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Crisis and Regeneration: the Conversos of Majorca, 1391-1416

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Crisis and Regeneration: the Conversos of Majorca, 1391-1416 Crisis and Regeneration: The Conversos of Majorca, 1391-1416 by Natalie Oeltjen A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Department of the Centre for Medieval Studies University of Toronto © Copyright by Natalie Oeltjen 2012 Dissertation Abstract Natalie Oeltjen Crisis and Regeneration: The Conversos of Majorca, 1391-1416 Doctor of Philosophy Centre for Medieval Studies, University of Toronto, 2012 In the summer of 1391 anti-Jewish violence spread across the kingdom of Castile and the Crown of Aragon. Unprecedented numbers of Jews were murdered and even more were forcibly converted. These converts, known as conversos, formed a new, self-perpetuating social group, which, together with the rest of Spanish society, remained deeply conscious of its distinct ethnicity and culture. A century later, testimonies to the Spanish Inquisition depict a converso community with a continued, if varied, affiliation to Judaism. This dissertation investigates the economic, social and political factors that promoted Jewish identification among the first two generations of conversos in Majorca following their baptism in 1391. It employs previously unexamined and unpublished archival sources to argue that corporate fiscal obligations had a major impact in shaping the converso community in Majorca, just as they shaped Jewish social and communal life prior to 1391. Conversos organized collectively in order to meet royal fiscal demands, settle their corporate debt and fund social welfare following the disruptions of1391, adopting administrative models of the former aljama. The monarchy continued to relate to the conversos as a distinct corporate entity in the same ways it had dealt with them as Jews. Royal efforts to prevent converso emigration to the Maghreb, where many fled to renege on Catholicism, carried overtones of the same proto-mercantilist policies that motivated its failed attempts to revivify the island’s Jewish aljama. Publicized restrictions against conversos, many of whom continued to cultivate prior commercial and family ii relationships with Maghrebi Jews, contributed to popular assumptions that Majorcan conversos at sea were Judaizers, spurring targeted anti-converso and anti-Jewish piracy. Conversos thus remained entrenched in the same socioeconomic structures, and employed the same licit and illicit strategies to cope with royal exploitation, as when they were Jews. This perpetuated a group identity that was unmistakeably anchored in their Jewish past, and which could promote other aspects of Jewish affiliation. In 1404 the conversos established a formal confraternity which replicated the social welfare programs and administrative techniques of the former aljama within the framework of a Catholic pious society, representing one of the first necessary adaptations to Christian life. iii Acknowledgements I must first thank all my professors, friends and colleagues at the Liberal Arts College at Concordia University, Montreal, for inspiring me to love all the humanities, for fostering my fascination with people in the past and their ideas, and for cultivating my creativity as I wrote about them. I owe my love of the Middle Ages and interest in Spanish conversos to Virgina Nixon, who taught me so much more than Art History and how to write a good paper. I am particularly grateful for the many hours she spent mentoring me during two independent studies on images of the Madonna in medieval Spain. I came to the Centre for Medieval Studies at the University of Toronto to study with Mark Meyerson, whose work, historical approaches and conscientiousness I have always deeply admired and sought to emulate. I cannot thank him enough for his devotion and patience over the many years it has taken me to complete my doctorate. My path has been atypical, and I was compelled to write most of my dissertation part time as a “lapsed” student. All the while, Professor Meyerson was available to help and mentor me even though he was under no obligation to do so. For this I am grateful beyond expression, since without his willingness to stick by me I would not have finished. In my first year at the CMS I had the honour of taking courses with Professor Jocelyn Hillgarth. I had already decided to study Spanish Jews and conversos, but it was he who suggested that I focus on the community in Majorca, and I cannot thank him enough for this. I will always remember the delicious vegetarian paella his lovely wife, Nina, cooked for me in his historic Majorcan home when I was conducting archival research. Professor Hillgarth introduced me to a number of people whose help was indispensable in Majorca, among them Perico de Montaner of the Municipal Archive, and Bernat Rubí of the Cathedral Archive. I am also iv grateful for the professional and personal support of Jacqueline Tobiass and other members of the small Jewish community there, including Ferran Aguiló and especially my friends Jordi Gendra and Manel Frau, who are now leaders of a Reconstructionist community in the USA. I was especially blessed to have known Tomás Vibot, a historian who, in addition to being a companion in the archive and local guide, gave me the greatest gift which only a local excurionista and montañero could: he showed me the raw beauty of the island, with which I fell deeply in love and still yearn for to this day. In Barcelona, Xevi Prat became a close friend from the moment he picked me up at the airport. An intellectual and an architect, he brought me much laughter after the archives, and showed me the humble splendour of Catalonia on the weekends; without him I would not have known which way to turn. Back at University of Toronto’s History department, I had the good fortune of working as a teaching assistant for Peter Blanchard and Ken Mills, from whom I learned much about teaching and received much encouragement in my thesis writing. Ken Mills also took the time to read through my first chapters and offered his wonderfully distinct perspective before he formally joined my defense committee in my final year. My teaching was deeply influenced by watching Ken strive to liberate the “voice” of his students (including me), often stifled by what they felt ought to be said. Another excellent teacher to whom I owe much gratitude, outside of the University of the University of Toronto, is Kenneth Stow, who edited and published my first article in the journal Jewish History, and since that time has been a constant guide, a deeply caring and encouraging mentor. I am grateful, as well, for the positive encouragement and support of Teofilo Ruiz, my external examiner. Outside of the academe, I am deeply indebted to the support of my “day job” bosses, particularly Chris Payne and Kevin Dalton at CIBC World Markets, and Wendy Dobson and Ig v Horstmann at the Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto, who were all very accommodating in order to allow me to pursue an academic career. At CIBC, Chris and Kevin, two successful executives who thought “outside the box,” were especially unorthodox in allowing me to work only half days at what should have been a full-time job. At the Rotman Institute for International Business, I am ever grateful to Wendy and Ig for the flexibility in my work hours, and crucially, for giving me a space to write. Their personal interest in my completing my Ph.D. was most heartening, as was Ig’s joyful curiosity about things medieval. My other colleagues at Rotman, during the final two years of writing and revising my dissertation, were incredibly supportive of my academic pursuits too, offering helpful advice on many fronts, comfort, and a much needed ear during office hours: Frank Mathewson, Jim Pesando, Chris Leowoski, Steve Murphy, Peter Dungan, Dan Derkach, Grace Raposo and Trevor Tombe. Special thanks go to Audrey Wi and Shirley Vanderpuye for their spiritual depth and insight. I consider myself extremely lucky to have had such accomplished and encouraging superiors and colleagues. Words cannot express the invaluable support of my closest friends and family. Felicia Zeidman, my soul sister, has been there for me from the very beginning, without questions, all times of day or night. Thanks to my dear friends Alyssa Quint and Mike Baird for their endless support, advice and patience in editing my work; I have benefited much from their unwavering stability and ability to lovingly bring me back to my feet. It was Alyssa who unwittingly sparked my interest in Jewish history and religion through our friendship that began at the Liberal Arts College in Montreal, and by inviting me to Shabbat dinners at her home where I tasted her grandmother’s unforgettable—and my first—potato kugel. Sophie Afriat sat by me, literally, as we wrote together many late nights in the library, and I will always think fondly of our vi whispered conversations over the desk; her companionship provided motivation, and her compassionate insightfulness kept me sane. I am deeply appreciative of Adam Cohen’s generous and heartfelt commitment to pulling me through to the end, taking precious time to read and comment on lengthy drafts. Linda Safran provided much guidance, graciously responding to all kinds of academic queries in the blink of an eye. For their proofreading and friendship, I also thank Phil Goodman, Jonathan Gribetz and Jennifer Harris; as well as Alexandra Guerson, with whom I enjoyed numerous thought-provoking discussions on our shared topic. I am profoundly grateful to Greti Dinkova-Bruun for sharing with me her very special life wisdom, and for teaching me Latin, without which I would not have made it into the Ph.D. program nor been able to read my archival documents. Memorable friends and study mates from my early years at the Centre for Medieval Studies include Gabriella Corona, Jesse Brink, and David LeRoy.
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