THE MYTH OF MINORITY : CULTURAL CHANGE IN VALENCIA IN THE THIRTEENTH CENTURY AT THE TIME OF THE CONQUESTS OF JAMES I OF ARAGON Ben Eckersley A Thesis Submitted for the Degree of MPhil at the University of St. Andrews 2007 Full metadata for this item is available in Research@StAndrews:FullText at: http://research-repository.st-andrews.ac.uk/ Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/10023/374 This item is protected by original copyright The myth of minority: cultural change in Valencia in the thirteenth century at the time of the conquests of James I of Aragon. Ben Eckersley “When they saw that we held Xativa and Biar, the rest of the kingdom from Xuquer to the lands of Murcia surrendered to us, according to the agreement that we had made allowing them to remain in the kingdom. And so we had it all.” James I, Llibre dels Fets, chapter 360 “The myth of minority: cultural change in Valencia in the thirteenth century at the time of the conquests of James I of Aragon.” An MPhil Thesis by Ben Eckersley Supervisor: Dr Esther Pascua, Department of Medieval History Completion Date: September 2006 I, Benjamin Eckersley, hereby certify that this thesis, which is 39, 940 words in length, has been written by me, that it is the record of work carried out by me and that it has not been submitted in any previous application for a higher degree. The amendments appended to this thesis were officially requested as additions by the examiners. date………………………………. signature of candidate……………………………… I was admitted as a research student in September 2005 and as a candidate for the degree of MPhil in September 2005; the higher study for which this is a record was carried out in the University of St Andrews between 2005 and 2006. date………………………………. signature of candidate……………………………… I hereby certify that the candidate has fulfilled the conditions of the Resolution and Regulations appropriate for the degree of MPhil in the University of St Andrews and that the candidate is qualified to submit this thesis in application for that degree. date………………………………. signature of supervisor……...……………………… In submitting this thesis to the University of St Andrews, I understand that I am giving permission for it to be made available for use in accordance with the regulations of the University Library for the time being in force, subject to any copyright vested in the work not being affected thereby. I also understand that the title and abstract will be published, and that a copy of the work may be made and supplied to any bona fide library or research worker, that my thesis will be electronically accessible for personal or research use, and that the library has the right to migrate my thesis into new electronic forms as required to ensure continued access to the thesis. I have obtained any third-party copyright permissions that may be required in order to allow such access and migration. date………………………………. signature of candidate……………………………… 2 Contents Declaration 2 Introduction 4 Chapter One – James I of Aragon and the Llibre dels Fets 6 Chapter Two – Christian Conquest: Tactics and Philosophies 33 Chapter Three – Shaping the Conquered Lands and the Question of Convivencia 62 Chapter Four – Exploring Minorities under Christian Rule 93 Conclusion 125 Appendices 131 Bibliography 134 Thesis Amendments - The Spanish Historiography of Mudejars 140 in the kingdom of Aragon during the Middle Ages – Minority and Reconquest Appended Bibliography 152 3 Introduction The history of the Iberian Peninsula is intricate and complex. Like most regions of Western Europe in the Middle Ages, it suffered invasion, occupation, political change and an almost constant re–alignment of social alliances. Yet the thirteenth century saw one of the most massive shifts in the balance of power recorded in western history. In the space of fifty years, Islamic rule within the peninsula was ended for good, with the last vestiges of Muslim territory erased from the southern peninsula by the fifteenth century. Christian ascendancy heralded the arrival of a mixed policy of tolerance, as questions began to be asked about the nature of living together with other cultures and religions and whether this new rule – this new Christian rule – needed to tolerate the existence of others in its midst. The most dramatic shift in policy occurred in the middle of the thirteenth century, as the campaigns of the two great northern kingdoms of Leon–Castile and Aragon– Catalonia moved southwards. The most dramatic outcome – due to the size of the Muslim population – was the relatively swift conquest of, in the case of Ferdinand III, the main towns of Andalucia and, in the case of James I, king of Aragon, the region of Valencia by 1245. Yet it is important when examining the campaigns of these great warrior kings not to be overwhelmed by the idea of the religious ethos for the conquest. Some historians have chosen to interpret the thirteenth–century conquests as the Christian reaction for the centuries of subjugation under Muslim rule. The reasoning behind the conquests was far more complex than that of a mere idealistic crusade. In the case of thirteenth–century Christian expansion, desire for 4 territory, sovereignty, inheritance, taxation and inter-territorial rivalry had just as much of a part to play as a desire to overcome the Muslim ‘infidel.’ It is the conquest of Valencia which will form the major focal point of this paper, examining the historical precedent for conquest, the nature of Muslim rule, the ulterior motives of the Christians, the position of Muslims and Jews in existing Christian society (as well as under the conquerors) and the role of James I in both consolidating and changing that culture. The programme of this thesis is divided into two main parts. In the first part, the paper will explore the impact of historical events up to the birth of James; how these events both shaped him as a king and as a warrior; and how domestic concerns may have provided a greater incentive than religious missionaries spreading Crusading fever amongst Western kingdoms. It will review the impact of those close to the king; on the nature of his conquest; on his ideology; and how his attitude towards his conquered subjects was shaped. External political and geographical pressures impacted both upon the king’s campaigning and, ultimately, how complete the conquest was. In the second part, the thesis will focus on the communities themselves and the changes that occurred as the conquests progressed further and further southwards. It will contrast the circumstances and fortunes of those conquered with the lives of minority cultures who were already subjects in the Christian realms. It will examine the idea of hierarchy within minority culture and the social mores that had an even more direct impact upon community life than the military campaigning. Most important of all, it will question the idea of convivencia and the concept of tolerance and ‘living together.’ 5 Chapter One – James I of Aragon and the Llibre dels Fets. Spain in the thirteenth century was a most unusual territory.1 Christians shared a bond with the faith of Islam because of its imposing presence in the Iberian world since the ninth century. It was a bond formed by a shared cultural experience; “by the daily presence among them of Muslims and of Jews trained in Arabic culture; by the physical setting in which they lived… which, for centuries, the conquerors hardly attempted to change.”2 Al–Andalus, by contrast, had been “the monolithic empire of the Almohad dynasty and religious orientation, centred on Marrakesh at the Sahara’s edge”3 and was an empire that was fast disintegrating at the dawn of the thirteenth century conquests. The Iberian Peninsula was home to three disparate religions, living together in relative harmony, mixing on an almost daily basis.4 Such a situation, even if apparently deceptive, rarely thrived elsewhere. For the people of Spain, it was a state of reluctantly accepted co-existence and cultural exchange which existed for social, economic and military reasons. Particularly in Valencia, Christian, Muslim and Jew lived side by side, interacting, socialising and conducting business in a way not seen before or since. Christian conquerors made pacts with Islamic defenders, allowing them to remain in their lands. 1 The peninsula was “a patchwork of disparate countries, cultures and languages crowded into a geography of contrasts.” Burns, R. I. ‘Castle of Intellect, Castle of Force: The Worlds of Alfonso the Learned and James the Conqueror’ in R. I. Burns (ed.) The Worlds of Alfonso the Learned and James the Conqueror – Intellect and Force in the Middle Ages (Princeton 1985) p 3 2 Hillgarth, J. N. The Spanish Kingdoms 1250–1516 Volume I: ‘1250–1410 Precarious Balance’ (Oxford 1976) p 161 3 Burns (1985) p 3 4 This phenomenon, often referred to as convivencia, is discussed further in chapter 3. 6 In this examination of cultural change in the thirteenth century, the three key players were James I of Aragon (a king greatly influenced by his background and those who cared for him5 and a representative of Christian sentiment and idealism), along with the Jews and Muslims themselves, both as individual communities and also as a body politic. Whilst the Jews merely settled down to life under yet another change of regime, the conquered Muslims continued to rebel, even when all seemed lost, once the final conquests of the 1240s had been completed. James’ son, Peter, was to finally enjoy, in the closing years of the thirteenth century, the limited peace which his own father’s endeavours had helped to secure.6 Muslims, both in the conquered lands to the south and in James’ homelands of Aragon and Catalonia, were considered a ‘royal treasure,’ a phrase arising from Boswell’s study of their status in the fourteenth century.7 In the regions already under Christian control, Muslims were ‘like frequent raisins in a pudding.’8 In the conquered territories, they were experts on irrigation, land holdings and the existing Muslim communities’ legal customs, as well as being key players in trade and commerce.