[Sidenote: [1369-1479 A.D.]]
All Castile breathed more freely at the news of the death of Pedro the
Cruel, and acknowledging Henry of Trastamara as king, did him homage.
By a rule as judicious and just as it was vigorous he endeavoured to
obliterate the dark blots which stained his accession.
Don Pedro’s race vanished from Castilian soil. On the death of his
mistress Maria de Padilla shortly after the murder of the unhappy
Blanche, Pedro had tried every means to secure the succession for her
children. He brought sworn witnesses to testify that he had been joined
with Padilla in lawful wedlock, and induced the estates to confer the
first title to the throne upon her son Alfonso, and, in case of his
death without issue, upon her three daughters, Beatrice, Isabella,
and Constanza, in order of seniority. Alfonso, however, died the same
year, and Beatrice followed soon after the frustration of her projected
marriage with the heir of Aragon; while the two youngest, whom their
father had taken with him when he fled to Guiennes, were detained as
hostages by the Black Prince, who sent them to England, where they were
married to two sons of Edward III (Constanza to John of Lancaster and
Isabella to Edmund of York), and thus transmitted to the English dynasty
their claims to the heritage of Castile.
[Sidenote: [1369-1373 A.D.]]
Henry assumed the government of Castile under difficulties. As the
illegitimate son of King Alfonso XI, he met with strong opposition.
Moreover his right to the throne was contested by others besides a
large body of the Castilian nobility. King Ferdinand of Portugal, who
had renewed the alliance which his father had concluded with Don Pedro,
tried to win the crown of Castile for himself after the murder of the
latter, on the ground that he, being the grandson of Beatrice, princess
of Castile, was the only male descendant born in lawful wedlock. To
support his claim he allied himself with Muhammed, the Moorish prince
of Granada. Like Pedro IV of Aragon, he received with all honour the
malcontent and fugitive Castilian nobles. He paid no heed to the murmurs
of the Portuguese at their king’s liberality to foreigners, but marched
into Galicia with an army, while the Moors took Algeciras; and the king
of Aragon endeavoured to unite Molina, Almazan, Soria, and other frontier
districts with his own dominions. At the same time the duke of Lancaster,
uncle of Richard II, assumed the title of king of Castile in right of his
wife, the eldest daughter of Don Pedro, and was acknowledged as such by
the English court.
But Henry extricated himself from the difficulties that encompassed him
in his own country with prudence and skill, and turned the disadvantages
of his opponents to his own profit; and thus he succeeded in putting down
all resistance and seated himself firmly on the throne of Castile, though
he was still regarded by enemies as a usurper. The Moorish conquests were
confined to Algeciras; the king of Portugal, who also styled himself
“king of Castile,” carried on the war with so little success that the
Spanish historian López de Ayala[b] says that it would have been more
to his honour to have discontinued the campaign; the English had their
hands full in their own country, and the Aragonese, besides having their
attention diverted by a war in Sardinia, found themselves, by Henry’s
shrewd contrivance, confronted with another adversary in the person of
James III of Majorca, the pretender to the throne of the Balearic kingdom.
This adventurous infante, though married to Queen Juana of Naples,
had entered the service of Pedro the Cruel and been taken prisoner at
Montiel. Henry set him at liberty on payment of a heavy ransom by the
wealthy queen of Naples, and thus fulfilled the double object of filling
his own coffers and setting up a rival to his enemy. He had already
taken possession of the abundant treasure which the fallen tyrant had
amassed in the strong vaults of the castles of Seville and Carmona, and
had obtained large subsidies besides from the estates of the kingdom at
Medina del Campo; and was therefore able to pay off and discharge the
mercenary troops which had carried him to victory and to surround himself
with a well disciplined army. Bertrand du Guesclin and the leaders of
other companies received gifts of towns and territory over and above
their pay, and promptly sold them again.
[Illustration: HENRY OF CASTILE]
The history of Castile for the next few years is like a diplomatic game
of chess in which the French, the English, and the pope all played their
parts as well as the sovereigns of the peninsula. And all did their best
to win. While the faithless and fickle king of Portugal, who had given
great offence to his own subjects by his marriage, made common cause
with the duke of Lancaster and acknowledged him king of Castile in order
to secure the assistance of England; and while the Roman see, alarmed
at the alliance between Christian courts and the Mohammedans of Granada
and Morocco exhausted itself in attempts at mediation, Henry concluded a
treaty with France and invaded Portugal with an army. Viseu was occupied,
Lisbon blockaded by land and sea and sorely damaged and wasted by fire,
Coimbra was besieged, and only spared by the Castilians out of chivalrous
gallantry, because Ferdinand’s consort Leonora was there waiting the
birth of her child. Many Portuguese nobles with the king’s brother at
their head abetted the Castilians out of disgust at Ferdinand’s marriage.
At length the papal legate brought about a reconciliation, which was
accelerated and rendered easier by Henry’s magnanimity and moderation
(1373). The Portuguese king relinquished his alliance with the duke
of Lancaster and England, banished from his dominions the malcontent
Castilians who still refused to acknowledge Henry king, in spite of
his chivalrous nature and high sovereign qualities, and joined the
Franco-Castilian alliance. The war with Aragon was brought to an equally
successful issue. Don Pedro concluded peace and alliance and restored the
districts on the Castilian frontier which he had occupied in the course
of the campaign.
[Sidenote: [1373-1380 A.D.]]
Biscay was also united to the kingdom of Castile on the death without
issue of the infante Don Tello on whom the king had bestowed it in
fee, but the province remained in possession of its ancient rights and
liberties. When the daughter of Ferdinand de la Cerda, who had married
the duke of Alençon, laid claim to Biscay and the whole of the Lara
heritage in her own name and that of her children, Henry stipulated
that her sons should reside in Spain. They refused, however, to resign
the position they held in France, and he therefore declared the
principalities fiefs that had lapsed to the crown. When Henry had further
prevailed upon the king of Navarre to make peace with him by reimbursing
the expenses he had incurred in the fortification of Logroño and Vitoria,
Castile was once more complete within her ancient borders and his own
sovereignty was firmly established and fully recognised. But by the
reckless munificence with which he gave away the immediate property of
the crown, in order to satisfy the nobles and attach them to the new
dynasty, he laid up many troubles in store for his successors.[c]
In the schism which afflicted the church, from the rival pretensions of
Urban VI and the anti-pope Clement, Henry declared for neither--doubtless
to gratify his avarice by withholding the customary contributions to
the papal see. He died in 1379. In character he was as cruel as Pedro;
as loose in morals, and scarcely inferior as a tyrant. On the whole,
however, he was a fortunate ruler. Either by bribes or force, he reduced
Galicia to obedience, recovered several places from the king of Navarre,
whose capital he at one time invested, and overawed his neighbours of
Portugal and Aragon.
JUAN I AND THE PORTUGUESE WARS
Juan I followed his father’s advice, by cultivating the friendship of the
French king, whom he frequently assisted in the interminable wars between
that monarch and the English. Like his father, he had also to dread the
pretensions of John of Gaunt the duke of Lancaster; and it was equally
his aim to occupy the ambitious Plantagenet with other affairs than
disputing his succession.
To preserve Portugal as an ally, Juan, in the second year of his reign,
consented or proposed to marry his infant son Henry with Beatrice,
presumptive heiress of the Portuguese crown. This princess, who was in
her tenth year, had been promised to Frederick, brother of the Castilian
king; but the superior pretensions of Henry induced the Portuguese
monarch to prefer the latter for a son-in-law. One condition of the
projected marriage was that, in case either of the young betrothed died
without issue, the other should inherit the states of the deceased. So
fair a prospect of uniting the two crowns could not fail to be agreeable
to the two sovereigns. Notwithstanding this solemn treaty, Ferdinand of
Portugal secretly resolved to make war on Castile; and, with the view
of strengthening himself by the alliance of the duke of Lancaster, he
despatched a trusty messenger to obtain the co-operation of that prince,
who readily promised it.
[Sidenote: [1380-1385 A.D.]]
Juan, who was soon acquainted with the league, resolved to anticipate
his enemy: off Cape St. Vincent his fleet triumphed, in 1381, over that
of Ferdinand; and Almeida was forced to submit to him. The arrival from
England of the earl of Cambridge, brother of the duke, with five hundred
men-at-arms, and as many archers, roused the courage of the Portuguese,
but did them little service. As the allies could obtain no money from
Ferdinand, they did not scruple to lay their hands on whatever they
pleased: hence the distrust and dislike which arose between them and
the natives, and which neutralised the little success obtained by their
combined arms.[44] Wearied alike with his allies and the war, Ferdinand,
in 1382, solicited and obtained peace, and the English returned home. The
death of the queen of Castile leaving Henry a widower, Ferdinand offered
him the princess Beatrice, who had been successively promised to his
brother, to his two sons, and even to the son of the earl of Cambridge;
on condition, however, that the issue of the marriage, whether male or
female, should be the sovereign of Portugal, and that he himself should
have no share in the administration so long as Leonora, the Portuguese
queen, should survive Ferdinand. This condition, so characteristic of
Portuguese dislike of Castilian sway, did not prevent Juan from marrying
the princess. Ferdinand died the very year of this marriage; and his
death opened the door to new hostilities.
Though Juan and his new queen were, in fact, excluded by the treaty
accompanying their union, he no less eagerly claimed the crown in her
own right; and several of the Portuguese nobles admitted the justice of
that claim. Even the widowed queen, Leonora, caused her daughter to be
proclaimed in the capital; but the bulk of the towns and prelates refused
to acknowledge her, and declared Don João bastard brother of Ferdinand,
regent of Portugal. The latter prepared to vindicate his right; when
Urban VI, whom he had refused to recognise, raised up against him his
old enemy, the duke of Lancaster, who was persuaded by that pope again
to invade Castile. The usurper Juan was no less anxious to secure the
co-operation of the Plantagenet, whose departure to claim the crown of
Castile he began to urge with success. To frustrate the double object of
this alliance, the Castilian, in 1384, entered the kingdom, received the
homage of his adherents, and proceeded to invest the capital: but his
troops were ignobly defeated by those of his rival; even the queen-mother
scorned to favour his pretensions; and he was constrained to abandon the
siege, and return into his dominions. In 1385, the states of Coimbra
proclaimed his rival king; who began vigorously to invest the places
which held for him.
[Sidenote: [1385-1387 A.D.]]
Fortune attended the arms of the Portuguese, who successively obtained
possession of the chief fortified places, and, in several partial
engagements, was hailed as victor. A greater and a decisive action was
now at hand. Though he had but ten thousand men, he marched against
the Castilian king, who met him with an army of at least thirty-four
thousand; in which were two thousand French knights. The two armies met
near Aljubarrota, a village in Portuguese Estremadura; where, by the
advice of the English knights who served in his army, the Portuguese
intrenched his followers in a position of some strength. As the troops
of the Castilian were wearied by their march, some of his officers,
especially the chronicler Pedro López de Ayala,[b] in a council of
war assembled to decide on the subject, endeavoured to dissuade him
from the battle; but the greater number, among whom were the French
knights, confiding in their overwhelming numerical superiority and in
their own ardour, inclined him to risk it. The action commenced towards
sunset, on a fine summer evening (August 14th), and was, for a short
time, maintained with great spirit on both sides. In the end, the
Portuguese obtained a splendid victory, most of the Castilian chivalry
and ten thousand of the infantry being left dead on the field: the king
himself with difficulty effected his escape. The loss was so heavy that
he ordered his subjects to mourn for a whole year; while the victors
annually commemorated their triumph. The French allies, who bore the
brunt of the battle, suffered severely on this occasion.
JOHN OF GAUNT IN SPAIN
To profit by this victory, the Portuguese monarch commanded his barons to
make an irruption into Castile, while he himself despatched to the duke
of Lancaster a circumstantial account of this signal success. The latter
now burned to assert his rights by other means than threats, or by the
mere report of his preparations; he actually left England, with a small
but choice armament (about fifteen hundred knights, and as many archers),
accompanied by his wife, the lady Constanza, and his three daughters. In
July, 1386, he appeared off the coast of Galicia, and ultimately landed
at El Padron; thence he proceeded to Santiago, where he was solemnly
proclaimed king of Castile and Leon. In an interview with the king of
Portugal, on the confines of the two states, both entered into a treaty
offensive and defensive; and, to cement it the more strongly, agreed that
the king should marry Philippa, daughter of the duke.
In the meantime, the Castilian was not idle: he had obtained succours
from his constant ally the French king and encouragement from Clement
VII, the rival of Urban. In the spring of 1387, the duke and the
Portuguese king arrived at Benavente; but their progress was stayed
by the plague, which daily made great ravages in their ranks. After
the conquest of a few towns and fortresses, the allied army retired
into Portugal. The duke himself was seriously indisposed in body, and
consequently dispirited. Their retreat was hastened by intelligence of
the troubles which raged in England, and which ended in the imprisonment,
and eventually the death of the unfortunate Richard II. The Castilian
king dreaded the resumption of hostilities at a more favourable period.
He proposed to the Plantagenet the marriage of his eldest son, Henry,
with Catherine, daughter of the duke, by the princess Constanza, and,
consequently, granddaughter of Pedro the Cruel. To this overture the duke
lent a favourable ear; towards the close of the year the conditions were
definitively arranged at Bayonne. The principal were that, if Henry died
before the consummation of the marriage, the princess should be given
to the next son, Don Ferdinand; that Constanza, mother of the princess,
should receive in fief five or six towns in Castile, besides a revenue
of 40,000 francs per annum; that the duke should receive 600,000 in
gold, by instalments, as an indemnification for the expenses of the war;
that both Constanza and her husband should renounce all claim to the
Castilian crown; and that hostages should be given him as a security for
the due performance of the first three. Thus, if the personal ambition
of the Plantagenet remained without gratification, he had at least the
satisfaction of seeing one of his daughters queen of Portugal, and the
other destined to the throne of Castile. Early in the following year,
Catherine, who was in her fourteenth year, was betrothed to Henry, who
was only in his ninth, and who on this occasion assumed the title of
prince of the Asturias.
[Sidenote: [1387-1390 A.D.]]
The king of Castile did not long survive this reconciliation with the
Plantagenet. On the 9th day of October, 1390, he was killed by falling
under his horse. The reign of Juan I was one of continued troubles,
which, though his abilities were moderate, his firmness prevented from
ruining the state, or endangering his own power. Once, indeed, during
the disputed succession to the Portuguese crown, he seriously intended
to resign in favour of his own son Henry, who, as the son of Beatrice,
daughter of Ferdinand, was the true heir to the Portuguese no less than
the Castilian throne. His object was to secure the execution of the
treaty made with that prince, and forever to unite the two crowns. But
his nobles, who were evidently no less averse to such a union than their
western neighbours, not merely advised but compelled him to preserve his
dignity.[g]
But the greatest glory of King Juan’s reign was his successful expedition
against the coasts of England, to punish the presumption of the duke
of Lancaster. Once more the maintenance of the Lancastrian claims was
the signal for the destruction of a British fleet. Not content with
threatening the ports, the Castilians, emboldened by former successes,
sailed up the Thames, in 1380, and took or burned the shipping in the
river almost within sight of London.[h]
THE GOOD KING HENRY III (1390-1406 A.D.)
[Sidenote: [1390-1396 A.D.]]
The crown descended to Henry, Juan’s first-born son, who since his
betrothal in 1387 had taken from the ancestral seat of his family, now
elevated into a principality, the title of “prince of Asturias,” which
has been borne by the heir-apparent of Castile ever since.
Henry, surnamed the Infirm, was a weakly prince of eleven years of age,
and a regency had to be appointed during his minority, whence much evil
accrued to the realm of Castile. By the last testament of the late king
the affairs of state were to be managed by a council of regency composed
of the three estates of the kingdom. This arrangement was contested
as showing too little regard for the rights of the heads of the great
families, and a fresh regency was set up by the help of the estates, in
which the lords temporal and spiritual--the duke of Benavente, a natural
son of Henry II, Count Pedro of Trastamara, the marquis of Villena, the
archbishops of Toledo and Santiago de Compostella, the grand-masters of
the orders, and others--divided the royal authority between them.
No notice was taken of the assessors of the middle class who ought to
have been admitted to their deliberations. But the nobles at the head of
affairs, each one of whom was eager to take advantage of these propitious
circumstances to enrich himself and increase his own power, were soon
at variance and strife among themselves, the kingdom was split up into
factions, the crown property alienated, disorder prevailed throughout the
country.
Not until the king, having passed his fourteenth year, proclaimed
himself of age with the consent of the estates and assumed the reins of
government in person (1393) did a change for the better set in. For in
spite of his youth and feeble frame, Henry III was possessed of sagacity
and a real aptitude for political and public affairs. Trusting to the
temper of the nation, which yearned for a strong government and for
deliverance from the oppressive rule of the nobles and the anarchy of
the knights, he promptly proceeded to energetic measures. Not content
with sharing the royal authority among themselves, the lords in power had
seized upon many of the estates of the crown, already much reduced by
the lavishness of former kings, and consequently the necessary funds to
meet public expenditure were lacking. Henry’s first step therefore was
to come to an agreement with the cortes, to which he promised in return
for the grant of the _alcabalas_ that no fresh tax should be introduced
without their consent, and then took vigorous action against the nobles.
All gifts and pensions which had been made at the expense of the crown
demesnes during his minority were cancelled and the revenues of the lords
temporal and spiritual reduced to the level at which they had stood at
Don Juan’s death, and at the same time all engagements which the barons
had entered into with one another and confirmed by oath were annulled.
This bold stroke on the part of the young king greatly incensed the
feudal lords; the duke of Benavente, the marquis of Villena, and the two
infantes Alfonso count of Gijon and Don Pedro of Trastamara, endeavoured
to form a coalition of nobles to avert by force the impending reduction
of their revenues; but it was nipped in the bud by the energetic action
of King Henry, who offered pardon and favour to the obedient and
tractable and menaced the stubborn and recalcitrant with the forces
which quickly gathered round his standard. The leaders of the coalition,
unsupported by the nation and without help from abroad, could not carry
their purpose into effect; they were overthrown or captured one by one,
and compelled to submit to the king’s orders and purchase his favour by
taking the oath of fealty and allegiance.
Henry displayed the same energy and discretion in all other acts of
his reign. His marriage with Catherine of Lancaster, a sister of Queen
Philippa of Portugal, hastened the conclusion of peace with that country,
and Castile then had leisure to restore her lost prestige abroad among
Christians and Mohammedans alike. Although the king relied upon skilful
diplomacy rather than upon arms and armies, his forces by land and
sea were in such a state of efficiency as not merely to enable him to
repel all attacks with vigour but to secure for him the authority of an
arbitrator in quarrels between others. Thus he preserved the peace of his
own dominions, set bounds to the license of Moorish piracy, and enhanced
his consequence abroad.
[Sidenote: [1396-1417 A.D.]]
War was on the point of breaking out with the emir Yusuf of Granada,
kindled by the fanaticism of the grand-master of the order of Alcantara,
who was eager to make converts of the infidels at the sword’s point,
when it was averted by Henry’s presence of mind. He declared that he had
nothing in common with the assailants, most of whom paid for their folly
with their lives in a disastrous battle, and persuaded the offended emir
to restore peace (1394). Yusuf died shortly after, of poison administered
to him by the prince of Fez; and Muhammed, his ambitious second son,
usurped the throne of Granada and threw his elder brother into prison.
The king availed himself of the general apprehension that under the new
emir the friendly relations between Castile and Granada would not last,
to incite the estates to a more liberal expenditure on preparations for
war. The amount of money, ships, and armed men, both horse and foot,
which the cortes was said to have raised in conjunction with the king’s
exchequer, bears witness to the height of prosperity and power to which
Castile had risen through the wise and peaceful policy of Henry III.
His contemporaries adduce the exchange of embassies between the king of
Castile and the great Mongol sovereign Timur [or Tamerlane] as a proof
of how far the fame of the former had extended. The Turkish sultan
responded to the embassy from the Christian king by sending a return
embassy with costly presents, among which were two Christian captives
of high rank and great beauty. But Henry’s life was hastening to its
close. He had been prevented by sickness from opening in person the diet
at Toledo, where the demands were presented of which mention has been
made, and was obliged to delegate his share in the proceedings to his
brother Ferdinand, the infante who ascended the throne of Aragon a few
years later. On Christmas Day in the same year (1406) King Henry III died
at the age of twenty-seven, leaving a child one year old as heir to the
throne. Great was the mourning in Castile for the high-souled prince who
had combined vigour with gentleness, maintained peace and justice, and
never violated the constitution or the existing framework of law by the
abuse of the principle he himself had laid down--that the welfare of the
nation is the supreme law against which no usurper or chartered rights
could appeal. His country had all the more reason to lament him, as a war
with the Moors was imminent and a fresh regency in prospect.
Ferdinand, the brother of Henry III, had so fully won the esteem of
the nation that the Castilian nobles tendered him the crown. This
the high-minded prince[45] indignantly refused; but lest the kingdom
should be left to the weak hands of a child and a woman, he undertook
the government in conjunction with Catherine, the widowed queen, and
displayed such admirable qualifications for rule that Castile was for
many years spared the evils usually inseparable from a minority. He
gained the confidence of the estates, kept the nobles under control, and
won the fortress of Antequera and the surrounding country in a successful
war against the Moors (1411). When the cortes of Aragon elected him king
(1412), he continued to govern his nephew’s dominions in conjunction
with the queen-mother, and the power which was thereby concentrated in
his hands enabled him not merely to subdue the rebellious nobles of
Aragon and secure himself and his house in possession of the crown, but
to frustrate every revolt in Sardinia and the Balearic Islands, and to
assume the tone of a ruler and arbitrator, even in Sicily. Unfortunately
he died after a reign of four years, in 1416, and Queen Catherine
passed away not long after, too early for the young king, Juan II, who
had hitherto shown but small intellectual vigour, and who now, in the
fourteenth year of his age, took the sceptre in his own hands without
either capacity, experience, or strength of character to wield it. A
troublous time then began for Castile, during which revolts and civil
wars dealt grievous blows at the prosperity and power of the nation.[c]
The old historian Guzman[j] has traced a faithful portrait of the young
sloth who now filled the throne.
GUZMAN’S PORTRAIT OF JUAN AND HIS MINISTER
[Sidenote: [1406-1454 A.D.]]
Juan was of tall stature and largely built, but was neither well made
nor possessed of great strength; he had a pleasing countenance, fair
complexion, and high shoulders; his face was broad, his speech slightly
rapid. He was calm and gentle, his conversation measured and simple.
As his disposition was most extraordinary, it is necessary to dilate
thereon: he was a man who in speech was wise and prudent, possessed great
knowledge of other men, and understood those whose conversation was best,
most discreet, and most witty.
It pleased him to listen to well-informed men, and he took good note of
what they said. He both spoke and understood Latin. He read well; books
and histories delighted him; he loved to hear witty rhymes, and could
point out their defects; he enjoyed gay and intelligent conversation, in
which he could bear his part. He spent much time in the chase and hunting
of fierce animals, and was well skilled in the art of it. He had studied
music, and could both sing and play well; he was skilful in jousting, and
well versed in the exercise of tilting with reeds.
But enjoying a tolerable proficiency in these graceful accomplishments,
he was lamentably deficient in real virtues, necessary to all men and
more so to kings; for after good faith the chief virtue of a king should
be a diligent application to the government and administration of his
kingdom. In this Solomon proved himself the wisest of all, who, when
God bade him ask for what he most desired, merely begged for wisdom to
govern his people, which request was so agreeable to the Lord, that he
granted this virtue and other singular attributes pertaining to it. This
king was so deficient in this respect that, possessed of the aforesaid
accomplishments, he refused to give one hour to the government of his
kingdom. Although during this time there were more rebellious seditions
and evils than were experienced during the reigns of past kings for more
than two hundred years, which were productive of considerable harm to
his fame and kingdom, yet such were his negligence and remissness in the
government of his kingdom that he would never devote any time to it, but
preferred to spend it in other occupations more peaceful and pleasing
than useful or honourable.
And yet in the histories which he read he learned the evils which
had befallen kings and their kingdoms through such negligence and
remissness, and, moreover, was warned by many priests and knights that
his kingdom was in great peril through his neglect, and that his fame
greatly suffered thereby; and what was more serious, that he must render
to God strict account for the evils fallen upon his subjects through
his negligence, since God had given him brain and judgment to govern.
In spite of these warnings and notwithstanding that he saw the scanty
obedience he could command, the little reverence paid him, the contempt
of his letters and commands, yet he would not reform nor give his mind to
the government of his kingdom.
Don Juan II of Castile left the government of his kingdom entirely in
the hands of Alvaro de Luna, in whom he placed such singular confidence
that, to those who did not witness it, it appeared hardly credible,
and to those who did it was a matter of extreme wonder. Not only all
orders relating to his rents and treasures, offices of his household and
administration of justice were given by the constable, but nothing was
done without the latter’s consent. It is true that orders and letters,
licenses, favours, and donations were made in the king’s name and under
his signature, yet the secretaries waited the constable’s pleasure to
write, the king to sign, and the chancellor to seal; without it no letter
carried weight or was put into execution.
So great was the singular confidence which the king placed in the
constable, and so excessive the latter’s power, that it would be
difficult to find a king or prince, however feared and obeyed, more
powerful in his kingdom than was the constable in Castile, or who
enjoyed greater freedom in the government and administration. Not only
the offices, positions, and grants, of which the king had the disposal,
were in his hands, but also the ecclesiastical dignities and benefices;
no man in the kingdom was bold enough to petition the pope or recognise
his orders save with the constable’s consent. Thus both spiritual and
temporal power were in his hands; the king’s sole responsibility was to
affix his signature to letters; for the form and execution the constable
was responsible. So extended was his power, and so fully had he taken
on himself the king’s prerogative, that few thought of petitioning
the latter were it for the highest office in the land or the meanest
favour, or returned him thanks for the same; but to the constable they
were applied for, and to him acknowledged. But, what is yet more to be
marvelled at, even in natural acts the king allowed himself to be ruled
by the constable; so that being young and healthy, and knowing his queen
to be young and beautiful, he would not seek her apartment at night, did
the constable forbid him, nor yet solace himself with other women, though
his inclinations in this respect were naturally strong.
[Illustration: DON JUAN II
(From an effigy)]
Finally we have two points to consider and marvel at: the first a king
in many ways accomplished, yet totally negligent and remiss in the
government of his kingdom, being neither moved nor stimulated thereto
by discretion, nor by experience of the difficulties encountered in
the disputes and uprisings occurring in his kingdom, nor yet by the
admonitions and warnings tendered him by powerful nobles and priests.
Further, that a natural attraction should be so strong and vigorous as
to make him in all things, without exception, submit to the constable’s
command or counsel with an obedience unequalled by the most humble of
sons to a father, or the most obedient of monks to his abbot or prior.
Some persons, upon noting this marked love and excessive confidence, held
it to be the work of witchcraft, but this was never proved, although
steps were taken in the matter. The second point is that a man without
connections and of such poor origin, in a kingdom of vast dimensions,
containing so many powerful nobles, during the reign of a king so little
feared or obeyed, should enjoy such singular power. Because if we suppose
this power was due to the king’s authority, how could he give to another
what he himself never possessed, or how is it that the lieutenant was
obeyed where he whose place he took could not command obedience? Truly
I fear that no distinct reason can be given for this, save by him who
was responsible for the king’s extraordinary disposition, nor yet an
explanation of the constable’s power, for I know not which is most to be
marvelled at, the king’s character, or the constable’s power.[j]
We need not feel the amazement felt by Guzman at Alvaro’s power over
the king if we can trust the following portrait of him from an old and
anonymous biography of Alvaro.[a]
CHRONICLE OF THE CONSTABLE DON ALVARO DE LUNA
[Sidenote: [1417-1420 A.D.]]
The outward shape and seeming of Don Alvaro de Luna, master of the order
and knighthood of Santiago, and constable of the kingdoms of Castile and
Leon, were in the following wise:
He was short of stature and very upright; fair complexioned, and of
a very graceful figure all his years, slight and well-built with a
well-turned leg and length of limb in proportion to his height. His
neck was long, straight, and well-shaped, his eyes joyous and always
bright. He had a calm presence, and where he gazed, his eyes dwelt longer
than those of other men. He carried his head ever erect with a joyous
countenance; his nose was well shaped with wide nostrils, his forehead
broad, and he was early bald. He laughed readily and sought food for
mirth, and stammered a little in his speech. He was full of life; he
never put on flesh or varied in figure in the least, so that he seemed
made of bone and muscle.
He was temperate and restrained in his habits from his youth; he ever
loved and honoured the whole race of women. He loved much, and ever
observed great secrecy concerning his loves. He made discreet and lively
ballads of his loves, in which he often touched upon the mysteries of
other great deeds. He was always well-dressed, and whatever he wore sat
well upon him, so that whether dressed for the chase, for war, or for
state occasions, he was approved of all. He had a ready wit and was
much given to inventing tales and presenting interludes at the feasts,
the jousts, or in the fight, and in these compositions he very subtly
signified what he wished. He was a famous horseman in both saddles,
and a great soldier. He was very careful to have good fleet horses. He
took great delight in getting his arms repaired, and in examining them
and keeping them bright and clean and point-device. In war, he was too
courageous and daring, so that he often placed himself in great peril, as
may be seen from his history and in many other places. He was often in
arms and ever eager for the fray. He addressed his king at all times with
great reverence and ceremony [?]. He was a great huntsman and laboured
much therein, and followed the chase so often, when other business gave
him leisure, that he was better skilled in it than other men. He took
great pleasure in discoursing of archery, and in that sport it was a
marvel to find any who could beat him at the crossbow. He loved wise
and prudent men, and endeavoured to win them to himself and reposed
great trust in them; but for those who were libertines and chatterers,
he laughed with them and showed them good countenance, and held them of
small account.[k]
INTERNAL DISSENSIONS
[Sidenote: [1420-1445 A.D.]]
It was not to be supposed that the power of De Luna would fail to arouse
the jealousy and indignation of both nobles and people. But the first
disturbances of Juan’s reign were caused by the refusal of his sister,
Catalina, to marry Henry, infante of Aragon. The latter proceeded to use
force, succeeded in capturing not only the princess but Juan himself, and
retained them as his prisoners at Avila. The marriage took place, and
though Juan soon afterwards contrived to escape, Henry and his brother,
the king of Navarre, both continued to give him serious trouble in the
succeeding years of his reign by their invasions of Castile, and the
encouragement they gave to his revolted subjects. The king’s wasteful
bounty towards his favourites was a constant excuse for rebellion. It
was against his constable, Alvaro de Luna, that the enmity of nobles and
people alike was chiefly directed.[a]
In 1439 a league (not the first) was formed against him, and was headed
as usual by Henry of Aragon and the king of Navarre. Its members
loudly demanded the removal of the obnoxious favourite. To dispel the
approaching storm, Don Alvaro retired for a time from the court; but
the confederates refused to lay down their arms until he should be
forever driven from the royal presence. Though the complaints which
they elaborately brought against him were for the most part invented or
exaggerated, it is evident enough that he had abused his influence over
the royal mind, and exhibited as much eagerness to enrich, no matter by
what means, his creatures and instruments, as vindictiveness against all
who ventured to thwart his will. To appease his barons, the king convoked
his cortes at Valladolid; such a step was become necessary, for the
leaguers had seized on some of his chief cities, and were preparing to
proceed still further.
The first act of the assembly was to recommend that all parties should
disarm--the king as well as the infante, the constable as well as the
king of Navarre. But this recommendation led to no result; both parties
continued exasperated as before. That of the king was weakened by the
desertion of his only son, Prince Henry, who espoused the cause of the
confederates. The queen followed the example of her son: in short, the
aspect of affairs was so menacing that Don Alvaro began to turn his eyes
towards Portugal in search of an asylum. Through the persuasion of the
king, however, who assured him that everything should be arranged to his
wish, he consented to await the result.
The horrors of internal strife were now felt in all their force; city
after city was invested and taken by the confederate rebels, who showed
little mercy to the partisans of the king and constable. In vain did
Juan whisper peace; in vain did he appear to abide by the decision of
his states, which he might summon for the purpose: as he did not at
once and forever banish Don Alvaro from his presence, his entreaties
and remonstrances were equally disregarded. In 1443 the rebels obtained
possession of the king’s person and held him as a kind of prisoner in his
own palace. Though their subsequent efforts were somewhat paralysed by
the defection of Prince Henry, who even called on all good men to aid him
in rescuing his father from a slavish dependence on them, they persevered
not the less in their design. They took the field against both the prince
and the father, who now contrived to escape and reach the camp of the
former. But on this occasion the confederates were routed and dispersed
in several successive actions, and their strong places recovered by the
royal forces. Their estates were seized by the king, and they themselves
forced to seek refuge in Aragon or Navarre. Subsequently, both the king
of Navarre and his brother, the reckless Henry, collected troops, and
invaded, the one Castile, the other Murcia; but without any other result
than that of harassing the innocent peasantry, or wreaking vengeance on
their personal enemies. Finally the victory of Olmedo, gained by Juan in
person over the two brothers, the acquisition of a considerable number
of prisoners, and the death of Henry (of Aragon) through a wound received
in that battle, appeared to consolidate both the power of the king and
the influence of the favourite.
THE FALL OF ALVARO
[Sidenote: [1445-1453 A.D.]]
But royal attachments are seldom permanent, because they are seldom
founded on merit; and because the minds of men, especially those of
kings, are generally incapable of any lasting impression. Though the
favour of Juan II had been protracted far beyond the limits of ordinary
duration, it was not to prove an exception to the usual course of
human experience. Soon after the battle of Olmedo, the partiality of
the monarch began to be weakened. Years elapsed before Juan could put
into execution his long-meditated design of destroying his constable.
His attention, indeed, was long distracted by the irruptions into his
territories of the Aragonese and Navarrese, in conjunction with the
Castilian exiles; and by the partial revolts which from time to time
agitated his kingdom (that of Toledo for instance, occasioned by an
exaction, under the name of a loan, of a million maravedis, was not
suppressed without much difficulty). It was not until the year 1453, that
he seriously resolved to rid himself of this formidable minister.
To rashness, and an insolent contempt of the royal power and authority,
Don Alvaro soon added the crime of murder. Knowing that Alfonso de
Vivero, one of his creatures, was become his secret enemy, he planned
the destruction of that false confidant. One day he held in his own
house a council, to which Alfonso was summoned. On the appearance of the
latter, he was shown the correspondence which he had held with the king
relative to the constable’s arrest, and which Alvaro had intercepted. The
confusion of the traitor would have been evidence enough of his guilt,
without the incontestable documents then produced. On a signal from the
constable, he was dragged to the top of the tower, precipitated headlong,
and dashed to pieces on the ground below. The creatures of Alvaro
suddenly raised a note of lamentation, as if the fall had been purely
accidental; but the king was soon acquainted with the truth, and the more
confirmed in his purpose of vengeance.
[Sidenote: [1453-1454 A.D.]]
Don Alvaro was at Burgos, when the order for his arrest was given by the
king to the son of the count of Plasencia, to take him dead or alive.
During the night, troops were secretly placed in various parts of the
city and at the entrance of the fortress, into which some men-at-arms
were silently introduced. The royal order was to invest the house in
which the constable resided, and thereby compel him to surrender.
Accordingly the young Zuñiga, with two hundred men-at-arms and twenty
horsemen, surrounded the house, exclaiming, “_Castilla! Castilla!
libertad para el Rey!_” The constable showed his head from a window; but
an arrow being shot at him, he withdrew it, and his men began to fire on
the royal troops. The assault was repelled; but he himself was at length
persuaded to surrender, on receiving an assurance in writing, under the
king’s own hand, that his life, liberty, and even possessions should be
spared. No sooner, however, was he secured, than his gold and jewels
were seized by the faithless monarch, and orders given to try--in other
words, to condemn him. Twelve lawyers and several barons, being assembled
for this purpose, unanimously passed on him the last sentence and the
confiscation of all his possessions. From Burgos he was conducted to
Valladolid, where the execution was appointed to take place.
He prepared for death with firmness, and with apparent contrition for
his past misdeeds. During the night preceding the execution, the king’s
mind was far from tranquil. He remembered the real services of the
constable through so many years, the affection he had once borne him,
and the promise he had made of sparing his life. The remembrance was
so troublesome that he once or twice delivered a sealed paper to the
chamberlain on duty, which he wished to be taken to Zuñiga--doubtless, to
stay the execution. Hearing of his agitation, the queen, whose conduct
throughout was exceedingly vindictive, hastened to him, and succeeded
in suspending rather than removing his scruples. As the fatal hour
approached, Don Alvaro, mounted on a mule, and attended by two monks,
left his house for the scaffold. On the way, the public herald, according
to custom, vociferated his crimes and punishment. “I deserve all this,”
said he, “and more, for my sins!” When near the scaffold, he called a
page of the prince, and said to him, “Page, tell my lord the prince to
reward his servants better than the king, my sovereign, now rewards
me!” He ascended with a firm step, knelt for a few moments before a
crucifix, bared his neck with his own hands, and quietly laid his head
on the block, when the executioner plunged the knife into his throat,
and afterwards separated the head from the body, amidst the tears of the
surrounding multitude.
Thus fell the great constable of Castile, the victim, chiefly, of his own
immeasurable ambition, and in no mean degree of courtier jealousy and of
royal faithlessness. If his crimes were many, they were characteristic
rather of the age than of the man: he was certainly no more criminal
than the great body of the Castilian barons, who despised alike justice
and reason when violence could secure their ends. To him the queen was
indebted for her crown; yet she persecuted him with unrelenting hatred.
The numbers whom he had enriched forsook him as his favour declined;
three only of his army of dependents remained faithful to the last.
And as to his trial, the most eminent legal authorities of Spain have
satisfactorily proved that in his case both the spirit and forms of
justice were disregarded.
Juan II did not long survive the constable: he died in 1454. He was one
of the weakest and most despicable princes that ever swayed the scepter
of any country. Besides two sons, he left issue the infanta Isabella,[46]
so famous in the annals of Spain.[g]
HUME’S ESTIMATE OF JUAN II
[Sidenote: [1406-1458 A.D.]]
Juan II was unfortunate in living when he did. Peace-loving and amiable,
one of the greatest patrons of letters who ever ruled in Spain, he was
not without considerable gifts of mind, but utterly unfitted to hold the
reins of government in a state during the crucial period of struggle
between the aristocratic and democratic principles. Alvaro de Luna,
though greedy and intolerant, ruled on the whole not unwisely, with a
view to the increase of the power of the crown, and with a strong king to
support him the latter might have become supreme over both elements, as
his great-grandson did.
But though his long reign was politically a failure, it marks a period of
social splendour at court and almost universal luxury such as had never
been seen in Spain before; while Castilian letters, under the patronage
of the king, reached one of those culminating points of development which
appear in Spain at intervals of about two centuries. With the advance
of culture and the arts of peace the old rough epics of an earlier time
and the didactic verse that followed had become unfashionable; and in
the early fifteenth century, both in the courts of Castile and Aragon,
lyric poetry and chronicles of romantic incident became the rage. From
King Juan II and Alvaro de Luna downward, almost every noble and knight
wrote verses of some sort; and of the 136 poets who wrote the songs
in the _Cancionero General_ (Valencia, 1511), probably more than half
belonged to the court of Juan II, while in the _Cancionero de Baena_ the
proportion must be still larger. Music, dances, theatrical interludes,
and poetic competitions were the favourite diversions which kept the king
amused, while Alvaro de Luna governed according to his will.[i]
THE DISASTERS OF HENRY IV
The reign of Henry IV, surnamed the Impotent, was even more disastrous
than that of his father. That this surname was not undeserved, we have
the testimony of his own wife, Blanche of Navarre, whom he led to the
altar in 1440, and who, after a union of thirteen years, could complain
that the _debitum conjugale_ remained unpaid. On this ground, in 1453,
the marriage was annulled. After his accession, however, he obtained the
hand of a Portuguese infanta.
From his rebellious conduct towards his own father, it could scarcely be
expected that he would be allowed to sway the sceptre in peace. Besides
the disputes which he had with the crowns of Navarre and Aragon, he was
perpetually subjected to the insults no less than the defiance of his
turbulent nobles, and to the partial revolts of the people whom the
exactions of his revenue officers never failed to exasperate. In 1457
a league was formed against him, just as it had been against the late
king, and composed of the most influential barons and ecclesiastics:
among these was Henry’s favourite Pacheco, for whom he had obtained the
marquisate of Villena, and whom he had laden with honours and wealth.
Their complaints were that the business of administration was neglected;
that the king kept aloof from the hereditary advisers of his crown, and
associated with individuals of low birth [these included numerous Moors],
on whom he lavished his resources to the great detriment of the state.
Whatever might be his other faults, he was naturally mild, and disposed
to cherish his people; to their remonstrance he replied that he would
convoke his cortes, and do whatever they advised him. They accordingly
disbanded. But he soon abandoned himself to new favourites.
[Sidenote: [1458-1465 A.D.]]
In the meantime, the confederates again proceeded to strengthen their
league: made a second petition, drawn up in more decided terms than
the preceding; and, besides, insisted that the king should pay more
regard to the education of the infantes, Alfonso and Isabella, and cause
the former to be recognised as his heir by the states of the kingdom.
As his answer was evasive, they again placed the king of Aragon and
Navarre[47] at their head, and laboured by every means to obstruct the
course of his government. Hostilities between him and that monarch were
the consequence; but they led to nothing, especially as from time to
time he found means to gain over several of the discontented lords. His
satisfaction was increased by the pregnancy of his queen; who, early in
1462, was delivered of a daughter, the infanta Juana or Joanna. Though
popular report did not hesitate to assign the child to the familiarity
of the mother with Don Beltran de la Cueva, count of Ledesma, one of
Henry’s favourites, and even applied to that issue the significant
epithet of _Beltraneja_, the latter was not the less eager in securing
the recognition of the princess as heiress to his dominions.
[Illustration: HENRY IV]
At length the marquis of Villena, the very soul of the league, being
disappointed in his expectation of the grand-mastership of Santiago,
which was conferred on the count of Ledesma, formed no less a project
than that of arresting both king and queen, of proclaiming Alfonso,
and, in concert with his confederates, of reigning under the name and
authority of that young prince. Being seasonably warned by four faithful
servants, the king avoided the snare. Nevertheless in a subsequent
interview he agreed that his brother Alfonso should be declared his
heir; that Don Beltran should resign the grand-mastership of Santiago
in favour of that infante, who should be consigned to the guardianship
of the marquis of Villena. Early in the following year (1465), these
conditions were punctually performed: Beltran resigned the dignity, with
which Alfonso was immediately invested; and that infante, on engaging
to marry the Beltraneja, was, at the same time, proclaimed prince of
the Asturias, and successor to the throne. But Henry’s unexampled
concessions were insufficient. Henry summoned them to lay down their
arms, and to surrender his brother, and went to invest Arevalo, one of
their fortresses: that siege, however, he soon raised on hearing that
Valladolid had declared for Alfonso, whom the rebels were conducting to
Avila, to be there proclaimed king of Leon and Castile.
The scene which now disgraced Avila was one of unparalleled effrontery.
In the midst of the plain, near the walls of the city, a vast theatre
was constructed; in the centre rose a throne, on which was placed an
effigy of Henry with a crown on the head, a sceptre in the hand, and
other ensigns of royal dignity. A herald ascended the platform and read,
in a loud voice, the various charges that had long been urged against
the administration of the king--his neglect of justice, his incapacity,
the outrages which he had committed against his kingdom and nobles;
hence, that, in conformity with reason and justice, no less than the
fundamental laws of the realm, the said Henry had been pronounced by the
most eminent civilians to be unfit any longer to wear the crown, and that
his deposition was imperiously demanded by the interests of the nation.
This decision was justified by an allusion to other kingdoms, which, in
various periods of history, had been compelled to depose their rulers.
No sooner was this strange homily finished than the archbishop of Toledo,
with the marquis of Villena, the count of Plasencia, the grand-master
of Alcantara, and other barons, ascended the platform, and approached
the statue. The first took off the royal crown; the second snatched away
the sceptre; the third, the sword; a fourth stripped off the kingly
robe; a fifth and sixth, the other emblems of royalty: all six then
simultaneously kicked the statue from the chair, and precipitated it
to the ground, loading it with curses and the most insulting terms of
reproach. Alfonso was next brought on the stage, and was elevated on the
shoulders of the nobles, who exclaimed, “_Castilla! Castilla! para el rey
Don Alfonso!_” The flourish of trumpets, the beating of drums, and the
homage solemnly rendered to the new king, completed the scene.
[Sidenote: [1465-1469 A.D.]]
Henry was naturally anxious to punish the rebels, but their attitude was
too formidable for him. They continued under arms, besieging fortress
after fortress, and wreaking vengeance alike on their personal and
political enemies. During these troubles there was a total relaxation
of the laws; numerous bands of robbers paraded the highways, and not
infrequently pillaged the towns of the kingdom; until the inhabitants
formed themselves into voluntary confederations for the protection of
their persons and properties. Thus continued the face of affairs until
1467, when Henry resolved to risk a battle with the rebels. He met them
near Olmedo, where, after a fierce but indecisive struggle, both armies
left the field, each boasting of the victory. While each was collecting
reinforcements to try the event of another action, arrived a papal
legate, who endeavoured to reduce the rebels to reason, and who was so
imprudent as to threaten them with the thunders of the church unless
they laid down their arms and submitted their complaints to arbitration.
Three hundred tongues hooted him from the camp of the confederates: to
avoid something worse, he hastily mounted his mule, and fled. This event,
however, did not prevent the king from meeting the leaders at Segovia,
where a suspension of arms was agreed on. The following year his rival,
the infante Alfonso, died--an event highly favourable to the king.
The rebels, indeed, proposed to raise the infanta Isabella, his sister,
to the throne, and thereby perpetuate their own impunity; but that
princess, who had principles and an understanding far above her years,
refused to become the tool of a few factious rebels. Finally, peace was
made: Isabella and Henry met with every appearance of good will; and that
princess was recognised, both by him and the great body of the barons and
deputies as the undoubted heiress of the two crowns. The queen, indeed,
protested against this arrangement in favour of her daughter; but her
complaints passed unheeded.
MARRIAGE OF FERDINAND AND ISABELLA
[Sidenote: [1469-1474 A.D.]]
In the same year was laid the foundations of a union which was to prove
of such unbounded value to Spain; Juan II of Aragon solicited the hand of
Isabella of Castile for his son and heir Don Ferdinand, king of Sicily.
The overture was formally received by the princess; but obstacles of so
formidable a nature intervened that, for some time, there was little hope
of a successful issue to the negotiations. Neither the king nor the queen
wished to see the cause of Isabella supported by so powerful a neighbour
as the future monarch of Aragon would necessarily be. Besides, several
barons, who had followed the fortunes of Henry, and procured great
estates at the expense of the infanta’s adherents, naturally dreaded her
accession in any case, especially if there should be a junction of her
power with that of Aragon.
[Illustration: QUEEN ISABELLA]
Such, however, was the eagerness of Juan to conclude the match; such
the sums he distributed among the Castilian nobles; and so powerful the
interference of the archbishop of Toledo in the cause, that her adherents
decided on bringing the affair as soon as possible to a conclusion. The
whole negotiation was secretly conducted; the rather as the princess was
sought both by the duke of Berri, brother to the French king, and by the
monarch of Portugal, whose agents were sure to oppose every obstacle
in their power to the union with Aragon. For a time she was a prisoner
in Madrigal, where it was evidently intended to detain her until she
gave her consent to either the Portuguese or the Frenchman. The former
was considered too old to have issue, the latter was too far removed to
be dreaded. She contrived to acquaint her friends with her unexpected
position. The primate immediately collected three hundred lances, and
marched to her relief; the admiral of Castile and the bishop of Curia
did the same; she was released, and triumphantly escorted to Valladolid.
Ferdinand was invited to hasten from Aragon with all possible expedition,
while Henry was absent in Andalusia, and receive his bride. As he was
likely to be intercepted on his reaching the Castilian territory, he
assumed a suitable disguise, and, with three attendants only, eluded
the design of his enemies. On the 25th of October, 1469, the royal pair
received the nuptial benediction in the cathedral of Valladolid.
No sooner was Henry acquainted with this precipitate marriage, than
he resolved to leave no measure untried for securing the crown to
Beltraneja. To the deputations of his sister and brother-in-law, who
entreated him to forgive a step rendered necessary by circumstances, he
returned answers studiously evasive. The profusion with which he lavished
lands, lordships, and other honours on the more powerful barons, proved
how anxious he was to effect his object. But his attention was long
distracted, and his efforts rendered abortive, by the troubles which
lacerated his kingdom. There was no longer a government: one baron made
war on another, and one class of the community on another, with perfect
impunity and with perfect contempt of their sovereign’s authority. In
some towns the streets were deluged with blood by their contentions. But
the king was too mutable in character to persevere long in any given line
of conduct. In 1474 he again sought for an opportunity of entrapping and
imprisoning the infanta and her husband; but his purpose was divined and
eluded.
This weak monarch--weak even to helplessness--died near the close of
1474; by his last will he declared the young Juana his successor, and
charged four of his most considerable barons with its execution. The
desire of wiping away the stain on his manhood did not forsake him even
on the verge of the grave.
On the death of Juan, Ferdinand was at Saragossa; but his consort,
being at Segovia, summoned that city to acknowledge her, and was
instantly obeyed: by the nobles and prelates present, both were solemnly
proclaimed joint sovereigns of Castile and Leon. On his return from
Aragon, there was much dispute as to the power he was to exercise in the
administration. While one party contended that the undivided executive
ought to depend on the queen, as _domina et hæres_ of the monarchy,
another maintained that he alone should govern; since, in default of
male issue by the deceased king, the crown devolved of right to him
as the next heir. But the Salic law had never been in force in this
kingdom, however it might be recognised in some neighbouring states.
After frequent and acrimonious consultations, it was agreed that the
king and queen should reign conjointly, and that, in all public acts,
his name should precede hers; but, to save her rights, or rather to
satisfy Castilian jealousy, it was no less stipulated that without her
express sanction he should not have power to alienate any portion of the
royal revenues or domains, nor to nominate the governors of towns or
fortresses. These restrictions were far from pleasing to Ferdinand, who
was immoderately fond of power, and who, at first, even threatened to
return into his hereditary kingdom. His indignation was disarmed by the
prudence of the queen, who, by promising submission to his will, averted
so fatal a misfortune.
WAR OF THE SUCCESSION (1474-1479 A.D.)
[Sidenote: [1474-1479 A.D.]]
But if the majority of the people were in favour of the new reign, there
were yet many barons, and those of considerable influence, who espoused
the interests of Juana. The marquis of Villena, with other barons of
the same party, resolved to marry the young princess to Alfonso V of
Portugal, assisted by whose arms they hoped to make head against the
reigning pair. Alfonso readily embraced the proposals of the disaffected:
he collected troops, and at the same time, as uncle of Juana, applied to
the pope for a dispensation to celebrate the marriage.
However important the stake for which the two parties now began to
contend, the details of that contention are too obscure in themselves,
and were too indecisive, to merit minute attention. Though the Portuguese
obtained some partial successes, among others the strong fortress of
Zamora, the war was decidedly in favour of the Castilian sovereigns: in
the very first campaign the marquis of Villena had the mortification to
see his hereditary domains in possession of the royal forces; while many
of the towns and forts, which had at first declared for Juana, returned
to their duty. In 1476 the Portuguese king was compelled to retreat from
Zamora, which was invested by Ferdinand; near Toro he was overtaken by
his active enemy, and a battle ensued, in which victory declared for the
latter;[48] it was immediately followed by the surrender of the fortress.
About the same time, Madrid, which had held for Juana, capitulated to the
duke del Infantado: Ucles followed the example. Both the marquis and the
primate were now tired of their ally and their cause. Negotiations were
opened; and, in September, 1479, satisfactorily concluded at Alcacebas.
The principal conditions were that Alfonso should renounce the title of
king of Castile; that he should neither marry, nor in any way favour the
pretensions of Doña Juana; that “this pretended daughter of the late
king, Don Henry,” should be allowed six months to decide whether she
would wait until the infante Juan (only son of Ferdinand and Isabella,
then but a year old) arrived at a marriageable age, or take the veil;
that the Portuguese should restore the few places they still held in
Estremadura. It was added that if, on arriving at a proper age, the
infante should be averse to the match, he had only to pay 100,000
pistoles to be at liberty to marry whom he pleased. The unfortunate
lady, seeing that she was sacrificed to the interests of the two kings,
professed in the convent of St. Clair at Coimbra.[49]
The very year in which peace was thus happily restored between Castile
and Portugal, Ferdinand, by the death of his father, Juan II, was called
to the throne of Aragon. Having received the homage and confirmed the
privileges of his Aragonese subjects at Saragossa, of the Catalonians
at Barcelona, and of the Valencians in the capital of that province, he
returned into Castile.[g]
There was now a Spain, though the government of the two kingdoms was
separately administered under separate constitutions long after the
time of Ferdinand and Isabella; yet the double throne was after all one
throne, and Spain was at last a nation, fronting the world united, as far
as the Spaniards of that time could be united, and the first reign of the
new realm was the most glorious of all.[a]
FOOTNOTES
[44] Let us hope that the atrocities of the English allies--so gently
noticed by Froissart[d]--are exaggerated; yet certain it is that the
old Portuguese chroniclers dwelt largely on them: “_Nao se cançaõ os
nossos chronistas de encarecer as atrocidades que estas tropas auxiliares
cometteraõ em todos os terrenos de Portugal por onde andaraõ_,” says
Lemos.[e] “King Ferdinand,” says the _Chronicon Conimbricense_[f] “had to
seize the church plate to satisfy his allies: _Mandou o ditto senhor rey
tomar os thesouros das igrejas, convem a saber, frontaes, e calices et
magestades, para pagar o soldo aos dittos Ingrezos._”
[45] [Hume[i] calls him “one of the noblest personages of Spanish
history.”]
[46] [While there are discrepant statements as to the date and place
of Isabella’s birth, Prescott accepts April 22nd, 1451, as the date,
and Madrigal as the place.[l] Burke[h] emphasises the fact that in her
veins flowed the blood both of Guzmans and of Plantagenets; both her
great-grandmother and her grandmother were English.]
[47] Juan, king of Navarre, who in 1458 had succeeded his brother Alfonso
as king of Aragon.
[48] In this battle it was somewhat singular to see two eminent
ecclesiastical dignitaries, the cardinal De Mendoza and the archbishop
of Toledo, fighting on opposite sides. There was something not exactly
apostolic in the former’s hastening along the Castilian ranks, with a
crucifix borne before him, shouting, “Knaves, fight away! have ye not a
cardinal with you?”
[In honour of this victory Isabella walked barefoot in a religious
procession through the streets.]
[49] Alfonso later abdicated and went into a monastery.
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