.gif)
Miquelet (militia)
Encyclopedia
Kingdom of Valencia
The Kingdom of Valencia , located in the eastern shore of the Iberian Peninsula, was one of the component realms of the Crown of Aragon. When the Crown of Aragon merged by dynastic union with the Crown of Castile to form the Kingdom of Spain, the Kingdom of Valencia became a component realm of the...
militia. The name is a diminutive of Michael
Michael
Michael is a given name that comes from the , derived from the Hebrew question מי כמו אלוהים? meaning "Who is like God?" In English, it is sometimes shortened to Mike, Mikey, or, especially in Ireland, Mick...
; it is claimed it comes from Miquel or Miquelot de Prats, a Catalan mercenary
Mercenary
A mercenary, is a person who takes part in an armed conflict based on the promise of material compensation rather than having a direct interest in, or a legal obligation to, the conflict itself. A non-conscript professional member of a regular army is not considered to be a mercenary although he...
captain in the service of Cesare Borgia
Cesare Borgia
Cesare Borgia , Duke of Valentinois, was an Italian condottiero, nobleman, politician, and cardinal. He was the son of Pope Alexander VI and his long-term mistress Vannozza dei Cattanei. He was the brother of Lucrezia Borgia; Giovanni Borgia , Duke of Gandia; and Gioffre Borgia , Prince of Squillace...
. The term was used for many unconnected groups of Catalans who took up arms in many wars, as well as in banditry; the term was generic rather than referring to a specific militia. The two most notable usages were during the Catalan secessionist revolt of 1640
Catalan Revolt
The Catalan Revolt affected a large part of the Catalan Principality of Catalonia between the years of 1640 and 1659. It had an enduring effect in the Treaty of the Pyrenees , which ceded the county of Roussillon and the northern half of the county of Cerdanya to France , thereby splitting the...
against the Spanish government and the Peninsular War
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...
against Napoleonic France. Miquelet was a sobriquet used by Catalan soldiers on both sides of these and other wars; the French raised Catalan troops in 1689 in the Revolt of the Barretines as well as in 1808 in the Peninsular War. Those cases were the exceptions rather than the rule, though.
The occasional banditry aspect was reflected in the Dictionnaire de l'Académie française, 5th Edition, 1798: Miquelet. sm Il se dit d'une sorte de bandits qui vivent dans les Pyrénées. Les Miquelets sont fort à craindre pour les voyageurs. The Miquelets were maintained at the parish level, not by the central or the provincial governments, and as they had to turn out for duty on sound of the village alarm-bell (someten) they are frequently called somatenes.
In specific wars
In the War of the Spanish SuccessionWar of the Spanish Succession
The War of the Spanish Succession was fought among several European powers, including a divided Spain, over the possible unification of the Kingdoms of Spain and France under one Bourbon monarch. As France and Spain were among the most powerful states of Europe, such a unification would have...
, the Miquelets continued the struggle against the French claimant Philip, Duke of Anjou
Philip V of Spain
Philip V was King of Spain from 15 November 1700 to 15 January 1724, when he abdicated in favor of his son Louis, and from 6 September 1724, when he assumed the throne again upon his son's death, to his death.Before his reign, Philip occupied an exalted place in the royal family of France as a...
(Philip V) until long after the peace.
During the Peninsular War
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...
they were exceedingly successful in harassing the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
occupiers in the mountains of Catalonia. Sometimes they even attempted operations in large bodies, as in the operations around Girona
Siege of Gerona (1809)
The Siege of Gerona of May 6, 1809, sometimes called the Third Siege of Gerona or Girona , involved the French Grande Armée's seven-month struggle to conquer the Spanish garrison at Girona...
in 1808 and 1809.
Miquelets in the Americas
Regiments of Miquelets were also integrated in the Spanish armySpanish Army
The Spanish Army is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest active armies - dating back to the 15th century.-Introduction:...
and fought in other places of the Spanish Empire
Spanish Empire
The Spanish Empire comprised territories and colonies administered directly by Spain in Europe, in America, Africa, Asia and Oceania. It originated during the Age of Exploration and was therefore one of the first global empires. At the time of Habsburgs, Spain reached the peak of its world power....
, outside Spain. For example, the First Free Company of Volunteers of Catalonia, which was composed of Catalan Miquelets, was destined in New Spain
New Spain
New Spain, formally called the Viceroyalty of New Spain , was a viceroyalty of the Spanish colonial empire, comprising primarily territories in what was known then as 'América Septentrional' or North America. Its capital was Mexico City, formerly Tenochtitlan, capital of the Aztec Empire...
. From there, the Company played a crucial role in the Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
colonization of the Pacific Northwest
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...
, building Fort San Miguel
Fort San Miguel
For Angola fort, see Fortaleza de São MiguelFort San Miguel was a Spanish fortification at Friendly Cove in Nootka Sound , Vancouver Island....
, the first formal Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an settlement in British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, from 1790 to 1792. Its captain, Pere d'Alberní i Teixidor
Pere d'Alberní i Teixidor
Don Pedro de Alberni, sometimes known as Pere d'Alberní i Teixidor in Catalan was a Spanish soldier who served the Spanish Crown for almost all his life. He spent most of his military career in the Viceroyalty of New Spain...
, reached the higher military decorations and even was appointed Interim Governor of California in 1800.
Other uses
The police forces of the autonomousFuero
Fuero , Furs , Foro and Foru is a Spanish legal term and concept.The word comes from Latin forum, an open space used as market, tribunal and meeting place...
governments of Biscay
Biscay
Biscay is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country, heir of the ancient Lord of Biscay. Its capital city is Bilbao...
(1784-1877) and Gipuzkoa (1796-1936) were known as Miqueletes.
See also
- History of CataloniaHistory of CataloniaThe territory that now constitutes the autonomous community of Catalonia in Spain, and the adjoining Catalan region of France, was first settled during the Middle Palaeolithic...
- Free Company of Volunteers of CataloniaFree Company of Volunteers of CataloniaThe Free Company of Volunteers of Catalonia was a military company of the Spanish Army serving in the Spanish colonial empire.-Origins:...