Medieval Territories [1 ed.] 1527507955, 9781527507951

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Medieval Territories

Medieval Territories Edited by

Flocel Sabaté and Jesús Brufal

Medieval Territories Edited by Flocel Sabaté and Jesús Brufal This book first published 2018 Cambridge Scholars Publishing Lady Stephenson Library, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 2PA, UK British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Copyright © 2018 by Flocel Sabaté, Jesús Brufal and contributors All rights for this book reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. ISBN (10): 1-5275-0795-5 ISBN (13): 978-1-5275-0795-1

CONTENTS

An Approach to the Study of Medieval Territories ..................................... 1 Jesús Brufal Lidar for Landscape Archaeology: Detecting Archaeological Features in the Àger Valley ............................. 10 Antonio Porcheddu The Roman and Medieval Settlement in the Pisa Plain: The Reconstruction of an Ancient Landscape and its Evolution ............... 27 Arianna Commodari Shaping the Medieval Landscape of Braga’s Territory (5th-13th Centuries) ..................................................................................... 51 Luís Fontes and Francisco Andrade The City of Braga and its Territory through its Material Culture (5th-15th Centuries) ..................................................................................... 68 Raquel Martínez Peñín, Manuela Martins and Luís Fontes An Approach to Territorial Organization in Medieval Galicia until the 13th Century: The Terrae as Object of Study ............................... 87 Mariña Bermúdez Beloso The Territory of Stintino (Sardinia) from its Origins to the Contemporary Age ........................................................................ 113 Marta Diana The Archaeological Heritage of the Coastal Area of Villanova Monteleone (Sardinia) ........................................................ 142 Rosanna Livesu Monastic Networks and Assembling Power by Asturleonese Kings in the Northwest of the Iberian Peninsula (860-999) ............................... 171 Juan Carlos García Cacho

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Contents

Sant Esteve de Caulès: Everyday Life of a Rural Parish in Girona Region during the Middle Ages. An Archaeological and Archival Study ........... 194 Pau Turon The Multi-disciplinary Methodology as a Means for the Study of Medieval Defensive Elements. Some Examples from the North Territory of Milan County, Italy .......... 215 Andrea Mariani From the Hermitage to the Urban Monastic Building: Architectural and Geographical Changes in the Early Friaries in Portugal ............................................................................................... 237 Catarina Almeida Marado Friars in Medieval Towns: Patronage, Urban Space and Architecture in Northern Italy ........................................................... 250 Silvia Beltramo From Ecclesiastical Asset to Private Property: ‘ Expropriation’ of Monastic Estates at the Beginning of the Fourteenth Century in a Milanese Case Study .............................. 274 Fabio Carminati and Andrea Mariani The Landscape of Sardinia’s Medieval Settlements: The Case Studies of Meilogu and Anglona ............................................. 316 Marco Milanese, Maria Cherchi and Gianluigi Marras Santillana: The Process of Inclusion in a Regional Seignorial Estate and its Medieval Power Relationships (1369-1445) ................................ 337 Jesús A. De Inés Serrano The Urban Morphology of Braga in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries: An Analysis Methodology ..................................................... 352 Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, Manuela Martins, Fernanda Magalhães and Natália Botica The Riতla of ‘Umar Ba৬njn: A Mudejar Pilgrimage Route to Mecca from Castile .............................. 382 Pablo Roza

AN APPROACH TO THE STUDY OF MEDIEVAL TERRITORIES JESÚS BRUFAL UNIVERSITAT DE LLEIDA

Territory is the result of human action on the natural landscape with the clear purpose to occupy and exploit it. That is why territory is configured by human cultural and technological action, contextualized in diverse historical periods. Human activity has remained fossilized in the territory, depending on its grade of intensity, in the shape of buildings, names, production spaces, communication infrastructures, cultural boundaries, etc. These elements make up the identity of early societies, a detailed stratification of artefacts and vestiges produced over a specific period in the past. This accumulation of technological experience and cultural transformation has persisted as a legacy. They are the historical memory of a human community. Studying territory means studying the environmental context, which is why both elements are encompassed in the landscape. To find the pioneers in studies about territory from a geological and environmental perspective, we have to go back to the prehistoric archaeologists. The concept of stratigraphy, borrowed from geology, begins to be experimented with during the second half of the nineteenth century, amidst the consolidation of Positivism.1 In Italy, the first scholars of prehistory were educated in from an environmental perspective, following in the footsteps of Giuseppe Scarabelli, whose research focused on artefacts manufactured in the Paleolithic and Neolithic periods.2

 1

Charles Lyell, The geological evidences of the Antiquity of Man (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009) (first edition 1863). 2 Giuseppe Scarabelli, “Intorno alle Armi antiche di pietra dura che sono state raccolte nell’imolese”, Nuovi annali delle scienze naturali e rendiconto delle sessioni della Società agraria, e dell’Accademia delle scienze dell’Istituto di Bologna, 3/2 (1850), pp. 258-266.

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An Approach to the Study of Medieval Territories

Moving the chronological context forward from the late nineteenth century to the 1950s, we find an archaeological interest in the geology and geography of territories, especially influencing cartography and topography.3 It was not until after World War II, mostly with the emergence of the New Archaeology,4 that archaeology accepted the need to integrate the different scientific disciplines with frameworks related to the natural environment. This way, the archaeologist gains a new perspective on territory and, of course, on landscape, and begins to experiment with studies of paleoenvironment, archaeometrics, archaeobotany and archaeozoology. With this new experience, the basis for a new discipline, geoarchaeology, has been established. Its objectives are to rebuild the formative processes of archaeological stratification, in relation to the geomorphological and paleoclimatical aspects. Therefore, geoarchaeological studies are not an end in themselves, but a means to rebuild the history of humanity from a social and economic perspective through an approach to the natural environment.5 Simultaneously, archaeological geography focuses on the connection between the natural environment and production spaces, especially the agrarian. French geoarchaeology projects are headed in this direction, bringing new conceptual frameworks such as 'ecofact' and 'manufact'. This scientific framework of French historiography, which associates history to geography, has been seen in the avant-garde studies of rural history and, evidently, in the contribution of the Annales School, well represented by Febvre, Braudel and Le Roy Ladurie. Environmental Archaeology has also been in the spotlight in the study of territory, particularly in Europe and the United States. As of the 1970s, this discipline gained importance together with geoarchaeology, as a result of the importance of recognizing the formations of human culture and the corresponding archaeological repository. To study territories occupied by groups of humans without getting to know the natural environment seems meaningless. Karl Butzer (1982) incorporates the concept of an ecosystem

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We emphasise the studies of John L. Myers in the UK [John L. Myers, Geographical History in Greek Lands (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1953)], and the studies of Emilio Sereni in Italy [Emilio Sereni, Storia del paesaggio agrario italiano (Bari: Laterza, 1961)]. 4 Nicola Terrenato, “New Archaeology”, Dizionario di archeologia, ed. by Riccardo Francovich (Bari: Editori Laterza, 2007), pp. 204-206. 5 Karl W. Butzer, Archaeology as a human ecology: Method and theory for a contextual approach (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1982).

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defined as the space where a group of living organisms interrelate and coexist. He also acknowledges the concept that 'human ecosystem' refers to the interdependence between cultural and environmental variables.6 Currently, archaeological field research is developing towards understanding territory and the elements that form it. So, observation on a local level is reaching for a global view of the elements that explain how territory is organized and exploited. In this circumstance, geoarchaeology allows us to go beyond static analysis to decipher the distribution of artefacts. Environmental archaeologists have been developing interesting contributions to the study of the configuration of territory, on the basis of paleoclimatic analysis. Climate, landscapes and inhabited areas are three closely related variables: in Mediterranean climate territories, populations settle in elevated lands, away from river courses, cliffs or torrents, to avoid floods that result from major storms, and to use sediments and water for irrigation afterwards. The indirect signs that allow us to rebuild past climates come from heterogeneous evidence, such as the growth rings of trees, pollen analysis, evolution of mollusks in terrestrial or marine contexts, and river sediments in their banks or deltas, among other factors. The development of scientific disciplines for the study of territory that we have elucidated would not be possible without the application of field surveys, a set of techniques and implementations used to differentiate the elements that form a landscape (areas of production, settlements, and routes, among others).7 The field survey is an essential instrument, although not the only one, for the reconstruction of past territories, visible or not, in the shape of cultural fossilized elements from the societies that created them. This work methodology is specifically related to Landscape Archaeology, the discipline which concerns itself with the study of territory from a more generic perspective or, in this case, a conceptual synonym, the landscape. This methodology offers a diachronic analytical point of view, an ideal perspective to understand the diverse historical and natural periods of the configuration of a territory or landscape. The work environment is the field itself, the places where history has manipulated natural elements and adapted them to every socio-economical context. The

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Karl W. Butzer, Archaeology as a human ecology (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1982). 7 Franco Cambi and Nicola Terrenato, Introduzione all’archeologia dei paesaggi (Rome: Carocci, 1994); Colin Renfrew and Paul Bahn, Archeologia. Teorie, metodi, pratica (Bologna: Zanichelli, 1995).

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field survey delves into history to detect those elements that give it identity and context. In its most fundamental form, the field survey consists of a direct observation of a particular territorial space, in order to guarantee uniform and exhaustive coverage. These portions of land, which may coincide with croplands, are traversed by walking (field-walking) with the purpose of finding artefacts or other elements that allow the identification of archaeological sites or traces of past cultures. The typology of the field survey is developed in the project framework with an aim to finding nonvisible remains of archaeological elements. However, field surveys can also be programmed with less intensive field work when the object of study has significant architectural elements on the surface, such as a medieval castle or monastery. Without a doubt, the field survey must be supported by more studies that complete the archaeological field work. This is why it is important to ascertain the correct configuration of multidisciplinary teams, made up of historians of written sources, numismatists, geophysicists, anthropologists, ethnoanthropologists, etc. Archaeologists that work with sources obtained from aerial photography, satellite images8 or remote sensing images deserve a special mention. It is unquestionable that remote sensing applied to field archaeology has experienced a huge qualitative improvement in the past few years. Experimentations with Lidar,9 the widespread use of various Geographical Information System software, and new methods of quantitative and predictive archaeology10 have opened new horizons for historical study and the appreciation of cultural heritage. Studies on territory through landscape have experienced remarkable growth in the last decade, as a consequence of our society's interest in cultural landscapes. This interest is related to the higher social consciousness when facing present and future ecological challenges, and to the institutional support that stems from the European Landscape

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Chris Musson, Rog Palmer and Stefano Campana, In volo nel Passato: aerofotografía e cartografia archeologica (Florence: All’Insegna del Giglio, 2005). 9 Topographic laser ranging and scanning: principles and processing, ed. by Jie Shan and Charles K. Toth (Boca Raton: Chemical Rubber Company Press, 2008); Interpreting archaeological topography, ed. by Rachel Opitz and David Cowley (Oxford: Oxbow Books, 2013). 10 Novelties in the field can be followed at the Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology annual conferences.

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Convention of the Council of Europe, held in Florence in 2000.11 Presently, we define 'landscape' as: El trabajo humano el que crea los paisajes, al modificar la sucesión natural y mantener estados antrópicos intermedios convenientes y previsibles para los fines humanos. El paisaje es un algoritmo socioecológico. Sin intervención antrópica ni fines humanos no habría paisajes. Sólo ecosistemas.12

Therefore, landscape is not defined by its natural agents: it is a socioterritorial reality. It ceases to be a natural landscape when it becomes a cultural landscape. History builds them through a long diachronic process over time. Its action has shaped territory in accordance with cultural needs:13 Los paisajes son esencialmente construcciones multidimensionales, resultado de la interacción de estructuras históricamente determinadas y de procesos contingentes. Como marco de la actividad humana y escenario de su vida social, el paisaje agrario, y los paisajes humanos en general, son una construcción histórica resultante de la interacción entre los factores bióticos y abióticos del medio natural. Cualquier interpretación histórica debe partir de la comprensión de esta dinámica. Es necesario, por tanto, que consideremos los paisajes como consecuencia de la coevolución socionatural a largo plazo.14

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National Plan on Cultural Landscapes (“Plan Nacional de Paisajes Culturales”). , May 10th, 2017. 12 “Human work creates landscapes by modifying natural succession and maintaining anthropic intermediate states that are convenient and foreseeable for human ends. Landscape is a socio-ecological algorithm. Without anthropic intervention or human ends there would not be landscapes. Only ecosystems.” (Enric Tello, “La formación histórica de los paisajes agrarios mediterráneos: una aproximación coevolutiva”, Historia Agraria, 19 (1999), pp. 195-212). 13 José Maria Martín Civantos, “Arqueología y recursos naturales”, Medio ambiente y arqueología medieval, ed. by José María Martín Civantos (Granada: Alhulia, 2008), p. 26. 14 “In essence, landscapes are multidimensional constructions, a result of the interaction of historically determined structures and contingent processes. As a frame for human activity and the scenery for social life, the agrarian landscape, and human landscapes in general, are a historical construction, the product of the interaction between biotic and abiotic factors of the natural environment. Any historical interpretation must start with the understanding of these dynamics. Thus, it is necessary to consider landscapes as a consequence of long-term socio-natural coevolution.” (Ramon Buixó, “Paisajes culturales y reconstrucción histórica de la

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An Approach to the Study of Medieval Territories

New perspectives on the study of territory imply changing theory and work methodology to increase the levels of complexity. These changes, already made during the development of field surveys, have been put into practice by Felipe Criado and the Landscape Archaeology research team from the University of Santiago de Compostela,15 Almudena Orejas,16 Gian Pietro Brogiolo from the University of Padua,17 and Antonio Malpica from the University of Granada.18 These proposals start with the idea that "Human beings, unlike other living beings, do not only live in the environment, they also build their own environment to live or […] build their own socio-cultural environment".19 This trend is based on the concept of landscape proposed by Fernando González Bernáldez and mentioned by Enric Tello: En tanto que construcción histórica el paisaje es como un palimpsesto que registra en el territorio las sucesivas huellas territoriales directas –y a una escala mayor, también la ‘huella ecológica global- de las diversas sociedades que se han sucedido en el tiempo. Las formas y las escalas de tales huellas dependen de los flujos de energía y materiales extraídos, de los impactos y residuos resultantes de su procesamiento, y de la selección entre especies existentes o introducidas en el medio por la intervención humana voluntaria e involuntariamente.20

 vegetación”, Ecosistemas. Revista científica y técnica de ecología y medio ambiente, 1 (2006), p. 1). 15 Felipe Criado, Del terreno al espacio: Planteamientos y perspectivas para la Arqueología del Paisaje (Corunna: Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, 1997). 16 Almudena Orejas, “El estudio del paisaje: decisiones desde la arqueología”, Arqueología Espacial, 19-20 (1998), pp. 9-20. 17 Gian Pietro Brogiolo, “Dall’Archeologia dell’Architettura all’Archeologia della complessità”, Pyrenae: revista de prehistòria i antiguitat de la Mediterrània Occidental, 38/1 (2007), pp. 7-38. 18 Antonio Malpica, “El agua en al-Andalus. Un debate historiográfico y una propuesta de análisis”, V Semana de Estudios Medievales: Nájera, 1 al 15 de agosto de 1994 (Logroño: Instituto de Estudios Riojanos, 1995), p. 74. 19 Felipe Criado, Del terreno al espacio, p. 5. 20 “As a historical construction, landscape is like a palimpsest that records in territory the successive, direct territorial traces – and, on a larger scale, the global ecological footprint as well – of the diverse societies that have succeeded each other through time. The shapes and scales of such traces depend on the energy flows and extracted materials, on the impact and waste that result from its processing, and on the selection among existent species or species introduced in the environment by human intervention, willingly and unwillingly." (Enric Tello,

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Therefore, territory and landscape are understood as a synthesis of social relations, and to study them we must understand them from the viewpoint of a macro-scenery or an extensive archaeological site. According to José María Martín Civantos, “esto quiere decir que ese paisaje puede ser conocido y comprendido a lo largo de los diversos períodos por los que ha pasado y que de él se puede extraer información acerca de las distintas formaciones sociales que fueron dejando su huella”.21 Certainly, this is an approach to the study of territory from a diachronic perspective, and from a geographic standpoint that is, delimiting the framework on the basis of features of the natural environment. That way, we will understand the diverse phases of its construction according to the historical society of that time. From this viewpoint, it is true to say that studies on territory and mountain landscapes have been furthered, primarily on the dry lands in the Mediterranean area. Due to their environmental traits, these lands require an epistemological approach that encompasses all the artefacts and anthropic transformations, analysed from a holistic standpoint. Therefore, the diverse elements that form them ௅ villas, fortresses, towers, wells, canals, routes, places of worship and burial, mines, crop fields, etc. ௅ must be differentiated for to be better studied, but without forgetting the natural environment as a whole; its presence reminds us that we are looking at an archaeological macro-site. The fragility of dry lands, due to aridity and erosion, is an additional difficulty for historians. The settlements there do not always show longterm occupation, perhaps as a consequence of the climate and environmental features. In dry lands, water is key to guaranteeing the survival of human groups. However, some climatic fluctuations have consequences in meteorology right away, in the form of more extreme temperatures or in pluviometric variability (increased droughts, stormy rains, etc.). It is also important to mention that, in the Mediterranean area, these territories have not undergone great morphological transformations, if we

 “La formación histórica de los paisajes agrarios mediterráneos: una aproximación coevolutiva”, Historia Agraria, 19 (1999), p. 197). 21 “This means that landscapes can be known and understood through their diverse periods, and information about the different social formations that left their trace can be extracted from the landscape." (Jose María Martín Civantos, “Arqueología y recursos naturales”, p. 30).

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An Approach to the Study of Medieval Territories

compare them with peri-urban agriculture. Even if historians cannot find large amounts of data, it is certain that the data they do find do not experience major changes, due to the action of mechanised agriculture or the introduction of new irrigation systems, for example. Therefore, dry lands, because of their extent and importance to understanding human evolution in the Mediterranean, must be protected and, above all, must be understood by scientific historiography. The intensity of the work accomplished thus far has been contributing to the progress of medieval archaeology and the study of landscapes, which have progressed immensely since their early days. With the purpose of promoting the exchange and discussion of research from the perspective of medieval archaeology and territory, various researchers doing archaeological work on medieval territories gathered for the 5th International Medieval Meeting Lleida, held at the University of Lleida on June 25 and 26, 2015. Their contributions were presented in specific sessions, such as the one organized by Carlo Citter, Antonio Porcheddu and Giovanna Pizziolo, ‘Archaeological landscape evolution. Methods and applications I, II and III’; the sessions fostered by Juan Antonio Quirós, ‘Social inequality in north-western Iberia: The archaeological markers’ and ‘The emergence of social complexity in Ebro villages’; ‘Paisagens en mudança: cidades e territórios na Ida de Média’, organized by Raquel Martínez and Manuela Martins; and ‘Primeros resultados de la necrópolis de Sant Joan de Caselles (Canillo, Andorra), organized by Albert Fortó. The conference also offered researchers the possibility of presenting their field work as free papers within the 'Archaeology' strand. As an outcome of the sessions and papers presented individually at the 5th International Medieval Meeting Lleida, this book contains rich and interesting contributions on medieval territory from archaeological, historical, diachronic and transversal perspectives. The methodological developments in remote sensing exhibited by Antonio Porcheddu needed to be recorded after his study at the Ager Valley. Arianna Commodari presents the reconstruction of the past landscape of Pisa from Roman to Medieval times, from an archaeological viewpoint. Braga and its territory have been studied from a diachronic, multidisciplinary perspective by archaeologists Luís Fontes, Francisco Andrade, Raquel Martínez Peñín, and Manuela Martins. In addition, Mariña Bermúdez focuses on the study of the Terrae in Medieval Galicia through the thirteenth century. There are two further diachronic studies on the Sardinian territories of, Stintino and

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Villanova Monteleone, carried out by Marta Diana and Rosanna Livesu, respectively. Juan Carlos García Cacho's research focuses on territory at monasteries and assemblies from Asturias and Leon in a specific chronology, through the years 860 to 999. Pau Turon presents a local study of Saint Esteve de Caulès and its environment from an archaeological perspective and the analysis of written documents. The multidisciplinary approach of Andrea Mariani contemplates analytical methods for the study of defensive architecture in the territory of the County of Milan. Catarina Almeida delves into the transition from the hermitage to the urban monastic building in Portugal and its effects in territory configuration. Pilgrimages were an alternative way to explore territory in the Middle Ages, hence the Mudejar routes between Castile and Mecca. Territory continues to be seen from different perspectives, such as the one presented by Silvia Beltramo from friars in medieval towns in northern Italy. Changes in territory can also be of different kinds: Fabio Carminati and Andrea Mariani analyse the transition from ecclesiastical assets to private property in the Milan area in the fourteenth century. Marco Milanese, Maria Cherchi and Gianluigi Marras transport us to the study of the Sardinian medieval landscape from a multidisciplinary perspective, featuring new remote sensing techniques. Jesús A. de Inés Serrano studies territory from a local perspective, using Santillana as his starting point, between 1369 and 1445. Lastly, an urban analysis of Braga in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, is carried out by Maria Do Carmo Ribeiro, Manuela Martins, Fernanda Magalhães and Natália Botica. The texts included in this book open new, innovative lines of research and suggest new methodologies for the study of the configuration of territory in diverse historical stages, and specifically in the Middle Ages, from their complexity. 

LIDAR FOR LANDSCAPE ARCHAEOLOGY: DETECTING ARCHAEOLOGICAL FEATURES IN THE ÀGER VALLEY1 ANTONIO PORCHEDDU UNIVERSITAT DE LLEIDA

In 2014 the Institut Cartografic i Geologic de Catalunya (“Catalan Institute of Geology and Cartography”) and the University of Lleida signed an agreement for the use of lidar data in archaeological research. The ICGC provided data from the Àger valley to be used as a test area for research on Landscape Archaeology. In the last fifteen years, lidar has become very useful for archaeological purposes because of the improving experience of researchers and better quality of data. This paper aims to assess the archaeological potential of the ICGC lidar data applied to some case studies of Landscape Archaeology in the Àger valley (Spain).

1. Lidar Principles and the ICGC Lidar Dataset Lidar is a form of technology derived from laser scanners and is applied to a wide surface area, using an aircraft as a vector for the instrument. The acronym, Light (sometimes laser) Detection and Ranging, exposes that the main principle of lidar is to measure distances using precision light (laser). The distance is measured from the scanner to the hit surface using time and the angle of return of the echo of the emitted pulse.

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Abbreviations used: ICGC, Institut Cartografic i Geologic de Catalunya; Lidar, Light, Detection and Ranging; GPS, Global Positioning System; IMU, Inertial Measurement Unit; DEM, Digital Elevation Models; DTM, Digital Terrain Model; DSM, Digital Surface Model; GIS, Geographic Information System; PCA, Principal Component Analysis; LRM, Local Relief Model; LiVT, Lidar Visualisation Toolbox; SVF, Sky View Factor.

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Other parameters such as flying data (IMU) and GPS data are used to refine the correct position of each point. The resulting points are stored as R3 coordinates and constitute the socalled points cloud. By interpolating these points, it is possible to digitise some surfaces as Digital Elevations Models (DEM). The points can also be classified in order to correspond to an object of the real surface (buildings, low vegetation, high vegetation, etc.) and then filtered to retain the desired features. An important use of this property is to filter the vegetation in order to obtain the surface of the bare earth, the Digital Terrain Model (DTM). The lidar data available from the Catalan Institute of Cartography and Geology were collected between 2008 and 2011 during the LIDARCAT project. This project started in 2006 with the objective being to scan the entire surface of Catalonia with lidar. As stated in a presentation in 2009, the ICGC processed the lidar point cloud in order to obtain precision but also to avoid huge time consuming procedures. This means that the low points were not revised, and they were classified without a manual classification.2 This kind of data was used by the ICGC for other research projects, in geography, geology, and environmental science, but this is the first time in Catalonia that the ICGC lidar has been used for archaeological purposes.3

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The entire procedure of the data processing of the lidar point cloud performed by the ICGC is published on the official web page of the institution, and the document is downloadable at the following URL:  3 Antonio Ruiz, “Aportación del lídar aerotransportado al cálculo de cambios en las playas tras temporales”, Revista Catalana de Geografia, 14/37 (2009), pp. 5461; Marc Coromines, Antonio Ruiz and Ester Blanco, “Aplicación de la tecnología lidar al estudio de la cubierta vegetal”, Cuadernos de la Sociedad Española de Ciencias Forestales, 19 (2005), pp. 71-77; Antonio Ruiz, Oriol Viñas, Albert Domingo and Valentí Marco, “Tree Species Classification from Aerial Images and Lidar in Agricultural Areas”, , 15th March 2015. 

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Figure 1. The ICGC aircraft used with the lidar installed on board (photo from www.icgc.cat)

2. Lidar in Archaeology Researchers in Archaeology consider lidar as one of the most useful tools for archaeological prospection in the present day, which is demonstrated by the growing number of publications and projects related to it.4 Even though very effective techniques, such as geophysics, exist and can generate extremely precise results in the prospections of archaeological sites, lidar is the perfect tool for surveying large areas, which is why it has become essential for Landscape Archaeology. In particular, what has made it so popular for archaeologists is the ability to derive a reliable high resolution digital terrain model from the point cloud. This means that, by classification and filtering processes from the point cloud, it is possible to separate different objects of the landscape and to retain the desirable ones. In this case, archaeologists are interested in the surface of the terrain because here it is possible to detect archaeological features, especially in those areas where other sources of data are less useful, such as aerial photography of a forested landscape. Lidar allows a DTM of the surface under the vegetation canopy to be generated, thanks to a number of points that hit the terrain. This fact is one of the most important achievements of lidar for archaeology: for the first time it has

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As lidar is becoming more and more accessible to researchers, they are increasingly using it to support their research throughout the world. Some of the most important projects are in the United Kingdom, where Historic England uses lidar to support the Heritage List project. (https://historicengland.org.uk/research/approaches/research-methods/airborneremote-sensing/lidar/). For a general review of lidar’s use in archaeology see: Rachel Opitz and David Cowley, Interpreting archaeological topography: 3D data, visualisation and observation (Oxford: Oxbow Books, 2013).

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been possible to remove the vegetation canopy and to discover dozens of new archaeological evidences. Another useful characteristic of lidar-derived digital terrain models is the precision in determining altitude variations. This means that it is possible to determine micro relief variations that often may hide features of archaeological interest. For example, fossil agrarian parcels, remains of roads or buildings and little motte-and-bailey castles.5

3. The General Study Area and the Test Areas The choice of the Àger study area was based on research interests. The Consolidated Medieval Studies Research Group of the University of Lleida exhibited a strong interest in this area, carrying out several research tasks. In particular, these included developed studies on the Middle Ages period based in documental history, art history, architecture, archaeological excavations and prospections.6 This last subject is the one in which lidar data is supposed to contribute the most. The Àger valley is an area of barely 50 square kilometres located in the pre-Pyrenees to the north of Lleida. It is surrounded to the north and south by middle-altitude mountains (the Montsec and the Montclús). The east and west sides are delimited by two rivers, the Noguera Pallaresa and the



5 Benoît Sittler and Sabine Schellberg, “The Potential of LIDAR in Assessing Elements of Cultural Heritage Hidden Under Woodland Canopies. Possibilities and Limits in Detecting Microrelief Structures for Archaeological Surveys”, From Space to Place. 2nd International Conference on Remote Sensing in Archaeology, ed. by Stefano Campana (Oxford: British Archaeology Reports, 2006), pp. 4-7; Rosa Lasaponara and Nicola Masini, “On the processing of aerial LiDAR data for supporting enhancement, interpretation and mapping of archaeological features”, Computational Science and Its Applications, ed. by Beniamino Murgante, Osvaldo Gervasi, Andrés Iglesias, David Taniar and Bernardy O. Apduhan (Berlin: Springer, 2011), pp. 392-406. 6 Francesc Fité, Reculls d'història de la Vall d'Ager. Període Antic i Medieval (Àger: Centre d’Estudis de la Vall d’Àger, 1985); Flocel Sabaté, “Las tierras nuevas en los condados del nordeste peninsular (siglos X-XII)” Studia historica. Historia medieval, 23 (2005), pp. 139-170; Antonio Porcheddu, “Predicting and Postdicting a Roman Road in the Pre-pyrenees Area of Lleida (Spain)”, CAA2015 KEEP THE REVOLUTION GOING, Proceedings of the 43rd Annual Conference on Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology, ed. by Stefano Campana, Roberto Scopigno, Gabriella Carpentiero and Marianna Cirillo (Oxford: Archaeopress, 2006) pp. 599-604.

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Noguera Ribagorçana. The entire area presents a huge variability in both vegetation canopy and orography that makes it interesting to test and compare the results over areas of different characteristics (plain, highly steeped, densely and scarcely vegetated areas). The first test area is a little monticule near the medieval tower Torre dels Moros or Masos de Millà, a village south-east of Àger. There, some circles are visible from the aerial photograph. The main aim is to evaluate if lidar could help us to understand the nature of these circles better. From the aerial view they appear as crop marks, but no more information can be obtained about their relief. The second test area is a flat open area near the village of Àger, where we would like to test the level of precision of the data to enhance micro relief features. This area is characterized by agrarian fields with division marks consisting of secondary roads, trenches and hedges. The third area is a heavily wooded, uncultivated slope, located on the southern face of the Montsec. In this area, we would like to understand by which measures our data can visualize the terrain under the vegetation canopy and what features can be mapped. It is important to take this into consideration when extracting a DTM from a densely vegetated area, as there could be much less data than in the case of a flat open area. The fourth example is located in uplands near the village of Millà. It is a stark area with very little vegetation and a rugged surface. This is an example of where the DTM is almost a DSM, so the classification and the filtering of the points have little influence on the result. The fifth test is over the medieval village of Montlleó, which is located on a hill near the Port d’Àger. We want to try to visualize the topography of the abandoned settlement, in which only the church remains in a good condition.

4. Work Methodology The methodology used in this study is based on a series of steps that involve data processing and analysis. The ICGC, provider of the data, performed the pre-processing of the point cloud, classifying, filtering and interpolating the points to obtain the DTM. The DTM is the main product with which the archaeologist works. In recent decades, dozens of publications have explained how to obtain the best ways of processing the DTM to enhance the visibility of features on its surface.7 For

 7

For a general comprehension see: Rachel Opitz and David Cowley, Interpreting archaeological topography: 3D data, visualisation and observation (Oxford: Oxbow Books, 2013). 

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archaeologists the main target is to make the DTM as ‘readable’ as possible to facilitate the detection of every detail that could reveal some feature of interest. In order to achieve this objective, archaeologists work with basic and advanced algorithms applied to a raster surface. Some of these applications are used in this study to test the potential of the ICGC’s DTM and are described below. All the operations performed for this work were executed with GRASS-GIS software, release 7.0.3. It is free, open source software that disposes of all the modules to obtain the raster manipulations described below.8

5. Analytical Hill Shading This is the most basic technique to enhance the visibility of a DEM. In fact, a raster DEM is a surface that is normally displayed with a palette of colours based on the value of each pixel. The value of the pixel represents its altitude. Normally this kind of visualization does not have a good level of realism and makes it difficult to distinguish the objects represented. The Hill Shading or Shaded Relief is an algorithm that simulates the presence of a light source that illuminates the surface directly, creating brighter and darker areas. The result is a more plastic surface due to the shadows created around the objects, which depend on the incident angle of the light. The GIS used to perform this algorithm has a pre-implemented script that, by selecting various parameters, generates the raster’s hill shading. In particular, it is important to modify the angles of incidence and the direction of the light source to create different illuminated scenarios. Indeed, the visibility feature depends on the direction of the light: if the light is parallel to the object, then it will not create a shadow and it will not be visible; conversely, a transversal light will enhance the plasticity of a feature and create a shadow. Thanks to the software, it is also possible to create some unrealistic scenarios, such as making the sunlight come from the north and creating a reversed surface with depression perceived as relief. This technique is useful for plane surfaces with oblique light, which permits the enhancement of the micro relief. It becomes clear, though, that the global visualization of the terrain is a disadvantage. Indeed, to have a



8 Geographic Resources Analysis Support System (GRASS) is released under a GNU GPL (General Public License). The modules used for the image processing of DTM in this work are: r.relief, r.slope.aspect, r.shaded.pca, r.local.relief, r.skyview. Some of these are installed on the official release and others can be downloaded through the official page of add-ons for GRASS GIS. 

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general idea of what could be visible on the surface, it is necessary to continuously change the light angle, generating multiple shaded relief images. This could be a time consuming process and cause confusion. The Principal Component Analysis has been proposed to avoid this problem.

6. Principal Component Analysis The principal component analysis (PCA) applied to a DEM surface is a reaction to the problems that occurs when working with the analytical hill shading. Its aim is to obtain a unique raster image composed of three images, in which the maximum quantities of features, which are otherwise only visible through several hill-shading images, can be seen. The proposal made by Devereux in 2008 starts with16 hill shaded images from 16 different positions of the light source.9 The information contained in the 16 images is rearranged in 16 new images in such a way that the maximum amount of information is stored in the minimum number of images. In this way, the three first images usually contain 95% of the information and the remaining 5% is in the other 13 images. Thanks to this, when combining the first three images, it is possible to visualize the majority of features illuminated by 16 different angles. As stated in the official online manual of GRASS GIS, the r.shaded.pca creates relief shades from various directions and combines them into RGB composition. The combined shades highlight terrain features which wouldn't be visible using standard shading technique.10

7. Slope The Slope is another basic analysis that can be made on a DTM surface and that could be useful for visualization. It represents the incline percentage or degree of the surface. Mathematically it can be expressed as the derivative of elevation because it represents the rate of change between a cell and its neighbours. High values of slope represent a steep surface and usually, in greyscale visualizations, are shown as darker. Low values of slope represent a flat surface that is shown as brighter.



9 Bernard Devereux, Gabriel Amable and Peter Crow, “Visualisation of LiDAR terrain models for archaeological feature detection”, Antiquity, 82/316 (2008), pp. 470-479. 10 . 15th March 2015.

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All GIS software can perform this basic but very useful analysis. In our aims of improving visualization of features, it can be useful to apply this kind of algorithm. The important thing to keep in mind is that the visualized surface is not the real surface but a representation of the slope rate of change, so it has to be interpreted to avoid misunderstanding.

8. Openness and Sky View Factor The openness is based on the concept of diffuse light, an illumination from every point in the scene. This technique was presented in 2002 for the visualization of digital terrain models.11 To understand how this algorithm works it is necessary to deal with some trigonometric calculus. There are a few main steps that have to be made to obtain an image of this kind. It starts with the computation of all the elevation angles between point A and point B over direction D at distance L. Using Pythagoras’ theorem it is possible to obtain the projected horizontal distance between points A and B. Then the elevation angle is the arctangent of the ratio between the elevation difference and the horizontal distance. For every direction at distance L from the point, there exists a maximum and minimum elevation angle (zenith and nadir). The surface is created by dividing the arc length (360º) in 8 parts and calculating and computing, the zenith and nadir angles for every direction from the selected point and then computing the medium value. In the author’s words “the resulting maps of openness superficially resemble digital images of shaded relief or slope angle, but emphasize dominant surface concavities and convexities”.12 The results are determined by the parameters selected during computation, in particular the radius of application of the semi sphere and the number of directions. The Sky View Factor is a similar technique that was proposed for archaeological purposes in 2011 by a Slovenian research group.13 The illumination of the surface comes from a semi sphere that creates a diffuse illumination and represents the sky over the surface. The semi sphere is centred on the illuminated point. Assuming that a) the light intensity in the

 11

Ryuzo Yokoyama, Michio Shirasawa and Richard J. Pike, "Visualizing topography by openness: a new application of image processing to digital elevation models", Photogrammetric engineering and remote sensing, 68/3 (2002), pp. 257266. 12 Yokoyama, Shirasawa and Pike, "Visualizing topography by openness", p. 257. 13 Klemen Zakšek, Kristof Oštir and Žiga Kokalj, "Sky-view factor as a relief visualization technique", Remote Sensing, 3/2 (2011), pp. 398-415.

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semi sphere is constant and b) excluding the effect of the earth curvature for small surfaces, it is possible to compute the quantity of visible sky from a point as follows:

In this formula, n denotes the number of directions and J the elevation angle of the horizon. The values of s, the visible sky, are in the interval [0, 1]. Value 1 means that the entire sky is visible from that point. Then, this value is used to determine the intensity of the greyscale of the pixel in order to enhance the morphology of the surface. As with the openness, this algorithm enhances the micro relief and the concavities, but the visualization is more realistic than the openness. The important parameters are again the number of directions (between 8 and 32) and the dimension of the radius, which depends on data resolution. Because these two techniques are similar and the second is derived from the first, we applied only the Sky View Factor using the module developed for GRASS GIS r.skyview.

9. Local Relief Model The Local Relief Model (LRM) “represents local, small-scale elevation differences after removing the large-scale landscape forms from the data”.14 This method, as described by its creator Ralf Hesse, is based on applying the technique of Trend Removal to enhance variations over the earth’s surface. Trend Removal is a statistical principle in which the data trend is removed and the residual data are retained. The larger objects in the landscape represent the trend while the residual objects are the little differences in elevation. The algorithms consist of several steps that can be summarised as follows: -

The application of a smoothing filter to obtain a more homogeneous surface. A process of map algebra subtracting the new smoothed image from the original one. The improvement of the raw LRM by enhancing contours.

 14

Ralf Hesse, "LiDARǦderived Local Relief Models–a new tool for archaeological prospection", Archaeological Prospection, 17/2 (2010), pp. 67-72.

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This algorithm is implemented in Ralph Hesse’s LiVT open source software for lidar data manipulation and also in GRASS GIS with the addon r.local.relief. The image that is obtained is not easy to read but can enhance the shapes of the features on the surface very well.

10. Results 10.1. Area 1. Torre dels Moros Thanks to the aerial photograph it was possible to perceive some concentric circles as crop marks in the field named lo Bosc of Joanet. The place name indicates a wooden area that has since disappeared. Thanks to the historical aerial photograph of 1946 it was possible to visualize the wood and some circular terraces. By observing the photographs we could interpret the topography and the geomorphology, thinking that the central part of the wood was at the higher height and the concentric terraces gradually descended to lower heights. Obviously we are in front of anthropic features but the actual topography cannot justify the morphology of these features. Indeed, from a lidar-derived DTM, we can see a different scene. As expected the medieval tower is placed at the highest point, dominating its surroundings. At the same time, just by calculating a profile from the DTM, it is easy to see that from the tower there is a constant descending altitude. So what we supposed to be a central high location is actually at an intermediate quota. In addition the concentric circular features are not positioned at the same level. At this point it is not possible to justify the field pattern as an adaptation to the topography. In addition the survey showed that the micro relief is only perceivable from the DTM and revealed the presence of a consistent amount of stones. In any case, no pottery or other micro-evidences of human activities were found during the survey because of the scarce ground visibility. This example showed that lidar gave an effective contribution to understanding the place’s topography and opened new questions that are necessary to answer in order to understand the choice of this arrangement. The dimensions, the shape and the location, with the available natural resources, bring to mind a typology of protohistoric settlement such as the Iberian settlement at Vilars d’Arbeca. Obviously at this time it is not possible to support this conjecture at all, even if it is clear that this area is a strategic place for a settlement. Only more intensive surveys will clarify the nature of these shapes.

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Figure 2. Area 1. Tower of Masos (by the Author)

10.2. Area 2. The Plain of Àger This area was chosen to test the potential of the DEM on a plain. It is very important to enhance the micro relief of plains in order to obtain the maximum level of detail from the resolution of the raster. Using the image

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processing techniques described above, we could enhance some details of the ICGC lidar DTM to observe the shape of agrarian divisions, the system of roads, some features of micro relief and some fossil parcels. Research in archéogéographie and ancient topography needs to visualize these kinds of features as clearly as possible. Hill Shade, with a correct sun elevation and azimuth, and Slope were useful to understand the micro relief and to detect some fossil parcels, while PCA image results were more difficult to interpret. The Local Relief Model was without any doubt the technique that worked best to enhance linear features.

Figure 3. Area 1. Altitude section. The circles area are not the highest part and they are not followed at the same altitude (by the Autrhor)

Figure 4. Area 2. Plain of Àger (by the Author)

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10.3. Area 3. The Wood The third area is a test over a heavy wooded area. First of all we have to consider two things. When the vegetation canopy is dense, fewer laser points hit the ground than in other terrains, so the classification and the consequent filtering reduce the level of detail of the terrain. We can still obtain a DTM but the interpolation process approximates a larger quantity of the surface. The 2-meter DTM will decrease in resolution even if every raster cell is still 2m2. The opportunity to detect small archaeological features in this case is very low. For this example we applied the Hill Shade, the Slope, the Principal Component Analysis, the Sky View Factor and the Local Relief Model techniques. The Hill Shade revealed a series of abandoned agrarian terraces. The visibility was sensibly improved with the PCA and the Slope while the LRM and the SVF only partially shaped these terraces. Indeed, an important achievement was finding a new area of ancient exploitation. So far as we understand, with this surface it is possible to map all the terraces and other features hidden under the vegetation canopy. Small archaeological features are impossible to detect, however, and we would require a more dense point cloud from lidar.

Figure 5. Area 3 (by the Author)

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10.4. Area 4. The Arid Uplands of Montclús This area was chosen in order to have an inverse situation from area 3. Indeed, here the vegetation is very scarce and the classification and filtering of the point cloud generates a surface without many differences when comparing the DSM and DTM. From the archaeological point of view, this is an area of transhumance itinerary with no other economic exploitation. The application of the image processing brought a smooth surface with no particular details. Only the Local Relief Model and the Slope gave some results, in particular the presence of two paleo channels with some terraces and the enhancement of transhumance paths. No other details can be detected from this DTM. In addition the interpolation created some artefacts that do not correspond to any feature in the terrain but are the result of the application of the algorithms. It is useful to remember that a lot of artefacts can be created during every phase of data processing and that sometimes these are difficult to distinguish from real features. The only solution to this problem is to constantly compare the digital elevation model with an aerial photograph or a ground survey.

10.5. Area 5. The Castle and Village of Montlleó The village of Montlleó was located in the south face of the Àger valley near the Port d’Àger, and it is known from documentary sources to be a medieval village that developed around a former castle before 1173. The houses were abandoned before the 14th century, and then the church became just a hermitage dependent on the Àger church of Sant Vincent.15 The aim of our test is to detect the topography of the village or, at least, to determine the area where the village was settled. Indeed, the resolution of the DTM is not high enough to determine the topography of specific village features like remains of walls. However, it is possible to use an alternative interpretation to determine a possible extension of the village around the known features. In particular, with the PCA, it is possible to see some artificially flattened areas on the south face of the hill and away from the east side of the church. It is possible to distinguish these zones from the normal shape of the hill side.

 15

Jordi Bolòs and Francesc Fité, “Castell i Vilatge de Montlleó”, Catalunya Romànica. La Noguera, ed. by Antoni Pladevall (Barcelona: Enciclopèdia Catalana, 1994), XVII, pp. 157-158. 

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Figure 6. Area 4 (by the Author)

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Some features that could be considered as the remains of the village were found during the survey verification and under the tree canopy in the aforementioned areas. Obviously this was only a test over a known archaeological area, but it could be effective for the exploration of unknown landscapes or to improve our knowledge of those that are already known.

Figure 7. Area 5. Montlleó (by the Author)

Conclusions and Future Perspectives The main aim of this contribution was to test the potential of the Catalan Institute of Geology and Cartography’s lidar-derived DEM for archaeological purposes. It is a significant product because it is a free resource available to archaeologists who intend to deepen the knowledge of a study area. This contribution has also been useful to review some of the methodologies and approaches of an archaeologist dealing with this tool for Landscape Archaeology. We can state that the lidar product from ICGC could be useful in Landscape Archaeology for some particular applications. The 2-meter resolution is not enough to guarantee the detection of little archaeological

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features such as walls, but it is enough to enhance the majority of features that interest archaeological topography like roads, channels, terraces, parcels, and so on. A useful approach could be the analysis of the shape of the landscape, as in archéogéographie. We saw that when applying the Local Relief Model we could emphasize the parcels’ shapes, the roads and other linear features. Another positive use, which is common to all lidar products, is to map the abandoned agrarian terraces that endure under the vegetation canopy. The ICGC lidar also has a sufficient level of precision to remark on some micro relief features, like the pseudo circles viewed in area 1, or the fossil parcels in area 2. For this, a simple Hill Shade or a Principal Component Analysis, as well as the Local Relief Model, are enough to extract all the components of micro relief. There are many other things that could be done with lidar-derived Digital Elevation Models, but which we did not discuss here, such as Predictive Archaeology. In these cases the difference between 1 and 2meter resolution is not as relevant as it is for features detection. The future perspectives for lidar in Archaeology are very clear. We need to spread the availability of data for more people to use as they slowly become cheaper. We need to improve the training of archaeologists so that they can handle GIS software, the principles of image processing and the interpretation of anomalies from the beginning of their studies. Especially in Italy and Spain, very few humanities students are capable of working easily with these tools. The most challenging aspect for the future is to have lidar reliefs specifically for archaeology and to develop algorithms for automatic classification and filtering of lidar point clouds in order to preserve the archaeological data as well as possible.

THE ROMAN AND MEDIEVAL SETTLEMENT IN THE PISA PLAIN: THE RECONSTRUCTION OF AN ANCIENT LANDSCAPE AND ITS EVOLUTION ARIANNA COMMODARI1 UNIVERSITÉ CÔTE D’AZUR

Introduction My research concerns the plain of Pisa, located in the valley of the River Arno, also known as Valdarno Inferiore, where it flows into the Tyrrhenian Sea. The zone studied covers about 800 square kilometres, and is bordered by the River Serchio to the north, the Pisa Mountains to the north-east, the Leghorn and Pisa hills to the south, and the River Era to the east (see map 1-1). Traces of an agrarian system, known as the ‘Pisa centuriation’, are still visible on the plain. Centuriation was a system created to measure and divide the territory, and to assign the resulting lots to army veterans. In the case of Pisa, the centuriation was probably designed to favour the settlement of veterans of Augustus’ legions. Much research has been devoted to the chronological reconstruction of the foundation of the colony of Pisa, which probably took place between the date of the Battle of Philippi (42 BC) or the Battle of Actium (31 BC) and the year 27 BC.2 Pliny’s text relating to the VII regio, in which the

 1

This paper was produced in the framework of the PhD programme “History and Archaeology of the Roman and Medieval worlds” at the Université Côte d’AzurCNRS.Abbreviations used: CTR Technical Regional Map; DTM Digital Terrain Model; IGM, Istituto Geografico Militare; GIS, Geographic Information System; MAPPA project, Metodologie Applicate alla Predittività del Potenziale Archeologico. 2 Lawrence Keppie, Colonisation and veteran settlement in Italy (47-14 B.C.) (London: British School at Rome, 1983); Giulio Ciampoltrini, “Note sulla colonizzazione augustea nell’Etruria settentrionale”, Studi Classici e Orientali, 31 (1981), pp. 31-55.

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Augustan colonies are listed, has also recently been re-examined by Maria Antonietta Giua, who confirms that the colony of Pisa was founded during the triumviral period by Octavian, not yet emperor.3 Pisa’s status as a colonia is also confirmed by the Decreta Pisana, the resolutions adopted by the local senate to honour the memories of Lucius and Gaius Caesar in 2 AD and 4 AD. In the two inscriptions, the citizens of Pisa are designated ‘settlers’ and the name of the colony Iulia Pisana Opsequens is recalled. The Decreta also testifies to the honour paid to the members of Domus Augusta by the colony, and clarifies the colony’s strong attachment to the Domus Augusta.4 The assignment of lots (assignatio) is confirmed by a tombstone (stele) dedicated to Sextus Anquirinnius, a veteran of Augustus’ 19th legion who participated in the civil war and later probably was settled in the territory of Pisa. The stele itself was found near Castelnuovo della Misericordia, in the southern sector of the ager Pisanus.5 However, it is difficult to establish the exact number of settlers because of the absence of epigraphic, literary or historical data which might be able to produce some evidence. Some authors6 estimate the number of settlers at about 1,400/2,400, or even 3,000, through analogies with other colonies from the same period. The lots assigned could therefore have covered between 25 and 50/60 iugera7 (from 6.25 to 12.5/15 hectares). The first study on the centuriation of Pisa was carried out in 1939 by Plinio Fraccaro, who, on the basis of the IGM cartography, recognized several axes located at a distance of about 710 meters (2,400 piedi, or feet, in the Roman metric system, which corresponds to centuriae of 200 iugera). In his analysis, Fraccaro remarked how centurial axes visible in the modern cartography correspond with roads and drainage canals.8 The studies about the Pisa centuriation are based on a carto-topographic approach which integrates to the modern cartography analysis with the numerous archaeological data (field surveys and excavations) produced during recent years and also

 3

Maria Antonietta Giua, “La fides di Plinio e la colonia di Pisa. Nota a Nat. Hist.III. 50”, Artissimum memoriae vinculum. Scritti di geografia storica e di antichità in ricordo di Gioia Conta, ed. by Umberto Laffi, Francesco Prontera and Virgilio Biagio (Florence: Olschki, 2004), pp. 199-208. 4 Maria Antonietta Giua, “La fides di Plinio e la colonia di Pisa”. 5 Lawrence Keppie, Colonisation and veteran settlement in Italy (47-14 B.C.), pp. 173-174. 6 Marinella Pasquinucci, “Colonia Opsequens Iulia Pisana: qualche riflessione sulla città ed il suo territorio”, Annali della Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa, 25/1-2 (1995), pp. 311-317. 7 1 iugerum = about 0.25 hectares. 8 Plinio Fraccaro, “La centuriazione romana dell’agro Pisano”, Studi Etruschi, 13 (1939), pp. 221-229.

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historical sources, as well as the toponyms, to reconstruct the process of Romanization of the Pisan countryside.9 Recent research, conducted during the MAPPA project at the University of Pisa since 2011, has permitted the digitalization of the traces of centuriation that are still visible in the present landscape, as well as the anomalies, on the basis of the interpretation of historical aerial photography and satellite images10 (see maps 1-2). The present paper focuses on the process of transformation of the centuriation over the centuries and has the aim of responding to various queries, such as why an agrarian system created more than 2,000 years ago is still visible in the current morphology of the countryside, and questioning which elements have influenced this process. This paper is organized into 4 sections: the first describes the methodological approach, principally based on the ‘archeo-geographic’ and ‘geo-archaeological’ methods using to study the centurial landscape. In the second part, the initial results of the morphological analysis carried out on the modern cartography are illustrated. The third section is devoted to demonstrating how the study of the geographical and hydrographical features of the plain using GIS has enabled us to clarify some factors which have enabled the construction of the agrarian morphology over the centuries. The last section is devoted to resuming the stratigraphic and geo-archaeological analyses undertaken on the plain to reconstruct the ancient landscape and the future research perspectives.

 9

Some publications about: Marinella Pasquinucci, “L’area di Cascina nell’antichità”, Cascina II. Dall’antichità al medioevo, ed. by Marinella Pasquinucci, Gabriella Garzella and Maria Luisa Ceccarelli (Pisa: Pacini Editore, 1986), pp. 13-59; Marinella Pasquinucci, Beatrice Guiggi and Serena Mecucci, “Il territorio circostante Pontedera nell’antichità”, Pontedera: Archeologia, Storia e Arte, ed. by Paolo Morelli (Pisa: Pacini Editore, 1994), pp.13–23; Giulio Ciampoltrini, “La Valdera romana tra Pisa e Volterra”, La Valdera Romana fra Pisa e Volterra. L’area Archeologica di Santa Mustiola (Colle Mustarola) di Peccioli. Atti dell’Incontro di studio del 13 maggio 2006 (Pisa: Pacini Editore, 2008), pp.17–29. 10 Monica Bini, Marco Capitani, Marta Pappalardo and Giorgio Franco Pocobelli, “Vecchi e nuovi dati dalla fotointerpretazione aerea”, MAPPA, Metodologie applicate alla predittività del potenziale archeologico, ed. by Francesca Anichini, Fabio Fabiani, Gabriele Gattiglia and Maria Letizia Gualandi (Rome: Edizione Nuova Cultura, 2012), I, pp. 131-156.

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Map 1-1. The plain of Pisa (Google Earth's image)

Map 1-2. The first digitalisation of centuriation traces (by the Author)11

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Monica Bini, Marco Capitani, Marta Pappalardo and Giorgio Franco Pocobelli, “Vecchi e nuovi dati dalla fotointerpretazione aerea”, pp.131-156.

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1. The Methodology ‘Archeo-geography’ is a discipline which combines geographical and archaeological approaches to the study of historical landscapes. The methodology is principally based on the ‘morphological analysis’ (intended as a form of analysis) of modern and historical parcels, with the main objective of tracing the ‘morphogenes’ or any geographical object of the ancient landscape (such as the centuriation, the paleo-channels, the road network), that may have exerted a continuous influence on the form of the landscape, from the moment of its creation.12 Above all, the aim is to understand the dynamics that have influenced this process of transmission. The study of the form and structure of the agrarian landscape is carried out by various documents, including aerial photographs, modern and ancient cartography, satellite images, as is shown in the study by Robin Brigand of the agri centuriati of the central plain of Venice13 (see map 2-1) .14 In the study of a centuriation, which represents a coherent and clearly defined form of the landscape characterized by the alignments of streets or canals and the orthogonality of parcel boundaries, the concept of the transmission and transformation of the ancient form is the key to understanding the landscape’s evolution and the determinant factors of this construction. The interaction between environment, natural resources and human activities leads to the construction of an agrarian form, such as the centuriation, that transmits the techniques and solutions adopted in landscape management and conserves the elements of transformations that have occurred over the centuries.



12 Gérard Chouquer, L’étude des paysages. Essais sur leurs formes et leur histoire (Paris: Ed. Errance, 2000), p. 149; Gerard Chouquer, ed., “Nouveaux chapitres d’histoire du paysage. Dossier d’Archéogéographie”, Études Rurales, 175-176 (2006), pp. 9-128; Ricardo González Villaescusa, ed., “Archéogéographie et disciplines voisines”, Études Rurales, 188 (2011), pp. 9-187; Magali Watteaux, ed., “L’archéogéographie. Un état des lieux et de leurs dynamiques”, Les Nouvelles de l’archéologie, 125 (2011), pp. 3-54. 13 Robin Brigand, “Centuriations romaines et dynamique des parcellaires : une approche diachronique des formes rurales et urbaines de la plaine centrale de Venise (Italie)” (Besançon: Université de Franche-Comté, PhD Dissertation, 2010). 14 Robin Brigand, “Centuriations romaines et dynamique des parcellaires”.

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Map 2-1. The study on the agri centuriati of the central plain of Venice (by the Author)

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The concept of ‘résilience’,15 or the capacity of a system to conserve its structure beyond the transformations or perturbations that took place after the moment of its creation, allows us to explain the presence of an ‘ancient’ agrarian system in the current landscape. It means that the system is capable of adapting to environmental transformations and also of integrating these transformations. The transmission of the form could concern its orientation (isocline parcels) or placement (isotope parcels). For example, the latter could represent a vertical transmission, visible in the stratigraphy, in spite of the evolution of the landscape. Thanks to morphological and geoarchaeological research, the case of Pierrelatte ‘Les Malalonnes’ (Drôme, France) demonstrates how the ancient information has been transmitted over the centuries due to the continuous occupation of the soil. The study of the historical parcels, individuated thanks to the photographic and cartographic analysis, integrated with archaeological and paleo-environmental research, enabled the parcels’ characteristics (form, function) and fossilisation process (taphonomy of historical parcels) over the times to be reconstructed.16 The ‘geo-archaeological’ approach used in the case study of the plain of Lugo is another example which demonstrates the necessity to integrate historical, archaeological and stratigraphic information in order to reconstruct the evolution of the landscape and to understand the ‘persistence’ phenomenon. In spite of strong sedimentation (in some cases the Roman level is conserved at a depth of 6/7 meters), the centuriation axes started up again some centuries after their creation, probably during the land reclamation that took place in the medieval period. Carrying out a subsurface survey, consisting of auger tests, core tests, and penetrometer tests has permitted the paleo-geographic context to be reconstructed and a diachronic study of the centurial system in relation to pedological and sedimentary processes17 to be carried out (see map 2-2).

 15

Gérard Chouquer, L’étude des paysages. Essais sur leurs formes et leur histoire (Paris: Ed. Errance, 2000), pp. 146-163. 16 Jean-François Berger and Cécile Jung, “Fonction, évolution et ‘taphonomie’ des parcellaires en moyenne vallée du Rhône. Un exemple d’approche intégrée en archéomorphologie et en géoarchéologie”, Les formes du paysage, ed. by Gerard Chouquer, 2 vols. (Paris: Errance, 1996), pp. 95-112. 17 Carlotta Franceschelli and Stefano Marabini, Lettura di territorio sepolto. La pianura lughese in età romana (Bologna: Ante Quem, 2007); Carlotta Franceschelli, “Dynamique de transmission de la morphologie agraire: ‘pérennisation’ et ‘effacement’ de la centuriation romaine dans la plaine du Pô”, Agri Centuriati, An international journal of landscape archaeology, 5 (2009), pp. 77-105.

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The Roman and Medieval Settlement in the Pisa Plain

Map 2-2. The study on the agri centuriati of the central plain of Venice (by the 18 Author)

Another example is at Tours, where the study of the form integrated with archaeological and geological data (cores) has permitted the identification and reconstruction of an ancient paleo-canal reclaimed by an urban form as a street (hybrid form). The canal is conserved and transmitted with its form in the modern parcels, despite its functional transformation.19

1.1. The GIS System for Database Management and Exploration The study of the Pisa Plain is based on a rich cartographic database, consisting of the CTR (Technical Regional Map) at the scales of 1:10,000 and 1:2,000 (see maps 2-3), the Regional Geologic Cartography CAR.G1:10,000 (Service GEOscopio Région Toscane),20 the Soil map1:250,000,21 and also satellite images and the ancient cadastre, such as the ‘Leopoldino’ cadastre. The GIS system also enables the heterogeneous database consisting of archaeological (field surveys and excavations), historical (churches or medieval villages known from the medieval sources and toponyms), geological and hydrological data to be collected, managed and explored. The elaboration of a high-resolution Digital Terrain Model

 18

Carlotta Franceschelli and Stefano Marabini, Lettura di territorio sepolto. Hélène Noizet, “La trasmission de la ‘nature’ et du ‘rural’ dans la ville: le cas de Tours”, Étude Rurales, 175-176 (2005), pp. 109-128; Hélène Noizet, “Une histoire géo-archéologique du rapport `a la Loire: le cas de la boire de Saint-Venant à Tours”, Temps et espaces de l’homme en société. Analyses et modèles spatiaux en archéologie (XXVes Rencontres internationales d’archéologie et d’histoire d’Antibes, 21-23 octobre 2004), ed. by Jean-François Berger, Frédérique Bertoncello, Frank Braemer, Gourguen Davtian and Michiel Gazenbeek (Antibes: Éditions APDCA, 2005), pp. 451-461. 20 See: . 21 See: . 19

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(DTM) for example has permitted us to clarify some aspects of the transmission dynamics of the ancient agrarian system, and to propose new questions related to the ancient hydrographic and the environmental scenarios.

Map 2-3. The Technical Regional Map (raster and vector format) (by the Author)

2. The First Results of the Morphological Analyses The centuriation is defined as a geometric grid characterized by two fundamental parameters: 1. orthogonality and predominant orientation; 2. the presence of a module whose value is expressed in actus. The morphological analysis has shown evidence of significant alignments with the same orientation as the ancient axes of the centuriation reconstructed on the base of a theoretical grid, created with ArcGIS tools (see map 3-1).

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The Roman and Medieval Settlement in the Pisa Plain

Map 2-4. The Technical Regional Map (raster and vector format) (by the Author)

Map 3-1. The centuriation of Pisa: result of morphological analysis (by the Author)

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On the Pisa Plain, the centuriation respects a module of 707 meters with a prevailing orientation of 29 degrees east of the geographic north. An analysis of the parcels was carried out inside the centuriae, considered the ‘intermediary forms’ of the centurial network. Some anomalies were detected: -

-

Deformation by attraction: the presence of new centres, associated with the installation of medieval churches, attracts the centuriation axes, which then deviated. Examples include Macerata and Marcianella. So-called ‘bayonet’ deformation: the axes inside the centuria have been modified by the installation of a new inhabited centre, which has conditioned its viability, and assume a form typical of a bayonet (see map 3-2). Cancellation of a limes connected to the passage of the river Arno. Deformation of a limes caused by the construction of a bridge.

And also forms of transmission: -

Transmission of an intersection of limites (centuriation axes) by a significant toponym, in this case related to a religious element (‘L’Immaginetta’ means a religious icon). Urban and agrarian parcels orthogonal to the centurial axes which transmit the grid orientation (see map 3-3). Presence of regular forms inserted into the centurial network that preserve the same orientation as the centuriation axes. These may be associated with a newer agrarian system constructed during the Middle Ages (currently under study).

3. The Integration of Environmental and Hydrographical Data The Plain of Pisa is an alluvial plain, formed mainly by the fluvial sediments of the Rivers Arno and Serchio. The zones near the rivers are characterized by well-drained sandy-silt sediments, while the areas farthest from the channels formed by the clay-silt sediments are susceptible to becoming morasses. Moreover, the natural drainage is obstructed by the low slope, the presence of vast depressions in the zone next to the sea (near Coltano and Stagno) and the more elevated sandy littoral dunes which obstruct the free circulation of the surface waters. The frequency of episodes of flooding, which are now mainly controlled, is also a determining factor in hydrological instability.

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The Roman and Medieval Settlement in the Pisa Plain

Map 3-2. Example of deformation known as ‘bayonet’ (by the Author)

The hydrological risk and the necessity to manage an agricultural territory could explain the connection and interaction between the hydrological resources, the hydraulic system, and the transmission of the ancient agrarian system. In a flatland context, the micro-topography shows the difference in altitude between the north-eastern and south-western sectors. In the current morphology, it is possible to perceive that the drainage canal system preserves the same orientation as the cardines (see map 4-1). The construction of these canals started in the Middle Ages, as recorded in the administrative documents of the Municipality of Pisa dated from 1287, and that a previous study assumed could be connected to the centuriation.22 The axis of the ancient agrarian system called cardines followed the slope of the ground and probably guaranteed the surface water drainage towards the south-western zone, where there was a vast paludal-lagoonal area connected to the sea, as attested by recent geo-

 22

Maria Luisa Ceccarelli Lemut, Renzo Mazzanti and Paolo Morelli, “Il contributo delle fonti storiche alla conoscenza della geomorfologia”, La pianura di Pisa e i rilievi contermini-la natura e la storia, ed. by Renzo Mazzanti (Rome: Società Geografica Italiana, 1994), pp. 401-429.

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archaeological studies,23 in the same way as the modern and medieval hydraulic system. The west-northwest/south-southeast axes, called decumani, flowed from the eastern sector of the plain, morphologically more elevated, towards the north-western part, probably allowing free circulation and distribution of the water. This spatial analysis enabled us to clarify a phenomenon of ‘transmission’ and to present the principal factors involved in this process.

Map 3-3. Example of centurial axes' transmission (by the Author)



23 Cécile Allinne, Christophe Morhange, Marinella Pasquinucci and Camille Roumieux, “Géoarchéologie des ports de Pise ‘Stazione Ferroviaria San Rossore’ et de Portus Pisanus : dynamiques géomorphologiques, sources antiques, données archéologiques”, Les ports dans l’espace méditerranéen antique. Narbonne et les systèmes portuaires fluvio-lagunaires. Aix-en-Provence, Montpellier, 22 et 23 mai 2014, ed. by Corinne Sanchez (Aix-en-Provence: Presses Universitaires de Provence, 2015), pp. 321-338.

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The Roman and Medieval Settlement in the Pisa Plain

In conclusion, the first hydraulic work dating back to the Roman period was the centuriation of Pisa. In a context characterized by hydrological instability, where in some sectors of the plain the Roman level is preserved at a depth of around 1-1.52 meters, it seems that the centuriation form is still preserved because of its functionality in the drainage of surface water, particularly when concerning the cardines of the agrarian system. However, this first analysis will need to be integrated with the stratigraphic and paleo-environmental data that future research will supply (see paragraphs below) in order to reconstruct the ancient landscape and its evolution over time. The knowledge of the chronostratigraphic units of the Plain of Pisa, in particular of the sectors more influenced by the presence of the centuriation axes, would allow the dynamics of transmission and transformation related to the paleo-hydrographic and paleo-environmental evolution to be explained.

3.1. The Middle Ages Settlement System The integration of settlement data referring to the medieval period adds a new element to our comprehension of the process of transmission of the centurial system. Starting from the 7th century and throughout the medieval period, baptismal churches or pievi became the principal centres of the rural settlement system. The churches were built in easily accessible places, often alongside main roads, and each baptismal church had a number of smaller dependent churches or villages.24 These new centres (baptismal churches, small churches, villages) were positioned in the higher and most geologically stable sectors of the plain, often located in proximity to or at the intersection of ancient limites, as has been shown for the eastern sector.25 The analysis of the location of medieval villages (Oratoio, Pettori,

 24

Gabriella Garzella, “Cascina e il suo territorio nel Medioevo: chiese, monasteri, ospedali”, Cascina, segni d’arte e cultura in un centro della Pianura pisana, ed. by Giovanna Formichi (Pisa: Italia Nostra, 2002), pp. 49-60. 25 Marinella Pasquinucci, Serena Mecucci and Paolo Morelli, “Territorio e popolamento tra i fiumi Arno, Cascina ed Era: ricerche archeologiche, topografiche e archivistiche”, I Congresso Nazionale di Archeologia Medievale. Auditorium del Centro Studi della Cassa di Risparmio di Pisa (Pisa, 29-31 Maggio 1997), ed. by Sauro Gelichi (Florence: All’Insegna del Giglio, 2000), pp. 239–248.

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Badia, San Lorenzo alle Corti, Zambra, Casciavola, Navacchio, Marciana, and Latignano) clarifies this phenomenon (see map 4-2). This stability probably ensured the survival of a ‘collective memory’ of the centurial system even after the Roman age.26 Medieval society contributed to the ‘construction’ of the centuriation through the foundation of the new religious centres, hydraulic system and probably also through new planned agrarian forms inserted within the centurial network, somehow maintaining its orientation and principal axes. Thanks to all these elements, the process of transmission of the geographical elements of the Roman centuriation has been possible. We can also speak of a ‘reification process’27 of the centuriation, understood as the temporal difference between the centuriation project and its materialization. The centuriation was constructed over the centuries, through medieval and modern reutilization, in spite of more than 2000 years of sedimentation.

4. The Contribution of Stratigraphic and Archaeological Data in the Reconstruction of a Paleo-environment My PhD research also aims to integrate the chronostratigraphic data for the reconstruction of the paleo-environmental and paleo-hydrographical context, in particular between the Roman and Medieval ages.

4.1. The formation of the Pisa Plain The development of the plain of Pisa is strictly connected to the marine transgression-regression sequence and to the sedimentary and erosion dynamics of the rivers which crossed the plain. The Pisa paleo-valley started to develop as a result of the sea level fall which culminated during the last Glacial Maximum (18,000 BP circa), 120 metres circa lower than its current level. In response to this, the Arno River formed a prominent incised valley, 40-45 metres deep and 5-7 km wide. After the last Glacial

 26

Arianna Commodari, “Pianificazioni agrarie antiche e medievali nella Pianura di Pisa”, Agri Centuriati, An international journal of landscape archaeology, 10 (2013), pp. 41-56. 27 François Favory, “Retour critique sur les centuriations du Languedoc oriental, leur existence et leur datation”, Les formes du paysage, ed. by Gérard Chouquer (Paris: Errance, 1997), III, pp. 96-126.

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The Roman and Medieval Settlement in the Pisa Plain

Maximum, a progressive sea level rise known as ‘Versilian transgression’ started and which gradually brought the sea level closer to its modern level. The paleo-valley was progressively filled with coastal plain and estuarine deposits. During the maximum marine ingression, dated at 7800 BP calibrated, the coastline moved 7 kilometres to the east of its current position. Behind the littoral, a vast lagoon developed, testified to by a stratigraphic unit known as a pancone.28 This lithofacies, formed between 8000-5000 BP, is composed of soft grey clays and registered to a depth between 20 and 7 meters circa below sea level.29 After this, when the sea level was more stable and nearer the current levels, the trend changed: the coastline moved progressively west, due to an increase of fluvial sedimentation by the Arno and Serchio-Auser Rivers, and the Pisa Plain started to acquire its modern conformation. Alluvial sediments cover the plain: sand-silt sediments are deposed not far from the Rivers Arno and Serchio and the other minor river courses, while the finest clay-silt alluvial sediments characterized the areas further away from the rivers.30 In the coastal sector, the formation of a delta-plain began: the lagoon was progressively filled with alluvial sediment and, after being completely filled, the formation of the delta started. Today, the delta plain is characterized by several offshore bars, which attest to the ancient coastlines, interrupted by depressed zones which are sometimes associated with swamp formation.31

 28

Alessandro Amorosi, Veronica Rossi, Giovanni Sarti and Roberto Mattei, “Coalescent valley fills from the late Quaternary record of Tuscany (Italy)”, Quaternary International, 288 (2013), pp. 132-134; Giovanni Sarti, “La macroarea di Pisa”, Tutela della costa pisana dall’ingressione marina. Safeguard of the Pisan coastal aquifers against sea-water intrusion, ed. by Massimo V. Civita and Marco Redini (Pisa: Camune di Pisa, 2012), pp. 64-73. 29 Veronica Rossi, Giovanni Sarti, Alessandro Amorosi and Miriam Potenza, “Influence of inherited topography on the Holocene sedimentary evolution of coastal systems: An example from Arno coastal plain (Tuscany, Italy)”, Geomorphology, 135 (2011), pp. 117-128; “Palaeo-environments and palaeotopography of a multilayered city during the Etruscan and Roman periods: early interaction of fluvial processes and urban growth at Pisa (Tuscany, Italy)”, Journal of Archaeological Science, 59 (2015), pp. 197-210. 30 Bruno Della Rocca, Renzo Mazzanti and Enzo Pranzini, “Studio geomorfologico della pianura di Pisa”, Geografia Fisica e Dinamica Quaternaria, 10 (1987), pp. 56-84. 31 Piero Bellotti, “Il modello morfo-sedimentario dei maggiori delta tirrenici italiani”, Bollettino della Società Geologica Italiana, 119 (2000), pp. 777-792.

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Map 4-1. The relation between centuriation's axes and drainage canals system (by the Author)

The progradation of the coastline quickened after 3000 BP circa due to climatic change (increase in rainfall) and human activities (deforestation, land reclamation, hydraulic works). The configuration of the Tyrrhenian deltas, including the Arno Delta, are characterized by a less sloping platform, slightly affected by subsidence or by tidal excursions, but more influenced by environmental changes or human activities.32 It has been

 32

Piero Bellotti, “Il modello morfo-sedimentario”, pp. 789-790.

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The Roman and Medieval Settlement in the Pisa Plain

calculated that the coastline moved about 6 kilometres westward between the Roman period and the 19th century.33

Map 4-2. The settlement system related to the Middle Ages (by the Author)

4.2. The Paleo-environment in the Roman and Medieval Periods During the Roman period, the landscape was completely different to that of today. The city of Pisa was then 20 Roman stadi from the coastline (as Strabo records),34 that is, less than 4 kilometres. The archaeological findings at San Piero a Grado,35 Isola di Migliarino36, Coltano37 and

 33

Renzo Mazzanti and Marinella Pasquinucci, “L’evoluzione del litorale lunense pisano fino alla metà del XIX secolo”, Bollettino della Società Geografica Italiana, 10/12 (1983), pp. 605-658; Paolo Roberto Federici and Renzo Mazzanti, “L’evoluzione della paleogeografia e della rete idrografica del Valdarno Inferiore”, Bollettino della Societa Geologica Italiana, 10–12 (1989), pp. 573–615. 34 Strab., 5, 2, 5 C 222. 35 Stefano Bruni, “‘Ad Gradus Arnenses’. Il distretto della Foce del ramo settentrionale del delta dell’Arno in età antica”, Tombolo: territorio della Basilica di San Piero a Grado, ed. by Silvio Paglialunga (Pisa: Felici, 2001), pp. 83-99. 36 Simonetta Menchelli and Maria Adelaide Vaggioli, “Ricerche archeologicotopografiche nell’ager ‘Pisanus’ settentrionale: il sito costiero di Isola di Migliarino”, Studi Classici e Orientali, 37 (1988), pp. 495-520.

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Gronda dei Lupi,38 confirm that the ancient coastline, between Leghorn to the south and the River Serchio to the north, was about 6 kilometres inland from its present position (see map 5-1). It has been estimated that from 2000 BP, the sea level in the western Mediterranean was between about 0.5 and 0.13 meters lower than its present level.39 A complex harbour system, which remained active until the Late Antiquity, guaranteed trade with Mediterranean markets. Numerous ports, more or less structured, were located at Gronda dei Lupi, near Leghorn (Portus Pisanus); at San Piero a Grado at the mouth of the ancient Arno River; and at Isola di Migliarino at the mouth of the ancient Auserculus.40 An urban harbour was also located at San Rossore, close to an ancient Auser palechannel.41 Recent research, carried out by the University of Pisa as part of the MAPPA Project, has permitted the reconstruction of the depositional architecture of the Arno coastal plain and the ancient course of the Arno and Serchio Rivers during the Roman period up to the 4th century AD for the urban context (see map 5-2).

 37

Simonetta Menchelli, “Contributo allo studio del territorio pisano: Coltano e l’area dell’ex padule di Stagno”, Studi Classici e Orientali, 32 (1984), pp. 255-270. 38 Marinella Pasquinucci and Gabriella Rossetti, “The harbour infrastructure at Pisa and Porto Pisano from ancient times until the Middle Ages”, Archaeology of coastal changes: proceedings of the First International Symposium “Cities on the Sea--Past and present”, Haifa, Israel, September 22-29, 1986, ed. by Avner Raban (Oxford: British Archaeological Reports, 1988), pp. 137-155. 39 Marco Benvenuti, Marta Mariotti-Lippi, Pasquino Pallecchi and Mario Sagri, “Late-Holocene catastrophic floods in the terminal Arno River (Pisa, Central Italy) from the story of a Roman riverine harbour”, The Holocene, 16/6 (2006), pp. 863876. 40 Marinella Pasquinucci, “Pisa e i suoi porti in età etrusca e romana”, Pisa e il Mediterraneo. Uomini, merci, idee dagli Etruschi ai Medici, ed. by Marco Tangheroni, (Milan: Skira, 2003), pp. 93-98. 41 Andrea Camilli, “Le struttre ‘portuali’ dello scavo di Pisa S. Rossore”, Le strutture dei porti e degli approdi antichi, II Seminario Roma-Ostia antica 16-17 aprile 2004, ed. by Anna Gallina Zevi and Rita Turchetti (Rome: Rubettino Editore, 2004), pp. 67-86; Andrea Camilli, “Ambienti, rinvenimenti e sequenza. Un breve riassunto aggiornato dello scavo delle navi”, Il bagaglio di un marinaio (le navi Romane di Pisa) ed. by Esmeralda Remotti, (Rome: Aracne, 2012), pp. 1318.

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The Roman and Medieval Settlement in the Pisa Plain

42

Map 5-1. The coastline evolution (by the Author)

 42

Giovanni Sarti, Monica Bini and Serena Giacomelli, “The growth and decline of Pisa up to the Middle Ages: correlations with landscape and geology”, Il Quaternario Italian Journal of Quaternary Sciences, 23 (2010), pp. 311-322.

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Recent geo-archaeological investigations also reconstructed the Roman landscape of the southern area of Pisa plain where the Portus Pisanus was located (to the east of the modern city of Leghorn). Until the 5th century AD, the Portus Pisanus area was characterized by a vast lagoon naturally protected from, and connected to, the sea, which facilitated the installation of a harbour. Only after the 5th century AD, with the gradual progression of the coastline to the west and the consequent closure of the lagoon, was the ancient harbour abandoned and replaced with a new one further to the west.43 In the area of Coltano and Stagno, behind the littoral, the presence of probably swamplands did not impede the installation of Roman farms, dating from the 1st century BC to the 4th-5th centuries AD. 44 During the Middle Ages, the hydrogeological situation did not change: several swamp formations are documented between Coltano and Stagno (the swampland of Stagno is recorded in the medieval sources with the term Tumulus, and extended to San Piero a Grado during the 13th century) and also in other sectors of the plain to the north and the east of the town of Pisa, to the edge of Mount Pisano45, in the southern sector of the plain near Macerata and Vicarello (recorded in the sources as Gonfus Vetus and Novus),46 and near Lavaiano and Gello in the eastern sector of the plain.47. The probable extension of medieval swamps has been reconstructed using a predictive model, based on different factors (elevation, slope, soil typology, medieval toponyms referring to swamp formation), and in some sectors compared with the stratigraphic data.48 A wonderful 16th-century map created by Leonardo da Vinci49 shows that the situation at that time was not so different: the plain was

 43

Cécile Allinne, Christophe Morhange, Marinella Pasquinucci and Camille Roumieux, “Géoarchéologie des ports de Pise”; Monica Baldassarri, “Strutture portuali e comunicazioni marittime nella Toscana medievale alla luce della fonte archeologica (VIII-inizi XIII sec. d.C.)”, I sistemi portuali della Toscana mediterranea, ed. by Giuseppe Petralia (Pisa: Pacini Editore, 2010), pp. 81-116. 44 Simonetta Menchelli, “Contributo allo studio del territorio pisano: Coltano e l’ex Padule di Stagno”, Studi classici orientali, 32 (1984), pp. 255-270. 45 Gabriele Gattiglia, MAPPA. Pisa medievale, pp. 38-56. 46 Dizionario Geografico, Fisico e Storico della Toscana, ed. by Emanuele Repetti (Florence: without Publisher, 1835) II, p. 466. 47 Marinella Pasquinucci, Serena Menchelli and Paolo Morelli, “Territorio e popolamento tra i fiumi Arno, Cascina ed Era”, pp. 239-247. 48 Gabriele Gattiglia, MAPPA. Pisa medievale. 49 Leonardo da Vinci, Mappa della pianura di Pisa e della bocca d’Arno, Codice di Madrid, II, cc. 52v-53r (1503).

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The Roman and Medieval Settlement in the Pisa Plain

characterized by a vast swamp formation at Coltano, Castagnolo and Stagno (to the south) and near Mount Pisano, and a well-defined hydrological network is illustrated. This situation effectively changed in the 20th century (1922-1931), when the swamplands of Coltano and Stagno were reclaimed.50

Map 5-2. The reconstruction of the paleo-Arno river (by the Author)51

The above research confirms the changing nature of the Pisan landscape. The aim of my future research will be to reconstruct the evolution of the ancient landscape, in particular in the area between Pisa and Cascina, where the majority of centuriation axes are preserved. This analysis will be possible through the reconstruction of depositional architecture (taphonomic process) and the integration of the existent archaeological data. To sum up, the main objectives of this project, in collaboration with the University of Pisa, will be to:



50 Simonetta Menchelli, “Contributo allo studio del territorio pisano: Coltano e l’ex Padule di Stagno”, Studi classici orientali, 32 (1984), pp. 255-270. 51 Giovanni Sarti, Veronica Rossi and Alessandro Amorosi, “Influence of Holocene stratigraphic architecture on ground surface settlements: A case study from the City of Pisa (Tuscany, Italy)”, Sedimentary Geology, 281 (2012), pp. 75-87.

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49

Reconstruct the paleo-course of the Arno during Roman times and its evolution until the Medieval period. Retrace the sedimentation process and the fossilisation dynamics of the ancient ground level. Start a preliminary reflection about the eastern sector of the plain, where less centurial traces are preserved than in the central sector despite good conservation of Roman sites.

52

Map 5-3.

 52

Veronica Rossi, Alessandro Amorosi, Giovanni Sarti and Roberta Romagnoli “New stratigraphic evidence”, pp. 201-214.

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The Roman and Medieval Settlement in the Pisa Plain

Conclusion The mentioned research demonstrates that reconstructing the ancient landscape and the interaction between human society and the environment requires an interdisciplinary approach. This includes the utilisation of GIS software able to collect and manage different data (consisting of ancient and modern cartography, satellite images, archaeological, geological and hydrological data) and to realize spatial analyses (DTM model), which could add new elements to the interpretative process. In the case of the Pisa plain, the analyses of the hydraulic system and the characteristics of the surface relief, and also the medieval settlement system have enabled us to analyse the transmission of the centuriation over the time. The archaeo-geographic approach, based on the morphological analysis of the parcels and carried out on various documents (aerial photographs, modern and ancient cadastres, satellite images), allows us to identify several forms which transmit or transform the elements of the ancient landscape. These represent the first step towards understanding the process that led to the construction of the centurial system as it is visible in the current morphology. The integration of stratigraphic and archaeological data permits the reconstruction of the dynamics between the paleo-environmental changes and the anthropic actions and also the taphonomic process which involved the fossilization of the ancient fields.

SHAPING THE MEDIEVAL LANDSCAPE OF BRAGA’S TERRITORY (5TH-13TH CENTURIES) LUÍS FONTES AND FRANCISCO ANDRADE UNIVERSIDADE DO MINHO

Introduction This study aims to present the main stages and characteristics of the evolution of Braga and its territory between the 5th century and the 13th century. It intends to establish the current state of the investigation about this subject, according to the latest perspectives and research methodologies. The urban analysis has benefited from the data obtained from the Archaeological Project of Braga (previously Salvamento de Bracara Augusta), led by the Archaeological Unit of the University of Minho.1 Recent work has provided information about the changes in Late Antiquity,2 particularly in terms of urban morphology, internal characteristics of the buildings3 and the use of some public spaces.4 The 1

Manuela Martins and Luís Fontes, “Bracara Augusta. Balanço de 30 anos de investigação arqueológica na capital da Galécia romana”, Buletin de la Societé archéologique champenoise, 19 (2010), pp. 111-124. 2 Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Luís Fontes, “The urban morphology of Braga between Late Antiquity and the fourteen-fifteen century”, Braga and its territory between the fifth century and the fifteen centuries, ed. by Raquel Martínez Peñín (Lleida: Edicions i Publicacions de la Universitat de Lleida, 2015), pp. 29-45. 3 Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Luís Fontes, “The urban morphology of Braga”, pp. 29-45. 4 Manuela Martins, Jorge Ribeiro, Fernanda Magalhães and Raquel Martínez Peñín, “Urban changes in Braga in Late Antiquity: The area of the Roman Theater”, Braga and its territory between the fifth century and the fifteen centuries, ed. by Raquel Martínez Peñín (Lleida: Edicions i Publicacions de la Universitat de Lleida, 2015), pp. 11-28.

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Shaping the Medieval Landscape of Braga’s Territory

approach to the landscape of the region of Braga has benefited from the research undertaken in recent years, which has been essentially based on an analysis of the territory and its archaeological sites, combined with documental data related to the organization of the territory in various chronological periods. This research analyses several documents about the territorial limits of Braga, namely documents dating from 873,5 905-910,6 1102,7 11288 and the donation of the ancient diocese of Dume to the bishop of Mondoñedo in 911.9 The remaining documental data related to the medieval settlement, were collected from the inquiries carried out in 122010 and 1288.11 The compilation of all the data allow us to attempt an evolutional synthesis of the city of Braga and its territory and identify some of the main agents and drivers of change and stability that guided the human settlement between Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages.

1. Urban evolution of Braga between Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages The city of Braga was founded at the end of the 1st century B.C. in the context of the political and administrative reorganization of territories in the north-west that followed the Cantabrian Wars.12 Previously the capital of conventus, it became, as part of the administrative reformation of Diocletian, the capital of the province of Gallaecia, separate from Tarraconensis.13 The city had had great political and administrative 5

Avelino Jesus da Costa, Liber Fidei Sanctae Bracarensis Ecclesiae (Braga: Critical Edition, Junta Distrital de Braga, 1965), pp. 33-35. 6 Avelino Jesus da Costa, Liber Fidei Sanctae Bracarensis Ecclesiae, pp. 36-38. 7 Alberto Feio, “O têrmo de Braga”, Boletim da Biblioteca Publica e Arquivo Distrital de Braga, 2 (1921), pp. 1-19. 8 Alberto Feio, “O têrmo de Braga”, pp. 1-19. 9 Avelino Jesus da Costa, Liber Fidei Sanctae Bracarensis Ecclesiae, pp. 38-40. 10 Portvgaliae Monvmenta Historica: Inquisitiones, ed. by Academiae Scientiarum Olisiponensis (Olissiponi: Typis Academis, 1888), I, pp. 1-287, especially p. 68, 161, 204 and 256. 11 Portvgaliae Monvmenta Historica: Inqvisitiones, Inquirições Gerais de D. Dinis de 1288, Sentenças de 1290 e Execuções de 1291, ed. by José Sottomayor-Pizarro (Lisboa: Academia das Ciências de Lisboa, 2015), IV/1, pp. 419-461. 12 Manuela Martins and Luís Fontes, “Bracara Augusta. Balanço de 30 anos de investigação arqueológica”, pp. 111-112. 13 Luís Fontes, Manuela Martins, Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Helena Paula Carvalho, “A cidade de Braga e o seu território nos séculos V-VII”, Espacios

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importance since antiquity, which was enhanced in the 5th century, under the Suebic Kingdom, when it was established as the capital of the new kingdom.14 The political preponderance of the city of Braga only decreased when the Suebic Kingdom was incorporated into the Visigothic Kingdom and the administrative functions were concentrated in Toledo, the capital of the kingdom. Bracara only retained an important role as a religious centre with some regional administrative relevance, as the north-western region seems to have maintained some autonomy in the context of the Visigothic Kingdom.15 The importance of Braga as a religious centre was interrupted due to the installation of the bishops of Braga in Lugo, until the restoration of the diocese in 1071, when it gradually regained a stronger status in the Iberian context.16

1.1. The Urban Structure The urbanisation of Braga in Late Antiquity was marked by the construction of an imposing wall that surrounded the urban area in the 3rd4th centuries, which greatly conditioned the known urbanistic changes of subsequent periods.17 In the 5th century, despite the political changes driven by the Suebic occupation, the urban dynamics of the previous century do not seem to have been altered, as the entire area of forty hectares bounded by the wall was occupied.18

Urbanos en el Occidente Mediterráneo (s. VI-VIII), ed. by Alfonso García (Toledo: Toletum Visigodo, 2010), pp. 255; Luís Fontes, “Braga e o norte de Portugal em torno de 711”, Zona Arqueológica, 15 (2011), p. 316. 14 Luís Fontes, Manuela Martins, Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Helena Carvalho, “A cidade de Braga e o seu território”, pp. 252- 255. 15 Luís Fontes, “O período suévico visigótico e o papel da igreja na organização do território”, Minho traços de identidade, ed. by Paulo Pereira (Braga: Universidade do Minho, 2009), p. 290. 16 Avelino Jesus da Costa, O Bispo D. Pedro e a organização da Arquidiocese de Braga (Braga: Irmandade de S. Bento da Porta Aberta, 1997), pp. 195-223. 17 Luís Fontes, Manuela Martins, Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Helena Paula Carvalho, “A cidade de Braga e o seu território”, p. 255. 18 Manuela Martins, Jorge Ribeiro, Fernanda Magalhães and Raquel Martínez Peñín, “Urban changes in Braga in Late Antiquity”, p. 14.

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Public buildings, such as the Roman theatre, were reused, and residential buildings, “parasitic” of the public entertainment building, were built.19 The peripheral buildings of the urban area, very close to the wall, were occupied, but in its interior, as with the episcopal complex,20 a new urban centrality began to develop in the north-east quadrant of the urban space. In addition to the episcopal complex, and although the data are scarce, the Christian topography also seems to have been more related to the east-west axis, defined by the ancient decumanus, which corresponded to one of the main circulation routes of the city.21 The internal organization of the urban space was altered, namely through the obstruction of some communication channels, which changed the methods of circulation through some parts of the city. At the same time that the public space was altered, the private space also suffered some changes, namely a bigger compartmentalization of residential units, preferring units of smaller dimensions with a functionality that was also distinct from the previous.22 The pattern of delocalizing the urban centre to the north-east, between the 5th and 8th centuries, culminated with the delimitation in the 9th century of an area of approximately 15 hectares. The ‘new’ defensive perimeter reused, in its northern zone, the Roman wall, and remained in use until the first quarter of the 14th century.23

19

Manuela Martins, Jorge Ribeiro, Fernanda Magalhães and Raquel Martínez Peñín, “Urban changes in Braga in Late Antiquity”, pp. 11-28. 20 Luís Fontes, Francisco Sande Lemos and Mário Cruz, “Mais velho que a Sé de Braga, intervenção arqueológica na catedral bracarense: noticia preliminar”, Cadernos de Arqueologia, 2/14-15 (1997-1998), pp. 137-164. 21 Luís Fontes, Manuela Martins, Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Helena Paula Carvalho, “A cidade de Braga e o seu território”, p. 258. 22 Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Luís Fontes, “The urban morphology of Braga”, p. 34. 23 Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Luís Fontes, “The urban morphology of Braga”, pp. 37-41.

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Figure 1. Urban evolution of Braga between the 5th and 13th century. (Figure 1A: The city of Braga in the 6th-8th centuries. 1. Cristian temple/episcopal cathedral; 2. Suebian-visigotic necropolis; 3. Disabled Roman forum; 4. Disabled Roman public baths; 5. Disabled roman theater; 6. Disabled Roman amphitheater; 7. Roman necropolis; TSHT Terra Sigillata Hispânica Tardia-limit of the distribution of Late Hispanic Sigillata; CPA Cerâmica de Produção Africana (“Ceramic of African production”); CCT Cerâmica Cinzenta Tardia (“Late Gray ceramic”); CF Cerâmica Foceiana (“Phocaean Ceramic”); (Figure 1B: The city of Braga in the 9th-13th centuries. 1. Church of Sanctae Marie Bracarensis/ episcopal cathedral; 2. Church of Sancto Petro de Maximinus; 3. Church of “Sancti Clementi”; 4. Wall and castle of the Late Middle Ages (by the Authors)

1.2. The Periphery of Braga The alterations evidenced in Braga, can be seen not only in the urban centre, but also in peripheral areas, mainly related to the spatial markers associated with Christianity, namely basilicas associated with necropolises, Some were, in the proximity of the Roman roads that were still in use, as was the case with São Clemente de Fujacal, and São Pedro de Maximinos, while others seemed to ordinate small suburban residential centres, as was the case with the basilicas of São Victor and São Vicente.24 These first evidences of the ancient Christian topography were the genesis of the late medieval suburbs that developed outside the walls, near the main roads of access to the city, namely Maximinos, Cruz de Pedra, Eirado, São Lázaro, Corredoura, Chãos and Burgo.

24

Luís Fontes, Manuela Martins, Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Helena Paula Carvalho, “A cidade de Braga e o seu território”, p. 258.

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Figure 2. Braga and its periphery, main Christian places (by the Authors)

2. The Territory of Braga The territory, which was directly linked to the city of Braga, has varied over time, due to historical vicissitudes that accompanied the political and administrative changes that the north-west of the peninsula experienced between the 5th-13th centuries, namely the formation of the Suebic Kingdom, the creation of the earldom of Portucale and the emergence of the Kingdom of Portugal. In the 5th century, the city of Braga was surrounded in its wider periphery by various villae, though, in a considerable number of cases, it is unknown how the settlements changed in detail, after the creation of the Suebic Kingdom. Between the 6th and 9th centuries the main entity that confronted the domain of the city of Braga was the monastery-diocese of

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Dume,25 which was under its spiritual dependence, but enjoyed some administrative autonomy. With the Muslim incursions, the region of Braga suffered some disruption to its social structures but remained populated. After the restoration of the diocese of Braga and the increase of power that the bishops of Braga acquired, the number of territories under the direct dependence of Braga, more specifically under the ecclesiastic authority of the city, increased through several Cartas de Couto and donations.26 Besides the territories that were directly under the dependence of Braga, the episcopal authority, which was based in the city, had spiritual and, in certain ways, jurisdictional, influence over a much wider area.

2.1. The Domain of Dume The monastery of Dume was established in the 6th century, reusing a Roman villa located in the north of the city of Braga. The foundation was closely related to the leading historic figure of São Martin (Bracarensis/Dumiensis),27 known as the ‘apostle of the Suebic people’. The monastic domain, which was in part the successor of the Roman villa, was simultaneously an integrant part of the monastic set and the limit of the diocese that was instituted in the 6th century, a monastery-diocese that was a personal prelature of its first abbot-bishop, São Martin.28 According to what is described in the confirmation of 911,29 the domain of the monastery-diocese incorporated a vast area of fertile lands that were well connected with the main communication routes that linked the city to the northern region. By reading the document and cross-referencing the data with the archaeological evidences known for the region,30 it is possible to acquire knowledge of the surrounding area of the monastic domain, namely of 25

Francisco Andrade, “Arquitetura e paisagem monásticas no território bracarense: O caso de Dume (S. Martinho)” (Braga: Universidade do Minho, Master Dissertation, 2015). 26 Avelino Costa, O Bispo D. Pedro, pp. 257-271. 27 Luís Fontes, A Basílica Sueva de Dume e Túmulo Dito de São Martinho (Braga: Universidade do Minho, 2006), p. 20. 28 Francisco Andrade, “Arquitetura e paisagem monásticas”, p. 65. 29 Avelino Costa, Liber Fidei Sanctae Bracarensis Ecclesiae, pp. 38-40. 30 Francisco Andrade, “Arquitetura e paisagem monásticas”, p. 57.

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several settlements located in the neighbourhood of Dume, practically in every direction., What is remarkable is the proximity of the archaeological remains of the Roman era with the places that we consider correspond to the ones that are enumerated in the document.31 Despite the limitations derived from the fact that the archaeological site of Dume is practically the only one that provides data from archaeological excavations, the permanence of some Roman delimitation elements that affect the morphology of the rest of the settlements in the region is remarkable. That permanence is verified, by the properties that border the monastic domain. Effectively, the reference made in the confirmation of 911, that the delimitation would respect the ancient limits, seems to reinforce this permanence, at least in parts of the agrarian settlements.32 Very close to the monastery of Dume, in Montélios, São Fructuoso, bishop of Braga and Dume, ordered the construction of a monastery dedicated to São Salvador, as well as a mausoleum to house his grave.33 This, along with the monastery of Dume, was an important religious and cultural centre in the periphery of the city of Braga. The monastery of Dume was abandoned in the 9th century, when its abbot was installed in Mondoñedo (Foz, Lugo), and it was in fact the document of 911 that confirmed the donation of the domain to the bishop, together with a detailed description of its limits.34 The monastery of São Salvador was rebuilt in the 9th-10th centuries within the contemporaneous process of restructuration, and a cult to São Fructuoso was instituted.35 The two monastic sets, among other data, play a key role in the comprehension of the organization of the rural space to the north of the city of Braga.

31

Francisco Andrade, “Arquitetura e paisagem monásticas”, p. 57. Francisco Andrade, “Arquitetura e paisagem monásticas”, pp. 115-117. 33 Luís Fontes, “A igreja sueva de São Martinho de Dume. Arquitetura cristã antiga de Braga e na Antiguidade Tardia do noroeste de Portugal”, Revista de Historia da Arte, 6 (2008), p. 172; Francisco Andrade, “Arquitetura e paisagem monásticas”, pp. 115-117; Luís Fontes, “Braga e o norte de Portugal em torno de 711”, p. 324. 34 Avelino Costa, Liber Fidei Sanctae Bracarensis Ecclesiae, pp. 38-40. 35 Luís Fontes, “A igreja sueva de São Martinho de Dume”, p. 172; Luís Fontes, “Braga e o norte de Portugal em torno de 711”, p. 324. 32

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Map 1. The monastic domain of Dume, after the confirmation of 911 (by the Authors)

2.2. The Evolution of the Domain of Braga from the 9th to the 12th Century The city of Braga was the head of a diocese that in earlier times occupied a vast territory that extended from Pontevedra to the Douro river, from the Atlantic coast to the Esla river.36 The territory that was directly attached to the city and that belonged to its domain was relatively small, not extending very far away from the periphery of the urban centre. The oldest document that we know about the territory of Braga is from 873. In that document, in addition to the delimitation of the city domain, it was ordered by Alfonso III that the city should be restored and repopulated.37 The document in question states that the observation of the limits of the domain of Braga was established by several orographic elevations like the Alpe Custodias or the Montem Maiorum. These places, besides being hills, also present remains of fortified hillforts known as “castros”, as in the cases of Castro Maximo and Castro super villa Ferrarios. In addition 36 37

Avelino Costa, O Bispo D. Pedro, p. 29. Avelino Costa, Liber Fidei Sanctae Bracarensis Ecclesiae, pp. 33-35.

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to these limits, the domain was also punctuated by watercourses (fontes de Aliste) and by artificial elements constituted by a stone embedded in the ground (petra ficta) and two stone elements related to water (archas).38 The description of these elements allows the conclusion that in the regions where the terrain morphology permits, the delimitation was made by the hills and other orographic elements. When that does not happen, it was made by artificial elements. Another interesting aspect is the fact that the domain of Braga confronts the limit of Dume in the northern region; it is explicitly mentioned in the document that the delimitation passed by its limits (per termino de Dumio). The cartographical transposition of the approximate limits of the domain described in 873 allows us to observe a configuration that has decentred to the east, relative to the urban centre, covering the totality of the east river upstream of the city.39 There is also another document from 905-910,40 that describes a new delimitation of the domain of Braga and confirms its possession by the bishop Flaviano Recaredo. This document differs from the previous in several points, but maintains some coincident references, like the Castro Maximo, Alpe Custodias and that the limits in the north were coincident with the domain of Dume (dividet cum dumiensis sedis). Despite these common elements and others that, although uncommon, don’t have implications in the limits of the domain, we verify effectively a discrepancy between the limit described in the document of 873 and the document of 905-910. The limits that the second document poses are substantially smaller than the first one, with the most notorious difference in the east zone. In the second document, the totality of the east river’s upstream course wasn’t included in the domain. Also in the south region, a discrepancy seems to exist between the two domains described. The document of 905-910, presents smaller

38

Avelino Costa, Liber Fidei Sanctae Bracarensis Ecclesiae, pp. 33-35. As stated by Carlos Alberto Ferreira de Almeida, “Arquitectura românica de Entre-Douro-e-Minho” (Porto: Universidade do Porto, PhD Dissertation, 1978), pp. 18-22, the control of the water was particularly important in the organization of the medieval territories. 40 Avelino Costa, Liber Fidei Sanctae Bracarensis Ecclesiae, pp. 36-38. 39

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dimensions, encompassing only the suburban communities of Gonderiz, Columnas, Subcolina and Tornarios.41 This reduction of limits referenced in the domain of 905-910, relative to the domain of 873, is difficult to understand. Effectively some of the donations that were made to Compostela, namely Sancti Fructuosi (877) and Sancti Victoris (883) happened between the two delimitations. That could be an element that indicates that the limits of the domain of Braga may have been dismembered. However, the fact that a considerable number of the places were donated or acquired by the diocese of Braga in the 11th century could also be an indicator that the limits in question reveal an intention to legitimize the ownership of those places. Despite the possible interpolations that the documents may contain, the data about the limits of the domain, according to authors like Pierre David, were based on an authentic delimitation.42 Due to the lack of documents with bigger accuracy and reliability, these are the only known documents that can provide us with data about the limits at that time. The domain with a broader area, described in the document of 873, was recovered by the limits of the couto of 1112, in the epoch of the archbishop Mauritius. The region of Fontes de Aliste was once again incorporated in the boundaries. In the west, the limits were maintained, as the limits of the domain of Braga continued to be made by columnas and established by rivulum tortum. The domain of 1112 reveals new alterations.43 In addition to the region of Fraião and Nogueira, the main verified alteration is the inclusion of Dume in the domain of Braga, which tallies with the full integration of the parish of Dume into the diocese of Braga, ordered by Pope Paschal II in 1103. From this moment the close relation between the two regions ends, since the prelate of Dume was installed in the locality of the north of Galicia. The limits of the couto in 1128 expanded a lot, in comparison to the domain’s previous limits. In the north and north-east direction, the limit extended to the Cávado river, and in the south-west direction it embraces the parishes of Arentim, Tadim, Ruilhe, Celeirós, Aveleda, Vimieiro, Vilaça, Cunha, and the Bastuço area (Santo Estevão and São João), which 41

Avelino Costa, O Bispo D. Pedro, pp. 48-55. Avelino Costa, O Bispo D. Pedro, pp. 48-55 and 257-267. 43 Alberto Feio, “O têrmo de Braga”, pp. 1-19. 42

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was already in the municipality of Barcelos. In the south direction the parishes of Figueiredo, Lamas, Escudeiros and Esporões were incorporated. In the south-east, in addition to the parish of Espinho the domain also incorporated Balazar, though it was later detached and passed to the domain of Guimarães.44 With the couto of 1128, the administrative limits that the region of Braga would have in future times started to be outlined.

Map 2. Evolution of the limits of the domain of Braga (by the Authors)

2.3. Settlement in Braga from the 11th to the 13th Century The region inter Limiam et Ave, where Braga is located, remained populated during this period, although numbers fell due to the instability that occurred in the period following the Muslim incursions and the subsequent disorganization, as proved by Avelino Jesus da Costa’s analysis of the census of the late 11th century ordered by bishop Peter.45

44 45

Alberto Feio, “O têrmo de Braga”, pp. 1-19. Avelino Costa, O Bispo D. Pedro.

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The data collected in this document46 allows the identification of a very well structured, dense network of parishes, revealing a higher density of parishes than currently exists and a higher number of monasteries in comparison to more recent periods. In fact, in the corresponding territory to the Archdeaconry of Braga, there were at least twenty other parishes that later became extinct. Even if we exclude, two parishes that weren’t present in the census and another that – although evidences of occupation previous to the census being carried out are present – was only elevated to the status of parish at the beginning of the 20th century, the number of parishes at the end of the 11th century was far superior to the number of parishes in the 20th century, even before the administrative reorganization of 2013. Such a high number of parishes, as Avelino Jesus da Costa demonstrated, could hardly be the result of a recent organization, in the context of the Asturian conquest. This conclusion of the author, which we share, was the basis of contesting the strategic ermamento thesis to the region of Braga, and one of the main proofs presented to defend its inexistence. The vast region of the Archdeaconry of Braga in the 11th century embraced a region slightly larger than the actual municipality of Braga, including several parishes that are currently part of Barcelos in its east zone, like the area of the monastery of Vilar de Frades and the area of Bastuço. The parishes of Navarra, Santos Lucrécia de Algeriz, Crespos, Pousada, Sobreposta and Pedralva,47 which presently belong to Braga, belonged to Lagenoso. This wide settlement network was served by the main Roman roads that were still in use. The defense of the territory of Braga was ensured by a network of fortifications outlined in previous centuries to provide a defense from the episodic devastations carried out by Muslim, Norman and Viking forces. This system was based around the network of hillforts in the region, of which some were of pre-Roman foundation and others, less elaborated, were founded in the early Middle Ages. The implementation of these defensive structures seems to configure a model that favors their implantation in places that allowed the control of communication paths

46

Avelino Costa, O Bispo D. Pedro. Referenced parishes correspond to parishes before the administrative reform of 2013.

47

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and were articulated with the more populated valleys, ensuring refuge to the populations that dwelt there. In the wider surroundings of Braga we documented eleven fortifications that may have performed this function. One of the most important places in this typology was the Sancta Marta hill, an ancient oppidum near the city of Braga, which was also a site chosen in the 6th century to build a Suebian palace.48

Map 3. Settlement in Braga in the 11th century (Censual) (by the Authors)

This settlement matrix, although presenting some continuity, evolved due to political and social contingencies, namely the reinforcement of the prerogatives of the archbishop of Braga and the enlargement of the domain in 1128 that accompanied the insertion of this territory in the Portuguese independent state that started to take shape in the 12th century. The Inquisitiones ordered by King Alfonso II in 1220,49 provide data of an administrative organization of the territory that corresponds with the current municipality of Braga. This territory was largely occupied by the 48

Luís Fontes, “Braga e o norte de Portugal em torno de 711”, p. 320. Portvgaliae Monvmenta Historica: Inquisitiones, I, pp. 1-287, especially 68, 161, 204 and 256. 49

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Couto of Braga, with limits that correspond, with some minor alterations, to the limits that were granted in 1128. These alterations happened primarily in the east zone of Braga, belonging to Penafiel de Bastuço, covering the parishes of Tadim, Ruilhe, Celeirós, Aveleda, Vilaça, Cunha and the monastery of Vimieiro, included in 1128 in the Couto of Braga, together with several parishes near the castle of Penafiel de Bastuço and the monastery of Areias de Vilar. The monastery of Tibães, founded in 1071,50 would also have had an autonomous status. The Julgado de Pedralvar was also included in the interior of the current limits of Braga. This was a small territorial circumscription constituted only by three parishes that nowadays correspond to the parishes of Pedralva and Sobreposta.

Map 4. Settlement in Braga in 1220 (Inquisitiones) (by the Authors)

The similar inquiries set in 128851 give an identical scenario, although, the more profound level of the descriptions, allows us to increase the detail of the 50 Luís Fontes, São Martinho de Tibães. Um sítio onde se fez um mosteiro, Ensaio em Arqueologia da Paisagem e Arquitectura (Lisboa: Instituto Português do Património Arquitectónico, 2005). 51 Portvgaliae Monvmenta Historica: Inqvisitiones, Inquirições Gerais de D. Dinis de 1288, Sentenças de 1290 e Execuções de 1291, IV/1, pp. 419-461.

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analysis of the distribution and land ownership, and the privileges, exemptions and abuses perpetrated by individuals or institutions in this region. A more general analysis of the data, allows us to look at a territory identical to the one that is presented in 1220, with the exception of the parish of Espinho, which had temporarily passed to the jurisdiction of Guimarães. A proliferation of privileged lands (honras) can be also verified, all over the actual territory of Braga, with more incidences in the lands that belong to Penafiel de Bastuço. A total of 73 privileged proprieties (honras) can be identified, within the territorial circumscriptions that somehow overlap the actual municipality of Braga,52 distributed in an unequal way. The Julgado de Penafiel de Bastuço presents a honra/parish ratio of 1:3, only being surpassed by the small Couto de Vimieiro, localized between itself and the Couto de Braga, which presents a ratio of 1:5. The Couto de Braga presents less than a honra per parish, with a ratio of 0:9. Only the Couto de Tibães and the Couto de Pedralvar present a smaller density of honras per parish, with a ratio of 0:5 for Tibães and a complete absence of honras in Pedralvar, another domain of the archbishop of Braga. This tendency seems to evidence, in a certain way, that the areas under the direct dependence of the prelate of Braga would be less permeable to the existence of entities out of his sphere of influence. The attempts of preservation and reinforcement of power by the archbishops of Braga would become notorious in later periods.

Conclusions The shaping of the landscape of Braga, between the 5th and 13th centuries was largely influenced by the previous reality, and it was also conditioned by the development of the territory of Braga in the subsequent periods. The alterations of the urban morphology were guided essentially by an organic evolution from the 5th century, as well as a gradual change of the functional areas and relocation of the city centre in the north-east area. The alterations to the configuration of the domain reflect the social and political dynamics that were verified, namely the success and failure of the powerful forces of the region, in particular the diocese of Braga.

52

It wasn’t considered the Julgado de Guimaraez, because the inclusion of Espinho parish was a punctual situation, and the vast land occupied by the Julgado de Guimaraez was a totally different reality.

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Map 5. Settlement in Braga in 1288, showing the density of Honras (Inquisitiones) (by the Authors)

The main spatial markers of the landscape were, in the earlier periods, the elements that were related to the ancient Christian topography, both inside and outside the walls, which enhanced the development and the concentration of Christian communities in order for them to, live their daily lives, practice their economic activities and interact socially in the orbit of these Christian locales. These places constituted evangelization centres and also played an important role in the affirmation of the social power of the church and of the elites that financed some of the constructions. Gradually, the Church tried to become the most powerful entity in the region, benefiting from the protection of the political powers. The alliance between political and religious powers was reinforced after the independence of Portugal, maintaining a strategic alliance between the two entities that increased their capacity of reaction relative to external entities., This had special incidence in the religious field, namely in opposition to the newly created archbishopric of Santiago de Compostela, which had, until the 12th century, property rights in the region of Braga. After the consolidation of the power of the archbishopric of Braga in the region, there were notoriously attempts to limit the power of external entities within the domain of the archdiocese of Braga, which will continue way beyond our period of study.

THE CITY OF BRAGA AND ITS TERRITORY THROUGH ITS MATERIAL CULTURE (5TH-15TH CENTURIES)1 RAQUEL MARTÍNEZ PEÑÍN, MANUELA MARTINS AND LUÍS FONTES UNIVERSIDADE DO MINHO

Introduction Since the seventies, the research work of the Archaeology Unit of the University of Minho on the city of Braga and its territory in the 12th century has provided a wealth of data on the evolution of both the urban enclave – Projecto de Salvamento de Bracara Augusta – and its surrounding area – Projecto de Salvamento de São Martinho de Dume. The result of decades of intense work on a large number of archaeological excavations has provided an enormous amount of ceramics from welldefined stratigraphic origins, something that is crucial to give a problematic study, such as this, some guarantees. On this solid foundation we set up the study presented below. In it we try to recognize more precisely whether the ceramic containers were produced in Braga’s territory or if they were imported between late antiquity and the Middle Ages. This will enable us, on the one hand, to do an evolutionary analysis of the different technological aspects that characterize these ceramic productions, and on the other, by no means less important, to allow a more precise dating of each of the contexts to which they are linked.

 1

This paper is part of the research project funded by the UID/AUR/04509/2013, FCTMEC, FEDER and PT2020. Abbreviations used: ARSW, Terra Sigillata Africana; TSHT, Lately Hispanic Terra Sigillata; Late Roman C, Lately Focense Terra Sigillata.

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Similarly, from a technical point of view, the analysis of the changes that are witnessed in the manufacture of ceramic parts also enables us to offer information on the social, economic and cultural characteristics of Braga and its territory during the extensive period of time under study. Obviously the study we will develop will not start from scratch; the first works on the ceramic productions of the late medieval period and Braga’s territory were published in the eighties. In the case of containers of medieval ascription, particularly noteworthy is the analysis carried out by Alexandra Gaspar on materials found in archaeological interventions at Nossa Senhora do Leite.2 In addition, during the nineties a comprehensive study referring to Braga’s medieval pieces was released.3 These analyses are completed with the publication of many of the ceramics from the 11th and 15th centuries excavated at the monastery of São Martinho de Tibães.4 As regards the late containers, Manuela Delgado has published a selection of the ‘engobe vermelho tardios’ (“late red slipware”) ceramics found, so far, in Braga.5 We should also mention the first results of the excavations in the church of São Martinho de Dume, where a significant number of late antique and early medieval materials have been exhumed.6 Currently, the ceramics contained in this enclave, both those discovered in the old excavations and the most recent, are under study.

 2

Alexandra Gaspar, “Escavações Arqueológicas na Rua de Nª. Sª. do Leite, em Braga”, Cadernos de Arqueologia, 2/2 (1985), pp. 51-125. 3 Alexandra Gaspar, “Contribuição para o estudo das cerámicas medievais de Braga”, IV Congreso Internacional de Cerámica Medieval en el Mediterráneo Occidental (Lisboa: Campo Arqueológico de Mértola, 1991), pp. 365-372; Alexandra Gaspar, “Cerâmica Medievais de Braga”, Actas do 1º Congresso de Arqueologia Peninsular (Porto: Sociedade Portuguesa de Antropologia e Etnologia, 1995) pp. 253-260. 4 Luís Fontes, Isabel Maria Fernandes and Fernando Castro, “Peças de louça preta decoradas com moscovite encontradas nas escavações arqueológicas do Monteiro de S. Martinho de Tibães”, Actas das 2ª Jornadas de cerámica Medieval e PósMedieval Métodos e resultados para o seu estudo, ed. by João Manuel de Diogo and Hélder Chilra Abraços (Tondela: Câmara de Tondela, 1998), pp. 355-363. 5 Manuela Delgado, “Noticia sobre cerâmica de engobe vermelho nâo vitrificàvel encontradas em Braga”, Cadernos de Arqueologia, 10-11 (1993-1994), pp. 113152. 6 Luís Fontes and Alexandra Gaspar, “Cerâmicas da região de Braga na transição da Antiguidade Tardia para a Idade Média”, La Céramique Médiévale en Méditerraneé. Actes du 6 congrés de l’Association Internationale pour l’étude des céramiques médiévales méditerranéenes, ed. by Gabrielle Démians d’Archimbaud (Aix-en-Provence: Narration, 1997), pp. 203-212.

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Studies on the later locally produced materials took an important turn with the presentation of Gaspar’s PhD thesis, in which the production of ‘cinzenta tardia’ (“late grey”) ceramic from a number of sites in the city of Braga, which already have an explanatory stratigraphic sequence, are analyzed. The novelty of this work is the inclusion of the archaeometric analysis, applied to the examination of these pieces, which allows the author to specify the origin of the raw materials with which they were made more precisely, and also to identify the different ceramological groups using microscopy.7 A few years later came, the work entitled Guia das Cerâmicas de Produçâo Local de Bracara Augusta, in which there is a short chapter on the late antique productions known to date in the city.8 Later, in 2012, Fernández and Morais conducted a review and an update of the ‘engobe vermelho tardio’ ceramics of Braga.9 Finally, the results of some of the late foreign productions located in different excavations in the city of Braga have been released, although these materials lack an explanatory stratigraphic sequence.10

 7

Alexandra Gaspar, “Contribuição para o estudo das Cerâmicas Cinzentas dos séculos V-VI d. C. de Braga” (Braga: Universidade do Minho, PhD Master Dissertation, 2000); Alexandra Gaspar, “Cerâmicas cinzentas da antiguidade tardia e alto-medievais de Braga e Dume”, Cerámicas tardorromanas y altomedievales en la Península Ibérica. Ruptura y continuidad, ed. by Luis Caballero, Pedro Mateos and Manuel Retuerce (Madrid: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, 2003), pp. 455-481. 8 Manuela Delgado and Rui Morais, Guia das cerâmicas de produção local de Bracara Augusta (Braga: Centro de Investigação Transdisciplinar Cultura, Espaço e Memória, 2009), pp. 61-70. 9 Adolfo Fernández Fernández and Rui Morais, “Terra Sigillata Bracarense Tardía (Tsbt). O Grupo II das cerâmicas de engobe vermelho nao vitrificavel (Delgado 1993-94). O cerámicas de engobe vermelho. Grupo II (Delgado y Morais, 2009)”, Cerámicas Hispanorromanas II. Producciones regionales, ed. by Darío Bernal and Albert Ribera (Cadiz: Servicio de Publicaciones de la Universidad de Cádiz, 2012), pp. 131-174. 10 Manuela Delgado, Adolfo Fernández, José Quaresma and Rui Morais, “Una aproximación a la terra sigillata africana de Bracara Augusta (Braga, Portugal)”, Rei creatariae romanae favtorvm actas 43. Congressus vicesimus octavus Rei Cretariae Romanae Fautorum Catinae habitus MMXII (Bonn: Rei Cretariae Romanae Favtores, 2014), pp. 671-680.

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1. Space and Time Frame The urban core of Braga has an Augustan origin, so the archaeological remains exhumed in various excavations, so far, have made it possible to conclude that this is a well planned city and has had a development project since its foundation.11

Figure 1. Early Imperial chain mail from Bracara Augusta (by the Authors)



11 Manuela Martins, As termas romanas do Alta da Cividade. Un exemplo de arquitectura pública em Bracara Augusta (Braga: Unidade de Arqueologia da Universidade do Minho, 2005); Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Braga entre a época romana e a Idade Moderna: uma metodologia de análise para a leitura da evolução da paisagem urbana” (Braga: Universidade do Minho, PhD Dissertation, 2008); Manuela Martins, “Bracara Augusta. Panorama e estado da questão sobre seu urbanismo”, Do Castro á Cidade. A romanización na Gallaecia e na Hispânia Indoeuropea (Lugo: Diputación de Lugo, 2009), pp. 181-211; Manuela Martins and Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Em torno da Rua Verde. A evolução urbana de Braga na longa duração”, Evolução da paisagem urbana. Transformação morfológica dos tecidos históricos, ed. by Maria do Carmo Ribeiro anda Arnaldo Melo (Braga: Centro de Investigação Transdisciplinar “Cultura, Espaço e Memória”, 2013), pp. 11-44; Manuela Martins, Jorge Ribeiro, Fernanda Magalhães and Raquel Martínez Peñín, “Urban changes in Braga in Late Antiquity: The area of the Roman Theater”, Braga and its territory between the fifth century and the fifteen centuries, ed. by Raquel Martínez Peñín (Lleida: Edicions i Publicacions de la Universitat de Lleida, 2015), pp. 11-28.

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Right from its foundation, it was equipped with a number of public buildings – forum, theater, amphitheater, baths12 – and had two main lines of communication: the cardo maximo, running in a north / north westsouth / south east direction, and the decumanus, oriented west / south west-east / east north-east. The excavations have also allowed us to identify a part of the sanitation network built below the aforementioned cardo.13 Also, several cemetery areas have been located along the major roads that surround the city. Almost all these were in continuous use between the High Imperial period and Late Antiquity, as is the case with the Necropolis da Via XVII or Cangosta da Palha.14

 12

Manuela Martins, Jorge Ribeiro and Fernanda Magalhães, “A Arqueologia urbana em Braga e a descoberta do teatro de Bracara Augusta”, Forum, 40 (2006), pp. 9-30; Manuela Martins, Jorge Ribeiro, Fernanda Magalhães and Cristina Braga, “Urbanismo e arquitectura de Bracara Augusta. Sociedade, economia e lazer”, Evolução da paisagem urbana. Sociedade e economía, ed. by Maria do Carmo Ribeiro anda Arnaldo Melo (Braga: Centro de Investigação Transdisciplinar “Cultura, Espaço e Memória”, 2012), pp. 29-67; Manuela Martins, Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and José Meireles, “As termas públicas de Bracara Augusta e o abastecimiento de agua da cidade romana”, Aquae Sacrae. Agua y sacralidad en época antigua, ed. by Ana Costa, Lluís Palahí and David Vivó (Girona: Universitat de Girona, 2011), pp. 69-102; Manuela Martins, Jorge Ribeiro, Ricardo Mar, Fernanda Magalhães and Raquel Martínez Peñín, “El teatro romano de Bracara Augusta y la urbanización del noroeste de la Península Ibérica”, Férvedes, 8 (2015), pp. 321-330; Manuela Martins, Ricardo Mar, Jorge Ribeiro and Fernanda Magalhães, “The Roman theatre of Bracara Augusta”, Centro y periferia en el mundo clásico: Actas XVIII Congreso Internacional Arqueología Clásica, ed. by José María Álvarez Martínez, Trinidad Nogales and Isabel Rodà (Merida: Museo Romano de Mérida, 2014), II, pp. 861-864; Manuela Martins, Jorge Ribeiro, Fernanda Magalhães and Raquel Martínez Peñín, “Urban changes in Braga in Late Antiquity”, pp. 11-28. 13 Manuela Martins and Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Em torno da Rua Verde”, pp. 11-44. 14 Manuela Delgado, Francisco Sande Lemos and Manuela Delgado, “Escavações de emergência na Necrópole Romana da Cangosta da Palha”, Cadernos de Arqueologia, 2/4 (1987), pp. 179-186; Manuela Martins, Manuela Delgado and Alain Tranoy and Patrick Le Roux, “As necrópoles de Bracara Augusta”, Cadernos de Arqueologia, 2/6-7 (1989), pp. 41-186; Cristina Braga, “Rituais funerários em Bracara Augusta: o novo núcleo de necrópole da Via XVII” (Braga: Universidade do Minho, PhD Master Dissertation, 2010); Cristina Braga, “A new sector of Via XVII necropolis in Bracara Augusta: the High Empire phase”, Centro y periferia en el mundo clásico: Actas XVIII Congreso Internacional Arqueología Clásica, ed. by José María Álvarez Martínez, Trinidad Nogales and Isabel Rodà (Merida: Museo Romano de Mérida, 2014), II, pp. 1253-1258;

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Similarly, archaeological interventions in different places of the city have allowed us to locate a number of domus of High Imperial chronology. In some of them arcaded areas overlooking the street have been recognized, whose ground floors were dedicated to retail spaces. At the same time, the field work has confirmed the presence, in several cases, of private baths.15 During the reign of Diocletian, Bracara Augusta became the capital of the new province of Galaecia. Thus, the most important constructive transformation of this time corresponds to the building of a great wall similar to other contemporary ones in the northwest cities of Lugo,16 Astorga17 and Leon,18 among others.

 Cristina Braga and Manuela Martins, “Bracara Augusta: rituais e espaços funerários”, Férvedes, 8 (2015) pp. 301-310. 15 Fernanda Magalhães, “Arquitectura doméstica em Bracara Augusta” (Braga: Universidade do Minho, PhD Master Dissertation, 2010); Manuela Martins, José Meireles, Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, Fernanda Magalhães and Cristina Braga, “The water in the city of Braga”, pp. 65-82; Fernanda Magalhães, “Arquitectura doméstica em Bracara Augusta”, Interconexões, 1 (2013), pp. 13-30; Jorge Ribeiro, Adolfo Fernández Fernández, Armandino Cunha, Manuela Martins, Fernanda Magalhães and Cristina Braga, “A cerâmica romana do balneário da rua D. Afonso Henriques: estudo preliminar da sequenciação cronológica e ocupacional do edifício (Braga, Portugal)”, As produções cerâmicas de imitação na Hispania. Monografias Ex Officina Hispana II (Actas do II Congresso da Sociedade de Estudos da Cerâmica Antiga da Hispânia, ed. by Rui Morais, Adolfo Fernández and María José Sousa, (Porto: Faculdade de Letras da Universidade do Porto, 2014), I, pp. 483-506; Raquel Martínez Peñín, Armandino Cunha, Fernanda Magalhães and Manuela Martins, “La secuencia tardoantigua y medieval de la zona arqueológica D. Afonso Henriques 36/40 y 42/56: una contribución al estudio de la cerámica medieval de Braga”, As produções cerâmicas de imitação na Hispania. Monografias Ex Officina Hispana II (Actas do II Congresso da Sociedade de Estudos da Cerâmica Antiga da Hispânia, ed. by Rui Morais, Adolfo Fernández and María José Sousa (Porto: Faculdade de Letras da Universidade do Porto, 2014), I, pp. 561-572; Manuela Martins, Jorge Ribeiro, Fernanda Magalhães and Raquel Martínez Peñín, “Metamorfoses de um espaço urbano. A sequência de ocupação da Zona Arqueológica da R. Afonso Henriques Nº 42 a 56, em Braga”, Oppidum, 7 (2014), pp. 42-53. 16 Carlos Andrés González Paz, “A muralla romana de Lugo: permanencia no medievo”, Murallas de ciudades romanas en el occidente del Imperio. Lucus Augusti como paradigma. Actas del Congreso Internacional celebrado en Lugo (26-29, XI, 2005) en el V aniversario de la declaración, por la UNESCO, de la muralla de Lugo como Patrimonio de la Humanidad, ed. by Antonio Rodríguez Colmenero and Isabel Rodà (Lugo: Diputación de Lugo, 2007), pp. 313-326. 17 María Ángeles Sevillano Fuertes, “La muralla romana de Astorga (León)”, Murallas de ciudades romanas en el occidente del Imperio. Lucus Augusti como

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Map 1. Map of Braga in the Late Antiquity (by the Authors)

 paradigma. Actas del Congreso Internacional celebrado en Lugo (26-29, XI, 2005) en el V aniversario de la declaración, por la UNESCO, de la muralla de Lugo como Patrimonio de la Humanidad, ed. by Antonio Rodríguez Colmenero and Isabel Rodà (Lugo: Diputación de Lugo, 2007), pp. 343-358; Milagros Burón Álvarez, “La puerta norte del recinto tardorromano de ‘Asturica Augusta’ (Astorga, León)”, Murallas de ciudades romanas en el occidente del Imperio. Lucus Augusti como paradigma. Actas del Congreso Internacional celebrado en Lugo (26-29, XI, 2005) en el V aniversario de la declaración, por la UNESCO, de la muralla de Lugo como Patrimonio de la Humanidad, ed. by Antonio Rodríguez Colmenero and Isabel Rodà (Lugo: Diputación de Lugo, 2007), pp. 359-380. 18 Victorino García Marcos, Rosalía María Durán and Ángel Morillo, “La muralla tetrárquica de Legio: aproximación al conocimiento de su sistema constructivo”, Murallas de ciudades romanas en el occidente del Imperio. Lucus Augusti como paradigma. Actas del Congreso Internacional celebrado en Lugo (26-29, XI, 2005) en el V aniversario de la declaración, por la UNESCO, de la muralla de Lugo como Patrimonio de la Humanidad, ed. by Antonio Rodríguez Colmenero and Isabel Rodà (Lugo: Diputación de Lugo, 2007), pp. 23-39; Ángel Morillo Cerdán, “Sistemas defensivos en los campamentos romanos de León”, V Congreso de Obras Públicas Romanas: Las Técnicas y las Construcciones en la Ingeniería Romana (Madrid: Fundación de la Ingeniería Técnica de Obras Públicas, 2010), pp. 463-477.

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During the 4th century, the city became, in turn, an Episcopal seat, which favoured the appearance of new public buildings, such as residential blocks, remodelled to suit a mass population living in a positive economic climate.19 At the beginning of the 5th century, a transcendental change for the city and for the entire northwest region of the peninsula took place: the establishment of Swabian rule in the territory, with Braga becoming the capital of this Kingdom.20 From this moment, buildings of Christian worship –such as the Cathedral – began to proliferate, located both inside and outside of the fortified late Roman enclosure – e.g. at São Victor, São Vicente or São Pedro. In addition, the construction of the palatial area of Falperra, attached to the Swabian court and located in the vicinity of the ancient Roman city, was carried out.21 At the same time, the erection of a series of monasteries in the territory surrounding Braga started, among which were those of São Martinho de Dume and São Frutuoso de Montélios.22



19 Luís Fontes, Manuela Martins, Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Helena Paula Carvalho, “A cidade de Braga e o seu território nos séculos V-VII”, Espacios Urbanos en el Occidente Mediterráneo (s. VI-VII), ed. by Alfonso García (Toledo: Toletvm Visigodo, 2010), pp. 255-262; Manuela Martins and Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Em torno da Rua Verde”, pp. 11-44; Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Luís Fontes, “The urban morphology of Braga between Late Antiquity and the fourteenth-fifteenth centuries”, Braga and its territory between the fifth and the fifteenth centuries, ed. by Raquel Martínez Peñín (Lleida: Edicions i Publicacions de la Lleida, 2015), pp. 29-45; Manuela Martins, Jorge Ribeiro, Fernanda Magalhães and Raquel Martínez Peñín, “Urban changes in Braga in Late Antiquity”, pp. 11-28. 20 Javier Arce Martínez, Bárbaros y romanos en Hispania (400-507 a. d.) (Madrid: Marcial Pons, 2005); Pablo de la Cruz Díaz, Celia Martínez Maza and Francisco Javier Sanz Huesma, Hispania tardoantigua y visigoda (Madrid: Ismo, 2007); Luís Fontes, “O período suévico visigótico e o papel da igreja na organização do território”, Minho traços de identidade, ed. by Paulo Pereira (Braga: Universidade do Minho, 2009), pp. 272-295; Luís Fontes, “Braga e o norte de Portugal em torno a 711”, Zona Arqueológica, 15 (2011), pp. 313-334; Luís Fontes, “Das Suebische Königreich auf der Iberischen Halbinsel”, Archäologie in Deutschland. Die Sueben, 5 (2014), pp. 32-35; Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Luís Fontes, “The urban morphology of Braga between Late Antiquity and the fourteenth-fifteenth centuries”, pp. 29-45; 21 Luís Fontes, Manuela Martins, Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Helena Carvalho, “A cidade de Braga e o seu território nos séculos V-VII”, pp. 255-262; Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Luís Fontes, “The urban morphology of Braga”, pp. 29-45. 22 Luís Fontes, A Basílica Sueva de Dume e Túmulo Dito de São Martinho (Braga: Unidade de Arqueologia da Universidade do Minho, 2006); Luís Fontes, “A igreja

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Around the year 550, the Swedish monarch ordered the construction of a primitive basilica at São Martinho de Dume, located below the current parish church. This raised an Episcopal seat and was devoted to São Martinho de Tours. A little later he founded a monastery next to it.23 In the late 6th century a vital political change occurred in this area when the Swabian Kingdom came under the control of the Visigoths.24 During the 6th and 7th centuries, archaeology shows that many of the spaces within the city walls of Braga were still inhabited. Moreover, it shows the reuse of most of the existing public areas, such as the theater, whose structures were reused and transformed into a presumably craft area.25 The Early Middle Ages began with the erection of a new walled enclosure in the north-western area of the Low Empire city. Within its small space was the primordial Romanesque cathedral, now a centre of Braga’s political and religious power.26 It was at this time that, its first major transformation took place as, in the past, it had been an early Christian temple prior to the erection of the pre-Romanesque structure, which became the site of the Romanesque cathedral.27 Thus began a strong alteration to the urban fabric inherited from the Roman era, both in the streets and the existing building structures.

 sueva de São Martinho de Dume, Arquitetura cristã antiga de Braga e na Antiguidade Tardia do noroeste de Portugal”, Revista de Historia da Arte, 6 (2008), pp. 162-181; Luís Fontes, “Braga e o norte de Portugal em torno de 711”, pp. 315-333; Francisco Andrade, “Arquitetura e paisagem monásticas no território bracarense: O caso de Dume (S. Martinho)” (Braga: Universidade do Minho, PhD Master Dissertation, 2015). 23 Francisco Andrade, “Arquitetura e paisagem monásticas no território bracarense”; Luís Fontes, A Basílica Sueva de Dume. 24 Javier Arce, Esperando a los árabes. Los visigodos en Hispania (507-711) (Madrid: Marcial Pons, 2011), pp. 97-110. 25 Luís Fontes, Manuela Martins, Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Helena Carvalho, “A cidade de Braga e o seu território nos séculos V-VII”, pp. 255-262; Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Luís Fontes, “The urban morphology of Braga”, pp. 29-45; Luís Fontes, “Braga e o norte de Portugal em torno a 711”, pp. 313-334. 26 Luís Fontes, “O norte de Portugal ente os séculos VIII e X: balanço e perspectivas de investigação”, Visigodos y omeyas VI. Asturias entre visigodos y mozárabes, ed. by Luis Caballero, Pedro Mateos and César García de Castro (Madrid: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, 2012), pp. 443-474. 27 Luís Fontes, Francisco Lemos and Mario Cruz, “Mais velho que a Sé de Braga. Intervenção arqueológica na catedral bracarense: noticia preliminar”, Cadernos de Arqueologia, 14-15 (1997), pp. 142-143.

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Throughout the 14th and 15th centuries the city grew significantly in the north, which meant an extension of the defensive enclosure was required on that flank. In this way, the epicenter of both the political and religious power of the city of Braga came to be placed in the vicinity of the Cathedral and the Paço Episcopal.28

Map 2. Map of Braga in the Early (1) and Late Middle Ages (2) (by the Authors)

 28

Francisco Sande Lemos, Manuela Delgado and Manuela Martins, “Sondagens arqueológicos no Largo do Paço, Braga”, Cadernos de Arqueologia, 2/5 (1988), pp. 67-76; Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, O antigo paço Arquiepiscopal de Braga, (Braga: Coleccão sítios com História, Universidade do Minho, 2011); Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Arnaldo Melo, “A materialização dos poderes no espaço da memoria e identidade urbana medieval”, Medievalismo, 12 (2012), pp. 2-37; Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Luís Fontes, “The urban morphology of Braga between Late Antiquity and the fourteenth-fifteenth centuries”, pp. 29-45.

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2. Materials Study The ceramics analyzed have been found in several archaeological excavations carried out in the city of Braga and its territory. This is a set of sites where several phases of occupation have been identified, with a chronological spectrum extending from the very founding of the city in the Augustan age, up to relatively recent times – the sites cover the area surrounding the Teatro, Ex Albergue Distrital, Afonso Henriques 20/26, Afonso Henriques 42/56, Escola da Sé Velha and São Martinho de Dume. Thus, our analysis focuses on the study and characterization of a series of ceramics that are perfectly stratigraphic, assigned to the late antique and medieval occupation phases already identified in our study area. Regarding the late ceramics, we find an abundance of imported pieces (‘ARSW’, ‘TSHT’, ‘Late Roman C’). We also have copies of some of the exogenous ceramics in two productions of local character: these are, firstly, those known as ‘engobes vermelhos’ and, secondly, the ‘cinzenta tardia’. These containers date from the early 4th century and the 6th century. At the same time we have a number of common pieces with a much broader chronology (5th-7th centuries). We must also mention a diverse set of ceramics dating from an early medieval chronology (between the 8th and 11th century). Finally, a varied repertoire of ceramics from the Late Middle Ages also appears.

2.1. Imported Productions Regarding the imported late productions, the ‘ARSW’ are the pieces that are most frequently found in the excavations of the city and its territory. The forms that are especially frequent are Hayes 44, Hayes 58A, Hayes 59A, Hayes 59B, Hayes 61A, Hayes 61B, Hayes 73 Hayes 76, Hayes 91, Hayes 97 and, Hayes 104, among others. The chronology of these ranges from the mid 3rd century until, in some cases, the end of the 6th century. From a quantitative point of view, next are the ‘TSHT’ containers usually located in archaeological interventions in Braga; these include Palol 1, Palol 2, Palol 3, Palol 4, Palol 8, Palol 9/11, Ritt. 8 and Drag. 37T, among others. These cover a somewhat broader period of time, ranging between the 4th and 6th centuries. Lastly, copies of ‘Late Roman C’ are less frequent, but some examples of Hayes 3 made between the 5th and 6th centuries have been found.

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2.2.1. Local ‘engobe vermelho tardio’ ceramic ‘Engobe vermelho’ ceramics are characterized by clear pastes with few tempers and smaller in size. They are modelled using a fast turning wheel, and mostly undergo oxidative type firings. They are characterized by the use of slips with various shades of red covering both the inside and outside parts. It is also common to see the presence of smooth surfaces. Morphologically they mimic the imported sigillata ceramics used as tableware, such as ‘ARSW’ (Hayes 42, 61, 73, 76) and ‘TSHT’ (Palol 9/11, Drag. 37T, among others). This production dates from the end of the 4th century and the 6th century.

Figure 2. Late Antiquity ‘engobe vermelho’ ware (by the Authors)

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2.2.2. Local ‘cinzentas tardias’ ceramic The raw materials with which the ‘cinzentas tardias’ are made are decanted clays, and non-plastic inclusions, which are rather slim and small in size. From a technical point of view, they are modelled using a quick turning wheel and possess smoothed surfaces on the inside and outside. The ceramics were subjected to reducing firing conditions, which cause the walls to be of a greyish and blackish colour. In terms of their form, most types were also copied later and were used as tableware, such as ‘ARSW’ (Hayes 42, 59, 61A, 61B, 73, 76, 97, among others), ‘TSHT’ (Palol 9/11, Drag. 37T) and ‘Late Roman C’ (Hayes 3). These are containers whose original productions were made between the end of the 4th century and the 6th century.

Figure 3. Late Antiquity cinzenta ware, in imitation of ‘ARSW’, ‘TSHT’ and ‘Late Roman C’ (by the Authors)

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2.3. Common Late Productions As for the common productions, these were made with less unsettled pastes than before, in which tempers are more abundant and of a larger size. Technically, they were produced by the use of lathes and warping, and are characterized by an irregular basis as well as smoothed inner and outer surfaces, though in a much coarser way than in the previous case form. In terms of the firing, the reducing predominates. Morphologically, a small set of culinary pieces can be identified. These include the presence of pots with rounded thickened lips, slightly concave necks and globular bodies. In addition, several copies of pitchers of rounded or slightly bevelled lips, slightly cowl necks and handles of rectangular section born from the central part of the neck are identified. There are also abundant quantities of bowls with rounded lips and hemispheric bodies. Some dishes that are characterized by rounded lips and appear to be shallow also appear.

Figure 4.Antiquity Common Productions ware (by the Authors)

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2.4. Early Medieval Ceramic In this case, there is little typological variety. The small number of types may be related to the fact that many of the pieces had polyfunctional uses, and crockery made of other materials other than ceramic probably existed. Quantitatively, the most abundant type is the pitcher of narrow neck, bevelled lips, and globular body designed to handle one or two tabs born from the edge. Then there are the medium-sized pots, whose edges present enormous similarities with those of the ‘cinzentas tardias’ common ceramic. However, the Early Medieval pots have the most varied lips, such as thickened or, rounded. There are also several lids of different dimensions. The surface of these appears to be polished, which indicates that they were made after firing. The functionality of these is undetermined; the smaller ones may have served to cover containers with narrow mouths, made of materials that have not been preserved, or as gambling chips. Larger types could be used to cover some of the above forms – pots, jars or pans, among others. In addition, some examples of jugs with lobed mouths, straight necks, globular bodies and handles arising from the edge can be recognized. The archaeological excavations have also located a number of crucible fragments, used to melt materials at very high temperatures. These have egg-shaped, concave bases. Remains of what appears to be metal concretions have adhered to the outer wall of the container. These data reveal enough evidence to consider the existence of some type of metal production. Typologically several lids with a flat base and a rounded or bevelled lip can be recognized. They are characterized by having a vertical handle appended in the middle. Given their size, they should have been used to cover both small (pots) and midsize (pans) containers. Meanwhile, the plates have flared edges and rounded lip that is slightly bevelled inside, possibly to contain a cover. We must also mention the presence of bowls with flared edges and hemispheric bodies. The lips are straight, rounded or bevelled inside, in order that a cover can be placed inside. The pans have flared edges, swollen lips, slightly curvy bodies and flat bases. These have two handles of rectangular section that extend from the height of the rim to the centre of the body. The saucers are very similar to the dishes, but of a slightly larger size. They have gray paste and reduced burning, while possessing

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flared edges, rounded lips and flat bases. Finally, a possible mould is identified, of a clearly reduced burning gray paste, whose use may be related to the foundry and metal modelling.

Figure 5. Late Antiquity Common Productions ware (by the Authors)

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2.5. Late Medieval Ceramic As for the late medieval containers, the macroscopic observations allowed us to distinguish several ceramic groups that match those already established by Gaspar for Nossa Senhora do Leite.29 These are containers made with relatively decanted clay, where non-plastic inclusions such as mica, quartz, organic charred or grog abound. Technologically we find pieces that were manufactured using rapid turning wheels, and only the accessories and some forms of larger size, were combined with slow turning leading to warping. From a morphological point of view, the predominant type is the pan with rounded or bevelled lips, a slightly concave neck and globular body; some have a finish based on horizontal incised lines. We also found a number of lids that are characterized by abundant decoration. Bowls of rounded lips and semi-hemispherical bodies also appear. A number of single-fired pitchers with straight lips, concave necks and globular bodies are also documented, including some with spouts. Lastly, we should mention the presence of several disk-shaped pieces made by reused ceramic and whose functionality is still unknown (gaming chips, lids, etc.).

Conclusions This work demonstrates the importance of studying the ceramic material to understanding the development experienced by the city of Braga and its territory from Late Antiquity through to the final moments of the Middle Ages. The presence of a large quantity of ceramic productions, which have been excavated in different archaeological interventions, thus highlights the continued occupation of the city and its surrounding area, especially in later times. At the same time, the abundance of imported pieces that are associated with late antique phases of occupation, and those identified so far include ceramics from the north of Africa, highlights the intense trade flows that existed in this period between Braga and various extra-peninsular territories. In this regard, we note that most of these foreign productions date back to the time when the city was the capital of the Swabian Kingdom.



29 Alexandra Gaspar, “Escavações Aequeológicas na Rua de Nª. Sª. do Leite, em Braga”, pp. 51-125.

Raquel Martínez Peñín, Manuela Martins and Luís Fontes

Figure 6. Early Medieval ceramic ware (by the Authors)

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However, the volume of containers analyzed from the Early Medieval period is much lower than for earlier periods, and this is also the case for ceramics for culinary use. This may be related to a phenomenon observed for other urban and pre-urban areas in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages, such as Lugo, Leon, Astorga and Oviedo. During this time, these all experienced a demographic decline and consequently the population became concentrated in a very small area of the city. This must also have happened in the case of Braga. A fact that confirms this is that most of the ceramics from this period were not located in the city, but instead in some of the monasteries located in the surrounding area – such as São Martinho de Dume or São Fructuoso de Montelius – which enjoyed a certain economic dynamism during this time. Finally, the increased volume of localized late medieval pottery seems to coincide with the demographic growth experienced at that time, as evidenced by the construction of a new wall in the northern area. A substantial change is observed in the types of containers produced, while an increased tendency for decorating the pieces can be recognized. This can be seen as a prelude to the ornate Portuguese ceramic productions of modern times.

AN APPROACH TO TERRITORIAL ORGANIZATION IN MEDIEVAL GALICIA TH UNTIL THE 13 CENTURY: THE TERRAE AS OBJECT OF STUDY MARIÑA BERMÚDEZ BELOSO UNIVERSIDADE DE SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA

Introduction The Middle Ages were a period of major changes and transformations in Europe and also in the Iberian Peninsula and Galicia. The fall of the Roman Empire, which marks the end of Antiquity, the entrance of the Germanic people in the Iberian Peninsula at the beginning of the period, the end of the Germanic monarchies that had been established after the Muslim conquest, and the process of the so-called Christian Reconquest that was initiated as an answer to this power that came from the south leave us facing an unstable period, at least on the political scene (an aspect that is reinforced by the wide chronology that the medieval period covers). Gradually, thanks not only to the aforementioned changes, but also to the continuity of important elements from Classical Antiquity, the bases for a lot of political, social and cultural changes that emerged in the 14th and 15th centuries were settled. It is in this context that we have just outlined where we place our research, which focuses in particular on one element whose configuration changed throughout this period due to this ongoing process of conformation: the organization of territory, and more specifically the organization of territory in Galicia. This research is part of a doctoral thesis, currently in the process of elaboration, entitled “Space in the western Iberian Peninsula and its territorial organization (c. 700- c. 1250)”, under the direction of Professor Fernando López Alsina, at the University of Santiago de Compostela.

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We do not intend to study it in abstract terms or in general, which would probably be a lifetime’s work, but we will rather focus on one specific administrative entity whose characterization constitutes our starting point, which we know thanks to documentary evidence: the terrae. According to Professor Fernando López Alsina,1 the terra is defined as a district for the exercise of power, especially royal power, and that is characterized by the union of a considerable number of parishes. These districts or administrative entities were granted by kings to nobles, who became tenente terrae:2 Montaos, en tanto que terra, es uno de los distritos característicos para el ejercicio del poder, especialmente en el realengo. Como otras terrae, tenía límites precisos. Si la parroquia agrupa normalmente varias villae, la terra se caracteriza por agrupar un número considerable de parroquias, cifra que puede alcanzar varias decenas. Al compás de la expansión demográfica y del crecimiento económico se multiplica el número de villae y se pueden desdoblar las parroquias existentes dentro de una determinada terra, sin que sus límites tengan necesariamente que modificarse. […] A efectos de administración y gobierno, la terra se fracciona internamente en distritos menores que son los términos parroquiales que, como la terra, pero a escala menor, también encuadran hombres, heredades y villae.3

 1

Fernando López Alsina, “La articulación de las unidades de organización social del espacio en Galicia durante la Edad Media: ‘villa’, parroquia, ‘terra’”, La pervivencia del concepto: nuevas reflexiones sobre la ordenación social del espacio en la Edad Media, ed. by José Ángel Sesma Muñoz and Carlos Laliena Corbera (Saragossa: Gobierno de Aragón, Centro de Estudios Medievales de Aragón, 2008), pp. 57- 111. 2 The term tenente is a Latinism used to refer to a person (generally from the aristocracy, but also from the high clergy) who exercises the effective power and jurisdiction over a domain, or a certain territory, by delegation of the king, who grants him the control of one or more districts or administrative units. 3 “Montaos, as a terra, is one of the characteristic districts for the exercise of power, especially royal power. As with other terrae, it had precise limits. If the parish usually groups together several villae, the terra is characterized by grouping a considerable number of parishes, which could amount to dozens. The number of villae multiplies according to the pace of demographical expansion and economic growth, and the existing parishes can be divided within a certain terra, without necessarily having to modify its limits. […]. For the purposes of administration and government, the terra is divided internally into smaller districts that are the parish areas, which, like the terra, but on a lesser scale, also include men, properties and villae.” (Fernando López Alsina, “La articulación de las unidades, ” pp. 76, 84).

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Once we have presented and defined our research object, we must specify the purpose of our work: to identify these terrae in the most thorough possible way, and to study and chart them, through the work with documentary evidence. What we present in this article is a first approach to the subject, with a quick bibliographic review, a discussion of the concept of Galicia in the Middle Ages (can we talk about Galicia in the Middle Ages?) and its territorial organization, a presentation of the methodology that we are following, and some provisional results.

1. Previous Research: A Brief Review of the Existing Bibliography As we have just said in the introduction, in this section we are going to do a brief review of previous works concerning the study of territorial issues in Spain and, more specifically, in Galicia. We think that it is important to include this information in order to provide those who are interested in the topic, but are not very familiar with it, with some important titles that have already approached the study of territory and its organization. At the same time, while introducing the research that has already been carried out, we justify the selection of our topic, since, as we will see, there are still some areas that have not been deeply studied when we talk about Galician territorial organization. To begin, we think that it is convenient to mention some of the main works that tackle the subject in the Iberian Peninsula from a general perspective, and which serve as a base to the current and any future research project focused on the space and territory of the Iberian Peninsula in the Middle Ages. Among the authors that study these aspects, one who stands out is José Ángel García de Cortázar, author and editor of several books related to spatial structuring in the Christian realms of the Iberian Peninsula, as well as numerous articles about the subject. An example of his extensive work is Sociedad y organización del espacio en la España medieval,4 a compilation of articles and conference papers in which he approaches, among other topics, the unities of social organization of space. In addition to this book, there is another work coordinated by this author that is important to mention and have in mind when thinking of space and territory in medieval Spain: Del Cantábrico al Duero: trece

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José Ángel García de Cortázar, Sociedad y organización del espacio en la España medieval (Granada: Editorial Universidad de Granada, 2004).

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estudios sobre la organización social del espacio en los siglos VIII a XIII.5 Throughout these thirteen studies (which are the work of the same number of researchers), several aspects related to the ways in which medieval societies arranged and organized a hierarchy for space are analysed in an exhaustive way. More precisely, they study the space contained between the Cantabrian Sea and the river Duero, and the different physical, cultural, economic, administrative and political aspects that define that space. Topics such as villages (aldeas) in Liebana (Elisa Álvarez Llopis) or Najera (Javier García Turza), the parishes and dioceses using the example of Santiago de Compostela’s bishopric (Fernando López Alsina) and the ecclesiastical organization of the diocese of Braga (Luis Carlos Amaral), as well as nine other subjects, are studied by the researchers all through the pages of this book. At this point, we must take something into account: in these general works about the Christian realms of the medieval Iberian Peninsula, we can find information about Galicia and its reality in those times, but we must also ask if there are any specific studies that are focused on the Galician area. So, despite the fact that there are several other general works about medieval Christian Spain, as well as studies that are centred on specific zones,6 we are now going to turn away from the general perspective and focus our attention on some books and articles that exclusively study the case of medieval Galicia and its territorial organization. It is regretful that the bibliography focused on the particular study of the territorial and spatial organization of medieval Galicia is rather scarce. Despite this, we can mention the work of four Professors from the University of Santiago de Compostela, who have devoted part of their work to researching the fields of territory, space and their organization in Galicia during the Middle Ages. We have already mentioned Fernando López Alsina and two of his articles, so we will not deal with his work again. Another Professor that has approached this research field is Carlos Baliñas, who has written a monograph about the social and territorial

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José Ángel García de Cortázar, Del Cantábrico al Duero: trece estudios sobre la organización social del espacio en los siglos VIII a XIII (Santander: Universidad de Cantabria, 1999). 6 For example: Iñaki Martín Viso, ¿Tiempos oscuros?: territorio y sociedad en el centro de la Península Ibérica (siglos VII- X) (Madrid: Sílex, 2009).

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definition of Galicia in the Early Middle Ages.7 Finally, Professors María del Carmen Pallares and Ermelindo Portela have written several books and articles related to the subject, for example De Galicia en la Edad Media: sociedad, espacio y poder,8 where they combine the three elements mentioned in the title: society, space and power. Besides the abovementioned works, there are others that are still more specialized and that treat the specific administrative unity that we are studying and that we have already presented: the terra. As when we presented the bibliography about medieval Galicia and its territorial and spatial organization, we must mention again here that there are not as many works on this topic as we would like, which could be explained by a lack of interest in the subject or by its apparent difficulty. There is only one monograph focused exclusively on one terra: Toronium: aproximación a la historia de una tierra medieval,9 written by Manuel Fernández Rodríguez. Despite its recent publication (2004), the study is more than 50 years old, since it is the result of a doctoral thesis that was presented and defended in the year 1951. After exhaustive work with the medieval documentation, the author presents a detailed and careful approach to the terra of Toronium, in the south of the present province of Pontevedra, accompanied by maps and the numbering of the minor population entities that would have formed it. In addition to this monograph, there is a series of articles that address the study of specific terrae. We will mention some of them below, following the chronological order of their publication. First of all, we find again Manuel Fernández Rodríguez, who in 1960 published an article about the terra of Taraes,10 one of the minor terrae in which Toronium was divided. The article focuses on historical documentation, by means of which he delimits the territory that was included under this place name.

 7

Carlos Baliñas Pérez, Do mito á realidade. A definición social e territorial de Galicia na Alta Idade Media (Santiago de Compostela: Fundación Universitaria de Cultura, 1992). 8 Ermelindo Portela Silva, María del Carmen Pallares Méndez, De Galicia en la Edad Media. Sociedad, espacio y poder (Santiago de Compostela: Xunta de Galicia, 1993). 9 Manuel Fernández Rodríguez, Toronium: aproximación a la historia de una tierra medieval (Santiago de Compostela: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, 2004). 10 Manuel Fernández Rodríguez, “La ‘terra’ medieval de Taraes”, Cuadernos de Estudios Gallegos, 15 (1960), pp. 5-14.

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Then, using this information, he creates a map of the main terra and its subdivisions (minor terrae). After having read this author’s other publication about the terra of Toronium, it seems that this article is an extract of his wider research, which was as yet unpublished in the 1960s. Thirty years later, in the 1990s, an article coordinated by Professor María del Carmen Pallares Méndez about the terra of Santiago was published.11 It is not only particularly focused on the spatial aspect, but it also analyses the mechanisms used by the bishopric of Santiago de Compostela to govern and control its extensive possessions, as well as the relations between the ruling ecclesiastical hierarchy and those over whom it exercised its power. The article also includes a map of the territories over which this power was exercised, as well as a detailed list of those territories with the parishes that formed part of each minor terra in which the terra of Santiago was divided. Finally, and as a conclusion to this review of articles focused in the subject of terrae, we are going to mention Professor Mercedes Durany Castrillo, from the University of Vigo, who is the author of several studies about the areas of Celanova and Limia, in the present province of Ourense. As an example of her work, we will mention an article written in collaboration with two other researchers about the terra of Limia.12 In this article, the authors analyse, through working with documentary evidence, the changes and evolutions experienced by this territory of Limia, which was one of the most important ones in the present province of Ourense. They also approach, in a more specific way, the minor terrae that can be identified inside the main terra of Limia.

2. The Notion of Galicia in the Middle Ages After having presented the subject of our research and having done a brief review of the main bibliography related to the topic, we must ask ourselves one question before entering into methodological considerations or the results of the research: can we talk about Galicia in the Early and High Middle Ages, or is it a modern concept?

 11

María del Carmen Pallares, Francisco Javier Pérez Rodríguez, Marta González Vázquez and María Beatriz Vaquero, “La tierra de Santiago, espacio de poder (siglos XII y XIII)”, Semata. Ciencias Sociais e Humanidades, 4 (1992), pp. 133174. 12 Mercedes Durany, Francisco Javier Pérez Rodríguez, María Beatriz Vaquero, “A terra da Limia na Idade Media”, Lethes, 10 (2010-2011), pp. 160-179.

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This question can seem a bit obvious or out of place, since the Romans had already talked about Gallaecia, but we understand it from the perspective of avoiding the mistake of studying – and especially judging – the past with the eyes and mentality of the present. Considering these precautions, the doubt of whether the term Galicia was used by the Middle Ages arises, and, if it was, whether its boundaries matched (not necessarily completely, but at least to a certain degree) with the present ones. At any rate, we cannot forget that the idea of a border as we understand it today differs from the medieval concept, especially for the inhabitants of the Peninsular Hispanic realms, for whom the main border was the one that separated them from Al-Andalus.13 We have just mentioned Roman Gallaecia; related to this toponym, it is important to remember that its original extension covered a much wider territory than what we traditionally identify as Galicia. What interests us now is to try to determine if the limits established by the Romans continued through the Germanic period and into the Early Medieval world, or if, on the contrary, a readjustment and contraction of borders took place after the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the end of Classical Antiquity. We will also keep the initial question of whether it is correct to speak about Galicia in the Early and High Middle Ages in mind. To answer this question we are going to consult both the modern literature and some primary sources from that time, which will hopefully allow us to throw some light on the subject. After the entrance of the Germanic peoples in the Iberian Peninsula and the collapse of the Western Roman Empire, the newly arrived populations proceeded to distribute the peninsular territory, following the provincial divisions that had previously been established by the Roman Empire for this task. As a result, in the 5th century, ancient Gallaecia



13 Quoting Emilio Mitre: […] Lo que hoy en día entendemos por frontera tiene unas connotaciones puramente políticas: la línea de separación entre comunidades articuladas jurídicamente en algo que llamamos Estado. Una realidad que de forma clara y didáctica se expresa en los mapas de geografía política […]. (“[…] What we nowadays understand as a border has purely political connotations: the line of separation between communities which are juridically articulated in what we call a State. It is a reality that is expressed in a clear and didactic way in the maps of political geography […]”). Emilio Mitre Fernández, “La cristiandad medieval y las formulaciones fronterizas”, Fronteras y fronterizos en la historia, ed. by Emilio Mitre, Ricardo García Cárcel, Manuel Lucena, Friedrich Edelmayer and Borja de Riquer (Valladolid: Instituto de Historia Simancas, 1997), pp. 7-62.

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passed into the hands of new occupants: the Sueves and the Hasding Vandals (the latter only for a short period). The Sueve kingdom, with its capital in Braga, which preserved its previous position as an administrative centre, controlled the north-western peninsula, but only for a short period of time, until it fell under the control of the Visigoths. This group had established a stronger and more organized kingdom, with its capital in Toledo, that would last until the Muslim conquest in the 8th century.14 Inside this territory, now under the control of the Germanic tribes, a series of spaces started to become gradually distinguished from one another, until they became independent, such as Asturias. It is also necessary to mention the importance of Christianity and the Church, since we should not forget that the supposed remains of the Apostle Saint Jacques were discovered in this Early Medieval time. This fact would radically change the future of the Galician territory, and it probably explains the influence of Galicia, and more specifically of Santiago de Compostela, in the future development and history of the Hispanic realms (especially the kingdom of Leon and, after the unification in 1230, the kingdom of Castile and Leon). Besides this, we also cannot forget the diocese of Braga, which was of great importance during the Sueve and Visigoth kingdoms, and which saw its ecclesiastical organization strongly damaged after the Muslim conquest. With the posterior advance of the Christian realms to the south, the stability of Braga increased too, until the restoration of the diocese in the year 1071.15 Further sources of information that we must take into account when talking about the Early Medieval time are those that come from the Arabic world. In the writings of authors from the 10th-12th centuries, we find references to Galicia as a part of western Christianity, and more specifically of the peninsular one. As an example, the chronicler Ibn Hawkal (10th century) says in his world configuration that más allá se encuentra la región de los Vascos, que son los cristianos de Galicia.16

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Carlos Baliñas Pérez, “El reino suevo de Galicia”, Historia de Galicia, ed. by Ramón Villares (Vigo: Galaxia, 1991), pp. 177-96; Roger Collins, Early Medieval Spain. Unity in Diversity, 400-1000 (London: McMillan, 1983), pp. 1-31. 15 Maria Cristina Almeida e Cunha, A Chancelaria Arquiepiscopal de Braga (1071- 1244) (Noia, Toxosoutos, 2005). 16 “beyond is the land of Basques, who are the Christians of Galicia” (Ibn Hawkal, Configuración del mundo, trans. María José Romaní (Valencia: Anubar 1971), p. 62).

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In this same work we can see the identification of Galicia with the whole Christian territory of the peninsula at the moment of its writing: La parte oriental la constituye el imperio bizantino, desde los confines sirios, en dirección a Constantinopla, hasta Roma, Calabria, Lombardía, Francia y Galicia; el territorio restante pertenece a los árabes, bajo la dominación de los señores de España.17 At the same time he seems to identify Spain with the territory under Muslim control, which would lead one to think of a contrast between Galicia (Christian territory) and Spain (Muslim territory). Nevertheless, this hypothesis does not seem to be sustainable, since it is more usual to utilize the term Al-Andalus to refer to this second reality. The other Muslim source that we are going to quote to reinforce the presence of Galicia as a recognised, coetaneous reality is the geography written by Al-IdrƯsƯ, a 12th century author who identifies the following territories as part of Galicia: En esta misma sección son de Galicia: Segovia, León, Soria, Burgos, Nájera, Logroño, Estella, Puente la Reina, Pamplona, Santa María de Baleyo, Santillana, San Pedro, San Érdamo, San Salvador de Olobide y Bayona.18 After this quick incursion into the Muslim texts, we now go back to the Christian vision, where we are going to resume our narrative with the moment of the arrival of a new power that came from the south. As we have already mentioned, the entrance and subsequent conquest of a good part of the peninsular territory by the Muslims caused the fall of the Visigothic kingdom of Toledo, and the fragmentation of the existing territorial organization. As it is generally well known, the conquest had little impact in the northernmost territories, which favoured the configuration of primitive Christian groups which later would lead to the appearance of the kingdom of Asturias, the first of the peninsular Christian realms. With the exception of Asturias, the Galician mountain range (Macizo Galaico), a natural barrier between the north-western space and

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“The oriental part is formed by the Byzantine Empire, from the Syrian borders, towards Constantinople, as far as Rome, Calabria, Lombardy, France and Galicia; the remaining territory belongs to the Arabs, under the domination of the lords of Spain” (Ibn Hawkal, Configuración del mundo, p. 9). 18 “In this same section the following are part of Galicia: Segovia, León, Soria, Burgos, Nájera, Logroño, Estella, Puente la Reina, Pamplona, Santa María de Baleyo, Santillana, San Pedro de Érdamo, San Salvador de Olobide and Bayona” (Al-IdrƯsƯ, Geografía de España (Valencia: Anúbar, 1974), pp. 73-74).

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the rest of the peninsular territory, became the first Galician border, the eastern one.19 Despite this differentiation between Asturias and Galicia from a political perspective, both areas would unite again a short time later. From the very beginning, the leaders of the new Asturian kingdom seemed interested in annexing their closest Christian territory, that is, Galicia. After the initial politics of forced annexation, King Alfonso II (791-842) outlined a new strategy of pacific integration, which was eventually successful and ended with the incorporation of Galicia into the Asturian kingdom. However, this union did not imply a definite integration and the total loss of independence on the part of the Galician territory, but, as we can see in the documentation, the kingdom of Galicia remained a differentiated space inside the kingdom of Asturias, and later in the kingdom of Leon. This last idea can be confirmed in the royal documentation, where the kingdom of Galicia appears, for example, in royal intitulations, or acting as a geographical reference frame.20 In relation to this idea, it is also important to remember that Galicia was one of the territories that the kings of Castile and Leon assigned to their heirs until the formal unification of 1230. The key to the definition of the southern Galician border was the conformation of the kingdom of Portugal in the 12th century. The setting of its southern limit was not free from problems, since there were several disputes around the possession of Toronium (south of the present province

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Carlos Baliñas Pérez, Do mito á realidade, pp. 389-390. We add two examples to illustrate this affirmation: - A document from king Alfonso VII from 1148 in which we can read: […] Quorum baselice sunt prouincie Gallecie iusta fluuium Sarrie ubi modo dicunt Samanos […] (“[…] Whose churches are in the province of Galicia, next to river Sarria, where they say Samanos […]”). Manuel Recuero Astray, Marta González Vázquez and Paz Romero Portilla, Documentos medievales del Reino de Galicia: Alfonso VII (1116- 1157) (Corunna: Xunta de Galicia, 1998), p. 125 (doc. No. 120). - A document from king Alfonso IX from 1209: […] Notum fieri volo tam presentibus quam futuris ego A(defonsus), Dei gratia, rex Legionis et Gallecie, […] (“[…] I want it to be known both by present and future people I, Adefonsus, by the grace of God, king of León and Galicia […]”). Manuel Lucas Álvarez, Tumbo A de la Catedral de Santiago de Compostela (Santiago de Compostela: Seminario de Estudios Galegos-Cabildo de la Santa Apostólica Metropolitana Iglesia Catedral, 1998), pp. 296-297 (doc. No. 149).

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of Pontevedra, on the border with Portugal) and Limia (south of the present province of Ourense, also on the border with Portugal). Finally, the Miño river (another natural barrier) became the line that separated the kingdoms of Galicia and Portugal. We find notice of this fact in the Historia Compostelana:21 Audiens autem episcopus, quia iam Minei fluuium sancti transissent et in tuto loco positi essent (fluuius enim iste Portugalensem terram disterminat a Gallitia).22 After this brief review of the changes that took place in the northwestern territories of the Iberian Peninsula, and despite the transformations to its limits, we consider our explanations have justified the ability to talk about Galicia in the medieval era and to make it our object of study. However, as we have previously said, we cannot make the mistake of applying present concepts to the reality of eight, nine or ten centuries ago, because even though we use the same terms (Galicia, border, limit) the mental and social perceptions change and evolve, and so the realities that we refer to in the same way are not exactly identical. That is, we talk about Galicia and we study Galicia, but our Galicia is not exactly the same as the one that appears in medieval sources, and it is highly probable that our perception of Galicia is not the same as the one that those authors had, although (at least geographically) there are a lot of common aspects.

3. Territorial Organization in Galicia until the 13th Century Before commencing the exposition of the methodology that we used throughout this research, it is worth recalling the scheme of the territorial organization in Galicia until the 13th century, as a means of better contextualizing the framework in which the object of study is placed.

 21

This is the name of the work published for the first time in Spain by Enrique Flórez in 1765 (volume XX of the España sagrada), under the title of Historia Compostellana siue de rebus gestis D. Didaci Gelmirez, primi Compostellani archiepiscopi. It is the story of the facts of Diego Gelmírez, bishop of Compostela since the year 1100 and archbishop of the same see from 1120 until his death in 1140. In this book the main facts between 1100 and 1130 are described, with few references to the time before the accession of Gelmírez to the bishopric. It was written in the first half of the 12th century, but we are not completely sure of the exact date or the name(s) of its author(s). 22 “When the bishop heard that all the saints had crossed the Miño and that they were in a safe place (since this river separates Portugal from Galicia).” (Historia Compostellana, ed. by Emma Falque Rey (Turnhout: Brepols, 1988), p. 35).

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We must remember that the control of territory has always been a central issue for those who exercise power, since such control is the starting point to the control and ruling of a space. In the Middle Ages we find two main centres of power: monarchy and Church. These two institutions defined, through the centuries, their own ways of organization, which fulfilled their ambitions of dominating both people and lands. Using concessions and delegations, hierarchic structures were being put into place, in which the king was at the summit, from where he exercised his power through his nobles, while the Church had its own structure. These two forms of organization were not totally independent, nor were they synonymous, but they frequently affected the same spaces as each related to the other (for example, the parish turned from being a strictly ecclesiastical division to a basic territorial unit that still remains nowadays). On the whole, what we find in both structures is similar: we start with an unbreakable unit, which then joins with others that are close to it; this process is repeated until it results in big territorial entities (such as the kingdom itself).

3.1. The Civil Organization of Territory We are going to start this review by pointing out the basic characteristics of the elements that form the civil organization of territory, remembering from the beginning that this issue is controversial and not exempt from polemic. For example, Anselmo López Carreira defines territory (territorio) as the basic civil administrative unit that was ruled by a tenente of royal designation; these territories would be identifiable, for the most part, with the comarcas (a territorial division that includes several settlements; similar to a region).23 However, in this research we give the name of terra to that reality – a, term that, as we have already seen, is used by other historians and generalized in the bibliography about the topic. As our starting point, we are going to talk about the casal or casare, the minimum non-divisible unit. According to the philologist Xaime Varela Sieiro, this term refers to a place for living, a place where someone lives or, widening the definition, a dwelling house and its farm, and which can even refer to an agricultural space or peasant land.24



23 Anselmo López Carreira, O Reino medieval de Galicia (Vigo: A Nosa Terra, 1995), p. 316. 24 Xaime Varela Sieiro, Léxico cotián na alta Idade Media de Galicia: a arquitectura civil (Santiago de Compostela: Universidade de Compostela, Servicio de Publicaciones e Intercambio Científico, 2008), pp. 42-56.

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We can complete this philological definition from the perspective of historian, Professor María Luz Ríos Rodríguez, who has written an article about the medieval Galician casal. In this article she presents the casal as a key unit in the organization and transformation of space in Galicia in the Middle Ages. At the same time, she shares the view of the casal as the lower range unit in social space organization. She also analyses other aspects, such as its role as an element for the organization of agrarian space or its double dedication, both to agriculture and livestock, as an economic base.25 In the next step we find the villa, a term that has caused several disputes and polemics due to its interpretation. Of the definitions that we have found, we will present two, which we hope will help to clarify the doubts. The first of them is proposed by Professors Ermelindo Portela Silva and María del Carmen Pallares Méndez, who identify two essential elements for the definition of a villa: a precisely delimited territory and a series of human activities related to habitation and the cultivation of lands.26 We can develop this idea following the work of Fernando López Alsina: En la documentación el término villa atiende ante todo al espacio que se sabe bien definido, dentro del que habitan los hombres, se cría el ganado, se explota la tierra y se aprovecha el monte, sin que para aplicar la denominación a una determinada entidad importe demasiado la superficie del término, la condición social de su o sus propietarios, la eventual existencia de una reserva señorial, el número de personas que la habitan, el número de explotaciones o, incluso, el número de entidades singulares de población que pueda haber dentro del término.27



25 María Luz Ríos Rodríguez, “El casal medieval gallego: contribución al estudio de una unidad de poblamiento y explotación (siglos XI a XIII)”, Galicia en la Edad Media: actas del Coloquio de Santiago de Compostela, La Coruña, Pontevedra, Vigo, Betanzos, 13-17 julio 1987 (Madrid: Sociedad Española de Estudios Medievales, 1990), pp. 109-28. 26 Ermelindo Portela Silva, María del Carmen Pallares Méndez, “La villa, por dentro. Testimonios galaicos de los siglos X y XI”, Studia Historica. Historia Medieval, 16 (1998), pp. 13-43. 27 “In the documentation the term villa refers first of all to the space that is well defined, inside which men live, cattle is bred, land is cultivated and woodland is exploited, without the surface of the territory, the social condition of its owner or owners, the eventual existence of a lordly reserve, the number of people that inhabit it, the number of farmsteads, or even the number of singular population units that can be inside the term being too important for the use of the

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After the villa we are going to talk briefly about the aldea (‘small village’), a term with which we break the linear progression that we have been following until now. The general tendency among historians is to place it at the same level as the villa, sometimes identifying the first one as an heir of the second. This would suggest that, the villa is a product of the Early Middle Ages that disappears over time, and in its place arose the aldea, to which José Ángel García de Cortázar attributes the triumph over the first one in the 10th century. According to this author, the villa is the Early Medieval denomination of the aldea, and he defines it as follows: Lugar poblado por un grupo que tiene sentido preciso de territorialidad en sus relaciones con el espacio, comenzando por el reconocimiento de que su autoridad sobre el mismo tiene unos límites topográficos.28 Even though it is a reality that is part of the ecclesiastical organization of space, it has acquired so much importance that we consider it necessary now to mention the parish, which is situated above the villae and aldeas but under the cautum. To illustrate the importance of the parish in the civil organization, we will just recall the simplest definition of terra: a district for the exercise of power with precise limits and that groups together a considerable number of parishes. The detailed definition of a parish will be made during the analysis of the ecclesiastical organization. Another entity that we can usually find in medieval documentation is the cautum. In essence, it is defined in terms of being a compact and delimited space, of variable size, with immunity and in which the lords have the right to exercise functions that are typical of public powers, and to accumulate all the rents that come from that exercise. The king did not act directly in these spaces, but instead they were territories with certain autonomy from public power and in which the population depended on a lord that exercised jurisdiction.29 We are going to end this review with the comitatus or counties, without reaching the upper civil jurisdiction, because we consider that, for

 denomination to a specific entity.” (Fernando López Alsina, “La articulación de las unidades”, pp. 62-63). 28 “The place populated by a group that has a precise sense of territoriality in its relations with space, starting with the acknowledgement that its authority over it has precise topographical limits.” (José Ángel García de Cortázar, Sociedad y organización del espacio, pp. 107-108). 29 María del Carmen Pallares Méndez, “Los cotos como marco de los Derechos Feudales en Galicia durante la Edad Media (1100- 1500)”, Liceo Franciscano, 9193 (1978), pp. 202-25.

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the topic we are studying here, an explanation that ends with these counties is sufficient. Broadly speaking, we can say that counties are characterized by being territorial concessions ad imperandum, which implies that the inhabitants of that territory must subjugate themselves to the ordinatio of whoever receives such a privilege from the hands of the king. The royal concession of counties and mandationes to members of the secular and ecclesiastical nobility are verified in Galicia since the 10th century, and although initially it was not a lifetime charge, the permanence of counts in the same territory when their labour pleased the king is stated.30

3.2. The Ecclesiastical Organization of Territory As we have already mentioned, the civil power and the spatial organization that it generated coexisted with another structure, the ecclesiastical, at that time. As we have done with the former, we are now going to show the main aspects of the system that the church gradually imposed in medieval Galicia. Before starting with these explanations, we would like to point out that what we present here as something apparently stable and closed is the result of centuries of evolution and changes: the conformation of the described panorama did not end in the Middle Ages, but its process of formation continued until the present. The first step in this ascent of the ecclesiastical administrative structure is the parochia or parish, already mentioned when we talked about the civil organization because of the great importance that it achieved. Professor Jorge Díaz Ibáñez proposes the following definition, in which he contemplates its main characteristics: La parroquia es una comunidad de fieles constituida establemente en una iglesia particular (diócesis o territorio exento) cuyo cuidado pastoral, bajo la autoridad del obispo, se confía a un presbítero que puede ser ayudado por uno o más auxiliares, siendo en ella donde generalmente se administra el primer sacramento, el bautismo, se llevan a cabo los enterramientos de los feligreses adscritos a la parroquia, y se realiza la recogida del diezmo. Se trata, sin duda, de una célula básica para la organización del territorio diocesano, pues en torno a ella se articulan la mayor parte del clero y las



30 Amancio Isla Frez, La sociedad gallega en la Alta Edad Media (siglos IX- XII) (Madrid: Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 1989), pp. 348-58.

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An Approach to Territorial Organization in Medieval Galicia until the 13th Century diferentes comunidades de laicos, por lo que no debe ser confundida con otras iglesias de carácter no parroquial.31

In a more simplified way, José Ángel García de Cortázar summarizes the five points that, quoting Jean Gaudemet, would have characterized the medieval parish: lugar de culto, presbítero responsable, patrimonio suficiente, grupo receptor de sacramentos y (desde un cierto momento) abonador del diezmo y territorio delimitado.32 Higher up we find the arcipresbiteratus (“archpriesthoods”), which were territorial divisions that grouped a number of parishes. In charge of them were the rural archpriests, responsible for coordinating parish life by a series of measures, such as the annual visit to parishes, in order to control the behaviour of the clergy. They had certain minor jurisdictions, though they were always subjugated to the bishop’s ultimate control.33 According to José Ángel García de Cortázar, the name archpriest would give a much broader suggestion of the abbas or priest of the ‘ancient parish’ or ‘rural parish’, than what this author names a ‘classic parish’, a result of the fragmentation of the first one, and which was the one that survived from the 12th century until now. This ancient parish is the one that is registered, for example, in the Sueve Parish of the 6th century, and that, in turn, is the result of the ‘primitive parish’, that would



31 “The parish is a congregation stably constituted in a particular church (diocese or exempt territory) whose pastoral care, under the authority of the bishop, was entrusted to a presbyter that could be helped by one or more auxiliaries, and here the first sacrament, baptism, is administrated, the parishioners are buried and the tithe is collected. It is, without a doubt, a basic cell for the organization of diocesan territory, since around it the main part of the clergy and different secular communities are articulated, and that is why it should not be confused with other non-parish churches.” (Jorge Díaz Ibáñez, La organización institucional de la Iglesia en la Edad Media (Madrid: Arco Libros, 1998), p. 37). 32 “A place of worship, a presbyter in charge, sufficient assets, a group that received sacraments and (from a certain time) paid the tithe, and delimited territory.” (José Ángel García de Cortázar, “La organización socioeclesiológica del espacio en el norte de la Península Ibérica en los siglos VIII a XIII”, La pervivencia del concepto: nuevas reflexiones sobre la ordenación social del espacio en la Edad Media, ed. by José Ángel Sesma and Carlos Laliena (Saragossa: Universidad de Zaragoza, 2008), pp. 13-56). 33 Jorge Díaz Ibáñez, La organización institucional, pp. 44-71.

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be equal to the diocese. Returning to the archpriest, the term designated the first of the presbyters in that ancient rural parish.34 After the archpriesthoods we find the archidiaconatus (“archdeaconry”), a diocesan division that grouped several archpriesthoods. In charge of them were the archdeacons, who acted as intermediaries between the bishop and the archpriests and parishes, and who had a bigger jurisdiction than those who were in charge of the archpriesthoods. Inside his territory, the archdeacon was an agent of the bishop, in whose name he exercised different tasks such as the institution of vicarages and chaplaincies or the modification of parish limits.35 The last of the stages that we are going to refer to is the bishopric or diocese, a territory that the pontiff entrusted to a bishop to rule it pastorally with the cooperation of presbyters. Each one of the dioceses had a cathedral or main church, see of the bishop and of the cathedral chapter. Inside this delimited territory of the diocese the bishop had a series of powers and attributions not only of a religious kind (for example, he was the only one that could administer all the sacraments), but also jurisdictional, since he was the one responsible for granting laws and statutes related to canonical right and the government of the diocese itself. This way, the bishop was in charge of administrating justice through his tribunals in the causes related to Episcopal legislation, as well as being the one that had the legal authority to control parishes. The exercise of this jurisdictional power of the bishops ended up colliding with that of the secular lords, which caused several conflicts over the limits of one jurisdiction and the other.36 As in the case of civil organization, the bishopric is not the uppermost stage on the ecclesiastical hierarchy. Nevertheless, we will stop at this point because what we have explained is what interests us the most to understand the structuring of the Galician space. Above the bishopric we find the ecclesiastical provinces, the metropolis, the primacies and finally

 34

For further information about the original meaning of the term parochia, the primitive parish and the conformation of the parish network see among others: Fernando López Alsina, “Parroquias y diócesis: el obispado de Santiago de Compostela”, Del Cantábrico al Duero. Trece estudios sobre organización social del espacio en los siglos VIII a XIII, ed. by José Ángel García de Cortázar (Santander: Servicio de Publicaciones de la Universidad de Cantabria, 1999), pp. 263-312. 35 Jorge Díaz Ibáñez, La organización institucional, pp. 44-45. 36 Jorge Díaz Ibáñez, La organización institucional, pp. 11- 20.

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the papacy; we choose to limit our exposition to the low and intermediate entities, without reaching those who exercise power in the latter instances, because it is in these lower levels where the mechanisms for direct control of the territory are better perceived.

4. Methodology Now that we have introduced our readers to the research topic and its context, we will explain the methodology we followed during the study of our object of knowledge. We are going to distinguish two different phases: in the first, we worked with the sources and processed the information that allowed the elaboration of a list of territorial entities; in the second, we proceeded to identify those entities, or at least tried to do so. The first step in the process of the investigation itself (after having chosen and defined the object of study, formulated the starting hypothesis and the main objective, and undertaking an initial appraisal of the bibliography) was the selection of the documentary sources that would constitute the basis of our work. We imposed a rule for this purpose: we would just work with edited sources, because working with the original ones would slow down research. Moreover, we decided that we would use documentary collections that presented better indexes, since onomastic indexes, especially socio-professional indexes, are very useful to the identification of tenentes, which is the criterion we follow for finding terrae in the documents.37 Initially we selected six collections from a series of Galician monasteries that preserve an important amount of documentation: Celanova (Ourense),38 Oseira (Ourense),39 San Xulián de

 37

The mention of tenetes as witnesses is very frequent in the documentation, with the expression tenente X domno Y or domno Y tenente X, for example: Comite Gomiz tenente Trastamar, Montem Rosum, Montem Nigrum et Sarria (“Count Gómez tenente of Trastamara, Monterroso, Montenegro and Sarria”). Francisco Javier Pérez Rodríguez, Os documentos do tombo de Toxos Outos (Santiago de Compostela: Consello da Cultura Galega, 2004), pp. 76-77. 38 José Miguel Andrade Cernadas, O Tombo de Celanova: estudio introductorio, edición e índices (ss. IX- XIII) (Santiago de Compostela: Consello da Cultura Galega, 1995); María Beatriz Vaquero Díaz, Colección Diplomática do Mosteiro de San Salvador de Celanova (ss. XIII- XV) (Santiago de Compostela: Tórculo, 2004). 39 Miguel Romaní Martínez, A colección diplomática do Mosteiro Cisterciense de Santa María de Oseira (Ourense) (Santiago de Compostela: Tórculo, 1990-2008).

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Samos (Lugo),40 Sobrado dos Monxes (Corunna),41 and Toxos Outos (Corunna).42 At present, we are reviewing and extending this list of documentary collections with other editions, such as those of Tumbo A43 or the cathedral of Ourense.44 As we are talking about research that is still in progress, it is possible that the number of collections will increase, but probably not by more than two or three. We have just mentioned the criterion we follow for the identification of the terrae (a mention of the tenentes), but it would also be pertinent to explain what we do with that information. The process is as follows: we look for the tenentes in the indexes (onomastic or socio-professional, depending on the collection), then find the document where the tenente is mentioned and identify the part of the text in which we find the reference (which is generally either in the witnesses of the document or in the date) and finally we include the key information in a Microsoft Access database that we have designed for this purpose. For each collection we have created an independent table, and the fields we must include in each one are: -

-

Terra (we include the actual place name in Galician and then, within parentheses, the original as it appears in the document. This is for practical purposes; we opt for the use of a common toponym, since the ones that appear in the documentation often have differences in their spelling). Reproduction of the exact part of the text where the tenete is mentioned. Name of the tenente. Date. Place inside the document. Regesto.



40 Manuel Lucas Álvarez, El Tumbo de San Julián de Samos (siglos VIII a XIII); estudio introductorio, edición diplomática, apéndice e índices (Santiago de Compostela: Caixa Galicia, 1986). 41 Pilar Loscertales de García de Valdeavellano, Tumbos del Monasterio de Sobrado de los Monjes (Madrid: Archivo Histórico Nacional, 1976). 42 Francisco Javier Pérez Rodríguez, Os documentos do tombo. 43 Manuel Lucas Álvarez, Tumbo A. 44 María Beatriz Vaquero and Francisco Javier Pérez Rodríguez, Colección documental del Archivo de la Catedral de Ourense (Leon: Centro de Estudios e Investigación San Isidoro, 2010).

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-

Place of preservation of the document. Volume and page. If the mentioned territory is part of Galicia or not. Additional information.

When designing the database, the aim was to include as much information in it as we could without making it difficult to use. At the same time, the use of a database facilitates the searching and the accounting of the data, in terms of the elaboration of tables and statistics, as opposed to the traditional methods of manuscript cards or copying the information into a text document. After having obtained this information, which constitutes what we can call our raw material, we elaborated a series of tables in which we summarized the main information, focusing on two aspects: the terrae that appear in each collection and the chronology. For this second element, we calculated the percentages of the times that each century appears in the documentation, and using this information we elaborated a series of graphs (as with the tables, one graph for each documentary collection and another one for the total results). Through this chronological exercise, we were able to observe that an important part of the mentions we had compiled were from the first half of the 13th century (63,32%), which could imply either that the tenentes were more important during those years or that more documentation from that period has been preserved. In the second part of the research (of the two that we identified at the beginning of this section) we faced the problem of identifying, as far as was possible, the territories that these entities occupied, which would allow us to elaborate maps that would help us to conceive the information obtained in a more visual way. There are a series of Internet resources that were very helpful in this regard, which we are going to refer to below. In the first place we would like to present a tool that ended up being very useful for this project: Corpus Documentale Latinum Medievale Gallaeciae, a database of the Ramón Piñeiro Centre for Research on Humanities.45 This project permits the search of 9611 documents from medieval Galicia written in Latin, some of which still remain unpublished and others that were published decades ago, which can sometimes be

 45

CODOLGA: Corpus Documentale Latinum Gallaeciae, 9 (2012) (Centro Ramón Piñeiro para a investigación en Humanidades), , 4th April 2012.

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difficult to locate and consult as a result. Thanks to this search engine, we were able to obtain further allusions to the toponyms we were working with, such as the names of parishes that were part of those terrae, or geographical references, especially rivers and mountains. The main problem of this search engine is that it only allows the reading of one line of the document, i.e. those words that come right before and after the term we are looking for. If we wanted to read the rest of the document, we would have to consult the work in which it is published, or try to rebuild the sentence using exact phrases. The toponymy references that we found are of a diverse nature: churches (parish or not), villae, rivers, mountains, and so on. Sometimes, the toponym survives until the present day, and so we could identify it, but others were either lost during the centuries or we were not able to identify the present equivalent due to the term’s linguistic evolutions. To work with the toponyms, we used an online resource that has an equivalent on paper: the Nomenclátor de Galicia,46 where we can look for toponyms using four fields: council, parish, place and province. Frequently it is an exercise of trial and error, of trying different possible evolutions of the term to see if it has remained until the present. Once we identified a list of toponyms as part of a terra, we have to turn to a new scenario, quite far removed from the work with the documentation: the work with maps. If we keep in mind that this research focuses on the territorial organization of the north-western space, and more specifically of Galicia, the utilization of maps seems quite obvious. As well as the other resources that we have just presented, in this part we used materials and free access tools on the Internet, since online map servers make the work with maps more dynamic, although we should not forget the traditional paper atlas, which we consulted on particular occasions. Some of these map resources are generally very well known, so we will just mention them and the utility they had for our project. One of them is Google Maps, a useful and easy to use tool that helped us localize the places

 46

Nomenclátor de Galicia: toponimia oficial das provincias, concellos, parroquias e lugares (Santiago de Compostela: Consellería da Presidencia, Relacións Institucionais e Administración Pública and Consellería de Educación e Ordenación Universitaria, 2003-2004), , 5th April 2012.

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in the first instance, though sometimes the toponyms we were looking for (small villages and in Galician) did not appear on this server. Another map server we used was SixPac,47 a geographical information system server that presents us with the map of Galicia, which we used to locate the toponyms and obtain geographical coordinates. Besides these two servers, we also used the ones that are available in two institutions that depend on the autonomous Galician government: the Centre of Super Computing of Galicia,48 which has a physical map with a complete hydrographical layer that was very useful for the location of some river names that are mentioned in the documentation; and the Institute of Territorial Studies, which has a portal that is focused on Galicia’s territorial information systems and spatial data infrastructure (called SITGA-IDEG),49 from which we can gain access to basic cartography or to a project about parishes that includes a map with parish boundaries and a parish searcher. Once we have documented, identified and visualised the toponyms associated with an entity (terra) on a map, we have one last task: to place them on our own map to elaborate a proposal for the territory that each one occupied. To do so, we used two programmes that are available for free download: Google Earth and Quantum GIS. In the case of Google Earth, we used it before learning how to use a specific GIS program. What we did was, using the coordinates that we had obtained in SixPac, we placed a position marker in the corresponding place, and repeated the process with each of the toponyms that we had been able to identify. This way, we progressively delimited the approximate territory of each terra, but always depending on the information that we could obtain from the primary sources, that is, if we were able to identify a sufficient number of references. After placing the position markers, we joined them with a polygon, and the result constitutes our proposal of the limits of the terra. This is the most risky part, since we propose a series of precise limits, but in truth we cannot stick to those points for two reasons: first of all, we cannot forget that the parish generally encompasses more than the nuclear centre where we place the



47 Xunta de Galicia, Consellería do Medio Rural e do Mar, , 8th April 2012. 48 Servidor de Cartografía of the Centro Tecnolóxico de Supercomputación de Galicia,, 8th April 2012. 49 Información Xeográfica de Galicia of the Xunta de Galicia, , 8th April 2012.

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position marker, so we would have to take into account the parish limits, that do not appear in the programme used (Google Earth). Secondly, we must always remember that we only know a small part of the parishes and hamlets that formed part of a terra. Despite these difficulties, we consider that it is necessary to take the risk and offer a proposal, which could be argued in the future, but this, luckily, would cause a debate and a deeper study of the question. At present, we are introducing ourselves to the world of Geographic Information Systems, and we are still taking our first steps. What we have done until now is to reuse the information (position markers and polygons) that we had in Google Earth with the Quantum GIS, since the two programmes share compatible formats. To finish this section, we include three maps that were created with Quantum GIS that exemplify what we have done until now and that we have tried to explain in the lines above.

Map 1. Points identified until present (by the Author)

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Map 2. Proposal of the space that each terra occupied (by the Author)

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Map 3. The terrae names and their approximate location in the map (by the Author)

These three maps are the best examples and summaries of the work we have done until now. We present them as our provisional results and as our proposal and answer to the question we posed at the beginning of our research: what is a terra, which were the terra and what spaces and territories did they occupy?

Conclusions After having done a review of the entire research process, from the proposal of the starting hypothesis, the bibliographical approach, and the contextualization of the topic, to the explanation of the main points of the used methodology, there is still one last aspect to treat: the conclusions we have achieved in our research up to the present. First of all, we will have a look at the hypothesis and its subsequent development: at the beginning we contemplated the existence of an

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administrative unit which we called the terra, to which we attributed certain characteristics, and then we proposed its identification, study and charting using historical documentation. As to the first of these ideas, after the bibliographical and especially the documentary enquiries, we consider that we have proved the existence of the terra as a distinguished entity in Early and High Medieval Galicia, since the presence of the tenente terrae witnessing the documents is frequent, and the term terra itself is also frequently used as a frame for geographical references. As to the second idea, we cannot consider it to be completely developed since, as we can observe in Maps 1, 2 and 3, there are still blank spaces that we have to cover. But what we can state, more than the full achievement of the starting objectives, is the validity of the proposed method: following the steps that we have detailed here, and thanks to the use of the presented tools, we have been able to identify a considerable number of terrae, and to form an idea of the space that they occupied. The necessity of completing the rest of the map (up to the point that the sources allow us) is posed, by the application and improvement of the proposed method. Beyond the conclusions that derive directly from this specific work, we find it interesting to finish this exposition with an invitation to reflect on the importance of the use of new technologies in Humanities in general, and in History in this specific case. For example, databases such as CODOLGA facilitate access to sources, as well as accelerating searches. But probably the clearest examples are the geographical information systems, and all the facilities and options that they provide for cartography. Even though we only used a small part of the resources that the GIS provide, they have lately been essential in fields such as archaeology, and the possibilities in the field of medieval History are also huge. Our objective with these reflexions was twofold: firstly, to introduce the readers to a field that is probably not very well known, the reality of Galicia in the Early and High Middle Ages and more specifically its territorial organization. Secondly, to present a research project, from the hypothesis to the solutions adopted, in order to solve the posed questions and difficulties, and in general to explain the followed method, hoping that it may help other researchers. Since we are talking about research that is still in the process of development, it seems that the means, the paths that we follow, are more important than the objectives we achieve with them, without devaluing the interest (at least for us) of the project and its provisional results.

THE TERRITORY OF STINTINO (SARDINIA) FROM ITS ORIGINS TO THE CONTEMPORARY AGE1 MARTA DIANA UNIVERSITÀ DEGLI STUDI DI SASSARI

Introduction This study reports the preliminary results following a hands-on campaign that took place across the territories administered by the town of Stintino, located in north-western Sardinia. Its purpose is to analyse the area’s human settlement, diachronically, from Prehistory to the present time by mapping and analysing relevant archaeological and historical sites. In addition, in response to the general lack of both documentary and historiographical written sources, a thorough, dedicated on-the ground methodological analysis took place in the area. My special thanks to the citizens of Stintino for their precious witness accounts and accurate directions, allowing me to spot on maps the right site location.

1. The Territory Located in the north-western area of Sardinia, it stretches for 58, 52 km² as reported by section 440 (scale 1:25.000) of the Military Geographic Institute2 map, which unveils the morphology of both Stintino and Pozzo San Nicola. At first glance, the territory testifies that humankind has inhabited this area since the Prehistoric Age, for example at the north of lake Casaraccio, given the high concentration of mica schist and paragneisses minerals, which seem to date back to the Precambrian and Palaeozoic Age. These stones can also be found between the southern 1

Abbreviations used: IGM, Istituto Geografico Militare; PUC, Piano Urbanistico Comunale; CTR, Carta Tecnica Regionale; Lidar, Light, Detection and Ranging. 2 The Istituto Geografico Militare, or IGM, is the provider of official cartographic sources of the Italian Republic.

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coast and the southern side of the local salt flats. Meanwhile, the minerals found along the western border, stretching from the site named Coscia di Donna up to the area of Biancareddu, are mostly finely crafted metalbased fragments, dating back to the Middle and Upper Ordovician Era. Capo Falcone is the highest in both altitude and latitude relief. The rest of the territory consists of low hills and flatlands. The coastline is somewhat irregular in its northern and western parts, characterised by rough cliffs and small bays generated by sea erosion, as well as narrow valleys like the so-called Valle della Luna and Biggiu Marinu. On the other conformation, the eastern coast is flat, alternating rocky and sandy beaches, excluding the area along the salt fields, inhabited by many gastropod species, which contains just sands, resulting from the erosion of both silts and clays, and occasionally quartz in pebbles and tinier grains of sandstone. From a hydrographic point of view, the territory presents large lakes and smaller ponds, characterised by a high salt concentration, namely the Casaraccio and the inner basins belonging to the area called Saline (‘salt flats’), both fuelled and filled by underground torrents originating from the sea.

2. Investigation Method The bibliography referring to the areas examined in this study is scarce and only covers the local archaeological findings, whose origins date back to the Prehistoric and Roman periods. Nonetheless, such written sources were of great help in defining potential and actual restrictions to the urban development of the area, as reported by the Piano Urbanistico Comunale,3 an administrative plan aimed at monitoring and regulating the urbanization activities in a town and its surroundings. The local administration has carried out several surveys in previous years. Although the main interest of these actions was to detect new Nuragic sites and settlements, they mostly confirmed the existence of many such sites that were already known about. In addition, our work has confirmed that many of these sites were inhabited repeatedly, from Prehistory until the Middle Ages. Oral accounts transmitted by elderly locals allowed me to further enrich my investigation and eased the detection of a number of undisclosed sites, eventually revealing some sort of continuum between the various ages in which mankind has inhabited them. The selected 3

‘‘Urban Development Plan”, approved in 2008 by the local governement.

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criteria was to proceed with accurate, boots-on-the-ground inspections from the already known sites, progressively extending the search out of such areas in a 360° radius. These activities occurred in 2014, between February and April. The most fruitful surveys occurred in the first weeks, thanks to the recent field clearances and ploughing, offering excellent visibility at eye level. Such ideal circumstances were a key factor in spotting pottery and stone materials, allowing accurate estimations regarding the density of such fragments emerging from the ground. Maps, both digital and in paper form, documentary sources and oral accounts are to be considered the backbone of the investigation in its preliminary stage. In order to select the sites with an alleged higher rate of potential new findings, we made extensive use of maps from different sources, such the ones provided by IGM and the regional administration (CTR scale 1:25.000), later integrated with enhanced satellite images and data collected via remote sensing techniques. Data collection occurred on the ground, and every relevant site was individually catalogued in accordance with its morphology, soil use, light conditions, visibility at eye level, and concentration of findings on its surface. After sorting such data, it has been possible to analyse, diachronically, the presence of mankind within the territory of Stintino, from Prehistory until the Modern Age.

3. Prehistoric Age The historic region of Nurra has a great quantity of prehistoric monuments, dating from the Neolithic era, the majority of which are from a funerary context. The predominant typology is the Domus of Janas: there are 194 of these graves, but only 17 are isolated and the others are associated in necropolises; for example the necropolis of Angelu Ruju in the area of Alghero, and the necropolises of Su Crucifissu Mannu, Ponte Secco and Monte d’Accoddi in the area of Sassari. Only 3 graves have architectural features. In terms of villages, Elisabetta Alba observes that, in the majority of circumstances, there is a total lack of these, probably due to limited archaeological explorations. However, the villages might be located close to the necropolises.4

4

Elisabetta Alba, ‘L’ipogeismo nella Nurra’. L’ipogeismo nel Mediterraneo, origini, sviluppo, quadri culturali (Sassari:Università degli Studi di Sassari, 2000) pp. 761-767.

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The Domus of Tana di Lu Mazzoni,5 located in Badde Longa, approximately 1 kilometre from Pozzo San Nicola, is the most ancient structure around Stintino and has witnessed human presence here since the Late Neolithic Age. At a closer look, its shape resembles the typical Domus of Janas6 with architectural features, subsequently enriched by the presence of an arched stele, typically found in the so-called Tombe dei Giganti.7 The walls are made of limestone. The interior comprises a small antechamber, followed by a dressing room from which three small cells are visible, pointing west, north and east. The Nuragic stele shows carvings depicting a fake door. The stele was probably previously placed above a tumulus; today it is still possible to appreciate the outcome of its restoration, which took place in 1974.8 The inspection of the area around this monument, partly because of the poor visibility conditions, failed to bring to light potentially interesting human crafts linked to this site. This does not minimise the importance of the site itself, especially during the Nuragic Age, as this very site is apparently connected with three further megalithic settlements located nearby.

5

The meaning of this place name, literally translated from the ‘Sassarese’ dialect (spoken in north-western Sardinia), is “the fox hideout”, but it also goes by the name of Domus of Badde Longa (“long valley”) as on ancient maps. Professor Pinza, reports one more Domus in his archaeological maps, identified by himself near to the Roman building found in Etzi Minori (Giovanni Pinza, Monumenti primitivi della Sardegna (Milan: Reale Accademia dei Lincei, 1901), table IX). On-site investigations have failed to locate the Domus, thus it has not been possible to prove its existence. This was also due to the lack of other references about the monument above. 6 Domus of Janas are rock graves of prenuragic period. They can be mono or pluri cellular with different types of architecture. 7 The Tombe dei Giganti (“Tombs of Giants”) are multiple graves of the Middle Bronze Age and Nuragic periods. They are made from exedras and large covered corridors in their most ancient form. The facade is made of monoliths and a central stele that reproduces a fake door. 8 This monument was the only one of its kind in this area to benefit from a proper scientific excavation campaign by archaeologist Editta Castaldi in 1974, who subsequently took charge of the stele restoration works, too. Inside, apart from several kinds of fragments dating back to the Pre-Nuragic age, a set of funeral artefacts of Roman design has been retrieved, proving that the area had been inhabited and the building converted for other purposes during later periods. See: Editta Castaldi, Domus Nuragiche (Rome: De Luca, 1975).

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Map 1. Prehistorical sites (by the Author)

3.1. Nuragic Age The findings related to the Proto-Historical Age are generally better preserved and significantly higher in number. Apart from the five sites

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The Territory of Stintino (Sardinia) from its Origins to the Contemporary Age

already identified when the area was inspected ahead of the Piano Urbanistico Comunale (“Urban Development Plan”) back in 2008, it has been possible for me to spot a previously undetected site thanks to the oral testimonies9 the locals shared with me. Unfortunately, the sixth site, which falls within the Due Nuraghe area, currently lies in ruins and offers just its basement stones to visitors, together with many fragments of human crafts, mostly made out of ceramic. By performing further investigations of the area above in the future, such as ground surveys followed by the collection and classification of any findings, it will be possible to venture a more accurate hypothesis about the site’s original purpose. There are five sites that fall within the Pozzo San Nicola settlement and five more are located just outside its administrative borders, as stated by researcher Giovanni Pinza, who was the first to assume this area was just part of a more complex system of communications between neighbouring megalithic sites.10 The only relevant site located to the north of the map, just a short stroll away from the road connecting the Casaraccio pond with the Country Paradise tourist resort, isolated from other similar sites, is the ruins of the Nuraghe Monte Atena located nearby the Cuile named after it. The existence of this site is certain, as verified by a published book.11 Unfortunately, because of the many interventions aimed at draining and reclaiming the land over the centuries, very little of the former Nuraghe still stands today; many are the stones now scattered on the ground, alongside ceramic fragments of large amphorae belonging to the Late Imperial Age, including fragments made of tuff still displaying signs of human craftworks. Oral sources also reported that a huge, squared block of tuff looking like an altar, or a part thereof, disappeared sometime after World War II, probably stolen by an anonymous thief. In spite of this, it is worth stating that another oral source indicated the former presence of a burial ground, known as the Tombe dei Giganti, which was removed from 9

My special thanks to Prospero Maddau, Tzia Mattia in Tolu, Antonello Sanna and Giuseppe Delaccà for their precious witness accounts and accurate directions, allowing me to spot on maps the right site location. 10 Giovanni Pinza, Monumenti primitivi della Sardegna (Milan: Reale Accademia dei Lincei, 1901), table 9, specifically: Lunestras, San Nicola Grande, San Nicola Piccolo, Paleonessa and Manzini. These five sites are located within the hamlet of Sassari. Not much is left of them today, making it hard to guess how these sites were potentially connected to their counterparts located in the area around Stintino. 11 Giovanni Pinza, Monumenti primitivi, table 9.

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the nearby Monte Atena site to allow the construction of the Country Paradise tourist resort. The remains of Nuraghe Unia, which have been investigated by Elisabetta Alba, 12 are easier to recognize and investigate. This nuraghe is located 2 km away from Pozzo San Nicola, and dominates the neighbouring territories both to the west and to the south, due to its altitude. It was also within sight of both Nuraghe Etzi and Nuraghe Ercoli, located a couple of kilometres away. At first glance, it resembles a default type of nuraghe: a single tower made up of limestone blocks, whose diameter is 13 metres if measured from north east-south west, and just 12,6 metres from north west-south east, its plant being sub-circular. The tower is 6,4 metres high if measured from within its chamber, but its height is restricted to 4 metres from outside, the walls being partly earthed. Nowadays, it is possible to gain access into the nuraghe through a breach caused by a minor collapse of the outer walls, as the original entrance is now under the ground level, due to soil accumulation over the centuries. Inside, evidences of a helix shaped staircase are still traceable. The Tholos appears to be in a good state of conservation; three small niches, arranged in a cross, are visible, although they are partly covered by soil that has accumulated over time, which prevents inspection taking place from the inside. It is likely that human settlements could have been established around this monument, yet the lavish vegetation, which constitutes a threat to the monument itself, impedes further investigation. Oral sources also suggested the existence of three wells, located nearby this monument. Vegetation always constitutes a problem when looking for such kinds of sites, and after extensive, deep research, only one out of the three wells has been found. Its shape is conical, and large hewn stones are still visible from the outgrowing grass. We have few archaeological evidences of the Nuraghe Etzi,13 originally located in the Ezzi Minori area, 2,5 kilometres away from the Nuraghe Unia. Today, the area presents some hewn rubbles and many similarlyshaped stones scattered along the surface of a hill close by, which, because of its particular characteristics, might still be hosting traces of the ancient native’s hut internally. Not far from the remains of a Roman Domus, 12

Elisabetta Alba, “Testimonianze archeologiche”, Stintino tra terra e mare, ed. by Salvatore Rubino (Sassari: Edes Editrice, 2010), pp. 26-27. 13 Giovanni Pinza, Monumenti primitivi, table 9; Emanuele Melis, Carta dei nuraghi della Sardegna (Spoleto: Arti Grafiche Panetto & Petrelli, 1967), p.181.

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another Nuragic legacy can be found: a typical Nuragic well, accompanied by a more recent concrete tub placed here to quench the thirst of the animals pasturing the land. The Nuraghe Ercoli,14 located in the homonymous site, has collapsed and only its basement stones are visible today. The area’s thick vegetation, which currently covers the remaining blocks, inhibits further mapping of the site, although it might be another case of a single tower building. It is worth mentioning a small, perfectly round hole in the centre of a squared stone, possibly used as a slot for wooden crafts. However, there are many ceramic findings15 scattered across the ground, proving this site remained of some importance at later times, especially during the Roman occupation of the northern territories of La Nurra and of the Asinara Island. Incidentally, the nuraghe is very close to the important Prehistoric site of Tana di lu Mazzoni and to some wells similar to the ones described before, although modified by civilization over the centuries. The Nuragic site of Casteddu,16 located south-west of Pozzo San Nicola where a seasonal stream flows, raises particular interest. This site is currently engulfed in what seems to be an artificial hill,17 characterised by several terraces and slopes; despite such circumstances, the emerging structure suggests an original complex pattern, potentially surrounded by a large village. Venturing a hypothesis based on the remains of the walls emerging from the ground and examining several bird’s-eye pictures of the area, the plant of such a site could have been trilobal, or maybe a tancato, 14

Giovanni Pinza, Monumenti primitivi, table 9; Emanuele Melis, Carta dei nuraghi, p. 80. 15 Fragments of Nuragic craftworks have been encountered around the monument, together with others from the later Roman Age, which are typically reddish in colour, and also other whiter, glazed fragments of African origin. 16 Its name (“The Castle”) is due to a misinterpretation by local inhabitants regarding the purpose of this site as a medieval fortification. The first person who appropriately dated the alleged medieval site was Alessandro Soddu in the early ’90s, who also suggested this site was rather an articulated Nuragic complex. 17 A tower belonging to this Nuragic site was still perfectly visible around 30 years ago, until it was covered deliberately by former tenants of that time, according to several oral witnesses. Some of them also mentioned the unearthing of large ceramic fragments, traces of buried bones and a large amphora left in situ, following the field ploughing in San Simplicio district, some 200 metres away from the original tower location. Unfortunately, in the subsequent site inspection, only large limestone blocks still bearing traces of ancient human craftwork and some ceramic material with medieval features have been recorded.

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meaning a plan that originally displayed gabled structures and secondary circular towers connected to the donjon by stone walls, usually enclosing an internal courtyard. While carrying out the investigation in a 360° radius in search of Nuragic evidence, it was unexpected to come across signs of prehistorical heritage in the area called Due Nuraghe, just off the provincial road connecting Pozzo San Nicola with Biancareddu. The site-related bibliography proves mankind has inhabited this area since the Middle Ages, but its name clearly recalls the existence of ancient proto-historical buildings.18 Suffice to say that there were two key factors which pushed me to inspect the site: the fact this area is near to Badde Longa, where the important Tana di lu Mazzoni still lies, together with the nearby presence of Nuraghe Casteddu (just 2 kilometres away). Consequently, I interviewed several local elders who not only confirmed the presence of the two missing buildings, but also mentioned former remains of an alleged burial ground, including tombstones and artefacts unfortunately ransacked by unknown people. Because of the dramatic changes caused by the operation of land reclamation after World War II, in this case we followed a different inspection approach by, starting our investigation from two Cuili19 of historical origins, known as Cuile Bassu and Cuile Delaccà. A rocky area near the first Cuile presented smoothening and squaring evidences; the area was probably a sort of shelter for cattle and sheep, although not necessarily since the Nuragic Age. About 400 metres west of this site, along a gravel road leading to a natural grotto, several fragments of ceramic items belonging to various ages have been recorded. Huge squared stones and ceramic material, mostly dating back to the Roman Era, have been detected right under a lentil tree. Some of these findings might be what remains today of the Nuragic towers, assuming they were mechanically removed from their original locations. Other similar objects have been sighted in the adjoining yards, still in situ, but because of their scattered layout and scarcity, it is impossible to reconstruct the former 18 Elisabetta Alba was the first to confirm the presence of proto-historical buildings (Elisabetta Alba, “Testimonianze archeologiche”, p. 29) in accordance with the oral accounts she was given, describing two circular towers located close to each other until World War II. Such information was ignored when mapping the territory ahead of the already mentioned Piano Urbanistico Comunale 2008, thus the area has not been investigated. 19 The name of the local shepherd’s dwellings.

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architectural features of the ancient buildings. The presence of a nearby building, made up of squared stones, which clearly features modern architectural characteristics and style, leaves no doubts about the original location of its very compounding stones. Furthermore, the area is rich in dry stone walls, built between the commencement and the end of World War II to delimit field property. These two factors suggest an intentional dismantling of the two Nuragic towers. It is also worth underlining the presence of a well, located in front of the original Due Nuraghe area, similar to the one found in nearby Nuraghe Unia.

Map 2. Nuragic sites (by the Author)

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3.2. The Roman Age There is a long list of retrieved items dating back to the Roman Age. Most of them have come from ancient boats that sank somewhere off the north-western Stintino coastline during the previous centuries. It is clear that the findings retrieved after excavation and drainage works during the construction of Portu Mannu, which occurred in the early seventies of the 20th century,20 were key in determining the Roman origin of a number of previously retrieved items. Unfortunately, on many occasions the findings were not handed over promptly to local authorities and, arguably, many of them have disappeared. Nonetheless, our gratitude goes to several locals, who indicated the area to us where heaps of removed soil resulting from drainage operations had been deposited, allowing me to certify, once more, the accuracy and credibility of such oral sources. This area is currently called Caggadaia. Every time, when the time to plough fields comes, it is possible to spot fragments of both ceramic amphorae and stone anchors. The many shipwrecks that occurred in the area called Mare di Fuori, as well as the famous Spiaggia della Pelosa nearby, are the proof that the seas around Stintino were an obligatory route for any boat sailing towards Turrys Libissonis, nowadays called Porto Torres. Returning to the mainland, two important sites were investigated in 1997: Etzi Minori and Cuile Ercoli, which I have already mentioned when analysing the megalithic remains close by. The first is a Roman building within the Ezzi Minori area, built above a flushing meadow presenting signs of past irrigation channels halfway between the megalithic settlement and the Cuile known as Ezi Vecciu. The building, made up of limestone and trachyte mortared with rubbles, appears to consist of a single room facing north-west/south-east but is actually part of a larger complex according to Alessandro Teatini, who first reported the existence of this site.21 This building, which has been modified on several occasions 20

The inhabitants of Stintino put particular emphasis on the retrieval of boat anchors made of lead, subsequently handed to the local authorities. During the excavation and drainage operations, however, the company responsible for such duties came across many other important findings which were not reported to the authorities, in the attempt to avoid possible stoppages to the excavations, including boats, some of them still bearing their cargo, . Later on, rumours broke out about archaeological findings being dumped in the areas of “Cagaddaia” and “Campu Bellu”, and the findings were eventually signalled to the Superintendence. 21 Alessandro Teatini, “Ricognizioni topografiche nella Nurra\1 Indagine preliminare sugli insediamenti agricoli di età romana nel territorio di Turris Lybissonis: i siti di Ezi Minori e Cuili Ercoli”, Sacer. Bollettino dell’ Associazione

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in modern times, is divided into two parts, although it cannot be excluded that a third roofed space also existed;, these will be named, respectively, rooms A, B and C. Room A enjoys better preservation at the present time. Its walls are still holding up the ceiling, which appears to be in decent condition; room B only displays two walls facing west and east, while room C consists today of just two lines of stones, the detection of which has been difficult because of the thick vegetation, which is putting the integrity of the whole building at risk. Access to this monument is possible through an arched entrance made of bricks featuring a barrel vault. There are several ceramic fragments dating to the middle Imperial Age on the ground facing the entrance. Heading south, it is possible to see a low, stone-made fence hiding underneath a small necropolis, the landowner states. In actual fact, many slabs made up of limestone have been unearthed during land ploughing and were subsequently piled to one side, giving further credit to the owner’s statement. The Etzi beach is located 1 kilometre away from this site, where similar low walls can be seen cyclically emerging from the foreshore, in accordance with the tides and underwater currents. Another important Roman settlement has been identified close to Cuili Ercoli, near to the Nuraghe carrying its name. Cuili Ercoli was a small village whose first dwellings were built on its southern side; later, other houses were built north of the first. Ceramic fragments are abundant here, in addition to a sarcophagus, safeguarded by a local farmer; these are the solid proofs this was a rural site of some importance across the ages, even if this area is mostly renowned for its medieval past.22 A rectangular structure, erected using trachyte stones jointed to limestone-based material using mortar, is located at a distance of 150 metres from the Nuraghe Ercoli. It might be a very old Christian shrine because of its small apse, built using trachyte and limestone jointed by mortar. The vegetation is causing major structural faults to it, impeding any further guessing about the monument’s characteristics; anyway the items collected here, and the presence of the already mentioned sarcophagus, would lead any Storica Sassarese, 5 (1998), pp. 95-104. 22 Many certified and official documents are proving settlers established themselves here during the Middle Age, from the second half of 12th century until the second half of 14th century. Vittorio Angius believes there was a small church dedicated to San Hanna of Egui (or Eguili) until the year 1370 when the village disappeared from official documentation. Vittorio Angius, “Nurra”, Dizionario geografico storico statistico commerciale di S. M. il Re di Sardegna, ed. by Goffredo Casalis (Turin: G. Maspero, 1833), I, pp.1833-1856.

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investigator to consider that this site could be hiding an ancient necropolis. Apart from the two sites described above, it is also worth mentioning the high number of ceramic fragments belonging to the middle Imperial Age, concentrated mostly around Nuraghe Casteddu and the Due Nuraghe site.23

Map 3. Roman sites (by the Author) 23

When patrolling the site in February 2015, I detected a vast area located between the territories of Stintino and the ones within Sassari’s administrative borders where I recorded a significant concentration of late imperial ceramic material (approximately 5 to 10 items per square metre). I also found a large, artificial pit, located just off the area’s perimeter and hidden by vegetation, whose interior was filled with ceramic rubbles. According to local folklore, this was the entrance of a rural church, accessible from a staircase built inside the pit. No further investigation was possible because of adverse patrolling conditions.

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3.3. The Middle Ages Warfare and its related side effects, like famine and depopulation, significantly marked the historical region called La Nurra across the centuries of the early Middle Ages, leaving many historians puzzled when attempting to reconstruct, diachronically, the exact settlement locations within this territory. The historian Alessandro Soddu highlighted in his study that, unlike other areas of Sardinia, there are many linguistic layers to be found in the region, following the many military operations aimed at colonizing or retaking ground by both regional and external forces alike, eventually causing the repeated change of place denominations.24 La Nurra was part of an independent system of governance known as Giudicato di Torres (also called Giudicato di Logudoro), overseen by a leader, namely the Iudex, until the last quarter of the 13th century, when the area became the subject of disputes between two Italic noble families: the Doria from Genoa, and the Malaspina from Pisa, Tuscany. The founding date of this form of government remains unknown; the oldest official documents related to the four Sardinian Giudicati (Torres, Gallura, Arborea, Cagliari) date back to the 11th century, a time when such forms of independent government had already been self-established and sovereign. Unfortunately, written sources covering the decades from the 11th century to the 13th century are generally scarce and unclear; suffice to say that no written documents at all that cover as much as 40 years of the 11th century have survived until today.25 The first Iudex we know about goes by the name of Barisone the First, who we know ruled the Giudicato di Torres during the year 1063, after he sent his diplomats to the Abbey of Montecassino, near Rome, to request the foundation of a monastery in his realm. His name also appears in official papers in 1065 together with the name of his co-ruling nephew, Mariano the First, after he gave the Basilica of Santa Maria di Bubalis and a church dedicated to Santa Elia of Montesanto as gifts to the Abbott of Montecassino. Mariano ruled alone from 1073 for nine years; the name of his co-ruling son, Costantino, only appears on official documents in 1082.26 Back in that time, La Nurra 24

Alessandro Soddu, “Per un quadro dell’insediamento medievale della Nurra (XIXIV secolo)”, Stintino tra terra e mare (Sassari: Edes editrice, 2010), p.51. 25 Marco Milanese, “Paesaggi rurali e luoghi di potere nella Sardegna Medievale”, Archeologia Medievale, 37 (2010), p. 247. 26 Gian Giacomo Ortu, La Sardegna dei giudici (Nuoro: Editrice il Maestrale, 2005), p.48.

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belonged to the largest of several districts, called Curatorias, composing the Giudicato di Torres. Thanks to the retrieval of clerical administrative books, named Condaghes, concerning the local monasteries of San Pietro di Silki and Santa Nicola di Trullas, we became aware of the curator’s name of that time: Ithoccor de Athen. It is now worth mentioning some of the events that triggered the remarkable changes in the rural landscape over the centuries under consideration. From the second half of the 11th century, both the Iudex and the Majorales of Torres used to periodically hand over part of their land properties, to curry favour with noble families from Genoa, Pisa or with the monastic Benedictine Order. When the Giudicato di Torres eventually fell in 1259 (or, according to Alessandro Soddu, in 1272), the county of La Nurra became partly controlled by the Doria family, from Genoa, and partly administered by the municipality of Sassari, under Pisan political control. A major factor causing a change to the internal balance of power was the erection of the Monteleone Castle, at the will of Barisone Doria. The two powers eventually faced each other in 1284, when both their fleets deployed at Meloria, off the Tuscan coastline. The outcome of this naval battle marked the beginning of the decline of Pisa as a naval power, and also changed the balance of power over the Giudicato di Torres itself, which came under the control of the Dorian clan. In spite of the clan’s efforts, the political map became inextricably altered in 1297, when Pope Bonifacio VIII created a new realm, il Regno di Sardegna e Corsica, appointing the Crown of Aragon as ruler over the two islands. Brancaleone and his son, Bernabò, obtained an acknowledgement of their former feudal rights by the Aragonese King, and continued harvesting taxation throughout La Nurra until 1323. This year marked the beginning of a new string of hostilities between the Doria and the Catalan-Aragonese rulers, causing severe unrest amongst the population, which suffered from famine and pestilence, especially during the half of the century. As a result, the overall population dropped and many villages became abandoned.27 It is now worth introducing some of the terms to depict the rural Sardinian economic map of the area in the 11th century, before venturing into the reconstruction of abandoned villages and settlements around Stintino. We personally share the key arguments proposed by the researcher Gian Giacomo Ortu, who believes the following:

27

Alessandro Soddu, “Per un quadro dell’insediamento medievale della Nurra”, p.53.

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The Territory of Stintino (Sardinia) from its Origins to the Contemporary Age Con il termine Domus viene identificato l’insieme del dominio fondiario del signore e l’azienda a gestione diretta con il nome di Curtis. Esistono inoltre altre unità produttive minori come le domestias e i masones. Per quanto riguarda la villa, il villaggio sardo dell’XI secolo, può essere esterno all’ambito fondiario e disciplinare della Domus, oppure, interno ad esso, in posizione di dipendenza immediata per le prestazioni di lavoro agricolo che i gli abitanti devono versare al donnu.28

The data collection and interviews within the area of Stintino failed to produce the locations of many medieval villages, which we only know about through a few toponymical data, thanks to the written sources available today. Despite having used the survey data extraction method, the efforts aimed at better determining the right location of the seven medieval villages named Essola, Fredu (San Lorenzo di Fredu), Erquilo, Etzi, Duos Nurakes, Fioreddu and Piddiacca, remain unsatisfactory. This study has already determined that many of the above-mentioned sites were inhabited during the Nuragic Age. Consequently, the inspections took place in the nearby areas surrounding each protohistoric site, retaining awareness of the tendency of every conquering force to use the crafted material from existing constructions to build up newer facilities, for both housing and burial purposes.29

28

“The word Domus refers to the overall property owned and controlled by the Landowner, while its farm and related facilities are known under the name of Curtis. Other minor productive areas and their related buildings are recorded under the names Domestias and Masones, while the Villa, the so-called typical Sardinian village of the century XI, was either under administrative control by the Donnu (Landowner), or distinguishably independent from the Domus economy.” (Gian Giacomo Ortu, La Sardegna dei giudici, p.101). 29 An excellent example is the nuraghe ‘Su Mulinu’, located in Villanovafranca, near Cagliari, where people of Byzantine origins sometimes built their dwellings from the basement of the ancient protohistoric housing. Inside the nuraghe, funeral remains of a Vandal child and other bodies dating back to the Byzantine period have been found. It is now vital to highlight that the name Casteddu, found in many official documents, refers both to the original name of Pozzo San Nicola, and also to the complex Nuragic site present nearby. Considering that the information available was extracted from later transcriptions of ancient documents, it is plausible to believe that the name Casteddu was meant to identify an area located at a high ground level, commanding the area around itself., This is just what appears to happen with the Nuragic complex, whose wall could have been wrongly attributed to the remains of a fortified building from the Middle Ages, as erroneously maintained not only by the inhabitants of Pozzo San Nicola.

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The investigation started from a spot located 200 metres southwest of the Nuraghe Casteddu, a place named San Simplicio by the local dwellers. It is worth remarking that John Day mentioned a place carrying the same name, San Simplicio di Essola, a medieval village still to be located somewhere within the township named Pozzo San Nicola, where a castle and a village were once visible.30 Written sources demonstrate the existence of such place by 1082, when Mariano the First of Torres gave the church of San Simplicio di Essola to the religious order of Santa Maria di Pisa, together with its related landholding and clerical bondage.31 In the year 1325, this village passed to Catalan-Aragonese control, before, in 1358, it became abandoned as reported in official documents. It is reasonable to place the religious building at the very centre of this settlement. However, the real problem is that no traces suggesting the right location of a past church have been found, apart from a good amount of fragmented bricks, shaped in a way that recalls both tiles for roofing purposes, or flat tiles similar to the ones typically composing a Capuchin tomb.32 Moreover, other construction materials, showing residual traces of mortar and carrying the signs of prolonged exposure to fire, are still present here. The inspections aimed at classifying any solid proof to determine the history of each site have also been carried out in the place named Due Nuraghe, where only a few ceramic fragments have been retrieved. Oral sources today report that a higher number of rubbles were present here until the early years following World War II, together with a clearly visible tiled floor. Another area, known as San Lorenzo, still displays the ruins of a church later converted into a Cuile, whose walls can be still seen today, together with modern prefabricated facilities. Official medieval documents report that a Vallombrosian Monastery was once present here, since this monastic order enjoyed an ever-growing control over the Casaraccio pond and its salt flats. Before the fall of the Giudicato di Torres, the salt flats were considered part of the land assets, or Rennu, of both the Iudex and his Majorales, who bestowed a growing number of concessions over the

30

Such a burial ground has been mentioned by oral sources and confirmed by the former tenant of the land. 31 John Day, I villaggi medievali abbandonati in Sardegna dal Trecento al Settecento (Paris: Éditions du Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique), p. 117. 32 Such a burial ground has been mentioned by oral sources and confirmed by the former tenant of the land.

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decades to Abbotts and other titled monastic and religious figures.33 In order to focus things correctly on this area, it is now appropriate to mention some of the events setting a trend in the history of the region’s population.34 The Vallombrosian order was present in Sardinia from September 3rd 1127, as certified by an official document held at the State Archives in Florence. This document describes the terms of a concession made by the Primate of Pisa to the Master Abbott of the Vallombrosian order. The Vallombrosian order first received the church named San Michele di Plaiano, whose construction is attributed to Mariano I De Lacon Gunale, who later gave the property as a gift to the Opera di Santa Maria di Pisa, a religious order, on March 18th 1082. Later, the Vallombrosian order also became responsible for the administration of other minor churches in the area of Stintino during the 12th century, following a Papal Bull dated 1176. It is worth mentioning at least two of them were included in this document: San Simplicio di Essola (or Essala), and San Lorenzo di Fretu.35 The building in San Lorenzo crumbled due to a lack of maintenance and remained in such a state for centuries, until Cavaliere Giovanni Delipieri took possession of the Cuile and the adjoining ruins, founding a new church right above the previous one in the year 1820. Following the so-called Legge delle Chiudende (“Land Enclosures Act”), the ownership of this land passed to a former regional bank, Banca Agricola Sassarese (“Sassarese Rural Credit”) which later sold it to a member of the Depalmas Family. According to a local researcher,36 this church underwent repair works by order of two noble families, the Depalmas and Diana, in 1954, but not many years later both the church and the adjoining Cuile were abandoned 33

Stefano Castello, “Le saline degli ecclesiastici e dell’ordine equestre di San Giovanni di Gerusalemme nella Nurra di Sassari”, Stintino: tra terra e mare. Atti del Convegno di studi, Stintino, Sala consiliare 4 settembre 2010 (Sassari: Edes Editrice, 2011), p.108. 34 Ginevra Zanetti, I vallombrosani in Sardegna (Sassari: Edizioni Galizzi, 1968), p.42. 35 Ginevra Zanetti, ‘‘Per una storia dei Vallombrosani in Sardegna. Rettifiche storiche e cronologiche preliminari’’, Studi Sassaresi (Sassari: Editore Gallizzi, 1965), XXX, pp. 171-197. 36 My deepest gratitude goes to Pietro Diana, for he allowed me to read his unpublished studies on the matter.

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and the building collapsed again. Remarkably, the inspection within San Lorenzo also uncovered the traces of an ancient burial ground, whose origins are yet to be determined. The name Etzi appears for the first time briefly on a medieval document dated 1330; regretfully, paperwork from the same source also reports its disappearance as early as 1358. The settlement named Ercoli appears in official documents in the half of the 12th century, and we know it existed until 1370, when it was destroyed. In his research, the historian Angius mentioned the presence of a small church or chapel here, dedicated to Santa Anna of Egui or Eguili.37 His description provides a good match with an apsidal building found by Alessandro Teatini during his ground reconnaissance campaign of the area, which took place in the early nineties of the past century. Moreover, a stone-made sarcophagus without its covering lid, which displays a lythic pillow inside, has been found nearby, and it is still located nowadays next to a sheepfold. It is a common belief, according to the locals’ perspective, that close to the ruins of the above mentioned building there has to be a sort of graveyard or burial ground, possibly linked with the religious building itself. Unfortunately, due to adverse weather conditions hampering visibility rates on the day set for the site inspection, the accuracy of such statements has yet to be properly tested. We know today nothing about Fioreddu and Piddiacca but their very names, quoted by Angius and Fara in their works. Fara himself mentioned in his books the existence of the ancient town, of Nure38 together with a further twelve medieval villages, some of which are the object of this study. There are many the elements yet to be discovered, and the need for a new set of strategies to discover more about Stintino’s historical background is growing. Hence, the idea is to promote further, more accurate investigation through Lidar remote scanning technology, which is proving effective in digitally removing any form of vegetation, thereby allowing a clearer sight of the ground’s morphology, and ultimately gathering better results compared to the typical boots-on-the-ground inspection, as many archaeologists would probably agree.

37

Alessandro Teatini, “Ricognizioni topografiche nella Nurra/1”, p.104. Giovanni Francesco Fara, De Chorographia Sardiniae Libri duo. De rebus Sardonis. Libri quatuor, ed. by Aloisio Cibrario (Cagliari: Ex Tipografia Regia, 1838), p.80.

38

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The Territory of Stintino (Sardinia) from its Origins to the Contemporary Age

Map 4. Hypothesis on the organization of the Medieval villages on note archaeological sources (by the Author)

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3.4. The Spanish Age The area’s legacy to the Spanish Era is still visible today along the north-western coastline through the three towers belonging to the fortified defensive system, which were part of a more extensive set of fortifications stretching as far as Asinara Island. This system was designed to protect the territories from the rampaging piracy of the 16th century. It is safe to say that the Spanish naval power here never managed to successfully tackle such raids prior to the fortification of the area, and on 30th June 1583, the local Parliament of Cagliari urged the establishment of an enhanced defensive system to solve this annoying issue. Consequently, ports, gulfs and strategical settlements along the Sardinian coast enjoyed the reassuring presence of 52 new towers39 erected in just two decades (15911610). The Pelosa tower, erected on an islet facing the homonymous beach, appears to be designed to withstand the weight of several cannons, having a base larger than its terrace. Its height is approximately 10 metres. A small window located 5-6 metres above ground level allows inspection from within the main chamber, whose vaulted ceiling is held up by a central pillar. This room also features three narrow slits and a staircase leading to the upper terrace. Its construction began between the years 1590-1592 and was entirely completed by 1594; it remained operative until the year 1846.40 I believe it is appropriate to report the presence of a furnace as well, located on Pelosa beach, whose top emerged from the beach after a sea storm. It is licit to guess this furnace produced the bricked material the Spanish rulers needed to stock up, before kick-starting the construction of the defensive towers. Another important defensive structure is Torre Falcone, located on the homonymous promontory at 189 metres above sea level. The name Capo Falcone is due to the alleged presence of such animals in the past, which noblemen enjoyed training for hunting purposes.41 The location first 39

Alessandra Argiolas and Antonello Mattone, “Torri e difese costiere nei secoli XVI-XVIII”, L'isola dell'Asinara. L'ambiente, la storia, il parco, ed. by Michele Gutierrez, Franca Valsecchi and Antonello Mattone (Nuoro: Poliedro, 1998), p. 63. 40 Massimo Rassu, Guida alle torri e ai forti costieri (Cagliari: Artigianarte, 2000), p. 129. 41 Rassu, Guida alle torri e ai forti costieri, p. 130.

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appeared on official paperwork in 1578. Because of its excellent command over the Asinara Strait, the tower was probably tightly connected to the Castellaccio dell’Asinara, with the Torre della Finanza on Piana Island, and with the Torre delle Saline (“salt flats”) on the opposite coast. The Torre delle Saline has a circular base, the bottom being larger than the top in diameter; it is 8 metres tall, and is made of schist blocks and clay bricks. To ease access to the site, a staircase has been put into place in later times. A main column supports the vault, whose shape resembles a mushroom cap. Access to the large terraced floor is possible via a hatchway located in the main chamber, where, a ladder was later put in place in order to ease the flow of both goods and people through it. Later on, the terrace defences were further improved with extra blocks, and small barracks were built close to the tower itself. A lack of maintenance over time caused this building to fall into a very poor state of conservation; nowadays the stairs are dangerously unstable, both inside and outside, thus access to this monument is forbidden for safety reasons. Finally, the last tower erected inside the hamlet was the Torre delle Saline, located at sea level on the homonymous beach. It offered an excellent view of the Tonnara Saline and was a privileged spot to oversee convicted people extracting the salt. It is a circular-based tower reaching a height of 12 metres; originally, its entrance consisted of a small window located a few metres above the ground and, like the building at Torre Falcone, a ladder was built in order to get inside easily. Furthermore, a more recent building was later attached to the western perimeter of the tower itself, but both the stairwell and the newer building crumbled because of their proximity to the beach and the inevitable sea erosion. Internally, this military building comprises two floors, whose ceilings are vaulted in a way that resembles a mushroom cap. Slits, present in both floors, offered a visual connection to the Aragonese tower in Porto Torres. According to the site-related bibliography, fishermen and salt workers established a village somewhere near the tower,42 not to lose sight of the 42

John Warren Tyndale, L'isola di Sardegna (Nuoro: Ilisso Editore, 1849), p. 187. Tyndale, was a British historian who travelled by horse from Sassari to Stintino to attend the Tuna Slaughter in the 18th century. He took the opportunity to note the tower presence, regarded as vital for those overseeing the convicted people while working at the State-owned salt flats, and to briefly described the fishing ground, where over 140 men were deployed on 12 boats in the attempt to push tuna towards the ‘death chamber’. Litanies, following an unsuccessful fishing day, were chanted to honour the Virgin Mary and Saint George.

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Tonnara Saline, whose existence has been recorded since 1700, and which remained operative until 1973. There is an ecclesiastic document held at the Diocesan Archive in Sassari, reporting the visit of Bishop Giuseppe Sicardo to the area. According to this document, the Bishop visited the Basilica San Gavino in Porto Torres, the Tonnara Saline and Asinara Island between 25th April and 11th May 1703. On 7th and 8th May 1703, the Bishop held the religious office at the Saline Chapel, followed by 162 individuals, including the Tonnara’s workforce and their family members, the Marquese Don Josep Maria Vivaldi, the owner of the Tonnara himself, the priest of the chapel and many others.

Map 5. Spanish towers (by the Author)

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The Territory of Stintino (Sardinia) from its Origins to the Contemporary Age

3.5. The Modern and Contemporary Age The territory is dotted with Cuili constructed during the modern age; some of them are older than the town of Stintino itself, founded in 1885. The study will focus on the older Cuili. The Cuile is the typical kind of housing to be found in the north-western area of Sardinia known as La Nurra, and dates back as early as the 18th century. Such buildings usually consisted of quite a simple, spartan-looking room, later enhanced with extra spaces for cooking or for resting purposes; a wooden fence also prevented raised animals from roaming freely. The fireplace was usually located in the main room where two doors facing each other allowed smoke to flow outdoors. The roofing material varied in accordance with the owner’s personal needs: the room equipped with a fireplace usually displayed a single, large wooden bar supporting other transversally-placed rafters and the roof was often covered with curved tiles, while the sleeping room had an extra layer of canes covering the ceiling, to improve thermal insulation. The low walls are composed of the typical stones of this area, sometimes jointed by clays on other materials, and the same construction materials have been employed to build a reservoir, commonly found near every Cuile of the area. Usually, every ancient Cuile around Stintino displays two or more rooms, like the Cuile named San Lorenzo, which is the most interesting amongst its counterparts of ancient origins, engulfing a previously inspected religious building characterised by its apse and its central plant. The ruins are also known as Casa del Marchese by local people. , The Cuile probably originally consisted of a single, large room, later improved with a reservoir, a fenced yard for animal branding, and certainly some extra indoor spaces. There are two other examples of ancient Cuili: Fioreddu and Rindundaddu. While the first has several rooms and large adjoining fenced yards for animal husbandry, the second, as suggested by its very name, originally consisted of a single cell whose yard grew progressively more circular in extension. The adjoining yards are partially occupied by modern prefabricated structures. Not much is known about these two buildings, and the only relevant information about them comes from private research about the history of previous families who owned the premises43 rather 43

Many thanks to Pietro Diana for his help during my investigation, because thanks to oral accounts I’ve discovered the genealogy of Cuili’s ancient landowners. Pietro Diana says: Il Cuile Rindundaddu venne edificato tra il 1820 e

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than a proper study focusing on the buildings themselves. A key element providing optimistic prospects for the whole area was the foundation of Stintino, which occurred officially on 15th August 1885. The Italian royal government decreed the construction of a new facility for quarantining purposes and a convicted colony on the nearby Asinara Island. The islanders were invited to move either to the Porto Conte bay or towards a strip of land between two small gulfs named Isthintini (“the bowels”), giving them an allowance worth 750 lire to deal with the inevitable relocation expenses. Some of the 45 families living on Asinara Island il 1821 da Gavina Ledda Di Pietro (originaria di Pattada) e Rosina Pazzoni o Bazzoni di Simone, proprietario del cuile di Pazzoni. Detta Gavina ricevette dal padre Pietro i suddetti terreni dove edificò il cuile e si sposò con Stacca Giov. Antonio dell'Asinara, figlio di Antonio e Santina Scano, vedovo della cugina Paolina, sposata nel 1804, dalla quale ebbe una figlia, Santina che sposò Pietro Dellacà di Camogli. Dal matrimonio di Gavina Ledda e Giov. Antonio Stacca, nacque un figlio, Pietro che ereditò il cuile Rindundaddu. Pietro si sposò con la nipote Lucia Masia di Giuliano (proprietario del cuile Monti Atena) e Giuseppina Carriga di Biancareddu. Dal loro matrimonio nacquero i figli Giovanni, Antonio, Baingia o Gavina, Antonicca, Raffaela, Francesca e Maria Giulia o Giulietta. Per quanto riguarda il Cuile Fioreddu lo storico locale riporta: 'Il cuile apparteneva ad una nobile donna di nome Antonietta Cocco che lo vendette a Giov. Antonio, figlio di Santina e Pietro Dellaccà di Camogli e fratello di Cecilia, nel 1875. Nell'atto di vendita del cuile era specificato che i Dellaccà avrebbero dovuto badare alla nobil donna fino alla sua morte. La donna fu poi seppellita probabilmente presso il Cimitero di Tonnara Saline’ (“Cuile Rindundaddu was built between 1820 and 1821 by Gavina Ledda Di Pietro [born in Pattada] and Rosina Pazzoni [or Bazzoni] di Simone, owner of the Cuile di Pazzoni. The above mentioned lady, Gavina, took possession of the area from his father Pietro and decided to build a Cuile here where she got married to Giov. Antonio Stacca from Asinara, son of Antonio and Santina Scano, previously married to his earlydeparted cousin Paolina in 1804, who gave him a daughter they named Santina, who later married Pietro Delaccà from Camogli. Following the wedding between Gavina Ledda and Giov. Antonio Stacca, the couple gave birth to their only son, named Pietro, who became the sole owner of Cuile Rindondaddu. Pietro got married to the nephew of both Lucia Masia di Giuliano [owner of Cuile Monte Atena] and Giuseppina Carriga from Biancareddu. They had seven children: Giovanni, Antonio, Baingia [or Gavina], Antonicca Raffaella, Francesca and Maria Giulia [or Giulietta]. About the Cuile Fioreddu, meanwhile, the local historian states: 'This cuile belonged to a noblewoman called Antonietta Cocco until 1875, when she sold it to Giov. Antonio, son of Santina and Pietro Delaccà from Camogli and brother of Cecilia. The contract forced the Delaccà family to take care of the noblewoman until her death. Antonietta Cocco lies buried at the Cemetery of Tonnara-Saline’). Marta Diana, Beni storico-archeologici del territorio di Stintino (Rome: Gruppo Editoriale l’Espresso), p.70.

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selected the latter option as their new home, choosing the shacks belonging to the Tonnara as temporary accommodation, then moving into the first new houses at a later stage. Given the ever-growing attention that Bunker Archaeology is receiving from both researchers and common people alike, it is worth mentioning a system of bunkers and forts dating back to World War II. A recent project44 funded by the Regione Autonoma della Sardegna is now numbering and naming the military fortifications in Sardinia through the contribution of researchers like Rolando Galligani, Giuseppe Carro and Daniele Grioni. Official documents related to the construction of this fortified complex have disappeared. We know that such buildings were part of a larger defensive network, which never became 100% operative, called SSStintino Strait, covering the area from the ancient salt flats to a small hill called Monte Frattu. Other pillboxes not belonging to this defensive spot were erected on Tonnara Saline, Coscia di Donna, and along the panoramic road leading to Stintino. The defensive system comprised 12 concrete pillboxes which were once painted to offer the best possible camouflage, a group of rectangular barracks and a machine gun post located near a large, oval fort, whose architectural features are now hidden by the vegetation claiming back its territory. Lastly, Dragon teeth, namely pyramidal-shaped blocks of concrete, were placed on the ground to hamper the deployment of enemy tanks.

Conclusions The valuable information this study has made available so far, calls for further research and investigations on the territory in future, especially across the northern areas, where new sites45 have been recently spotted and deserve better examination.

44

Regione Autonoma della Sardegna, Research Project “Lo spazio rurale nel contesto della nuova metropolizzazione, il caso di studio dell'area metropolitana di Cagliari” (EXTRAMET). 45 I refer to the recent soil perforation in the hamlet of Monte Pedra Bianca and to the structures allegedly built for funerary purposes in the hamlet of Muru Pulchaggiu.

Marta Diana

Map 6. Cuili (by the Author)

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The Territory of Stintino (Sardinia) from its Origins to the Contemporary Age

Map 7. Military fortifications (by the Author)

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It is worth briefly mentioning one of them, located in the area known as Muru Pulchaggiu. While exploring the site, we recorded the presence of some structures,46 suggested to us by a local farmer, which I found only after extensive searches through the Mediterranean flora. Because of the poor visibility conditions, it was not possible to determine whether there were 3 or 4 structures;, the most visible of them displayed a rectangular base (2×1,5 metres), and whose collapsed walls were 50-60 centimetres thick, reaching a maximum height of 70 centimetres. We have also recorded the presence of damaged schist slabs lying next to the walls, probably meant to serve as a lid or as a kind of cover. Such ancient structures are located next to a recently constructed building, which makes the detection of other hidden remains a harder task to fulfil. The lavish vegetation prevents on-site material collection, which would certainly help to disclose the original purpose of these buildings.

Map 8. Map of sites (by the Author) 46 The local inhabitants call these structures Tombe dei Giganti or Li sipusthuri, but such buildings have nothing to do with the homonymous protostoric burial grounds.

THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL HERITAGE OF THE COASTAL AREA OF VILLANOVA MONTELEONE (SARDINIA)1 ROSANNA LIVESU UNIVERSITÀ DEGLI STUDI DI SASSARI

Introduction The research presented in these pages is a preliminary diachronic reconstruction of the coastal strip belonging to the territory of the municipality of Villanova Monteleone, in the north-west of Sardinia, based on already known and registered archaeological assets. It is intended to outline, over a period stretching from Prehistory to the post-Middle Ages, the various stages of human occupation of the area through surveys that were adjusted to the particular morphology of the territory, often difficult to access, chiefly considering settlement typologies in relation to the peculiar features of the territory.

1. The Morphology of the Territory The territory of the municipality of Villanova Monteleone has a total area of 202,58 km².2 It is situated in the north-west of Sardinia, in the historical Logudoro region. It is included in the IGM grid sheet 479. The study took into consideration the coastal strip, which is about 13 kilometres long, and the immediate inland areas within a radius of about 4 kilometres from the sea. The structure of the area taken into consideration is mainly of Oligo-Miocene volcanic origin and composed of the Miocene

 1

Abbreviation used: IGM, Istituto Geografico Militare. Paola Dui, “Il territorio”, Testimonianze archeologiche del Nurcara, ed. by Giuseppa Tanda (Villanova Monteleone: Soter editrice, 1995), p.13.

2

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sedimentary complex.3 From a morphological viewpoint, it is mainly characterized by low hills and flat-topped peaks while its contours are marked by steep escarpments and debris fall,4 which account for its rugged conformation. This factor is particularly noticeable on the west side where there is a considerable height difference: the lowest point is situated near Poglina and Sa Murena beaches, along the Alghero-Bosa coast road, while Monte Cuccu corresponds to the highest point (659 metres). The area has a distinctive landscape characterized by a big trachyte plateau, about 500 metres high, which occasionally gives way to small, almost inaccessible valleys such as that of Badde Jana.5 Particular to some plateaus are the socalled cuestas, which are made up of a steep frontslope, where the tops of some hard, rocky banks, dark in colour with reddish or purplish hues, appear on the surface,6 and a gently sloping backslope. During the Cenozoic Era, periods of intense alkaline, transitional and sub-alkaline activity resulted in basalt lava flows that covered them.7 The coast of the territory stands out because of its varied natural environment. To the north, on the border with the territory of Alghero, extends the sandy beach of Poglina (Poglina comes from the Sardinian word Poddine meaning “superfine flour”). Further south, the morphology of the coastline becomes different with cliffs that are difficult to access, small inlets and the small rocky peninsula called Sa Mesa ‘e Su Attentu. The cliffs known as Croci (“Crosses”), light green rock faces falling sheer to the sea, are peculiar to the coastline. The last stretch of coastline consists of the small sandy-pebbly beach of Sa Murena, located near the border with the territory of Bosa and sheltered by a high hill that almost prevents access to it. The hydrology of the coastal area consists of springs and, mostly, small streams having irregular flow regimes and generally fed by rainwater. The entire territory is characterized by a variety of plant species related to the Mediterranean bush and a diverse endemic fauna.

 3

Ministero dell’Ambiente, Entroterra e zona costiera tra Bosa, Capo Marargiu e Porto Tangone. Piano di Gestione per il sito di importanza comunitaria (SIC) (Rome: 2008), p.30. 4 Ministero dell’Ambiente, Entroterra e zona costiera, p.31. 5 Ministero dell’Ambiente, Entroterra e zona costiera, p.165. 6 Ministero dell’Ambiente, Entroterra e zona costiera, p.30. 7 Ministero dell’Ambiente, Entroterra e zona costiera, p.31.

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The Archaeological Heritage of the Coastal Area of Villanova Monteleone (Sardinia)

Map 1. Territorial framework (by the Author)

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Figure 1. The characteristics plateau of landscape, from west (by the Author)

2. Research Method and Problems Related to the Territory The research was carried out along the coastline, focusing attention on settlement dynamics related to the area, which nowadays is not very affected by urbanization and seems almost intact, while trying to understand how the particular configuration of the territory and its proximity to the coast may have affected settlement aspects over time. The area was chosen on account of its morphology and was widened at its eastern end so as to include the vast plateau where the Protohistoric settlement of Nuraghe Appiu is located and which could be considered as ‘a bridge between the sea and the inland areas’.8 The research intends to present a diachronic description of the different settlement phases of the area, stretching from Prehistory to the Post-Middle Ages. This approach has already been applied to the study of large areas such as the territory of the Phoenician town of Nora,9 at the southern end of Sardinia, where all

 8

Gabriella Gasperetti and Nina Logias, “Scavi nel villaggio di nuraghe Appiu a Villanova Monteleone”, Memorie dal sottosuolo: scoperte archeologiche nella Sardegna centro-settentrionale, ed. by Luisanna Usai (Quartucciu: Scuola Sarda, 2013), p.73. 9 Massimo Botto and Stefano Finocchi, “Nora: sfruttamento del territorio e organizzazione del paesaggio in età fenicia e punica”, Ecohistoria del paisaje

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the settlement phases of the territory, from Prehistory to the Middle Ages, have been taken into consideration.10 Previous studies of the area are mostly based either on single monuments dating back to different historical periods or focus on the Roman period11 and the Middle Ages.12 An extensive description of the landscape dates back to the 1920s13 while most of the current bibliography deals with the settlement of Nuraghe Appiu, to which the recent excavations completed in 2012 refer.14 The research centred on already known and registered historical archaeological assets15 and the surrounding area, aiming at assessing the possible extent of deposits and, the presence of useful elements so as to determine their chronology as well as the presence of other sites. The preliminary phase included the analysis of various maps of the territory,16 so as to define the field of interest. At first, the work envisaged an intensive survey of the area surrounding the site. This kind of investigation was tested in relation to ground visibility, which in most cases turned out to be almost nil. For this reason, a new strategy had to be implemented, opting for surveys targeting

 agrario: la agricultura fenicio-punica en el Mediterraneo, ed. by Carlos Gomez Bellard (Valencia: Universidad de Valencia, 2003), p.151. 10 Massimo Botto and Stefano Finocchi, “Nora: sfruttamento del territorio”, p.151. This study, included in a multidisciplinary project by some Italian Universities, later focuses its investigation on the development and transformations that took place from the foundation of the colony (around the second half of the 8th century BC) up to its final abandonment (around the beginning of the 8th century). 11 Attilio Mastino, “Il territorio del comune di Villanova Monteleone in età romana”, Sacer. Bollettino dell’associazione storico-sassarese, 2 (1995), pp.7-22. 12 Alessandro Soddu, Incastellamento in Sardegna: l’esempio di Monteleone (Raleigh: Aonia edizioni, 2014). 13 Alberto Della Marmora, Viaggio in Sardegna (Cagliari: Fondazione il Nuraghe, 1928), III, pp.408-409. 14 Gabriella Gasperetti and Nina Logias, “Scavi nel villaggio di nuraghe Appiu”, pp.73-83. 15 Attilio Mastino, “Il territorio del comune di Villanova Monteleone”, p.16. The Villanova amateur archaeospeleological group registered the monuments in the 1980s; later, the results, achieved in collaboration with the Superintendence of Sassari and Nuoro, were expounded at the conference ‘Archaeology and Territory: Preservation, Promotion and Fruition of Archaeological Monuments’. The conference took place in Villanova Monteleone in May 1993. 16 IGM maps on a scale of 1:25, 000; the historical-cultural emergency map of the municipality of Villanova related to PUC (1:25, 000); and the map called “I Sentieri della Memoria”, which was elaborated in collaboration with the Superintendence (1:25, 000).

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the site alone and monitoring the surrounding area from the asset itself, according to the above-mentioned factor. This method was applied to the analysis of the territory of Lucca,17 which was done in poor visibility conditions, but with a considerable deviation from it18 due to the presence of well-known sites and the use of IGM maps alone supported by digital cartography. Then, the data relating to the survey of the site were recorded on cards, the same used for the survey of the area of the Punic settlement of Neapolis,19 in the west of Sardinia, assessing above all the type of territory, its use, light conditions, and ground visibility. The research was carried out from May to October, on sunny or cloudy days. In most cases, poor visibility conditions and the configuration of the territory impaired the readability of the soil. Furthermore, the monuments are located on hillsides or on plateaus, mostly on almost untrodden lands that are difficult to access, with thick or luxuriant vegetation. At times, the land was uncultivated or occasionally used for pasture. Visibility proved to be essential to the methodological approach and the ensuing results. In the case of the area of Santu Sidorinu, where a church and a nuraghe are located, vegetation prevented access to the site. Only in two cases did ground conditions turn out to be different, both in the proximity of churches (Sant’Imbiligu and Santa Maria de Badde Pessighe) where ground visibility made it possible to conduct an intensive survey of the surrounding areas, also thanks to the dry season and the type of seasonal vegetation. In the case of Badde Pessighe, better visibility conditions were attained after cleaning the ground. The description of the assets was supplemented by information provided by oral sources,20 which contributed to clarifying the data

 17

Marco Milanese and Gabriele Gattiglia. “Ricerche di archeologia del paesaggio nella Lucchesia medievale”, Atti del II Congresso di Archeologia Medievale, ed. by Gian Pietro Brogiolo (Florence: All’Insegna del Giglio, 2000), pp. 264-269. 18 Marco Milanese and Gabriele Gattiglia, “Ricerche di archeologia del paesaggio”, pp. 264-269. This method was implemented on the eastern side of medieval Lucchesia in order to elaborate an archaeological map of the province of Pistoia. Owing to areas with almost nil visibility conditions, at least initially, a strategy of targeted survey was implemented, suggested by elements such as toponymy, geomorphology, and the analysis of aerial photos, peaks, and scattered rural residential areas. 19 Elisabetta Garau, Da Qrtgdsht a Neapolis: trasformazioni dei paesaggi urbano e periurbano dalla fase fenicia alla fase bizantina (Ortacesus: Nuove grafiche Puddu, 2006). 20 Special thanks to Mario Livesu, Antonio Giovanni Sechi, Angelino Meloni and Leonardo Meloni for their contribution.

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collected, especially in relation to the use of the land, the recent transformations of the landscape as well as the sites themselves.

Figure 2. The visibility of the ground, Sa Corcorigia area, from east (by the Author)

Figure 3. The visibility of the ground: The area of Su Saltu ‘e s’Abba, From west site (by the Author)

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3. The Prehistoric Age The oldest remains in the landscape are the hypogean necropolises known as Domus de Janas. Therefore human presence seems to date back to the Late Neolithic Age. There are three burial sites in the area. Given the geological configuration of the territory, hypogea are carved inside ridges or trachyte outcrops, at an altitude of approximately 330-420 metres. Their rather simple plans, most likely due to the particular configuration of the rock, are tricellular (Niolu) or bicellular (Badde Jana, Appiu). They are located in the centre-west and the south of the territory. The Domus de Janas of Badde Jana is situated on the western side of the island, at about 360 metres. It is carved in the trachyte face of the homonymous hill (Punta Badde Jana, 498 metres). The necropolis is located in a particularly rugged area, on the ridge overlooking the small valley that during the Spanish period was used to control the territory and where a watchtower was built in the 16th century (the tower of Badde Jana).21 The hypogeum, which is bicellular, consists of a small raised opening of about 70 centimetres in height, eroded by the weather on the corners of its lower side. The entrance gives access to the first vaulted chamber (the main chamber), which is 2 metres long. On its right, there is the secondary chamber, smaller than the first. The Domus de Janas Sa Pala ‘e su Puzzone (or Appiu) has a similar morphology, but it is larger. It is situated a little further to the east, within the area of the settlement of Nuraghe Appiu, in the trachyte ridge of the plateau named Chentu Mannas, where the Iron Age settlement is located and to the west of it. The Domus has a rectangular entrance (about 3×2 metres), and an 80 centimetre high porthole, slightly raised, with a carved lintel. At its base, there is a small drainage channel. The rock where the burial place is carved shows some shades of red, which may be put down to traces of paint.22 This entranceway gives access to a three metre long and two metre wide chamber with a rectangular plan. The flat ceiling is about 1,5 metres high and shows a diagonal crack, probably caused by water seepage. On the left-hand side of the entrance, there is the secondary chamber of 2 metres in length, itself raised and with a flat ceiling. To the

 21

Massimo Rassu, Le sentinelle del mare: le torri costiere a difesa della Sardegna (Dolianova: Grafica del Parteolla, 2005), p.85. 22 Giovanni Maria Demartis, “Area archeologica: Villanova Monteleone: Sassari, loc. Appiu”, Bollettino di Archeologia, 13-15 (1992), pp. 207-208.

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right of the entrance, there is a carved niche, concave in shape. Nearby, at different levels of the rock, more Domus still lie below ground.23 At the far south end of the territory, near a rocky outcrop, the Domus de Janas Niolu is located. This burial place is situated at more than 300 metres, on a hillside, in an area called Tanca‘e Mesu. The thick vegetation makes it difficult to gain access to the site. The hypogeum is made up of a small antechamber (about 70×60 centimetres), where there is a porthole showing a cavity in the jamb (this may have been used to allow the porthole to be closed with wooden poles). The porthole gives access to the main chamber, which is placed transversely to the antechamber. This chamber is 2 metres long, about 70 centimetres high and has a curved ceiling. The main chamber opens into a smaller secondary chamber (about 1 m2). The megalithic circle of Sa Pischina, too, may be ascribed to the Prehistoric Age and dated back to the Late Neolithic Age when megalithic architecture started in Sardinia. The site is located on the plateau of Chentu Mannas, less than 500 metres east from the settlement of Nuraghe Appiu. It is a northwest oriented semi-circular structure, made up of big rough-hewn stones (up to 1 metre in length) laid horizontally on the ground. The structure extends for about 100 metres. In some points, the lithic elements ‘lean against’ one another. Its circular and slightly concave shape is peculiar to the area where the structure is located. During the summer, the site is covered by self-sown vegetation of Gramineae, which ‘stands’ out from the thick Mediterranean bush of the surrounding areas. In autumn and winter, when rain falls, the area fills with water forming a temporary basin, partly delimited by the structure. The interpretation of the site calls for further research and the presence, albeit seasonal, of water should not be neglected.

 23

Oral sources of the archaeospeleological group report that some skulls were found within a tafone located near the domus Appiu in the 1980s. The Superintendence was immediately informed of the find.

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Map 2. Prehistorical sites (by the Author)

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Figure 4. Prehistoric Age: Domus de Janas de Badde Jana, from west (by the Author)

3.1. The Nuragic Age More historical records are available about the Protohistoric Age testifying to the existence of five single tower nuraghi and one complex. Five of those have a simple structure – Pala Entone, Su Saltu ‘e s’Abba, Sa Corcorigia, Calaresu, Sa Punta ‘e s’Ardia – and are situated in sheltered points, within a short distance –as the crow flies– from the coast, overlooking a large area. In all cases, research was confined to the surrounding area for the above-mentioned reasons (see paragraph 2). No materials were found. These single tower nuraghi are located in an area that covers the whole coast from north to south. Residential areas are located further inland where the land is more suitable for human settlements. Of the above-mentioned monuments, Pala Entone is the one that is situated furthest north, on private land near the Villanova-Poglina road, at an altitude of a little more than 300 metres. The area can be described as a not particularly vast plateau stretching within the western side of Sa Corcorigia (491 metres). Located at the end of this area, the monument has five residual medium-sized stone rows in the part that is immediately visible to the east, while a dry-stone wall joins the southeastern side. On the northwestern side, towards the sea, the stones become considerably

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bigger. Here, there are four natural upright stone blocks, more than 2 metres high, (there were originally two of them divided by a vertical cleft), showing an opening that allows access to the nuraghe. The tholos was probably built by leaning the structure against the natural rocks present in situ. The entrance is not visible as it is probably obstructed by some collapsed stones. Some round-shaped lithic materials can be observed among the items that have collapsed from the tower. Located in a particularly strategic area, little more than 1km away from the sea, the monument is sheltered by mountains to the east and overlooks a large stretch of coast as well as inland areas. The rather flat configuration of the area, when compared to the surrounding land, and the nearby presence of water are all elements that make it also suitable for settlements. No huts have been found, but the fact that the lithic materials present in situ (probably related to dwellings) were used to build some adjacent dry-stone walls cannot be ruled out. Within a short distance from them, about 400 metres further south, stands the single tower of Sa Corcorigia, named after the area. Of the original part of the structure, almost nothing survives, except for the big ashlars, some of which are slightly squared. The opposite side of the site, westward, is inaccessible. Decades ago, the construction of a dry-stone wall from local stones, which had been removed to clear an area intended for grape cultivation, was integrated with the perimeter of the nuraghe. As the site is situated in a strategic area, it may have been used to control the territory. The single tower of Su Saltu ‘e s’Abba24 is what immediately comes into sight next. This site is situated on a hillslope, at about 80 metres, in the homonymous area. The nuraghe is located at a lower altitude and nearer to the coast (about 300 metres) than the other single towers in the area. It overlooks almost the entire coastline, which stretches from Poglina beach to the inlet of Sa Mesa’e s’Attentu. The visible part of the tholos is situated on the eastern side of the area while access to it from the western side is made practically impossible by the vegetation that grows there. On this side, towards the slope and in its central part, the monument has partly collapsed. The remaining stone rows are about 1m high. The base, in line with ground level, is made up of smaller and ‘regular’ stones, when compared to the elevation. On the basis of its location and the absence of

 24

Alba Foschi Nieddu, “Villanova Monteleone, loc. su Saltu de s’Abba (Prov. Di Sassari)”, Rivista di scienze preistoriche, 39 (1984), pp. 391-392.

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remains of any residential area, we can infer that it served the function of a watchtower.25 Southward, further inland, there is the nuraghe Calaresu, named after the area. It is located on the top of a hill, in a slightly rugged area, at an altitude of 410 metres. The thick Mediterranean bush hides it from view so that it can only be seen at a distance of a few metres. The tholos has for the most part collapsed and the remaining stone rows are hardly visible as a result of the thick vegetation. However, the collapsed stones do not completely obstruct some parts of the structure, and some sections of the edifice, consisting of medium-sized stones, can be seen. An acute-angled niche can be openly seen on the edifice, from which it is possible to make out an extension of the stone rows which are, for the most part, below ground. Some more collapsed stones obstruct the niche, impairing readability. Some bigger blocks of stone are found on the opposite side of the construction and the entrance cannot be seen. The structure has a highly strategic position since it overlooks most of the coast and of the inland areas. Its location seems to support the hypothesis that it was used to control the territory. On the southern side, there is the single tower of Sa Punta ‘e s’Ardia. It stands on the top of the hill at about 340 metres, near the by-road leading to the Alghero-Bosa coast road. It is almost completely covered with lentisk and wild olives, which hide it from view and make it difficult to gain access to the site. The original structure was likely to be a single tower about 12 metres in diameter, now almost completely below ground. Further north, there are some heaps of big-sized stones (up to 1,2 metres in length), which were probably part of the nuraghe itself. Near the tholos, there is an eggshaped basin carved in trachyte (102×78×50 centimetres). Near the circular dry-stone walls situated further south, some medium-sized stones, almost completely covered with lentisk, appear on the surface. As their winding courses suggest, they may be the remains of ancient huts. Eastward, not far from the above-mentioned sites, in the large plateau of Chentu Mannas, there is the vast settlement of Nuraghe Appiu. It is the only site in the area where a series of excavations have taken place: in 2001-2005,

 25

Alba Foschi Nieddu, “Villanova Monteleone”, pp.391-392. Alba Foschi Nieddu reports the nearby presence of an oil mill carved in the rocks, which appears on the surface, and of some stone containers that may refer to a time when the site was used again. The current state of investigations does not make it possible to locate it.

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in 2011 and in 2012.26 It is one of the most important sites of the area, and developed in the Late Nuragic Age. It consists of a Nuragic fortress with a quatrefoil plan, a large village and a sacred area with a Tomba di Giganti (Giants’ Tomb), some sacred altars and a single tower nuraghe (Appiu 2 or Punta ‘e su Crabile).27 The large plateau, situated at about 480 metres, is sheltered by mountains to the southeast and it is within a short distance –as the crow flies– from the coast from which it commanded a broad view of the surrounding areas. The presence of water was essential since the residential areas relied on a spring for their water supply. Nuraghe Appiu is situated in the large area of Chentu Mannas, at 486 metres, where a survey was carried out between 2010 and 2012, involving the cleaning of the monument and the surrounding area and the undertaking of a graphic and photographic survey of the collapsed parts. Then a considerable part of the monument, primarily, the entrance and the courtyard, were restored. Nuraghe Appiu is a two-storeyed nuraghe with a quatrefoil plan, which rises about 15 metres above ground level. It consists of an imposing central tower and four smaller outer towers connected by curtain walls. Only two of the towers next to the main entrance are visible from the outside; the others are covered by collapsed stones and sparse vegetation. The entrance has a trapezoidal form, which opens into a roofed courtyard, probably a unicum in the island, opposite the donjon. On the right, a loophole allowed access from the outside through a wooden staircase. Inside the tholos, there are four niches located at ground level. In the higher part of the structure, opposite the entrance, a loophole pierces the helicoidal staircase, which begins from the outside, on the left of the donjon, and ends just where the central loophole is. At this height, there are two cavities on each side, used to fix wooden fences serving as an intermediate floor, which could be accessed through the loophole. On the left-hand side of the entrance, in the connecting curtain wall, there is a kind of stone staircase, partially obstructed by collapsed stones. On the right-hand side of the nuraghe, the walls form a kind of arterial road, partly below ground, connecting all the towers and probably ending outside, towards the village.



26 Gabriella Gasperetti and Nina Logias, “Scavi nel villaggio di nuraghe Appiu”, p. 75. 27 Patrizia Fenu, “Villanova Monteleone, il nuraghe Appiu e l’area archeologica di Pottu Codinu”, La Nurra e Villanova Monteleone, territorio e paesaggio, ed. by Giuseppina Marras (Cagliari: Regione Sardegna), pp. 51-55.

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The adjacent village is composed of groups of huts, a typology which developed between the Late Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age, consisting of a number of non-communicating chambers overlooking a common courtyard. The 2001-2005 excavations brought to light two structures, classified as A and B, which were part of a large residential area of about 5 hectares. The two groups of huts have different plans. Structure A has a quadrangular perimeter while Structure B is subcircular in plan. Structure A consists of six chambers with an extra chamber separated by a corridor. Excavations have made it possible to identify the typology of the structures and the functions of the chambers of Structure A, which are mainly linked with day-to-day activities such as stonecutting, wool manufacturing, storerooms and food preservation. Outside the village, north-westward, there is an area called the sacred area which was probably both a place of burial and of worship. Its plan seems to suggest a kind of ‘path’. The first monument, north-westward, is a Tomba di Giganti (collective burials which developed during the Nuragic Age) of the row type or probably Nuragic, less common in the north of Sardinia, dating back to the Late Nuragic Age. The structural development of the tombs follows the nuraghe construction process. The structure is about 3 metres in length, a little more than 1m in width and height. It is composed of regular rows of big-sized stones. There is no stele while the wings of the exedra have collapsed. Its roof is made up of jutting-out stone slabs. Being small, it was likely to be an individual tomb or intended for a limited number of burials. The tomb might be related to the settlement of Nuraghe Appiu.28 90 metres westward, there are some sacred altars made up of two small-sized dolmens (the first one is a little more than 70 centimetres high and 85 centimetres wide; the second is about 90 centimetres wide and 80 centimetres high) and two small aniconic betyls. The altars are arranged along the ‘path’. On account of their size, which is probably a unicum as far as dolmens are concerned, their sepulchral purpose can be ruled out. The betyls are both symbols of male fertility. Westward, along the ‘path’, stands the single tower nuraghe Appiu 2 (or Punta ‘e Su Crabile), located at the end of the path of the sacred area and built with a cyclopean technique.29 The small size of the structure is its distinctive feature: the tholos has a residual height of about 3,5 metres (the equivalent of 11 stone rows) and is about 3,3 metres in diameter. On the

 28

Gabriella Gasperetti and Nina Logias, “Scavi nel villaggio di nuraghe Appiu”, pp. 75-83, especially 73, 74, 75 and 75-77. 29 Patrizia Fenu, “Villanova Monteleone, il nuraghe Appiu”, pp. 51-55.

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outside, there are some stone blocks which seem to suggest a kind of path leading to the entrance. The entrance is characterized by the fact that it does not have a lintelled structure but a sub-trapezoid one. The initial ogival vaulted corridor of the nuraghe (probably a sentry post) is 2,7 metres long and gives access to the tholos. The area of the nuraghe has a lithic floor, which is missing in its centre. The purpose of the monument might be related to either a settlement30 other than Nuraghe Appiu 1 or, within a sacred context, worship.

Map 3. North Area: Nuraghic sites (by the Author)

 30

Gabriella Gasperetti and Nina Logias, “Scavi nel villaggio di nuraghe Appiu”, p.74.

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The Archaeological Heritage of the Coastal Area of Villanova Monteleone (Sardinia)

Map 4. South Area: Nuraghic sites (by the Author)

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Figure 5. Nuraghic Age: Nuraghe su Saltu ‘e s’Abba, from east (by the Author)

3.2. The Roman Period Faint traces remain of the Roman period. No structure dating back to the period has been found, however, Roman presence is attested by surface material. Surveys carried out in the pre-excavation phase ascertained.31 Roman presence in the area around Nuraghe Appiu. Furthermore, Attilio Mastino hints at the existence of a link road32 leading into the area of Nuraghe Appiu, partly corresponding to the present day AlgheroVillanova-Montresta main road (SS 292), along the route ‘Our Lady of Calvia, Scala Piccada’, the local road ‘Sas Attas, Nuraghe Appiu’, and the local road ‘Monte Cuccu’. Further evidence of a Roman presence is provided by other Roman roads, of which neither geographic nor military sources have knowledge. These are ancient routes that ran along ancient Nuragic or Punic roads.33 The Roman period is also attested by two more

 31

Gabriella Gasperetti and Nina Logias, “Scavi nel villaggio di nuraghe Appiu”, p.73. 32 Attilio Mastino, Storia della Sardegna antica (Nuoro: Il Maestrale, 2005). This is the western Roman coast road, 260 miles long, known in this stretch as Tibula Sulcis. According to Mastino, it ran towards the interior and not along the coast, as the present day coast road does and which, on account of the complex configuration of the land, required considerable works. 33 Attilio Mastino, “Il territorio del comune di Villanova Monteleone”, p.12.

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sites related to churches. In the case of San Imbiligu, situated to the south, evidence is provided by faint traces of pottery and by more considerable quantities of tiles, which may have been used to build the rural church. In the area of Santa Maria de Badde Pessighe, the presence of pottery34 is more considerable. Taramelli hinted at the presence of Roman bricks within the site,35 among the ruins of the church. Data support the hypothesis of the existence of a residential area nearby.36 On the basis of these elements, a first initial reconstruction of the areas related to the Roman period, which are still further attested by their location near the stretch of road identified by Mastino,37 is now possible.

3.3. The Middle Ages The earliest written sources of the Medieval period date back to the 11th century. During the independent reigns of the so-called Giudicati38 (“Judicates”), the territory belonged to the curatoria of Nurcara,39 under the Judicate of Torres’40 administration. Written sources have made it

 34

A first analysis shows that among the fragments found was some terra sigillata ware, common pottery, among which were some amphoras. The purpose of the survey was not, however, to collect and study the material. It is hoped that further surveys will be carried out so as to achieve a more detailed reconstruction of the site. 35 Antonio Taramelli, Edizione archeologica della Carta d’Italia al 100.000 (Florence: Istituto Geografico Militare, 1940), p.705. 36 Antonio Taramelli, Edizione archeologica della Carta d’Italia, p.705. Antonio Taramelli puts forward the hypothesis of the existence of a Roman residential area nearby, but in order to have enough data to support this, further research would be necessary, starting with the widening of the field of interest. 37 Attilio Mastino, Storia della Sardegna antica, p. 377. This stretch of road went on further to the south into the rural areas of the municipalities of Montresta and Bosa. 38 A Giudicato was an independent state that developed between the 9th and 15th centuries as relationships with the Byzantine Empire became less frequent. Sardinia was divided into four Giudicati, each of them administered by a Judex. The population expressed its power by electing its representatives in the curatorias (see note 45) who, in their turn, nominated the members of the Upper Parliament called Coronas de Logu. 39 Curatorias were administrative divisions on which the organization of the territory was based. The area of Nurcara is the historical region that includes the present day territories of Villanova Monteleone, Monteleone Roccadoria, Romana, and partially Bosa and Montresta (240 square kilometres). 40 The Giudicato di Torres (11th-13th centuries) included the northwest of Sardinia and was subdivided into 19 curatorias. Its seat was the present day town of Porto Torres.

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possible to reconstruct the main events of this period and the organisational structure of the territory. This structure underwent changes over time in connection with a succession of events that took place in the political framework: the Doria family, the incastellamento phenomenon and the 14th century Aragonese conquest, which led to the disintegration of the original territory of the curatoria. The wider area of Nurcara included the present day territories of Villanova Monteleone and, Monteleone Roccadoria,41 and bordered the territory of Alghero to the north, Monteleone to the east and Bosa to the south. During the Judicate period, the territory of Nurcara consisted of rural settlements called villas (“villages”) whose inhabitants had different legal statuses, including servants. The majores de villa was the police officer and the majores de iscolca, the individual charged with justice administration. The inhabitants of the villas could exploit the common lands (populares) and sell their right of use.42 There were also small house owners and landowners, who could have legal rights. The production system was based on the domos, which were farms that included land, livestock and servants. Information about economy and settlement patterns can be inferred from condaghes.43 During the 11th century, the territory of Nurcara became the centre of a political and economic network under the influence of Pisa and Genoa. By then many congregations and monastic societies had settled in Sardinia. The relationship with Pisa and Genoa was to the advantage of all parties from a political and economic point of view. The aristocracy showed its prestige and power over the territory by building new churches and restoring old ones. In the 13th century, the fall of the Judicate of Torres allowed the Doria family to increase their influence over the Nurcara. Fortresses and castles were built all over the territory in order to expand and stabilize their power. The incastellamento of Monteleone itself, in 1272, may also have taken place for this reason, since the fortress was meant to defend Nurcara and control the strategic roads to the ports of Bosa and Alghero. In the 14th century, the Aragonese conquest marked the appearance of a new prominent figure on the political

 41

Monteleone Roccadoria was situated to the east of the curatoria of Nurcara. During the 13th century, it was one of most important settlements in northwest Sardinia. 42 Alessandro Soddu, Incastellamento in Sardegna, p.14. 43 Condaghes are administrative manuscripts that collected documents about donations to the church. They also included notarial and judiciary documents about estate donations and property exchanges. They usually belonged to monastic societies.

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and economic scene. The coexistence between the Doria family and the Iberian power was to the advantage of both parties, but it also resulted in violent fights. Between the end of the 14th century and the first decades of the 15th century, a wave of plague and famine as well as some local wars resulted in a decline in population and many settlements were abandoned. In 1436, the Kingdom of Aragon, after conquering the castle of Monteleone, gained complete control over the entire region of Nurcara. From an archaeological point of view, it is important to emphasize the fact that the castle of Monteleone was officially destroyed. Some written sources confirm that some official licences, entitling the reuse of the stones, wood and tiles of the fortress for selling and personal use, were issued. After this period, the political organization of the Nurcara became fragmented. The population moved to the new Villanova of Monteleone or to the towns of Bosa and Alghero, which marked the end of the scattered rural settlement.44 From an archaeological point of view, remains from the Middle Ages are related to rural churches and evidence is also provided by religious place names. It can be assumed that in both areas churches were built in places where Roman presence has also been attested. Just a few fragments of medieval pottery were found in both sites. The post-depositional processes in the areas, among which was the probable knocking down of assets in order to build animal fences or dry-stone walls for the demarcation of borders, are noticeable. The area of San Imbiligu or San Quirico is located in the southern part of the territory. It can be easily reached from the by-road that branches off from the Villanova-Montresta main road (SS 292). The site is situated on a plateau located in the higher part of the area, at the foot of the hill called Mérula (502 metres). The site cannot be easily read. No traces of the raised construction remain. The presence of an adjacent circular dry-stone wall suggests the hypothesis that it was at least partly knocked down in order for animal shelters, often found in these areas, to be built. The original part of the church may be related to a kind of row made of local stones, partly below ground, with some squared blocks that suggest a base. The hypothesis that there might have been several structures in the area cannot be ruled out, as suggested by the presence of a great amount of lithic material, partly heaped nearby and towards the slope underneath, in several points of the area. The great number of Roman tiles scattered,

 44

Alessandro Soddu, Incastellamento in Sardegna, pp. 39-102.

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above all, over the area immediately underneath and within the heaps themselves, does not exclude that they were reused for construction.

Map 5. Roman presence (by the Author)

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The Archaeological Heritage of the Coastal Area of Villanova Monteleone (Sardinia)

Figure 6. Roman presence: Area of Badde Pessighe, from north-west (by the Author)

The area of Santa Maria de Badde Pessighe also contains a sacred construction,45 which can be seen from the by-road that branches off from the Villanova-Montresta road. The site is located on a kind of natural terrace within the valley, at the foot of the hill of Santa Maria (421 metres). The area, a private property on a slightly sloping area, is ‘closed’ south-eastward by a dry-stone wall, while the northwestern part shows big blocks with thick vegetation. The construction was located at the centre of this area, where some trachyte rocks appear on the surface and which could be related to a kind of lithic floor. No traces of the elevation of the church remain. Oral sources attest to the existence up to the 1980s of some traces of a wall made of local stones at a residual height of about 50 centimetres. It was part of a tiny construction. Roman bricks were used to build the structure.46 The monument may have been despoiled decades ago

 45

It means ‘Peach Valley’. It is cited in a 1436 document as Vado Pessiguo where a certain Jaume Figuera from Alghero was rewarded for his services during the siege of Villanova with some saltos, which were part of the vegueria of Alghero and now are included in the rural area of Villanova Monteleone (Alessandro Soddu, Incastellamento in Sardegna, p. 99). A saltos was a plot of land which in the Middle Ages was used for pasture or farming. Oral sources remember the fertility of this area, which up until recently was used for growing fruit trees. Taramelli himself hints at “that place rich in fountains” (Antonio Taramelli, Edizione archeologica della Carta d’Italia (Florence: Istituto geografico militare, 1935), p.705). 46 Antonio Taramelli mentions the use of Roman bricks, which could be seen among the “ruins of the church”. (Antonio Taramelli, Edizione archeologica della Carta d’Italia, p.705). Some fragments have been found in the area.

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in order to build the circular stone wall located nearby. As mentioned above, human presence in the site dates back to an earlier time. Apart from the Roman period, in the higher part of the area, the presence of a great number of blocks dating back to the Nuragic Age, seems to suggest a construction that was later knocked down.47

Map 6. Medieval sites (by the Author)



47 The hypothesis of a settlement in the area of the valley cannot be ruled out. Further investigations are necessary in order to have proper data.

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The Archaeological Heritage of the Coastal Area of Villanova Monteleone (Sardinia)

Further evidence related to religious place names is provided by the inaccessible church of Santu Sidorinu. Its name may come from San Isidoro. It is located on a small plateau, not far from the present day Alghero-Bosa coast road. Oral sources report that, up to a few decades ago, there were some remains of its elevation, now totally at the mercy of vegetation. Near the remains of the church there is a homonymous nuraghe.

Figure 7. The Middle Age: The site of Santu Imbiligu, the probably remains of the church, from east (by the Author)

3.4. The Spanish Period The post-Middle Ages along the coast are attested by the 16th century Spanish tower of Badde Jana, which was part of a defence system that developed along the coast of the island to control and protect the innermost area and the dwellings therein from pirate raids. The monument is located in the homonymous area at the edge of the inaccessible small valley that extends on the rocky ridge, at an elevation of more than 350 metres. Its location at such a high altitude makes it one of the highest valleys on the island. The construction, made out of local trachyte, has a truncated cone shape, with a base of about 8 metres and a height of 3 metres. On the eastern part, towards the interior, the collapse of part of the structure obstructs the entrance. The bulwark was built around 1580 and

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finished in 1585 on the orders of the Lord of Monteleone and at the expenses of the vassals of Monteleone, Villanova and Romana, who also paid the guards.48 In 1582, the small village of Villanova was plundered by the Saracens, who had landed near Poglina Tower.49 Raids were expected from S’Istrampu ‘e Su Segnore, further south than the tower, which also protected the small inlet of Seno de Sa Pazzosa. From the construction, which overlooks a very large area, it was possible to encompass the whole horizon up to a distance of about 70 kilometres, including most of the northwestern areas of Sardinia, from Capo Caccia to the north to Capo Marargiu to the south. The defensive function of the structure lasted little more than a century: records dating back to 1720-1729 attest that it had been abandoned long before.50

Conclusions Some conclusions about the settlement patterns of the territory can be drawn. The particular features of the territory have undoubtedly affected settlement typologies or their functions. In the pre-Nuragic Age, the hypogean necropolises had, as previously said (see paragraph 3), some features in common. Furthermore, all settlements were located not far from flat areas and near later sites belonging to the following centuries. In the case of the area of Sa Pischina, the site may also have had a role in the Nuragic Age because of its proximity to the settlement of Nuraghe Appiu. The presence of water nearby was a standard feature of all sites. The rugged coastline may have been considered as an ideal place for controlling the territory and, above all, the coast, supposedly forming ‘connections’ between the single towers themselves, which may also have protected inland dwellings. The defensive function of the towers may also be extended, even though they date back to a more generic Nuragic Age, to the vast settlement of Nuraghe Appiu, since compared to it, they are located in the north, west and south of the territory. One more observation can be added: there are a greater number of Nuragic towers situated in the north, nearer the area of the present day beach of Poglina, which might have been at that time an easier landing place for a prospective raid from the sea. Probable dwellings were located further inland, in areas more

 48

Massimo Rassu, Le sentinelle del mare, p. 85. It is the tower that stands in the area of Poglina, situated further north, in the territory of Alghero, of which only a few traces remain. It had a visual connection with the tower of Badde Jana. 50 Massimo Rassu, Le sentinelle del mare, p.85. 49

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The Archaeological Heritage of the Coastal Area of Villanova Monteleone (Sardinia)

suitable for building than those nearer to the coast. There is water near all settlements.

Map 7. Spanish site (by the Author)

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Figure 8. The Spanish tower of Badde Jana, from east (by the Author)

Figure 9. View to North from the Spanish Tower of Badde Jana (by the Author)

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The Archaeological Heritage of the Coastal Area of Villanova Monteleone (Sardinia)

During the Roman period, settlements were located further inland and in flat areas, close to the road mentioned by Mastino,51 as they were easier to access and more suitable for settlement. In these cases, the proximity to the coast does not seem to have been a significant influence while the proximity to communication routes seems to have been a more decisive factor. The same can be said about the Middle Ages: churches were built in areas that had been occupied during the Roman period, located further south and close to the present day by-road. The hypothesis that the routes were more or less the same cannot be ruled out. In the post-Middle Ages, the coastal areas were still considered the ideal places for the protection of the coast. Some difficulties were encountered during the research, which is still in its early stages, particularly in the sites marked by poor visibility conditions. In these cases, comprehensive reconstruction was based on data such as context and location as well as proximity to water sources or other sites. The study may be developed from many points of view. In the case of Badde Pessighe, the territory should be subjected to more in-depth analyses. The survey, which concerned restricted areas, made it possible to identify the Roman phase of the site and a likely Nuragic period. Therefore further intensive surveys, starting from the area around the site, would be necessary in order to define the different layers of stratification, supported by material collection and analysis of data. The methodological approach needs further analyses concerning, above all, toponymy, geomorphology and aerial photography. These analyses may be extended to areas situated further inland, applying the targeted survey52 method and conducting intensive surveys where the ground permits them.

 51

Attilio Mastino, Storia della Sardegna antica, p.377. Marco Milanese and Gabriele Gattiglia, “Ricerche di archeologia del paesaggio”, pp. 264-269. 52

MONASTIC NETWORKS AND ASSEMBLING POWER BY ASTURLEONESE KINGS IN THE NORTHWEST OF THE IBERIAN PENINSULA (860-999)1 JUAN CARLOS GARCÍA CACHO UNIVERSIDAD DE SALAMANCA

The purpose of this study is to analyse the monastic networks in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula to see how social dynamics were carried out on a local level during the years 860-999. In order to consider this, we have chosen the Asturleonese kings as main characters to analyse the complex scenarios in which social dynamics and monastic networks developed and how this can also help us to identify the particularities of local churches and monasteries between them.

1. The Proprietary Church: From the Eigenkirche of Stutz to recent Historiographical Approaches In the study of the Spanish Early Middle Ages, there are a lot of institutions that can help researchers analyse social dynamics, which can simultaneously be used as guidelines to understand the foundations of other aspects of medieval societies, such as economy, politics, culture and religion. One of these institutions is the Eigenkirche (“proprietary church”), a term coined by Stutz for churches and monasteries that were founded on the initiative of laymen, a practice which he considers typical of the Germanic-barbarian tribes.2 Stutz’s approach caused the rapid generation of other different historiographical points of views such as 1

Abbreviation used: SNA, Social Networks Analysis. Ulrich Stutz, Geschichte des Kirlichen Benefzialswesens, I, Die eigenkirche (Berlin: without publisher, 1895).

2

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Dopsch’s hypothesis, which correlates the emergence of the proprietary church with the gradual process of the feudalisation of society that took place in the Early Middle Ages.3 In Spain, one of the first historians who studied critically the term was Torres López who expressed his doubts regarding its ethnical or purely feudal origins, pointing out instead its origins as an ecclesiastical institution created by the autonomy that monasteries held in the Late Antiquity period, the lack of supervision by the Hispanic bishoprics and the capacity of late-antique and early medieval proprietaries to possess churches and chapels.4 In recent years, many historians have addressed this ecclesiastical institution from perspectives other than the prevailing historiographical approaches, such as canon law or economic history. Among these new perspectives, we should highlight the contributions made by Tellenbach, interested in the proprietary church and longer-term structural changes, and Wood, who has done holistic research regarding the institution in all of Western Europe considering social, religious, legal and administrative factors as keys to understanding the phenomenon.5 There has also been considerable progress concerning what is known about the proprietary church through archaeology undertaken in different places throughout Europe (France, Italy and Spain to name a few), which has served as an important reference for studying its role in social organization on a local level, and its changes and continuities throughout the centuries.6

3

Alphons Dopsch, Fundamentos económicos y sociales de la cultura europea: de César a Carlomagno (Mexico: Fondo de Cultura Económica, 1951), pp. 342-348. 4 Manuel Torres López, “La doctrina de las ‘Iglesias Propias’ en los autores españoles”, Anuario de Historia del Derecho Español, 2 (1925), pp. 402-461; and also Manuel Torres López, “La ‘Iglesia propia’ en España”, Anuario de Historia del Derecho Español, 5 (1928), pp. 83-217. 5 Gerd Tellenbach, Church, State and Christian Society at the Time of the Investiture Contest (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1948); Susan Wood, The Proprietary Church in the Medieval West (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008). 6 Claude Lorren, “Le village de Saint-Martin-de-Trainecourt à Mondeville (Calvados), de l’Antiquité au haut Moyen Âge”, La Neustrie. Le pays au Nord de la Loire de 650 à 850, ed. by Hartmut Atsma (Therbecke: Sigmarigen, 1989), I, pp. 439-466; Stefano Gasparri and Cristina La Rocca, Carte di familia. Strategie, rapresentazione e memoria dei grupo familiare di Totone di Campione (721-877) (Rome: Viella, 2005); José Avelino Gutiérrez González, “El Páramo Leónés entre la Antigüedad y la Alta Edad Media”, Studia Historica. Historia Medieval, 14 (1996), pp. 47-96.

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2. The Social Networks Analysis and Early Medieval Local Churches and Monasteries Still, much needs to be said about the proprietary church as an institution, especially about its impact in social terms and how lay and religious powers used local churches and monasteries as means for social control and political manoeuvring. Similarly, we have to study thoroughly how the proprietary church was used as an instrument for forging social prestige by its owners and protectors. One way to address this research problem is through the Social Networks Analysis (SNA), a methodology that comes from contributions made in the Social Sciences, particularly by Moreno’s sociometry, Barnes’ application of the term network in an allegorical sense, and the theoretical contributions made by the anthropologists Mitchell and Boissevain, among others.7 One of the main strengths of the SNA is that it allows a different perspective of the social-political dynamics of medieval society in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula compared to a micro-scale perspective, since SNA focuses on the active roles executed by the characters (or nodes) that take part in social relations.8 Those characters, even though they interact at a local level, are not strictly tied to it, as they can come from other networks that operate at different scales. We believe that this is 7

Jacob Moreno, Fundamentos de la sociometría (Buenos Aires: Paidós, 1972); John Arundel Barnes, “Clase y comités en una comunidad isleña noruega”, Análisis de redes sociales. Orígenes, teorías y aplicaciones, ed. by Félix Requena Santos (Madrid: Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas and Siglo XXI Editores, 2003), pp. 121-146; Talcott Parsons, Essays in Sociological Theory (New York and London: Collier-Macmillan, 1954); Talcott Parsons, Edward Albert Shils and Edward Chace Tolman, Hacia Una Teoría General de La Acción (Buenos Aires: Kapelusz, 1968). Radcliffe-Brown, A. R., Structure and Function in Primitive Society: Essays and Addresses (Illinois: The Free Press, 1952); Jean Clyde Mitchell, “The Concept and Use of Social Networks”, Social Networks in Urban Situations: Analyses of Personal Relationships in Central Africa Towns, ed. by Jean Clyde Mitchell (Manchester: University of Manchester Press, 1969), pp. 1-49; Jeremy Boissevain and Jean Clyde Mitchell, Network Analysis: Studies in Human Interaction (The Hague: Mouton, 1973); Julián Paniagua López, Curso de Análisis de Redes Sociales: Metodología y estudios de caso (Granada: Editorial Universidad de Granada, 2012); Félix Requena Santos, Análisis de redes sociales. Orígenes, teorías y aplicaciones (Madrid: Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas, 2003). 8 Jeremy Boissevain, Friends of Friends. Networks, Manipulators and Coalitions (New York: Saint Martin’s Press, 1974), p. 7.

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a strong point of our research because it is the presence of characters as varied as peasants, rural elites, bishops, emissaries from the king, and kings that makes a local monastery a complex social network. In view of the above, we will study the extent of the monarchic influence and the manoeuvring space of local characters using proprietary churches as the settings of exchange and power relations.9 Another issue that we want to study, at least initially, is how a local church managed by the monarchic power became intertwined with other nodes in one way or another, forming relatively complex networks as a result. Even so, it is necessary to keep in mind that some theoretical and methodological challenges will be faced in the application of the SNA. First of all, research in Spanish Medieval Studies using SNA is not abundant, a fact that has been addressed by María Ángeles Martín Romera,10 while the proportion of studies that focuses on the Early Middle Ages is smaller.11 Second, the scarcity of Spanish Early Medieval sources during the eighth and the first half of the ninth century, unlike in other places around Europe such as the Middle Rhine Valley (because of the Abbeys of Fulda and Lorsch’s cartularies), or central Italy, where we have the vast ninth century Lucchese documentation that has been preserved.12 While this situation changes at the end of the ninth century, one must still 9

Álvaro Carvajal Castro and Iñaki Martín Viso, “Historias regionales de la repoblación: los reyes asturleoneses y las ‘políticas de la tierra’ en el oeste de la meseta del Duero”, El historiador y la sociedad. Homenaje al profesor J. M. Mínguez, ed. by Pablo C. Díaz Martínez, Fernando Luis Corral and Iñaki Martín Viso (Salamanca: Ediciones Universidad de Salamanca, 2013), pp. 40 and 41; Chris Wickham, Framing the Early Middle Ages. Europe and the Mediterranean, 400-800 (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005), pp. 393-398; Matthew Innes, State and Society in the Early Middle Ages: The Middle Rhine Valley, 400-1000 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000). 10 María Ángeles Martín Romera, “Nuevas perspectivas para el estudio de las sociedades medievales: el análisis de redes sociales”, Studia Historica. Historia Medieval, 28 (2010), p. 220. 11 Mercedes Cano Herrera, David Carvajal de la Vega, Javier Añíbarro Rodríguez, and Imanol Vítores Casado, Redes sociales y económicas en el mundo bajomedieval (Valladolid: Castilla Ediciones, 2011); Iñaki Martín Viso, “Monasterios y redes sociales en El Bierzo altomedieval”, Hispania. Revista Española de Historia, 71/237 (2011), pp. 9-38. 12 Francisco Javier Fernández Conde, La Religiosidad Medieval en España. Alta Edad Media (siglos VII-X) (Gijon: Ediuno, 2008), pp. 157 and 158; Matthew Innes, State and Society, p. 2; Chris Wickham, The Mountains and the City. The Tuscan Apennines in the Early Middle Ages (Oxford: Oxford University Press), p. 15.

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consider that the element of subjectivity found in Early Medieval sources cannot be ignored, especially when sources related to monastic networks were written by religious men, and, consequently, through a religious perspective. Furthermore, although early medieval sources were relatively more abundant at the end of the ninth century, and particularly in the tenth century, they are still very vague in social, political, economic, and even geographic terms, up to the point that there are cases where some aspects of monasteries and local churches are unknown. These could include the monastery’s internal organization, its location, or ambiguity regarding who the abbot was when we find transactions regarding a monastic community, or vice versa, since abbots can often be found participating in a donation, but the monastery which he leads is unknown. In most cases the only thing that is known about a monastery is the saints to which it was consecrated, not its origins and foundation, which may be because of the monastery’s lack of relevance for the copyist, or the loss of documents about it, depending on the case. This explains why it is very common to find cases where only one or two documents regarding a local church are identified, and on occasions, there can be a very large chronological gap between them, which is a research problem that we cannot be indifferent towards. Another historiographical and research challenge that has been identified when studying monastic networks is the lack of distinction between a church and a monastery in the Early Middle Ages.13 Following the contribution of Stutz regarding the proprietary church phenomenon in Germany, one of the first historians to address this problem in Spain was García Gallo, who underlined cases where we can find monastic communities supervised by an abbot and organized in the same way as an early medieval collegiate church.14 This was later confirmed by Orlandis and Fernández Conde.15 This last historian in particular has stated that the 13

Gerd Tellenbach, Church, State and Christian Society; Gerd Tellenbach, The Church in Western Europe from the Tenth to the Early Twelfth Century (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000); María Isabel Loring García, “Nobleza e iglesias propias en la Cantabria altomedieval”, Studia Historica. Historia Medieval, 5 (1987), pp. 90-91; Wendy Davies, Acts of Giving: Individual Community and Church in Tenth-Century Christian Spain (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007), pp. 44-45. 14 Alfonso García Gallo, “El Concilio de Coyanza. Contribución al estudio del derecho canónico español en la alta Edad Media”, Anuario de Historia del Derecho Español, 20 (1950), pp. 390-392. 15 José Orlandis, Estudios sobre instituciones monásticas medievales (Pamplona: Ediciones Universidad de Navarra, 1971), pp. 25-26; Francisco Javier Fernández Conde, La Religiosidad Medieval en España, p. 160.

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confusion between them is due to the fact that none of them had clearly defined functions as ecclesiastical institutions. But instead of seeing this matter as a problem concerning a lack of ecclesiastical definition, the proprietary church in Spain has to be seen and described in terms of the social relations that developed around it, how they were used as scenarios for local power, and as connections to other central nodes such as the monarchy, bishoprics, and supra-local churches. In addition, we want to evaluate if changes and continuity in some matters can be detected through the different phases. Considering this and the fact that social organization and control was not homogeneous, along with the debates regarding the monarchy’s reach with its surroundings in this process, it is an objective of this monastic networks analysis to evaluate if there is a relation between the heterogeneity of the process of social articulation and the ambiguous distinction between a local church and a monastery.16 Nevertheless, (and returning to the documents issue), when sources reappear at the end of the ninth century, all types of interactions between religious and lay men, including kings, can be identified. Having said this, a profound revision of the sources has been the key for the SNA, with an emphasis on local churches and monarchs, but also taking into account all the social interactions that can be found by other actors such as religious men, bishops, royal and local aristocrats, proprietaries and members of the local communities linked to the local church through a micro-scale approach, within the period between the year 860 to 999. But, in order to carry out a systematic analysis during these 139 years, it is necessary to define the evolution of the monastic network, which we have done using 23 nodes: 18 nodes represent local churches, one representing the monarchy, another representing the bishoprics (or more precisely, the episcopal power, in order to concentrate more on local churches than bishoprics, as we believe that the role of bishops in the monastic network is a theme that deserves a separate thorough study), and three representing supra-local monasteries. This does not mean that only 18 local churches existed during the 139 years under study, because many more appear in the sources. But, the particularity of these 18 cases is that they are linked in one way or another to the monarchy, as will be seen later on. So, to keep the research on a systematic level, the monastic network analysis has been divided into three phases: the first phase covers, the years 860-910, the

16

Iñaki Martín Viso, “Monasterios y redes sociales”, pp. 9-38.

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second phase, starts in the year 911 and ends in 956, and the third phase, includes the years 956-999.

3. Monastic Network Analysis: The First Phase (860-910) The first phase17 consists of a total of seven monasteries that are relatively connected with the monarchy, but also includes other types of relations concerning religious men and lay men. The first phase is characterized by the actions executed by King Ordoño I (850-866) in a dispute over property and King Alfonso III (866-910) and his support to the system of local control that was being put into effect around local churches. During this phase, various local churches and monasteries were identified as part of a monarchic network: the church of Santa Eulalia, the basilica of Santa María, the San Julián de Ruifurco monastery, the monastery of San Félix de Cea, the monastery of Santos Justo y Pastor de Cea and the church of San Martín de Parada y Cebraria. The first two mentioned local churches, Santa Eulalia and the basilica of Santa María, are known from the result of a dispute between some monks, who were linked to bishop Frunimio, and other local men who lived in them. According to the sources, the men that occupied them first are described as follows: Homines laici inlicite de ipsa ratione optinet, uel monachi neclegentes ex ipsa loca extraneauerunt.18 At the end of the controversy, King Ordoño I ordered the community of monks and lay men that were living in Santa Eulalia and Santa María to leave them, and to return all the patrimonial assets they had in their possession so the community of monks connected to bishop Frunimio could inhabit these monasteries: Omnia rigiliter adprehende et post partem eclesie restitute et firmissime obtine…, et pro subsidio fratrum.19 The question that comes to mind (although there is not much evidence to answer this) is if the root of the quarrel over the local churches was in a lack of clarity over the ownership of Santa Eulalia and Santa María based 17

See figure 1. “Unauthorised laymen and nonchalant monks came as outsiders to this obtained place”, Colección documental del archivo de la Catedral de León, ed. by Emilio Sáez Sánchez (León: Centro de Estudios e Investigación ‘San Isidoro’, 1987), I, pp. 5-6 (doc. No. 2) (June 860). 19 “Everything that was cruelly confiscated was firmly recuperated and returned to the church…, and in favor of the sustenance of the brothers” (Colección documental del archivo de la Catedral de León, I, pp. 5-6 (doc. No. 2) (June 860). 18

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on the occupation of lands without the strict consent of the king that occured between the eighth, ninth and tenth centuries. This occupation was carried out by the elite members and peasants responsible for the process of social organisation that took place.20 We must also ask ourselves if the dispute between both parties also reflected a struggle for the retention of local power. The way Ordoño I assisted the monks linked to bishop Frunimio may support this hypothesis.21 Some years later, specifically in the year 931, another local quarrel identical to the one discussed above was found in the selected sources. Again, the dispute was between a local monastic community and some local characters, in which the monarch (this time Alfonso IV) again intervened. The reason for the dispute was the monastery of San Julián de Ruifurco’s claim to ownership of some lands called Manzaneda and Garrafe, which the local peasants opposed: Orta fuit contemtio inter parte de fratres de monasterio Sancti Iuliani, qui est fundatum super ripa de ribulo Torio, in suburbia ciuitatis Legionense, et partier sub una uoce cum eis Garsea, genero de Rumfurco, contra omines abitantes in uilla Manzaneta et uillare quem uocitant Garrafi, quam fratres de supradicto monasterio per testamentos obtinebunt de concessione regum domnissimi Adefonsi principis.22

The dispute over Manzaneda and Garrafe is interesting because the local peasants can be seen to be interacting, something that is not very frequent in the sources. Still, their interaction is very limited because it is passively represented in the studied charter.23 Based on the source we do 20

Iñaki Martín Viso, “La monarquía asturleonesa en el Bierzo (siglos IX-X)”, Mundos medievales: espacios, sociedades y poder. Homenaje al profesor José Ángel García de Cortázar, ed. by Beatriz Arízaga, (Santander: PubliCan, 2012), pp. 741-742. 21 Colección documental del archivo de la Catedral de León, I, pp. 5-6 (doc. No. 2) (June 860). 22 “A quarrel occurred between the brothers of the monastery of San Julián, which has been founded near the Torío river, the suburb of the city of León, and in the same way, one with their own voice, García, son of Runfurco, against all the inhabitants of Manzaneda village and the little village that they call Garrafe, that the brothers of the aforementioned monastery obtained in testament as a concession of the very noble king Alfonso”. Colección documental del archivo de la Catedral de León, I, pp. 147-148 (doc. No. 89) (January 931). 23 Wendy Davies, Small Worlds: The Village Community in Early Medieval Brittany (Berkeley: University of California Press), 1988, p. 48; Chris Wickham, Land and Power. Studies in Italian and European Social History, 400-1200

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not learn anything from them directly, but instead from the scribe who wrote about them and Alfonso IV’s decision on the dispute. Nonetheless, as has been seen in the case of Santa Eulalia and Santa María, monarchs were more inclined to favour monastic communities, especially when local organization had at some point been carried out by a local aristocrat with the king’s consent, even though the king himself had not necessarily been present during the process.24 In this case, the monastic community defended its ownership over Manzaneda and Garrafe based on a donation that was made to the institution by a person named Runfurco, probably a local leader that carried out the organization of the area’s inhabitants with King Alfonso III’s approval. Afterwards, during Alfonso IV’s reign, the king sanctioned the monastery of San Julián’s dominion over Manzaneda and Garrafe with García’s testimony (Runfurco’s son-in-law) stating that, Manzaneda and Garrafe were included with Runfurco’s first donation.25 There are more examples where social organization carried out by local elites can be observed. However, there is a particularity regarding the royal presence that deserves to be pointed out in these last two remaining local churches. Namely, this concerns how the kings contributed to the conformation of supra-local monastery networks.26 This was identified in cases where local monasteries such as San Félix del Cea were linked to the monastery of Sahagún. In the case of San Félix del Cea, its connection was created when Alfonso III donated it to Sahagún in the year 904.27 Another monastery called Santos Justo y Pastor del Cea confirms the tendency of the development of a network with a supra-local monastery, in this case Sahagún, as a central node. In the three charters related to this local monastery, two from the year 909 and one from 910, King Alfonso III is seen buying the Santos Justo y Pastor del Cea church with a villa of the same name from Sarracino, Falcón and Dulquito. According to the two charters from the year 909, the villa with its monastery was articulated by (London: British School at Rome, 1994), p. 203; Iñaki Martín Viso, “Monasterios y redes sociales”, p. 12. 24 José María Mínguez Fernández, “Poderes locales en el espacio central asturleonés”, Territorio, Sociedad y Poder, 2 (2009), pp. 204-206. 25 Colección documental del archivo de la Catedral de León, I, pp. 147-148 (doc. No. 89) (January 931). 26 Wendy Davies, Acts of Giving, p. 51. 27 Colección documental del archivo de la Catedral de León, I, pp. 13-14 (doc. No. 6) (March 904).

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themselves per ordinacione dominica, which suggests a direct link with the monarch, and that the three of them had to be members of the local elite group (although one must question how relevant they were as members of the elite and how attached or unattached they were to their local community).28 In general terms, the sold villa of Santos Justo y Pastor del Cea and its church were described in the charters as having cultivated and uncultivated lands, lands for pasture, a mill, a water mill, and some orchards. In exchange for the sold villa, King Alfonso III gave the three men another villa located in Tordesillas.29 One year later, this local church with its villa was donated to the monastery of Sahagún, (a donation in which Sarracino, Falcón and Dulquito are also present), and land near the Cea river, in which Calzada was also included.30 Last, but not least, is the monastery of San Martín de Parada y Cebraria, an interesting local church because it is linked in an intriguing way with the monarchy that deserves to be analysed, both in this phase and the next. There are also previous or indirect connections to other characters than Alfonso III that should not be ignored.31 In San Martín de Parada y Cebraria’s case, King Alfonso III bought it for a person named Ensila, a member of the social elite of the region. His membership to the elite is confirmed by the fact that he was the cousin of bishop Indisclo, who was an important member of Alfonso III’s court.32

28

Colección diplomática del monasterio de Sahagún (siglos IX y X), ed. by José María Mínguez Fernández (León: Centro de Estudios e Investigación ‘San Isidoro’, 1976), I, pp. 37-39 (doc. No. 9-10) (April 904); José María Mínguez Fernández, “La nueva ordenación del poblamiento en la cuenca septentrional del Duero en los inicios de la Edad Media”, Aragón en la Edad Media, 14-15/2 (1999), p. 1043. 29 Colección diplomática del monasterio de Sahagún, I, pp. 37-39 (doc. No. 9-10) (April 904). 30 Colección diplomática del monasterio de Sahagún, I, pp. 39-40 (doc. No. 11) (April 910). 31 Colección documental de la catedral de Astorga, ed. by Gregoria Cavero Domínguez and Encarnación Martín López, (León: Centro de Estudios e Investigación ‘San Isidoro’, 1999), I, pp. 58-59 (doc. No. 8) (February 895). 32 Álvaro Carvajal Castro, “La construcción de la monarquía asturleonesa en la meseta del Duero. Estudio de los procesos de integración territorial (s. IX-XI)” (Salamanca: Universidad de Salamanca, PhD Dissertation, 2013), pp. 48-49.

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There are no further charters from this phase that relate to the San Martín de Parada y Cebraria monastery, aside from the one we have studied. It is not until the next period that we find more evidence about this monastery: one from the year 925 where the king is not present, and another one from the year 940 where Ramiro II directly intervenes. This last one reveals direct contact between the monarchy and the local monastery. With this in mind, how can this lack of evidence be helpful to understanding the monarchy’s apparent ‘inactivity’ towards the monastery of San Martín after Alfonso III’s purchase? How can we sustain hypothetical royal activity in the San Martín monastery with a lack of charters which suggest the opposite? To answer these questions one has to bear in mind that the lack of information from the charters about the San Martín monastery does not have to be taken as inactivity, for charters are written, first and foremost, for transactional purposes. So, the apparent silence does not have to be interpreted in any way as inactivity, at least on social or political terms. This makes sense considering the geographical space where San Martín was located and how important it would have been for the kings to have a local church there. The region where the monastery of San Martín de Parada y Cebraria was founded was El Bierzo, characterized by the high presence of monasteries founded or protected by the local aristocracy.33 So, the fact that we have evidence related to this monastery and the monarchy 45 years later may be explained in terms of the kings’ interest in being symbolically present in a region where they were not physically present.34 However, we do not want to jump to any conclusions, for this is a matter that will be studied in the second phase.

4. Monastic Network Analysis: The Second Phase (911-956) In the second phase,35 eight additional local churches (San Claudio, Lupercio and Victorico, San Fructuoso in Insula, Santiago de Doraxa, San Cristóbal in Insula, the monastery of San Juan, Santa Columba, Santa Eugenia de Calaberas and San Cipriano de Valdesaz), two supra-local monasteries (San Salvador de Celanova and Santiago de Peñalba), and two local churches previously mentioned in the first phase (San Julián de Ruifurco and San Martín de Parada y Cebraria) were identified. Similarly, 33

Iñaki Martín Viso, “Monasterios y redes sociales”, pp. 13-14. Colección documental de la catedral de Astorga, I, p. 107 (doc. No. 57) (April 940); María del Carmen and Mercedes Durany Castrillo, “Ocupación y organización del espacio en el Bierzo bajo entre los siglos V al X”, Studia Historica. Historia Medieval, 16 (1998), p. 65. 35 See figure 2. 34

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there is an increment of cases in which local churches are related to a supra-local monastery. In addition to this, links between local churches and kings tend to increase too. However, the frequency of connections between the proprietary church and the bishopric remained the same, since this tendency was only observed in one transaction, as happened in the first phase. There are also cases where a multiplicity of connections is identified between local churches, the monarchy, bishoprics and big monasteries at the same time. Regarding the cases where we find a tendency for connections between local churches and supra-local monasteries, we would like to point out five that are present in the charters. San Martín de Parada y Cebraria (a monastery studied in the first phase), and the church of Santa Columba, were both linked to Santiago de Peñalba. Two other local churches, namely San Cristóbal in Insula and San Fructuoso in Insula, a dependent of Santa Eulalia, were connected to San Salvador of Celanova after Ramiro II donated them to San Fructuosus of Braga and the monastery of Celanova: cartulam concessionis de eclesia uocabulo Sancte Eolalie, ubi fuit Kidericus abbas, uel de alias eclesias eiusdem loci subditas, quarum nomina hec sunt: Sancto Cristoforo et Sanctum Fructuosum in Insula.36 In addition to these relations, Ramiro II also donated the monastery of Santiago de Doraxa, a local ecclesiastical institution that does not seem to be connected to San Cristóbal and San Fructuoso in Insula, only to Celanova: concedimus etiam uobis ecclesiam Sancti Iacobi in Doraxa.37 Another local church mentioned at the beginning of this section, Santa Columba, also seems to be linked to a supra-local monastery, Santiago de Peñalba. We must highlight the fact that Santiago de Peñalba was the central node of a network of monasteries related to the work of Genadio de Astorga and his followers.38 According to the sources, Santa Columba was donated to Peñalba by bishop Salomón:

36

“Donation to the church named Santa Eulalia, where Kidericus was abbot, and of another one located in the same place, the ones that were named, are: San Cristóforo and San Fructuoso in Insula” [(Colección diplomática del monasterio de Celanova, ed. by Emilio Sáez and Carlos Sáez (Alcala: Universidad de Alcalá de Henares, 1996), I, pp. 58-59 (doc. No. 47) (July 935)]. 37 “We also give to you the church of Santiago de Doraxa” [(Colección diplomática del monasterio de Celanova, I, pp. 58-59 (doc. No. 47) (July 935)]. 38 Colección documental de la catedral de Astorga, I, pp. 97-100 (doc. No. 48) (February 937); Iñaki Martín Viso, “Monasterios y redes sociales”, p. 37.

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Ego, iam dictus servus servorum vestrorum, Salomon, indignus episcopus, sub ordinatione piisimi principis nostril supra memorati domni Ranemiri et cum consensus omnium clericorum sociorum meorum in supra dictam sedem degentium vitam sed et de omnem magnatorum laicorum urbem ipsam Astoricam continentium offero vel concedo aulae vestrae et monasterii ipsi ecclesiae vocabule Sanctae Columbae qui est circa ribusculum Escamut in confinio Casteli quam dicunt tres.39

The allusion of bishop Salomón as the main character of the donation is of great importance because of his connection to King Ramiro II. This connection with the monarch has its own historical background for two main reasons: firstly, and more obviously, the proximity between the bishopric of Astorga and the kings; secondly, the close relations between the kings and Genadio of Astorga, whose immediate circle of loyal religious men at the time, also included Salomón. Incidentally, Ramiro II’s support of this donation is inferred in this charter, mainly because of bishop Salomón’s recognition of his authority, but also due to the fact that he was the bishop of Astorga, an episcopal see in a region of social and political importance.40 Let us not forget that Astorga, as well as León, (and probably Zamora and Salamanca), were close to the king’s sphere of activity. Considering all of this, the passive support that Ramiro II gave to bishop Salomón in the transaction between the bishopric of Astorga and Santiago de Peñalba is more understandable. In this case, Salomón was the main character and a great ally of King Ramiro II. Therefore, the king did not need to interact directly because the bishop acted in accordance to Ramiro II’s policy.41 All of these facts support the idea that Santa Columba is an example of how local churches served as a central node that connected various others: the node of the supra-local church, in this case Santiago de Peñalba, the bishopric of Astorga (in the person of Salomón), and the monarchy represented by king Ramiro II. 39 “I, your servant of servants aforementioned, Salomón, unworthy bishop, under our king’s most pious command afore remembered, the lord Ramiro and with the consensus of all the clergymen, of my fellows currently living in the aforementioned see and of all of the lay magnates of the near city of Astorga, I offer and donate to your church and monastery that church named Santa Columba, which is near the Escamuz stream, at the limit of the castle that they call Three” [Colección documental de la catedral de Astorga, I, pp. 97-100 (doc. No. 48) (February 937)]. 40 Amancio Isla, La Alta Edad Media: siglos VIII-XI (Madrid: Síntesis, 2002), p. 242. 41 Augusto Quintana Prieto, El obispado de Astorga en los siglos IX y X (Astorga: Archivo Diocesano de Astorga, 1968), p. 91.

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What makes this donation still more relevant is the presence of royal aristocrats such as Fernán González (count of Castile), Vermudo Núñez, Osorio Muñoz, and Asur Fernández, all of them confirming the donation as additional members of the king’s court, of which bishop Salomón was also a member.42 Because of the above, the monastery of Santa Columba started to form part of a network originally created by Genadio de Astorga, who took the initiative to reform some monasteries that were founded by Fructuoso of Braga and Valerio of Bierzo, which had been destroyed or abandoned after the arrival of the Muslims in the year 711. Thanks to this link with Peñalba, Santa Columba broadened its range of interaction and became an ecclesiastical institution of certain relevance on a local level.43 One local monastery that seems to draw parallels with Santa Columba is San Martín de Parada y Cebraria.44 In the year 940, King Ramiro II donated San Martín to the same supra-local monastery that owned Santa Columba: Santiago de Peñalba.45 But before this donation, in the year 925, bishop Fortis had linked San Martín to the monastery of San Dictino, within the bishopric of Astorga.46 This therefore means that San Martín was connected to both the episcopal and monarchic powers. In the monarchy’s case, the closeness between the proprietary church and the royal power is evident, as it can be seen in Ramiro II’s donation to Peñalba.47 In the bishopric’s case, it is known for a fact that Peñalba was very close to the episcopal power, for Genadio of Astorga, its founder, was bishop of Astorga. As for Fortis’ relationship with the king, it did not differ from the one his predecessor and mentor had.48 So, with Ramiro II’s donation to Peñalba, linked to the bishopric of Astorga due to bishop 42

Colección documental de la catedral de Astorga, I, pp. 97-100 (doc. No. 48) (February 937); Margarita Torres, Linajes nobiliarios de León y de Castilla: siglos IX-XIII (Valladolid: Junta de Castilla y León, Consejería de Educación y Cultura, 1999), p. 51; Justiniano Rodríguez Fernández, Ramiro II: rey de León (Burgos: La Olmeda, 1998), p. 228; Gonzalo Martínez Díez, El Condado de Castilla (7111038): la historia frente a la leyenda, 1 vol. (Valladolid and Madrid: Junta de Castilla y León, Consejería de Cultura y Turismo and Marcial Pons, 2005). 43 Iñaki Martín Viso, “Monasterios y redes sociales”, pp. 15-16. 44 See figure 1. 45 Colección documental de la catedral de Astorga, I, p. 107 (doc. No. 57) (April 940). 46 Colección documental de la catedral de Astorga, I, pp. 80-82 (doc. No. 28) (April 925). 47 Colección documental de la catedral de Astorga, I, p. 107 (doc. No. 57) (April 940). 48 Augusto Quintana Prieto, El obispado de Astorga, pp. 90-91.

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Fortis’ donation of a local church to the see of Astorga, one can observe the strengthening of a monastic network between Peñalba, San Martín, the bishopric of Astorga and the monarchy. Regarding bishop Fortis’ specific role in this relationship, Augusto Quintana Prieto states that he was very close to the monarchy, which explains why this local monastery was related to Peñalba, San Dictino (both related to Fortis), and the king simultaneously. This, in consequence, shows us how intertwined both, the episcopal and monarchic powers were in order to deepen their authority on a local level. As has been commented upon before, the other connection between a local church, the monarchy and the bishoprics is the case of the San Claudio, Lupercio and Victorico monastery, located in the outskirts of Leon.49 This religious centre was a simple local monastery at that moment, which have just kept one charter from the period 860-99950, although, during the following centuries, it became an important and continued well documented monastery51. According to sources contemporary with King Ordoño III (951-956), this monastery was reformed by Ramiro II after he found it abandoned, and it was then donated by his son, King Ordoño III, to bishop Gonzalo of León. Another kind of connection that seems to have increased in the second phase is the one between the monarchy and local churches. During this phase there are four local churches that fall into this category. The first is the San Cipriano de Valdesaz monastery, which is the only documented intervention of King Garcia I (911-914), son of Alfonso III, in relation to a local church. In this intervention, we can see him favouring the monastic community by donating to the monks a castrum named Fano, which suggests a reorientation of the territorial organization of the community.52 Next is the case of, the San Juan monastery, whose historic and geographic background is unknown, which, together with its abbot Servando, received 49

Colección documental del archivo de la Catedral de León, I, pp. 19-24 (doc. No. 270) (June 954). 50 Colección documental del archivo de la Catedral de León, I, pp. 19-24 (doc. No. 270) (June 954). 51 Manuel Risco, Historia de León. Tomo II. Iglesia de León, y monasterios antiguos y modernos de la misma ciudad (Leon: Nebrija, 1978), pp. 86-93; Colección documental medieval de los monasterios de San Claudio de León, Monasterio de Vega y San Pedro de las Dueñas, ed. by Santiago Domínguez Sánchez (Leon: Centro de Estudios e investigación ‘San Isidoro’, 2001). 52 Colección documental del archivo de la Catedral de León, I, pp. 95-96 (doc. No. 27) (July 912).

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the Valle Cesarii from King Ordoño II (914-924).53 Another ‘monarchiclocal monastery connection’ is the one established between Santa Eugenia de Calaberas, San Pedro and San Pablo, and the levity and athlete San Vicente.54 In this connection, Ordoño II confirmed his patrimony to the monastic community and its abbot Vitizani and established the domain’s boundaries. In a similar case mentioned above, the San Julián de Ruifurco monastery linked the monarchy and the monastic community, even though it should not be strictly considered as a monarchic possession.55 During this phase this monastery reappears in a dispute over its ownership that involved the monastic community and the local peasants, which we discussed in the first phase.56 At the end of the controversy, King Alfonso IV (926-931) favoured the community of monks and forbade the local inhabitants to trespass on the monastic domains.

5. Monastic Network Analysis: The Third Phase (956-999) The third phase57 consists of an additional four local churches that appear for the first time in the monastic network (San Cristóbal, Santos Cosme and Damián de Burbia, San Andrés de León and Santos Justo and Pastor de León) alongside the reappearance of a monastery that was mentioned for the first time in the first phase, Sahagún, and the local church named San Cipriano de Valdesaz, the only case that does not seem to have any other connections than the one it had with the monarchy. To understand the order in which we address the promoted monastic links by the kings during this phase, it is necessary to bear in mind the sociopolitical conditions that led to the networking tendencies that can be observed during this phase. Firstly, the Caliphate of Cordoba was at its hegemonic peak, mainly when Almanzor was made hayib (978) by Caliph Hisham II (976-1009).58 Secondly, we cannot ignore that both the 53 Colección documental del archivo de la Catedral de León, I, pp. 56-58 (doc. No. 38) (January 916). 54 Colección diplomática del monasterio de Sahagún, I, pp. 50-51(doc. No. 22) (March 921). 55 Colección documental del archivo de la Catedral de León, I, pp. 147-148 (doc. No. 89) (January 931). 56 See figure 1. 57 See figure 3. 58 Laura Bariani, Almanzor (San Sebastian: Nerea, 2003); Ana Echevarría, Almanzor. Un califa en la sombra (Madrid: Sílex ediciones, 2011); Philippe Sénac, Almanzor: el azote del año mil (Valencia: Publicacions de la Universitat de València, 2011).

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Asturleonese monarchy and the nobility were facing political and internal changes.59 All of this determined the networking carried out during this phase, which saw the continuation of tendencies such as connections between local churches and supra-local monasteries, like Sahagún, or with bishoprics such as León or Astorga. The only monastery that does not fit in these two tendencies is San Cipriano de Valdesaz, a local monastery that first appeared in the first phase during Garcia I’s reign, and is again close to the monarchy when it reappears in this final phase. In this third phase, this monastery can be seen in the sources that relate to Ramiro III’s reign, curiously not after he was defeated by Almanzor in the battle of San Esteban de Gormaz (975), but later on when Ramiro defeated him in April 978 at Atienza.60 There are two monarchs who follow a determined networking plan for local churches. The first was Ramiro III (966-985), who, aside from the personal link that he had with San Cipriano de Valdesaz, also promoted relations between local churches and big monasteries, as shown in the charter when he donated the San Andrés de León monastery to Sahagún in January 977: Annuit namque huius serenitati regni glorie nostre ut faceremus vobis sicuti et facimus cartula series testament de monasterio nostro vocabulo Sancti Andre intus cives legionensis terminatum per suis certissimis terminis, a parte orienti ad illam Portam Sancte Marie Regula, ad occidentalem vero per illa eglesiam Sancti Michaeli, ad meridiam et septentrionalem partem de calle ad callem; omnia ab homni integritate vobis concedimus.61

59

José María Mínguez Fernández, La España de los siglos VI al XIII: guerra, expansión y transformaciones: en busca de una frágil unidad (San Sebastian: Nerea, 2004); Amancio Isla, La Alta Edad Media, p. 107. 60 Colección documental del archivo de la Catedral de León, II, pp. 264-265 (doc. No. 461) (November 978); Alfonso de Ceballos-Escalera, Ordoño III, 951-956, Sancho I, 956-966, Ordoño IV, 958-959, Ramiro III, 966-985, Vermudo II, 982-999 (Burgos: La Olmeda, 2000) pp. 147-148. 61 “Record of our serene highness, the King, to make for you like that, and we made a series of wills and charters of our monastery named San Andrés in the city of León, establishing its exact boundaries, in the eastern part to the door of Santa María de Regla, and in the west to the church of San Miguel, to the southern and northern parts from path to path, everything to you, men, we completely give.” [Colección diplomática del monasterio de Sahagún, I, pp. 345-346 (doc. No. 286) (January 977)].

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Later, in June that same year, he confirmed Sahagún’s and his abbot Vicencio’s ownership over San Andrés de León: offero sacris sanctisque altaribus vestris et vobis domno Vicentio abbati monasterium nostrum vocabulo Sancti Andre apostolic.62 Similarly, he confirmed the possession of another local church mentioned in the document: Santos Justo and Pastor on the fringes of León: in primis, eclesia videlicet ipsius sanctorum martirum Iusti et Pastoris que sita est in suburbia legionenses.63 The other king is Vermudo II (986-999), who donated a church called San Cristóbal to the bishopric of León in the year 985, whose original proprietary, presbyter Ero, escaped from this church after having been caught fornicating and, in addition, murdering someone whose identity is not revealed: ipsa ecclesia cum tota ipsa hereditate de ipso Ero presbitero uobis concedimus pro remedio anime nostre. Et in fuga fuit ipse Ero monaco propter Scelus fornicationem et propter omicidio quos fecit.64 Was there a political or economic reason behind the moral one for Vermudo II’s confiscation of the church of San Cristóbal? Sadly, this is impossible to tell merely from what is revealed in the documents. However, while we are aware it is impossible to answer, it forces us to ask if the confiscation of San Cristóbal was a response to a monarchic initiative to balance the forces within the kingdom; that is, its own monarchic power and the aristocratic elite’s power. A result of this regulation of the kingdom’s power balance (even though it does not satisfactorily explain the reason behind the confiscation), is the revolt that took place five years after the donation of San Cristóbal, in the year 990, against Vermudo II led by García Gómez (who was the brother-in-law of King Ramiro III, who reigned before Vermudo II), with the support of Almanzor.65 So, it is possible that the donation of San Cristóbal is just an initial example of the balancing and stabilization of power carried out during Vermudo II’s reign. 62

“I give to your sacrosanct altar, and to you, Vicencio, abbot of our monastery called San Andrés” [Colección diplomática del monasterio de Sahagún, I, pp. 349351 (doc. No. 290) (June 977)]. 63 “In first place, obviously, the church of the holy martyrs Justo and Pastor that is located on the fringes of León.” [Colección diplomática del monasterio de Sahagún, I, pp. 349-351 (doc. No. 290) (June 977)]. 64 “That church with all its hereditate of Ero the presbyter we give to you for the benefit of our soul. And he, Ero the monk, ran away due to the crime of fornication and a homicide that he committed.” [Colección documental del archivo de la Catedral de León, III, pp. 318-319 (doc. No. 507) (November 985)]. 65 Alfonso de Ceballos-Escalera, Ordoño III, p. 180.

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The hypothesis of confiscating local churches as a means to regulate the kingdom’s internal power struggle can be more solidly confirmed when studying the monastery of Santos Cosme and Damián de Burbia.66 In the year 988, (two years before the aforementioned revolt led by García Gómez), King Vermudo II did the same with Santos Cosme and Damián de Burbia as he did with San Cristóbal: he put it in the hands of the bishopric of Astorga and its bishop Sampiro after it was confiscated by an insubordinate local aristocrat who had participated in a revolt against him.67

6. Brief Considerations of the King’s Sphere of Influence in Monastic Networks Throughout the 139 years under study, we have found a monastic network that consists of a total of 18 local churches that are relatively well-linked to the monarchy and three supra-local monasteries, (Sahagún, Celanova and Santiago de Peñalba). This number does not mean that these are the only local churches found in the documentation, but they are the only ones related to the kings. So in total we have 21 monastic nodes, with an absolute total of 23 (when including the monarchy and the episcopal power as nodes).68 However, it does not seem that the tendency is that local monasteries and churches had continuous and direct links with the kings, at least in most cases. Even though this raises questions regarding the extent of the kings’ sphere of influence, and if their reach and control was the same in the whole kingdom, the evidence found suggests that maybe it was not imperatively necessary for the monarchs to be continuously and directly involved in local church matters. Indeed, indirect contacts and linkages with other important nodes served as means to an end for the monarchy. In addition, the kings acted pragmatically; that is, they were not following a specific political program, but instead acted as and when required, when it was advantageous to their interests and those of actors close to them. Some tendencies are noticeable in the analysis of the monastic networks, which support this observation. Take for example the roles of 66

Colección documental de la catedral de Astorga, I, pp. 174-175 (doc. No. 183) (September 998). 67 Iñaki Martín Viso, “Monasterios y redes sociales”, p. 17. 68 Evidently, there are more nodes in the Social Network Analysis (bishops, kings, local actors, etc.), but let us not forget that our research priority was local churches and monasteries and how they were linked to the monarchy.

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Sahagún, Celanova and Peñalba and their participation in the monastic networks under the monarchy’s influence. It is clear that this type of linkage is the one that appears most frequently in the monastic network throughout the three phases, and at the same time this type of dynamic helps us to identify some particularities that certain local churches have. Of the three supra-monasteries that have been mentioned, the one with the highest centrality in the social network is Sahagún, with links to San Félix del Cea, Santos Andrés de León, Justo and Pastor de León, and Justo and Pastor del Cea, followed by the supra-local monastery of Celanova, linked to only three local churches (San Fructuoso in Insula, Sant Cristóbal in Insula and Santiago de Doraxa). In the case of Santiago de Peñalba, the other supra-local monastery, only two churches are connected to it (Santa Columba, which is also connected to the monarchy, and San Martín de Parada and Cebraria). Although it has less centrality in comparison to Sahagún and Celanova, we cannot ignore its strong network based on its social memory around San Genadio de Astorga. The other type of connection promoted by the monarchs was with bishops and their bishoprics and local churches, the second kind of proprietary church where we see the kings interacting. During these three phases both of the bishoprics, León and Astorga, had an active role in the monastic networks, connecting with four local churches. These were Santa Eugenia del Lena and the Basilica of Santa María in the first phase, San Claudio, Lupercio and Victorico in the second phase (but remember the fact that this one was very close to Ramiro II, and that it was then donated to León), and in the third phase San Cristóbal, Santos Cosme and Damián de Burbia, San Andrés, and Santos Justo and Pastor. In addition, there are mixed connections with the monarchy (San Claudio, Lupercio and Victorico) and between supra-local monasteries and kings (Santa Columba). The third observed tendency is the direct connection between local monasteries and churches with the monarchy, where throughout the three phases six connections are observed: four solely with the kings (Santa Eugenia de Calaberas, the monastery of San Juan Cipriano de Valdesaz, and San Julián de Ruifurco), one sharing a connection with the bishopric of León (San Claudio, Lupercio and Victorico) and another one connected to the monarchy, a bishopric and a supra-local monastery (the monastery of Santa Columba). On the other hand, evidence shows that the local church with most centrality, even though it only appears in the second phase, is the

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monastery of Santa Columba because it served as a scene of power where members of the aristocratic elite such as Fernán González, Vermudo Núñez, Osorio Muñoz, and Asur Fernández participated in the donation of the mentioned monastery made by bishop Salomón of Astorga to the monastery of Peñalba. This link is noteworthy because it connects the Santa Columba monastery to another very relevant network, in which Peñalba was the central node for other local churches, such as San Martín de Parada and Cebraria. Moreover, another monastery with a high frequency of centrality that also appeared in the second phase is the monastery of San Claudio, Lupercio and Victorico. As we have seen during the study of the second phase, this monastery had connections with the kings Ramiro II and, Ordoño III, as well as bishop Gonzalo de León. In addition, there are other dynamics that suggest that some local churches had certain relevance, (and are, therefore, relatively distinct), for example, when a local church has been identified in more than one phase and is also linked with the monarchy. This is observed in cases such as San Martín de Parada and Cebraria, which appeared for the first time with Alfonso III in the first phase, and then with Ramiro II in the second phase. It is also seen in the monastery of San Julián de Ruifurco, which was a relevant local site during the reigns of Alfonso III and Alfonso IV. Another local church that fits in this category is San Cipriano de Valdesaz, which was connected to García I during the second phase, and then to Ramiro III during the third phase. So, in a sense, some local churches can be defined by dynamics such as direct and intense relations with the kings and other relevant characters related to them throughout the three phases. Similarly, there is a social difference between the local churches linked between themselves (San Fructuoso in Insula and San Cristóbal in Insula), local churches linked with monasteries and relevant characters aside from the monarchy (the monastery of Celanova and San Fructuoso), and local monasteries that were exclusively connected with the kings (San Juan monastery, for example).69 Sole links with bishoprics and with the monarchy are also elements that can help us describe what a monastery was in the 10th century. Again, the San Martín de Parada and Cebraria monastery is a great example to analyse this dynamic, allowing us to see how both the episcopal and royal powers supported each other politically and ideologically and how they used these churches as means for carrying out effective social control on a local level by connecting San Martín with the monastery of Peñalba. But still, this is just a partial conclusion 69

See figures 1 and 3.

192 Asturleonese Kings in the Northwest of the Iberian Peninsula (860-999)

regarding the description of different types of local monasteries, because it is necessary to do more research about the role played by these combined forces and their behaviour in these local monastic networks. So, in the end, it can be stated that the configuration of the monastic networks responded to particular social and political variables, and to how kings and other nodes (supra-local monasteries, bishops, etc.) acted according to these dynamics. At a local level, a local monastery could acquire institutional and social prestige depending on the relations it maintained in the networks. In some cases, it consisted of being the site of a local struggle for power, or by being a communication channel to supralocal monasteries or bishoprics. As has been seen, patterns fluctuated in relation to social dynamics, depending on the active roles assumed by religious men, the relevance of the local church, the social memory of a supra-local church, and the social and political changes that the aristocratic nobility and the monarchy faced at the end of the 10th century.

Figure 1. Monastic network (first phase, 860-910) (by the Author)

Juan Carlos García Cacho

Figure 2. Monastic network (second phase, 911-956) (by the Author)

Figure 3. Monastic network (second phase, 956-999) (by the Author)

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SANT ESTEVE DE CAULÈS: EVERYDAY LIFE OF A RURAL PARISH IN GIRONA REGION DURING THE MIDDLE AGES. AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND ARCHIVAL STUDY1 PAU TURON UNIVERSITAT DE BARCELONA

The ancient medieval hamlet of Sant Esteve de Caulès (in the municipality of Caldes de Malavella, Catalonia) was one of the first medieval settlements subject to archaeological studies in Catalonia, specifically by Manuel Riu i Riu, a professor at the University of Barcelona, between 1971 and 1972. The excavation’s results were published four years later,2 and the remains became one of the most famous examples of Catalan medieval archaeology. The publication has been quoted by many researchers, amongst them: Joan Albert Adell,3 Xavier Barral,4 Jordi Bolòs5 and Ramón Martí.6

1

Abbreviations used: ACG, Arxiu Capitular de Girona; ACA, Arxiu de la Corona d’Aragó; AHG, Arxiu Històric de Girona; ADG, Arxiu Diocesà de Girona; BC, Biblioteca de Catalunya. 2 Manuel Riu, Excavaciones en el poblado medieval de Caulers. Mun. Caldes de Malavella, prov. Gerona (Madrid: Excavaciones Arqueológicas en España, 1976). 3 Joan-Albert Adell. “Els despoblats medievals. Un urbanisme impossible”, Cota zero: revista d’arqueologia i ciencia, 6 (1990), pp. 79-85. 4 Xavier Barral i Altet, L’Art pre-romànic a Catalunya: segles IX-X (Girona: Edicions 62, 1981). 5 Jordi Bolòs, Maria Lluïssa Ramos and Joan Albert Adell, “Sant Romà de Sidillà (o de les Arenes)”, Catalunya Romànica. L’Empordà I, ed. by Antoni Pladevall (Barcelona: Enciclopèdia Catalana, 1989), pp. 212-214; Jordi Bolòs, Catalunya medieval. Una aproximació al territori i la societat de l’edat mitjana (Barcelona:

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Caulès, however, has not been revisited in any monographic work since Manuel Riu’s research more than forty years ago. I believe that the study of both the archaeological and documented remains of Caulès allows us to shed light on the topic of everyday life in the parish.

1. Geographical Situation and Vegetation The Sant Esteve de Caulès ruins are located atop a hill which is a minor geomorphological feature of the Ardenya-Cadiretes massif, specifically at 247 metres above sea level. From the said hill the village would have controlled the Can Noguera stream valley, which at the time was called Riu Clar. Parallel to this small river was a road that led to Santa Seclina and Caldes de Malavella in the north, and to Tossa de Mar and Llagostera in the east. The village and the church were not geographically at the centre of the parish area,7 but the institution ruled most of the Ardenya-Cadiretes massif. The better known limits of the parish district were in the east at the Riu Clar8 and the mountain pass of Terra Negra,9 and the hills of Mont Gros, l’Espina and Montoriol in the south.10 As for the western and northern limits of the parish, documents do not offer clear information, although it is most likely that they ended at the hilly area, on the edge of the Selva plain.

Pòrtic, 2000); and Jordi Bolòs, Els orígens medievals del paisatge català. L’arqueologia del paisatge com a font per conèixer la història de Catalunya (Barcelona: Publicacions de l’Abadia de Montserrat, 2004). 6 Ramon Martí, “L’ensagrament: utilitats d’un concepte”, Les sagreres a la Catalunya medieval, ed. by Aymat Catafau, Víctor Farías and Ramon Martí (Girona: Estudis de la Biblioteca d'Història Rural, 2007), pp. 85-204. 7 First mentioned as a parish in 1079, in a consecration act of Sant Romà de Lloret’s church. Arxiu Capitular de Girona, parchment n. 502; ACG, Llibre Verd del Capítol, f. 366v; ACG, Pabordia de Novembre, Reg. 8.d.1, f. 19r-v, n. 10. 8 Biblioteca de Catalunya, Arxiu Solterra, Reg. 4, 13/99 and 16/13. 9 In some medieval documents, among them some by the Caldes de Malavella’s public notary, it is said that Terra Negre belonged to Caulès. 10 Mentioned in 1079 in the act of consecrating Sant Romà de Lloret’s church.

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Map 1. Situation of Sant Esteve de Caulès in Catalonia (by the Author)

From a geological point of view, the Ardenya-Cadiretes massif is a granite formation. It is sprinkled with low hills and its highest point is the mountain called Puig de les Cadiretes (municipality of Llagostera, Catalonia), at an altitude of 518 metres. Of its present day vegetation, cork oak (Quercus suber), is by far the most common tree. Its presence became more common due to the demand created by the local cork stopper industry, which was extremely prosperous from the nineteenth century to the beginning of the twentieth century. In 1840 Madoz’s dictionary mentioned that before this industrial expansion there had been “un bosque impenetrable de corpulentos madroños, encinas, arbustos y mata baja”11 which the regional interest in cork production turned into “robustos alcornoques que producen abundante cosecha de superior calidad”.12

11

“An impenetrable forest of corpulent strawberry trees, holm oaks, bushes and low shrubs” (Rosa Congost, “El cas dels boscos de Llagostera. Les complexitats del liberalisme en un marc local”, Història de Llagostera. Les claus del passat [Llagostera: Ajuntament de Llagostera and Arxiu Municipal, 2010], p. 241). 12 “Strong cork oaks which produce an abundant, high quality yield” (Rosa Congost, “El cas dels boscos de Llagostera”, p. 241).

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Map 2. Parishes neighbouring Caulès during the Middle Ages (by the Author)

2. Caulès Communications As previously mentioned, the Ardenya-Cadiretes massif consists of relatively low granitic hills, but in reality these hills constitute an authentic geographical barrier between the plains and the coast within the Selva district. For this reason all the main medieval roads which went through Caulès’s parish territory connected the said plain with the Mediterranean coast. As such, the parish controlled a privileged area between the plain and the coast. We can group the different paths and roads present in the Caulès parish into three categories: -

Extralocal routes: in this group we can put all the tracks that connect Caulès and its territory with the principal neighbouring towns, although the majority ignore Sant Esteve’s church itself. The most important are: the Tossa road (now called the C-842), which was probably of Roman origin but was only mentioned for the first time in 1314 (camí públich qui va de Torsa a Gerona);13 the Vidreres to Lloret route (the present day C-63), with a history similar to the previous case; the Vidreres to Tossa de Mar path, which was frequently used in the Early Modern and Modern periods; and, last but not least, the Santa Susanna de Caulès to

13 “The public way that goes from Tossa to Girona” (Arxiu de la Corona d’Aragó, Monacals, Sant Pere de Galligants, scroll 39, parchment n. 8).

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Lloret de Mar track, which shows several signs of having been used often by herds of different farm animals. -

Crest paths: let us remember that Caulès had very complex terrain, since most of the parish was composed of valleys that were difficult to access. Therefore, paths that followed hill crests were really important for people living in masos (farmhouses) as it was only along these crests that people were able to reach other places.

-

Hillside paths: there is a high number of hillside paths in the parish, which connect the various crest paths with roads and with the Selva plains. They differ depending on the type of hill they cross: when the hillside is steeper, they zigzag in order to make it easier to travel uphill, whilst on lower hills they are straighter.

Map 3. Map of Caules’s ancient parish and its surroundings. Church: 1. Saint Esteve de Caulès; 2. Saint Susanna de Caulès; 3. Saint Seclina; 4. Saint Maria de Vidreres. Roman-era sites: 5. Tarressos d’en Baulé; 6. Trenca del Barco; 7. Can Vidal de Llobatera. Known farmhouses: 8. Cabanyes; 9. Masada; 10. Morell; 11. Padrosa; 12. Rourich; 13. Vidal. Approximate places of other farmhouses: 14. Boneta; 15. Florit. Known geographical limits of the parish area: 16. Collet de Terra Negra; 17. Mont Gros; 18. Puig de l’Espina; 19. Montoriol. Main roads: I. Tossa’s way (only since Santa Seclina); II. Vidreres to Lloret’s path; III. Vidreres to Tossa’s path; IV. Santa Susanna de Caulès to Lloret’s path (by the Author)

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3. Caulès in the Early Middle Ages Although human occupation in the Ardenya-Cadiretes massif began in the Palaeolithic period, the first signs of medieval presence come from the camp de sitges14 of Can Pelet Ferrer (municipality of Llagostera, Catalonia). During excavations, as well as an interesting ensemble of medieval pottery, a coin from the reign of Louis the Pious (778-840) was also found. It is known that this settlement was obliterated during the Carolingian era.15 It is very likely that at the same time that the Can Pelet Ferrer settlement was destroyed, Sant Esteve de Caulès was turning into a consolidated village. At that precise moment people occupied the ruins of a settlement dating to Late Antiquity,16 exactly where Sant Esteve de Caulès now stands. The first written records mentioning Caulès that we find belong to the ninth and tenth centuries, and the year 919 is especially worth mentioning.17 We also know that in the eleventh century, Caulès was called a vico (Latin for village or hamlet),18 whilst in 1079, the consecration of a parish church close by, reveals that Caulès had already been instituted as a parish domain. The most important remnant of this period is the very same parish church of Sant Esteve. Constructed in a pre-Romanesque style with a nave of 6,80 metres by 4,60 metres, an entrance door facing south, and an apse of 3,20 metres by 3,23 metres, the nave was accessed through a magnificent triumphal horseshoe arch.

14

A group of buried silos used to store cereals. Joan Llinàs, “De la prehistòria a l’època romana. Els primers 100.000 anys d’activitat humana a Llagostera”, Història de Llagostera. Les claus del passat (Llagostera: Ajuntament de Llagostera and Arxiu Municipal, 2010), pp. 71-90. 16 Manuel Riu, Excavaciones en el poblado, pp. 12-13. 17 Francisco Miquel Rosell, Liber feudorum maior. Cartulario real que se conserva en el Archivo de la Corona de Aragón (Barcelona: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, 1945), I, pp. 409-410. 18 ACG, parchment n. 47a; ACG, Pabordia de Novembre, doc. No. 8.d.1, f. 17r, n. 1 and 2. 15

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Figure 1. Triumphal arch of Saint Esteve de Caules’s church (by the Author)

The only decorative elements in the building which we can still see nowadays are a pair of parallel lines engraved on the whitewash covering the stone pewters at the side of the nave, and a little cross on the front wall of the apse.

Figure 2. Little cross engraving in the church’s apse (by the Author)

We can find strong similitudes with other Catalan churches, for example Sant Romà de Sidillà (municipality of Foixà, Catalonia), Santa Coloma (Andorra la Vella, Andorra) or Sant Martí de Baussitges (municipality of Espolla, Catalonia); all of which were also built during the tenth century.19 19

Xavier Barral i Altet, L’Art pre-romànic.

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In the same century, and to the south of the church, a small necropolis was constructed, used to bury the outskirts’ inhabitants. We can divide the discovered graves into three typologies: first, shaft tombs that were built in the tenth century, which are of trapezoidal/anthropomorphic shape and partially dug out of the rock bed; second, flagstone box tombs or trapezoidal/anthropomorphic cysts, belonging to the second half of the tenth century and the first half of the eleventh century; and third, cyst tombs, from the twelfth century. The absence of Late Middle Ages tombs points to the fact that the graveyard was abandoned during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, when the area was urbanized; the graveyard was possibly moved to the north of the church. Another contemporary element, although it cannot be dated securely enough, is a quadrangular tower, with buttresses on its four angles, on the southernmost extremity of the archaeological site.

4. Caulès in the Late Middle Ages Up to the present day, this is the period where research has yielded the most results, principally because one can combine the prolific archive of Caldes de Malavella’s medieval notary public office with the archaeological remains.

4.1. Concentrated settlement Once of the main changes compared to earlier periods is that, between the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, four houses were built to the south of the church. All except one were semi-detached houses; their back walls formed a wall that closed the settlement. The fourth house leaned against the church’s wall. To the south of this housing complex a tower was found, with a rectangular floor and two buttresses, which was only accessible through the biggest house. This type of layout was not an isolated phenomenon, but typical of ensagrament processes.20 The sagreres, also known as celleres, were holy spaces in Middle Age Catalonia where nobody could commit an act of violence, and which comprised thirty paces around any parish church. Its origin, despite a few precedents, was related to the spread of the Pau i Treva institution (Peace and Truce Institution), which was an attempt by

20

The processes of instituting the sagreres.

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churchmen to put a brake on feudal violence, starting from the eleventh century onwards.

Figure 3. Copy of Manuel Riu i Riu’s excavations map made with Freehand software. The sectors in grey represent hypothetical sectors or very damaged remnants (by the Author)

Although historians initially thought that the sagreres were a refuge for farmworkers and their harvests, where they were protected against the depredations of feudal nobility, now it is believed that their evolution was more complex. Originally the sagrera area almost exclusively contained underground silos and wine cellars – the, cellars gave origin to the name cellera in the dioceses of Girona and Elna. Later on, between the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, neighbouring farmhouses who used to own the silos and wine cellars inside the sagreres, let non-inheriting sons (who could very often no longer stay at the family house) build houses there. This gave birth to many new towns.21

4.2. The Sparse Population At the same time a series of masos (farmhouses) became established throughout the entire parish area. We know fifteen of them (Asprach, Boneta, Bosc, Cabanyes, Coll, Florit, Masada, Morell, Padrosa, Pagès, 21

Elvis Mallorquí, “Parròquia i societat rural al bisbat de de Girona, segles XIII i XIV” (Girona: Universitat de Girona, PhD Dissertation, 2007); and Elvis Mallorquí, “Les celleres medievals de les terres de Girona”, Quaderns de la Selva, 21 (2007), pp. 117-148.

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Prat, Repudell, Rourich, Venrell and Vidal), and it is clear that farmhouses were Caulès’s social and economic motor. This is clear because, despite medieval documents rarely mentioning the population living around the parish church, which was in the main settlement, they do frequently mention farmhouses in the parish territory. Thanks to the preserved documents and the collaboration of people who also do research on the Caulès area, we have been able to identify and locate six of these farmhouses (Cabanyes, Masada, Morell, Padrosa, Rourich and an unnamed one) and find the general area where two more had previously been (Boneta and Florit). They were almost always situated on a hilltop, which allowed the house to have plenty of sun and fresh air, and we always find one or more water streams circulating the slopes of the hills which had a house on top. In spite of this, the slopes were impossible to cultivate unless the farmers had spent resources on building terraces. The situation was completely different for those farmhouses located on the beds of gorges, such as Mas Florit and Mas Cabanyes. They possibly occupied these uncommon places due to a belated establishment, when the best lands were already taken, or perhaps because even if the arable land surrounding them was not so good, they were nonetheless near the Vidreres to Lloret road. As in the rest of Catalonia, Caulès farmhouses were constituted by a house surrounded by secondary buildings, and a combination of plots. In Caulès these normally comprised forests, terraces and essartages,22 all of which were dispersed throughout the territory and were not necessarily limited to a single parish. I also wish to point out that there existed a strong identification between the farmhouse and the family who lived in it, mostly because of their existence outside of towns but partly also because of the feudal lords’ interventions, as they repeatedly attempted to bond farmers to the land they were working. A consequence of this is that the name of the mas (farmhouse) and the surname of the family inhabiting it were often the same, and when they were not, it did not take long for the heir to the farming rights to change his original surname to the name of the house.

22

Slash and burn agriculture plots, called bohigues or artigues in Catalan.

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5. Environment’s Exploitation As it is nowadays, in the Middle Ages the Ardenya-Cadiretes massif was covered principally by enormous forested areas, where the local population obtained wood from holm oaks, cork oaks, strawberry trees, Mediterranean buckthorn and rabasses.23 The most important economic activity, shared with other nearby parishes, was the making of charcoal,24 some of which was then sent to the harbours of Lloret and Tossa de Mar. Strong evidence of its importance is that, even if cereal was weighed with Caldes de Malavella’s local measure, Tossa’s and Lloret’s system of measures were always used for charcoal. Whilst the production of charcoal was initially the most profitable activity in Caulès parish, agricultural activities grew in importance over time, regardless of the aforementioned difficulties of the agricultural cultivation of the massif, which were the hardness of the soil and the complicated local orography.

Figure 4. Present-day the Ardenya-Cadiretes massif (by the Author) 23

The buried part of certain plants and trees. Arxiu Històric de Girona, Notarial, Caldes-Llagostera, reg. 1, f. 66; reg. 5, f. 8; and reg. 29, ff. 8, 9, 12, 14, 17 and 23. 24

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Many of the documented crops are cereals, primarily wheat, barley, proso millet and sorghum. Two documents25 also explain that the first two (wheat and barley) were harvested on the Saints Day of Sant Felix (1st August), whilst the latter two (proso millet and sorghum), were harvested on Michaelmas (29th September), together with legumes. These documents, combined with the presence of these cereals and legumes, indicate that Caulès inhabitants practiced crop rotation, thus reducing the need to set soil aside. This coincides with what is already known about medieval Catalan agriculture, which is that in spring, after they had been sown in the autumn, farmers harvested the so-called blats grossos (wheat, barley and legumes) while in autumn, farmers harvested the so-called blats menors (proso millet and sorghum), which had been sown in the spring. Together with these cereals and legumes, one also finds grapevines.26 We know they were abundant because not only were they very often mentioned in the medieval documentation, but we also know that inhabitants of Caulès had a lot of equipment related to the wine-making process (vats, wine-carrying packsaddles, casks and barrels). Fruit trees were also planted in Caulès parish,27 including common fig trees, almond trees, apple trees and plum trees. Another common economic activity was farming livestock, which included cattle, sheep and pigs. Lastly, I wish to mention the presence of bee-keeping, mentioned in 134628 when, due to an unpaid debt, the saig (a medieval Catalan judiciary agent) of the town of Caldes de Malavella seized fifteen beehives from the wife of Pere Morell (an inhabitant of Caulès). Although the document did not mention it, we can suppose that in view of the high number of beehives, the main aim of producing honey and wax was to sell it to the market.

6. Extralocal Relationships 6.1. Families Sant Esteve de Caulès’ inhabitants established strong bonds with neighbouring parishes, marrying people native to Santa Seclina, Vidreres, 25

AHG, Notarial, Caldes-Llagostera, reg. 7, ff. 49 and 104. AHG, Notarial, Caldes-Llagostera, reg. 27, ff. 20 and 21; reg. 33, ff. 29 and 30; and reg. 39, ff. 15, 16 and 22. 27 AHG, Notarial, Caldes-Llagostera, reg. 7, f. 49; and reg. 39, ff. 15, 16 and 22. 28 AHG, Notarial, Caldes-Llagostera, reg. 29, f. 65. 26

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Lloret de Mar, Caldes de Malavella and Sant Pere de Vilamajor (municipality of Barcelona, Catalonia), although the single most common marriage alliance was with other families that also came from Caulès. The growing prosperity of the neighbouring towns, combined with that of Caulès itself, attracted more and more people to the parish. A capbreu29 made in 1373 by the pabordia de Novembre,30 shows three families who are seen to have a farmhouse in Caulès at the same time as having another house and/or plot of land in Lloret de Mar. We also know about cases of Caulès inhabitants, principally non-inheriting sons, who migrated to parishes like Blanes and Santa Seclina.31

6.2. Economics One of the principal characteristics of the Middle Ages was the increasing importance of the market, which was because, among other reasons, it was where the population could obtain the necessary cash, both through selling their surpluses and through requesting or offering loans, in order to face certain everyday expenses, especially to pay feudal rights to lords. Like most people of the Middle Ages, Caulès inhabitants also went to markets, principally those of Caldes de Malavella, and all nearby coastal towns with a harbour. Reasons for visiting local markets included selling surplus – for example, in 1323, Arnau de Mas sold a flock of sixty-five sheep and goats to Guillem d’Anglada, a butcher from Girona32 – or to obtain manufactured products. These included a kneading trough, bought in 1323 by a carpenter in Caldes de Malavella,33 and a book for the church, probably produced in a cultural centre like Barcelona, which the Caulès parish priest, Pere de Torroella, went to collect in Tossa de Mar in 1330.34

29 A document where the peasants recognized the feudal rents and tithes they had to pay to their lord. 30 An important medieval institution, which had its seat in the cathedral of Girona. 31 AHG, Notarial, Caldes-Llagostera, reg. 1, f. 136; and reg. 37, ff. 68 and 69. 32 AHG, Notarial, Caldes-Llagostera, reg. 1, f. 49. 33 AHG, Notarial, Caldes-Llagostera, reg. 1, f. 136. 34 ACG, Llibres de visites, reg. 4, f. 81r.

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Figure 5. An example of the documents that can be found in the archive of CaldesLlagostera’s notary public office. In March nineteenth, 1348 Guillem Pagès, inhabitant of Caulès parish, sold to Pere Soler, inhabitant of Caldes de Malavella, six somades (medieval measure) of wine, which he has in his mas called Pagès (by the Author)

Some of the most frequently mentioned products were cloths and fabrics. They were always sold by drapers, blanketers, and by Girona’s merchants, who also acted as the main source of credit for Caulès’ inhabitants. The prices, except in a few cases, never went higher than one hundred sous barcelonesos (medieval Catalan money),35 and there was a regular distribution of prices under this limit. Another way to measure economic relationships between Caulès and the outside world is to study the comandes – literary commandments, a type of document made by public notaries related to trade by means of middlemen – that appear in the books of the Caldes-Llagostera public notary’s office. Most of those I have found refer to cereal, livestock, charcoal and cash. These documents show that the majority of capitalist partners lived, in order from more to less relevant, in Caulès itself, Caldes de Malavella, Girona, the harbour of Lloret de Mar, Santa Seclina, Vidreres, Franciac, and finally Cassà de la Selva. As for the beneficiary or seller of goods, he is almost always found to live in the parish of Caulès, with the exception of a few who lived in the village of Santa Seclina.

35

Catalan accounting money, following the Barcelona system, was divided into lliures, sous and diners in the same fashion as English accounting money was divided into pounds, shillings and pence (1-20-240), though needless to say it had a different real value. The one-hundred sous mentioned here represent the division which in the English system would be equal to shillings.

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Finally, I would like to point out that not all economic exchanges involving Caulès went through local markets. Proof of this is the contract signed by Guillem de Puig, stonemason of Caulès, who on 9th December, 1342 signed a statement promising that he would build a house in Lloret de Mar.36

6.3. Feudal Lords An event that influenced the relationship between Sant Esteve de Caulès and its outskirts was that the parish territory was divided into three castle domains: Lloret castle, which had jurisdiction over the southern sector; Blanes castle,37 whose domain was the north-eastern quarter; and Sant Iscle castle (municipality of Vidreres, Catalonia), which had jurisdiction over the rest of the parish.38 In addition, Caulès, instead of nominating its own bailiff, was under the jurisdiction of different neighbouring village bailiffs. This included that of Caldes, as explained in an episcopal document from 1345,39 and that of Lloret, as stated in 138940 when the Lloret castle lord appointed Francesc Tosses as bailiff of his domain, called Botet, and indicated that one of his predecessors was Pere de Coll, inhabitant of Caulès parish.

7. Decline and disappearance of Sant Esteve de Caulès Like all of Western Europe, Sant Esteve de Caulès suffered the harshness of the Late Middle Ages crisis and disappeared because of this in the fifteenth century. Documents from the second half of the fourteenth century mention that its inhabitants were frequently in poverty, such as that of 4th June, 1370.41 We can see this same poverty in a petition made, seven years after42 by Ramón de Peisoler, Caulès’s parish priest, to the chapter vicar of Girona cathedral, in which he asked for permission to 36

AHG, Notarial, Caldes-Llagostera, reg. 24, f. 73. The most important evidence of this domain is a document (AHG, Notarial, Caldes-Llagostera, reg. 39, ff. 15 and 16), which mentioned both that Asprach farmhouse is a vassal of Guillem de Blanes, the lord of the homonymous castle, and that Francesc Pagès, an inhabitant of Caulès, is bailiff of the latter. 38 Arxiu Diocesà de Girona, Mitra, calaix 5, Llibre Verd dels feus, ff. 137v-138r. 39 ADG, U-9, f. 13v. 40 ACG, Pabordia de Novembre, reg. without number f. 1. 41 ADG, U-60, f. 58v (4th June 1370). 42 ADG, U-69, f. 29v (16th March 1377). 37

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migrate to another place where he would be able to earn enough for his subsistence. He finally obtained permission to go to the parish of Lloret de Mar. Another example of the parish’s decline is the sharp fall in population it suffered, which can be seen through two facts. First, in 1394,43 Simó de Cabanyes, a Caulès parishioner, informed Llagostera’s priests that he was the only parishioner in a parish that had previously had twenty-two focs (literally fireplaces, a medieval censual unit representing a household); twenty-two focs is the approximate equivalent of at least a hundred people. He also told them that the church was in danger of collapsing. The other important piece of information is the disappearance of most of the parish’s farmhouses, mainly between the final decades of the Late Middle Ages and the beginning of the Early Modern period. Four farmhouses (Bosc, Coll, Venrell and Vidal) were last mentioned in the fourteenth century; seven were last mentioned in the sixteenth century (Asprach, Boneta, Florit, Masada, Morell, Pagès and Prat), although three of them were already in ruins; and two more (Repudell and Rourich) disappeared during the Early Modern era. Only two (Cabanyes and Padrosa) still exist nowadays. Another cause of this phenomenon, apart from the Late Middle Ages crisis, was the distance from Sant Esteve de Caulès to the main communication thoroughfares and the lack of output obtained from the exploitation of lands in the massif. Therefore, the number of Caulès’s inhabitants who emigrated grew during these centuries, especially to the coastal towns (Tossa and Lloret de Mar) but also to the villages on the Selva plain (Caldes de Malavella, Vidreres, etc.). In 144844 the bishop of Girona, Bernat de Pau, dissolved Caulès parish and merged it with the neighbouring one of Vidreres. Only one hundred years after, thanks to Occitan immigration, the area began its demographic recovery. A last important detail of the crisis is the apogee experienced by the church of Santa Susanna de Caulès, a church which was situated right at the centre of the parish, but lacked institutional affiliations, which grew in importance as Sant Esteve de Caulès suffered decline and abandonment. 43 44

ADG, U-83, f. 45r-v. ADG, G-65, f. 154r-v; and ADG, D-193, f. 81r-v.

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Figure 6. Church façade of Santa Susanna de Caulès, which was intensively reformed and improved during the Early Modern Ages and following centuries (by the Author)

Although traditionally Santa Susanna has been attributed with preRomanesque origin because of its architecture, the first written reference to it is in a will made in 1339.45 A few decades afterwards, in 1370,28 an episcopal document says that there was a side chapel in the church of Sant Esteve, which had been constructed previously, but that due to the poverty of the few remaining parishioners, it had been impossible to cover it with a vault. In another episcopal document six years later,46 it is again described in a similar way, attesting the former parish church’s decline. In the latter two cases, it is said that Sant Esteve’s church was in bad shape, but in a pastoral visit of 154447 only Santa Susanna is mentioned within Caulès’s territory, and the bishopric does not mention Sant Esteve’s former parish church ever again. Nonetheless, by then the only functioning church of Santa Susanna had incorporated both an altar dedicated to Santa Maria and an altar dedicated to Sant Esteve, thus the parishioners were now able to continue showing their dedication to him in the church of Santa Susanna, even when Sant Esteve remained in ruins. 45

AHG reg. 37, ff. 38r-39r. ADG, Q-1, f. 77v. 47 ADG, Llibres de visites, Reg. 43, ff. 151v, 152r-v. 46

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In spite of the documentation that has been found, there are still many doubts about the history of Santa Susanna de Caulès parish church building, principally concerning its origin and its evolution during the Middle Ages, which we will only be able to answer by means of a future archaeological excavation.

Conclusions It is hoped that this article has shown that an effective way to reconstruct the evolution of a territory and the daily life of its inhabitants is to research and contrast both archaeological and archived sources referring to it. The main advantage of this method is that some drawbacks, such as the lack of knowledge about goods which leave no archaeological record, or the lack of information of a building’s or a landscape’s evolution in written sources, are mutually compensated. Another fact that can be learned from the study of the parish of Caulès is that, in spite of its difficult environment and geology, people could adapt and achieve economic success for most of the Middle Ages, thereby completely integrating a territory that could have been thought to be marginal to the social and economic circles of the region. Nevertheless, the impact of the Late Middle Ages crises made preexisting difficulties harder to bear, provoking a swift abandonment of the hamlet and most of the farmhouses. The former parish of Sant Esteve de Caulès is a prime example of a fruitful place to attempt a study of this kind, since it fulfills a series of criteria: it has been excavated (by Manuel Riu i Riu), it was abandoned during the Late Middle Ages crises, and it was under the influence of a public notary office which has left behind a very rich collection of documents. For these reasons, we can gain access to enough written and archaeological sources to be able to study not only the history of the parish, but also the dynamics of the local society and the life of all of its inhabitants.

Bibliography Joan A. Adell, “Els despoblats medievals. Un urbanisme imposible”, Cota zero: revista d’arqueologia i ciencia, 6 (1990), pp. 79-85. Francesc Aicart, Josep Maria Nolla, and Lluís Palahí, L’Església Vella de Santa Cristina d’Aro. Del monument tardoantic a l’església medieval

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(Girona: Ajuntament de Santa Cristina d’Aro, Universitat de Girona, 2008). Xavier Barral-i-Altet, L’Art pre-romànic a Catalunya: segles IX-X (Barcelona: Edicions 62, 1981). Cristina Belmonte, “Una hipòtesi de funcionament de la sagrera de Sant Menna. Resultats de l’excavació arqueològica realitzada al solar ubicat entre el carrer de Sabadell, 3 i la Plaça de Dalt, 10-14 de Sentmenat”, Actes del III congrés d’arqueologia medieval i moderna a Catalunya. Intervencions arqueològiques 2002-2006. Espais rurals (Sabadell: Associació Catalana per a la Recerca en Arqueologia Medieval, 2006), II, pp. 707-716. Jordi Bolòs, Maria Lluïsa Ramos and Joan Albert Adell, “Sant Romà de Sidillà (o de les Arenes)”, Catalunya Romànica VIII. L’Empordà I. ed. by Antoni Pladevall (Barcelona: Enciclopèdia Catalana, 1991), pp. 212-214 Jordi Bolòs, Catalunya medieval. Una aproximació al territori i la societat de l’edat mitjana (Barcelona: Pòrtic, 2000). Jordi Bolòs, Els orígens medievals del paisatge català. L’arqueologia del paisatge com a font per conèixer la història de Catalunya (Barcelona: Publicacions de l’Abadia de Montserrat, 2004). Francesc Burjachs, “Paisatges i climes medievals de la façana ibèrica nord-occidental”, Actes del congrés. Els castells medievals a la Mediterrània nord-occidental (Arbúcies: Museu Etnològic del Montseny, 2004), pp. 231-246. Rosa Congost, 2010. “El cas dels boscos de Llagostera. Les complexitats del liberalisme en un marc local”, Història de Llagostera. Les claus del passat (Llagostera: Ajuntament de Llagostera, 2010), pp. 241-262. Josep Formiga, Història de Vidreres (Vidreres: Ajuntament de Vidreres, 2011). Jordi Llinàs and Josep Merino, “Caulès Vell: un poble medieval”, Gavarres, 2 (2002), pp. 80-81. Jordi Llinàs, “De la prehistòria a l’època romana. Els primers 100.000 anys d’activitat humana a Llagostera”, Història de Llagostera. Les claus del passat (Llagostera: Ajuntament de Llagostera, 2010), pp. 7190. José Antonio López Sáez, Lourdes López Merino, Sebastián Pérez Díaz, Miguel Ángel Mateo Mínguez, “Historia de la vegetación en el litoral Norte de Girona entre los siglos VIII y XX dC”, Arqueologia y Territorio Medieval, 15 (2008), pp. 13-28.

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Elvis Mallorquí, Les Gavarres a l’Edat Mitjana. Poblament i societat d’un massís del nord-est català (Girona: Associació d’Història Rural de les Comarques Gironines, 2000). Elvis Mallorquí, “El terme de Lloret de Mar del segle XI al XVIII: una aproximació cartográfica”, Quaderns de la Selva, 13 (2001), pp. 67-82. Elvis Mallorquí, “Parròquia i societat rural al bisbat de de Girona, segles XIII i XIV” (Girona: Universitat de Girona, PhD Dissertation, 2007). Elvis Mallorquí, “Les celleres medievals de les terres de Girona”, Quaderns de la Selva, 21 (2009), pp. 117-148. Elvis Mallorquí, El Llibre Verd del bisbe de Girona (1362-1371). El delme i l’estructura feudal de la diòcesi de Girona al segle XIV (Girona: Diputació de Girona, 2011). Ramon Martí, “L’ensagrament: utilitats d’un concepte”, Les sagreres a la Catalunya medieval, ed. by Aymat Catafau, Victor Farías and Ramon Martí (Girona: Centre de Recerca d’Història Rural, 2007), pp. 85-204. Imma Ollich, “Arqueologia i vida quotidiana a l’època medieval. L’excavació i interpretació d’una casa del segle XIII al jaciment de l’Esquerda”, Acta historica et archaeologia mediaevalia, 23-24 (2002), pp. 145-165. Manuel Riu, Excavaciones en el poblado medieval de Caulers (Mun. Caldes de Malavella, prov. Gerona) (Madrid: Excavaciones Arqueológicas en España, 1976). Manuel Riu, “Notes sobre l’aportació de l’arqueologia a l’urbanisme medieval català”, Fonaments, 5 (1985), pp. 143-154. Manuel Riu, L’arqueologia medieval a Catalunya. Barcelona (Barcelona: Els Llibres de la Frontera, 1989). Manuel Riu, “Creació i desaparició d’alguns vilatges fortificats a la Catalunya medieval”, Cota zero: revista d’arqueologia i ciencia, 6 (1990), pp. 57-66. Manuel Riu, “Poblat i església de Sant Esteve de Caulès Vell”, Catalunya Romànica V. El Gironès, la Selva, El Pla de l’Estany, ed. by Antoni Pladevall (Barcelona: Enciclopèdia Catalana, 1991), pp. 294-296. Manuel Riu, “Algunos modelos de población dispersa y agrupada en la Cataluña medieval”, Boletín de Arqueologia Medieval, 7 (1993), pp. 89-93. Xavier Soldevila, Llagostera medieval. Viure i sobreviure dins de la plana de la Selva el 1300 (Llagostera: Ajuntament de Llagostera, 2012). Pau Turon, “Sant Esteve de Caulès. Vida i mort d’un poblat medieval al massís de l’Ardenya – Cadiretes”, Quaderns de la Selva, 25 (2013), pp. 252-264.

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Pau Turon, “Sant Esteve de Caulès: evolució del massís de l’ArdenyaCadiretes des de l’època romana fins a l’edat mitjana (Resultats Preliminars)”, La vida quotidiana a l'edat mitjana. Actes del IV Seminari d’Estudis Medievals d’Hostalric (Hostalric: Ajuntament d’Hostalric, 2014), pp. 134-142. Pau Turon, “Sant Esteve de Caulès: vida a l’Ardenya-Cadiretes medieval”, Revista de Girona, 297 (2016), pp. 79-81. Mario Zucchitello, El Comerç marítim de Tossa a través del port barceloní: 1357-1553 (Tossa: Ajuntament de Tossa, 1982). Mario Zucchitello, Tossa: la formació d'una vila : el comte, l'abat i els tossencs : segles IX/XII (Tossa: Ajuntament de Tossa, 1998).

Webography eGipci: . Institut Cartogràfic i Geològic de Catalunya (ICGC): .

THE MULTI-DISCIPLINARY METHODOLOGY AS A MEANS TO STUDY MEDIEVAL DEFENSIVE ELEMENTS: SOME EXAMPLES FROM THE NORTH TERRITORY OF MILAN COUNTY, ITALY1 ANDREA MARIANI UNIVERSIDADE DO PORTO

Introduction Over 30 years ago Aldo Settia understood that any research conducted on medieval defensive (and other) elements would not improve our understanding of history, if it was limited to only archival documents. At the end of the first chapter of his Castelli e Villaggi nell’Italia padana, Popolamento, potere e sicurezza fra IX e XIII secolo he wrote that those who dealt with the study of a castle should analyse the surviving architectural structures, as well as their changes; that they should use archaeological excavations as a resource; and that they should keep in mind any relationships concerning the history of the population, the ecclesiastical organization, the family groups who lived there, the geographic position, data regarding the nature of the soil, and the development of fortification techniques. 2 Furthermore, he added that it would be helpful to be knowledgeable about folk traditions, without ignoring studies on agrarian history and toponymy.3



1

Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia PhD grant holder (SFHR/BD/109896/2015). Abbreviations used: IGM, Istituto Geografico Militare; ASMI, Archivio di Stato di Milano. I would like to express my thanks to Miss Kathy Tijou for the English language revision. 2 Aldo Settia, Castelli e villaggi nell'Italia padana. Popolamento, potere e sicurezza fra IX e XIII secolo (Naples: Liguori, 1984), pp. 30-31. 3 Aldo Settia, Castelli e villaggi nell'Italia padana, p. 31.

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Settia reiterated this subject just one year ago when he pointed out that if historians decide to work only with written documents, they would end up studying so-called ‘paper castles’. He continues his defence of ‘historical archaeology’, which means treating material aspects of the fortifications through written documents, by arguing that it has significant importance when it is conducted alongside the analysis of defensive elements that otherwise would be based only on what has survived to the present day. With regard to fortified architectures, the first building that comes to mind is the castle, though wooden and stone walls of fortified villages, moats, ditches, and towers shouldn't be considered of secondary importance. We focused our interest on all these defensive elements, trying to follow Settia’s advice during research that resulted in a magistral thesis, presented at the University of Milan, Italy, entitled: Elementi difensivi nel territorio brianzolo: fonti scritte e materiali (X-XIII secolo).4

1. The Brianza Micro-region Brianza is a part of Lombardy, a micro-region to the north of Milan between the cities of Monza, Como and Lecco, which themselves are not part of it (map 1). Brianza is located in the center of the Italian Lakes Region. It features a large amount of ponds and small lakes, characteristic elements that constitute, together with hills, its landscape. The most important part from a hydrographic aspect is located in the Lario area. Brianza is an area with undefined borders, though several scholars who have dealt with it have sought to define them over time. From an original nucleus where the name Brianza signified a small part of the territory (a hill, a valley and their surroundings), over the centuries we witness a systematic expansion of the boundaries of the area concerned, often dictated by commercial opportunism. This is especially true during the 20th century when it grew to a new and modern ‘Great’ Brianza that embraced a very large territory, which was neither very homogeneous nor designated this name with any historical correspondence or justification.

 4

Andrea Mariani, “Elementi difensivi nel territorio Brianzolo: fonti scritte e materiali. (Secoli X-XIII)” (Milan: Università degli Studi di Milano, Master Dissertation, 2014).

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Map 1. The Brianza micro region, settled in Lombardy (North of Italy) (by the Author)

The first written document in which the name 'Brianza' appears is dated 1097 where we read about a man, Vuifredo, qui fuit de loco Briantia,5 but the best known document dates to 16th August 1107: it is a testament in which Contessa, 6 widow of the Milanese Azzone Grassi, donated all her possessions in loco et fundo seu monte qui dicitur Brianza for the foundation of the Cluniac monastery of San Nicolao, in Villa Vergano, currently a hamlet of Galbiate, more precisely in the place known as Figina. We also find the name used by Goffredo of Bussero in his Liber Notitiae Sanctorum Mediolani,7 dated to the late 13th century.

 5

Gli atti privati milanesi e comaschi del sec. XI, vol. IV (1075-1100), ed. by Cesare Manaresi and Caterina Santoro (Milan: Castello Sforzesco, 1969), n. 843. 6 Auguste Bernard and Alexandre Bruel, Recueil des chartes de l'Abbaye de Cluny, V (Paris: Imprimerie Nationale, 1894), pp. 213-215; Diego Sant’Ambrogio, “Gli atti di fondazione di tre priorati cluniacensi della diocesi di Como”, Rivista Archeologica Comense, 51-52 (1906), p. 161; Virginio Longoni, I castelli medievali della Bevera (Oggiono: Sistema Bibliotecario Brianteo, 1995), p. 212 (doc. No. A-4). 7 Liber notitiae sanctorum Mediolani. Manoscritto della Biblioteca capitolare di Milano, ed. by Marco Magistretti and Ugo Monneret De Villard (Milan: Biblioteca Ambrosiana, 1917).

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In the Middle Ages the whole area was part of the Martesana or Martesana Superior countryside; from the 14th century until the domination of the Sforza family, the territory of Brianza is indicated in official documents with this designation. Bernardino Corio himself in his 9 Historia Patria writes about “monti de Brianza e Martesana”.

2. The Multidisciplinary Approach Following a multidisciplinary approach, the research was not only focused on written sources (literary and archival) but also on architectural, iconographic and, where possible, archaeological ones. Consequently, we consulted architects, archaeologists, historians, art historians, experts of folk tradition and even non-professionals with great knowledge on the present area. The latter, knowing the territory, helped with toponymy and topographical indications. In actuality, their contribution turned out to be very important in recovering micro toponymy information.

2.1. Micro Toponymy I: Bosco della Regina, Olginate (LC) In front of the locality known as Figina rises the Monte Regina. This is an area of high ground that divides Villa Vergano –a hamlet of Galbiate– from Consonno, the latter currently belonging to the Olginate municipality. On Monte Regina, we find the area known as Bòsch de la Regina (“The Queen’s woods”) or Castèl (“Castle”) – both in local dialect - where traces of a fortification can still be found. However, the nature of the fortification isn't easy to determine: it consists of a tower (see figure 1) measuring approximately 5×5 metres, placed inside a double circle of walls built in an ellipsoidal shape (see figures 2-3).

 8

This locale, a large region in the north-east of the municipality of Milan, whose boundaries are undefined, geographically corresponded to a part of Brianza, including the parishes of Asso, Incino, Galliano, Oggiono, Garlate Brivio, Missaglia, Agliate Mariano, Seveso, Vimercate, Desio, Pontirolo (on the Milanese side of the Adda River), Gorgonzola and Corneliano; the latter were subtracted by the second half of the XIV century. Since the XIII century, it has been divided into two regions: the Martesana de medio, bordering on the west with the Seprio county and to the east with the River Molgora, and Martesana Abduana, positioned between the Rivers Adda and Molgora. 9 “The hills of Brianza and Martesana”, Bernardino Corio, Historia di Milano, volgarmente scritta d'all'eccellentissimo oratore M. Bernardino Corio, ... di nuovo ristampata, et in molti luoghi... riformata et ristaurata... (Venice: G.M. Bonelli, 1554), p.302.

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The major axis of the first wall measures 25 to 30 metres, the second one 60 metres. The thickness of the walls reaches 70-75 centimetres in the thickest points.10 A hypothetical site map11 attributed a length of at least 70 metres to the second wall. We cannot rule out that, over time, the hilltop perimeter has been subject to a strong erosion phenomenon; the map was traced in 2007 but we have not found information on any excavations.

Figure 1. The ruins in the locality known as ‘Queen Woods’ or ‘Castle’ (by the Author)

 10

This was confirmed during a visit with Dr. Livio Asta, formerly an archaeologist and now a professor in high school. 11 Giuseppe Panzeri, Percorsi fra natura arte e storia. Itinerario culturale dalla badia di Figina verso Galbiate e il Monte Barro (Dolzago: Arti Grafiche Maggioni, 2009).

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Figure 2. The ruins in the locality known as ‘Queen Woods’ or ‘Castle’ (by the Author)

Figure 3. The ruins in the locality known as ‘Queen Woods’ or ‘Castle’ (by the Author)

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Traditional tales tend to identify the often quoted ‘queen’ with the Lombard queen Theodolinda, but until the end of the 19th century the Monte Regina, as we can see in the Istituto Geografico Militare maps (maps 2 and 3), was known as Monte Baravello –a name that is not very different to Monte Baradello, close to the city of Como, where a fort has been attested since at least the 6th century A.D.12

Map 2. 1888 IGM Map

 12

Isabella Nobile De Agostini, “Nuove indagini al Castello Baradello”, Fernand de Dartein e l'architettura romanica comasca. Viaggio in un archivio inesplorato, ed. by Gabriella Guarisco, Tancredi Bella, Marco Leoni and Daniela Mirandola (Rome: Ermes Edizioni, 2015), pp. 245-252.

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Map 3. 1931 IGM Map

Clearly this opens some interesting speculation about the toponymy of the area and calls for the revision of some documentary and literary sources. Let us also remember that the archaeological site of Monte Barro, where a fortified Goth settlement was found, is located near the area.

2.2. Micro Toponymy II: Monte Castelletto, Pescate (LC) Between 2011 and 2013 an archaeological excavation unearthed a fortification in the hamlet of San Michele, in the municipality of Pescate, in the locality known as “Monte Castelletto”, (Mount “Little Castle”) a name which is itself very evocative. Initially, it was thought that a single tower was present, but excavations have detected a large rectangular shaped complex; a quadrilateral tower of irregular shape stands on one side (6-8 metres on each side), and opposite to it, possibly, the entrance (see figures 4-6).

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The excavations were completed at the end of 2013. The site is a typical example of castle-enclosure formed by a massive tower. Given the strategic location of the place, the tower could feasibly be older, if it had been built as a watchtower. As a matter of fact, from this hill, an observer can monitor both the Adda River, towards Lake Garlate and the Olginate bridge, and the branch of Lake Como that ends, in the Lecco area. The tower is surrounded by walls whose boundaries can still be observed: the radiocarbon analysis of a sample of coal has dated the structure between 1250 and 1290. Among the finds currently being studied is a catapult projectile.13

Figure 4. The ruins of the castle on the ‘Monte Castelletto’, Pescate (LC) (by the Author)



13 Taken from an official communication of December 2013 from the ‘Parco del Monte Barro’ to the Verri Museum of Biassono.

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Figure 5. The ruins of the castle on the ‘Monte Castelletto’, Pescate (LC) (by the Author)

Figure 6. The ruins of the castle on the ‘Monte Castelletto’, Pescate (LC) (by the Author)

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A first historical and archival research project on the fortifications of the area was assigned to Dr Gianmarco Cossandi of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore di Milano e Brescia; when it was presented in July 2014, however, it did not bring about significant developments, and the identity of this castle is still unknown, except for the fact that some theories are still to be verified. 14 The end of the 13th century is characterized by the struggle between the Visconti and Della Torre families for control over Milan. Despite Archbishop Ottone Visconti’s victory that took place at Desio in 1277, the clashes between the two families and their supporters did not end. Given this scenario, in which Lecco sided with the Della Torre, the peace agreements between Milan and Lecco could be of particular interest. The peace treaty, signed on 3rd April 1286, among other provisions, established that: quod rocheta de Leuco et a rocheta superius ultra Abduam remaneat in custodia domini Luterii Rusce et partis et amicorum ipsius Luterii Rusce de Cumis.15 There is an important reference to a rochetta superius ultra Abduam, which, some details notwithstanding, may match either the fortress of Chiuso or the one of Vercurago, suggested by local history, with the castle found on Monte Castelletto.16

3. The Importance of the Cartography In order to verify the information contained in the books, we conducted a physical survey of several locations. Ruins and traces of fortifications were located in the middle of the woods, and where physical surveys were not possible, we used the Istituto Geografico Militare maps; and some other maps dated between the 16th and the 18th century. We also used Theresian cadastres and the municipality’s modern TMP, to test theories, or hypothesize new ones; furthermore, through the use of programs such as Google Earth, we were able to visit, albeit virtually, hard-to-reach spots or those located on private property.



14

Gianmarco Cossandi, “Dall’archeologia alla storia: qualche ricerca sulle fortificazioni del Monte Castelletto e Monte Barro”, Conference in Galbiate, 4th of July 2014. I would like to thank Dott. Cossandi for sending me the text of his lecture. 15 Gli atti del comune di Milano nel secolo XIII, III. (1277-1300), ed. by Maria Franca Baroni (Alessandria: Ferraris, 1992), pp. 375-381 (doc. No. 376). 16 Gianmarco Cossandi, “Dall’archeologia alla storia”, pp. 10-11.

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3.1. Castle Ganza, Ganzetta-Olginate (LC) Castle Ganza, situated in a locality known as Ganzetta, belonging to the municipality of Olginate, bordering Valgreghentino, is shown on a map17 of the 17th-18th century (map 4); the maps of this period already identify the castle as ruined (Castello di Ganza diroccato).

Map 4. Ganza Castle in a 17th-18th century map (by the Author)

Despite further research, we were not able to find more information, and for this reason this castle was not added to the list of those presented in the thesis. During a site visit, the few remains (figures 7-9) did not offer more insights, nor could we shed further light on the time of its construction. Obviously, if focused on-site excavations were carried out, such as those seen at Monte Castelletto, perhaps more data would be available to us.

 17

Preserved in the Angelo Mai Library of Bergamo, CART_B_26_001.

Andrea Mariani

Figure 7. The ruins of Castle Ganza (by Fabio Carminati)

Figure 8. The ruins of Castle Ganza (by Fabio Carminati)

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Figure 9. The ruins of Castle Ganza (by Fabio Carminati)

3.2. Google Earth and Cadastres: Confirmations and Hypotheses The use of Google Earth in some cases offered more information about what was found in the documentary and architectural sources. The medieval castle of Arosio (see figure 10), dating back at least to the first half of the 12th century,18 was located on the top of the small hill at the end

 18

The first written document of the presence of a castrum in Arosio is dated May 1133: Mario Corbetta and Arnaldo Martegani, Storia di una pieve nelle carte dei secoli X-XII. Mariano Comense (Como: Società Storica Comense, 1986), pp. 3738 (doc. No. 15). In this document we read how Pietro Cane, a citizen of Milan, grants dominio utile to his brothers Giovanni and Lanfranco on his part of goods, in addition to the tithe of the place of Arosio, tam infra castrum ipsius loci, quam in villa, et in eius territorio, et in eius curte. Pietro also assigns any future rights to Margherita, abbess of the Monastero Maggiore of Milan. On Arosio, in particular, see: Elisa Occhipinti, Il contado milanese nel secolo XIII. L'amministrazione della proprietà fondiaria del Monastero Maggiore (Bologna: Cappelli, 1982); Cosimo Damiano Fonseca, La signoria del Monastero Maggiore di Milano sul luogo di Arosio (secoli XII-XIII) (Genoa: Basile, 1974).

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of the modern ‘Via al Castello’ (road to the castle). We have a number of documents that provide information about the castle and its transformations during the 12th and 13th centuries: for example, in a document dated 29th July 1211, Mundalbergo, consul of Milan, obliged the peasants to execute maintenance works and to pay for the costs. 19 The homines belonging to the castellany of Arosio were in fact forced (by statute) to carry out the following works at their own expense: the restoration of walls, towers and merlons of the castle, fixing the castle door with a new lock, storing farm products in the caneva (storage), and alternately provide the necessary watch-keeping. The peasants were required to care for the maintenance and the reinforcement of the moat of the villa by using spines and poles,20 the construction or upkeep of the entrances to the villa, and finally, the appointment of a guardian for each of them. We know that the castle belonged initially to the Cane family, then to the Monastero Maggiore; later, for a short time, it was part of the properties of the de Gluxiano family, and then it returned to the possessions of the Monastero Maggiore.21 Above the old castle, a new one was built in the 17th century,22 and then turned into a farmhouse (cascina), with an irregular quadrilateral plan Currently the farmhouse still looks impressive, and it is interesting to note the presence of a double courtyard and what could be interpreted as towers, plastered and incorporated almost entirely in the structure of the farm in the north-west and south-west corners, for the use of those who look after the complex’s entrance.23 After analyzing the complex and the surrounding area through Google Earth, there are no traces of buildings dedicated to worship. We can assume a more regular plan for the primitive structure and can guess what the fossatum mentioned in the documents of the 13th century was.

 19

Gli atti del comune di Milano fino all'anno 1216, ed. by Cesare Manaresi (Milan: Capriolo & Massimino, 1919), pp. 463-465 (doc. No. 347). 20 Spinata and parengata strengthen the wall and the moat of Arosio: Aldo Settia, Castelli e villaggi nell'Italia padana, p. 372. 21 Andrea Mariani, “Elementi difensivi nel territorio Brianzolo”, pp.135-141. 22 Cosimo Damiano Fonseca, La signoria del Monastero Maggiore di Milano sul luogo di Arosio, p. 20. 23 Information collected during a site visit with the architect A. Anzani.

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Figure 20. The ‘Castle’, Arosio (CO) (source: Google Earth)

In other cases, the use of this software confirms what was found in the documents: in a late 12th century document, 24 related to the castrum Farga,25 a place located in the municipality of Seveso, there are references

 24

In one carta vendictionis dated 30th November 1186, Giovanni, known as Guilielmi di Barlassina, received from Bonizone, gastaldus of Letizia, abbess of the church and monastery of San Vittore in Meda, eight lira of Terzoli minus twenty-five denarii as the price for the sale of a lawn of about two perches located ante castrum Faroe. Along with the field, the rights to the water are also annexed (una cum omnia aquaductu et usibus aque in integrum); Timothy Salemme, Carte del secolo XII nel fondo di San Vittore di Meda (Cabiate, Cimnago, Farga), Fonti e documenti 8 (Milan: Biblioteca Francescana, 2012), pp. 99-100 (doc. No. 44). 25 The first document that attests the existence of the castrum of Farga dates back to 1067. This was a sale between spouses Redaldus and Mafelda with Zeno, the presbiter of the monastery of San Protasio, of all the goods that the aforementioned had: in loco et fu[ndo] [Faloa] [t]am infra castro quam et foris vel in esius territorio [Gli atti privati milanesi e comaschi del sec. XI. Vol. III (1051-1074), ed. by Cesare Manaresi and Caterina Santoro (Milan: Castello Sforzesco, 1965), pp. 240-242 (doc. No. 473)]. The last document in which the castle of Farga is

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to water rights, without specifying which river they refer to. However, we can clearly see in figure 11 that the document was referring to the River Seveso, which runs several metres away from the cascina Farga, the farmhouse with the remains of the castle. Through the analysis of 11th and 12th century documents, we know that Farga was a well-fortified place. It used its own unit of measurement for calculating rents, and consisted of an extended castrum including both houses and lands, with a large annexed villa surrounded by a fossatum. For these reasons, Tagliabue considers the castellany of Farga to be one of the most important of this area.26 We know from a testament dated 113027 that in Arcore there was a castle. In their will Ariprando, curator de civitate Mediolani, and his wife Gisla, left some of their properties to the church of Santa Maria near Porta Orientale; these properties were located in Milan, in the vicus and in the territory of Concorezzo, and especially in Arcore, where they left a house with a farmyard inside the castle: […] et casa una cum area eius iuris nostri quam habere visi sumus infra castrum de loco Arcuri […]. Other assets owned in Milan (exactly a third of the total) were donated to the city hospitals, ospitalium que s[unt ed]ificata in circuitu mediolanense, to which Ariprando also gave half of a house with a yard and backyard in the



mentioned is the previous carta vendictionis dated 30th November 1186. After this date there are no more references to any fortification. Actually, Farga is mentioned in relation with the murder of Santo Pietro of Verona (d. 1252), as silva inter Seveso et Barlassina (Leopoldo Pozzi, “Origine e sviluppo del Borgo Medievale”, Carate alle radici del presente, ed. by Domenico Ronzoni (Missaglia: Bellavite, 2006), p.45). It is thought that Farga lost importance to the point that it nearly disappeared, because the part of the plain where it stood was often flooded by the Seveso River. Its level was raised due to the fact that many mills had been built along its banks: in a document dated to April 1138 we read: […] et exepto molendinum unum quod est edificatum in ripa et fluvio Sevisi cum alveo et clusa et rugia [...]. Timothy Salemme, Carte del secolo XII nel fondo di San Vittore di Meda, pp. 32-36 (doc. No. 16). The people who migrated probably moved to higher places like Seveso, Barlassina and Meda, contributing to the population increase of those villages. See: Meda. Mille anni di storia all'ombra di un monastero, ed. by Amministrazione Comunale di Meda (Meda: Comune di Meda, 19882^) p. 21. 26 Mauro Tagliabue, “Origine e sviluppo del borgo medievale”, Seregno. Una comunità di Brianza nella Storia (secoli XI-XX), ed. by Giorgio Picasso and Mauro Tagliabue (Seregno: Comune di Seregno, 1994) p. 22. 27 Floriano Pirola, “Concorezzo, S. Floriano ed Arcore nel testamento di Ariprando e Gisla del 1130”, Quaderni della Brianza, 76 (1991), pp. 78-82.

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villa of Arcore: et medietas de casa una cum area eius et curte iuris nostri quam habere visi sumus infra villam de suprascripto loco Arcori. The beneficiaries would only enjoy their bequests after the death of Ariprando, but Gisla retained the usufruct, except where specified, should she survive her husband, though not remarry. We clearly know from this information that Ariprando was a wealthy citizen of Milan.

Figure 31. Cascina Farga-Castrum de loco Faroa, Seveso (MB); on the left the Seveso River (source: Google Earth)

We must primarily focus our attention on the term villa: the local historian Gianni Buonomo28 mistakenly identifies it as a farm situated in the territory of the loco of Arcore, therefore attributing the Latin meaning to the word and identifying it as a villa rustica. However, the villa, must be located in that space built around the fortification, as suggested for other areas of Lombardy by Menant: “le case fuori dal castrum saranno a loro volta circondate da una recinzione più approssimativa di quella del castrum e prenderanno una forma organica, sotto il nome di villa.”29 The

 28

Gianni Buonomo and Tonino Sala, Arcore: un popolo, la sua chiesa, il suo territorio (Biassono: Gruppo Culturale Sant'Eustorgio, 1994). 29 “The houses outside the castrum will be surrounded by a rougher fence than the one of the castrum and take an organic form, under the name of villa” (François

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villa probably evolved in an orderly and steady way due to an official act of the municipality of Milan dated 1244, when the podestà was Oberto Macassola, in which Arcore is mentioned along with the burgi of Concorezzo, Biassono and Vedano. 30 In addition, we find in the Liber Notitiae Sanctorum Mediolani that the churches of San Martino and San'Apollinare are placed in the burgus of Arcore.31 Dozio says that Arcore in the Middle Ages had a castle, “in a place that still retains the name, possessed in the 12th century by vavasours of Arcore”;32 Dozio also adds that during the battle of Cortenuova (27th and 28th November 1237), where the Emperor Frederick II defeated the Lega Lombarda, a certain Alberto da Arculi, probably belonging to the family of the landlords of that territory, died after proving his virtue. The testament does not provide information about the location of the castle. However, in this case we are aided by the Catasto of Lombardo Veneto,33 dated to the second half of the 19th century, where the modern Monte Grappa street was known as ‘the road of the castle’, as indicated by the blue rectangle, while the area bound by the yellow rectangle was known as ‘the castle’ (see map 5). Some even speculated that the possible location of the ancient fortification was the area where, up until a few years ago, there was the farmhouse ‘Cascina Morganti’ (indicated by the black triangle), which is also reported in the cadastral; 34 part of the structure of this farmhouse still recalls the shape of a tower, at the top of which a bay window with a pointed arch was visible, which could be

 Menant, “Dai Longobardi agli esordi del comune”, Storia economica e sociale di Bergamo. I primi millenni. Dalla Preistoria al Medioevo, II, tomo I, ed. by Maria Fortunati e Raffaella Poggiani Keller (Bergamo: Fondazione per la storia economica e sociale di Bergamo, Istituto di Studi e Ricerche, 1997), p. 747). 30 Cesare Aguilhon, “Di alcuni luoghi dell'antica corte di Monza che hanno cambiato nome, ad illustrazione di scoperte archeologiche fatte in quei dintorni”, Archivio Storico Lombardo, 2/7-17 (1890), pp. 245-276. 31 Liber Notitiae Sanctorum Mediolani, docs. n. 55B and 9A. The Church of San Eustorgio is placed in loco Arcuri. 32 Giovanni Dozio, Notizie su Vimercate e sua pieve raccolte su vecchi documenti (Milan: Agnelli, 1853), p. 61. Giovanni Dozio –theologian, historian and palaeographer– was deputy prefect of the Ambrosiana Library of Milan. 33 ASMI, Catasto Lombardo. Nuovo Censo. Mappe Prima Copia, Arcore. Comune censuario, f. 9 (map 5 is a section of it). 34 Gianni Buonomo and Tonino Sala, Arcore: un popolo, la sua chiesa, il suo territorio, pp. 38-40.

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connected with the 14th century castle assigned by Fabi to Arcore.35 On the other hand, it could also be a neo-Gothic architectural element from the 19th century. It is also interesting to note the confluence of the two streams joining their courses is just behind the farmhouse. This data could be very important, because it is well-known how often the fortifications of the plain, not relying on the benefits of those that were positioned on higher ground, had to resort to fences and walls or at least to ditches and embankments.

Map 5. Possible location of the castle of Arcore (ASMI, Catasto Lombardo. Nuovo Censo. Mappe Prima Copia, Arcore. Comune censuario, f. 9, particular (by the Author)

Conclusion With this multidisciplinary approach, during the investigation we found 159 defensive elements, including 104 castles. The terms castellum and castrum do not always indicate a pure military fortification (as in

 35

Massimo Fabi, Dizionario geografico storico statistico di tutte le provincie, distretti, comuni e frazioni della Lombardia (Milan: Tipi della Ditta Pirotta, 1855), p.16.

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cases of Ganza, Monte Regina and Monte Castelletto), but can also refer to a fortified village or at least a part of it (Arcore, Farga and probably, in its early stages, Arosio). Later, some of them could develop a more complex system of defence (as we see in the case of Arosio).36 We have also taken into consideration later documents which could give indications about prior buildings, or testify to their existence through toponymy, thus extending the time span until the early 16th century and consequently increasing the number of defensive elements to 239. Obviously, we should add to this number all the elements built between the 14th and the 16th century, under the dominion of the Visconti and Sforza families, but those, not being in line with this investigation, have not been specifically analyzed. During this research, we came across various problems. To begin with, the area of the territory analyzed was vast (over 150 modern municipalities over an area of about 9000 square kilometres) and even today, as was said at the beginning, even though the debate has lasted for nearly two centuries, the boundaries of this micro-region are not yet defined. Besides, the bibliography dedicated to local history has not always proved trustworthy. Another problem consisted of identifying modern locations with the toponymies mentioned in the documents. Lastly, the biggest problem was to stay focused on the research of defensive elements without being overwhelmed by the many closely interconnected branches of research: a good example is the development of the study of those castellans who belonged to smaller branches of large families of capitanei, the armed wing of the bishopry, and the capitanei themselves.

 36

An example similar to Arosio is Cesano Maderno. Its castrum dates back at least to the early 11th century, which we know from a document dated April 1014, which mentions the fossato de castro ipsius vici; Gli atti privati milanesi e comaschi del sec. XI. Vol. I (1001-1025), ed. by Giovanni Vittani, Cesare Manaresi (Milan: Hoepli, 1933), doc. No. 66. On the evolution of the fortified structure of Cesano, we find important information in a sentence, judged by the judges and consuls of Milan Arnoldo of Monza and Pietro de Bernadigio, dated 17th July 1229 [Giorgio Giulini, Memorie spettanti alla storia, al governo e alla descrizione della città e della campagna di Milano ne' secoli bassi, VI (Milan: Colombo, 1855), pp. 320321] which forced all the men to submit to the jurisdiction of the nuns of the monastery of Santa Maria d’Aurona of Milan and to recognize all their rights on those lands: Et specialiter petit, ut Castrum, quod est in loco Cixano refficiat, et murum Castri, et Fossatum; et Portenarium ponat; et guaitam et scaraguaitam; et Fossatum circa Villam, et Portas, et Clavatura ferreas in Villa, et Castro faciat, et teneat, et habeat; et in eo Castro incastellet, et incanevet.

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Map 6. The fortifications analized in this article (by the Author)

In order to confirm the validity of this methodology, it was decided that it should be applied to our new investigation that, in a few years, will result in a doctoral thesis entitled: The medieval fortified structures in the Diocese of Porto (North of Portugal) and in Brianza area (North of Milan): a comparative study (IX-XII century). This new research will focus on the relations between the fortifications, the domini loci and the territory.

FROM THE HERMITAGE TO THE URBAN MONASTIC BUILDING: ARCHITECTURAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL CHANGES IN THE EARLY FRIARIES IN PORTUGAL CATARINA ALMEIDA MARADO UNIVERSIDADE DE COIMBRA

Introduction The first mendicants entered Portugal at the beginning of the 13th century and rapidly spread throughout the entire country. By the end of this century there were 28 friaries of the four mendicant orders (Franciscans, Dominicans, Carmelites, and Hermits of Saint Augustine), but it was the latter end of the first half of this century which saw a sudden increase in the number of foundations.1 This was a period marked by strong transformations inside the mendicant orders and this is reflected in their houses, not only in the architectural characteristics of their buildings but also in their topographical features. The eremitic origin of the mendicant communities has been analysed in many studies dedicated to the four mendicant orders,2 some of which have discussed how the change to a more active religious life directly influenced the friars’ attitudes toward both the location of their houses and 1

Catarina Almeida Marado, “Sharing the city: the establishment of mendicant houses in Portuguese medieval towns”, The Journal of Medieval Monastic Studies, 4 (2015), pp. 47-77. 2 See: Clifford H. Lawrence, The friars: The impact of the mendicant orders on medieval society (London: I.B. Tauris, 2013); Michael Robson, The Franciscans in the Middle Ages (Woodbridge: The Boydell Press, 2006); and Frances Andrews, The Other Friars: Carmelite, Augustinian, Sack and Pied Friars (Woodbridge: The Boydell Press, 2006).

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to architecture. In an article dedicated to the social and spatial aspects of the mendicant, Marta Cuadrado, for example, synthesizes the main aspects of this process.3 In Portugal, although there have been a great number of studies on the religious orders,4 in-depth research on mendicant architecture,5 and a more recent line of investigation regarding how this architecture interacts with the urban environment,6 the issues related to both the location and architectural characteristics of the earlier friaries have not been yet analysed. This paper will focus specifically on these aspects and particularly on the material and spatial impacts of the transformation that the first Franciscan and Dominican communities underwent in the first half of the 13th century.

1. Franciscans and Dominicans in Portugal The Franciscans arrived in Portugal in 1216 and the Dominicans in the following year,7 both settling in Alenquer, a town located in the central part of the kingdom and belonging to the sister of Afonso II, the Infanta D. Sancha, who was a great supporter of the mendicant friars (maps 1 and 2). Shortly afterward, the Franciscans founded three more friaries north of the Tagus River, in Guimarães, Coimbra and Lisbon (map 1). At this time, the southern-most regions of Portugal were still under Muslim control, as the Reconquista only concluded in 1249 with the conquest of the Kingdom of the Algarve. Until the end of the century, the two religious orders spread throughout the Portuguese territory and over this period the location and the architectural characteristics of these mendicant buildings changed considerably. 3

Marta Cuadrado Sanchez, “Un Nuevo marco socioespacial: emplazamiento de los conventos mendicantes en el plano urbano”, Espiritualidad, franciscanismo: VI Semana de Estudios Medievales, ed. by José Ignacio de la Iglesia, Javier García, José Angel García and Ruiz de Aguirre (Najera: Logroño Instituto de Estudios Riojanos, 1996), pp. 100-109. 4 Ordens Religiosas em Portugal das origens a Trento. Guia histórico, ed. by Bernardo Vasconcelos Sousa (Lisboa: Livros Horizonte, 2005); Dicionário histórico das ordens, institutos religiosos e outras formas de vida consagrada católica em Portugal, ed. by José Eduardo Franco (Lisboa: Gradiva, 2010). 5 História da Arte Portuguesa. III, ed. by Paulo Pereira (Lisboa: Círculo de Leitores, 1995). 6 Catarina Almeida Marado, “Sharing the city: the establishment of mendicant houses in Portuguese medieval towns”, The Journal of Medieval Monastic Studies, 4 (2015), pp. 47-77. 7 Dicionário histórico das ordens, pp. 158-173 and pp. 138-152.

Catarina Almeida Marado

Map 1. Portugal, Franciscan friaries (1216-1217) (by the Author)

Map 2. Portugal, Dominican friaries (1217) (by the Author)

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2. The Change of the Location Criteria The first Dominican house in Portugal was founded by the friar Soeiro Gomes in 1217 at an old church (Ermida de Nossa Senhora das Neves) located in a very isolated place atop a mountain (Serra de Montejunto), approximately 14 kilometres from the town of Alenquer. This hermitage was a humble construction associated with an existing old church. This religious house underwent several transformations during the early modern period, yet today there are almost no remains of this 13th century building. The second house of the Dominican order in the Kingdom of Portugal was founded in Santarém in 1221 and had completely different geographical characteristics. This indeed represented the transfer of the original community in Alenquer to Santarém as the Order of Friars Preachers intentionally transferred the community from the remote Serra de Montejunto to a city setting (map 2). In Santarém, they first settled in an old church located outside the city walls, selecting a location near an area of early urban expansion called Montirás. Four years later they moved again to a place nearer to the town, where they first settled near the Santa Maria Madalena church outside the Manços Gate (Porta de Manços) before moving to another existing church (Ermida de Nossa Senhora da Oliveira) located outside the Leiria Gate (Porta de Leiria) (map 3). According to the chronicles of the Order the reason for this change of location was that the Dominicans lacked the conditions to satisfactorily fulfill their apostolic activities at the previous site.8 This meant an intentional change of their location strategies. Their subsequent 13th century foundations of the Order – in Coimbra in 1227,9 Oporto in 1237,10 Lisboa in 1241, Elvas in 1266, Guimarães in 1272 and Évora in 1298 – were all located near the towns.

8

Luís de Cácegas, Primeira parte da Historia de S. Domingos particular do reino e conquistas de Portugal (Lisboa: Officina de António Rodrigues Galhardo, 1767), I, p. 129. 9 Saul António Gomes, “As Ordens Mendicantes na Coimbra Medieval: Tópicos e Documentos”, Lusitania Sacra, Nova Série (1998), pp. 149-215. 10 José F. Afonso, “O convento de S. Domingos e o plano urbano do Porto entre os séculos XIII e XVI”, Monastic architecture and the city, ed. by Catarina Almeida Marado (Coimbra: Centro de Estudos Sociais, 2014), pp. 35-50.

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Map 3. Location of the first Dominican settlements in Santarém (by the Author)

In Portugal, the early Franciscan friars also settled first at eremitic sites and then moved to the periphery of the towns. The four houses they founded between 1216 and 1217 were located in isolated places: in Alenquer, they established themselves at an existing church dedicated to Santa Catarina, located near a river about one kilometer from the castle. In Guimarães, they also settled in an isolated area, Fonte Santa, located atop a hill (Monte de Santa Catarina) around 1,5 kilometres from the city. In Coimbra, they first settled at an old church-hospital, called the Ermida de Santo Antão dos Olivais, two kilometres from the urban area. And in Lisbon, they occupied the Ermida de Nossa Senhora dos Mártires located atop the Monte Fragoso hill to the west of the city, around 500 meters from the city walls. In this last city, the Friars Minor selected a location much closer to the urban area than in the other three, which might well indicate that the Franciscans had changed their criteria regarding the location of their houses (map 4). Nevertheless, we must recall that the church (the Ermida dos Mártires), built after the conquest of the city in 1147 in honor of the crusaders who died during the Reconquista, was given to the Franciscans by Afonso II. The Church of São Vicente, also

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built following the Reconquista in honor of the crusaders,11 had been given by Afonso Henriques to the Canons Regular of Saint Augustine (and then transformed into the Monastery of São Vicente) whereas the Ermida dos Mártires was offered to the Franciscans by his son, Afonso II, at the beginning of the following century (map 4). Thus, the king’s intervention vis-à-vis the settlement of the Franciscans in Lisbon could have influenced the choice of this church. In the 1220s the Franciscan friars did not found any religious houses in Portugal, but the ones built over the next two decades – in Leiria (1232), Oporto (1233), Covilhã (1235), Guarda (1235), Estremoz (1239), Portalegre (1240), Santarem (1242) and Evora (1245) – were all located near the city limits.12

Map 4. Location of the Franciscans in Lisbon (by the Author)

11

Megan Cassidy-Welch, “The Monastery of São Vicente de Fora in Lisbon as a Site of Crusading Memory”, The Journal of Medieval Monastic Studies, 3 (2014), pp. 1-20. 12 José Mattoso, “O enquadramento social e económico das primeiras fundações franciscanas”, Obras Completas. Portugal Medieval: novas interpretações (Lisboa: Círculo dos Leitores, 2002), VIII, pp. 243-254.

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Although we can clearly pinpoint the early 1220s as the moment when the Dominican Order changed its model for deciding the location of its houses in Portugal (with their transfer to Santarém), the same cannot be said for the establishment of such a date for the Franciscans. Indeed, in Lisbon they settled at a short distance from the city walls, but we do not have evidence to indicate whether this was a conscious change in how they determined the characteristics of their settlements. The change of the location criteria for both Dominicans and Franciscans was motivated by the clericalization process of these two mendicant orders, which began in the first decades of the 13th century, and according to Caroline Bruzelius the Dominicans took the lead in this process.13 In the case of the Franciscan Order, the change from an eremitical and itinerant life in which they refused propriety for a more permanent settling in the urban environment where they build their own churches only occurred in the 1230s.14 Accepting that the chronology of this process in Portugal was similar to the rest of Western Europe, we can say that 1217 (the year of the foundation of the Franciscan friary in Lisbon) is perhaps too early to mark a conscientious and intentional approach to the city, meaning that such a determination would only occur in this country with the foundation of the friaries of Leiria in 1232 and in Oporto in 1233. In this regard, the case of Oporto is quite significant. In this city the Franciscans entered into considerable conflict with the Bishop regarding the location for their house. Arriving in Oporto in 1233, that same year the Franciscans were ceded some land for the building of a convent in Reboleira, a location to the west of the city walls, both on the river and near Oporto’s urban riverfront (Ribeira). However, the bishop presiding over the city, D. Pedro Salvadores, opposed the foundation of the friary and prohibited its construction, thus instigating a quarrel which would lead to the violent expulsion of the Franciscans by the Cathedral Chapter and successive interventions from the Pope, who called on the Bishop of Braga and the bishops of the neighboring cities of Viseu and Lamego to defend the friars. The various papal bulls issued by Gregory IX produced little effect and in 1237 the Friars Minor were forced to yield to the bishop’s demand that they build on a location farther away from the city and on the opposite side of the Douro River. A few short years later, in 1244, the Franciscans received support from Pope Innocent IV and were allowed to 13

Caroline Bruzelius, Preaching, Building and Burying: Friars in the Medieval City (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2014), pp. 19-25. 14 Clifford H. Lawrence, The friars; and Caroline Bruzelius, Preaching, Building and Burying, p. 113.

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return to the location from which they had once been forced out.15 Construction work thus began on the Convent of São Francisco, which would be completed at the end of the 13th century. According to Barroca the monastery church was of modest construction, small in size and quite probably with only one nave.16 It is important to note that the three hermitages of the Franciscan Order in Portugal located in isolated areas around the cities of Alenquer, Guimarães and Coimbra transferred their houses to the vicinity of these cities during the 13th century. Only the Lisbon friary stayed in the same location. In 1222 the community in Alenquer transferred their first house to the inner city, more specifically to the court of the Infanta D. Sancha. Later, in 1280, they began to build their monastic building on grounds donated by D. Beatriz, the wife of Afonso III, who had just come to own the town. In the 1240s the community of friars at Olivais in Coimbra moved to a site nearer the city, on the left river bank of the Mondego given to them by the daughters of Sancho I in 1242. A few years later, in 1247, they began the construction of the Franciscan Monastery.17 In 1271 the Friars Minor of Guimarães left their remote hermitage and occupied a hospital called the Hospital do Concelho near the city limits.18 In this city, as in Oporto, the Franciscans also suffered great opposition from the ecclesiastical institutions. The Chapter of Colegiada de Nossa Senhora da Oliveira tried several times to expel the friars but they managed to resist and, in 1282, finally started the construction of their monastery, although the conflicts did not stop.19

3. Architectural Changes Although the friars began by establishing their houses near the city walls, they nevertheless did so at pre-existing churches as guests, building interim constructions to accommodate the community. In Portugal there 15

Ordens Religiosas em Portugal das origens a Trent. Guia histórico, ed. by Bernardo Vasconcelos Sousa (Lisboa: Livros Horizonte, 2005), p. 276. 16 Mario Jorge Barroca and Carlos Alberto Ferreira de Almeida, História da Arte em Portugal. O gótico (Lisboa: Editorial Presença, 2002), II, p. 51. 17 Saul António Gomes, “As Ordens Mendicantes na Coimbra Medieval”, p. 156. 18 Manuel da Esperança, Historia Serafica da Ordem dos Frades Menores de S. Francisco na Provincia de Portugal. (Lisboa: Officina Craesbeeckiana, 16561721), pp. 139-184. 19 Manuel da Esperança, Historia Serafica da Ordem dos Frades Menores de S. Francisco, pp. 141-149.

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was only one instance in the 1240s where they began to build their own churches and monastic buildings. We can see in the chronology of the construction of Portuguese mendicant buildings that the Dominicans started this process in the first half of this decade but the Franciscans only in the second. This change of attitude toward architecture was a consequence of the intensification of the clericalization process. However, it was also a result of the growing competition in terms of preaching that marked the middle of this century. Fervor in terms of preaching was felt both within the ecclesiastic institutions and within the two mendicant orders.20 In the second half of the 13th century all the mendicant communities were setting up their own buildings and affirming themselves in urban society. By doing so they took up the ‘monastic model’ as a reference for building large complexes comprising a church (their own), monastic dependencies (a cloister, dormitories, a refectory, chapter houses, and so on) and gardens. In most cases, the mendicant monasteries were built in the same place as the original hermitage, and in several situations they even adopted the name of the pre-existent churches. The example of Lisbon, however, was different in that here the two mendicant monasteries were built next to the existing older churches, side by side with the mendicant churches. As previously mentioned, the Franciscan friars in Lisbon, having come from Alenquer, established themselves at the Ermida de Nossa Senhora dos Mártires in 1217 with the support of Afonso II, and in 1244 work began on the construction of a monastic edifice under the patronage of D. Uracca, wife of Sancho II, to be erected to the north of the Ermida dos Mártires. The monastic church, whose works began in 1246, stood next to the primitive hermitage, separated by a narrow path used in processions. Later, in the 16th century, during some expansion work at the convent, Manuel I sought to demolish the old Ermida dos Mártires, moving it to another location. To do so, the king obtained authorization from the Pope but gave up the idea when the Franciscans intervened. As a result of this expansion work, the pathway separating the two churches was reduced to about 10 palm-lengths in width. In 1550, at the time of the rebuilding of the Chapel of the Most Blessed Sacrament (Capela do Santíssimo Sacramento) at the

20

Catarina Almeida Marado, “Sharing the city: the establishment of mendicant houses in Portuguese medieval towns”, The Journal of Medieval Monastic Studies, 4 (2015) pp. 47-77.

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Igreja dos Mártires Church, this pathway was closed off, with the lateral walls of the two churches touching each other. The Dominicans arrived in Lisbon only in the early 1240s, upon the initiative of Sancho II, and they established themselves on lands donated by the king near the Ermida de Nossa Senhora da Escada, located in a lowlying area just outside the northern wall of the city. Construction began on the convent in 1241 and the monastic church was placed alongside the Ermida da Escada. The exact way in which this early monastery church was built in relation to the small hermitage is unknown, since both were greatly affected over the centuries by a series of calamities, particularly the earthquake of 1531 which caused substantial damage to the Monastery of São Domingos.21 Finally, in the reconstruction work carried out in the 16th century, the new monastery church is said to have been erected upon the south wall of the primitive hermitage. In a 16th century engraving of the City of Lisbon (map 5), we can still see the Monastery of São Francisco with the Ermida de Nossa Senhora dos Mártires to the south, as well as the Monastery of São Domingos with the Ermida de Nossa Senhora da Escada located to the north. Although the engraving is not quite a precise depiction of the city, we note that for both the Friars Minor and the Friars Preachers, the two churches on the property –the primitive hermitage and the monastic church– are found to be separated by a road (map 6). Documented sources confirm this fact, at least in the case of the Franciscan convent.22 However, cartography from the 18th century, recorded prior to the earthquake of 1755, shows that in both cases the primitive hermitages are adjoined to the monastery churches (map 7). This occurred as a result of the important renovation work which both of the capital’s mendicant complexes underwent in the 16th century, which included a change in the orientation of the Franciscan church. It was during this work of expanding the monastery churches of São Francisco and São Domingos that the edifices came to be joined to their respective primitive hermitages.

21

Luís de Cácegas, Primeira parte da Historia de S. Domingos, I, pp. 316-318. Manuel da Esperança, Historia Serafica da Ordem dos Frades Menores de S. Francisco, pp. 185-189. 22

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Map 5. Lisbon, 16th century. Franciscan and Dominican Friaries (in red) and existing churches (in yellow). Olissippo quae nunc Lisboa (original publicado em Georgio Braunio, "Urbium praecipuarum mundi theatrum quintum", de 1593, 5º vol., 2ª estampa). Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal, cc-381-a, cartografia.

Map 6a. Franciscan Friary in Lisbon, 16th century (by the Author) Map 6b. Dominican Friary in Lisbon, 16th century (by the Author)

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Map 7a. Franciscan Friary in Lisbon, 18th century. Planta de Lisboa anterior ao Terramoto (entre 1800 e 1850). A. Aires de Carvalho, Catálogo da colecção de desenhos, 1977, No. 1097. Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal, d-107-r, iconografia. Map 7b. Dominican Friary in Lisbon, 18th century. Planta de Lisboa anterior ao Terramoto (entre 1800 e 1850). A. Aires de Carvalho, Catálogo da colecção de desenhos, 1977, No. 1097. Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal, d-107-r, iconografia.

Conclusions The early years of the mendicant orders were difficult times as it was a period marked by swift and significant transformations. On a material level, we can identify and date the changes which the early communities experienced in the first decades of the 13th century. In Portugal, these changes are quite visible, namely in regard to both the topographical characteristics of the religious houses and their architecture. In terms of the former, the features are evident for the Dominicans from the early 1220s. In contrast, the Franciscan friars, who founded a greater number of houses in their initial years in Portugal, took longer to move closer to the country’s towns and cities; it was only in the 1230s that they began their search for locations closer to urban areas. As for how their attitude toward architecture evolved, this occurred afterwards. Initially setting up their houses near the walls of fortified cities and towns, the mendicants in the early 1240s began to transform their early churches and provisional accommodations into grand monastic complexes. In this process, most of the simple structures disappeared completely, with the exception of

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Lisbon’s, where the construction of the two mendicant monasteries was able to maintain the primitive hermitages. Both the Monastery of São Francisco and the Monastery of São Domingos were erected adjacent to the hermitages which first welcomed the friars. Initially, these hermitages remained independent given that the monastery churches were built some distance away. However, as a result of the expansion projects carried out at these monastic complexes over the centuries, and especially those resulting from the great urban transformations underway in Lisbon at the beginning of the 16th century,23 the mendicant church walls ended up being adjoined to those of the primitive hermitage, thus causing there to be a visual integration of the earlier structure into the monastic complex.

23 See: Helder Carita, Lisboa Manuelina e a formação de modelos urbanísticos da época moderna, 1495-1521 (Lisboa: Livros Horizonte, 1999).

FRIARS IN MEDIEVAL TOWNS: PATRONAGE, URBAN SPACE AND ARCHITECTURE IN NORTHERN ITALY1 SILVIA BELTRAMO POLITECNICO DI TORINO

In the late Middle Ages all members of society (patrons, masters of work and citizens) took part in new religious communities. This research aims to investigate the role played by Mendicant Orders and their settlement in towns (communes and princedoms) in the 12th and 13th centuries considering not only the economic and social aspects but mainly also the architectural models adopted.2 The understanding of some aspects typical of Mendicant Order construction sites between the late 13th and 15th centuries leads us to focus on the relationship between religious communities and patronage in seigniorial and episcopal-communal towns as well as between architecture and urban areas.3 Moreover in this paper

 1

Abbreviation used: AST, Archivio di Stato di Torino. Caroline Bruzelius inspired me to purse my research on Mendicant architecture thanks to both the opportunity I had to discuss some new and suggested theories with her and her fundamental study entitled, Preaching, Building, and Burying. Friars in the medieval city (New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2014). 3 Urban studies published on Mendicant settlements include: André Vauchez “Gli ordini mendicanti e la città nell’Italia dei comuni (XIII-XV secolo). Alcune riflessioni vent’anni dopo”, Ordini religiosi e società politica in Italia e Germania nei secoli XIV e XV, ed. by Giorgio Chittolini and Kaspar Eelm (Bologna: Il Mulino, 2001), pp. 31-44; Gli ordini mendicanti e la città. Aspetti architettonici, sociali e politici, ed. by Joselita Raspi Serra (Milan: Guerini Studio, 1990); Gli ordini mendicanti e la città. I Frati Predicatori, ed. by Dario Lanzardo and Bruno Taricco (Cherasco: Centro Internazionale di Studi sugli Insediamenti Medievali, 2009); Thomas Coomans, “L’architecture médiévale des ordres mendiants (franciscains, dominicains, carmes et augustins) en Belgique et aux Pays-Bas”, Revue belge d’archéologie et d’histoire de l’art, 70 (2001), pp. 3-111; Panayota Volti, Les Couvents des ordres mendiants et leur environnement à la fin du Moyen Âge: le nord de la France et les anciens Pays-Bas méridionaux (Paris: Centre 2

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the selected convents are compared to other religious communities and places of civil and religious power, also considering the physical limits of towns (e.g. urban walls).4 The areas of research are the Monferrato and Saluzzo marquisates, the county of Savoy (Rivoli and Pinerolo) later elevated to a duchy, the principality of Acaia, and the Alba and Chieri communes.

1. Settlement of Orders and Patronage: ‘seigniorial convents’ In Piedmont, the Dominican Order began spreading slightly later than the Franciscans and developed at a slower pace, in spite of the fact that the two orders were founded almost at the same time (map 1).5 The new

 Nationale de la Recherche Scientifique, 2003); Louise Bourdua, The Franciscans and Art Patronage in Late Medieval Italy (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004); Caroline Bruzelius, “The Architecture of the Mendicant Orders in the Middle Ages: An Overview of Recent Literature”, Perspective, 2 (2012), pp. 365-386; Wolfgang Schenkluhn, Architettura degli ordini mendicanti: lo stile architettonico dei domenicani e dei francescani in Europa (Padua: Editrici Franciscane, 2003); Antonio Cadei, “Secundum loci conditionem et morem patriae”, Saggi in onore di Renato Bonelli (Rome: Multigrafica, 1992), pp. 135142; Gabriella Villetti, Studi sull’edilizia degli ordini mendicanti (Rome: Gangemi, 2003); Richard A. Sundt, “Mediocres domos et humilis habeant fratres nostri: Dominican Legislation on Architecture and Architectural Decoration in the 13th Century”, Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, 46 (1987), pp. 394-407, and finally, my conference presentation “The friars’ town: urban spaces and architectural solutions in Late Medieval Italy” in the 12th International Conference on Urban History. Cities in Europe, cities in the world. September 3-6 2014. 4 I discuss some of these topics in “The construction sites of the Mendicant Orders in North Western Italy (13th -15th centuries): ‘civitas’, masters of work and architecture”, Kirche als Baustelle. Große Sakralbauten des Mittelalters, ed. by Katja Schröck, Bruno Klein and Stefan Bürger (Cologne: Böhlau-Verlag, 2013), pp. 88-103. 5 Giovanni G. Merlo, “Minori e Predicatori nel Piemonte del Duecento: gli inizi di una presenza”, Piemonte medievale. Forme del potere e della società. Studi per Giovanni Tabacco (Turin: Einaudi, 1985), pp. 207-226; Giovanni G. Merlo, Tra eremo e città. Studi su Francesco e francescanesimo medievale (Assisi: Porziuncola, 2007); Giovanni G. Merlo, “Gli inizi dell'ordine dei frati Predicatori. Spunti per una riconsiderazione”, Rivista di storia e letteratura religiosa, 31 (1995), pp. 415-441; Il francescanesimo dalle origini alla metà del secolo XVI. Esplorazioni e questioni aperte, ed. by Franco Bolgiani and Giovanni Grado Merlo (Bologna: Il Mulino, 2005), p. 278; Giuseppe Villa d’Andezeno and Petro

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communities were introduced into the urban pattern in different ways and their relationship with territorial expansion was a fundamental element in their choices of religious settlements, which were generally ascribed to two different modi operandi. In the urban pattern they could become the catalysts for the development of neighbourhood areas through new squares and prestigious buildings. Thus, placed in peripheral areas, they could also foster their expansion and create poles of attraction for the growth of new neighbourhoods.6 In several cases, the introduction of the Mendicant Order foundations was linked to a precise ‘dynastic development plan’ carried forward by local seigneuries in order to increase the prestige of urban centres and to obtain the title of civitas (Casale and Saluzzo).

1.1. Preachers in Savoy Territories In the dynamics of power consolidation and command of urban centres, the urban settlement of the Mendicant, Friars Minor and Friars Preacher (Franciscans and Dominicans) is relevant when considering seigniorial towns. The Preachers’ arrival can be considered in the perspective of a predetermined plan to reinforce the earl's authority in the urban environment through the town’s transformation. The settlement would have then fast become an essential component of urban society. In the Savoy countryside, a paradigmatic case is Rivoli, a town where it is possible to see a substantial reorganization of urban geography following the Preaching Fathers’ settlement.7 Different questions may arise when considering the reasons for their presence in Rivoli, the funding disbursed to the convent and the area where the friars lived from 1287.

 Benedictini, I domenicani nella Lombardia superiore: dalle origini al 1891, ed. by Valerio Ferrua (Turin: Biblioteca Storica Subalpina, 2002). 6 A recent contribution on the relationship between urban space and the friaries is: Caroline Bruzelius, “The territory of the friary”, Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference of the European Architectural History Network (EAHN), ed. by Hilde Heynen and Janina Gosseye, (Brussels: Koninklijke Vlaamse Academie van Belgie voor Wetenschappen en Kunsten, 2012), pp. 217-221. 7 I domenicani nella Lombardia superiore; Massimo Centini, Cenni di Storia Rivolese (Rivoli: without Publisher, 1917); Cristina Natoli, “Strumenti diversi di definizione urbanistica: i Predicatori”, Gli ordini mendicanti e la città. I frati Predicatori. La ricerca erudita cheraschese e la storia degli insediamenti fra Sei e Ottocento, ed. by Bruno Taricco and Diego Lanzardo (Cherasco: Centro Internazionale di studi insediamenti medievali, 2009), pp. 63-78.

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Map 1. Dominican and Franciscan convents in Piedmont (case studies) (by the Author)

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Friars in Medieval Towns

When, in 1246, Amedeo IV obtained Rivoli from the Emperor, he found a consolidated settlement where the communal ‘credence’ had been present since the mid-12th century. The count, giving instructions from the shelter of the castle, as the bishop used to do before him, appointed a liberal government which held the favour of the commune, thanks to the granting of franchises and privileges.8 The settlement was divided into an old village, a new village and a villanova; these three areas, comprising Late Medieval Rivoli, is the current old town centre.9 This was context in which the Preachers were called from Turin, which consequently made a decisive structural change in the town. In 1287, Ugo di Monmaggiore, on behalf of Amedeo of Savoy and in agreement with the representatives of the community of Rivoli, asked the friars, who had been settled in Turin for about twenty years, to open a new seat.10 A communal order dated 9th May 1287 ordered the donation of construction material for the church and convent which would be built at the foot of the south-east hill of the castle, as well as payment of 12 lire astensi until the construction was completed, plus an on-going annual payment for the friars’ clothing.11 The Preacher friars’ house received lots of incentives from the Royal House of Savoy, and they used their presence for urban organization development. For example, in 1343, Count Aimone of Savoy included in his will an order to supply bread and wine to friars for the entire period of his residence as well as those of his successors in Rivoli. This order was carried on by his descendants until the Pope closed the convent in 1797.12 In 1349, the same Count Aimone granted 20 gold florins for the purchase of two houses to expand the convent.13 The sale of the site and the financial incentives offered by the commune and by the Savoy family, making generous donations, some of which were on a perpetual basis, indicate that the will to transform that urban area, was no less than the desire to build a square, a road or any

 8

Massimo Centini, Storia di Rivoli (Rivoli: comune di Rivoli, 1990), p. 31. Cristina Natoli, “Strumenti diversi di definizione urbanistica”, p. 65. 10 Valerio Ferrua, Dal convento alla città. La vita torinese attraverso il registro dell’archivio del convento di San Domenico redatto da padre G.A. Della Torre (1780) (Turin: Deputazione Subalpina di Storia Patria, 1995), p. 16. 11 Paolo Nesta, Luca Patria, Guida agli itinerari turistici. La storia, il museo, il castello, il museo della stampa (Turin: Alfagraf, 1992). 12 Rosario M. Bianchi, Provincia di San Pietro e i suoi conventi (Chieri: without publisher, 1916). 13 Archivio Storico Ordine Predicatori della Provincia di San Pietro Martire, III, b.17/18, 1349. 9

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other building. The Mendicants’ strength was in gathering consensus as much among the commoners as among the various political forces, as proven by the concomitant subsidies dispensed by the commune of Rivoli, the princes and the local aristocracies, many of whom chose San Domenico as their final resting place. The preference for Mendicant churches as burial places for eminent citizens allows us to presume that those people or families had persistent relations with friars during their lifetimes, relations which resulted in the constant development of the churches’ architecture due to both the need to house huge numbers of worshippers and to the constant proliferation of altars and chapels following donations.14 The Dominican friary, consecrated in 137715 but completed many years before, as recorded in various documents, was at the basis of the development of the Savoy villanova (or new town) in the south-eastern part of Rivoli, behind the southern perimeter of the old village and the episcopal new village. It is assumed that, in 1287, when the Preachers were called, the area south of the castle and the old village where they were housed, was inhabited, but with no definite urban area as well as no perimeter walls. The scattered town was broken down into regular lots, the planning of which also included the construction of the Preachers’ complex. The space chosen for the construction of the convent and church belonging to the Preachers was at the foot of the castle enclosure, creating a dialectical relationship between the castle and the friars’ house. The latter appears as the alter ego of the castle, not only in terms of spatial dimensions, but also due to the role played in the urban structure inside the town, a new centre whose aggregating action was to lead to the creation of the square then followed by the villanova. Thus it seems to emerge as an intentional action, as shown by the following developments of that area and by the planning adhering to the rational values typical of the Preachers inside the town. The case of Rivoli also provides a starting point to study other settlements under the Savoy jurisdiction. It is interesting to note how some urban control instruments were repeatedly used by different branches of the dynasty: in Pinerolo, for example, following the unification of the Principality of Piedmont with the other Savoy territories, Amedeo VIII

 14 15

Massimo Centini, Storia di Rivoli, p. 33. Rosario M. Bianchi, Provincia di San Pietro, p. 54.

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promoted the foundation, inside the walls, of a Preacher friars’ house.16 This project, apparently motivated by his devotion towards the saint, falls within a precise programme to limit the power of another Mendicant order, that of Saint Francis, long-rooted in the urban patter and closely linked to the Acaia government, so much so as to be the princes’ funeral chapel.17 The policy of Amedeo VIII aimed at increasing control over the Pinerolo church by establishing an institution involved in social activities, particularly in teaching. At the same time, the duke intended to remove the memory of the Acaia princes through works that would have a strong impact on the urban environment. Thus, in 1348, work began on the Preachers’ church with its five naves in the village known as Planus near the gate of San Francesco.18 These operations were part of a dynastic infiltration, via a religious settlement, in newly conquered towns or were intended to consolidate power already known to the Savoy family in earlier centuries (the case of Rivoli is one such example). In Rivoli, the friars were settled in 1287 by the Savoy dynasty’s will, and also in order to cancel the bishops’ power, whereas in Pinerolo the Dominican foundation was supposed to erase memories of the Acaia family. Another example is Aosta, where Pope Clement VI, in 1352, gave the Lesser Brothers - also called Friars Minor - permission to settle in towns because there were no other Mendicant friaries. The Savoy family was also involved in this event, guaranteeing provision for the expenses incurred for the construction of a new settlement. Moreover, the relationship with the seigniors is evident from the fact that Amedeo VI appointed Brother Raimondino as his personal attorney, along with Aimone of Challant, for all matters relating to the construction of the

 16

Valerio Ferrua, I domenicani nella Lombardia superiore; Pietro Caffaro, Notizie e documenti della Chiesa Pinerolese (Pinerolo: Chiantore Mascarelli, 1900), V, pp. 35-66; Marco Calliero, Dentro le mura: il Borgo e il Piano di Pinerolo nel consegnamento del 1428 (Pinerolo: Alzani, 2002); Domenico Carutti, Storia della città di Pinerolo (Pinerolo: Chiantore Mascarelli, 1897); Giovanni Visentin, Pinerolo tra cronaca e storia (Pinerolo: Alzani, 1996). 17 On San Domenico di Pinerolo, see Carlo Tosco, L’architettura religiosa nell’età di Amedeo VIII, Architettura e insediamento nel tardo medioevo in Piemonte, ed. by Carlo Tosco and Micaela Viglino (Turin: Celid, 2003), pp. 94-95. 18 Andrea Piazza, I frati e il convento di San Francesco di Pinerolo, 1248-1400 (Pinerolo: Parlar di storia, 1993); Albino Caffaro, Pineroliensia: contributo agli studi storici su Pinerolo: ossia vita pinerolese specialmente negli ultimi due secoli del Medio-Evo (Pinerolo: Tipografia Chiantore Mascarelli, 1906).

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religious complex.19 In the lands ruled by the Savoy family (in northwest Piedmont), albeit with a certain delay due to the lack of cultural synchronicity with the bordering Italian regions, Lessers and Preachers succeeded in penetrating Subalpine society on a broad scale, and were able to activate advantageous relations with communal bodies, local aristocracies and princes, paying attention not to go against ecclesiastical power already present in that area but seeking balance through actively approaching different interlocutors. Once again, Pinerolo is a prime example, as the Lesser Brothers’ convent there had a privileged link with the Acaia family. They had the opportunity to receive constant donations which soon become a stable source of income for that religious community, which was so esteemed as to be chosen as the funeral place for the dynasty and then for the Saluzzo marquises. At the same time, they were also able to have a stable and clear communication with the commune. In fact, town meetings, called Consiglio dei Cento, often took place in the cloister.20

1.2. In the Marquisate of Saluzzo A similar policy was implemented by the marquises of Monferrato and those of Saluzzo. The Dominican Order community’s presence in the Marquisate of Saluzzo was established at the end of the 13th century with the first female convent in Revello. The choice of introducing this new religious community into the Saluzzo territory is late, when compared to other neighbouring territories, and strongly connected to the dynasty’s predilections; they seemed to prefer, by far, the Dominicans over the Franciscans.21 Thomas I’s choice to found a new nunnery in Revello became a characteristic decision of the marquisate, and also served the purpose of ensuring that the numerous female family members could be accepted into the religious community. The foundation of the Maria di Revello convent is documented in a deed dated June 1291, in which a dowry was established to ensure the autonomy of the women’s community.22 The link with the marquises was reinforced by the decision

 19

Giovanni Grado Merlo, Tra eremo e città, pp. 177-178. Domenico Carutti, Storia della città di Pinerolo. 21 Giovanni Grado Merlo, Forme di religiosità nell’Italia occidentale dei secoli XII e XIII (Vercelli-Cuneo: Società degli Studi Storici Artistici Archeologici della Provincia di Cuneo, 1997), pp. 147-175. 22 Delfino Muletti, Memorie storiche-diplomatiche appartenenti alla città ed ai marchesi di Saluzzo raccolte dall’avvocato Delfino Muletti (Saluzzo: Domenico 20

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to build a mansion to host the marquisate family, whilst the marquise was also entitled to stay within the complex walls. The second foundation of the Dominican order in the marquisate was concluded by Manfred IV who - in his will dated 1332 - expressed his wish to be buried “apud ecclesiam fratrum Predicatorum de Saluciis”.23 Evidence of the presence of the Dominican Order friary dates to the 1320s: a deed in “claustro de frati Domenicani” drawn up in 1323.24 This establishment only took its final shape, with all the areas required for community life, between the 14th and 15th centuries. The marquis' patronage for the Dominican church of San Giovanni in Saluzzo, which began in the early decades of the 14th century, was concluded with the erection of the chapel, the family mausoleum. Construction on this site lasted for a very long time, which, in accordance with Thomas I’s last will and testament dated to the beginning of the 15th century, only ended in the early decades of the 16th century, with the construction of Ludovico II’s mausoleum (figure 1). The Saluzzo Marquises’ funerary chapel, which constitutes the apses of the San Giovanni church, shows exceptional architectural features within the local context. The sculptors employed in the marquis’ chapel, Anechino Sambla and Perineto Zochelli25 (at work from 1491), came from

 Lobetti Bodoni, 1830), III, pp. 140-142; Armando Tallone, “Tommaso I marchese di Saluzzo”, Regesto dei marchesi di Saluzzo (1091-1340) (Pinerolo: Biblioteca della Società Storica Subalpina, 1906), p. 350. 23 Le carte dei frati Predicatori di San Giovanni di Saluzzo: 1305-1505, ed. by Teresa Mangione (Cuneo: Società degli Studi Storici Artistici Archeologici della Provincia di Cuneo, 2005), p. 15. 24 Biblioteca Reale di Torino, Historia de Marchesi di Saluzzo di Gioffredo della Chiesa segretario del marchese Ludovico primo con molte addizioni di Mons. Franc. Agostino della Chiesa vescovo d’essa città, Storia Patria, 174, f. 155r. On San Giovanni: Giovanni Vacchetta, La Chiesa di San Giovanni di Saluzzo, la cappella funeraria dei Marchesi, il Convento domenicano (Cuneo: Società degli Studi Storici Artistici Archeologici della Provincia di Cuneo, 2007) (first edition Turin 1931); and the recent studies in the volume: San Giovanni di Saluzzo, ed. by Rinaldo Comba (Cuneo: Società degli Studi Storici Artistici Archeologici della Provincia di Cuneo, 2009); Silvia Beltramo, Il marchesato di Saluzzo tra Gotico e Rinascimento. Architettura città e committenti (Rome: Viella, 2015). 25 Perineto Zochelli, as documented, lived in Saluzzo and worked in Avignon on the site of the façade of the Saint-Pierre church, together with sculptor Nicolas Gasc, from 1512; Pierre Henri Requin, “La façade et les portes de l’église de SaintPierre d’Avignon”, Memoires de l’Académie de Vaucluse, 4 (1887), pp. 151-159 and 164-167; Françoise Robin, Midi gothique de Béziers à Avignon (Paris: Picard,

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southern France, where they worked in Avignon, Aix-en-Provence and Carpentras between the late 15th century and the early 16th century. These places hosted the last examples of flamboyant gothic style in the south of France, and those sculptors transposed this model in their work on the Saluzzo chapel. The unique features of their work compare favourably with other, more famous seigniorial chapels, such as those in Vincennes, Chambery and Bourges.26 The Franciscans only began to settle in Saluzzo from 1470 onwards, with the establishment of St. Bernardino’s Osservanti.27

 1999), pp. 168-174; Silvia Beltramo, “Perineto Zocchelli and Aneclino Sambla, stone masons between the South of France and the Marquisate of Saluzzo (Italy) at the end of the 15th century”, 1514. Arquitectos Tardogóticos en la Encrucijada (Sevilla: Editorial Universidad de Sevilla, 2016), pp. 163-176; Silvia Beltramo and Maurizio Gomez, “Le rôle de la stéréotomie et des modèles architectoniques dans le développement de l’architecture gothique tardive du Nord-Ouest de l'Italie (XVème siècle)”, Les temps de la construction. Processus, Acteurs, Matériaux. Deuxième Congrès Francophone d'Histoire de la Construction, ed. by Laurent Baridon, François Fleury, Antonella Mastrorilli, Rémy Mouterde, Nicolas Reveyron (Paris: Picard, 2016), pp. 703-716. 26 Claudine Billot, Les Saintes Chapelles royales et princières (Paris: Éditions du patrimoine, collection thématique du patrimoine, 1998). On the Sainte-Chapelle of Bourges: Le Palais et son décor. Au temps de Jean de Berry, ed. by Alain Salamagne (Tours: Presses universitaires, 2010), pp. 171-181; Franck Delmiot, Le Palais de Justice et la Sainte-Chapelle (Puy-de-Dôme) (Clermont-Ferrand: Inventaire général des monuments et des richesses artistiques de la France, 1999), pp. 12-14 and 26-31; Michelle Santelli, La Sainte-Chapelle du château des ducs de Savoie à Chambéry (Chambéry: Société savoisienne d'histoire et d'archéologie, 2003). 27 Giovanni Grado Merlo, “Gli inizi dell'Osservanza minoritica nella regione subalpina”, Frate Angelo Carletti osservante Frate Angelo Carletti osservante nel V Centenario della morte (1495-1995), ed. by Ovidio Capitani, Rinaldo Comba, Maria Consiglia De Matteis and Giovanni Grado Merlo, Bollettino della Società per gli Studi Storici, Archeologici ed Artistici della Provincia di Cuneo, 118 (1998), pp. 19-41; Silvia Beltramo, “L’architettura delle chiese conventuali a Saluzzo nel XV secolo: dati, problemi, progetti di ricerca”, Bollettino della Società per gli Studi Storici, Archeologici ed Artistici della Provincia di Cuneo, 149 (2013), pp. 167-181; “Le chiese dell’Osservanza nel XV secolo: architettura e spazio sacro”, Arte, Architettura, Paesaggio. Conoscere, Conservare, Valorizzare. Il Patrimonio Culturale Religioso, ed. by Olimpia Niglio (Rome: Aracne Editrice, 2017), pp. 92-100.

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Figure 1. Dominican convent in Saluzzo (San Giovanni). Photo by Marco Gattinoni (by the Author)

1.3. In the Marquisate of Monferrato The Mendicant Orders had been present in the Monferrato territories since the early years of the 14th century, according to the will of Theodore I Palaiologos, who founded the convents of Chivasso in 1317 and Moncalvo in the 1320s. The first interventions seemed to privilege the Franciscans, whilst the Preachers settled only in the early 15th century, with the foundation of Santa Caterina di Trino. However, the introduction of friaries either determined or became the vehicle for new urban choices aimed at reshaping the area settled. In 1469, marquis William VIII Palaiologos donated a domus to Giovanni di San Miniato, vicar of the general master of the Order, to build a church and a convent close to the hospitale. The donation contained a clause which stipulated that the construction site was to be completed within three years. The erection of the Dominican friary played an organic part in confirming the definitive role of Casale as capital of the Marquisate and seat of the Diocese,28 and

 28

Aldo A. Settia, “‘Fare Casale ciptà’: prestigio principesco e ambizioni familiari nella nascita di una diocesi tardo medievale”, Rivista di Storia, Arte e Archeologia per le Provincie di Alessandria e Asti, 96-97 (1987-1988), pp. 285-318.

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thus became an essential element of the urban institutional profile. The marquis' project was so rapid that, in 1470, he attended the laying of the first stone. The marquises - or branches of their family - promoted several other religious foundations, from San Francesco’s friary in Nizza Monferrato (1476), to Santa Caterina di Finalborgo (1493), while –in 1474– another member of the Del Carretto family, the Alba bishop, supported the reform of the Saint Dominic convent and introduced the Predicatori dell’Osservanza.29 The foundation of the convent in Casale played a utilitarian role in the prince’s expectations (figures 2- 3). On the one hand, he used it to obtain the promotion of the rank of Casale, and on the other he launched a political project which soon took the form of a specific attempt to strengthen the marquis’ control over the town, via the assurance of unconditional support to the orders that had adhered to the Observant reform of Osservanza.30 In actual fact, there is a third aspect, linked to an instrumental use, showing that the marquises seemed to be inclined to get their own friaries, which evidently had results as seen by the constant architectural and artistic developments that were always economically and tangibly supported by the Palaiologos family. Though the dynastic devotion remained constantly linked to the lesser convent of San Francesco, at least from the time of Giangiacomo Palaiologos (early 15th century), chosen as the preferred burial ground for the marquis’ family members, it would seem that the new friaries of the Observance were assigned the task of maintaining the architectural lexicon, having been given a definite and archaic representative role by the prince, sensitive to models reflecting common solutions in Lombardy’s cultural environment from the 14th century, but also underlining the evident archaic style as a paradigm, with a ‘dynastic’ value (figure 4).31



29 Luca Patria, “Teodoro Paleologo e gli ordini mendicanti nelle terre del marchesato”, ‘Quando venit marchio grecus in terra Montisferrati’. L’avvento di Teodoro I Paleologo nel VII centenario (1306-2006), ed. by Aldo A. Settia (Casale Monferrato: Associazione Casalese Arte e Storia, 2008), pp. 129-194; Pietro F. Macconio, I Francescani a Casale Monferrato (Casale Monferrato: without publisher, 1929); Enrico Lusso, “I conventi del principe. Fondazioni dei Predicatori e strategie urbane nel Monferrato paleologo”, Gli ordini mendicanti e la città. Aspetti architettonici, sociali e politici (Milano: Guerini e Associati, 1990), pp. 89-119. 30 Giovanni Grado Merlo, “Gli inizi dell'Osservanza minoritica”, pp. 20-22. 31 This is not configured as an absence of new information, but as a deliberate and distinctive choice which would explain the continuation, before the rich

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The urban area around the San Domenico convent was an early configuration of a highly qualified settlement. A series of palaces and prestigious residences were situated close to the complex, also including the one belonging to commissary Giovanni Antonio Picco, who took legal action against the friars because the construction works blocked the windows of his house.32 When the closure of the site drew near, in around the second decade of the 16th century, an unknown patron had his residence built opposite the apse of the church, modelling the inner courtyard of his palace on the stone columns of the church bell tower.33 A document, dated 1514, confirms the existence of other aristocratic residences near the Preachers’ complex, such as that of a branch of the Sannazzaro family, while, in 1527, Galeotto del Carretto certified that his residential palace was near the western end of the transept of the convent’s church.34 It is, therefore, obvious that, in the plans destined to transform Casale into the seat of the diocese, the San Domenico friary, with its highly qualifying presence, fulfilled the role of balancing development towards the south of the town. To a certain extent, this was officially legitimized in 1510, when Guglielmo IX ordered the expropriation of a certain number of buildings to allow the construction of the square in front of the church,35 following the construction of the new gate by Giovanni

 renaissance season inaugurated by Guglielmo IX and Anna d’Alençon towards 1510. Antonella Perin, “Il palazzo tra gotico e rinascimento da Alba a Casale Monferrato”, Architettura e insediamento nel tardo medioevo (Turin: Celid, 2003), pp. 143-176; Francesco Di Teodoro, “L’Antico nel rinascimento casalese. Arte, architettura, ornato”, Monferrato, identità di un territorio, ed. by Vera Comoli and Enrico Lusso (Alessandria: Cassa di Risparmio di Alessandria, 2005), pp. 64-73. 32 Archivio Storico del Comune di Casale Monferrato, Culto, m. 113, fasc. 336, (18th August 1488); Enrico Lusso, “I conventi del principe”, p. 115. 33 Vittorio Tornielli, Architetture di otto secoli del Monferrato (Casale Monferrato: Banca di Casale e del Monferrato, 1963), p. 58; Elisabetta Del Bo, Uomini e Strutture di uno Stato Feudale. Il Marchesato di Monferrato (1418-1483) (Milan: Edizioni Universitarie di Lettere, economia e diritto, 2009); Alessandra Guerrini, “Ritrattistica di corte e cicli profani nella Casale dei Paleologi”, Intorno a Macrino d’Alba. Aspetti e problemi di cultura figurativa del Rinascimento in Piemonte (Alba: Fondazione Ferrero, 2002), pp. 131-143. 34 AST, Corte, Monferrato protocolli, vol. 11, f. 33 (4th September 1514); and AST, Archivio Del Carretto di Millesimo, m. 94, n. 3 (5th July 1527). 35 Antonino Angelino, Attilio Castelli, Indagini sulla storia urbana di Casale. Dal borgo di Sant’Evasio alla città di Casale (1300-1500) (Turin: Centro Studi Piemontesi, 1977), p. 291; Enrico Lusso, “I conventi del principe”, p. 116.

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Battista de Paris.36 While, on the one hand, the square in front of the church was an element that indicated the presence of the Preachers in a settlement,37 on the other, in the case of Casale, it shows how strong the relationships established by the friars with the town were, which offers suggestions to help us understand some apparent deviations from what can be considered to be the ‘standard’, most popular convent model at the time. Unlike the older buildings in Alba, dating back to the 14th and 15th centuries, and in Turin, completed in the mid-15th century, San Domenico di Casale shows, in addition to a refined volumetric management of the chapel space, the presence of an element which is only comprehensible in relation to the surrounding urban context. This is the false transept, a feature which, in a local setting, undoubtedly seems unusual. However, considering that today’s façade was completely invisible during the 15 years or so that elapsed between the closure of the church construction site and the building of the square, it is obvious that the definition of the western end of the transept with a rich terracotta rose is none other than an attempt to give the building a monumental, albeit understated, prospect, which celebrated the financial commitment made by the marquises and also marked a first step towards that decoration which Bonifacio III deemed indispensable for ‘the ornament of a town’.38 The story of the friars’ foundations in Monferrato is, first and foremost, the story of the relationship developed over the years between the prince and the main towns in the Marquisate. The two partners in the relationship sometimes moved in parallel, and were not always in



36 The gate was similar to the first attempt to finally overcome the one typical of the late gothic style that guarded the site until then. Alessandra Guerrini, “Matteo Sanmicheli in duomo e a Casale Monferrato”, Il duomo di Casale Monferrato. Storia, arte e vita liturgica (Novara: Intelinea, 2000), pp. 145-159. 37 Silvia Beltramo, “La città dei frati: gli spazi della predicazione nelle iconografie tardo medievali”, Visibile e invisibile. Percepire la città tra descrizioni e omissioni, ed. by Salvo Adorno, Giovanni Cristina and Arianna Rotondo (Catania: Scrimm Edizioni, 2014), pp. 2197-2206; Silvia Beltramo, “Dal pulpito alla navata: la predicazione medievale nella sua recezione da parte degli ascoltatori (sec. 13.-15.)”, Medioevo e Rinascimento. Annuario del Dipartimento di Studi sul Medioevo e il Rinascimento dell’Università di Firenze (Florence: Olschki, 1989) III; Éric Palazzo, Liturgie et société au Moyen Age (Paris: Aubier, 2000), pp. 124149. 38 AST, Corte, Monferrato gride, m.1, fasc. 6, n. 79 (21st March 1491); Enrico Lusso, “L’insediamento nella prima età moderna. Città, borghi, campagne”, Monferrato, identità di un territorio (Alessandria: Cassa di Risparmio di Alessandria, 2005), pp. 98-117.

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agreement, but they were able to fully exploit the potential of a convent to become a centre of urban development, without interfering with the ‘institutional’ activities of the order, and, last but not least, to trigger those phenomena of residential qualification that, especially in areas far away from the usual court residence, the prince would otherwise have found hard to control on a continuous basis. Between the 14th and 15th centuries, relations between the Mendicant Orders and the main dynastic families governing Piedmont were rather frequent, especially in relation to burials. The practice of choosing a conventual church belonging to the Friars Minor to create the family chapel was very common. This was the case for the Savoy family in Pinerolo and the Saluzzo marquises in the convent of the Preachers of Revello and, later, of Saluzzo, where they had the marquis’ chapel built for their own burial. The situation is similar to that of Pinerolo, where the Acaia princes created close connections with the Lesser Brothers in whose friary they built the noble chapel destined to become the family mausoleum, dissolving the link with the comital branch of the Savoy family, which had its dynastic sepulchral monument in Hautecombe, Savoy.39 Behavioural similarities in relations with the Lesser Brothers can also be found in the Monferrato marquises. In his last will and testament dated 1372, Giovanni I indicated the church of the Friars Minor of Chivasso to be his second option for his burial. There, the Franciscan friary, commissioned in 1317 by Teodoro I Palaiologos, became the family’s chosen burial place. In actual fact, the 14th-century foundation of the convent was part of a process of cooperation between the friars and leading noble families in the area, a partnership which also included the comital branch of the Savoy family, in the Subalpine area, as in France.

 39

Caroline Bruzelius, “The Dead Come to Town. Preaching, Burying and Building in the Mendicant Orders”, The Year 1300 and the Creation of a New European Architecture, ed. by Alexandra Gajewski and Zoë Opacic (Turnhout: Brepols, 2007), pp. 203-224. On Hautecombe: Luigi Cibrario, Storia e descrizione della R. Badia d’Altacomba antico sepolcro dei principi di Savoia (Turin: Fontana, 1845); Carlo Tosco, Architetture del medioevo in Piemonte (Turin: Marcovalerio, 2003).

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Figure 2. Dominican convent in Casale Monferrato (San Domenico): façade (by the Author)

2. Municipal Patronage: Urban Convents in Alba and Chieri In Alba, one of the first towns in Piedmont to welcome the new religious communities in 1233,40 the location of two friaries –the Franciscans and Dominicans– followed a similar logic, though with different results from the urban point of view.41 The ample concession of

 40

Giovanni Grado Merlo, “Minori e Predicatori nel Piemonte del Duecento”, pp. 208-214. 41 Carte varie a supplemento, p. 162 (doc. No. 156): “In conventu fratum Minorum” (Alba, 1254); Armando Tallone, Regesto dei marchesi di Saluzzo (1091-1340) (Pinerolo: Chiantorelli-Mascarelli, 1906), p. 129 (doc. No. 462); Claudia Bonardi, “Spazio urbano e architettura tra X e XVI secolo”, Una città nel

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land to the religious orders by the municipality –similar to what happened in Chieri– aimed at encouraging the development of urban settlement.42

Figure 3. Dominican convent in Casale Monferrato (San Domenico): cloister (by the Author)

The first document attesting the Preachers’ presence in Chieri dates back to 1260, when the commune decided to donate a habit, or its value in money, to every friar in the religious home. The communal charter confirms their presence in the territory for several years, probably from

 medioevo. Archeologia e architettura ad Alba dal VI al XV secolo, ed. by Egle Micheletto (Alba: Famija Albèisa, 1999), pp. 61-89. 42 Valerio Ferrua, “Alle origini dell'architettura domenicana”, Una chiesa, la sua storia. Momenti storici e sviluppo artistico della chiesa di San Domenico di Chieri (Alba: without publisher, 1991), pp. 7-22; Guido Vanetti, “Dall’avvento dei Frati Predicatori alla fabbrica della chiesa gotica”, Una chiesa, la sua storia. Momenti storici e sviluppo artistico della chiesa di San Domenico di Chieri (Alba: without publisher, 1991), pp. 21-30; Archivio del convento di San Domenico di Chieri, Giovanni Villa, Storia del convento di S. Domenico di Chieri dalle origini fino all’anno 1680, (1680); Chiara Ollino and Chiara Strola, “La chiesa di San Domenico di Chieri. Dal rilievo all’analisi architettonica” (Turin: Politecnico di Torino, Degree Dissertation, 2003-2004); Angelico Guarienti, La chiesa di San Domenico di Chieri (Turin: Industria Libraria Tipografica Editrice, 1961).

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1250-1255,43 in an existing religious building behind the walls. The construction of a new complex seems to cover a long period of time from 1326, the year of the first Provincial Chapter, which took place in the convent of Chieri.44 The long construction process of the complex, which ended at the beginning of the 15th century with the construction of the portal on the façade, was constantly sustained in economic terms by the communal authorities, which established a contribution towards the completion of construction works in 1332, and an additional one for the bells.45 The Dominican friars’ presence in the town was solid and consistent, and relations with the town authorities were also good, guaranteeing continuous donations during the successive phases. A significant contribution was defined by the presence of friar Tommaso da Casasco, who was the inquisitor in Chieri from 1362.46 In 1380 he became Provincial Father for the Province of Higher Lombardy and finally, Cardinal of antipope Clement VII.47 He not only pursued his career against heretics, but he also promoted the construction of the new complex, becoming interlocutor at the commune and investing everything taken from heretics. The site was operational for a long time and was very well organised. It was financed, as was the case in Saluzzo, in part through private bequests, due to the possibility for the donors to obtain burial spaces for their family members inside the church. Thus, the lateral chapels were built and instructions were left for their maintenance. As the site progressed, more and more patrons became involved. The earlier phase was characterized by the town’s commitment, led by friar Tommaso da Casasco, and the latter one witnessed the noble families’ acquisition of the burial chapels. The two phases tend to chronologically overlap and seem aimed exclusively at completing the immense construction site. The earlier project, characterized by the dynamism of the inquisitor, consolidated the religious community’s presence in the urban context,

 43

Archivio del convento di San Domenico di Chieri, Giovanni Villa, “Storia del convento di S. Domenico di Chieri”. 44 Guido Vanetti, “Dall’avvento dei Frati Predicatori”, pp. 21-30. 45 Valerio Ferrua, “Alle origini dell'architettura domenicana”, p. 25. 46 Giovanni Grado Merlo, “Predicatori e inquisitori. Per l’avvio di una riflessione”, Praedicatores inquisitores I. The Dominicans and the Mediaeval Inquisition. 1st International Seminar of the Dominicans and the Inquisition (Rome, 23-25 February 2002) (Rome: Istituto storico domenicano, 2004), pp. 13-31; Giovanni Grado Merlo, “Frati Minori e inquisizione”, Frati Minori e inquisizione (Spoleto: Fondazione Centro Italiano di Studi sull’Alto Medioevo, 2006), pp. 3-24. 47 Giovanni Grado Merlo, Inquisitori e Inquisizione del Medioevo (Bologna: il Mulino, 2008).

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which was also thanks to its outstanding prestige and power over the urban institutions. It was only in the 15th century that the Order solidified their collective identity and the relationship seemed to move away from civil institutions towards the emerging families of financiers. In Alba, both friaries (the Franciscans and Dominicans) settled within the town walls. The Franciscans, who arrived first, selected a north-west area next to the fortifications in front of the Tanaro gate. The Dominicans found their permanent quarters –at the end of the 13th century– in a fairly central area of the town half way towards the walls’ southern extremity, near the bishop's castle and the Cathedral. The Franciscans held very important roles in Alba: friar Simon is remembered as bishop in 1266, one of the first cases in northern Italy, which indicates the importance (also at a political level) appropriated by the new community of the Friars Minor, which also aimed at pacifying conflicts between various political and religious powers.48 The Dominican settlement in Alba seems to be based on different conditions compared to the seigniorial ones, as analysed above (figure 5). Pietro de Brayda, a representative of the municipality, donated the land – as required by the Mendicants' Rule– with the specific purpose of improving the urban area by providing it with a higher level of community facilities. The decision made at the end of the 13th century to place the Dominican convent between the main street (via Maestra) and the bishop’s palace was not by chance, but was specifically aimed at reinstating a certain aristocratic vocation in the quarter by means of a prestigious community service. The Franciscan complex positioned at the end of what is now via Cavour, towards the western entrance to the town and the nearby bridge, allows us to suppose that a similar operation to that of the Dominicans occurred in this instance as well. The settlement and the opening of the Franciscan house took place before 1266,49 and the

 48

Dal pulpito alla cattedra: i vescovi degli ordini mendicanti nel ’200 e nel primo ’300 (Spoleto: Fondazione Centro Italiano di Studi sull’Alto Medioevo, 2000); Luigi Pellegrini, Insediamenti francescani nell’Italia del Duecento (Rome: Laurentianum, 1984). 49 Claudia Bonardi, “Spazio urbano e architettura”, pp. 61-89; Carlo Tosco, “Il gotico ad Alba: l’architettura degli ordini mendicanti”, Una città nel medioevo. Archeologia e architettura ad Alba dal VI al XV secolo (Rome: Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali, 1999), pp. 88-107.

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donations of large plots by the commune50 can be observed in the importance of the road layout and in the rapid settlement development (figure 6). Very similarly, in Turin, two Mendicant friaries were positioned along the road (now called via Milano) which, in the 13th century, was the most modern and well-equipped in the city, and similar layouts characterized the aforesaid two religious communities in other towns.51 In Alba, the settlement of Preachers and Lesser Brothers in the area the town expanded into can be seen, in the case of San Domenico, with the presence of the road that joined the cathedral to the bishop’s castle, and, in the case of San Francesco, with the bridge over the River Tanaro, which existed until the 1440s.52 The principle often found in communal towns, which the Mendicant orders’ churches tended to reflect with respect to the town centre, represented by the square in front of the cathedral, is valid for Alba too.53 The creation of the above-mentioned two convents represented a farreaching event for the communal town: an opportunity for the importation of new architectural forms promoted by Mendicants, for the extension of cycles of frescoes, and for the opening of active centres concerning the development and expansion of urban areas. The big construction sites opened by new orders had to mark a clear improvement from the quality of the surrounding architecture, while the town’s main church, the cathedral, retained its Romanesque appearance at that time. The presence of a cemetery in the aforesaid two friaries, and of rich sepulchral chapels destined to the town’s leading families, show the ties woven by new orders with the heads of the ecclesiastic and laic powers.

 50

Rigestum comunis Albe, ed. by Euclide Milan (Alba: Chiantore-Mascarelli, 1903), XX, (doc. No. 945); Biblioteca civica di Alba, Giuseppe Vernazza, Titoli antichi di chiese, cappelle, benefici, ospedali di Alba, p. 27, manuscript 99.2 VER. 51 Luigi Pellegrini, “Gli insediamenti degli ordini Mendicanti e la loro tipologia. Considerazioni metodologiche e piste di ricerca”, Mélanges de l’Ecole Française de Rome-Moyen Age, Temps Modernes, 89/2 (1977), pp. 563-573; Luigi Pellegrini, “Gli insediamenti francescani nella evoluzione storica degli agglomerati umani e delle circoscrizioni territoriali dell’Italia del secolo XIII”, Chiesa e società dal secolo IV ai nostri giorni-Studi storici in onore del P. Illarino da Milano (Rome: Herder editrice e libreria, 1979), pp. 195-237. 52 Claudia Bonardi, “Spazio urbano e architettura”, p. 75; Carlo Tosco, “Il gotico ad Alba”, p. 89. 53 Enrico Guidoni, La città dal Medioevo al Rinascimento (Bari: Laterza, 1981).

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Alba also reflects the preference by Franciscans for positioning their communities along roads or by gateways, on the edges of towns; Franciscans were to be in viam, ‘on the road’ in every sense. In major cities too, such as Florence and Bologna, Mendicant houses marked the arteries into the city. In Bologna, Lesser Brothers acquired land just west of the city walls by the confluence of three large roads. The acquisition of this particularly strategic site was a joint effort by the friars’ community, their supporters in the communal government, and the papacy.54 The locations provided to friars in towns were sometimes on sites that nobody else wanted: on the far-flung fringes of a town, or in low-lying land prone to flooding, as in the case of San Francesco in Alba. The land given to Franciscans by Giovanni Badoer in Venice, where the current church Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari stands, was swampy and low.55 In Florence, even the highest foundation of Santa Croce, reconstructed after 1294, could not save the church from the disastrous floods of 1966.56 Communes and seigniorial towns, as in the case of Casale, took an interest not only in providing space for Mendicant convents, but also in sponsoring urban spaces necessary for outdoor preaching (Santa Maria Novella, and Santa Croce in Florence, San Fermo in Verona, and various Mendicant churches of Siena).57 Communes thus engaged in a planning process that could be understood in a number of possible ways: either decentralizing the city, giving new significance to Mendicant houses on the periphery that often ringed the urban centre, or as affirming and stabilizing the city margins with the stable presence of new religious communities.

 54

Caroline Bruzelius, “The Dead Come to Town”, pp. 123-127; Elizabeth Bradford, “City Planning in the Florentine Commune: Santa Maria Novella, its Piazza and its Neighborhood”, Construir la ciudad en la edad media, ed. by Beatriz Arizaga Bolumburu and Jesús Ángel Solórzano Telechea (Logroño: Instituto de Estudios Riojanos, 2010), pp. 477-496. 55 Caroline Bruzelius, “The Dead Come to Town”, pp. 123-125. 56 Robert Davidsohn, Storia di Firenze (Florence: Sansoni, 1956-1965), IV, pp. 1075-1079 and 1113-1116; Daniel R. Lesnick, Preaching in Medieval Florence. The Social World of Franciscan and Dominican Spirituality (London: University of Georgia Press, 1989). 57 Caroline Bruzelius, Preaching, Building, and Burying, pp. 128-130.

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Figure 4. Dominican convent in Alba (San Domenico): inside of the church (by the Author)

Conclusions The analysis of Mendicant settlements in northwest Italy has highlighted certain common practices in the cases of Casale, Saluzzo, Rivoli and Pinerolo, as well as some peculiarities visible in the heterogeneity of their settlement in the urban context. We have tried to reconstruct the elements typical of the first religious communities in seigniorial towns and the relationships created with commissions carried out by marquises and princes, who favoured their arrival by financing the construction sites and guaranteeing their full development, The choices made by civil communities in the cases of Alba and Chieri have also been studied, through the assessment of urban components of localization on religious houses in order to renew rundown areas or to give them a particular importance. It therefore seems possible to briefly summarize the relationships between religious communities and patrons, dividing them according to the dynamics differentiating seigniorial towns from communal ones, and underlining some cases which have common aspects.

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Figure 5. Dominican convent in Alba (San Domenico): façade of the church (by the Author)

In seigniorial towns, in several cases, the introduction of Mendicant Order foundations is linked to a precise ‘dynastic development plan’ carried forward by local seigniors in order to increase the prestige of the urban centre up to its acquiring –in some cases– the title of civitas (marquisates of Casale and Saluzzo, duchies of Savoy and Milan). The Preachers’ coming can be considered from the perspective of a predetermined plan of seigniorial power in the urban environment through the town’s transformation. The religious houses soon became an essential component of urban society. In many analysed cases concerning episcopal-communal towns and communities of Franciscan and Dominican convents, they follow the logic linked to the perspective of fast development in the surrounding urban

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tissue in areas of recent development, often characterized by an exiguous number of inhabitants. The friars’ settlement modalities in the communal towns are always the result of a donation, for the sole purpose of promoting its urban requalification, by providing it with a high-prestige community service. The settlements of religious communities also seem to be distinguished by different chronologies: their first dissemination through the northern Italian territory, ascribable to the end of the 13th century, is characterized mainly by the reuse of pre-existing religious buildings, and witnesses an immediate consolidation of Mendicant houses. The 14th century is marked, at various points, by the big architectural sites of Saluzzo, Alba, Rivoli, Pinerolo and Chieri, while the Preachers’ arrival in the Marquisate of Monferrato seems to proceed with a different dating, which only came about with the concomitant desire to make Casale not only the capital of the Marquisate, but also seat of the diocese. To fulfil the same aim, the marquises of Saluzzo also completed the long-standing marquis’ site, as well as welcoming the Minors of Observance and Augustinians’ marchioness communities, at the turn of the 15th century.

FROM ECCLESIASTICAL ASSET TO PRIVATE PROPERTY: ‘EXPROPRIATION’ OF MONASTIC ESTATES AT THE BEGINNING OF THE FOURTEENTH CENTURY IN A MILANESE CASE STUDY FABIO CARMINATI ASSOCIAZIONE CAPIATE-RADICI NEL FUTURO ONLUS

AND ANDREA MARIANI1 UNIVERSIDADE DO PORTO

 The present study aims to clarify some specific issues concerning the occupation of ecclesiastical estates by private persons at the beginning of fourteenth century within the Milanese territory. It is not easy to determine the level of diffusion of this phenomenon, but it seems rather typical of that period. By then, rural communes had grown in importance and a new class of local aristocrats had emerged, who hardly suffered from empowerment restrictions due to longstanding ecclesiastical privileges. We shall consider the representative case of Capiate, most likely a public property in the Lombard Age, and later a possession of the Monastery of Sant’Ambrogio of Milan. During the first months of 1312, an apparently ordinary purchase of lands by the monastery hides a complex swap operation involving Capiate estates. Such an exchange passed through a sequence of deeds and a temporary cash deposit, in order to extend its span and, perhaps, to cover uneven values attributed to the lands. The counter-parties to the monastery were the noble Febo Della Torre and Obizo de Bernadigio, the latter being a strong supporter of the

 1

Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia PhD grant holder (SFHR/BD/109896/2015). Abbreviations used: ACC, Archivio Civico di Como; ASMi, Archivio di Stato di Milano; BAMi, Biblioteca Ambrosiana di Milano; ASCMi, Archivio Storico Civico di Milano.

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Della Torre family. This transaction tightly interwines with the destiny of this family, who were banished from Milan in the same period. The specific ‘technical’ features of the deeds and the role of the persons involved can be entirely understood through focusing on the social and political context.

1. The Monastic Possession of Capiate Capiate consists of a wide land compendium including six different localities: Capiate, Villa Capiate, Greghentino, Miglianico, Carsaga, and Caromano.2 It lies near the main road that links Milan, Monza and Lecco, alongside a narrow strip between the elevated ground of Monte di Brianza and the river Adda, about five kilometres south of the town of Lecco. Nowadays, the territory is split into the two modern municipalities of Olginate and Valgreghentino.3 Such a particular compendium was likely part of a Roman (or late-Roman) military district, which in the Lombard Age ended up among the Crown properties (map 1 shows the compendium and the most probable ancient main road in red). We shall analyze its origin in a future paper.4 We could not find any evidence confirming the existence of any of the compendium’s land owners other than the Monastery of Sant’Ambrogio until the fourteenth century, except, maybe, for the locality of Caromano: this could be identified with part of the casa tributaria that the Lombard

 2

The total expanse is 7,430 perticae, comprising the sum of Capiate and Valgreghentino perticae, approximately corresponding to five hundred hectares. See: Massimo Fabi, La Lombardia descritta. Dizionario statistico, amministrativo storico ed ecclesiastico (Milan: Carlo Scapin, 1852), items ‘Capiate’ and ‘Valgreghentino’. The Milanese pertica as a measure of area is equivalent to circa 654 square metres: 10 perticae correspond to circa 1,61 acres. 3 We can be sure that the medieval place name of Capiate matches the modern locality of Capiate, belonging to the Commune of Olginate, due to the fact we have been able to find documents concerning almost all property transfers, at least by family groups, of the main cluster of the buildings up until the Contemporary Age. The group ‘Capiate, Villa Capiate, Greghentino, Miglianico’ that we find on documents is unique and unmistakable. 4 See also our recent work: Fabio Carminati and Andrea Mariani, “Isola Comacina e Isola Comense. Una storica con-fusione di identità”, Nuova Rivista Storica, 100/1 (2016), pp. 13-72.

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vir magnificus Rottopert from Agrate owned in Capiate.5 Atto, a secular leading figure bound to the Monastery of Sant’Ambrogio in the ninth century, came from Caromano. His son Adalbertus was Bishop of Bergamo but in his will he did not mention properties in Caromano; therefore, we suppose that, at that time, the whole land was already owned by the Milanese Monastery.6

 5

The Monastery had been established in the first months of 784. See: Historiae Patriae Monumenta edita iussu Regis Caroli Alberti, XIII Codex Diplomaticus Langobardiae, ed. by Giulio Porro Lambertenghi (Turin: Regio Typographeo, 1873), pp. 111-113 (doc. No. 59). Its rights were set up in the year 789 (pp. 119122, doc. No. 64) and confermed by Charlemagne in 790 (pp. 122-124, doc. No. 65). See also: Gabriella Rossetti, “Il Monastero di S. Ambrogio nei primi due secoli di vita: i fondamenti patrimoniali e politici della sua fortuna”, Il Monastero di S. Ambrogio nel medioevo, Convegno di studi nel XII centenario, ed. by Giorgio Picasso (Milan: Vita e Pensiero, 1988), p. 30. In Caromano (from German Harimann?) there should stand a Lombard Arimannia, which is the domicile of a group of free men, exercitales, who guarded the military establishment of Capiate. See: Stefano Gasparri, “‘Nobiles et credentes omines liberi arimanni’. Linguaggio, memoria sociale e tradizioni longobarde nel Regno italico”, Bullettino Dell’istituto storico italiano per il medio evo, 105 (2003), pp. 25-51; Pier Silverio Leicht, Studi sulla proprietà fondiaria nel medioevo (Verona-Padova: Fratelli Drucker, 1903), I, pp. 41-44; Gian Piero Bognetti, Studi sulle origini del comune rurale, ed. by Franca Sinatti d’Amico and Cinzio Violante (Milan: Vita e Pensiero, 1978), pp. 161-164; Historiae Patriae Monumenta edita iussu Regis Caroli Alberti. Codex Diplomaticus Langobardiae, pp. 25-29 (doc. No. 11); Il Museo diplomatico dell’archivio di stato di Milano, ed. by Alfio Rosario Natale (Milan: Amministrazione Provinciale, 1970), I, doc. No. 13. The casa tributaria of Capiate mentioned by Rottopert was not part of his original family assets, which were automatically designated to the eldest son (see: Cristina La Rocca, “Segni di distinzione. Dai corredi funerari alle donazioni 'post obitum'”, L'Italia centrosettentrionale in età longobarda, ed. by Lidia Paroli (Florence: All’Insegna del Giglio, 1997), pp. 31-54), Rottopert had acquired the casae of Capiate and of the fundo trecio from an unnamed seller de Ocornaco (Ornago). Rules esisted in Lombard laws, forbidding the buying and selling of the case tributarie, see: Leicht, Studi sulla proprietà fondiaria, and the Edicta of Rotari and Liutprand in: Monumenta Germaniae Historica. Legum, ed. by Georgius Heinricus Pertz (Hannoverae: Bibliopola Hahniana, 1868), IV, p. 431 (paragraph 58[59]Liutprand), and p. 362 (paragraph 252-Rotari). 6 About Atto and Adalbertus da Caromano see: Virginio Longoni, Fonti per la storia dell'alta valle San Martino, I, La valle dei Castelli (IV-XII) (Calolziocorte: Comunità Montana Valle San Martino, 1995), pp. 29-32; Andrea Castagnetti, “Transalpini e vassalli in area milanese (secolo IX)”, Medioevo. Studi e documenti, I, ed. by Andrea Castagnetti, Antonio Ciaralli and Gian Maria Varanini (Verona: Libreria Universitaria Editrice, 2005), pp. 7-109, especially, pp. 94-97. For the

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Map 1. The compendium of Capiate. Aerial photograph dated 1944 (by the Author)



  correct identification of Caromano see: Carlo Massimo Rota, “Paesi del milanese scomparsi o distrutti”, Archivio storico lombardo, 1-2 (1920), pp. 17-58, especially, pp. 31-34; quoted by: Andrea Mariani, “Elementi difensivi nel territorio brianzolo: fonti scritte e materiali (secoli X-XIII)” (Milan: Università degli Studi di Milano, PhD Master Dissertation, 2013), pp. 211-213; see also: Historiae Patriae Monumenta edita iussu Regis Caroli Alberti. Codex Diplomaticus Langobardiae, pp. 341-344 (doc. No. 207), pp. 391-393 (doc. No. 234), pp. 395-396 (doc. No. 236), pp. 432-433 (doc. No. 256), pp. 435-437 (doc. No. 258), pp. 805-807 (doc. No. 465), pp. 816-818 (doc. No. 472), pp. 909-910 (doc. No. 533), pp. 1096-1098 (doc. No. 638); Ferdinandus Ughellus, Italia Sacra, sive de Episcopis Italiae et insularum adiacentium, ed. by Nicolas Coletus (Venice: Sebastiano Coleti, 17171722), IV, col. 420-435 (Adalbertus’ testament).

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Until the transference of the property to the Della Torre family, the compendium of Capiate consisted of a group of estates owned by a single proprietor. In this case, however, the use of words such as ‘property’ and ‘proprietor’ seems to be inappropriate: it is very likely that the lands came from public assets and were granted to the Monastery as a fief by Frankish Emperors.7 This grant would have been revocable, and this explains why the Monastery periodically required its confirmation.8 We find the first remark on Capiate (Clapiadam) in a diploma issued by the Emperor Lotharius on 5 May 8359 that confirms the Monastery’s possessions. A previous diploma by the Archbishop Angilberto, issued in March, does not report Capiate in the list of the possessions, but is otherwise the same. 10 Therefore, we could suppose that Capiate was granted to the Monastery between March and May, but it is also possible that there is a mistake in the earlier diploma, which is only a thirteenthcentury copy, while the later one is unanimously considered original and genuine. 11 Consequently, we cannot exclude that the Monastery of Sant’Ambrogio obtained the possession of Capiate earlier than 835.



7 This case is not unique, but certainly uncommon. See: Gian Piero Bognetti, Studi sulle origini del comune rurale, pp. 118-119. The unity of the possession is also confirmed in 1376, when, as we shall see in paragraph 6, the D’Adda family bought the whole of Villa Capiate’s lands, evidently including Capiate. The deed shows an unusually wide formula, which excludes the possibility of the existence of other owners. Gianluigi Barni analysed further proofs conferming the public origin of Capiate lands: Gianluigi Barni, “Ricerche sulle vie di trasporto fra la Corte di Limonta e i centri di raccolta dei redditi nell'alto Medio Evo”, Atti e memorie del terzo congresso storico lombardo, Cremona, 29-30-31 maggio 1938 (Milan: Giuffrè, 1939), pp. 279-290, especially, pp. 285-286. 8 For an example of the assignment of estates clearly originating from King’s assets see the instance of Limonta, another well-known curtis of Sant’Ambrogio Monastery, not far from Capiate, in: Historiae Patriae Monumenta edita iussu Regis Caroli Alberti, pp. 222-223 (doc. No. 125) (year 835, diploma by Lotario); Il Museo diplomatico, I, doc. No. 60 and 60a: “conferremus curtem ex fisco nostro super ripam laci comacini vocatam Limunta”. 9 Historiae Patriae Monumenta edita iussu Regis Caroli Alberti, pp. 220-221 (doc. No. 124); Il Museo diplomatico, I, doc. n. 59. 10 The socalled ‘Angilbertus’ confirmation’ (1st March 835): Historiae Patriae Monumenta edita iussu Regis Caroli Alberti, pp. 218-219 (doc. No. 122); Il Museo diplomatico, I, doc. No. 58. 11 Giovanni Dozio, Notizie di Vimercate e sua Pieve (Milan: Giacomo Agnelli, 1853), p. 166, believes, on the contrary, that Clapiadam is a successive interpolation within the diploma of May. The original document, stored in the

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The possession is periodically confirmed every fifty years or so, with various spellings: Capiate, Clapiate, Clepiate, Capliate and Capriate. 12 The analysis of the periodic confirmation deeds of the Monastery's properties indicates that a church was established in Capiate (the Basilica of San Nazaro),13 together with a monastic cell, suppressed before 1028,14

 ASMI, Diplomatico 2.23.50, appears to be intact and without corrections. The copy of Angilbertus’ diploma could have been written when Capiate was no longer part of the Monastery’s assets (post 1310). Several scholars suspected that Angilbertus’ diploma may be a fake, or at least widely interpolated. See: Il Museo diplomatico, I, doc. No. 58. 12 See: Historiae Patriae Monumenta edita iussu Regis Caroli Alberti, pp. 499-501 (doc. No. 294) (year 880), pp. 501-502 (doc. No. 295) (year 880), pp. 595-596 (doc. No. 358) (year 893), pp. 1020-1022 (doc. No. 596) (year 951), pp. 1662-1663 (doc. No. 944) (year 998); Il Museo diplomatico, docs. No. 141, 142, 143 and 157; Privilegiorum et diplomatum omnium insigni basilicae et imperiali monasterio Sancti Ambrosii Maioris Mediolani concessorum exemplaria, in Insignis Basilicae et imperialis Coenobii S. Ambrosii Maioris Mediolani Abbatum chronologicas Series, ed. by Bartholomaeo Aresio (Mediolani: Ramellati, 1674), p. 57 (year 1005), p. 59 (year 1028 or 1032), p. 81 (year 1210), p. 83 (year 1251); Le carte del monastero di S. Ambrogio di Milano III/1 (1101-1180), ed. by Marta L. Mangini (Pavia: Università degli Studi di Pavia, 2007) doc. No. 3 (year 1102) and doc. No. 17 (year 1110), , 12th November 2016; Le carte del monastero di S. Ambrogio di Milano III/2 (1181-1200), ed. by Ada Grossi (Pavia: Università degli Studi di Pavia, 2005), doc. No. 26 (year 1185), and doc. No. 79 (year 1196), , 12th November 2016. 13 Historiae Patriae Monumenta edita iussu Regis Caroli Alberti, pp. 556-557 (doc. No. 331) (year 885, donation of mint-officer Ambrosius). The church was called Basilica in 885, and it was probably used as a private church at that time. When using the word ‘basilica’ we usually mean the basilica-shaped building (with apse and internal subdivisions, on the model of civil Roman basilicas; otherwise it is called ‘aula’), whereas ‘ecclesia’ strictly identifies the community of believers: Le denominazioni di ecclesia e di basilica sono quindi tra loro indipendenti, anche se l'uso distinto dei termini può servire a designare alcune varianti nella specifica destinazione dell'edificio di culto, in relazione ai particolari tipi di funzione che in esso si svolgevano (“The classifications of ecclesia and basilica are therefore independent of each other, and the separate uses of these terms can help to point out some variations in the specific purpose of the church, in terms of their different functions”). From item ‘basilica’ by: Margherita Cecchelli, Enciclopedia dell’arte Medievale, 12 vols. (Rome: Fondazione Treccani, 1992). In medieval documents, ‘basilica’ emphasizes the building and the lack of a parish community. If the parish community exists, the building receives the usual designation of ‘ecclesia’ as well. It is certainly not a fixed rule, and may change due to local customs, but it is something more than just a nuance. The Church of Capiate was called Ecclesia,

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and that the main crop was probably grapes, as we can deduce from complaints by servants of the Limonta court, forced by monks to travel to Capiate and prune vines contra consuetudinem.15 The Monastery held in Capiate (with Carsaga, Caromano, Villa Capiate, Greghentino and Miglianico) decimis, primitis, servis, ancillis, famulis, praecaria, districtu, et fodro, 16 and also, from at least 1110, a castrum,17 which should be understood as a simple fortified enclosure for refuge and the protection of people, animals and supplies.18

 in 1102 (Le carte del monastero di S. Ambrogio di Milano III/1, doc. No. 3); in 1193 (Le carte del monastero di S. Ambrogio di Milano III/1, doc. No. 68, deed of privilege by Archbishop Milo); and in 1251 (Privilegiorum et diplomatum, p. 83). We found Ecclesia with Parochia in 1193 (Le carte del monastero di S. Ambrogio di Milano III/1, doc. No. 68). In 885 the Church is said to be established in propriis rebus ipsius monasteri (Historiae Patriae Monumenta edita iussu Regis Caroli Alberti, pp. 556-557 (doc. No. 331). Recent archaeological examinations have allowed the identification of the Church, partially preserved, absorbed within modern buildings. See: Dario Gallina, “Capiate, Corte di Sant’Ambrogio. Analisi stratigrafica delle fasi antiche e medievali”, La Curtis di Capiate fra tardo antico e medioevo. Scoperte inedite e nuove ricerche sul territorio. Atti della prima giornata di studi. Monastero di Santa Maria del Lavello – Calolziocorte, 21 maggio 2016, ed. by Andrea Mariani and Fabio Carminati (Milan: Associazione Capiate-Radici nel Futuro ONLUS, 2017), pp. 135-218 (Digital edition at: , 19th February 2017). 14 Privilegiorum et diplomatum, p. 59 (year 1028, erroneously under year 1032, donation by Archbishop Aribertus de Intimiano). About Aribertus see: Maria Franca Baroni, “Segni del potere: i documenti di Ariberto”, Ariberto da Intimiano. Fede, potere e cultura a Milano nel secolo XI, ed. by Ettore Bianchi, Martina Basile Weatherill and Miriam Teresa Tessera (Milan: Cinisello Balsamo, 2007), pp. 417-429; Andrea Mariani, Elementi difensivi nel territorio brianzolo, pp. 39-42, with bibliography; Gli atti dell’arcivescovo di Milano nei secoli XI-XII: Ariberto da Intimiano (1018-1045), ed. by Marta L. Mangini (Milan: Biblioteca Francescana, 2009). 15 Historiae Patriae Monumenta edita iussu Regis Caroli Alberti, pp. 702-704 (doc. No. 417) (year 905). Gianluigi Barni supposed that the olive oil from Limonta would be carried by waterway up to Capiate, then by road, to Milan. The boat pilots would have been temporarly held in Capiate for rural jobs. Gianluigi Barni, “Ricerche sulle vie di trasporto”, pp. 279-290. 16 Privilegiorum, p. 83 (1251). 17 Le carte del monastero di S. Ambrogio di Milano III/1, doc. No. 17. 18 The process of making castles from rural curtes is common in Milanese territory and in the Po valley. It begins in the tenth/eleventh centuries. Aldo Angelo Settia, “Il Riflesso Ossidionale”, Rapine, assedi, battaglie. La guerra nel Medioevo, ed.

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The case is typical, serving as an example of a common scheme adopted in all monastic curtes in Middle-Age Lombardy: the monasteries usually managed rural possessions intended for their support not only with the purpose of agricultural production, but also with the aims of law and order, protection and spiritual necessities. The monks made up for the lack of a central power, whether civil or ecclesiastical, and were able to supply services and guarantees to the population. They formed de facto stateentites, of sorts, with a high level of autonomy.

2. Looking for Independence Between the end of the twelfth and the beginning of the thirteenth centuries, we find evidence of the existence of the Commune of Capiate with its consules.19 Traces of such a commune remain until at least 1412.20 In that period, rural communes in Lombardy leaned towards a gradual increase in their levels of autonomy, looking for political support in order to release themselves from the monastic authority. In 1279 the Monastery explicitly complained to the Commune of Milan in order to avoid the designation of the Podestà where the Monastery itself held jurisdiction;21 among other places, we find Capiate, Villa Capiate, Greghentino and Miglianico listed. The rural communes, which were fighting against oppressive monastic authority, could be compared with the town of Milan, which was aiming to release itself from imperial power. The pathway towards autonomy intertwined with the crisis of Milan, caused by the conflict between opposite factions: the ‘Guelphs’ and the ‘Ghibellines’, the first referring to the Della Torre family, the second to the Visconti.

 by Aldo Angelo Settia (Rome-Bari: Laterza, 2002), pp. 77-182; Aldo Angelo Settia, Castelli e villaggi nell'Italia padana, (Naples: Liguori, 1984), pp. 445-448. 19 We find names of at least four consules communis de Capiate within a Rubrica di atti notarili riguardanti crediti ripartiti tra gli eredi di Arderico de Vicomercato covering the period 1183-1222 (Virginio Longoni, Fonti per la storia dell'alta valle San Martino. I, pp. 112-137). 20 In this year the delegates of Capiate Commune are present at the collective oath of allegiance to the Duke Filippo Maria Visconti: see , 13th November 2016. The Commune was later merged with Olginate Commune, in unknown times. A new division took place in the year 1632; then, Capiate stood as an independent Commune until 1928, when it was merged with Olginate again (see note 90). 21 Privilegiorum et diplomatum, p. 91: Abbot’s claim to the Milan Podestà Loterio Rusca, dated 4th December 1279.

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The Della Torre obtained the approval of those striving for independence and self-regulation. They were preferred by minor aristocrats, merchants, and small and middle landowners. These classes are usually known as ‘Guelphs’, in order to distinguish them from the opposing ‘Ghibellines’. Such names however, do not imply their support to the papal authority beyond what was useful to achieve their immediate purposes. On the other hand, the Visconti represented the fulcrum for major aristocrats, together with grand merchants and landowners involved in wide-ranging interests and trades, who aspired to strenghten imperial power as a guarantee for their extra-regional businesses. From the last quarter of the thirteenth century up to 1311, the conflict had ups and downs: the Visconti tended to consolidate power mostly in the town of Milan, while the Della Torre and their supporters encouraged insurrections in the countryside, occupying monastic properties through a well-organized network of local clientes.22 Throughout the whole period we observe the widespread captures and occupations of castra and

 22

See for example: Paolo Grillo: “Rivolte antiviscontee a Milano e nelle campagne fra XIII e XIV secolo”, Rivolte urbane e rivolte contadine nell'Europa del Trecento. Un confronto, Atti del covegno internazionale di studi, Firenze, 30 marzo-1 aprile 2006, ed. by Monique Bourin, Giovanni Cherubini and Giuliano Pinto (Florence: University Press, 2008), pp. 202-203. “Countries thus fell into a period of high uncertainty, well demonstrated by private documents through a diffusion of contracts that made provisions for facilitations or exemptions in case of war. For example, we can recall a covenant from the year 1294 of the Commune of Inzago with the Monastery of Sant’Ambrogio in order to reinforce the local castle propter timorem guerre presentis existentis inter homines et comune Mediolani pro parte una et homines et comune Laude ac illos de la Ture et sequaces eorum. From the first years of the regime, new tensions grew, involving some rural communities, who relied on the Della Torre for independence projects, and the local lords who, supported by the town, took safety in what had served them in the past. It is worthwhile analysing what happened in Brivio [adjoining Capiate], a particuarly important village due to its castle and the bridge over the Adda river, subordinated to the dominatus of Cathedral Canons: here, the Della Torre had assembled a thick net of local clientes, and they sometimes imposed compulsory transfers of properties in favour of their closer followers. They de facto stole the place from Canonical power [see document in the Archivio di Stato di Milano, PPF, cart. 38, doc. No. 159 (17th March 1276)]. When some of their delegates laid claim to their ecclestiatical rights, about one hundred men and women rose up and rioted against them, hunting and trying to kill them. In the end, the uprising was bloodless, and the three clerics were only in danger for a short time” (Gian Piero Bognetti, “Un brutto quarto d’ora per tre canonici della metropolitana”, Archivio storico lombardo, 45 (1918), pp. 130-134).

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fortresses by Della Torre forces across Milanese territory, which quickly returned to the Visconti.23 As a further complicating factor, the opposing coalitions were not monolithic, but rather fragmented: members from both alliances frequently joined, reconciled and agreed to associate, even matrimonially, irrespective of orders from their leaders.24 The monastic possession of Capiate was directly involved in historical events of this time. Since 1311, it was no longer under the Monastery's jurisdiction, as shown by a deed dated 17th September, in which the Abbot once again complained to the Commune of Milan in order to prevent the designation of local Podestà. The act lists the same localities listed in 1279, except Capiate, which is no longer included.25

3. The Emperor Henry VII of Luxembourg and the ‘Peace of Milan’ At the end of 1310, the Emperor Henry VII of Luxembourg moved to Italy, aiming to reinforce imperial power. In December he was in Asti, and there he met some members of the Visconti (Matteo with his sons) and Della Torre families (Napo’s grandsons: Cassone, Napino, Rinaldo, Adoardo and Moschino), trying to reconcile them.



23 The best known example is that of Castelseprio, an important fortress disputed on various occasions, and permanently destroyed by Ottone Visconti in 1287, forbidding its reconstruction. See: Giorgio Giulini, Memorie spettanti alla storia, al governo ed alla descrizione della città e campagna di Milano ne’ secoli bassi (Milan: Giambattista Bianchi, 1760-[1775]), VIII, year MCCLXXXVII, book LVIII, pp. 379-381. We can find other cases: Incino d’Erba, a village attacked by Ezzelino da Romano in 1259, then beset by the Della Torre family, led by Cassone, about twenty years later; in 1279 Ottone Visconti castrum Incini obsedit, ac multa vi concussit, ut brevi in potestateem redigerit; in 1285 the borgo de Inzino, at that time a refuge for some of the Visconti’s supporters, was demolished by the Della Torre (Andrea Mariani, Elementi difensivi nel territorio brianzolo, p. 159). 24 More than one member of the Della Torre family married one of the opposite faction. See: Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, items: Cassone Della Torre , 13th November 2016; and Guido Della Torre , 13th November 2016. 25 Documenti diplomatici tratti dagli archivi milanesi, ed. by Luigi Osio (Milan: Bernardoni, 1864-72), I, p. 62 (doc. No. 45).

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The Della Torre who went to Asti were the most open to negotiation and also the most detached from the policy of Guido Della Torre, Capitano Perpetuo del Popolo in Milan. 26 Cassone, Archbishop of the Milanese diocese,27 had serious problems with Guido, due to compliant behaviour towards the Visconti: in October 1310 he had been imprisoned for a short time together with Paganino, Adoardo and Moschino, charged with treason.28 On 4th December 1310, in Asti, Cassone and his brothers signed a pact of peace with the Visconti, in the presence of the Emperor. Immediately after, Henry VII moved to Milan, where he encouraged similar appeasement by Guido and his followers. However, Guido remained unruly towards the Emperor, resenting interference in Milanese matters. 29 Unwillingly, he subscribed the pacification deed on 27th December 1310, in the presence of, among others, Obizo and Thomasius de Bernadigio. 30 Hereafter, on 2nd January 1311, a decree forced both factions to return formerly occupied properties pertaining to the other party.31 Febo Della Torre and Thomasius de Bernadigio were present; the latter was probably a relative of Obizo.32 In 1311, Febo Della Torre and



26 The Capitano del Popolo was an Italian medieval institutional figure created to balance the power and authority of noble families. 27 From 1308 up to 1317, at which point he was appointed as Aquileia’s Patriarch, like his great-uncle Raimondo. For this last, see: Luca Demontis, Raimondo Della Torre patriarca di Aquileia (1273-1299)-politico, ecclesiastico, abile comunicatore (Alessandria: Edizioni dell’Orso, 2009). See also Section 4 for a simplified family tree. 28 For a summary of those events, see: Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, item: Cassone Della Torre, , 13th November 2016; and also: Paolo Zaninetta, “Milano, 12621322. Due segni di un potere nuovo” (Milan: Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, PhD Dissertation, 2009), pp. 78-83, , 17th November 2016. 29 Luca Demontis, Raimondo Della Torre, p. 40. 30 Antiquitates Italicae Medii Aevii, ed. by Ludovico Antonio Muratori (Milan: Mediolani ex Typographia Societatis Palatinae in Regia Curia, 1741), IV, p. 631. 31 Antiquitates Italicae Medii Aevii, IV, p. 633. 32 Such was the opinion of Giovan Battista Bernareggi, who in 1711 presented a Supplica per il riconoscimento della nobiltà e legittimità della sua famiglia, where he provided a list of his more illustrious ancestors (ACMi, fondo famiglie, cart. 154). We must not mistake this Obizo for the homonymous Milanese cleric and the parish priest of the Church of Santo Stefano di Vimercate (the last one wrote his

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Obizo de Bernadigio were the buyers of the monastic possession of Capiate. The appeasement only lasted a short time. Shortly after the coronation of Henry with the crown of Italy, which took place in Milan on 6th January 1311, a revolt against the Emperor was crushed. 33 Members of both factions, possibly, promoted the rebellion, but the responsibility fell solely upon the Della Torre family.34 Consequently, they were banished from the town and all their estates were confiscated, plundered and destroyed. They could no longer return to Milan, in spite of several attempts and their alliance with the King of Naples –stipulated in Pavia on 5th November 1312, where Febo Della Torre was present. 35 Their attempts to return culminated with the Battle of Vaprio in 1324, where the Della Torre suffered their last defeat, definitively shattering their hopes. The Visconti remained the uncontested masters of Milan.

4. Febo Della Torre and Obizo de Bernadigio Febo and Obizo obtained the possession of Capiate from the Monastery of Sant’Ambrogio. The fact emerges from two unpublished deeds dated between February and May 1312 (, see appendix). Before examining their content it may be convenient to briefly introduce the characters. Febo was the son of Lombardo Della Torre, according to the following simplified family tree:36

 testament in 1300). See: Le pergamene duecentesche di santo Stefano di Vimercate (1273-1300), ed. by Luca Fois (Milan: Biblioteca Francescana, 2012), p.161. 33 The coronation took place in Sant’Ambrogio Basilica. The crown then remained guarded by the Abbot Astolfo de Lampugnano. See: Anton Francesco Frisi, Memorie storiche di Monza e sua corte (Milan: Gaetano Motta, 1794), I, pp. 172173. 34 This was the opinion of the coeval historians, but the whole matter remains unclear. 35 Bernardino Corio, L’historia di Milano volgarmente scritta (Padua: Paolo Frambotto, 1646), p. 346. 36 In bold, the persons we mention within the paper. We add just a little biographical information in the footnotes, to draw attention to the wide pervasion of the family and to their many roles. Details are from the web site of Associazione Capiate Radici nel Futuro ONLUS, , 17th November 2016, which published an almost complete family tree of the Della Torre at , 17th November 2016. 

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A1. Pagano37 B1. Ermanno (Line of Gorizia) C1. Lombardo38 D1. Febo39 B2. Napoleone nicknamed ‘Napo’40 (Line of Udine) C1. Corrado nicknamed ‘Mosca’41 D1. Cassone42 D2. Guidetto D3. Adoardo43 D4. Nappino44 D5. Rinaldo45 D6. Ingrostone D7. Paganino46 D8. Guida D9. Fioravante D10. Eleonora/Leonora D11. Florimonte nicknamed ‘Moschino’47

 37

Podestà of Brescia 1227. Podestà of Bergamo 1228. Died 6th January 1241. Podestà of Novara 3rd November 1267/1268. Podestà of Albairate 1275. Died as a prisoner of the Visconti in Baradello castle 1280. 39 Vicedominus of the Patriarchy of Aquileia 1298. Podestà of Treviso 1321. Podestà of Trieste 1326. Died 1328. 40 Died as a prisoner of the Visconti in Baradello castle, 1278. 41 Podestà of Mantova 1266, Governor of Istria and of Trieste 1209. Podestà of Bergamo 1307. Died in Milan 24th October 1304. 1st wife: Valentina, daughter of Pietro Visconti; 2nd wife: Allegranza, daughter of Guidone da Rho. 42 Ordinary Canon of Milan, Canon of Cividale. Dean of the Chapter of Aquileia. Archbishop of Milan from 12th February 1308 (ordained 12th October 1310) to 1316. Patriarch of Aquileia from 31st January 1317. Died 17th August 1317. 43 Died after 9th June 1345. 44 Canon of the Patriachal Church of Aquileia in 1302. General Commander of the Guelph army in Lombardy in 1318. Gastaldus of Udine 9th November 1326. Died in Aquileia 20th February 1329. Wife: Lazzarina, daughter of Ottorino Borri, Milanese Patrician. 45 Canon of the Patriarchal Church of Aquilea, of the collegiate Church of Sant’Ambrogio and San Nazario, of the archpriest Church of San Giovanni Battista in Como and Canon of Cividale. Treasurer’s officer of Aquileia’s Church (renounced 13th November 1331). Counselor of Aquileia’s Patriarch from 29th September 1328. Died in Aquileia about1332. 46 Podestà of Como 1302. Lord of Rome 1309. Died after 1310. 1st wife a daughter of Matteo Maggi, Lord of Brescia; 2nd wife: the noble Caterina Strassoldo. 47 Deputy of Aquileia’s Patriarch 1317. Wife: Caterina, daughter of Ottone, Count of Cortenuova. Died after 10th January 1345). 38

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B3. Avone48 B4. Martino B5. Filippo49 B6. Paganino50 B7. Francesco51 (Line of Como) C1. Guido52 B8. Salvino B9. Caverno53 (Line of Verona) B10. Raimondo54 In 1274, Lombardo had sent Febo to Friuli to be educated by Raimondo Della Torre, Patriarch of Aquileia 55 at that time, previously Bishop of Como until 1273;56 he was the son of Pagano, and therefore he was the brother of Febo’s grandfather. In 1285, the young Febo was given as a hostage to Guido Castiglioni, foster son of the Milanese Bishop Ottone Visconti, as a guarantee of temporary peace during the transfer of the Seprio castle to Visconti’s forces, prior to its final demolition in 1287.57 In 1292 Febo was the Gastaldus of Tolmin fortress (now in Slovenia), when he was taken prisoner by the people of Cividale. 58 In 1297,

 48

Podestà of Pistoia 1274. Died 1279. Podestà of Sacile 1290. 50 Podestà of Novara 1259. Died Vercelli 29th January 1266. Wife: Micarda, daughter of Guido, Count of Montefeltro. 51 Podestà of Novara 1243, 1263 and 1271. Lord of Seprio 1266. Podestà of Brescia 1266. Podestà of Alessandria 1269. Podestà of Cremona 1271. Podestà and Ruler of the Riviera d’Orta 1271. Killed in the battle of Desio 20th January 1277. Wife: Giulia, daughter of Corrado Castiglioni. 52 Capitano Perpetuo del Popolo; Lord of Milan (17th December 1307, deposed February 1311). Defender and Protector of Piacenza (1308-10). Died in Cremona in March 1312. 1st wife: 1259 Beatrice Guidi, daughter of Simone, Count of Battifolle; 2nd wife: 1302 Brunissenda, daughter of Filippo, Count of Langosco. 53 Died as a prisoner of the Visconti in Baradello castle, 1278. 54 Archpriest of Monza (1251-62). Archbishop of Milan (1261-62). Bishop of Como 1262. Patriarch of Aquileia 30th December 1273. Died castle of Udine 21st June 1298. 55 Rodolfo Pichler, Il castello di Duino (Trento: Giovanni Seiser, 1882), p. 311. 56 Luca Demontis, Raimondo Della Torre, p. 38; Rodolfo Pichler, Il castello di Duino, p. 18. 57 Giorgio Giulini, Memorie spettanti, VIII, year MCCLXXXV, book LVII, p. 369. 58 Rodolfo Pichler, Il castello di Duino, p. 312. 49

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Raimondo admonished him because he had appropriated incomes from Cividale’s Church Chapter. 59 The following year Febo stood as Vicedominus of the Patriarchy of Aquileia. 60 In 1317, his great-uncle, Cassone, was appointed as the new Patriarch of Aquileia, 61 but he suddenly died immediately after. In 1321, Febo was Podestà of Treviso, 62 in 1324/1325 he was feudatory of Flambro and Castellutto, 63 and in 1326 he was Podestà of Trieste, where he died in 1328. 64 His grandsons were admitted to the aristocracy of the Republic of Venice.65 Another descendant, Tommaso, fought and died under Venetian banners against Filippo Maria Visconti during the conquest of Bergamo.66 Febo’s descendants have permanently lived in Friuli and Venezia Giulia ever since: they were the ancestors of the noble Thurn and Taxis family. As for Obizo de Bernadigio and his family, coeval historians supply us with little information. His father, Gaspare de Bernadigio, was banished, together with many Della Torre in 1287, after the destruction of Seprio castle.67 Among his other relatives was, Thomasius, who was Podestà and

 59

Luca Demontis, Raimondo Della Torre, p. 235 and pp. 550-551. Luca Demontis, Raimondo Della Torre, p. 206. 61 Rodolfo Pichler, Il castello di Duino, p. 24. Many members of the Della Torre family rest in the chapel of Sant’Ambrogio or Della Torre, inside the Basilica of Aquileia, Cassone was buried in Florence, in Santa Croce Church. 62 Rodolfo Pichler, Il castello di Duino, p. 313. 63 Rodolfo Pichler, Il castello di Duino, p. 312. 64 Miriam Davide, “La documentazione giudiziaria tardo-medievale e della prima Età moderna nel Patriarcato di Aquileia e a Trieste”, La documentazione degli organi giudiziari nell’Italia tardo-medievale e moderna. Atti del Convegno di Studi, Siena, Archivio di Stato 15-17 settembre 2008, ed. by Andrea Giorgi, Stefano Moscadelli and Carla Zarrilli (Rome: Ministero per i beni e le attività culturali. Direzione generale per gli archivi, 2012), pp. 223-248, especially, p. 245; Rodolfo Pichler, Il castello di Duino, p. 318. 65 Giuseppe Cappelletti, Storia della Repubblica di Venezia (Venice: Antonelli, 1849-1855), IV, p. 162 (21st November 1339). 66 Rodolfo Pichler, Il castello di Duino, p. 317 (after 1431). 67 Tristani Calchi Mediolanensis Historiae Patriae libri viginti (Mediolani: Melchioris Malatestae, 1627), p. 385. Perhaps, he is the same Gaspare Bernadigio who was Gastaldo of Udine in 1293, mentioned on p. 365 of: Antonio Battistella, “I lombardi in Friuli”, Archivio Storico Lombardo, 37 (1910), pp. 297-372. 60

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Rettore (magistrate) of the town of Piacenza in 130868 and who, together with Obizo, subscribed to the ‘Peace of Milan’ in 1311. Obizo, heading an army, conquered the town of Monza in 1322 as reported by the chronicler Galvano Fiamma: Post duos vero dies Tegnacha de Paravisino & Strazia de Paravisino, Guizinus Cavazia & Obizo de Bernadigio cum CC. militibus & aliis viris armatis circa decem millia intraverunt Modoetiam cum intentione introducendi Turrianos. Quibus auditis, supradicti Nobiles de Mediolano, qui civitatis fastigia gubernabant, turbati corde, Franciscum de Rusconibus Capitaneum Civitatis Cumanae convocantes, burgum de Modoetia invadunt.69

The historian Giovanni da Cermenate gives us more information about Obizo, writing up a proper eulogy on him: Huius Melosae factionis, que semper inimica Turrianis fuerat, Nobilis, ac domi dives Marthesanus Obizo de Bernadigio cum Turrianis exulans amicus ac praecipuus fautor, ac defensor extiterat, regnantibus Turrianis, nunc etiam domo patriis bonis secum pulsus, ipsis etiam invitis, quos sequebatur ut duces, cursitans undique per exercitum quoscunque suae partis Melosae captos reperit aut precibus, aut pretiis redemit, ut potuit. Plerosque quos crudelis spoliaverat praedo, suis, suorumque famulo rum ejectis de dorso vestibus nudos cooperuit. Huius viri mores silere nequeo: nullus in Marthesana, ipso non exule, terram pluribus vertebat aratris; non tamen delicatis sed grossis vivebat cibis. Amicus, quem casu aliquo visitasset, si ipsum lauta, & pingui mensa cibasset, non reprehensione carebat. Eidem visitanti possessiones suas nullus colonus eius capones, aut alias pingues carnes praesentare audebat in mensa. Qui rapas macras modico sale conditas dabat sibi, admodum sibi carus erat. Sed ad tutandos, sublevandosque amicos totus deditus, prodigus semper fuit, nullis parcens expensis, aut laboribus personarum. Saepe etenim oneratis victualibus plaustris non modo amicos amore sequaces, verum etiam mercede conductos secum ducens nullam sui Communis poenam metuens, ad



68 Umberto Locati, De placentinae urbis origine, successu et laudibus (Cremonae: Vincentium Conctum, 1564), p. 204. 69 “Two days later, Tegnacha Parravicini, Straccia Parravicini, Guizino Cavazia and Obizo de Bernadigio occupied Monza, together with two hundred soldiers and about ten thousand armed men. They intended to make the way for the Della Torre. The Milanese nobles who held the town government building, having been informed and being worried, called the Captain of Como, Francesco Rusconi, and invaded the town of Monza”. Galvano Fiamma, “Manipulus florum”, Rerum Italicarum Scriptores, ed. by Ludovico Antonio Muratori (Milan: ex Typographia Societatis Palatine in Regia Curia, 1727), XI, chapter 361, p. 729.

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From Ecclesiastical Asset to Private Property propulsandas amicorum iniurias, & offensas, aut eorum hostibus inferendas, celer tendebat agmine numquam parvo.70

5. Capiate leaves the Monastery's assets Between January and May 14th 1312, Obizo stipulated, together with the Abbot of San'Ambrogio, Astolfo de Lampugnano, two deeds for a land transfer (see the transcription in the appendix). In the first one, which was written by notary Ughino Gallazi, Obizo was present, while the Abbot was represented by Raimondo Gallazi. In the second one, written by notary Beltramo Mazalli, Obizo was represented by Iacobo de Lampugnano (the Abbot’s relative?), while the Abbot was present in person. The deeds come from the Monastery’s archive and are quite fragmentary. In the same archive folder we find a third document, also fragmentary, which



70 “The Martesanus Obizo de Bernadigio was among the richest in his country. He was a noble [At that time, nobility implied use of weapons. Here, Nobilis is the same as Miles], belonging to the part of the Melosi who always opposed the Della Torre. This notwithstanding, he distinguished himself as a friend of the Della Torre from the time when they dominated Milan. He was their main supporter and defender, and was then banished with them. He was driven away from his clan, but he took paternal wealth and helped as many members of the Melosi prisoners of the Della Torre army as he could: he paid their ransom, through prayers or money, even in the case of those commanders which he reluctantly had followed. He redressed with his clothes, or with his servants' ones, those who had been disrobed by savage plunderer. I cannot omit the habits of this man: nobody in Martesana worked as hard with ploughs as him, nor those unbanished. He did not feed on high-quality morsels, but on rough ones. If by chance he visited a friend who was sitting at a lavish and rich table, he did not omit to reprimand him. When he inspected his possessions, no peasant dared to put on his table capons or other fatty meats. He loved those who offered him lean turnips seasoned with just a little salt. He always was dedicated to relieve and protect his friends, was broadly generous, never saving money nor servants. Often, he rapidly moved to repel injuries and injustices from his friends or conducted by their enemies, with a wide army. He did not fear penalties established by his Commune, always leading groups of friends and mercenaries, together with carriages loaded with supplies”. Joannes de Cermenate, “Historia de situ, origine, cultoribus Ambrosianae Urbis, ac de Mediolanensium gestis sub Imperio Henrici Septimi ab anno MCCCVII ad annum MCCCXIII,” Rerum Italicarum Scriptores, ed. by Ludovico Antonio Muratori (Milan: Typographia Societatis Palatine in Regia Curia, 1726), IX, chapter 66, pp. 1283-1284. Such an expensive way of life damaged Obizo’s family wealth and delivered huge debt to his heirs (see paragraph 6). In Vimercate and in its territory, the faction of the Rustici and the Melosi fought each other (Joannes de Cermenate, “Historia”, chapter 66, p. 1283).

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represents the previous deed concerning some of the lands sold by Obizo. By integrating all the information, we can fill in many gaps (see table n.1). Obizo transferred the property of lands in Tainate, not too far to the south of Milan, to the Monastery;71 he gave the lands to the Monastery, but the price for them was paid to Iacobo de Lampugnano, who was the true owner and seller and, furthermore, represented Obizo at the deed of May 14th. The money was withdrawn from the deposit, created by both Obizo and Febo, for the purchase, by exchange,72 of Capiate, Villa Capiate, Greghentino and Miglianico, including the curia of Capiate.73 Notwithstanding the fragmentary nature of the deeds, it appears clear that: -

At an unspecified time, Obizo and Febo acquired the whole territory of Capiate by a swap operation with the Monastery.74

-

The exchange was not accomplished at that time –they were not able to find lands sufficiently appreciated by the Abbot to exchange with Capiate’s– and a temporary currency deposit was established (1,100 lire terzole) as a guarantee for the conclusion of the operation.75

 71

Today, a locality in the municipality of Noviglio. Exchange was the method regularly used by the Monastery to optimise its properties, from the tenth century. See: Gabriella Rossetti, “Il Monastero di S. Ambrogio”, p. 33. 73 Pro predictis terris de Capiate et eius curie (deed 2); predictis terris predictorum locorum et possessionum curie de Capiate (deed 3). This specific mention of the curia is quite odd. The word can be translated as ‘the court’ or as ‘the palace’, or even ‘Monastery’s Chapter house’ (Carolus du Fresne Dominus Du Cange, Glossarium Mediae et Infimae Latinitatis (Niort: Favre Imprimeur-Éditeur, 1886); Egidio Forcellini, Lexicon totius Latinitatis, 4 vols. (Padua: Thomas Bettinelli, 1805); Francesco Arnaldi and Pasquale Smiraglia, “Latinitatis Italicae Medii Aevi Lexicon Imperfectum”, Archivum Latinitatis Medii Aevi, , 17th November 2016. Several folders, index under the authors’ surnames (Arnaldi and Smiraglia). In this case it could be identified as the building inhabited by the Monastery’s delegate (Gastaldus). 74 Villa Capiate et de Grugantino et de Mellianigo que date fuerunt in permutationem ipsi domino Obizone et domino Febo de Laturre per predictum dominum abbatem (deed 3) (14th May 1312). 75 Ad complendam ipsam permutationem ipsi dominus Obizo et Febus deposuerunt et dederunt libras millecentum tertiolorum pro acquirendo possessiones (deed 3) (14th May 1312). 72

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-

When lands cherished enough by the Monastery were identified, the exchange was accomplished. The deposit was used to pay for the lands: the owner of the lands (Iacobo de Lampugnano, who had acquired part of the lands from a certain Riccardo quondam Aloisio, de Lampugnani) received the payment. Obizo, consigning the lands, fulfilled his obligation to purchase the possession of Capiate by a trade-in with other similar goods.

A simple purchase of Tainate’s lands could not have been possible because the Monastery had formulated the sale of the possession of Capiate as an exchange. Obizo’s formal intervention was crucial to characterize the whole operation as a swap, albeit backed by the deposit of the price in cash, allowing both counterparts to extend the time for closing. Febo Della Torre was no longer involved in this process after he, along with his entire family, was banished from Milan in 1311. We could not determine if the expulsion concerned an obliteration of their legal capacity, but it is possible, as otherwise he could have made use of a representative, perhaps Obizo, even though he did not chose to. The absence of Febo made the exchange imperfect. We are not able to understand how they could go beyond such a procedural problem. Perhaps, since there were two subjects in the first phase (Obizo and Febo), they considered, with legal force, that the second phase could be accomplished by either of them separately. The transfer of Capiate and the connected pecuniary deposit probably took place before the banishment of the Della Torre, in February 1311. Moreover, Capiate was no longer listed among the localities that claimed the Monastery's jurisdiction within the above-mentioned deed of 17th September 1311.76 It is more than likely that, the transfer of the possession of Capiate took place when Henry VII was in Milan in January 1311. Up to the end of the thirteenth century, Febo Della Torre lived mostly in Friuli and it is possible that he was called back to Milan only when the Della Torre overcame Visconti for the last time in the very first years of the fourteenth century. With Cassone Della Torre as bishop and with the presence of the Emperor in Milan, the opportunity to obtain all the juridical requirements and authorizations enabled the Abbot to devise such an operation.

 76

Documenti diplomatici tratti dagli archivi milanesi, I, p. 62 (doc. No. 45).

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We cannot exclude the possibility that the project of transferring a formerly public possession to private persons, could lead the Monastery to cautiously consider obtaining the Emperor's endorsement as well. The presence of the Imperial Chancellery in Milan could have offered suitable timing. We also have to remember the preeminent status of the Abbot of Sant'Ambrogio, who was locum tenens when the Archbishop was away.77 Clearly, the Abbot should have been rather embarrassed after the banishment of the Della Torre, since the land exchange was not closed and its completion created a delicate problem. It is necessary to point out that we find other land-owners in Tainate named de Lampugnano, beyond Iacobo, the seller and Obizo's agent. They are clearly members of the Lampugnani family, known through fourteenth century Milanese chronicles. Their main properties were in Legnano (north of Milan). 78 Besides, let us keep in mind that the Abbot is Astolfo de Lampugnano. It would seem that the Tainate lands had been suitably selected for the exchange, in order to keep the whole operation ‘within the family’.79 The Lampugnani family had been among the strongest supporters of the Della Torre since the thirteenth century, 80 together with the Cotta, Pirovano, Osio, and Dell'Orto families.81 All these family groups had no large land assets, but they shrewdly placed their relatives or allies within monastic and cathedral chapters, and also as secular administrators of the

 77

Gigliola Soldi Rondinini, “Milano e il Monastero di S. Ambrogio nel secolo XIV”, Il Monastero di S. Ambrogio nel medioevo, Convegno di studi nel XII centenario, ed. by Giorgio Picasso (Milan: Vita e Pensiero, 1988), p. 230. 78 For information about the Lampugnani family, see: Francesca Maria Vaglienti, “‘Non siando may puniti de li excessi fati, ogni dì presumono fare pegio’: violenze consortili nella Legnano di fine '400”, L'Alto Milanese nell'età del ducato, Atti del Convegno di Studio, Cairate, 14-15 maggio 1994, ed. by Claudio Tallone (Varese: Lativa, 1995), pp. 143-170; see also: Gigliola Soldi Rondinini, “Milano e il Monastero di S. Ambrogio”, p. 217; she characterises them as “money makers, mint officers, bankers, merchants”. 79 Francesca Maria Vaglienti (note 81) identifies a branch of the Lampugnani family that, in the fifteenth century, nicknamed itself the Lampugnani degli Astolfetti, trying to distinguish itself from other Lampugnani. It could be connected with the Abbot Astolfo. It is unlikely at all that the Lampugnani in this deed were only people that came from Lampugnano: this village is located north of Milan, far from Tainate, which lies to the south. 80 Gigliola Soldi Rondinini, “Milano e il Monastero di S. Ambrogio”, p. 226. 81 Elisa Occhipinti, Il contado milanese nel secolo XIII: l’amministrazione della proprietà fondiaria del Monastero Maggiore (Bologna: Cappelli, 1982), p. 148, note 16.

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same institutions, in order to take personal benefits from managing big ecclesiastical properties.82 In exchange for the possession of Capiate, the Monastery purchased lands for the total price of 372 lire terzole, drawn from the 1,100 deposited by Obizo and Febo to accomplish the exchange. We do not know anything about the remaining 728 lire terzole. Possibly, other purchases followed and the swap was closed, but we have not found any trace of them. By the two deeds hereby published, the Monastery purchased 124 perticae of woody lands at the cost of 3 lire terzole per pertica. Since the whole territory of Capiate amounts to 7,430 perticae,83 with the same price of 3 lire per pertica, its value should have been of 22,290 lire terzole. It is notable that Febo and Obizo deposited only 1,100 lire terzole for the purchase of Capiate, Villa Capiate, Greghentino, and Miglianico, including the curia of Capiate: that means only about 3 soldi per pertica.84 The possession of Capiate was considerably underestimated. The difference in values is so big that we can consider the price as ‘symbolic’, and the operation can be read mostly as an ‘expropriation’ because it pauperized the Monastery's assets; this is also clear considering that the price of 3 lire per pertica appears to be aligned with the prices at the end of the thirteenth century in the area of Milan, for more valuable land, such as vineyards. 85 Therefore, the Monastery exchanged undervalued lands with overvalued ones, suffering twice the damage on both sides. In the meantime, Obizo and Febo acquired a large quantity of land at a pitiful price, and Iacobo Lampugnani sold low-valued woody lands at a high price.86

 82

Elisa Occhipinti, Il contado milanese, p. 148, note 16. From: Massimo Fabi, La Lombardia descritta, as the sum of the perticae of items ‘Capiate’ (2,549 perticae) and ‘Valgreghentino’ (4,881 perticae). 84 One lira was made up of twenty soldi. One soldo was made up of 12 denari imperiali or 24 denari terzoli. The denari terzoli contained about half the silver of the denari imperiali. So, the lira imperiale had double the value of lira terzola. 85 Elisa Occhipinti, Il contado milanese, table on p. 214. Three lire terzole were equivalent to 60 soldi, or 720 denari imperiali/1.440 denari terzoli. The prices observed by Elisa Occhipinti for grapevines swing from 60 to 80 soldi per pertica, those for fields are about 40 soldi per pertica. 86 The lands of Capiate and Villa Capiate (without Greghentino and Miglianico) were sold in 1376 to the D’Adda at the price of 1,225 florins, at the exchange rate of 3 lire terzole and 4 soldi per florin; that means a total of 3.920 lire terzole. See: paragraph 6. 83

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It may be that the Della Torre family wanted to set up a Guelph enclave in Capiate, (red oval in map 2) deep inside a strategic territory, which was turning towards the Ghibellines: on the eastern bank of the Adda river (orange area in map 2), Guelphs would have been dominant for a whole century after, but on the western one, the area of the Monte di Brianza, overlooking Capiate, belonged to the opposite party (green area in map 2). The Visconti issued several decrees for tax exemption from 1373 onwards, in favour of the loyal Ghibellines inhabiting the Monte di Brianza; they never mentioned Capiate, but they benefited the nearby villages of Olginate and Airuno.87 The territory of Capiate, Villa, Greghentino and Miglianico is also strategic from the point of being a necessary passage on the way from Milan to Lecco and the Valsassina, homeland of the Della Torre and historically linked to them. Furthermore, Capiate stands between two of the most important crossing points on the river Adda, Olginate and Brivio, controlling both quite easily.

 87

About these tax exemptions, see: Rinaldo Beretta, Pagine di Storia Briantina (Como: Società Arti Grafiche San Abbondio, 1972), chapter II “Il territorio briantino”, paragraphs 3-9; and, further: Luca Zenobi, “Nascita di un territorio. La vicenda del monte di Brianza tra Trecento e Quattrocento”, Quaderni storici, 3 (2013), pp. 813-855. The exemptions had been granted, initially, by Bernabò Visconti in the year 1373. Then, they were periodically confirmed until the second half of the fifteenth century or, maybe, the first half of the sixteenth. These exemptions could have been one of the causes for the gradual 'extention' of the territory called Martesana and Monte di Brianza, as it reached countries which had never previously been part of it. Almost certainly, they were the reason for the end of the Commune of Capiate, which disappears in documents after 1412: the part consisting of Capiate and Caromano, owned by the D’Adda, was merged with the Commune of Olginate (where the D’Adda lived and which benefited from tax exemptions); the part consisting of Villa Capiate, Greghentino, and Miglianico formed the new Commune of Valgreghentino (deprived of tax exemptions). The community of Capiate separated from Olginate in 1632, establishing a new Commune (deed of 7th February, written by notary G. Paolo Marchesino de’ Airoldi, ASMi, fondo notarile, cart. 24981, copy of preparatory documents in the Archivio Parrocchiale di Olginate, P-BF/VII, 2, n. 1846 [information courtesy of Gianluigi Riva and Giovanni Aldeghi]). In the separation documents they pointed out that Capiate had its own perticato (sum of all properties' surfaces), different from Olginate's one, and it was only joined with Olginate for the percentage de sale (tax on salt). This new Commune of Capiate lasted until 1928, when it was merged again with Olginate by the fascist government.

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Map 2. The Adda valley and the areas of political influence in the fourteenth century. The Ghibellines areas in green; the Guelph areas in orange; the areas where the Della Torre occupied ecclesiastical properties are in red while the red oval marks the position of Capiate (by the Authors)

 At the present time we are not able to understand if the Della Torre family carried out other similar attempts to enlarge their properties. However, we can point out the direct effects of this exchange, beyond the intentions of those who performed it: -

The Abbot lost lands where he held jurisdictional power, gaining lands without it. In the deeds, nothing is written about the districtus of the lands of Tainate. The lands in Milanese territory, subjected to monasteries' feudal rights, de facto decreased.

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-

The public assets, in concession to the Monastery, were impoverished in favour of private persons. The possibility of retrogression of lands to the public, which had been granted to the Monastery for centuries, seems to be only theoretical, but it cannot be a priori excluded, considering the high level of political uncertainty at that time.

-

The Della Torre gained control of localities and castles within Milanese territory. They could be used, from a military point of view, as centres for logistical support, to concentrate troops or provisions, and to guard lands.

-

The rural communes grew up, because of the insertion and/or enhancement of a new wealth-based, not feudal, aristocracy, who were much more willing to consider splitting and selling property, and with whom it was easier to deal.

The long-lasting period of monastic government by the Abbot Astolfo de Lampugnano (c. 1299-1338) was particularly disastrous for the assets of the Milanese monastic institution, and it was also notable for the wide permissiveness in the monks' way of life.88 On 4th June 1320 the possessions of Limonta and Civenna were also sold through a swap operation similar to the one of Capiate.89 Those lands



88 See: Vera Segre Rutz, “Ricerche su S.Maria dei Ghirli a Campione d'Italia e i pittori Lanfranco e Filippolo De Veris”, Rivista svizzera d'arte e d'archeologia, 53 (1996), pp. 147-164, note 23. The author highlights, following Giuseppina Bertoni (see note 92), that in 1320 only nine monks lived in the Monastery of Sant'Ambrogio; four of them were Lampugnani. In 1402: there were five monks, three of them, Lampugnani. See also: Mauro Tagliabue, “Cronotassi degli abati di S. Ambrogio nel medioevo (784-1497)”, Il Monastero di S. Ambrogio nel medioevo, Convegno di studi nel XII centenario, ed. by Giorgio Picasso (Milan: Vita e Pensiero, 1988), pp. 274-349, especially p. 330. In the tenth century there were about fifteen monks, see: Gabriella Rossetti, “Il Monastero di S. Ambrogio”, p. 35. We find the highest number in about the year 1200: 36 monks. See: Mauro Tagliabue, “Cronotassi”, p. 289. 89 In the following century, in about 1420, the Monastery partially succeded in recovering Civenna and Limonta. For the whole sequence of events see: Giuseppina Bertoni, “L’inizio della giurisdizione dell’abate di S. Ambrogio di Milano sulla corte di Limonta e Civenna”, Memorie storiche della Diocesi di Milano, 13 (1966), pp. 167-320; Giuseppina Bertoni, “La giurisdizione dell’abate di S. Ambrogio di Milano sulla corte di Limonta e Civenna”, Memorie storiche della Diocesi di Milano, 14 (1967), pp. 29-189.

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were another public estate, formerly granted to the Monastery by Emperor Lotharius I. However, this time around, the operation was closed with the Ghibellines Rusconi and de Pizo, from Como. The support of the Lampugnani to the cause of the Della Torre, lost by then, had been more a matter of opportunity than of political faith. The lands of Limonta and Civenna were sold for the price of 4,000 lire terzole, which were deposited by order of the Archbishop at the monastery of San Vittore al Corpo and held until the Archbishop approved the purchase of other lands. 90 A document dated October 1321 proves that other lands in Tainate were eventually bought, but in this case, we do not know their price or their origin.91 Since the whole area of the lands of Limonta and Civenna covers 10,847 perticae,92 the lands were sold at the price of little more than 7 soldi per pertica, while for Capiate the price was 3 soldi per pertica. This is a big difference –especially if we consider that the territory of Civenna is mostly uplands and mountainous, and Limonta’s partially so. Therefore, the price should have been lower than Capiate's since its territory is mostly flat. However, at this point the Archbishop of Milan was no longer Cassone Della Torre, who certainly had an interest in covering up murky operations in order to assist his family group. Therefore, it would be unwise, to apply excessively low prices in the latter case. One century later, the Monastery succeeded in getting back at least the feudal rights and jurisdiction on Limonta and Civenna because nobody had claimed it. 93 The Monastery kept the rights until its closure in the

 90

Giuseppina Bertoni, “L’inizio della giurisdizione”, p. 217. See also copy of receipt declaration in the Registri delle Lettere Ducali at Archivio Civico di Como (ACC, Registri delle Lettere Ducali, III, p. 352t) and its summary in: Emilio Motta, “Lettere Ducali Viscontee”, Periodico della Società Storica per la Provincia e l’antica diocesi di Como, 10 (1893), p. 165. A fragmentary transcription of the sale deed can be found in: Biblioteca Nazionale Braidense di Milano, Ermete Bonomi, Tabularii coenobi Ambrosiani exemplaria, manuscript AE XV 17-19 (18th century). 91 Giuseppina Bertoni, “L’inizio della giurisdizione”, p. 218. 92 Exactly, 7,831 for Civenna and 3,016 per Limonta, following: Massimo Fabi, La Lombardia descritta, items ‘Civenna’ and ‘Limonta’. 93 This part of the sequence of events, retraced by: Giuseppina Bertoni, “L’inizio della giurisdizione”, pp. 223-224, remains quite vague, anyway. See also the deed for feudal investiture of tithe rights on the places of Civenna, Limonta, and Agrario made by the Vicedomini of Cosso in favour of Giovanni, son of the late Arderico De Pino from Varenna, dated 16th May 1324, Archivio Pietro Pensa di Esino Lario, parchments 4, 1.

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eighteenth century. The opposite happened for Capiate, whose territory remained in possession of private persons while the Chamber of the Duke managed the feudal rights until the time of their release.94

6. The following occurrences of the Capiate Possession The lands of Capiate 95 became the inheritance of Obizo's son, Francesco Foppa de Bernadigio.96 In 1376 Francesco sold them entirely to the brothers Bartolomeo, Bernardo, and Martino D’Adda, from Olginate, sons of Giovanni nicknamed Mayostre, for the price of 1,225 gold florins (at the exchange rate of 64 soldi per florin).97 Around the same time, the

 94

The fief of Garlate, including Capiate, belonged at first to Bartolomeo Calchi (11th April 1491), and it was included in the fief of the Quattro Pievi di Brianza. Then, it was separated and granted to Gian Giacomo de’ Medici nicknamed Medeghino (31st October 1528-13th February 1532). On 16th September 1538 it was given to Giovanni Agostino D’Adda (ASMi, Rogiti Camerali, cart. 539, notary Giuliano Pessina): his family kept it until 14th January 1652 when, due to the death of the last feudatory Ambrogio D’Adda without male heirs, the King’s Chamber obtained it. In 1632 the community of Capiate separated from Olginate, formed an independent Commune, and began the procedure for the emancipation from the fief, which was accomplished in circa 1668. See all documents in: ASMi, Feudi Camerali, cart.133-276-433-434-435-962, among others. 95 But, it seems, not those of Greghentino and Miglianico. 96 We should point out a simple peculiarity: in the Fugger coat of arms collection (Insignia Urbium Italiae Septentronalis: nobilum mediolanensium, a 16th century manuscript in Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, Munich, Cod. Icon. 270) the arms of the De Bernadigio and the De Foppa are very similar –a little plant on red/yellow shield–, but in the De Foppa coat of arms, some leaves of the plant are coloured black. Could this be a clue of adoption or illegitimate birth? This Foppa family could be the same as the parentela de Foppa listed with many others in a decree by Gian Galeazzo Visconti dated 7th June 1385, pardoning the rebellious families of Martesana (Pietro Paolo Bonetti, Antiqua Ducum Mediolani decreta (Mediolani: apud Io. Baptistam et Julium Caesarem fraters Malatestas, 1654), pp.77-79). 97 Sale deed written by notary Giovannolo Oldeni on 12th January 1376, in: ASMi, fondo Notarile, cart. 6. The document only mentions Villa Capiate, but it seems that the described borders define a territory including Capiate too. De facto, in following documents, the D’Adda appear as the owners of Capiate and Villa Capiate. The description of the sale subject confirms that the whole territory is involved: Nominative et generaliter de omnibus et singulis sediminibus, domibus, hedifficiis, teretoriis, posessionibus, terris cultis et incultis, pratis, silvis, paschuis, fluminibus, aquis, aqueductibus et iuribus aquarum, utensilibus (?) et apparatibus (?) aptis ipsis bonis, et generaliter de quibuscumque aliis bonis mobilibus et immobilibus existentibus et iacentibus in loco Vila Capiate et eius territorio a

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D’Adda brothers acquired large financial credits against Francesco. To be precise, these were: -

150 gold florins from the Milanese Giovannino Casati, nobilis et egregius miles, son of Filippo, as a part of a total credit of 1, 000 florins. 22nd February 1376.98

-

480 imperial lire from the Milanese Rinaldo Regna, nobilis et egregius vir, son of Yoseppo, nobilis et egregius miles. 26th January 1377.99

Those credits had been renewed from older ones, which possibly dated back to Obizo's generosity. Francesco did not maintain any property in Capiate, which we can deduce from a deed of property division among his heirs, which does not mention Capiate.100 The D’Adda came from nearby Olginate. The family was wide and had many branches, and were merchants dealing with wools and fabrics. In the fifteenth century they became very rich by smuggling goods, particularly

 Flumine Veteri usque in locum plebis de Gralate comitatus Mediolani exsistentibus et iacentibus ubicumque et cuiuscumque manerii libere (?) sint et existant in dicto loco et territorio et pertinentibus, spectantibus et competentibus ipsis venditoribus et cuilibet eorum et alicui et aliquibus eorum in dictis loco et territorio a dicto Flumine Veteri usque in locum predictum que appelatur Lacus de Lavelo plebis de Gralate. Compare this with the sale subject in the case of the Limonta and Civenna possessions: omnibus terris, domibus, pratis, silvis, arboribus, alpibus, oliveriis, cassinis, campis et rebus territorijs ipsis domino Abbati, Monacis, monasterio sancti Ambrosii spectantibus et pertinentibus quorumque modo, jure in locis et territorijs de Limonta et de Civena bellaxij, episcopatus Cumarum, et de omni onere districtu et jurisdictione et decimis et juribus decimarum ipsis domino abbati monacis et monasterio spectantibus et pertinentibus quocumque modo in dictis locis et territoritorijs de Limonta, de Civena et in personis ipsorum locorum et territorij (Emilio Motta, “Lettere Ducali Viscontee”, p.165). Jurisdictional rights (districtu et jurisdictione et decimis et juribus decimarum) were not sold to the D’Adda family, and we know nothing about them. 98 Credit sale deed written by notary Giovannolo Oldeni on 22nd February 1376, ASMi, fondo Notarile, cart. 6. 99 Credit sale deed written by notary Giovannolo Oldeni on 26th January 1377, BAMi, parchment 2890, lemale 234. 100 Properties division deed among the brothers Gasparolo, Luigi, Biagio and Bonifacio, sons of the late Francesco de Foppa de Bernadigio, written by notary Manfredolo de Medici di Novate on 23th March 1388: BAMi, parchment 2971, lemale 236.

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fodders, with the Republic of Venice.101 At the same time, their Milanese branch distinguished itself at Visconti's court: they obtained increasingly high offices and, between the sixteenth and the seventeenth centuries, titles of nobility. The transactions with Francesco Foppa de Bernadigio implied complex relations and interests that are challenging to reconstruct, but their outcome was to turn a local non-noble family into owners of the former public estate of Capiate. As a result, the lands were gradually parcelled and in part, sold to other people. In the public Appraisal of Farmland (Estimo), dated 1558, the D’Adda family still held about 40% of Capiate's lands.102 The fate of Greghentino and Miglianico (with the tiny localities of Biglio and Dozio) remains unclear. In the aforementioned Appraisal, the D’Adda held few lands there while families bearing surnames typical from the town of Brescia (De Madio, Maggi) are registered together with a large group of Tauri, or De Tauri, who disappeared during the second half of the seventeenth century. The surname Tauri is unusual, as it does not seem typical of Lombardy, but of Friuli. 103 In that region, Febo Della Torre conducted his main affairs. We could conceive that Febo in some way succeeded in conserving the property of Greghentino and Miglianico – while Obizo held Capiate and Villa Capiate– and that his heirs sold out to someone with whom they were in contact in Friuli, where they lived. Lacking any evidence, however, this remains only a hypothesis.

 101

Giovanni Aldeghi, Gianluigi Riva, “Adda fiume di confine: contrabbando e spionaggio tra Olginate e la valle di San Martino nella seconda metà del Quattrocento”, Archivi di Lecco, 4 (1994), pp. 63-128. Further developed version on under the name of Gianluigi Riva, 26th November 2015. 102 Estimo, ASCMi, Località Foresi, cart. 21/II, Pieve di Garlate. 103 Tauriano/Fundus Tauri, Tarvisio, Tauri mountains. Not far from the slopes of the Tauri mountains, we find the Predil pass, from which the Lombards are told to invade Italy. Nowadays, we find the surname Tauri within central and southern regions of Italy, particularly in Puglia.

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Figure 1. The curia of Capiate (by the Authors)

Conclusions  We have described a particular kind of acquisition by private persons of a formerly public estate, granted by the Emperor to a monastic institution. Such a transition from ‘public’ asset to private property favoured the growth and development of local wealth-based nobility and diffusion of little property with a detriment to state assets, during a historical period that was fundamental to the establishment of increasingly independent Signorie from the Empire, and for the arising of the middle class. In the Lombard territory, between the rivers Ticino and Adda, the properties, which originally fell within the Lombard royal heritage and later merged into the imperial trasury, had to be particularly widespread due to the proximity of the court headquarters at Monza, Milan, and Pavia. We have good reasons to believe that attacks to large agricultural estates could have been more successful in this area than in others where the close presence of a dominus loci assured major control. This may have been one of the main reasons for the spread of small land ownership and of the early enrichment of this region, compared to those where properties consisting of large tracts of land remained untouched for a longer time.

4 woody parcels in Tadenate, or Barate:

4 woody parcels in Taenate:

Obizo de Bernadigio of the late Gaspare

Abbot Astolfo de Lampugnano represented by R.. (This should be Raimondo of the late Guglielmo Gallazi, who also wrote the document)

Milano Broletto nuovo

Between January and May 1312104

Deed 2

1) ad Carpaneum, undivided half of

[2] woody parcels in Tadenate

Obizo de Bernadigio of the late Gaspare, represented by Iacobo de Lampugnano special proxy written by notary Rogerio da Sottoportico on 10th February [1312]

Abbot Astolfo de Lampugnano

Milano Cloister loggia of the Monastery of Sant’Ambrogio

14 May 1312

Deed 3

303

On the borders of one parcel in deed 3 we find the Monastery of Sant’Ambrogio. So, it is plausible that deed 2 preceeds deed 3. Necessarily, deed 1 preceeds deed 2.

104



Subject of Purchase / Exchange

[Ricardo] of the late Aloisio de Lampugnano

Seller / Giving in Exchange

Guarantor: Girardo fq. Arderico de Lampugnano

Iacobo de Lampugnano of the late Lanzarotto

Milano Broletto nuovo

Between January and May 1312

Purchaser / Receiving in Exchange

Drafting Place

Date

Deed 1 Origin of the lands sold by deed 2

Fabio Carminati and Andrea Mariani

3) ad Brugum perticae [27] Borders: a) […] de Lampugnano b) before-mentioned Rodolfo and his sons and grandsons 4) ad Beolas perticae 15 Borders: a) illorum de Lampugnano, formerly of Maffeo de P[…] b) Lectum Barone

3) ad Brugum perticae 27 Borders: a) […] grandsons. b) woods of those de Lampugnano, of the before- mentioned Rodolfo, of the brother and grandsons de Pizo

4) ad Beolas perticae 15 Borders: a) illorum de Lampugnano formerly of Maffeo […] b) […] of Rodolfo and of the brother and grandsons de Pizo

105

2) ad Brugum perticae 7 Borders: a) Rodolfo brother of […. b) ……] from Monza

1) [ad Buscum] de Ulmo perticae 11 Borders: a) Heirs of Guidotto de Lampugnano, b) illorum de Sal[vano]

From Ecclesiastical Asset to Private Property

1) ad Buscum de Ulmo perticae 11 Borders: a) Heirs of Guidotto de Lampugnano b) illi de Salvano c) illorum […] Pizaschi de Pizo105 2) ad Brugum perticae 7 Borders a) Rod[olfo…] b) illorum de Pizo c) Leonardo from Monza 2) ***** pert.[ ….]

perticae […] Borders: a) […] o Monastery of S. Ambrogio b) Balzaro and Franzollo de Pizo; Girardo e Jacobino de Lampugnano. c) Balzaro and Franzollo [de Pizo…]

In deed II, we no longer find those de Pizo in borders of the same parcel, but in borders of the following one.



304

Iacobinus de Merate

Francino Pagnano

106

Second notary: Ughino Gallazzi

Rogatarius: Raimondo of the late Guglielmo Gallazzi

Iacobo de Lampugnano f.q. Lanzarotto who bought from Ricardo son of the late Aloisio [de Lampugnano] (see deed 1)

3 lire terzole

180 lire terzole

Total perticae [60]

305

Ughino Gallazzi scriptor on order of before-mentioned notary

Rogatarius: Beltramino Mazalli  Second notary: Astolfo Cotta106

Iacobo de Lampugnano

[3 lire terzole]

192 lire terzole

If we apply the price of 3 lire terzole inferred from deeds 1 and 2, the result should be 64 perticae exactly.

This is another family bound to the Della Torre. See: Elisa Occhipinti, Il contado milanese, p. 148, note 16.



Notaries

Rogatarius: Raimondo of the late Guglielmo Gallazzi  Second notaries: […] Ruzaleone de Merate

3 lire terzole

Inferred price per pertica

Previous owner

180 lire terzole

Price

Total perticae 60

c) Lectum Barone

Fabio Carminati and Andrea Mariani

Stefanino son of Paxii de Novate

[..] of Arderico Cagalancia

Giroldo of the late domini G[…]

Pagano of the late Florerio Plato

Robino de Lampugnano of the late Lantelmo

Fazio of the late Beno de Lam[pugnano]

From Ecclesiastical Asset to Private Property

Table 1: Summary of the main information from the deeds edited in the Appendix

Witnesses

306

Beltramo Plato of the late Florerio.

Guillelmus Cagalancia of the late Arderico

[...] Lampugnano of the late***

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Documental Appendix107 1 1312, Milan (In brolieto novo communis Mediolani) Riccardus son of the late Aloixius de Lampugniano sells four plots of wooded land in the district of Tadenate to Iacobus son of the late Lanzarottus de Lampugniano for a sum of 180 lire of terzoli. [A] Original, AsMi, Pergamene per fondi, cart. 328, No. 31 The parchment (mm. 397/280×645/670, with restoration 430/305×645/660) is seriously damaged along the right edge; presence of a cut on lower left edge; stitching of mm. 20 between the 27th and the 29th line not concerning the text; four stitchings in the lower side; two horizontal folds; scattered moisture stains. Writing material restored in modern age by the bonding of two sheets of paper. A side note reads: “buschus de Beolis | non in|venitus”. Inscribed verso, in an old hand: “1312”; archive record reference code in another old hand: “T. 17, C. 2, N. 31”; in a contemporaneus hand, in pencil: “31”. (SN) In nomine Domini. Anno a nativitate Eiusdem millesimo trecentesimo duodecimo, indictione decima die […]odec[imo. Venditio]|nem ad libellum liberam et absolutam ab omni onere, ficto, censu, condicione et servitute alicui prestandis vel faciendis seu […] sustinendis R[icardus] | filius condam domini fratris Aloixii de Lampug(ni)ano civitatis Mediolani, parochie Sancti Maurilii porte Ticin(ensis), Iacobo filio condam domini Lanzarotti de Lampug[niano … pa]|rochie Sancti Georgii in Pallatio. Nominative de infrascriptis petiis terrarum buschorum iacen(tibus) in territorio loci de Tadenate sive de Barate pleb[is …] | quarum est buschus ubi dicitur ad Buschum de Ulmo, cui est a mane heredum condam Guidotti de Lampug(ni)ano, a meridie illorum de Salvano, a sero ill[orum …] | Pizaschi de Pizo, et est pertice undecim vel id circa; § secunda petia est buschus et iacet ubi dicitur ad Brugum, cui est a mane et a sero Red[ulfi …], | a meridie illorum de Pizo, a monte Leonardi de Mod(oeti)a, et est pertice septem vel id circa; § tertia petia est buschus ubi dicitur ad Brugum, cui est a mane […] | nepotum, a meridie predictis buschis illorum de Lampug(ni)ano et in parte

 107

Documents transcripted by Maria Cristina Piva.

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predictorum Redulfi, fratris et nepotum de Pizo, a sero similiter, a monte predic[…], | et est pertice viginti septem vel id circa; § quarta petia est buschus ubi dicitur ad Beolas, cui est a mane illorum de Lampug(ni)ano et fuit Mafei […] | Redulfi et fratris et nepotum de Pizo, a sero lectum Barone, et est pertice quindecim vel id circa seu quod c(ir)cumq(uam)q(ue) sunt hee coherentie; salvo quod si | plus vel minus fuerint infra ipsas coherentias, quod permaneant in presenti venditione, et quod pretium addatur et diminuatur ad conputum librarum | Mediolani nunc cur(entis) pro qualibet pertica. Item de omnibus iuribus et accessiis, ingressibus et regressibus et iuribus omnibus superioribus et in[ferioribus …] | pertinentibus et spectantibus pro predictis petiis buschorum vel earum seu alicuius earum occaxione. Eo tenore quod decetero omni tempore dictus emp[tor …] | et cui dederit habeat, teneat et possideat predictas omnes petias buschorum et omnia suprascripta superius vendita, et de eis omnibus faci[at …] | contradictione. Et cessit, mandavit et dedit dictus venditor suprascripto enptori omnes actiones utiles et directas, reales et personall[es …] | replicationes, retentiones, usus et deffensiones et omnia iura ei conpetentes et conpetentia modis omnibus in illis et super illis petiis buschor[um …]|ditis et contra quascumque personas et res pro predictis vel eorum occaxione. Et volens dictus venditor dominium et possessionem suprascriptarum petiarum buschorum […] | venditorum in ipsum enptorem transfere, dare et relinquere, constituit se tenere et possidere vel quasi ipsas petias buschorum et omnia suprascriptas superi[us …] | illius enptoris et pro eo, volens ministerio suo ipsum enptorem suum constituere et facere possessorem vel quasi, cui possessioni vel quasi dominio confesti[m …] | absentem exinde fecit, et ipsum enptorem suum missum et procuratorem in rem suam fecit et constituit et eum per omnia in suum locum […] | guadiam dedit et se et omnia sua bona pignori obligavit dictus Ricardus suprascripto Iacobo quod deffendet et guarentabit ei et suis […] | petias buschorum et omnia suprascripta superius vendita omni t(en)pore ab omni persona, co(mmun)i, collegio et universitate et hec omnibus suis damnis et […] | suprascripti enptoris. Item quod exonerabit et deliberabit et indemnem conservabit et prestabit suprascriptum enptorem omni t(en)pore a co(mmun)i Mediolani et eius offitialibus […] | cuius fuissent dicte petie buschorum et omnia suprascripta superius vendita fodris omnibus, condemnationibus et mallestimis, mutuis, taleis et impos[itionibus …] | inventariis et facultatibus et extimis seu arbitriis olim factis, omnibus suis damnis et expensis et sine damnis et expensis suprascripti enptoris e[...] | suprascripto enptori omne damnum et interesse et dispendium quod pateretur, faceret vel sustineret seu haberet pro predictis vel eorum seu alicuius eorum occaxione […] | expen(sis) et sine

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damnis et expensis suprascripti enptoris. Pro qua vero venditione seu pro precio suprascriptarum omnium petiarum buschorum et omnium suprascriptorum superius [...] | fuit dictus Ricardus recepisse et habuisse a suprascripto Iacobo enptore libras centum octuaginta tertiollorum bone monete Mediolani nunc cur(entis), renuntiando […] | et non numerate pecunie et pretii non recepti et non facte venditionis, et predictorum et infradictorum omnium non ita actorum, et omni probationi incontrarium […] | Ricardo venditore extitit fideiussor Girardus filius condam domini Arderici de Lampug(ni)ano civitatis Mediolani parochie Sancti Ambr(osi)i in Solaro[llo …] | Ricardo debitorem et observatorem omni t(en)pore cum effectu constituit principallem, ita ut in solidum teneatur et cum effectu conveniri possit de toto et p[…] | novis constitutionibus et auxilio epistule divi Adriani; et pro inde obligavit se et omnia sua bona pignori suprascripto Iacobo enptori. Que omnia facta […] | et dicto per spetialle pactum, quod possit dictus enptor ipsum venditorem et eius fideiussorem et quem maluerit in solidum omni t(en)pore […]|libet iudice convenire, renuntiando omnibus feriis et dillationibus causarum et cuilibet interdicto earum; et quod dare non possint [...] | aliud quam pecuniam numeratam, renuntiando omnibus statutis, consiliis et ordinamentis factis vel faciendis per co(mmun)e Mediolani seu […]|rium, et statuto paraticorum et benefitio eiusdem. Constituendo se tenere et possidere vel quasi omnia eorum bona, res et iura nomi[ne …] | possit dictus enptor sua auctoritate propria et sine servitore et banno et nuntio co(mmun)is Mediolani ubique accipere, robare, saxire, sequestrare et occ[...] | et in possessionem intrare et in solutum retinere de bonis et rebus et iuribus suprascriptorum venditoris et fideiussoris et cuiuslibet eorum in solidum usque ad […]|tionem et satisfactionem suprascripti pretii et expensarum, damnorum et interesse; et ob hoc non intelligatur quod eis vel alicui eorum vim vel violentiam fatiat […] | accusationi et deffensioni quam proinde facere possent, et capitulo pacis sancti Ambr(osi)i quod loquitur super violentiis. Actum in brolieto novo c[…] Ruzaleonus de Merate porte Nove et Francinus Pag(ni)anus porte Romane notarii. Interfuerunt ibi testes dominus Fatius filius condam domini Beni de Lamp[…] | Arderici Cagalanzie et Paganus filius condam domini Florerii Plati, omnes civitatis Mediolani porte Ticin(ensis), noti omnium contrahentium, et Giroldus filius condam domini G[…] | Sancti Bartolomei porte Nove. (SN) Ego Iacobinus de Merate predictus notarius pro notario interfui ut supra et subscripsi.

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(SN) Ego Raimondus filius condam domini Guillielmi Gallatii c(ivitatis) M(ediolani) porte Romane parochie Sancti Iohannis ad Concham notarius tradidi et scripsi. 2 1312, Milan (In brolieto novo communis Mediolani) Obizo son of the late Gasparrus de Bernadigio gives four plots of wooded land in the district of Taenate to Astolfus de Lampugniano, abbot of the monastery of S. Ambrogio and represented by his attorney Raimondus Gallatius, in exchange for lands in the curia of Capiate given to him by the abbot. [A] Original, AsMi, Pergamene per fondi, cart. 328, No. 32. The parchment (mm. 375/364 x708/5087; with restoration 410/430×708/605) is seriously damaged along the edges; presence of numerous stitchings along the text; scattered moisture stains. Writing material restored in modern age by the bonding of four sheets of paper. Inscribed verso, in an old hand: “1312 14 maii”; archive record reference code in another old hand: “T 17, C 2, N 32”; in a contemporaneaus hand, in pencil: “32”. (SN) In nomine Domini. Anno a nativitate Eiusdem millesimo trecentesimo duodecimo, indictione […] | Obizo filius condam domini Gasparri de B(er)nadigio civitatis Mediolani porte Hor(ientallis) dedit et dat im.permutation[em …] | conditione et servitute alicui prestandis vel fatiendis(a) seu etiam sustinendis michi Ra[imondo … re]|cipienti nomine et ad partem et utilitatem domini doni Astulfi de Lampug(ni)ano, Dei gratia abb[atis …] | infrascriptas petias quatuor terrarum buscharum iacen(tes) in territorio loci de Taenate sive de […] | de Ulmo, cui coheret a mane heredum condam Guidotti de Lampug(ni)ano, a meridie illorum de Sal[…] | undecim vel idcirca; § secunda iacet ubi dicitur ad Brugum, cui est a mane et a sero Redulfi et fratris […] | Mod(oeti)a, et est pertice septem vel idcirca; § tertia iacet ubi dicitur ad Brugum, cui est a mane predicto[rum … ] | illorum de Lampug(ni)ano et in parte predictorum Redulfi et fratris et nepotum, a sero similiter, a monte predictorum Redulfi […]; | § quarta est buschus ubi dicitur ad Beolas, cui est a mane illorum de Lampug(ni)ano et fuit Mafei de P[…], | a sero lectum Barone, et est pertice quindecim; cum omnibus iuribus et accessiis, ingressibus et

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regressibus et […] | spectantibus pro predictis petiis buschorum vel earum seu alicuius earum occaxione. Eo tenore quo decetero dict[us dominu]s abbas et capitulum […] | successoribus et cui dederit habeant, teneant et possideant suprascriptas omnes terras cum omnibus suis iuribus et accessiis, et de eis omnibus […] | sine alicuius contradictione. Et cessit, mandavit et dedit dictus dominus Obizo michi notario suprascripto modo et nomine recipienti omnes a […]|tas reales et personalles et ypotecharias, exceptiones, replicationes, retentiones, usus et deffensiones et omnia iura ei[…]|dis omnibus in illis et super illis terris et omnibus suprascriptis superius im.permutat(ione) datis et contra quascumque personas et res pro pred[…] | occaxione. Et volens dictus dominus Obizo dominium et possesionem suprascriptarum omnium terrarum et omnium suprascriptorum su[…] | et nomine recipientem transfere, dare et relinquere, constituit se tenere et possidere vel quasi [… im.per]|mutat(ionem) data nomine suprascriptorum domini abbatis, monachorum et capituli suprascripti monasterii et pro eis, volens […] | suprascripti monasterii suos constituere et facere possessores vel quasi, cui possessioni vel quasi dominio conf[estim …] | dominum abbatem, monachos et capitulum suprascripti monasterii suos missos et procuratores in rem suam […] | locum posuit. Et promisit et guadiam dedit et se et omnia sua bona […] | et nomine recipienti quod deffendet et guarentabit suprascripto domino abbati, monacis et capitulo suprascript[…] | terras et iura et omnia suprascripta superius im.permutat(ionem) data omni tempore ab omni persona, colleg[io …] | et sine damnis et expensis suprascriptorum dominorum abbatis, monachorum et capituli suprascripti monasterii. E[…] | dominus Obizo alii non vendidit vel alienavit seu obligavit suprascriptas terras et iura vel ali[…] | aliquo nec ad damnum vel interesse vel ad pretii restitutionem vel ad aliquod aliud. Que […] | emptis per ipsum dominum Obizonem pro dandis im.permutacionem dicto domino abbati et capitulo suprascripti monasterii occaxione terrarum et poss[esionum …] | villa Capiate et de Gregantino et de Melianiga que date fuer(unt) im.permutationem ipsi domino Obizoni et domino Febo de la T(ur)re per predic[…] | et capitulum dicti monasterii. Cuius occaxione, ad complendam ipsam permutationem, ipsi domini Obizo et Febus deposuerunt et dederunt libras millecent[um …]|do possesiones dandas im.permutationem ipsi monasterio pro predictis terris de Capiate et eius curie. Et quas terras ipse dominus ab[bas …] | a domino Iacobo de Lampug(ni)ano filio condam domini Lanzarotti pro pretio librarum centum octuaginta tertiollorum de predicto deposito […] | librarum millecentum(b) tertiollorum; et quas terras dictus dominus Iacobus emit a Ricardo filio condam domini Aloixii de [… con]|fessus fuit ipse dominus Obizo omni

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occaxione remota et exceptione renuntiata. Et si […] | dominus Obizo ad premissa omni tempore et ubique et sub quolibet iudice conveniri non ob[…] | et cuilibet interdicto earum, et quod dare non possit in solutum pro predictis aliud quam […] | consiliis et ordinamentis factis vel fatiendis per co(mmun)e Mediolani seu per aliam personam in[… Ac]|tum in brolieto novo co(mmun)is Mediolani. Pro notariis Uginus Gallatius porte Romane et R[…]|. Interfuerunt ibi testes dominus Robinus de Lampug(ni)ano iurisperitus filius condam domini Lantelm[i … porte ]|Ticin(ensis) et Stefaninus filius Paxii de Novate porte Horientallis, omnes noti. (SN) Ego predictus Uginus Gallatius notarius c(ivitatis) M(ediolani) porte Romane pro notario interfui ut supra et subscripsi. (SN) Ego Raimondus filius condam domini Guillielmi Gallatii c(ivitatis) M(ediolani) porte Romane parochie Sancti Ioh(ann)is ad Concham preditis omnibus interf[ui], | tradidi et scripsi. (a)

A v(e)l fatien(dis) repeated. (b) Second -e- corrected on other letter.

3 14 May, 1312, Milan (Super lobia claustri monasterii Sancti Ambrosii Mediolani) Obizo son of the late Gasparrus de Bernadigio, represented by his attorney Iacobus son of the late Lanzarottus de Lampugniano, gives two plots of wooded land in the district of Tadenate to Astolfus de Lampugniano, abbot of the monastery of S. Ambrogio in exchange for lands in the curia of Capiate given to him by the abbot. [A] Original, AsMi, Pergamene per fondi, cart. 328, No. 30. The parchment (mm. 370/390 x 590/569, with restoration 430/487×590/575) is seriously damaged along the entire right edge; presence of two horizontal folds; scattered moisture stains; small hole in lower right corner. Writing material restored in modern age by the bonding of a sheet of paper along the missing edge. Inscribed verso, in a coeval hand and partially covered by the sheet used for the restoration: “[…] facte inter dominum abbatem | […] et dominum Iacobum de | […] Obizonis de Bernadigio”; archive record reference code

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in an old hand: “T. 17, C. 2, N. 30”, in another old hand: “1312 14 maii”; in a contemporaneus hand, in pencil: “30”. (SN) In nomine Domini. Anno a nativitate Eiusdem millesimo trecentesimo duodecimo, indictione decima, die dominico quartodecimo madii. Dominus(a) Iacobus de Lamp[ugniano …] | parochia Sancti Georgii in Pallatio Porte Ticin(ensis), nuntius et procurator domini Obizonis filii condam domini Gasparri de Bernadigio, civitatis Mediolani Porte Hor(ientallis), ad hoc fatiend[um …] | iovis decimo februarii per Rugerium de Subporticu notarium, procuratorio nomine ipsius domini Obizonis dedit et dat in permutationem ad libellum liberum et absolutum […] | seu fatiendis seu etiam sustinendis reverendo viro domino dompno Astulfo de Lampug(ni)ano, Dei gratia abbati monasterii Sancti Ambrosii(b) Mediolani, recipienti [… infra]|scriptas petias terrarum buschorum iacentium in territorio loci de Tadenate. § Prima quarum iacet ubi dicitur ad Carpaneum, et est medietas pro indiviso per[…] | sive dicti monasterii, a meridie Balzarri et Franzolli de Pizo et in parte dominorum Girardi et Iacobini qui dicuntur de Lampug(ni)ano, a sero predictorum Balzarri et F[ranzolli …] | similiter buschus iacent(is) in eodem territorio ubi dicitur in ***(c), et est per[…], | ingressibus et regressibus et iuribus dicto domino Obizoni pertinentibus et spectantibus pro predictis petiis buschorum vel eorum seu alicuius eorum occaxione. Eo ten[ore … con]|ventus dicti monasterii cum suis sucessoribus et cui dederint habeant et teneant et possideant suprascriptas omnes terras cum omnibus suis iuribus […] | quicquid voluerit sine alicuius contradictione. Et cessit, mandavit et dedit dictus Iacobus procurator et procuratorio nomine predicto suprascripto domino abbati suprascripto modo et […] | actiones utiles et directas, realles et personalles et ypotecharias, e(..)sticas, exceptiones et replicationes, retentiones, usus et deffensiones et omnia alia quecu[…] | modis omnibus in illis et super illis terris et omnibus suprascriptis superius in permutationem datis et contra quascumque personas et res et contra datores ipsius […]|tores rerum suarum que sunt vel fuerunt aut erunt pro predictis terris vel eorum seu alicuius eorum occaxione. Et vollens dictus procurator dicto modo et nomi[ne …] | terrarum superius in permutationem datarum suprascripto prefato domino abbati suprascripto modo et nomine recipienti transfere, dare et relinquere, constitu[it …] | et iura et omnia suprascripta superius in permutationem data nomine suprascripti domini abbatis et capituli et conventus dicti monasterii et pro eis, vollen[s …] | et capitulum et conventus ipsius monasterii suos constituere et facere possessores vel quasi, cui possessioni vel quasi dominio con[festim…] | dicto modo et nomine, et inde fecit et predictum dominum abbatem et capitulum et conventus ipsius monasterii dicto modo

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et nomine […] | et per omnia in suum locum posuit. Et promisit et guadiam dedit et omnia bona dicti Obizonis dictus procurator ex facultate […] | datum pignori obligavit prefato domino abbati recipienti suo et suprascripto nomine quod deffendet et guarentabit ei suprascripto nomine et […] | et omnia suprascripta in permutationem data omni tempore ab omni persona, collegio et universitate, et hec omnibus suis dampnis et expensis dicto mo[do…] | et monasterii, et hoc tantum pro suo sive dicti domini Obizonis dato et facto determinato quod si dictus dominus Obizo nec ipse procurator alii non vendidit vel alienavit […] | earum in toto vel in parte, et alias non teneatur in aliquo nec ad dampnum nec interesse nec pretii restitutionem nec ad aliquid aliud. Que quidem permutatio fac[…] | dominum Obizonem sive per predictum procuratorem nomine predicto pro dando in permutationem dicto domino abbati et capitulo dicti monasterii occaxione […] | villa Capiate et de Grugantino et de Mellianigo que date fuerunt in permutationem ipsi domino Obizoni et domino Febo de la T(ur)re(d) per(d) predictum dominum abbatem […] | ad complendam ipsam permutationem ipsi dominus Obizo et Febus deposuerunt et dederunt libras millecentum tertiolorum pro acquirendo possessiones(d) dandas in […] | predictis terris predictorum locorum et possessionum curie de Capiate. Quas quidem terras ipse Obizo sive dictus procurator nomine ipsius emit a I[acobo] | de Lampug(ni)ano pro pretio librarum centum nonagintaduarum tertiolorum quas habuerunt de predicto deposito librarum millecentum tertiolorum, ut per omnia(d) ipsi dominus abb[as …] | et exceptione renuntiata. Que omnia facta sunt eo acto et dicto per pactum, quod si de predictis vel aliquo predictorum ullo tempore agi contingerit [… ] | omni tempore et ubique et sub quolibet iudice conveniri, renuntiando omnibus feriis et dillationibus causarum et cuilibet interdicto earum […] | debiti co(mmun)is Mediolani nec aliquid aliud quam peccuniam numeratam, renuntiando omnibus statutis, consciliis, ordinamentis factis vel fac[ …] | statutorum paraticorum et benefitio eiusdem. Et constituit dicto modo et nomine se tenere et possidere vel quasi omnia sua bona(d), res et […] | quod possit dictus dominus abbas suo et dicto modo et nomine, sua auctoritate propria et sine auctoritate iudicis et sine servitore et banno et nuntio co(mmun)is(d) Medio[lani …] | capere et detinere, in possessionem intrare et in solutum retinere de bonis et rebus dicti procuratoris dicto nomine sive dicti domini Obizonis usque ad plenam […] | omnium premissorum; et ob hoc non intelligatur quod ei dicto nomine vim vel violentiam faciat vel inferat, renuntiando omni acusationi et deffensioni quam pro inde facere [...] | quod loquitur super violenciis et beneficio eiusdem. Actum in dicto monasterio super lobia claustri dicti monasterii; presente Astulfo Cotta pro secundo notario.

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Intefuerunt ibi testes [… Lam]|pug(ni)ano iurisperitus filius condam domini ********** et Guillielmus Cagalancia filius condam ser Arderici et Beltramus Platus filius condam Florerii, omnes civitatis Mediolani porte Ticin(ensis), ad hoc [….] | noti. (SN) Ego Beltraminus Mazallis filius condam domini Leonardi c(ivitatis) M(ediolani) porte Hor(ientallis) notarius tradidi et subscripsi. (SN) Ego Uginus filius condam domini Guidoti Gallacii civitatis Mediol(ani) porte Romane notarius iussu suprascripti notarii scripsi. (a) (d)

A struck out l. (b) Underlined with red pencil. (c) White space of mm. 210. Faded text, as if it were erased.

THE LANDSCAPE OF SARDINIA’S MEDIEVAL SETTLEMENTS: THE CASE STUDIES OF MEILOGU AND ANGLONA MARCO MILANESE AND MARIA CHERCHI UNIVERSITÀ DEGLI STUDI DI SASSARI

GIANLUIGI MARRAS SOPRINTENDENZA ARCHEOLOGIA, BELLE ARTI E PAESAGGIO PER LE PROVINCE DI SASSARI E NUORO

Introduction This paper intends to propose a reflection on the settlement structures of medieval Sardinia, with particular reference to the various forms of rural settlement, but also to the process of incastellamento and the prospects suggested by recent archaeological and historiographical research, which have gradually changed interpretations of the Sardinian settlement phenomena, rooted in history for about four centuries. The period analyzed by the current paper is between the 6th and 15th centuries, with deeper insights into the 14th century. The territory chosen coincides with the Diocese of Sorres and curatoria of Anglona, in northwest Sardinia, corresponding to the Judgedom of Torres until the third quarter of the thirteenth century, when it was the subject of a hard-fought partition between the Ligurian and Tuscan noble families of Doria and Malaspina, the cities of Sassari and Pisa, and the neighboring Kingdom of Arborea. Since 2001, the Department of History, Human Sciences and Education at the University of Sassari, under the scientific direction of Professor Marco Milanese, has carried out many topographical, geophysical and stratigraphic research activities in these territories. Since

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1995, archaeological research has been aimed at the construction of a settlement model, that could shape the terms of the settlement forms of the written sources and get a broader picture of information on the basis of the material sources, capable of widening the prospects of historiographical and anthropological interpretation. In the Anglona and Meilogu territories, archaeological surveys have found the sites of about thirty deserted medieval villages (curtes, villages, castles, monasteries).1 The geophysical prospecting and other stratigraphic excavations allow a depth of information to be obtained, thus building the models to be checked against by future investigations.2

1. The Meilogu Area The historical region of Meilogu (north-western Sardinia) is now a marginal area, subject to severe demographic, economic and social crises. In the Middle Ages, however, Meilogu was the center of various historical, economical and settlement dynamics and represents a paradigm of historical, settlement and political processes that affected rural and internal Sardinia from the 6th to the 15th centuries. Written and archaeological sources allow us to describe the evolution of the historic landscapes of the Middle Ages; we only have minor and inhomogeneous sources about the Dark Ages, but we can assume the development of certain processes.

 1

Maria Cherchi, Gianluigi Marras and Giuseppe Padua, “La topografia di Orria Pithinna”, Orria Pithinna. La chiesa, il monastero, il villaggio. 800 anni di storia, ed. by Marco Milanese (Florence: All’Insegna del Giglio, 2012), pp. 25-55. 2 On these topics see: Marco Milanese, “Contribution of Archaeology to Medieval and Modern Sardinia”, A Companion to Sardinian History, 500-1500, ed. by Michelle Hobart (Leiden-Boston: Brill, 2017), pp. 271-313, especially pp. 275- 292; Marco Milanese, Vita e morte dei villaggi rurali tra medioevo ed età moderna. Dallo scavo della villa de Geriti ad una pianificazione della tutela e della conoscenza dei villaggi abbandonati della Sardegna (Florence: All’Insegna del Giglio, 2006); Marco Milanese, Maria Cherchi and Gianluigi Marras, “Villaggi medievali abbandonati nel territorio di Martis (Anglona, SS): prime indagini archeologiche di superficie”, Martis, Storia, Archeologia, Territorio, ed. by Simonetta Castia (Sassari: without publisher, 2008), pp. 83-113, especially p. 185; Marco Milanese, Studi e ricerche sul villaggio medievale di Geridu (Miscellanea 1995-2000) (Florence: All’Insegna del Giglio, 2004); Marco Milanese, “Archeologia del potere nella Sardegna Medievale: la signoria dei Doria”, Atti IV Congresso Nazionale di Archeologia Medievale. San Galgano, (Florence: All’Insegna del Giglio, 2006), pp. 287-293; Marco Milanese, “Paesaggi rurali e luoghi del potere nella Sardegna Medievale”, Archeologia Medievale, 37 (2010), pp. 247-258.

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The Landscape of Sardinia’s Medieval Settlements

Map 1. Geographical location of the case studies (by Maria Cherchi and Gianluigi Marras)

Meilogu’s name derives from the name of a Curatoria in the Judgedom of Torres, seamlessly attested in the 12th century, which was one of several ‘regional districts’ into which the kingdom was divided, and

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which was administered by a royal official, the curatore. 3 Defining the context of study is difficult due to the evolution of the name’s geographical extent over time.4 According to historians and perceptual processes involving birth and death records, enlargements or restrictions, misunderstandings and neglect of medieval curatorias, the term Meilogu defined very different territories at different points. The definition and geographical extent of Meilogu also changed between medieval times and the present day: until the fall of Torres (12581272) Meilogu was a curatoria, an administrative district ruled by a royal official (curatore), often belonging to the same family of the judiciary; during the period of the Lordship and Arborea (1272-1420), it belonged to the Doria family and included the ancient curatorias of Ardar and Oppia. During the post-medieval period the term Meilogu had different meanings, and today gives its name to a very wide union of municipalities. It was therefore necessary to perform a multiscalar analysis,5 within a diachronic-thematic context:6 -

Macro scale, in which we analyzed the written sources related to the Diocese of Sorres (attested from 1112 to 1505).7

 3

Arrigo Solmi, Studi storici sulle istituzioni della Sardegna nel Medioevo (Nuoro: Illisso, 2001), p. 113 (1st edition 1917). Regarding the origin and function of these districts, and their officials, see: Gian Giacomo Ortu, La Sardegna dei Giudici (Nuoro: Regione Autonoma della Sardegna, 2005), pp. 80-82. 4 Giovanni Deriu and Salvatore Chessa, Meilogu. Tomo I (Cargeghe: Documenta, 2011). 5 Marco Valenti, “Macro-Semi Micro-Micro: L’approccio e le attività del LIAAM nella catastazione digitale della risorsa archeologica”, APSAT 1.Teoria e metodi della ricerca sui paesaggi d’altura, ed. by Gian Pietro Brogiolo, Diego Ercole Angelucci, Annalisa Colecchia and Fabio Remondino (Mantova: Società Archeologica Padovana, 2010), pp. 165-201. 6 Franco Cambi and Nicola Terrenato, Introduzione all’archeologia del paesaggio (Florence: Nuova Italia editrice, 1994), pp. 99-101. 7 Ginevra Zanetti, I camaldolesi in Sardegna (Cagliari: Fossataro, 1974), pp. 8-11; Raimondo Turtas, “Un tentativo di riordino cronologico delle schede del Condaghe di S. Pietro di Silki dagli inizi del giudicato di Torres fino all'abdicazione del Giudice Gunnari I (1154)”, La Civiltà Giudicale in Sardegna nei secoli XI-XIII. Fonti e Documenti scritti. Atti del Convegno Nazionale (Sassari-Usini, 16-18 marzo 2001) (Muros: Associazione “Condaghe S. Pietro di Silki”, 2002), p. 30; Corrado Zedda and Raimondo Pinna, “La nascita dei Giudicati. Proposta per lo scioglimento di un enigma storiografico”, Archivio storico giuridico sardo di

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-

Semi-macro scale, from the point of view of the landscape’s archaeology, in which we carried out archaeological surveys within the territory defined in the contrada of Ardara and Meilogu (curatorias of Meilogu, Oppia, Ardar; and current municipalities of Ardara, Siligo, Banari, Bonnyrigg, Borutta, Torralba, Mores, Ittireddu), in the period, central to this research, when the villages were abandoned (second half of the 14th century-first half of the 15th century).

Using this approach, the archaeological discoveries cited by the literature and archival data have been analyzed, and recorded on the cartography, on the macro scale, while the data obtained from archaeological surveys have been studied and mapped on the semi-macro scale.8 From a geographical point of view Meilogu is a diverse territory, which combines plains, hillsides and plateaus; this variety has always permitted an integrated economic exploitation, with areas exploited both for agriculture and for grazing. Geologically, Meilogu is a limestone area, but in the Pliocene-Quaternary period, massive volcanic activity produced the basaltic plateaux (Monte Santo, Monte Pelao) that shape this characteristic landscape. The main rivers of northern Sardinia (Coghinas, Rio Mannu, Temo) originate from the springs of this region.

1.2 The Early Middle Ages We know twenty sites datable to the Early Middle Ages, whose typologies (stratigraphic contexts, monuments, finds), analysis and documentation are very heterogeneous. However we can draw some brief conclusions on the locations and types of sites identified and on the history of Meilogu in this period. Most of the sites are located on the plain between Mount Pelao and Monte Santo and/or near to Roman roads, especially the A Karalibus Turrem (Nuraghe Santu Antine, San Pietro di

 Sassari, 12 (2007), pp. 87-99; Franco G.R., Campus, “Popolamento, incastellamento, poteri signorili in Sardegna nel Medioevo: il caso dell’Anglona”, Castelsardo, 900 anni di storia, Antonello Peppino, ed. by Antonello Mattone and Alessandro Soddu (Rome: Carocci, 2007), p. 50, n. 60; Sara Silvia Piras and Gisa Dessì, Il Registro di San Pietro di Sorres (Cagliari: Cuec Editrice, 2003), pp. 7-8, with earlier literature. 8 For a similar approach, see: Marco Valenti, “Una via archeologica all’informatica (non una via informatica all’archeologia)”, Informatica e Archeologia Medievale. L’esperienza senese, ed. by MarcoValenti, Alessandra Nardini and Vittorio Fronza (Florence: All’Insegna del Giglio, 2009), p. 24.

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Nurighe, Santa Andrea, Sas Muras, Santa Maria di Mesumundu).9 We have only indirect clues of settlements, perhaps as a result of insufficient knowledge of material culture, and while we know churches, rural churches and cemeteries, we can only provide partial information about the types, framework and perimeter of the settlement areas. The sites can be classified as follows: -

Necropolis related to privileged groups of soldiers. These people were buried with funerary kits that indicated their status, including weapons, objects of military clothing and remains of their horses. Even their families were buried with particular kits; females were often buried with jewellery (gold, silver, bronze). Sites in this category include San Pietro di Nurighe and San Pietro di Sorres but, as these sites haven’t been excavated stratigraphically, it is impossible to know the typological and anthropological data, as well as the neighboring presence of religious, and military structures and settlements.

-

Generic necropolis: Santa Maria di Mesumundu, where there were twenty burials, San Lussorio di Romana (whose date is as yet uncertain), San Eliseo (lower level) and Santa Andrea Priu, where individual tombs were carved into the rock, may fall into this category.

Places of worship, including: -

Churches with baptismal function: Santa Maria di Scalas and Santa Maria di Mesumundu were baptismal churches, and these probably had a central function to the settlement.

 9

Attilio Mastino, Storia della Sardegna Antica (Nuoro: Il Maestrale, 2005), pp. 360-366; Attilio Mastino and Paola Ruggeri, “La Viabilità della Sardegna romana: un nuovo praetorium a Sas Presones a Rebeccu”, Almanacco gallurese (20092010), pp. 314-320; Marilena Sechi, “La Viabilità romana nel Marghine e Meilogu della Sardegna tra le stationes di Hafa e Molaria” (Sassari: Università degli Studi di Sassari, PhD Dissertation, 2012). Available at ; Nadia Canu, “La strada a Turre fino a Bonorva”, Studi sul paesaggio della Sardegna Romana, ed. by Nadia Canu and Giampiero Pianu (Muros: Nuova Stampa Color, 2011), pp. 61-82.

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Map 2. Meilogu: the early medieval sites (by Gianluigi Marras)

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-

Generic places of worship: these are fairly numerous structures and monuments, which have carried out the function of a religious center or parish in rural villages (like Santa Croce, Santa Elena, Santa Andrea, Santa Giulia).

-

Monastic settlements: groups of rock-hewn churches at Santa Andrea Priu, Monte Santo, and Mount Lachesos could be interpreted as laure, whose monks lived in different caves.10

This classification allows us to capture a landscape whose management was divided between different institutional entities, as we can see in the written sources of the second half of the 11th century. Other considerations can be drawn from the analysis of existing and later sites. We can see that some of the sites had already played a central role in a previous era (i.e., the Roman imperial period), such as the Nuraghe San Antine, San Pietro near Ardara (the location of an important castrum) and Santa Maria di Mesumundu. Analyzing the Judgedoms’ period, immediately following, we find that Santa Maria di Mesumundu, along with San Elias Montesanto, is the subject of the first donation to the Abbey of Monte Cassino (1065).11 San Pietro di Sorres is the seat of the diocese and Nostra Signora del Regno becomes the palatine chapel of the Judgedom of Torres. The area of Monte Santo, perhaps already involved in a laura, continued to be the center of monasticism through donations to the Abbey of Monte Cassino.12 It is obvious that Santa Maria di Mesumundu represents a central place over a long period of time, probably in relation to its geographical location and to its proximity to the road network. In the Byzantine era, the presence of privileged burials could be related to the persistence, or emergence, of privileged families, probably in relation to land ownership and the rural world. The site has been the subject of numerous and poorly documented excavations between 1930 and recent years; since 2013 a project carried

 10

Pier Giorgio Spanu, La Sardegna bizantina tra 6° e 8° secolo (Oristano: Editrice s'Alvure, 1998), pp. 204-208, especially p. 202, figure 191. 11 Pasquale Tola, Codex Diplomaticus Sardiniae (Sassari: 1985), doc. No. 6 (11th century). 12 Pasquale Tola, Codex Diplomaticus Sardiniae, doc. No. 36 and doc. No. 46 (12th century); doc. No. 23 (13th century).

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out by the University of Sassari (site director Marco Milanese) has investigated the thermal baths and the surrounding area, which had not previously been investigated. Excavations have revealed the presence of a necropolis set on the ruins of the Roman structures; the baths underwent many renovations and the church was built on their ruins (5th century A.D.). In the Early Middle Ages, San Pietro di Sorres started to play a central function. The site was placed in a commanding position and was easily defensible from the roads; in the Byzantine period (7th-8th A.D.?) it hosted a military allocation, though its material articulation remains unknown. The chronological sequence of Roman settlement to Byzantine fortification to 11th century diocesan seat is definitely an important fact. Other dioceses, probably formed in the 11th century, were also placed in positions to control the main road (the road to Olbia): Nostra Signora di Castro (Oschiri) was located at the Roman and Byzantine headquarters in Castrum and San Antioco Bisarcio (Ozieri) in an area with many artifacts from the Byzantine period and Early Middle Ages, unfortunately decontextualized.

1.3 The Judgedoms’ Period In the Judgedoms’ period (11th-13th centuries AD), Meilogu was a curatoria of the Kingdom of Torres, but this study extends also to the whole Diocese of Sorres (curatorias of Caputabbas, Oppia, Valles). When the written sources begin to highlight the history of Sardinia after some centuries of silence, the Meilogu area already appears to be fully in the center of the main historical dynamics. The Palatium of Ardara, the palace of the kings of Torres and, dating back to at least 1065, was situated at the region’s north-western limits. The archaeological investigations (2012-2014, site director Marco Milanese) are highlighting the extent of the planimetric and decorative richness of the Palatium, the result of careful design, as shown by the water system, with its well, tank and canalizations. The first donation to the Benedictine monks, a precursor to the broader phenomenon of the 12th century, also interested the area of Meilogu: in 1065, the Judge Barisone gave the churches of Santa Maria di Bubalis (identified with Santa Maria di Mesumundu) and Santa Elia di Montesanto, cum integro monte, to the Abbey of Monte Cassino.13 The object of the donation is especially

 13

Pasquale Tola, Codex Diplomaticus Sardiniae, doc. No. 6 (11th century).

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important for the purposes of our research as the probable center of a sacred landscape even by the Early Middle Ages; in 1122 San Eliseo, a hypogean Neolithic tomb reused as a church, also became the property of Monte Cassino.14

Map 3. Meilogu: the medieval settlements (by Gianluigi Marras)

This area witnessed other donations to monastic institutions; however, unlike other curatorias (e.g. Anglona), they were mostly churches and property, with a few monasteries. The region is characterized by the preponderance of villages in the public system (villas) over private settlements (domos, curtes), and a few mentioned only in the 12th century. The working hypothesis is a strong control of the central area, while lordships of land (such as the De Athen family in the curatoria of Valles)

 14

Roberto Caprara, “L'età altomedievale nel territorio del Logudoro- Meilogu”, Il Nuraghe S. Antine nel Logudoro-Meilogu, ed. by Alberto Moravetti (Sassari: Carlo Delfino editore, 1988), p. 404; Paola Basoli, “Monte Acuto: testimonianze della presenza bizantina”, Ai confini dell'impero. Storia, arte e archeologia della Sardegna Bizantina, ed. by Paola Corrias and Salvatore Cosentino (Cagliari: M&T Sardegna, 2002), p. 197; Pier Giorgio Spanu, La Sardegna bizantina, p. 204; Pasquale Tola, Codex Diplomaticus Sardiniae, doc. No. 36 and doc. No. 65 (12th century); doc. No. 33 (13th century); Mauro G. Sanna, Innocenzo III e la Sardegna (Cagliari: Cuec Editrice, 2003), doc. No. 121.

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were only visible in the periphery, under the physical and symbolic control of the palace of Ardara and the Cathedral of San Pietro di Sorres. The analysis of the written sources shows that, in this period, the settlement pattern included 55 settlements of different categories: the villages in the public system (villas) constitute 48% of the total, while the monastic churches make up 27% and belong to different Benedictine communities (Cassinesi, Camaldolesi, Vallombrosani, Vittorini). Only 15% of the total are private manorial settlements (domos), in contrast to the ‘domus system’ theorized by many historians with regard to this historical period of Sardinia.

1.4 The Lordships’ and Arborea’s Period After the collapse of the Kingdom of Torres (1259-1272), Meilogu passed under the control of the Doria family, except the curatoria of Valles, which belonged to the Malaspina. The lordship of Doria was expressed materially by the construction of a new landscape of power that here, as elsewhere, is marked by the installation of castles.15 These not only have a military function but also reflect the status of the owners and to administer the territory. For this purpose, the Doria built a castle on the ruins of the Palatium of Ardara, and so, through a building of considerable architectural commitment, they symbolically appropriated from previous royalty. Meanwhile, the territories were governed by newly founded castles (Monteleone Roccadoria, La Capula), built over a long period of time, to which we can ascribe the ‘classic’ process of incastellamento.16 The only other type of settlement present is the village (villa), as the monastic centers have already been abandoned. The beginning of the Catalan conquest marked the beginning of a long period of crisis, in which war, famine and epidemics contributed to a phase of demographic collapse, marked by the abandonment of many villages.17 During the first half of the 14th century Meilogu was the scene of

 15

Marco Milanese, “Archeologia del potere”, pp. 287-293; Marco Milanese, “Paesaggi rurali”, pp. 247-258. 16 Franco G.R. Campus, “Castelli e dinamiche dell’insediamento urbano nella Sardegna bassomedievale (XII-XIV secolo)”, Identità cittadine ed élites politiche ed economiche in Sardegna tra XIII e XV secolo, ed. by Giuseppe Meloni, Pinuccia F. Simbula and Soddu Alessandro (Sassari: Editrice Democratica Sarda, 2010), pp. 29-62. 17 Marco Milanese, Vita e morte dei villaggi.

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numerous acts of war (the siege and capture of Ardara, the battle of Aidu de Turdu) and in this period the Doria, and even the Catalans, tried to build new fortresses, both in places of power (San Elias Montesanto, Sorres) and in new sites (Roccaforte), but these foundations were not successful. The only exception is the aforementioned castle of La Capula (SiligoSS), founded between 1348 and 1350 on the northern headland of Monte Pelao.18 The fort, which became the capital of Meilogu, exploits its natural position: archaeological surveys reveal that there are no defensive elements present, but there are instead 12 houses, a church and a cistern, covered with vegetation but in good condition. Mariano IV, Judge of Arborea, acquired the castles of Ardara and La Capula and their appurtenances from Damian Doria in 1353.19 However the crisis was irrevocable: in the second half of the 14th century, 17 villages out of 37 (46%) were abandoned, and another 5 villages would be depopulated in later centuries. If we extend the chronological spectrum and consider all kinds of settlement, we can see that, despite all the limitations imposed by the gaps in the written documentation, there is a long-term movement that leads to a strong centralization and scarcity of settlements. After this process briefly settled in the 12th century, it reached its peak between the 14th and 15th centuries, when 39 villages were deserted, and continued in the following centuries. The archaeological surveys identified traces of 18 medieval sites, classified as villages, domos/ small settlements, isolated churches, monasteries, and privileged settlements. A better evidenced chronological phase is the 14th-15th century, which is partly due to the lack of index fossils for the previous centuries. The medieval sites include a church (integrates, in ruins, place name) around which is an area of morphological anomalies in association with the dispersion and concentration of lithic elements, bricks and pottery (especially Pisan archaic Maiolica, Ligurian graffita arcaica, Hispano-Moresque pottery, etc.), the extent of which is variable. In most cases the sites are multilayered with numerous chronological phases; of course, the methods of landscape archaeology have trouble identifying continuity and ruptures. After 1420, when the

 18

Alessandro Soddu, Banari. Storia e identita di un paese della Sardegna (Sassari: Edes, 2013). 19 Luisa D’Arienzo, Carte reali diplomatiche di Pietro IV il Cerimonioso, re d’Aragona, riguardanti l’Italia (Padua: Cedam, 1970), doc. No. 441.

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whole island is under the control of the Crown of Aragon, Meilogu was divided into different estates and became a rural district; the last seat of power, the Diocese of Sorres, was suppressed and merged with the Diocese of Torres in 1505 by Pope Giulio II.20

2. Magnetometric Prospection on the Deserted Medieval Villages of Anglona A geomagnetic analysis can detect buried archaeological structures by measuring the contrast between the value of the earth’s magnetic field and anomalies (objects, structures, etc.) in the subsurface, recognizable by their induced magnetism (fires, pottery, etc.). The geophysical surveys, carried out in the territory of Anglona, aim to study the sites of deserted medieval villages, both those previously investigated by surveys and others not yet analysed from an archaeological perspective. The study aims to cross-reference the new information with readings of buried archaeological remains, in order to define the internal planimetry. The two cases presented show the different levels of magnetometric potential at sites with different geomorphological features. Each geomagnetic survey needs a preliminary study of geographical and geo-pedological contexts and of the archaeological processes of formation, as well as the analysis of written sources. Reading data and survey procedures, designed and led by an archaeologist, needs the development of documentation models, with the compilation of numerous forms, which are inserted, along with maps of identified magnetic anomalies and their interpretation, into a queryable GIS platform. The complexity of the forms of settlement in the Sardinian Middle Ages has guided the choice of sites to be investigated: among these are villages (villas) and a ‘secondary’ manorial center (domos). To obtain the highest degree of potential information with the use of the magnetometer, a homogeneous historical region was studied, the curatoria of Anglona. This approach allows the possibility to give uniformity to the data and further clarify aspects of settlement in areas that are already subject to historical and archaeological investigations.



20 Sara Silvia Piras and Gisa Dessì, Il Registro di San Pietro di Sorres (Cagliari: Cuec Editrice, 2003).

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2.1 The curatoria of Anglona In the Middle Ages Anglona was a curatoria of the Judgedom of Torres, bordering the Judgedom of Gallura and the curatorias of Monteacuto, Ogianu, Bisarcio, Ardara, Ploaghe and Romangia.21 From the second half of the 13th century, this region was incorporated into the possessions of the Doria. The first mention of the Anglona district dates between the 11th and the 12th centuries.22 During the Judicial period, there were no changes in the extension of Anglona, which instead underwent territorial changes after the dissolution of the judicial realm, and the establishment of the Doria family, in the third quarter of the 13th century.23 According to comparable political dynamics from the Italian peninsula, the new lords organized the territory through the establishment of castles, first Castelgenovese, then Casteldoria and Chiaramonti, which, in addition to performing a military function, also became economic and demographic centers in the settlement reorganization of the 14th century.24 In Anglona geographical conditions varied and different forms of settlement had to coexist, which paints a complex, but very significant,



21 On the territorial and institutional consistency of these first three districts see: Alessandro Soddu, “Il Monte Acuto nel Medioevo”, Il Monte Acuto. Museo Itinerante del territorio: l’uomo, l’ambiente e la storia di una comunità della Sardegna. Ozieri, convento delle Clarisse, 25 aprile-25 maggio 2002 (Muros: Comunità montana Monte Acuto, 2003), p. 120, figure 1. 22 Mauro Maxia, Anglona Medievale (Ozieri: Il Torchietto, 2001), pp. 50-51; Raimondo Turtas, “Un tentativo di riordino cronologico”, p. 91; Paolo Maninchedda and Antonello Murtas, Il Condaghe di San Michele di Salvennor (Cagliari: Cuec Editrice, 2003), n. 149 and n. 188, dated to the period of Abbot Bernardo (1120-1140). 23 With regard to this family, see: Enrico Basso and Alessandro Soddu, L’Anglona negli atti del notaio Francesco Da Silva (1320-1326) (Perfugas: Comunità Montana Su Sassu-Anglona-Gallura, 2001); Alessandro Soddu, “La signoria dei Doria”, pp. 287-293; Alessandro Soddu, “La Bassa Valle del Coghinas nel medioevo”, Le origini storiche e culturali del territorio di Viddalba, Santa Maria Coghinas, Valledoria, ed. by Alessandro Soddu and Franco G.R. Campus (Sassari: Composita Editoria, 2007), p. 75 and following. 24 Alessandro Soddu, “La signoria dei Doria”, pp. 287-293; Alessandro Soddu, “La Bassa Valle”, pp. 63-106; Gianluigi Marras, “Il castello di Chiaramonti in Anglona: indagini preliminari sul sito e sulle fonti materiali” (Pisa: Università degli Studi di Pisa, Master Dissertation, 2006). Download at link: ; Gianluigi Marras, “Chiaramonti, Monte Cheja, 2006”, Archeologia Postmedievale, 11 (2007), pp. 365-366.

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framework, as the territory stretched, from the sea and the coast to inland areas. On the one hand there was trade, on the other hand an economy based on agriculture and pastoralism; this dichotomy that seems to divide the territory into two distinct areas. Under the Doria, the internal area was called Anglona or Claramonte.

2.2 The Anglona Medieval Settlement There were different settlement types in Sardinia in the Middle Ages: there could be civil settlements (castrensian settlements as well as villas, domos, curtes) and religious (monastic domos), all of which are present in the studied context. Anglona experienced two intense population phases: in the mid-12th century, in full Judgedom’s age, and during the first half of the 14th century. The two phases are separated by a very low but steady growth. The written sources mention 49 villages, and we know the terminus ad quem for 22 of these: there are 8 that continue to exist even today, while certain data are missing for 19. The 22 documented settlements were abandoned in 1388 or at other points during the second half of the 14th century.25 Of the settlements studied with surface surveys, the villages of Orria Pithinna and Hostiano de Monte, in the municipality of Chiaramonti (Sassari), were chosen for magnetometric prospection.

2.3 Orria Pithinna The deserted medieval village of Orria Pithinna is an important case study for the archaeology of Sardinia. The public village and the domo (curtis) of Orria Pithinna, owned by the De Thori family, coexisted in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries: in 1205 the churches of Santa Maria and Santa Giusta, with domos, possessions, servants, and cattle, were donated to the Camaldoles monks.26 Little or nothing is known about the domos, particularly the effective size of their settlements, from an archaeological point of view and they are still the subject of discussion and debate among historians.27 The area indicated by the name Orria Pithinna is situated in a

 25

According to the periodization of: Carlo Livi, Villaggi e popolazione in Sardegna nei secoli XI-XX (Sassari: Carlo Delfino Editore, 2014), pp. 73-3. 26 Maria Cherchi, Gianluigi Marras and Giuseppe Padua, “La topografia di Orria Pithinna”, pp. 25-55. 27 Marco Milanese, Maria Cherchi and Gianluigi Marras, “Villaggi medievali abbandonati”, pp. 83-113; Marco Milanese, Vita e morte dei villaggi; Carlo Livi,

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plain to the west of the town of Chiaramonti, in an area particularly rich in water; clay soils are very fertile and are cultivated with barley and cereals. The geological landscape is characterized by a limestone substrate alternating with volcanic formations (ignimbrites and trachytes). The church stands between the altitudes of 322 and 306 meters above sea level; the surrounding area is characterized by shallow layers of soil and rocky outcrops.

Figure 1. Orria Pithinna (Chiaramonti-SS): identified structures positioned on the image of the magnetic survey (by Maria Cherchi)

The site has never been subjected to archaeological excavations. The few data on buried archaeological remains are derived from the restoration of 1976, when the roof was rebuilt and the wall hangings were consolidated; some earthen graves were discovered around the perimeter of the church.28 Between 2001 and 2009, archaeological surveys was conducted in the village and around the church, where traces of buried

 Villaggi e popolazione; Mauro Maxia, Anglona Medievale; Gian Giacomo Ortu, La Sardegna dei Giudici. 28 Alma Casula, “Il restauro della chiesa e del corredo artistico di S. Maria de Orria Pitzinna”, Orria Pithinna. La chiesa, il monastero, il villaggio. 800 anni di storia (Florence: All’Insegna del Giglio, 2012), pp. 117-123.

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structures have been identified.29 Geophysical surveys have analyzed the area around the church, where the traces of the curtis (domo) and the monastery should be. Natural and anthropogenic disturbances are present. The volcanic bedrock creates a background noise, which only occasionally generated peaks in values; landfills of materials and scrap metal give greater background noise. The early stages of field work were for the positioning and relief of the grid. A grid of 14 squares was prepared, each measuring 20×20 meters (for a total of 5600 square meters). As the site has experienced several phases of frequentation, related to the characteristics and environmental factors devotional and has undergone over time the human presence, all these human-induced changes were considered in the planning. As regards the work of prospecting 14 squares of 20×20 meters were examined, with a reading interval of 1 meter and a transverse interval of 0,50 meters, for a total of about 11,000 points. This examination was undertaken in changeable weather conditions and the framework of the factors of natural and anthropogenic disturbance is varied. The bedrock is volcanic, which creates a background noise but only occasionally generated peak values; these were also created by waste sites and scrap metal. The collected data are interesting from a historical and topographical perspective. A number of structures around the church were highlighted, along the contour lines to the south, and several other structures of different sizes to the east. Some of these structures were interpreted as rooms of a rectangular shape by measuring the variables, mostly oriented east-west, but some on a north-south axis; other walls were placed around the church, like the one that runs parallel to the north chapel and a part of which is visible on the surface. Other structures are visible to the east of the apse where it is possible to recognize an area bounded by walls, compatible with the presence of a cemetery and some circles. The portion south of the church, where the distinctive parts of the monastery should be, such as the cloister, is little or not readable. The structures found around the church seem to have the same orientation as the church; those raised in the south, along the slope towards the river Iscanneddu, follow the contour’s curve. Some of these structures seem to have housing or production functions, such as warehouses, relative to the presence of a core of modest size. The attribution of these homes to monks or previous domo donated by Maria de Thori is riskier. In the first case, the



29 Maria Cherchi, Gianluigi Marras and Giuseppe Padua, “La topografia di Orria Pithinna”, pp. 25-55.

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number of houses seems excessive if we assume the presence of only a few monks, but a comparison with the plan of the monastery of Monte Rua Torreglia (Padua) seems to make this interpretation plausible;30 in fact, the cells and some of the structures of the latter monastery were built along the contour lines that characterize the morphology of the plateau. The type of the detected structures cannot be defined without stratigraphic data, but the presence of a settlement nucleus around the church, distinct from the village of Orria Pithinna, is confirmed. Orria Pithinna is a bipolar settlement: on the one hand there is the private settlement (domo), on the other a public one (villa), which are also separated geographically by a road (via de Anglona). This remained unchanged until the 19th century.31 Questions about the history of the domus and the villa remain.

2.4 Hostiano de Monte Hostiano de Monte is best documented in the 14th century, when we find it quoted in the Rationes Decimarum and other documents in the archive of the Crown of Aragon.32 One of the aims of the survey was to check if there are traces of settlement structures, especially relating to places of worship, as well as to verify the assumptions of localization proposals by historians. The site is located in an area located between 380 and 390 meters above sea level: it is a small limestone plateau that dominates the valley, further along which lies the burg of Chiaramonti. The land’s micromorphology is plagued with numerous bumps and hollows, characterized by a greater concentration of lithics, tiles and pottery sherds. The clay layer varies between a thickness of 20-30 centimeters at the edge of the plateau and increased thickness in the middle, where archaeological anomalies are more plentiful.

 30

Laura Callea, “Chiesa e monastero di San Nicola di Trullas: lettura stratigrafica”, San Nicola di Trullas : archeologia architettura paesaggio, ed. by Antonietta Boninu and Antonella Pandolfi (Semestene: Comune, 2010), pp. 71-84. 31 See: Massimo Rassu, “La viabilità nella Sardegna medievale”, Quaderni Bolotanesi, 28 (2002), pp. 249-250; Maria Cherchi, Gianluigi Marras and Giuseppe Padua, “La topografia di Orria Pithinna”, p. 14. 32 Pietro Sella, Rationes Decimarum Sardiniae (Rome: Biblioteca Vaticana, 1945), n. 215, 836, 1248, 1759, and 2021; Mauro Maxia, Anglona Medievale, p. 440 (n. 776).

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Figure 2. Hostiano de Monte (Chiaramonti-SS). Planner interpreted anomalies: in the image the two groups of environments, consisting of 5:00 to 6:00 units, are circled in blue; the yellow arrows indicate the nucleus consisting of two rooms (by Maria Cherchi)

Between 2007 and 2009, archaeological surveys were carried out around the ruins of the churches of San Giuliano and Santa Caterina.33 Magnetometric prospection was carried out at the ruins of the church of Santa Caterina. During the prospections we observed the same materials at those found during the surveys; in particular, we found a modest amount of roof tile sherds, cooking ware and Pisan archaic majolica. The lithics are limestone of small and medium sizes, associated with red trachyte. We set up a grid of 14 squares, each measuring 20×20 meters. Factors that disturbed this were the presence of a cell tower, electricity poles and metal fences. Over the years, the area, which has been heavily anthropized, has been exploited for agriculture. The building materials are mainly limestone, as this is the geological substratum: this therefore limits



33 Marco Milanese, Maria Cherchi, Gianluigi Marras, Giuseppe Padua and Alessandro Vecciu, “Paesaggi agrari tardo-antichi”, pp. 2125-2126.

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the susceptibility contrast between the archaeological anomalies and the substratum. An area of about 5, 600 square meters was investigated by placing 14 square grids of 20×20 meters each, with an intensity of 800 points taken per square (11, 200 points in total). The conditions the work was conducted under were variable weather, with good visibility. Reading the processed data is complex: we find some areas with a high density of magnetic peaks to the south and east of the church. In this area it is complex to highlight the clear presence of structures, although the data reveal the artifacts’ concentration and the presence of structures with a magnetic field greater than the limestone substrate. Another indicative area is located further south, where it is possible to trace the profile of some rooms that are both aligned and close together. There is probably some continuity between the two areas: this suggests that the village has developed along the plateau, maintaining a buffer zone next to the road that likely follows an existing path and divides two parts of San Giuliano and Santa Caterina. Several anomalies were detected, of which many are quadrangular and/or rectangular, and are placed in the middle area of the plateau, more concentrated near the church, where the magnetic signal is higher. The size of the anomalies ranges from 18,5 square meters to 36 square meters, with three rooms ranging in size from 22 to 24 square meters; only one exceeds 60 square meters (measurements which reflect the wide magnetic anomaly at the church have been excluded from the analysis, because it is difficult to distinguish whether these are single structures or multiple adjacent rooms). The anomalies appear to be celled units, divided into groups of five to six cores; only in two cases, do the anomalies appear to be organized in groups of two rooms. Rooms of variable sizes have also been excavated in the village of Geridu, where the dimensions vary from 66 to 26 square meters.34 In the medieval village of Ardu, located in the countryside of Sassari, the few excavated houses vary in size between 3,5 and 10 square meters.35 At the Geridu site, some buildings are terraced, and have a common wall that follows the contour line.36

 34

Marco Milanese, Studi e ricerche, p. 105. Daniela Rovina and Elisabetta Grassi, “Il villaggio medievale”, p. 168. 36 Marco Milanese, Studi e ricerche, p. 105. 35

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Areas with a higher and circumscribed magnetic signal, characterized by concentrations of tiles and lithics, can be interpreted as collapsed walls and roofs. On the ground a few walls are also visible and sub-circular morphological anomalies indicate the presence of buried structures. The presence of larger anomalies may be an indication of ‘privileged structures’, as the house of Doria cited in a document of 1346;37 however, the absence of stratigraphic data does not confirm this hypothesis. The investigations have yielded important data relating to the response of the magnetometer when it was applied to cases with different archaeological formation processes and geological conditions. Therefore it was possible to explore the use of different degrees of intensity in the survey and compare the data with what has emerged from previous research.

 37

Angelo Castellaccio, “Doria ed Aragona: lettura e interpretazione di un’istruttoria giudiziaria (anno 1346)”, XIV Congresso di Storia della Corona d’Aragona, Sassari-Alghero 19-24 maggio 1990, ed. by Olivetta Schena and Maria Giuseppina Meloni (Sassari: Carlo Delfino editore, 1995), App.1, f. 9v.

SANTILLANA: THE PROCESS OF INCLUSION IN A REGIONAL SEIGNIORIAL ESTATE AND ITS MEDIEVAL POWER RELATIONSHIPS (1369-1445) JESÚS A. DE INÉS SERRANO1 UNIVERSIDAD DE CANTABRIA

1. Historiography Notes Social conflicts recurrently appear in Social Medieval studies. As many investigation lines have been admitting for decades, social movements actually fuelled Medieval History. As a result, new researchers may well compare established and universally known publications, such as Mollat and Wolff’s, with updated contributions from current specialists, for instance Jelle Haemers, Christian Liddy or Louis Sicking. Moreover, Spanish students usually handle volumes written by Máximo Diago, Julio Valdeón, María Isabel del Val and many more researchers in order to shape their professional interests.

 1

This article summarises the conclusions from our Master’s Dissertation, titled ‘Ciudades y señores en conflicto durante la dinastía de los Trastámara: Santillana y la Casa de los Mendoza’, developed at the University of Cantabria and supervised by Prof. Jesús Ángel Solórzano. We thank the University of Cantabria for financing our PhD thesis titled ‘Relaciones de poder, cultura política y contestación social en las comunidades del Cantábrico en la Baja Edad Media’, which this article is now framed in. Secondly, this article’s content was held as a paper at the V International Medieval Meeting Lleida (2015). I am grateful to the organizers for giving me the opportunity to contribute with the results of my research. Thirdly, I express my wholehearted gratitude to the editors for publishing this contribution under a prestigious seal. Abbreviations used: AGS, Archivo General de Simancas; ARCHV, Archivo de la Real Chancillería de Valladolid; AHN, Archivo Histórico Nacional.

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New historians are also unavoidably in dire need of reading fresh perspectives, such as those of Rafael Hipólito Oliva Herrer, who has highlighted some statements about the active participation of commoners in the political metamorphosis experimented by Castilian institutions and the creation of discursive threads linked to social awareness.2 Currently, Beatriz Arízaga and Jesús Ángel Solórzano are coordinating PhD theses and international projects focused on Cantabrian Social and Economical History and their inclusion in Atlantic contexts.3 José Ramón Díaz de Durana and Jon Andoni Fernández emphasised significant differences between the principality of Asturias (Asturias de Oviedo), medieval Cantabrian merindades and the County of Vizcaya. The first and the latter both chiefly belonged to great lords: the bishop of Oviedo and the count of Vizcaya.4 Meanwhile, merindades,



2 Mainly: Hipólito Rafael Oliva, Justicia contra señores. El mundo rural y la política en tiempos de los Reyes Católicos (Valladolid: Instituto Universitario ‘Simancas’, Secretariado de Publicaciones e Intercambio Editorial and Universidad de Valladolid, 2004); as well as: Hipólito Rafael Oliva, "La memoria fronteriza. Memoria histórica campesina a fines de la Edad Media", Memoria e Historia. Utilización política en la Corona de Castilla al final de la Edad Media, ed. by Jon Andoni Fernández de Larrea and José Ramón Díaz de Durana (Madrid: Sílex, 2010), pp. 249-271; and Hipólito Rafael Oliva Herrer, "Monde rural et politique à la fin du XVe siècle en Castille", La société politique à la fin du XVe siècle dans les royaumes ibériques et en Europe: élites, peuple, sujets? La sociedad política a fines del siglo XV en los reinos ibéricos y en Europa: ¿élites, pueblo, súbditos?, ed. by Vincent Challet, Jean Phillippe Genet, Hipólito Rafael Oliva and Julio Valdeón (Paris and Valladolid: Publications de la Sorbonne and Universidad de Valladolid, 2007), pp. 179-195. Contrast this view to: John Watts, "The pressure of the public on later medieval politics", Political culture in late medieval Britain, ed. by Linda Clark and Christine Carpenter (Woodbridge: Boydell Press, 2004), pp. 159-180. 3 The project is titled: Las sociedades urbanas de las ciudades y villas portuarias de la Europa Atlántica en la Baja Edad Media (HAR2012-31801) and it is financially supported by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Competitiveness of Spain. They count on María Jesús Cruchaga and Javier Añíbarro from the University of Cantabria and several worldwide recognised medievalists such as Roman Czaja, Jelle Haemers, Christian Kuhn, Christian Liddy, Mário Paulo Martins Viana, Louis Sicking and, above all, Michel Bochaca and Amélia Aguiar. 4 José Ramón Díaz de Durana and Jon Andoni Fernández de Larrea, “Las villas cantábricas bajo el yugo de la nobleza. Consecuencias sobre los gobiernos urbanos durante la época Trastámara”, Sociedades urbanas y culturas políticas en la Baja Edad Media castellana, coord. by José María Monsalvo (Salamanca: Ediciones Universidad de Salamanca, 2013), pp. 49-70.

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jurisdictionally fragmented during the 14th century, experienced a major process of reconfiguration and were included in several lords’ dominions thanks firstly to royal privileges that the nobility was awarded with and, secondly, to motu proprio campaigns of appropriation. Reading Liddy’s article about enclosure riots,5 it must be concluded that, independently of specific causes, English and Castilian commonalty rights and political participation of commoners and communities were generally reduced, or at least changed, in favour of the nobility and oligarchy. Consequently, conflicts arose. In developing research for the Master’s, some transcribed and edited documental compendiums were consulted and analysed to tackle original hypotheses about medieval politics and society in Asturias de Santillana in general, and the town of Santillana in particular. They are available in several monographs, promoted by organisations such as the Fundación Santillana and by some key authors.6

2. Santillana during its merindad Santillana, today called Santillana del Mar, is now located inland, which is why the cabeza de la merindad cannot be considered a coastal town, even though it had its own port: San Martín de la Arena. Despite this, the “Camino Real” (“Royal Road”) crossed Santillana, connecting the southern Meseta (“Spanish tableland”) with the northern ports and leading merchants to stop and trade there. What is more, the town needed its

 5

Christian Liddy, “Urban enclosure riots: rising of the commons in English towns, 1480-1525”, Past and Present, 226 (2015), pp. 41-77. 6 Mateo Escagedo, Colección diplomática: documentos en pergamino que hubo en la Real ex-Colegiata de Santillana, 2 vols. (Santoña: Imprenta Editorial del Dueso, 1926-1927); Rogelio Pérez Bustamante, Sociedad, Economía, Fiscalidad y Gobierno en las Asturias de Santillana (s. XIII-XV) (Santander: Ediciones Librería Estudio, 1979); Rogelio Pérez Bustamante and Juan Manuel Calderón, El marqués de Santillana (biografía y documentación) (Santillana del Mar: Fundación Santillana, 1983); Carmen Díez Herrera, Luis López Ormazábal and Rogelio Pérez Bustamante, La abadía de Santillana. Colección diplomática (Santillana del Mar: Fundación Santillana, 1983); Rogelio Pérez Bustamante, La villa de Santillana. Estudios y documentos (Santillana del Mar: Fundación Santillana, 1984). Also see: Fernando González-Camino, Las Asturias de Santillana en 1404: según el Apeo formado por orden del Infante don Fernando de Antequera (Santander: Librería Moderna, 1930) and Gonzalo Martínez Díez, Libro Becerro de las Behetrías (Leon: Centro de Estudios e Investigación ‘San Isidoro’, Caja de Ahorros y Monte de Piedad and Archivo Histórico Diocesano, 1981).

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market, which took place every Thursday, to interchange manufactured goods and cereals. Revealingly, Santillana, as the rest of towns and mountainous villages, was dependant on basic food provision despite enjoying a noteworthy manufacturing industry. Conversely, coastal towns, such as San Vicente de la Barquera, Santander, Laredo and Castro Urdiales developed prosperous fishing guilds and intense commercial relationships with other Castilian, English, French, Brittany, Flemmish and Irish ports.7 As far as population is concerned, there was no difference in quantity. According to Pérez Bustamante, Santander counted over 5,000 inhabitants (around 1,200 neighbours) while Santillana’s population was not much less (around 800 or 1000 neighbours). On the other hand, following the 1445 tax distribution, Santander paid 63,690 maravedís compared to Santillana, whose contribution rose to 13,226.8 In summary, it was a matter of wealth, not population.

3. The Oldest Vertex: Santa Juliana Following the abstract, four sides competed for political supremacy in the town. The collegiate of Santa Juliana was far older than other political bodies. The Libro de la Regla provides evidences for the first donations to the church being given from the end of 8th century to the middle of the next, and they kept being given until at least the mid-12th century.9 Amassing such a vast and dispersed dominion turned Santa Juliana into both one of the main landowners of the primitive Iberian kingdoms and a reference for the Early Medieval economic system. During this stage, the monastic community was adopting an abbatial model of organization and it is notable that the monks received a first franchise charter from Ferdinand I in 1045. From this point, donations did not stop and Santa Juliana’s dominion continued to grow, but they notably diminished in number. The collegiate leased pieces of land on account of a desire to bring in income from rent

 7

Jesús Ángel Solórzano Telechea, “Las Neireidas del Norte: puertos e identidad urbana en la fachada cantábrica entre los siglos XII y XV”, Anales de la Universidad de Alicante. Historia Medieval, 16 (2009-2010), pp. 39-61. 8 Rogelio Pérez Bustamante, La villa de Santillana. Estudios y documentos, pp. 49, 62 and 280-286. 9 Eduardo Jusué, Libro de la Regla o Cartulario de la antigua abadía de Santillana del Mar (Madrid: Sucesores de Hernando, 1912).

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and the emergence of confrontations between the church incumbents, the abbot, and the bishop of Burgos. Despite having signed a capitulation in 1236, which differentiated the possessions of the chapter from the abbot’s, this and other agreements did not totally repair the economic fissures. One of the most thorny and delicate matters, which resonated strongly for decades, was the loan vacancies collection.10 Abbots, as they were acting as lords, earned far more than the canons, who were not able to support themselves with their exiguous incomes; therefore, the key problem did not reside in the hierarchy itself, but the economical retribution it entailed. Indeed, from the second half of the 13th century, abbots provided for the chapter by awarding benefices until the adjustments of the clergymen count and associated benefits in 1417-1418. Moreover, the estrangement deepened between the abbots, who used to absent themselves from Santa Juliana to take up their honourable duties as royal priests at court, and the canons, who started neglecting their responsibilities in Santa Juliana. This carelessness was repeatedly taken advantage of by noblemen and the local council in 14th and 15th centuries, who would harass Santa Juliana by misappropriating lands and rights and by usurping power areas, respectively. Fortunately for the collegiate, abbots such as Juan Martínez de Mendoza, at the end of the 14th century, and Alfonso Niño de la Vega, at the beginning of the next, encouraged measures of exploiting material sources to pacify the council of canons (1406-1417) and to rebuke their dependents for turning into slothful subjects. These tactics might have helped to strengthen the survivor spirit in order to face other sides in political wrangles. Santa Juliana had to contend with Fernán Sánchez Calderón and Juan Sánchez de Bustamante, who claimed economic rights over Oreña in 1404, and with the inhabitants of Bustablado, who aspired to emancipate from Santillana and to evade paying usufructs they owed for labouring in Duña lands (1403).11

 10

Any digression regarding conflicts has been omitted, especially the one which happened between Santa Juliana (the prior and capitulum together) and the see of Burgos for collecting the imposition called catedrático and diocesan vigilance. Santa Juliana, holding the status of collegiate, obdurately refused to accept both requests, which were finally abolished by the bishop of Burgos in 1436. 11 Carmen Díez Herrera, Luis López Ormazábal and Rogelio Pérez Bustamante, La abadía de Santillana. Colección diplomática (Santillana del Mar: Fundación Santillana, 1983), docs. 256 and 244, respectively.

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Another expression of defiance came when powerful men fortified houses, such as the case of Diego González de Barreda in San Martín de la Arena in 1403. In order to avoid this kind of contestation, Santa Juliana introduced specific formulas in their rent contracts: [...] non podades vender, nin empeñar, nin enagenar [pieces of land] a omme fijodalgo, nin a omme poderoso por que pueda y facer torre, nin casa fuerte.”; “[…] si non a veçino morador en la dicha villa [Santillana] que non sea señor. 12

4. The Council and Municipal Lineages Indeed, noblemen and merchants got used to monopolising municipal power and social representation. Documents show us how the main lineages (Villa, Velarde, Barreda and Polanco) and minor ones (Arroyo, Bustamante, Calderón, Portales, Tagle and more) were amenable to occupying vacant municipal charges, not only as aldermen, but also as owners, clergymen, tradesmen and as probi omines (omes buenos), juries, judicial witnesses and guarantors as well. Flicking through the register of 1419, Juan González de Polanco (or Gómez, depending on the interpretation) shall appear as the attendant of the Corregidor.13 Using local lineages as the thematic thread, it is time to outline the third side in political debates: the council. Considering the bestowal of the charter to the abbey in 1045 as a foundational event, this point may be extrapolated to the franchise obtained from Alfonso VIII, in which the council was mentioned for the first time. It must be contextualised that at the beginning of 13th century, specifically in December 1209, that this monarch was desirous of reorganising the administrative and commercial regional systems, especially in the northern provinces. Apart from containing the first reference to the town itself, this document was addressed to the concilium, and the townspeople were provided with a newly acquired political identity: vicinus ville. Thence, the

 12

“[…] do not sell, nor pawn, nor transfer [pieces of land] to noble nor powerful man so that they will not build any tower there.”; “[...] unless renters were residents in this town [Santillana] and not lords” (Documents dated 1354 and 1380. See: Mateo Escagedo, Colección diplomática: documentos en pergamino que hubo en la Real ex-Colegiata de Santillana (Santoña: Imprenta Editorial del Dueso, 1926-1927), I, pp. 347-349 and 384-386). 13 Rogelio Pérez Bustamante, El registro notarial de Santillana (Madrid: Fundación Matritense del Notariado, 1984).

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abbey was not the only municipal institution in the king’s eyes; this notwithstanding, the abbot retained some elements of effective power as dominus in villa or dominus ville.14 But, far from interweaving the church and the council’s relations peacefully, as the king had hoped, it instead opened new, long-standing, wide fissures underneath the political surface. In other words, some privilege confirmations and recently awarded grants were successively collected by both sides from the reigns of Alfonso X the Wise to John II;15 nevertheless, when in need, the abbey and municipal authorities joined forces to face other fierce competitors, mentioned below.

5. The Leadership of Santillana and its Royal Representatives: Corregidores With its municipal relevance extended, Santillana was considered the regional ‘capital’, although this term was not used in medieval documents – cabeza appeared instead. Not only did the General Assembly gather outdoors, at the place they called Campo del Revolgo, and indoors, en la claustra de la eglesia de esta villa (“courtyard of the church of this town”) but the Corregimiento also settled in the town. Leaving aside the trajectory of this institution, which deserves to be the subject of a whole monograph, suffice to say here that charges may be identified by studying documents from the 13th century and by progressively distinguishing the ones held by kingdom officials across the four regions that made up late-medieval Cantabria, namely Liébana (in the west), Campoo (to the south), Trasmiera (to the east) and Asturias de Santillana (set amidst the others). Indeed, corregidores, who were

 14

It is hoped that this will be more precisely defined in the near future through new information we are obtaining from unedited documents deposited at the Archivo General de Simancas (General Archive of Simancas), Archivo de la Real Chancillería de Valladolid (the Archive of the Royal Chancery of Valladolid) and Archivo Histórico Nacional (the National Historical Archive). 15 There were at least eleven confirmations to the abbey between 1255 and 1393 and five to the council from 1302 to 1427. Added to this, the council was given extra rights and protection charts, for example the one which allowed citizens to gather independently from the abbot (1302). Last reference available at: Mateo Escagedo Salmón, Colección diplomática: documentos en pergamino que hubo en la Real ex-Colegiata de Santillana (Santoña: Imprenta Editorial del Dueso, 19261927), I, pp. 185-194.

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strengthening the royal presence in Castilian cities and towns, ended up reunifying three of the previous regions under the Corregimiento de las Merindades de Asturias de Santillana, Liébana, Pernía y Campoo, from at least 1396.16 Corregidores, who were the kings’ alter egos, tenaciously aspired to centralise administration and subject every ordo to their authority, while they also averted disturbances by dealing with justice affairs in person or via their delegates (alcaldes). However, obdurate opposition to them proliferated from the highest noble families: the Niño (counts of Buelna), Guevara (counts of Tahalú), Manrique (counts of Castañeda) and de la Vega families had been growing vertiginously during the previous centuries.

6. Blood, Perspicacity and Power in New Times: The Ascension of de la Vega-Mendoza Garcilaso I and Garcilaso II de la Vega reached some towering heights at Court and Garcilaso III fought bravely in Henry’s II army during the Civil War against Peter I of Castile. Exhibiting their ‘absolute power’ (poderío real absoluto), monarchs rewarded attentive services with substantial rights and territorial privileges. Once the Trastámara dynasty was enthroned, de la Vega family members finally reached the height of power when Leonor, the last Garcilaso’s daughter, married the royal nephew, Juan Téllez. Even though this matrimony did not produce a male heir,17 it added Campoo and Liébana-Pernía to the patrimonial states of the new husband, the Admiral of Castile Diego Hurtado de Mendoza. This second marriage (1387) produced descendants who founded one of most important noble lineages in Castile during the 15th and 16th centuries: de la Vega-Mendoza. Having said that, let us turn to some measures employed by de la Vega-Mendoza to secure Santillana and consider what they can inform medievalists about. The first measure, and also the most widespread in Castile, consisted of acquiring land lots and houses so as to put councils

 16

Mateo Escagedo Salmón, Colección diplomática: documentos en pergamino, I, pp. 422-425. 17 Aldonza, the only offspring, married García Fernández Manrique, I count of Castañeda and parent of I marquis of Aguilar de Campoo.

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under pressure.18 However, contrary to what could be expected, the analysis does not demonstrate any vehement aim to penetrate Santillana itself via buying properties, as opposed to other lineages such as the, Arce, Ceballos, Cossío, Escalante or Quevedo.19 Otherwise, de la VegaMendoza manifested interest in seizing profitable commercial entities from Santa Juliana, such as the maritime port, at San Martín de la Arena, or salmon ponds in Hinojedo. Secondly, as with other high noble houses, de la Vega-Mendoza depended on loyal noblemen and minor relatives to control properties and jurisdiction, such as the occasion when Pedro Ruiz de Villegas deputised for his father-in-law, Gonzalo Ruiz de la Vega. Diego Hurtado chose allies such as archpriest Fernando Díaz de Ceballos in Santillana (1403) and merchant García González de Barreda, who represented the interests of the Admiral’s son, Íñigo López de Mendoza, during the conflict with Santander for ownership of San Martín de la Arena (1434-1436).20 But, if the de la Vega-Mendoza were backed up by Ceballos or Barreda, it ought not to be forgotten that although Juan Martínez de Mendoza and Alfonso Niño de la Vega were abbots of Santa Juliana, they offered no ostensible advantages for the lineages that they shared last names with. Thirdly, under no circumstances does the documentation reveal Diego Hurtado de Mendoza to be in the role of town-lordship pretender, but merely on the side of a conflict in which he verbalised his eagerness to advocate a solution to Corregidor Gómez Arias’ interferences in the king’s and people’s interests.21 This brief appearance definitely did not represent a jurisdictional submission on the part of the town; thus, de la Vega lords had to appeal to other less vague strategies. The first started developing when, in 1315, some residents in Santillana (together with others from Oña and Oreña)

 18

Note Liddy’s article and this second as two of innumerable examples in the Spanish bibliography: Máximo Diago, “Intervencionismo de la alta nobleza en la vida política de las ciudades castellanas a fines de la Edad Media: los mariscales de Castilla en Soria”, Edad Media. Revista de Historia, 15 (2014), pp. 245-271. 19 Added to native ones (Barreda, Polanco, Velarde, Villa). See: Enrique San Miguel Pérez, Poder y territorio en la España cantábrica. La baja Edad Media (Madrid: Dikynson, 1999), pp. 43-48. 20 Jesús Ángel Solórzano and Lorena Fernández González, Conflictos jurisdiccionales entre la villa de Santander y el Marquesado de Santillana en el siglo XV (Santander: Fundación Marcelino Botín, 1996). 21 Rogelio Pérez Bustamante, Sociedad, Economía, Fiscalidad, doc. No. 13.

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declared themselves to be Garcilaso’s vassals and accepted his judicial authority: […] por nos e por nuestros fijos, [...] éstos somos de Santa Yllana; [...] fasemos pleito e postura [...] en nombre de Garci Laso de la Vega [...], in order to [...] lo sirvamos como vasallo a señor [...]; [...] nos que los vayamos querellar [injurers] a los dichos Garci Laso e a su fijo [...], and vassals would be promised that [...] [lords] nos guarden e nos amparen [...].22

Additionally, the abbot faced the danger of losing the local management in 1327 by “taking the council and vassals out from the abbey” if he persevered in refusing to pay the yantar, and he still denied stopping collective abuses.23 Garcilaso I de la Vega, as a royal agent and confident in 1339, obtained this particular tax exoneration for Santillana as well as the inhabitant’s faith. Soon thereafter, in 1403, the pact between the Corregidor and the Admiral recognised the legal investiture of nobility agents around the territorial areas of Santillana which the Admiral had integrated into his patrimony. They also agreed to assign an executor in the town, Gonzalo de la Calesa, so as to ensure that Gómez Arias did not persist in interfering in don Diego Hurtado’s jurisdiction.24 However, the struggle for power did not finish there, but actually worsened. Only a year after the agreement signed in 1403, de la Vega presented a royal charter in which Henry III reminded Gómez Arias not to



22 “[…] we and on behalf of our issue, […] we are from Santa Yllana; […] we pay homage [...] to Garci Laso de la Vega [...]”; in order to “[...] serve him as a vassal usually does to his lord [...]”; “[...] we sue them [injurers] to Garci Laso and his son [...]”, and vassals would be promised that “[...] they [lords] protect us [...]” (Rogelio Pérez Bustamante, Sociedad, Economía, Fiscalidad, pp. 285-286 [doc. No. 1]). 23 Mateo Escagedo, Colección diplomática: documentos en pergamino que hubo en la Real ex-Colegiata de Santillana (Santoña: Imprenta Editorial del Dueso, 1926-1927), II, pp. 257-261. 24 Rogelio Pérez Bustamante, Sociedad, Economía, Fiscalidad, pp. 310-311 (doc. No. 13). The role of the Admiral as a consort or the effective manager of his spouse’s possessions, is complicated to deal with. Combining documents and other research, like Ortiz Real’s mentioned below, could help to unpick such a thorny item.

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seize the Admiral’s legitimate authority.25 Leonor de la Vega and Íñigo López de Mendoza adduced these sorts of violations in order to befriend the Crown while they were constantly ruining Corregidores’ reputations. Another interesting reference comes from the Registro of 1419; in folio 79, it is possible to find the complaints of a nobleman, Juan Ibáñez, who denied being tried by the Corregidor as he was subjected to doña Leonor’s justice.26 Another extraordinarily unusual document dated 1412 has been found, in which the regent, Catherine of Lancaster, strengthened royal authority in Asturias de Santillana by ordering councils to accept the Corregidor, Juan Ruiz de Medina, to cease harassments against him, and to give him the official commands that belonged in his charge. On their behalf, de la Vega, the abbot of Santa Juliana and other lords hid behind their privileges, whose veracity the queen commanded to be verified.27 The last document is an implicit example of interference from the nobility and coercive measures applied by them, which are exhaustively described in Pleito Viejo (1438-1444).28 All this validates that violence, far from becoming an unusual matter, bombarded medieval daily lives and prooves how a convulsive atmosphere reigned over medieval Cantabria and, particularly, over Santillana. There were many conflicts, but three of them must be remarked upon to complete a concise contextualization. Firstly, since Henry III made his brother, Prince Fernando, the beneficiary of royal rights in the behetrías in 1403, Leonor de la Vega and other noblemen obviously denied transferring him benefits they had been enjoying for decades, unless they were promised requitals instead. Therefore, Fernando, nicknamed ‘of Antequera’, and his sons, Alfonso V of Aragon and John I of Navarre (John II of Aragon afterwards), set about insistently expropriating rights in behetrías from 1407 to 1440. The documentation produced is in contrast to the Becerro de las Behetrías, the Apeo of 1404 and other specific sheets which do not have any concrete mentions of towns or villages.29 Adding to



25 Rogelio Pérez Bustamante, Sociedad, Economía, Fiscalidad, pp. 293-295 (doc. No. 4). 26 Rogelio Pérez Bustamante, El registro notarial de Santillana. 27 Rogelio Pérez Bustamante, Sociedad, Economía, Fiscalidad, p. 309 (doc. No. 12). 28 ARCHV, Pleitos Civiles, Alonso Rodríguez (F), Caja 2523, 1; 2524,1. 29 See: note 6.

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this lack of explicit references, vicissitudes such as tax ownership changing hands obscure who the real rights belonged to. Secondly, the de la Vega lords also disputed titles to hold civil and criminal jurisdiction over several Cantabrian valleys. This struggle was gravely prolonged, if not worsened, by the Crown’s ambivalence. In 1395, Henry III ratified legal possession of Liébana-Pernía and Campoo to the Admiral, replacing Aldonza, the natural heiress of Juan Téllez. Moreover, both the count of Castañeda, Garci Fernández Manrique, and Íñigo López de Mendoza were rewarded by the king and were acquiring various vassals, tributes, lands and jurisdiction in the years between 1420 and 1438. Manrique demonstrated that he would not accept de la Vega’s dominion by unbalancing the latter’s government over occidental and southern provinces and by devoting himself to take don Íñigo to courts, mainly between 1437 and 1439, when he was serving as a Captain on the Granada border. As he sought to keep the status quo in medieval Cantabria and maintain the ‘equality’ of both lords, the king consecutively ordered Manrique to respect don Íñigo’s estates and vice versa. Thirdly, the Crown or councils themselves occasionally raised objections with the great noblemen, for example when don Íñigo was to blame for illegitimately misappropriating the jurisdiction of several Cantabrian valleys;30 or when Ruy Gutiérrez de Escalante usurped some vassals and taxes in La Marina and Camargo from Leonor. Lope de Salazar, representing the noblewoman, told this to the caballero: [...] [Ruy Gutiérrez] avedes entremetido e entremetystes de resçebyr por vuestros vasallos [vecinos] seyendo vasalos solariegos de la dicha sennora donna Lyonor [...] and [...] avedes levado e levastes de ellos [...] derechos que pertenesçían [...] a la dicha sennora donna Lyonor [...].31

In other words, it seems that common and less powerful people were aware of their interests; they took part in political changes, tailored their own political speech so as to legitimate their position and they approached each other and other social agents in order to achieve their goals.

 30

Specifically, the Alfoz de Loredo, Cabezón, Cabuérniga, Camargo, Camesa, Carriedo, Cayón, Honor de Miengo, Piélagos, Toranzo, Ucieda, and Villaescusa valleys and even the Mayordomazgo de la Vega in Pleito Viejo. 31 “[…] [Ruy Gutiérrez] you had entered into receiving them [vecinos] as if they were your own vassals despite them being doña Leonor’s solariego ones […]” and “[…] you had collected from them […] some rights belonging […] to doña Leonor […]” (AHN, Sección Osuna, leg. 1791, 3).

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On the whole, violence was broadly used by the nobility to vanquish riots and rumours in Cantabria,32 perfectly interwoven with legal actions, and it framed the context in which the invasion of Santillana must be set.

7. Different Models: Santillana and Santander, what changed and what remained According to the version of the Pleito de los Valles studied by Pérez Bustamante, don Íñigo’s soldiers subdued Santillana and some other valleys in 1440.33 Texts reflect the dreadfulness of the devastation caused by Sancho López de Guinea and Juan de Solórzano on Santillana’s harvest fields. It is also described how they kidnapped inhabitants and defeated the detachment commanded by Juan Gómez de Carmona, the Corregidor’s representative; how they attacked buildings and threatened to slaughter any who resisted indoors; how they imprisoned whoever dared to ask for royal help; and how citizens incurred debts as a result. Here follows an extract from the document, illustrating the destructiveness of the event: Juan de Solorzano e Sancho Lópes de Guinea juntaron e asignaron fasta quinientos homes poco más o menos, armados de muchas armas […], e asi juntos llegaron a Barcena la Puente lugar que es cerca de la dicha villa de Santillana e prendieron ende ciertas mugeres […], e tomaron quanto trigo e farina ende fallaron e lavaronlo […] and […] entraron a 34 destruir e quemar la dicha villa.

 32

Javier Ortiz counted some other testimonies about acts of violence from Garcilaso III and the skirmish between Sancho López de Guinea, governor for de la Vega, and the Corregidor from 1426 to 1430. See: Javier Ortiz Real, Doña Leonor de la Vega (1364 Ca.-1432). Apuntes para una Biografía Crítica (Torrelavega: Grupo Vigo Global Trading S.L., 2004), pp. 19 and 59-60. 33 Following Enrique San Miguel’s version, don Íñigo broke into the town in 1435 and he sent his son, Diego Hurtado de Mendoza, to invade it again in 1439. See: Enrique San Miguel, Poder y territorio en la España cantábrica. La baja Edad Media (Madrid: Dikynson, 1999), pp. 100-102. The valleys mentioned above are Cabuérniga, Ucieda, Cabezón, Loredo, Reocín, Camesa, Penagos (twice), Cayón, Villaescusa, Camargo, Carriedo and Miengo. 34 “Juan de Solorzano and Sancho Lopes de Guinea gathered and sent approximately five hundred armed men with many weapons [...], and then they all together arrived in Barcena la Puente, close to Santillana, and they captured several women there [...], and they robbed all the wheat and flour they found and they carried it [...]” and “[...] they entered to destroy and burn the town [...]” (Rogelio Pérez Bustamante, Sociedad, Economía, Fiscalidad, pp. 359-363 [doc. No. 32]).

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Leaving aside the rough details, it would be convenient to emphasise other aspects which describe the medieval mindset and restless fears related to lordship, for instance the possibility of being included in a considerably more oppressive political estate, and frequent aspirations regarding freer royal dependence and a willingness to die defending it. Moreover, there were discursive prescriptions addressed to the Crown with the result that the king became enraged and avoided noble appropriation. The next notices came a few years later, in 1444, when Prince Henry gifted valleys and Santillana to don Íñigo, accompanied by royal confirmations and separate titles of count of El Real de Manzanares and marquis of Santillana (1445).35 The lack of information suggests that troops did not evacuate their forces. In fact, they appear to have stayed in Santillana, guaranteeing their lord’s dominion; what the monarch therefore did was simply to acquiesce to such an irreversible situation. The consequences were obviously severe. Firstly, Corregidores were expelled from the town, which meant not only its conversion to the estate’s capital, but the Corregimiento was also reborn under the appellative of ‘de las Cuatro Villas de la Costa’ afterwards. Next, local lineages continued to play an important political role in municipal charges alongside the governors in Santillana and the abbots, such as Hurtado de Mendoza and Garcilaso de Mendoza in the 1480s. Santa Juliana clerks dithered over accepting the marquis’ authority, apparent in contracts dated until 1453 and also from a brief conflict for jurisdiction in 1445. Eventually, the clergymen acquiesced and the governor recognised their ecclesiastical dominion outside the town in exchange.36 Despite the merindad having undergone a deep administrative reorganization, the conflicts were not definitively quashed. The Pleito Viejo concludes in 1444, but Toranzo valley continued to litigate to hold their jurisdictional rights over hills, pastures or cattle against the Mendoza and Manrique families. What is more, the undoubtedly complicated Pleito

 35

Rogelio Pérez Bustamante, Sociedad, Economía, Fiscalidad, docs. 33 and 34; Rogelio Pérez Bustamante, La villa de Santillana. Estudios y documentos (Santillana del Mar: Fundación Santillana, 1984), doc. 4; Rogelio Pérez Bustamante and Juan Manuel Calderón Ortega, El marqués de Santillana (biografía y documentación) (Santillana del Mar: Fundación Santillana, 1983), docs. 155 and 158. 36 Mateo Escagedo, Colección diplomática: documentos en pergamino que hubo en la Real ex-Colegiata de Santillana, II, pp. 368-380.

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de los Nueve Valles was rekindled in 1495 when the Carriedo valley brought up more issues than normal, and they asked to be incorporated into the royal administration (realengo), without success until 1542. Some other territories were inspired to do the same, but they had to wait until 1581, when the court sentenced in their favour. This article concludes with a concise comparison with Santander. As Diego Hurtado de Mendoza allied with Henry IV against Prince Alfonso, he was rewarded with Santander in 1466. Consequently, the 2nd marquis of Santillana invaded the town and tried to defeat the part of population who fervently resisted being subdued. Eventually, the king, pressured by this violent reaction in the town, decided to revoke the grant in 1467 and again in 1469, though a treatise was not signed until 1472.37 Finally, both the conquest processes of Santillana and Santander and their results were very dissimilar. Nevertheless, the help volunteered by other coastal towns to Santander between 1466 and 1472, the bravery shown during the trials for the ownership of San Marín de la Arena and the cohesion of the valleys in their fights for jurisdictional and economic vindications all reveal their tireless eagerness to protect themselves against the de la Vega-Mendoza lords’ voracity.

 37

For more information, see: Jesús Ángel Solórzano Telechea, Santander en la Edad Media. Patrimonio, parentesco y poder (Santander and Torrelavega: Servicio de Publicaciones de la Universidad de Cantabria and Ayuntamiento de Torrelavega, 2002); Javier Añíbarro Rodríguez, “Las Cuatro Villas de la Costa de la Mar. Conflictos jurisdiccionales y comerciales” (Santander: Universidad de Cantabria, PhD Dissertation, 2013), pp. 131-138.

THE URBAN MORPHOLOGY OF BRAGA IN THE FOURTEENTH AND FIFTEENTH CENTURIES: AN ANALYSIS METHODOLOGY1 MARIA DO CARMO RIBEIRO, MANUELA MARTINS, FERNANDA MAGALHÃES AND NATÁLIA BOTICA UNIVERSIDADE DO MINHO

Introduction The long-term study of Braga’s urban evolution has contributed to the definition and the characterization of the main urban consolidation phases witnessed by the city since its origin in the Roman period until the present day. The study results have benefited from particular conditions, mainly regarding the variety of available sources that allow the documentation of the successive urban and architectonic transformations and the fact that these key phases marked the overall city development, through the partial or full occupation/reuse of the former urbanized areas. In reality, since its foundation in the late first century B.C., the city’s urban space has been permanently occupied. In Roman times, the urbs grew over a flattened hill and followed an urban project with a rectangular plan that occupied an area of around 30 hectares, with the Alto da Cividade district forming its central place, as represented by the forum. The Bracara Augusta settlement and occupation process was continuous and the city reached its maximum urban expansion

 1

This paper was produced in the framework of the project PTDC/HISARQ/121136/2010 (funded by FCT- COMPETE Programme) and the project UID/AUR/04509/2013, funded by POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007528. Abbreviation used: ADB, Arquivo Distrital de Braga.

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in the second century, when it also exhibited densely occupied outskirts.2 When a robust wall was constructed during the late third/early fourth centuries, it effectively surrounded an urban area of around 48 hectares.3 However, with the fall of the Western Roman Empire, a series of more complex and turbulent occupational periods originated some gradual changes inside the walled area, contributing towards the urban consolidation of the northeast quadrant’s occupation during the High Middle Ages, which was the origin of the medieval town. Under SuebicVisigothic control (fifth-eight centuries), the city kept itself within the defined boundaries of the Low Empire wall.4 Nevertheless, the urban mutations occurring between the eighth/ninth and thirteenth centuries transformed the city into a small fortified borough that reused the northern part of the Low Empire wall, bounded by a new defensive perimeter on its southern and western parts, and which occupied an area of the previous Roman city no wider than 15 hectares.5 In fact, Bracara Augusta’s northeast quadrant was to be the genesis of the High Medieval city and the site from which the urban area would develop towards the north and northeast parts, surrounded by a new

 2

Manuela Martins, “Bracara Augusta. Panorama e estado da questão sobre o seu urbanismo”, Do Castro à Cidade. A romanización na Gallaecia e na Hispânia indoeuropea (Lugo: Diputación de Lugo, 2009), pp. 181-211; Manuela Martins, Jorge Ribeiro, Fernanda Magalhães and Cristina Braga, “Urbanismo e arquitetura de Bracara Augusta. Sociedade, economia e lazer”, Evolução da Paisagem Urbana: Economia e Sociedade, ed. by Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Arnaldo Melo (Braga: Centro de Investigação Transdisciplinar “Cultura, Espaço e Memória”, 2012), pp. 29-67. 3 Francisco S. Lemos, José M. F. Leite and Luís Fontes, “A muralha de Bracara Augusta e a cerca medieval de Braga”, Mil Anos de Fortificações na Península Ibérica (500-1500), Actas do Simpósio Internacional Sobre Castelos, ed. by Isabel Fernandes (Palmera: Edições Calibri, 2001), pp. 121-132. 4 Luís Fontes, Manuela Martins, Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Helena Paula Carvalho, “A cidade de Braga e o seu território nos séculos V-VII”, Espacios Urbanos en el Occidente Mediterráneo (s. VI-VII) (Toledo: Toletum Visigodo, 2010), pp. 255-262. 5 Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Luís Fontes, “The urban morphology of Braga between Late Antiquity and the fourteenth-fifteenth centuries”, Braga and its territory between the fifth and the fifteenth centuries, ed. by Raquel Martínez Peñín (Lleida: Edicions i Publicacions de la Universitat de Lleida, 2015), pp. 29-45.

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archaeologically documented defensive perimeter.6 Throughout the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries a new and wider fortified city emerged, with the construction of another defensive wall, one that began to incorporate its suburbs (map 1).7

Map 1. General planimetry of the territory between Roman time and the Middle Ages (by the Authors)

Since then, and until the present day, this new urban area has been permanently occupied and has been demonstrating urban continuities and

 6

Luís Fontes, Francisco Sande Lemos and Mário Cruz, “‘Mais Velho que a Sé de Braga’. Intervenção arqueológica na catedral bracarense: notícia preliminar”, Cadernos de Arqueologia, 2/14-15, (1997-98), pp. 137-164. 7 Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Arnaldo Sousa Melo, “O papel dos sistemas defensivos na formação dos tecidos urbanos (Séculos XIII-XVII)”, Evolução da paisagem urbana: transformação morfológica dos tecidos históricos, ed. by Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Arnaldo Sousa Melo (Braga: Centro de Investigação Transdisciplinar “Cultura, Espaço e Memória”, 2013), pp. 190-192.

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discontinuities materializing from transformation processes that occurred rather significantly in the sixteenth and the nineteenth centuries.8 Naturally, and despite part of the urban area being permanently occupied since the city’s Roman foundation, the registered urban changes have been rather prominent, albeit not always easy to identify. As noted above, the study of Braga’s urban medieval evolution benefits from a variety of sources that complement each other; some of those we should highlight are the archaeological sources, cartography and historical iconography, written sources, and the historical buildings. Under these circumstances, the challenges within our work have been the adoption of an analysis methodology that contributes towards the understanding of the city’s urban evolution analysis, an objective that catered for the handling of different types of data, and the adoption of a methodology that included its articulation. Effectively, the study of the urban morphology of the city between the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, which is the overall aim of the present paper, must consider, on the one hand, the morphological attributes that featured the urban space during the previous urban periods and, on the other hand, the potential of the different types of available sources through an analysis methodology that enables the simultaneous use of progressive and regressive approaches. In this sense, we structured the present work into three parts. In the first part, we will approach the potentialities offered by the diverse types of sources, followed by an assessment of the analysis methodology adopted, and lastly the results of its application to the morphological studies in Braga, between the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.

2. Sources and Analysis Methodology 2.1. Sources Among the available sources, and especially the ones used by our analysis, we highlight the archaeological data, cartography and historical



8 Miguel Sopas Bandeira, “O Espaço Urbano de Braga-obras públicas, urbanismo e planeamento (1790-1974)”, (Braga: University of Minho, PhD Dissertation, 2002); Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Braga entre a época romana e a Idade Moderna. Uma metodologia de análise para a leitura da evolução do espaço urbano”, (Braga: University of Minho, PhD Dissertation, 2008).

356 The Urban Morphology of Braga in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries

iconography, written sources, and the historical constructions and fossilized marks existing within the current urban fabric. 2.1.1. Archaeological Sources Archaeological data emerging from the excavations conducted in Braga’s urban space since 1976 and as part of the ‘Bracara Augusta Rescue Project’ provide an extremely relevant archive that has enabled a characterization of the Roman urban layout and the successive transformations impacting the city in the following periods up to the High Middle Ages.9 Actually, from a morphological point of view, the archaeological data documented that the urbanized area of the Roman foundational period was planned according to an orthogonal layout defined by a system of regular streets that crossed perpendicularly and were structured according to two main road axes, the cardus maximus, running N/S, and the decumanus maximus, running E/W, which formed regular residential city quarters. As previously noted, Bracara Augusta’s foundational urban plan referred to a rectangular open urban surface of around 30 hectares, with the forum occupying the central place and located in the highest part of the city.10 However, the edification of a powerful wall in the late third/early fifth centuries significantly changed the urban shape of the foundational city, closing and bounding a space that was open up to then, providing the city with an elliptical shape.11 Equally, due to the construction of this defensive

 9

Manuela Martins, Luís Fontes, Armandino Cunha, “Arqueologia urbana em Braga: balanço de 37 anos de intervenções arqueológicas”, Arqueologia in Portugal 150 anos, ed. by José Morais Arnaud, Andrea Martins and César Neves (Lisboa: Associação portuguesa de Arqueólogos, 2013), pp. 81-88; Manuela Martins and Luís Fontes, “Bracara Augusta. Balanço de 30 anos de investigação arqueológica na capital da Galécia romana”, Mémoire, 19 (2010), pp. 111-124. 10 Manuela Martins and Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Em torno da Rua Verde. A evolução urbana de Braga na longa duração”, Evolução da paisagem urbana. Transformação morfológica dos tecidos históricos, ed. by Maria do Carmo Ribeiro anda Arnaldo Melo (Braga: Centro de Investigação Transdisciplinar “Cultura, Espaço e Memória”, 2013), pp. 11-44. 11 Francisco Sande Lemos, José M. F. Leite and Armandino Cunha, “A muralha romana (Baixo Império) de Bracara Augusta”, Murallas de ciudades romanas en el Occidente del Imperio. Lucus Augusti como paradigma, Actas del Congreso Internacional, ed. by Antonio Rodríguez Colmenero and Isabel Rodá de Llanza (Lugo: Diputación Provincial de Lugo, 2007), pp. 329-341.

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structure, some changes emerged within the regular urban plan as a result of the closing of some streets and buildings overlapping some public spaces, such as porticos and streets, which suggest the beginning of a process of reorganizing the residential quarters (map 2).12 The fragmentation of the previous Roman quarters was a complex process throughout subsequent centuries, not yet completely understood, which culminated in its division into much smaller plots, giving rise to the medieval urban plan that will be analysed below.

] Map 2. Urban plan of Bracara Augusta in the Low Empire (by the Authors)

Equally, the archaeological data documented a series of changes associated with the abandonment of some entertainment buildings, such as the theatre and the amphitheatre, and with the dissemination of Christianity, mainly related to the construction of the first early Christian basilica in the city. This was built, in the late fourth and early fifth centuries, in the northeast quadrant of the Roman town, and reused a

 12

Manuela Martins and Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Em torno da Rua Verde”, p. 25.

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previously existing Roman building located on the same site where the medieval cathedral would also later be erected.13 Recent archaeological data also documented an intense occupation of the ancient Roman town area between the fifth and seventh centuries, during the Suevic and Visigothic periods. Two types of space occupation seem to have occurred within the inner city walls during this period. One is clearly associated with the continuity of the residential Roman blocks occupation, where the domus kept being structured around the orthogonal foundational urban layout.14 A second type of occupation is linked with the emergence of new domestic and artisanal constructions organized around areas previously associated with Roman public buildings, as is the case with the Roman theatre.15 Consequently, during Late Antiquity a new urban reality emerged in the northeast quadrant of the Roman town in the area where the first early Christian basilica was constructed, becoming the new administrative and religious urban centre. This was bounded by the episcopal power that existed in the city and was fully consolidated with the construction of the cathedral and its respective episcopal complex in the eleventh century.16 Archaeological data also confirmed that the northern part of the Roman wall, dating to the Low Empire, was kept in use up to the early fourteenth century, although it should be said that the construction of a new wall in the southern part likely occurred between the late ninth and tenth

 13

Luís Fontes, Francisco Sande Lemos and Mário Cruz, “‘Mais Velho” que a Sé de Braga’. Intervenção arqueológica na catedral bracarense”, pp. 137-164. 14 Manuela Martins, Fernanda Magalhães, Raquel Martínez Peñín and Jorge Ribeiro, “The housing evolution of Braga between Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages”, Arqueología Medieval. Hàbitats Medievals, ed. by Flocel Sabaté and Jesús Brufal (Lleida: Pagès editors, 2016), pp. 35-52. 15 Manuela Martins, Jorge Ribeiro, Fernanda Magalhães and Raquel Martínez Peñín, “Urban changes in Braga in Late Antiquity: The area of the Roman Theater”, Braga and its territory between the fifth and the fifteenth centuries, ed. by Raquel Martínez Peñín (Lleida: Edicions i Publicacions de la Universitat de Lleida, 2015), pp. 11-28. 16 Luís Fontes, “O Norte de Portugal entre os séculos VIII e X: balanço e perspetivas de investigação”, Asturias entre visigodos y mozárabes. Visigodos y omeyas VI (Madrid: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, 2012), pp. 443-474.

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centuries.17 With this early medieval wall in place, two thirds of the Roman city area remained outside the protected urban area (map 3).

Map 3. Urban plan of Braga in 9th-13th centuries (by the Authors)

The reuse of the northern part of the Roman wall included a door from the former defensive system, as suggested by archaeological excavations conducted on site.18 This door provided articulation between one of the main inner-walled Roman axes, the cardus maximus, running N/S, and the Via XIX that crossed the valleys of the rivers Cávado and Homem, connecting Bracara with Lucus Augusti.19 The aforementioned archaeological excavations equally enabled the identification of a medieval pavement, corresponding to the modern Sapateiros street, which



17 Luís Fontes, “Braga e o norte de Portugal em torno a 711”, Zona Arqueológica, 15 (2011), p. 317. 18 Excavation carried out by the Archaeological Office of the city of Braga, directed by Dr. Armandino Cunha, whom we thank for the information. 19 Luís Fontes, “O Norte de Portugal entre os séculos VIII e X”, pp. 443-474.

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ran alongside the old cardus maximus axis preserved in the medieval Rua Verde.20 The archaeological data produced in the last 40 years has been the only basis for tracing Braga’s urban evolution from its Roman origin up to the High Middle Ages, at a time when the urbs was a mere small fortified borough no bigger than 15 hectares, but this would be the core from which the city would evolve throughout the Middle Ages.

2.1.2. Documental Sources The oldest available historical sources used for the morphological study of Braga were essentially produced for administrative purposes by the Cathedral Chapter of Braga. In this regard, we should stress that, since the 12th century, the city’s masters have been the archbishops, elected after the city became an ecclesiastical centre in the year 1112.21 To deal with this particular issue a group of documents have been used, in particular the 1º Livro do Tombo do Cabido, referring to the period between 1369 and 1380,22 the Índice dos Prazos das Casas do Cabido, covering the time between 1406 and 190523 and the Memorial das Obras que D. Diogo de Sousa mandou fazer, for the years 1505 to 1532.24 In general terms, these documents list the properties that the Cathedral Chapter of Braga had in the city. Although, they provide indirect information regarding urban features, they mainly provide data related to the different urban spaces, namely the streets and squares, while identifying their names and the urban properties owned by the Chapter.

 20

Manuela Martins and Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Em torno da Rua Verde”, p. 25. Avelino Jesus da Costa, O Bispo D. Pedro e a Organização da Arquidiocese de Braga (Braga: Irmandade de S. Bento da Porta Aberta, 1997), pp. 213-223. 22 This document belongs to the Arquivo Distrital of Braga and was critically dated between 1369-1380 by: Avelino Jesus da Costa, O Bispo D. Pedro, pp. 213-223. 23 Published together with the 2nd volume of ‘Mapa das Ruas de Braga’ (edited by Arquivo Distrital de Braga/Universidade do Minho e Companhia IBM Portuguesa, Braga, in 1989-91). 24 This document was produced by canon Tristão Luís, between 1532 and 1565 and belongs to: ADB, General record, book 330, pp. 329-334v. It was published by: Avelino Jesus da Costa, “D. Diogo de Sousa - Novo fundador de Braga e grande Mecenas da Cultur”, Separata do Livro de Homenagem à Arquidiocese Primaz nos 900 Anos de Dedicação da Catedral (Braga: Catedral de Braga, 1993), pp. 15-118. 21

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The analysis of the 1º Livro do Tombo do Cabido allowed us to identify a list of the names of the different streets that existed inside the walled space in the second half of the fourteenth century and their approximate location within the urban layout through the names of the places where the streets would begin and end and through their general association with prominent buildings in the medieval town, such as the cathedral, the wall’s gates or other sites that focused on commercial and trading activities. It was also possible to identify the houses that the Chapter held in each street, alongside the existence of backyards, courtyards and annexed buildings, and the housing typologies and their state of preservation state can also be identified. Furthermore, through the analysis of the names given to each street it was possible to get information related to its functionality (Sapateiros street-Shoemakers street), the street morphology or even the type of residents (Burgueses street-Burghers street).25 The 1º Livro do Tombo do Cabido provided data related to the streets inside the walled space and characterized the system and the properties located on the city’s outskirts in the second half of the fourteenth century. The Índice dos Prazos das Casas do Cabido is a document created in the eighteenth century, comprising four volumes. It was produced with the aim of reviewing and reordering the Chapter archive that was, at the time, in a state of great disarray.26 The book lists the urban properties owned by the Chapter, their typology and approximate location, providing information related to their successive tenants and transferences, with the oldest being from the year 1406. This document is particularly relevant for the urban study of the city due to the presence of the urban properties belonging to the Chapter and recording a plan of the houses of the eighteenth century streets that have also been graphically represented in a book entitled Mapa das Ruas de Braga, to be analysed later. The Memorial das Obras que D. Diogo de Sousa mandou fazer is a document identifying several urban interventions commissioned by D. Diogo de Sousa during his governance of Braga, between the years 1505 and 1532. In reality, this document describes a real urban program focused

 25

Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Braga entre a época romana e a Idade Moderna”, pp. 65-70, 195-198. 26 José Augusto Ferreira, Fastos Episcopais da Igreja Primacial de Braga (séc. IIIXX) (Braga: Mitra Bracarense, Famalicão, 1932), pp. 271-275; Maria da Assunção Vasconcelos, “O Mapa das Ruas de Braga de 1750 – Breve apontamento sobre a situação do Cabido Bracrense no séc. XVIII”, Fórum, 4 (1998), pp. 91-101.

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on modernizing and embellishing the city under the orders of the archbishop and widening the medieval city outside the walls.27 The latter was a key target that D. Diogo de Sousa had for his program, as the city had not yet developed towards its outskirts. Among other aspects, we should highlight the opening of new larger gates on the medieval wall, close to the old ones. In terms of the inner-walled area, other than reforms impacting the physiognomy and architecture of key city buildings, there were changes conducted to the street system, including the creation of new streets and squares, and the regulation of others. The aforementioned urban transformations were easily identified in the first general illustration produced for the city in the year 1594, widely known as Braunio’s Map, which will be analysed later. Consequently, while the Memorial das Obras registers the changes affecting the urban layout of Braga at the beginning of the modern age, it can be crossreferenced with Braunio’s Map and the 1º Livro do Tombo do Cabido in order to get an approximate idea of the medieval urban features. Although it is generally difficult to use historical documentary data in urban morphology studies, we must emphasise its relevance, in the case of Braga, after it has been cross-referenced with other sources, as it gives us a more accurate perspective of the features of the medieval and modern town.

2.1.3. Iconographic Sources The study of modern urbanism in Braga has benefited from another type of source related to the city’s first general illustrations. As previously noted, the first known iconographic representation dates back to the year 1594 and refers to the widely known Braunio’s Map (map 4). Although it is not a map in a topographic sense, this illustration provides a general image of the urban layout of the city in the sixteenth century, which we consider to be equally valid for the medieval town’s morphology.



27 Avelino Jesus da Costa, “D. Diogo de Sousa”, pp. 15-118; Miguel Sopas Bandeira, “D. Diogo de Sousa, o urbanista-leituras e texturas de uma cidade refundada”, Bracara Augusta, 103 (2000), pp. 19-58; Rui Maurício, O mecenato de D. Diogo de Sousa, Arcebispo de Braga (1505 1532) (Lisboa: Magno Edições, 2000).

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Map 4. Braunio’s Map (1594) (by the Authors)

In reality, the street system represented in Braunio’s Map for the innerwalled area matched, in general terms, both the same area referred to in the 1º Livro do Tombo do Cabido from the second half of the fourteenth century, and the area represented in the first topographically accurate map dating to the years 1883/1884. Equally, the changes endured by the modern town, also listed in the Memorial das Obras que D. Diogo de Sousa mandou fazer, can be easily identified in Braunio’s Map. In general, these changes have been morphologically highlighted and, in some cases, topographically decentred, as the vast majority were carried out inside the walled areas of the city, in the lesser urbanized ones, or in the immediate city suburbs. The morphology of sixteenth century Braga is also represented in another general town illustration, produced in the seventeenth century and corresponding to a coloured map included in an album in which other Portuguese settlements have also been represented (map 5).28 Despite some morphological anomalies present in the illustration, its comparison



28 Henrique Barreto Nunes, “Uma Imagem Inédita de Braga no Século XVII”, Forum, 15/16 (1994), pp. 21-23.

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with Braunio’s Map enables us to document the process of the city’s growth, mainly in terms of the rise of constructed plots. The features of the eighteenth century urban layout were illustrated in two types of cartographic representations: the Mapa das Ruas de Braga,29 commonly designated by the abbreviation ‘MRB’, and the Mapa da Cidade de Braga Primas, created by the architect of Braga André Soares (map 6).30

Map 5. Illustration of Braga in 17th century (by the Authors)

The Mapa das Ruas de Braga was produced by the Cathedral Chapter of Braga as part of its archive reorganization process, together with the Índice dos Prazos das Casas do Cabido.31 In reality it refers to a book depicting a high number of streets in the eighteenth century town, through the drawing of the construction elevations along the streets and squares where the Chapter held properties. The graphical representation of the different building facades was made to scale, therefore providing relevant data related to the height and width of the houses and other buildings. Although it failed to integrate the entirety of the spaces of the eighteenth

 29

Maria da Assunção Vasconcelos, “O Mapa das Ruas de Braga de 1750”, pp. 91101. 30 André Rybeiro Soares da Silva, Mapa da Cidade de Braga Primas (Lisboa: Biblioteca da Ajuda, 1755(?)). 31 José Augusto Ferreira, Fastos Episcopais da Igreja Primacial de Braga, pp. 91101.

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century city, this source portrayed the totality of the buildings, on both sides of the streets and squares, and includes the totality of the innerwalled area.32 Constructions belonging to the Chapter were marked with a numbered footnote linking them with the Índices dos Prazos das Casas do Cabido. This allowed the verification of a few represented constructions of medieval features, namely residential units, while illustrating parts of the medieval defensive system, such as doors, windows and towers (map 7).

Map 6. Mappa da Cidade de Braga Primas (18th century) (by the Authors)

 32

Maria da Assunção Vasconcelos, “O Mapa das Ruas de Braga de 1750”, pp. 91101; Miguel Sopas Bandeira, O espaço urbano de Braga em meados do século XVIII (Porto: Edições Afrontamento, 2000).

366 The Urban Morphology of Braga in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries

Map 7. Maximinos street in Mappa das Ruas de Braga (18th century) (by the Authors)

This document has a high iconographic and cadastral value and performed an important analytical tool for further comparison with the surviving historical buildings, the size of the plots, the morphological features of built spaces and the evolution of the building fronts. With this analysis it was possible to attest the more recent evolution of buildings, the distinct types of windows, doors and balconies, the variation in the number of floors, the presence of geminate houses, staggered floors, ceiling levels and the elements employed in construction and decoration.33 Lastly, we would like to stress that the version of the book analysed in our research was a reprint that included new material published by the District Archive in Braga and consisted of two volumes, the first published in 1989 and the second in 1991.34 The Mapa da Cidade de Braga Primas, dating back to the mid-eighteenth century, provided a general city overview and was projected with high aesthetic concern at an approximate 1:2000 scale. Its author, André Soares, was a prominent baroque architect of Braga, who represented the urban space by conciliating perspective and

 33

Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Braga entre a época romana e a Idade Moderna”, pp. 53-55. 34 André Rybeiro Soares da Silva, Mapa da Cidade de Braga Primas.

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scale, thus ensuring the proportionality of all represented elements in a rigorous visual three-dimensional projection of the urban space. Similarly to the Mapa das Ruas de Braga, this iconographic source provides a characterization of the urbanism of the city in the mideighteenth century. In articulation with the remaining sources, especially Braunio’s Map, it makes it possible to identify the main changes introduced to the urban space between the sixteenth and the eighteenth centuries, alongside the morphological continuities, which, when applied to the inner-walled area, were rather significant. In reality, the city mainly grew in its outskirts.

2.1.4. Cartographic Sources The nineteenth century oversaw the production of the first rigorous cartographic representations of the city, although they exhibit different levels of detail. Among these representations two should be highlighted: one refers to a plan executed with a 1:4000 scale by the army engineers Belchior José Garcez and Miguel Baptista Maciel (map 8),35 and the other is a map created by Francisco Goullard in 1883-1884, with a 1:500 scale (map 9).36 The first map refers to a rigorous and geometric survey of Braga in the eighteenth century and it provides a topographic reading of the city’s layout, although the built space was represented as a continuous stain accompanying the streets, failing to individualize the built plots. In addition, this map represented the first document upon which we were able to rigorously map Braga’s urban plan for the previous centuries, namely the modern and medieval periods. Through a comparative analysis with Braunio’s Map, it is possible to attest small morphological changes occurring in the inner-walled area from the sixteenth century up to the nineteenth century, whilst also proposing a valid cartography for the medieval period.

 35

Belchior José Garcez and Miguel Baptista Maciel, Planta da Cidade de Braga, escale 1/4000 (Lisboa: Instituto Cartográfico e Cadastral Português, undated). 36 Plan at a 1:500 scale, consisting of 32 sheets belonging to Braga City Council, whom we thank for the concession of the plan in a digital format.

368 The Urban Morphology of Braga in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries

Map 8. Braga’s city map in the 19th century (by the Authors)

Map 9. Braga’s city map in 1883-1884 (sheet 15) (by the Authors)

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The second map, created by Francisco Goullard, is a source of great relevance to the analysis of urbanism in the 1800s, as it recorded, in detail, the entire street system, the quarters and the plots, differentiating the built areas from the connected backyards, while also discriminating different soil uses. In addition, this map documented the urban plan prior to the main urban transformations conducted in the late nineteenth century around the inner-walled area, changes that completely destroyed the medieval urban layout.37 With regard to the adopted cartographic sources, we should also mention the 1946/1948 photograms and the topographic surveys conducted in 1968 and, again, in 1992. These maps correspond to the cartographic support used as the digital base for the present work. 2.1.5. Historical Constructions and Fossilized Marks in the Urban Landscape The reuse of urban structures throughout the gradual occupational stages of urban centres is an evident and common process for a great number of historical cities. In fact, despite the necessary renewals emerging from the extended use of buildings, cities assimilated and integrated constructive elements built in the earlier periods of occupation.38 This process is responsible for the preservation of architectonic elements in almost all historic cities until the present day. Sometimes it occurs in more obvious ways, as is generally the case with the most important historical buildings, while in other cases the preserved elements are rather dissimulated within the current urban fabric. In Braga’s case, this process can be observed in the city’s defensive system and in some of its built heritage. In an attempt to recover some of these evidences, fieldwork studies have been conducted within a few town



37 Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, Braga entre a época romana e a Idade Moderna, p. 172; Manuela Martins and Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Em torno da Rua Verde”, pp. 18-19. 38 Nuray Ozaslan, “Historic urban fabric: source of inspiration for contemporary city form” (York: University of York, PhD Dissertation, 1995); Roberto Cavallo, Susanne Komossa, Nicola Marzot, Meta Berghauser Pont and Joran Kuijper, New Urban Configurations (Amsterdam: IOS Press, 2014).

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quarters, alongside the listing of features of its historical buildings, through the application of archaeological methodologies.39 The tasks of locating, identifying and analysing the historical constructions have been aided by the available historical iconography, particularly by Braunio’s Map, the Mapa das Ruas de Braga (MRB), and the Mapa da Cidade de Braga Primas. In this sense, it was possible to establish analogies between the current constructions and their graphic representations when compared to former times, which in some cases goes back as far as the Middle Ages. In terms of the medieval defensive system, it was possible to identify, locate and map some of its constructed sections, that had been reused for other purposes, especially as plot boundaries, but also as the support for adjoining constructions. This task contributed towards the development of the planimetric proposal for the overall medieval defensive system.40

2.2. Analysis Methodology The detailed analysis of a city’s urban evolution from its genesis until the present day presents a difficult task, mainly due to the transformation processes taking place throughout successive periods of occupation, with different impacts on the city’s morphology and on the fragmentary nature and indirect character of the different sources that can document the evolutionary processes. The use of several types of sources becomes paramount in this task and the nature of the different types of data to be used must be as distinct as possible, while contemplating archaeological data, historical documentation, iconography, cartography and even the historical buildings. The exercise of compiling data emerging from different sources has previously been undertaken for the reconstruction of urban planimetry, as it is needed to produce new information from an interpretation process conducted and based upon the appreciation of the different types of existing testimonies. Equally, it is not always possible to use progressive

 39

Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Braga entre a época romana e a Idade Moderna”, pp. 73-271; Luís Fontes, Sofia Catalão and Mafalda Alves, “Arqueologia da Arquitectura em Contexto Urbano: reflexões a partir de três exemplos da cidade de Braga, Portugal”, Arqueología de la Arquitectura, 7 (2010), pp.105-128. 40 Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Braga entre a época romana e a Idade Moderna”, pp. 326-403.

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and evolutionary approaches, and on occasion regressive ones become necessary, as they subtract the transformations in the urban layout introduced in later times. In this sense, it is equally relevant to use a rigorous cartographic support, which should be as old as possible and valid for the planimetric and morphological reconstruction of the different occupational phases of the city. Thus, the digitization of records emerging from different sources, especially through the creation of back offices holding different types of data, which can be qualitative, cartographic, graphic and photographic, and the storing of data referring to key moments of urban consolidation, together with its cross-checking, should contribute towards the production of different interpretative maps, virtual models and detailed reconstructions of distinctive spaces, such as, the street system, the quarters and plots, and the characterization of the built heritage in different periods via distinct output tools, such as CitiEngine.41 For the study of Braga’s morphological evolution, between the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, the cartography adopted was a modern map dating back to 1992, commissioned by the city hall. It should be noted that this map was based upon aerial photography, requiring some corrections to be made on the terrain, particularly in terms of the plots (the number of plots, and their size, width and depth). This correction emerged from fieldwork carried out across the different quarters. The graphical data was later digitalized in AutoCAD and the descriptive information included in a database (SIUA-Information System of the Unit of Archaeology).42 The cartographic maps available for the nineteenth century were also digitalized, considering their relevance to the interpretation of the urban modern and medieval street grid and layout of the plots. The vectorization of these maps contributed towards their articulation with the current city map (1992), thus, performing the oldest rigorous cartographic support from which a regressive approach can be conducted, one that sought to suppress the changes introduced during the modern era. In this sense, the use of the Mapa das Ruas de Braga, dating back to the mid-eighteenth

 41

Natália Botica, Manuela Martins, Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Fernanda Magalhães, “3D representation of the urban evolution of Braga using the CityEngine tool”, Managing archaeological heritage: past and present (Kristiansand: Vest-Agder Museum, 2015), pp. 132-143. 42 Manuela Martins and Paulo Bernardes, “A multi-disciplinary approach for research and presentation of Bracara Augusta”, Archeologia e Calcolatori, 11 (2000), pp. 347-357.

372 The Urban Morphology of Braga in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries

century, was equally an extremely relevant source that documented the plotting and the construction features of the 1800s, some of which were of medieval origin. Taking the nineteenth century topographic plan as the starting point, a reconstruction of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries’ urban plans was intended through the cross-checking of data emerging from the written sources, particularly from the Índices dos Prazos das Casas do Cabido, with the data provided by the nineteenth century historical iconography represented by both the Mapa das Ruas de Braga and the Mapa da Cidade de Braga Primas. Data emerging from the analysis of the written sources was chronologically ordered and loaded into the SIUA database, respecting the different quarters of the modern city, as well as the plot system. In the sixteenth and eighteenth century cases it was possible to associate information to each plot by referring to the emphyteusis, especially in terms of names, occupations, marital statuses and plot typologies. This procedure was systematically adopted, allowing the reconstruction of the sixteenth century urban plan proposal. In this case, Braunio’s Map, created in 1594, and the Memorial das Obras que D. Diogo de Sousa mandou fazer, from the sixteenth century, were very important sources. Using the sixteenth century plan proposal as a base, we have tried to analyse and map the urban morphological features from the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries documented by the written sources 1º Livro do Tombo do Cabido (1369 and 1380) and Índices dos Prazos das Casas do Cabido (from 1406), which are particularly significant for the restitution of the street system and the Low Middle Ages urban quarters. By also using the written sources, we are able to document some important constructive changes during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries that impacted on the city’s urban layout, namely the new defensive perimeter, the castle,43 and the archiepiscopal palace, alongside the emergence of new streets within the walled area of the city. Although most of the medieval wall is no longer visible, it was possible to identity its layout due to the intensive fieldwork that has been carried out inside the quarters, where various remains are still noticeable

 43

José Marques, “O Castelo de Braga (1350-1450)”, Mínia, 8 (1986), pp. 5-34; Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Braga entre a época romana e a Idade Moderna”, pp. 315-500.

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and are preserved as part of the current urban plot system. This task was articulated with the analysis of the iconographic sources, namely Braunio’s Map and the Mapa da Cidade de Braga Primas, where the medieval wall was represented. This type of procedure was also adopted for the reconstruction proposal of the medieval castle, which benefited from an analysis conducted inside present buildings, which had preserved parts of this old heritage, in articulation with cartography and historical iconography available for modern times. This unveiled the different changes the castle endured up to its partial demolishing at the beginning of the twentieth century.44 Taking into consideration that the genesis of the medieval city is to be found in the northeast quadrant of the ancient Roman town, and that it was from this sector that the city of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries grew, we deemed it necessary to contemplate Braga’s urban morphology since the Roman era. The primary sources for the reconstruction of the Roman city and the Late Antique urban morphology are the relevant available archaeological data emerging from the Rescue Project of Braga, since 1976.45 Aerial photography and the cartography of modern Braga, dating back to 1992, served as secondary sources. In a similar fashion to what occurred in earlier periods, the archaeological sources fostered a High Medieval morphological approach for Braga. In this case, the nineteenth century topographic map created by B. Garcez and M. Maciel also performed as a primary source, as it represents the first rigorous cartographic base for the city’s urban plan prior to the great urban transformations that impacted the inner-walled urban space in the second half of the nineteenth century. Meanwhile, the main sources for the Low Medieval morphological reconstruction were the nineteenth century topographic maps, in terms of the restitution of the street layout, and the Mapa das Ruas de Braga (MRB), from the eighteenth century, used for the analysis of the plots and the reconstruction of the defensive system. The available historical documentation and iconography, in particular the well-known Braunio’s Map from 1594, were used as secondary sources.

 44

Eduardo Pires de Oliveira, “Documentos para a História do Museu D. Diogo de Sousa II”, Cadernos de Arqueologia, 2/2 (1985), pp. 179-194. 45 Manuela Martins, Luís Fontes and Armandinho Cunha, “Arqueologia urbana em Braga”, pp. 81-88; Manuela Martins and Luís Fontes, “Bracara Augusta. Balanço de 30 anos de investigação arqueológica”, pp. 111-124.

374 The Urban Morphology of Braga in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries

From the articulated analysis of the different types of available sources and through the adoption of a methodology that valued the simultaneous application of progressive and regressive approaches, as well as the production of new information, it was therefore possible to elaborate an interpretation proposal for Braga’s urban morphology, during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.

3. Braga’s Urban Morphology in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries Starting in the late thirteenth century, written sources documented the growth of the urban area of Braga towards the north and northeast parts of the city, through the emergence of new streets, the widening of the defensive system that started to integrate new gateways, and the construction of a new archiepiscopal palace and castle, at the very beginning of the fourteenth century. Equally, data recovered by archaeology demonstrated that the northern part of the High Medieval defensive system was reorganized in the early fourteenth century, culminating with the expansion of the defensive wall towards the north and northeast areas of the ancient High Medieval city. The new Low Medieval wall incorporated the previous suburbs and therefore it duplicated the High Medieval city area (map 10).46 Both the High and Low Medieval walls are documented in the archaeological area of ‘Escola Velha da Sé’, where part of a tower is also present.47 The remains show that the construction of the High Medieval wall involved the destruction of part of a Roman block, which had remained occupied throughout Late Antiquity. Although the exact date of the construction of this wall still remains open to discussion, it is certainly later than the eighth century. In fact, despite the political and administrative dismantling relating to the establishment of the Arab rule on the south of the Iberian Peninsula from 711, Braga and its wide diocesan region, corresponding to the territory of what is now north Portugal, remained populated not only according to archaeology but also



46 Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Luís Fontes, “The Urban Morphlogy of Braga”, pp. 37-44. 47 Excavation carried out by the Archaeological Office of the city of Braga, directed by Dr. Armandino Cunha, whom we thank for the information. Fernanda Magalhães, “Arquitetura doméstica em Bracara Augusta” (Braga: Universidade do Minho, Master Dissertation, 2010); Fernanda Magalhães, “Arquitetura doméstica em Bracara Augusta”, Interconexões, 1 (2013), pp. 13-30.

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to the written sources, namely the documented activity of the Bishop of Odoário in the second half of the eighth century.48 So, bearing in mind the archaeological and documentary written sources, we can accordingly suggest that the construction of the High Medieval defensive perimeter of Braga, with a significant reduction of the city’s previous urban area, passing from the 40 hectares of Late Antiquity to just over 15 hectares, could be closely related to the territorial reorganization undertaken by Alfonso III of Asturias, who in 873 ‘restored’ and bound the city of Braga.49

Map 10. Reconfiguration of the urban space in 9th-13th centuries (by the Authors)

It was also possible to find one of the doors of the High Medieval wall,50 aligned with the medieval Rua Verde street, which fossilized the



48 Avelino Jesus da Costa, Liber Fidei Sanctae Bracarensis Ecclesiae (Braga: Assembleia Distrital de Braga, 1965), pp. 44-51 (doc. No. 22); Avelino Jesus da Costa, O bispo D. Pedro e a organização da diocese de Braga, (Braga: Edição Irmandade de S. Bento da Porta Aberta1997), p. 48. 49 Luís Fontes, “O Norte de Portugal entre os séculos VIII e X”, pp. 443-474. 50 Excavation carried out by the Archaeological Office of the city of Braga, directed by Dr. Armandino Cunha, whom we thank for the information.

376 The Urban Morphology of Braga in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries

general orientation of the northern part of the Roman cardus maximus.51 Nevertheless, it was not possible until the present moment to document other archaeological evidences of the perimeter of the High Medieval wall, but we would suggest that it must correspond to the one recognized in the Low Medieval perimeter, in both the south and east areas. In fact, as a result of the excavations carried out in different areas close to the crossing of the medieval wall, two phases of stone plunder of the Roman buildings have been systematically documented, which must be related to the construction of any public amenities.52 One is clearly chronologically associated with the construction of the Low Medieval wall, and it is possible to consider that the other phase could be dated back to the eighthninth centuries, based on the ceramic contexts. We are surely faced with indirect evidence of the wall’s construction during the High Middle Ages, whose perimeter would be coincident with the later wall, except on the north side, where it was defined by part of the Lower Roman Empire wall, constructed between the end of the third century and the beginning of the fourth century.53 This fortification would only be definitively destroyed and replaced in the fourteenth century with the Fernandina wall.54 In the intramural area of the medieval city the episcopal headquarters, set up in Late Antiquity as an architectural urban marker and as a religious, political and administrative hub, joined the civil and ecclesiastical powers through the figure of the bishop. Built at the beginning of the fifth century, it remained in use until the eleventh century, when Bishop D. Peter launched the major project of a new

 51

Manuela Martins and Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Em torno da Rua Verde”, pp. 11-44. 52 This is the case documented in the archaeological excavations in the area known as R. Afonso Henriques, nº 42-56, and the one of the Ex Albergue Distrital; Manuela Martins, Armandino Cunha, Fernanda Magalhães and Cristina Braga, “Metamorfoses de um espaço urbano. A sequência de ocupação da Zona Arqueológica da R. Afonso Henriques nºs 42 a 56, em Braga”, Oppidum, 7 (2014), pp. 111-127; Ana Catarina Torres, “Sequência de ocupação da Zona Arqueológica do Ex. Albergue Distrital. Contributo para a análise evolutiva e funcional de uma unidade doméstica em Bracara Augusta”, (Braga: University of Minho, Master Dissertation, 2014). 53 Francisco S. Lemos, José M. F. Leite and Luís Fontes, “A muralha de Bracara Augusta e a cerca medieval de Braga”, pp. 121-132. 54 Luís Fontes, Francisco Sande Lemos and Mário Cruz, “‘Mais Velho’ que a Sé de Braga”, pp. 137-164.

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Romanesque cathedral.55 This conditioned the further evolution of the city in the High Middle Ages, once it saw its northeastern area restricted by the episcopal complex. In fact, the cathedral remained peripheral until the fourteenth century, as it was constructed very close to the north side of the Roman and High Medieval wall. Only with the duplication of the city in the Low Middle Ages did the cathedral become a central point of the city’s organization, clearly separating the episcopal city (north side) and the civil city (south side) (map 11).

Map 11. Braga’s medieval urban plan (by the Authors)

As noted above, the genesis of the Low Medieval urban morphology of Braga is to be found in the small borough formed in the northeast quadrant

 55

Avelino Jesus da Costa, O Bispo D. Pedro, pp. 213-223; Manuel Real, “O projecto da catedral de Braga, nos finais do século XI, e as origens do românico português”, Actas IX Centenário da Dedicação da Sé de Braga. Congresso Internacional (Braga: Faculdade Teologia/Cabido de Braga, 1990), pp. 435-511; Luís Fontes, Francisco Sande Lemos and Mário Cruz, “‘Mais Velho’ que a Sé de Braga, pp. 137-164.

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of the Roman town, between the ninth and the thirteenth centuries. Its defensive system resulted from the reuse of the Low Roman Empire wall, and the edification of a new southern perimeter, enclosing an urban area no greater than 15 hectares. Under these circumstances, the town plan for the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries clearly reflected two distinctive urban developments. One corresponded to an area occupied since the Roman times, and the other resulted from a growth process that started to integrate the rural surroundings on the northern side of the city. Despite the restructuring processes carried out in the area where the medieval city overlapped the previous Roman areas, which were also occupied in Late Antiquity, the streets and quarters stood out due to their regularity, mainly in the inner area corresponding to the High Medieval city. The layout formed in this sector was defined by five streets running N/S and another running E/W, corresponding to the medieval Travessas district, well documented since the late fourteenth century in the 1º Livro do Tombo do Cabido. In reality, the logic of the medieval street structure’s orientation for this sector was based on maintaining its Roman origin, although the medieval axes had been decentred from the ancient Roman ones and were less rectilinear and often sinuous. Comparing the medieval reality with the Roman street network, we can verify that the number of axes with N/S orientations remained practically identical to the ancient secondary cardines existing in the same area in the Roman town; the northern part contained only one extra street, which was connected to the opening of a new wall door. In terms of the number of street axes running E/W, there was a clear reduction in the number of decumani and only one street retained that orientation, the medieval ‘Travessas’ street. However, in general terms, there was no exact match between the Roman and medieval street networks and only the medieval Rua Verde kept its Roman axis, corresponding to the fossilized layout of the northern cardus maximus.56 It is possible that the general process of constructing over the Roman circulation axes documented throughout Late Antiquity could have caused the disappearance of the E/W Roman axes and the aggregation of the old Roman quarters, thus, forming broader medieval quarters of rectangular shape and N/S orientation.57 Nevertheless, we do not have enough

 56

Manuela Martins and Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Em torno da Rua Verde”, pp. 11-44. 57 Manuela Martins and Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Em torno da Rua Verde”, p. 30.

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379

archaeological data to prove this assumption and further information is required to understand why this process could have affected the decumani more than the cardines. Equally problematic is the formalization process of the medieval blocks and plots. In fact, it is possible that the fragmentation of the former Roman quarters into different family houses, documented in Late Antiquity,58 could have been accompanied by the spontaneous growth in height of separate houses recorded since the High Middle Ages, and have originated their progressive fossilization into small plots. However this is a question that only can be solved by further archaeological research and we must wait for more data to understand the process of medieval plot formation more clearly. In general, we may consider that the medieval street system was only slightly hierarchized, once it included streets with roughly the same width. The plots were narrow and long and the constructions were located nearby the streets, with backwards-facing and annexed buildings existing inside the quarters.59 In contrast with the south area of the city, it should be noted that the northern area bounded by the fourteenth century wall maintained very rural features and mainly included properties owned by the Chapter in the surroundings of the archiepiscopal palace.60 This was characteristic of the area for a number of centuries, and explains the differences between the two urban areas that still exist today. In terms of the medieval urban plan, another type of morphology clearly stood out within the city and seems to have resulted from the growth process of the urbanized area, integrating the previous rural suburbs, alongside spaces developed near to the wall or the wall’s doors.61 In this case, it was mainly the street axes and the irregular quarters that clearly characterized the urban layout (map 11).

 58

Manuela Martins, Fernanda Magalhães, Raquel Martínez Peñín and Jorge Ribeiro, “The housing evolution of Braga”, pp. 35-91. 59 Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Braga entre a época romana e a Idade Moderna”, p. 500. 60 Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Braga entre a época romana e a Idade Moderna”, p. 488. 61 Maria do Carmo Ribeiro, “Braga entre a época romana e a Idade Moderna”, pp. 336-337.

380 The Urban Morphology of Braga in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries

The exact boundary of the medieval wall, and in particular the location of its doors, sheds some light on the articulation they had with the primary inner-walled circulation axes, and with the street system connecting the city with urban centres growing around the churches located in the outskirts, mainly nearby the areas of old Roman necropolises.62

Final Considerations The adopted approach in terms of the analysis of Braga’s urban fabric in the Late Middle Ages sought to recreate an analysis model to evaluate the urban configuration of the city, valuing the potential offered by the different types of available sources, namely information emerging from archaeology and written sources, cartography and historical iconography, as well as, from the analysis of historical constructions. We are aware of the difficulties of our approach and particularly of the issues that have to be solved, primarily related with the genesis processes of the medieval street network and the shape of the quarters and lots. It also seems clear that the urban structure of Braga in the late Middle Ages is quite indebted to that which was formalized in the preceding period, between the tenth and thirteenth centuries, for which we have less archaeological evidence and few written sources for the city’s study. However, we believe that only the articulated use of the emerging results in archaeological and historical research can contribute towards the production of new information that could help to formalize better plan proposals for the medieval city of Braga. In some cases the regressive analysis of historic and cartographic data can also provide some useful conjectures to be later validated by archaeological research and cartographic analysis. In fact, despite the urban changes documented in Braga between its Roman origin and the present, the extraordinary preservation of some structural features of Braga’s urban fabric performed a particularly key condition for the study of the city’s urban evolution. Braga’s medieval urban features were not very distinctive from the ones reproduced by the earliest existing iconography portraying the sixteenth century city. Equally, the changes recorded in the city between



62 Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Arnaldo Sousa Melo, “O crescimento periférico das cidades medievais portuguesas (séculos XIII- XVI): a ação dos mesteres e das instituições religiosas’, Evolução da paisagem urbana :cidade e periferia, ed. by Maria do Carmo Ribeiro and Arnaldo Sousa Melo (Braga: Centro de Investigação Transdisciplinar “Cultura, Espaço e Memória”, 2014), pp. 86-91.

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the Late Middle Ages and the nineteenth century matched the typical changes occurring during the Renaissance period and the eighteenth century, being well-individualized morphologically and, in some cases, topographically decentred. The same trends occurred with the nineteenth century alterations, namely the opening of some new streets regulating part of the medieval and modern street system, with the consequent destruction of its corresponding plots that are safely registered in the cartographic records of the nineteenth century.

THE RIণLA OF ‘UMAR BA৫NjN: A MUDEJAR PILGRIMAGE ROUTE TO MECCA FROM CASTILE1 PABLO ROZA CANDÁS UNIVERSIDAD DE OVIEDO

According to Islamic precepts, the obligation of pilgrimage to Mecca once in a lifetime falls on every adult and healthy Muslim, unless circumstances beyond his control prevent it.2 The pilgrimage or ‫ۊ‬aЂЂ, which always occurs on the same dates of the Muslim lunar calendar, coinciding with the first fortnight of the month of ‫ڳ‬nj l-‫ۊ‬iЂЂa, is the highest expression of strength and solidarity of the umma or community of believers. However, long distances, the high costs of such an expedition, and the multiple risks along the way (wars, storms, bandits, epidemics, etc.) meant that at various times throughout history the ‫ۊ‬aЂЂ, while not impossible, was at the very least an arduous enterprise in which many of these pilgrims perished. Those Muslims living in territories under Christian rule, whose movements gradually created mistrust among the authorities in power, certainly faced an additional obstacle. In this paper I will describe the path followed by ‘Umar Ba৬njn, one of those Spanish Muslims who, at a delicate moment in Spain’s history, after a long and eventful journey, managed to gaze upon the longed-for Holy Places with his own eyes. His story, hidden away for centuries in a humble Aljamiado codex of the Aragonese Moriscos, today constitutes an exceptional testimony that speaks out to us from the Mudejar aljamas of 1

This paper was written within the framework of the Marie Curie - Clarín Cofund Postdoctoral Research Program (2014-2016) at the Centre de Recherches MoyenOrient Méditerranée (CERMOM EA 4091), Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales (INALCO), Paris. 2 Quran, 3: 97: “And pilgrimage to the House is a duty unto Allah for all mankind, for him who can find a way thither”. Other Quranic references to the pilgrimage can be found in suras 2: 153-158 and 185-189; 5: 2, 95-96 and 97-98; 9: 19; 22: 25-38 and 48: 27.

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Castile, and carries us across the Mediterranean, to the remote deserts of the Middle East.

1. Mudejar Pilgrimages to Mecca We know that during the Mudejar period, depending on the moment in history and the place, the Islamic communities of the Iberian peninsula enjoyed a certain freedom of movement that allowed them to travel to other Muslim countries for trade, debt collection, family matters or, as we shall see, to fulfill their duty to do the ‫ۊ‬aЂЂ or pilgrimage to the Holy Places of Islam. So while in the Kingdom of Castile it appears that there were certain limits on Mudejar movement, in the Kingdoms of Aragon and Navarre, these communities generally enjoyed greater freedom (although always subject to restrictions)3 to travel through their territories and outside them. Amongst these Mudejar journeys, we know that, with certain limitations, pilgrimages from Catalonia and Valencia ports were common, where groups of pilgrims would sail to the coast of North Africa and from there start their journey to Mecca.4 Some of these overseas voyages of the Muslim population were recorded in the books of the Batllia General (General Bailiff) of Catalonia and the Batllia General of Valencia during the first half of the 14th century, with the explicit mention of Mecca as the final destination of the traveler. In such cases, before he travelled the pilgrim had to formally apply for a permit or letter of safe conduct allowing him to pass through the 3 Thus, within the Kingdom of Aragon, it seems that the Catalan and Aragonese Mudejars, subject to Christian rule from early times, enjoyed greater privileges than those of Valencia, whose community was larger than in the north and more influenced by Granada and North Africa (José Hinojosa Montalvo, Los mudéjares: la voz del Islam en la España cristiana [Teruel: Centro de Estudios Mudéjares, 2002], pp. 63-64 and 76). Having said that, the surrender agreements of cities such as Chivert and Játiva guaranteed the specific right of Mudejars to make the pilgrimage to Mecca, subject only to tolls. See: Robert Ignatius Burns, Islam under the Crusaders: Colonial Survival in the Thirteenth-Century Kingdom of Valencia (Princeton-New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1973), pp. 195-197. Yet in 1347 Peter IV of Aragon (known as the Ceremonious) granted the Valencian Mudejars the right to move to Muslim lands for family, business or religious reasons on the condition that they returned at the end of their voyage. 4 Particularly the ports of Tortosa and Barcelona, along with those of the Valencian coast, from which Catalans, Aragonese and Navarrese sailed. See: Ana Echevarría Arsuaga, La minoría islámica de los reinos cristianos medievales (Malaga: Sarriá, 2004), pp. 118-119; and José Hinojosa Montalvo, Los mudéjares, pp. 63-64 and 76.

384

The Riতla of ‘Umar Ba৬un

peninsular territories, and pay a bond that would ensure his return within the time determined by the authorities.5 Furthermore, these voyages were usually organized by Christian agents who would ensure the transfer of pilgrims to the port of destination. This is the case of Pasqual de Vilafranca from Lleida, who is mentioned several times in the Barcelona archives between 1342 and 1346, and for Francesc Bosquet or Guillem Jordà from Tortosa, who were in charge of carrying these groups of Muslims in ships owned by Arnau Guillem Sabastida, Pere Mitjavila, etc.6 Indeed, these pilgrimage routes appear extensively and explicitly in medieval Christian cartography, which would appear to prove that they were everyday occurrences. Thus, for example, in the 14th century the shipping charts of Majorca, such as the Atles català of 1375, take great delight in describing and illustrating the North African pilgrimage routes7 as well as Mecca itself.8 While it is true that obtaining such travel permits was not excessively difficult for the Mudejar community, the papal ban, issued in the first third of the 14th century, on doing business with the lands of the Mamluk Sultanate following the loss of Acre in 1291, undoubtedly represented an obstacle for pilgrims to leave their lands. Nevertheless, between 1329 and 5

Thus, the traveler was not subject to any taxes as long as he returned within a year and a day. If this condition was not fulfilled he would have to pay the same taxes as the Moors who migrated, as well as a tenth of his assets, which was calculated before his departure in anticipation of a possible delay in his return. Most often, however, it seems it was the payment of a simple fine for missing the established return date. See: Maria Teresa Ferrer, “Documentación sobre mudéjares del Archivo de la Corona de Aragón”, Fuentes documentales para el estudio de los mudéjares, ed. by Maria Teresa Ferrer, Isabel Montes Romero-Camacho, Germán Navarro Espinach and José Francisco Egea Gilaberte (Teruel: Centro de Estudios Mudéjares, 2005), pp. 9-53; Maria Teresa Ferrer, Els sarraïns de la Corona catalano-aragonesa en el segle XIV: Segregació i discriminació (Barcelona: Consell Superior d'Investigacions Científiques, 1987), pp. 137-138; and José Hinojosa Montalvo, Los mudéjares, pp. 124-125. 6 Maria Teresa Ferrer, “Els viatges piadosos de cristians, jueus i musulmans per la Mediterrània medieval”, Un Mar de Lleis: De Jaume I a Lepant (Barcelona: Institut Europeu de la Mediterrània, 2008), pp. 112-114. 7 Sandra Sáenz-López Pérez, “La peregrinación a La Meca en la Edad Media a través de la cartografía occidental”, Revista de poética medieval, 19 (2007), pp. 180 and 183-184. 8 In accordance with Christian imagery, it was believed that the Prophet’s bones were laid to rest in Mecca (not in Medina) in a sort of ark that was kept floating in mid-air by magnetisation.

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1347 the departure of groups of Catalan and Aragonese Muslims for different parts of the Mediterranean such as Cyprus, Jerusalem and especially Alexandria is recorded from the ports of Barcelona and Tortosa, although we can assume that the final destination of most of these expeditions was none other than the Holy Places of the Arabian Peninsula. From the second half of the 14th century it was becoming easier to obtain permits, with the result that the flow of travelers and pilgrims, many of whom now preferred to do without a Christian agent, became more regular. Ferrer Mallol9 quotes some cases of these sarraïns (Saracens) undertaking the journey, in a family group, such as the Cordoví in 1361 who sailed from Barcelona for Jerusalem, or the Abenferre of Lleida in 1371 who sailed for Mecca. We also have cases of Mudejars that undertake the journey alone, such as a pilgrim from Finestrat in Alicante in 1381, or a saraceno of Saragossa who in 1388 obtained a permit to ir a venerar la tumba de Mahoma.10 From the early years of the 16th century, with the tightening of the measures taken against the now Morisco11 Muslim community, such as the ban on Islamic rites and ceremonies, their form of dress or language, restrictions were also placed on travel inside and outside the Iberian Peninsula, which meant having to give up such a fundamental precept as the pilgrimage.12 In this climate of prohibition, and with an ever-shrinking economy, the Morisco could be considered, from a legal standpoint, as being exempted from this basic Islamic obligation.13 This notwithstanding, 9 Maria Teresa Ferrer, “Els viatges piadosos de cristians, jueus i musulmans per la Mediterrània medieval”, pp. 114-115. 10 “Go and worship at the tomb of Muhammad”. 11 On the pilgrimage amongst the Moriscos, see: Leonard Patrick Harvey, “The Moriscos and the ণajj”, Bulletin of the British Society for Middle Eastern Studies, 14 (1988), pp. 11-24. 12 Louis Cardaillac, Moriscos y cristianos: Un enfrentamiento polémico (14921640) (Madrid: Fondo de Cultura Económica, 1979), p. 34; Anwar G. Chejne, Islam and the West: the Moriscos (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1983), p. 63; Míkel de Epalza, Los moriscos antes y después de la expulsión (Madrid: Mapfre, 1992), p. 106; Bernard Vincent, “La vida social y religiosa”, Entre tierra y fe: los musulmanes en el reino cristiano de Valencia (1238-1609) (Valencia: Universitat, 2009), p. 373. 13 In the same way, the pilgrimage obligation is suspended in situations of extreme danger on the road, such as wars or epidemics. On the other hand, Islamic law allows certain categories of Muslims who are unable to perform the pilgrimage to delegate the obligation to another member of the umma. See: Arent Jan Wensinck

386

The Riতla of ‘Umar Ba৬un

although a few references have reached us of Morisco voyages through the Mediterranean and the Middle East before the expulsion, some of these testimonies prove how a small number did indeed manage to fulfill this obligation.14 It is true that, depending on the time and the place, we can assume that a relatively large section of Morisco society conserved their Islamic practices (including the pilgrimage), especially in areas of dense Muslim population where family and community structure remained cohesive for longer.15

2. Mudejar and Morisco Literary Contexts Broadly speaking, the ‘travelogue’, ‘travel account’ or ri‫ۊ‬la,16 in which the chronicle of ‘Umar Ba৬njn is included, is a literary genre from the Western area of the Muslim world that links up with the previous tradition of ahbar, which are biographical stories in which both personal anecdotes and data of a historical nature are contained. The first evidence of this Andalusian genre dates back to the 10th century, in which Ibn QallƗs of Malaga (270/883 - 337/948) made a brief account of his trip to Tunisia, Egypt and Arabia. However, it was at the beginning of the 11th century that the genre17 took shape in the hands of Abnj Bakr b. al-‘ArabƯ (468/1076 543/1148) with his TartƯb ar-ri‫ۊ‬la. In the 12th century we find the most notable examples of this literature in the chronicles of Abnj ণƗmid aland Jacques Jomier, “Hadjdj”, Encyclopédie de l’islam (Leiden: Brill, 1960-2005), p. 35 [2nd edition]. 14 Leonard Patrick Harvey, “Los moriscos y los cinco pilares del Islam”, Actas del III Simposio Internacional de Estudios Moriscos: las prácticas musulmanas de los moriscos andaluces (1492-1609) (Zaghouan: CEROMDI, 1989), p. 96; Antonio Domínguez Ortiz and Bernard Vincent, Historia de los moriscos: vida y tragedia de una minoría (Madrid: Revista de Occidente, 1978), p. 92. 15 Mercedes García-Arenal, “Simancas. Moriscos e Inquisición”, Los moriscos: españoles desterrados (Madrid: Ministerio de Cultura, 2009), p. 39. 16 Ian Richard Netton, “Riতla”, Encyclopédie de l’islam (Leiden: Brill, 1960-2005), pp. 545-546 [2nd edition]; Houari Touati, “Travel”, Medieval Islamic Civilization. An Encyclopedia, ed. J. W. Meri (New York: Routledge, 2006), II, pp. 830-832. See also: Dolors Bramon Planas, “Viajeros musulmanes: origen y desmitificación de creencias medievales”, Cuadernos del CEMYR, 14 (2006), pp. 37-54; and the introductory study in Ibn ۛubayr: A través del Oriente (Ri‫ۊ‬la), ed. by Felipe Maíllo Salgado (Madrid: Alianza Editorial, 2007), pp. 25-32. 17 From the 9th century we have reports of other Andalusian travelers who visited different centers of Islamic learning in the Mediterranean and Near East such as Ibn ণabƯb (d. 238/852), YaতyƗ b. ‘Umar (d. 283/896) or BaqƯ b. Maਏlad (d. 276/889).

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ƤarnƗ৬Ư (473/1080 - 565/1169), collected in his KitƗb al-Mu‘rib ‘an ba‘‫ڲ‬ ‘aЂƗ’ib al-Maƥrib and Tu‫ۊ‬fat al-albƗb wa nuܵbat al-‘aЂƗb and especially in the Ri‫ۊ‬la of Ibn ۛubayr, who can be considered the most representative example of this genre and a model for authors of later centuries such as Ibn Sa‘Ưd al-MaƥribƯ, al-‘AbdarƯ, Ibn Rušayd, at-TuۜƯbƯ, al-Qan৬njrƯ, atTiۜanƯ, Abnj’l-BaqƗ’, HƗlid al-BalawƯ and the famous traveler Ibn Ba৬৬nj৬a from Tangiers. After a period of relative decline, it was not to be until well into the 17th century when the genre recovered its initial splendor with the Ri‫ۊ‬la of the Maghrebi Al-‘AyyƗšƯ (1628-1779). Alongside the commercial expeditions and the study trips to the great centers of learning in the Mediterranean and Middle East (ri‫ۊ‬la fƯ ‫ܒ‬alab al‘ilm), one of the main topics of these stories is undoubtedly the pilgrimage or ‫ۊ‬aЂЂ to Mecca. In the same way as a modern travel guide, and by describing the experience of other travelers, this literature provided pilgrims with practical information on the most ideal routes, means of transport, distances between cities, weather conditions, accommodation and the cost of living in different countries. Furthermore, travelers would find in these literary works descriptions of regions and cities that their routes passed through and data on the most diverse habits and customs of each country. Similarly, from a religious point of view, this travel literature provides a detailed description of the rites of the ‫ۊ‬aЂЂ and other popular places of devotion (relics, shrines, tombs, etc.) that pilgrims would encounter on their way and a visit to which is recommended as an introduction to the Holy Places of Mecca and Medina. We know that the Mudejars and Moriscos, heirs to the Andalusian tradition, cultivated this genre, and although surviving testimonies are not high in number, what does exist is very significant to the extent that these travelers’ chronicles give us firsthand knowledge of the era in its most diverse aspects: historical, political, economic, cultural, religious, etc. One of these works is the ‫܇‬ifƗt al-‫ۊ‬aЂЂ or De la descripçión del modo de visitar el templo de Meca by Aতmad ibn Fath ibn AbƯ ar-RabƯ‘a 18 which includes two travel stories: the first is the story of a pilgrim who sets out from Tortosa to Mecca in 1396, while the second contains the chronicle of the Alfaqui of Fez who, having set out on his voyage around 1400, is

18

Manuscript kept under catalogue number 128 in the Biblioteca de la Fundación Bartolomé March in Palma, Majorca. See the edition and study by: Míkel de Epalza, “Dos textos moriscos bilingües (árabe y castellano) de viajes a Oriente (1395 y 1407-1412)”, Hesperis-Tamuda, 20-21 (1982-1983), pp. 25-112.

388

The Riতla of ‘Umar Ba৬un

captured and taken to the island of Majorca, where he would eventually be rescued by Moriscos. The autobiographical work Ni‫܈‬Ɨb al-aܵbƗr wa ta‫ڴ‬kirat al-aܵyƗr is written in Arabic by the Mudejar ‘Abd Allah b. aৢ-ৡabbƗত al-AৢbaতƯ alAndalusƯ from Almeria, contained in codex No. 2295 of the Bibliothèque Nationale de Tunis, and can be dated to around 1490.19 It was written when he returned to Almeria when he was 60-70 years old and narrates his tour of the Mediterranean and the Middle East, which he did between the years 1450-1460, with the aim of strengthening the religious values of the Mudejar community through the evocation of other regions and Islamic countries. Along with these Mudejar examples, which by this time had become Morisco works,20 we have the well known Coplas del al‫ۊ‬ichante de Puey Monçón,21 contained in the manuscript Resc/13 (olim J 13) of the Consejo 19

Edited by: Antonio Constán Nava, “Edición diplomática, traducción y estudio de la obra ‘NiৢƗb al-ajbƗr wa-ta঎kirat al-ajyƗr’ de Ibn al-ৡabbƗত (s. IX H./XV d.C.)” (Tunis: Université de La Manouba, PhD Dissertation, 2014). Also see: Djomaa Cheikha, “Aspects réligieux du recit de ‘Abd Allah ibn Al-Sabbah”, Actas del III Simposio Internacional de Estudios Moriscos: las prácticas musulmanas de los moriscos andaluces (1492-1609) (Zaghouan: CEROMDI, 1989), p. 55 and Francisco Franco Sánchez, “Los mudéjares, según la riতla de Ibn aৢ-ৡabbƗত (m. después 895/1490)”, Sharq Al-Andalus, 12 (1995), pp. 375-391. 20 In relation to Morisco routes see also: Leonard Patrick Harvey, “The Literary Culture of the Moriscos” (Oxford: Magdalen College, PhD Dissertation, 1958), pp. 324-327. 21 Pablo Gil, “Las coplas del alhichante de Puey Monzón”, El Archivo, 4 (1890), pp. 171-181; Mariano de Pano y Ruata, Las coplas del peregrino de Puey Monçón. Viaje a La Meca en el siglo XVI (Saragossa: Comas Hermanos, 1897); Henri Bigot, “Les strophes du pélerin de Puey Monçon (voyage à la Mecque à la fin du XVIe siècle)”, Revue Tunisienne, 31 (1916), pp. 87-124; Linda Grace del Casino, “Edición y estudio de las Coplas del al-তijante de Puey Monçón” (Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania, PhD Dissertation, 1978); Ramón Zúñiga López, “Las Coplas del Alhichante de Puey Monçón (Peregrinación a La Meca de un morisco aragonés a finales del siglo XVI)”, Miscelánea de Estudios Árabes y Hebraicos, 3738/2 (1988-1989), pp. 449-479; Ramón Zúñiga López, “Un morisco, peregrino en La Meca en el s. XVI”, Historia 16, 197 (1992), pp. 99-104; and Ramón Zúñiga López, “El alhichante de Puey Monçón”, Album, 37 (1993), pp. 83-85; Tarek Khedr, Códice aljamiado de varias materias (Manuscrito nº XIII de la antigua Junta para la Ampliación de Estudios) (Madrid-Oviedo: Universidad Complutense de Madrid-Universidad de Oviedo, 2004), pp. 363-390. In Abdeljelil Temimi, Bibliographie générale d’etudes morisques (Zaghouan: FTERSI, 1995) p. 252,

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Superior de Investigaciones Científicas of Madrid, which was discovered in Almonacid de la Sierra (Saragossa). This is an Aljamiado verse narrative, which tells of the pilgrimage of a Muslim from Huesca, who set out from Puey Monçon (today Pueyo de Santa Cruz) for Mecca, probably during the first half of the 16th century. To this Mudejar and Morisco corpus, we should also add the nowdisappeared codex which supposedly contained the story of the pilgrimage of Mancebo de Arevalo, which Gayangos claimed to have seen among the manuscripts of the Real Biblioteca de Palacio de Madrid in 1839. Whatever the fortunes of that copy (if it ever existed), the truth is that we do not know with certainty whether or not the enigmatic Mancebo de Arevalo even made the journey, as some other people in his milieu did in fact do.22 Finally, within the framework of these Aljamiado travel writings, but outside the strictly religious context, we must include another type of travel chronicle:23 the clandestine routes of escape and return to the Peninsula followed by the Moriscos in the 16th and 17th centuries. The texts of three such stories have reached us: the Viaje de Venecia a España contained in manuscript 11/9412 (a) [olim T 16] of the Biblioteca de la Real Academia de la Historia of Madrid, and the Itinerario de España a Turquía and Avisos para el camino, both of which are contained in manuscript Arabe 774 of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France.24

there was also a report of an edition of this text by Antonio Vespertino Rodríguez in cooperation with Míkel de Epalza, without any further information. 22 This would be the case of Nuzaya Calderán, sage, magician and traditional healer referred to in manuscript Dd. 9. 49 (p. 94) of the Cambridge University Library. See: Leonard Patrick Harvey, “Los moriscos y los cinco pilares del Islam”, p. 96. 23 To these Morisco travel chronicles we should add a very short fragment of geographical content, preserved under catalogue number Resc/86 (olim J 86) in the Biblioteca Tomás Navarro Tomás of the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas of Madrid, the poor condition of which only allows us to distinguish a few place names (Golfo de Venezia, Isla de Chipre, etc.). 24 Mercedes Sánchez Álvarez, El manuscrito misceláneo 774 de la Biblioteca Nacional de París. Leyendas, itinerarios, profecías sobre la destrucción de España y otros relatos moriscos (Madrid: Gredos, 1982), pp. 50-51 and 153-154; Luce López-Baralt and Awilda Irizarry, “Dos itinerarios secretos de los moriscos del siglo XVI (Los manuscritos aljamiados 774 de la Biblioteca Nacional de París y T16 de la Real Academia de la Historia)”, Homenaje a Álvaro Galmés de Fuentes, (Oviedo-Madrid: Universidad de Oviedo-Gredos, 1985), II, pp. 547-582,

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3. The ri‫ۊ‬la of ‘Umar Ba৬njn 3.1. The Calanda Discovery In the spring of 1988, while demolishing a house in the town of Calanda in the province of Teruel (Aragon), a sack containing various Arabic and Aljamiado manuscripts was discovered inside the walls. Possibly hidden just before the Moriscos were exiled, perhaps with the possible return of their owner in mind, the religious nature of these codices lead us to believe that they were part of the personal library of one of the town’s Muslim scholars. This discovery25 and its contents were duly reported at the time by María José Cervera,26 who described and catalogued the material. Shortly after this discovery, Guillermo Redondo, of the University of Saragossa, visited Calanda and acquired from the owners of the house some other notebooks and loose papers, which due to their poor condition had not been considered of interest and therefore had not been catalogued.27 All this material was subsequently transferred to the Fondo Documental Histórico de las Cortes de Aragón of Saragossa, and one of

republished in La literatura secreta de los últimos musulmanes de España (Madrid: Trotta, 2009), pp. 395-442. 25 One year later, in 1988, another Morisco document, which was not recorded by Cervera, was discovered when a wall in another house in the same town was demolished. It is currently under private ownership, and consists of a sheet with an initial basmala and an Arabic alphabet some calligraphic practices. A reproduction of this document can be seen in: Rosa Mª Bueso Zaera, “Moriscos de Aragón”, Ontejas, 19 (2007), p. 2. I am grateful to Rosa Mª Bueso and Jesús Villarroya for the information they gave me on how this discovery was made. 26 A preliminary cataloguing was done by Cervera when this material was exhibited in the Biblioteca de Aragón in January 1992. See: María José Cervera Fras, “Fichas descriptivas. Exposición de manuscritos aljamiados”, I Jornadas de literatura aljamiada aragonesa (Saragossa: Biblioteca de Aragón, 1992), pp. 1524. Subsequently this cataloguing was extended in: María José Cervera Fras, “Descripción de los manuscritos mudéjares de Calanda (Teruel)”, Aragón en la Edad Media, 11-12 (1993), pp. 165-188. 27 I am grateful to Alberto Montaner and Guillermo Redondo for the information given in this regard.

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the documents is the current manuscript L771-4,28 where the story of the pilgrimage to Mecca of ‘Umar Ba৬njn29 from Ávila is told.

3.2. Manuscript L771-4 of the Fondo Documental Histórico de las Cortes de Aragón This is a small Aljamiado codex bound in parchment and comprises 40 pages, some of them in very poor condition. The language of the text is Castilian with some eastern features, and the writing, very careless and irregular, is of Maghrebi/Andalusian style. There is no time reference in the manuscript that allows us to date it exactly, but the language used allows us to tentatively set its date of composition as the mid-16th century. While we do not know the identity of the scribe, certain linguistic features of the text lead me to believe that its origins might be in the eastern neighboring regions of Calanda, that is to say, those territories of Bajo Aragon that are Catalan-speaking.30

28

I would like to thank the staff of the Servicio de Biblioteca, Archivo y Fondo Antiguo de las Cortes de Aragón, coordinated by María Teresa Pelegrín Colomo, for their constant assistance in providing me access to the codex. 29 I made the codex public for the first time at the XIII Simposio Internacional de Mudejarismo that took place in Teruel in September 2014, in: Pablo Roza Candás, “De Ávila a La Meca: Notas en torno a una ri‫ۊ‬la aljamiada inédita”, Actas del XIII Simposio Internacional de Mudejarismo, 4-5 de septiembre de 2014 (Teruel: Centro de de Estudios Mudéjares, 2017), pp. 353-364. Some aspects of its contents were also made public in: Pablo Roza Candás, “Túnez, camino de La Meca. Noticia de una peregrinación (ms. L771-4 del Fondo Documental Histórico de las Cortes de Aragón)”, Miscelánea Hispano-Tunecina (Oviedo: Universidad de Oviedo) (forthcoming); and Pablo Roza Candás, “Nuevos datos para el estudio de la variación dialectal aragonesa en textos aljamiados”, Armonías y contrastes. Estudios sobre variación dialectal, histórica y sociolingüística, ed. by José María Santos Rovira (Lugo: Axac, 2015), pp. 233-247. A short time later, Xavier Casassas Canals also gave an introduction to the codex at the symposium Circulaciones mudéjares y moriscas. Redes y representaciones that took place in the Casa de Velázquez of Madrid in October 2014, published in “La Ri‫ۊ‬la de Omar Patún: el viaje de peregrinación a La Meca de un musulmán de Ávila a finales del siglo XV (1491-1495)”, Espacio, tiempo y forma, 28 (2015), pp. 221-254. While Unpublished to date, a complete edition of the manuscript will come out shortly in: Pablo Roza Candás, Treslado i memoria de ida i venida hasta Maka. La peregrinación de Omar Patón (Oviedo: Servicio de Publicaciones) (CLEAM, 16). 30 A preliminary linguistic study of some aspects of the codex can be seen in: Pablo Roza Candás, “Nuevos datos para el estudio de la variación dialectal aragonesa”, pp. 233-247.

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As is mentioned at the beginning of the story, the text in question seems to be a copy or translation (treslado), possibly from a Castilian original, written in the late 15th century or early 16th century by ‘Umar Ba৬njn himself: Aquest-es un treslado i memoria de ‘Umar Ba‫ܒ‬njn, vezino de la çibdad de Ávila, i lo que le acaeçió en su camino de ida i de venida hasta Makata.31

3.3. ‘Umar Ba৬njn All we know of ‘Umar Ba৬njn or Gomar Patón (a form that appears in all the Christian documents) is that he was a citizen of Ávila in the late 15th century, and that is what is written in the town’s Mudejar32 census in 1483. We also know his affiliation with a certain master Alicaro, as stated in a property transaction document of 1500 from Ávila’s Moorish quarter:33 Gomar Patón, hijo de maestre Alicaro moro, deja huerto tomando el censo el dicho capellán catedral en los arrabales de la mezquita de la morería vieja hacia Santo Tomás ante Gil Día de Ávila.34 Similarly, a year before, Gomar Patón himself is mentioned in a sale and purchase document from the same Castilian Moorish quarter:35 Los moros Gomar Patón y Aceyte Cabeza se compravenden casas con corral en la morería vieja, camino del monasterio nuevo, con censo de estas linderas de las de Mohamad Cabeza.36

31

“This is a translation and report of ‘Umar Ba৬njn, citizen of Ávila, and what happened to him on his way back and forth to Mecca” (f. 1v). 32 Serafín de Tapia Sánchez, La comunidad morisca de Ávila (Salamanca: Universidad de Salamanca, 1991), p. 438. 33 Archivo Histórico Nacional, Sección Clero, legajo 621 (21). Published in: Cándido María Ajo González de Rapariegos y Sainz de Zúñiga, Historia de Ávila y su tierra, de sus hombres y sus instituciones, por toda su geografía provincial y diocesana (Ávila: Institución Alonso de Madrigal, 1962-2002), III, pp. 279-280. 34 “Gomar Patón, son of Master Alicaro the Moor, left the orchard, and the aforementioned cathedral chaplain took the census in the suburbs of the old mosque of the Moorish quarter towards Saint Thomas before Gil Día de Ávila”. 35 Archivo Histórico Nacional, Sección Clero, legajo 533. Published in: Cándido María Ajo González de Rapariegos y Sainz de Zúñiga, Historia de Ávila y su tierra, de sus hombres y sus instituciones, por toda su geografía provincial y diocesana, p. 152. 36 “The moors Gomar Patón and Aceyte Cabeza effect a sale and purchase of houses together with their yards in the old Moorish quarter, on the way to the new monastery, adjoining Mohamad Cabeza’s property”.

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On the other hand, it is interesting to note the possible connection between ‘Umar Ba৬njn/Gomar Patón and another Ba৬njn, Muতammad Ba৬njn. As quoted by Mancebo de Arevalo in his Tafçira,37 we know that this other Ba৬njn had returned to Castilian lands after performing the pilgrimage to Mecca, but we do not know the exact date of his expedition.38 While it is true that it might a priori be the same person, we do not have at this moment any conclusive data that allows us to identify both Ba৬njns as the same individual.

3.4. Chronology From the dates contained in the documents provided, we could speculate that our pilgrim would have made the trip in the late 15th century. Some chronological and historical data contained in the text, as well as the reference made to some people of that era, seem to support this hypothesis. The a quo point in this hypothetical dating would be marked by an interesting passage in which ‘Umar Ba৬njn refers to the famous Muslim scholar of Segovia, Iça de Gebir, whose tomb he claims to have visited in Tunisia: I por escarmiento de lo que vƯ por su carta del alfaqƯ de Sogovia, no osamos intrar en los desertes d-entre Iscandería i Trabalez de Berbería, qu-allƯ murió su conpañero [de] don ‘Ʈçà i él murió en Túnuç, i yo vesité su fuesa.39

This new information about the Segovia scholar, about whose life we had heard nothing since 1462, when he wrote his Breviario Çunní, reveals the supposed site of his death but not the date. In any case, ‘Umar’s visit to his grave, must have occurred, logically and necessarily, several years after 1462. The ad quem point would be no later than 1499, the date by which ‘Umar would already be back in Ávila, as evidenced by the

37

See the reference to this personality in the publication of this work in: María Teresa Narváez Cordova, Tratado [Tafsira] del Mancebo de Arévalo (Madrid: Trotta, 2003), pp. 308-309. 38 On the reference by Mancebo de Arévalo to this personality see Leonard Patrick Harvey, “The Moriscos and the ণajj”, pp. 17-18. 39 “And because of the fear of what I read in the letter of the scholar of Segovia, we did not dare to enter the deserts between Alexandria and Tripoli in Libya, where ‘Ʈçà’s partner died, and he died in Tunis, and I visited his tomb” (f. 21v).

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aforementioned property transaction documents of the Castilian Moorish quarter.40

3.5. Route to Mecca and Back ‘Umar Ba৬njn’s trip begins in the town of Ávila, from which he leaves for Tortosa in Catalonia with his partner Muতammad Alcorral.41 Following the course of the river Ebro, they travel down to the Mediterranean coast and set sail for Valencia, possibly from San Carlos de la Rapita. After a brief stopover in that port, they embarked on a hard journey of thirty days until they finally reached the town of Tunis on December 25, la más gentil çibdad que ay en toda la Barbería,42 where they would remain for thirteen months waiting for the departure of ships for the Levant. Back en route, now on board a Genoese ship, our pilgrims set sail for Beirut via the Italian island of Favignana, the Greek town of Methoni and the port of Chios in front of the Turkish coast, where they are banned from disembarking due to the great pestilençia or plague that was ravaging the ship and had already killed most of the people on board: todos los más de los días, tres i cuatro onbres echaban en la mar muertos.43 This made them alter their route and they finally reach the Turkish port of Çesme, sick and penniless: Echáronos en-un desespera‫ڴ‬o puerto de la Turquía que se llama Šišma, sesenta i dos jornadas por tierra de donde nos abía de poner por mar, porque era obligado de nos poner en Bayrut. En saliendo de la mar cayó malo mi conpañero, no se devantaba de su dolençia i estábamos anbos que no podíamos el-uno al-otro servirnos de agua. En-este puerto abía quinze casas, que todos huían de nosotros porque no se le pegase la muert […].

40 Further research in the Christian documentation of the period will allow us to confirm the chronological hypotheses presented here [When this paper was already in press, I was able to consult the documentation of the Arxiu del Regne de València where I found the travel permits from Valencia to Tunis of Omar Patón and his partner, Mahomad del Corral, dated November 1491 (Reial Cancelleria, nº 707, f. 916r – 916v and 918r – 918v)]. 41 Apart from his name, no other reference is made in ‘Umar’s chronicle to this Mudejar whom, for the moment, it has not been possible to identify. 42 “The most beautiful city in all of Barbary” (f. 2r). 43 “Most days three or four bodies were thrown overboard” (f. 2v).

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Murieron aquƯ de los que desenbarcaron más de çincuenta presonas. AquƯ murió el muftƯ de Granada i el alqayde de WadƯš.44

When they had recovered their health and their financial situation had improved,45 they entered Anatolia via Bursa, Ankara and Kayseri and continued south, reaching the Syrian city of Aleppo, where they joined a recua or caravan46 of çinco mil gamellos i seysçientos de caballo47 which would take them to Damascus. Passing through the cities of Homs and Baalbek, they finally arrived in the Syrian capital, a critical stop on the way and where a major pilgrimage caravan is formed, the grandeur of which ‘Umar describes: Estuvieron en sallir por-una calle de la çibdad dos días i dos noches, que no s-estalló en sallir gente e gamellos.48 In this city that was rƯca i viçiosa i de muchas fruytas,49 they stayed for six months during which time they made several pious visits to different shrines and relics both in the city and other nearby towns.50 44

“We were left in a dangerous Turkish port called Çe‫܈‬me, sixty-two days by land from where we should have been taken by sea, because their obligation was to take us to Beirut. After landing, my partner got sick, did not get up because of his illness and neither of us could even give the other water. In this port there were fifteen houses, and everyone shunned us to avoid catching the plague. More than fifty of the people who disembarked here died. Here, the Mufti of Granada and the governor of Guadix died” (f. 3r). 45 Apart from the cash that it was necessary to carry, our travelers carried goods to sell along the way to help cover the costs of their journeys. From amongst these goods ‘Umar makes reference on two occasions to tocas that they used as exchange currency. Whatever the case, this business did not always turn out to be as profitable as hoped, such as the incident that occurred in the Turkish port of Çeúme: no traíamos dinero, que lo que traíamos venía enpleado en tocas i no valían aquí como donde las tomamos. Ubimos de vender nuestros vestidos por-el terçio de lo que valían (“We had no money, as what we had we had used to buy headwear, which was not worth the same here as where we bought it. We had to sell our clothes for a third of their value”) (f. 3r). 46 Until the 18th century, pilgrims could avail themselves of organised caravans from different enclaves in the Middle East, as well as various support points along the way, which enabled them to journey across the territories with considerably less risk along the route. 47 “Five thousand camels and six hundred horsemen” (f. 4v). 48 “It took them two days and two nights to leave through a street in the city, and people and camels were continually leaving” (f. 6r). 49 “Rich, fertile and bearing many fruits” (f. 4v).

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En route once again, our pilgrims venture into Palestine through Galilee and head south through the town of Ramla and reach Jerusalem. The passages regarding the Holy Land are certainly some of the most interesting points in this chronicle. Thus, together with the reference to various places of special veneration for Muslims, mention is made here of several enclaves of Christian worship which are visited by our travellers. Thus, for example, la piedra donde s-asentó Maryam cuando vido levar el hƯjo;51 el altar donde dizía misa San Juan e la piedra donde hazieron apóstol a Santo Matía;52 donde dizen que se ajuntó ‘Ʈçà con sus apóstoles53 or the Monte Olivet or the Mount of Olives donde fue puyado a los çielos ‘Ʈçà ibnu Maryam.54 But among these pious visits, the most significant, without doubt, is the one made to the Holy Sepulchre, on Mount Calvary, where our pilgrims meet a friar, also from Ávila, who works as a guard, and who provides them with letters of safe conduct for their return to Spain: En medio de la çibdad está la iglesia mayor del monte Galvario, donde está el sepulcro e su monimento. Estaban las puertas çerradas i sobre las çirraduras sus sillos, i dentro estaban los frayles, i llamamos e salieron. Hallamos por guƗrdián un fraile qastillƗno de la villa de Arévalo, llámanlle Fray Agustín de San Françisco, fijo de Garçía de la Cárçel. Él nos mostró el llugar donde le cruçeficaron i la capilla donde le sopultaron,

50

Along with visits to shrines and historical places of Islam, visits to graves and cemeteries where the bones of holy men and great Islamic personalities are laid to rest, made up other pious stops along the way for the traveler, and an effective way of getting a divine blessing or baraka. In this way, from the 12th century onwards a new genre arose called ziyƗrat, which was dedicated to drawing up lists of these tombs and cemeteries, which were especially venerated by pilgrims. Amongst the most outstanding of these lists are those offered by the Iraqi al-HarawƯ. See: Dolors Bramon Planas, “Viajeros musulmanes”, p. 47. Thus, in his chronicle ‘Umar mentions numerous mausoleums and graves of prophets and historical personalities of Islam, such as the tombs of the famous warriors HƗlƯd bnu alWalƯd (f. 4v) and ঋirƗr bnu al-ƖzwƗr (f. 5v), the tomb of the prophet and king ÇulaymƗn (f. 7v), or the magnificent mausoleum of the Patriarchs in the Palestinian city of Hebron, for which ‘Umar offers us a detailed description (f. 8v). 51 “The stone where Mary sat when she saw that her Son was being taken” (f. 8r). 52 “The altar where Saint John gave mass and the stone where Saint Matthew was made an apostle” (f. 8v). 53 “Where they say Jesus met with his apostles” (f. 8v). 54 “From where Jesus Son of Mary ascended to heaven” (f. 8r).

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según ellos creen. Este frayle nos dio cartas para las tierras e señoríos de cristianos, que pudísemos pasar seguramente a Castilla.55

One could wonder here if our pilgrims would have actually declared, when leaving Castile, that their final destination was Mecca or whether, on the contrary, they would have left undercover as Christian pilgrims to the Holy Land. We do not know for sure, but in any case, possession of a document issued by the Franciscans of Jerusalem could certainly have facilitated the return journey and entry into the Iberian Peninsula.56 Indeed, the references to compatriots, residents or to other travelers from different parts of the Mediterranean and the Middle East, are some of the other interesting points of this story. In Jerusalem itself, during his visit to the tomb of King David on Mount Zion, ‘Umar relates his encounter with another friar, on this occasion a Catalan one: Fuemos a la otra parte de la çibdad a vesitar el tenplo del rey DƗwud, ‘alayhi alççalƗm, qu-está debašo de la ’iglesia de Monte Sion. Hallamos cuatro frayles e uno era de España, del reino de Catalluñia, que lentendíamos muy bien la lengua.57

After several days in the Holy City, our pilgrims head to Cairo, passing first through Hebron and then on to Gaza, again on a rough journey, in this case, full of bandits: sallieron ladrones a nosotros a robƗrnos, que dešaron

55

“In the middle of the city there is the main church of Mount Calvary, where the sepulchre and its monument are located. The doors were closed, on the locks there were their seals, and the friars were inside, and we knocked and they came out. We found a Castilian friar, from the town of Arévalo, acting as a guard. His name was Friar Agustín de San Francisco, son of García de la Cárcel. He showed us the place where He had been crucified, and the chapel where He was buried, as they believe. That friar gave us letters for the Christian lands and possessions so that we could pass through safely to reach Castile” (f. 8v). 56 Some time later those Moriscos who attempted to do the pilgrimage would have more problems. Leaving the Peninsula was certainly seen as a serious offence by the Christian authorities, not only religiously but also politically. In this way the Morisco was suspected of wanting to travel to enter into alliances with enemies of the Catholic faith and the kingdom of Castile. See: Luce López-Baralt and Awilda Irizarry, “Dos itinerarios secretos de los moriscos del siglo XVI”, p. 398. 57 “We went to the other side of the city to visit the temple of King David, peace be upon him, which is beneath the Mount Zion Church. We found four monks and one was from Spain, from the kingdom of Catalonia, whose language we could understand very well” (f. 9r).

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The Riতla of ‘Umar Ba৬un

al-al‫ۊ‬aЂi Mu‫ۊ‬ammad, mi conpañero, en camisa i un sayo58 recounts ‘Umar in his chronicle.59 But undoubtedly the biggest problem they would face on this dangerous route was caused by their lack of language skills. It is indeed the case that, as Muslims from far-away Castile who had already lost the knowledge of the holy tongue, communication in some areas must have been extremely difficult, especially the Arabic-speaking ones: mucho daño hallamos en cada lugar con su lengua,60 says ‘Umar. Thus, in Palestine, the exotic language spoken by our pilgrims, which was none other than Castilian, raised many suspicions as to their identity, and was enough to have them reported to the authorities for being Christians, as ‘Umar relates in the following passage: Echáronos a presos diçiendo qu-éramos cristiƗnos i que no teníamos lenguas de ‘arabƯ, que-íbamos por engaño. Pusiéronos (…) en una cárçel. Demandé que me diesen trujamán i que me levasen delante del-alqadƯ mƗlik. (…) Leváronme delante del malikƯ e tomó de mƯ su enformaçión de cómo éramos mǀros de tierras cristianas que no sabíamos arƗbƯgo, que vinimos en romeaje a la Casa Santa de Makkata. I mandónos soltar luego, ya que nos queríamos partir.61

Once the misunderstanding was cleared up our pilgrims continued their trip and arrived in Cairo, where they stayed for about seven months waiting for the departure of a caravan that would take them safely to Mecca.62 At this point ‘Umar, impressed by the magnificence of the city 58

“We were mugged by robbers and they left al‫ۊ‬aЂi Muতammad, my partner, only with a shirt and a coat” (f. 9r). 59 People themselves were an important source of risk and worry for the traveler, especially financially. Thus, ‘Umar describes when they travelled along the edges of the territory of the Great Tartar: no abía seguro camƯno, que abíamos de pasar con junto de tierras del gran Tártalo e abía ladrones (“there was no safe route, we had to travel close to the lands of the Great Tartar and there were thieves”) (f. 3v). 60 “We faced many problems in each place, especially with their language” (f. 9v). 61 “They took us saying that we were Christian, and that we did not speak Arabic, that we were deceiving them. They put us in prison. I asked for a translator and to be taken before the Maliki judge. They took me before the Maliki and took my testimony that we were Moors coming from a Christian land, and that we could not speak any Arabic, and that we were pilgrims heading to the Holy House in Mecca. He then ordered that they release us, as we wanted to leave” (f. 9r). 62 Under the command of a pilgrimage master or amƯr al-‫ۊ‬aЂЂ, the different secondary caravans joined together in strategic points along the way, depending on where they came from (the Maghreb, Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, etc.). The

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that he described as la más grande que pueda aber i más rƯca63 offers us a detailed description of its urban fabric, its monuments, the famous Nilometer, and places of worship such as Mataria, where the güerto del bálsamo or the Garden of Balm, and the figuera de Fir‘njna or Pharaoh’s fig tree are, and where ‘Umar meets with another countryman, this time from Aragon: Hallamos aquƯ un mǀro de Aragón que tenía nuesa habla e era ortalano del güer‫ܒ‬o, que se le dio el rey. UbƯmos con-él plazer, que nos hƯzo onra en la que cobdiçiábamos del güer‫ܒ‬ǀ.64 From Cairo, back on the road, they went down the Sinai Peninsula, passing the monastery of St. Catherine and, reaching the port of Al-Tur, where they embarked on a rugged journey through la mar del AnnabƯ Mu‫ۊ‬ammad or sea of the Prophet Muhammad and the mar de Mnjçà or sea of Moses (f. 11r) until they reached Jeddah, the gateway to the Arabian Peninsula: Ante que llegamos al puerto, tomónos fortuna e mala mar en-un lugar estrecho. Levábamos dos pilotes, el-uno dƯšo el timonero a la mano derecha, el-otro a la mano eçquerra. Dieron con nosotros in-una roca questaba debašo del agua que tuvo tres vezes la barja a las peñas, que bien pensábamos quedar allƯ todos hinchados de agua.65

From Jeddah, our pilgrims finally reached Mecca, a town that ‘Umar describes as being in a remote site, virtually inaccessible, que maravilla es de ver donde está formada.66 We know that our travelers entered the Holy spectacular nature of some of them no doubt caused quite an event when they reached Mecca (Arent Jan Wensinck and Jacques Jomier, “Hadjdj”, pp. 35-36). ‘Umar himself, in his chronicle, describes the entry of these hosts of travelers, and was dazzled by the magnificence of the caravan arriving from Egypt, which carried the kiswa or richly embroidered black silk used to cover the Caaba. 63 “The biggest and richest there could be” (f. 9v). 64 “We met a Moor from Aragon who spoke our language and was gardener of the orchard, which had been given to him by the king. We enjoyed meeting him, and he honored us with what we wanted from his orchard” (f. 10v). 65 “Before arriving at the port, the storm and rough sea hit us. We had two pilots, one told the helmsman to turn right and the other said left. They ran us into a rock that was under water. Three times the boat was about to run onto the rocks. We thought we would all perish there, swollen by the water” (f. 11r). 66 “Which is wonderful to see where it was built” (f. 12r). The admiration that ‘Umar expresses in some of his descriptions sometimes reminds us of the stories in the ‘aЂƗ’ib or marvels literature, some elements of which also appear in the ri‫ۊ‬la genre, and which here are beginning to show faintly. In relation to the ‘aЂƗ’ib literature, see: Dolors Bramon Planas, “Viajeros musulmanes”, pp. 38-40.

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The Riতla of ‘Umar Ba৬un

City on the 18th of the month ša'bƗn, that is to say, four months before the start of ‫ۊ‬aЂЂ, with two objectives, firstly to make the smaller pilgrimage or ‘umra as a preamble to the major pilgrimage,67 and secondly to comply with the fasting month of Ramadan in the Holy Places.68 Once the pilgrimage rites were fulfilled, the description of which is at the heart of the story, our now ‫ۊ‬uЂЂƗЂ began their return journey without us knowing with certainty the initial itinerary from Mecca, as the story was interrupted.69 We find them again at a port close to the Negev desert, most likely that of Aqaba in southern Jordan. We can therefore assume a land journey from Mecca, through the region of Hijaz, almost certainly including a visit to the city of Medina, where our pilgrims venerated the tomb of the Prophet. From Aqaba, then, and through the Sinai desert, they again headed to Cairo, where ‘Umar recounts how the party was generously received by the residents: Sallieron de la çibdad contra gran reçebimiento hata una jornada con tantos menjares de comer, los unos a sus ermanos e parientes, los otros por amor de Allah a los algarƯbos que ni tienen ermanos ni parientes sino Allah.70 67

The concept of Islamic pilgrimage in fact covers two types of rites (‫ۊ‬aЂЂ and ‘umra), which are clearly differentiated, not so much in ritual praxis but more from a legal point of view. In any event, what happens most frequently is that both types of pilgrimage are done during one visit to Mecca. The rituals the pilgrims must follow are in general terms the same for both types; although the ‫ۊ‬aЂЂ is essentially an ‘umra to which a series of visits to the Holy Places around Mecca are added. 68 Certainly, we know that during the Middle Ages the custom was for pilgrims to arrive in Mecca to coincide with Ramadan, the month during which the ‘umra was considered to be especially worthy. See: Arent Jan Wensinck and Jacques Jomier, “Hadjdj”, p. 36. 69 A loss of at least two pages in which we can assume that ‘Umar referred to the rest of the ceremonies for the period between 10 and 13 ‫ڳ‬nj l-‫ۊ‬iЂЂa. Upon completion of ‫ۊ‬aЂЂ rituals, pilgrims take advantage of their stay in the Holy Land to visit various points of popular devotion. Among these was, the ineludible (but not compulsory) visit to the Prophet's tomb in the city of Medina, to where our pilgrims possibly directed their steps, before embarking on the journey back to Castile. 70 “They came out to meet us at a day’s journey from the city with a great reception and many delicacies, some for their brothers and relatives, others for God’s love of strangers who have no brothers or relatives but God” (f. 18r).

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In Cairo they stayed for one year waiting for ships to reach the port of Alexandria. On receiving news of their arrival, they travelled down the Nile to Rosetta, where they disembarked in order to reach Alexandria from there con harto temor de cosarios que andaban por la mar.71 Once at the port, the disagreement between customs officials and the Venetian captains, who ordered que ningún pa‫ܒ‬rón fuese osado de levar mǀro en las galeras so pena de tantos duqados,72 left our pilgrims on land for some time. Finally on board, they set sail for Venice with stops in several Aegean islands and skirting round the ancient Albanian kingdom of Durrës. Without knowing if they actually got to disembark in Venice, we find them again on the island of Malta, where they left for Spain and where the story is abruptly interrupted.73 We know that the initial plan was to get to Valencia or Barcelona, going through the French port of AiguesMortes. However, the dramatic situation they experienced in the bay of Valletta, which ‘Umar describes in his last lines, fills us with uncertainty and does not allow us to know the final fate of our pilgrims: VƯmos venir dos naves de-armada i dešamos de parar en-el puerto por miedo qu-eran cosarios o de l-armada del rey de Françia. Cargamos de velas i-echamos a huir i ellos tras nosotros hasta que nos dieron caça […] que venían sus naves ligeras i la una d-ellas […] haziéndonos señal quesperásemos. No quesƯmos sino andar. Apareamos de más da dozientas i çincuenta sacas de algo‫ڴ‬ón e aparejos, más de çient onbradas i todos armados i con ballestas i-espingardas, i llegamos çerca. Enpeçaron de tirar con más de vinte […].74

Still, there is no doubt that our travelers, after many vicissitudes, finally reached Spanish territory, where ‘Umar wrote or finished writing the account of his hazardous journey. 71

“With much fear of the pirates that roamed the sea” (f. 22r). “That no captain dare take Moors in the galleys under penalty of many ducats” (f. 22v). 73 There is no mention in the account of the route taken from Venice and the time it took to reach the Maltese coast. 74 “We saw two army ships coming and we decided not to stop at the port, as we were afraid they might be pirates or belong to the French King’s army. We set the sails and started to escape. They came after us until they reached us (…) their ships were fast and one of them (…) was signaling us to wait. We only wanted to continue ahead. We estimated more than two hundred and fifty sacks of cotton and rigging, more than a hundred men, all of them armed with crossbows and muskets, and we approached them. They started to shoot with more than twenty…” (f. 23v). 72

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The Riতla of ‘Umar Ba৬un

4. Conclusion The detailed references and descriptions, as well as the many anecdotes contained in the chronicle of ‘Umar Ba৬njn, certainly provide a firsthand testimony to give us knowledge of that time, not only from a historical perspective but also in its geographical, socio-cultural, economic and religious aspects, etc. Without falling into the trap of an accumulation of information that we find in the classics of the genre of ri‫ۊ‬la, our pilgrim gives us a plain account, with simple language without an overload of literary traits, and offers us precise data about everything that he sees and that attracts his attention. With all this, the author's claims are certainly more practical than literary, so he conceives his work more as a kind of travel guide for the pilgrim than as a form of literary expression. On the other hand, the story of ‘Umar Ba৬njn is a striking example of the interconnections that existed between two space-time realities: the Castilian Mudejar minority and the Aragonese Morisco community. The chronology that I have outlined in this paper also allows us to locate ‘Umar Ba৬njn himself astride those two worlds: Mudejar before his departure to Mecca and Morisco upon his return to Castile. In short, the partial presentation of the contents of this chronicle highlights the uniqueness and the interest of this unprecedented Aljamiado testimony, possibly the last link in the genre of ri‫ۊ‬la among Spanish Muslims.

Addenda I have continued the research on this subject after the submission and acceptance of this paper, reason why I reached new data and evidences about the journey of ‘Umar Ba৬njn. I expect a soon publication which includes the edition and study of a second Morisco version of this travel chronicle, hitherto unknown, kept in another Aljamiado manuscript.

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Figure 1. Biblioteca Cortes Aragón, Fondo Documental Histórico de las Cortes de Aragón, Ms. L771-4. f. 14r

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The Riতla of ‘Umar Ba৬un

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