Confraternity of Belchite
Encyclopedia
The Confraternity of Belchite was an "experimental" community of knights founded in 1122 by Alfonso the Battler
, king of Aragon
and Navarre
, and lasting until shortly after 1136. Members could enlist permanently or for a set time, vowing "never to live at peace with the pagans but to devote all their days to molesting and fighting them". When the Emperor Alfonso VII confirmed the charter of the confraternity, he specified that it existed "for the defence of Christians and the oppression of Saracens". A Christian organisation dedicated to a holy war against Muslims
(reconquista), its impetus and development coincide with that of the international military orders and it introduced the concept of an indulgence
proportional to length of service.
, about twenty-two miles southeast of his main target, the city of Zaragoza
, which surrendered on 18 December 1118. The following years were spent consolidating these gains, and it was not until 1122 that Alfonso established a confraternity of knights in Belchite. He may have "envisioned international crusading movement based on military orders", as Peter Schickl suggested and Alfonso's will may attest. The foundation charter of the confraternity does not survive, but that of the similar Order of Monreal, founded by Alfonso in 1128, does. We know that the foundation charter of Belchite was witnessed by the most powerful bishops from throughout Spain: Bernard de Sedirac, Oleguer Bonestruga, Diego Gelmírez
and Guy de Lescar.
José Lacarra (1971) speculated that the confraternity was merged into the Templar organisation, but there is no evidence of its continuance beyond 1136. More probably it had collapsed by the time of Alfonso the Battler's will (1134), leaving its confirmation charter of 1136 as a political ploy in the haggling over the succession in Aragon. In 1143 a settlement was reached in which Raymond Berengar IV of Barcelona gave the castle at Belchite to the Templars "according as [they could] best come to terms" with its lord, Lope Sanz (Sánchez), who was the princeps and rector of the confraternity in 1136.
On 4 October 1136 a synod convened by Alfonso VII sat in Burgos
and, at his request, granted an indulgence for those lent support to Belchite. Present were three archbishops—Raymond de Sauvetât
, Diego Gelmírez
, Paio Mendes
—twenty bishops, nine abbots and the Papal legate
Guido Pisano
. The support that qualified could be permanent or temporary membership, or a donation, and the indulgence applied everybody both lay and religious. The equating of reconquista with crusade was based on the idea of opening a route to Jerusalem through Spain and North Africa. Likewise the Confraternity of Belchite is explicitly compared to the Hospitallers
and the Templars
, and the indulgence to that granted for the 1113–15 Balearic Islands expedition
and the 1118–20 conquest of Zaragoza
:
Much of the language of the indulgence is borrowed from the speech made by Diego Gelmírez at the Council of Compostela (1125), the only other instance of such an indulgence being issued by a Spanish ecclesiastic and not by a pope in the twelfth century. This strongly suggests that Diego was influential in writing up the indulgence of 1136.
was the first to propose a connexion between the military orders and the Islamic ribāṭ
:
In his work on Spanish historiography (1954), Américo Castro
also "proposes that the medieval Christian military orders of fighting religious men were modeled on the Islamic ribāṭ." His proposal was rejected for lack of positive evidence by Joseph O'Callaghan (1959), before being taken up by Thomas Glick and Oriol Pi-Sunyer as a textbook example medieval acculturation
through stimulus- or idea-diffusion:
Elena Lourie argues that the notion of temporary service, so alien to Christian idea of vocation, yet central to the nucleus of the rule of Belchite of 1122 (preserved in the re-issue of 1136, with changes) could only have come from the Islamic ribāṭ. Already the confirmation charter of 1136 shows a shift in emphasis towards the permanent members, and the difference in rank between permanent and temporary members of the Templars shows, Lourie argues, that the one is further from any Islamic source and closer to Christian monastic tradition. Belchite is a "half-way house" between municipal fraternities, the monastic orders and the ribāṭ. She goes on to quote the objection of O'Callaghan why "[i]f the ribāṭ with its complement of warrior-ascetics existed in Spain for centuries ... the first Spanish military order [the Order of Calatrava
] was not founded before 1158?" According to Jesuit historian Robert Ignatius Burns, borrowing from a position of strength, which the Christians of Iberia attained only by the mid-eleventh century, is preferred to borrowing from weakness.
Alfonso the Battler
Alfonso I , called the Battler or the Warrior , was the king of Aragon and Navarre from 1104 until his death in 1134. He was the second son of King Sancho Ramírez and successor of his brother Peter I...
, king of Aragon
Kingdom of Aragon
The Kingdom of Aragon was a medieval and early modern kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula, corresponding to the modern-day autonomous community of Aragon, in Spain...
and Navarre
Kingdom of Navarre
The Kingdom of Navarre , originally the Kingdom of Pamplona, was a European kingdom which occupied lands on either side of the Pyrenees alongside the Atlantic Ocean....
, and lasting until shortly after 1136. Members could enlist permanently or for a set time, vowing "never to live at peace with the pagans but to devote all their days to molesting and fighting them". When the Emperor Alfonso VII confirmed the charter of the confraternity, he specified that it existed "for the defence of Christians and the oppression of Saracens". A Christian organisation dedicated to a holy war against Muslims
Reconquista
The Reconquista was a period of almost 800 years in the Middle Ages during which several Christian kingdoms succeeded in retaking the Muslim-controlled areas of the Iberian Peninsula broadly known as Al-Andalus...
(reconquista), its impetus and development coincide with that of the international military orders and it introduced the concept of an indulgence
Indulgence
In Catholic theology, an indulgence is the full or partial remission of temporal punishment due for sins which have already been forgiven. The indulgence is granted by the Catholic Church after the sinner has confessed and received absolution...
proportional to length of service.
History
In 1117 Alfonso the Battler conquered the town of BelchiteBelchite
Belchite is a village in the province of Zaragoza, Spain, about 40 km southeast of Zaragoza. It is the capital of Campo de Belchite comarca and is located in a plain surrounded by low hills, the highest of which is Lobo...
, about twenty-two miles southeast of his main target, the city of Zaragoza
Zaragoza
Zaragoza , also called Saragossa in English, is the capital city of the Zaragoza Province and of the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain...
, which surrendered on 18 December 1118. The following years were spent consolidating these gains, and it was not until 1122 that Alfonso established a confraternity of knights in Belchite. He may have "envisioned international crusading movement based on military orders", as Peter Schickl suggested and Alfonso's will may attest. The foundation charter of the confraternity does not survive, but that of the similar Order of Monreal, founded by Alfonso in 1128, does. We know that the foundation charter of Belchite was witnessed by the most powerful bishops from throughout Spain: Bernard de Sedirac, Oleguer Bonestruga, Diego Gelmírez
Diego Gelmírez
Diego Gelmírez was the second bishop and first archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, Spain. He is a prominent figure in the history of Galicia and an important historiographer of the Spain of his day...
and Guy de Lescar.
José Lacarra (1971) speculated that the confraternity was merged into the Templar organisation, but there is no evidence of its continuance beyond 1136. More probably it had collapsed by the time of Alfonso the Battler's will (1134), leaving its confirmation charter of 1136 as a political ploy in the haggling over the succession in Aragon. In 1143 a settlement was reached in which Raymond Berengar IV of Barcelona gave the castle at Belchite to the Templars "according as [they could] best come to terms" with its lord, Lope Sanz (Sánchez), who was the princeps and rector of the confraternity in 1136.
Organisation
The confraternity was to have its headquarters either at Belchite or any other suitable fortress in the frontier beyond Zaragoza. It was granted all booty it could seize from the Muslims and exempted from the quinta, the fifth of the booty traditionally owed to the sovereign. It was permitted to colonise any depopulated lands, but all its property was held per deum (of God) and inde deo serviant (for serving God). It elected its own leader, titled princeps or rector, and it employed two merchants exempted from all customs and tolls. Furthermore, the members were permitted to judge cases brought by outsiders against any member.On 4 October 1136 a synod convened by Alfonso VII sat in Burgos
Burgos
Burgos is a city of northern Spain, historic capital of Castile. It is situated at the edge of the central plateau, with about 178,966 inhabitants in the city proper and another 20,000 in its suburbs. It is the capital of the province of Burgos, in the autonomous community of Castile and León...
and, at his request, granted an indulgence for those lent support to Belchite. Present were three archbishops—Raymond de Sauvetât
Raymond de Sauvetât
Francis Raymond de Sauvetât, or Raymond of Toledo, was the Archbishop of Toledo from 1125 to 1152. He was a French Benedictine monk, born in Gascony....
, Diego Gelmírez
Diego Gelmírez
Diego Gelmírez was the second bishop and first archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, Spain. He is a prominent figure in the history of Galicia and an important historiographer of the Spain of his day...
, Paio Mendes
Paio Mendes
Paio Mendes was the Archbishop of Braga from 1118 until his death. He was an adherent of Afonso Henriques, Count of Portugal.In 1136 he attended the council of Burgos presided over by the legate Guido Pisano...
—twenty bishops, nine abbots and the Papal legate
Papal legate
A papal legate – from the Latin, authentic Roman title Legatus – is a personal representative of the pope to foreign nations, or to some part of the Catholic Church. He is empowered on matters of Catholic Faith and for the settlement of ecclesiastical matters....
Guido Pisano
Guido Pisano
Guido Pisano was a prelate and diplomat from Pisa. He probably belonged to the family of the counts of Caprona, and was promoted to the College of Cardinals and appointed to the deaconry of Santi Cosma e Damiano by Pope Innocent II on 4 March 1132. Between 10 and 11 December 1146 he was created...
. The support that qualified could be permanent or temporary membership, or a donation, and the indulgence applied everybody both lay and religious. The equating of reconquista with crusade was based on the idea of opening a route to Jerusalem through Spain and North Africa. Likewise the Confraternity of Belchite is explicitly compared to the Hospitallers
Knights Hospitaller
The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta , also known as the Sovereign Military Order of Malta , Order of Malta or Knights of Malta, is a Roman Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of military, chivalrous, noble nature. It is the world's...
and the Templars
Knights Templar
The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon , commonly known as the Knights Templar, the Order of the Temple or simply as Templars, were among the most famous of the Western Christian military orders...
, and the indulgence to that granted for the 1113–15 Balearic Islands expedition
1113–1115 Balearic Islands expedition
In 1114, an expedition to the Balearic Islands, then a Muslim taifa, was launched in the form of a Crusade. Founded on a treaty of 1113 between the Republic of Pisa and Ramon Berenguer III, Count of Barcelona, the expedition had the support of Pope Paschal II and the participation of many lords of...
and the 1118–20 conquest of Zaragoza
Battle of Cutanda
The Battle of Cutanda or Batalla de Cutanda was a battle in June of the year 1120 between the forces of Alfonso I the Battler and an army led by Ibrahim ibn Yusuf occurring in a place called Cutanda, near Calamocha , in which the Almoravid army was defeated by the combined forces, mainly of Aragon...
:
Let he who wishes to serve God [in Belchite] for a year gain the same remission as if he went to Jerusalem. . . If any knight or anyone else, living or dead, should leave his horse or arms for the service of God [in Belchite], let him have the same indulgence as he who has bequeathed them to the Hospital of Jerusalem or the Temple. . . Therefore, dearest brothers, make haste toward the great joy of this indulgence with an eager spirit[.] [B]y the same indulgence the tomb of the Lord [sepulcrum Domini] was delivered from captivity, as were Mallorca and Zaragoza and other places, and likewise, by the favour of God, the road to Jerusalem [iter Hierosolymitanum] from this region [pars] will be opened [aperietur] and the Church of God, which is held there as a slave in captivity, will be liberated.
Much of the language of the indulgence is borrowed from the speech made by Diego Gelmírez at the Council of Compostela (1125), the only other instance of such an indulgence being issued by a Spanish ecclesiastic and not by a pope in the twelfth century. This strongly suggests that Diego was influential in writing up the indulgence of 1136.
Influence of the ribāṭ
The Spanish orientalist José Antonio CondeJosé Antonio Conde
José Antonio Conde y García was a Spanish Orientalist and historian. His Anacreon obtained him a post in the royal library in 1795. He also published several paraphrases of Greek classics. These were followed in 1799 by an edition of the Arabic text of Muhammad al-Idrisi's Description of Spain,...
was the first to propose a connexion between the military orders and the Islamic ribāṭ
Ribat
A ribat is an Arabic term for a small fortification as built along a frontier during the first years of the Muslim conquest of North Africa to house military volunteers, called the murabitun...
:
It seems highly probable that from these rábitos developed, both in Spain and among the Christians in the East, the idea of the military orders, so distinguished for their valour and the outstanding services which they rendered to Christianity. Both institutions were very similar.
In his work on Spanish historiography (1954), Américo Castro
Americo Castro
Américo Castro y Quesada was a Spanish cultural historian, philologist, and literary critic who challenged some of the prevailing notions of Spanish identity, raising heated controversy with his conclusions that Spaniards didn't become the distinct group they are today until after the Islamic...
also "proposes that the medieval Christian military orders of fighting religious men were modeled on the Islamic ribāṭ." His proposal was rejected for lack of positive evidence by Joseph O'Callaghan (1959), before being taken up by Thomas Glick and Oriol Pi-Sunyer as a textbook example medieval acculturation
Acculturation
Acculturation explains the process of cultural and psychological change that results following meeting between cultures. The effects of acculturation can be seen at multiple levels in both interacting cultures. At the group level, acculturation often results in changes to culture, customs, and...
through stimulus- or idea-diffusion:
Many an alien institution which is basically attractive may be unacceptable in its original form. But it may act as a stimulus to a reinvention within the confines of the recipient culture of a similar institution consonant with the values of the recipient. The ribāṭ was attractive to the Christians and fulfilled a social and military need but was unacceptable owing to Spanish religious values. For the Christians it would have been thoroughly repugnant to take on the trappings of that very religion whose extermination was life's highest goal. Nevertheless we may posit that the Islamic concept acted as a stimulus towards the reinvention of the ribāṭ in completely Christian guise. In such a case, moreover, the anthropologist would expect precisely not to find that document institutional continuity upon which the medievalists so depend.
Elena Lourie argues that the notion of temporary service, so alien to Christian idea of vocation, yet central to the nucleus of the rule of Belchite of 1122 (preserved in the re-issue of 1136, with changes) could only have come from the Islamic ribāṭ. Already the confirmation charter of 1136 shows a shift in emphasis towards the permanent members, and the difference in rank between permanent and temporary members of the Templars shows, Lourie argues, that the one is further from any Islamic source and closer to Christian monastic tradition. Belchite is a "half-way house" between municipal fraternities, the monastic orders and the ribāṭ. She goes on to quote the objection of O'Callaghan why "[i]f the ribāṭ with its complement of warrior-ascetics existed in Spain for centuries ... the first Spanish military order [the Order of Calatrava
Order of Calatrava
The Order of Calatrava was the first military order founded in Castile, but the second to receive papal approval. The papal bull confirming the Order of Calatrava as a Militia was given by Pope Alexander III on September 26, 1164.-Origins and Foundation:...