such a
popular engine may have appeared to the eye of
the monarch, he was often led to countenance it by
a sense of his own impotence, as well as of the
overweening power of the nobles, against whom
it was principally directed. Hence these associa-
tions, although the epithet may seem somewhat
overstrained, have received the appellation of " cor-
tes extraordinary." 40
With these immunities, the cities of Castile at-
tained a degree of opulence and splendor unri-
valled, unless in Italy, during the middle ages. At
a very early period, indeed, their contact with the
Arabs had familiarized them with a better system
of agriculture, and a dexterity in the mechanic arts
unknown in other parts of Christendom. 41 On the
40 So at least they are styled by-
Marina. See his account of these
institutions ; (Teoria, part. 2, cap.
39 ; ) also Salazar de Mendoza,
(Monarquia, lib. 3, cap. 15, 16,)
and Sempere, (Histoire des Cortes,
chap. 12, 13.) One hundred cities
associated in the Hermandad of
1315. In that of 1295, were thir-
ty-four. The knights and inferior
nobility frequently made part of the
association. The articles of con-
federation are given by Risco, in
his continuation of Florez. (Espafia
Sagrada, (Madrid, 1775-1826,)
tom.xxxvi.p. 162.) In one of these
articles it is declared, that, if any
noble shall deprive a member of
the association of his property, and
refuse restitution, his house shall
be razed to the ground. (Art. 4.)
In another, that if any one, by
command of the king, shall at-
tempt to collect an unlawful tax, he
shall be put to death on the spot.
Art. 9.
41 See Sempere, Historia del
Luxo, torn. i. p. 97. — Masdeu.
Hist. Critica, torn. xiii. nos. 90,
91. — Gold and silver, curiously
wrought into plate, were export-
ed in considerable quantities from
Spain, in the tenth and eleventh
centuries. They were much used
in the churches. The tiara of the
pope was so richly incrusted with
the precious metals, says Masdeu,
as to receive the name of Spano-
clista. The familiar use of these
metals as ornaments of dress is
attested by the ancient poem of the
"Cid." See, in particular, the
costume of the Campeador ; vv
3099 et seq.
CASTILE.
Iv
occupation of a conquered town, we find it distrib-
uted into quarters or districts, appropriated to the
several crafts, whose members were incorporated
into guilds, under the regulation of magistrates and
by-laws of their own appointment. Instead of the
unworthy disrepute, into which the more humble
occupations have since fallen in Spain, they were
fostered by a liberal patronage, and their professors
in some instances elevated to the rank of knight-
hood. 42 The excellent breed of sheep, which early
became the subject of legislative solicitude, fur-
nished them with an important staple, which, to-
gether with the simpler manufactures, and the
various products of a prolific soil, formed the mate-
rials of a profitable commerce. 43 Augmentation of
SECTION
i.
42 Zufiiga, Annales Eclesiasti-
cosySecularesdeSevilla, (Madrid,
1677,) pp. 74, 75. — Sempere,His-
toria del Luxo, torn. i. p. 80.
43 The historian of Seville de-
scribes that city, about the middle
of the fifteenth century, as possess-
ing a flourishing commerce, and a
degree of opulence unexampled
since the conquest. It was filled
with an active population, employed
in the various mechanic arts. Its
domestic fabrics, as well as natu-
ral products, of oil, wine, wool,
&c, supplied a trade with France,
Flanders, Italy, and England. (Zu-
fiiga, Annales de Sevilla, p. 341.
— See also Sempere, Historia del
Luxo, p. 81, nota 2.) The ports
of Biscay, Which belonged to the
Castilian crown, were the marts of
an extensive trade with the north,
during the thirteenth and four-
teenth centuries. This province
entered into repeated treaties of
commerce with France and Eng-
land ; and her factories were es-
tablished at Bruges, the great em-
porium of commercial intercourse
during this period between the north
and south, before those of any oth-
er people in Europe, except the
Germans. (Diccionario Geografico-
Historico de Espafia, por la Real
Academia de la Historia, (Madrid,
1802,) torn. i. p. 333.)
The institution of the mesta is
referred, says Laborde, (Itineraire
Descriptif de l'Espagne, (Paris,
1827 - 1830,) torn. iv. p. 47,) to the
middle of the fourteenth century,
when the great plague, which de-
vastated the country so sorely, left
large depopulated tracts open to
pasturage. This popular opinion
is erroneous, since it engaged the
attention of government, and be-
came the subject of legislation as
anciently as 1273, under Alfonso
the Wise. (See Asso y Manuel,
Instituciones, Introd. p. 56.) Cap-
many, however, dates the great
improvement in the breed of Span-
ish sheep from the year 1394, when
Catharine of Lancaster brought
with her, as a part of her dowry
Ivi INTRODUCTION.
iNTROD. wealth brought with it the usual appetite for ex-
pensive pleasures ; and the popular diffusion of lux
ury in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries is
attested by the fashionable invective of the satirist,
and by the impotence of repeated sumptuary enact-
ments. 44 Much of this superfluous wealth, how-
ever, was expended on the construction of useful
public works. Cities, from which the nobles had
once been so jealously excluded, came now to be
their favorite residence. 45 But, while their sump-
tuous edifices and splendid retinues dazzled the
eyes of the peaceful burghers, their turbulent spirit
was preparing the way for those dismal scenes of
faction, which convulsed the little commonwealths
to their centre during the latter half of the fif-
teenth century.
The flourishing condition of the communities
to the heir apparent of Castile, a (Hist, de los Arabes en Espafia,
flock of English merinos, distin- torn. i. p. 488, nota.) The deriva-
guished, at that time, above those tion might startle any but a pro-
of every other country, for the fessed etymologist,
beauty and delicacy of their fleece. 44 See the original acts, cited
(Memorias Historical sobre la Ma- by Sempere. (Historia del Luxo,
rina, Comercio, y Artes de Uarce- passim.) The archpriest of Hita
lona, (Madrid, 1779 -1792,) torn. iii. indulges his vein freely against the
pp. 336, 337.) This acute writer, luxury, cupidity, and other fashion-
after a very careful examination of able sins of his age. (See Sanchez,
the subject, differing from those al- Poesias Castellanas, torn, iv.) —
ready quoted, considers the raw The influence of Mammon appears
material for manufacture, and the to have been as supreme in the
natural productions of the soil, to fourteenth century as at any later
have constituted almost the only period.
articles of export from Spain , until .• Sea un ome nescio, et rudo labrndor,
after the fifteenth century. (Ibid., 1-os dineros le fasen fidalgo e Babidor,
p. 338.) We will remark, in con- Qua,u ° a j™ 9 alg0 tiene ' talUo es mM de
elusion of this desultory note, that gl que no ha dineros, non esdesi sefior."
the term merinos is derived, by Vv. 465et»eq.
Conde, from nwedinos, signifying 45 Marina, Ensayo, nos. 199,
"wandering"; the name of an 297. — Zufiiga, Annalesde Sevilla,
Arabian tribe, who shifted their p. 341.
place of residence with the season.
CASTILE. Ivii
gave their representatives a proportional increase of section
importance in the national assembly. The liberties
Period of
of the people seemed to take deeper root in the [^;!7 !
midst of those political convulsions, so frequent in monT"
Castile, which unsettled the ancient prerogatives
of the crown. Every new revolution was followed
by new concessions on the part of the sovereign,
and the popular authority continued to advance
with a steady progress until the accession of Henry
the Third, of Trastamara, in 1393, when it may be
said to have reached its zenith. A disputed title
and a disastrous war compelled the father of this
prince, John the First, to treat the commons with a
deference unknown to his predecessors. We find
four of their number admitted into his privy coun-
cil, and six associated in the regency, to which he
confided the government of the kingdom during his
son's minority. 46 A remarkable fact, which occurred
in this reign, showing the important advances made
by the commons in political estimation, was the sub-
stitution of the sons of burgesses for an equal num-
ber of those of the nobility, who were stipulated to
be delivered as hostages for the fulfilment of a treaty
with Portugal, in 1393. 47 There will be occasion
to notice, in the first chapter of this History, some
of the circumstances, which, contributing to under-
mine the power of the commons, prepared the way
for the eventual subversion of the constitution.
46 Marina, Teoria, part. 2, cap. they not soon been replaced by ju-
28. — Mariana, Hist, de Espafia, risconsults, whose studies and sen-
lib. 18, cap. 15. — The admission timents inclined them less to the
of citizens into the king's council, popular side than to that of pre-
would have formed a most impor- rotative,
tant epoch for the commons, had 47 Ibid., lib. 18, cap. 17.
VOL. I. k
it;
Iviii INTRODUCTION.
introd. The peculiar situation of Castile, which had been
Ti.enobii- so favorable to popular rights, was eminently so to
those of the aristocracy. The nobles, embarked
with their sovereign in the same common enterprise
of rescuing their ancient patrimony from its in-
vaders, felt entitled to divide with him the spoils of
victory. Issuing forth, at the head of their own
retainers, from their strong-holds or castles, (the
great number of which was originally implied in
the name of the country,) 48 they were continually
enlarging the circuit of their territories, with no
other assistance than that of their own good swords. 49
This independent mode of effecting their conquests
would appear unfavorable to the introduction of the
feudal system, which, although its existence in
Castile is clearly ascertained, by positive law, as
well as usage, never prevailed to any thing like the
same extent as it did in the sister kingdom of
Aragon, and other parts of Europe. 50
48 Cnslilla. See Salazar de Men- Se perdieron,
dTL/r , iri Q Y en este oficio uri, rtinteuiixmrot S" lin R circumstance for the antiquary.
\yu alrit- (Tnvestigaciones Historicas de las
Odyss. 0. :S90. Antiguedades del Reyno de Na-
varra, (Pamplona, 1766,) torn. vi.
In like manner Alfonso 111. al- lib. 2, cap. 11.) Indeed, the histo-
ludes to " the ancient times in rians of Aragon admit, that the
Aragon, when there were as many public documents previous to the
kings as ricos hombres." See fourteenth century suffered so much
Zurita, Anales, torn. i. fol. 316. from various causes as to leave
8 The authenticity of the " Fue- comparatively few materials for au-
ro de Soprarbe " has been keenly then tic narrative. (Blancas, Corn-
debated by the Aragonese and Na- mentarii, Pref. — Risco, Espana
varrese writers. Morel, in refuta- Sagrada, torn. xxx. Prologo.)
tion of Blancas, who espouses it, Blancas transcribed his extract of
(See CommentarH, p. 289,) states, the laws of Soprarbe principally
that, after a diligent investigation from Prince Charles of Viana's
of the archives of that region, he History, written in the fifteenth
finds no mention of the laws, nor century. See Commcntarii, p. 25.
Ixxxviii INTRODUCTION.
introu. source of disquietude. 9 No baron could be divested
of his fief, unless by public sentence of the Justice
and the cortes. The proprietor, however, was re-
quired, as usual, to attend the king in council, and
to perform military service, when summoned, during
two months in the year, at his own charge. 10
!i , ues. immu ' The privileges, both honorary and substantia],
enjoyed by the ricos hombres, were very consider-
able. They filled the highest posts in the state.
They originally appointed judges in their domains
for the cognizance of certain civil causes, and over
a class of their vassals exercised an unlimited crimi-
nal jurisdiction. They were excused from taxation
except in specified cases ; were exempted from all
corporal and capital punishment ; nor could they be
imprisoned, although their estates might be seques-
trated, for debt. A lower class of nobility styled
infanzones, equivalent to the Castilian hidalgos, to-
gether with the caballeros, or knights, were also
possessed of important though inferior immunities. 11
The king distributed among the great barons the
territory reconquered from the Moors, in proportions
9 Asso y Manuel, lnstituciones, among his knights, so that a com-
pp. 39, 40. — Blancas, Commen- plete system of sub-infeudation was
tarii, pp. 333, 334, 340. — Fueros established. The knights, on re-
y Observancias del Reyno de Ara- storing their fiefs, might change
gon, (Zaragoza, 1667,) torn. i. fol. their suzerains at pleasure.
130. — The ricos hoinbres, thus ,0 Asso y Manuel, lnstituciones,
created by the monarch, were p. 41. — Blancas, Commentarii, pp.
styled de mesnada, signifying "of 307, 322, 331.
the household." It was lawful for n Fueros y Observancias, torn,
a rico hombre to bequeath his hon- i. fol. 130. — Martel, Forma de
ors to whichsoever of his legitimate Celebrar Cortes en Aragon, (Zara-
children he might prefer, and, in goza, 1641,) p. 98. — Blancas,
default of issue, to his nearest of Commentarii, pp. 306, 312-317,
kin. He was bound to distribute 323, 360. — Asso y Manuel, Insti-
the bulk of his estates in fiefs tuciones, pp. 40-43.
ARAGON. Ixxxix
ii.
determined by the amount of their respective ser- section
vices. We find a stipulation to this effect from
James the First to his nobles, previous to his in-
vasion of Majorca. 12 On a similar principle they
claimed nearly the whole of Valencia. 13 On occu-
pying a city, it was usual to divide it into barrios, or
districts, each of which was granted by way of fief
to some one of the ricos hombres, from which he
was to derive his revenue. What proportion of the
conquered territory was reserved for the royal de-
mesne does not appear. 14 We find one of these
nobles, Bernard de Cabrera, in the latter part of
the fourteenth century, manning a fleet of king's
ships on his own credit ; another, of the ancient
family of Luna, in the fifteenth century, so wealthy
that he could travel through an almost unbroken
line of his estates all the way from Castile to
France. 15 With all this, their incomes in general,
in this comparatively poor country, were very infe-
rior to those of the great Castilian lords. 16
The laws conceded certain powers to the aris-
tocracy of a most dangerous character. They were
entitled, like the nobles of the sister kingdom, to
defy, and publicly renounce their allegiance to their
sovereign, with the whimsical privilege, in addition,
of commending their families and estates to his pro-
12 Zurita, Anales, torn. i. fol. torn. ii. p. 198. — Blancas,Commen-
124. tarii, p. 218.
13 Blancas, Commentarii, p. 334. 10 See a register of these at ihe
14 See the partition of Saragossa beginning of the sixteenth century,
by Alonso the Warrior. Zurita, apud L. Marineo, Cosas Memora-
Anales, torn. i. fol. 43. bles, fol. 25.
15 Mariana, Hist, de Espafia,
VOL. 1. /
xc INTRODUCTION.
imiiod tection, which he was obliged to accord, until they
were again reconciled. 17 The mischievous right of
private war was repeatedly recognised by statute.
It was claimed and exercised in its full extent, and
occasionally with circumstances of peculiar atrocity.
An instance is recorded by Zurita of a bloody feud
between two of these nobles, prosecuted with such
inveteracy that the parties bound themselves by
solemn oath, never to desist from it during their
lives, and to resist every effort, even on the part of
the crown itself, to effect a pacification between
them. 18 This remnant of barbarism lingered longer
in Aragon, than in any other country in Christen-
dom.
teilcc turbu " T ne Aragonese sovereigns, who were many of
them possessed of singular capacity and vigor, 19
made repeated efforts to reduce the authority of
their nobles within more temperate limits. Peter
the Second, by a bold stretch of prerogative, strip-
ped them of their most important rights of jurisdic-
tion. 20 James the Conqueror artfully endeavoured
to counterbalance their weight by that of the com-
17 Zurita, Anales, torn. ii. fol. ulla erat eorum ulilitatis facienda
127. — Blancas, Commentarii, p. jactura."
324. — " Adhrec Ricis hominibus ls Fueros y Observaneias, torn,
ipsis majorum more institutisque i. p. 84. — Zurita, Anales, torn. i.
conccdcbatur, ut sese possen r t, dum fol. 350.
ipsi vellent, a nostrorum Regum 19 Blancas somewliere boasts,
jure et potestate, quasi nodum ali- that no one of the kings of Aragon
quem, expedire ; neque expedire has been stigmatized by a cogno-
solum, scd dimisso prius, quo poli- men of infamy, as in most of the
rentur, Honore, bellum ipsis inferre ; other royal races of Europe. Pe-
Reges vero Rici hominis sic expe- ter IV., " the Ceremonious," rich-
diti uxorem, fdios, familiam, res, ]y deserved one.
bona, et fortunas omnes in suam 20 Zurita, Anales, torn. i. fol.
recipere fidem tenebantur. Neque 102.
ARAGON. xci
mons and the ecclesiastics. 2l But they were too section
formidable when united, and too easily united, to
be successfully assailed. The Moorish wars termi-
nated, in Aragon, with the conquest of Valencia, or
rather the invasion of Murcia, by the middle of the
thirteenth century. The tumultuous spirits of the
aristocracy, therefore, instead of finding a vent, as
in Castile, in these foreign expeditions, were turned
within, and convulsed their own country with per-
petual revolution. Haughty from the consciousness
of their exclusive privileges and of the limited num-
ber who monopolized them, the Aragonese barons
regarded themselves rather as the rivals of their
sovereign, than as his inferiors. Intrenched within
the mountain fastnesses, which the rugged nature
of the country everywhere afforded, they easily bade
defiance to his authority. Their small number gave
a compactness and concert to their operations,
which could not have been obtained in a multitudi-
nous body. Ferdinand the Catholic well discrimi-
nated the relative position of the Aragonese and
Castilian nobility, by saying, " it was as difficult to
divide the one, as to unite the other." 22
These combinations became still more frequent JMviiegMoi
t Union.
after formally receiving the approbation of King
Alfonso the Third, who, in 1287, signed the two
celebrated ordinances entitled the " Privileges of
Union," by which his subjects were authorized to
81 Zurita, Annies, totn. i. fol. 198. — Sempere, Histoire des Cortes,
— He recommended this policy to p. 164.
his son-in-law, the king of Castile.
xcii INTRODUCTION.
iNTRoi). resort to arms on an infringement of their liber-
ties. 23 The hermandad of Castile had never been
countenanced by legislative sanction ; it was chiefly
resorted to as a measure of police, and was direct-
ed more frequently against the disorders of the no-
bility, than of the sovereign ; it was organized
with difficulty, and, compared with the union of
Aragon, was cumbrous and languid in its opera-
tions. While these privileges continued in force,
the nation was delivered over to the most fright-
ful anarchy. The least offensive movement, on the
part of the monarch, the slightest encroachment on
personal right or privilege, was the signal for a gen-
eral revolt. At the cry of Union, that " last voice,"
says the enthusiastic historian, " of the expiring
republic, full of authority and majesty, and an open
indication of the insolence of kings," the nobles
and the citizens eagerly rushed to arms. The
principal castles, belonging to the former were
pledged as security for their fidelity, and intrusted
to conservators, as they were styled, whose duty it
was to direct the operations and watch over the in-
terests of the Union. A common seal was pre-
pared, bearing the device of armed men kneeling
before their king, intimating at once their loyalty
and their resolution, and a similar device was dis-
played on the standard and the other military in-
signia of the confederates. 24
23 Zurita, Anales, lib. 4, cap. 24 Blancas, Commentarii, pp.
96. — Abarca dates this event in 192, 193. — Zurita, Anales, torn,
the year preceding. Reyes de Ar- i. fol. 2G6 et alibi,
agon, en Anales Historicos, (Mad-
rid, 1682-1684,) tom.ii. fol. 8.
AUAGON. xciii
The power of the monarch was as nothing be- section
fore this formidable array. The Union appointed ' — -
. . iiii« t • r Their nbro-
a council to control all his movements, and, in fact, *otion.
during the whole period of its existence, the reigns
of four successive monarchs, it may be said to have
dictated law to the land. At length Peter the
Fourth, a despot in heart, and naturally enough
impatient of this eclipse of regal prerogative,
brought the matter to an issue, by defeating the
army of the Union, at the memorable battle of
Epila, in 1348, " the last," says Zurita, " in which
it was permitted to the subject to take up arms
against the sovereign for the cause of liberty."
Then, convoking an assembly of the states at Sara-
gossa, he produced before them the instrument con-
taining the two Privileges, and cut it in pieces with
his dagger. In doing this, having wounded him-
self in the hand, he suffered the blood to trickle
upon the parchment, exclaiming, that "a law, which
had been the occasion of so much blood, should be
blotted out by the blood of a king. " 25 All copies
of it, whether in the public archives, or in the pos-
session of private individuals, were ordered, under a
heavy penalty, to be destroyed. The statute pass-
ed to that effect carefully omits the date of the de-
tested instrument, that all evidence of its existence
might perish with it. 26
25 Zurita, Anales, torn. ii. fol. ber of Deputation at Saragossa in
126-130. — Blancas, Commenta- Philip II. 's time. See Antonio
rii, pp. 195-197. — Hence he was Perez, Relaciones, fol. 95.
styled "Peter of the Dagger"; 2(3 Seethe statute, Dc Prohibita
and a statue of him, bearing in one Unione, &c. Fueros y Observan
hand this weapon, and in the other cias, torn. i. fol. 178. — A copy of
the Privilege, stood in the Cham- the original Privileges was detected
<
a
o
w
23
fa 1
a
« IP
B £ ci
^3
C ei W
»-» ^ T3
•SE-TJ
*«*,
o
coo
fa o
o » g
BrS o
*-> o
« a
. 0, .
B S**
C rt 2
«
u.
>- <
H
0bras> (Alcala?
" 15 He was the grandson, not, as 1566,) fol. 138.
Sanchez supposes (torn. i. p. 15), 17 The recent Castilian transla-
the son, of Alonso de Villena, the tors of Bouterwek's History of
first marquis as well as constable Spanish Literature have fallen into
created in Castile, descended from an error in imputing the beautiful
James II. of Aragon. (See Dor- cancionof the " Querellade Amor"
mer, Enmiendas y Advertencias to Villena. It was composed by
de Zurita, (Zaragoza, 1683,) pp. the Marquis of Santillana. (Bou-
371-376.) His mother was an terwek, Historia de la Literatura
illegitimate daughter of Henry II., Espauola, traducida por Cortina
of Castile. Guzman, Generaciones, y Hugalde y Mollinedo, (Madrid,
cap. 28. — Salazar de Mendoza, 1829,) p. 196., and Sanchez, Poesias
Monarquia de Espafia, (Madrid, Castellanas, torn. i. pp. 38, 143.)
1770,) torn. i. pp. 203, 339. The mistake into which Nicolas
BIRTH OF ISABELLA. Id
prose, and is said to have given the first example chapter
of a version of the iEneid into a modern language. 18 —
He labored assiduously to introduce a more culti-
vated taste among his countrymen, and his little
treatise on the gaya sciencia, as the divine art was
then called, in which he gives an historical and
critical view of the poetical Consistory of Barce-
lona, is the first approximation, however faint, to
an Art of Poetry in the Castilian tongue. 19 The
exclusiveness, with which he devoted himself to
science, and especially astronomy, to the utter
neglect of his temporal concerns, led the wits of
that day to remark, that " he knew much of heaven,
and nothing of earth." He paid the usual penalty
of such indifference to worldly weal, by seeing
himself eventually stripped of his lordly possessions,
and reduced, at the close of life, to extreme pov-
erty. 20 His secluded habits brought on him the
appalling imputation of necromancy. A scene took
place at his death, in 1434, which is sufficiently
characteristic of the age, and may possibly have
suggested a similar adventure to Cervantes. The
king commissioned his son's preceptor, Brother
Lope de Barrientos, afterwards bishop of Cuenca,
to examine the valuable library of the deceased ;
Antonio had also fallen in suppos- terwek, Literatura Espafiola, trad,
ing Villena's "Trabajos deHercu- de Cortina y Mollinedo, nota S.
les," written in verse, has been 19 See an abstract of it in
subsequently corrected by his learn- Mayans y Siscar, Origines de la
ed commentator Bayer. See Ni- Lengua Espafiola, (Madrid, 1737,)
colas Antonio, Bibliotheca Hispana torn. ii. pp. 321 et seq.
Vetus, (Matriti, 1788,) torn. ii. p. 20 Zurita, Analesde la Corona de
222, nota. Aragon, (Zaragoza, 1669,) torn. iii.
18 Velazquez, Origenes de la p. 227 Guzman, Generaciones,
Poesia Castellana, p. 45. — Bou- cap. 28.
16
REIGN OF JOHN II., OF CASTILE.
PART
I.
Marquis of
Sniiiilliinti.
and the worthy ecclesiastic consigned more than
a hundred volumes of it to the flames, as savouring
too strongly of the black art. The Bachelor Cib-
dareal, the confidential physician of John the
Second, in a lively letter on this occurrence to
the poet John de Mena, remarks, that " some
would fain get the reputation of saints, by making
others necromancers ; " and requests his friend
" to allow him to solicit, in his behalf, some of the
surviving volumes from the king, that in this way
the soul of Brother Lope might be saved from
further sin, and the spirit of the defunct marquis
consoled by the consciousness, that his books no
longer rested on the shelves of the man who had
converted him into a conjuror." 21 John de Mena
denounces this auto da fe of science in a similar,
but graver tone of sarcasm, in his " Laberinto."
These liberal sentiments in the Spanish writers of
the fifteenth century may put to shame the more
bigoted criticism of the seventeenth. 22
Another of the illustrious wits of this reign was
Inigo Lopez de Mendoza, marquis of Santillana,
" the glory and delight of the Castilian nobility,"
whose celebrity was such, that foreigners, it was
said, journeyed to Spain from distant parts of
21 Ccnton Epistolario, epist. 06. —
The bishop endeavoured to transfer
the blame of the conflagration to the
king. There can be little doubt,
however, that the good father in-
fused the suspicions of necromancy
into his master's bosom. " The
angels," he says in one of his
works, "who guarded Paradise,
presented a treatise on magic to one
of the posterity of Adam, from a
copy of which Villena derived his
science." (See Juan de Mena,
Obras, fol. 139, glosa.) One
would think that such an orthodox
source might have justified Villenu
in the use of it.
22 Comp. Juan de Mena, Obras,
copl. 127, 128. ; and Nic. Antonio,
Bibliotheca Vetus, torn. ii. p. 220
BIRTH OF ISABELLA. 17
Europe to sec him. Although passionately devoted chapter
to letters, he did not, like his friend the marquis
of Villena, neglect his public or domestic duties
for them. On the contrary, he discharged the
most important civil and military functions. He
made his house an academy, in which the young
cavaliers of the court might practise the martial
exercises of the age ; and he assembled around
him at the same time men eminent for genius and
science, whom he munificently recompensed, and
encouraged by his example. 23 His own taste led
him to poetry, of which he has left some elaborate
specimens. They are chiefly of a moral and pre-
ceptive character ; but, although replete with noble
sentiment, and finished in a style of literary excel-
lence far more correct than that of the preceding
age, they are too much infected with mythology
and metaphorical affectations, to suit the palate of
the present day. He possessed, however, the soul
of a poet ; and when he abandons himself to his
native redondillas, delivers his sentiments with a
sweetness and grace inimitable. To him is to be
ascribed the glory, such as it is, of having natural-
ized the Italian sonnet in Castile, which Boscan,
many years later, claimed for himself with no small
degree of self-congratulation. 24 His epistle on the
23 Pulgar, Claros Varones dc — Sanchez, Poes:as Castellanas,
Castilla, y Letras, (Madrid, 1755,) tom. i. p. 21. — Boscan, Obras,
tit. 4. — Nic. Antonio, Bibliotheca (1543,) fol.19. — 'It must be admit-
Vetus, lib. 10, cap. 9. — Quin- ted, however, that the attempt was
cua^cnas de Gonzalo de Oviedo, premature, and that it required a
MS., batalla 1, quinc. 1, dial. 8. riper stage of the language to give
2-1 Garcilasso de la Vega, Obras, a permanent character to the in-
ed. de Herrera, (1580,) pp. 75, 76. novation.
VOL. I. 3
18 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF CASTILE.
• part primitive history of Spanish verse, although eon-
'- — taming notices sufficiently curious from the age
and the source whence they proceed, has perhaps
done more service to letters by the valuable illus-
trations it has called forth from its learned editor. 25
This great man, who found so much leisure for
the cultivation of letters amidst the busy strife of
politics, closed his career at the age of sixty, in
1458. Though a conspicuous actor in the revolu-
tionary scenes of the period, he maintained a char-
acter for honor and purity of motive, unimpeached
even by his enemies. The king, notwithstanding
his devotion to the faction of his son Henry, con-
ferred on him the dignities of count of Real de
Manzanares and marquis of Santillana ; this being
the oldest creation of a marquis in Castile, with
the exception of Villena. 26 His eldest son was sub
sequently made duke of Infantado, by which tith
his descendants have continued to be distinguished
to the present day.
John de Me. f} u t the most conspicuous, for his poetical talents,
of the brilliant circle which graced the court of
John the Second, was John de Mena, a native of
fair Cordova, " the flower of science and of chival-
25 See Sanchez, Pocsias Caste- torn. i. p. 218. — Idem, Orfgen de
lianas, torn. i. pp. 1-119. — A las Dignidades Scglares de Castilla
copious catalogue of the marquis y Leon, (Madrid, 1794,) p. 285. —
de Santillana's writings is given in Oviedo makes the marquis much
the same volume, (pp. 33 et seq.) older, seventy-five years of age,
Several of his poetical pieces are when he died. lie left, besides
collected in the Cancionero Gen- daughters, six sous, who all became
eral, (Anvers, 1573,) fol. 34 et the founders of noble and powerful
seq. houses. Sec the whole genealo-
26 Pulgar, Claros Varoncs, tit. 4. gy, in Oviedo, Quincuagenas, MS.,
— Salazar de Mendoza, Monarquia, bat. 1, quinc. 1, dial. 8.
BIRTH OF ISABELLA. 19
ry," 27 as he fondly styles her. Although born in chapter
a middling condition of life, with humble prospects, —
he was early smitten with a love of letters ; and,
after passing through the usual course of discipline
at Salamanca, he repaired to Rome, where in the
study of those immortal masters, whose writings
had but recently revealed the full capacities of a
modern idiom, he imbibed principles of taste,
which gave a direction to his own genius, and, in
some degree, to that of his countrymen. On his
return to Spain, his literary merit soon attracted
general admiration, and introduced him to the pat-
ronage of the great, and above all to the friendship
of the marquis of Santillana. 28 He was admitted
into the private circle of the monarch, who, as his
gossiping physician informs us, " used to have
Mena's verses lying on his table, as constantly as
his prayer-book." The poet repaid the debt of
gratitude by administering a due quantity of honeyed
rhyme, for which the royal palate seems to have
possessed a more than ordinary relish. 29 He con-
tinued faithful to his master amidst all the fluctua-
tions of faction, and survived him less than two
years. He died in 1456 ; and his friend, the mar-
quis of Santillana, raised a sumptuous monument
over his remains, in commemoration of his virtues
and of their mutual affection.
John de Mena is affirmed by some of the na- "« >"«'»-
tional critics to have given a new aspect to Castilian
27 " Flor de saber y cabelleria." " Cibdareal, Centon Epistolario,
El Laberinto, copla 114. opist. 47, 49.
2S Nic. Antonio, Bibliotheca Vc-
tus, torn. ii. pp. 205 et seq.
20 REIGN OF JOHN II. . OF CASTILE.
part poetry. 30 His great work was his " Laberinto," the
. outlines of whose plan may faintly remind us of
that portion of the " Divina Commedia," where
Dante resigns himself to the guidance of Beatrice.
In like manner the Spanish poet, under the escort
of a beautiful personification of Providence, wit-
nesses the apparition of the most eminent indi-
viduals, whether of history or fable ; and, as they
revolve on the wheel of destiny, they give occasion
to some animated portraiture, and much dull, pe-
dantic disquisition. In these delineations we now
and then meet with a touch of his pencil, which,
from its simplicity and vigor, may be called truly
Dantesque. Indeed the Castilian Muse never be-
fore ventured on so bold a flight ; and, notwith-
standing the deformity of the general plan, the
obsolete barbarisms of the phraseology, its quaint-
ness and pedantry, notwithstanding the cantering
dactylic measure in which it is composed, and which
to the ear of a foreigner can scarcely be made
tolerable, the work abounds in conceptions, nay in
whole episodes, of such mingled energy and beauty,
as indicate genius of the highest order. In some
of his smaller pieces his style assumes a graceful
flexibility, too generally denied to his more strained
and elaborate efforts. 31
cionero cnn * ^ w *^ not ^e necessar y to bring under review
the minor luminaries of this period. Alfonso de
Baena, a converted Jew, secretary of John the
30 See Velazquez, Poesia Cas- porated in the Cancionero General,
tellana, p. 49. fol. 41 et seq.
31 A collection of them is incor-
BIRTH OF ISABELLA. 21
Second, compiled the fugitive pieces of more than chapter
fifty of these ancient troubadours into a cancionero, !
" for the disport and divertisement of his highness
the king, when he should find himself too sorely
oppressed with cares of state," a case we may
imagine of no rare occurrence. The original man-
uscript of Baena, transcribed in beautiful charac-
ters of the fifteenth century, lies, or did lie until
very lately, unheeded in the cemetery of the Es-
curial, with the dust of many a better worthy. 32
The extracts selected from it by Castro, although
occasionally exhibiting some fluent graces with con-
siderable variety of versification, convey, on the
whole, no very high idea of taste or poetic talent. 33
Indeed this epoch, as before remarked, was not
so much distinguished by uncommon displays of
genius, as by its general intellectual movement,
and the enthusiasm kindled for liberal studies.
Thus we find the corporation of Seville granting a
hundred doblas of gold as the guerdon of a poet,
who had celebrated in some score of verses the
glories of their native city ; and appropriating the
32 Castro, Biblioteca Espafiola, ot scq. — The veneration enter-
(Madrid, 1781,) torn. i. pp. 266, taincd for the poetic art in that
267. — This interesting - document, day may be conceived from Baena's
the most primitive of all the Span- whimsical prologue. " Poetry,"
ish cancionemx, notwithstanding its he says, " or the gay science, is a
local position in the library is very subtile and delightsome corn-
specified by Castro with great pre- position. It demands in him, who
cision, eluded the search of the would hope to excel in it, a curi-
industrious translators of Bouter- ous invention, a sane judgment, a
wek, who think it may have dis- various scholarship, familiarity with
appeared during the French inva- courts and public affairs, high birth
sion. Literatura Espailola, trad, and breeding, a temperate, cour-
de Cortina y Mollinedo, p. 205, teous, and liberal disposition, and,
nota Hh. in fine, honey, sugar, salt, freedom,
33 See these collected in Castro, and hilarity in his discourse." p.
Biblioteca Espafiola, torn. ii. p. 265 268.
22 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF CASTILE.
l'Aiti same sum as an annual premium for a similar per-
. formance. 34 It is not often that the productions of
a poet laureate have been more liberally recom-
pensed even by royal bounty. But the gifted
spirits of that day mistook the road to immortality.
Disdaining the untutored simplicity of their prede-
cessors, they sought to rise above them by an
ostentation of learning, as well as by a more
classical idiom. In the latter particular they suc-
ceeded. They much improved the external forms
of poetry, and their compositions exhibit a high
degree of literary finish, compared with all that
preceded them. But their happiest sentiments are
frequently involved in such a cloud of metaphor,
as to become nearly unintelligible ; while they in-
voke the pagan deities with a shameless prodigality,
that would scandalize even a French lyric. This
cheap display of school-boy erudition, however it
may have appalled their own age, has been a prin-
cipal cause of their comparative oblivion with
posterity. How far superior is one touch of nature,
as the " Finojosa " or " Querella de Amor," for
example, of the marquis of Santillana, to all this
farrago of metaphor and mythology !
nwralure The impulse, given to Castilian poetry, ex-
i'J. er tended to other departments of elegant literature.
Epistolary and historical composition were culti-
vated with considerable success. The latter, es-
pecially, might admit of advantageous comparison
with that of any other country in Europe at the
34 Castro, Biblioteca Espaiiola, torn. i. p. 273.
BIRTH OF ISABELLA. 23
same period ; 35 and it is remarkable, that, after such chapter
early promise, the modern Spaniards have not been ~_
more successful in perfecting a classical prose style.
Enough has been said to give an idea of the state
of mental improvement in Castile under John the
Second. The Muses, who had found a shelter in
his court from the anarchy which reigned abroad,
soon fled from its polluted precincts under the
reign of his successor Henry the Fourth, whose
sordid appetites were incapable of being elevated
above the objects of the senses. If we have dwelt
somewhat long on a more pleasing picture, it is
because our road is now to lead us across a dreary
waste exhibiting scarcely a vestige of civilization.
While a small portion of the higher orders of Denmeor
the nation was thus endeavouring to forget the Luna,
public calamities in the tranquillizing pursuit of
letters, and a much larger portion in the indulgence
of pleasure, 35 the popular aversion for the minister
35 Perhaps the most conspicuous of his great repository, has assem-
of these historical compositions for hied the biographical and biblio-
mere literary execution is the graphical notices of the various
Chronicle of Alvaro de Luna, to Spanish authors of the fifteenth
which I have had occasion to re- century, whose labors diffused a
for, edited in 1781, by Floras, the glimmering of light over their own
diligent secretary of the Royal age, which has become faint in
Academy of History. He justly the superior illumination of the
commends it for the purity and succeeding.
harmony of its diction. The loy- 3G Sempere in his Historia del
alty of the chronicler seduces him Luxo, (torn. i. p. 177,) has pub-
sometimes into a swell of panegyr- lished an extract from an unprinted
ic, which may be thought to savour manuscript of the celebrated mar-
too strongly of the current defect quis of Villena, entitled Triunfo
of Castilian prose; but it more de las Donas, in which, adverting
frequently imparts to his narrative to the petits-moitrcs of his time, he
a generous glow of sentiment, recapitulates the fashionable arts
raising it. far above the lifeless de- employed by them for the embel-
tails of ordinary history, and occa- lishment of the person, with a
sionally even to positive eloquence, degree of minuteness, which might
Nic. Antonio, in the tenth book edify a modern dandy.
24 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF CASTILE.
part Luna had been gradually infusing itself into the
— royal bosom. His too obvious assumption of su-
periority, even over the monarch who had raised
him from the dust, was probably the real though
secret cause of this disgust. But the habitual
ascendency of the favorite over his master, pre-
vented the latter from disclosing this feeling until
it was heightened by an occurrence, which sets
in a strong light the imbecility of the one and the
presumption of the other. John, on the death
of his wife, Maria of Aragon, had formed the
design of connecting himself with a daughter of
the king of France. But the constable, in the
mean time, without even the privity of his master,
entered into negotiations for his marriage with the
nrincess Isabella, granddaughter of John the First
of Portugal ; and the monarch, with an unprece-
dented degree of complaisance, acquiesced in an
arrangement professedly repugnant to his own in-
clinations. 37 By one of those dispensations of
Providence, however, which often confound the
plans of the wisest, as of the weakest, the column,
which the minister had so artfully raised for his
support, served only to crush him.
The new queen, disgusted with his haughty
bearing, and probably not much gratified with the
subordinate situation to which he had reduced her
ins fun. husband, entered heartily into the feelings of the
latter, and indeed contrived to extinguish whatever
37 Cronica de Juan II., p. 499. gfiiesa, (1G79,) torn. ii. pp. 335,
— Faria y Sousa, Europa Portu- 372.
BIRTH OF ISABELLA. 25
spark of latent affection for his ancient favorite chapter
lurked within his breast. John, jet fearing the —
overgrown power of the constable too much to
encounter him openly, condescended to adopt the
dastardly policy of Tiberius on a similar occasion,
by caressing the man whom he designed to ruin ;
and he eventually obtained possession of his person,
only by a violation of the royal safe-conduct. The
constable's trial was referred to a commission of
jurists and privy counsellors, who, after a summary
and informal investigation, pronounced on him the
sentence of death on a specification of charges
either general and indeterminate, or of the most
trivial import. " If the king," says Garibay, " had
dispensed similar justice to all his nobles, who
equally deserved it in those turbulent times, he
would have had but few to reign over." 38
The constable had supported his disgrace, from ins.ieath.
the first, with an equanimity not to have been
expected from his elation in prosperity ; and he
now received the tidings of his fate with a similar
fortitude. As he rode along the streets to the
place of execution, clad in the sable livery of an
ordinary criminal, and deserted by those who had
been reared by his bounty, the populace, who
before called so loudly for his disgrace, struck with
this astonishing reverse of his brilliant fortunes,
were melted into tears. 39 They called to mind the
33 Cronica de Alvaro de Luna, las Chronicas de Espafia, (Barce-
tit. 128.— Cronica de Juan II., pp. lona, 1628,) torn. ii. p. 493.
457,460,572. — Abarca, Reyes de 39 Cronica de Alvaro de Luna,
Arajjon, torn. ii. fol. 227,228.— tit. 128. — What a contrast to all
Garibay, Compendio Historial de this is afforded by the vivid por-
VOL. I. 4
26 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF CASTILE.
part numerous instances of his magnanimity. They
- — reflected, that the ambitious schemes of his rivals
had been not a whit less selfish, though less suc-
cessful, than his own ; and that, if his cupidity
appeared insatiable, he had dispensed the fruits of
it in acts of princely munificence. He himself
maintained a serene and even cheerful aspect.
Meeting one of the domestics of Prince Henry, he
bade him request the prince "to reward the attach-
ment of his servants with a different guerdon from
what his master had assigned to him." As he
ascended the scaffold, he surveyed the apparatus
of death with composure, and calmly submitted
himself to the stroke of the executioner, who, in
the savage style of the executions of that day,
plunged his knife into the throat of his victim, and
deliberately severed his head from his body. A
basin, for the reception of alms to defray the
expenses of his interment, was placed at one ex-
tremity of the scaffold ; and his mutilated remains,
after having been exposed for several days to the
gaze of the populace, were removed, by the breth-
ren of a charitable order, to a place called the
1453. hermitage of St. Andrew, appropriated as the ceme-
tery for malefactors. 40
Such was the tragical end of Alvaro de Luna ;
a man, who, for more than thirty years, controlled
trait, sketched by John de Mena, 40 Cibdareal, Centon Epistola-
of the constable in the noontide of rio, cp. 103. — Cronica de Juan
his glory. 11., p. 564. — Cronica de Alvaro
"Estecaualgasobre la Comma do Luna, tit. 128, and Apend. p.
y doma su ctiello con aspcrns riendas 4<"Q
y annque del tengft tan mnchns de prendas * J ~.
ella non le oks tocar de ningiiiia," 4c.
Lahcrinto, coplaa 235 et seq.
BIRTH OF ISABELLA. 27
the counsels of the sovereign, or, to speak more chapter
properly, was himself the sovereign of Castile. '. — .
His fate furnishes one of the most memorable
lessons in history. It was not lost on his contem-
poraries ; and the marquis of Santillana has made
use of it to point the moral of perhaps the most
pleasing of his didactic compositions. 41 John did Jjjjg^ 1
not long survive his favorite's death, which he was
seen afterwards to lament even with tears. Indeed
during the whole of the trial he had exhibited the
most pitiable agitation, having twice issued and
recalled his orders countermanding the constable's
execution ; and, had it not been for the superior
constancy, or vindictive temper of the queen, he
would probably have yielded to these impulses of
returning affection. 42
So far from deriving a wholesome warning from
experience, John confided the entire direction of
his kingdom to individuals not less interested, but
possessed of far less enlarged capacities, than the
former minister. Penetrated with remorse at the
retrospect of his unprofitable life, and filled with
41 Entitled " Doctrinal de Priva- I give Longfellow's version, as
dos." See the Cancioncro Gene- spirited as it is literal,
ral, fol. 37 et seq. — In the follow- « Spain's haughty Constable,— the great
ing stanza, the constable is made to And gallant Master, — cruel fate
moralize with good effect on the B ^H "" ^e'r of his pride,
instability of worldly grandeur. He on the gloomy scaffold died,
Ignoble fall !
" Que se hi7.o la moneda _ rh(i countless treasures ofliis care,
que guarde para mis danos Hamlets and villas green and fair,
taut os tiempos tantos aims )|j s mighty power,
plata joy as oro y seda What were they all but grief and shame,
y de lodo no me queda Tears and a broken heart', — when came
smo este cadahalso ; The parting hour ! "
mundo mulo mimtlo falso Stanza 21.
no ay quien contigo pueda " An ,-,■, , 1 /-. -n ■ . .
43 Cibdarcal, Ccnton Epistola-
Manrique has the same senti- rio, cp. 103. — Cronica de Alvaro
ments in his exquisite "Coplas." de Luna, tit. 128.
28
REIGN OF JOHN II., OF CASTILE.
PART
Death of
John II.
Birth of Isa-
bella.
melancholy presages of the future, the unhappy
prince lamented to his faithful attendant Cibdareal.
on his deathbed, that " he had not been born the
son of a mechanic, instead of king of Castile." He
died July 21st, 1454, after a reign of eight and forty
years, if reign it may be called, which was more
properly one protracted minority. John left one
child by his first wife, Henry, who succeeded him
on the throne ; and by his second wife two others,
Alfonso, then an infant, and Isabella, afterwards
queen of Castile, the subject of the present narra-
tive. She had scarcely reached her fourth year at
the time of her father's decease, having been born
on the 22d of April, 1451, at Madrigal. The king
recommended his younger children to the especial
care and protection of their brother Henry, and
assigned the town of Cuellar, with its territory and
a considerable sum of money, for the maintenance
of the Infanta Isabella." 43
43 Cronica de Juan II., p. 576.
— Cibdareal, Centon Epistolario,
epist. 105.
There has been considerable dis-
crepancy, even among cotempora-
ry writers, both as to the place
and the epoch of Isabella's birth,
amounting, as regards the latter,
to nearly two years. I have adopt-
ed the conclusion of Scfior Clemen-
cin, formed from a careful collation
of the various authorities, in the
sixth volume of the Memorias de la
Real Academia de Historia, (Ma-
drid, 1821,) Ilust. 1, pp. 56-60.
Isabella was descended both on the
father's and mother's side from the
famous John of Gaunt, duke of
Lancaster. See Florez, Memorias
de las Reynas Catholicas, (2d ed.
Madrid, 1770,) torn. ii. pp. 743,
787.
CHAPTER II.
CONDITION OF ARAGON DURING THE MINORITY OF FERDI-
NAND.— REIGN OF JOHN II., OF ARAGON.
1452—1472.
John of Aragon. — Difficulties with his Son Carlos. — Birth of Fer-
dinand. — Insurrection of Catalonia. — Death of Carlos. — His
Character. — Tragical Story of Blanche. — Young Ferdinand be-
sieged by the Catalans. — Treaty between France and Aragon. —
Distress and Embarrassments of John. — Siege and Surrender of
Barcelona.
We must now transport the reader to Aragon, in chapter
order to take a view of the extraordinary circum- —
stances, which opened the way for Ferdinand's
succession in that kingdom. The throne, which
had become vacant by the death of Martin, in
1410, was awarded by the committee of judges to
whom the nation had referred the great question of
the succession, to Ferdinand, regent of Castile dur-
ing the minority of his nephew, John the Second ;
and thus the sceptre, after having for more than
two centuries descended in the family of Barcelo-
na, was transferred to the same bastard branch of
Trastamara, that ruled over the Castilian monar-
chy. 1 Ferdinand the First was succeeded after a
1 The reader who may be curi- pedigree exhibiting the titles of
ous in this matter will find the the several competitors to the
gon
30 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF ARAGON.
part brief reign by his son Alfonso the Fifth, whose
'- — personal history belongs less to Aragon than to Na-
ples, which kingdom he acquired by his own prow-
ess, and where he established his residence, attract-
ed, no doubt, by the superior amenity of the climate
and the higher intellectual culture, as well as the
pliant temper of the people, far more grateful to
the monarch than the sturdy independence of his
own countrymen.
johnuf a™- During his long absence, the government of his
hereditary domains devolved on his brother John,
as his lieutenant-general in Aragon. 2 This prince
had married Blanche, widow of Martin, king of
Sicily, and daughter of Charles the Third, of Na-
varre. By her he had three children ; Carlos,
prince of Viana ; 3 Blanche, married to and after-
wards repudiated by Henry the Fourth, of Castile ; 4
and Eleanor, who espoused a French noble, Gas-
ton, count of Foix. On the demise of the elder
Blanche, the crown of Navarre rightfully belonged
to her son, the prince of Viana, conformably to a
1*442. stipulation in her marriage contract, that, on the
crown given by Mr. Ilallam. II., of Castile. The genealogical
(State of Europe during the Mid- table, at the beginning of this His-
dle Ages, (2d cd. London, 1819,) tory, will show their relationship
vol. ii. p. GO, note.) The claims to each other,
of Ferdinand were certainly not 3 His grandfather, Charles III.,
derived from the usual laws of de- created this title in favor of Carlos,
scent. appropriating it as the designation
2 The reader of Spanish history henceforth of the heir apparent. —
often experiences embarrassment Aleson, Anales del Reyno de Na-
from the identity of names in the varra, contin. deMoret, (Pamplona,
various princes of the Peninsula. 170G,) torn. iv. p. 398. — Salazar
Thus the John, mentioned in the de Mendoza, Monarquia, torn. ii. p.
text, afterwards John II., might 331.
be easily confounded with his 4 See Part I. Chap. 3, Note 5,
namesake and contemporary, John of this History.
Title of his
Ron Carlos to
N av aire
MINORITY OF FERDINAND. 31
event of her death, the eldest heir male, and, in chapter
default of sons, female, should inherit the kingdom ■ —
to the exelusion of her husband. 5 This provision,
which had been confirmed by her father, Charles
the Third, in his testament, was also recognised in
her own, accompanied however with a request,
that her son Carlos, then twenty-one years of age,
would, before assuming the sovereignty, solicit
" the good will and approbation of his father." 6
Whether this approbation was withheld, or wheth-
er it was ever solicited, does not appear. It seems
probable, however, that Carlos, perceiving no dis-
position in his father to relinquish the rank and
nominal title of king of Navarre, was willing he
should retain them, so long as he himself should be
allowed to exercise the actual rights of sovereign-
ty ; which indeed he did, as lieutenant-general or
governor of the kingdom, at the time of his moth-
er's decease, and for some years after. 7
In 1447, John of Aragon contracted a second
alliance with Joan Henriquez, of the blood royal
of Castile, and daughter of Don Frederic Henri-
quez, admiral of that kingdom ; 8 a woman consid-
erably younger than himself, of consummate ad-
dress, intrepid spirit, and unprincipled ambition.
5 This fact, vaguely and various- pp. 365, 36G.) This industrious
iy reported by Spanish writers, is writer has established the title of
fully established by Aleson, who Prince Carlos to Navarre, so fre-
cites the original instrument, con- quently misunderstood or misrep-
tained in the archives of the resented by the national historians,
counts of Levin. Analcs de Navar- on an incontestable basis.
ra, torn. iv. pp. 354, 305. 7 Ibid., torn. iv. p. 4f>7.
6 See the reference to the origi- 8 See l'ait I. Chap. 3, of this
nal document in Aleson. (Tom. iv. work.
32 REIGN OF JOHN II. OF ARAGON.
part Some years after this union, John sent his wife
- — - — into Navarre, with authority to divide with his son
Carlos the administration of the government there.
This encroachment on his rights, for such Carlos
reasonably deemed it, was not mitigated by the de-
portment of the young queen, who displayed all
the insolence of sudden elevation, and who from
the first seems to have regarded the prince with
the malevolent eye of a step-mother.
He takes Navarre was at that time divided by two potent
arms against J *■
kis father, factions, styled, from their ancient leaders, Beau-
monts and Agramonts ; whose hostility, originating
in a personal feud, had continued long after its
original cause had become extinct. 9 The prince of
Viana was intimately connected with some of the
principal partisans of the Beaumont faction, who
heightened by their suggestions the indignation to
which his naturally gentle temper had been roused
by the usurpation of Joan, and who even called on
him to assume openly, and in defiance of his father,
the sovereignty which of right belonged to him. The
emissaries of Castile, too, eagerly seized this occa-
sion of retaliating on John his interference in the
domestic concerns of that monarchy, by fanning
the spark of discord into a flame. The Agra-
monts, on the other hand, induced rather by hos-
tility to their political adversaries than to the prince
of Viana, vehemently espoused the cause of the
9 Gaillard errs in referring- the quotes a proclamation of John in
origin of these factions to this relation to them in the lifetime of
epoch. (Histoire rle la Rivalite de Queen Blanche. Annale3 do Na-
France ct de l'FiSpajrne, (Paris, varra, torn. iv. p. 494.
1801,) torn. iii. p. 227.) Aleson
MINORITY OF FERDINAND. 33
queen. In this revival of half-buried animosities, chapter
fresh causes of disgust were multiplied, and mat- . '. —
ters soon came to the worst extremity. The
queen, who had retired to Estella, was besieged
there by the forces of the prince. The king, her
husband, on receiving intelligence of this, instantly
marched to her relief; and the father and son con-
fronted each other at the head of their respective
armies near the town of Aybar. 10
The unnatural position, in which they thus found isdefeated.
themselves, seems to have sobered their minds, and
to have opened the way to an accommodation, the
terms of which were actually arranged, when the
long-smothered rancor of the ancient factions of
Navarre thus brought in martial array against each
other, refusing all control, precipitated them into
an engagement. The royal forces were inferior in
number, but superior in discipline, to those of the
prince, who, after a well-contested action, saw his 1452.
own party entirely discomfited, and himself a pris-
oner. 11
Some months before this event, Queen Joan had Birth or Fer-
t i 1- dinand.
been delivered of a son, afterwards so famous as
Ferdinand the Catholic ; whose humble prospects,
at the time of his birth, as a younger brother, af-
forded a striking contrast with the splendid destiny
10 Zurita, Anales, torn. iii. fol. u Abarca, Reyes de Aragon,
278. — Lucio Marineo Siculo, Co- torn. ii. fol. 223. — Aleson, Ana-
ronista de sus Magestades, Las Co- les de Navarra, torn. iv. pp. 501
sas Mcmorables de Espaila, (Alca- -503. — L. Marineo, Cosas Mem-
Ik de Henares, 1539,) fol. 104.— orables, fol. 105.
Aleson, Anales de Navarra, torn,
iv. pp. 494-498.
VOL. I. 5
34 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF ARAGOiV.
part which eventually awaited him. This auspicious
'. — event occurred in the little town of Sos, in Aragon,
on the 10th of March, 1452 ; and, as it was nearly
eontemporary with the capture of Constantinople,
is regarded by Garibay to have been providentially
assigned to this period, as affording, in a religious
view, an ample counterpoise to the loss of the cap-
ital of Christendom. 12
The demonstrations of satisfaction, exhibited by
John and his court on this occasion, contrasted
strangely with the stern severity with which he
continued to visit the offences of his elder offspring.
It was not till after many months of captivity that
the king, in deference to public opinion rather than
the movements of his own heart, was induced to
release his son, on conditions, however, so illiberal
(his indisputable claim to Navarre not being even
touched upon) as to afford no reasonable basis of
reconciliation. The young prince accordingly, on
his return to Navarre, became again involved in the
12 Compendio, torn. iii. p. 419. — ascertains with curious precision
L. Marineo describes the heavens even the date of his conception,
as uncommonly serene at the mo- fixes his birth in 1450. (fol. 153. )
ment of Ferdinand's birth. " The But Alonso do Palencia in his Ilis-
sun, which had been obscured tory, ( Verdadera Coronica de Don
with clouds during the whole day, Enrique IV., Rei de Castilla y Lc-
suddcnly broke forth with unwont- on, y del Rei Don Alonso su Henna-
cd splendor. A crown was also no, MS.) and Andres Bernaldez,
beheld in the sky, composed of va- Cura de Los Palacios, (Historia de
rious brilliant colors like those of los Reyes Cat61icos, MS., c. 8,)
a rainbow. All which appearances both of them contemporaries, refer
were interpreted by the spectators this event to the period assigned
as an omen, that the child then in the text ; and, as the same
born would be the most illustrious epoch is adopted by the accurate
among men." (Cosas Memora- Zurita, (Anales, torn. iv. fol.
bles, fol. 153.) Garibay postpones 9,) I have given it the prcf-
the nativity of Ferdinand to the erence.
year 1453, and L. Marineo, who
MINORITY OF FERDINAND., 35
factions which desolated that unhappy kingdom, chapter
and, after an ineffectual struggle against his ene- L_
mies, resolved to seek an asylum at the court of his
uncle Alfonso the Fifth, of Naples, and to refer to
him the final arbitration of his differences with his
lather. 13
On his passage through France and the various cariosre-
* ° ° tires to Na-
courts of Italy, he was received with the attentions ples -
due to his rank, and still more to his personal char-
acter and misfortunes. Nor was he disappointed
in the sympathy and favorable reception, which he
had anticipated from his uncle. Assured of protec-
tion from so high a quarter, Carlos might now rea-
sonably Hatter himself with the restitution of his
legitimate rights, when these bright prospects were
suddenly overcast by the death of Alfonso, who
expired at Naples of a fever in the month of May,
1453, bequeathing his hereditary dominions of 1458.
Spain, Sicily, and Sardinia to his brother John, and
his kingdom of Naples to his illegitimate son Fer-
dinand. 11
The frank and courteous manners of Carlos had
won so powerfully on the affections of the Neapoli-
tans, who distrusted the dark, ambiguous character
of Ferdinand, Alfonso's heir, that a large party
eagerly pressed the prince to assert his title to the
vacant throne, assuring him of a general support
13 Zurita, Anales torn. iv. fol. lib. 26, c. 7. — Ferreras, Histoire
3-48. — Aleson, Anales dc Na- Gene>ale d'Espagne, trad, par
varra, torn. iv. pp. 508-526. — ■ D'Hermilly, (Paris, 1751,) torn.
L. Marineo, Cosas Memorables, vii. p. 60. — L'Histoire du Roy-
fol. 105. aumc de Navarre, par 1'un des
14 Giannonc, Istoria Civile del Secretaires Interprcttes de sa Ma-
ftegno di Napoli, (Milano, 1823,) jeste, (Paris, 1596.) p. 468.
36 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF ARAGON.
part from the people. But Carlos, from motives of pru-
■ . dence or magnanimity, declined engaging in this
"•Jslcuy. liew contest, 15 and passed over to Sicily, whence
he resolved to solicit a final reconciliation with his
father. lie was received with much kindness by
the Sicilians, who, preserving a grateful recollection
of the beneficent sway of his mother Blanche,
when queen of that island, readily transferred to
the son their ancient attachment to the parent. An
assembly of the states voted a liberal supply for
his present exigencies, and even urged him, if we
are to credit the Catalan ambassador at the court
of Castile, to assume the sovereignty of the isl-
and. 16 Carlos, however, far from entertaining so
rash an ambition, seems to have been willing to se-
clude himself from public observation. He passed
the greater portion of his time at a convent of
Benedictine friars not far from Messina, where, in
the society of learned men, and with the facilities
of an extensive library, he endeavoured to recall
the happier hours of youth in the pursuit of his
favorite studies of philosophy and history. 17
15 Compare the narrative of the 97. — Nic. Antonio, Bibliotlieca
Neapolitan historians, Summonte, Vetus, torn. ii. p. 282. — L. Mari-
(Historia della Citta e Regno di neo, Cosas Memorables, fol. 10G. —
Napoli, (Napoli, 1675,) lib. 5, c. Abarca, Reyes dc Aragon, torn. ii.
2.) and Giannone, (Istoria Civile, fol. 250. — Carlos bargained with
lib. 26, c. 7. — lib. 27. Introd.) Pope Pius II. for a transfer of this
with the opposite statements of L. library, particularly rich in the an-
Marineo, Cosas Memorables, (fol. cient classics, to Spain, which was
106,) himself a contemporary, eventually defeated by his death.
Aleson, (Anales de Navarra, torn. Zurita, who visited the monastery
iv. p. 546j) and other Spanish containing it nearly a century after
writers. this period, found its inmates pos-
16 Enriquez del Castillo, Croni- sessed of many traditionary anec-
ca de Enrique el Quarto, (Madrid, dotes respecting the prince during
1787,) cap. 43. his seclusion among them.
17 Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. fol.
suc-
ceeds to th<;
of
MINORITY OK FERDINAND. 37
In the mean while, John, now king of Aragon chapter
and its dependencies, alarmed by the reports of his '
son's popularity in Sicily, beeame as solicitous for John n.
ceeds to
the security of his authority there, as he had before c / own °
J J Aragon.
been for it in Navarre. He accordingly sought to
soothe the mind of the prince by the fairest profes-
sions, and to allure him back to Spain by the pros-
pect of an effectual reconciliation. Carlos, believing
what he most earnestly wished, in opposition to
the advice of his Sicilian counsellors, embarked for
Majorca, and, after some preliminary negotiations,
crossed over to the coast of Barcelona. Postpon-
ing, for fear of giving offence to his father, his en-
trance into that city, which, indignant at his perse-
cution, had made the most brilliant preparations for
his reception, he proceeded to Igualada, where an
interview took place between him and the king
and queen, in which he conducted himself with
unfeigned humility and penitence, reciprocated
on their part by the most consummate dissimu-
lation. 18
All parties now confided in the stability of a cariosrec-
. , . , •. . onciled with
pacification so anxiously desired, and effected with his folher -
such apparent cordiality. It was expected, that
John would hasten to acknowledge his son's title
as heir apparent to the crown of Aragon, and con-
vene an assembly of the states to tender him the
customary oath of allegiance. But nothing was
further from the monarch's intention. He indeed
18 Aleson, Anales de Navarra, — Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. fol. 60
torn. iv. pp. 548-554. — Abarca, -69.
Reyes de Aragon, torn. ii. fol. 251
8 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF ARAGON.
run summoned the Aragonese cortes at Fraga for the
r.
purpose of receiving their homage to himself; but
he expressly refused their request touching a simi-
lar ceremony to the prince of Viana ; and he openly
rebuked the Catalans for presuming to address him
as the successor to the crown. 19
In this unnatural procedure it was easy to discern
the inlluence of the queen. In addition to her
original causes of aversion to Carlos, she regarded
him with hatred as the insuperable obstacle to her
own child Ferdinand's advancement. Even the
affection of John seemed to be now wholly trans-
ferred from the offspring of his first to that of his
second marriage ; and, as the queen's influence
over him was unbounded, she found it easy by
artful suggestions to put a dark construction on
every action of Carlos, and to close up every av-
enue of returning affection within his bosom.
Convinced at length of the hopeless alienation
of his father, the prince of Viana turned his atten
tion to other quarters, whence he might obtain sup
port, and eagerly entered into a negotiation, which
had been opened with him on the part of Henry
the Fourth, of Castile, for a union with his sister
the princess Isabella. This was coming in direct
collision with the favorite scheme of his parents.
The marriage of Isabella with the young Ferdi-
nand, which indeed, from the parity of their ages,
was a much more suitable connexion than that with
!9 Abarca, Reyes de Aragon, iv. fol. 70-75. — Aleson, Anales
ubi supra. — Zurita, Anales, torn, de Navarra, torn. iv. p. 556.
MINORITY OF FERDINAND. 39
Carlos, had long been the darling object of their chapter
policy, and they resolved to effect it in the face of
every obstacle. In conformity with this purpose,
John invited the prince of Viana to attend him at
Lerida, where he was then holding the cortes of
Catalonia. The latter fondly, and indeed foolishly,
after his manifold experience to the contrary, con-
fiding in the relenting disposition of his father,
hastened to obey the summons, in expectation of
being publicly acknowledged as his heir in the as-
sembly of the states. After a brief interview he
was arrested, and his person placed in strict con- is imp*
- 1 oned.
finement. 80
The intelligence of this perfidious procedure
diffused general consternation among all classes.
They understood too well the artifices of the queen
and the vindictive temper of the king, not to feel
the most serious apprehensions, not only for the
liberty, but for the life of their prisoner. The
cortes of Lerida, which, though dissolved on that
very day, had not yet separated, sent an embassy
to John, requesting to know the nature of the crimes
imputed to his son. The permanent deputation of
Aragon, and a delegation from the council of Bar-
celona, waited on him for a similar purpose, remon-
strating at the same time against any violent and
unconstitutional proceeding. To all these John
returned a cold, evasive answer, darkly intimating
a suspicion of conspiracy by his son against his
20 L. Marineo, Cosas Memora- de Navarra, lorn. iv. pp. 556, 557.
t>les, fol. 108. — Zurita, Anales, — Castillo, Cronica, cap. 27.
Mb. 17, cap. 3. — Aleson, Anales
40 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF ARAGON.
[art life, and reserving to himself the punishment of the
— ! offence. 21
insurrection No sooner was the result of their mission com-
"I the Cala-
municated, than the whole kingdom was thrown
into a ferment. The high-spirited Catalans rose
in arms, almost to a man. The royal governor,
after a fruitless attempt to escape, was seized and
imprisoned in Barcelona. Troops were levied, and
placed under the command of experienced officers
of the highest rank. The heated populace, out-
stripping the tardy movement of military opera-
tions, marched forward to Lerida in order to get
possession of the royal person. The king, who
had seasonable notice of this, displayed his wonted
presence of mind. He ordered supper to be pre-
pared for him at the usual hour, but, on the
approach of night, made his escape on horseback
with one or two attendants only, on the road to
Fraga, a town within the territory of Aragon ;
while the mob, traversing the streets of Lerida,
and finding little resistance at the gate, burst into
the palace and ransacked every corner of it, pier-
cing, in their fury, even the curtains and beds with
their swords and lances. 22
The Catalan army, ascertaining the route of the
royal fugitive, marched directly on Fraga, and arriv-
ed so promptly, that John, with his wife, and the
21 L. Marineo, Cosas Memora- 22 Aleson, Anales de Navarra,
bles, fol. 108, 109. — Abarca, torn. ii. p. 358. — Zurita, Anales,
Reyes de Aragon, torn. ii. fol. 252. lib. 17, cap. 6. — Abarca, Reyes de
— Zurita, Anales, lib. 17, cap. 45. Aragon, torn. ii. fol. 253. — L.
— Aleson, Anales de Navarra, Marineo, Cosas Memorables, fol.
torn. ii. p. 357. 111.
MINORITY OF FERDINAND. .%]
deputies of the Aragoncse cortes assembled there, ciupteb
had barely time to make their escape on the road "'
to Saragossa, while the insurgents poured into the
city from the opposite quarter. The person of
Carlos, in the mean time, was secured in the inac-
cessible fortress of Morella, situated in a mountain-
ous district on the confines of Valencia. John, on
halting at Saragossa, endeavoured to assemble an
Aragonese force capable of resisting the Catalan
rebels. But the flame of insurrection had spread
throughout Aragon, Valencia, and Navarre, and was
speedily communicated to his transmarine posses-
sions of Sardinia and Sicily. The king of Castile
supported Carlos at the same time by an irruption
into Navarre, and his partisans, the Beaumonts, co-
operated with these movements by a descent on
Aragon. 23
John, alarmed at the tempest which his precipi- cariw re-
1 leased.
tate conduct had roused, at length saw the neces-
sity of releasing his prisoner ; and, as the queen
had incurred general odium as the chief instigator
of his persecution, he affected to do this in conse-
quence of her interposition. As Carlos with his
mother-in-law traversed the country on their way
to Barcelona, he was everywhere greeted, by the
inhabitants of the villages thronging out to meet
him, with the most touching enthusiasm. The
queen, however, having been informed by the
magistrates that her presence would not be permit-
ted in the capital, deemed it prudent to remain at
23 Zurita, Anales, lib. 17, cap. 6. — L. Marineo, Cosas Memorable?,
fol. 111.
VOL. I. 6
42 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF ARAGON.
part Villa Franca, about twenty miles distant ; while
' — the prince, entering Barcelona, was welcomed with
the triumphant acclamations due to a conqueror
returning from a campaign of victories. 24
The conditions, on which the Catalans proposed
to resume their allegiance to their sovereign, were
sufficiently humiliating. They insisted not only on
his public acknowledgment of Carlos as his rightful
heir and successor, with the office, conferred on
him for life, of lieutenant-general of Catalonia, but
on an obligation on his own part, that he would
never enter the province without their express per-
mission. Such was John's extremity, that he not
only accepted these unpalatable conditions, but did
it with affected cheerfulness.
Fortune seemed now weary of persecution, and
Carlos, happy in the attachment of a brave and
powerful people, appeared at length to have reach-
ed a haven of permanent security. But at this
crisis he fell ill of a fever, or, as some historians
insinuate, of a disorder occasioned by poison admin-
istered during his imprisonment ; a fact, which,
although unsupported by positive evidence, seems,
notwithstanding its atrocity, to be no wise improb-
able, considering the character of the parties impli-
iits death, cated. He expired on the 23d of September,
1461. 1461, in the forty-first year of his age, bequeathing
24 Castillo, Cronica, cap. 28. — Tarraca closed their gates upon the
Abarca, Reyes de Aragon, fol. 253, queen, and rung the bells on her
254. — L. Marineo, Cosas Memo- approach, the signal of alarm on
rabies, fol. Ill, 112. — Aleson, the appearance of an enemy, or for
Anales de Navarra, torn. iv. pp. the pursuit of a malefactor.
559, 5G0. — The inhabitants of
MINORITY OF FERDINAND. 43
his title to the crown of Navarre, in conformity chapter
with the original marriage contract of his parents, . .
to his sister Blanche and her posterity. 25
Thus in the prime of life, and at the moment
when he seemed to have triumphed over the malice
of his enemies, died the prince of Viana, whose
character, conspicuous for many virtues, has become
still more so for his misfortunes. His first act of
rebellion, if such, considering his legitimate preten-
sions to the crown, it can be called, was severely
requited by his subsequent calamities ; while the
vindictive and persecuting temper of his parents
excited a very general commiseration in his behalf,
and brought him more effectual support, than could
have been derived from his own merits or the jus-
tice of his cause.
The character of Don Carlos has been portrayed Hischara*
by Lucio Marineo, who, as he wrote an account of
these transactions by the command of Ferdinand
the Catholic, cannot be suspected of any undue
partiality in favor of the prince of Viana. " Such,"
says he, " were his temperance and moderation,
such the excellence of his breeding, the purity of
his life, his liberality and munificence, and such the
sweetness of his demeanor, that no one thing
seemed to be wanting in him which belongs to a
true and perfect prince." 26 He is described by
25 Alonso de Palencia, Cronica, 35 L. Marineo, Cosas Memora-
MS., part. 2, cap. 51. — L. Mari- bles, fol. 106. — " Por quanto era
neo, Cosas Memorables,fol. 114. — la templanca y mesura de aquel
Aleson, Anales de Navarra, torn, principe ; tan grande el concierto
iv. pp. 561 - 563. — Zurita, Anales, y su crianca y costumbres, la lim-
cap. 19, 24. pieza de su vida, su liberalidad y
'14 REIGN OF jOILN II., OF ARAGON.
part another contemporary, as " in person somewhat
! above the middle stature, having a thin visage, with
a serene and modest expression of countenance,
and withal somewhat inclined to melancholy. " 27
He was a considerable proficient in music, painting,
and several mechanic arts. He frequently amused
himself with poetical composition, and was the inti-
mate friend of some of the most eminent bards of
his time. But he was above all devoted to the
study of philosophy and history. He made a ver-
sion of Aristotle's Ethics into the vernacular, which
was first printed, nearly fifty years after his death,
at Saragossa, iii 1509. He compiled also a Chron-
icle of Navarre from the earliest period to his own
times, which, although suffered to remain in manu-
script, has been liberally used and cited by the
Spanish antiquaries, Garibay, Blancas, and others. 28
His natural taste and his habits fitted him much
better for the quiet enjoyment of letters, than for
the tumultuous scenes in which it was his misfor-
tune to be involved, and in which he was no match
for enemies grown gray in the field and in the
intrigues of the cabinet. But, if his devotion to
learning, so rare in his own age, and so very rare
among princes in any age, was unpropitious to his
success on the busy theatre on which he was en-
magnificencia, yfinalmentesudulce Antonio, Bibliotheca Vetus, torn,
conversacion, que ninguna cosa en ii. p. 281.
el faltava de aquellas que pertenes- & Nic. Antonio, Bibliotheca Ve-
cen a recta vivir; y que arman el tus, torn. ii. pp. 281, 282. — Mari-
verdadero y perfecto principe y ana, Hist, de Espafia, torn. ii. p.
sefior." 434.
27 Gundisalvus Garsias, apud Nic.
MINORITY OF FERDINAND. 45
gaged, it must surely elevate his eharacter in the chapter
estimation of an enlightened posterity. '. —
The tragedy did not terminate with the death of J™* 1 ^ 1
Carlos. His sister Blanche, notwithstanding the miuwhti -
inoffensive gentleness of her demeanor, had long
heen involved, by her adhesion to her unfortunate
brother, in a similar proscription with him. The
succession to Navarre having now devolved on
her, she became tenfold an object of jealousy both
to her father, the present possessor of that king-
dom, and to her sister Eleanor, countess of Foix,
to whom the reversion of it had been promised by
John, on his own decease. The son of this lady,
Gaston de Foix, had lately married a sister of Louis
the Eleventh, of France ; and, in a treaty subse-
quently contracted between that monarch and the
king of Aragon, it was stipulated that Blanche
should be delivered into the custody of the countess
of Foix, as surety for the succession of the latter,
and of her posterity, to the crown of Navarre. 29
Conformably to this provision, John endeavoured
to persuade the princess Blanche to accompany him
into France, under the pretext of forming an alli-
ance for her with Louis's brother, the duke of
Berri. The unfortunate lady, comprehending too
well her father's real purpose, besought him with
the most piteous entreaties not to deliver her into
the hands of her enemies ; but, closing his heart
against all natural affection, he caused her to be
529 This treaty was signed at Olit p. 235. — Gaillard confounds it
in Navarre, April 12th, 1462. — with the subsequent one made in
Zurita, Anales, lib. 17, cap. 38, the month of May, near the town
39. — Gaillard, Rivalit6, torn. iii. of Salvatierra in Bearne.
46 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF ARAGON.
taut torn from her residence at Olit, in the heart of her
— ' — own dominions, and forcibly transported across the
mountains into those of the count of Foix. On
arriving at St. Jean Pied de Port, a little town on
the French side of the Pyrenees, being convinced
that she had nothing further to hope from human
succour, she made a formal renunciation of her
right to Navarre in favor of her cousin and for-
mer husband, Henry the Fourth, of Castile, who
had uniformly supported the cause of her brother
Carlos. Henry, though debased by sensual indul-
gence, was naturally of a gentle disposition, and
had never treated her personally with unkindness.
In a letter, which she now addressed to him, and
which, says a Spanish historian, cannot be read,
after the lapse of so many years, without affecting
the most insensible heart, 30 she reminded him of
the dawn of happiness which she had enjoyed
under his protection, of his early engagements to
her, and of her subsequent calamities ; and, antici-
pating the gloomy destiny which awaited her, she
settled on him her inheritance of Navarre, to the
entire exclusion of her intended assassins, the count
and countess of Foix. 31
1462. On the same day, the last of April, she was de-
livered over to one of their emissaries, who con-
ducted her to the castle of Ortes in Bearne, where,
after languishing in dreadful suspense for nearly
30 Ferreras, Hist. d'Espagne, varra, torn. iv. pp. 590-593.—
torn. vii. p. 110. Abarca, Reyes de Aragon, torn. ii.
31 Hist. duRoyaumede Navarre, fol. 258, 259. — Zurita, Anales,
p. 496. — Aleson, Anales de Na- lib. 17, cap. 38.
October C.
MINORITY OF FERDINAND. 17
two years, she was poisoned by the command of chapter
her sister. 32 The retribution of Providence not . '_.-
unfrequently overtakes the guilty even in this
world. The countess survived her father to reign
in Navarre only three short weeks; while the
crown was ravished from her posterity for ever by
that very Ferdinand, whose elevation had been the
object to his parents of so much solicitude and so
many crimes.
Within a fortnight after the decease of Carlos, Ferdinand
a sworn heir
the customary oaths of allegiance, so pertinaciously £ ^.
withheld from that unfortunate prince, were ten- 1 4 6 1
dered by the Aragonese deputation, at Calatayud
to his brother Ferdinand, then only ten years of
age, as heir apparent of the monarchy ; after which
he was conducted by his mother into Catalonia, in
order to receive the more doubtful homage of that
province. The extremities of Catalonia at this
time seemed to be in perfect repose, but the capital
was still agitated by secret discontent. The ghost
of Carlos was seen stalking by night through the
streets of Barcelona, bewailing in piteous accents
his untimely end, and invoking vengeance on
his unnatural murderers. The manifold miracles
wrought at his tomb soon gained him the reputa-
32 Lebrija, DeBello Navaricnsi, Lebrija, a contemporary, (loc. cit.)
(Granatoe, 1545,) lib. 1, cap. l,fol. in imputing- it to poison. The fact
74. — Alcson, Analcs do Navarrn, of her death, which Aleson, on I
ubi supra. — Zurita, Anales, lib. 17, know not what authority, refers to
cap. 38. — The Spanish historians the 2d of December. 1464, was not
are not agreed as to the time publicly disclosed till some months
or even mode of Blanche's death, after its occurrence, when disclo-
All concur, however, in attributing sure became necessary in conse-
it to assassination, and most of quence of the proposed interposi-
them, with the learned Antonio tion of the Navarrese cortcs.
48 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF ARAGON.
part tion of a saint, and his image received the devo-
_ _ tional honors reserved for such as have been duly-
canonized by the church. 33
The revolutionary spirit of the Barcelonians, kept
alive by the recollection of past injury, as well as
by the apprehensions of future vengeance, should
John succeed in reestablishing his authority over
them, soon became so alarming, that the queen,
whose consummate address, however, had first ac-
complished the object of her visit, found it advisa-
ble to withdraw from the capital ; and sho sought
refuge, with her son and such few adherents as still
remained faithful to them, in the fortified city of
Gerona, about fifty miles north of Barcelona.
Besieged by Hither, however, she was speedily pursued by
ihe Catalan* .
in Gerona. tne Catalan militia, embodied under the command
of their ancient leader Roger, count of Pallas, and
eager to regain the prize which they had so inad-
vertently lost. The city was quickly entered, but
the queen, with her handful of followers, had re-
treated to a tower belonging to the principal church
in the place, which, as was very frequent in Spain,
in those wild times, was so strongly fortified as to
be capable of maintaining a formidable resistance.
33 Alonso dePalencia, Coronica, icnt application ,to the diseased
MS., part. 2, cap. 51. — Zurita, members of the pilgrims who visit-
Analcs,tom. iv. fol. 98. — Abarca, ed his shrine, remained in his day
Reyes de Aragon, torn. ii. fol. 256. in a perfectly sound and healthful
— Aleson, Anales deNavarra, torn, state! (Historias Ecclesiastieas y
iv.pp.5G3 et seq. — L. Marineo,Co- Seculares de Aragon, (Zaragoza,
sas Mcmorablcs, fol. 114. — Accord- 1622,) torn. i. p. 553.) Aleson
ing to Lanuza, who wrote nearly wonders that any should doubt the
two centuries after the death of truth of miracles, attested by the
Carlos, the flesh upon his right monks of the very monastery in
arm, which had been amputated which Carlos was interred,
for the purpose of a more conven-
II.
MINORITY OF FERDINAND. 49
To oppose this, a wooden fortress of the same chapter
height was constructed by the assailants, and plant-
ed with lombards and other pieces of artillery then
in use, which kept up an unintermitting discharge
of stone bullets on the little garrison. 34 The Cata-
lans also succeeded in running a mine beneath the
fortress, through which a considerable body of
troops penetrated into it, when, their premature
cries of exultation having discovered them to the
besieged, they were repulsed, after a desperate
struggle, with great slaughter. The queen dis-
played the most intrepid spirit in the midst of
these alarming scenes ; unappalled by the sense of
her own danger and that of her child, and by the
dismal lamentations of the females by whom she
was surrounded, she visited every part of the works
in person, cheering her defenders by her presence
and dauntless resolution. Such were the stormy
and disastrous scenes in which the youthful Ferdi-
nand commenced a career, whose subsequent pros-
perity was destined to be checkered by scarcely a
reverse of fortune. 35
34 L. Marineo, Cosas Memora- riod, and indeed later, that it was
bles, fol. llfi. — Alonso do Palen- usual for a field-piece not to be
cia, Coronica, MS., part. 2, cap. 51. discharged more than twice in the
— Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. fol. 113. course of an action, if we may
The Spaniards, deriving the credit Machiavelli, who, indeed, re-
knowledge of artillery from the commends dispensing with the use
Arabs, had become familiar with of artillery altogether. Arte della
it before the other nations of Chris- Guerra, lib. 3. (Opcrc, Genova,
tendom. The affirmation of Zuri- 1708.)
ta, however, that 5000 balls were 33 Alonso de Palencia, Cor6nica,
fired from the battery of the be- MS., part. 2,c. 51. — L. Marineo,
siegers at Gerona in one day, is Cosas Memorables; fol. 116. — Zu-
perfectly absurd. So little was the rita, Anales, torn. iv. fol. 113. —
science of gunnery advanced in Abarca, Reyes de Aragon, torn. ii.
other parts of Europe at this pe- fol. 259.
VOL. I. 7
50 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF ARAGON.
part In the mean while, John, having in vain attempt-
, ed to penetrate through Catalonia to the relief of
w e ce'n ybi: ' his wife, effected this by the cooperation of his
Aragon. French ally, Louis the Eleventh. That monarch,
with his usual insidious policy, had covertly de-
spatched an envoy to Barcelona on the death of
Carlos, assuring the Catalans of his protection,
should they still continue averse to a reconciliation
with their own sovereign. These offers were but
coldly received ; and Louis found it more for his
interest to accept the propositions made to him by
the king of Aragon himself, which subsequently led
to most important consequences. By three several
treaties, of the 3d, 21st, and 23d of May, 1462, it
was stipulated, that Louis should furnish his ally
with seven hundred lances and a proportionate
number of archers and artillery during the war with
Barcelona, to be indemnified by the payment of
two hundred thousand gold crowns within one year
after the reduction of that city; as security for
which the counties of Roussillon and Cerdngne
were pledged by John, with the cession of their
revenues to the French king, until such time as the
original debt should be redeemed. In this transac-
tion both monarchs manifested their usual policy ;
Louis believing that this temporary mortgage would
become a permanent alienation, from John's ina-
bility to discharge it; while the latter anticipated,
as the event showed, with more justice, that the
aversion of the inhabitants to the dismemberment
of their country from the Aragonese monarchy
MINORITY OF FERDlNAiND. 51
would baffle every attempt on the part of the chapter
French to occupy it permanently. 36
In pursuance of these arrangements, seven hun- voulScSL
dred French lances with a considerable body of
archers and artillery 37 crossed the mountains, and,
rapidly advancing on Gerona, compelled the insur-
gent army to raise the siege, and to decamp with
such precipitation as to leave their cannon in the
hands of the royalists. The Catalans now threw
aside the thin veil, with which they had hitherto
covered their proceedings. The authorities of the
principality, established in Barcelona, publicly re-
nounced their allegiance to King John and his son
Ferdinand, and proclaimed them enemies of the
republic. Writings at the same time were circu-
lated, denouncing from Scriptural authority, as well
as natural reason, the doctrine of legitimacy in the
broadest terms, and insisting that the Aragonese
monarchs, far from being absolute, might be law-
fully deposed for an infringement of the liberties of
the nation. " The good of the commonwealth," it
was said, " must always be considered paramount
36 Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. fol. 1'Histoire de France, (Paris, 1836,)
111. — Another 100,000 crowns torn. xi. Introd. p. 245.
were to be paid in case further 37 A French lance, it may be
assistance should be required from stated, of that day, according to L.
the French monarch alter the re- Marineo, was accompanied by two
duction of Barcelona. This treaty horsemen ; so that the whole con-
has been incorrectly reported by tingent of cavalry to be furnished
most of the French and all the on this occasion amounted to 2100.
Spanish historians whom I have (Cosas Memorables, fol. 117.)
consulted, save the accurate Zuri- Nothing could be more indetermi-
ta. An abstract from the original nate than the complement of a
documents, compiled by the Abbe lance in the Middle Ages. It is
Legrand, has been given by M. not unusual to find it reckoned at
Petitot in his recent edition of the five or six horsemen.
Collection des Memoires relatifs a
52 REIGN OF JOHN II.. OF ARAGON.
part to that of the prince." Extraordinary doctrines
. — these for the age in which they were promulged,
affording a still more extraordinary contrast with
those which have been since familiar in that un-
happy country ! 38
The government then enforced levies of all such
as were above the age of fourteen, and, distrusting
the sufficiency of its own resources, offered the
sovereignty of the principality to Henry the Fourth,
of Castile. The court of Aragon, however, had so
successfully insinuated its influence into the coun-
cil of this imbecile monarch, that he was not per-
mitted to afford the Catalans any effectual support ;
and, as he abandoned their cause altogether before
the expiration of the year, 39 the crown was offered
to Don Pedro, constable of Portugal, a descendant
successes of of the ancient house of Barcelona. In the mean
John.
while, the old king of Aragon, attended by his
1464. youthful son, had made himself master, with his
characteristic activity, of considerable acquisitions
in the revolted territory, successively reducing Le-
rida, 40 Cervera, Amposta, 41 Tortosa, and the most
38 Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. fol. Lucan, (Pharsalia, lib. 4.) with
113-115. — Alonso de Palencia, his usual swell of hyperbole.
Coronica, MS., part. 2, cap. 1, 41 The cold was so intense at
39 In conformity with the famous the siege of Amposta, that ser-
verdict given by Louis XI. at Bay- pents of an enormous magnitude
onne, April 23d, 1403, previously are reported by L. Marineo to have
to the interview between him and descended from the mountains, and
Henry IV 7 . on the shores of the taken refuge in the camp of the
Bidassoa. See Part I. Chap. 3. of besiegers. Portentous and supei-
this History. natural voices were frequently
4 This was the battle-ground heard during the nights. Indeed
of Julius Caesar in his wars with the superstition of the soldiers
Pompey. See his ingenious mili- appears to have been so lively as
tary manoeuvre as simply narrated to have prepared them for seeing
in his own Commentaries, (De and hearing any thing.
Bello Civili, torn. i. p. 54.) and by
Jan.
MINORITY OF FERDINAND. 53
li.
important places in the south of Catalonia. Many chapter
of these places were strongly fortified, and most
of them defended with a resolution which cost the
conqueror a prodigious sacrifice of time and money.
John, like Philip of Macedon, made use of gold
even more than arms, for the reduction of his
enemies ; and, though he indulged in occasional
acts of resentment, his general treatment of those
who submitted was as liberal as it was politic.
His competitor, Don Pedro, had brought little
foreign aid to the support of his enterprise ; he
had failed altogether in conciliating the attachment
of his new subjects ; and, as the operations of the
war had been conducted on his part in the most
languid manner, the whole of the principality
seemed destined soon to relapse under the do-
minion of its ancient master. At this juncture
the Portuguese prince fell ill of a fever, of which
he died on the 29th of June, 1466. This event,
which seemed likely to lead to a termination of
the war, proved ultimately the cause of its pro-
traction. 42
It appeared, however, to present a favorable
opportunity to John for opening a negotiation with
the insurgents. But, so resolute were they in main-
taining their independence, that the council of Bar-
celona condemned two of the principal citizens,
42 Faria y Sousa, Europa Portu- Pedro no sooner arrived in Catalo-
guesa, torn. ii. p. 390. — Alonso de nia, than he was poisoned." (His-
Palencia, MS., part. 2, cap. 60, 61. — toire Generate de Portugal, (Paris,
Castillo, Cronica, pp. 43, 44,46,49, 1735,) torn. iii. p. 245.) It must
50,54. — Zurita, Angles, torn. ii. fol. have been a very slow poison.
116, 124, 127, 128, 130, 137, 147. — He arrived January 2 1st, 1404, and
M. La Clede states, that " Don died June 29th, 1466.
54
REIGN OF JOHN II., OF AHAGON.
PART
I.
Crown of
Catalonia
offered to
Ren6 of An-
jou.
suspected of defection from the cause, to be pub-
licly executed ; it refused moreover to admit an
envoy from the Aragonese cortes within the city,
and caused the despatches, with which he was in-
trusted by that body, to be torn in pieces before
his face.
The Catalans then proceeded to elect Rene le
Bon, as he was styled, of Anjou, to the vacant
throne, brother of one of the original competitors
for the crown of Aragon on the demise of Martin ;
whose cognomen of " Good " is indicative of a
sway far more salutary to his subjects than the
more coveted and imposing title of Great. 43 This
titular sovereign of half a dozen empires, in which
he did not actually possess a rood of land, was too
far advanced in years to assume this perilous enter-
prise himself; and he accordingly intrusted it to
his son John, duke of Calabria and Lorraine, who,
in his romantic expeditions in southern Italy, had
acquired a reputation for courtesy and knightly
prowess, inferior to none other of his time. 44
43 Sir Walter Scott, in his
" Anne of Geierstein," has brought,
into full relief the ridiculous side
of Rene's character. The good
king's fondness for poetry and the
arts, however, although showing
itself occasionally in puerile eccen-
tricities, may compare advanta-
geously with the coarse appetites
and mischievous activity of most
of the contemporary princes. After
all, the best tribute to his worth
was the earnest attachment, of his
people. His biography has been
well and diligently compiled by the
viscount of Villeneuve Bargemont,
(Histoirc de Rene d'Anjou, Paris,
1825,) who has, however, indulged
in greater detail than was perhaps
to have been desired by Rene, or
his readers.
44 Comines says of him, "A
tous alanines c'estoit le premier
homme arme, et de toutes pieces,
ct son cheval tousjours barde. II
portoit un habillement que ces con-
ducteurs portent en Italie, et sem-
bloit bien prince et chef de guerre;
et y avoit d'obeissance autant que
monseigneur de Charolois, et luy
obeissoit tout 1'ost de meilleur
coeur, car a la verite il estoit digne
d'estre honore." Philippe de
Comines, Memoircs, apud Petitot ;
(Paris, 182G,) liv. 1, chap. 11.
MINORITY OF FERDINAND. 55
Crowds of adventurers floeked to the standard of chapter
a leader, whose ample inheritance of pretensions . ■ —
had made him familiar with war from his earliest
boyhood ; and he soon found himself at the head
of eight thousand effective troops. Louis the
Eleventh, although not directly aiding his enter-
prise with supplies of men or money, was willing
so far to countenance it, as to open a passage for
him through the mountain fastnesses of Roussillon,
then in his keeping, and thus enable him to descend
with his whole army at once on the northern borders 14 67.
of Catalonia. 45
The kinjr of Aragon could oppose no force Distress and
° l x embnrrass-
capable of resisting this formidable army. His j^",'. 8 of
exchequer, always low, was completely exhausted
by the extraordinary efforts, which he had made in
the late campaigns ; and, as the king of France,
either disgusted with the long protraction of the
war, or from secret good-will to the enterprise of
his feudal subject, withheld from King John the
stipulated subsidies, the latter monarch found him-
self unable, with every expedient of loan and
exaction, to raise sufficient money to pay his troops,
or to supply his magazines. In addition to this, he
was now involved in a dispute with the count and
countess of Foix, who, eager to anticipate the
possession of Navarre, which had been guarantied
45 Villeneuve Bargemont, Hist. Zurita, Anales, lorn. iv. fol. 150,
de Rene, torn. ii. pp. 168, 169. — 153. — Alonso de Palencia, Coro-
Histoire de Louys XI., autrement nica, MS., part. 2, cap. 17. — Pa-
dicte La Chronique Scandaleuse, lencia swells the numbers of the
par un G re flier de l'Hostelde Ville French in the service of the duke
de Paris, (Paris, 1620,) p. 145. — of Lorraine to 20,000.
56
REIGN OF JOHN II , OF ARAGON.
PART
1.
Popularity
of the du lie
< f Lorraine.
to them on their father's decease, threatened a
similar rebellion, though on much less justifiable
pretences, to that which he had just experienced
from Don Carlos. To crown the whole of John's
calamities, his eyesight, which had been impaired
by exposure and protracted sufferings during the
winter siege of Amposta, now failed him alto-
gether. 46
In this extremity, his intrepid wife, putting her-
self at the head of such forces as she could collect,
passed by water to the eastern shores of Catalonia,
besieging Rosas in person, and checking the opera-
tions of the enemy by the capture of several
inferior places ; while Prince Ferdinand, effecting
a junction with her before Gerona, compelled the
duke of Lorraine to abandon the siege of that
important city. Ferdinand's ardor, however, had
nearly proved fatal to him ; as, in an accidental
encounter with a more numerous party of the
enemy, his jaded horse would infallibly have be-
trayed him into their hands, had it not been for
the devotion of his officers, several of whom, throw-
ing themselves between him and his pursuers,
enabled him to escape by the sacrifice of their
own liberty.
These ineffectual struggles could not turn the
tide of fortune. The duke of Lorraine succeeded
in this and the two following campaigns in making
46 L. Marineo, Cosas Memora- pp. 611-613. — Duclos, IIist.de
bles, fol. 139. — Zurita, Anales, Louis XL. (Amsterdam, 1746,)
torn. iv. fol. 148, 149, 158. —Ale- torn. ii. p. 114. — Mem. do Comi-
son, Anales de Navarra, torn. iv. nes, Introd. p. 258, apud Petitot.
MINORITY OF FERDINAND. , 57
himself master of all the rich district of Ampurdan, chapter
ii.
northeast of Barcelona. In the capital itself, his . '. —
truly princely qualities and his popular address
secured him the most unbounded influence. Such
was the enthusiasm for his person, that, when he
rode abroad, the people thronged around him em-
bracing his knees, the trappings of his steed, and
even the animal himself, in their extravagance ;
while the ladies, it is said, pawned their rings,
necklaces, and other ornaments of their attire, in
order to defray the expenses of the war. 47
Kins John, in the mean while, was draining: the Death or the
° ° queen of
cup of bitterness to the dregs. In the winter of Ara e° n
1468, his queen, Joan Henriquez, fell a victim to
' a painful disorder, which had been secretly corrod-
ing her constitution for a number of years. In
many respects, she was the most remarkable woman
of her time. She took an active part in the politics
of her husband, and may be even said to have given
them a direction. She conducted several important
diplomatic negotiations to a happy issue, and, what
was more uncommon in her sex, displayed con-
siderable capacity for military affairs. Her perse-
cution of her step-son, Carlos, has left a deep stain
on her memory. It was the cause of all her hus-
band's subsequent misfortunes. Her invincible
spirit, however, and the resources of her genius,
supplied him with the best means of surmounting
many of the difficulties in which she had involved
4 ? Villeneuve Bargemont, Hist. Anales, torn. iv. fol. 153-164. —
de Ren6, torn. ii. pp. 182, 183. Abarca, Reyes de Aragon, torn.
L. Marineo, fol. MO. — Zurita, ii. rey 29, cap. 7.
VOL. I. 8
58 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF ARAGON.
part him, and her loss at this crisis seemed to leave him
at once without solace or support. 48
At this period, he was further embarrassed, as
will appear in the ensuing chapter, by negotiations
for Ferdinand's marriage, which was to deprive him,
in a great measure, of his son's cooperation in the
struggle with his subjects, and which, as he la-
mented, while he had scarcely three hundred enri-
ques in his coffers, called on him for additional dis-
bursements.
Jn^StTrT As the darkest hour, however, is commonly said
Mrs. to precede the dawning, so light now seemed to
break upon the affairs of John. A physician in
Lerida of the Hebrew race, which monopolized at
that time almost all the medical science in Spain,
persuaded the king to submit to the then unusual
operation of couching, and succeeded in restoring
sight to one of his eyes. As the Jew, after the
fashion of the Arabs, debased his real science with
astrology, he refused to operate on the other eye,
since the planets, he said, wore a malignant aspect.
But John's rugged nature was insensible to the
timorous superstitions of his age, and he compelled
the physician to repeat his experiment, which in the
end proved perfectly successful. Thus restored to
his natural faculties, the octogenarian chief, for such
48 Alonso de Palencia, Coronica, was heard several times, in her last
MS., part. 2, cap. 88. — L. Ma- illness, to exclaim, in allusion, as
rineo, Cosas Memorahlcs, fol. 143. was supposed, to her assassination
Aleson, Anales de Navarra, torn, of* Carlos, "Alas! Ferdinand, how
iv. p. 609. — The queen's death dear thou hast cost thy mother!"
was said to have heen caused by a I find no notice of this improbable
cancer. According to Aleson and confession in any contemporary
some other Spanish writers, Joan author.
MINORITY OF FERDINAND. 59
he might now almost be called, regained his wonted chapter
elasticity, and prepared to resume offensive opera-
tions against the enemy with all his accustomed
energy. 49
Heaven, too, as if taking compassion on his
accumulated misfortunes, now removed the prin-
cipal obstacle to his success by the death of the
duke of Lorraine, who was summoned from the
theatre of his short-lived triumphs on the 16th of
December, 1469. The Barcelonians were thrown 1469.
into the greatest consternation by his death, im-
puted, as usual, though without apparent foundation,
to poison ; and their respect for his memory was
attested bv the honors no less than royal, which
they paid to his remains. His body sumptuously
attired, with his victorious sword by his side, was
paraded in solemn procession through the illumin-
ated streets of the city, and, after lying nine days
in state, was deposited amid the lamentations of
the people in the sepulchre of the sovereigns of
Catalonia. 50
As the father of the deceased prince was too old,
and his children too young, to give effectual aid to
49 Mariana, Hist, dc Espafia, the duke of Lorraine, and the en-
tom. ii. pp. 459, 460. — L. Mari- voy despatched to notify his ac-
neo, Cosas Memorahles, fol. 141. ceptance of it, on arriving at the
— Alonso de Palencia, Coronica, court of Castile, received from the
MS., cap. 88. lips of Henry IV. the first tidings
so Villcneuve Bargemont, Hist, of his master's death, (torn. ii.
de Rene\ torn. ii. pp. 182, 333, p. 184.) He must have learned
334. — L. Marineo, Cosas Mem- too with no less surprise that Isa-
orables, fol. 142. — Alonso de Pa- bella had already been married at
lencia, Cor6nica, part. 2, cap. 39. that time more than a year! See
— Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. fol. the date of the official marriage
178. — According to M. de Ville- recorded in Mem. dc la Acad, de
neuve Bargemont, the princess Hist., torn. vi. Apend. no. 4.
Isabella's hand had been offered to
60 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF ARAGON.
part their cause, the Catalans might be now said to be
— again without a leader. But their spirit was un-
broken, and with the same resolution in which they
refused submission more than two centuries after,
in 1714, when the combined forces of France and
Spain were at the gates of the capital, they rejected
the conciliatory advances made them anew by John.
That monarch, however, having succeeded by ex-
traordinary efforts in assembling a competent force,
was proceeding with his usual alacrity in the re-
duction of such places in the eastern quarter of
Catalonia as had revolted to the enemy, while at
the same time he instituted a rigorous blockade of
siege of n»r- Barcelona by sea and land. The fortifications were
celona. J
strong, and the king was unwilling to expose so
fair a city to the devastating horrors of a storm.
The inhabitants made one vigorous effort in a sally
against the royal forces ; but the civic militia were
soon broken, and the loss of four thousand men,
killed and prisoners, admonished them of their
inability to cope with the veterans of Aragon. 51
At length, reduced to the last extremity, they
consented to enter into negotiations, which were
concluded by a treaty equally honorable to both
parties. It was stipulated, that Barcelona should
retain all its ancient privileges and rights of juris-
diction, and, with some exceptions, its large terri-
torial possessions. A general amnesty was to be
granted for offences. The foreign mercenaries
51 Alonso de Palcncia, Coronica, — Abarca, Reyes de Aragon, rev
MS., part. 2, cap. 29,45. — Zurita, 29, cap. 29.
Anales, torn. iv. f'ol. 180- 183
It surren-
ders.
MINORITY OF FERDINAND. 61
were to be allowed to depart in safety ; and such chapter
of the natives, as should refuse to renew their '
allegiance to their ancient sovereign within a year,
might have the liberty of removing with their
effects wherever they would. One provision may
be thought somewhat singular, after what had
occurred ; it was agreed that the king should cause
the Barcelonians to be publicly proclaimed, through-
out all his dominions, good, faithful, and loyal sub-
jects ; which was accordingly done !
The king, after the adjustment of the prelimina-
ries, " declining," says a contemporary, " the tri-
umphal car which had been prepared for him, made
his entrance into the city by the gate of St. Antony,
mounted on a white charger ; and, as he rode along
the principal streets, the sight of so many pallid
countenances and emaciated figures, bespeaking
the extremity of famine, smote his heart with
sorrow." He then proceeded to the hall of the
great palace, and on the 22d of December, 1472, 1473.
solemnly swore there to respect the constitution and
laws of Catalonia. 58
Thus ended this long, disastrous civil war, the
fruit of parental injustice and oppression, which
had nearly cost the king of Aragon the fairest
portion of his dominions ; which devoted to dis-
quietude and disappointment more than ten years
of life, at a period when repose is most grateful ;
and which opened the way to foreign wars, that
52 L. Marinco, Cosas Memora- Alonsode Palencia, Coronica, MS.,
bles, fol. 144, 147. — Zurita, An- part. 2, cap. 1.
ales, torn. iv. fol. 187, 188. —
62 REIGN OF JOHN II., OF ARAGON.
part continued to hang like a dark cloud over the even-
1 ing of his days. It was attended, however, with
one important result ; that of establishing Ferdi-
nand's succession over the whole of the domains
of his ancestors.
CHAPTER III.
REIGN OF HENRY IV., OF CASTILE. — CIVIL WAR. — MARRIAGE
OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
1454—1469.
Henry IV. disappoints Expectations. — Oppression of the People. —
League of the Nobles. — Extraordinary Scene at Avila. — Early
Education of Isabella. — Death of her Brother Alfonso. — Intestine
Anarchy. — The Crown offered to Isabella. — She declines it. —
Her Suitors. — She accepts Ferdinand of Aragon. — Marriage Arti-
cles. — Critical Situation of Isabella. — Ferdinand enters Castile. —
Their Marriage.
While these stormy events were occurring in chapter
Aragon, the Infanta Isabella, whose birth was men-
tioned at the close of the first chapter, was passing
her youth amidst scenes scarcely less tumultuous.
At the date of her birth, her prospect of succeeding
to the throne of her ancestors was even more re-
mote than Ferdinand's prospect of inheriting that of
his; and it is interesting to observe through what
trials, and by what a series of remarkable events,
Providence was pleased to bring about this result,
and through it the union, so long deferred, of the
great Spanish monarchies.
The accession of her elder brother, Henry the Popularity
r> 1 i i • i i of Henry
rourth, was welcomed with an enthusiasm, propor- 1V -
tioned to the disgust which had been excited by
the long-protracted and imbecile reign of his pre-
'.
64 CASTILE UNDER HENRY IV.
part decessor. Some few, indeed, who looked back to
the time when he was arrayed in arms against his
father, distrusted the soundness either of his princi-
ples or of his judgment. But far the larger portion
of the nation was disposed to refer this to inexpe-
rience, or the ebullition of youthful spirit, and in-
dulged the cheering anticipations which are usually
entertained of a new reign and a young monarch. *
Henry was distinguished by a benign temper, and
by a condescension, which might be called familiar-
ity, in his intercourse with his inferiors, virtues pe-
culiarly engaging in persons of his elevated station ;
and as vices, which wear the gloss of youth, are
not only pardoned, but are oftentimes popular with
the vulgar, the reckless extravagance in which he
indulged himself was favorably contrasted with the
severe parsimony of his father in his latter years,
and gained him the surname of" the Liberal." His
treasurer having remonstrated with him on the
prodigality of his expenditure, he replied ; " Kings,
instead of hoarding treasure like private persons,
are bound to dispense it for the happiness of their
subjects. We must give to our enemies to make
them friends, and to our friends to keep them so."
He suited the action so well to the word, that, in a
few years, there was scarcely a maravedi remaining
in the royal coffers. 2
l"Nil pniict assnetos sceptris : mitis- 38,39. — Pulsrar, Claros Varones,
4"SWe "ovo." tit- 1 • - Castillo, Cronica, i. 20.-
l.ucan. Pharsalia. lib. 8- Guzman, Generaciones, cap. 33. —
2 Ovicdo, Quincuagenas, MS., bat. Although Henry's lavish cxpendi-
1, quinc. 1, dial. 8. — Rodericus turc, particularly on works ofarchi-
Sanctius, Historia Hispanica, cap. tecturc, gained him in early life the
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 65
He maintained greater state than was usual with chapter
. . hi.
the monarchs of Castile, keeping in pay a body-
guard of thirty-six hundred lances, splendidly equip-
ped, and officered by the sons of the nobility. He
proclaimed a crusade against the Moors, a measure
always popular in Castile ; assuming the pomegran-
ate branch, the device of Granada, on his escutch-
eon, in token of his intention to extirpate the
Moslems from the Peninsula. He assembled the
chivalry of the remote provinces ; and, in the early
part of his reign, scarce a year elapsed without one
or more incursions into the hostile territory, with
armies of thirty or forty thousand men. The re- no disap-
J J points ex-
sults did not correspond with the magnificence of i )ect!ilio,,s
the apparatus ; and these brilliant expeditions too
often evaporated in a mere border foray, or in an
empty gasconade under the walls of Granada.
Orchards were cut down, harvests plundered, villa-
ges burnt to the ground, and all the other modes of
annoyance peculiar to this barbarous warfare, put in
practice by the invading armies as they swept over
the face of the country ; individual feats of prowess,
too, commemorated in the romantic ballads of the
time, were achieved ; but no victory was gained,
no important post acquired. The king in vain ex-
cused his hasty retreats and abortive enterprises,
by saying, " that he prized the life of one of his
soldiers, more than those of a thousand Mussul-
mans." His troops murmured at this timorous pol-
appellation of "the Liberal," he is ian sovereigns by the less flatter-
better known on the roll of Castil- ing title of " the Impotent."
VOL. I. 9
06 CASTILE UNDER HENRY IV.
part icy, and the people of the south, on whom the
charges of the expeditions fell with peculiar heavi-
ness, from their neighbourhood to the scene of
operations, complained that " the war was carried
on against them, not against the infidel." On one
occasion an attempt was made to detain the king's
person, and thus prevent him from disbanding his
forces. So soon had the royal authority fallen into
contempt! The king of Granada himself, when
summoned to pay tribute after a series of these in-
effectual operations, replied " that, in the first years
of Henry's reign, he would have offered any thing,
even his children, to preserve peace to his domin-
ions; but now he would give nothing." 3
The contempt, to which the king exposed him-
self by his public conduct, was still further height-
ened by his domestic. With even a greater indis-
position to business, than was manifested by his
lather, 4 he possessed none of the cultivated tastes,
which were the redeeming qualities of the latter.
Having been addicted from his earliest youth to de-
bauchery, when he had lost the powers, he retained
all the relish, for the brutish pleasures of a volup-
tuary. He had repudiated his wife, Blanche of
Aragon, after a union of twelve years, on grounds
3 Zufiiga, Anales Eclesiasticos Guzman and Ponce de Leon, did
y Seculares de Se villa, (Madrid, not occur till a later period, 14G2.
16G7,) p. 341. — Castillo, Cronica, 4 Such was his apathy, says
cap. 20. — Mariana, Hist, de Espa- Mariana, that he would subscribe
na, torn. ii. pp. 415, 419. — Alonso his name to public ordinances,
de Palencia, Coronica, MS., part, without taking the trouble to ac-
1, cap. 14 etseq. — The surprise quaint himself with their contents,
of Gibraltar, the unhappy source Hist, de Espafia, torn. ii. p. 423.
of feud between the families of
His dissolute
habits.
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 67
sufficiently ridiculous and humiliating. 5 In 1455, chapter
he espoused Joanna, a Portuguese princess, sister —
of Alfonso the Fifth, the reigning monarch. This
lady, then in the bloom of youth, was possessed of
personal graces and a lively wit, which, say the
historians, made her the delight of the court of
Portugal. She was accompanied by a brilliant
train of maidens, and her entrance into Castile was
greeted by the festivities and military pageants,
which belong to an age of chivalry. The light and
lively manners of the young queen, however, which
seemed to defy the formal etiquette of the Castilian
court, gave occasion to the grossest suspicions. The
tongue of scandial indicated Beltran de la Cueva,
one of the handsomest cavaliers in the kingdom,
and then newly risen in the royal graces, as the
person to whom she most liberally dispensed her
favors. This knight defended a passage of arms,
in presence of the court, near Madrid, in which he
maintained the superior beauty of his mistress,
against all comers. The king was so much de-
lighted with his prowess, that he commemorated
the event by the erection of a monastery dedicated
to St. Jerome ; a whimsical origin for a religious
institution. G
5 Pulgar, Cronica de los Reyes of Toledo, " por impolencia respec-
Oatolieos, (Valencia, 1780,) cap. tiva, owing to some malign influ-
2. — Alonso de Palencia, Coronica, ence " !
MS., part. l,cap. 4.— Aleson, An- 6 La Clede, Hist, de Portugal,
ales de Navarra, torn. iv. pp. 519, torn. iii. pp. 325, 345. — Florez,
520. — The marriage between Reynas Catholicas, torn. ii. pp. 763,
Blanche and Henry was publicly 76G. — Alonso de Palencia, Co-
declared void by the bishop of Se- ronica, MS., part. 1, cap. 20, 21. —
govia, confirmed by the archbishop It does not appear, however, whom
68 CASTILE UNDER HENRY IV.
i>art The queen's levity might have sought some jus-
tification in the unveiled licentiousness of her hus-
band. One of the maids of honor, whom she
brought in her train, acquired an ascendency over
Henry, which he did not attempt to disguise ; and
the palace, after the exhibition of the most dis-
graceful scenes, became divided by the factions of
the hostile fair ones. The archbishop of Seville
did not blush to espouse the cause of the paramour,
who maintained a magnificence of state, which ri-
valled that of royalty itself. The public were still
more scandalized by Henry's sacrilegious intrusion
of another of his mistresses into the post of abbess
of a convent in Toledo, after the expulsion of her
predecessor, a lady of noble rank and irreproacha-
ble character. 7
oppression The stream of corruption soon finds its way from
of the peo- l
pto * the higher to the more humble walks of life. The
middling classes, imitating their superiors, indulged
in an excess of luxury equally demoralizing, and ru-
inous to their fortunes. The contagion of example
infected even the higher ecclesiastics ; and we find
the archbishop of St. James hunted from his see by
the indignant populace, in consequence of an out-
Beltran dela Cueva indicated as the uted among his female guests. At
lady of his love on this occasion, a ball given on another occasion, the
(See Castillo, Cronica, cap. 23, 24.) young queen having condescended
Two anecdotes may be mentioned to dance with the French ambassa-
as characteristic of the gallantry of dor, the latter made a solemn vow,
the times. The archbishop of Se- in commemoration of so distin-
ville concluded a superb file, qiv- guished an honor, never to dance
en in honor of the* royal nuptials, with any other woman,
by introducing on the table two 7 Alonso de Palencia, Coronica,
vases filled with rings garnished MS., cap. 42, 47. — Castillo, Cro-
with precious stones, to be distrib- nica, cap. 23.
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 69
rage attempted on a youthful bride, as she was re- chapter
turning from church, after the performance of the —
nuptial ceremony. The rights of the people could
be but little consulted, or cared for, in a court thus
abandoned to unbounded license. Accordingly we
iind a repetition of most of the unconstitutional
and oppressive acts which occurred under John the
Second, of Castile ; attempts at arbitrary taxation,
interference in the freedom of elections, and in the
right exercised by the cities of nominating the com-
manders of such contingents of troops, as they
might contribute to the public defence. Their ter-
ritories were repeatedly alienated, and, as well as
the immense sums raised by the sale of papal indul-
gences for the prosecution of the Moorish war,
were lavished on the royal satellites. 8
But, perhaps, the most crying evil of this period „ f e ^ em ?™
was the shameless adulteration of the coin. In-
stead of five royal mints, which formerly existed,
there were now one hundred and fifty in the hands
of authorized individuals, who debased the coin to
such a deplorable extent, that the most common
8 Alonso de Palcncia, Cor6nica, dox casuists doubted the validity of
MS., cap. 35.— Sempere, Hist, del such a bull. But it was decided
Luxo, torn. i. p. 183. — Idem, Hist, after due examination, that, as the
des Cortes, en. 19.— Marina, Teo- holy father possessed plenary pow-
ria, part. 1, cap. 20. — part. 2, pp. er of absolution of all offences
390, 391. — Zufiiga, Anales deSe- committed upon earth, and as pur-
villa, pp. 346, 349. — The papal gatory is situated upon earth, it
bulls of crusade issued on these properly fell within his jurisdiction,
occasions, says Palencia, contained (cap. 32.) Bulls of crusade were
among other indulgences an exemp- sold at the rate of 200 maravedies
tion from the pans and penalties of each; and it is computed by the
purgatory, assuring to the soul of same historian, that no less than
the purchaser, ifter death, an im- 4,000,000 maravedies were amass-
mediate translation into a state of ed by this traffic in Castile, in the
glory. Some of the more ortho- space of four years !
70 CASTILE UNDER HENRY IV.
part articles of life were enhanced in value three, four,
' and even six fold. Those who owed debts eagerly
anticipated the season of payment ; and, as the
creditors refused to accept it in the depreciated
currency, it became a fruitful source of litigation
and tumult, until the whole nation seemed on the
verge of bankruptcy. In this general license, the
right of the strongest was the only one which
could make itself heard. The nobles, converting
their castles into dens of robbers, plundered the
property of the traveller, which was afterwards sold
publicly in the cities. One of these robber chief-
tains, who held an important command on the fron-
tiers of Murcia, was in the habit of carrying on an
infamous traffic with the Moors by selling to them as
slaves the Christian prisoners of either sex, whom
he had captured in his marauding expeditions.
When subdued by Henry, after a sturdy resistance,
he was again received into favor, and reinstated in
his possessions. The pusillanimous monarch knew
neither when to pardon, nor when to punish. 9
But no part of Henry's conduct gave such um-
brage to his nobles, as the facility with which he
resigned himself to the control of favorites, whom
he had created as it were from nothing, and whom
he advanced over the heads of the ancient aristoc-
ciiaracter or racy of the land. Anions; those especiallv disgust-
Pacheco, J c l J ~
vmeni! ° f ea< by this proceeding, were Juan Pacheco, mar-
quis of Villena, and Alfonso Carillo, archbishop of
9 Saez, Monedasde Enrique IV., de Palencia, Coronica, MS., cap.
(Madrid, 1805,) pp. 2-5. — Alonso 36, 39. -Castillo, Cronica,cap. 19.
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 71
in.
Toledo. These two personages exercised so im- chapter
portant an influence over the destinies of Henry, as
to deserve more particular notice. The former was
of noble Portuguese extraction, and originally a page
in the service of the constable Alvaro de Luna, by
whom he had been introduced into the household
of Prince Henry, during the lifetime of John the
Second. His polished and plausible address soon
acquired him a complete ascendency over the feeble
mind of his master, who was guided by his perni-
cious counsels, in his frequent dissensions with his
father. His invention was ever busy in devising
intrigues, which he recommended by his subtile, in-
sinuating eloquence; and he seemed to prefer the
attainment (of his purposes by a crooked rather than
by a direct policy, even when the latter might
equally well have answered. He sustained reverses
with imperturbable composure ; and, when his
schemes were most successful, he was willing to
risk all for the excitement of a new revolution.
Although naturally humane, and without violent or
revengeful passions, his restless spirit was perpetu-
ally involving his country in all the disasters of civil
war. He was created marquis of Villena, by John
the Second ; and his ample domains, lying on the
confines of Toledo, Murcia, and Valencia, and em-
bracing an immense extent of populous and well-
fortified territory, made him the most powerful vas-
sal in the kingdom. 10
i0 Pulgar, Claro3 Varones, tit. torn. i. p. 328. — The ancient mar-
0. — Castillo, Cronica, cap. 15. — • quisate of Villena, having been
Mendoza, Monarquia de Espafia, incorporated into the crown of
72 CASTILE UNDER HENRY IV.
part liis uncle, the archbishop of Toledo, was of a
sterner character. He was one of those turbulent
Character of .. .
bi e h" rch f P rc l a tes, not unirequcnt in a rude age, who seem
Toledo. intended by nature for the camp rather than the
church. He was fierce, haughty, intractable ; and
he was supported in the execution of his ambitious
enterprises, no less by his undaunted resolution, than
by the extraordinary resources, which he enjoyed as
primate of Spain. He was capable of warm at-
tachments, and of making great personal sacrifices
for his friends, from whom, in return, he exacted
the most implicit deference ; and, as he was both
easily offended and implacable in his resentments,
he seems to have been almost equally formidable as
a friend and as an enemy. 11
These early adherents of Henry, little satisfied
with seeing their own consequence eclipsed by the
rising glories of the newly-created favorites, began
secretly to stir up cabals and confederacies among
the nobles, until the occurrence of other circum-
stances obviated the necessity, and indeed the pos-
sibility, of further dissimulation. Henry had been
persuaded to take part in the internal dissensions
which then agitated the kingdom of Aragon, and had
supported the Catalans in their opposition to their
Castile, devolved to Prince Henry of transmitted to his son, afterwards
Aragon, on his marriage with the raised to the rank of duke of Es-
daughter of John II. It was sub- calona, in the reign of Isabella,
sequently confiscated by that mon- Salazar de Mendoza, Dignidades
arch, in consequence of the repeat- de Castilla y Leon, (Madrid,
ed rebellions of Prince Henry ; and 1794,) lib. 3, cap. 12, 17.
the title, together with a large pro- u Pulgar, Claros Varones, tit.
portion of the domains originally 20. — Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos,
attached to it, was conferred on MS., cap. 10, 11.
Don Juan Pacheco, by whom it was
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 73
sovereign by seasonable supplies of men and money, chapter
He had even made some considerable conquests for .
himself, when he was induced, by the advice of
the marquis of Villena and the archbishop of Tole-
do, to refer the arbitration of his differences with
the king of Aragon to Louis the Eleventh, of
France ; a monarch whose habitual policy allowed
him to refuse no opportunity of interference in the
concerns of his neighbours.
The conferences were conducted at Bayonne, interview
J ' between
and an interview was subsequently agreed on be- "Xhll:
tween the kings of France and Castile, to be held
near that city, on the banks of the Bidassoa, which
divides the dominions of the respective monarchs.
The contrast exhibited by the two princes at this
interview, in their style of dress and equipage, was
sufficiently striking to deserve notice. Louis, who
was even worse attired than usual, according to
Comines, wore a coat of coarse woollen cloth cut
short, a fashion then deemed very unsuitable to
persons of rank, with a doublet of fustian, and a
weather-beaten hat, surmounted by a little leaden
image of the Virgin. His imitative courtiers adopt-
ed a similar costume. The Castilians, on the other
hand, displayed uncommon magnificence. The
barge of the royal favorite, Beltran de la Cueva,
was resplendent with sails of cloth of gold, and his
apparel glittered with a profusion of costly jewels.
Henry was escorted by his Moorish guard gor-
geously equipped, and the cavaliers of his train vied
with each other in the sumptuous decorations of
VOL. i. 10
74 CASTILE UNDER HENRY JV.
part dress and equipage. The two nations appear to
- — have been mutually disgusted with the contrast
exhibited by their opposite affectations. The
French sneered at the ostentation of the Spaniards,
and the latter, in their turn, derided the sordid par-
simony of their neighbours ; and thus the seeds of
a national aversion were implanted, which, under
the influence of more important circumstances,
ripened into open hostility. I2
The monarchs seem to have separated with as
little esteem for each other as did their respective
courtiers ; and Comines profits by the occasion to
inculcate the inexpediency of such interviews be-
tween princes, who have exchanged the careless
jollity of youth for the cold and calculating policy
of riper years. The award of Louis dissatisfied all
parties ; a tolerable proof of its impartiality. The
Castilians, in particular, complained, that the mar
quis of Villena and the archbishop of Toledo had
compromised the honor of the nation, by allowing
their sovereign to cross over to the French shore of
the Bidassoa, and its interests, by the cession of the
vnicmiaml conquered territory to Aragon. They loudly ac-
the archbish- 1 ^1 r i • r v <-
opofToiedo. cused them or being pensioners or Louis, a fact
which does not appear improbable, considering the
usual policy of this prince, who, as is well known,
maintained an espionage over the councils of most
of his neighbours. Henry was so far convinced of
12 At least these arc the impor- 241 -243. — ■ Comines, M^moires,
tant consequences imputed to this liv. 3, chap. 8. — Also Castillo,
interview by the French writers. Cronica, cap. 48, 49. — Zurita.
See Gaillard, Rivalite, torn. iii. pp. Anales, lib. 17, cap. 50.
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 75
the truth of thest? imputations, that he dismissed chapter
the obnoxious ministers from their employments. 13 1
The disgraced nobles instantly set about the L^agueof
° J the nobles.
organization of one of those formidable confedera-
cies, which had s3
order ; and splendid preparations were instantly chapter
commeneed for the approaching nuptials. 22
Isabella was then in her sixteenth year. On her Hereariy
J education.
father's death, she retired with her mother to the
little town of Arevalo, where, in seclusion, and far
from the voice of flattery and falsehood, she had
been permitted to unfold the natural graces of mind
and person, which might have been blighted in the
pestilent atmosphere of a court. Here, under the
maternal eye, she was carefully instructed in those
lessons of practical piety, and in the deep reverence
for religion, which distinguished her maturer years.
On the birth of the princess Joanna, she was re-
moved, together with her brother Alfonso, by Henry
to the royal palace, in order more effectually to dis-
courage the formation of any faction, adverse to
the interests of his supposed daughter. In this
abode of pleasure, surrounded by all the seductions
most dazzling to youth, she did not forget the early
lessons, that she had imbibed ; and the blameless
purity of her conduct shone with additional lustre
amid the scenes of levity and licentiousness by
which she was surrounded. 23
The near connexion of Isabella with the crown,
as well as her personal character, invited the ap-
plication of numerous suitors. Her hand was first
solicited for that very Ferdinand, who was destined
to be her future husband, though not till after the
23 Rades y Andrada, Chronica 23 L. Marineo, Cosas Memora-
de LasTrcs Ordenes y Cavallerias, bles, tbl. 154. — Florez, Rcynas
(Toledo, 1572,) fol.76. — Castillo, Catholicas, torn. ii. p. 789. — Cas-
Cr6nica,cap.85. — AlonsodePalen- tillo, Cronica, cap. 37.
cia, Coronica, MS., part. 1, cap. 73.
81. CASTILE UNDER HENRY IV.
r
part intervention of many inauspieious cireumstances.
■ - She was next betrothed to his elder brother, Car-
los ; and some years after his decease, when thir-
teen years of age, was promised by Henry to Al-
fonso, of Portugal. Isabella was present with her
brother at a persona! interview with that monarch
in 1464, but neither threats nor entreaties could
induce her to accede to a union so unsuitable from
the disparity of their years ; and with her charac-
teristic discretion, even at this early age, she rested
her refusal on the ground, that " the infantas of
Castile could not be disposed of in marriage, with-
out the consent of the nobles of the realm." 24
projected When Isabella understood in what manner she
union with
nlafc'r of was now to ne sacrificed to the selfish policy of her
brother, in the prosecution of which, compulsory
measures if necessary were to be employed, she
was filled with the liveliest emotions of grief and
resentment. The master of Calatrava was well
known as a fierce and turbulent leader of faction,
and his private life was stained with most of the
licentious vices of the age. He was even accused
of having invaded the privacy of the queen dow-
ager, Isabella's mother, by proposals of the most
degrading nature, an outrage which the king had
either not the power, or the inclination, to resent. 25
With this person, then, so inferior to her in birth,
24 Aleson, Anales de Navarra, 25 Decad. de Palencia, apud
torn. iv. pp. 5G1, 5G2. — Zurita, Mem. de la Acad, de Hist., torn.
Anales, lib. 16, cap. 46, lib. 17, vi. p. 65, nota.
cap. 3. — Castillo, Cronica, cap.
31,57. — Alonso de Palencia, Co-
ronica, MS., cap. 55.
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 85
and so much more unworthy of her in every other chapter
point of view, Isabella was now to be united. On -
receiving the intelligence, she confined herself to
her apartment, abstaining from all nourishment and
sleep for a day and night, says a contemporary
writer, and imploring Heaven, in the most piteous
manner, to save her from this dishonor, by her own
death or that of her enemy. As she was bewail-
ing her hard fate to her faithful friend, Beatriz de
Bobadilla, " God will not permit it," exclaimed the
high-spirited lady, " neither will I ; " then drawing
forth a dagger from her bosom, which she kept
there for the purpose, she solemnly vowed to plunge
it in the heart of the master of Calatrava, as soon
as he appealed ! 26
Happily he» »
J ° usurpation.
in any other light, than that of a usurpation ; al-
though some Spanish writers, and among the rest
Marina, a competent critic when not blinded by
prejudice, regard him as a rightful sovereign, and
as such to be enrolled among the monarchs of Cas-
tile. 35 Marina, indeed, admits the ceremony at
Avila to have been originally the work of a faction,
and in itself informal and unconstitutional ; but
he considers it to have received a legitimate sanc-
tion from its subsequent recognition by the people.
But I do not find, that the deposition of Henry the
34 Alonsode Palencia, Coronica, nica, cap. 94. — Garibay, Compcn-
MS., cap 87, 92. — Castillo, Cro- dio, lib. 17, cap. 20.
35 Marina, Teoria, part. 2, cap. 38.
92 CASTILE UNDER HENRY IV.
part Fourth was ever confirmed by an act of cortes. He
■ still continued to reign with the consent of a large
portion, probably the majority, of his subjects ; and
it is evident that proceedings, so irregular as those
at Avila, could have no pretence to constitutional
validity, without a very general expression of ap-
probation on the part of the nation.
Thecrown The leaders of the confederates were thrown
offered to t 1 • 1 1
uabeiia. m t consternation by an event, which threatened
to dissolve their league, and to leave them exposed
to the resentment of an offended sovereign. In
this conjuncture, they naturally turned their eyes on
Isabella, whose dignified and commanding charac-
ter might counterbalance the disadvantages arising
from the unsuitableness of her sex for so perilous a
situation, and justify her election in the eyes of the
people. She had continued in the family of Henry
during the greater part of the civil war ; until the
occupation of Segovia by the insurgents, after the
battle of Olmedo, enabled her to seek the protection
of her younger brother Alfonso, to which she was
the more inclined by her disgust with the license
of a court, where the love of pleasure scorned even
the veil of hypocrisy. On the death of her brother,
she withdrew to a monastery at Avila, where she
was visited by the archbishop of Toledo, who, in
behalf of the confederates, requested her to occupy
the station lately filled by Alfonso, and allow her-
self to be proclaimed queen of Castile. 5
86
36 Lebrija, Rerum Gestarum 1, cap. 92. — Florez, Reynas Ca-
Decad., lib. 1, cap. 3. — Alonso tholicas, torn. ii. p. 790.
de Palencia, Coronie.a, MS., part.
She declines
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 93
Isabella discerned too clearly, however, the path chapter
of duty and probably of interest. She unhesitat-
ingly refused the seductive proffer, and replied,
that, " while her brother Henry lived, none other
had a right to the crown ; that the country had
been divided long enough under the rule of two
contending monarchs ; and that the death of Al-
fonso might perhaps be interpreted into an indica-
tion from Heaven of its disapprobation of their
cause." She expressed herself desirous of estab-
lishing a reconciliation between the parties, and
offered heartily to cooperate with her brother in the
reformation of existing abuses. Neither the elo-
quence nor entreaties of the primate could move
her from her purpose ; and, when a deputation
from Seville announced to her that that city, in
common with the rest of Andalusia, had unfurled
its standards in her name and proclaimed her sove-
reign of Castile, she still persisted in the same
wise and temperate policy. 37
The confederates were not prepared for this TrC!itv b *
A 1 tween Henry
magnanimous act from one so young, and in oppo- a!dl r l a h te S conr
sition to the advice of her most venerated counsel-
lors. No alternative remained, however, but that
of negotiating an accommodation on the best terms
possible with Henry, whose facility of temper and
love of repose naturally disposed him to an ami-
cable adjustment of his differences. With these
dispositions, a reconciliation was effected between
37 Lebrija, Rerum Gestarum — Alonso de Paleneia, Coronica,
Decad., lib. 1, cap. 3. — Ferreras, part. 1, cap. 92. — part. 2, cap. 5.
Hist. d'Espagne, torn. vii. p. 218.
94
CASTILE UNDER HENRY IV.
PAKT
I
Isabnlla
acknowiedg
c.
line of frontier by the kingdoms of MS., part. 2, cap. 10.
Aragon and Navarre.
vol. r. 13
98
CASTILE UNDER HENRY IV.
PAUT
I.
Support of
Joanna Uel-
traneja.
female heart. Ferdinand was then in the bloom
of life, and distinguished for the comeliness of his
person. In the busy scenes, in which he had been
engaged from his boyhood, he had displayed a chiv-
alrous valor, combined with maturity of judgment
far above his years. Indeed, he was decidedly su-
perior to his rivals in personal merit and attrac-
tions. 44 But, while private inclinations thus happi-
ly coincided with considerations of expediency for
inclining her to prefer the Aragonese match, a
scheme was devised in another quarter for the ex-
press purpose of defeating it.
A fraction of the royal party, with the family of
Mendoza at their head, had retired in disgust with
the convention of Toros de Guisando, and openly
espoused the cause of the princess Joanna. They
even instructed her to institute an appeal before the
tribunal of the supreme pontiff, and caused a pla-
card, exhibiting a protest against the validity of the
late proceedings, to be nailed secretly in the night
to the gate of Isabella's mansion. 45 Thus were
sown the seeds of new dissensions, before the old
11 Isabella, in order to acquaint
herself more intimately with the
personal qualities of her respective
suitors, had privately despatched
her confidential chaplain, Alonso de
Coca, to the courts of France and
of Aragon, and his report on his
return was altogether favorable to
Ferdinand. The duke of Guienne
he represented as " a feeble, effem-
inate prince, with limbs so emacia-
ted as to be almost deformed, and
with eyes so weak and watery as
to incapacitate him for the ordina-
ry exercises of chivalry. While
Ferdinand, on the other hand, was
possessed of a comely, symmetri-
cal figure, a graceful demeanor,
and a spirit that was up to any
thing ; " mui dispuesto para toda
cosa que haccr tjuisiesc. It is not
improbable that the queen of Ara-
gon condescended to practise seme
of those agreeable arts on ihe
worthy chaplain, which made so
sensible an impression on the mar-
quis of Villena.
45 Alonso de Palencia, Coronica.
MS., part. 2, cap. 5.
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 99
were completely eradicated. With this disaffected chapter
party the marquis of Villena, who, since his recon- ! —
eiliation, had resumed his ancient ascendency over
Henry, now associated himself. Nothing, in the
opinion of this nobleman, could be more repugnant
to his interests, than the projected union between
the houses of Castile and Aragon ; to the latter of
which, as already noticed, 43 once belonged the ample
domains of his own marquisate, which he imagined
would be held by a very precarious tenure should
any of this family obtain a footing in Castile.
In the hope of counteracting this project, he P h r e 0I, ° s n ai £}
endeavoured to revive the obsolete pretensions of ]2£f&!i
Alfonso, king of Portugal ; and, the more effectual-
ly to secure the cooperation of Henry, he connect-
ed with his scheme a proposition for marrying his
daughter Joanna with the son and heir of the Por-
tuguese monarch ; and thus this unfortunate prin-
cess might be enabled to assume at once a station
suitable to her birth, and at some future opportu-
nity assert with success her claim to the Castilian
crown. In furtherance of this complicated intrigue,
Alfonso was invited to renew his addresses to
Isabella in a more public manner than he had
hitherto done ; and a pompous embassy, with the 146 9
archbishop of Lisbon at its head, appeared at
Ocana, where Isabella was then residing, bearing
the proposals of their master. The princess return-
ed, as before, a decided though temperate refusal. 47
46 See ante, note 10. Alonso de Palencia, Coronica,
47 Faria y Sousa, Europa Por- MS., part. 2, cap. 7. — Lebrija,
tuguesa, torn. ii. p. 391. — Cas- Rerum Gestarum Decad., lib. 1,
tillo, Cronica, cap. 121, 127. — cap. 7.
100 CASTILE UNDER HENRY IV.
part Henry, or rather the marquis of Villena, piqued at
! — this opposition to his wishes, resolved to intimidate
her into compliance ; and menaced her with im-
prisonment in the royal fortress at Madrid. Neither
her tears nor entreaties would have availed against
this tyrannical proceeding ; and the marquis was
only deterred from putting it in execution by his
fear of the inhabitants of Ocana, who openly es-
poused the cause of Isabella. Indeed, the common
people of Castile very generally supported her in
her preference of the Aragonese match. Boys
paraded the streets, bearing banners emblazoned
with the arms of Aragon, and singing verses pro-
phetic of the glories of the auspicious union. They
even assembled round the palace gates, and insult-
ed the ears of Henry and his minister by the repe-
tition of satirical stanzas, which contrasted Alfon-
so's years with the youthful graces of Ferdinand.' 18
Notwithstanding this popular expression of opin-
ion, however, the constancy of Isabella might at
length have yielded to the importunity of her
persecutors, had she not been encouraged by hei
friend, the archbishop of Toledo, who had warm
ly entered into the interests of Aragon, and who
promised, should matters come to extremity, to
march in person to her relief at the head of a suffi-
cient force to insure it.
FerdiS 119 Isabella, indignant at the oppressive treatment,
which she experienced from her brother, as well as
at his notorious infraction of almost every article in
48 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, MS., cap. 7. — Alonso de Palencia.
Coronica, MS., part. 2, cap. 7.
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 101
the treaty of Toros de Guisando, felt herself released chapter
from her corresponding engagements, and deter- ! —
mined to conclude the negotiations relative to her
marriage, without any further deference to his
opinion. Before taking any decisive step, how-
ever, she was desirous of obtaining the concurrence
of the leading nobles of her party. This was
effected without difficulty, through the intervention
of the archbishop of Toledo, and of Don Frederic
Henriquez, admiral of Castile, and the maternal
grandfather of Ferdinand ; a person of high con-
sideration, both from his rank and character, and
connected by blood with the principal families in
the kingdom. 49 Fortified by their approbation,
Isabella dismissed the Aragonese envoy with a
favorable answer to his master's suit. 50
Her reply was received with almost as much
satisfaction by the old king of Aragon, John the
Second, as by his son. This monarch, who was one
of the shrewdest princes of his time, had always
been deeply sensible of the importance of consolidat-
ing the scattered monarchies of Spain under one
head. He had solicited the hand of Isabella for
his son, when she possessed only a contingent rever-
sion of the crown. But, when her succession had
been settled on a more secure basis, he lost no
time in effecting this favorite object of his policy.
With the consent of the states, he had transferred
to his son the title of king of Sicily, and associated
40 Pulgar, Claris Varones, tit. 2. Palencia, Coronica, MS., part. 2,
50 L. Marineo, Cosas Memora- cap. 7. — Pulgar, Reyes Catoli-
nles, fol. 154. — Zurita, Anales, cos, cap. 9.
torn. iv. fol. 162. — Alonso de
102
CASTILE UNDER HENRY IV.
PART
I.
Articles of
marriage.
1469.
him with himself in the government at home, in
order to give him greater consequence in the eyes
of his mistress. He then despatched a confidential
agent into Castile, with instructions to gain over to
his interests all who exercised any influence on the
mind of the princess ; furnishing him for this pur-
pose with cartes blanches, signed by himself and
Ferdinand, which he was empowered to fill at his
discretion. 51
Between parties thus favorably disposed, there
was no unnecessary delay. The marriage articles
were signed, and sworn to by Ferdinand at Cer-
vera, on the 7th of January. He promised faith-
fully to respect the laws and usages of Castile ; to
fix his residence in that kingdom, and not to quit
it without the consent of Isabella ; to alienate no
property belonging to the crown ; to prefer no for-
eigners to municipal offices, and indeed to make no
appointments of a civil or military nature, without
her consent and approbation ; and to resign to her
exclusively the right of nomination to ecclesiastical
benefices. All ordinances of a public nature were
to be subscribed equally by both. Ferdinand en-
gaged, moreover, to prosecute the war against the
Moors ; to respect King Henry ; to suffer every
noble to remain unmolested in the possession of his
dignities, and not to demand restitution of the
domains formerly owned by his father in Castile.
The treaty concluded with a specification of a
magnificent dower to be settled on Isabella, far
51 Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. fol. 157, 163.
MARRIAOE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 103
more ample than that usually assigned to the chapter
r . , -« III
queens of Aragon. 52 The circumspection of the 1_.
framers of this instrument is apparent from the
various provisions introduced into it solely to calm
the apprehensions and to conciliate the good will
of the party disaffected to the marriage ; while the
national partialities of the Castilians in general
were gratified by the jealous restrictions imposed
on Ferdinand, and the relinquishment of all the
essential rights of sovereignty to his consort.
While these affairs were in progress, Isabella's critical situ-
1 ° ation of Iaa-
situation was becoming extremely critical. She bella -
had availed herself of the absence of her brother
and the marqiuis of Villena in the south, whither
they had gone for the purpose of suppressing the
still lingering spark of insurrection, to transfer her
residence from Ocaiia to Madrigal, where, under
the protection of her mother, she intended to abide
the issue of the pending negotiations with Aragon.
Far, however, from escaping the vigilant eye of the
marquis of Villena by this movement, she laid her-
self more open to it. She found the bishop of
Burgos, the nephew of the marquis, stationed at
Madrigal, who now served as an effectual spy upon
her actions. Her most confidential servants were
corrupted, and conveyed intelligence of her pro-
ceedings to her enemy. Alarmed at the actual
progress made in the negotiations for her marriage,
52 See the copy of the original de Hist., Apend.no. 1. — Zurita,
marriage contract, as it exists in the Anales, lib. 18, cap. 21. — Ferre-
archives of Simancas, extracted in ras, Hist. d'Espagne, torn. vii.
torn. vi. of Memorias de la Acad. p. 236.
10i CASTILE UNDER HENRY IV.
part the marquis was now convinced that he could only
: — hope to defeat them by resorting to the coercive
system, which he had before abandoned. He
accordingly instructed the archbishop of Seville to
march at once to Madrigal with a sufficient force to
secure Isabella's person ; and letters were at the
same time addressed by Henry to the citizens of
that place, menacing them with his resentment, if
they should presume to interpose in her behalf.
The timid inhabitants disclosed the purport of the
mandate to Isabella, and besought her to provide
for her own safety. This was perhaps the most
critical period in her life. Betrayed by her own
domestics, deserted even by those friends of her
own sex, who might have afforded her sympathy
and counsel, but who fled affrighted from the scene
of danger, and on the eve of falling into the snares
of her enemies, she beheld the sudden extinction
of those hopes, which she had so long and so fondly
cherished. 53
In this exigency, she contrived to convey a
knowledge of her situation to Admiral Henriquez,
and the archbishop of Toledo. The active prelate,
on receiving the summons, collected a body of
horse, and reinforced by the admiral's troops, ad-
vanced with such expedition to Madrigal, that he
succeeded in anticipating the arrival of the enemy.
Isabella received her friends with unfeigned satis-
53 Alonso de Palcncia, Coronica, Beatrice de Bobadilla and Mencia
MS., part. 2, cap. 12. — Castillo, de la Torre, the two ladies most in
Cronica, cap. 128, 131, 130. — her confidence, had escaped to the
Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. fol. 1C2. — neighbouring town of Coca.
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 105
faction ; and, bidding adieu to her dismayed guar- chapter
in.
dian, the bishop of Burgos, and his attendants, she .
was borne off by her little army in a sort of military
triumph to the friendly eity of Valladolid, where
she was welcomed by the citizens with a general
burst of enthusiasm. 51
In the mean time Gutierre de Cardenas, one of
the household of the princess, 55 and Alfonso de
Palencia, the faithful chronicler of these events,
were despatched into Aragon in order to quicken
Ferdinand's operations, during the auspicious inter-
val afforded by the absence of Henry in Andalusia.
On arriving at the frontier town of Osma, they
were dismayed to find that the bishop of that place,
together with the duke of Medina Celi, on whose
active cooperation they had relied for the safe in-
troduction of Ferdinand into Castile, had been
gained over to the interests of the marquis of Vil-
Icna. 5G The envoys, however, adroitly concealing
the real objeet of their mission, were permitted to
pass unmolested to Saragossa, where Ferdinand
was then residing. They could not have arrived
at a more inopportune season. The old king of
Aragon was in the very heat of the war against the
54 Castillo, Cronica, cap. 130. the world, qualities with which he
— Alonso de Palencia, Coronica, united a steady devotion to the in-
MS., part. 2, cap. 12. — Carbajal, terests of his mistress. Oviedo,
Anales, MS., afio 09. Quincuagenas, MS., bat. 1, quinc.
55 This cavalier, who was of an 2, dial. 1.
ancient and honorable family in 5ti Alonso de Palencia, Coronica,
Castile, was introduced to the prin- MS., cap. 14. — The bishop told
cess's service by the archbishop of Palencia, that "if his own servants
Toledo. He is represented by deserted him, he would oppose the
Gonzalo de Oviedo, as a man of entrance of Ferdinand into the
much sagacity and knowledge of kingdom."
VOL. I. 14
106 CASTILE UNDER HENRY IV.
tart insurgent Catalans, headed by the victorious John
— of Anjou. Although so sorely pressed, his forces
were on the eve of disbanding for want of the
requisite funds to maintain them. His exhausted
treasury did not contain more than three hundred
enriques. 57 In this exigency he was agitated 03
the most distressing doubts. As he could spare
neither the funds nor the force necessary for cover-
ing his son's entrance into Castile, he must either
send him .unprotected into a hostile country, already
aware of his intended enterprise and in arms to
defeat it, or abandon the long-cherished object of
his policy, at the moment when his plans were ripe
for execution. Unable to extricate himself from
this dilemma, he referred the whole matter to Fer-
dinand and his council. 58
Ferdinand Jt was a t length determined, that the prince
enters Cas- O ' *■
tlIe ' should undertake the journey, accompanied by half
a dozen attendants only, in the disguise of mer-
chants, by the direct route from Saragossa ; while
another party, in order to divert the attention of
the Castilians, should proceed in a different direc-
tion, with all the ostentation of a public embassy
from the king of Aragon to Henry the Fourth.
The distance was not great, which Ferdinand and
his suite were to travel before reaching a place of
safety ; but this intervening country was patrolled
by squadrons of cavalry for the purpose of inter-
cepting their progress ; and the whole extent of
57Zurita,AnaIes,lib. 18, cap. 26. 58 Zurita, Anales,lib. 18, cap. 20.
— The enrique was a gold coin, so — Abarca, Reyes de Aragon, torn,
denominated from Henry II. ii. p. 273.
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 107
til
the frontier, from Almazan to Guadalajara, was de- ciufteh
fended by a line of fortified castles in the hands of
the family of Mendoza. 59 The greatest circum-
spection therefore was necessary. The party jour-
neyed chiefly in the night; Ferdinand assumed the
disguise of a servant, and, when they halted on the
road, took care of the mules, and served his com-
panions at table. In this guise, with no other dis-
aster except that of leaving at an inn the purse
which contained the funds for the expedition, they
arrived, late on the second night, at a little place
called the Burgo, or Borough, of Osma, which the
count of Treviilo, one of the partisans of Isabella,
had occupied with a considerable body of men-at-
arms. On knocking at the gate, cold and faint;
with travelling, during which the prince had al-
lowed himself to take no repose, they were saluted
by a large stone discharged by a sentinel from the
battlements, which, glancing near Ferdinand's head,
had wellnigh brought his romantic enterprise to a
tragical conclusion ; when his voice was recognised
by his friends within, and, the trumpets proclaiming
his arrival, he was received with great joy and fes-
tivity by the count and his followers. The remain-
der of his journey, which he commenced before
dawn, was performed under the convoy of a numer-
ous and well-armed escort ; and on the 9th of Oc-
tober he reached Duenas in the kingdom of Leon,
where the Castilian nobles and cavaliers of his par-
59 Mem. de la Acad, de Hist., torn. vi. p. 78, Ilust. 2.
108 CASTILE UNDER. HENRY IV.
part ty eagerly thronged to render him the homage due
!l — to his rank. 60
The intelligence of Ferdinand's arrival diffused
universal joy in the little court of Isabella at Valla-
dolid. Her first step was to transmit a letter to her
brother Henry, in which she informed him of the
presence of the prince in his dominions, and of
their intended marriage. She excused the course
she had taken by the embarrassments, in which she
had been involved by the malice of her enemies.
She represented the political advantages of the con-
nexion, and the sanction it had received from the
Castilian nobles ; and she concluded with soliciting
his approbation of it, giving him at the same time
affectionate assurances of the most dutiful submis-
sion both on the part of Ferdinand and of herself. 61
Arrangements were then made for an interview
between the royal pair, in which some courtly
parasites would fain have persuaded their mistress
to require some act of homage from Ferdinand, in
token of the inferiority of the crown of Aragon to
that of Castile ; a proposition which she rejected
with her usual discretion. 62
rrivntcin- Agreeably to these arrangements, Ferdinand, on
lervicw ho- , #
tweenFerdi- t ] ie eveninjr of the 15th of October, passed private-
iinml and Is- o '11
ly from Duenas, accompanied only by four attend-
ants, to the neighbouring city of Valladolid, where
he was received by the archbishop of Toledo, and
00 Alonso de Palencia, Coronica, 12th, is cited at length by Castillo,
MS., part. 2, cap. 14. — Zurita, Cronica, cap. 130.
Anales, loc. cit. G2 Alonso de Palencia, Coronica,
6* This letter, dated October MS., part. 2, cap. 15.
m.
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 109
conducted to the apartment of his mistress. c3 Fer- chapter
dinand was at this time in the eighteenth year of
his age. His complexion was fair, though some-
what bronzed by constant exposure to the sun ; his
eye quick and cheerful ; his forehead ample, and
approaching to baldness. His muscular and well-
proportioned frame was invigorated by the toils of
war, and by the chivalrous exercises in which he
delighted. He was one of the best horsemen in his
court, and excelled in field sports of every kind.
His voice was somewhat sharp, but he possessed a
fluent eloquence; and, when he had a point to car-
ry, his address was courteous and even insinuating.
He secured his health by extreme' temperance in
his diet, and by such habits of activity, that it was
said he seemed to find repose in business. G1 Isa-
bella was a year older than her lover. In stature
she was somewhat above the middle size. Her
complexion was fair ; her hair of a bright chestnut
color, inclining to red ; and her mild blue eye
beamed with intelligence and sensibility. She was
exceedingly beautiful ; " the handsomest lady,"
says one of her household, " whom 1 ever beheld,
and the most gracious in her manners."" The
63 Gutierre de Cardenas was the 15. — Oviedo, Quincuagenas, MS.,
first who pointed him out to the bat. 1, quinc. 2, dial. 1.
princess, exclaiming at the same c4 L. Marineo, Cosas Memora-
time, " Ese cs, cse es," " This is hies, fol. 182. — Garibay, Compen-
he ; " in commemoration of which dio, lib. 18, cap. 1. — " Tan amigo
ho was permitted to place on his de los negocios," says Mariana,
escutcheon the letters SS, whose " que parecia con el trabajo des-
pronunciation in Spanish resem- cansaba." Hist, de Espafia, lib.
bles that of the exclamation, which 25, cap. 18.
he had uttered. Ibid., part. 2, cap. C5 " En hermosura, puestas de-
110 CASTILE UNDER HENRY IV.
part portrait, still existing of her in the royal palace, is
conspicuous for an open symmetry of features, in-
dicative of the natural serenity of temper, and that
beautiful harmony of intellectual and moral quali-
ties, which most distinguished her. She was dig-
nified in her demeanor, and modest even to a de-
gree of reserve. She spoke the Castilian language
with more than usual elegance ; and early imbibed
a relish for letters, in which she was superior to
Ferdinand, whose education in this particular seems
to have been neglected. 66 It is not easy to obtain
a dispassionate portrait of Isabella. The Span-
iards, who revert to her glorious reign, are so smit-
ten with her moral perfections, that even in depict-
ing her personal, they borrow somewhat of the ex-
aggerated coloring of romance.
The interview lasted more than two hours, when
Ferdinand retired to his quarters at Duenas, as pri-
vately as he came. The preliminaries of the mar-
riage, however, were first adjusted ; but so great
was the poverty of the parties, that it was found
necessary to borrow money to defray the expenses
of the ceremony. 67 Such were the humiliating cir-
cumstances attending the commencement of a union
destined to open the way to the highest prosperity
and grandeur of the Spanish monarchy !
Their mar- The marriage between Ferdinand and Isabella
riage. °
lante S. A. todas las mugcres que B6 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos,
yo he visto, ninguna vi tan gracio- MS., cap. 201. — Abarca, Reyes de
sa, ni tanto de vcr como su perso- Aragon, torn. ii.p. 3G2. — Ganbay,
na, ni de tal manera e sanetidad Compendio, lib. 18, cap. 1.
honestisima." Oviedo, Quincua- G7 Mariana, Hist, de Espafia,
genas, MS. torn. ii. p. 405.
III.
1469.
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. 1 1 1
was publicly celebrated, on the morning of the chapter
19th of October, in the palace of John de Vivero,
the temporary residence of the princess, and subse-
quently appropriated to the chancery of Valladolid.
The nuptials were solemnized in the presence of
Ferdinand's grandfather, the admiral of Castile, of
the archbishop of Toledo, and a multitude of per-
sons of rank, as well as of inferior condition,
amounting in all to no less than two thousand. 68 A
papal bull of dispensation was produced by the
archbishop, relieving the parties from the impedi-
ment incurred by their falling within the prohibited
degrees of consanguinity. This spurious document
was afterwards discovered to have been devised by
the old king of Aragon, Ferdinand, and the arch-
bishop, who were deterred from applying to the
court of Rome by the zeal with which it openly es-
poused the interests of Henry, and who knew that
Isabella would never consent to a union repugnant
to the canons of the established church, and one
which involved such heavy ecclesiastical censures.
A genuine bull of dispensation was obtained, some
years later, from Sixtus the Fourth ; but Isabella,
whose honest mind abhorred every thing like arti-
fice, was filled with no little uneasiness and mortifi-
cation at the discovery of the imposition. G9 The
C8 Carbajal, Anales, MS., afio GO The intricacies of this affair,
1169. — Alonso de Palencia, Coro- at once the scandal and the stum-
nica, MS., part. 2, cap. 16. — Zu- blingblock of the Spanish histori-
rita, Anales, lib. 18, cap. 26. — See arts, have been unravelled by Sefior
a copy of the official record of the Clemencin, with his usual perspi-
marriage, Mem. de la Acad., torn, cuity. See Mem. de la Acad.,
vi. Apend. 4. See alsothellust. 2. torn. vi. pp. 105- 110, Uust. 2.
112
CASTILE UNDER HENRY TV.
PARI
I.
ensuing week was consumed in the usual festivities
of this joyous season; at the expiration of which,
the new-married pair attended publicly the celebra-
tion of mass, agreeably to the usage of the time, in
the collegiate church of Santo Maria. 70
An embassy was despatched by Ferdinand and"
Isabella to Henry, to acquaint him with their pro-
ceedings, and again request his approbation of
them. They repeated their assurances of loyal
submission, and accompanied the message with a
copious extract from such of the articles of mar-
riage, as, by their import, would be most likely to
conciliate his favorable disposition. Henry coldly
replied, that " he must advise with his ministers." 71
7° Alonso de Palenoia, Coronica, Reminiscences of Spain, (Boston,
MS., part. 2, cap. 16. — A lively 1833,) vol. i. pp. 225-255.
narrative of the adventures of ~' Castillo, ( Ironica, cap. 137. —
Prince Ferdinand, detailed in this Alonso dc Palencia, Coronica,
chapter, may he found in Cushing's MS., part 2, cap. 10.
Qnlncus-
£i na.s of
Ufietlo.
Gonzalo Fernandez de Oviedo y
Valdes, author of the " Quincua-
genas " frequently cited in this His-
tory, was born at Madrid, in 1478.
He was of noble Asturian descent.
Indeed, every peasant in the Astu-
rias claims nobility as his birth-
right. At the age of twelve he
was introduced into the royal pal-
ace, as one of the pages of Prince
John. He continued with the
court several years, and was pres-
ent, though a boy, in the closing
campaigns of the Moorish war. In
1514, according to his own state-
ment, he embarked for the Indies,
where, although he revisited his
native country several times, lie
continued during the remainder
of his long life. The time of his
death is uncertain.
Oviedo occupied several impor-
tant posts under the government,
and he was appointed to one of a
literary nature, for which he was
well qualified by his long residence
abroad ; that of historiographer of
the Indies. It was in this capacity
that he produced his principal work
" Historia General dc las Indias,'
in fifty books. Las Casas denoun-
ces the book as a wholesale fabri-
cation, " as full of lies, almost, as
pages." (CEuvres, trad, de Llo-
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
113
rente, torn. i. p. 382. ^ But Las
Casas entertained toe hearty an
aversion for the man, whom he
publicly accused of rapacity and
cruelty, and was too decidedly op-
posed to his ideas on the govern-
ment of the Indies, to be a fair
critic. Ovicdo, though somewhat
loose and rambling, possessed ex-
tensive stores of information, by
which those who have had occa-
sion to follow in his track have
liberally profited.
The work with which we arc
concerned, is his Quincuagenas. It
is entitled " Las Quincuagenas de
los generosos 6 ilustres e no menos
famosos Reyes, Principes, Duques,
Marqucses y Condes et Caballeros,
et Personas notables de Espafia,
que escribio el Capitan Gonzalo
Fernandez de Oviedo y Valdez,
Alcaide de sus Magestades de la
Fortalcza de la Cibdad e Puerto de
Sancto Domingo de la Isla Espa-
fiola, Coronista de las Indias," &c.
At the close of the third volume is
this record of the octogenarian au-
thor; " Acabe de escribir de mi
mano este famoso tractado de la
nobleza de Espafia, domingo 1° dia
de Pascua de Pentecostes XXIII.
de mayo de 1556 ailos. LausDeo.
Y de mi edad 79 afios." This
very curious work is in the form
of dialogues, in which the author
is the chief interlocutor. It con-
tains a very full, and, indeed, pro-
lix notice of the principal persons
in Spain, their lineage, revenues,
and arms, with an inexhaustible
fund of private anecdote. The
author, who was well acquainted
with most of the individuals of
note in his time, amused himself,
during his absence in the New
World, with keeping alive the
images of home by this minute
record of early reminiscences. In
this mass of gossip, there is a good
deal, indeed, of very little value.
It contains, however, much for the
illustration of domestic manners,
and copious particulars, as I have
intimated, respecting the charac-
ters and habits of eminent person-
ages, which could have been known
only to one familiar with them.
On all topics of descent and herald-
ry, he is uncommonly full ; and
one would think his services in
this department alone, might have
secured him, in a land where these
are so much respected, the honors
of the press. His book, however,
still remains in manuscript, appar-
ently little known, and less used,
by Castilian scholars. Besides
the three folio volumes in the
Royal Library at Madrid, from
which the transcript in my pos-
session was obtained, Clemencin,
whose commendations of this w6rk,
as illustrative of Isabella's reign,
are unqualified, (Mem.de la Acad,
de Hist., torn. vi. Ilust. 10.) enu-
merates three others, two in the
king's private library, and one in
that of the Academy.
VOL I.
15
CHAPTER IV.
FACTIONS IN CASTILE. — WAR BETWEEN FRANCE AND
ARAGON.— DEATH OF HENRY IV., OF CASTILE.
1469 — 1474.
Factions in Castile. — Ferdinand and Isabella. — Gallant Defence of
Perpignan against the French.- — Ferdinand raises the Siege. — Isa-
bella's Party gains Strength. — Interview between King Henry IV.
and Isabella. — The French invade Roussillon. — Ferdinand's sum-
mary Justice. — Death of Henry IV., of Castile. — Influence of his
Reign.
PART
I.
Factions in
Castile.
The marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella discon-
certed the operations of the marquis of Villena, or
as he should be styled, the grand master of St.
James, since he had resigned his marquisate to his
elder son, on his appointment to the command of
the military order above mentioned, a dignity infe-
rior only to the primacy in importance. It was
determined, however, in the councils of Henry to
oppose at once the pretensions of the princess
Joanna to those of Isabella ; and an embassy was
gladly received from the king of France, offering to
the former lady the hand of his brother the duke of
Guienne, the rejected suitor of Isabella. Louis the
Eleventh was willing to engage his relative in the
DEATH OF HENRY IV. 1 15
unsettled polities of a distant state, in order to chapter
relieve himself from his pretensions at home. 1 1-
An interview took plaee between Henry the 1470.
Fourth and the French ambassadors in a little
village in the vale of Lozoya, in Oetober, 1470. A
proclamation was read, in which Henry declared
his sister to have forfeited whatever claims she had
derived from the treaty of Toros de Guisando, by
marrying contrary to his approbation. He then
with his queen swore to the legitimacy of the prin-
cess Joanna, and announced her as his true and
lawful successor. The attendant nobles took the
usual oaths of allegiance, and the ceremony was
concluded by affiancing the princess, then in the
ninth year of her age, with the formalities ordinarily
practised on such occasions, to the count of Bou-
logne, the representative of the duke of Guienne. 2
This farce, in which many of the actors were the
same persons who performed the principal parts at
the convention of Toros de Guisando, had on the
whole an unfavorable influence on Isabella's cause.
It exhibited her rival to the world as one whose
1 Alonso de Palencia, Coronica, in 1470 for the convocation of the
MS., part. 2, cap. 21. — Gaillard, deputies, to obtain a recognition of
Rivalite, torn. iii. p. 281. — Rades the title of Joanna. But without
y Andrada, Las Tres Ordenes, fcl. effect. In the letters of convoca-
G5. — Caro de Torres, Ordenes lion issued for a third assembly of
Mi!itMrr. ?) f ( ,i. 43_ tl, c states, in 1471, this purpose
2 Oviedo, QuincuafTcnas, MS., was prudently omitted, and thus
bat. 1, quinc. 1, dial. 23.— Castillo, the claims of Joanna failed to re-
Cronica, p. 2!)8. — Alonso de Pa- ceive the countenance of the only
lencia, Coronica, MS., part. 2, cap. body which could give them valid-
24. — Henry, well knowing how ity. See the copies of the original
little all this would avail without writs, addressed to the cities of
the constitutional sanction of the Toledo and Segovia, cited by Ma-
cortcs, twice issued his summons rina, Teoria, torn. ii. pp. 87-89.
116 TROUBLES IN CASTILE AND ARAGON.
part claims were to be supported by the whole authority
'. — of the court of Castile, with the probable coopera-
tion of France. Many of the most considerable
families in the kingdom, as the Pachecos, 3 the
Mendozas in all their extensive ramifications, 4 the
Zuiligas, the Velascos, 5 the Pimentels, 6 unmindful
of the homage so recently rendered to Isabella,
now openly testified their adhesion to her niece.
Ferdinand Ferdinand and his consort, who held their little
and Isabella.
court at Duenas, 7 were so poor as to be scarcely
capable of defraying the ordinary charges of their
table. The northern provinces of Biscay and Gui-
puscoa had, however, loudly declared against the
French match ; and the populous province of Anda-
lusia, with the house of Medina Sidonia at its head,
still maintained its loyalty to Isabella unshaken. But
her principal reliance was on the archbishop of Tole-
do, whose elevated station in the church and ample
3 The grand master of St. James, 5 Alvaro de Zufiiga, count of
and his son, the marquis of Villena, Palcncia, and created by Henry IV.
afterwards duke of Escalona. The duke of Arevalo. — Pedro Fernan-
rents of the former nobleman, dez de Velasco, count of Haro, was
whose avarice was as insatiable, raised to the post of constable of
as his influence over the feeble Castile in 1473, and the office con-
mind of Henry IV. was unlimited, tinued to be hereditary in the
exceeded those of any other gran- family from that period. Pulgar,
dee in the kingdom. See Pulgar, Claros Varones, tit. 3. — Salazar
Claros Varones, tit. 6. de Mcndoza, Dignidades, lib. 3,
4 The marquis of Santillana, first cap. 21.
dukeof Infantado, and his brothers, 6 The Pimentels, counts of Be-
the counts of Corufia, and of Ten- navente, had estates which gave
dilla, and above all Pedro Gonzalez them G0,000 ducats a year ; a very
de Mendoza, afterwards cardinal large income for that pei'O'l- and
of Spain, and archbishop of Toledo, far exceeding that of any other
who was indebted for the highest grandee of similar rank in the king-
dignities in the church less to his dom. L. Marineo, Cosas Memo-
birth than his abilities. See Cla- rabies, fol. 25.
ros Varones, tit. 4, 9. — Salazar 7 Carbajal, Anales, MS., aiio
de Mendoza, Dignidades, lib. 3, 70.
cap. 17.
DEATH OF HENRY IV. 117
revenues gave him perhaps less real influence, than chapter
his commanding and resolute character, which had
enabled him to triumph over every obstacle devised
by his more crafty adversary, the grand master of
St. James. The prelate, however, with all his
generous self-devotion, was far from being a com-
fortable allj. He would willingly have raised Isa-
bella to the throne, but he would have her indebted
for her elevation exclusively to himself. He looked
with a jealous eye on her most intimate friends,
and complained that neither she nor her husband
deferred sufficiently to his counsel. The princess
could not always conceal her disgust at these hu-
mors, and Ferdinand, on one occasion, plainly told
him that " he was not to be put in leading-strings,
like so many of the sovereigns of Castile." The
old king of Aragon, alarmed at the consequences of
a rupture with so indispensable an ally, wrote in
the most earnest manner to his son, representing
the necessity of propitiating the offended prelate.
But Ferdinand, although educated in the school
of dissimulation, had not yet acquired that self-
command, which enabled him in after-life to sacri-
fice his passions, and sometimes indeed his prin-
ciples, to his interests. 8
The most frightful anarchy at this period pre- civuanar.
vailed throughout Castile. While the court was
abandoned to corrupt or frivolous pleasure, the
administration of justice was neglected, until crimes
8 Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. fol. 170. — Alonso de Palencia, Cor6-
nica, MS., cap. 45.
I.
118 TROUBLES IN CASTILE AND ARAGON.
part were committed with a frequency and on a scale,
which menaced the very foundations of society.
The nobles conducted their personal feuds with an
array of numbers which might compete with those
of powerful princes. The duke of Infantado, the
head of the house of Mendoza, 9 could bring into
the field, at four and twenty hours' notice, one
thousand lances and ten thousand foot. The bat-
tles, far from assuming the character of those waged
by the Italian condottieri at this period, were of the
most sanguinary and destructive kind. Andalusia
was in particular the theatre of this savage warfare.
The whole of that extensive district was divided
by the factions of the Guzmans and Ponces de
Leon. The chiefs of these ancient houses having
recently died, the inheritance descended to young
men, whose hot blood soon revived the feuds, which
had been permitted to cool under the temperate
sway of their fathers. One of these fiery cavaliers
was Rodrigo Ponce de Leon, so deservedly cele-
brated afterwards in the wars of Granada as the
marquis of Cadiz. He was an illegitimate and
younger son of the count of Arcos, but was prefer-
red by his father to his other children in conse-
quence of the extraordinary qualities which he
evinced at a very early period. He served his
apprenticeship to the art of war in the campaigns
9 This nobleman, Diego Hurta- reign of Isabella, (Quincuagenas,
do, " muy gentil caballero y gran MS., bat. 1, quinc. 1, dial. 8.) To
senor," as Oviedo calls him, was avoid confusion, however, 1 have
at this time only marquis of San- given him the title by which he
tillana, and was not raised to the is usually recognised by Castilian
title of duke of Infantado till the writers.
DEATH OF HENRY IV. 119
against the Moors, displaying on several occasions chapter
an uncommon degree of enterprise and personal .-
heroism. On succeeding to his paternal honors, his
haughty spirit, impatient of a rival, led him to re-
vive the old feud with the duke of Medina Sidonia,
the head of the Guzmans, who, though the most
powerful nobleman in Andalusia, was far his inferior
in capacity and military science. 10
On one occasion the duke of Medina Sidonia
mustered an army of twenty thousand men against
his antagonist ; on another, no less than fifteen
hundred houses of the Ponce faction were burnt to
the ground an Seville. Such were the potent en-
gines employed by these petty sovereigns in their
conflicts with one another, and such the havoc
which they brought on the fairest portion of the
Peninsula. The husbandman, stripped of his har-
vest and driven from his fields, abandoned himself
to idleness, or sought subsistence by plunder. A
scarcity ensued in the years 1472 and 1473, in
which the prices of the most necessary commodities
rose to such an exorbitant height, as put them
beyond the reach of any but the affluent. But it
would be wearisome to go into all the loathsome
details of wretchedness and crime brought on this
unhappy country by an imbecile government and a
disputed succession, and which are portrayed with
10 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, Mcndoza, (Toledo, 1625.) pp. 138,
MS., cap. 3. — Salazar do Mendo- 150. — Zufiiga, Anales de Sevilla,
za, Cronica de el Gran Cardenal de p. 362.
Espafia, Don Pedro Gonzalez de
120 TROUBLES IN CASTILE AND ARAGON.
part lively fidelity in the chronieles, the letters, and the
satires of the time. 11
Rouslsilon While Ferdinand's presence was more than ever
from Louis necessar y t0 SU pport the drooping spirits of his
party in Castile, he was unexpectedly summoned
into Aragon to the assistance of his father. No
sooner had Barcelona submitted to king John, as
mentioned in a preceding chapter, 12 than the in-
habitants of Roussillon and Cerdagne, which prov-
inces, it will be remembered, were placed in the
custody of France, as a guaranty for the king of
Aragon's engagements, oppressed by the grievous
exactions of their new rulers, determined to break
the yoke, and to put themselves again under the
protection of their ancient master, provided they
could obtain his support. The opportunity was
favorable. A large part of the garrisons in the
principal cities had been withdrawn by Louis the
Eleventh, to cover the frontier on the side of
11 Bcrnaldez, Reyes Catolicos, and a better sovereign to the coun-
MS., cap. 4, 5, 7. — Zufiiga, Ana- try. This performance, even more
les de Sevilla, pp. 363, 364. — interesting to the antiquarian than
Alonso do Palencia, Cor6nica, MS., to the historian, has been attributed
part. 2, cap. 35, 38, 39,42. — Sacz, by some to Pulgar, (see Mariana,
Monedas de Enrique I V., pp. 1-5. Hist, de Espafia, torn. ii. p. 475,)
— Pulgar, in an epistle addressed, and by others to Rodrigo Cota,
in the autumn of 1473, to the bish- (see Nic. Antonio, Bibliotheca
op of Coria, adverts to several cir- Vetus, torn. ii. p. 264,) but with-
cumstances which set in a strong out satisfactory evidence in favor
light the anarchical state of the of cither. Boutcrwek is much
kingdom and the total deficiency mistaken in asserting it to have
of police. The celebrated satirical been aimed at the government of
eclogue, also, entitled " Mingo John II. The gloss of Pulgar,
Revulgo," exposes, with coarse but whose authority as a contemporary
cutting sarcasm, the license of the must be considered decisive, plain-
court, the corruption of the clergy, ly proves it to have been directed
and the prevalent depravity of the against Henry IV.
people. In one of its stanzas it 12 See Chap. II.
boldly ventures to promise another
DEATH OF HENRY IV. 121
IV.
Burgundy and Brittany. John, therefore, gladly chapter
embraced the proposal ; and on a concerted day a
simultaneous insurrection took place throughout the
provinces, when such of the French, in the principal
towns, as had not the good fortune to escape into
the citadels, were indiscriminately massacred. Of
all the country, Salces, Collioure, and the castle of
Perpignan alone remained in the hands of the
French. John then threw himself into the last-
named city with a small body of forces, and in-
stantly set about the construetion of works to pro-
tect the inhabitants against the fire of the French
garrison in the castle, as well as from the army
which might soon be expected to besiege them
from without. 13
Louis the Eleventh, deeply incensed at the de-
fection of his new subjects, ordered the most for-
midable preparations for the siege of their capital.
John's officers, alarmed at these preparations, be-
sought him not to expose his person at his advanced
age to the perils of a siege and of captivity. But
the lion-hearted monarch saw the necessity of
animating the spirits of the besieged by his own
presence ; and, assembling the inhabitants in one
of the churches of the city, he exhorted them reso-
lutely to stand to their defence, and made a solemn
oath to abide the issue with them to the last.
Louis, in the mean while, had convoked the ban
13 Alonso de Palencia, Coronica, rante, Histoire des Dues de Bour-
MS., cap. 56. — Mariana, Hist, de gogne, (Paris, 1825,) torn. ix. pp.
Espafia, torn. ii. p. 481. — Zurita, 101 - 106.
A.nales, torn. iv. fol. 191. — Ba-
VOL. I. 16
122
TROUBLES IN CASTILE AND ARAGON.
PART
I.
Oitninit de-
fence of I'cr-
pignan.
Ferdinand
raises the
and arriere-ban of the contiguous French provinces,
and mustered an array of chivalry and feudal militia,
amounting, according to the Spanish historians, to
thirty thousand men. With these ample forces, his
lieutenant-general, the duke of Savoy, closely in-
vested Perpignan ; and, as he was provided with
a numerous train of battering artillery, instantly
opened a heavy fire on the inhabitants. John, thus
exposed to the double fire of the fortress and the
besiegers, was in a very critical situation. Far
from being disheartened, however, he was seen,
armed cap-a-pie, on horseback from dawn till even-
ing, rallying the spirits of his troops, and always
present at the point of danger. He succeeded per-
fectly in communicating his own enthusiasm to the
soldiers. The French garrison were defeated in
several sorties, and their governor taken prisoner ;
while supplies were introduced into the city in the
very face of the blockading army. H
Ferdinand, on receiving intelligence of his fa-
ther's perilous situation, instantly resolved, by Isa-
bella's advice, to march to his relief. Putting
himself at the head of a body of Castilian horse,
generously furnished him by the archbishop of To-
ledo and his friends, he passed into Aragon, where
he was speedily joined by the principal nobility
of the kingdom, and an army amounting in all to
thirteen hundred lances and seven thousand infan-
14 Alonso de Palencia, Coronica, — Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. fol. 195.
MS., cap. 70. — Mariana, Hist, de ■ — Anquetil, Histoire de France,
Espafia, torn. ii. p. 482. — L. Ma- (Paris, 1805,) torn. v. pp. GO, 01.
rineo, Cosas Memorables, fol. 148.
DEATJI OF HENRY IV. 123
try. With this corps he vapidly descended the chapter
Pyrenees, by the way of Mancanara, in the face of '
a driving tempest, which concealed him for some
time from the view of the enemy. The latter,
during their protracted operations, for nearly three
months, had sustained a serious diminution of num-
bers in their repeated skirmishes with the besieged,
and still more from an epidemic which broke out in
their camp. They also began to suffer not a little
from want of provisions. At this crisis, the appari-
tion of this new army, thus unexpectedly descend-
ing on their rear, filled them with such consterna-
tion, that they raised the siege at once, setting fire
to their tents, and retreating with such precipita-
tion as to leave most of the sick and wounded a
prey to the devouring element. John marched out,
with colors flying and music playing, at the head
of his little band, to greet his deliverers ; and, after
an affecting interview in the presence of the two
armies, the father and son returned in triumph into
Perpignan. 15
The French army, reinforced by command of Treaty
" J between
Louis, made a second ineffectual attempt (their ££)££. and
own writers call it only a feint) upon the city; and 1473 -
the campaign was finally concluded by a treaty be-
tween the two monarchs, in which it was arranged,
that the king of Aragon should disburse within the
year the sum originally stipulated for the services
rendered him by Louis in his late war with his
15 Ziirita, Anales, torn. iv. fol. 10G. — L. Marineo. Cosas Memora-
19G. — Barante, Hist, des Dues bles, fol. 149. — Alonso de Palen-
de Bourgogne, torn. x. pp. 105, cia,Coronica,MS.,cap. 70, 71, 72.
1 24 TROUBLES IN CASTILE AND ARAGON.
part Catalan subjects; and that, in case of failure, the
— provinces of Roussillon and Cerdagne should be
permanently ceded to the French crown. The
commanders of the fortified places in the contested
territory, selected by one monarch from the nomina-
tions of the other, were excused during the interim
from obedience to the mandates of either ; at least
so far as they might contravene their reciprocal
engagements. 16
There is little reason to believe that this singu-
lar compact was subscribed in good faith by either
party. John, notwithstanding the temporary suc-
cour which he had received from Louis at the com-
mencement of his difficulties with the Catalans,
might justly complain of the infraction of his engage-
ments, at a subsequent period of the war ; when
he not only withheld the stipulated aid, but indirect-
ly gave every facility in his power to the invasion
of the duke of Lorraine. Neither was the king
of Aragon in a situation, had he been disposed, to
make the requisite disbursements. Louis, on the
other hand, as the event soon proved, had no other
object in view but to gain time to reorganize his
army, and to lull his adversary into security, while
he took effectual measures for recovering the prize
which had so unexpectedly eluded him.
Isabella's During these occurrences Isabella's prospects
■SSy?" were daily brightening in Castile. The duke of
J c Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. fol. Louis XL, torn. ii. pp. 99, 101. —
200. — Gaillard, Rivalite, torn. iii. Alonso de Palencia, Coipnica,
p. 2G6. — See the articles of the MS., cap. 73.
treaty cited by Duclos, Hist, de
DEATH OF HENRY IV. 125
Guienne, the destined spouse of her rival Joanna, cuaptek
IV.
had died in France ; but not until he had testified - —
his contempt of his engagements with the Castilian
princess by openly soliciting the hand of the heiress
of Burgundy. 17 Subsequent negotiations for her
marriage with two other princes had entirely failed.
The doubts which hung over her birth, and which
the public protestations of Henry and his queen,
far from dispelling, served only to augment, by the
necessity which they implied for such an extra-
ordinary proceeding, were sufficient to deter any
one from a connexion, which must involve the
party in all the disasters of a civil war. 18
Isabella's own character, moreover, contributed
essentially to strengthen her cause. Her sedate
conduct, and the decorum maintained in her court,
formed a strong contrast with the frivolity and li-
cense which disgraced that of Henry and his con-
sort. Thinking men were led to conclude that
the sagacious administration of Isabella must eventu-
ally secure to her the ascendency over her rival ;
while all, who sincerely loved their country, could
not but prognosticate for it, under her beneficent
sway, a degree of prosperity, which it could never
17 Louis XI. is supposed with cousin of Ferdinand, and the king
much probability to have assassi- of Portugal. The former, on his
nated this brother. M. de Barante entrance into Castile, assumed
sums up his examination of the such sovereign state, (giving his
evidence with this remark. " Le hand, for instance, to the grandees
roi Louis XI. ne fit peut-etre pas to kiss,) as disgusted these haugh-
mourir son frcre, mais personne ty nobles, and was eventually the
ne pensa qu'il en fut incapable." occasion of breaking off his match.
Hist, des Dues de Bourgogne, Alonso de Palencia, Coronica,
torn. ix. p. 433. MS., part. 2, cap. 62. — Faria
18 The two princes alluded to y Sousa, Europa Portuguesa, torn,
were the duke of Segorbe, a ii. p. 392.
126
TROUBLES IN CASTILE AND ARAGON.
part reach under the rapacious and profligate ministers
— ■ who directed the councils of Henry, and most
probably would continue to direct those of his
daughter.
Among the persons whose opinions experienced
a decided revolution from these considerations, was
Pedro Gonzalez de Mendoza, archbishop of Seville
and cardinal of Spain ; a prelate, whose lofty sta-
tion in the church was supported by talents of the
highest order ; and whose restless ambition led him,
like many of the churchmen of the time, to take
an active interest in politics, for which lie was
admirably adapted by his knowledge of affairs and
discernment of character. Without desertinjr his
former master, he privately entered into a corre-
spondence with Isabella : and a service, which
Ferdinand, on his return from Aragon, had an op-
portunity of rendering the duke of Infantado, the
head of the Mendozas, 19 secured the attachment of
the other members of this powerful family. 20
A circumstance occurred at this time, which seem-
ed to promise an accommodation between the ad-
verse factions, or at least between Henry and his
sister. The government of Segovia, whose impreg-
nable citadel had been made the depository of the
Interview
between
Henry IV.
and Isabella
at Segovia.
19 Oviedo assigns another reason
for this change ; the disgust occa-
sioned by Henry IV. 's transferring
the custody of his daughter from
the family of Mendoza to the
Pachccos. Quincuagcnas, MS.,
bat. 1, quinc. 1, dial. 8.
'■*° Salazar de Mendoza, Cron. del
Gran Cardenal,p. 133. — Alonso de
Palencia, Coronica, MS., part. '2,
cap. 40, 92. — Castillo, Cronica,
cap. 103. — - The influence of
these new allies, especially of the
cardinal, over Isabella's councils,
was an additional ground of um-
brage to the archbishop of Tole-
do, who, in a communication with
the king of Aragon, declared him-
self, though friendly to their cause,
to he released from all further ob-
ligations to serve it. See Zurita,
Anales, torn. iv. lib. 40, cap. 19
DEATH OF HENRY IV. 127
royal treasure, was intrusted to Andres de Cabrera, chapter
an officer of the king's household. This cavalier, —
influenced in part by personal pique to the grand
master of St. James, and still more perhaps by the
importunities of his wife, Beatriz de Bobadilla, the
early friend and companion of Isabella, entered into
a correspondence with the princess, and sought to
open the way for her permanent reconciliation
with her brother. He accordingly invited her to
Segovia, where Henry occasionally resided, and, to
dispel any suspicions which she might entertain of
his sincerity, despatched his wife secretly by night,
disguised in the garb of a peasant, to Aranda,
where Isabella then held her court. The latter
confirmed by the assurances of her friend, did not
hesitate to comply with the invitation, and, accom-
panied by the archbishop of Toledo, proceeded to 1473.
Segovia, where an interview took place between her
and Henry the Fourth, in which she vindicated her
past conduct, and endeavoured to obtain her broth-
er's sanction to her union with Ferdinand. Henry,
who was naturally of a placable temper, received
her communication with complacency, and, in order
to give public demonstration of the good under-
standing now subsisting between him and his sis-
ter, condescended to walk by her side, holding the
bridle of her palfrey, as she rode along the streets
of the city. Ferdinand, on his return into Castile,
hastened to Segovia, where he was welcomed by the
monarch with every appearance of satisfaction. A
succession of fetes and splendid entertainments, at
which both parties assisted, seemed to announce an
128 TROUBLES IN CASTILE AND ARAGON.
part entire oblivion of all past animosities, and the na-
h tion weleomed with satisfaction these symptoms of
repose after the vexatious struggle by which it had
been so long agitated. 21
The repose, however, was of no great duration.
The slavish mind of Henry gradually relapsed un-
der its ancient bondage ; and the grand master of
St. James succeeded, in consequence of an illness
with which the monarch was suddenly seized after
an entertainment given by Cabrera, in infusing into
his mind suspicions of an attempt at assassination.
Henry was so far incensed or alarmed by the
suggestion, that he concerted a scheme for privately
seizing the person of his sister, which was defeated
by her own prudence and the vigilance of her
friends. 22 — But, if the visit to Segovia failed in its
destined purpose of a reconciliation with Henry, it
was attended with the important consequence of
securing to Isabella a faithful partisan in Cabrera,
who, from the control which his situation gave him
over the royal coffers, proved a most seasonable ally
in her subsequent struggle with Joanna.
Not long after this event, Ferdinand received
another summons from his father to attend him in
Aragon, where the storm of war, which had been
21 Carbajal, Anales, MS., auos tillo, Cronica, cap. 164. — Oviedo
73, 74. — Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, has given a full account of this cava-
p.27. — Castillo, Cronica, cap. 164. lier, who was allied to an ancient
— Alonso de Palencia, Coroniea, Catalan family, but who raised
MS., part. 2, cap. 75. — Ovie- himself to such preeminence by
do, Quincuagcnas, MS., bat. 1, his own deserts, says that writer,
quinc. 1, dial. 23. that he may well be considered the
22 Mendoza, Cron. del Gran founder of his house, loc. cit.
Cardenal, pp. 141, 142. — Cas-
DEATH OF HENRY IV. \2d
for some time gathering in the distance, now burst cdapteu
. iv.
with pitiless fury. In the beginning of February,
1474, an embassy consisting of two of his principal 1474.
nobles, accompanied by a brilliant train of cava-
liers and attendants, had been deputed by John to
the court of Louis XL, for the ostensible purpose of
settling the preliminaries of the marriage, previous-
ly agreed on, between the dauphin and the infanta
Isabella, daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella, then
little more than three years of age. 23 The real
object of the mission was to effect some definitive
adjustment or compromise of the differences relat-
ing to the contested territories of Roussillon and
Cerdagne. The king of France, who, notwith-
standing his late convention with John, was making
active preparations for the forcible occupation of
these provinces, determined to gain time by amus-
ing the ambassadors with a show of negotiation,
and interposing every obstacle which his ingenuity
could devise to their progress through his domin-
ions. He succeeded so well in this latter part of
his scheme, that the embassy did not reach Paris
until the close of Lent. Louis, who seldom resided
in his capital, took good care to be absent at this
season. The ambassadors in the interim were
entertained with balls, fetes, military reviews, and
whatever else might divert them from the real ob-
jects of their mission. All communication was cut
23 Carbajal, Anales, MS., afio Oct. 1st, 1470 ; afterwards queen
70. — This was the eldest child of Portugal.
of Ferdinand and Isabella, born
VOL. I. 17
130
TROUBLES IN CASTILE AND ARAGON.
PART
I.
off with their own government, as their couriers were
stopped and their despatches intercepted, so that
John knew as little of his envoys or their proceed-
ings, as if they had been in Siberia or Japan. In
the mean time, formidable preparations were mak-
ing in the south of France for a descent on Roussil-
Ion ; and when the ambassadors, after a fruitless
attempt at negotiation, which evaporated in mutual
crimination and recrimination, set out on their re-
turn to Aragon, they were twice detained, at Lyons
and Montpelier, from an extreme solicitude, as the
French government expressed it, to ascertain the
safest route through a country intersected by hostile
armies ; and all this, notwithstanding their repeated
protestations against this obliging disposition, which
held them prisoners, in opposition to their own
will and the law of nations. The prince who
descended to such petty trickery passed for the
wisest of his time. 24
In the mean while, the Seigneur du Lude had
invaded Roussillon at the head of nine hundred
French lances and ten thousand infantry, supported
by a powerful train of artillery, while a fleet of Gen-
oese transports, laden with supplies, accompanied
147 4. the army along the coast. Elna surrendered after a
sturdy resistance ; the governor and some of the prin-
cipal prisoners were shamefully beheaded as traitors;
and the French then proceeded to invest Per-
pignan. The king of Aragon was so much impovcr-
■Kffond
Trench in-
vasion 8.) The Curate of
Los Palacios refers to a clause re-
ported, he says, to have existed in
the testament of Henry IV., in
which he declares Joanna his
daughter and heir ; (Reyes Ca-
tolicos, MS., cap. 10.) Alonsodc
Palencia states positively that there
was no such instrument, and that
Henry, on being asked who was to
succeed him, referred to his secre-
tary Juan Gonzalez for a knowl-
edge of his intention. (Cron.c.92.)
L. Marineo also states that the
king, " with his usual improvi-
dence," left, no will. (Cosas Mc-
morables, fol. 155.) Pulgar, an-
other contemporary, expressly de-
clares that he executed no will,
and quotes the words dictated by
him to his secretary, in which he
simply designates two of the gran-
dees as " executors of his soul, "
(atbaccas dc su anima,) and four
others in conjunction with them as
the guardians of his daughter Jo-
anna. Reyes Cat. p. 31.) It seems
not improbable that the existence
of this document has been confound-
ed with that of a testament, and
that with reference to it, the phrase
above quoted of Castillo, as well as
the passage of Bernaldcz, is to be
interpreted. Carbajars wild story
of the existence of a will, of its
secretion for more than thirty
years, and its final suppression by
Ferdinand, is too naked of testimo-
ny to deserve the least weight with
the historian. (See his Anales,
MS., afio 74.) It should be remem-
bered, however, that most of the
abovementioned writers compiled
their works after the accession of
Isabella, and that none, save Cas-
tillo, were the partisans of her rival.
It should also lie added that in the
letters addressed by the princess
Joanna to the different cities of the
kingdom, on her assuming the title
of queen of Castile, (bearing date
May, 1475.) it is expressly stated
that Henry IV., on his deathbed,
solemnly affirmed her to be his on-
ly daughter and lawful heir. These
letters were drafted by John de
Ovicdo, (Juan Gonzalez,) the con-
fidential secretary of Henry IV.
See Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. fol.
235 - 239.
136
TROUBLES IN CASTILE AND ARAGOiN.
PATtT
!.
The testaments of the Castilfan sovereigns, though
never esteemed positively binding, and occasionally,
indeed, set aside, when deemed unconstitutional or
even inexpedient by the legislature, 30 were always
allowed to have great weight with the nation.
With Henry the Fourth terminated the male
line of the house of Trastamara, who had kept
possession of the throne for more than a century,
and in the course of only four generations had ex-
hibited every gradation of character from the bold
and chivalrous enterprise of the first Henry of that
name, down to the drivelling imbecility of the last.
30 As was the case with the tos- century, and with that of Peter the
tamcnts of Alfonso of Leon and Cruel, in the fourteenth.
Alfonso the Wise, in the thirteenth
Notice of
Alonso de
Palenciu.
The historian cannot complain
of a want of authentic materials
for the reign of Henry IV. Two
of the chroniclers of that period,
Alonso de Palencia and Enriquez
del Castillo, were eyewitnesses
and conspicuous actors in the
scenes which they recorded, and
connected with opposite factions.
The former of these writers, Alon-
so de Palencia, was born, as ap-
pears from his work, " De Synon-
ymis," cited by Pcllicer, (Biblio-
theca de Traductorcs, p. 7,) in
1423. Nic. Antonio has fallen
into the error of dating his birth
nine years later. (Bibliotheca Ve-
tus, torn. ii. p. 331.) At the age of
seventeen, he became pase to Al-
fonso of Carthagena, bishop of
Burgos, and, in the family of that
estimable prelate, acquired a taste
for letters, which never deserted
him during a busy political career.
He afterwards visited Italy, where
he became acquainted with Cardi-
nal Bessarion, and through him
with the learned George of Trebi-
zond, whose lectures on philosophy
and rhetoric he attended. On his
return to his native country, he was
raised to the dignity of royal his-
toriographer by Alfonso, younger
brother of Henry IV., and compet-
itor with him for the crown. He
attached himself to the fortunes of
Isabella, after Alfonso's death, and
was employed by the archbishop
of Toledo in many delicate nego-
tiations, particularly in arranging
ihc marriage of the princess with
Ferdinand, for which purpose he
made a secret journey into Aragon.
On the accession of Isabella, he
was confirmed in the office of na-
tional chronicler, and passed the
remainder of his life in the compo-
sition of philological and histori-
cal works and translations from the
ancient classics. The time of his
death is uncertain. He lived to a
good old age, however, since it ap-
pears from his own statement, (see
Mendez, Typographia Espaiiola,
(Madrid, 1796,) p. 190,) that his
version of Joseph us was not com-
pleted till the year 1492.
The most popular of Palencia's
DEATH OF HENRY IV.
137
Influence of
reign.
The character of Henry the Fourth has been chapter
sufficiently delineated in that of his reign. He
was not without certain amiable qualities, and may llis
be considered as a weak, rather than a wicked
prince. In persons, however, intrusted with the
degree of power exercised by sovereigns of even
the most limited monarchies of this period, a weak
man may be deemed more mischievous to the state
over which he presides than a wicked one. The
latter, feeling himself responsible in the eyes of the
nation for his actions, is more likely to consult ap-
pearances, and, where his own passions or interests
are not immediately involved, to legislate with ref-
erence to the general interests of his subjects. The
former, on the contrary, is too often a mere tool
writings, are his " Chronicle of
Henry IV.," and his Latin "De-
cades," continuing the reign of Is-
abella down to the capture of Ba-
za, in 1489. His historical style, far
from scholastic pedantry, exhibits
the business-like manner of a man
of the world. His Chronicle, which,
being composed in the Castilian,
was probably intended for popular
use, is conducted with little arti-
fice, and indeed with a prolixity
and minuteness of detail, arising
no doubt from the deep interest
which as an actor he took in the
.scenes he describes. His senti-
ments arc expressed with boldness,
and sometimes with the acerbity
of party feeling. He has been
much commended by the best
Spanish writers, such as Zurita,
Zufiiga, Marina, Clemencin, for
his veracity. The internal evi-
dence of this is sufficiently strong
in his delineation of those scenes
in which he was personally en-
gaged ; in his account of others, it
will not be difficult to find exam-
ples of negligence and inaccuracy.
His Latin " Decades" were prob-
ably composed with more care, as
addressed to a learned class of
readers ; and they are lauded by
Nic. Antonio as an elegant com-
mentary, worthy to be assiduously
studied by all who would acquaint
themselves with the history of
their country. The art of printing
has done less perhaps for Spain
than for any other country in Eu-
rope ; and these two valuable histo-
ries are still permitted to swell the
rich treasure of manuscripts with
which her libraries are overloaded.
Enriquez del Castillo, a native Notice of
of Segovia, was the chaplain and Enriquez del
historiographer of King Henry IV., Castlll °-
and a member of his privy coun-
cil. His situation not only made
him acquainted with the policy and
intrigues of the court, but with
the personal feelings of the mon-
arch, who reposed entire confidence
in him, which Castillo repaid
with uniform loyalty. He appears
very early to have commenced his
VOL. I
18
138 TROUBLES IN CASTILE AND ARAGON.
part in the hands of favorites, who, finding "themselves
___J screened by the interposition of royal authority
from the consequences of measures for which they
should be justly responsible, sacrifice without re-
morse the public weal to the advancement of their
private fortunes. Thus the state, made to minister
to the voracious appetites of many tyrants, suffers
incalculably more than it would from one. So fared
it with Castile under Henry the Fourth ; dismem-
bered by faction, her revenues squandered on
worthless parasites, the grossest violations of justice
unredressed, public faith become a jest, the treasury
bankrupt, the court a brothel, and private morals too
loose and audacious to seek even the veil of hypoc-
risy ! Never had the fortunes of the kingdom reach-
ed so low an ebb since the great Saracen invasion.
Chronicle of Henry's reign. On work is not written in the business-
thc occupation of Segovia by the like style of Palcncia's. The sen-
young- Alfonso, after the battle of timents exhibit a moral sensibility
Olmeclo, in 1107, the chronicler, scarcely to have been expected,
together with the portion of his even from a minister of religion,
history then compiled, was un- in the corrupt court of Henry IV. ;
fortunate enough to fall into the and the honest indignation of the
enemy's hands. The author was writer, at the abuses which he
soon summoned to the presence witnessed, sometimes breaks forth
of Alfonso and his counsellors, to in a strain of considerable elo-
hear and justify, as he could, cer- quence. The spirit of his work,
tain passages of what they termed notwithstanding its abundant loy-
his " false and frivolous narrative." alty, may be also commended for
Castillo, hoping little from a dc- its candor in relation to the parti-
fence before such a prejudiced tri- sans of Isabella ; which has led
bunal, resolutely kept, his peace; some critics to suppose that it
and it might have gone hard with underwent a rifacimento after the
him, had it not been for his eccle- accession of that princess to the
siastical profession. He subsc- throne.
quently escaped, but never recov- Castillo's Chronicle, more for-
ered his manuscripts, which were tunate than that of his rival, has
frobably destroyed; and, in the been published in a handsome
ntroduction to his Chronicle, he form under the care of Don Jose
laments, that he has been obliged Miguel de Flores, Secretary of the
to rewrite the first half of his mas- Spanish Academy of History, to
ter's reign. whose learned labors in this way
Notwithstanding Castillo's fa- Castilian literature is so much in-
miliarity with public affairs, his debted.
CHAPTER V.
ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA. — WAR OF THE SUC-
CESSION.— BATTLE OF TORO.
1474—1476.
Isabella proclaimed Queen. — Settlement of the Crown. — Alfonso of
Portugal supports Joanna. — Invades Castile. — Retreat of the Cas-
tilians. — Appropriation of the Church Plate. — Reorganization of the
Army. — Battle of Toro. — Submission of the whole Kingdom. —
Peace with France and Portugal. — Joanna takes the Veil. — Death
of John II., of Aragon.
Most of the contemporary writers are content chapter
to derive Isabella's title to the crown of Castile ■ —
i mi • • f -it rt Title of Isa-
from the illegitimacy of her rival Joanna. i3ut, as b ^ n& -
this fact, whatever probability it may receive from
the avowed licentiousness of the queen, and some
other collateral circumstances, was never established
by legal evidence, or even made the subject of legal
inquiry, it cannot reasonably be adduced as afford-
ing in itself a satisfactory basis for the pretensions
of Isabella. !
1 The popular belief of Joanna's princess Joanna, the only child
illegitimacy was founded on the of his second queen, Joanna of
following circumstances. 1. King Portugal, was not born until the
Henry's first marriage with Blanche eighth year of her marriage, and
of Navarre was dissolved, after it long after she had become noto-
had subsisted twelve years, on the rious for her gallantries. 3. Al-
publicly alleged ground of " im- though Henry kept several mis-
potence in the parties." 2. The tresses, whom he maintained in so
110
ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
PART
I.
These arc to be derived from the will of the
nation as expressed by its representatives in cortes.
The power of this body to interpret the laws regu-
lating the succession, and to determine the succes-
sion itself, in the most absolute manner, is incon-
trovertible, having been established by repeated
precedents from a very ancient period. 2 In the
present instance, the legislature, soon after the
birth of Joanna, tendered the usual oaths of alle-
giance to her as heir apparent to the monarchy.
On a subsequent occasion, however, the cortes, for
reasons deemed sufficient by itself, and under a
conviction that its consent to the preceding measure
had been obtained through an undue influence on
the part of the crown, reversed its former acts, and
did homage to Isabella as the only true and law-
ful successor. 3 In this disposition the legislature
ostentatious a manner as to excite
general scandal, he was never
known to have had issue by any
one of them. — To counterbalance
the presumption afforded by these
facts, it should be stated, that
Henry appears, to tbe day of his
death, to have cherished the prin-
cess Joanna as his own offspring,
and that Bcltran de la Cucva, duke
of Albuquerque, her reputed fa-
ther, instead of supporting her
claims to the crown on the demise
of Henry, as would have been
natural had he been entitled to the
honors of paternity, attached him-
self to the adverse faction of Isa-
bella.
Queen Joanna survived her hus-
band about six months only. Fa-
ther Florez (Reynas Catholicas,
torn. ii. pp. 760 -780) has made
a flimsy attempt to whitewash her
character ; but, to say nothing of
almost every contemporary histo-
rian, as well as of the official docu-
ments of that day (see Marina,
Teoria, torn. iii. part. 2, num.
11.), the stain has been too deeply
fixed by the repeated testimony of
Castillo, the loyal adherent of her
own party, to be thus easily effaced.
It is said, however, that the
queen died in the odor of sanctity ;
and Ferdinand and Isabella caused
her to be deposited in a rich mau-
soleum, erected by the ambassador
to the court of the Great Tamer-
lane for himself, but from which
his remains were somewhat un-
ceremoniously ejected, in order to
make room for those of his royal
mistress.
2 See this subject discussed in
cxtenso, by Marina, Teoria, part.
2, cap. 1-10. — See, also, Introd.
Sect. 1. of this History.
3 See Part I. Chap. 3.
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION. 14 J
continued so resolute, that, notwithstanding Henry chaptek
twice convoked the states for the express purpose —
of renewing their allegiance to Joanna, they refused
to comply with the summons ; 4 and thus Isabella,
at the time of her brother's death, possessed a title
to the crown unimpaired, and derived from the sole
authority which could give it a constitutional valid-
ity. It may be added that the princess was so well
aware of the real basis of her pretensions, that in
her several manifestoes, although she adverts to the
popular notion of her rival's illegitimacy, she rests
the strength of her cause on the sanction of the
cortes.
On learning- Henry's death, Isabella signified to sheispro-
& J ' b claimed
the inhabitants of Segovia, where she then resided, i lleen -
her desire of being proclaimed queen in that city,
with the solemnities usual on such occasions. 5 Ac-
cordingly, on the following morning, being the 13th
of December, 1474, a numerous assembly, consist-
ing of the nobles, clergy, and public magistrates in
their robes of office, waited on her at the alcazar or
castle, and, receiving her under a canopy of rich
brocade, escorted her in solemn procession to the
principal square of the city, where a broad platform
or scaffold had been erected for the performance of
the ceremony. Isabella, royally attired, rode on a
4 See Part I. Chap. 4, Note 2. juncture was so important, that
5 Fortunately, this strong place, Oviedo docs not hesitate to declare,
in which the royal treasure was " It lay with him to make Isabella
deposited, was in the keeping of or her rival queen, as he listed."
Andres de Cabrera, the husband Quincuagenas, MS., bat. 1, quinc.
of Isabella's friend, Beatriz de 1, dial. 23.
Bobadilla. His cooperation at this
142 ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
part Spanish jennet whose bridle was held by two of
the civic functionaries, while an officer of her court
preceded her on horseback, bearing aloft a naked
sword, the symbol of sovereignty. On arriving
at the square she alighted from her palfrey, and,
ascending the platform, seated herself on a throne
which had been prepared for her. A herald with a
loud voice proclaimed, " Castile, Castile for the
king Don Ferdinand and his consort Dona Isabella,
queen proprietor (reina proprietaria) of these king-
doms ! " The royal standards were then unfurled,
while the peal of bells and the discharge of ord-
nance from the castle publicly announced the acces-
sion of the new sovereign. Isabella, after receiving
the homage of her subjects, and swearing to main-
tain inviolate the liberties of the realm, descended
from the platform, and, attended by the same cor-
tege, moved slowly towards the cathedral church ;
where, after Te Deum hid been chanted, she pros-
trated herself before the principal altar, and, re-
turning thanks to the Almighty for the protection
hitherto vouchsafed her, implored him to enlighten
her future counsels, so that she might discharge the
high trust reposed in her, with equity and wisdom.
Such were the simple forms, that attended the
coronation of the monarchs of Castile, previously to
the sixteenth century. 6
The cities favorable to Isabella's cause, compre-
6 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, ■ — L. Marineo, Cosas Memo rabies,
MS., cap. 10. — Carbajal, Anales, fol. 155. — Oviedo, Quincuagenas,
MS., afio 75. — Alonso dc Palen- MS., bat. 1, quinc. 2, dial. 3.
cia, Coronica, MS. , part. 2, cap. 93,
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION. 143
hcnding far the most populous and wealthy through- chapter
out the kingdom, followed the example of Segovia, ! —
and raised the royal standard for their new sov-
ereign. The principal grandees, as well as most
of the inferior nobility, soon presented themselves
from all quarters, in order to tender the eustomary
oaths of allegiance ; and an assembly of the estates,
convened for the ensuing month of February at
Segovia, imparted, by a similar ceremony, a consti-
tutional sanction to these proceedings. 7
On Ferdinand's arrival from Araeon, where he setuemei
° ' of the
was staying at the time of Henry's death, occupied crowa '
with the war of Roussillon, a disagreeable discussion
took place in regard to the respective authority to
be enjoyed by- the husband and wife in the admin-
istration of the government. Ferdinand's relatives,
with the admiral Henriquez at their head, con-
tended that the crown of Castile, and of course the
exclusive sovereignty, was limited to him as the
nearest male representative of the house of Trasta-
mara. Isabella's friends, on the other hand, insisted
that these rights devolved solely on her, as the law-
fid heir and proprietor of the kingdom. The affair
was finally referred to the arbitration of the cardinal
7 Marina, whoso peculiar re- Among the nobles, who openly
searches and opportunities make testified their adhesion to Isabella,
him the best, is my only authori- were no less than four of the six
ly for this convention of the cor- individuals, to whom the late king
tes. (Teoria, torn. ii. pp. 63, 89.) had intrusted the guardianship of
The extracts he makes from the his daughter Joanna ; viz. the
writ of summons, however, seem grand cardinal of Spain, the con-
to imply, that the object was stable of Castile, the duke of In-
not the recognition of Ferdinand fantado, and the count of Bena-
and Isabella, but of their daugh- vente.
ter, as successor to the crown.
144 ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
part of Spain and the archbishop of Toledo, who, after
— - — • careful examination, established by undoubted pre-
cedent, that the exclusion of females from the suc-
cession did not obtain in Castile and Leon, as was
the case in Aragon ; 8 that Isabella was consequent-
ly sole heir of these dominions ; and that whatever
authority Ferdinand might possess, could only be
derived through her. A settlement was then made
on the basis of the original marriage contract. 9 All
municipal appointments, and collation to ecclesias-
tical benefices, were to be made in the name of
both with the advice and consent of the queen.
All fiscal nominations, and issues from the treasury,
were to be subject to her order. The commanders
of the fortified places were to render homage to her
alone. Justice was to be administered by both
conjointly, when residing in the same place, and by
each independently, when separate. Proclamations
and letters patent were to be subscribed with the
signatures of both ; their images were to be stamp-
ed on the public coin, and the united arms of Cas-
tile and Aragon emblazoned on a common seal. 10
8 A precedent for female inherit- bella II. will put this much vexed
ance, in the latter kingdom, was question at rest for ever,
subsequently furnished by the un- 9 See Part I. Chap. 3. — Ferdi-
disputcd succession and long reign nand's powers are not so narrowly
of Joanna, daughter of Ferdinand limited, at least not so carefully
and Isabella, and mother of Charles defined, in this settlement, as in
V. The introduction of the Salic the marriage articles. Indeed, the
law, under the Bourbon dynasty, instrument is much more concise
opposed a new barrier, indeed ; but and general in its whole import,
this has been since swept away by 10 Salazar de Mendoza, Cron.
the decree of the late monarch, del Gran Cardenal, lib. 1, cap. 40. —
Ferdinand VII. , and the paramount L. Marineo, Cosas Memorables, fol.
authority of the cortes ; and we 155, 156. — Zurita, Anales, torn,
may hope, that the successful as- iv. fol. 222-224. — Pulgar, Reyes
sertion of her lawful rights by Isa- Catolicos, pp. 35, 36. — See the
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION. 145
Ferdinand, it is said, was so much dissatisfied ciiapteh
with an arrangement which vested the essential ■ —
rights of sovereignty in his consort, that he threat-
ened to return to Aragon ; but Isabella reminded
him, that this distribution of power was rather
nominal than real ; that their interests were indi-
visible ; that his will would be hers ; and that the
principle of the exclusion of females from the suc-
cession, if now established, would operate to the
disqualification of their only child, who was a
daughter. By these and similar arguments the
queen succeeded in soothing her offended hus-
band, without compromising the prerogatives of
her crown.
Although the principal body of the nobility, as Partisans he did not choose to compromise her dignity by
any further advances.
By Isabella's extraordinary exertions, as well as casiiiian
J J army.
those of her husband, the latter found himself, in the
beginning of July, at the head of a force amounting
in all to four thousand men-at-arms, eight thousand
light 'horse, and thirty thousand foot, an ill-disci-
plined militia, chiefly drawn from the mountainous
districts of the north, which manifested peculiar
devotion to his cause ; his partisans in the south
being preoccupied with suppressing domestic revolt,
and with incursions on the frontiers of Portugal. 16
Meanwhille Alfonso, after an unprofitable deten- Ferdinand
' A marches
tion of nearly two months at Arevalo, marched Sf AI "
on Toro, which, by a preconcerted agreement, was
delivered into his hands by the governor of the
city, although the fortress, under the conduct of a
woman, continued to maintain a gallant defence.
While occupied with its reduction, Alfonso was
invited to receive the submission of the adjacent
city and castle of Zamora. The defection of these
places, two of the most considerable in the prov-
ince of Leon, and peculiarly important to the king
of Portugal from their vicinity to his dominions,
was severely felt by Ferdinand, who determined to
advance at once against his rival, and bring their
quarrel to the issue of a battle ; in this, acting in
J 6 Carhajal, Anales, MS., ailo d'Espagne, torn. vii. p. 411. —
75. — Puigar, Reyes Catolicos, Bernaldez, Reyes Cat61icos, MS.,
pp. 45 - 55. — Ferreras, Hist. cap. 23.
152
ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
PART
I.
He r.hnllen-
gca him to
personal
rombat.
Disorderly
retreat of
the Castil-
ians.
opposition to the more cautious counsel of his father,
who recommended the policy, usually judged most
prudent for an invaded country, of acting on the
defensive, instead of risking all on the chances of
a single action.
Ferdinand arrived before Toro on the 19th of
July, and immediately drew up his army, before its
walls, in order of battle. As the king of Portugal,
however, still kept within his defences, Ferdinand
sent a herald into his camp, to defy him to a fair
field of fight with his whole army, or, if he declined
this, to invite him to decide their differences by-
personal combat. Alfonso accepted the latter alter-
native ; but, a dispute arising respecting the guar-
anty for the performance of the engagements on
either side, the whole affair evaporated, as usual,
in an empty vaunt of chivalry.
The Castilian army, from the haste with which
it had been mustered, was wholly deficient in bat-
tering artillery, and in other means for annoying a
fortified city ; and, as its communications were cut
off, in consequence of the neighbouring fortresses
being in possession of the enemy, it soon became
straitened for provisions. It was accordingly de-
cided in a council of war to retreat without further
delay. No sooner was this determination known,
than it excited general dissatisfaction throughout
the camp. The soldiers loudly complained that the
king was betrayed by his nobles ; and a party of
over-loyal Biscayans, inflamed by the suspicions of
a conspiracy against his person, actually broke into
the church where Ferdinand was conferring with
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION. 153
V.
his officers, and bore him off in their arms from chapter
the midst of them to his own tent, notwithstanding
his reiterated explanations and remonstrances. The
ensuing retreat was conducted in so disorderly a
manner by the mutinous soldiery, that Alfonso, says
a contemporary, had he but sallied with two thousand
horse, might have routed and perhaps annihilated
the whole army. Some of the troops were detach-
ed to reinforce the garrisons of the loyal cities, but
most of them dispersed again among their native
mountains. The citadel of Toro soon afterwards
capitulated. The archbishop of Toledo, consider-
ing these events as decisive of the fortunes of the
war, now openly joined the king of Portugal at the
head of five hundred lances, boasting at the same
time, that " he had raised Isabella from the distaff,
and would soon send her back to it again." 17
So disastrous an introduction to the campaign
might indeed well fill Isabella's bosom with anx-
iety. The revolutionary movements, which had so
long agitated Castile, had so far unsettled every
man's political principles, and the allegiance of
even the most loyal hung so loosely about them,
that it was difficult to estimate how far it might be
shaken by such a blow occurring at this crisis. 18
Fortunately, Alfonso was in no condition to profit
17 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, 18 " Pues no os maravilleis de
MS., cap. 18. — Faria y Sousa, eso," says Oviedo, in relation to
Europa Portuguesa, torn. ii. pp. these troubles, " que no solo entre
398-400. — Pulgar, Cronica, pp. liermanos suele haber esas dife-
55-60. — Ruy de Pina, Chron. d' rencias, mas entre padre e hijo lo
el Rey Alfonso V., cap. 179. — La vimos aver, como suelen decir."
Clcde, Hist, de Portugal, torn. iii. Quincuagenas, MS., bat. 1, quinc.
p. 366. — Zurita, Anales,tom. iv. 2, dial. 3.
fol. 240 - 243.
VOL. I. 20
154 ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
part by his success. His Castilian allies had experi-
enced the greatest difficulty in enlisting their vas-
sals in the Portuguese cause ; and, far from furnish-
ing him with the contingents which he had expect-
ed, found sufficient occupation in the defence of
their own territories against the loyal partisans of
Isabella. At the same time, numerous squadrons
of light cavalry from Estremadura and Andalusia,
penetrating into Portugal, carried the most terrible
desolation over the whole extent of its unpro-
tected borders. The Portuguese knights loudly
murmured at being cooped up in Toro, while their
own country was made the theatre of war ; and
Alfonso saw himself under the necessity of detach-
ing so considerable a portion of his army for the
defence of his frontier, as entirely to cripple his
future operations. So deeply, indeed, was he im-
pressed, by these circumstances, with the difficulty
of his enterprise, that, in a negotiation with the
Castilian sovereigns at this time, he expressed a
willingness to resign his claims to their crown in
consideration of the cession of Galicia, together
with the cities of Toro and Zamora, and a con-
siderable sum of money. Ferdinand and his min-
isters, it is reported, would have accepted the
proposal ; but Isabella, although acquiescing in the
stipulated money payment, would not consent to
the dismemberment of a single inch of the Cas-
tilian territory.
In the mean time both the queen and her hus-
band, undismayed by past reverses, were making
every exertion for the reorganization of an army on
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION. 155
a more efficient footing. To accomplish this object, chapter
an additional supply of funds became necessary, !
since the treasure of King Henry, delivered into
their hands by Andres de Cabrera, at Segovia, had
been exhausted by the preceding operations. 19 The
old king of Aragon advised them to imitate their
ancestor Henry the Second, of glorious memory, by
making liberal grants and alienations in favor of
their subjects, which they might, when more firmly
seated on the throne, resume at pleasure. Isabel-
la, however, chose rather to trust to the patriotism
of her people, than have recourse to so unworthy a
stratagem. She accordingly convened an assembly 1475.
of the states, in the month of August, at Medina
del Campo. As the nation had been too far im-
poverished under the late reign to admit of fresh
exactions, a most extraordinary expedient was de-
vised for meeting the stipulated requisitions. It
was proposed to deliver into the royal treasury half Appropru-
11 J J ,j on f th«
the amount of plate belonging to the churches ^£™]
throughout the kingdom, to be redeemed in the
term of three years, for the sum of thirty cuentos,
or millions, of maravedies. The clergy, who were
very generally attached to Isabella's interests, far
from discouraging this startling proposal, endeav-
oured to vanquish the queen's repugnance to it, by
'9 The royal coffers were found govia. She subsequently gave a
to contain about 10,000 marks of more solid testimony of her grati-
silver. (Fulgar, RcvesCatol. p. 54.) hide, by raising him to the rank
Isabella presented Cabrera with of marquis of Moya, witli the
a golden goblet from her table, grant of an estate suitable to his
engajjinff that a similar present new dignity. — Oviedo, Quincua-
should be regularly made to him genas, MS., bat. 1, quinc. 1, dial.
and his successors on the anni- 23.
versary of his surrender of Se-
the
rch
arms
156 ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
taut arguments and pertinent illustrations drawn from
■ Scripture* This transaction certainly exhibits a
degree of disinterestedness, on the part of this
body, most unusual in that age and country, as
well as a generous confidence in the good faith of
Isabella, of which she proved herself worthy by
the punctuality with which she redeemed it. 20
itaSMha Thus provided with the necessary funds, the
sovereigns set about enforcing new levies and
bringing them under better discipline, as well as
providing for their equipment in a manner more
suitable to the exigencies of the service, than was
done for the preceding army. The remainder of
the summer and the ensuing autumn were con-
sumed in these preparations, as well as in placing
their fortified towns in a proper posture of defence,
and in the reduction of such places as held out
against them. The king of Portugal, all this
while, lay with his diminished forces in Toro,
making a sally on one occasion only, for the relief
of his friends, which was frustrated by the sleepless
vigilance of Isabella.
Early in December, Ferdinand passed from the
siege of Burgos, in Old Castile, to Zamora, whose
inhabitants expressed a desire to return to their
ao The indignation of Dr. Sala- ii. p. 400. — Rades y Andrada,
zar de Mendoza is roused by this Las Tres Ordenes, part. 1, fbl.
misapplication of the church's 67. — Zurita, Anales, torn. iv.
money, which he avers "no neces- fol. 243. — Bernaldez, Reyes Ca-
sity whatever could justify." This tolicos, MS., cap. 18, 20.) Zufiiga
worthy canon flourished in the gives some additional particulars
seventeenth century. (Cron. del respecting the grant of the cortes,
Gran Cardcual, p. 147. — ■ Pulgar, which I do not find verified by any
ReyesCatol. pp. 00,-02. — Faria y contemporary author. Annales de
Sousa, Europa Portuguesa, torn. Sevilla, p. 372.
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION. 157
ancient allegiance ; and, with the cooperation of chapter
the citizens, supported by a large detachment from v *
his main army, he prepared to invest its citadel. As
the possession of this post would effectually in-
tercept Alfonso's communications with his own
country, he determined to relieve it at every haz-
ard, and for this purpose despatched a messenger
into Portugal requiring his son, Prince John, to
reinforce him with such levies as he could speedily
raise. All parties now looked forward with eager-
ness to a general battle, as to a termination of the
evils of this long-protracted war.
The Portuguese prince, having with difficulty as-
sembled a corps amounting to two thousand lances
and eight thousand infantry, took a northerly cir-
cuit round Galicia, and effected a junction with his
father in Toro, on the 14th of February, 1476. 14 76.
Alfonso, thus reinforced, transmitted a pompous
circular to the pope, the king of France, his own
dominions, and those well affected to him in Cas-
tile, proclaiming his immediate intention of taking '
the usurper, or of driving him from the kingdom.
On the night of the 17th, having first provided for
the security of the city by leaving in it a powerful
reserve, Alfonso drew off the residue of his army,
probably not much exceeding three thousand five
hundred horse and five thousand foot, well provided
with artillery and with arquebuses, which latter
engine was still of so clumsy and unwieldy con-
struction, as not to have entirely superseded the
ancient weapons of European warfare. The Por- Kingorpor.
1 x _ tugal arrives
tuguese army, traversing the bridge of Toro, pur- J|j£ *•
non.
158 ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
part sued their march along the southern side of the
- — Douro, and reached Zamora, distant only a few
leagues, before the dawn. 21
At break of day, the Castilians were surprised
by the array of floating banners, and martial pan-
oply glittering in the sun, from the opposite side of
the river, while the discharges of artillery still more
unequivocally announced the presence of the ene-
my. Ferdinand could scarcely believe that the
Portuguese monarch, whose avowed object had
Absurd po S i- been the relief of the castle of Zamora, should
have selected a position so obviously unsuitable for
this purpose. The intervention of the river, be-
tween him and the fortress situated at the northern
extremity of the town, prevented him from reliev-
ing it, either by throwing succours into it, or by
annoying the Castilian troops, who, intrenched in
comparative security within the walls aud houses
of the city, were enabled by means of certain
elevated positions, well garnished with artillery, to
inflict much heavier injury on their opponents,
than they could possibly receive from them. Still
Ferdinand's men, exposed to the double fire of the
fortress and the besiegers, would willingly have
come to an engagement with the latter ; but the
river, swollen by winter torrents, was not fordable,
and the bridge, the only direct avenue to the city,
21 Carbajal, Anales, MS., afios fol. 156. — Faria y Sousa, Eiiropa
75 ( 7fi. — R U y de Pina,Chron. d' Portuguesa, torn. ii. pp. 401, 404.
el Rey Alfonso V., cap. 187, 189. — Several of the contemporary
— Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, Castilian historians compute the
MS., cap. 20, 22. — Pulgar, Portuguese army at double the
Reyes Catolicos, pp. 63-78. — amount given in the text.
L. Marineo, Cosas Memorables,
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION. 1.59
was enfiladed by the enemy's cannon, so as to chapter
render a sally in that direction altogether impracti- '.
cable. During this time, Isabella's squadrons of
light cavalry, hovering on the skirts of the Portu-
guese camp, effectually cut off its supplies, and soon
reduced it to great straits for subsistence. This
circumstance, together with the tidings of the rapid
advance of additional forces to the support of Fer-
dinand, determined Alfonso, contrary to all expec-
tation, on an immediate retreat ; and accordingly
on the morning of the 1st of March, being little Hesudden.
. ...'>' decamps.
less than a fortnight from the time in which he com-
menced this empty gasconade, the Portuguese army
cpiitted its position before Zamora, with the same
silence and celerity with which it had occupied it.
Ferdinands troops would instantly have pushed
after the fugitives, but the latter had demolished
the southern extremity of the bridge before their
departure ; so that, although some few effected an
immediate passage in boats, the great body of the
army was necessarily detained until the repairs were
completed, which occupied more than three hours.
With all the expedition they could use, therefore,
and leaving their artillery behind them, they did
not succeed in coming up with the enemy until
nearly four o'clock in the afternoon, as the latter
was defiling through a narrow pass formed by a overtaken
- . . fc y Ferdi-
crest of precipitous hills on the one side, and the nand -
Douro on the other, at the distance of about five
miles from the city of Toro. 22
•22 Pulgar, Reyes Catoliccs, pp. fol. 252, 253. — Faria y Sousa,
82-85. — Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. Europa Portuguesa, torn. ii. pp.
1G0 ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
part A council of war was then called, to decide on
the expediency of an immediate assault. It was
objected, that the strong position of Toro would ef-
fectually cover the retreat of the Portuguese in case
of their discomfiture ; that they would speedily be
reinforced by fresh recruits from that city, which
would make them more than a match for Ferdi-
nand's army, exhausted by a toilsome march, as
well as by its long fast, which it had not broken
since the morning ; and that the celerity, with
which it had moved, had compelled it, not only to
abandon its artillery, but to leave a considerable
portion of the heavy-armed infantry in the rear.
Notwithstanding the weight of these objections,
such were the high spirit of the troops and their
eagerness to come to action, sharpened by the view
of the quarry, which after a wearisome chase seem-
ed ready to fall into their hands, that they were
thought more than sufficient to counterbalance
every physical disadvantage ; and the question of
battle was decided in the affirmative.
Battle or As the Castilian army emerged from the defile
into a wide and open plain, they found that the
enemy had halted, and was already forming in or-
der of battle. The king of Portugal led the centre,
with the archbishop of Toledo on his right wing,
its extremity resting on the Douro ; while the left,
comprehending the arquebusiers and the strength
of the cavalry, was placed under the command of
his son, Prince John. The numerical force of the
404, 405. — Bernaldez, Reyes Ca- Pina, Chr6n. d'el Rey Alfonso V.
tolicos, MS., cap. 23. — Ruy de cap. 190.
Toro.
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION. ]Q\
two armies, although in favor of the Portuguese, chapter
y
was nearly equal, amounting probably in each to '. —
less than ten thousand men, about one third being
cavalry. Ferdinand took his station in the centre,
opposite his rival, having the admiral and the duke
of Alba on his left ; while his right wing, distribut-
ed into six battles or divisions, under their several
commanders, was supported by a detachment of
men-at-arms from the provinces of Leon and Ga-
licia.
The action commenced in this quarter. The
Castilians, raising the war-cry of " St. James and
St. Lazarus," advanced on the enemy's left under
Prince John, but were saluted with such a brisk and
well-directed fire from his arquebusiers, that their
ranks were disconcerted. The Portuguese men-at-
arms, charging them at the same time, augmented
their confusion, and compelled them to fall back
precipitately on the narrow pass in their rear, where,
being supported by some fresh detachments from the
reserve, they were with difficulty rallied by their
officers, and again brought into the field. In the
mean while, Ferdinand closed with the enemy's
centre, and the action soon became general along
the whole line. The battle raged with redoubled
fierceness in the quarter where the presence of the
two monarchs infused new ardor into their soldiers,
who fought as if conscious that this struggle was to
decide the fate of their masters. The lances were
shivered at the first encounter, and, as the ranks of
the two armies mingled with each other, the men
vol. i. 21
162 ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
part fought hand to hand with their swords, with a fury
sharpened by the ancient rivalry of the two nations,
making the whole a contest of physical strength
rather than skill. 23
The royal standard of Portugal was torn to
shreds in the attempt to seize it on the one side and
to preserve it on the other, while its gallant bearer,
Edward de Almeyda, after losing first his right arm,
and then his left, in its defence, held it firmly with
his teeth until he was cut down by the assailants.
The armour of this knight was to be seen as late as
Mariana's time, in the cathedral church of Toledo,
where it was preserved as a trophy of this desper-
ate act of heroism, which brings to mind a similar
feat recorded in Grecian story.
The old archbishop of Toledo, and the cardinal
Mendoza, who, like his reverend rival, had ex-
changed the crosier for the corslet, were to be seen
on that day in the thickest of the melee. The
holy wars with the infidel perpetuated the unbe-
coming spectacle of militant ecclesiastics among
the Spaniards, to a still later period, and long after
it had disappeared from the rest of civilized Eu-
rope.
•riierort.i- At length, after an obstinate struggle of more
^'iicserouieJ ° °°
than three hours, the valor of the Castilian troops
prevailed, and the Portuguese were seen to give
93 Carbajal, Anales, MS., afio ii. pp. 404, 405. — Bernaldez,
76. — L. Marineo, Cosas Memo- Reyes Cat61icos, MS., cap. 23. —
rabies, fol. 158. — Pulgar, Reyes La Clede, Hist, de Portugal, lorn.
Catolicos, pp. 85-89. — Faria y iii. pp. 378-383. — Zurita, Ana-
Sousa, Europa Portuguesa, torn les, torn. iv. fol. 252 -355.
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION. 163
way in all directions. The duke of Alva, by sue- chapter
ceeding in turning their flank, while they were '
thus vigorously pressed in front, completed their
disorder, and soon converted their retreat into a
rout. Some, attempting to cross the Douro, were
drowned, and many, who endeavoured to effect, an
entrance into Toro, were entangled in the narrow
defile of the bridge, and fell by the sword of their
pursuers, or miserably perished in the river, which,
bearing along their mutilated corpses, brought ti-
dings of the fatal victory to Zamora. Such were
the heat and fury of the pursuit, that the interven-
ing night, rendered darker than usual by a driving
rain storm, alone saved the scattered remains of
the army from destruction. Several Portuguese
companies, under favor of this obscurity, contrived
to elude their foes by shouting the Castilian battle-
cry. Prince John, retiring with a fragment of his
broken squadrons to a neighbouring eminence, suc-
ceeded, by lighting fires and sounding his trumpets,
in rallying round him a number of fugitives ; and, as
the position he occupied was too strong to be readi-
ly forced, and the Castilian troops were too weary,
and well satisfied with their victory, to attempt
it, he retained possession of it till morning, when
he made good his retreat into Toro. The king of
Portugal, who was missing, was supposed to have
perished in the battle, until, by advices received
from him late on the following day, it was as-
certained that he had escaped without personal in-
jury, and with three or four attendants only, to the
fortified castle of Castro Nuno, some leagues distant
164 ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
part from the field of action. Numbers of his troops,
! — . attempting to escape across the neighbouring
frontiers into their own country, were maimed or
massacred by the Spanish peasants, in retaliation
of the excesses wantonly committed by them in
their invasion of Castile. Ferdinand, shocked at
this barbarity, issued orders for the protection of
their persons, and freely gave safe-conducts to such
as desired to return into Portugal. He even, with
a degree of humanity more honorable, as well as
more rare, than military success, distributed clothes
and money to several prisoners brought into Zamo-
ra in a state of utter destitution, and enabled them
to return in safety to their own country. 24
The Castilian monarch remained on the field
of battle till after midnight, when he returned to
Zamora, being followed in the morning by the car-
dinal of Spain and the admiral Henriquez, at the
head of the victorious legions. Eight standards
with the greater part of the baggage were taken
in the engagement, and more than two thousand
of the enemy slain or made prisoners. Queen
Isabella's Isabella, on receiving tidings of the event at Tor-
thanksgiving CD CD
for^the vie (j es iii aSj w here she then was, ordered a procession
24 Faria y Sousa claims the Catolicos, pp. 85-90. — L. Mari-
honors of the victory for the Por- neo, Cosas Memorables, fol. 158.
tuguese, because Prince John kept — Carbajal, Anales, MS., afio 76.
the field till morning. Even M. La — Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos,
Clede, with all his deference to the MS., cap. 23. — Ruy de Pina,
Portuguese historian, cannot swal- Chron. d' el Rey Alfonso V., cap.
low this. Faria y Sousa, Europa 191. — Ferdinand, in allusion to
Portuguesa, torn. ii. pp. 405-410. Prince John, wrote to his wife,
— Oviedo, Quincuagenas, MS., that " if it had not been for the
bat. 1, quinc. 1, dial. 8. — Salazar chicken, the old cock would have
de Mendoza, Cron. del Gran Carde- been taken." Garibay, Compen-
nal,lib. 1, cap. 46. — Pulgar, Reyes dio, lib. 18, cap. 8.
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION. 165
to the church of St. Paul in the suburbs, in which chapter
she herself joined, walking barefoot with all humili- ! —
tj, and offered up a devout thanksgiving to the
God of battles for the victory with which he had
crowned her arms. 25
It was indeed a most auspicious victory, not so submission
1 J of the whole
much from the immediate loss inflicted on the en- kin s dom -
emy, as from its moral influence on the Castilian
nation. Such as had before vacillated in their
faith, who, in the expressive language of Bernal-
dez, " estaban aviva quien vence," — who were
prepared to take sides with the strongest, now
openly proclaimed their allegiance to Ferdinand
and Isabella ; while most of those, who had been
arrayed in arms, or had manifested by any other
overt act their hostility to the government, vied
with each other in demonstrations of the most loyal
submission, and sought to make the best terms for
themselves which they could. Among these latter,
the duke of Arevalo, who indeed had made over-
tures to this effect some time previous through the
agency of his son, together with the grand master
of Calatrava, and the count of Urueiia, his brother,
experienced the lenity of government, and were
confirmed in the entire possession of their estates.
The two principal delinquents, the marquis of Vil-
lena and the archbishop of Toledo, made a show
of resistance for some time longer ; but, after
25 Pulgar, Reyes Cat61icos, p. do, with the title of San Juan de
90. — The sovereigns, in compli- los Reyes, in commemoration of
ance with a previous vow, caused their victory over the Portuguese,
a superb monastery, dedicated to This edifice was still to be seen in
St. Francis, to be erected in Tole- Mariana's time.
166 ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
tart witnessing the demolition of their castles, the cap-
! ture of their towns, the desertion of their vassals.
and the sequestration of their revenues, were fain
to purchase a pardon at the price of the most hum-
ble concessions, and the forfeiture of an ample
portion of domain.
The castle of Zamora, expecting no further suc-
cours from Portugal, speedily surrendered, and this
event was soon followed by the reduction of Madrid.
Baeza, Toro, and other principal cities ; so that, in
little more than six months from the date of the
battle, the whole kingdom, with the exception of a
few insignificant posts still garrisoned by the ene-
my, had acknowledged the supremacy of Ferdinand
and Isabella. 26
Soon after the victory of Toro, Ferdinand was
enabled to concentrate a force amounting to fifty
thousand men, for the purpose of repelling the
French from Guipuscoa, from which they had
already twice been driven by the intrepid natives,
and whence they again retired with precipitation
on receiving news of the king's approach. 27
The King of Alfonso, finding his authority in Castile thus
Portugal vis- ' O J
rapidly melting away before the rising influence of
Ferdinand and Isabella, withdrew with his virgin
bride into Portugal, where he formed the resolution
26 Rades y Andrada, Las Tres dez, Reyes Catolicos, MS., cap. 10.
Ordenes, torn. ii. fol. 79, 80. — Pul- — Oviedo, Quincuagenas, MS., bat.
gar, Reyes Catolicos, cap. 48-50, 1, quinc. 1, dial. 8.
55, 60. — Zurita, Anales, lib. 19, 2 ? Gaillard, Rivalite, torn. iii.
cap. 46, 48, 54, 58. — Ferreras, pp. 290-292. — Carbajal, Anales,
Hist. d'Espagne, torn. vii. pp. 476 MS., aiio 76.
-478, 517-519, 546. — Bernal-
ita France.
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION. ] (J7
V.
of visiting France in person, and soliciting succour ciiapti-.k
from his ancient ally, Louis the Eleventh. In spite
of every remonstrance, he put this extraordinary
scheme into execution. He reached France, with
a retinue of two hundred followers, in the month
of September. He experienced everywhere the
honors due to his exalted rank, and to the signal
mark of confidence, which he thus exhibited to-
wards the French king. The keys of the cities
were delivered into his hands, the prisoners were
released from their dungeons, and his progress was
attended by a general jubilee. His brother mon-
arch, however, excused himself from affording more
substantial proofs of his regard, until he should have
closed the war then pending between him and
Burgundy, and until Alfonso should have fortified
his title to the Castilian crown, by obtaining from
the pope a dispensation for his marriage with
Joanna.
The defeat and death of the duke of Burgundy,
whose camp, before Nanci, Alfonso visited in the
depth of winter, with the chimerical purpose of
effecting a reconciliation between him and Louis,
removed the former of these impediments ; as, in
good time, the compliance of the pope did the lat-
ter. But the king of Portugal found himself no
nearer the object of his negotiations ; and, after
waiting a whole year a needy supplicant at the
court of Louis, he at length ascertained that his
insidious host was concerting an arrangement with
his mortal foes, Ferdinand and Isabella. Alfonso,
whose character always had a spice of Quixotism
1 68 ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
part in it, seems to have completely lost his wits at this
— last reverse of fortune. Overwhelmed with shame
at his own credulity, he felt himself unable to en-
counter the ridicule which awaited his return to
Portugal, and secretly withdrew, with two or three
domestics only, to an obscure village in Normandy,
whence he transmitted an epistle to Prince John,
his son, declaring, " that, as all earthly vanities
were dead within his bosom, he resolved to lay up
an imperishable crown by performing a pilgrimage
to the Holy Land, and devoting himself to the ser-
vice of God, in some retired monastery ; " and he
concluded with requesting his son " to assume the
sovereignty, at once, in the same manner as if he
had heard of his father's death." 28
I'onugai! Fortunately Alfonso's retreat was detected be-
fore he had time to put his extravagant project
in execution, and his trusty followers succeeded,
though with considerable difficulty, in diverting
him from it ; while the king of France, willing to
be rid of his importunate guest, and unwilling per-
haps to incur the odium of having driven him to so
desperate an extremity as that of his projected
pilgrimage, provided a fleet of ships to transport
him back to his own dominions, where, to complete
1478 - the farce, he arrived just five davs after the cere-
Nov. 15. 7 ■' J
mony of his son's coronation as king of Portugal.
Nor was it destined that the luckless monarch
98 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, 20, cap. 10. — Ruy de Pina,Chron.
MS., cap. 27. — Pulgar, Reyes Ca- d'el Rey Alfonso V., cap. 194-
tolicos, cap. 56, 57. — Gaillard, Ri- 202. — Faria y Sousa, Enropa Por-
valite, torn. iii. pp. 290-292. — tuguesa, torn. ii. pp. 412 -415. —
Zurita, Anales, lib. 19, cap. 56, lib. Comincs, Memoires, liv. 5, chap. 7.
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION. 169
should solace himself, as he had hoped, in the arms chapter
V
of his youthful bride ; since the pliant pontiff, Sixtus '■ —
the Fourth, was ultimately persuaded by the court
of Castile to issue a new bull overruling the dis-
pensation formerly conceded, on the ground that it
had been obtained by a misrepresentation of facts.
Prince John, whether influenced by filial piety,
or prudence, resigned the crown of Portugal to his
father, soon after his return ; 29 and the old monarch
was no sooner reinstated in his authority, than,
burning with a thirst for vengeance, which made
him insensible to every remonstrance, he again
prepared to throw his country into combustion by
reviving his enterprise against Castile. 30
While these hostile movements were in progress, £rance Wilh
Ferdinand, leaving his consort in possession of a 1478.
sufficient force for the protection of the frontiers,
made a journey into Biscay for the purpose of an
interview with his father, the king of Aragon, to
concert measures for the pacification of Navarre,
which still continued to be rent with those san-
guinary feuds, that were bequeathed like a precious
29 According to Faria y Sousa, pered to the duke of Braganza, "I
John was walking along the shores will take good care that that stone
of the Tagus, with the duke of does not rebound on me." Soon
Braganza, and the cardinal, arch- after, he left Portugal for Rome,
bishop of Lisbon, when he received where he fixed his residence. The
the unexpected tidings of his fa- duke lost his life on the scaffold
thcr's return to Portugal. On his for imputed treason, soon after
inquiring of his attendants, how he John's accession. — Europa Portu-
should receive him, " How but as guesa, torn. ii. p. 416.
your king and father ! " was the 30 Comines, Memoires, liv. 5,
reply ; at which John, knitting his chap. 7. — Faria y Sousa, Europa
brows together, skimmed a stone, Portuguesa, torn. ii. p. 116. — Zu-
which he held in his hand, with rita, Anales, lib. 20, cap. 25. —
much violence across the water. Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, MS.,
The cardinal, observing this, whis- cap. 27.
VOL. I. 22
70
ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
PAltT
I.
Active mea-
sures of Isa-
bella.
legacy from one generation to another. 31 In the
autumn of the same year a treaty of peace was
definitively adjusted between the plenipotentiaries
of Castile and France, at St. Jean de Luz, in which
it was stipulated as a principal article, that Louis
the Eleventh should disconnect himself from his
alliance with Portugal, and give no further support
to the pretensions of Joanna. 32
Thus released from apprehension in this quarter,
the sovereigns were enabled to give their undivided
attention to the defence of the western borders.
Isabella, accordingly, early in the ensuing winter,
passed into Estremadura for the purpose of repel-
ling the Portuguese, and still more of suppressing
the insurrectionary movements of certain of her
own subjects, who, encouraged by the vicinity of
Portugal, carried on from their private fortresses a
most desolating and predatory warfare over the cir-
cumjacent territory. Private mansions and farm-
houses were pillaged and burnt to the ground, the
cattle and crops swept away in their forays, the
highways beset, so that all travelling was at an end.
all communication cut off, and a rich and populous
31 This was the first meeting
between father and son since the
elevation of the latter to the Cas-
tilian throne. King John would
not allow Ferdinand to kiss his
hand ; he chose to walk on his
left ; he attended him to his quar-
ters, and, in short, during the
whole twenty days of their con-
ference, manifested towards his
son all the deference, which, as a
parent, he was entitled to receive
from him. This he did on the
ground that Ferdinand, as king
of Castile, represented the elder
branch of Trastamara, while he
represented only the younger. It
will not be easy to meet with an
instance of more punctilious eti-
quette, even in Spanish history. —
Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, cap. 75.
32 Salazar de Mendoza, Cr6n.
del Gran Cardenal, p. 162. — Zu-
rita, Anales, lib. 20, cap. 25. —
Carbajal, Anales, MS., afio 79.
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION. 17
district converted at once into a desert. Isabella, chapter
v.
supported by a body of regular troops and a detach- ■ — — ' — -
ment of the Holy Brotherhood, took her station at
Truxillo, as a central position, whence she might
operate on the various points with greatest facility.
Her counsellors remonstrated against this exposure
of her person in the very heart of the disaffected
country ; but she replied that " it was not for her
to calculate perils or fatigues in her own cause,
nor by an unseasonable timidity to dishearten her
friends, with whom she was now resolved to remain
until she had brought the war to a conclusion."
She then gave immediate orders for laying siege at
the same time to the fortified towns of Medellin,
Merida, and Deleytosa.
At this juncture the infanta Dona Beatriz of Treaty of
" peace with
Portugal, sister-in-law of king Alfonso, and mater- Porlu * al -
nal aunt of Isabella, touched with grief at the
calamities, in which she saw her country involved
by the chimerical ambition of her brother, offered
herself as the mediator of peace between the bel-
ligerent nations. Agreeably to her proposal, an in-
terview took place between her and queen Isabella
at the frontier town of Alcantara. As the conferen-
ces of the fair negotiators experienced none of the
embarrassments usually incident to such delibera-
tions, growing out of jealousy, distrust, and a mutual
design to overreach, but were conducted in perfect
good faith, and a sincere desire, on both sides, of
establishing a cordial reconciliation, they resulted,
after eight days' discussion, in a treaty of peace,
with which the Portuguese infanta returned into
172 ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
part her own country, in order to obtain the sanction
- — of her royal brother. The articles contained in it,
however, were too unpalatable to receive an im-
mediate assent ; and it was not until the expiration
of six months, during which Isabella, far from
relaxing, persevered with increased energy in her
original plan of operations, that the treaty was for-
scpt. 24. mally ratified by the court of Lisbon. 33
It was stipulated in this compact, that Alfonso
should relinquish the title and armorial bearings,
which he had assumed as king of Castile ; that he
should resign his claims to the hand of Joanna, and
no longer maintain her pretensions to the Castilian
throne ; that that lady should make the election
within six months, either to quit Portugal for ever,
or to remain there on the condition of wedding Don
John, the infant son of Ferdinand and Isabella, 34 so
soon as he should attain a marriageable age, or to
retire into a convent, and take the veil ; that a
general amnesty should be granted to all such
Castilians as had supported Joanna's cause ; and,
finally, that the concord between the two nations
should be cemented by the union of Alonso, son of
the prince of Portugal, with the infanta Isabella, of
Castile. 35
33 Ruy dc Pina, Chron. d'el Rey 34 Born the preceding year, June
Alfonso V., cap. 20G.— L. Marineo, 28th, 1478. Carbajal, Anales, MS.,
Cosas Memorables, fol. 166, 167. anno codem.
— Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, cap. 35 L. Marineo, Cosas Memora-
85, 89, 90. — Faria y Sousa, Eu- bles, fol. 168. — Pulgar, Reyes
ropa Portuguesa, torn. ii. pp. 420, Catolicos, cap. 91. — Faria y Sou-
421. — Ferreras, Hist. d'Espagne, sa, Europa Portuguesa, torn. ii. pp.
torn. vii. p. 538. — Carbajal, Ana- 420, 421.— Ruy de Pina, Chron.
les, MS., afio 79. — Bernaldez, d'el Rey Alfonso V., cap. 206.
Reyes Catolicos, MS., cap. 28, 36,
37.
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION. 173
Thus terminated, after a duration of four years chapter
and a half, the War of the Suceession. It had ■ —
fallen with peculiar fury on the border provinces of
Leon and Estremadura, which, from their local
position, had necessarily been kept in constant colli-
sion with the enemy. Its baneful effects were long
visible there, not only in the general devastation
and distress of the country, but in the moral dis-
organization, which the licentious and predatory
habits of soldiers necessarily introduced among a
simple peasantry. In a personal view, however,
the war had terminated most triumphantly for Is-
abella, whose wise and vigorous administration,
seconded by her husband's vigilance, had dispelled
the storm, which threatened to overwhelm her from
abroad, and established her in undisturbed posses-
sion of the throne of her ancestors.
Joanna's interests were alone compromised, or Joanna takea
1 the veil.
rather sacrificed, by the treaty. She readily dis-
cerned in the provision for her marriage with an
infant still in the cradle, only a flimsy veil intend-
ed to disguise the king of Portugal's desertion of
her cause. Disgusted with a world, in which she
had hitherto experienced nothing but misfortune
herself, and been the innocent cause of so much to
others, she determined to renounce it for ever, and
seek a shelter in the peaceful shades of the clois-
ter. She accordingly entered the convent of Santa
Clara at Coimbra, where, in the following year, she
pronounced the irrevocable vows, which divorce the
unhappy subject of them for ever from her species.
Two envoys from Castile, Ferdinand de Talavera,
174 ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
part Isabella's confessor, and Dr. Diaz de Madrigal, one
i. . & '
of her council, assisted at this affecting ceremo-
ny ; and the reverend father, in a copious exhorta-
tion addressed to the youthful novice, assured her
" that she had chosen the better part approved in
the Evangelists ; that, as spouse of the church, her
chastity would be prolific of all spiritual delights ;
her subjection, liberty, — the only true liberty,
partaking more of Heaven than of earth. No kins-
man," continued the disinterested preacher, " no
true friend, or faithful counsellor, would divert you
from so holy a purpose." 36
S h of flUe Not long after this event, King Alfonso, penetrat-
ed with grief at the loss of his destined bride, —
the "excellent lady," as the Portuguese continue
to call her, — resolved to imitate her example, and
exchange his royal robes for the humble habit of a
Franciscan friar. He consequently made prepara-
tion for resigning his crown anew, and retiring to
35 Ruy de Pina, Chron. d'el between the courts of Castile and
Hey Alfonso V., cap. 20. — Faria Portugal, and to have been a prin-
y Sousa, Europa Portuguesa, torn, cipal cause of those frequent inter-
ii. p. 421. — Pulgar, Reyes Ca- marriages between the royal fami-
tolicos, cap. !)2. — L. Marineo lies of the two countries, by which
speaks of the Seno7-a muy excelen- Ferdinand and Isabella hoped to
te, as an inmate of the cloister at detach the Portuguese crown from
the period in which he was writ- her interests. Joanna affected a
ing, 1522. (fol. 168.) Not with- royal style and magnificence, and
standing her "irrevocable vows," subscribed herself " I the Queen,"
however, Joanna several times to the last. She died in the palace
quitted the monastery, and main- at Lisbon, in 1530, in the 69th year
tained a royal state under the of her age, having survived most
protection of the Portuguese nion- of her ancient friends, suitors, and
archs, who occasionally threat- competitors. — Joanna's history,
ened to revive her dormant claims subsequent to her talcing the veil,
to the prejudice of the Castilian has been collected, with his usual
sovereigns. She may be said, precision, by Seilor Olemcncin,
consequently, to have formed the Mem. de la Acad, de Hist., torn,
pivot, on which turned, during her \i., Ilust. 19.
whole life, the diplomatic relations
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION. 175
the monastery of Varatojo, on a bleak eminence chapter
near the Atlantic ocean, when he suddenly fell ill, . '.
at C intra, of a disorder which terminated his ex-
istence, on the 28th of August, 1481. Alfonso's
fiery character, in which all the elements of love,
chivalry, and religion were blended together, re-
sembled that of some paladin of romance ; as the
chimerical enterprises, in which he was perpetually
engaged, seem rather to belong to the age of knight-
errantry, than to the fifteenth century. 37
fn the beginning of the same year in which the 1)eaiti °r
c ° -> the king oJ
pacification with Portugal secured to the sovereigns Ara ° on -
the undisputed possession of Castile, another crown
devolved on Ferdinand by the death of his father,
the king of Aragon, who expired at Barcelona, on
the 20th of January, 1479, in the eighty-third year
of his age. 38 Such was his admirable constitution,
that he retained not only his intellectual, but his
bodily vigor, unimpaired to the last. His long life
was consumed in civil faction or foreign wars ; and
his restless spirit seemed to take delight in these
tumultuous scenes, as best fitted to develope its
various energies. He combined, however, with
this intrepid and even ferocious temper, an address
in the management of affairs, which led him to
rely, for the accomplishment of his purposes, much
more on negotiation than on positive force. He
may be said to have been one of the first monarchs,
37 Faria y Sousa, Europa Por- 79. — Bernaldez, Reves Catolicos,
tuguesa, torn. ii. p. 423. — Ruyde MS., cap. 42. — Mariana, Hist.
Pina, Chron. d' el Rey Alfonso V., de Espafia, (cd. A r alencia,) torn,
cap. 212. viii. p. 204, not. — Abarca, Reyes
38 Carbajal, Anales, MS., afio de Aragon, torn. ii. fol. 295.
I.
1 76 ACCESSION OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA.
part who brought into vogue that refined science of the
cabinet, which was so profoundly studied by states-
men at the close of the fifteenth century, and on
which his own son Ferdinand furnished the most
practical commentary.
The crown of Navarre, which he had so shame-
lessly usurped, devolved, on his decease, on his
guilty daughter Leonora, countess of Foix, who,
as we have before noticed, survived to enjoy it
only three short weeks. Aragon, with its exten-
sive dependencies, descended to Ferdinand. Thus
the two crowns of Aragon and Castile, after a
separation of more than four centuries, became
indissolubly united, and the foundations were laid
of the magnificent empire, which was destined to
overshadow every other European monarchy.
VI.
CHAPTER VI.
INTERNAL ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE.
1475—1482.
Schemes of Reform. — Holy Brotherhood. — Tumult at Segovia.—
The Queen's Presence of Mind. — Severe Execution of Justice. —
Royal Progress through Andalusia. — Reorganization of the Tribu-
nals. — Castilian Jurisprudence. — Plans for reducing the Nobles. —
Revocation of Grants. — Military Orders of Castile. — Masterships
annexed to the Crown. — Ecclesiastical Usurpations resisted. — Res-
toration of Trade. — Prosperity of the Kingdom.
I have deferred to the present chapter a consid- chapter
eration of the important changes introduced into
the interior administration of Castile, after the ac-
cession of Isabella, in order to present a connected
and comprehensive view of them to the reader,
without interrupting the progress of the military
narrative. The subject may afford an agreeable re-
lief to the dreary details of blood and battle, with
which we have been so long occupied, and which
were rapidly converting the garden of Europe into
a wilderness. Such details indeed seem to have
the deepest interest for contemporary writers ; but
the eye of posterity, unclouded by personal interest
or passion, turns with satisfaction from them to
those cultivated arts, which can make the wilder-
ness to blossom as the rose.
vol. i. 23
]78 ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE.
part If there be any being on earth, that may be per-
— mitted to remind us of the Deity himself, it is the
ruler of a mighty empire, who employs the high
powers intrusted to him exclusively for the benefit
of his people ; who, endowed with intellectual
gifts corresponding with his station, in an age of
comparative barbarism, endeavours to impart to his
land the light of civilization which illumines his
own bosom, and to create from the elements of dis-
cord the beautiful fabric of social order. Such was
Isabella; and such the age in which she lived. And
fortunate was it for Spain that her sceptre, at this
crisis, was swayed by a sovereign possessed of suf-
ficient wisdom to devise, and energy to execute,
the most salutary schemes of reform, and thus to
infuse a new principle of vitality into a govern-
ment, fast sinking into premature decrepitude.
scheme of The whole plan of reform introduced into the
reform for x
u°of e cas- government by Ferdinand and Isabella, or more
properly by the latter, to whom the internal admin-
istration of Castile was principally referred, was
not fully unfolded until the completion of her reign.
But the most important modifications were adopted
previously to the war of Granada in 1482. These
may be embraced under the following heads. I.
The efficient administration of justice. II. The
codification of the laws. III. The depression of
the nobles. IV. The vindication of ecclesiastical
rights belonging to the crown from the usurpation
of the papal see. V. The regulation of trade.
VI. The preeminence of royal authority,
^ministra- J. The administration of justice. In the dismal
lie*.
reform for
the
merit
tile.
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE. 179
anarchy, which prevailed in Henry the Fourth's chapter
reign, the authority of the monarch and of the ■ —
royal judges had fallen into such contempt, that the
law was entirely without force. The cities afforded
no better protection than the open country. Every
man's hand seemed to be lifted against his neigh-
bour. Property was plundered ; persons were vio-
lated ; the most holy sanctuaries profaned ; and the
numerous fortresses scattered throughout the coun-
try, instead of sheltering the weak, converted into
dens of robbers. l Isabella saw no better way of
checking this unbounded license, than to direct
against it that popular engine, the Santa Herman- Establish
° r r © ' ment f t ], e
dad) or Holy Brotherhood, which had more than Hermandad
once shaken the Castilian monarchs on their throne.
The project for the reorganization of this insti-
tution was introduced into the cortes held, the year
after Isabella's accession at Madrigal, in 1476. It
was carried into effect by the junta of deputies
from the different cities of the kingdom, convened
at Dueilas in the same year. The new institution
differed essentially from the ancient hermandades,
since, instead of being partial in its extent, it was
designed to embrace the whole kingdom ; and, in-
stead of being directed, as had often been the case,
1 Among other examples, Pul- tribute, (black mail,) to protect
gar mentions that of the alcayde of their territories from his rapacity.
Castro-Nuiio, Pedro de Mendana, His successful example was imi-
who from the strong-holds in his tated by many other knightly free-
possession, committed such griev- hooters of the period. (Reyes
ous devastations throughout the Catolicos, part. 2, cap. 66.) — See
country, that the cities of Burgos, also extracts cited by Saez from
Avila, Salamanca, Segovia, Valla- manuscript notices by contempora-
dolid, Medina, and others in that ries of Henry IV. Monedas de
quarter, were fain to pay him a Enrique IV., pp. 1,2.
180 ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE.
part against the crown itself, it was set in motion at the
— ! — suggestion of the latter, and limited in its opera-
tion to the maintenance of public order. The
crimes, reserved for its jurisdiction, were all vio-
lence or theft committed on the highways or in the
open country, and in cities by such offenders as es-
caped into the country ; house-breaking ; rape ; and
resistance of justice. The specification of these
crimes shows their frequency ; and the reason for
designating the open country, as the particular the-
atre for the operations of the hermandad, was the
facility which criminals possessed there for elud-
ing the pursuit of justice, especially under shelter
of the strong-holds or fortresses, with which it was
plentifully studded.
An annual contribution of eighteen thousand
maravedies was assessed on every hundred veci-
nos or householders, for the equipment and mainte-
nance of a horseman, whose duty it was to arrest
offenders, and enforce the sentence of the law.
On the flight of a criminal, the tocsins of the
villages, through which he was supposed to have
passed, were sounded, and the quadrilleros or offi-
cers of the brotherhood, stationed on the different
points, took up the pursuit with such promptness
as left little chance of escape. A court of two al-
caldes was established in every town containing
thirty families, for the trial of all crimes within the
jurisdiction of the hermandad ; and an appeal lay
from them in specified cases to a supreme council.
A general junta, composed of deputies from the
cities throughout the kingdom, was annually con-
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE. 181
vened for the regulation of affairs, and their in- chapteb
, .... VI.
structions were transmitted to provincial juntas,
who superintended the execution of them. The code or : ;
. HermantliuJ.
laws, enacted at different times in these assem-
blies, were compiled into a code under the sanction
of the junta general atTordelaguna, in 1485. 2 The
penalties for theft, which are literally written in
blood, are specified in this code with singular pre-
cision. The most petty larceny was punished with
stripes, the loss of a member, or of life itself; and
the law was administered with an unsparing rigor,
which nothing but the extreme necessity of the
case could justify. Capital executions were con-
ducted by shooting the criminal with arrows. The
enactment, relating to this, provides, that " the
convict shall receive the sacrament like a Catholic
Christian, and after that be executed as speedily
as possible, in order that his soul may pass the
more securely." 3
Notwithstanding the popular constitution of the ineffectual
hermandad, and the obvious advantages attending °f„ the no -
its introduction at this juncture, it experienced so
decided an opposition from the nobility, who dis-
2 The Quadcrno of the laws of ed. 1539. — Mem. de la Acad, de
the Hermandad has now become Hist., torn, vi., Ilust. 4. — Car-
very rare. That in my possession bajal, Anales, MS., afio 76. — Le-
was printed at Burgos, in 1527. brija, Rerum Gestarum Decades,
It has since been incorporated with fol. 36. — By one of the laws, the
considerable extension into the inhabitants of such seignorial
Recopilacion of Philip II. towns as refused to pay the contri-
3 Quaderno de las Leyes Nue- butions of the Hermandad were
vas de la Hermandad, (Burgos, excluded from its benefits, as well
1527,) leyes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6,8, 16, as from traffic with, and even the
20,36,37. — Pulgar, Reyes Ca- power of recovering their debts
tolicos, part. 2, cap. 51. — L. Ma- from other natives of the kingdom,
rineo, Cosas Memorables, fol. 160, Ley 33.
1 82 ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE.
part cerned the check it was likely to impose on their
authority, that it required all the queen's address
and perseverance to effect its general adoption.
The constable de Haro, however, a nobleman of
great weight from his personal character, and the
most extensive landed proprietor in the north, was
at length prevailed on to introduce it among his
vassals. His example was gradually followed by
others of the same rank ; and, when the city of
Seville, and the great lords of Andalusia, had con-
sented to receive it, it speedily became established
throughout the kingdom. Thus a standing body of
troops, two thousand in number, thoroughly equip-
ped and mounted, was placed at the disposal of the
crown, to enforce the law, and suppress domestic
insurrection. The supreme junta, which regulated
the counsels of the hermandad, constituted more-
over a sort of inferior cortes, relieving the exigen-
cies of government, as we shall see hereafter, on
more than one occasion, by important supplies of
men and money. By the activity of this new mili-
tary police, the country was, in the course of a few
years, cleared of its swarms of banditti, as well as
of the robber chieftains, whose strength had ena-
bled them to defy the law. The ministers of jus-
tice found a sure protection in the independent
discharge of their duties ; and the blessings of per-
sonal security and social order, so long estranged
from the nation, were again restored to it.
The important benefits, resulting from the in-
stitution of the hermandad, secured its confirma-
tion by successive cortes, for the period of twenty-
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE. 183
two years, in spite of the repeated opposition of chapter
the aristocracy. At length, in 1498, the objects ■ —
for which it was established having been complete-
ly obtained, it was deemed advisable to relieve the
nation from the heavy charges which its mainte-
nance imposed.* The great salaried officers were
dismissed ; a few subordinate functionaries were
retained for the administration of justice, over
whom the regular courts of criminal law possessed
appellate jurisdiction ; and the magnificent appara-
tus of the Santa Hermandad, stripped of all but
the terrors of its name, dwindled into an ordinary
police, such as it has existed, with various modifica-
tions of form, down to the present century. 4
Isabella was so intent on the prosecution of her Tumuitat
"■ Segovia.
schemes of reform, that, even in the minuter details,
she frequently superintended the execution of them
herself. For this she was admirably fitted by her
personal address, and presence of mind in danger,
and by the influence which a conviction of her in-
tegrity gave her over the minds of the people. A
remarkable exemplification of this occurred, the
year but one after her coronation, at Segovia. The
inhabitants, secretly instigated by the bishop of
that place, and some of the principal citizens, rose
against Cabrera, marquis of Moya, to whom the
government of the city had been intrusted, and
4 Recopilacion de las Leyes, — Lebrija, Rerum Gestarum De-
(Madrid, 1640,) lib. 8, tit. 13, ley cad., fol. 37, 38. — Las Pragma-
44. — Zufiiga, Annates de Sevilla, ticas del Reyno, (Sevilla, 1520,)
p. 379. — Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, fol. 85. — L. Marineo, Cosas
part. 2, cap. 51. — Mem. de la Memorables, fol. 160.
Acad, de Hist., torn. vi. Ilust. 6.
184 ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE.
part who had made himself generally unpopular by his
'. strict discipline. They even proceeded so far as to
obtain possession of the outworks of the citadel,
and to compel the deputy of the alcayde, who was
himself absent, to take shelter, together with the
princess Isabella, then the only daughter of the
sovereigns, in the interior defences, where they
were rigorously blockaded.
irabeiia'8 The queen, on receiving tidings of the event
presence of 1 » o o
at Tordesillas, mounted her horse and proceed-
ed with all possible despatch towards Segovia,
attended by Cardinal Mendoza, the count of
Benavente, and a few others of her court. At
some distance from the city, she was met by a
deputation of the inhabitants, requesting her to
leave behind the count of Benavente and the mar-
chioness of Moya, (the former of whom as the
intimate friend, and the latter as the wife of the
alcayde, were peculiarly obnoxious to the citizens,)
or they could not answer for the consequences.
Isabella haughtily replied, that " she was queen of
Castile ; that the city was hers, moreover, by right
of inheritance ; and that she was not used to receive
conditions from rebellious subjects." Then press-
ing forward with her little retinue, through one
of the gates, which remained in the hands of
her friends, she effected her entrance into the
citadel.
The populace, in the mean while, assembling in
greater numbers than before, continued to show
the most hostile dispositions, calling out, "Death to
the alcayde ! Attack the castle ! " Isabella's attend-
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE. ] 85
ants, terrified at the tumult, and at the preparations chapter
which the people were making to put their mena- .
ces into execution, besought their mistress to cause
the gates to be secured more strongly, as the only
mode of defence against the infuriated mob. But,
instead of listening to their counsel, she bade them
remain quietly in the apartment, and descended
herself into the court-yard, where she ordered the
portals to be thrown open for the admission of the
people. She stationed herself at the further ex-
tremity of the area, and, as the populace poured
in, calmly demanded the cause of the insurrection.
" Tell me," said she, " what are your grievances,
and I will do all in my power to redress them ; for
I am sure that what is for your interest, must be
also for mine, and for that of the whole city." The
insurgents, abashed by the unexpected presence of
their sovereign, as well as by her cool and dignified
demeanor, replied, that all they desired was the
removal of Cabrera from the government of the
city. " He is deposed already," answered the
queen, " and you have my authority to turn out
such of his officers as are still in the castle, which I
shall intrust to one of my own servants, on whom
I can rely." The people, pacified by these assur-
ances, shouted, " Long live the queen ! " and
eagerly hastened to obey her mandates.
After thus turning aside the edge of popular
fury, Isabella proceeded with her retinue to the
royal residence in the city, attended by the fickle
multitude, whom she again addressed on arriving
VOL. i. 24
186
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE.
PART
I.
Isabella vis
its Seville.
there, admonishing them to return to their voca-
tions, as this was no time for calm inquiry ; and
promising, that, if they would send three or four of
their number to her on the morrow to report the
extent of their grievances, she would examine into
the affair, and render justice to all parties. The
mob accordingly dispersed, and the queen, after a
candid examination, having ascertained the ground-
lessness or gross exaggeration of the misdemeanors
imputed to Cabrera, and traced the source of the
conspiracy to the jealousy of the bishop of Segovia
and his associates, reinstated the deposed alcayde
in the full possession of his dignities, which his
enemies, either convinced of the altered dispositions
of the people, or believing that the favorable mo-
ment for resistance had escaped, made no further
attempts to disturb. Thus by a happy pres-
ence of mind, an affair, which threatened, at
its outset, disastrous consequences, was settled
without bloodshed, or compromise of the royal
dignity. 5
In the summer of the following year, 1477, Isa-
bella resolved to pay a visit to Estremadura and
Andalusia, for the purpose of composing the dis-
sensions, and introducing a more efficient police, in
5 Carbajal, Anales, MS., afio
76. — Pulgar, Reyes Cat6licos,
part. 2, cap. 59. — Ferreras, Hist.
d'Espagne, torn. viii. p. 477. —
Lebrija, Rerum Gestarum Decad.,
fol. 41, 42. — Gonzalo de Oviedo
lavishes many encomiums on Ca-
brera, for " his generous qualities,
his singular prudence in govern-
ment, and his solicitude for his
vassals, whom he inspired with
the deepest attachment." (Quin-
cuagenas, MS., bat. 1, quinc. 1,
dial. 23.) The best panegyric on
his character, is the unshaken con-
fidence, which his royal mistress
reposed in him, to the day of her
death.
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE. 1{J7
these unhappy provinces ; which, from their prox- chapter
imity to the stormy frontier of Portugal, as well as ! .
from the feuds between the great houses of Guz-
man and Ponce de Leon, were plunged in the most
frightful anarchy. Cardinal Mendoza and her other
ministers remonstrated against this imprudent ex-
posure of her person, where it was so little likely
to be respected. But she replied, " it was true
there were dangers and inconveniences to be en-
countered ; but her fate was in God's hands, and she
felt a confidence that he would guide to a pros-
perous issue such designs as were righteous in
themselves and resolutely conducted."
Isabella experienced the most loyal and magni- Her splendid
ficent reception from the inhabitants of Seville, tn ere.
where she established her head-quarters. The first
days of her residence there were consumed in
fetes, tourneys, tilts of reeds, and other exercises of
the Castilian chivalry. After this she devoted her
whole time to the great purpose of her visit, the
reformation of abuses. She held her court in the
saloon of the alcazar, or royal castle, where she
revived the ancient practice of the Castilian sove-
reigns, of presiding in person over the administra-
tion of justice. Every Friday, she took her seat in
her chair of state, on an elevated platform covered
with cloth of gold, and surrounded by her council,
together with the subordinate functionaries, and the
insignia of a court of justice. The members of
her privy council, and of the high court of criminal
law, sat in their official capacity every day in the
week; and the queen herself received such suits as
188 ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE.
1.
Severe exe
cution of
justice.
part were referred to her adjudication, saving the par-
ties the usual expense and procrastination of justice.
By the extraordinary despatch of the queen and
her ministers, during the two months that she re-
sided in the city, a vast number of civil and criminal
causes were disposed of, a large amount of plunder-
ed property was restored to its lawful owners, and
so many offenders were brought to condign punish-
ment, that no less than four thousand suspected
persons, it is computed, terrified by the prospect of
speedy retribution for their crimes, escaped into the
neighbouring kingdoms of Portugal and Granada.
The worthy burghers of Seville, alarmed at this
rapid depopulation of the city, sent a deputation to
the queen, to deprecate her anger, and to represent
that faction had been so busy of late years in their
unhappy town, that there was scarcely a family to
be found in it, some of whose members were not
more or less involved in the guilt. Isabella, who
was naturally of a benign disposition, considering
that enough had probably been done to strike a
salutary terror into the remaining delinquents, was
willing to temper justice with mercy, and ac-
cordingly granted an amnesty for all past offences,
save heresy, on the condition, however, of a gene-
ral restitution of such property as had been un-
lawfully seized and retained during the period of
anarchy. 6
6 Zuiiiga, Annales de Sevilla, p. 77. — L. Marineo, Cosas Memora-
381. — Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, bles, fol. 162.; who says, no less
part. 2, cap. 65, 70, 71. — Bernal- than 8,000 guilty fled from Seville
dez, Reyes Catolicos, MS., cap. and Cordova.
29. — Carbaiil, Anales, MS., afio
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE. 189
But Isabella became convinced that all arrange- chapter
ments for establishing permanent tranquillity in —
Seville would be ineffectual, so long as the feud Cadiz and
° duke of Mc-
continued between the great families of Guzman d|nnBWonia -
and Ponce de Leon. The duke of Medina Sido-
nia and the marquis of Cadiz, the heads of these
houses, had possessed themselves of the royal towns
and fortresses, as well as of those which, belong-
ing to the city, were scattered over its circumjacent
territory, where, as has been previously stated,
they carried on war against each other, like in-
dependent potentates. The former of these gran-
dees had been the loyal supporter of Isabella in
the War of the Succession. The marquis of Cadiz,
on the other hand, connected by marriage with the
house of Pacheco, had cautiously withheld his alle-
giance, although he had not testified his hostility
by any overt act. While the queen was hesitating
as to the course she should pursue in reference to
the marquis, who still kept himself aloof in his for-
tified castle of Xerez, he suddenly presented him-
self by night at her residence in Seville, accompa-
nied only by two or three attendants. He took
this step, doubtless, from the conviction that the
Portuguese faction had nothing further to hope in
a kingdom, where Isabella reigned not only by the
fortune of war, but by the affections of the people ;
and he now eagerly proffered his allegiance to her,
excusing his previous conduct as he best could.
The queen was too well satisfied with the submis-
sion, however tardy, of this formidable vassal, to
call him to severe account for past delinquencies.
190 ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE.
part She exacted from him, however, the full restitution
— of such domains and fortresses as he had filched
from the crown and from the city of Seville, on
condition of similar concessions by his rival, the
duke of Medina Sidonia. She next attempted to
establish a reconciliation between these belligerent
grandees ; but, aware that, however pacific might
be their demonstrations for the present, there could
be little hope of permanently allaying the inherited
feuds of a century, whilst the neighbourhood of the
parties to each other must necessarily multiply
fresh causes of disgust, she caused them to with-
draw from Seville to their estates in the country,
and by this expedient succeeded in extinguishing
the flame of discord. 7
R °y al In the following year, 1478, Isabella accompa-
progress c? J ' > V
AndauLa nied her husband in a tour through Andalusia, for
the immediate purpose of reconnoitring the coast.
In the course of this progress, they were splendidly
entertained by the duke and marquis at their pa-
trimonial estates. They afterwards proceeded to
Cordova, where they adopted a similar policy with
that pursued at Seville, compelling the count de
Cabra, connected with the blood royal, and Alonso
de Aguilar, lord of Montilla, whose factions had
long desolated this fair city, to withdraw into
the country, and restore the immense possessions,
7 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, Rerum Gestarum Decades, lib.
MS., cap. 29. — Zurita, Anales, 7. — L. Marineo, Cosas Memo-
torn, iv. fol. 283. — Zufiiga, An- rabies, ubi supra. Garibay, Com-
nales de Sevilla, p. 382.— Lebrija, pendio, lib. 18, cap. 11.
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE. 191
which they had usurped both from the municipality chapter
VI.
and the crown. 8 '■ —
One example among others may be mentioned, JjJgJgJ} ^
of the rectitude and severe impartiality, with which thelaws -
Isabella administered justice, that occurred in the
case of a wealthy Galician knight, named Alvaro
Yanez de Lugo. This person, being convicted of
a capital offence, attended with the most aggra-
vating circumstances, sought to obtain a commuta-
tion of his punishment, by the payment of forty
thousand doblas of gold to the queen, a sum ex-
ceeding. at that time the annual rents of the crown.
Some of Isabella's counsellors would have per-
suaded her to accept the donative, and appropriate
it to the pious purposes of the Moorish war. But,
far from being blinded by their sophistry, she suf-
fered the law to take its course, and, in order to
place her conduct above every suspicion of a mer-
cenary motive, allowed his estates, which might
legally have been confiscated to the crown, to de-
scend to his natural heirs. Nothing contributed
more to reestablish the supremacy of law in this
reign, than the certainty of its execution, without
respect to wealth or rank ; for the insubordination,
prevalent throughout Castile, was chiefly imputable
to persons of this description, who, if they failed to
defeat justice' by force, were sure of doing so by
the corruption of its ministers. 9
8 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, Pulgar, " k facer justicia, tanto
MS., cap. 30. — Pulgar, Reyes que le era imputado seguir mas la
Catolicos, part. 2, cap. 78. via de rigor que de la piedad ; y
9 " Era muy inclinada," says esto facia por remediar a la gran
;92
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE
TAUT
I.
Reorganize
lion of the
tribunals.
Ferdinand and Isabella employed the same vigor-
ous measures in the other parts of their dominions,
which had proved so successful in Andalusia, for
the extirpation of the hordes of banditti, and of the
robber-knights, who differed in no respect from the
former, but in their superior power. In Galicia
alone, fifty fortresses, the strong-holds of tyranny,
were razed to the ground, and fifteen hundred
malefactors, it was computed, were compelled to
fly the kingdom. " The wretched inhabitants of
the mountains," says a writer of that age, " who
had long since despaired of justice, blessed God
for their deliverance, as it were, from a deplorable
captivity." 10
While the sovereigns were thus personally occu-
pied with the suppression of domestic discord, and
the establishment of an efficient police, they were
not inattentive to the higher tribunals, to whose
keeping, chiefly, were intrusted the personal rights
and property of the subject. They reorganized the
royal or privy council, whose powers, although, as
has been noticed in the Introduction, principally of
an administrative nature, had been gradually en-
croaching on those of the superior courts of law.
During the last century, this body had consisted of
prelates, knights, and lawyers, whose numbers and
relative proportions had varied in different times.
The right of the great ecclesiastics and nobles to a
seat in it was, indeed, recognised, but the transac-
corrupcion de criinines que fallo en 10 Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, part,
el Iteyno quando subcedio en el." 2, cap. 97, 98. — L. Marineo, Co-
Reyes Catolicos, p. 37. sas Memorables, fol. 162.
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE.
193
tion of business was reserved for the counsellors chapter
VI
specially appointed. 11 Much the larger proportion .
of these, by the new arrangement, was made up of
jurists, whose professional education and experi-
ence eminently qualified them for the station. The
specific duties and interior management of the
council were prescribed with sufficient accuracy.
Its authority as a court of justice was carefully lim-
ited ; but, as it was charged with the principal ex-
ecutive duties of government, it was consulted in
all important transactions by the sovereigns, who
paid great deference to its opinions, and very fre-
quently assisted at its deliberations. 12
No change was made in the high criminal court
of alcaldes de corte, except in its forms of proceed-
11 OrdenariQas Reales de Casti-
lla, (Burgos, 1528,) lib. 2, tit. 3,
ley 31.
This constitutional, though, as it
would seem, impotent right of the
nobility, is noticed by Sempere.
(Hist, des Cortes, pp. 123, 129.)
It should not have escaped Marina!
ia Lib. 2, tit. 3, of the Ordenan-
Marina, Ensayo Historico-
dinal Ximenes afterwards estab- Critico, nos. 322, 334, 341. — Riol,
lished a magnificent chapel in the Informe, apud Semanario Erudito,
cathedral church of Toledo for the pp. 92 et seq.
performance of the Muzarabic ser-
'20 ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE.
pope
part crown and the pontiff, in reference to the see of
' — Taracona, and afterwards of Cuenca. 46
SSSdui* Sixtus the Fourth, had conferred the latter ben-
efice, on its becoming vacant in 1482, on his
nephew, Cardinal San Giorgio, a Genoese, in direct
opposition to the wishes of the queen, who would
have bestowed it on her chaplain, Alfonso de Bur-
gos, in exchange for the bishopric of Cordova. An
ambassador was accordingly despatched by the Cas-
tilian sovereigns to Rome, to remonstrate on the
papal appointment ; but without effect, as Sixtus
replied, with a degree of presumption, which might
better have become his predecessors of the twelfth
century, that " he was head of the church, and,
as such, possessed of unlimited power in the distri-
bution of benefices, and that he was not bound to
consult the inclination of any potentate on earth,
any farther than might subserve the interests of
religion."
The sovereigns, highly dissatisfied with this re-
sponse, ordered their subjects ecclesiastical, as well
as lay, to quit the papal dominions ; an injunction,
which the former, fearful of the sequestration of
their temporalities in Castile, obeyed with as much
promptness as the latter. At the same time,
Ferdinand and Isabella proclaimed their intention
of inviting the princes of Christendom to unite
46 Marina, Ensayo Historico- the latter part of Henry IV. 's
Critico, nos. 335-337. — Orde- reign, a papal bull had been grant-
nancas Reales, lib. 1, tit. 3, leyes ed against the provision of foreign
19, 20 ; lib. 2, tit. 7, ley 2 ; lib. 3, ers to benefices. Mariana, Hist,
tit. I,ley6. — Riol, In forme, apud de Espafia, torn. vii. p. 196, ed.
Sem&nario Erudito, loc. cit. — In Valencia.
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE. 221
with them in convoking a general council for the chapter
reformation of the manifold abuses, which dis- !
honored the church. No sound could have grated
more unpleasantly on the pontifical ear, than the
menace of a general council, particularly at this
period, when ecclesiastical corruptions had reached
a height which could but ill endure its scrutiny.
The pope became convinced that he had ventured
too far, and that Henry the Fourth was no longer
monarch of Castile. He accordingly despatched a
legate to Spain, fully empowered to arrange the
matter on an amicable basis.
The legate, who was a layman, by name Do-
mingo Centurion, no sooner arrived in Castile, than
he caused the sovereigns to be informed of his
presence there, and the purpose of his mission; but
he received orders instantly to quit the kingdom,
without attempting so much as to disclose the
nature of his instructions, since they could not but
be derogatory to the dignity of the crown. A safe-
conduct was granted for himself and his suite; but,
at the same time, great surprise was expressed
that any one should venture to appear, as envoy
from his Holiness, at the court of Castile, after it
had been treated by him with such unmerited
indignity.
Far from resenting this ungracious reception, the
legate affected the deepest humility ; professing
himself willing to wave whatever immunities he
might claim as papal ambassador, and to submit
to the jurisdiction of the sovereigns as one of their
own subjects, so that he might obtain an audience.
222 ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE.
part Cardinal Mendoza, whose influence in the cabinet
i.
had gained him the title of " third king of Spain,"
apprehensive of the consequences of a protracted
rupture with the church, interposed in behalf of
the envoy, whose conciliatory deportment at length
so far mitigated the resentment of the sovereigns,
that they consented to open negotiations with the
court of Rome. The result was the publication of
a bull by Sixtus the Fourth, in which his Holiness
engaged to provide such natives to the higher dig-
nities of the church in Castile, as should be nom-
inated by the monarchs of that kingdom ; and Al-
fonso de Burgos was accordingly translated to the
see of Cuenca. 47 Isabella, on whom the duties of
ecclesiastical preferment devolved, by the act of
settlement, availed herself of the rights, thus wrest-
ed from the grasp of Rome, to exalt to the vacant
sees persons of exemplary piety and learning, hold-
ing light, in comparison with the faithful discharge
of this duty, every minor consideration of interest,
and even the solicitations of her husband, as we
shall see hereafter. 48 And the chronicler of her
reign dwells with complacency on those good old
times, when churchmen were to be found of such
47 Itiol, in his account of this dignidades dc la Iglesia hombres
celebrated concordat, refers to the capazes 6 idoneos para la buena
original instrument, as existing in administracion del servicio del cul-
his time in the archives of Siman- to divino, e a la buena ensefianza
cas, Semanario Erudito, torn. iii. e utilidad de los Christianos sus
p. 95. vasallos ; y entre todos los varones
48 " Lo que es publico hoy en Es- de sus Reynos asi por largo conos-
pafia e notorio," says Gonzalo de cimiento como per larga e sccreta
Oviedo, " nunca los Reyes Catho- informacion acordaron encojer e
licos descaron ni procuraron sino elegir," &c. Quincuagenas, MS
que proveer 6 presentar para las dial, de Talavera.
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE. 223
singular modesty, as to require to be urged to ac- chapter
cept the dignities to which their merits entitled ■ —
them. 49
V. The regulation of trade. It will be readily Restoration
•'of trade.
conceived that trade, agriculture, and every branch
of industry must have languished under the misrule
of preceding reigns. For what purpose, indeed,
strive to accumulate wealth, when it would only
serve to sharpen the appetite of the spoiler ? For
what purpose cultivate the earth, when the fruits
were sure to be swept away, even before harvest
time, in some ruthless foray ? The frequent famines
and pestilences, which occurred in the latter part
of Henry's reign and the commencement of his
successor's, show too plainly the squalid condition
of the people, and their utter destitution of all use-
ful arts. We are assured by the Curate of Los
Palacios, that the plague broke out in the southern
districts of the kingdom, carrying off eight, or nine,
or even fifteen thousand inhabitants from the vari-
ous cities ; while the prices of the ordinary aliments
of life rose to a height, which put them above the
reach of the poorer classes of the community. In
addition to these physical evils, a fatal shock was
given to commercial credit by the adulteration of
the coin. Under Henry the Fourth, it is computed
that there were no less than one hundred and fifty
49 Salazar de Mendoza, Cron. similar independent conduct pur-
del Gran Cardenal, lib. 1, cap. 52. sued by Ferdinand, three years
— Idem,Dignidadesde Castilla, p. previous, with reference to the see
374. — Pulgar Reyes Catolicos, of Taragona, related by Zurita,
part. 2, cap. 104. — See also the Anales, torn. iv. fol. 304.
224 ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE.
tart mints openly licensed by the crown, in addition to
. many others erected by individuals without any
legal authority. The abuse came to such a height,
that people at length refused to receive in payment
of their debts the debased coin, whose value depre-
ciated more and more every day ; and the little
trade, which remained in Castile, was carried on
by barter, as in the primitive stages of society. £0
salutary The magnitude of the evil was such as to claim
enactments c
of cortes. tne earliest attention of the cortes under the new
monarchs. Acts were passed fixing the standard
and legal value of the different denominations of
coin. A new coinage was subsequently made. Five
royal .mints were alone authorized, afterwards aug-
mented to seven, and severe penalties denounced
against the fabrication of money elsewhere. The
reform of the currency gradually infused new life
into commerce, as the return of the circulations,
which have been interrupted for a while, quickens
the animal body. This was furthered by salutary
laws for the encouragement of domestic industry.
Internal communication was facilitated by the con-
struction of roads and bridges. Absurd restrictions
on change of residence, as well as the onerous du-
ties which had been imposed on commercial inter-
course between Castile and Aragon, were repealed.
Several judicious laws were enacted for the protec-
tion of foreign trade ; and the flourishing condition
50 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, 3. — Also the coarse satire (com-
MS., can. 44. — See a letter from posed in Henry's reign) of Mingo
one of Henry's subjects, cited by Revulgo, especially coplas 24 -27.
Saez, Monedas de Enrique IV., p.
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE. 225
of the mercantile marine may be inferred from that chapter
of the military, which enabled the sovereigns to fit . —
out an armament of seventy sail in 1482, from the
ports of Biscay and Andalusia, for the defence of
Naples against the Turks. Some of their regu-
lations, indeed, as those prohibiting the exporta-
tion of the precious metals, savour too strongly of
the ignorance of the true principles of commercial
legislation, which has distinguished the Spaniards
to the present day. But others, again, as that for
relieving the importation of foreign books from all
duties, " because," says the statute, " they bring
both honor and profit to the kingdom, by the facil-
ities which they afford for making men learned,"
are not only in advance of that age, but may sus-
tain an advantageous comparison with provisions on
corresponding subjects in Spain at the present time.
Public credit was reestablished by the punctuality
with which the government redeemed.the debt con-
tracted during the Portuguese war ; and, notwith-
standing the repeal of various arbitrary imposts,
which enriched the exchequer under Henry the
Fourth, such was the advance of the country un-
der the wise economy of the present reign, that the
revenue was augmented nearly six fold between the
years 1477 and 1482. 51
Thus released from the heavy burdens imposed prosperity
on it, the spring of enterprise recovered its former dom
51 Pragmaticas del Reyno, fol. ley 13. — See also other whole-
64. — Ordenancas Reales, lib. 4, some laws for the encouragement
tit. 4, ley 22 ; lib. 5, tit. 8, ley 2 ; of commerce and general security
lib. 6, tit. 9, ley 49 ; lib. 6, tit. 10, of property, as that respecting
vol. 1. 29
226
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE.
PART
I.
elasticity. The productive capital of the country
was made to flow through the various channels of
domestic industry. The hills and the valleys again
rejoiced in the labor of the husbandman ; and the
cities were embellished with stately edifices, both
public and private, which attracted the gaze and
commendation of foreigners. 52 * The writers of
that day are unbounded in their plaudits of Isabel-
la, to whom they principally ascribe this auspicious
revolution in the condition of the country and its
inhabitants, 53 which seems almost as magical as
one of those transformations in romance wrought
by the hands of some benevolent fairy. M
VI. The preeminence of the royal authority.
contracts, (lib. 5, tit. 8, ley 5,)
— fraudulent tradesmen, (lib. 5,
tit. 8, ley 5,) — purveyance,
(lib. 6, tit. 11, ley 2 et al. — Re-
copilacion de las Leyes, lib. 5, tit.
20, 21, 22; lib. G, tit. 18, ley 1.
— Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, part.
2, cap. 99. — Zurita, Anales, torn,
iv. fol. 312. — Mem. de la Acad,
de Hist., torn. vi. Ilust. 11.) —
The revenue, it appears, in 1477,
amounted to 27,415,228 marave-
dies ; and in the year 1482, we find
it increased to 150,095,288 marave-
dies. (Ibid., Ilust. 5.) — A survey of
the kingdom was made between
the years 1477 and 1479, for the pur-
pose of ascertaining the value of the
royal rents, which formed the basis
of the economical regulations adopt-
ed by the cortcs of Toledo. Al-
though this survey was conducted
on no uniform plan, yet, according
to Sefior Clemencin, it exhibits
such a variety of important de-
tails respecting the resources and
population of the country, that it
must materially contribute towards
an exact history of this period.
The compilation, which consists
of twelve folio volumes in manu-
script, is deposited in the archives
of Simancas.
52 One of the statutes passed at
Toledo expressly provides for the
erection of spacious and hand-
some edifices (rasas grandes y ken
fechas) for the transaction of muni-
cipal affairs, in all the principal
towns and cities in the kingdom.
Ordenancas Reales, lib. 7, tit. 1,
ley 1. — Sec also L. Marineo,
Cosas Mcmorables, passim, — ei
al. auct.
53 " Cosa fuc por cicrto maravi-
llosa," exclaims Pulgar, in his
Glosa on the Mingo Revulgo,
" que lo que muchos hombres, y
grandes sefiores no se acordaron a
hacer en muchos afios, sola una
mugcr, con su trabajo, y goberna-
cion lo hizo en poco tiempo."
Copla 21.
54 The beautiful lines of Virgil,
so often misapplied,
" Jnm redit et Virgo ; rcileunt Saturnia
regnu ;
Jam nova progenies," &c.
seem to admit here of a pertinent
application.
VI.
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE. 227
This, which, as we have seen, appears to have chapter
been the natural result of the policy of Ferdinand
and Isabella, was derived quite as much from the
influence of their private characters, as from their
public measures. Their acknowledged talents were
supported by a dignified demeanor, which form-
ed a striking contrast with the meanness in mind
and manners, that had distinguished their prede-
cessor. They both exhibited a practical wisdom
in their own personal relations, which always com-
mands respect, and which, however it may have
savoured of worldly policy in Ferdinand, was, in
his consort, founded on the purest and most exalt-
ed principle. Under such a sovereign, the court,
which had been little better than a brothel under
the preceding reign, became the nursery of virtue
and generous ambition. Isabella watched assidu-
ously over the nurture of the high-born damsels of
her court, whom she received into the royal palace,
causing them to be educated under her own eye,
and endowing them with liberal portions on their
marriage. 55 By these and similar acts of affection-
ate solicitude, she endeared herself to the higher
classes of her subjects, while the patriotic tendency
of her public conduct established her in the hearts
of the people. She possessed, in combination with
55 Carro de las Donas, apud Mem. nanc,as Rcales, lib. 2, tit. 14, ley
de la Acad, de Hist., torn. vi. Ilust. 31 ; lib. 8, tit. 10, ley 7.) L. Mari-
21. — As one example of the moral neo, according to whom, "hell
discipline introduced by Isabella in is full of gamblers," highly com-
her court, we may cite the enact- mends the sovereigns for their
ments against gaming, which had efforts to discountenance this vice,
been carried to great excess under Cosas Memorables, fol. 1G5.
the preceding reigns. (See Orde-
228 ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE.
part the feminine qualities which beget love, a mascu-
' — line energy of character, which struck terror into
the guilty. She enforced the execution of her
own plans, oftentimes even at great personal
hazard, with a resolution surpassing that of her
husband. Both were singularly temperate, indeed,
frugal, in their dress, equipage, and general style
of living ; seeking to affect others less by external
pomp, than by the silent though more potent influ-
ence of personal qualities. On all such occasions
as demanded it, however, they displayed a princely
magnificence, which dazzled the multitude, and is
blazoned with great solemnity in the garrulous
chronicles of the day. 56
The tendencies of the present administration
were undoubtedly to strengthen the power of the
crown. This was the point, to which most of the
feudal governments of Europe at this epoch were
tending. But Isabella was far from being actuated
by the selfish aim or unscrupulous policy of many
contemporary princes, who, like Louis the Elev-
enth sought to govern by the arts of dissimula-
56 See, for example, the splendid rate of Los Palacios devotes the
ceremony of Prince John's hap- 32d and 33d chapters of his His-
tism, to which the gossiping Cu- tory.
CJcmeiicin. The sixth volume of the Mem- of her personal character, and of
oirs of the Royal Spanish Acade- the condition of science under her
my of History, published in 1821, government. These essays ex-
is devoted altogether to the reign hibit much curious research, being
of Isabella. It is distributed into derived from unquestionable con-
Illustrations, as they are termed, temporary documents, printed and
of the various branches of the ad- manuscript, and from the public
ministrative policy of the queen, archives. They are compiled with
VI.
ADMINISTRATION OF CASTILE. 229
tion, and to establish their own authority by fo- chapter
meriting the divisions of their powerful vassals.
On the contrary, she endeavoured to bind together
the disjointed fragments of the state, to assign to
each of its great divisions its constitutional limits,
and, by depressing the aristocracy to its proper
level and elevating the commons, to consolidate the
whole under the lawful supremacy of the crown.
At least, such was the tendency of her administra-
tion up to the present period of our history. These
laudable objects were gradually achieved without
fraud or violence, by a course of measures equally
laudable ; and the various orders of the monarchy,
brought into harmonious action with each other,
were enabled to turn the forces, which had before
been wasted in civil conflict, to the glorious ca-
reer of discovery and conquest, which it was des-
tined to run during the remainder of the century.
much discernment ; and, as they vived the wreck of scholarship in
throw light on some of the most Spain, and who with the erudi-
recondite transactions of this reign, tion, which has frequently distin-
are of inestimable service to the guished his countrymen, combined
historian. The author of the vol- the liberal and enlarged opinions,
ume is the late lamented secretary which would do honor to any coun-
of the Academy, Don Diego Cle- try.
mencin ; one of the few who sur-
CHAPTER VII.
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE MODERN INQUISITION.
Origin of the Ancient Inquisition. — Retrospective View of the Jews in
Spain. — Their Wealth and Civilization. — Bigotry of the Age. —
Its Influence on Isabella. — Her Confessor, Torquemada. — Bull
authorizing the Inquisition. — Tribunal at Seville. — Forms of Trial.
— Torture. — Autos da Fe. — Number of Convictions. — Perfidious
Policy of Rome.
part It is painful, after having dwelt so long on the
i.
- important benefits resulting to Castile from the
comprehensive policy of Isabella, to be compelled
to turn to the darker side of the picture, and to
exhibit her as accommodating herself to the illiberal
spirit of the age in which she lived, so far as to
sanction one of the grossest abuses that ever dis-
graced humanity. The present chapter will be
devoted to the establishment and early progress of
the Modern Inquisition ; an institution, which has
probably contributed more than any other cause to
depress the lofty character of the ancient Spaniard,
and which has thrown the gloom of fanaticism over
those lovely regions which seem to be the natural
abode of festivity and pleasure.
In the present liberal state of knowledge, we
look with disgust at the pretensions of any human
THE INQUISITION. 231
being, however exalted, to invade the sacred rights chapter
of conscience, inalienably possessed by every man. '
We feel that the spiritual concerns of an individual
may be safely left to himself, as most interested in
them, except so far as they can be affected by
argument or friendly monition ; that the idea of
compelling belief in particular doctrines is a sole-
cism, as absurd as wicked ; and, so far from con-
demning to the stake, or the gibbet, men who
pertinaciously adhere to their conscientious opinions
in contempt of personal interests and in the face of
danger, we should rather feel disposed to imitate
the spirit of antiquity in raising altars and statues
to their memory, as having displayed the highest
efforts of human virtue. But, although these truths
are now so obvious as rather to deserve the name
of truisms, the world has been slow, very slow in
arriving at them, after many centuries of unspeak-
able oppression and misery.
Acts of intolerance are to be discerned from the origin ortho
earliest period in which Christianity became the v>wtinto Ar- Aragon, where, in 1242, additional provisions were
1 Mosheim, Ecclesiastical His-
tory, translated by Maclaine,
(Charlestown, 1810,) cent. 13,
P. 2, chap. 5. — Sismondi, Histoire
des Frangais, (Paris, 1821,) torn,
vi. chap. 24 - 28 ; torn. vii. chap. 2,
3. — Idem, De la Literature du
Midi de l'Europe, (Paris, 1813,)
torn. i. chap. 6. — In the former
of these works M. Sismondi has
described the physical ravages of
the crusades in southern France,
with the same spirit and eloquence,
with which he has exhibited their
desolating moral influence in the
latter.
Some Catholic writers would
fain excuse St. Dominic from the
imputation of having founded the
Inquisition. It is true he died
some years before the perfect or-
ganization of that tribunal ; but, as
he established the principles on
which, and the monkish militia, by
whom, it was administered, it is
doing him no injustice to regard
him as its real author. — The Si-
cilian Paramo, indeed, in his heavy
quarto, (De Origine et Progressu
Officii Sanctae Inquisitionis, Matri-
ti, 1598,) traces it up to a much
more remote antiquity, which, to a
Protestant ear at least, savours not
a little of blasphemy. According
to him, God was the first inquisi-
tor, and his condemnation of Adam
and Eve furnished the model of the
judicial forms observed in the tri-
als of the Holy Office. The sen-
tence of Adam was the type of the
inquisitorial reconciliation; his sub-
sequent raiment of the skins of
animals was the model of the
san-benito, and his expulsion from
Paradise the precedent for the con-
fiscation of the goods of heretics.
This learned personage deduces a
succession of inquisitors through
the patriarchs, Moses, Nebuchad-
nezzar, and King David, down to
John the Baptist, and even our
Saviour, in whose precepts and
conduct he finds abundant authori-
ty for the tribunal ! Paramo, De
Origine Inquisitionis, lib. 1, tit. 1,
2,3.
THE INQUISITION.
233
framed by the council of Tarragona, on the basis of chapter
. . 'VII.
those of 1233, which may properly be considered
as the primitive instructions of the Holy Office in
Spain. 2
This Ancient Inquisition, as it is termed, bore
the same odious peculiarities in its leading features
as the Modern ; the same impenetrable secrecy in
its proceedings, the same insidious modes of accu-
sation, a similar use of torture, and similar penalties
for the offender. A sort of manual, drawn up by
Eymerich, an Aragonese inquisitor of the fourteenth
century, for the instruction of the judges of the
Holy Office, prescribes all those ambiguous forms
of interrogation, by which the unwary, and perhaps
innocent victim might be circumvented. 3 The
2 Sismondi, Hist, des Frangais,
torn. vii. chap. 3. — Limborch,
History of the Inquisition, trans-
lated by Chandler, (London, 1731,)
book 1, chap. 24. — Llorente, His-
toire Critique de PInquisition d'Es-
pagne, (Paris, 1818,) torn. i. p.
110. — Before this time we find a
constitution of Peter I. ofAragon
against heretics, prescribing in cer-
tain cases the burning of heretics
and the confiscation of their estates,
in 1197. Marca, Marca Hispanica,
sive Limes Hispanicus, (Parisiis,
1688,) p. 1384.
3 Nic. Antonio, Bibliotheca Ve-
tus, torn. ii. p. 186. — Llorente,
Hist, de l'lnquisition, torn. i. pp.
110 - 124. — Puigblanch cites some
of the instructions from Eymerich 's
work, whose authority in the courts
of the Inquisition he compares to
that of Gratian's Decretals in other
ecclesiastical judicatures. One of
these may suffice to show the spirit
of the whole. " When the in-
quisitor has an opportunity, he
shall manage so as to introduce to
the conversation of the prisoner
some one of his accomplices, or
any other converted heretic, who
shall feign that he still persists in
his heresy, telling him that he had
abjured for the sole purpose of
escaping punishment, by deceiving
the inquisitors. Having thus gain-
ed his confidence, he shall go into
his cell some day after dinner, and,
keeping up the conversation till
night, shall remain with him under
pretext of its being too late for him
to return home. He shall then
urge the prisoner to tell him all
the particulars of his past life, hav-
ing first told him the whole of his
own ; and in the mean time spies
shall be kept in hearing at the
door, as well as a notary, in order
to certify what may be said with-
in." Puigblanch, Inquisition Un-
masked, translated by Walton,
(London, 1816,) vol. i. pp. 238,
239.
VOL. I.
30
I.
234 THE INQUISITION.
part principles, on which the ancient Inquisition was
established, are no less repugnant to justice, than
those which regulated the modern ; although the
former, it is true, was much less extensive in its
operation. The arm of persecution, however, fell
with sufficient, heaviness, especially during the thir-
teenth and fourteenth centuries, on the unfortunate
Albigenses, who from the proximity and political
relations of Aragon and Provence, had become nu-
merous in the former kingdom. The persecution
appears, however, to have been chiefly confined to
this unfortunate sect, and there is no evidence that
the Holy Office, notwithstanding papal briefs to
that effect, was fully organized in Castile, before
the reign of Isabella. This is perhaps imputable to
the paucity of heretics in that kingdom. It can-
not, at any rate, be charged to any lukewarmness
in its sovereigns ; since they, from the time of St.
Ferdinand, who heaped the fagots on the blaz-
ing pile with his own hands, down to that of
John the Second, Isabella's father, who hunted the
unhappy heretics of Biscay, like so many wild
beasts, among the mountains, had ever evinced a
lively zeal for the orthodox faith. 4
4 Mariana, Hist, de Espafia, lib. clothes and beaten with rods by a
12, cap. 11 ; lib. 21, cap. 17. — priest, three Sundays in succession,
Llorcnte, Hist, dc l'lnquisition, from the gale of the city to the door of
torn. i. chap. 3. — The nature of the church; not to eat any kind of
the penance imposed on reconciled animal food during his whole life ;
heretics by the ancient Inquisition to keep three Lents a year, without
was much more severe than that even eating fish ; to abstain from
of later times. Llorente cites an fish, oil, and wine three days in
act of St. Dominic respecting a the week during life, except in
person of this description, named case of sickness or excessive labor ;
Ponce Roger. The penitent was to wear a religious dress with a
commanded to be " stripped of his small cross embroidered on each
THE INQUISITION. 235
VII.
By the middle of the fifteenth century, the Albi- chapter
gensian heresy had become nearly extirpated by
the Inquisition of Aragon ; so that this infernal
engine might have been suffered to sleep undis-
turbed from want of sufficient fuel to keep it in
motion, when new and ample materials were dis-
covered in the unfortunate race of Israel, on whom
the sins of their fathers have been so unsparingly
visited by every nation in Christendom, among
whom they have sojourned, almost to the present
century. As this remarkable people, who seem to
have preserved their unity of character unbroken,
amid the thousand fragments into which they have
been scattered, attained perhaps to greater consid-
eration in Spain than in any other part of Europe,
and as the efforts of the Inquisition were directed
principally against them during the present reign,
it may be well to take a brief review of their pre-
ceding history in the Peninsula.
Under the Visigothic empire the Jews multiplied netrospec-
1 x live view o
exceedingly in the country, and were permitted to g h p e ai J n < ; W8 in
acquire considerable power and wealth. But no
sooner had their Arian masters embraced the ortho-
dox faith, than they began to testify their zeal by
pouring on the Jews the most pitiless storm of per-
secution. One of their laws alone condemned the
whole race to slavery ; and Montesquieu remarks,
side of the breast ; to attend mass ing, and twenty times at midnight "/
every day, if he had the means of (Ibid. chap. 4.) If the said Roger
doing so, and vespers on Sundays failed in any of the above requisi-
and festivals ; to recite the service tions, he was to be burnt as a
for the day and the night, and to relapsed heretic ! This was the
repeat the paler nosier seven times encouragement held out by St.
in the day, ten times in the even- Dominic to penitence.
236 THE INQUISITION.
part without much exaggeration, that to the Gothic code
■ may be traced all the maxims of the modern Inqui-
sition, the monks of the fifteenth century only
copying, in reference to the Israelites, the bishops
of the seventh. 5
A?ab S rthe After the Saracenic invasion, which the Jews,
perhaps with reason, are accused of having facili-
tated, they resided in the conquered cities, and were
permitted to mingle with the Arabs on nearly equal
terms. Their common Oriental origin produced a
similarity of tastes, to a certain extent, not unfavor-
able to such a coalition. At any rate, the early
Spanish Arabs were characterized by a spirit of
toleration towards both Jews and Christians, " the
people of the book," as they were called, which
has scarcely been found among later Moslems. 6
The Jews, accordingly, under these favorable aus-
pices, not only accumulated wealth with their usual
diligence, but gradually rose to the highest civil
dignities, and made great advances in various de-
partments of letters. The schools of Cordova,
Toledo, Barcelona, and Granada were crowded
with numerous disciples, who emulated the Arabi-
ans in keeping alive the flame of learning, during
the deep darkness of the middle ages. 7 Whatever
5 Montesquieu, Esprit des Loix, 6 The Koran grants protection
liv. 28, chap. 1. — See the canon to the Jews on payment of tribute,
of the 17th council of Toledo, See the Koran, translated by Sale,
condemning the Israelitish race to (London, 1825,) chap. 9.
bondage, in Florez, Espafia Sa- 7 The first academy founded by
grada, (Madrid, 1747-75,) torn, the learned Jews in Spain was
vi. p. 229. — Fuero Juzgo (ed. de that of Cordova, A. D. 948. Cas-
ia Acad. (Madrid, 1815,) lib. 12, tro, Biblioteca Espafiola, torn. i.
tit. 2 and 3,) is composed of the p. 2. — Basnage, History of the
most inhuman ordinances against Jews, translated by Taylor, (Lon-
this unfortunate people. don, 1708,) book 7, chap. 5.
THE INQUISITION.
237
may be thought of their success in speculative phi-
losophy, 8 they cannot reasonably be denied to have
contributed largely to practical and experimental
science. They were diligent travellers in all parts
of the known world, compiling itineraries which
have proved of extensive use in later times, and
bringing home hoards of foreign specimens and
Oriental drugs, that furnished important contribu-
tions to the domestic pharmacopoeias. 9 In the
practice of medicine, indeed, they became so ex-
pert, as in a manner to monopolize that profession.
They made great proficiency in mathematics and
particularly in astronomy ; while, in the cultivation
of elegant letters, they revived the ancient glories
of the Hebrew muse. 10 This was indeed the
CHAPTER
VII.
8 In addition to their Talmudic
lore and Cabalistic mysteries, the
Spanish Jews were well read in
the philosophy of Aristotle. They
pretended that the Stagirite was a
convert to Judaism and had bor-
rowed his science from the wri-
tings of Solomon. (Brucker, His-
toria Critica Philosophiae, (Lipsiae,
1766,) torn. ii. p. 853.) M. Dege-
rando, adopting similar conclusions
with Brucker, in regard to the
value of the philosophical specu-
lations of the Jews, passes the
following severe sentence upon the
intellectual, and indeed moral char-
acter of the nation. " Ce peu-
ple, par son caractere, ses moeurs,
ses institutions, semblait etre des-
tine a rester stationnaire. Un at-
tachement excessif a leurs propres
traditions dominait chez les Juifs
tous les penchans de l'esprit: ils
resiaient presque etrangers aux
progres de la civilisation , au mouve-
ment general de la society ; ils
6taient en quelque sorte morale-
ment isohSs, alors meme qu'ils
communiquaient avec tous les peu-
ples, et parcouraient toutes les
contrees. Aussi nous cherchons en
vain, dans ceux de leurs ecrits qui
nous sont connus, non seulement
do vraies decouvertes, mais meme
des idees reellement originates."
Histoire Comparee des Systemes
de Philosophie, (Paris, 1822,) torn,
iv. p. 299.
9 Castro, Biblioteca Espanola,
torn. i. PP. 21, 33, et alibi. — Ben-
jamin of Tudela's celebrated Itin-
erary, having been translated into
the various languages of Europe,
passed into sixteen editions before
the middle of the last century.
Ibid., torn. i. pp. 79, 80.
10 The beautiful lament, which
the royal psalmist has put into the
mouths of his countrymen, when
commanded to sing the songs of
Sion in a strange land, cannot be
applied to the Spanish Jews, who,
far from hanging their harps upon
the willows, poured forth their lays
238
THE INQUISITION.
PART
I.
Under the
Caaliliaus.
gold on age of modern Jewish literature, which,
under the Spanish caliphs, experienced a protection
so benign, although occasionally chequered by the
caprices of despotism, that it was enabled to attain
higher beauty and a more perfect developement in
the tenth, eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth centu
ries, than it has reached in any other part of Chris
tendom. n
The ancient Castilians of the same period, very
different from their Gothic ancestors, seem to have
conceded to the Israelites somewhat of the feelings
of respect, which were extorted from them by the
superior civilization of the Spanish Arabs. We
find eminent Jews residing in the courts of the
Christian princes, directing their studies, attending
them as physicians, or more frequently administer-
ing their finances. For this last vocation they seem
to have had a natural aptitude ; and, indeed, the
correspondence which they maintained with the
different countries of Europe by means of their
own countrymen, who acted as the brokers of al-
most every people among whom they were scattered
during the middle ages, afforded them peculiar fa-
cilities both in politics and commerce. We meet
with a freedom and vivacity, which
may be thought to savour more of
the modern troubadour, than of the
ancient Hebrew minstrel. Castro
has collected, under Siglo XV.,
a few gleanings of such, as hy
their incorporation into a Christian
Cancioncro, escaped the fury of
the Inquisition. Biblioteca Espa-
fiola, torn. i. pp. 205-361.
11 Castro has done for the He-
brew, what Casiri a few years be-
fore did for the Arabic literature
of Spain, by giving notices of such
works as have survived the ravages
of time and superstition. The first
volume of his Biblioteca Espaiiola
contains an analysis accompanied
with extracts from more than seven
hundred different works, with bio-
graphical sketches of their authors ;
the whole bearing most honorable
testimony to the talent and various
erudition of the Spanish Jews.
THE INQUISITION. 239
CHAPTER
with Jewish scholars and statesmen attached to the
courts of Alfonso the Tenth, Alfonso the Eleventh,
"5
Peter the Cruel, Henry the Second, and other
princes. Their astronomical science recommended
them in a special manner to Alfonso the Wise, who
employed them in the construction of his celehrated
Tables. James the First of Aragon condescended
to receive instruction from them in ethics ; and, in
the fifteenth century, we notice John the Second,
of Castile, employing a Jewish secretary in the
compilation of a national Cancionero. 12
But all this royal patronage proved incompetent ^ f cr t s h e e c ^™
to protect the Jews, when their flourishing fortunes
had risen to a sufficient height to excite popular
envy, augmented, as it was, by that profuse osten-
tation of equipage and apparel, for which this
singular people, notwithstanding their avarice, have
usually shown a predilection. 13 Stories were cir-
culated of their contempt for the Catholic worship,
their desecration of its most holy symbols, and of
their crucifixion, or other sacrifice, of Christian
12 Basnage, History of the Jews, his portraits of Rebecca and Isaac
book 7, chap. 5, 15, 1G. — Castro, in Ivanhoe, in which he seems to
Biblioteca Espafiola, torn. i. pp. have contrasted the lights and
1 16, 205, 2(57. — Mariana, Hist, shadows of the Jewish character,
de Espafia, torn. i. p. 900 ; — torn. The humiliating state of the Jews,
ii. pp. 63, 147, 459. — Samuel however, exhibited in this ro-
Levi, treasurer of Peter the Cru- mance, affords no analogy to their
el, who was sacrificed to the cu- social condition in Spain ; as is
pidity of his master, is reported evinced not merely by their wealth,
by Mariana to have left behind which was also conspicuous in the
him the incredible sum of 400,000 English Jews, but by the high
ducats to swell the royal coffers, degree of civilization, and even
Tom. ii. p. 82. political consequence, which, not-
i3 Sir Walter Scott, with his withstanding the occasional ebul-
usual discernment, lias availed litions of popular prejudice, they
himself of these opposite traits in were permitted to reach there.
I.
210 THE INQUISITION.
part children, at the celebration of their own passover. u
With these foolish calumnies, the more probable
charge of usury and extortion was industriously
preferred against them, till at length, towards the
close of the fourteenth century, the fanatical popu-
lace, stimulated in many instances by the no lese
fanatical clergy, and perhaps encouraged by the
numerous class of debtors to the Jews, who found
this a convenient mode of settling their accounts,
made a fierce assault on this unfortunate people in
Castile and Aragon, breaking into their houses,
violating their most private sanctuaries, scattering
their costly collections and furniture, and consign-
ing the wretched proprietors to indiscriminate mas-
sacre, without regard to sex or age. 15
In this crisis, the only remedy left to the Jews
was a real or feigned conversion to Christianity.
St. Vincent Ferrier, a Dominican of Valencia,
performed such a quantity of miracles, in further-
ance of this purpose, as might have excited the
envy of any saint in the Calendar ; and these, aided
by his eloquence, are said to have changed the
hearts of no less than thirty-five thousand of the
14 Calumnies of this kind were in Percy's "Reliques of Ancient
current all over Europe. The Poetry."
English reader will call to mind !5 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos,
the monkish fiction of the little MS., cap. 43. — Mariana, Hist, de
Christian, Espafia, torn. ii. pp. 186, 187. —
"Slain with cursed Jewes, as it is In 1391, 5,000 Jews were sacrificed
notable," to the popular fury, and according
singing most devoutly after his to Mariana, no less than 10,000
throat was cut from ear to ear, in perished from the same cause in
Chaucer's Prioresse's Tale. See Navarre about sixty years before,
another instance in the old Scottish See torn. i. p. 912.
ballad of the "Jew's Daughter"
THE INQUISITION.
race of Israel, which doubtless must be reckoned chapter
the greatest miracle of all. 1G ''
The legislative enactments t of this period, and
still more under John the Second, during the first
half of the fifteenth century, were uncommonly
severe upon the Jews. While they were prohibit-
ed from mingling freely with the Christians, and
from exercising the professions for which they
were best qualified, 17 their residence was restrict-
ed within certain prescribed limits of the cities
which they inhabited ; and they were not only
debarred from their usual luxury of ornament in
dress, but were held up to public scorn, as it were,
by some peculiar badge or emblem embroidered
on their garments. 18
16 According to Mariana, the
restoration of sight to the blind,
feet to the lame, even life to the
dead, were miracles of ordinary
occurrence with St. Vincent. (Hist,
de Espafia, torn. ii. pp. 229, 230.)
The age of miracles had probably
ceased by Isabella's time, or the
Inquisition might have been spar-
ed. Nic. Antonio in his notice of
the life and labors of this Domini-
can, (Bibliotheca Vetus, torn. ii.
pp. 205, 207,) states that he
preached his inspired sermons in
his vernacular Valencian dialect to
audiences of French, English, and
Italians, indiscriminately, who all
understood him perfectly well ;
" a circumstance," says Dr. M c -
Crie, in his valuable " History
of the Progress and Suppression
of the Reformation in Spain,"
(Edinburgh, 1829,) " which, if it
prove any thing, proves that the
hearers of St. Vincent possessed
more miraculous powers than him-
self, and that they should have
VOL. I. 31
been canonized, rather than the
preacher." p. 87, note.
17 They were interdicted from
the callings of vintners, grocers,
taverners, especially of apotheca-
ries, and of physicians, and nur-
ses. Ordenantjas Reales, lib. 8.
tit. 3, leyes 11, 15, 18.
18 No law was more frequent-
ly reiterated than that prohibiting
the Jews from acting as stew-
ards of the nobility, or farmers
and collectors of the public rents.
The repetition of this law shows
to what extent that people had
engrossed what little was known
of financial science in that day.
For the multiplied enactments in
Castile against them, see Ordenan-
gas Reales, (lib. 8, tit. 3.) For
the regulations respecting the Jews
in Aragon, many of them oppres-
sive, particularly at the commence-
ment of the fifteenth century, see
Fueros y Observancias del Reyno
de Aragon, (Zaragoza, 1067,) torn,
i. fol. 6. — Marca Hispanica, pp.
24£
THE INQUISITION.
PART
i.
Their state
nt the Reces-
sion of Isa-
Ix'lla.
Such was the condition of the Spanish Jews at
the accession of Ferdinand and Isahella. The new
Christians, or converts, as those who had renounced
the faith of their fathers were denominated, were
occasionally preferred to high ecclesiastical digni-
ties, which they illustrated by their integrity and
learning. They were intrusted with municipal
offices in the various cities of Castile ; and, as their
wealth furnished an obvious resource for repairing,
by way of marriage, the decayed fortunes of the
nobility, there was scarcely a family of rank in the
land, whose blood had not been contaminated at
some period or other, by mixture with the mala
sangre, as it came afterwards to be termed, of the
house of Judah ; an ignominious stain, which no
time has been deemed sufficient wholly to purge
away. 19
Notwithstanding the show of prosperity enjoyed
by the converted Jews, their situation was far from
secure. Their proselytism had been too sudden to
be generally sincere ; and, as the task of dissimula-
tion was too irksome to be permanently endured,
they gradually became less circumspect, and exhib-
ited the scandalous spectacle of apostates returning
1416, 1433. — Zurita, Anales,
torn. iii. lib. 12, cap. 45.
19 Bemaldez, Reyes Catolicos,
MS., cap. 43. — Llorente, Hist,
de Tlnquisition, pref. p. 26. —
A manuscript entitled Tizon de
Esparto, (Brand of Spain,) tracing
up many a noble pedigree to a
Jewish or Mahometan root, obtain-
ed a circulation, to the great scan-
dal of the country, which the
efforts of the government, combin-
ed with those of the Inquisition
have not been wholly able to sup-
press. Copies of it, however, are
now rarely to be met with. (Do-
blado, Letters from Spain, (London,
1822,) let. 2.) Clemencin notices
two works with this title, one as
ancient as Ferdinand and Isabella's
time, and both written by bishops.
Mem.de la Acad, de Hist., torn,
vi. p. 125.
THE INQUISITION. °2A3
to wallow in the ancient mire of Judaism. The chapter
VII.
clergy, especially the Dominicans, who seem to
have inherited the quick scent for heresy which
distinguished their frantic founder, were not slow
in sounding the alarm ; and the superstitious popu-
lace, easily roused to acts of violence in the name
of religion, began to exhibit the most tumultuous
movements, and actually massacred the constable
of Castile in an attempt to suppress them at Jaen,
the year preceding the accession of Isabella. Af-
ter this period, the complaints against the Jewish 14 78.
heresy became still more clamorous, and the throne
was repeatedly beset with petitions to devise some
effectual means for its extirpation. 20
A chapter of the Chronicle of the Curate of Los charges «.
■i gainst tliem
Palacios, who lived at this time in Andalusia,
where the Jews seem to have most abounded,
throws considerable light on the real, as well as
pretended motives of the subsequent persecution.
" This accursed race," he says, speaking of the
Israelites, " were either unwilling to bring their
children to be baptized, or, if they did, they washed
away the stain on returning home. They dressed
their stews and other dishes with oil, instead of
lard ; abstained from pork ; kept the passover ; ate
meat in lent ; and sent oil to replenish the lamps
of their synagogues ; with many other abominable
ceremonies of their religion. They entertained no
respect for monastic life, and frequently profaned
90 Mariana, Hist, de Espana, torn. ii. p. 479. — Pulgar, Reyes Ca-
tolicos, part. 2, cap. 77.
244 THE INQUISITION.
part the sanctity of religious houses by the violation or
— - — seduction of their inmates. They were an exceed-
ingly politic and ambitious people, engrossing the
most lucrative municipal offices ; and preferred to
gain their livelihood by traffic, in which they made
exorbitant gains, rather than by manual labor or
mechanical arts. They considered themselves in
the hands of the Egyptians, whom it was a merit
to deceive and plunder. By their wicked contrivan-
ces they amassed great wealth, and thus were often
able to ally themselves by marriage with noble
Christian families." 21
It is easy to discern, in this medley of credulity
and superstition, the secret envy, entertained by the
Castilians, of the superior skill and industry of their
Hebrew brethren, and of the superior riches which
these qualities secured to them ; and it is im-
possible not to suspect, that the zeal of the most
orthodox was considerably sharpened by worldly
motives.
Be that as it may, the cry against the Jewish
abominations now became general. Among those
most active in raising it, were Alfonso de Ojeda, a
Dominican, prior of the monastery of St. Paul in
Seville, and Diego de Merlo, assistant of that city,
who should not be defrauded of the meed of glory
to which they are justly entitled by their exertions
for the establishment of the modern Inquisition.
These persons, after urging on the sovereigns the
alarming extent to which the Jewish leprosy pre-
21 Reyes Catolicos, MS., cap. 43.
THE INQUISITION. 245
vailed in Andalusia, loudly called for the introduc- chapter
tion of the Holy Office, as the only effectual means ' —
of healing it. In this they were vigorously sup-
ported by Niccolo Franco, the papal nuncio then
residing at the court of Castile. Ferdinand lis-
tened with complacency to a scheme, which prom-
ised an ample source of revenue in the confiscations
it involved. But it was not so easy to vanquish
Isabella's aversion to measures so repugnant to the
natural benevolence and magnanimity of her char-
acter. Her scruples, indeed, were rather founded
on sentiment than reason, the exercise of which
was little countenanced in matters of faith, in that
day, when the dangerous maxim, that the end
justifies the means, was universally received, and
learned theologians seriously disputed whether it
were permitted to make peace with the infidel, and
even whether promises made to them were obliga-
tory on Christians. 22
The policy of the Roman church, at that time, Bigotry or
. . the age.
was not only shown in its perversion of some of
the most obvious principles of morality, but in the
23 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, fut d'abord plus politique que re-
ubi supra. — Pulgar, Reyes Cat6- ligieuse, et destinee a maintenir
licos, part. 2, cap. 77. — Zuiiiga, l'ordre plutotqu'adefendre la foi."
Annales de Sevilla, p. 386. — (Cours d'HistoireModerne, (Paris,
Mem. de la Acad, de Hist., torn. 1828-30,) torn. v. lee. 11.) This
vi. p. 44. — Llorente, torn. i. pp. statement is inaccurate in refer-
143, 145. ence to Castile, where the facts do
Some writers are inclined to not warrant us in imputing any
view the Spanish Inquisition, in its other motive for its adoption than
origin, as little else than a political religious zeal. The general char-
engine. Guizot remarks of the acter of Ferdinand, as well as the
tribunal, in one of his lectures, circumstances under which it was
" Elle contenait en germe ce qu' introduced into Aragon, may justi-
elle est devenue ; mais elle ne fy the inference of a more worldly
l'6tait pas en commen^ant : elle policy in its establishment there.
246 THE INQUISITION.
part discouragement of all free inquiry in its disciples.
- — whom it instructed to rely implicitly in matters of
conscience on their spiritual advisers. The artful
institution of the tribunal of confession, established
with this view, brought, as it were, the whole
Christian world at the feet of the clergy, who, far
from being always animated by the meek spirit of
the Gospel, almost justified the reproach of Vol-
taire, that confessors have been the source of most
of the violent measures pursued by princes of the
Catholic faith. 23
ouisST Isabella's serious temper, as well as early educa-
tion, naturally disposed her to religious influences.
Notwithstanding the independence exhibited by her
in all secular affairs, in her own spiritual concerns
she uniformly testified the deepest humility, and de-
ferred too implicitly to what she deemed the supe-
rior sagacity, or sanctity, of her ghostly counsellors.
An instance of this humility may be worth record-
ing. When Fray Fernando de Talavera, afterwards
archbishop of Granada, who had been appointed con-
fessor to the queen, attended her for the first time
in that capacity, he continued seated, after she had
knelt down to make her confession, which drew
from her the remark, " that it was usual for both
parties to kneel." " No," replied the priest, " this
is God's tribunal ; I act here as his minister, and
it is fitting that I should keep my seat, while your
Highness kneels before me." Isabella, far from
taking umbrage at the ecclesiastic's arrogant de-
23 Essai sur les Mceurs et l'Esprit des Nations, chap. 176.
THE INQUISITION. 247
meanor, complied with all humility, and was after- chapter
wards heard to say, " This is the confessor that I - —
wanted." 24
Well had it been for the land, if the queen's con- ammeter of
- 1 her confes-
science had always been intrusted to the keeping ^ d 1 a ° rq,K "
of persons of such exemplary piety as Talavera.
Unfortunately, in her early days, during the lifetime
of her brother Henry, that charge was committed
to a Dominican monk, Thomas de Torquemada, a
native of old Castile, subsequently raised to the
rank of prior of Santa Cruz in Segovia, and con-
demned to infamous immortality by the signal part
which he performed in the tragedy of the Inquisi-
tion. This man, who concealed more pride under
his monastic weeds than might have furnished forth
a convent of his order, was one of that class, with
whom zeal passes for religion, and who testify their
zeal by a fiery persecution of those whose creed
differs from their own ; who compensate for their
abstinence from sensual indulgence, by giving scope
to those deadlier vices of the heart, pride, bigotry,
and intolerance, which are no less opposed to virtue,
and are far more extensively mischievous to society.
This personage had earnestly labored to infuse into
Isabella's young mind, to which his situation as her
confessor gave him such ready access, the same
spirit of fanaticism that glowed in his own. For-
24 Sigflenza, Historia de la Or- virtues raised him from the hum-
den de Sin Geronimo, apud Mem. blest condition to the highest posts
de la Acad, de Hist., torn. vi. in the church, and gained him, to
llust. 13. — This anecdote is more quote that writer's words, the ap-
eharacteristic of the order than the pellation of " El sancto, 6 el buen
individual. Oviedo has given a arzobispo en toda Espafia." Quin-
brief notice of this prelate, whose cuagenas, MS., dial, de Talavera.
248
THE INQUISITION.
PART
1.
l'apal bull
ttuthorizing
i lie Inquisi-
iiiin.
tunately tliis was greatly counteracted by her sound
understanding and natural kindness of heart. Tor-
quemada urged her, or indeed, as is stated by some,
extorted a promise, that, " should she ever come
to the throne, she would devote herself to the ex-
tirpation of heresy, for the glory of God, and the
exaltation of the Catholic faith." 25 The time was
now arrived when this fatal promise was to be dis-
charged.
It is due to Isabella's fame to state thus much in
palliation of the unfortunate error into which she
was led by her misguided zeal ; an error so grave,
that, like a vein in some noble piece of statuary, it
gives a sinister expression to her otherwise unblem-
ished character. 26 It was not until the queen had
endured the repeated importunities of the clergy,
particularly of those reverend persons in whom she
most confided, seconded by the arguments of Fer-
dinand, that she consented to solicit from the pope
a bull for the introduction of the Holy Office into
Castile. Sixtus the Fourth, who at that time filled
the pontifical chair, easily discerning the sources of
wealth and influence, which this measure opened
to the court of Rome, readily complied with the
petition of the sovereigns, and expedited a bull
bearing date November 1st, 1478, authorizing them
25 Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. fol.
323.
26 The uniform tenderness with
which the most liberal Spanish
writers of the present comparative-
Z enlightened ape, as Marina,
lorente, Clemencin, &c., regard
the memory of Isabella, affords an
honorable testimony to the unsus-
pected integrity of her motives.
Even in relation to the Inquisition,
her countrymen would seem wil-
ling to draw a veil over her errors,
or to excuse her by charging them
on the age in which she lived.
resorts
to milder
measures.
THE INQUISITION. 249
to appoint two or three ecclesiastics, inquisitors for chapter
the detection and suppression of heresy throughout !
their dominions. 27
The queen, however, still averse to violent mea- Isabella
sures, suspended the operation of the ordinance,
until a more lenient policy had been first tried. By
her command, accordingly, the archbishop of Se-
ville, cardinal Mendoza, drew up a catechism ex-
hibiting the different points of the Catholic faith,
and instructed the clergy throughout his diocese to
spare no pains in illuminating the benighted Israel-
ites, by means of friendly exhortation and a candid
exposition of the true principles of Christianity. 28
How far the spirit of these injunctions was complied
with, amid the excitement then prevailing, may be
reasonably doubted. There could be little doubt,
however, that a report, made two years later, by a
commission of ecclesiastics with Alfonso de Ojeda
at its head, respecting the progress of the reforma-
tion, would be necessarily unfavorable to the Jews. 29
27 Pulsar, Reyes Catolicos, part, tive agency in the establishment of
2, cap. 77. — Bernaldez, Reyes the Inquisition, as is claimed for
Cat61iC0S, MS., cap. 43. — Llo- him by later writers, and especially
rente, Hist, de l'lnquisition, torn, his kinsman and biographer, the
i. pp. 143 - 145. — Much discrep- canon Salazar de Mendoza. (Cr6n.
ancy exists in the narratives of del Gran Cardenal, lib. 1, cap. 49.
Pulgar, Bernaldez, and other con- — Monarquia, torn. i. p. 336.) The
temporary writers, in reference to conduct of this eminent minister in
the era of the establishment of the tins affair seems, on the contrary,
modern Inquisition. I have fol- to have been equally politic and
lowed Llorente, whose chronologi- humane. The imputation of bigot-
cal accuracy, here and elsewhere, ry was not cast upon it, until the
rests on the most authentic docu- age when bigotry was esteemed a
ments. virtue.
28 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, 29 In the interim, a caustic pub-
MS., ubi supra. — Pulgar, Reyes lication by a Jew appeared, con-
Catolicos, part. 2, cap. 77. — I find taming strictures on the conduct of
no contemporary authority for im- the administration, and even on the
puting to cardinal Mendoza an ac- Christian religion, which was con-
vol. I. 32
250
?HE INQUISITION.
PART
I.
Kn forces the
1'apal bull.
1480.
Sept. 17.
Inquisition
at Seville.
In consequence of this report the papal provisions
were enforced by the nomination, on the 17th of
September, 1480, of two Dominican monks as in-
quisitors, with two other ecclesiastics, the one as
assessor, and the other as procurator fiscal, with
instructions to proceed at once to Seville, and enter
on the duties of their office. Orders were also
issued to the authorities of the city to support the
inquisitors by all the aid in their power. But the
new institution, which has since become the miser-
able boast of the Castilians, proved so distasteful to
them in its origin, that they refused any cooperation
with its ministers, and indeed opposed such delays
and embarrassments, that, during the first years, it
can scarcely be said to have obtained a footing in
any other places in Andalusia, than those belonging
to the crown. 30
On the 2d of January, 1481, the court com-
menced operations by the publication of an edict,
followed by several others, requiring all persons to
aid in apprehending and accusing all such as they
might know, or suspect to be guilty of heresy, 31
troverted at length by Talavera,
afterwards archbishop of Granada.
The scandal occasioned by this ill-
timed production undoubtedly con-
tributed to exacerbate the popular
odium against the Israelites.
30 It is worthy of remark, that
the famous cortes of Toledo, as-
sembled but a short time previous
to the abovementioned ordinances,
and which enacted several oppres-
sive laws in relation to the Jews,
made no allusion whatever to the
proposed establishment of a tribu-
nal, which was to be armed with
such terrific powers.
31 This ordinance, in which Llo-
rente discerns the first regular en-
croachment of the new tribunal on
the civil jurisdiction, was aimed
partly at the Andalusian nobility,
who afforded a shelter to the Jew-
ish fugitives. Llorente has fallen
into the error, more than once, of
speaking of the count of Arcos,
and marquis of Cadiz, as separate
persons. The possessor of both
titles was Rodrigo Ponce de Leon,
who inherited the former of them
from his father. The latter (which
he afterwards made so illustrious
in the Moorish wars) was confer-
THE INQUISITION. 2.51
and holding out the illusory promise of absolution to chapter
such as should confess their errors within a limited —
period. As every mode of accusation, even anony-
mous, was invited, the number of victims multi-
plied so fast, that the tribunal found it convenient
to remove its sittings from the convent of St. Paul,
within the city, to the spacious fortress of Triana,
in the suburbs. 32
The presumptive proofs, by which the charge of Proofs or
Judaism was established against the accused are so
curious, that a few of them may deserve notice. It
was considered good evidence of the fact, if the pris-
oner wore better clothes or cleaner linen on the
Jewish sabbath than on other days of the week ; if
he had no fire in his house the preceding evening ;
if he sat at table with Jews, or ate the meat of ani-
mals slaughtered by their hands, or drank a certain
beverage held in much estimation by them ; if he
washed a corpse in warm water, or when dying
turned his face to the wall ; or, finally, if he gave
Hebrew names to his children ; a provision most
whimsically cruel, since, by a law of Henry the
Second, he was prohibited under severe penalties
from giving them Christian names. He must have
found it difficult to extricate himself from the horns
of this dilemma. 33 Such are a few of the circum-
red on him by Henry TV., being Deity is one that the persecuted
derived from the city of that name, might join in, as heartily as their
which had been usurped from the oppressors. " Exurge Domine ;
crown. judica causam tuam ; capite nobis
32 The historian of Seville quotes vulpes." Zufiiga, Annales de Se-
the Latin inscription on the portal villa, p. 389.
of the edifice in which the sittings ^ Ordenan^as Reales, lib. 8, tit.
of the dread tribunal were held. 3, ley 26.
Its concluding apostrophe to the
252 THE INQUISITION.
part stances, some of them purely accidental in their
! nature, others the result of early habit, which might
well have continued after a sincere conversion to
Christianity, and all of them trivial, on which capi-
tal accusations were to be alleged, and even satis-
factorily established. 34
Thesangum- Tlie inquisitors, adopting the wily and tortuous
ary proceed- * . '
ingBofthe policy of the ancient tribunal, proceeded with a de-
spatch, which shows that they could have paid little
deference even to this affectation of legal form. On
the sixth day of January, six convicts suffered at the
stake. Seventeen more were executed in March,
and a still greater number in the month following ;
and by the 4th of November in the same year,
no less than two hundred and ninety-eight individ-
uals had been sacrificed in the autos dafe of Seville.
Besides these, the mouldering remains of many,
who had been tried and convicted after their death,
were torn up from their graves, with a hyena-like
ferocity, which has disgraced no other court, Chris-
tian or Pagan, and condemned to the common
funeral pile. This was prepared on a spacious
stone scaffold, erected in the suburbs of the city,
with the statues of four prophets attached to the
corners, to which the unhappy sufferers were bound
for the sacrifice, and which the worthy Curate of
Los Palacios celebrates with much complacency as
the spot, " where heretics were burnt, and ought to
burn as long as any can be found." S5
34 Llorente, Hist, de l'lnquisi- MS., cap. 44. — Llorente, Hist, de
tion, torn. i. pp. 153-159. l'lnquisition, torn. i. p. 160. — L.
35 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, Marineo, Cosas Memorables, fol.
THE INQUISITION. 253
VII.
Many of the convicts were persons estimable for chapter
learning and probity ; and, among these, three cler-
gymen are named, together with other individuals
filling judicial or high municipal stations. The
sword of justice was observed, in particular, to
strike at the wealthy, the least pardonable offenders
in times of proscription.
The plague which desolated Seville this year,
sweeping off fifteen thousand inhabitants, as if in
token of the wrath of Heaven at these enormities,
did not palsy for a moment the arm of the Inquisi-
tion, which, adjourning to Aracena, continued as in-
defatigable as before. A similar persecution went
forward in other parts of the province of Andalusia ;
so that within the same year, 1481, the number of
the sufferers was computed at two thousand burnt
alive, a still greater number in effigy, and seventeen
thousand reconciled ; a term which must not be un-
derstood by the reader to signify any thing like a
pardon or amnesty, but only the commutation of
a capital sentence for inferior penalties, as fines,
civil incapacity, very generally total confiscation of
property, and not unfrequently imprisonment for
life. 36
104. — The language of Bernaldez ment of fanaticism continued to
as applied to the four statues of the disgrace Seville till 1810, when it
quemadero, "ra<7?/elosquemavan," was removed in order to make
is so equivocal, that it has led to room for the construction of a
some doubts whether he meant to battery against the French,
assert that the persons to be burnt 36 L. Marineo, Cosas Memora-
were enclosed in the statues, or bles, fol. 164. — Bernaldez, Reyes
fastened to them. Llorente's sub- Catolicos, MS., cap. 44. — Mariana,
sequent examination has led him lib. 24, cap. 17. — Llorente, Hist,
to discard the first horrible suppo- de l'lnquisition, ubi supra. — L.
sition, which realized the fabled Marineo diffuses the 2,000 capital
cruelty of Phalaris. — This monu- executions over several years. He
I lie pajial
court.
254 the inquisition.
part The Jews were astounded by the bolt, which
' had fallen so unexpectedly upon them. Some suc-
ceeded in making their escape to Granada, others
to France, Germany, or Italy, where they appealed
from the decisions of the Holy Office to the sove-
•™?rrLi' f rc ig n pontiff. 37 Sixtus the Fourth appears for a
moment to have been touched with something like
compunction ; for he rebuked the intemperate zeal
of the inquisitors, and even menaced them with
deprivation. But these feelings, it would seem,
were but transient ; for, in 1483, we find the same
pontiff quieting the scruples of Isabella respecting
the appropriation of the confiscated property, and
encouraging both sovereigns to proceed in the great
work of purification, by an audacious reference to
the example of Jesus Christ, who, says he, consoli-
dated his kingdom on earth by the destruction of
idolatry ; and he concludes with imputing their
successes in the Moorish war, upon which they had
then entered, to their zeal for the faith, and prom-
ising them the like in future. In the course of the
sums up the various severities of again, who sincerely repent, she,
the Holy Office in the following notwithstanding the heinousness
gentle terms. " The church, who of their transgressions, merely sen-
is the mother of mercy and the tences to perpetual imprisonment ! ' '
fountain of charity, content with Such were the tender mercies of
the imposition of penances, gen- the Spanish Inquisition,
erously accords life to many who :i7 Bernaldez states, that guards
do not deserve it. While those were posted at the gates of the
who persist obstinately in their er- city of Seville in order to prevent
rors, after being imprisoned on the the emigration of the Jewish in-
testimony of trust-worthy witness- habitants, which indeed was forbid-
es, she causes to be put to the den under pain of death. The tri-
torture, and condemned to the bunal, however, had greater ter-
flames; some miserably perish, be- rors for them, and many succeeded
wailing their errors, and invoking in effecting their escape. Reves
the name of Christ, while others ( 'atolicos, MS., cap. 44.
call upon that of Moses. Many
THE INQUISITION. 255
same year, he expedited two briefs, appointing chapter
VII.
Thomas de Torquemada inquisitor-general of Cas- '. —
• i i ill* 1 • • l /* n Final organ-
tile and Araffon, and clothing him with lull powers izationofthe
° ° 1 Inquisition.
to frame a new constitution for the Holy Office. 1483.
m i •• 'i *ii "i 11 Aug. 2, and
This was the origin of that terrible tribunal, the oct.n.
Spanish or Modern Inquisition, familiar to most
readers, whether of history or romance ; which, for
three centuries, has extended its iron sway over the
dominions of Spain and Portugal. 38 Without going
into details respecting the organization of its vari-
ous courts, which gradually swelled to thirteen
during the present reign, I shall endeavour to ex-
hibit the principles which regulated their proceed-
ings, as deduced in part from the code digested
under Torquemada, and partly from the practice
which obtained during his supremacy. 89
Edicts were ordered to be published annually, Forms of
on the first two Sundays in lent, throughout the
churches, enjoining it as a sacred duty on all, who
knew or suspected another to be guilty of heresy,
38 L. Marineo, Cosas Memora- ation was to secure the interest of
hies, fol. 164. — Zufiiga, Annales the crown in the confiscated prop-
de Sevilla, p. 396 — Pulgar, Reyes erty, and to guard against the en-
f'atolioos, part. 2, cap. 77. — Ga- croachment of the Inquisition on
ribay, Compendio, torn. ii. Jib. 18, secular jurisdiction. The expedi-
cap. 17. — Paramo, De Origine ent, however, wholly failed, be-
Inquisitionis, lib. 2, tit. 2, cap. 2. cause most of the questions brought
— Llorente, Hist, de l'lnquisition, before this court were determined
lorn. i. pp. 163- 173. by the principles of the canon law,
39 Over these subordinate tribu- of which the grand inquisitor was
nals Ferdinand erected a court of to be sole interpreter, the others
supervision, with appellate juris- having only, as it was termed, a
diction, under the name of Coun- "consultative voice." Llorente,
dl of the Supreme, consisting of torn. i. pp. 173, 174. — Zurita,
the grand inquisitor, as presi- Anales, torn. iv. fol. 324. — Riol,
dent, and three other ecclesiastics, Informe, apud Semanario Erudito,
two of them doctors of law. The torn. iii. pp. 156 et seq.
principal purpose of this new ere-
THE INQUISITION.
part to lodge information against him before the Holy
-1 . Office ; and the ministers of religion were instructed
to refuse absolution to such as hesitated to comply
with this, although the suspected person might stand
in the relation of parent, child, husband, or wife.
All accusations, anonymous as well as signed, were
admitted ; it being only necessary to specify the
names of the witnesses, whose testimony was taken
down in writing by a secretary, and afterwards read
to them, which, unless the inaccuracies were so
gross as to force themselves upon their attention,
they seldom failed to confirm. 40
The accused, in the mean time, whose myste-
rious disappearance was perhaps the only public
evidence of his arrest, was conveyed to the secret
chambers of the Inquisition, where he was jealously
excluded from intercourse with all, save a priest of
the Romish church and his jailer, both of whom
might be regarded as the spies of the tribunal. In
this desolate condition, the unfortunate man, cut
off from external communication and all cheering
sympathy or support, was kept for some time in
ignorance even of the nature of the charges pre-
ferred against him, and at length, instead of the
40 Puigblanch, Inquisition Un- the interests of the tribunal."
masked, vol. i. chap. 4. — Llorente, Their answers often opened a new
Hist, de l'lnquisition, torn. i. chap, scent to the judges, and thus,
6, art. 1 ; chap. 9, art. 1, 2. — The in the language of Montanus,
witnesses were questioned in such " brought more fishes into the in-
general terms, that they were even quisitors' holy angle." See Mon-
kept in ignorance of the particular tanus, Discovery and Playne Dec-
matter respecting which they were laration of sundry subtill Practises
expected to testify. Thus, they of the Holy Inquisition of Spayne,
were asked " if they knew any Eng. trans. (London, 1569,) fol
thing which had been said or done 14.
contrary to the Catholic faith, and
THE INQUISITION. 257
original process, was favored only with extracts chapter
from the depositions of the witnesses, so garbled as . —
to conceal every possible clue to their name and
quality. With still greater unfairness, no men-
tion whatever was made of such testimony, as had
arisen in the course of the examination, in his
own favor. Counsel was indeed allowed from a list
presented by his judges. But this privilege avail-
ed little, since the parties were not permitted to
confer together, and the advocate was furnished
with no other sources of information than what had
been granted to his client. To add to the injus-
tice of these proceedings, every discrepancy in the
statements of the witnesses was converted into a
separate charge against the prisoner, who thus, in-
stead of one crime, stood accused of several. This,
taken in connexion with the concealment of time,
place, and circumstance in the accusations, created
such embarrassment, that, unless the accused was
possessed of unusual acuteness and presence of
mind, it was sure to involve him, in his attempts to
explain, in inextricable contradiction. 41
If the prisoner refused to confess his guilt, or, Tortow
as was usual, was suspected of evasion, or an at-
tempt to conceal the truth, he was subjected to the
torture. This, which was administered in the deep-
est vaults of the Inquisition, where the cries of
the victim could fall on no ear save that of his tor-
mentors, is admitted by the secretary of the Holy
41 Limborch, Inquisition, book chap. G,art. 1; chap. 9, art. 4-9.
4, chap. 20. — Montanus, Inquisi- Puigblanch, Inquisition Unmask-
tion of Spayne, fol. 6-15. — Llo- ed, vol. i. chap. 4.
iente,Hist. de l'Inquisition, torn. i.
vol. I. 33
258 THE INQUISITION.
pabt Office, who has furnished the most authentic report
! of its transactions, not to have been exaggerated in
any of the numerous narratives which have dragged
these subterranean horrors into light. If the in-
tensity of pain extorted a confession from the suf-
ferer, he was expected, if he survived, which did
not always happen, to confirm it on the next day.
Should he refuse to do this, his mutilated members
were condemned to a repetition of the same suffer-
ings, until his obstinacy (it should rather have been
termed his heroism) might be vanquished. 42 Should
the rack, however, prove ineffectual to force a
confession of his guilt, he was so far from being
considered as having established his innocence,
that, with a barbarity unknown to any tribunal
where the torture has been admitted, and which of
itself proves its utter incompetency to the ends it
proposes, he was not unfrequently convicted on the
depositions of the witnesses. At the conclusion
of his mock trial, the prisoner was again returned
to his dungeon, where, without the blaze of a
single fagot to dispel the cold, or illuminate the
darkness of the long winter night, he was left in
unbroken silence to await the doom which was
to consign him to an ignominious death, or a life
scarcely less ignominious. 43
42 Llorente, Hist, de l'lnquisi- pretending after each new inflic-
tion, torn. i. chap. 9, art. 7. — tion of punishment, that they had
By a subsequent regulation of only suspended, and not terminat-
Philip II., the repetition of torture ed the torture !
in the same process was strictly 43 Montanus, Inquisition of
prohibited to the inquisitors. But Spayne, fol.24 etseq. — Limborch,
they, making use of a sophism Inquisition, vol. ii. chap. 29. —
worthy of the arch-fiend himself, Puigblanch, Inquisition Unmasked,
contrived to evade this law, by vol. i. chap. 4. — Llorente, Hist.
THE INQUISITION. 259
The proceedings of the tribunal, as I have stated chapter
them, were plainly characterized throughout by the
most flagrant injustice and inhumanity to the ac-
cused. Instead of presuming his innocence, until
his guilt had been established, it acted on exactly
the opposite principle. Instead of affording him
the protection accorded by every other judicature,
and especially demanded in his forlorn situation, it
used the most insidious arts to circumvent and to
crush him. He had no remedy against malice or
misapprehension on the part of his accusers, or the
witnesses against him, who might be his bitterest
enemies ; since they were never revealed to, nor
confronted with the prisoner, nor subjected to a
cross-examination, which can best expose error or
wilful collusion in the evidence. 44 Even the poor
forms of justice, recognised in this court, might be
readily dispensed with ; as its proceedings were
impenetrably shrouded from the public eye, by the
appalling oath of secrecy imposed on all, whether
functionaries, witnesses, or prisoners, who entered
de l'Inquisition, ubi supra. — I Inquisition at Madrid, and his Es-
shall spare the reader the descrip- cape in 1817- 18."
tion of the various modes of tor- ** The prisoner had indeed the
ture, the rack, fire, and pulley, right of challenging any witness
practised by the inquisitors, which on the ground of personal enmity,
have been so often detailed in the (Llorente, Hist, de l'Inquisition,
doleful narratives of such as have torn. i. chap. 9, art. 10.) But as
had the fortune to escape with life he was kept in ignorance of the
from the fangs of the tribunal. If names of the witnesses employed
we are to believe Llorente, these against him, and as even, if he
harbarities have not been decreed conjectured right, the degree of
for a long time. Yet some recent enmity, competent to set aside tes-
statements are at variance with timony, was to be determined by
this assertion. See, among oth- his judges, it is evident that his
ers, the celebrated adventurer Van privilege of challenge was wholly
Halen's " Narrative of his Impris- nugatory,
onnient in the Dungeons of the
260 THE INQUISITION.
part within its precincts. The last, and not the least
- — odious feature of the whole, was the connexion
established between the condemnation of the ac-
cused and the interests of his judges ; since the
confiscations, which were the uniform penalties of
heresy, 45 were not permitted to flow into the royal
exchequer, until they had first discharged the ex-
penses, whether in the shape of salaries or other-
wise, incident to the Holy Office. 46
Auu» dafe. The last scene in this dismal tragedy was the
act of faith, (auto da fe,) the most imposing spec-
tacle probably, which has been witnessed since the
ancient Roman triumph, and which, as intimated
by a Spanish writer, was intended, somewhat pro-
fanely, to represent the terrors of the Day of Judg-
ment. 47 The proudest grandees of the land, on
45 Confiscation had long been to the tyranny of the confessional,
decreed as the punishment of con- aimed at establishing the same ju-
victed heretics by the statutes of risdiction over thoughts, which
Castile. (Ordenancjas Reales, lib. secular tribunals have wisely con-
8, tit. 4.) The avarice of the fined to actions. Time, instead of
present system, however, is exem- softening, gave increased harsh-
plified by the fact, that those, who ness to the features of the new
confessed and sought absolution system. The most humane pro-
within the brief term of grace al- visions were constantly evaded in
lowed by the inquisitors from the practice ; and the toils for ensnar-
publication of their edict, were ing the victim were so ingeniously
liable to arbitrary fines ; and those multiplied, that few, very few,
who confessed after that period, were permitted to escape without
escaped with nothing short of con- some censure. Not more than one
fiscation. Llorente, Hist, de l'ln- person, says Llorente, in one or
quisition, torn. i. pp. 17(3, 177. perhaps two thousand processes,
46 Ibid., torn. i. p. 216. — Zu- previous to the time of Philip III.,
rita, Anales, torn. iv. fol. 324. received entire absolution. So
— Salazar de Mendozn, Monar- that it came to be proverbial that
quia, torn. i. fol. 337. — It is easy all who were not roasted, were at
to discern in every part of the least singed.
odious scheme of the Inquisition, „ DeV(in , n nquisilion> quand on vient a
the contrivance of the monks, a jube,
class of men, cut off by their pro- Si I'on ne sort roti, l'on sort au moim
fession from the usual sympathies am e ' '
of social life, and who, accustomed 47 Montanus, Inquisition of
THE INQUISITION.
261
this occasion, putting on the sable livery of famil-
iars of the Holy Office and bearing aloft its banners,
condescended to act as the escort of its ministers ;
while the ceremony was not unfrequently counte-
nanced by the royal presence. It should be stated,
however, that neither of these acts of condescen-
sion, or more properly, humiliation, were witnessed
until a period posterior to the present reign. The
effect was further heightened by the concourse of
ecclesiastics in their sacerdotal robes, and the pom-
pous ceremonial, which the church of Rome knows
so well how to display on fitting occasions ; and
which was intended to consecrate, as it were, this
bloody sacrifice by the authority of a religion, which
has expressly declared that it desires mercy and
not sacrifice. 48
CHAPTER
VII.
Spayne, fol. 46. — Puigblanch,
Inquisition Unmasked, vol. i. chap.
4. — Every reader of Tacitus and
Juvenal will remember how early
the Christians were condemned to
endure the penalty of fire. Per-
haps the earliest instance of burn-
ing to death for heresy in modern
times occurred under the reign of
Robert of France, in the early part
of the eleventh century. (Sismon-
di, Hist, des Francais, torn. iv.
chap. 4.) Paramo, as usual, finds
authority for inquisitorial autos da
fe, where one would least expect
it, in the New Testament. Among
other examples, he quotes the re-
mark of James and John, who,
when the village of Samaria re-
fused to admit Christ within its
walls, would have called down fire
from heaven to consume its inhab-
itants. " Lo," says Paramo, " fire,
the punishment of heretics ; for the
Samaritans were the heretics of
those times." (De Origine In-
quisitionis, lib. 1, tit. 3, cap. 5.)
The worthy father omits to add
the impressive rebuke of our Sav-
iour to his over-zealous disciples.
" Ye know not what manner of
spirit ye are of. The son of man
is not come to destroy men's lives,
but to save them."
43 Puigblanch, vol. i. chap. 4. —
The inquisitors after the celebra-
tion of an auto da fe atGuadaloupe,
in 1485, wishing probably to justify
these bloody executions in the eyes
of the people, who had not yet be-
come familiar with them, solicited
a sign from the Virgin (whose
shrine in that place is noted all
over Spain) in testimony of her
approbation of the Holy Office.
Their petition was answered by
such a profusion of miracles, that
Dr. Francis Sanctius de la Fuente,
who acted as scribe on the occa-
sion, became out of breath, and,
after recording sixty, gave up in
despair, unable to keep pace with
I.
262 THE INQUISITION.
part The most important actors in the scene were
the unfortunate convicts, who were now disgorged
for the first time from the dungeons of the tribunal.
They were clad in coarse woollen garments, styled
san benitos, brought close round the neck and
descending like a frock, down to the knees. 49
These were of a yellow color, embroidered with
a scarlet cross, and well garnished with figures of
devils and flames of fire, which, typical of the
heretic's destiny hereafter, served to make him
more odious in the eyes of the superstitious mul-
titude. 50 The greater part of the sufferers were
condemned to be reconciled, the manifold meanings
of which soft phrase have been already explained.
Those who were to be relaxed, as it was called,
were delivered over, as impenitent heretics, to the
secular arm, in order to expiate their offence by
the most painful of deaths, with the consciousness,
still more painful, that they were to leave behind
them names branded with infamy, and families
involved in irretrievable ruin. 51
their marvellous rapidity. Para- rifice, or massacre; — it is all of
mo, De Origine Inquisitionis, lib. them. They reproach Montezuma
2, tit. 2, cap. 3. with sacrificing human captives to
49 San benito, according to Llo- the Gods. — What would he have
rente (torn. i. p. 127.), is a cor- said, had he witnessed an auto da
ruption of saco bendito, being the fe ? "
name given to the dresses worn 51 The government, at least,
by penitents previously to the cannot be charged with remissness
thirteenth century. in promoting this. I find two or-
50 Llorente, Hist, de l'Inquisi- dinances in the royal collection of
tion, torn. i. chap. 9, art. 16. — pragmaticas, dated in September,
Puigblanch, Inquisition Unmasked, 1501, (there must be some error in
vol. i. chap. 4. — Voltaire remarks the date of one of them,) inhibit-
(Essai sur les Mceurs, chap. 140.) ing, under pain of confiscation of
that, " An Asiatic, arriving at property, such as had been recon-
Madrid on the day of an auto da died, and their children by the
fe, would doubt whether it were a mother's side, and grandchildren
festival, religious celebration, sac- by the father's, from holding any
THE INQUISITION. 263
It is remarkable, that a scheme so monstrous as chapter
that of the Inquisition, presenting the most effect-
ual barrier, probably, that was ever opposed to the
progress of knowledge, should have been revived
at the close of the fifteenth century, when the
light of civilization was rapidly advancing over
every part of Europe. It is more remarkable, that
it should have occurred in Spain, at this time
under a government, which had displayed great
religious independence on more than one occasion,
and which had paid uniform regard to the rights
of its subjects, and pursued a generous policy in
reference to their intellectual culture. Where, we
are tempted to ask, when we behold the perse-
cution of an innocent, industrious people for the
crime of adhesion to the faith of their ancestors,
where was the charity, which led the old Castilian
to reverence valor and virtue in an infidel, though
an enemy ? Where the chivalrous self-devotion,
which led an Aragonese monarch, three centuries
before, to give away his life, in defence of the
persecuted sectaries of Provence ? Where the in-
dependent spirit, which prompted the Castilian
nobles, during the very last reign, to reject with
scorn the purposed interference of the pope him-
office in the privy council, courts find a precedent in a law of Sylla,
of justice, or in the municipalities, excluding the children of the pro-
or any other place of trustor honor, scribed Romans from political hon-
Tliey were also excluded from the ors ; thus indignantly noticed by
vocations of notaries, surgeons, and Sallust. " Quin solus omnium,
apothecaries. (Pragmaticas del post memoriam hominum, supplicia
Reyno, fol. 5, 6.) This was visit- in post futuros composuit ; quis
ing the sins of the fathers, to an prius injuria quam vita certa esset ."
extent unparalleled in modern le- Hist. Fragmenta, lib. 1.
gislation. The sovereigns might
VII.
264
THE INQUISITION.
PART
I.
Convictions
un
merce cultivated vega, or plain, so celebrated as the
arena, for more than two centuries, of Moorish
and Christian chivalry, every inch of whose soil
may be said to have been fertilized with human
Wood. The Arabs exhausted on it all their pow-
ers of elaborate cultivation. They distributed the
waters of the Xenil, which flowed through it, into
a thousand channels for its more perfect irrigation.
A constant succession of fruits and crops was ob-
tained throughout the year. The products of the
most opposite latitudes were transplanted there
with success ; and the hemp of the north grew
luxuriant under the shadow of the vine and the
olive. Silk furnished the principal staple of a
traffic that was carried on through the ports of
Almeria and Malaga. The Italian cities, then
rising into opulence, derived their principal skill
in this elegant manufacture from the Spanish
Arabs. Florence, in particular, imported large
quantities of the raw material from them as late
25 Conde, Dominacion de los to the large quantity of grain in
Arabes, torn. ii. p. 147. — Casiri, which its vega abounded; others
Bibliotheca Escurialensis, torn. ii. again to the resemblance which
pp. 248 et seq. — Pedraza, Anti- the city, divided into two hills
guedad y Excelencias de Granada, thickly sprinkled with houses,
(Madrid, 1608,) lib. 1. — Pedraza bore to a half-opened pomegran-
has collected the various etymolo- ate. (Lib. 2, cap. 17.) The arms
gies of the term Granada, which of the city, which were in part
some writers have traced to the composed of a pomegranate, would
fact of the city having been the seem to favor the derivation of its
spot where the pomegranate was name from that of the fruit,
first introduced from Africa ; others
THE SPANISH ARABS. 291
as the fifteenth century. The Genoese are men- chapter
vhi
tioned as having mercantile establishments in Gra- !
nada ; and treaties of commerce were entered into
with this nation, as well as with the crown of
Aragon. Their ports swarmed with a motley con-
tribution from " Europe, Africa, and the Levant,"
so that " Granada," in the words of the historian,
" became the common city of all nations." " The
reputation of the citizens for trust-worthiness,"
says a Spanish writer, " was such, that their bare
word was more relied on, than a written contract
is now among us ; " and he quotes the saying of
a Catholic bishop, that " Moorish works and Span-
ish faith were all that were necessary to make a
good Christian. " 26
The revenue, which was computed at twelve Resources or
< L the crown.
hundred thousand ducats, was derived from similar,
but, in some respects, heavier impositions than those
of the caliphs of Cordova. The crown, besides
being possessed of valuable plantations in the vega,
imposed the onerous tax of one seventh on all the
agricultural produce of the kingdom. The pre-
cious metals were also obtained in considerable
20 Pedraza, Antiguedad de Gra- on his passage to the court of
nada, fol. 101. — Denina, Delle Ri- Lisbon in the middle of the fif-
voluzioni d' Italia, (Venezia, 1816,) teenth century, contrasts the su-
Capmany y Montpalau, Memorias perior cultivation, as well as gen-
Historicas sobre la Marina, Co- eral civilization, of Granada at this
mercio, y Artes de Barcelona, period with that of the other ccun-
(Madrid, 1779-92,) torn. iii. p. tries of Europe through which he
218; torn. iv. pp. 67 et seq. — had travelled. Sismondi, Histoire
Coude, Dominacion de los Arabes, desRepubliquesItaliennes duMoy-
tom. iii. cap. 26. — The ambassa- en-Age, (Paris, 1818,) torn. ix. p.
dor of the emperor Frederic III., 405.
292 THE SPANISH ARABS.
part quantities, and the royal mint was noted for the
'" purity and elegance of its coin. 27
Luxurious The sovereigns of Granada were for the most
character of o
ihe people. p art distinguished by liberal tastes. They freely
dispensed their revenues in the protection of let-
ters, the construction of sumptuous public works,
and, above all, in the display of a courtly pomp,
unrivalled by any of the princes of that period.
Each day presented a succession of fetes and tour-
neys, in which the knight seemed less ambitious
of the hardy prowess of Christian chivalry, than
of displaying his inimitable horsemanship, and his
dexterity in the elegant pastimes peculiar to his
nation. The people of Granada, like those of an-
cient Rome, seem to have demanded a perpetual
spectacle. Life was with them one long carnival,
and the season of revelry was prolonged until the
enemy was at the gate.
During the interval, which had elapsed since the
decay of the Omeyades, the Spaniards had been
gradually rising in civilization to the level of their
Saracen enemies ; and, while their increased con-
sequence secured them from the contempt, with
which they had formerly been regarded by the
Mussulmans, the latter, in their turn, had not so
far sunk in the scale, as to have become the objects
of the bigoted aversion, which was, in after days, so
heartily visited on them by the Spaniards. At this
27 Casiri, Bibliotheca Escurial- tains an erudite essay by Conde on
ensis, torn. ii. pp. 250 - 258. — Arabic money, principally with
The fifth volume of the royal reference to that coined in Spain ;
Spanish Academy of History con- pp. 225-315.
THE SPANISH ARABS. 293
period, therefore, the two nations viewed each chapter
other with more liberality probably, than at any 1
previous or succeeding time. Their respective
monarchs conducted their mutual negotiations on a
footing of perfect equality. We find several ex-
amples of Arabian sovereigns visiting in person the
court of Castile. These civilities were recipro-
cated by the Christian princes. As late as 1463,
Henry the Fourth had a personal interview with
the king of Granada, in the dominions of the latter.
The two monarchs held their conference under a
splendid pavilion erected in the vega, before the
gates of the city ; and, after an exchange of pres-
ents, the Spanish sovereign was escorted to the
frontiers by a body of Moorish cavaliers. These
acts of courtesy relieve in some measure the ruder
features of an almost uninterrupted warfare, that
was necessarily kept up between the rival na-
tions. 28
The Moorish and Christian knights were also in
the habit of exchanging visits at the courts of their
respective masters. The latter were wont to repair
28 A specification of a royal don- of royalty appears to have been
ative in that day may serve to deemed peculiarly appropriate to
show the martial spirit of the age. the kings of Leon. Ferreras in-
In one of these, made by the king forms us that the ambassadors
of Granada to the Castilian sove- from France at the Castilian court,
reign, we find twenty noble steeds in 1434. were received by John
of the royal stud, reared on the II., with a full grown domesticat-
banks of the Xenil, with superb ed lion crouching at his feet. (Hist,
caparisons, and the same number d'Espagne, torn. vi. p. 401.) The
of scimitars richly garnished with same taste appears still to exist in
gold and jewels; and, in anoth- Turkey. Dr. Clarke, in his visit
er, mixed up with perfumes and to Constantinople, met with one
cloth of gold, we meet with a litter of these terrific pets, who used to
of tame lions. (Conde, Domina- follow his master, Hassan Pacha,
cion de los Arabes, torn. iii. pp. about like a dog.
163, 183.) This latter symbol
294 THE SPANISH ARABS
part to Granada to settle their affairs of honor, by per-
' — sonal rencounter, in the presence of its sovereign.
The disaffected nobles of Castile, among whom
Mariana especially notices the Velas and the Cas-
tros, often sought an asylum there, and served
under the Moslem banner. With this interchange
of social courtesy between the two nations, it could
not but happen that each should contract somewhat
of the peculiarities natural to the other. The
Spaniard acquired something of the gravity and
magnificence of demeanor proper to the Arabian ;
and the latter relaxed his habitual reserve, and
above all, the jealousy and gross sensuality, which
characterize the nations of the east. 29
u!mr rUh saI Indeed, if we were to rely on the pictures pre-
sented to us in the Spanish ballads or romances, we
should admit as unreserved an intercourse between
the sexes to have existed among the Spanish Arabs,
as with any other people of Europe. The Moorish
lady is represented there as an undisguised spec-
tator of the public festivals; while her knight, bear-
ing an embroidered mantle or scarf, or some other
token of her favor, contends openly in her presence
for the prize of valor, mingles with her in the
graceful dance of the Zambra, or sighs away his
soul in moonlight serenades under her balcony. 30
29 Conde, Dominacion de los Aguilar, failing to keep his en-
Arabes, torn. iii. cap. 28. — Henri- gagement, the other rode round
quez del Castillo (Cronica, cap. the lists in triumph, with his ad-
138,) gives an account of an in- versary's portrait contemptuously
tended duel between two Castilian fastened to the tail of his horse,
nobles, in the presence of the king 3° It must be admitted, that these
of Granada, as late as 1470. One ballads, as far as facts are con-
of the parties, Don Alfonso de cerned, are too inexact to furnish
THE SPANISH ARABS.
295
Other circumstances, especially the frescoes still chapter
extant on the walls of the Alhambra, may be cited —
as corroborative of the conclusions afforded by the
romances, implying a latitude in the privileges ac-
corded to the sex, similar to that in Christian coun-
tries, and altogether alien from the genius of Ma-
hometanism. 31 The chivalrous character ascribed chivalry,
other than a very slippery founda-
tion for history. The most beau-
tiful portion perhaps of the Moor-
ish ballads, for example, is taken
up with the feuds of the Abencer-
rages in the latter days of Granada.
Yet this family, whose romantic
story is still repeated to the travel-
ler amid the ruins of the Alhambra,
is scarcely noticed, as far as I am
aware, by contemporary writers,
foreign or domestic, and would
seem to owe its chief celebrity to
the apocryphal version of Gines
Perez de Hyta, whose " Milesian
tales," according to the severe
sentence of Nic. Antonio, " are fit
only to amuse the lazy and the
listless." (Bibliotheca Nova, torn.
i. p. 536.)
But, although the Spanish bal-
lads are not entitled to the credit
of strict historical documents, they
may yet perhaps be received in
evidence of the prevailing charac-
ter of the social relations of the
age ; a remark indeed predicable
of most works of fiction, written
by authors contemporary with the
events they describe, and more
especially so of that popular min-
strelsy, which, emanating from a
simple, uncorrupted class, is less
likely to swerve from truth, than
more ostentatious works of art.
The long cohabitation of the Sar-
acens with the Christians, (full
evidence of which is afforded by
Capmany, (Mem. de Barcelona,
lorn. iv. Apend. no. 11,) who
quotes a document from the pub-
lic archives of Catalonia, show-
ing the great number of Saracens
residing in Aragon even in the
thirteenth and fourteenth centuries,
the most flourishing period of the
Granadian empire,) had enabled
many of them confessedly to speak
and write the Spanish language
with purity and elegance. Some
of the graceful little songs, which
are still chanted, by the peasantry
of Spain in their dances, to the
accompaniment of the castanet,
are referred by a competent critic
(Conde, De la Poesia Oriental,
MS. ) to an Arabian origin. There
can be little hazard, therefore, in
imputing much of this peculiar
minstrelsy to the Arabians them-
selves, the contemporaries, and
perhaps the eyewitnesses of the
events they celebrate.
31 Casiri (Bibliotheca Escuria-
lensis, torn. ii. p. 259,) has tran-
scribed a passage from an Arabian
author of the fourteenth century,
inveighing bitterly against the lux-
ury of the Moorish ladies, their
gorgeous apparel and habits of
expense, " amounting almost to
insanity," in a tone which may re-
mind one of the similar philippic
by his contemporary Dante, against
his fair countrywomen of Florence.
— Two ordinances of a king of
Granada, cited by Conde in his
History, prescribe the separation of
the women from the men in the
mosques ; and prohibit their at-
tendance on certain festivals, with-
out the protection of their husbands
or some near relative. — Their
femmes savantes, as we have seen,
296 THE SPANISH ARABS.
part to the Spanish Moslems appears, moreover, in per-
feet conformity to this. Thus some of their sove-
reigns, we are told, after the fatigues of the tour-
nament, were wont to recreate their spirits with
" elegant poetry, and florid discourses of amorous
and knightly history." The ten qualities, enumer-
ated as essential to a true knight, were " piety,
valor, courtesy, prowess, the gifts of poetry and
eloquence, and dexterity in the management of the
horse, the sword, lance, and bow." 32 The history
of the Spanish Arabs, especially in the latter wars
of Granada, furnishes repeated examples, not mere-
ly of the heroism, which distinguished the European
chivalry of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries,
but occasionally of a polished courtesy, that might
have graced a Bayard or a Sidney. This combina-
tion of oriental magnificence and knightly prowess
shed a ray of glory over the closing days of the
Arabian empire in Spain, and served to conceal,
though it could not correct, the vices which it pos-
sessed in common with all Mahometan institutions.
unsettled The government of Granada was not adminis-
trate of °
oaiwda. tered with the same tranquillity as that of Cordo-
va. Revolutions were perpetually occurring, which
may be traced sometimes to the tyranny of the
prince, but more frequently to the factions of the
seraglio, the soldiery, or the licentious populace of
were in the habit of conferring- the tournaments, and the fortunate
freely with men of letters, and of knight receiving the palm of vic-
assisting in person at the academi- tory from their hands,
cal stances. — And lastly, the fres- 3 s Conde, Dominacion de los
coes alluded to in the text repre- Arabes, torn. i. p. 340; torn. iii. p.
sent the presence of females at 119.
THE SPANISH ARABS. 297
the capital. The latter, indeed, more volatile than chapter
VI II.
the sands of the deserts from which they originally —
sprung, were driven by every gust of passion into
the most frightful excesses, deposing and even as-
sassinating their monarchs, violating their palaces,
and scattering abroad their beautiful collections and
libraries ; while the kingdom, unlike that of Cor-
dova, was so contracted in its extent, that every
convulsion of the capital was felt to its farthest
extremities. Still, however, it held out, almost
miraculously, against the Christian arms, and the
storms that beat upon it incessantly, for more than
two centuries, scarcely wore away any thing from
its original limits.
Several circumstances may be pointed out as causes or
her success-
enabling Granada to maintain this protracted resist- ful resisl -
o r ance.
ance. Its concentrated population furnished such
abundant supplies of soldiers, that its sovereigns
could bring into the field an army of a hundred
thousand men. 33 Many of these were drawn from
the regions of the Alpuxarras, whose rugged in-
habitants had not been corrupted by the soft effemi-
nacy of the plains. The ranks were occasionally
recruited, moreover, from the warlike tribes of Af-
rica. The Moors of Granada are praised by their
enemies for their skill with the cross-bow, to the
use of which they were trained from childhood. 34
But their strength lay chiefly in their cavalry.
Their spacious vegas afforded an ample field for the
33 Casiri, on Arabian authority, 3 * Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, p.
computes it at 200,000 men. Biblio- 250.
theca Escurialensis, torn. i. p. 338.
VOL. I. 38
298 THE SPANISH ARABS.
part display of their matchless horsemanship ; while the
. — face of the country, intersected by mountains and
intricate defiles, gave a manifest advantage to the
Arabian light-horse over the steel-clad cavalry of
the Christians, and was particularly suited to the
wild guerrilla warfare, in which the Moors so much
excelled. During the long hostilities of the country,
almost every city had been converted into a for-
tress. The number of these fortified places in the
territory of Granada was ten times as great as is
now to be found throughout the whole Peninsula. 35
Lastly, in addition to these means of defence, may
be mentioned their early acquaintance with gun-
powder, which, like the Greek fire of Constantino-
ple, contributed perhaps in some degree to prolong
their precarious existence beyond its natural term.
But after all, the strength of Granada, like that
of Constantinople, lay less in its own resources
than in the weakness of its enemies, who, distract-
ed by the feuds of a turbulent aristocracy, especial-
ly during the long minorities with which Castile
was afflicted, perhaps more than any other nation
in Europe, seemed to be more remote from the
conquest of Granada at the death of Henry the
Fourth, than at that of St. Ferdinand in the thir-
teenth century. Before entering on the achieve-
ment of this conquest by Ferdinand and Isabella,
it may not be amiss to notice the probable influence
35 Mem. de la Acad, de Hist., the banks of the Guadayra and
torn. vi. p. 169. — These ruined Guadalquivir, retains its battle-
fortifications still thickly stud the rnented tower, which served for the
border territories of Granada ; and defence of its inmates against the
many an Andalusian mill, along forays of the enemy.
THE SPANISH ARABS. 299
exerted by the Spanish Arabs on European civil- chaptbb
vin.
ization.
Notwithstanding the high advances made by the Literature
° Q , J of the span-
Arabians in almost every branch of learning, and ish Arab8 -
the liberal import of certain sayings ascribed to
Mahomet, the spirit of his religion was eminently
unfavorable to letters. The Koran, whatever be
the merit of its literary execution, does not, we
believe, contain a single precept in favor of general
science. 3G Indeed during the first century after its
promulgation, almost as little "attention was bestow-
ed upon this by the Saracens, as in their " days of
ignorance," as the period is stigmatized which
preceded the advent of their apostle. 3r But, after
the nation had reposed from its tumultuous military
career, the taste for elegant pleasures, which natu-
rally results from opulence and leisure, began to
flow in upon it. It entered upon this new field
with all its characteristic enthusiasm, and seemed
ambitious of attaining the same preeminence in
science, that it had already reached in arms.
It was at the commencement of this period
of intellectual fermentation, that the last of the
36 P'llcrbelot, (Bib. Orientalc, rejected as apocryphal by the
torn. i. p. 630,) among- other au- Persians and the whole sect of the
thentic traditions of Mahomet, Shiites, and are entitled to little
quotes one as indicating his encour- weight with a European,
agement of letters, viz. " That 37 When the caliph Al Mamon
the ink of the doctors and the encouraged, by his example as well
blood of the martyrs are of equal as patronage, a more enlightened
price." M. (Eisner (Des Ef- policy, he was accused by the
fets dc la Religion de Mohammed, more orthodox Mussulmans of at-
Paris, 1810.) has cited several tempting to subvert the principles
others of the same liberal import, of their religion. See Pococke,
But such traditions cannot be re- Spec. Hist. Arabum, (Oxon. 1650,)
ceived in evidence of the original p. 166.
doctrine of the prophet. They are
)00 THE SPANISH ARABS.
part Omcyades, escaping into Spain, established there the
^— kingdom of Cordova, and imported along with him
the fondness for luxury and letters, that had begun
to display itself in the capitals of the east. His
munificent spirit descended upon his successors ;
and, on the breaking up of the empire, the various
capitals, Seville, Murcia, Malaga, Granada, and
others, which rose upon its ruins, became the cen-
tres of so many intellectual systems, that continued
to emit a steady lustre through the clouds and dark-
ness of succeeding centuries. The period of this
literary civilization, reached far into the fourteenth
century, and thus, embracing an interval of six
hundred years, may be said to have exceeded in
duration that of any other literature ancient or
modern,
circum- There were several auspicious circumstances in
stances fa- *
vorabietoit. tne condition of the Spanish Arabs, which distin-
guished them from their Mahometan brethren. The
temperate climate of Spain was far more propitious
to robustness and elasticitv of intellect than the
sultry regions of Arabia and Africa. Its long line
of coast and convenient havens opened to it an
enlarged commerce. Its number of rival states
encouraged a generous emulation, like that which
glowed in ancient Greece and modern Italy; and
was infinitely more favorable to the developement
of the mental powers than the far-extended and
sluggish empires of Asia. Lastly, a familiar inter-
course with the Europeans served to mitigate in
the Spanish Arabs some of the more degrading
superstitions incident to their religion, and to im-
isions
amine; .
THE SPANISH ARABS. 301
part to them nobler ideas of the independence and chapter
moral dignity of man, than are to be found in the 1—
slaves of eastern despotism.
Under these favorable circumstances, provisions gj
for education were liberally multiplied, colleges,
academies, and gymnasiums springing up spontane-
ously, as it were, not merely in the principal cities,
but in the most obscure villages of the country.
No less than fifty of these colleges or schools could
be discerned scattered over the suburbs and popu-
lous plain of Granada. Seventy public libraries, if
we may credit the report, were counted within the
narrow limits of the Moslem territory. Every place
of note seems to have furnished materials for a lit-
erary history. The copious catalogues of writers,
still extant in the Escurial, show how extensively
the cultivation of science was pursued, even through
its minutest subdivisions ; while a biographical no-
tice of blind men, eminent for their scholarship in
Spain, proves how far the general avidity for knowl-
edge triumphed over the most discouraging obsta-
cles of nature. 38
The Spanish Arabs emulated their countrymen
of the east in their devotion to natural and mathe-
matical science. They penetrated into the re-
motest regions of Africa and Asia, transmitting
an exact account of their proceedings to the na-
tional academies. They contributed to astronom-
ical knowledge by the number and accuracy of
their observations, and by the improvement of
38 Andres, Letteratura, part. 1, Escurialensis, torn. ii. pp. 71, 251,
cap. 8, 10. — Casiri, Bibliotheca et passim.
302
THE SPANISH ARABS.
PART
I.
The actual
results.
instruments and the erection of observatories, of
which the noble tower of Seville is one of the
earliest examples. They furnished their full pro-
portion in the department of history, which, accord-
ing to an Arabian author cited by D'Herbelot,
could boast of thirteen hundred writers. The trea-
tises on logic and metaphysics amount to one ninth
of the surviving treasures of the Escurial ; and, to
conclude this summary of naked details, some of
their scholars appear to have entered upon as vari-
ous a field of philosophical inquiry, as would be
crowded into a modern encyclopaedia. 39
The results, it must be confessed, do not appear
to have corresponded with this magnificent appara-
tus and unrivalled activity of research. The mind
of the Arabians was distinguished by the most
opposite characteristics, which sometimes, indeed,
served to neutralize each other. An acute and
subtile perception was often clouded by mysticism
and abstraction. They combined a habit of classi-
fication and generalization, with a marvellous fond-
ness for detail ; a vivacious fancy with a patience
of application, that a German of our day might en-
vy ; and, while in fiction they launched boldly into
originality, indeed extravagance, they were con-
tent in philosophy to tread servilely in the track of
their ancient masters. They derived their science
39 Casiri mentions one of these p. 370 ; torn. ii. p. 71 et alibi. —
universal geniuses, who published Zufiiga, Annales de Sevilla, p. 22.
no less than a thousand and fifty — D'Herbelot, Bib. Orientale, voce
treatises on the various topics of Tarikh. — Masdcu, Historia Criti-
Ethics, History, Law, Medicine, ca, torn. xiii. pp. 203, 205. — An-
&c. ! Bibliotheca Escurialensis, dres, Letteratura, part. 1, cap. 8.
torn. ii. p. 107. — See also torn. i.
THE SPANISH ARABS. 303
from versions of the Greek philosophers ; but, as chapter
- V1 »-
their previous discipline had not prepared them for
its reception, they were oppressed rather than stim-
ulated by the weight of the inheritance. They
possessed an indefinite power of accumulation, but
they rarely ascended to general principles, or struck
out new and important truths ; at least, this is cer-
tain in regard to their metaphysical labors.
Hence Aristotle, who taught them to arrange Averse*.
what they had already acquired, rather than to ad-
vance to new discoveries, became the god of their
idolatry. They piled commentary on commentary,
and, in their blind admiration of his system, may be
almost said to have been more of Peripatetics than
the Stagirite himself. The Cordovan Averroes
was the most eminent of his Arabian commentators,
and undoubtedly contributed more than any other
individual to establish the authority of Aristotie
over the reason of mankind for so many ages. Yet
his various illustrations have served, in the opinion
of. European critics, to darken rather than dissipate
the ambiguities of his original, and have even led
to the confident assertion that he was wholly unac-
quainted with the Greek language. 40
40 Consult the sensible, though text. (Nic. Antonio, Bibliotheca
perhaps severe, remarks of Dege- Vetus, torn. ii. p. 394.) Averroes
rando on Arabian science. (Hist, translated some of the philosoph-
de la Philosophic, torn. iv. cap. 24.) ical works of Aristotle from the
— The reader may also peruse Greek into Arabic ; a Latin ver-
with advantage a disquisition on sion of which translation was after-
Arabian metaphysics in Turner's wards made. Though D'Herbelot
History of England, (vol. iv. pp. is mistaken (Bib. Orientale, art.
405-449. — Brucker, Hist. Phi- Roschd,) in saying that Averroes
losophioe, torn. iii. p. 105.) — Lu- was the first, who translated Ar-
dovicus Vives seems to have been istotle into Arabic ; as this had
the author of the imputation in the been done two centuries before, at
304
THE SPANISH ARABS.
PART
I.
Their histor-
ical merits.
The Saracens gave an entirely new face to phar-
macy and chemistry. They introduced a great
variety of salutary medicaments into Europe. The
Spanish Arabs, in particular, are commended by
Sprengel above their brethren for their observations
on the practice of medicine. 41 But whatever real
knowledge they possessed was corrupted by their
inveterate propensity for mystical and occult sci-
ence. They too often exhausted both health and
fortune in fruitless researches after the elixir of life
and the philosopher's stone. Their medical pre-
scriptions were regulated by the aspect of the stars.
Their physics were debased by magic, their chem-
istry degenerated into alchemy, their astronomy
into astrology.
In the fruitful field of history, their success was
even more equivocal. They seem to have been
wholly destitute of the philosophical spirit, which
gives life to this kind of composition. They were
the disciples of fatalism and the subjects of a des-
potic government. Man appeared to them only in
the contrasted aspects of slave and master. What
could they know of the finer moral relations, or
of the higher energies of the soul, which arc devel-
oped only under free and beneficent institutions?
Even could they have formed conceptions of these,
how would they have dared to express them ?
least, by Honain and others in the alleged period. See art. Aver-
ninth century, (see Casiri, Bibli- roes.
otheca Escurialensis, torn. i. p. 41 Sprengel, Histoire de la M£d-
304,) and Bayle has shown that a ccine, traduite par Jourdan, (Paris,
Latin version of the Stagirite was 1815,) torn. ii. pp. 263 et seq.
used by the Europeans before the
THE SPANISH ARABS. 305
Hence their histories are too often mere barren chapter
chronological details, or fulsome panegyrics on their " ..,
princes, unenlivened by a single spark of philoso-
phy or criticism.
Although the Spanish Arabs are not entitled to Usefu ' «i«-
the credit of having wrought any important revolu-
tion in intellectual or moral science, they are com-
mended by a severe critic, as exhibiting in their
writings " the germs of many theories, which have
been reproduced as discoveries in later ages," 4i
and they silently perfected several of those useful
arts, which have had a sensible influence on the
happiness and improvement of mankind. Algebra,
and the higher mathematics, were taught in their
schools, and thence diffused over Europe. The
manufacture of paper, which, since the invention
of printing, has contributed so essentially to the
rapid circulation of knowledge, was derived through
them. Casiri has discovered several manuscripts
of cotton paper in the Escurial as early as 1009,
and of linen paper of the date of 1106 ; 43 the ori-
gin of which latter fabric Tiraboschi has ascribed
to an Italian of Trevigi, in the middle of the four-
teenth century. 44 Lastly, the application of gun-
powder to military science, which has wrought an
equally important revolution, though of a more
doubtful complexion, in the condition of society,
was derived through the same channel. 4b
4 2 Degcrando, Hist, de la Philo- 44 Letteratura Italiana, torn. v.
sopliie, torn. iv. ubi supra. p. 87.
43 BihliothecaEscurialensis,tom. 45 The battle of Crecy furnishes
ii. p. !). — Andres, Letteratura, the earliest instance on record of
part. 1, cap. 10. the use of artillery by the Euro-
VOL. I. 39
30G
THE SPANISH ARABS.
PART
I.
The impulse
given by
them to
Kurope.
Their ele-
gant litera-
-■ure.
The influence of the Spanish Arabs, however, is
discernible not so much in the amount of knowl-
edge, as in the impulse, which they communicated
to the long dormant energies of Europe. Their
invasion was coeval with the commencement of
that night of darkness, which divides the modern
from the ancient world. The soil had been im-
poverished by long, assiduous cultivation. The
Arabians came like a torrent, sweeping down and
obliterating even the land-marks of former civiliza-
tion, but bringing with it a fertilizing principle,
which, as the waters receded, gave new life and
loveliness to the landscape. The writings of the
Saracens were translated and diffused throughout
Europe. Their schools were visited by disciples,
who, roused from their lethargy, caught somewhat
of the generous enthusiasm of their masters ; and
a healthful action was given to the European intel-
lect, which, however ill directed at first, was thus
prepared for the more judicious and successful
efforts of later times.
It is comparatively easy to determine the value
pean Christians ; although Du
Cange, among several examples
which he enumerates, has traced
a distinct notice of its existence
as far back as 1338. (Glossarium
ad Scriptores Mediae et Infimae
Latinitatis, (Paris, 1739,) and Sup-
plement, (Paris, 1766,) voce Bom-
barda.) The history of the Spanish
Arabs carries it to a much earlier
period. It was employed by the
Moorish king of Granada at the
siege of Baza, in 1312 and 1325.
(Conde, Dominacion de los Arabes,
torn. iii. cap. 18. — Casiri, Biblio-
theca Escurialensis, torn. ii. p. 7.)
It is distinctly noticed in an Ara-
bian treatise as ancient as 1249 ;
and, finally, Casiri quotes a pas-
sage from a Spanish author at
the close of the eleventh century,
(whose MS., according to Nic.
Antonio, though familiar to schol-
ars, lies still entombed in the dust
of libraries,) which describes the
use of artillery in a naval engage-
ment of that period between the
Moors of Tunis and of Seville.
Casiri, Bibliotheca Escurialensis,
torn. ii. p. 8. — Nic. Antonio, Bib-
liotheca Vetus, torn. ii. p. 12.
THE SPANISH ARABS. 307
of the scientific labors of a people, for truth is the chapter
same in all languages ; but the laws of taste differ —
so widely in different nations, that it requires a
nicer discrimination to pronounce fairly upon such
works as are regulated by them. Nothing is more
common than to see the poetry of the east con-
demned as tumid, over-refined, infected with mere-
tricious ornament and conceits, and, in short, as
every way contravening the principles of good taste.
Few of the critics, who thus peremptorily condemn,
are capable of reading a line of the original. The
merit of poetry, however, consists so much in its
literary execution, that a person, to pronounce upon
it, should be intimately acquainted with the whole
import of the idiom in which it is written. The
style of poetry, indeed of all ornamental writing,
whether prose or verse, in order to produce a proper
effect, must be raised or relieved, as it were, upon
the prevailing style of social intercourse. Even
where this is highly figurative and impassioned, as
with the Arabians, whose ordinary language is
made up of metaphor, that of the poet must be
still more so. Hence the tone of elegant literature
varies so widely in different countries, even in those
of Europe, which approach the nearest to each
other in their principles of taste, that it would be
found extremely difficult to effect a close trans-
lation of the most admired specimens of eloquence
from the language of one nation into that of any
other. A page of Boccaccio or Bembo, for in-
stance, done into literal English, would have an air
of intolerable artifice and verbiage. The choicest
308 THE SPANISH ARABS.
part morsels of Massillon, Bossuet, or the rhetorical
: — Thomas, would savour marvellously of bombast ;
and how could we in any degree keep pace with
the magnificent march of the Castilian ! Yet
surely we are not to impugn the taste of all these
nations, who attach much more importance, and
have paid (at least this is true of the French and
Italian) much greater attention to the mere beauties
of literary finish, than English writers.
Whatever may be the sins of the Arabians on
this head, they are certainly not those of negli-
gence. The Spanish Arabs, in particular, were
noted for the purity and elegance of their idiom ;
insomuch that Casiri affects to determine the local-
ity of an author by the superior refinement of his
style. Their copious philological and rhetorical
treatises, their arts of poetry, grammars, and rhym-
ing dictionaries, show to what an excessive re-
finement they elaborated the art of composition.
Academies, far more numerous than those of Italy,
to which they subsequently served for a model,
invited by their premiums frequent competitions
Poeuc^ in poetry and eloquence. To poetry, indeed, es-
pecially of the tender kind, the Spanish Arabs
seem to have been as indiscriminately addicted as
the Italians in the time of Petrarch ; and there was
scarcely a doctor in church or state, but at some
time or other offered up his amorous incense on
the altar of the muse. 46
46 Petrarch complains in one of and he was afraid the very cattle
his letters from the country, that might begin to low in verse;" apud
"jurisconsults and divines, nay his De Sade, Memoires pour La Vie
own valet, had taken to rhyming; de Petrarque, torn. iii. p. 243.
character
THE SPANISH ARABS. 309
With all this poetic feeling, however, the Arabs chapter
never availed themselves of the treasures of Gre-
cian eloquence, which lay open before them. Not
a poet or orator of any eminence in that language
seems to have been translated by them. 47 The
temperate tone of Attic composition appeared tame
to the fervid conceptions of the east. Neither did
they venture upon what in Europe are considered
the higher walks of the art, the drama and the
epic. 48 None of their writers in prose or verse show
much attention to the developement or dissection of
character. Their inspiration exhaled in lyrical effu-
sions, in elegies, epigrams, and idyls. They some-
times, moreover, like the Italians, employed verse
as the vehicle of instruction in the grave and recon-
dite sciences. The general character of their poet-
ry is bold, florid, impassioned, richly colored with
imagery, sparkling with conceits and metaphors,
and occasionally breathing a deep tone of moral
sensibility, as in some of the plaintive effusions as-
cribed by Conde to the royal poets of Cordova.
The compositions of the golden age of the Abas-
sides, and of the preceding period, do not seem to
have been infected with the taint of exaggeration,
47 Andres, Letteratura, part. 1, Sismondi says that Sir W. Jones
cap. 11. — Yet this popular asser- is mistaken in citing the history of
tion is contradicted by Reinesius, Timour by Ebn Arabschah, as an
who states, that both Homer and Arabic epic. (Litterature du Mi-
Pindar were translated into Arabic di, torn. i. p. 57.) It is Sismondi
by the middle of the eighth centu- who is mistaken, since the English
ry. See Fabricius, Bibliothcca Grae- critic states that the Arabs have
ea, (Hamb. 1712-38,) torn. xii. p. no heroic poem, and that this poet-
753. ical prose history is not accounted
4 <* Sir William Jones, Traits such even by the Arabs them-
sur la Poesie Orientale, sec. 2. — selves.
VIII.
310
THE SPANISH ARABS.
PART
I.
Influence on
the Castil-
ian.
so offensive to a European, which distinguishes the
later productions in the decay of the empire.
Whatever be thought of the influence of the
Arabic on European literature in general, there can
be no reasonable doubt that it has been consider-
able on the Provencal and the Castilian. In the
latter especially, so far from being confined to the
vocabulary, or to external forms of composition, it
seems to have penetrated deep into its spirit, and is
plainly discernible in that affectation of stateliness
and oriental hyperbole, which characterizes Spanish
writers even at the present day ; in the subtilties
and conceits with which the ancient Castilian verse
is so liberally bespangled ; and in the relish for
proverbs and prudential maxims, which is so gen-
eral that it may be considered national. 49
49 It would require much more
learning than I am fortified with,
to enter into the merits of the ques-
tion, which has been raised re-
specting the probable influence of
the Arabian on the literature of
Europe. A. W. Schlegel, in a
work of little bulk, but much value,
in refuting with his usual vivacity
the extravagant theory of Andres,
has been led to conclusions of an
opposite nature, which may be
thought perhaps scarcely less ex-
travagant. (Observations sur la
Langue et la Litterature Proven-
eales, p. 64.) It must indeed seem
highly improbable, that the Sara-
cens, who, during the middle ages,
were so far superior in science and
literary culture to the Europeans,
could have resided so long in im-
mediate contact with them, and in
those very countries indeed which
gave birth to the most cultivated
poetry of that period, without ex-
erting some perceptible influence
upon it. Be this as it may, its
influence on the Castilian cannot
reasonably be disputed. This has
been briefly traced by Conde in an
" Essay on Oriental Poetry," Poesia
Oriental, whose publication he an-
ticipates in the Preface to his " His-
tory of the Spanish Arabs," but
which still remains in manuscript.
(The copy I have used is in the
library of Mr. George Ticknor.)
He professes in this work to dis-
cern in the earlier Castilian poetry,
in the Cid, the Alexander, in Ber-
ceo's, the arch-priest of Hita's,and
others of similar antiquity, most of
the peculiarities and varieties of
Arabian verse ; the same cadences
and number of syllables, the same
intermixture of assonances and
consonances, the double hemistich
and prolonged repetition of the
final rhyme . From the same source
he derives much of the earlier rural
minstrelsy of Spain, as well as the
measures of its romances and se-
THE SPANISH ARABS.
311
A decided effect has been produced on the chapter
VIII
romantic literature of Europe by those tales of fairy ' —
enchantment, so characteristic of oriental genius,
and in which it seems to have revelled with un-
controlled delight. These tales, which furnished
the principal diversion of the East, were imported
by the Saracens into Spain ; and we find the mon-
archs of Cordova solacing their leisure hours with
listening to their rawis, or novelists, who sang to
them
" Of ladye-love and war, romance, and knightly worth." 50
The same spirit, penetrating into France, stimu-
lated the more sluggish inventions of the trouvere,
and, at a later and more polished period, called
forth the imperishable creations of the Italian
muse. 51
It is unfortunate for the Arabians, that their liter- Circum-
stances pre-
ature should be locked up in a character and idiom Sum*
so difficult of access to European scholars. Their Uon '
guidillas ; and in the Preface to his
History, he has ventured on the
bold assertion, that the Castilian
owes so much of its vocabulary to
the Arabic, that it may be almost
accounted a dialect of the latter.
Conde's criticisms, however, must
be quoted with reserve. His habit-
ual studies had given him such a
keen relish for oriental literature,
that he was, in a manner, denatu-
ralized from his own.
50 Byron's beautiful line may
seem almost a version of Conde's
Spanish text, " sucesos de armas
fr de amores con muy estrafios
ances y en elegante estilo." —
Dominacion de los Arabes, torn. i.
P, 457.
51 Sismondi, in his Literature
du Midi (torn. i. pp. 267 et seq.),
and more fully in his Ripubliques
Italiennes (torn. xvi. pp. 448 et
seq.), derives the jealousy of the
sex, the ideas of honor, and the
deadly spirit of revenge, which dis-
tinguished the southern nations of
Europe in the fifteenth and six-
teenth centuries, from the Ara-
bians. Whatever be thought of
the jealousy of the sex, it might
have been supposed, that the prin-
ciples of honor and the spirit of
revenge might, without seeking
further, find abundant precedent in
the feudal habits and institutions
of our European ancestors.
312
THE SPANISH ARABS.
PART
I.
wild, imaginative poetry, scarcely capable of trans-
fusion into a foreign tongue, is made known to us
only through the medium of bald prose translation ;
while their scientific treatises have been done into
Latin with an inaccuracy, which, to make use of a
pun of Casiri's, merits the name of perversions
rather than versions of the originals. 52 How obvi-
ously inadequate, then, are our means of forming
any just estimate of their literary merits ! It is un-
fortunate for them, moreover, that the Turks, the
only nation, which, from an identity of religion and
government with the Arabs, as well as from its
political consequence, would seem to represent
them on the theatre of modern Europe, should be a
52 " Quas perversiones potius, Bibliotheca Escurialensis, torn. i.
quam versiones meritd dixeris." p. 266.
Notices of
Casiri, Con.
'.if., and
I'ardonne.
Notwithstanding the history of
the Arabs is so intimately con-
nected with that of the Spaniards,
that it may be justly said to form
the reverse side of it, and not-
withstanding the amplitude of au-
thentic documents in the Arabic
tongue to be found in the pub-
lic libraries, the Castilian writers,
even the most eminent, until the
latter half of the last century,
with an insensibility which can be
imputed to nothing else but a
spirit of religious bigotry, have
been content to derive their nar-
ratives exclusively from national
authorities. A fire, which occur-
red in the Escurial in 1671, having
consumed more than three quarters
of the magnificent collection of
eastern manuscripts which it con-
tained, the Spanish government,
taking some shame to itself, as il
would appear, for its past supine*-
ness, caused a copious catalogue
of the surviving volumes, to the
number of 1850, to be compiled by
the learned Casiri ; and the result
was his celebrated work, " Biblio-
theca Arabico-Hispana Escuria-
lensis," which appeared in the
years 1760-70, and which would
reflect credit from the splendor of
its typographical execution on any
press of the present day. This
work, although censured by some
later orientalists as hasty and su-
perficial, must ever be highly val-
ued as affording the only complete
index to the rich repertory of Ara-
bian manuscripts in the Escu-
rial, and for the ample evidence
VIII.
THE SPANISH ARABS. 313
race so degraded ; one which, during the five cen- chapter
turies, that it has been in possession of the finest
climate and monuments of antiquity, has so seldom
been quickened into a display of genius, or added
so little of positive value to the literary treasures
descended from its ancient masters. Yet this peo-
ple, so sensual and sluggish, we are apt to confound
in imagination with the sprightly, intellectual Arab.
Both indeed have been subjected to the influence
of the same degrading political and religious insti-
tutions, which on the Turks have produced the
results naturally to have been expected ; while the
Arabians, on the other hand, exhibit the extraordi-
nary phenomenon of a nation, under all these em-
barrassments, rising to a high degree of elegance
and intellectual culture.
The empire, which once embraced more than
half of the ancient world, has now shrunk within
its original limits ; and the Bedouin wanders over
which it exhibits of the science his work entitled " Historia de la
and mental culture of the Span- Dominacion de los Arabes en Es-
ish Arabs. Several other native pafia." The first volume appeared
scholars, among- whom Andres in 1820. But unhappily the death
and Masdcu may be particularly of its author, occurring- in the au-
noticed, have made extensive re- turnn of the same year, prevented
searches into the literary history the completion of his desig-n. The
of this people. Still their political two remaining volumes, however,
history, so essential to a correct were printed in the course of that
knowledge of the Spanish, was and the following year from his
comparatively neglected, until Se- own manuscripts ; and, although
fior Conde, the late learned libra- their comparative meagreness and
rian of the Academy, who had confused chronology betray the
given ample evidence of his ori- want of the same paternal hand,
ental learning in his version and they contain much interesting infor-
illustrations of the Nubian Geogra- mation. The relation of the con-
pher, and a Dissertation on Ara- quest of Granada, especially, with
bic Coins published in the fifth vol- which the work concludes, exhib-
ume of the Memoirs of the Roy- its some important particulars in
al Academy of History, compiled a totally different point of view
VOL. I. 40
314 THE SPANISH ARABS.
I.
part his native desert as free, and almost as uncivilized,
as before the coming of his apostle. The lan-
guage, which was once spoken along the southern
shores of the Mediterranean and the whole extent
of the Indian ocean, is broken up into a variety of
discordant dialects. Darkness has again settled
over those regions of Africa, which were illumined
by the light of learning. The elegant dialect of
the Koran is studied as a dead language, even in
the birth-place of the prophet. Not a printing-press
at this day is to be found throughout the whole
Arabian Peninsula. Even in Spain, in Christian
Spain, alas ! the contrast is scarcely less degrading.
A death-like torpor has succeeded to her former
intellectual activity. Her cities are emptied of the
population with which they teemed in the days of
the Saracens. Her climate is as fair, but her fields
no longer bloom with the same rich and variegated
husbandry. Her most interesting monuments are
from that in which they had been ities, indiscriminately, no part of
presented by the principal Spanish hie book can be cited as a genuine
historians. Arabic version, except indeed the
The first volume, which may last sixty pages, comprising the
be considered as having receiv- conquest of Granada, which Car-
ed the last touches of its author, donne professes in his Preface to
embraces a circumstantial narra- have drawn exclusively from an
tive of the great Saracen invasion, Arabian manuscript. Conde, on
of the subsequent condition of the other hand, professes to have
Spain under the viceroys, and of adhered to his originals with such
the empire of the Omeyades ; un- scrupulous fidelity, that " the Eu-
doubtedly the most splendid por- ropean reader may feel that he
tion of Arabian annals, but the is perusing an Arabian author " ;
one, unluckily, which has been most and certainly very strong internal
copiously illustrated in the popu- evidence is afforded of the truth of
lar work compiled by Cardonne this assertion, in the peculiar na-
from the oriental manuscripts in tional and religious spirit which
the Royal Library at Paris. But pervades the work, and in a cer-
as this author has followed the tain florid gasconade of style, corn-
Spanish and the oriental author- mon with the oriental writers. It
THE SPANISH ARABS.
315
those constructed by the Arabs ; and the traveller, chapter
as he wanders amid their desolate, but beautiful
ruins, ponders on the destinies of a people, whose
very existence seems now to have been almost
as fanciful as the magical creations in one of their
own fairy tales.
is this fidelity that constitutes the
peculiar value of Conde's narra-
tive. It is the first time that the
Arabians, at least those of Spain,
the part of the nation which reach-
ed the highest degree of refine-
ment, have been allowed to speak
for themselves. The history, or
rather tissue of histories, embodi-
ed in the translation, is certainly
conceived in no very philosophical
spirit, and contains, as might be
expected from an Asiatic pen, lit-
tle for the edification of a Eu-
ropean reader on subjects of poli-
cy and government. The narra-
tive is, moreover, encumbered with
frivolous details and a barren mus-
ter-roll of names and titles, which
would better become a genealog-
ical table than a history. But,
with every deduction, it must be
allowed to exhibit a sufficiently
clear view of the intricate conflict-
ing relations of the petty princi-
palities, which swarmed over the
Peninsula ; and to furnish abun-
dant evidence of a wide-spread in-
tellectual improvement amid all the
horrors of anarchy and a ferocious
despotism. The work has alrea-
dy been translated or rather para-
phrased into French. The necessi-
ty of an English version will doubt-
less be in a great degree super-
seded by the History of the Spanish
Arabs, preparing for the Cabinet
Cyclopaedia, by Mr. Southey, — a
writer, with whom few Castilian
scholars will be willing to com-
pete, even on their own ground ;
and who is, happily, not exposed
to the national or religious pre-
judices, which can interfere with
his rendering perfect justice to his
subject.
CHAPTER IX.
WAR OF GRANADA. - SURPRISE OF ZAHARA. — CAPTURE OF
ALHAMA.
1481 — 1482.
Zahara surprised by the Moors. — Marquis of Cadiz. — His Expedition
against Alhama. — Valor of the Citizens. — Desperate Struggle. —
Fall of Alhama. — Consternation of the Moors. — Vigorous Measures
of the Queen.
part No sooner had Ferdinand and Isabella restored
— '. internal tranquillity to their dominions, and made
the strength effective, which had been acquired by
their union under one government, than they turned
their eyes to those fair regions of the Peninsula,
over which the Moslem crescent had reigned tri-
umphant for nearly eight centuries. Fortunately
an act of aggression on the part of the Moors fur-
nished a pretext for entering on their plan of con-
quest, at the moment when it was ripe for exe-
cution. Aben Ismail, who had ruled in Granada
during the latter part of John the Second's reign,
and the commencement of Henry the Fourth's, had
been partly indebted for his throne to the former
monarch ; and sentiments of gratitude, combined
with a naturally amiable disposition, had led him
to foster as amicable relations with the Christian
SURPRISE OF ALHAMA. 317
princes, as the jealousy of two nations, that might chapter
be considered the natural enemies of each other, . ■ —
would permit ; so that, notwithstanding an occa-
sional border foray, or the capture of a frontier
fortress, such a correspondence was maintained be-
tween the two kingdoms, that the nobles of Castile
frequently resorted to the court of Granada, where,
forgetting their ancient feuds, they mingled with
the Moorish cavaliers in the generous pastimes of
chivalry.
Muley Abul Hacen, who succeeded his father in
1466, was of a very different temperament. His
fiery character prompted him, when very young, to
violate the truce by an unprovoked inroad into An-
dalusia ; and, although after his accession domestic
troubles occupied him too closely to allow leisure
for foreign war, he still cherished in secret the same
feelings of animosity against the Christians. When,
in 1476, the Spanish sovereigns required as the con-
dition of a renewal of the truce, which he solicited,
the payment of the annual tribute imposed on his
predecessors, he proudly replied that " the mints of
Granada coined no longer gold, but steel." His
subsequent conduct did not belie the spirit of this
Spartan answer. 1
At length, towards the close of the year 1481, p^VThe
the storm which had been so long gathering burst Moor8 '
upon Zahara, a small fortified town on the frontier
of Andalusia, crowning a lofty eminence, washed at
1 Cardonne, Hist. d'Afrique et — Conde, Domination de los Ara-
d'Espagne, torn. iii. pp. 467-469. bes, torn. iii. cap. 32, 34.
318 WAR OF GRANADA.
part its base by the river Guadalete, which from its po-
— '■ — sition seemed almost inaccessible. The garrison,
trusting to these natural defences, suffered itself to
be surprised on the night of the 26th of December,
by the Moorish monarch ; who, scaling the walls
under favor of a furious tempest, which prevented
his approach from being readily heard, put to the
sword such of the guard as offered resistance, and
swept away the whole population of the place, men,
women, and children, in slavery to Granada.
The intelligence of this disaster caused deep
mortification to the Spanish sovereigns, especially
to Ferdinand, by whose grandfather Zahara had
been recovered from the Moors. Measures were
accordingly taken for strengthening the whole line
of frontier, and the utmost vigilance was exerted
to detect some vulnerable point of the enemy, on
which retaliation might be successfully inflicted.
Neither were the tidings of their own successes
welcomed, with the joy that might have been ex-
pected, by the people of Granada. The prognos-
tics, it was said, afforded by the appearance of the
heavens, boded no good. More sure prognostics
were afforded in the judgments of thinking men,
who deprecated the temerity of awakening the
wrath of a vindictive and powerful enemy. " Woe
is me ! " exclaimed an ancient Alfaki, on quitting
the hall of audience, " The ruins of Zahara will
fall on our own heads ; the days of the Moslem
empire in Spain are now numbered ! " 2
2 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, cion de los Arabes, torn. iii. cap.
MS., cap. 51. — Conde, Domina- 34. — Pulgar, Reyes Cat61icos, p.
SURPRISE OF ALHAMA. 319
It was not long before the desired opportunity chapter
for retaliation presented itself to the Spaniards. '—
One Juan de Ortega, a captain of escaladores, or ofAiiiama.
scalers, so denominated from the peculiar service
in which they were employed in besieging cities,
who had acquired some reputation under John the
Second, in the wars of Roussillon, reported to
Diego de Merlo, assistant of Seville, that the for-
tress of Alhama, situated in the heart of the
Moorish territories, was so negligently guarded,
that it might be easily carried by an enemy, who
had skill enough to approach it. The fortress, as
well as the city of the same name, which it com-
manded, was built, like many others in that tur-
bulent period, along the crest of a rocky eminence,
encompassed by a river at its base, and, from its
natural advantages, might be deemed impregnable,
This strength of position, by rendering all other
precautions apparently superfluous, lulled its de-
fenders into a security like that which had proved
so fatal to Zahara. Alhama, as this Arabic name
implies, was famous for its baths, whose annual
rents are said to have amounted to five hundred
thousand ducats. The monarchs of Granada, in-
dulging the taste common to the people of the
east, used to frequent this place, with their court,
180. — L. Marineo, Cosas Memo- of gold ducats, and that it kept in
rabies, fol. 171. — Marmol, Histo- pay 7,000 horsemen on its peace
ria del Rebelion y Castigo de los establishment, and could send forth
Moriscos, (Madrid, 1797,) lib. 1, 21,000 warriors from its gates,
cap. 12. The last of these estimates would
Lebrija states, that the revenues not seem to he exaggerated. Re-
of Granada, at the commencement rum Gestarum Decades, ii. lib. 1,
of this war, amounted to a million cap. 1.
320 WAR OF GRANADA.
part to refresh themselves with its delicious waters, so
i.
that Alhama became embellished with all the mag-
nificence of a royal residence. The place was still
further enriched by its being the depot of the public
taxes on land, which constituted a principal branch
of the revenue, and by its various manufactures
of cloth, for which its inhabitants were celebrated
throughout the kingdom of Granada 3
Diego de Merlo, although struck with the ad-
vantages of this conquest, was not insensible to
the difficulties with which it would be attended ;
since Alhama was sheltered under the very wings
of Granada, from which it lay scarcely eight leagues
distant, and could be reached only by traversing
the most populous portion of the Moorish territory,
or by surmounting a precipitous sierra, or chain of
mountains, which screened it on the north. With-
out delay, however, he communicated the informa-
tion which he had received to Don Rodrigo Ponce
de Leon, marquis of Cadiz, as the person best
fitted by his capacity and courage for such an
TheMm-quis enterprise. This nobleman, who had succeeded
of Cadiz. r '
his father, the count of Arcos, in 1469, as head
of the great house of Ponce de Leon, was at this
period about thirty-nine years of age. Although
a younger and illegitimate son, he had been pre-
ferred to the succession in consequence of the
extraordinary promise which his early youth ex-
hibited. When scarcely seventeen years old, he
3 Estrada, Poblacion de Espafia, 222, nota. — Pulsar, Reyes Catoli-
tom. ii. pp. 247, 248. — El Nubi- cos, p. 181. — Marmol, Rebelion
ense, Descripcion dc Espafia, p. de Moriscos, lib. 1, cap. 12.
SURPRISE OF ALHAMA. 321
achieved a victory over the Moors, accompanied chapter
IX
with a signal display of personal prowess. 4 Later
in life, he formed a connexion with the daughter
of the marquis of Villena, the factious minister
of Henry the Fourth, through whose influence he
was raised to the dignity of marquis of Cadiz.
This alliance attached him to the fortunes of
Henry, in his disputes with his brother Alfonso,
and subsequently with Isabella, on whose accession,
of course, Don Rodrigo looked with no friendly
eye. He did not, however, engage in any overt
act of resistance, but occupied himself with prose-
cuting an hereditary feud, which he had revived
with the duke of Medina Sidonia, the head of
the Guzmans ; a family, which from ancient times
had divided with his own the great interests of
Andalusia. The pertinacity with which this feud
was conducted, and the desolation which it carried
not only into Seville, but into every quarter of the
province, have been noticed in the preceding pages.
The vigorous administration of Isabella repressed
these disorders, and, after abridging the overgrown
4 Zufiiga, Annales de Sevilla, no children born in wedlock, but a
pp. 349, 362. numerous progeny by his concu-
This occurred in the fight of Ma- bines. Among these latter, was
droiio, when Don Rodrigo stooping Dofia Leonora Nunez de Prado,
to adjust his buckler, which had the mother of Don Rodrigo. The
been unlaced, was suddenly sur- brilliant and attractive qualities of
rounded by a party of Moors. He this youth so far won the affections
8natched a sling from one of them, of his father, that the latter obtain-
and made such brisk use of it, that, ed the royal sanction (a circum-
after disabling several, he succeed- stance not infrequent in an age,
ed in putting them to flight ; for when the laws of descent were
which feat, says Zufiiga, the king very unsettled,) to bequeath him
complimented him with the title of his titles and estates, to the preju-
" the youthful David." dice of more legitimate heirs.
Don Juan, count of Arcos, had
VOL. I. 41
322 WAR OF GRANADA.
part power of the two nobles, effected an apparent (it
1 — . was only apparent) reconciliation between them.
The fiery spirit of the marquis of Cadiz, no longer
allowed to escape in domestic broil, urged him to
seek distinction in more honorable warfare ; and
at this moment he lay in his castle at Arcos, look-
ing with a watchful eye over the borders, and
waiting, like a lion in ambush, the moment when
he could spring upon his victim.
Htsexpedi- Without hesitation, therefore, he assumed the
tidii against , .
Ajiiama. enterprise proposed by Diego de Merlo, imparting
his purpose to Don Pedro Henriquez, adelantado
of Andalusia, a relative of Ferdinand, and to the
alcaydes of two or three neighbouring fortresses.
With the assistance of these friends he assembled
a force, which, including those who marched under
the banner of Seville, amounted to two thousand
five hundred horse and three thousand foot. His
own town of Marchena was appointed as the place
of rendezvous. The proposed route lay by the way
of Antequera, across the wild sierras of Alzerifa.
The mountain passes, sufficiently difficult at a sea-
son when their numerous ravines were choked up
by the winter torrents, were rendered still more
formidable by being traversed in the darkness of
night ; for the party, in order to conceal their move-
ments, lay by during the day. Leaving their bag-
gage on the banks of the Yeguas, that they might
move forward with greater celerity, the whole body
at length arrived, after a rapid and most painful
march, on the third night from their departure, in
n deep valley about half a league from Alhama.
SURPRISE OF ALHAMA.
Here the marquis first revealed the real object of chapter
the expedition to his soldiers, who, little dreaming '■ —
of any thing beyond a mere border inroad, were
transported with joy at the prospect of the rich
booty so nearly within their grasp. 5
The next morning, being the 28th of February, surprise or
070 J ' the fortress.
a small party was detached, about two hours before
dawn, under the command of John de Ortega for
the purpose of scaling the citadel, while the main
body moved forward more leisurely under the mar-
quis of Cadiz, in order to support them. The
night was dark and tempestuous, circumstances
which favored their approach in the same manner
as with the Moors at Zahara. After ascending the
rocky heights which were crowned by the citadel,
the ladders were silently placed against the walls,
and Ortega, followed by about thirty others, suc-
ceeded in gaining the battlements unobserved. A
sentinel, who was found sleeping on his post, they
at once despatched, and, proceeding cautiously for-
ward to the guard-room, put the whole of the little
garrison to the sword, after the short and ineffectu-
al resistance that could be opposed by men sudden-
ly roused from slumber. The city in the mean
time was alarmed, but it was too late ; the citadel
was taken ; and the outer gates, which opened into
the country, being thrown open, the marquis of
Cadiz entered with trumpet sounding and banner
5 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, at 3,000 horse and 4,000 foot.
MS., cap. 52. — L. Marineo, Co- Reyes Catolicos, p. 181. — Conde,
sas Memorables, fol. 171. — Pul- Domination de los Arabes, torn,
gnr computes the marquis's army iii. cap. 34.
m\
WAR OF GRANADA.
PART
1.
Valor of the
citizens.
Sally upon
the Moors.
flying, at the head of his army, and took possession
of the fortress. 6
After allowing the refreshment necessary to the
exhausted spirits of his soldiers, the marquis resolv-
ed to sally forth at once upon the town, before its
inhabitants could muster in sufficient force to oppose
him. But the citizens of Alhama, showing a reso-
lution rather to have been expected from men train-
ed in a camp, than from peaceful burghers of a
manufacturing town, had sprung to arms at the first
alarm, and, gathering in the narrow street on which
the portal of the castle opened, so completely com-
manded it with their arquebuses and crossbows, that
the Spaniards, after an ineffectual attempt to force a
passage, were compelled to recoil upon their defen-
ces, amid showers of bolts and balls which occa-
sioned the loss, among others, of two of their prin-
cipal alcaydes.
A council of war was then called, in which it
was even advised by some, that the fortress, after
having been dismantled, should be abandoned as
incapable of defence against the citizens on the one
hand, and the succours which might be expected
speedily to arrive from Granada, on the other. But
this counsel was rejected with indignation by the
marquis of Cadiz, whose fiery spirit rose with the
occasion ; indeed, it was not very palatable to most
of his followers, whose cupidity was more than ever
6 Lebrija, Rerum Geatarum De- cap. 52. — Zurita, Anales, torn,
cades, ii. lib. 1, cap. 2. — Carba- iv. fol. 315. — Cardonne, Hist,
jal, Anales, MS., afio 1482. — d'Afrique et d'Espagne, torn. hi.
Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, MS., pp. 252, 253.
SURPRISE OF ALHAMA. 326
inflamed by the sight of the rich spoil, which, after chapter
so many fatigues, now lay at their feet. It was . —
accordingly resolved to demolish part of the fortifi-
cations which looked towards the town, and at all
hazards to force a passage into it. This resolution
was at once put into execution ; and the marquis,
throwing himself into the breach thus made, at the
head of his men-at-arms, and shouting his war-cry
of " St. James and the Virgin,' 1 precipitated him-
self into the thickest of the enemy. Others of the
Spaniards, running along the out-works contiguous
to the buildings of the city, leaped into the street,
and joined their companions there, while others
again sallied from the gates, now opened for the
second time. 7
The Moors, unshaken by the fury of this assault, Desperate
. combat.
received the assailants with brisk and well-directed
volleys of shot and arrows ; while the women and
children, thronging the roofs and balconies of the
houses, discharged on their heads boiling oil, pitch,
and missiles of every description. But the weapons
of the Moors glanced comparatively harmless from
the mailed armour of the Spaniards, while their
own bodies, loosely arrayed in such habiliments as
they could throw over them in the confusion of the
night, presented a fatal mark to their enemies.
Still they continued to maintain a stout resistance,
checking the progress of the Spaniards by barri-
cades of timber hastily thrown across the streets ;
7 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, L. Marineo, Cosas Memorables,
MS., ubi supra. — Conde, Domi- fol. 172.
aacion de los Arabes, cap. 34. —
326 WAR OF GRANADA.
part and, as their intrenchments were forced one after
'- — another, they disputed every inch of ground with
the desperation of men who fought for life, fortune,
liberty, all that was most dear to them. The con-
test hardly slackened till the close of day, while the
kennels literally ran with blood, and every avenue
was choked up with the bodies of the slain. At
length, however, Spanish valor proved triumphant
in every quarter, except where a small and desper-
ate remnant of the Moors, having gathered their
wives and children around them, retreated as a last
resort into a large mosque near the walls of the
city, from which they kept up a galling fire on the
close ranks of the Christians. The latter, after
enduring some loss, succeeded in sheltering them-
selves so effectually under a roof or canopy con-
structed of their own shields, in the manner prac-
tised in war previous to the exclusive use of fire-
arms, that they were enabled to approach so near
the mosque, as to set fire to its doors; when its ten-
ants, menaced with suffocation, made a desperate
sally, in which many perished, and the remainder
surrendered at discretion. The prisoners thus
made were all massacred on the spot, without dis-
tinction of sex or age, according to the Saracen
accounts. But the Castilian writers make no men-
tion of this ; and, as the appetites of the Spaniards
were not yet stimulated by that love of carnage,
which they afterwards displayed in their American
wars, and which was repugnant to the chivalrous
spirit with which their contests with the Moslems
SURPRISE OF ALI-1AMA. 327
were usually conducted, we may be justified in re-
garding it as an invention of the enemy. 8
Alhama was now delivered up to the sack of FaiiofAi-
1 hama.
the soldiery, and rich indeed was the booty which
fell into their hands, — gold and silver plate, pearls,
jewels, fine silks and cloths, curious and costly
furniture, and all the various appurtenances of a
thriving, luxurious city. In addition to which, the
magazines were found well stored with the. more
substantial, and at the present juncture, more ser-
viceable supplies of grain, oil, and other provisions.
Nearly a quarter of the population is said to have
perished in the various conflicts of the day, and
the remainder, according to the usage of the time,
became the prize of the victors. A considerable
number of Christian captives, who were found
immured in the public prisons, were restored to
freedom, and swelled the general jubilee with their
grateful acclamations. The contemporary Castilian
chroniclers record also, with no less satisfaction,
the detection of a Christian renegade, notorious for
his depredations on his countrymen, whose mis-
deeds the marquis of Cadiz requited by causing
him to be hung up over the battlements of the
castle, in the face of the whole city. Thus fell
the ancient city of Alhama, the first conquest, and
achieved with a gallantry and daring unsurpassed
by any other during this memorable war. 9
8 Conde, Dominacion de los Ara- 9 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos,
bes, ubi sup. — Pulgar, Reyes Ca- MS., cap. 52. — Pulgar, Reyes Ca-
tolicos, pp. 182, 183. — Mariana, tolicos, ubi sup. — Cardonne, Hist.
Hist, de Espafia, torn. ii. pp.545, d'Afrique et d'Espagne, torn. iii.
546. p. 254.
328
WAR OF GRANADA.
I' ART
I.
Consterna-
tion of the
Moors.
The report of this disaster fell like the knell of
their own doom on the ears of the inhabitants of
Granada. It seemed as if the hand of Providence
itself must have been stretched forth to smite the
stately city, which, reposing as it were under the
shadow of their own walls, and in the bosom of a
peaceful and populous country, was thus suddenly
laid low in blood and ashes. Men now read the
fulfilment of the disastrous omens and predictions
which ushered in the capture of Zahara. The
melancholy romance or ballad, with the burden of
Ay de mi Alhama, " Woe is me, Alhama," com-
posed probably by some one of the nation not
long after this event, shows how deep was the
dejection which settled on the spirits of the people.
The old king, Abul Hacen, however, far from re-
signing himself to useless lamentation, sought to
retrieve his loss by the most vigorous measures.
A body of a thousand horse was sent forward to
reconnoitre the city, while he prepared to follow
with as powerful levies, as he could enforce, of the
militia, of Granada. 10
I " Passeavase el Rey Moro
For la ciudad de Granada,
Desde las puertas de Elvira
IIusui las de Bivarambla.
Ay de mi Alhama !
" Cartas le fueron venidaa
Que Alhama era ganada.
Las cartas echo en el fuego,
Y al mensagero matava.
Ay de mi Alhama !
" Hombres, niiios y mugeres,
Lloran tan grande perdida.
Lloravan todas las damas
Quantas en Granada avia.
Ay de mi Alhama !
" For las calles y ventanas
Mucho luto parecia ;
Llora el Rey como fembra,
Qu' es mucho lo que perdia.
Ay de mi Alhama! "
The romance, according to Hyta,
(not the best voucher for a fact,)
caused such general lamentation,
that it was not allowed to be sung
by the Moors after the eonquest.
(Guerras Civiles de Granada, torn.
i. p. 350.) Lord Byron, as the
reader recollects, has done this
ballad into English. The version
has the merit of fidelity. It is not
his fault if his Muse appears to
little advantage in the plebeian
dress of the Moorish minstrel.
SURPRISE OF ALHAMA. 329
The intelligence of the conquest of Alhama chapter
diffused general satisfaction throughout Castile, — — : —
and was especially grateful to the sovereigns, who
welcomed it as an auspicious omen of the ultimate
success of their designs upon the Moors. They
were attending mass in their royal palace of Me-
dina del Cainpo, when they received despatches
from the marquis of Cadiz, informing them of the
issue of his enterprise. " During all the while he
sat at dinner," says a precise chronicler of the
period, " the prudent Ferdinand was revolving in
his mind the course best to be adopted." He
reflected that the Castilians would soon be be-
leaguered by an overwhelming force from Granada,
and he determined at all hazards to support them.
He accordingly gave orders to make instant prep-
aration for departure ; but, first, accompanied the
queen, attended by a solemn procession of the
court and clergy, to the cathedral church of St.
James ; where Te Deum was chanted, and a hum-
ble thanksgiving offered up to the Lord of hosts
for the success with which he had crowned their
arms. Towards evening, the king set forward on
his journey to the south, escorted by such nobles
and cavaliers as were in attendance on his person,
leaving the queen to follow more leisurely, after
having provided reinforcements and supplies requi-
site for the prosecution of the war. "
11 L. Marineo, Cosas Memora- 34. — Carbajal, Anales, MS., ano
bles, fol. 172. — Conde, Domina- 1482. — Mariana, Hist, de Espana,
cion de los Arabes, torn. iii. cap. torn. ii. pp. 545, 546.
vol. I. 42
.330
WAR OF GRANADA.
TAUT
I.
The Moors
besiege Al-
bania.
On the 5th of March, the king of Granada ap-
peared before the walls of Alhama, with an army
which amounted to three thousand horse and fifty
thousand foot. The first object which encountered
his eyes, was the mangled remains of his unfortu-
nate subjects, which the Christians, who would
have been scandalized by an attempt to give them
the rites of sepulture, had from dread of infection
thrown over the walls, where they now lay half-
devoured by birds of prey and the ravenous dogs
of the city. The Moslem troops, transported with
horror and indignation at this hideous spectacle,
called loudly to be led to the attack. They had
marched from Granada with so much precipitation,
that they were wholly unprovided with artillery, in
the use of which they were expert for that period ;
and which was now the more necessary, as the
Spaniards had diligently employed the few days
which intervened since their occupation of the
place, in repairing the breaches in the fortifications,
and in putting them in a posture of defence. But
the Moorish ranks were filled with the flower of
their chivalry ; and their immense superiority of
numbers enabled them to make their attacks simul •
taneously on the most distant quarters of the town,
with such unintermitted vivacity, that the little
garrison, scarcely allowed a moment for repose, was
wellnigh exhausted with fatigue. 12
12 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, able estimate of the Arabian au
MS., cap. 52. — Bernaldez swells thors. Conde, Domination de los
the Moslem army to 5,500 horse, Arabes, torn. iii. cap. 34. — Pul-
and 80,000 foot, but I have pre- gar, Reyes Catolicos, loc. cit.
ferred the more moderate and prob-
SURPRISE OF ALHAMA. 331
At length, however, Abul Hacen, after the loss chapter
IX
of more than two thousand of his bravest troops in . —
these precipitate assaults, became convinced of the
impracticability of forcing a position, whose natu-
ral strength was so ably seconded by the valor of
its defenders, and he determined to reduce the
place by the more tardy but certain method of
blockade. In this he was favored by one or two
circumstances. The town, having but a single well »»««»■.<*
' O o the garrison.
within its walls, was almost wholly indebted for its
supplies of water to the river which flowed at its
base. The Moors, by dint of great labor, succeed-
ed in diverting the stream so effectually, that the
only communication with it, which remained open
to the besieged, was by a subterraneous gallery or
mine, that had probably been contrived with refer-
ence to some such emergency by the original in-
habitants. The mouth of this passage was com-
manded in such a manner by the Moorish archers,
that no egress could be obtained without a regular
skirmish, so that every drop of water might be said
to be purchased with the blood of Christians; who,
" if they had not possessed the courage of Span-
iards," says a Castilian writer, " would have been
reduced to the last extremity." In addition to this
calamity, the garrison began to be menaced with
scarcity of provisions, owing to the improvident
waste of the soldiers, who supposed that the city,
after being plundered, was to be razed to the
ground and abandoned. 13
13 Garibay, Compendio, torn. ii. lib. 18, cap. 23. — Pulgar, Reyes
Catolicos, pp. 183, 184.
332 WAR OF GRANADA.
PAitT At this crisis they received the unwelcome tid-
' ings of the failure of an expedition destined for
their relief by Alonso de Aguilar. This cavalier,
the chief of an illustrious house since rendered
immortal by the renown of his younger brother,
Gonsalvo de Cordova, had assembled a considerable
body of troops, on learning the capture of Alhama,
for the purpose of supporting his friend and com-
panion in arms, the marquis of Cadiz. On reaching
the shores of the Yeguas, he received, for the first
time, advices of the formidable host which lay be-
tween him and the city, rendering hopeless any
attempt to penetrate into the latter with his inade-
quate force. Contenting himself, therefore, with
recovering the baggage, which the marquis's army
in its rapid march, as has been already noticed, had
left on the banks of the river, he returned to Ante-
quera. M
Under these depressing circumstances, the in-
domitable spirit of the marquis of Cadiz seemed to
infuse itself into the hearts of his soldiers. He
was ever in the front of danger, and shared the
privations of the meanest of his followers ; encour-
aging them to rely with undoubting confidence on
the sympathies which their cause must awaken in
the breasts of their countrymen. The event proved,
that he did not miscalculate. Soon after the occu-
pation of Alhama, the marquis, foreseeing the diffi-
culties of his situation, had despatched missives,
requesting the support of the principal lords and
14 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, MS., cap. 52.
SURPRISE OF ALHAMA. 333
cities of Andalusia. In this summons he had omit- chapter
ted the duke of Medina Sidonia, as one who had , — _ — ,
good reason to take umbrage at being excluded
from a share in the original enterprise. Henrique me Duke o:
53 r * Medina Si-
de Guzman, duke of Medina Sidonia, possessed a donia -
degree of power more considerable than any other
chieftain in the south. His yearly rents amounted
to nearly sixty thousand ducats, and he could bring
into the field, it was said, from his own resources
an army little inferior to what might be raised by a
sovereign prince. He had succeeded to his inher-
itance in 1468, and had very early given his sup-
port to the pretensions of Isabella. Notwithstand-
ing his deadly feud with the marquis of Cadiz, he
had the generosity, on the breaking out of the
present war, to march to the relief of the marchion-
ess when beleaguered, during her husband's ab-
sence, by a party of Moors from Ronda, in her own
castle of Arcos. He now showed a similar alacrity
in sacrificing all personal jealousy at the call of
patriotism. 15
No sooner did he learn the perilous condition of Marches to
*■ relieve Al-
liis countrymen in Alhama, than he mustered the hama *
whole array of his household troops and retainers,
which, when combined with those of the marquis
de Villena, of the count de Cabra, and those from
Seville, in which city the family of the Guzmans
had long exercised a sort of hereditary influence,
swelled to the number of five thousand horse and
15 Zufliga, Annales de Sevilla, Rerum Gestarum Decades, lib. 1,
p. 360. — L. Marineo, Cosas Me- cap. 3.
morables, fol. 24, 172. — Lebrija,
334 WAR OF GRANADA
part forty thousand foot. The duke of Medina Sidonia,
' — putting himself at the head of this powerful body,
set forward without delay on his expedition,
luiwsthe When king Ferdinand in his progress to the
south had reached the little town of Adamuz, about
live leagues from Cordova, he was informed of the
advance of the Andalusian chivalry, and instantly
sent instructions to the duke to delay his march, as
he intended to come in person and assume the
command. But the latter, returning a respectful
apology for his disobedience, represented to his
master the extremities to which the besieged were
already reduced, and without waiting for a reply
pushed on with the utmost vigor for Alhama. The
Moorish monarch, alarmed at the approach of so
powerful a reinforcement, saw himself in danger of
being hemmed in between the garrison on the one
side, and these new enemies on the other. With-
out waiting their appearance on the crest of the
eminence which separated him from them, he has-
tily broke up his encampment, on the 29th of
March, after a siege of more than three weeks,
and retreated on his capital. ,6
Meeting or The garrison of Alhama viewed with astonish-
ihe two ar-
mie »- ment the sudden departure of their enemies ; but
their wonder was converted into joy, when they
beheld the bright arms and banners of their coun-
trymen, gleaming along the declivities of the moun
tains. They rushed out with tumultuous transport
16 Pulgar. Reyes Calolicos, pp. — Zuiiiga, Annales de Sevilla,
183, 181. Bernaldez, Reyes Cato- pp. 392, 393.— Cardonne, Hist,
licos, MS., cap. 53. — Ferreras, d'Afrique et d'Espagne, torn. iii.
Hist. d'Espagne, torn. vii. p. 572. p. 257.
SURPRISE OF AL1IAMA. 335
to receive them, and pour forth their grateful ac- chapter
IX.
knowledgments, while the two commanders, em-
bracing each other in the presence of their united
armies, pledged themselves to a mutual oblivion of
all past grievances ; thus affording to the nation
the best possible earnest of future successes, in the
voluntary extinction of a feud, which had desolated
it for so many generations.
Notwithstanding the kindly feelings excited be-
tween the two armies, a dispute had wellnigh aris-
en respecting the division of the spoil, in which
the duke's army claimed a share, as having con-
tributed to secure the conquest which their more
fortunate countrymen had effected. But these
discontents were appeased, though with some diffi-
culty, by their noble leader, who besought his men
not to tarnish the laurels already won, by mingling
a sordid avarice with the generous motives which
had prompted them to the expedition. After the
necessary time devoted to repose and refreshment,
the combined armies proceeded to evacuate Alhama,
and having left in garrison Don Diego Merlo, with
a corps of troops of the hermandad, returned into
their own territories. 17
King Ferdinand, after receiving the reply of the The sove-
° ° x •* reigns at
duke of Medina Sidonia, had pressed forward his Cori,ova -
march by the way of Cordova, as far as Lucena,
with the intention of throwing himself at all hazards
into Alhama. He was not without much difficulty
dissuaded from this by his nobles, who represented
17 Pv.lgar, Reyes Catolicos, pp. 183 - l86.-Oviedo, Quincuagenas,
MS., bat. 1, quinc. 1, dial. 28.
J3G WAR OF GRANADA.
part the temerity of the enterprise, and its incompeten-
cy to any good result, even should he succeed, with
the small force of which he was master. On re-
ceiving intelligence that the siege was raised, he
returned to Cordova, where he was joined by the
queen towards the latter part of April. Isabella
had been employed in making vigorous preparation
for carrying on the war, by enforcing the requisite
supplies, and summoning the crown vassals, and the
principal nobility of the north, to hold themselves
in readiness to join the royal standard in Andalusia.
After this, she proceeded by rapid stages to Cor-
dova, notwithstanding the state of pregnancy, in
which she was then far advanced.
Aihamain- Here the sovereigns received the unwelcome in-
vested again °
iioon. formation, that the king of Granada, on the retreat
of the Spaniards, had again sat down before Alha-
ma ; having brought with him artillery, from the
want of which he had suffered so much in the pre-
ceding siege. This news struck a damp into the
hearts of the Castilians, many of whom recom-
mended the total evacuation of a place, " which "
they said, " was so near the capital that it must
be perpetually exposed to sudden and dangerous
assaults ; while, from the difficulty of reaching it,
it would cost the Castilians an incalculable waste
of blood and treasure in its defence. It was expe-
rience of these evils, which had led to its abandon-
ment in former days, when it had been recovered
by the Spanish arms from the Saracens."
; Lena's Isabella was far from being shaken by these
arguments. " Glory, " she said, " was not to be
SURPRISE OF ALIIAMA. 337
won without clanger. The present war was one chapter
IX
of peculiar difficulties and danger, and these had . —
been well calculated before entering upon it. The
strong and central position of Alhama made it of
the last importance, since it might be regarded as
the key of the enemy's country. This was the
first blow struck during the war, and honor and
policy alike forbade them to adopt a measure,
which could not fail to damp the ardor of the
nation." This opinion of the queen, thus deci-
sively expressed, determined the question, and
kindled a spark of her own enthusiasm in the
breasts of the most desponding. 18
It was settled that the king should march to the Ferdinand
t t raises the
relief of the besieged, taking with him the most sU * e -
ample supplies of forage and provisions, at the head
of a force strong enough to compel the retreat of
the Moorish monarch. This was effected without
delay ; and, Abul Hacen once more breaking up
his camp on the rumor of Ferdinand's approach,
the latter took possession of the city without op-
position, on the 14th of May. The king was
attended by a splendid train of his prelates and
principal nobility ; and he prepared with their aid
to dedicate his new conquest to the service of the
cross, with all the formalities of the Romish church.
'8 Bcrnaldez, Reyes Catolicos, as Bernaldez, whom I have follow-
MS., cap. 53, 54. — Pulgar states ed, lived in Andalusia, the theatre
that Ferdinand took the more of action, he may be supposed to
southern route of Antequcra, where have had more accurate means of
he received the tidings of the Moor- information. — Pulgar, Reyes Ca-
ish king's retreat. The discrepan- tolicos, pp. 187, 188.
cy is of no great consequence ; but
VOL. I. 43
338 WAR OF GRANADA.
i.
part After the ceremony of purification, the three prin-
cipal mosques of the city were consecrated by the
cardinal of Spain, as temples of Christian worship.
Bells, crosses, a sumptuous service of plate, and
other sacred utensils, were liberally furnished by
the queen; and the principal church of Santa Maria
de la Encarnacion long exhibited a covering of the
altar, richly embroidered by her own hands. Isa-
bella lost no opportunity of manifesting, that she
had entered into the war, less from motives of am-
bition, than of zeal for the exaltation of the true
faith. After the completion of these ceremonies,
Ferdinand, having strengthened the garrison with
new recruits under the command of Portocarrero,
lord of Palma, and victualled it with three months'
provisions, prepared for a foray into the vega of
Granada. This he executed in the true spirit of
that merciless warfare, so repugnant to the more
civilized usage of later times, not only by sweeping
away the green, unripened crops, but by cutting
down the trees, and eradicating the vines ; and
then, without so much as having broken a lance in
the expedition, returned in triumph to Cordova. 19
*9 Oviedo, Quinouagenas, MS., walls of the city in the night, and
bat. 1, quinc. 1, dial. 28. — Ber- had nearly reached the gates with
naldez, Reyes Catolicos, MS., cap. the intention of throwing them
54, 55. — Lebrija, Rerum Gcst3- open to their countrymen, when
rum Decades, lib. 1, cap. 6. — they were overpowered, after a
Conde, Dominacion de los Arabes, desperate resistance, by the Chris-
cap. 34. — Salazar de Mendoza, tians, who acquired a rich booty,
Cron. del Gran Cardenal, pp. 180, as many of them were persons of
181. — Marmol, Rebelion de Mo- rank. There is considerable vari-
riscos, lib. 1, cap. 12. ation in the authorities, in regard
During this second siege, a body to the date of Ferdinand's occupa-
of Moorish knights to the number tion of Alhama. I have been guid-
of forty, succeeded in scaling the ed, as before, by Bernaldez.
SURPRISE OF ALHAMA. 339
Isabella in the mean while was engaged in active chapter
measures for prosecuting the war. She issued or- — — —
ders to the various cities of Castile and Leon, as measures or
' the queen.
far as the borders of Biscay and Guipuscoa, pre-
scribing the reparti?niento, or subsidy of provisions,
and the quota of troops, to be furnished by each
district respectively, together with an adequate sup-
ply of ammunition and artillery. The whole were
to be in readiness before Loja, by the 1st of July;
when Ferdinand was to take the field in person at
the head of his chivalry, and besiege that strong
post. As advices were received, that the Moors of
Granada were making efforts to obtain the cooper-
ation of their African brethren in support of the
Mahometan empire in Spain, the queen caused a
fleet to be manned under the command of her two
best admirals, with instructions to sweep the Med-
iterranean as far as the Straits of Gibraltar, and thus
effectually cut off all communication with the Bar-
bary coast. 20
20 Pulgar, Reyes CatAlicos, pp. 188, 189.
CHAPTER X.
WAR OF GRANADA. — UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPT ON LOJA.—
DEFEAT IN THE AXARQUIA.
1482—1483.
Unsuccessful Attempt on Loja. — Revolution in Granada. — Expedition
to the Axarquia. — Military A rray . — Moorish Preparations. — Bloody
Conflict among the Mountains. — The Spaniards force a Passage. —
The Marquis of Cadiz escapes.
part Loja stands not many leagues from Alhama, on
— the banks of the Xenil, which rolls its clear current
Siege of
Ma. through a valley luxuriant with vineyards and olive-
gardens ; but the city is deeply intrenched among
hills of so rugged an aspect, that it has been led
not inappropriately to assume as the motto on its
arms, " A flower among thorns." Under the Moors,
it was defended by a strong fortress, while the
Xenil, circumscribing it like a deep moat upon the
south, formed an excellent protection against the ap-
proaches of a besieging army ; since the river was
fordable only in one place, and traversed by a sin-
gle bridge, which might be easily commanded by
the city. In addition to these advantages, the king
of Granada, taking warning from the fate of Alha-
ma, had strengthened its garrison with three thou-
sand of his choicest troops, under the command
ROUT IN THE AXARQUIA. 341
of a skilful and experienced warrior, named Ali chapter
Atar. J , — - —
In the mean while, the efforts of the Spanish ca»tuian
' r forces.
sovereigns to procure supplies adequate to the
undertaking against Loja, had not been crowned
with success. The cities and districts, of which
the requisitions had been made, had discovered the
tardiness usual in such unwieldy bodies, and their
interest, moreover, was considerably impaired by
their distance from the theatre of action. Ferdi-
nand on mustering his army, towards the latter
part of June, found that it did not exceed four
thousand horse and twelve thousand, or indeed,
according to some accounts, eight thousand foot ;
most of them raw militia, who, poorly provided
with military stores and artillery, formed a force
obviously inadequate to the magnitude of his en-
terprise. Some of his counsellors would have per-
suaded him, from these considerations, to turn his
arms against some weaker and more assailable
point than Loja. But Ferdinand burned with a
desire for distinction in the new war, and suffered
his ardor for once to get the better of his pru-
dence. The distrust felt by the leaders seems to
have infected the lower ranks, who drew the most
unfavorable prognostics from the dejected mien of
those who bore the royal standard to the cathedral
of Cordova, in order to receive the benediction of
the church before entering on the expedition. ~
1 Estrada, Poblacion de Espafia, donne, Hist. d'Afrique et d'Es-
tom. ii. pp. 242, 243. — Zurita, pagne, torn. iii. p. 261.
Anales, torn. iv. fol. 317. — Car- 2 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos,
342
WAR OF GRANADA.
PART
I.
Encamp-
ment before
I.oja.
Skirmish
with the
enemy.
Ferdinand, crossing the Xenil at Ecija, arrived
again on its banks before Loja, on the 1st of July.
The army encamped among the hills, whose deep
ravines obstructed communication between its dif-
ferent quarters ; while the level plains below were
intersected by numerous canals, equally unfavorable
to the manoeuvres of the men-at-arms. The duke
of Villa Hermosa, the king's brother, and captain-
general of the hermandad, an officer of large ex-
perience, would have persuaded Ferdinand to at-
tempt, by throwing bridges across the river lower
down the stream, to approach the city on the other
side. But his counsel was overruled by the Cas-
tilian officers, to whom the location of the camp
had been intrusted, and who neglected, according
to Zurita, to advise with the Andalusian chiefs,
although far better instructed than themselves in
Moorish warfare. 3
A large detachment of the army was ordered to
occupy a lofty eminence, at some distance, called
the Heights of Albohacen, and to fortify it with
such few pieces of ordnance as they had, with the
view of annoying the city. This commission was
intrusted to the marquises of Cadiz and Villena,
and the grand master of Calatrava ; which last
nobleman had brought to the field about four hun-
dred horse and a large body of infantry from the
places belonging to his order in Andalusia. Before
MS., cap. 58. — Mariana, Hist. 3 L. Marineo,CosasMemorables,
de Espana, torn. ii. pp. 249, 250. fol. 173. — Pulgar, Reyes Catoli-
— Cardonne, Hist. d'Afrique et cos, p. 187. — Zurita, Anales, torn
d'Espagne, torn. iii. pp. 259, 260. iv. fol. 316, 317.
ROUT IN THE AXARQUIA. 343
X.
the intrenchment could be fully completed, Ali chapter
Atar, discerning the importance of this command-
ing station, made a sortie from the town, for the
purpose of dislodging his enemies. The latter
poured out from their works to encounter him ; but
the Moslem general, scarcely waiting to receive
the shock, wheeled his squadrons round, and began
a precipitate retreat. The Spaniards eagerly pur-
sued ; but, when they had been drawn to a suf-
ficient distance from the redoubt, a party of Moorish
ginetes, or light cavalry, who had crossed the river
unobserved during the night and lain in ambush,
after the wily fashion of Arabian tactics, darted
from their place of concealment, and galloping into
the deserted camp, plundered it of its contents,
including the lombards, or small pieces of artillery,
with which it was garnished. The Castilians, too
late perceiving their error, halted from the pursuit,
and returned with as much speed as possible to
the defence of their camp. Ali Atar, turning also,
hung close on their rear, so that, when the Chris-
tians arrived at the summit of the hill, they found
themselves hemmed in between the two divisions
of the Moorish army. A brisk action now ensued,
and lasted nearly an hour ; when the advance of
reinforcements from the main body of the Spanish
army, which had been delayed by distance and
impediments on the road, compelled the Moors to
a prompt but orderly retreat into their own city.
The Christians sustained a heavy loss, particularly
in the death of Rodrigo Tellez Giron, grand master
of Calatrava. He was hit by two arrows, the last
344 WAR OF GRANADA.
I.
part of which, penetrating the joints of his harness
beneath his sword-arm, as he was in the act of
raising it, inflicted on him a mortal wound, of
which he expired in a few hours, says an old
chronicler, after having confessed, and performed
the last duties of a good and faithful Christian.
Although scarcely twenty-four years of age, this
cavalier had given proofs of such signal prowess,
that he was esteemed one of the best knights of
Castile ; and his death threw a general gloom over
the army. 4
Ferdinand now became convinced of the unsuita-
bleness of a position, which neither admitted of easy
communication between the different quarters of his
own camp, nor enabled him to intercept the sup-
plies daily passing into that of his enemy. Oth-
er inconveniences also pressed on him. His men
were so badly provided with the necessary utensils
for dressing their food, that they were obliged
either to devour it raw, or only half cooked. Most
of them being new recruits, unaccustomed to the
privations of war, and many exhausted by a weari-
some length of march before joining the army, they
began openly to murmur, and even to desert in
great numbers. Ferdinand therefore resolved to
fall back as far as Rio Frio, and await there patient-
ly the arrival of such fresh reinforcements as might
put him in condition to enforce a more rigorous
blockade.
4 Rades y Andrada, Las Tres ii. lib. 1, cap. 7. — Conde, Domi
Ordenes, fol. 80, 81. — L. Marineo, nacion de los Arabes, torn. iii. p.
Cosas Memorables, fol. 173. — Le- 214. — Carbajal, Anales, MS., ano
brija, Rerum Gestarum Decades, 1482.
ROUT IN THE AXARQUIA. 34,5
Orders were accordingly issued to the cavaliers chapter
occupying the Heights of Albohacen to break up : —
i • i r ii t i i -ii Retreat of
their camp, and lall back on the main body }£ r e d f pan "
of the army. This was executed on the follow-
ing morning before dawn, being the 4th of July.
No sooner did the Moors of Loja perceive their
enemy abandoning his strong position, than they
sallied forth in considerable force to take possession
of it. Ferdinand's men, who had not been advis-
ed of the proposed manoeuvre, no sooner beheld the
Moorish array brightening the crest of the moun-
tain, and their own countrymen rapidly descending,
than they imagined that these latter had been sur-
prised in their intrenchments during the night, and
were now flying before the enemy. An alarm in-
stantly spread through the whole camp. Instead
of standing to their defence, each one thought only
of saving himself by as speedy a flight as possible.
In vain did Ferdinand, riding along their broken
files, endeavour to reanimate their spirits and re-
store order. He might as easily have calmed the
winds, as the disorder of a panic-struck mob, un-
schooled by discipline or experience. Ali Atar's
practised eye speedily discerned the confusion which
prevailed through the Christian camp. Without
delay, he rushed forth impetuously at the head of
his whole array from the gates of Loja, and con-
verted into a real danger, what had before been
only an imaginary one. 5
5 Pulsar, Reyes Catolicos, pp. iii. pp. 214-217. — Cardonne,
189 - 19 1 . — Bernaldez, Reyes Ca- Hist. d'Afrique et d'Espagne, torn,
tolicos, MS., cap. 58. — Conde, iii. pp. 260, 261.
Dominacion de los Arabes, torn.
vol. 1. 44
%6 WAR OF GRANADA.
part At this perilous moment, nothing but Ferdi-
. . — nand's coolness could have saved the army from
total destruction. Putting himself at the head of
the royal guard, and accompanied by a gallant band
of cavaliers, who held honor dearer than life, he
made such a determined stand against the Moorish
advance, that Ali Atar was compelled to pause in
his career. A furious struggle ensued betwixt this
devoted little band and the whole strength of the
Moslem army. Ferdinand was repeatedly exposed
to imminent peril. On one occasion he was in-
debted for his safety to the marquis of Cadiz, who,
charging at the head of about sixty lances, broke
the deep ranks of the Moorish column, and compel-
ling it to recoil, succeeded in rescuing his sove-
reign. In this adventure, he narrowly escaped with
his own life, his horse being shot under him, at the
very moment when he had lost his lance in the
body of a Moor. Never did the Spanish chivalry
shed its blood more freely. The constable, count
de Haro, received three wounds in the face. The
duke of Medina Celi was unhorsed and brought to
the ground, and saved with difficulty by his own
men ; and the count of Tendilla, whose encamp-
ment lay nearest the city, received several severe
blows, and would have fallen into the hands of the
enemy, had it not been for the timely aid of his
friend, the young count of Zuniga.
The Moors, finding it so difficult to make an
impression on this iron band of warriors, began at
length to slacken their efforts, and finally allowed
Ferdinand to draw off the remnant of his forces
ROUT IN THE AXARQUIA.
347
without further opposition. The king continued chapter
his retreat without halting, as far as the romantic 1
site of the Pena de los Enamorados, about seven
leagues distant from Loja ; and, abandoning all
thoughts of offensive operations for the present,
soon after returned to Cordova. Muley Abul Ha-
cen arrived the following day with a powerful re-
inforcement from Granada, and swept the coun-
try as far as Rio Frio. Had he come but a few
hours sooner, there would have been few Spaniards
left to tell the tale of the rout of Loja. 6
The loss of the Christians must have been very
considerable, including the greater part of the bag-
gage and the artillery. It occasioned deep mor-
tification to the queen ; but, though a severe, it
proved a salutary lesson. It showed the impor-
tance of more extensive preparations for a war,
which must of necessity be a war of posts ; and
G Bernaldez, Reyes Cat61icos,
MS., cap. 58. — Conde, Domina-
cion de los Arabes, torn. iii. pp.
214-217. — Pulgar, Reyes Catoli-
cos, ubi supra. — Lebrija, Rerum
Gestarum Decades, ii. lib. 1, cap.
7. — The Pcna de los Enamorados
received its name from a tragical
incident in Moorish history. A
Christian slave succeeded in inspir-
ing the daughter of his master, a
wealthy Mussulman of Granada,
with a passion for himself. The
two lovers, after some time, fearful
of the detection of their intrigue,
resolved to make their escape into
the Spanish territory. Before they
could effect their purpose, however,
they were hotly pursued by the
damsel's father at the head of a
party of Moorish horsemen, and
overtaken near a precipice which
rises between Archidona and An-
tequera. The unfortunate fugi-
tives, who had scrambled to the
summit of the rocks, finding alt
further escape impracticable, after
tenderly embracing each other,
threw themselves headlong from
the dizzy heights, preferring this
dreadful death to falling into the
hands of their vindictive pursuers.
The spot consecrated as the scene
of this tragic incident has received
the name of Rock of the Lovers.
The legend is prettily told by Ma-
riana, (Hist, de Espana, torn. ii.
pp. 253, 254,) who concludes with
the pithy reflection , that " such con-
stancy would have been truly ad-
mirable, had it been shown in de-
fence of the true faith, rather than
in the gratification of lawless appe-
tite."
348 WAR OF GRANADA.
part it taught the nation to entertain greater respect
for an enemy, who, whatever might be his natural
strength, must become formidable when armed
with the energy of despair.
Revolution At this juncture, a division among the Moors
in Granada. •* ' °
themselves did more for the Christians, than any
successes of their own. This division grew out
of the vicious system of polygamy, which sows the
seeds of discord among those, whom nature and
our own happier institutions unite most closely.
The old king of Granada had become so deeply
enamoured of a Greek slave, that the Sultana Zo-
raya, jealous lest the offspring of her rival should
supplant her own in the succession, secretly con-
trived to stir up a spirit of discontent with her
husband's government. The king, becoming ac-
quainted with her intrigues, caused her to be im-
prisoned in the fortress of the Alhambra. But the
sultana, binding together the scarfs and veils be-
longing to herself and attendants, succeeded, by
means of this perilous conveyance, in making her
escape, together with her children, from the upper
apartments of the tower in which she was lodged.
She was received with joy by her own faction.
The insurrection soon spread among the populace,
who, yielding to the impulses of nature, are readily
roused by a tale of oppression; and the number
was still further swelled by many of higher rank,
who had various causes of disgust with the op-
pressive government of Abul Hacen. 7 The strong
7 Conde, Dominacion de los Cardonne, Hist. d'Afrique et d'Ea-
Arabes, torn. iii. pp. 214-217. — pagne, torn. iii. pp. 262, 263. —
ROUT IN THE AXARQUIA.
349
fortress of the Alhambra, however, remained faith- chapter
x.
ful to him. A war now burst forth in the capital —
which deluged its streets with the blood of its
citizens. At length the sultana triumphed ; Abul
Haccn was expelled from Granada, and sought a
refuge in Malaga, which, with Baza, Guadix, and
some other places of importance, still adhered to
him ; while Granada, and by far the larger portion
of the kingdom proclaimed the authority of his
elder son, Abu Abdallah, or Boabdil, as he is
usually called by the Castilian writers. The Span-
ish sovereigns viewed with no small interest these
proceedings of the Moors, who were thus wantonly
fighting the battles of their enemies. All proffers
of assistance on their part, however, being warily
rejected by both factions, notwithstanding the mu-
tual hatred of each other, they could only await
with patience the termination of a struggle, which,
whatever might be its results in other respects,
could not fail to open the way for the success of
their own arms. 8
Marmol, Rebelion de Moriscos, lib.
1, cap. 12. — Bcrnaldcz states that
great umbrage was taken at the
influence which the king of Gra-
nada allowed a person of Christian
lineage, named Venegas, to exer-
cise over him. Pulgar hints at the
bloody massacre of the Abencer-
rages, which, without any better
authority that I know of, forms the
burden of many an ancient ballad,
and has lost nothing of its roman-
tic coloring under the hand of Gi-
nes Perez de Hyta.
8 Cardonne, Hist. d'Afrique et
d'Espagne, ubi supra. — Conde,
Dominacion de los Arabes, ubi sup.
Boabdil was surnamed " el Chi-
co," the Little, by the Spanish
writers, to distinguish him from an
uncle of the same name ; and " el
Zogoybi," the Unfortunate, by the
Moors, indicating that he was the
last of his race destined to wear the
diadem of Granada. The Arabs,
with great felicity, frequently se-
lect names significant of some qual-
ity in the objects they represent.
Examples of this may be readily
found in the southern regions of
the Peninsula, where the Moors
lingered the longest. The etymo-
logy of Gibraltar, Gebal Tarik,
Mount of Tarik, is well known.
350 WAR OF GRANADA.
fart No military operations worthy of notice occurred
— . — during the remainder of the campaign, except occa-
sional cavalgadas or inroads, on both sides, which,
after the usual unsparing devastation, swept away
whole herds of cattle, and human beings, the
wretched cultivators of the soil. The quantitv
of booty frequently carried oif on such occasions,
amounting, according to the testimony of both
Christian and Moorish writers, to twenty, thirty,
and even fifty thousand head of cattle, shows the
fruitfulness and abundant pasturage in the southern
regions of the Peninsula. The loss inflicted by
these terrible forays fell, eventually, most heavily
on Granada, in consequence of her scanty territory
and insulated position, which cut her off from all
foreign resources.
Towards the latter end of October, the court
passed from Cordova to Madrid, with the intention
of remaining there the ensuing winter. Madrid, it
may be observed, however, was so far from being
recognised as the capital of the monarchy at this
time, that it was inferior to several other cities, in
wealth and population, and was even less fre-
quented than some others, as Valladolid for exam-
ple, as a royal residence.
Thus, Algeziras comes from an Guadalquivir, great river, Guadia
Arabic word which signifies an na, narroiv or little river, Guada
island; Alpuxarras comes from a lete, &c. In the same manner the
term signifying herbage or pastur- term Medina, Arabici "city," has
age ; Arrecife from another, signi- been retained as a prefix to the
fying causeway or high road, etc. names of many of the Spanish
The Arabic word wad stands for towns, as Medina Celi, Medina del
river. This without much violence Campo, &c. See Conde's notes
has been changed into guad, and to El Nubiense, Descripcion dc
enters into the names of many of Espana, passim.
the southern streams ; for example,
ROUT IN THE AXARQUIA. 35 I
On the 1st of July, while the court was at Cor- chapter
dova, died Alfonso de Carillo, the factious arch- . —
bishop of Toledo, who contributed more than any archbishop e
r J of Toledo.
other to raise Isabella to the throne, and who, with
the same arm, had wellnigh hurled her from it.
He passed the close of his life in retirement and
disgrace at his town of Alcala de Henares, where
he devoted himself to science, especially to alchy-
my; in which illusory pursuit he is said to have
squandered his princely revenues with such prodi-
gality, as to leave them encumbered with a heavy
debt. He was succeeded in the primacy by his
ancient rival, Don Pedro Gonzalez de Mendoza,
cardinal of Spain ; a prelate whose enlarged and
sagacious views gained him deserved ascendency in
the councils of his sovereigns. 9
The importance of their domestic concerns did
not prevent Ferdinand and Isabella from giving a
vigilant attention to what was passing abroad. The
conflicting relations growing out of the feudal sys-
tem occupied most princes, till the close of the
fifteenth century, too closely at home to allow them
often to turn their eyes beyond the borders of their
own territories. This system was, indeed, now
rapidly melting away. But Louis the Eleventh
may perhaps be regarded as the first monarch, who
showed any thing like an extended interest in Eu-
ropean politics. He informed himself of the inte-
rior proceedings of most of the neighbouring courts,
9 Salazar de Mendoza, Cron. — Aleson, Annales de Navarra,
del Gran Cardenal, p. 181. — Pul- torn. v. p. 11, ed. 1766. — Peter
gar, Claros Varones, tit. 20. — Martyr, Opus Epist., epist. 158.
O-arbajal, Anales, MS., afio 1483.
352 WAR OF GRANADA.
part by means of secret agents whom he pensioned
— there. Ferdinand obtained a similar result by the
more honorable expedient of resident embassies, a
practice, which he is said to have introduced, 10 and
which, while it has greatly facilitated commercial
intercourse, has served to perpetuate friendly rela-
tions between different countries, by accustoming
them to settle their differences by negotiation rath-
er than the sword.
fcS ta " f ^ ne P os iti° n °f tne Italian states, at this period,
whose petty feuds seemed to blind them to the in-
vasion which menaced them from the Ottoman em-
pire, was such as to excite a lively interest through-
out Christendom, and especially in Ferdinand, as
sovereign of Sicily. He succeeded, by means of
his ambassadors at the papal court, in opening a
negotiation between the belligerents, and in finally
adjusting the terms of a general pacification, signed
December 12th, 1482. The Spanish court, in con-
sequence of its friendly mediation on this occa-
sion, received three several embassies with suit-
able acknowledgments, on the part of the pope
Sixtus the Fourth, the college of cardinals, and the
city of Rome ; and certain marks of distinction
were conferred by his Holiness on the Castilian en-
voys, not enjoyed by those of any other potentate.
This event is worthy of notice as the first instance
of Ferdinand's interference in the politics of Italy,
10 Fred. Marslaar, De Leg. 2, Spanish word cmbiar, " to send."
11. — M. de Wicquefort. derives See Rights of Embassadors, trans-
tlie word ambassadtiir (anciently lated by Digby, (London, 1740,)
in English embassador) from the book 1, chap. 1.
ROUT IN THE AXARQUIA. 353
in which at a later period lie was destined to act chapter
so prominent a part. " '. —
The affairs of Navarre at this time, were such as or Navarre
to engage still more deeply the attention of the
Spanish sovereigns. The crown of that kingdom
had devolved, on the death of Leonora, the guilty
sister of Ferdinand, on her grandchild, Francis
Phoebus, whose mother, Magdeleine of France, held
the reins of government during her son's minor-
ity. 12 The near relationship of this princess to
Louis the Eleventh, gave that monarch an absolute
influence in the councils of Navarre. He made
use of this to bring about a marriage between the
young king, Francis Phoebus, and Joanna Bel-
traneja, Isabella's former competitor for the crown
of Castile, notwithstanding this princess had long
since taken the veil in the convent of Santa Clara
at Coimbra. It is not easy to unravel the tortuous
politics of King Louis. The Spanish writers im-
pute to him the design of enabling Joanna by this
alliance to establish her pretensions to the Castilian
throne, or at least to give such employment to its
present proprietors, as should effectually prevent
11 Sismondi, Republiques Ital- of whom in turn succeeded to the
iennes, torn. xi. cap. 88. — Pulgar, crown of Navarre. Francis Phce-
Reyes Catolieos, pp. 195-198. — bus ascended the throne on the
Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. fol. 218. demise of his grandmother Leono-
w Aleson, Annales de Navarra, ra, in 1479. lie was distinguish-
ing. 34, cap. 1. — Histoire du Roy- cd by his personal graces and
aume de Navarre, p. 558. beauty, and especially by the gold-
Leonora's son, Gaston de Foix, en lustre of his hair from which,
prince of Viana, was slain by an according to Aleson, he derived
accidental wound from a lance, at a his cognomen of Phoebus. As it
tourney at Lisbon, in 1469. By the was an ancestral name, however,
princess Magdeleine, his wife, sis- such an etymology may be thought
ter of Louis XL, he left two chil- somewhat fanciful,
dren, a son and daughter, each
vol. I. 45
354 WAR OF GRANADA.
part them from disturbing him in the possession of Rous-
sillon. However this may he, his intrigues with
•lan. 30.
Portugal were disclosed to Ferdinand by certain
nobles of that court, with whom he was in secret
correspondence. The Spanish sovereigns, in order
to counteract this scheme, offered the hand of their
own daughter Joanna, afterwards mother of Charles
1483. the Fifth, to the king of Navarre. But all nego-
tiations relative to this matter were eventually de-
feated by the sudden death of this young prince,
not without strong suspicions of poison. He was
succeeded on the throne by his sister Catharine.
Propositions were then made by Ferdinand and
Isabella, for the marriage of this princess, then
thirteen years of age, with their infant son John,
heir apparent of their united monarchies. 13 Such
an alliance, which would bring under one govern-
ment nations corresponding in origin, language,
general habits, and local interests, presented great
and obvious advantages. It was however evaded
by the queen dowager, who still acted as regent,
on the pretext of disparity of age in the parties.
Information being soon after received that Louis
the Eleventh was taking measures to make him-
self master of the strong places in Navarre, Isabel-
la transferred her residence to the frontier town of
Logroilo, prepared to resist by arms, if necessary,
the occupation of that country by her insidious and
13 Ferdinand and Isabella had at to the succession, and the infantas
this time four children; the infant Isabella, Joanna, and Maria; the
Don John, four years and a half last, born at Cordova during the
old, but who did not live to come summer of 1482.
ROUT IN THE AXARQUIA. 355
powerful neighbour. The death of the king of chapter
France, which occurred not long after, fortunately — - —
relieved the sovereigns from apprehensions of any
immediate annoyance on that quarter. 14
Amid their manifold concerns, Ferdinand and
Isabella kept their thoughts anxiously bent on their
great enterprise, the conquest of Granada. At a
congress general of the deputies of the hermandad,
held at Pinto, at the commencement of the present
year, 1483, with the view of reforming certain
abuses in that institution, a liberal grant was made
of eight thousand men, and sixteen thousand beasts
of burden, for the purpose of conveying supplies to
the garrison in Alhama. But the sovereigns expe- Resources of
° ■*■ the crown.
nenced great embarrassment from the want of
funds. There is probably no period in which the
princes of Europe felt so sensibly their own penury,
as at the close of the fifteenth century ; when, the
demesnes of the crown having been very generally
wasted by the lavishness or imbecility of its propri-
etors, no substitute had as yet been found in that
searching and well-arranged system of taxation,
which prevails at the present day. The Spanish
sovereigns, notwithstanding the economy which
they had introduced into the finances, felt the
pressure of these embarrassments, peculiarly, at
the present juncture. The maintenance of the
royal guard and of the vast national police of the
14 Aleson, Annales de Navarra, de Portugal, torn. iii. pp. 438-
lib. 34, cap. 2 ; lib. 35, cap. 1. — 441. — Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos,
Histoire du Royaume de Navarre, p. 199. — Mariana, Hist de Espa-
pp. 578, 579. — La Clede, Hist, fia, torn. ii. p. 551.
356
WAR OF GRANADA.
PART
I.
Justice of
the sove-
reitrna.
hermandad, the incessant military operations of
the late campaign, together with the equipment of
a navy, not merely for war, but for maritime dis-
covery, were so many copious drains of the ex-
chequer. 15 Under these circumstances, they obtain-
ed from the pope a grant of one hundred thousand
ducats, to be raised out of the ecclesiastical reve-
nues in Castile and Aragon. A bull of crusade was
also published by his Holiness, containing numerous
indulgences for such as should bear arms against
the infidel, as well as those who should prefer to
commute their military service for the payment of a
sum of money. In addition to these resources, the
government was enabled on its own credit, justi-
fied by the punctuality with which it had redeem-
ed its past engagements, to negotiate considerable
loans with several wealthy individuals. 16
With these funds the sovereigns entered into ex-
tensive arrangements for the ensuing campaign ;
causing cannon, after the rude construction of that
age, to be fabricated at Huesca, and a large quanti-
ty of stone balls, then principally used, to be man-
ufactured in the Sierra de Constantina ; while the
magazines were carefully provided with ammunition
and military stores.
An event not unworthy of notice is recorded by
15 Lcbrija, Rerum Gestarum De- Coleccion de Cedillas y Otros Do-
cades, ii. lib. 2, cap. 1. cumentos, (Madrid, 1829,) torn. iii.
Besides the armada in the Med- no. 25.
iterranean, a fleet under Pedro de For this important collection, a
Vera was prosecuting a voyage of few copies of which, only, were
discovery and conquest to the Ca- printed for distribution, at the ex-
naries at this time. pense of the Spanish government,
16 Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, p. Jam indebted to the politeness of
199. — Mariana, torn. ii. p. 551. — Don A. Calderon de la Barca.
ROUT IN THE AXARQUIA.
Pulsar, as happening about this time. A common chapter
soldier, named John do Corral, contrived under :
false pretences, to obtain from the king of Granada
a number of Christian captives, together with a
large sum of money, with which he escaped into
Andalusia. The man was apprehended by the
warden of the frontier of Jaen ; and, the transac-
tion being reported to the sovereigns, they com-
pelled an entire restitution of the money, and con-
sented to such a ransom for the liberated Christians
as the king of Granada should demand. This act
of justice, it should be remembered, occurred in
an age when the church itself stood ready to sanc-
tion any breach of faith, however glaring, towards
heretics and infidels. 17
While the court was detained in the north, ti- Expedition
to the Axar-
dings were received of a reverse sustained by the quia -
Spanish arms, which plunged the nation in sorrow
far deeper than that occasioned by the rout at
Loja. Don Alonso de Cardenas, grand master of
St. James, an old and confidential servant of the
crown, had been intrusted with the defence of the
17 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, higher rank, Don Juan de Vera.
MS., cap. 58. — Pulgar, Reyes This knight, while conversing
Catolicos, p. 202. with certain Moorish cavaliers in
Juan de Corral imposed on the the Alhamhra, was so much scan-
king of Granada by means of cer- dalized by the freedom with which
tain credentials, which he had ob- one of them treated the immacu-
tained from the Spanish sovereigns late conception, that he gave the
without any privity on their part to circumcised dog the lie, and smote
his fraudulent intentions. The him a sharp blow on the head
story is told in a very blind manner with his sword. Ferdinand, says
by Pulgar. Bernaldez, who tells the story,
It may not be amiss to mention was much gratified with the ex-
here a doughty feat performed by ploit, and recompensed the good
another Castilian envoy, of much knight with many honors.
I.
358 WAR OF GRANADA.
part frontier of Ecija. While on this station, he was
strongly urged to make a descent on the environs
of Malaga, by his adalides or scouts, men who, be-
ing for the most part Moorish deserters or renega-
does, were employed by the border chiefs to recon-
noitre the enemy's country, or to guide them in
their marauding expeditions. 18 The district around
Malaga was famous under the Saracens for its silk
manufactures, of which it annually made large
exports to other parts of Europe. It was to be ap-
proached by traversing a savage sierra, or chain of
mountains, called the Axarquia, whose margin occa-
sionally afforded good pasturage, and was sprinkled
over with Moorish villages. After threading its
defiles, it was proposed to return by an open road
that turned the southern extremity of the sierra
along the sea-shore. There was little to be appre-
hended, it was stated, from pursuit, since Malaga
was almost wholly unprovided with cavalry. 19
18 The adalid was a guide, or nexion. When he is spoken of as
scout, whose business it was to a captain, or leader, as he some-
make himself acquainted with the times is in these and other ancient
enemy's country, and to guide the records, his authority, I suspect, is
invaders into it. Much dispute has intended to be limited to the per-
arisen respecting the authority and sons, who aided him in the execu-
functions of this officer. Some tion of his peculiar office. — It was
writers regard him as an indepen- common for the great chiefs, who
dent leader, or commander ; and lived on the borders, to maintain in
the Dictionary of the Academy de- their pay a number of these adali-
fines the term adalid by these very des, to inform them of the fitting
words. The Siete Partidas, how- time and place for making a foray,
ever, explains at length the pecu- The post, as may well be believed,
liar duties of this officer, conforma- was one of great trust and personal
bly to the account I have given, hazard.
(Ed. de la Real Acad. (Madrid, 19 Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, p.
1807,) part. 2, tit. 2, leyes 1-4.) 203. — L. Marineo, Cosas Memo-
Bernaldez, Pulgar, and the other rabies, fol. 173. — Zurita, Anales,
chroniclers of the Granadine war, torn. iv. fol. 320.
repeatedly notice him in this con-
ROUT IN THE AXARQUIA. 359
The grand master, falling in with the proposi- chapter
tion, communicated it to the principal chiefs on the .
borders ; among others, to Don Pedro Henriquez,
adelantado of Andalusia, Don Juan de Silva, count
of Cifuentes, Don Alonzo de Aguilar, and the mar-
quis of Cadiz. These noblemen, collecting their
retainers repaired to Antequera, where the ranks
were quickly swelled by recruits from Cordova, Se-
ville, Xerez, and other cities of Andalusia, whose
chivalry always readily answered the summons to
an expedition over the border. 20
In the mean while, however, the marquis of Ca-
diz had received such intelligence from his own
adalides, as led him to doubt the expediency of a
march through intricate defiles, inhabited by a poor
and hardy peasantry ; and he strongly advised to
direct the expedition against the neighbouring town
of Almojia. But in this he was overruled by the
grand master and the other partners of his enter-
prise ; many of whom, with the rash confidence of
youth, were excited rather than intimidated by the
prospect of danger.
20 Oviedo, Quincuagenas, MS., province or district in which he
bat. 1, quinc. 1, dial. 36. — Lebri- presided, and in war was invested
ja, Rerum Gestarum Decades, ii. with supreme military command,
lib. 2, cap. 2. His functions, however, as well as
The title of adelantado implies the territories over which he ruled,
in its etymology one preferred or have varied at different periods,
placed before others. The office An adelantado seems to have been
is of great antiquity ; some have generally established over a border
derived it from the reign of St. province, as Andalusia for exam-
Ferdinand in the thirteenth centu- pie. Marina discusses the civil au-
ry, but Mendoza proves its exist- thority of this officer, in his Teoria,
ence at a far earlier period. The torn. ii. cap. 23. See also Salazar
adelantado was possessed of very de Mendoza, Dignidades, lib. 2,
extensive judicial authority in the cap. 15.
360 WAR OF GRANADA.
part On Wednesday, the 19th of March, this gallant
L little army marched forth from the gates of Ante-
14 83. q Uera> The van was intrusted to the adelantado
The military
array. Henriquez and Don Alonso de Aguilar. The cen-
tre divisions were led by the marquis of Cadiz and
the count of Cifuentes, and the rear-guard, by the
grand master of St. James. The number of foot,
which is uncertain, appears to have been consider-
ably less than that of the horse, which amounted to
about three thousand, containing the flower of An-
dalusian knighthood, together with the array of St.
James, the most opulent and powerful of the Span-
ish military orders. Never, says an Aragonese his-
torian, had there been seen in these times a more
splendid body of chivalry ; and such was their con-
fidence, he adds, that they deemed themselves in-
vincible by any force which the Moslems could
bring against them. The leaders took care not to
encumber the movements of the army with artillery,
camp equipage, or even much forage and provisions,
for which they trusted to the invaded territory. A
number of persons, however, followed in the train,
who, influenced by desire rather of gain than of
glory, had come provided with money, as well as
commissions from their friends, for the purchase of
rich spoil, whether of slaves, stuffs, or jewels, which
they expected would be won by the good swords
of their comrades, as in Alhama. 21
21 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, — Lebrija, Rerum Gestarum De-
MS., cap. 60. — Rades y Andrada, cades, ii. lib. 2, cap. 2. — Oviedo.
LasTres Ordenes,fol.71. — Zurita, Quincuagenas, MS., bat. 1, quine.
Anales, torn. iv. i'ol. 320. — Zufii- 1, dial. 36.
ga, Annales de Sevilla, fol. 395.
ROUT IN THE AXARQUIA. 361
After travelling with little intermission through chapter
the night, the army entered the winding defiles of . '
the Axarquia ; where their progress was necessarily thearmy."
so much impeded by the character of the ground,
that most of the inhabitants of the villages, through
which they passed, had opportunity to escape with
the greater part of their effects to the inaccessible
fastnesses of the mountains. The Spaniards, after
plundering the deserted hamlets of whatever re-
mained, as well as of the few stragglers, whether
men or cattle, found still lingering about them,
set them on fire. In this way they advanced,
marking their line of march with the usual devas-
tation that accompanied these ferocious forays,
until the columns of smoke and fire, which rose
above the hill-tops, announced to the people of
Malaga the near approach of an enemy.
The old king Muley Abul Hacen, who lay at Moorish
...... . . i 11 Prepara-
tnis time in the city, with a numerous and well- tio " 6 -
appointed body of horse, contrary to the reports
of the adalides, would have rushed forth at once
at their head, had he not been dissuaded from it
by his younger brother Abdallah, who is better
known in history by the name of El Zagal, or " the
Valiant " ; an Arabic epithet, given him by his
countrymen to distinguish him from his nephew,
the ruling king of Granada. To this prince Abul
Hacen intrusted the command of the corps of
picked cavalry, with instructions to penetrate at
once into the lower level of the sierra, and en-
counter the Christians entangled in its passes ;
while another division, consisting chiefly of arque-
vol. i. 46
362 WAR OF GRANADA.
l-ART busiers and archers, should turn the enemy's flank
- — by gaining the heights under which he was de-
filing. This last corps was placed under the di-
rection of Reduan Benegas, a chief of Christian
lineage, according to Bernaldez, and who may per-
haps be identified with the Reduan, that, in the
later Moorish ballads, seems to be shadowed forth
as the personification of love and heroism. 22
skirmish The Castilian army in the mean time went for-
among Ihe
mountains. wa rd with a buoyant and reckless confidence, and
with very little subordination. The divisions oc-
cupying the advance and centre, disappointed in
their expectations of booty, had quitted the line
of march, and dispersed in small parties in search
of plunder over the adjacent country ; and some
of the high-mettled young cavaliers had the au-
dacity to ride up in defiance to the very walls of
Malaga. The grand master of St. James was the
only leader who kept his columns unbroken, and
marched forward in order of battle. Things were
in this state, when the Moorish cavalry under El
Zagal, suddenly emerging from one of the moun-
tain passes, appeared before the astonished rear-
guard of the Christians. The Moors spurred on
to the assault, but the well disciplined chivalry of
St. James remained unshaken. In the fierce strug-
gle which ensued, the Andalusians became embar-
rassed by the narrowness of the ground on which
they were engaged, which afforded no scope for the
22 Conde, Domination de los pagne, torn. iii. pp. 264-267. —
Arabes, torn. iii. p. 217. — Car- Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, MS.,
donne, Hist. d'Afrique et d'Es- cap. 60.
ROUT IN THE AXARQUIA. 363
manoeuvres of cavalry ; while the Moors, trained chapter
x
to the wild tactics of mountain warfare, went ■ —
through their usual evolutions, retreating and re-
turning to the charge, with a celerity, that sorely
distressed their opponents and at length threw
them into some disorder. The grand master in
consequence, despatched a message to the marquis
of Cadiz, requesting his support. The latter, put-
ting himself at the head of such of his scattered
forces as he could hastily muster, readily obeyed
the summons. Discerning on his approach the real
source of the grand master's embarrassment, he
succeeded in changing the field of action by draw-
ing off the Moors to an open reach of the valley,
which allowed free play to the movements of the
Andalusian horse, when the combined squadrons
pressed so hard on the Moslems, that they were
soon compelled to take refuge within the depths of
their own mountains. 23
In the mean while, the scattered troops of the Retreat of
1 y the Spuu-
advance, alarmed by the report of the action, grad- iards -
ually assembled under their respective banners, and
fell back upon the rear. A council of war was
then called. All further progress seemed to be
effectually intercepted. The country was every-
where in arms. The most that could now be
hoped, was, that they might be suffered to retire
unmolested with such plunder as they had already
acquired. Two routes lay open for this purpose.
23 Conde, Dominacion de los y Andrada, Las Tres Ordenes, fol.
Arabes, torn. iii. p. 217. — Pulgar, 71, 72.
Reyes Catolicos, p. 204. — Rades
MM WAR OF GRANADA.
I.
Their • • i i
y esperta para bataiia. 2 Londe, Dominacion de Ios
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 375
The advance of the party was not conducted so chapter
cautiously, but that it reached the ear of Don — — —
Diego Fernandez de Cordova, alcayde de los don-
zeles, or captain of the royal pages, who com-
manded in the town of Lucena, which he rightly
judged was to be the principal object of attack.
He transmitted the intelligence to his uncle the
count of Cabra, a nobleman of the same name with
himself, who was posted at his own town of Baena,
requesting his support. He used all diligence in
repairing the fortifications of the city, which, al-
though extensive and originally strong, had fallen
somewhat into decay ; and, having caused such of
the population as were rendered helpless by age or
infirmity to withdraw into the interior defences of
the place, he coolly waited the approach of the
enemy. 3
The Moorish army, after crossing the borders, Marches en
J ° Lucena.
began to mark its career through the Christian ter-
ritory with the usual traces of devastation, and,
sweeping across the environs of Lucena, poured a
marauding foray into the rich campina of Cordova,
as far as the walls of Aguilar ; whence it return-
ed, glutted with spoil, to lay siege to Lucena about
the 21st of April.
Arabes, torn. iii. cap. 36. — Car- The donzeles, of which Diego de
donne, Hist. d'Afrique et d'Es- Cordova was alcayde, or captain,
pagne, torn. iii. pp. 267-271. — were a body of young cavaliers,
Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, MS., originally brought up as pages in
cap. 60. — Pedraza, Antiguedad the royal household, and organized
de Granada, fol. 10. — Marmol, as a separate corps of the militia.
Rcbelion de Moriscos, lib. 1, cap. Salazar de Mendoza, Dignidades,
12. p. 259. — See also Morales, Obras,
3 Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, part. torn. xiv. p. 80.
3, cap. 20.
376 WAR OF GRANADA.
part The count of Cabra, in the mean while, who
— had lost no time in mustering his levies, set for-
Bauicof ward at the head of a small but well-appointed
force, consisting of both horse and foot, to the
relief of his nephew. He advanced with such
celerity that he had wellnigh surprised the be-
leaguering army. As he traversed the sierra, which
covered the Moorish flank, his numbers were par-
tially concealed by the inequalities of the ground;
while the clash of arms and the shrill music, rever-
berating among the hills, exaggerated their real
magnitude in the apprehension of the enemy. At
the same time the alcayde de los donzeles support-
ed his uncle's advance by a vigorous sally from the
city. The Granadine infantry, anxious only for the
preservation of their valuable booty, scarcely wait-
ed for the encounter, before they began a dastardly
retreat, and left the battle to the cavalry. The
latter, composed, as has been said, of the strength
of the Moorish chivalry, men accustomed in many
a border foray to cross lances with the best knights
of Andalusia, kept their ground with their wonted
gallantry. The conflict, so well disputed, remain-
ed doubtful for some time, until it was determined
by the death of the veteran chieftain Ali Atar, "the
best lance," as a Castilian writer has styled him,
" of all Morisma," who was brought to the ground
after receiving two wounds, and thus escaped by
an honorable death the melancholy spectacle of his
countrv's humiliation. 4
4 Conde, Dominacion de los Ar- Reyes de Aragon, torn. ii. fol.
abes, torn. iii. cap. 36. — Abarca, 302. — Carbajal, Anales, MS.,
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 377
The enemy, disheartened by this loss, soon be- chapter
gan to give ground. But, though hard pressed by .
the Spaniards, they retreated in some order, until
they reaehed the borders of the Xenil, which were
thronged with the infantry, vainly attempting a pas-
sage across the stream, swollen bv excessive rains
to a height much above its ordinary level. The
confusion now became universal, horse and foot
mingling together ; each one, heedful only of life,
no longer thought of his booty. Many, attempting
to swim the stream, were borne down, steed and
rider, promiscuously in its waters. Many more,
scarcely making show of resistance, were cut down
on the banks by the pitiless Spaniards. The young capture of
J r r . Abdallah.
king Abdallah, who had been conspicuous during
that day in the hottest of the fight, mounted on a
milk-white charger richly caparisoned, saw fifty of
his loyal guard fall around him. Finding his steed
too much jaded to stem the current of the river, he
quietly dismounted and sought a shelter among the
reedy thickets that fringed its margin, until the
storm of battle should have passed over. In this
lurking place, however, he was discovered by a
common soldier named Martin Hurtado, who, with-
out recognising his person, instantly attacked him.
The prince defended himself with his scimitar, until
Hurtado, being joined by two of his countrymen,
succeeded in making him prisoner. The men, over-
joyed at their prize (for Abdallah had revealed his
rank, in order to secure his person from violence),
afio 1483. — Bernaldez, Reyes Cronica, cap. 20. — Marmol, Re-
Catolicos, MS., cap. 61. — Pulgar, belion de Moriscos, lib. 1, cap. 12-
vol. I. 48
378 WAR OF GRANADA.
part conducted him to their general, the count of Ca-
' bra. The latter received the royal captive with a
generous courtesy, the best sign of noble breed-
ing, and which, recognised as a feature of chivalry,
affords a pleasing contrast to the ferocious spirit of
ancient warfare. The good count administered to
the unfortunate prince all the consolations which
his state would admit ; and subsequently lodged
him in his castle of Baena, where he was entertain-
ed with the most delicate and courtly hospitality. 5
Losses or the Nearly the whole of the Moslem cavalry were
cut up, or captured, in this fatal action. Many of
them were persons of rank, commanding high ran-
soms. The loss inflicted on the infantry was also
severe, including the whole of their dear-bought
plunder. Nine, or indeed, according to some ac-
counts, two and twenty banners fell into the hands
of the Christians in this action ; in commemoration
of which the Spanish sovereigns granted to the
count of Cabra, and his nephew, the alcayde de los
donzeles, the privilege of bearing the same number
of banners on their escutcheon, together with the
head of a Moorish king, encircled by a golden coro-
net, with a chain of the same metal around the
neck. 6
5 Garibay, Compendio, torn. ii. usual confused and contradictory
p. 637. — Pulgar, Reyes Catoli- manner by the garrulous chroni-
cos,ubi supra. — Bernaldez, Reyes clers of the period. All authori-
Catolicos, MS., cap. 61. — Conde, ties, however, both Christian and
Dominacion do los Arabes, torn. Moorish, agree as to its general
iii. cap. 36. — Cardonne, Hist, results.
d'Afrique et d'Espagne, torn. iii. 6 Mendoza, Dignidades, p. 382.
pp. 271-274. — Oviedo, Quincuagenas, MS.,
The various details, even to the bat. 1, quinc. 4, dial. 9.
site of the battle, are told in the
MILITARY TOLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 379
Great was the consternation occasioned by the chapter
XI
return of the Moorish fugitives to Granada, and ■ —
loud was the lament through its populous streets ;
for the pride of many a noble house was laid low
on that day, and their king (a thing unprecedented
in the annals of the monarchy) was a prisoner in
the land of the Christians. " The hostile star of
Islam," exclaims an Arabian writer, "now scattered
its malignant influences over Spain, and the down-
fall of the Mussulman empire was decreed."
The sultana Zoraya, however, was not of a tern- Moorish em-
J bassy to
per to waste time in useless lamentation. She was Cordovo -
aware that a captive king, who held his title by so
precarious a tenure as did her son Abdallah, must
soon cease to be a king even in name. She ac-
cordingly despatched a numerous embassy to Cor-
dova, with proffers of such a ransom for the prince's
liberation, as a despot only could offer, and few
despots could have the authority to enforce. 7
King Ferdinand, who was at Vitoria with the Debates in
queen, when he received tidings of the victory of council
Lucena, hastened to the south to determine on the
destination of his royal captive. With some show
of magnanimity, he declined an interview with
Abdallah, until he should have consented to his
liberation. A debate of some warmth occurred in
the royal council at Cordova, respecting the policy
to be pursued; some contending that the Moorish
monarch was too valuable a prize to be so readily
relinquished, and that the enemy, broken by the loss
7 Conde, Dominacion de los Ara- Hist. d'Afrique et d'Espagne, pp.
bes, torn. iii. cap. 36. — Cardonne, 271 -274.
380 WAR OF GRANADA.
part of their natural leader, would find it difficult to ral-
— - \y under one common head, or to concert any effec-
tive movement. Others, and especially the marquis
of Cadiz, urged his release, and even the support
of his pretensions against his competitor, the old
king of Granada ; insisting that the Moorish em-
pire would be more effectually shaken by internal
divisions, than by any pressure of its enemies from
without. The various arguments were submitted
to the queen, who still held her court in the north,
and who decided for the release of Abdallah, as
a measure best reconciling sound policy with gen-
erosity to the vanquished. 8
AMMiniT 1 * ^ ne terms °f tne treaty, although sufficiently
humiliating to the Moslem prince, were not mate-
rially different from those proposed by the sultana
Zoraya. It was agreed that a truce of two years
should be extended to Abdallah, and to such places
in Granada as acknowledged his authority. In
consideration of which, he stipulated to surrender
four hundred Christian captives without ransom, to
pay twelve thousand doblas of gold annually to the
Spanish sovereigns, and to permit a free passage,
as well as furnish supplies, to their troops passing
through his territories, for the purpose of carrying
on the war against that portion of the kingdom
which still adhered to his father. Abdallah more-
over bound himself to appear when summoned by
8 Pulsar, Reyes Cat61icos, cap. delicacy in regard to an interview
23. — Marmol, Rebelion de Mor- with his royal captive, or indeed
iscos, lib. l,cap. 12. to any part of his deportment to-
Charles V. does not seem to wards him.
have partaken of his grandfather's
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 381
Ferdinand, and to surrender his own son, with the chapter
XI.
children of his principal nobility, as sureties for his : —
fulfilment of the treaty. Thus did the unhappy
prince barter away his honor and his country's
freedom for the possession of immediate, but most
precarious sovereignty ; a sovereignty, which could
scarcely be expected to survive the period when he
could be useful to the master whose breath had
made him. 9
The terms of the treaty being thus definitively interview
J ° J between
settled, an interview was arranged to take place £ng S W0
between the two monarchs at Cordova. The Cas-
tilian courtiers would have persuaded their master
to offer his hand for Abdallah to salute, in token
of his feudal supremacy ; but Ferdinand replied,
" Were the king of Granada in his own domin-
ions, I might do this; but not while he is a prisoner
in mine." The Moorish prince entered Cordova
with an escort of his own knights, and a splendid
throng of Spanish chivalry, who had marched out
of the city to receive him. When Abdallah enter-
ed the royal presence, he would have prostrated
himself on his knees ; but Ferdinand, hastening
to prevent him, embraced him with every demon-
stration of respect. An Arabic interpreter, who
acted as orator, then expatiated, in florid hyper-
bole, on the magnanimity and princely qualities of
the Spanish king, and the loyalty and good faith of
his own master. But Ferdinand interrupted his
9 Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, ubi supra. — Conde, Domination de lot
Arabes, cap. 36.
382
WAR OF GRANADA.
PART
L
General poli-
cy of the
war.
Incessant
hostilities.
eloquence, with the assurance that " his panegyric
was superfluous, and that lie had perfect confidence
that the sovereign of Granada would keep his faith
as became a true knight and a king." After cere-
monies so humiliating to the Moorish prince, not-
withstanding the veil of decorum studiously thrown
over them, he set out with his attendants for his
capita], escorted by a body of Andalusian horse to
the frontier, and loaded with costly presents by
the Spanish king, and the general contempt of his
court. 10
Notwithstanding the importance of the results
in the w r ar of Granada, a detail of the successive
steps by which they were achieved would be most
tedious and trifling. No siege or single military
achievement of great moment occurred until near-
ly four years from this period, in 1487; although,
in the intervening time, a large number of fortress-
es and petty towns, together with a very extensive
tract of territory, were recovered from the enemy.
Without pursuing the chronological order of events,
it is probable that the end of history will be best
attained by presenting a concise view of the gen-
eral policy pursued by the sovereigns in the conduct
of the war.
The Moorish wars under preceding monarchs had
consisted of little else than cavalgadas, or inroads
into the enemy's territory, n which, pouring like a
torrent over the land, swept away whatever was
10 Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, loc. be used indifferently by the ancient
cit. — Conde, Dominacion de los Spanish writers to represent a
Arabes. cap. 36. marauding party, the foray itself,
11 The term cavalgada seems to or the booty taken in it.
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 383
upon the surface, but left it in its essential resources chapter
XI
wholly unimpaired. The bounty of nature soon
repaired the ravages of man, and the ensuing har-
vest seemed to shoot up more abundantly from the
soil, enriched by the blood of the husbandman. A
more vigorous system' of spoliation was now intro-
duced. Instead of one campaign, the army took
the field in spring and autumn, intermitting its
efforts only during the intolerable heats of sum-
mer, so that the green crop had no time to ripen,
ere it was trodden down under the iron heel of
war.
The apparatus for devastation was also on a Devastating
forays.
much greater scale than had ever before been wit-
nessed. From the second year of the war, thirty
thousand foragers were reserved for this service,
which they effected by demolishing farm-houses,
granaries, and mills, (which last were exceed-
ingly numerous in a land watered by many small
streams,) by eradicating the vines, and laying waste
the olive-gardens and plantations of oranges, al-
monds, mulberries, and all the rich varieties that
grew luxuriant in this highly favored region. This
merciless devastation extended for more than two
leagues on either side of the line of march. At
the same time, the Mediterranean fleet cut off all
supplies from the Barbary coast, so that the whole
kingdom might be said to be in a state of perpetual
blockade. Such and so general was the scarcity
occasioned by this system, that the Moors were
glad to exchange their Christian captives for pro-
visions, until such ransom was interdicted by the
384
WAR OF GRANADA.
PART
I.
Strength of
the Moorish
fortresses.
sovereigns, as tending to defeat their own meas-
ures. 12
Still there was many a green and sheltered valley
in Granada, which yielded its returns unmolested
to the Moorish husbandman ; while his granaries
were occasionally enriched with the produce of a
border foray. The Moors too, although naturally
a luxurious people, were patient of suffering, and
capable of enduring great privation. Other meas-
ures, therefore, of a still more formidable char-
acter, became necessary in conjunction with this
rigorous system of blockade.
The Moorish towns were for the most part
strongly defended, presenting within the limits of
Granada, as has been said, more than ten times
the number of fortified places that are now scat-
tered over the whole extent of the Peninsula.
They stood along the crest of some precipice, or
bold sierra, whose natural strength was augmented
by the solid masonry with which they were sur-
rounded, and which, however insufficient to hold
out against modern artillery, bade defiance to all
the enginery of battering warfare known previous-
ly to the fifteenth century. It was this strength
of fortification, combined with that of their local
position, which frequently enabled a slender garri-
son in these places to laugh to scorn all the efforts
of the proudest Castilian armies.
The Spanish sovereigns were convinced, that
12 Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, cap. 22.
torn. vi. Ilust. 6.
Mem. de la Acad, de Hist.,
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 385
they must look to their artillery as the only effectu- chapter
al means for the reduction of these strong-holds. 1—
In this, they as well as the Moors were extremely
deficient, although Spain appears to have furnished
earlier examples of its use than any other country
in Europe. Isabella, who seems to have had the
particular control of this department, caused the
most skilful engineers and artisans to be invited
into the kingdom from France, Germany, and Italy.
Forges were constructed in the camp, and all the
requisite materials prepared for the manufacture
of cannon, balls, and powder. Large quantities
of the last were also imported from Sicily, Flan-
ders, and Portugal. Commissaries were estab-
lished over the various departments, with instruc-
tions to provide whatever might be necessary for
the operatives ; and the whole was intrusted to the
supervision of Don Francisco Ramirez, an hidalgo
of Madrid, a person of much experience, and ex-
tensive military science, for that day. By these
efforts, unremittingly pursued during the whole of
the war, Isabella assembled a train of artillery,
such as was probably not possessed at that time
by any other European potentate. 13
Still the clumsy construction of the ordnance Description
J of the pieces
betrayed the infancy of the art. More than twenty
pieces of artillery used at the siege of Baza, during
this war, are still to be seen in that city, where
they long served as columns in the public market-
13 Pulgar. Reyes Cat61icos, cap. lib. 20, cap. 59. — Lebrija, Rerum
32, 41. — Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. Gestarum Decades, ii. lib. 3, cap. 5.
VOL. I. 49
31&
WAR OF GRANADA.
PART
I.
Of the kinds
of ammuni-
tion.
place. The largest of the lombards, as the heavy
ordnance was called, are about twelve feet in
length, consisting of iron bars two inches in breadth,
held together by bolts and rings of the same metal.
These were firmly attached to their carriages, in-
capable either of horizontal or vertical movement.
It was this clumsiness of construction, which led
Machiavelli, some thirty years after, to doubt the
expediency of bringing cannon into field engage-
ments ; and he particularly recommends in his
treatise on the Art of War, that the enemy's fire
should be evaded, by intervals in the ranks being
left open opposite to his cannon. u
The balls thrown from these engines were some-
times of iron, but more usually of marble. Several
hundred of the latter have been picked up in the
fields around Baza, many of which are fourteen
inches in diameter, and weigh a hundred and
seventy-five pounds. Yet this bulk, enormous as
it appears, shows a considerable advance in the art
since the beginning of the century, when the stone
balls discharged, according to Zurita, at the siege
of Balaguer, weighed not less than five hundred
and fifty pounds. It was very long before the
exact proportions requisite for obtaining the great-
est effective force could be ascertained. 15
The awkwardness with which their artillery was
14 Machiavelli, Arte della Guer- Constantinople, about thirty years
ra, lib. 3. before this time, threw stone balls,
15 Mem. de la Acad, de Hist., which weighed above GOO pounds.
torn. vi. Uust. 6. The measure of the bore was
According to Gibbon, the cannon twelve palms. Decline and Fall
used by Mahomet in the siege of of the Roman Empire, chap. 68.
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 387
served, corresponded with the rudeness of its manu- chapter
facture. Ft is noticed as a remarkable circumstance "
by the chronicler, that two batteries, at the siege
of Albahar, discharged one hundred and forty balls
in the course of a day. 16 Besides this more usual
kind of ammunition, the Spaniards threw from
their engines large globular masses, composed of
certain inflammable ingredients mixed with gun-
powder, " which, scattering long trains of light,"
says an eyewitness, " in their passage through the
air, filled the beholders with dismay, and, descend-
ing on the roofs of the edifices, frequently occa-
sioned extensive conflagration. 17
The transportation of their bulky engines was Roads for
1 ... ,he artillery
not the least of the difficulties which the Spaniards
had to encounter in this war. The Moorish for-
tresses were frequently intrenched in the depths
of some mountain labyrinth, whose rugged passes
were scarcely accessible to cavalry. An immense
body of pioneers, therefore, was constantly em-
ployed in constructing roads for the artillery across
16 Mem. de la Acad, de Hist., 17 L. Marineo, Cosas Memora-
tom. vi. Ilust. 6. hies, fol. 174. — Pulgar, Reyes
We get a more precise notion of Catolicos, cap. 44.
the awkwardness with which the Some writers, as the Abbe Mi-
artillery was served in the infancy gnot, (Histoire des Rois Catholi-
of the science, from a fact recorded ques Ferdinand et Isabelle, (Paris,
in the Chronicle of John II., that, 17G6,) torn. i. p. 273.) have re-
at the siege of Setenil, in 1407, five ferred the invention of bombs to
lombards were able to discharge the siege of Ronda. I find no
only forty shot in the course of a authority for this. Pulgar's words
day. We have witnessed an in-: are, "They made many iron balls,
vention, in our time, that of our large and small, some of which
ingenious countryman, Jacob Per- they cast in a mould, having re-
kins, by which a gun, with the duced the iron to a state of fusion,
aid of that miracle- worker, steam, so that it would run like any other
is enabled to throw a thousand metal."
bullets in a single minute.
388 WAR OF GRANADA.
part these sierras, by levelling the mountains, filling up
the intervening valleys with rocks, or with cork
trees and other timber that grew prolific in the
wilderness, and throwing bridges across the tor-
rents and precipitous barrancos. Pulgar had the
curiosity to examine one of the causeways thus
constructed, preparatory to the siege of Cambil
which, although six thousand pioneers were con-
stantly employed in the work, was attended with
such difficulty, that it advanced only three leagues
in twelve days. It required, says the historian,
the entire demolition of one of the most rugged
parts of the sierra, which no one could have be-
lieved practicable by human industry. 18
Defences of The Moorish garrisons, perched on their moun-*
Hie Moors. . .
tain fastnesses, which, like the eyry of some bird
of prey, seemed almost inaccessible to man, beheld
with astonishment the heavy trains of artillery,
emerging from the passes, where the foot of the
hunter had scarcely been known to venture. The
walls which encompassed their cities, although
lofty, were not of sufficient thickness to withstand
long the assaults of these formidable engines. The
Moors were deficient in heavy ordnance. The
weapons on which they chiefly relied for annoying
the enemy at a distance were the arquebus and
cross-bow, with the last of which they were un-
erring marksmen, being trained to it from infancy.
They adopted a custom, rarely met with in civilized
!8 Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, cap. 51. — Bernaldez, Reyes Cat61icos.
MS., cap. 82.
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 389
nations of any age, of poisoning their arrows ; dis- chapter
tilling for this purpose the juice of aconite, or ! .
wolfsbane, which they found in the Sierra Nevada,
or Snowy Mountains, near Granada. A piece of
linen or cotton cloth steeped in this decoction was
wrapped round the point of the weapon, and the
wound inflicted by it, however trivial in appear-
ance, was sure to be mortal. Indeed a Spanish
writer, not content with this, imputes such malig-
nity to the virus, that a drop of it, as he asserts,
mingling with the blood oozing from a wound,
would ascend the stream into the vein, and diffuse
its fatal influence over the whole system ! 19
Ferdinand, who appeared at the head of his Terms to the
1 l vanquished.
armies throughout the whole of this war, pursued
a sagacious policy in reference to the beleaguered
cities. He was ever ready to meet the first over-
tures to surrender, in the most liberal spirit ; grant-
ing protection of person, and such property as the
besieged could transport with them, and assigning
them a residence, if they preferred it, in his own
dominions. Many, in consequence of this, migrat-
ed to Seville and other cities of Andalusia, where
they were settled on estates which had been confis-
cated by the inquisitors ; who looked forward, no
doubt, with satisfaction to the time, when they
should be permitted to thrust their sickle into the
new crop of heresy, whose seeds were thus sown
19 Mendoza,Guerrade Granada, According to Mendoza, a de-
(Valencia, 1776,) pp. 73, 74. — coction of the quince furnished
Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. lib. 20, the most effectual antidote known
r -ap. 59. — Mem. delaAcad.de against this poison.
Hist., torn. vi. p. 168.
390 WAR OF GRANADA.
part amid the ashes of the old one. Those who prefer-
■ — red to remain in the conquered Moorish territory,
as Castilian subjects, were permitted the free en-
joyment of personal rights and property, as well as
of their religion ; and, such was the fidelity with
which Ferdinand redeemed his engagements during
the war, by the punishment of the least infraction
of them by his own people, that many, particularly
of the Moorish peasantry, preferred abiding in their
early homes to removing to Granada, or other places
of the Moslem dominion. It was, perhaps a coun-
terpart of the same policy, which led Ferdinand to
chastise any attempt at revolt, on the part of his
new Moorish subjects, the Mudejares, as they were
called, with an unsparing rigor, which merits the
reproach of cruelty. Such was the military execu-
tion inflicted on the rebellious town of Benema-
quez, where he commanded one hundred and ten of
the principal inhabitants to be hung above the walls,
and, after consigning the rest of the population,
men, women, and children, to slavery, caused the
place to be razed to the ground. The humane pol-
icy, usually pursued by Ferdinand, seems to have
had a more favorable effect on his enemies, who
were exasperated, rather than intimidated, by this
ferocious act of vengeance. 20
supplies for The magnitude of the other preparations corre-
the army. ° ± r
20 Abarca, Reyes de Aragon, bigoted for the age, seems to think
torn. ii. fol. 304. — Lebrija, Rerum the liberal terms granted by Ferdi-
Gestarum Decades, ii. lib. 4, cap. nand to the enemies of the faith
2. — Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, stand in need of perpetual apology.
MS., cap. 76. — Marmol, Rebelion See Reyes Catolicos, cap. 44 et
de Moriscos, lib. 1, cap. 12. passim.
Pulgar, who is by no means
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 391
sponded with those for the ordnance department, chapter
XI
The amount of forces assembled at Cordova, we '. —
find variously stated at ten or twelve thousand
horse, and twenty, and even forty thousand foot,
exclusive of foragers. On one occasion, the whole
number, including men for the artillery service and
the followers of the camp, is reckoned at eighty
thousand. The same number of beasts of burden
were employed in transporting the supplies requir-
ed for this immense host, as well as for provisioning
the conquered cities standing in the midst of a
desolated country. The queen, who took this
department under her special cognizance, moved
along the frontier, stationing herself at points most
contiguous to the scene of operations. There, by
means of posts regularly established, she received
hourly intelligence of the war. At the same time
she transmitted the requisite munitions for the
troops, by means of convoys sufficiently strong to
secure them against the irruptions of the wily ene-
my. 21
Isabella, solicitous for every thing; that concerned Isabella's
J O care of the
the welfare of her people, sometimes visited the *"**■■
camp in person, encouraging the soldiers to endure
the hardships of war, and relieving their necessities
by liberal donations of clothes and money. She
caused also a number of large tents, known as
" the queen's hospitals," to be always reserved for
the sick and wounded, and furnished them with
21 Bernaldez, Reyes Catcflicos, brija, Rerum Gestarum Decades,
MS., cap. 75. — Pulgar, Reyes ii. lib. 8, cap. 6. — Marmol, Re-
Catolicos, cap. 21, 33, 42. — Le- belion de Moriscos, lib. 1, cap. 13.
verance in
tlie war,
392 WAR OF GRANADA.
part the requisite attendants and medicines, at her own
- — , charge. This is considered the earliest attempt
at the formation of a regular camp hospital, on
record. 22
ner perse- Isabella may be regarded as the soul of this war.
She engaged in it with the most exalted views,
less to acquire territory, than to reestablish the em-
pire of the Cross over the ancient domain of Chris-
tendom. On this point, she concentrated all the
energies of her powerful mind, never suffering her-
self to be diverted by any subordinate interest from
this one great and glorious object. When the king,
in 1484, would have paused a while from the Gra-
nadine war, in order to prosecute his claims to
Roussillon against the French, on the demise of
Louis the Eleventh, Isabella strongly objected to
it ; but, finding her remonstrance ineffectual, she
left her husband in Aragon, and repaired to Cordo-
va, where she placed the cardinal of Spain at the
head of the army, and prepared to open the cam-
paign in the usual vigorous manner. Here, howev-
er, she was soon joined by Ferdinand, who, on a
cooler revision of the subject, deemed it prudent to
postpone his projected enterprise.
On another occasion, in the same year, when
the nobles, fatigued with the service, had persuaded
the king to retire earlier than usual, the queen,
dissatisfied with the proceeding, addressed a letter
to her husband, in which, after representing the
disproportion of the results to the preparations, she
22 Mem. de la Acad, de Hist., torn. vi. Uust. 6
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 393
besought him to keep the field as long as the season chapter
should serve. The grandees, says Lebrija, morti- . !
fied at being surpassed in zeal for the holy war by
a woman, eagerly eollected their forces, which had
been partly disbanded, and returned across the
borders to renew hostilities. 23
A circumstance, which had frequently frustrated p°iicyto-
^ J wards ihe
the most magnificent military enterprises under nob!es •
former reigns, was the factions of these potent
vassals, who, independent of each other, and al-
most of the crown, could rarely be brought to act
in efficient concert for a length of time, and broke
up the camp on the slightest personal jealousy.
Ferdinand experienced something of this temper
in the duke of Medina Celi, who, when he had
received orders to detach a corps of his troops to
the support of the count of Benavente, refused,
replying to the messenger, " Tell your master, that
I came here to serve him at the head of my house-
hold troops, and they go nowhere without me as
their leader." The sovereigns managed this fiery
spirit with the greatest address, and, instead of
curbing it, endeavoured to direct it in the path of
honorable emulation. The queen, who as their
hereditary sovereign received a more deferential
homage from her Castilian subjects than Ferdinand,
frequently wrote to her nobles in the camp, com-
plimenting some on their achievements, and others
less fortunate on their intentions, thus cheering the
hearts of all, says the chronicler, and stimulating
23 Lebrija, Rerum Gestarum Decades, ii. lib. 3, cap. 6. — Pulgar,
Reyes Catolicos, cap. 31.
vol. I. 50
>D 1« WAR OF GRANADA.
i'art them to deeds of heroism. On the most deserving
' she freely lavished those honors which eost little to
the sovereign, but are most grateful to the subject.
The marquis of Cadiz, who was preeminent above
every other captain in this war for sagacity and
conduct, was rewarded after his brilliant surprise of
Zahara, with the gift of that city, and the titles of
Marquis of Zahara and Duke of Cadiz. The warrior,
however, was unwilling to resign the ancient title
under which he had won his laurels, and ever after
subscribed himself, Marquis Duke of Cadiz. 24 Still
more emphatic honors were conferred on the count
de Cabra, after the capture of the king of Granada.
When he presented himself before the sovereigns,
who were at Vitoria, the clergy and cavaliers of the
city marched out to receive him, and he entered in
solemn procession on the right hand of the grand
cardinal of Spain. As he advanced up the hall of
audience in the royal palace, the king and queen
came forward to welcome him, and then seated him
by themselves at table, declaring that " the conquer-
or of kings should sit with kings." These honors
were followed by the more substantial gratuity of
a hundred thousand maravedies annual rent; "a
fat donative," says an old chronicler, " for so lean
a treasury." The young alcayde de los donzeles
experienced a similar reception on the ensuing day.
Such acts of royal condescension were especially
24 After another daring achieve- Ladyday ; a present, says Abarca,
ment, the sovereigns granted him not to be estimated by its cost,
and his heirs the royal suit worn Reyes de Aragon. torn. ii. fol. 303,
by the monarchs of Castile on
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 395
grateful to the nobility of a court, circumscribed chapter
beyond every other in Europe by stately and cere- ■ —
monious etiquette. 25
The duration of the war of Granada was such as
to raise the militia throughout the kingdom nearly
to a level with regular troops. Many of these
levies, indeed, at the breaking out of the war, might
pretend to this character. Such were those fur-
nished by the Andalusian cities, which had been
long; accustomed to skirmishes with their Moslem
neighbours. Such too was the well-appointed chiv-
alry of the military orders, and the organized militia
of the hermandad, which we find sometimes supply-
ing a body of ten thousand men for the service.
To these may be added the splendid throng of
cavaliers and hidalgos, who swelled the retinues
of the sovereigns and the great nobility. The
king was attended in battle by a body-guard of a
thousand knights, one half light, and the other half
heavy armed, all superbly equipped and mounted,
and trained to arms from childhood, under the
royal eye.
Although the burden of the war bore most com P o S j-
o tion of the
heavily on Andalusia, from its contiguity to the army-
scene of action, yet recruits were drawn in abun-
dance from the most remote provinces, as Galicia,
Biscay, and the Asturias, from Aragon, and even
the transmarine dominions of Sicily. The sove-
reigns did not disdain to swell their ranks with
25 Abarca, Reyes de Aragon, dez, Reyes Catolicos, MS., cap.
ubi supra. — Peter Martyr, Opus 68. — Zurita, Anales, torn. iv. cap.
Epist. lib. 1, epist. 41. — Bernal- 58.
396
WAR OF GRANADA.
PART
I.
Sw is.s mer-
cenaries.
levies of a humbler description, by promising an en-
tire amnesty to those malefactors, who had left the
country in great numbers of late years to escape
justice, on condition of their serving in the Moorish
war. Throughout this motley host the strictest
discipline and decorum were maintained. The
Spaniards have never been disposed to intemper-
ance ; but the passion for gaming, especially with
dice, to which they seem to have been immoder-
ately addicted at that day, was restrained by the
severest penalties. 26
The brilliant successes of the Spanish sovereigns
diffused general satisfaction throughout Christen-
dom, and volunteers flocked to the camp from
France, England, and other parts of Europe, eager
to participate in the glorious triumphs of the Cross.
Among these was a corps of Swiss mercenaries,
who are thus simply described by Pulgar. " There
joined the royal standard a body of men from Swit-
zerland, a country in upper Germany. These men
were bold of heart, and fought on foot. As they
were resolved never to turn their backs upon the
enemy, they wore no defensive armour, except in
front ; by which means they were less encumbered
in fight. They made a trade of war, letting them-
selves out as mercenaries ; but they espoused only
a just quarrel, for they were devout and loyal Chris-
tians, and above all abhorred rapine as a great
sin." 27 The Swiss had recently established their
26 Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, cap. tarnm Decades, ii. lib. 2, cap. 10.
31, 67, 69. — Lebrija, Rerum Ges- 27 Reyes Catolicos, cap. 21.
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 397
military renown by the discomfiture of Charles the chapter
Bold, when they first proved the superiority of in- , 1_.
fantry over the best appointed chivalry of Europe.
Their example no doubt contributed to the forma-
tion of that invincible Spanish infantry, which,
under the Great Captain and his successors, may
be said to have decided the fate of Europe for more
than half a century.
Among the foreigners was one from the distant The EngiM
O ~ lord Scales.
isle of Britain, the earl of Rivers, or conde de Es-
calas, as he is called from his patronymic, Scales,
by the Spanish writers. " There came from Brit-
ain," says Peter Martyr, " a cavalier, young,
wealthy, and high-born. He was allied to the
blood royal of England. He was attended by a
beautiful train of household troops three hundred
in number, armed after the fashion of their land
with long-bow and battle-axe." This nobleman
particularly distinguished himself by his gallantry
in the second siege of Loja, in 1486. Having ask-
ed leave to fight after the manner of his country,
says the Andalusian chronicler, he dismounted from
his good steed, and putting himself at the head of
his followers, armed like himself en bianco, with
their swords at their thighs, and battle-axes in their
hands, he dealt such terrible blows around him as
filled even the hardy mountaineers of the north
with astonishment. Unfortunately, just as the sub-
urbs were carried, the good knight, as he was
mounting a scaling-ladder, received a blow from
a stone, which dashed out two of his teeth, and
stretched him senseless on the ground. He was
398 WAR OF GRANADA.
part removed to his tent, where he lay some time under
— ' — medical treatment ; and, when he had sufficiently
recovered, he received a visit from the king and
queen, who complimented him on his prowess, and
testified their sympathy for his misfortune. " It
is little," replied he, " to lose a few teeth in the
service of him, who has given me all. Our Lord,"
he added " who reared this fabric, has only opened
a window, in order to discern the more readily
what passes within." A facetious response, says
Peter Martyr, which gave uncommon satisfaction to
the sovereigns. 28
The queen's The queen not long after, testified her sense of
courtesy. *■ O >
the earl's services, by a magnificent largess, con-
sisting among other things, of twelve Andalusian
horses, two couches with richly wrought hangings
and coverings of cloth of gold, with a quantity of
fine linen, and sumptuous pavilions for himself and
suite. The brave knight seems to have been sat-
isfied with this taste of the Moorish wars ; for he
soon after returned to England, and in 1488 pass-
ed over to France, where his hot spirit prompted
him to take part in the feudal factions of that coun-
try, in which he lost his life, fighting for the duke
of Brittany. 29
Magnin- The pomp with which the military movements
oence of Ihe x L J
uobies. were conducted in these campaigns, gave the scene
rather the air of a court pageant, than that of the
stern array of war. The war was one, which,
28 Peter Martyr, Opus Epist., 29 Guillaume de Ialigny, His
lib. 1, epist. 62. — Bernaldez, Re- toire de Charles VIII., (Paris,
yes Catolicos, MS., cap. 78. 1617,) pp. 90-94.
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 399
appealing both to principles of religion and patri- chapter
otism, was well calculated to inflame the imagina- — •
tions of the young Spanish cavaliers ; and they
poured into the field, eager to display themselves
under the eye of their illustrious queen, who, as
she rode through the ranks mounted on her war-
horse, and clad in complete mail, afforded no bad
personification of the genius of chivalry. The
potent and wealthy barons exhibited in the camp
all the magnificence of princes. The pavilions
decorated with various-colored pennons, and em-
blazoned with the armorial bearings of their an-
cient houses, shone with a splendor, which a Cas-
tilian writer likens to that of the city of Seville. 30
They always appeared surrounded by a throng of
pages in gorgeous liveries and at night were pre-
ceded by a multitude of torches, which shed a
radiance like that of day. They vied with each
other in the costliness of their apparel, equipage,
and plate, and in the variety and delicacy of the
dainties with which their tables were covered. 81
Ferdinand and Isabella saw with regret this
lavish ostentation, and privately remonstrated with
some of the principal grandees on its evil tendency,
especially in seducing the inferior and poorer nobil-
ity into expenditures beyond their means. This Th* gai-
J l J lantry.
Sybarite indulgence, however, does not seem to
have impaired the martial spirit of the nobles. On
30 Bernaldez, Reyes Oatolicos, the ancient proverb testifies. Zu-
MS., cap. 75. — This city, even ilifja, Annales de Scvilla, p. 183.
before the New World had poured « Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, cap.
its treasures into its lap, was con- 41.
spicuous for its magnificence, as
400 WAR OF GRANADA.
taut all occasions, they contended with each other for
the post of danger. The duke del Infantado, the
head of the powerful house of Mendoza, was con-
spicuous above all for the magnificence of his train.
At the siege of Illora, 1486, he obtained permis-
sion to lead the storming party. As his followers
pressed onwards to the breach, they were received
with such a shower of missiles as made them falter
for a moment. " What, my men," cried he, " do
you fail me at this hour ? Shall we be taunted
with bearing more finery on our backs than courage
in our hearts ? Let us not, in God's name, be
laughed at as mere holyday soldiers ! " His vassals,
stung by this rebuke, rallied, and, penetrating the
breach, carried the place by the fury of their
assault. 32
Isabella vif Notwithstanding the remonstrances of the sove-
Its tlie camp. o
reigns against this ostentation of luxury, they were
32 Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, cap. actions princely, maintaining un-
59. — Tins nobleman, whose name bounded hospitality among his nu-
was Ifiigo Lopez de Mendoza, was merous vassals and dependents, and
son of the first duke, Diego Hurta- beloved throughout Spain. His
do, who supported Isabella's claims palaces were garnished with the
to the crown. Oviedo was present most costly tapestries, jewels, and
at the siege of Illora, and gives a rich stuffs of gold and silver. His
minute description of his appear- chapel was filled with accomplish-
ance there. "He came," says that ed singers and musicians; his
writer, "attended by a numerous falcons, hounds, and his whole
body of cavaliers and gentlemen, hunting establishment, including a
as befitted so great a lord. He magnificent stud of horses, not to
displayed all the luxuries which be matched by any other nobleman
belong to a time of peace ; and his in the kingdom. Of the truth of all
tables, which were carefully served, which," concludes Oviedo, " I my-
were loaded with rich and curi- self have been an eyewitness, and
ously wrought plate, of which he enough others can testify." See
had a greater profusion than any Oviedo, (Quincuagenas, MS., bat.
other grandee in the kingdom." 1, quinc. 1, dial. 8.) who has given
In another place he says, "The the genealogy of the Mendozas
duke Ifiigo was a perfect Alexan- and Mendozinos, in all its endless
der for his liberality, in all his ramifications.
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 401
not wanting in the display of royal state and mag- chapter
nificence on all suitable oecasions. The Curate of . —
Los Palacios has expatiated with elaborate minute-
ness on the circumstances of an interview between
Ferdinand and Isabella in the camp before Moclin,
in 1486, where the queen's presence was solicited
for the purpose of devising a plan of future opera-
tions. A few of the particulars may be transcribed,
though at the hazard of appearing trivial to readers,
who take little interest in such details.
On the borders of the Yeguas, the queen was
met by an advanced corps, under the command of
the marquis duke of Cadiz, and, at the distance of
a league and a half from Moclin, by the duke del
Infantado. with the principal nobility and their vas-
sals, splendidly accoutred. On the left of the road
was drawn up in battle array the militia of Seville,
and the queen, making her obeisance to the banner
of that illustrious city, ordered it to pass to her
right. The successive battalions saluted the queen
as she advanced, by lowering their standards, and
the joyous multitude announced with tumultuous
acclamations her approach to the conquered city.
The queen was accompanied by her daughter, Royaico*.
1 * J % D tume.
the infanta Isabella, and a courtly train of damsels,
mounted on mules richly caparisoned. The queen
herself rode a chestnut mule, seated on a saddle-
chair embossed with gold and silver. The hous-
ings were of a crimson color, and the bridle was of
satin, curiously wrought with letters of gold. The
infanta wore a skirt of fine velvet, over others of
brocade ; a scarlet mantilla of the Moorish fashion ;
VOL. I. 51
402 WAR OF GRANADA.
part and a black hat trimmed with gold embroidery.
— — ! — The king rode forward at the head of his nobles to
receive her. He was dressed in a crimson doublet,
with chausscs, or breeches, of yellow satin. Over
his shoulders was thrown a cassock or mantle of
rich brocade, and a sopravest of the same materials
concealed his cuirass. By his side, close girt, he
wore a Moorish scimitar, and beneath his bonnet
his hair was confined by a cap or headdress of the
finest stuff.
Ferdinand was mounted on a noble war-horse
of a bright chestnut color. In the splendid train
of chivalry which attended him, Bernaldez dwells
with much satisfaction on the English lord Scales.
He was followed by a retinue of five pages arrayed
in costly liveries. He was sheathed in complete
mail, over which was thrown a French surcoat of
dark silk brocade. A buckler was attached by
golden clasps to his arm, and on his head he wore
a white French hat with plumes. The caparisons
of his steed were azure silk, lined with violet and
sprinkled over with stars of gold, and swept the
ground, as he managed his fiery courser with an
easy horsemanship that excited general admiration.
The king and queen as they drew near, bowed
thrice with formal reverence to each other. The
queen at the same time raising her hat, remained
in her coif or headdress, with her face uncovered ;
Ferdinand, riding up, kissed her affectionately on the
cheek, and then, according to the precise chroni-
cler, bestowed a similar mark of tenderness on his
daughter Isabella, after giving her his paternal
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 403
the sove-
reigns.
benediction. The royal party were then escorted chapter
to the camp, where suitable accommodations had . —
been provided for the queen and her fair retinue. 33
It may readily be believed that the sovereigns Devout de-
J J o meanor or
did not neglect, in a war like the present, an ap-
peal to the religious principle so deeply seated in
the Spanish character. All their public acts osten-
tatiously proclaimed the pious nature of the work
in which they were engaged. They were attend-
ed in their expeditions by churchmen of the highest
rank, who not only mingled in the councils of the
camp, but, like the bold bishop of Jaen, or the
grand cardinal Mendoza, buckled on harness over
rochet and hood, and led their squadrons to the
field. 34 The queen at Cordova celebrated the
tidings of every new success over the infidel, by
solemn procession and thanksgiving, with her whole
household, as well as the nobility, foreign ambassa-
dors, and municipal functionaries. In like manner,
Ferdinand, on the return from his campaigns, was
received at the gates of the city, and escorted in
33 Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos, stranger to the dangers of a battle.
MS., cap. 80. — The lively author I3y the comparative heights of the
of " A Year in Spain" describes armour, Isabella would seem to be
among other suits of armour still the bigger of the two, as she cer-
to be seen in the museum of the tainly was the better." A Year
armory at Madrid, those worn by in Spain, by a young American,
Ferdinand and his illustrious con- (Boston, 1829,) p. 110.
sort. "In one of the most con- M Cardinal Mendoza, in the cam-
spicuous stations is the suit of paign of 1485, offered the queen to
armour usually worn by Ferdinand raise a body of 3000 horse, and
the Catholic. He seems snugly march at its head to the relief of
seated upon his war-horse, with a Alhama, and at the same time to
pair of red velvet breeches, after supply her with such sums of
the manner of the Moors, with lift- money as might be necessary in
ed lance and closed visor. There the present exigency. Pulgar,
are several suits of Ferdinand and Reyes Catolicos, cap. 50.
of his queen Isabella, who was no
404 WAR OF GRANADA.
part solemn pomp beneath a rich canopy of state to the
cathedral church, where he prostrated himself in
grateful adoration of the Lord of hosts. Intelli-
gence of their triumphant progress in the war was
constantly transmitted to the pope, who returned
his benediction, accompanied by more substantial
marks of favor, in bulls of crusade, and taxes on
ecclesiastical rents. 35
ceremonies The ceremonials observed on the occupation of
on the occu- *
nation of a a new con q Ues t we r e such as to affect the heart
no less than the imagination. " The royal alfe-
rez," says Marineo, " raised the standard of the
Cross, the sign of our salvation, on the summit of
the principal fortress ; and all who beheld it pros-
trated themselves on their knees in silent worship
of the Almighty, while the priests chanted the
glorious anthem, Te Deum laudamus. The ensign
or pennon of St. James, the chivalric patron of
Spain, was then unfolded, and all invoked his
blessed name. Lastly, was displayed the banner
of the sovereigns, emblazoned with the royal arms ;
at which the whole army shouted forth, as if with
one voice, ' Castile, Castile ! ' After these so-
lemnities, a bishop led the w r ay to the principal
mosque, which, after the rites of purification, he
consecrated to the service of the true faith."
The standard of the Cross above referred to,
was of massive silver, and was a present from pope
Sixtus the Fourth to Ferdinand, in whose tent it
35 In 1486, we find Ferdinand of Compostella. Carbajal, Anales,
and Isabella performing a pilgrim- MS., alio 86.
aee to the shrine of St. James
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS. 405
was always carried throughout these campaigns, chapter
An ample supply of bells, vases, missals, plate, and X1 '
other sacred furniture, was also borne along with
the camp, being provided by the queen for the
purified mosques. 36
The most touching part of the incidents usually Release <>r
01 J Christian
occurring at the surrender of a Moorish city, was ca P lives -
the liberation of the Christian captives immured
in its dungeons. On the capture of Ronda, in
1485, more than four hundred of these unfortunate
persons, several of them cavaliers of rank, some of
whom had been taken in the fatal expedition of the
Axarquia, were restored to the light of heaven.
On being brought before Ferdinand, they pros-
trated themselves on the ground, bathing his feet
with tears, while their wan and wasted figures,
their dishevelled locks, their beards reaching down
to their girdles, and their limbs loaded with heavy
manacles, brought tears into the eye of every spec-
tator. They were then commanded to present
themselves before the queen at Cordova, who libe-
rally relieved their necessities, and, after the cele-
bration of public thanksgiving, caused them to be
conveyed to their own homes. The fetters of the
liberated captives were suspended in the churches,
where they continued to be revered by succeeding
generations as the trophies of Christian warfare. 37
Ever since the victory of Lucena, the sovereigns Poiicyimo.
J ° meriting the
had made it a capital point of their policy to ^ oor
tions.
36 L. Marineo, Cosas Memora- 3? Pulgar, Reyes Catolicos, cap.
bles, fol. 173. — Bevnaldez, Reyes 47. — Bernaldez, Reyes Catolicos,
Catolicos, MS., cap. 82, 87. MS., cap. 75.
406 WAR OF GRANADA.
part foment the dissensions of their enemies. The
-— " young king Abdallah, after his humiliating treaty
with Ferdinand, lost whatever consideration he had
previously possessed. Although the sultana Zoraya,
by her personal address, and the lavish distribution
of the royal treasures, contrived to maintain a fac-
tion for her son, the better classes of his country-
men despised him as a renegade, and a vassal of
the Christian king. As their old monarch had be-
come incompetent, from increasing age and blind-
ness, to the duties of his station in these perilous
times, they turned their eyes on his brother Ab-
dallah, surnamed El Zagal, or " The Valiant,"
who had borne so conspicuous a part in the rout
of the Axarquia. The Castilians depict this chief
in the darkest colors of ambition and cruelty ; but
the Moslem writers afford no such intimation, and
his advancement to the throne at that crisis seems
to be in some measure justified by his eminent
talents as a military leader.
On his way to Granada, he encountered and
cut to pieces a body of Calatrava knights from
Alhama, and signalized his entrance into his new
capital by bearing along the bloody trophies of
heads dangling from his saddlebow, after the bar-
barous fashion long practised in these wars. 38 It
38 Conde, Domination de los A garland of Christian heads seems
Arabes, torn. iii. cap. 37. — Car- to have been deemed no unsuitable
donne, Hist. d'Afrique et d'Es- present from a Moslem knight to
pagne, torn. iii. pp. 276, 281, 282. his lady love. Thus one of the
— Abarca, Reyes de Aragon, torn. Zegries triumphantly asks,
ii. fol. 304.
« El enjaeza cl caballo " i ft "? Cristianos habeis muerto,
De las cabezas de lama" O escalado que murallas ?
; O que cube/as laniosas
says one of the old Moorish ballads. Avcis prescntado a damas ?"
MILITARY POLICY OF THE SOVEREIGNS.
40'
was observed that the old king Abul Hacen did not chapter
long survive his brother's accession. 3y The young — — —
king Abdallah sought the protection of the Castilian
sovereigns in Seville, who, tfue to their policy, sent
him back into his own dominions with the means
of making headway against his rival. The ulfakies
and other considerate persons of Granada, scan-
dalized at these fatal feuds, effected a reconcilia-
tion, on the basis of a division of the kingdom
between the parties. But wounds so deep could
not be permanently healed. The site of the Moor-
ish capital was most propitious to the purposes of
faction. It covered two swelling eminences, divided
from each other by the deep waters of the Darro.
The two factions possessed themselves respective-
ly of these opposite quarters. Abdallah was not
ashamed to strengthen himself by the aid of Chris-
tian mercenaries ; and a dreadful conflict was car-
ried on for fifty days and nights, within the city,
which swam with the blood, that should have been
shed only in its defence. 40
This sort of trophy wns also borne
by the Christian cavaliers. Exam-
ples of this liny be found even as
late as the siege of Granada. See,
among others, the ballad, begin-
ning
" A vista tie los