Repoblación
Repoblación ( Portuguese repovoamento ) is a Spanish term for the repopulation of conquered areas on the Iberian Peninsula as part of the medieval Reconquista . These areas had been partially or completely devastated and depopulated in the course of the fighting between Christians and Muslims; after their occupation by Christian troops, Christians were resettled there or took possession of land on their own initiative.
The history of repopulation is a central theme of Spanish medieval research. This applies not only to the social, economic and legal history, but also to the language: the fact that the Castilian dialect ( castellano ) and not the Leonese or the Asturleonesian language group became the basis of today's Spanish depends on the central role of Castile in the course of the Repoblación.
depopulation
"Repopulation" requires prior depopulation. In this regard, Spanish research has traditionally faced two directions. One position was substantiated in detail by the prominent historian Claudio Sánchez-Albornoz († 1984); it says that large parts of western and central Spain were almost completely depopulated before the Repoblación. The other, which goes back to the Romanist Ramón Menéndez Pidal († 1968), assumes a diluted, but continuous settlement.
Initially, the Repoblación came from the Kingdom of Asturias , which had formed in the early 8th century (711–719) as the first Christian state after the Muslim conquest of the Iberian Peninsula. Even before the Muslim invasion, the final phase of the Visigoth Empire saw a significant population decline due to epidemics and famine. After the Arab-Berber conquest, the north of the Pyrenean Peninsula was secured by small garrisons , mostly made up of Berbers . Many of these Berbers moved south during the Berber uprising of around 740/741 to fight the Arabs there. A severe famine in the years 748–753 led to further depopulation. Therefore, King Alfonso I of Asturias (ruled 739–757) encountered relatively little resistance when he advanced from his empire far to the west, south and east into the valley of the Duero and the upper reaches of the Ebro .
According to the most important source, the "Chronicle of Alfonso III", he conquered the cities of Lugo , Porto , Tui , Braga , Viseu and Chaves in the west ( Galicia and northern Portugal) and Salamanca in the south (later the Kingdom of León ) , Zamora , Ávila , Astorga , León , Simancas and Ledesma , later in Castile Segovia , Osma , Miranda de Ebro , Sepúlveda and Coruña del Conde . Since he was unable to permanently secure these huge areas militarily, he had all Muslims he found there killed and resettled the Christian population in his kingdom. So he created a belt of devastation between his empire and the Muslim area, which was supposed to protect Asturias from Moorish attacks.
Course of repopulation
Legally, all conquered land theoretically belonged to the king, who could therefore decide on repopulation. In fact, however, a large part of the Repoblación happened without any royal participation and only with the tacit consent of the ruler. The taking over and cultivation of abandoned land ( presura ) created the conditions for a legal title . Because of the constant threat from the Muslims, the settlement had a military character; the villages were fortified and served as refuge for the rural population .
The Arabs apparently made only isolated attempts to secure their conquests by counter-settling after successful military advances. They may not have succeeded in mobilizing sufficient numbers of Muslim settlers. The victorious campaigns of Almansor in the late 10th century meant a serious setback for the Repoblación.
In the 13th century, when the Reconquista encompassed ever larger parts of the south of the Iberian Peninsula, the now much more systematically organized Repoblación orders came to the fore, namely the monastic orders of the Cistercians and the orders of knights ( Order of Calatrava , Alcántara , Santiagoorden ). There was increased training of large-scale manors with extensive use (cattle breeding).
Galicia and Northern Portugal
In Galicia, the repopulation began under King Fruela I (757–768), the successor of Alfonso I. There it was the Bishop of Lugo who was the first to take the initiative. He settled large-scale slaves ( unfree ) in his church. This settlement took place in a manorial form without the participation of the king and was continued by the later bishops. Under the kings Ordoño I of Asturias (850–866) and Alfonso III. from Asturias (866–910) a royal colonization began in Galicia and northern Portugal (a first county Portucale was established here ); Tui, Coimbra , Braga, Porto, Viseu and Lamego were settled, to the south of which Alfonso III created. a strategic belt of devastation. The land was given partly by the king personally and partly by his agents. The colonizers settled their own, often numerous unfree, or brought free peasants, especially from northern Galicia, which had never been depopulated. Free settlers were won over, among other things, with an amnesty for crimes they had previously committed; even murderers were granted forgiveness when they moved into the settlement area. In addition, Christians came from the Arab-dominated south of the Iberian Peninsula (so-called Mozarabers ). In the 10th and 11th centuries, many Castilians and even Basques took part , as the names of the places they settled show.
Leon
In the area of the later Kingdom of León, the repoblación did not begin until the middle of the 9th century under King Ordoño I of Asturias, a century later than in Galicia. Here the initiative lay with the king from the beginning, who entrusted the nobles with the implementation. The cities of León and Astorga were settled under Ordoño, and under his son Alfonso III. Zamora, Simancas and the area between Palencia and Medina del Campo, under Ramiro II (931–951) Salamanca and Ledesma. A particularly large number of Christians who had emigrated from the Arab region were settled here, among whom monks also played an important role. Arabic place names or place names that indicate Arabic-speaking settlers and other indications of the presence of Arabs are striking. Since the Christians who came from the Muslim south spoke Romansh or were bilingual, it can be assumed that the only Arabic-speaking settlers were Muslims who had come to the area as prisoners of war or refugees and later converted to Christianity.
Castile
In Castile, the repoblación began on a larger scale around 800; in the year 800 the name "Castile" is documented for the first time. The initiative apparently came first from the episcopal and monastic side; individual clerics acted of their own accord. The first settlers were partly monks, partly church unfree. This colonization took place in a manorial form. Ecclesiastical and secular landowners took possession of abandoned land and worked it. A settlement without a manorial base is documented for the first time in 814: free farmers came on their own initiative and settled. It can be assumed, however, that the activity of the landlords initially strongly dominated. It was not until the middle of the 9th century that royal influence emerged: at the end of the century, Count Diego Rodríguez, Castilian , received Porcelos from King Alfonso III. from Asturias to repopulate the depopulated land. Arab resistance was particularly fierce in Castile; successful Arab counter-attacks hampered the progress of settlement. So the life of the settlers in Castile was harder and more dangerous than in León and Galicia. Since the colonists had to be able to defend themselves, unfree people were less suitable as settlers. Mounted fighters were required; therefore, in the 10th and 11th centuries, vigorous free men were lured with special perks, including tax advantages and impunity for previously committed crimes by thieves and murderers. They were even offered the prospect of elevation to the nobility if they were able to go into battle on horseback. In this way, a farmer who owned a horse and was willing to fight could acquire the status of a nobleman (infanzón) .
After the conquest of Toledo (1085), the repopulation began in the south of Castile (New Castile, Castile-La Mancha ). Now many immigrants from southern France came into the country; their settlement was by King Alfonso VI. promoted by Castile (1072–1109).
Other regions
In contrast to western and central Spain and northern Portugal, there were no broad zones of devastation in Catalonia and Aragón . Therefore, the repoblación there had a smaller extent. The Carolingians settled Mozarabic refugees in the Spanish Mark ; the Counts of Barcelona continued the settlement efforts in the 9th and 10th centuries. A more extensive repopulation of conquered areas did not begin until the 11th century. Repopulation played only a minor role in the Kingdom of Navarre .
literature
- Dietrich Claude : The beginning of the repopulation of Central Spain . In: Walter Schlesinger (Ed.): The German East Settlement of the Middle Ages as a Problem of European History , Sigmaringen 1975, ISBN 3-7995-6618-X , pp. 607-656
- Klaus Herbers : History of Spain in the Middle Ages . Kohlhammer, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 3-17-018871-2
- Ramón Menéndez Pidal: Repoblación y tradición en la cuenca del Duero . In: Manuel Alvar et al. (Ed.): Enciclopedia lingüística hispánica . Volume 1, Madrid 1960, pp. XXIX-LVII
- Claudio Sánchez-Albornoz: Despoblación y repoblación del valle del Duero . Buenos Aires 1966
- Claudio Sánchez-Albornoz: Orígenes de la nación española . Volume 3, Instituto de Estudios Asturianos, Oviedo 1975, ISBN 84-00-04168-2 , pp. 395-492 ( Proceso y dinámica de la repoblación )
Remarks
- ↑ Claude p. 612.
- ↑ The Chronicle of Alfonso III. , ed. Jan Prelog, Frankfurt a. M. 1980, pp. 32-35.
- ↑ Justo Pérez de Úrbel, El condado de Castilla , Vol. 3, Madrid 1970, p. 5; Claude p. 653.
- ↑ Claude p. 625 f.
- ↑ Claude p. 627 f.
- ↑ Claude pp. 627-632.
- ↑ Claude p. 632.
- ↑ Claude pp. 633-636.
- ↑ Claude pp. 636-638.
- ↑ Claude pp. 639-645.
- ↑ Claude pp. 645-650.