Lope de Barrientos

Funeral portrait of Fray Lope de Barrientos; from a museum in Medina del Campo

Fray (brother) Lope de Barrientos (Medina del Campo, Spain 1382 - Cuenca, Spain, 1469), sometimes called Obispo Barrientos ("Bishop Barrientos"), was one of the most powerful clergymen of the Spanish Crown of Castile during the 15th century, although his prominence and the influence he wielded during his lifetime is not well-represented in Spanish history. From relatively humble beginnings in Medina del Campo where he studied grammar, he took advantage of a secular custom of Castilian monarchs to selectively promote lower class court nobility to enter the service of Ferdinand I of Aragon; a capacity normally reserved only to those of the high nobility.

Later, using his native intelligence, Barrientos exploited every opening to climb in social rank against the backdrop of a complex political atmosphere: over his lifetime he became a Dominican friar; served as a professor of theology at the University of Salamanca (possibly the first); as the bishop of three successive cities—Segovia, Ávila, and chiefly of Cuenca —as royal confessor of John II of Castile; an Inquisitor; an advisor to Henry IV of Castile; and as Chancellor of Castile. In addition, he published a series of theological treatises and tracts concerning religious problems encountered in 15th century Spain.

Biography

Barrientos was born in Medina del Campo in the year 1382, the son of Pedro Gutierre de Barrientos, a servant of Ferdinand I of Aragon, who was killed during a battle in service to the king. It is probable, though not possible to conclusively demonstrate, that his family were originally Marranos—that is, Sephardic Jews who were forced in ancient times to adopt the identity of Christians, either through coercion, or who, for form's sake, became Catholic converts in service to the Crown. He was born into the court and was treated as one of the Infantes de Aragón ("Princes of Aragorn"; the children of Fernando I and Eleanor of Alburquerque), which explains why he was a part of—-at least at first—the internal Castilian struggles against Álvaro de Luna, the Constable of Castile, Grand Master of the military order of Santiago, and favorite of King John II.

Barrientos first studied to be a Domican Friar in Medina, then at the Convent of San Esteban in Salamanca in 1406. Following the completion of his education, he took a teaching position at the University of Salamanca, where he conducted classes in theology and philosophy. While at the University, he met and befriended another eminent figure, Tomás de Torquemada. Barrientos and Torquemada had many things in common: they were both likely of Jewish origin; belonged to the Dominican Order; came from villages in the province of Valladolid; and, undoubtedly, shared ideas on the religious problem of Castile.

Barrientos was so outstanding in his teaching that in 1416 he was offered and accepted a chair at the university as professor of theology. Adding more prestige to the position, it is thought that this was the first time the University of Salamanca had endorsed this type of professorship. He remained there until 1433, when King John II nominated him to the post of royal confessor and further entrusted him with the education of his sons, Prince Henry (who would go on to become "the Impotent" King) and later, Prince Alfonso (b. 1453 - d. 1468).

View of the Cathedral of Segovia from the Alcázar.

Barrientos was appointed an Inquisitor during this time, and in 1438, he was elected Bishop of Segovia. On May 3, 1440 a church council was convened in the Church of San Miguel of Turégano, at which he presented his synodal commandments for the theological and pastoral formation of his clergymen. Being loyal to John II, in 1442 he reformed the diocese of Segovia, which had been under the influence of the rebellious prince Henry, to serve the province of Ávila in supporting the King. Later, he engineered a conciliation in the Tordesillas area to create a joint front in the face of the opposition of the Kingodoms of Navarre and Aragon. In 1444 he occupied the diocese of Cuenca and in the following year he lent the diocese's aid to the region's troops in the battle of Olmedo. Similarly, in 1449, he pledged the arms of the diocese in defense against the troops of don Alonso de Aragón and other Castilian noblemen who opposed the king. One offered him the archbishopric seat of Santiago de Compostela, but he rejected this enticement.

Despite his important religious responsibilities, Bishop Barrientos never neglected his duty to the state, serving throughout his career as adviser first to John II, later to Henry IV, and possibly as a instructor of the future Queen and then stepsister of the king, Isabella of Castile as well as being named tutor to John II's youngest son, prince Alphonsus in the King's will. From his privileged position of confidence it is likely that he decisively influenced their politics, as the religious policy views of all three monarchs closely resembled Barrientos' known theological policy leanings. Nevertheless, Barrientos deplored both kings for their sheepishness, and it is likely he conspired against Henry IV before his crowning given his close relationship with the Princes of Aragón.

His work as man of state was as discreet as it was fundamental. He worked or plotted in close proximity to John II, at first as a partisan supporter of the Princes of Aragón, but later as a faithful follower of of John II, once he became king. Ultimately, he became a very powerful and rich man despite the vow of poverty associated with the Dominican Order.

Although Álvaro de Luna had been a favorite of John II one of his his main advisors and wielded great power as Grand Master of the military order of Santiago, The king's second wife, Isabel de Portugal, was offended at the immense influence of the constable, and urged her husband to free himself from slavery to his favorite. In 1453 the king succumbed; Alvaro was arrested, tried and condemned. He was executed at Valladolid on 2 June, 1453. Barrientos stepped into the power vaccum, replacing Luna in the government of Castile until the death of John II just a year later. Following the crowning of Henry IV, Barrientos separated to some extent from the affairs of the state over disagreements with the new monarch. Despite his eventful political life, he had still time to found diverse convent houses—the Hospital de San Sebastián de Cuenca and Nuestra Señora de la Piedad de Medina del Campo—and to write numerous books, reflecting his adherence to the philosophy of scholasticism. Barrientos died in Cuenca on May 30, 1469 and was laid to rest in the second of the two convents he founded.

Activities as inquisitor and policy on conversion

At the end of 15th century, a wide sector of Spanish society held hostile views toward Jews; as the Franciscan, Alphonso de Spina explains in his treatise, Fortalitium Fidei: "Entraron, ¡oh Señor!, en tu rebaño los lobos rapaces. Nadie piensa en los pérfidos judíos, que blasfeman de tu nombre" (They entered your flock, oh Lord!, as greedy wolves. Nobody thinks about the perfidious Jews, who blaspheme in your name).

By contrast, there were influential Spaniards who decried these attitudes—at least toward converted Jews (some of them being converts themselves)—such as Díaz de Toledo, Alonso de Cartagena, Lope Barrientos and Juan de Torquemada (the uncle of the inquisitor). Benzion Netanyahu, a noted writer on 15th century Spanish affairs, affirms that when the converted Spaniards were persecuted, they were "determined to fight fire with fire, the Marranos enlisted in their support men of courage and brilliance, such as Lope de Barrientos...".

In fact, Barrientos wrote a number of tracts defending Jews; in one he recognized that it is "posible es que aya algunos, pero puesto que ansy sea, injusta e inhumana cosa sería todo el linaje dellos manzellar nin diffamar." (possible that there are some deserving of condemnation, but even if that is the case, it would be unjust and cruel to debase and defame all people of Jewish heritage). Thanks to his position as inquisitor and the influence that title conferred upon him, he was able to contact Pope Nicholas V regarding the issue. In 1449 he obtained a favorable response; according to Barrientos, the Pontiff "había mandado que no se hiciera ninguna discriminación entre los nuevos convertidos a la fe y los cristianos viejos en la recepción y tenencia de honores, dignidades y oficios, tanto eclesiásticos como seculares" (ordered him not to discriminate between new converts to the faith and old Christians in the reception and tenancy of honors, dignities and offices, both ecclesiastical and secular).

Lope de Barrientos, went so far as to make sure that he was descended from converted Jews. However, the research's aim was to establish himself as an old Christian, with the goal of using this evidence to strengthen his ideological position: to defend converted jews, but to attack nonconverted Jews.

Despite his laudable defense of converted Jews, Barrientos and, in general, the Dominican Order, supported the prohibition of Judaism in Castile. His stance was that the Judeo-Spaniards had to convert or leave, and they defended that ideology until, Tomás de Torquemada, the grand inquisitor, convinced Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon to act. In 1492 the Alhambra Decree issued, which mandated the expulsion of all Jews from Spain and its territories and possessions by July 31, 1492.

see also: Spanish Inquisition

Detail from a painting by Pedro Berruguete
on the life of Santo Domingo de Guzmán depicting
Dominican friars burning heretical books.

Another campaign Barrientos took up with the king was the prosecution of the Enrique de Villena, whom he charge with witchcraft and necromancy. Villena was a man of letters who wrote on diverse topics, was a translator (most notably of Virgil's Aeneid), a surgeon, and it is possible that he collected books in Hebrew and Arabic; such pursuits automatically turned him into a suspected heretic. Although John II was himself a man of innovative ideas and one of the more cultured people of his age, like many of the era, he distrusted intellectuals, and, in response to Barrientos' suit, condemned Enrique de Villena to prison. These events are well attested in unpublished works authored by Barrientos, which still exist in Salamanca such as his Tratado de caso e fortuna (Treatise on Prophesies).

After Villena died in jail in 1434, king John II entrusted his library to Barrientos for investigation. Barrientos ordered the majority of the manuscripts burned, but preserved a few. The poet, Juan de Mena (1411-1456) skewered Barrientos for these deeds in one of his poems:

Perdió los tus libros sin ser conosçidos,	(He lost your books without knowing what's what,
e cómo en esequia te fueron ya luego	and since in funeral you had already came
unos metidos al ávido fuego,	some books went into eager flame,
otros sin orden non bien repartidos;	and others, without order, badly divided up;)

Some accused Barrientos of being a savage and of plundering the most valuable books in Villena's collection in order to plagiarize them. Others, however, justified his acts by rationalizing that since John II wanted the entire collection put to the torch, it was only through Barrientos' intervention that even some were saved. Barrientos himself offered an explanation of the events, addressed to the king, in his Tractado de la Divinança, translated from the original Spanish as follows:

Your Majesty, after the death of Don Enrique de Villena, as a christian king, you sent me, your devoted follower, to burn his books, which I executed in the presence of your servants. These action, and other ones, are a testament to your Majesty's devotion to christianity. While this is praiseworthy, on the other hand, it is useful to entrust some books to reliable people who would use them solely with the goal of educating themselves to better defend the christian religion and faith and to bedevil idolaters and practitioners of necromancy.

Position with regard to Constable Álvaro de Luna

It is difficult to determine if Bishop Barrientos was or was not a supporter of Constable Álvaro de Luna, since, in the words of the historian, José Luis Martín: "...entre 1435 y 1440 el sistema de alianzas cambia continuamente. No es posible en una obra de esta naturaleza referirnos a todas ellas ni mencionar los nombres de quienes apoyan a unos u otro en cada momento" (...between 1435 and 1440 the system of alliances changed continuously. It is not possible in a work of this nature to refer to all of them nor to even mention the names of those who supported one faction or another at any given moment). Or as put by historian Paulino Iradiel: "Las luchas civiles se desarrollan de manera contradictoria e intermitente hasta el final del reinado (de Juan II), con alianzas, tácticas circunstanciales y cambios de bando que hacen difícil su explicación" (until the end of the reign of John II, the civil struggles develop in a contradictory and intermittent way, with alliances, circumstantial tactics and changes of edict that confound explanation).

Nevertheless, given Barrientos' close relationship with the Princes of Aragón, it is reasonable to conclude that, at least at first, he was a supporter of the opposition camp. Nevertheless, he was a skillful politician who knew how to maneuver when political winds shifted in favor of John II, to save himself from misfortune.

When John II of Aragón (one of the Princes of Aragón) broke the Truce of Majano (1430) and invaded Castile, King John II of Castile, along with loyal followers including Bishop Barrientos, was forced to take shelter in Medina del Campo. Although Medina collected tolls from wayfarers, other than an extensive moat, it had few military fortifications, and was consequently not easily defended. Bishop Barrientos offered to act as a mediator with the invading forces and apparently obtained beneficial treatment for both sides. Nevertheless, everything points to the fact that he betrayed his monarch; when John II was celebrating, trusted that he was secure in the heart of Medina del Campo, troops of the Kingdom of Navarre burst into the villa where he was sheltering and took him prisoner. Although he was soon released, his detention made of him a laughingstock and dishonored the prestige of the crown. It is possible to read into these events, that Barrientos was one of the instigators of the exile of Álvaro de Luna in 1439, preparing the way for the victory of the Princes of Aragón.

The passage of five years brought a dramatic change of events. Although John II of Aragon had continued to occupy the region, consolidating his annexation, the death of his wife, Blanca de Navarra, forced him to leave the Castilian campaign and beat a hasty retreat home, since his own crown was in danger from the pretensions of Charles of Viana. The power of the Princes of Aragón was sundered, and Barrientos had to react rapidly to the shifting political climate.

Barrientos' allegiance dilemma was solved when Álvaro de Luna returned from abroad, bringing with him the support of the diocese of Toledo, which had practically unlimited resources, and which had granted him their patronage at the behest of his half brother, Juan de Cerezuela. Greatly aided by their financial and political cachet, he was able to mobilize royalist supporters of the crown to fight for the king. While the two sides geared up for war (ultimately taking place in Olmedo), Barrientos, his course now clear, traveled to the town of Madrigal de las Altas Torres (northern Ávila) to convince the heir, prince Henry, to forbear from taking up arms against his own father.

The defeat of the Infants of Aragón in the battle of Olmedo of 1445 was overwhelming.

References

Notes

1. ^ Onrubia de Mendoza, José (1975). Poetas cortesanos del siglo XV. Page 123: Libro Clásico Bruguera (Barcelona). ISBN 8402040535. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)CS1 maint: location (link)
2. ^ Menéndez y Pelayo, Marcelino (2003). Historia de los heterodoxos españoles. Alicante: Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes. Digital edition based in the other one of Madrid, La Editorial Católica, 1978. ISBN 8479144823. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |year= (help); External link in |publisher= (help)
3. ^ Carriazo Arroquia, Juan de M, ed. lit. (1946). Refundición de la Crónica del Halconero por el obispo don Lope Barrientos. Espasa-Calpe, Madrid.
4. ^ Gómez Izquierdo, Agustín (2000). Introducción a la historia de Zapardiel de la Cañada. pages 80-81: Inedited. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)CS1 maint: location (link)
5. Mariana, padre (1592). Historia de rebus Hispaniae. Toledo. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)

Other references

• Template:Cite article
• Mariana, padre (1592). Historia de rebus Hispaniae. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |year= (help); Unknown parameter |publication= ignored (help)
• Martínez Casado, Ángel (1994). Lope de Barrientos.Un intelectual en la corte de Juan II. ISBN 8487557856. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |year= (help); Unknown parameter |publication= ignored (help)

See also

• Crisis of the Late Middle Ages
• Spanish Inquisition
• Dominican Order

External links

• Template:Es icon Benito Ruano, Eloy (2001). Los orígenes del problema converso. Digital edition based in Madrid, Real Academia de la Historia, 2001. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |year= (help); External link in |title= (help); Unknown parameter |publication= ignored (help)
• Template:Es icon Hernández Martín, Ramón (2004). Tomismo medieval en España, 2nd part. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |year= (help); External link in |title= (help); Unknown parameter |publication= ignored (help)
• Template:Es icon Menéndez y Pelayo, Marcelino (2003). Historia de los heterodoxos españoles. Digital edition based in Madrid, La Editorial Católica, 1978. ISBN 8479144823. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |year= (help); External link in |title= (help); Unknown parameter |publication= ignored (help)
• Template:En icon Lope de Barrientos in the Catholic Encyclopedia