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11
MEDIEVAL IBERIAN THE FORTRESS OF FAITH
PENINSULA The Attitude towards Muslims in Fifteenth Century Spain

TEXTS AND STUDIES ~¡ 94(460)"04/14"

BY
m~ - ECHEVARR fort
ress
(MIP) 782378000002

ANA ECHEVARRIA
EDITED BY

RACHEL ARIÉ AND ANGUS MAcKAY

VOLUME 12

THE FORTRESS OF FAITH

BRILL
LEIDEN · BOSTON · KOLN
1999
 CONTENTS

Acknowledgcmcnts ......................... .......... ................ ... ... .. ... .. .. .... VII

Abbrcviations .. . .. . .. .... ..... . .. .. ... .. ......... .... .. ... .. . .. ... .. .. .. . .. .. . .. .. . .. .. . .. . 1x

Introduction .............. ... ... ............ ...... ................ .... ..................... .

Chapter Onc The Political Approach to Muslims,
1430- 1470 .......................... .... ............................ ........................ 7
Chaptcr Two Thc Intcllcctual Approach I: T he Authors .... 28
Pedro de la Cavallería .... ... .... ..... ... .. .. .... ..... ........... ...... .. ..... .. 28
Juan de Segovia ...................................... .............................. 34
Juan de Torquemada ..... ............................... ...... .................. 41
Alonso de Espina .... .. ... .. .. ... .. .. .. ... . .. . .. .. .. . .. . .. .. ... .. .. .... .. .. . .. .. .. . 47
Chapter Three The Intellectual Approach II:
A Stylc for a Public ................................... .......................... .. ... 56
a) Sermons .. .. ........ .......... ...... ... .. . .. ... .... .. .. ... ... .. .. .. . .. ... ..... .. ... ... 63
b) Disputes .......... ............. ................... ... .. .................... ........... 68
e) Letters ..... ....................... ......... ......... .. ... ............................. 72
d) Reports .. .. .. . .. .. .. .... .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . .. .... .. . .. ..... .. .. .. .. .. ..... .. ... ... .. .. 78
e) Treatises ....... .... ... ... .. .. ....... ..... ...... ..... ..... ..... ..... ..... ..... ..... .. 80
Chapter Four Tradítion and Polemics: Sources for
Fifteenth-Century Authors . .. ..... .. .. . .. .... .. .. ...... ..... .. .. ... ... .. ... .. ... .. 83
Bible and !(oran .. .. ..... .. .. ... .. .. .. ... .. . .. . .. .. .. .. ... .. ... . .. .. ... . .. .. . .. ... .. 86
Polcmics in Lítcraturc: A Summary ...... .. ..... .. .......... .... .. .. . .. 90
Librarics: An Approach to Diffusion .. .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .... .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. 96
Chaptcr Fivc Contra En-ores Machometi . . . .. ... .. ......... ...... ..... ... 1O1
Structurc of the Treatises .. .. .. .. ... .. ... ......... ....... .. .... .. .... ....... ... 1Ol
Vocabulary . .. .. ... . .. .. .. . .. . .. .. ... .. .. .. . .. .. .... . .. .. .. . .. . .. .. .. .. ... .. .. .. ... .. .. .. l 03
Symbolism . .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. ... .. .. .. . .. .. .. . .. ... ..... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. ... .... l 06
Chronicles in Polemics ...... ........................... .......... ... .. ... ... .. .. 113
Characters for Polemics ........................................................ 122
a) MuJ:iammad's biography .. .. .... .......... ...... .. .. .. .... .. .. .... .. .. 122
b) Muslim kings and hcrocs ...... ............... .................. :.... ... 129
e) Christian saínts ............ ...... .. .. .. .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. .. .. ... ......... ... .. 131
 - - - - - - - - - · - - - --···-······-···-··

Vl CONTENTS

d) Christian kings ................ .... ................... ..... ..... .......... ... 132
e) Christian heroes ....................... .... ......... ...... ............... ... 134
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Chapter Six Islam in the Treatises ........................................ 137
Language and Rcligion .. ... ... .. .. . .. .. ... .. .. .. .. ... .. . .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . 13 7
On the Concordance and Discordance of Islam,
This book is a revision of my Ph.D. thcsis. It would not have been
Christianity and Judaism ............. ..... ..... ......... .......... ....... ..... 142
possible without the financia! support of thc University of Edinburgh
a) Christian doctrine .... .. ........... .................... ..... .. .. .. .......... 145
Faculty of Arts, which provided the funds for the core of my research,
b) Islamic doctrine ............................................................ 150
and thc scholarship from the Instituto de Cooperación con el Mundo
c) Other aspects of controversy .. ................ ... .. .. .... .. . .. ...... 163
Arabe in Madrid, which cnabled me to conduct more research in
d) Muslims, Heretics and Jews ........................................ 164
the Bibliothcque Nationale de Paris. 1 wish to thank them specially
Chapter Seven The Religious Argument: T olerance and far believing in my work.
AccuJturation .. . .. .. . .. ...... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. . .. ... .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ... ... .. 171 1 am also very grateful to the History Departmcnt at the University
"The Spirit of the Laws" ................................................ ,..... 171 of Edinburgh because they were always very hclpful and ready to
Acculturation Mechanisms within Society .... .. .... .... ...... ...... 182 discuss any matter. Also to Prof. M. J. Víguera Molins, Dr. M. C.
Conversion and Integration .... .... ................. ..... ........... ......... 186 Quintanilla Raso and Prof M. A. Ladero Quesada, who were .!DY h'.;l:~is..
The End of Muslim Powcr .... .... .............. ..... ... ... .... .. .. ... .. ... . 196 in Spain d~ring these years. And my great thanks to Dr. -K.i[ C.
Gerbet for introducing me to the immcnsc catalogue in the Bibliotheque
Conclusion ... .. . .. . .. ... .. .. ... .. ... .. ... .. .. .. ... ..... .. .. .. ... .. . .. ... ... .. .. ... .... .. .. .. 209 Nationale in París: none of my research thcrc would have been pos-
Chronology ................................................................................ 213 sible without her.
Appcndix 1: Sources of Fifteenth-century Treatises ................ 217 1 also want to mention Mr. A. Rose-Miller and Mrs. Thisbe Burns,
Appcndix II: External Structure of Fifteenth-century who were as patient as to read and revise my English text, and Mr.
Treatiscs .................................................................................. 220 R. Wood, with whom 1 havc sharcd very interesting thoughts about
Bibliography ........... ..... ..... ..... .... ..... ..... .......... .... ...... ... .. .. ........... .. 235 Espina and his world. Dr. G. Wicgers and Dr. A. Meyuhas Gínio
111dex ........................................................... .......... ..................... 247 kindly cliscussed the results of their own rcscarch with me and made
valuable suggestions. My friends J. M. Rodríguez, F. Luis, .J. M.
Mendoza, S. Johnstone, E. Massold, E. Llndeke, A. Ariza, E. Aparicio,
E. Cortés, and M. Torre-Enciso were always a great support both
providing ideas or discussíng them- or just as great company in
librarics! My spccial gratitude to the librarians of the Monastery of
Sta. María de la Vid in Burgos, Biblioteca Felíx María Pareja
(I.C.M.A.) and the Universidad Pontificia de Comillas in Madrid,
who always made my work so pleasant- and my dcsire that both
National Libraries of Madrid and Paris and the Cathcdral of Burgo
de Osma will improve their services.
Finally, 1 would like to thank my two supervisors, Prof Angus
I. K. MacKay and Mr. Allan Hood, for their continuous attentíon,
recommendations and patience. I hope their efforts were not in vain.
 ABBREVIATIONS

ACA Barcelona, Archivo de la Corona de Aragón

AHN Madrid, Archivo Histórico Nacional
AHDE Anuario de Historia del Derecho Español
AVCIH1V1A Actas del V Coloquio lntemacional de Historia Medieval de
Andalucía
BNM Madrid, Biblioteca Nacional
BNP París, Bibliotheque Natíonalc
BRAH Boletín de la Real Academia de la Hist01ia
BRABLB Boletín de la Real Academia de Buenas Letras de Barcelona
Cath. Catherinc of I~ancaster's Ordinanccs ( 1412)
CE Contra enores petfidi j\!f.achometi by Juan de Torquemada
CHE Cuadmws de Histmia de España
CSIC Madrid, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas
Disputatio Di.sputatio contra sarracenos et Alchoranwn by Ricoldo de
Montecroce
DM De mittendo gladio . . ., by Juan de Scgovia
Ese. El Escorial (Madrid), Monastery Library
F'F Fortalitium Fidei by Alonso de la Espina
Ms. Manuscript
PL Patrología Latina
RAH lVIadrid, Real Academia de la Historia
RUC Revista de la Universi.dad Complutense
s.d. sine data (no date)
Sent. Scntcnce of Medina del Campo (1465)
zc <.,elus Christi contra sarracenos . .. , by Pedro de la Cavallcría
 INTRODUCTION

The perception Christian writcrs in the Iberian Península had of the

Muslim community surrow1ding them, both within the ·Christian tcr-
ritories and in neighbouring Granada, is one of the most interesting
aspccts of the last ycars of the Reconquest. In spite of the large
number of studies devotcd to the fall of Granada in 1492, few schol-
ars have analysed the approach to the "Muslim matter" in the years
befare it. And it is precisely the period betwccn 1450 and 1470 which
provides the due to understanding the political thought of Isabel
and Femando.
A process had started with the conquest of Toledo in 1085 1 which
marked the change from a "total" Arabic religious culture coexisting
with two rrÍicro-culturcs (Jewish and Mozarab), to a "total" Christian
religious culture gradually imposing itself on the other two. Legal
sanction of the process carne with Alfonso X's Seven Parts, 2 which
established the framework for all future royal legislation dcaling with
socio-rcligious issues.
The parallel development of 1\!Iendicant ordcrs and their preach-
ing methods helpcd to consider Islam not just an enemy in crusadc,
but also an intcllectual adversary to be defeated by arguments. The
Iberian Península was a good place to test their theories, for it offered
thc perfect situation far preachers to practice their skills. They could
try both Muslims living under Christian rule (Mudejars) and the
Muslim kingdom of Granada, where they could travel providcd with
safe-conducts. A list of famous names tried- and failed-to achicve the
conversion of Andalusian Muslims.
By the fiftccnth centmy, the conquest of Granada was thought to
be inevitable and imminent, for thc first time in ccnturies. The facts
which had brought about this feeling in the Peninsular kingdoms
were Castilian self-awareness, after a long list of military successes,
and the imperialist claims of Aragon in the Mediterranean, which

1 Epalza, M. de: "Historia medieval de la Península: tres culturas o tres reli-

giones", pp. l 00-1 Ol.

2 Highfield, R.: "Christian, Jews and Muslims ... " Studies in Church History (1978),

pp. 123-'124.
2 INTRODUCTION
had led to the reduction of Granadan territory; and thc expectations
of thc clergy and the revival of crusading interests all over Europe
due to the Ottomans' advance. Iberian authors werc at the vanguard
of thcir contemporaries when it carne to considering these argumcnts
in their works.
A new conception of the relationship between both religions startcd
with Juan de Segovia and 'Isa ibn Djabir and thcír translation of
the Koran. Cabanela's pionccr work3 opened new roads in research
which have not been complctcly explored. Norman Daniel followed
with his extensive research on the formation of a corpus of European
ideas about Islam from the twelfth to the fourteenth century.'1 Although
his method was sornewhat descriptivc, his references and bibliogra-
phy are still csscntial. Southern' had an even more general view of
the pcnctration of the Islamic problem in European minds and the
response it gencrated in tlrree pcriods: 700- 1100, 1100-1400 and
1400 onwards. His approach was severely criticized, but it was still
another step forward in the analysis of thc European perception of
Islam in the Middle Ages.
Many works havc continued this trcnd. To mentían but a fcw
which have been vcry helpful for my own approach, there are Epalza's
life work on the views of both sidcs using Arabic sources; R. l. Burns
and his studics of the transition of Muslim to Christian power in
the kingdom of Valencia; R. Barkai's approach to chronicles in search
of rnirror-images of the two cultures, Lavajo's study of Raimundo
Martí's Summa contra Alchoranum, Wieger's monograph about 'Isa ibn
Djabir and Cardaillac's work on Morisco polcmícs (see bibliography).
However, most of thesc authors have faíled to go as far as the
fiftcenth century in their rcview of Christian views on Muslims. The
evolution of Iberian socicty throughout the fourteenth and fifteenth
centuries requires ncw approaches far this period. The study of ccclc-
siastical literature as a manifestation of a "frontier church" 6 gives an
3
Cabanelas, D.: Juan de Segovia y el problema islámico. Madrid 1952.
Daniel, N.: Nam and the West. 17ie Mak:ing ef an Image. Edinburgh 1960/0xford
·f
1992.
" Southern, R. W.: Westem uiews of Islam .. ., p. 13.
" According to R. l. Rurns, "The Significance of thc Frontier in the Middle
Agcs" lvledieval Frontier Soáeties, p. 326: "How lhcn wa~ it a frontier church? In thrcc
ways. First it was consciously the custodian here of the Europe-widc crusade spirit,
deliberatdy transforming its material surroundings to make little atolls in the sea
o[ Jviuslims. Secondly, it was itself dominated by reactive acculturation. An cnviron-
ment can be acculturated as much by reacting as by conforming. A comrnunity in
INTRODUCTION 3
idea of the atmosphcre at the court as wcll as the aims of the clergy.
Although Lavajo has considcrcd theological material more oqjective
than chroniclcs, we agree with Barkai in thinking exactly the opposite.
Both rcflcct the difference between popular practices in the fronticr
and ecclesiastical theo1y, as well as a particular knowlcdgc of Islamic
society in the Iberian Península. Unfortunatcly, thc rcpeated calls
for a comparative study of local documcnts and litcrary sources 7 are
impossible to satisfy duc to thc dispersion of primary sources.
This book has focused on the information contained in religious
trcatiscs, chronicles and royal legislation (cortú, }iteras reales and the
Seven Parts). The next step would be comparing this with local faeros
and contemporary documents.
The period between 1430 and 1470 in the Península was trouble-
some: civil war extended to all the kingdoms except Portugal and social
groups were uncasy. Religious minorities often suffered from such a
state of affairs. On the other hand, the Ottomans had conquered a
grcat dcal of the Islamic territories and advanced over Byzantium.
Thc final defeat of Constantinople- which had bcen forcsccn but
not avoided by Christian rulers-gave place to ncw attempts at cru-
sades launched by the pope.
Four authors show how facts influenced ecclesiastical literature,
which had alrcady a well-established backgrnund in which to search
far arguments to move Euro pean rulers to defeat Islam. The extra-
ordinary importance of Juan de Segovia's ideas concerning Islam
and his privileged place in the Catholic Church makes it worth mcn-
tioníng him in a special place. A lecturcr at thc Univcrsity of Sala-
manca and a member of the conciliarist party in thc schism, at the
end of bis political life he undcrtook the huge task of translating the
Koran for polernical purposes and devising a method to convert
Muslims peacefully. He wrote to the most important scholars of his
time, starting with the Pope Pius 11, and was the first person to co-
operate with a Muslim alfaqui in an attempt to approach thc two
religions to one another.
Pedro de la Cavalleria was a different case; his origins wcrc a re-
nowncd converso farnily in Aragon. He was himself counselor to King
reactive acculturation hardens its cultural patterns until the effect is stressful and
absurd. [. .. ] Thirdly, the king used Church personnel and institutions, as the most
accessible of his rnajor resources, far the transformation of his conqucst."
7
Ladero, M.. A.: "Los mudéjares en los reinos de la Corona de Castilla'', p. 20.
 4 INTRODUGTION
Juan II and an important member of the town council of Saragossa.
His treatisc :(,elus Christi contra Iudaeos, Sarracenos, etc., was a defence of
thc Christian faith against Jcws, but he also included a summary of
general points about Islam.
The fame as a preacher of Enrique IV's confessor made him write
a t:reatise about the dangers produced by the cnemics of Christian
faith. Alonso de Espina started his Fortalitium Fidei around 1459. It
would bccome one of the favourite manuals of the Inquisition in the
following century.
Finally, Cardinal Juan de Torqucmada was engagcd by Pius II in
the fight against Islam through a minor work entitlcd Contra errores
peifidi lvlachomeb.·. It was the main argument he uscd to address thc
European princcs at the Council of Mantua in Pius II's attempt to
start a crusadc against the Ottomans in 1459.
All the authors wrote their works between 1450 and 1461, a very
short span of time considering the history of Islamo-Christian relations.
The theory that thís book tries to provc is that historical events had
an important role in the revival of the polcmic genre against Islam.
The length and singular approach of Espina's work determines its
central part in the argument. The number of manuscripts, incunabula
and translations of the .Fortalitium during the sixtccnth century gives
an idea of the widespread interest it aroused.
The authors' di.fferent personal circumstances and purposes made
thcm choose di.fferent audicnces and styles to address them: sermons,
rhetorical letters, treatiscs and reports will be analysed to demonstrate
their relation with the public . and · the cxpected effect they would
have on society. The sources used to compose them wcre both his-
torical and . theological: . Bible and Koran shared thc first place in
quotations, and their accuracy will be discussed at lcngth. Dependence
on authorities was important because it guaranteed the quality of a
book. Oral sources are mentioned in ali the books by Iberian authors. 8
Obviously, in a country where coexistence had been practised for
centuríes, it is logical that any author who wanted to write about
Islam would try to contact an accurate sourcc, i.e., a l\/Iuslim, to
provide sorne practical details. A brief history of polemics and a
search in fifteenth-century libraries will complete the background
from which the authors took theír information.
6
Ff, fol. 132v;Juan de Segovia, Prologue to the Koran, fol. 190r (cif. Cabanelas,D.:
Juan de Segovia y el problema islámico, p. 289).
INTRODUCTlON 5
The corc of the book starts with the style of the treatises, the lan-
guage chosen to commwlicate with the possible rcaders, the symbol-
ism and images uscd to attract their attention and thc way chronicles
werc used as examples to imposc a particular view of the invasion
of Christian territories by Saracens.
Religious and legal arguments tricd to use controversy and laws
to place Jcws, Muslims and Christians in differcnt sphercs of every-
day life while self-awareness grew on thc Christian side. As it seemed
that the end of Muslim powcr would not come as soon as expected,
Christians had to be guided in ordcr to preserve their faith and iden-
tity. The dogmas of the Church had to be explained as much as
possiblc, and treatises became a manual for sermons. Meanwhilc,
Muslims andJews had to be kept from sharing too many habits with
Christians in case they might engage in proselitism.
Conversion as a way of assimilation was the ncxt step in the writ-
ers' minds, beforc they could declare the last crusade against Muslim
powcr, which would finish with the end of the world and the tri-
umph of Christian faith. Eschatological litcrature had sorne part in
the writers' training techniques, and subsequently appeared to a grcater
or lesser dcgree in their works.
The interpretation of these sourccs shows a new conception of
world history widening to a new view of the Christian-Muslim relation-
ship which, in due time, favoured the conquest of the last remains
of Muslim power in the Península (Granada) and the obstruction of
Turkish advancc.
I have tried consistently to solvc the difficulty of managing different
languages during thc preparation of the text. First, I shall never refer
to Spain, because at that time the Iberian Península was divided into
severa! kingdoms: Castilc, Navarre, Aragon, Portugal and Granada.
As the subject I am conccrned with deals mainly with the history
of ideas, it will be quite frequent to find referenccs to ali thc Christian
kingdoms on one side, for their experience and reactions facing ·Islam
are very similar, in which case they will be refcrred to as lberian
Península, lbe1ian or Peninsular.
I will refer to Muslim or Saracen, Islam, Islamic religi,on for. any equiva-
lents, although the various names used for them are 'commented
upon in chapter 6. The di:fferencc between law and religion was sel-
dom made in the fiftccnth century, so both will appear as synonyms.
Wherc Ch1istian, Christianiry or Christendom is uscd, it must be under-
stood to involve the Roman Latín Church in general.
6 INTRODUCTION

Where several copies of the treatises can be found, unless other-

wisc statcd, I have preferred to work with the oldest extant manu-
script or cdition. The fact that they are usually carefully decorated CHAPTER ONE
works, ordcrcd by a patron, makes them the best revised, accurate
transcriptions. THE POLITICAL APPROACH TO MUSLlMS, 1430- 1470
Names and placenames are used as follows: the authors will be
called Segovia, Cavalleria, Espina and Torquemada to simplify.
Spanish namcs will be used for Iberian kings and queens to distin- Thc pcriod between 1430 and 14 70 is defincd by the confrontation
guish them from European rulers; also for Iberian authors and char- of European Christcndom and Islam on either side of thcir tcrritory:
actcrs, except those who may have a well lmown English translation. to thc East, the advancc of the Turks, while in the West thc crusade
In any case, the particle de (of) indícating either the fathcr's surnamc that would later drive thc Muslims from the Iberian Península had not
or place of origin will remain in Spanish. Ali other names will appear yet finishcd. As a result of this, the "frontier" 1 situation extended to
in their English form. Thc samc applies to legal, institutional and both sides of Christendom. War in the East became continua! whereas
other specific terms: where a proper translation in English has not on the Western borders small fronti~.r~_§.kinnishes combincd with peace
be en found because thc tcrm refers to a particular Peninsular fact, trcaties in exchangc for tribut~; --to Christian monarchies, showing a
the Spanish word is kept (i.c., conversos). Transliterations from Arabic diffcrcnt way of undcrstandíng crusades. Western rulers who were
are avoided whcre thcre is an English or Spanish word to use, as more intcrested in crusades had family bonds among them and sim-
this · is not thc work of a ·linguist, and introducing more languages ilar intcrcsts regarding maritime, territorial and political expansion.
into the tcxt and notes would makc them more confusing. Whilc France .and England were cngaged in the Hundred Y cars
Punctuation has been introduccd in the Latin and old Castilian War,,{Dukc Philip the Good of Burgundy (1396- 1467) used crusadc
texts to make them more understandable. Double consonants in Latín as an""ínstrumcnt to avoid Frcnch dominationjProbably the influence
have been avoided because such was the usage in most of the fifteenth- ofJ;i,t~ füther, .capturr:d
. . . .. ...
in Nicopolis,
. .. .... .
was anothcr important
l
reason to
century Iberian works. make the duke compromise in such a venture. Twot;;.mbassics of Bur- (
gundian nobles sent to the East in 1421 and 1432, respectivcly, and \7
thc arguments of a Byzantine embassy in 1442 induced Philip the
Good to joín the Popc's appeal to thc crusade. The creation of the
{ Qrder of the Golden Flecce, bis marriagc to lsaP..~LgfJ?.!;u:.tugal----a
fnm defender of crusader p9J~cies-and his support of literary works
about Islam, crusade-añd~hivalry revealcd his intercst in this matter.
As regards practice, although Philip the Good has been accused
of being hasty, he is undoubtcdly the one European rulcr--except
the Iberian kings-who spent large amounts of money on war against

1
Literature in English about this subjcct is particularly abundan~. For instance,
see Burns, R. I.: "The Significance of the Fronticr in the Middlc Ages", in 1\1edieval
Frontier Societ:ies; MacKay, A. I. K.: La España de la E'dad M.edia, desde la .fi'ontera hasta
el imperio; and in other contexts Dufourq, Ch. E.: "Chréticns et musulrnans durant
les derniers siecles du Moyen Agc", Anuario de Estudios J\1edievales, 10; Ladero Quesada,
JvL A.: Granada, histmia de un país islámico and Housley, N.: "Frontiqr Socicties and
Crusading in the Late Middle Ages" in 1\íedite1mnean Histmical Review.
 8 CHAPTER ONE
Islam.(.!:Je sent his Portugucsc-built fleet to Rhodes in 1441.i~Johelp
the H~spitallers to raisc the siege ~the islancf ;;;:a:"a:ft~·;-- ~pending
sorne time raiding the North African coast, it joined the army, sail-
ing to the help of Constantinople (1444). Its lack of furthcr purposc
lcd the fleet to remain in the Meditcrrancan, sacking Genoesc ships
and causing much pro test. 2
Philip continued his contacts with other European leaders by scnd-
ing his lcgatcs to Alfonso V of Aragon. He also tried to reach a long-
standing pcacc bctwccn Charles VII of France and Henry IV of
England and, by means of buying the city ·of__Q~9a, tricd to supply
¡1his fleet with a Mediterranean port. His biographer, Richard Vaughan,
-'Suggests that all these measures were caused by him having heard that
Muhammad II was planning an attack on Constantinople. 3 During
the annual chapter of the Order of the Golden Flcecc inJY(1;:msc{May
1451) he announced his plan to JJrrQ~rtake a crusadc. He was supported
-by the Order's- Chancellor Jean Gc~maTii~-bishop of Chalon-sur-
Sa6ne, who had just preached to the knights attending the meeting
on the same subject. Embassies werc sent to France, England, Austria,
Hungary and Italy. Atmospherc in the court, according to Germain,
was optimistic. Unfortunately the I~Y,Q!t which .arp,se in Gaunt post-
poned crusader plans indefinitely. ----------··---
Philip of Burgundy was one of the first European rulers to rcact
[to Constantinople's fall: he organized the -~n~lJJ;.,! in Lillc known as
l/'The Feast of the Pheasant". There he promiscd to take the s.ross
z..,, . . . . ..
"':""'·~·-··~ ··~ ---··-··· ·· ··-~
only if at least one other ruler should take It with h1m"-----a cautious
arid uncompromising gesture. 4 More than two hundred nobles swore
to follow hlln, Despite the encouraging letter sent by John Capistrano
on ' 19 Match 1454 to encourage the expedition, it is difficult to
prove the duke's sincerity. His contemporarics interpreted this whole
ceremony more as aLslisplay of gallantry in the context of courtly
1
lJ;::hivalric ideals. 5 And it should nevcr be forgotten that by these public
manifestations the duke attracted a number of knights to his court,
many of them of French origin, who formed a real army surrounding
him against the King of France.
In any case, Dukc Philip attended the Diet of Regensburg (April
1454) after starting preparations far his departure. The Diet was a
2
Houslcy, N.: The La.l't Crnsades, pp. 92- 93.
3
Vaughan, R.: Philip the Good, p. 296.
+ Housley, N.: The Last Cmsades, p. 101.
5
Aubenas, R.: L'Égfüe a la Renaissance, p. 34.
THE POLITICAL APPROACH TO MUSLIMS, 1430-1470 9
failure because the emperor decided to rcmain at the Austrian front-
worried as he was by thc situation in Hungary- and sent his lcgates,
among whom was Eneas Silvius Piccolomini, whom we shall later
encountcr. After several spccches about the danger caused to Christcn-
dom by thc capture of Byzantium, the legates dccided to postponc
preparations far the crusade until the following autumn, after cele-
brating anothcr dict in Frankfurt open to every Christian ruler--not
just to the German princes.
There were negotiations with Rome, France and, especially, with
Aragon and Portugal, whom Philip trusted wciuld support him, given
the scarce interest shown by the Germans. Although this second dict
proved to be much more successful in terms of thc number of legates,
the crusader ideal had already bcen substituted by other issues, so
it was difficult to urge the princes to vote the nccessary subsidies.
lN"icholas V's death intcrrupted the proccss.
From all this it follows that the intervention of the papacy was
an essential condition far crusader policies at both fronts of the -
Mediterranean. However, in 1434 Christendom had been dividcd
once more by schism at the Council of Basle, where the legates try-
ing to salve !}1e concilia~i,~.t~s~y_~ .at the same time as satisfying polit-
ical interests, only 'jiist--~anaged to clect Felix V as new Pope. This
situation did not favour crusader intcrcsts at all. A good example
was the arrival of an embassy frorn King Duarte of Portugal to ask ,,.
for a crusader bull far Africa, which rcmained _unre_plied.6 In 1437
Emperor John VIII and the Patriarch of Co~·;t~Ú~~ple had to
choose between the conciliarists or asking far Eugenius IV's help.
Finally the latter prevailcd and the reunification of the Latin and ,.
Greek churches took place in Florence in July 1439.
As for the conciliarists, they continued to sec the crusade as an
excuse to provide money and prestige to the papacy. Even Eneas
Silvius Piccolomini- later to become Pope Pius II, who started his
own crusadc as we shall see- shared this point of view. The prob-
lems posed by Visconti in Milan and thc open question of thc suc-
cession to the thronc of Hungary postponcd preparations again, but
/h; 1442 Eugenius IV appointed Carc!fnal Ccsarini as .his legatc in
\~astern Europe to organize a crusad<~J A more settled political situ-
ation induced the parties to think about malcing the Turks withdraw
from the siege of Constantinople. 7
6 Antelo, A.: "El ideal de cruzada en la Edad Media peninsular'', p. 39.
7
Housley, N .: Tlze Last Crusades, p. 85.
 10 CHAPTER ONE
:-:~~
The solution to the schism carne with Fclix V's abdication on
7 April 1449, giving way to Nicholas V's pontificate. Despite his op-
position to the crusadc of Adrianopolis, thus favouring the florentines,
Nicholas V rcsumed crusader policies. After having sought help
repcatedly through several embassics, Constantinoplc fcll to the Turks.
Thc ncws reached Rome from different sourccs. The general fccl-
ing both of cardinals and humanísts was that once the "New Rome"
were conquered, thc Turks would try to reach the "Old" one in
order to plundcr its trcasures and to discover the tombs of their
ancestors, thc Trojans. 8 Since then, the Curia tried to show the nced
of ~ common war, pressing the European powers concerned, such
{y
as enice and Hungar:x:) Still, disunity prevailed as this passage from
Cardinal Piccolomini's memoii:~ serves to illustrate:
Christcndom has no head whom ali may obey. Neithcr the supreme
ponti:ff nor the emperor is given his due. Thcre is no revererice, no
obedience. Llke characters in fiction, figures in a painting, so do we
look upon the Pope and the emperor. Every city-state has its own
ruler. There are as many princes as houses. [...] What order will there
be in the army? What military discipline? What obedicncc? Who will
feed so many people? Who will understand the different languages?
[...] If you lead a fcw rrien against thc Turks you are casily defeatcd.
If you lead many, you are confounded! 9
Ultimately the joint projcct of Aragon, Serbia, Hungary and V cnicc
made the Pope issuc thc bull "Etsi ccclesia Christi" 1º on thc 30
September 1453. A !cague was formed the next year including Vcnicc,
1/Milan, F1orcncc. and Aragon, known. as the League of Lodi\ But
1\[~petians: withdrew. soon after signing a commercial agrecmé;;:t with
1
} the Turks which served as scandal for the rest of Christendom.
l . Both Nicholas V and Calixtus Jrr had tried to persuade Castile
to join thc crusadc in the East, but it was Alfonso V of Aragon who
wanted to assume leadership, making the most of the fact that Calixtus
was Aragonese and had been his son's tutor. As for Castile, legate
LRodrigo Sánchez de Arévalo got Calixtus III to change his target
and issuc a crusader buil against Gr¡mada in thc same terms as the
oncs intended for the Holy Land. 11\ Calixtus had been appointed
\
8.Ibidem, pp. 99-101.
9
Trans. by Setton, K. M.: 171e Papary and the Levant, H, p. 153.
10
Sobrequés, S.: "Sobre el ideal de cruzada . .. ", p. 237. Thc document is in
A.C.A., R. 2700, f. 39- 40.
11
Tate, R. B.: E'nsqyos sobre la historiogrqfia peninsular del siglo XV; p. 107.
THE POLITICAL APPROACH TO MUSLIMS, 1430- 1470 11
.
_,..
Pope against thc will of the Italian cardinals on 8 April 145.?.·:"'His
first purpose, according to his investiture speech, was trying to reclaim
Constantinople and to cradicate Islam from the Holy Land, recov-
ering Jcrusalem as wcll. 12
A ncw bull followed on May 1455, announcing the departurc of
crusaders on the following ycar. Instead of calling all the princcs
together, thc Pope preferrcd to contact each of them separately.
Thus l,he sent Cardinal .Carvajal. to Germany and Central Europe,
Cardi~·lir Alain to France and thc best Franciscan preachers- like
John Capistrano, Jacques de la Marche, Robert de Lccce or Antonino
de Montefalcone- all around Europe. Most sermons commcnted the
text of the bull, showing the Turks to be a divine punishmcnt to the
sins of Christendom. A part of the Roman treasure was sold, pro-
cessions and prayers were ordcred for the first Sundays of the month. 13
Calixtus III's strategy was cncouraging the rcsistence ª1llong the
Hungariap.s and in Albania whilc a naval attack was organ'ized from
the West. This time the rulers sccm to have reacted: Alfonso V of
Aragon agreed to takc the cross at thc same time as Philip the Good,
surrounded each by their vassals in two great cercmonies. So did
Fredcrick III and Alfonso V of Portugal. However, thcy were late:
Belgrade had been delivcrcd by the common front built up by John
Capistrano and John Hunyadi commanding a combined force of
Hungarians, Austrians, Gcrmans, Polish, Dalmatians and Bosnians.
Unfortunatcly, both died in thc plague of 1456 leaving the army
without its leadcrs. The Pope's flcct just delivered Lcmnos, Samothrace
and Thasos, dcfcated the Turks in Mytilene in August 145 7 and
sackcd the coasts of Cilicia, Syria and Egypt. Calixtus issued a com-
mcmorative medal with the device "I have been chosen for the
dcstruction of the enemies of the faith'', 1'f but by the time of his
death he had not .11.~h~.cyedJüs targ~t.
The election of Pius U (3 September 1458) was a total change of
pcrsonality as head of thc Church. He was preceded by bis grcat
expericnce in diplomacy duc to the number of missions he had per-
formcd for his predecessors in most of the European courts. Once
more, according to his own words, of ali his purposes none was
dearer to him than rousing Christians against the Turks ánd declaring
12
Cif. Aubenas, R.: ojJ. cit., p. 39.
13 Schwoebel, R .: The Shadow ef lhe Crescent, p. 45.
1
• Ihidem, p. 38.
 12 CHAPTER ONE
war upon them. 15 So two months after his investiture he summoned
'\ the Christian rulers to Mantua in order to hold a conference about
L~rusade, in which cardinal Torqucmada played a fundamental role.
"'SU.ch initiative was a new approach to the problem, since it was no
longer a reduced meeting of princes, nor a council whcre crusade
was just onc more mattcr to discuss. The Pope's dcparturc from
Rome worried both its inhabitants, who feared another schism, and
even sorne cardinals, but Pius had chosen Mantua because it was
an intermediate point for ali those summoncd and he remained firm.
The situation in Italy seemed quiet, so the Pope was full of hope,
but he was very disappointed by the princes, who had chosen to
send legates instead of coming personally to the council. 16 The sit-
uation in Europe was di:fficult: on the one hand, Frederick Ill was
Í not ready to let the Hungarian crown escape fro~ his hands, claimed
j b~ .Mathias Corvinus, supportcd by the. Pae.~~yj On the ot~er, ~e
1Qng of France would not cooperate until he saw thc Ang~vm clarm
sorted out in Naples/ Therefore, only the rulers of small .c'ó'üñtfies
.... --::...
~
fin danger of being conquered would arrive from J:~~pirns;" Cyprus,
)Rhodes, Trebizond, Bosnia and Hungary to the East; from thc Wcst,
' Philip of Burgundy, Francesco Sforza of Milan and Venice offered
their help only if another ruler would lead them first. Two more
diets were proposed to discuss the details of the enterpriscY Cardinal
Besariort was appointed legate for Germany, the Empcror as leader
of the crusader army, and a plenary indulgence was dcclared for the
1lext thfec years; Italians wcrc to pay a thirthieth and the Jews a
tWetitieth in tax.
< Although the general rcsl1lts ofthe Diet werc unsatisfying, thc
:Pope: dccided to travcl to Siena in January 1460, hoping that his
offer to lead the crusadc would encourage the princes. UntiL 1463
15
Pius II: 1\1emoirs ef a Renaissance Pope, pp. 91 - 93.
16
About Mantua, see Aubenas, R.: op. cit., pp. 50 ff.; Weber, E.: Croisade d'hier,
djihiid d'azgourd'hui, pp. 294- 303; Enríquez del Castillo, D.: Crónica de Enrique rv, pp.
165- 166 and Pius II: op. cit., pp. 94- 144. Pius U receivcd the Castilian cmbassadors
Sánchez de Arévalo and Alonso ele Palenzuela, hoping Enrique IV to send his
legates to Mantua in a letter of 27 February 1459, but he was deceived whcn he
saw that only these samc legates were scnt to the council (Trame, R. H.: op. eit.,
pp. 98- 103).
17
Convoked on the bull of 21 January 1460. Cf. Benito Ruano, E. : "Granada
o Constantinopla", appendixes 1- 8. Rodriguez de Arévalo wrote his comrnentaries
on this bull: Apparatus .1i11e commenti siljJer bulla cruciatae indictae per papam Pium contra
jJerfidos Turchos, cf. Trame, R. H .: op. cit. , p. 118.
THE POLITICAL APPROACH TO MUSLIMS, 1430- 1470 13
thc situation was qui et. Thcn, both V cnicc and Hungary decided to
join the enterprise, Venicc so as to takc possesíon of :Morea and the
latter due to the capture of Bosnia by Sultan Mu}:iammad. Most of
the Italian city-states thought it was better if Venicc cncountcrcd the
Turks on its own. The King of France refused to go, but Philip of
Burgundy signcd an agreement which bound him, for three years.
{Thc crusader bull was issucd on 22 October 146,,~j But once more
it was impossible to sGLsa.\l, for Louís XI of France warned Philip
of Burgundy that leaving his land at such time would leave it open , 4
to an English attack, which they could not afford. Philip was casily
persuaded and gave his apologies to the Pope, who was by thcn in
Ancqua waiting for the other rulers to join him. rn He died there on
1'4.August l '.!,§1f.
His successor Paul II continued thc trend of proclaiming his wish "
to fight the Turks, and decided to pay thc expenses with the income of
the alum commerce from T olfa, which had becn reccntly discovered
and ' ·expÍ~it~ci''i'hree cardinals were appointed to managc thc resourccs,
which they had to send to Hungary and to Scanderbeg in Albania.
In the Diet of Nurcmbcrg (1466) Western rulers refused to cooper-
ate. Scanderbcg managcd to pay for the war out of his own resources
but, when he died; Albania was casily invaded. After the fall of
Necroponte (12 July 14 70) all the attempts to hold the Turks back
failed. ... -··· '.,....
Meanwhile, the three most important kingdoms in thc Ibcrian
Península had devclopcd their own ideas about the encounter with
Islam and had tried to put them into practice. They had three
cliffcrent targcts (although somctimcs thcy are not clearly separated):
Portugal directed its efforts towards Africa, Aragon defended its Medí-)
terranean positions against the Turks and Castile opposed Granada- )
although it also tried to settle in the North of Africa. ·
The unsuccessful embassy of Duarte I of Portugal (1433 ..·1438) to
Basle had its origin in the question of where to direct the Portuguese
crusader efforts. Juan II of Castilc (1406-1454-) and his royal favourite
Alvaro de Luna had askcd him to consider the possibility of joining
thcm in a campaign against Granada, while{.puarte's brothers Enrique
and Fcrnandq tried to persuade him to continuc thc expansion in
North Africa. / The court was clivided: the general feeling was that
. •- ....... $
18 Trame, R. H.: op. cit., p . 120 mentions the speech Sánchez de Arévalo had
to rcad bcforc the Pope and his court before leaving for Dalmatia.
 14 CHAPTER ONE
the African enterprise was too expensive for the rcalm, whcreas thc
capture of new places would be uselcss if there wcre no military
power to keep them. Moreover, the campaign against Granada was
a holy war which would )ring the same_pre~0:ge far the nobility and
the army and had the suppo;t of Prince Pedro, the Earls of Arraiolos
and Barcclós and even Pope Eugenius. However, due to prcssure on
the side of the Princes Enrique and Fernando, their opinion prcvailcd
- and special subsidies for Ceuta were approvcd between 1432 and
1437. 19
As he didn't receive an answer from the pope in Basle, Prince
Fernando, chancellor of the Ordcr of Avis, tried to obtain more
bcnefits from his brothcr with the thrcat that he would go to serve
as a mcrccnary in Europc. Mcanwhile the Duchess of Burgundy, 20
sistcr to thc Portugucse princcs, asked Enrique to :fight against Francc
under her husband so that thcy could afterwards travel to J erusalem
together; . Seeing the confusion surrounding him, Duarte I finally
~ decided ·to call . a crusade against l),ngi!;;L as thc only alternativc to
stop. the füght of Portuguese nobility. He ordcred prince Enrique to
~ write a report to justify bis expansionist ideas. The reasons for the
expansion ·.plans . as reported by chronicler Azuara were the search
for truth and certainty above all, secondly commerce; the third, to
assess Muslim military capacitics, the fourth, and essential rcason
was to try to find Christian rulcrs beyond the known bordcrs who
could support thcir campaigns against Islam and, finally, the conver-
sion of pagans. 2ºª It scems that Duarte lalso took into considcration
thatEnriquc's last will lcft his properties to the crown princc in case
he diedin the expedition. The army left from Lis bon and Porto in
'~!~7~:~¡~: ~!~~~~~ª:u~af:~~·~ri~ce Fef!!<ll1q() V\lªS illiP~()ned
Although, as has been said, Portugal subscribed to the crusader
plans of the papacy- wbich never matcrialized- the Turkish threat
spreading on the other side of the Meditcrrancan was none of their
concern, or at least . less important than the African expansion as a
"national" business. Prince Enrique remained true to his principles
despite his defeat, and he shared them with bis nephew Alfonso V
19
Verissimo, J.: op. át., pp. 40 If.
20
Espina mentions Isabel of Burgundy in relation wíth the African crusade, Cif.
Mcyuhas Ginio, A.: La farteresse, p. 42.
2
ºª Antelo, A.: op. cit., pp. 39-40.
THE POLITICAL APPROACH TO MUSLIMS, 1430-·1470 15
( 1438- 1481).. Iri 145 7 there had bcen k~,~ns for the conqucst of.~':l_fi._
as vvitnesséd by a document condemning thc Jew David Malom for
warning the Nfoors about a Portuguese ship examining the conditions
for attacking the African coastlan_d- as was usual in this cases, like
thc conquest of Arzila in 1470. trangier was the most convenient
place for severa! reasons: it was ~tfí~ . biggest commcrcial port in the
{Maghrcb, which would providc ; -- base to supply Ceuta and future
expeditions, and would expedite the {ccove.ry _qf Prinec Fernando's
c;,0rpse. Rumours of an attack on Cc{i1.a· by the King of Fez, thc
~-eed-· f¿r at least a 25.000 soldier force to conquer the city and a
pcrmanent garrison to be lcft there and at thc same time in Ceuta,
dissuaded Alfonso V from his original idea. Al-qa~r al-Saghir (Alca-
zarquivir in Spanish sources) was closer to Ceuta, was also a corsair
port to be destroyed, a rich arca whích produced cattle and grain
far Granada, and would enable thc construction of a flcct to control
the maritimc traffic in the area ..J Al-qa~r al-Saghfr surrendcrcd after j'
a two-day fight in 1458. The kiiig added a nickname to his othcr !,.,
titles: "the J\frican", whilc he issued the usual charts for the popu-
lation of the land. 21 Thc Castilian chronicler Alonso de Palencia
stated that the king's main purpose was bis own glory. Nevertheless
he praised the courage of thc Portuguese troops who managed to
repcl the King of Fez's counter-attack soon after thc fall of the city. 22
The capacity shown by the Portugucsc fleet when dcvotcd to a
national issue shows to what extent Christian leaders werc unwilling
to eompromise in common European cntcrprises, which in thcory
would have provcd cvcn more suecessful, although it would have
been certainly more cxpensive to send a Portuguese fleet to fight in
Constantinople than paying for a campaign in the North of Afi:iea.
The Portuguese success was unknown to Calixtus III and Alfonso V
of Aragon, who had both died that summer before having achieved
their Eastern crusade. Alfonso V of Portugal maintaincd his policies
1in scarch of supplies for bis African scttlcments. He sacked the ter- !
fl ritory
-··
around Tangier in 1463, Anafe (Casablanca) in 1469, and in)
r471 he again considered invading Tangicr to keep it, although he
lmew he did not havc cnough troops. His intcrcsts then diverged to
Arzila, which was conqucrcd. 21
<-~"~--- ..-__ ,.~··
21
Verissimo, .J.: op. cit., pp. 83- 85.
22
Palencia, A.: Crónica de Enrique IV, I, p. 112.
23
Verissimo, J.: op. cit., pp. 85-·87.
 16 CHAPTER ONE
Regardlcss of the fact that a Castilian dynasty had been cnthroned
in Aragon, directing its interests towards the neighbouring country
rather than its own, Aragon was undoubtedly the most compromising
Peninsular kingdom rcgarding Eastern issues, due to 'ii~"·-;:;(i~~ercial
influence throughout the Mediterranean. Thc lack of a direct frontier
with Granada had weakened the need to fight Islam inside thc Iberian
Península. Dcspite geographical distance, the Turks thcn rernaíned
the main anxiety of Alfonso V of Aragon (1416--1458) as far as cru-
sading policies were concerned, except for his commercial advances
in Tunis. For a start, he launched an cxpedition in 1432 against the
island of Djerba-thc objcct of several Aragonese attacks from much
earlier- , but he failed to conquer it. On thc other hand, his com-
mercial agreements with Tunis were of no value due to piracy. 24·
Between 1444 and 1452 Alfonso signed a number of treaties with
the- Byzantine cmperor, Brancowitz thc Serbian, Scanderbeg from
Albania, . and Dcmetrius Paleologus of Morea, and he planned to
join togethcr in a single treaty Byzantium, the Negus of Ethiopia,
the Emperor ofTrebizond and-as he called him- "the Great Khan"
of Chirta. In May 1453, as danger grew greater for Constantinople,
Alfonso V sent his ambassador Luis Despuig to Rome to propose
the union of the Italian city-statcs in a peace lcague- which favoured
Alfonso .rather than thc republics- in ordcr to undertake the defense
of the city immediatcly. While Nicholas V considered the offer, Con-
stantinople fell, not withstanding another embassy from Alfonso V
to accelerate pteparatíons under the threatthat anything which might
happei1. would be attríbuted to the Pope's inactivíty. Unfortunatcly
~
he · ne:xt ncws hcard by Alfonso was the death of his consul in Con-
staritincipl.e ;Juan de la Vía; and his s~f>}éets ..~h~·"h.adb~~rf"defencling
he porL25 • ·.
~' The next plan . of the Aragonese monarch was an alliance with
Hungary; Venice and Serbia, which a bull ratiliecl in 1453, as we have
mentioned, and which was the origín of the Leaguc of Lodi. Alfonso
V hoped to Icad the crusade, gíven his good relationship with Calixtus
III, but the appointment by the king of condottiere Piccinino as com-
mandcr clid ·not satisfy the Pope. Meanwhile, Alfonso had to face
other problcms in his realm: the opposition of Catalan parties who
refused to vote crusader subsidies, the revolt of thc servant-peasants
2
• Hillgarth, J. N.: Tlze Spani.sh Kingdoms, pp. 306; 315- 316.
25
Sobrcqués, S.: oj1. cit., pp. 234-235.
THE POLITICAL APPROACH TO MUSLIMS, 1430- 1470 17
(remensas) who had to be declared free before they would baclc down
in 1455, and thc attack and further distruction of the moorish quarter
in Valencia by Christian craftsmen, who werc ordered to rebuild the .
neighbourhood.26 Fínally, in 1456 the king took the cross at the same {.,
time as Philip of Burgundy. '
According to Alonso de Palencia, Calixtus III scnt a lctter to
Alfonso V telling him how a Roman holy woman had prophesized
that the sultan would be captured under his mandate, so he had
hastened to warn the king of thc glory he would attaín should he
lead the expedition against Greece in thc Chtirch's name.27 Alfonso
informed his council of his devotion to the Christian cause and
promiscd fifteen gallcys to join the Christian fleet. However, his
Italian eontacts with Piccinino and interna! unrest in Aragon made
him dclay his expedition until 145 7, when he would attcnd together
with his nephew the Portugilesc King, this time with 400 gal~cys ancl
50.000 men.!J:Ie died in 1458 with ..b,~~.. Y.JJ)mÍse··unfu:l:fille9:.J
The long absence of Alfonso V from Aragon- he used to stay in
Naples- had affected the interna! balance of the kingdom. His impe-
rialist policies in the Mediterranean, supportcd by Catalan fieets, had
proved to be quite unproductive and had somctimes harmecl Catalan
interests. When thc cxperienced Juan II (1458- 14 79) beca.me king
he had to <leal first with the <?PE?.~Í.!Í.?.1.1:)~~d .1?Y his son Prince Carlos
de Viana. The revolt had a clcar social base and its effccts wcre so
outstanding that even the Church bccame divíded: most of thc bishops
supported the king, but thc low clcrgy stood for the prince until his
cleath. Civil war ravage,c!._Jh.g _counti;yJrom 1462 to 1472, leaving
Juan II few oppor~iae~ to bec¿ffi~"interestcd in fighting the Muslims.
;Following the usual pof-cy of Castilian affairs,ljyan II abandoned
/G,enoa's naval blockag~ and refused to get involved in Italian or
"E.astern issues despite repeated appeals from the Pope and Juan's
nephcw Fcrrantc of Naplcs.
Castilc was lcss committecl than any other kingdom in the wars
against MuJ:iammad II, because all its efforts were coneentrated on
its frontiers. From 1412 to 1430, truccs with Granada had been
signed, although constable Álvaro de Luna took advantage of the
26
Sobrcqués, S.: ojJ. cit., pp. 241-242; Hillgarth,J N.: op. cit., p. 13.1 and Dánvila
y Collado, M.: "La expulsión ... ", pp. 34-37 . About thc probletns caused by
Piccinino bctwccn Calixtus III and Alfonso V, sce also Pius JI: op. cit., pp. 74-77.
27
Palencia, A.: op. cit., I, p. 111.
 18 CHAPTER ONE
Nluslims' divisions "to imitate Alfonso Xl's success in channclling
the rebellious energy of Castile's nobility into holy war". 28 Juan II
of Castile (1406- 1454) proposed to Duarte of Portugal that he partici-
pate, as has been said, but he refused. The intercst of the papacy
was obvious: thc prcaching of indulgenccs was always followed by
taxes on the clcrgy and still more indulgences. In 1431 the discred-
ited G?.ª1;1iamcnt (Corles) had a meeting to vote subsidies. Following
this, thc victory of La Higueruela, though rninor compared to othcr
Christian successes, was the rnost important battlc of the period. Thc
Castilian advance was stopped by the intemal factions in the Castilian
court, specifically an attcmpt to murder the Constable, which made
him retreat from thc battlcficld. When thc surrender was acccptcd
(1439), the most fcrtilc arcas of Ronda and Málaga were in Christian
hands.
Thc struggle for power within thc frontiers of Castilc hindered
thc rcsumption of campaigns against thc Muslims until Enrique N
became king in 1454. The year bcfore, the most important man in
the kingdorn had fallen, causing commotion in thc court and impress-
ing foreigners; even cardinal Piccolomini was shockcd. If for Europe
1453 had been the year of thc capture of Constantinople, for Castile
it was the year of the public cxecution of Álvaro de Luna, accused
of treason againstJuan II. The chronicler Alonso de Palencia dcvoted
sorne pages of his Decades to the events which took place in Constan-
tinople and their consequences, complaining that they had divcrtcd
Europcan attention from the fall of Luna, which he considcrcd vital.
The Marquis of Santillana was encouraged by chroniclcr Pére;-··;r~
Guzmán to write sorne Italianate poems appealing for thc crusade
against thc Turks.
Soon after his favourite's death, Juan Il died too, and his son
Enrique IV (1454- 1475) succeded. He began his rcign as a rich man,
for to his possessions as Princc of Asturias-sincc he had no heir yet-
__1 he added the royal holdings, increased reccntly by {sonfiscation of
thc Constable's propcrtie~J Thc absence of support from among his
family and Castilian nobility made Enrique scck new assistants for
thc governmcnt. His rule started confirming his father's officials in
1 t.·heir posts. Thcn he tried to crcate new grandes from the lower ranks
lin the nobility, in an effort to dilute the powcr of the aristocracy.
'Following this systcm, he surroundcd himsclf with new allics such
28
Hillgarth, J. N.: op. cit., p. 315.
THE POLITICAL APPROACH TO MUSLIMS, 1430- 1470 19
as his friends Juan Pachcco, marquis of Villcna, his brother Pedro
Girón, Miguel Lucas de Iranzo and Beltrán de la Cucva. 29
\ In thc sccond year of his rcign, Enrique IV, undcr pressure from
\the
..,,.,
::_
nobility, started a series of four campaigns against Granada.....30.,...""'/
The conquest of the small kingdom would be extremely difficult and
expensive, as demonstrated by Ladero Quesada, 31 so Enrique prcfr:rred
policies which would "bring maximum bcnefits from a mínimum of
cost and effort". 32 From 1455 to 1458 Castilian troops were kcpt undcr
control, avoiding long sicgcs at fortificd places and using thc destruc-
tion of crops as an cconomic weapon. Skirmishes on thc part of the
knights trying .,!º show ()[ t1.dr (l~ilitie~ werc frequent but, in general,
diplomacy was preferred to the conq~est of fortresses, which would
0
give the nobles too much power and would encourage revenge from
the Muslims.
Tenancy of castles had been onc of thc first objectives of war until
thcn, in ordcr to kecp the borders safe. A grcat numbcr of gricvanccs
in thc Cortes about thc low paymcnt for thc castcllans and thc ruincd
statc of many of the building-s givcs an idea of thc monarchy's lack
of carc when war was not imminent. 33
The difficulty of providing funds for the war voted by a reluctant
parliament caused the king to seek another way of fighting against
Granada: he got the . Muslim lcadcrs of the diffcrent factions in thc ¡
Islamic realm to work against thc Nasrid dynasty on behalf of Cast_i~.~)~
War became thus a phcnomcnon "of fronticr", as dcfincd by Burns. 34
Thc embe~dcmentgf~rusadc sul:J.s.iqies was one of thc most frequent
lc«:~sailo~s against En;{qile 'fv·in tb.e -fust years of his reign. The
Castilian ambassador Rodrigo Sánchez de Arévalo achieved for Castile
~9
Phillips, W.: Enrique IV and the Crisis .. ., pp. 46-47.
30
Enríqucz del Castillo, D.: Crónica de Enrique IV, pp. 146- 147 describes the corles
at Cuéllar and reproduces thc nobility's argumcnts cxposcd by thc Marquis of
Santillana.
31
Ladero Quesada, M. A.: Caslilla }' la conquista del reino de Granada, p. 202.
12
' Phillips, W.: op. cit., p. 54.
33
This subjcct was discussed in the following meetings of the Gortes, as appears
in thcir proceedings: Ocaña, 1422, p. 42; Palcnzucla, 1425, pp. 62, 76·-·7;7; Valladolid,
1451, pp. 62 l ·-622; Ocaña, 1469, p . 80 l. In Cortes de los antiguas reinos de León)' de
Caslilla, Madrid, 1861, vol. III. .
• Burns, .R. l.: "The Significancc of thc Fronticr in thc Middc Agcs", p. 326.
3
For more informarion, sce Mata Carriazo, J. de: "La vida en la frontera .de Granada",
I Congreso de Hittoria de Andalucía J.l[edieval. Also Pino, .J. L. del: "Las <¡ampañas mi-
litares castellanas ... ", V Coloquio de Historia Medieval de Andalucía, p. 673 about the
econornic aspccts.
 20 CHAPTER ONE
the recognition of the Granadan campaigns as a parallel crusade to
the one taking part in thc Near East, declining their help on this
front. After sustaíning thís argument at the council of Mantua, thc
same privileges were granted for thc crusades at both cnds of the
Mediterranean, while the Crown was authorised to receive an income
i from the sale of indulgences. With these funds, a permanent mili-
) tary force of 3.000 lances and 20.000 foot soldiers was established.
¡
}' Calixtus III issued anothcr bull granting Enrique the position of
·' Master of thc Order of Santiago for fiftecn years and that of Alcántara
·- for ten years, with the capacity to control all their incomes and
armies. ~5 The king was supposed to turn against the Turks as soon
as the Muslims were driven out from the Iberian Pcninsula. Unfortu-
) nately, ~.?~~ ~~.~~~J~!}q~_,.Y,Y~E~. sfür9rtt_~_!o buy thc support of Beltrán
¡de la Cueva, Alonso de Fonseca, archbishop of Seville, and other
1newcomers.
Calixtus III was so delighted with the idea of a Península free from
Islamic power that. he alsolg¡:ante.q indulgcnce to any crusaders who
died on their journey to G;anada, ' and ·t~- -the faithful who gavc 200
maravedis in Castile or three flmins in Aragon. All thc indulgences
granted to churches, monasteries or individuals werc ~!!P~~,S:.<".~~g.
The treasurers wcrc supposed to gívc the money to the bishops under
penalty of excommunication, and the latter straight to the King. The
\crusade would have four years' validity frorn the date of the bull
f.~22 April 1455). In 1456 a new indulgence was preached to bring
Íñ'more funds in the next four years, but again in 145 7 there was
another, this time applied to the deceased, a new and unpreccdented
device, Finally; he anathematized whoever posed any obstacle to the
king in bis pursuit of the crusade. {Enriq~~,.+9ok._Jhe-l\f.QSS on the 25
February .L4.:2Z...&.-Pd was sent a bless~e(f;-~~urd ;~¿ a hat by the Pope,
as had be en traditional befo re the beginning of a crusade. 36 All the
Jchronicles without exception refer to thc ..~?.E gf.~ran.~~~ . ~s the main
'Jcvent of these four years, although the account 'Of 'md1vidual deeds
'lea ves few. pages for the dcvelopment of the campaigns as a whole.
The size of the army is another favourite subject, as well as the kind
of weapons used, but rcfcrences do not look very accurate.
35
Phillips, W.: op. cit., pp. 56- 57. About Sánchcz de Arévalo's role, sec Tate,
R. B.: k11sqyos sobre la hislo1iografia peninsular . .. , p. 107.
36
Enríquez del Castillo, D.: o/J. cit., pp. 156-157. Cf. Goñi Gaztambide,J: Esiudio
de la bula de cruzada ... , pp. 358- 366.
THE POLITlCAL APPROACH TO MUSLIMS, 1430--1470 21
Enrique IV's policies towards Granada have inspired differing opin-
ions and have often been misundcrstood. Many nobles did not agrce
with the .!!n;P.ted. war..!h~. kingp[()J?().s~~' as it kept them frorn e1;illect-
ing new land for thcir younge~ 'son:s and from military prestige.{'\t\'._hat
is quite certain is that the econQJJÚ.G..-.W.ªLfavoured by the Kin:g·
was
beyond the military concepts of his tin.?c~.J Thosc mcrnbers of the clergy
who were imbued with a spirit of intolcrancc could not understand
any approach to Muslims except through conquest or conversion.37
Arnong contemporary chroniclcrs, Alonso de Palencia was the first to
criticize Enrique as an "cnemy of the faith, passionate towards the
Moors" who damagcd his soldiers, deprived the Christians of their
goods and incomes to malee the Saracens rich, refused to attack the
infidels and was followed by a group of Moors (his body-guard) "whose
plunder, rape, coercion and inhuman rage against our people, crudely
extended through the realm,' cannot be described". 38 Thís evidence
clashes with the explanation given by Enríquez del Castillo for his
refusal to a1low individual or small-group skirmishes:
Quando los moros salian a dar escaramuc;:a, jamás el rrey <lava logar
a ello, porque como hera piadoso y no cruel, más amigo de la vida
de los suyos que derramador de su sangre, dec;:ía que pues la vida de
los hombres no tenía prec;:io, ni avía equivalenc;:ia para ella, que hcra
muy grand yerro consentir aventuralla y por eso no le plac;:ía que salie-
sen los suyos a escaramuz31·, ni se diesen batallas, ni convates, y quanto
quiera que en las tales entradas se gastava gran suma de dineros, que-
ria más espender sus thesoros que dañando los henemigos poco a poco,
que ver muertos ni estragos de sus gentes. 39
For a foreigner such asJorg von Ehingen, on the other hand, Castilian
campaigns were comparatively hard. The King had not only prepared
37
Phillips, W.: op. cil., p. 56.
3
Palencia, A. de: op. cit., I, p. 170. Dctailcd dcscriptions of the campaigns and
"
reactions of the king regarcling thc Muslims can be found in vol. I, pp. 70- 73,
103-108, 114, 133- 139; about truces, p. 145; thc cmbassy to the Pope to negotiate
tenths far thc war against the Turks, p . 157.
39
"Because he was pious and not cruel, more a friend of the lifc of his men than
the spiller of their blood, he said that [...] thc lifc of men had no price or equiv-
alent, and il was a great error to risk them, and for this reason it did not please
him that his men went out on skirmishes [...] and in such expcditions a large
amount of money was spent; he wished [.. .] rather to spend his treasures in dam-
aging thc cncmy little by littlc than to see his people dead." Enríqucz del Castillo, D.:
op. cit., p. 152. On thc campaign, pp. 149 --154. Thc same positive scope is found
in the Compendiosa historia hispánica by Rodrigo Sánchez de Arévaloi Trame has
describcd thc chapter about Enrique IV's victories as "an cxlravagant praise", cf.
Trame, .R. H.: op. cil., p. 117.
 22 CHAPTER ONE
himself "actively" b.u t also gathered an army of 70.000 soldiers "such
as had ncvcr been seen befare by any Christian man". He was wcll
imprcssed by the knights of the Order of Santiago, and describcd
the capture of villages and towns as well as thc death of infidels.
His description of a siege underlines the munher of good Christian
soldiers who might die in a heavy combat--and therefore the impos-
sibility of maintaining this kind of war for a long time. But Enrique
also uscd the tactics of his ancestors: "vVe then passed by Granada
through the kingdom, and destroyed and burnt and slew where we
could, so that nothing remained standing as we passed, for everything
".Y.a.:s..Jªid.:waste" ..¡{) This does not look likc the action of a feeble king.
Historiography based on these chronicles has taken either side:
among those who follow Enríquez del Castillo is the chronicler Bleda
who, in the seventeenth century, speaks of Enrique IV's intelligent
.strategy and of his !ove for his subjects ,which led himf.t.o avoid skir-
l~ishes in preference to economic W<l;d In any case, thc King was
decply touched by the g~_ªth 9LGarci Laso dela.Vega in a skirmish
he had forbidden- a point which Palencia denics- -, ··5¿- ~uch so that
he took his revcngc through further crop devastation in the surround-
ing valleys and thc capture of Jimena. Campaigns were abandoncd
due to instability inside both Castilc and Granada. The latter also
reduced the number of razzias against Christian towns. 41 Fernández
y González insists on the King's positive attitude, as he was the one
who asked Nicholas V for a cmsader bull and called the Cortes at
Cuéllar despite the nobility's opposition. But the decisive moment
was the submission of the Granadan king to Enrique IV as a vassal. 42
MacKay ressumes the accusations against Enrique for his Islamophile
tendencies madc in 1467 and sees his attitude as an element of bis
pro-Islamic policies which were strongly rejected by the nobility, the
clergy and historian Alonso de Palencia, as shall later be discussed.'13
Bishko insists on the influence of the nobility from a different view-
point: their attitude made Enrique IV decide against a purely military
strategy bccause thcy prcvented large scale operations. Later on, the
nobles charged him with secret contacts with the enemy to escape
resposibilities. Enrique only confirmcd their suspicions when he crossed
•0 ·ne Dial)' qf ]oig uon flrtin/;en, pp. 37-38.
H Blcda, B. J.: Crónica de los moros de füjJaiia, pp. 562- 566.
2
• Fernández y Gonzálcz, F.: Ertado social y político . . ., pp. 193 - l91· .
.:< M acKay, A. !.: "The Balad and the Frontier ... ", p. 28 . For the opinion of
the clergy, see Millcr, T .: Henry IV of Castile, p. 93.
THE POLITICAL APPROACH TO MUSLIMS, 1430 -1470 23
to Ceuta to havc an interview with l\!larinid legates.+i What Bishko
fails to explain is why the nobility should fccl such j!.__!:__~E~.9-ldI)n t~e
first years of his government, for a king who had confirmed all the~r
privilegcs, sincc historians agree that they were at first pleas~d at h1s
coronation and that thc starting point of friction was prcc1sely the
war against Granada.
According to Phillips, thcse years of war were in many ways a
grcat success. Castilian forces had sccured strategic positions such as
Archidona and Gibraltar. The frontier was more secure and Granada
had lost part of its former economical and political powcr. Enrique's
success might have bcen greatcr had he only been able to proceed
with his strategy, but the state of the realm prevcnted him from engag-
ing in policics to the South. Final conquest by the Reyes Católicos
took advantage of Enrique's advanccs, but added immense expenses
in mcn and funds during the war and compromised an enormous
amount of land for the aristocracy as payment far their support.
45
Maybe . Phillips' version is too benevolent regardíng Enrique I~,
but in thc light of the cvents taking place in Castile sincc 1459, it
is obvious that neither time or resources could be devoted to harass-
ing Muslim Granadans and it was more practica! to keep theU:: sub-
dued and quict. On the other hand, for Fernando and Isabel it was
more convenient to employ the rebellious nobility and the troops
gathered in thcir war againstJuana la Beltraneja in a common enter-
prisc far from the borders of Castilc and Aragón. If we assume that
\ the Islamophile accusations of 1467 werc ~ ~olitical ~anoeuvre, the
\campaigns of~~~-,?-~ .-~EJ?-C.a1: ª~ -~ p~9p_~g;;i.nd1sti.\ _l':~!sq:;ins~, ~avourable
·~to a r'lew··king with enough resources to get mvolved m 1t, to seek
Rome's supp~rt whilc "diplomatically" avoiding the ap~e~ for the,,..
crusade in the East, a way of acquiring goods and tcrntones for a
ne"v nobility in expansion and a display of his power befare Granada
to grant their tribute.,-a good sourcc of income far the crown-~nd
keep the borders quiet during his rcign. If things wcnt wrong. dunng
the following years, ~lame cannot be P.JJLtotally on the Kmg nor
on the nobility. Prob:~hly the formcr was too splendid with this friends
and the latter exccssive in their individualism and their · claims.
.¡.¡ Bishko, C. J.: "Spanish and Portuguese Reco°:que~t_. . .",p. H7¡ ~nrí1~1e7. del
Castillo, D.: op. cit., pp. 208-209 gives another vers1011 of an cncounter m Gibraltar
with the King of Portugal.
4 '.• Phillips, W.: oj1. cit., pp. 55 56.
 24 CHAPTER ONE
Nevertheless, therc wcre no further attempts of royal campaigns
due, in the first place, to Aragonese pressure. Enrique IV tried to
support his nephew Carlos de Viana and at the samc time to keep
peace with Juan JI divcrting his interest from Castilian politics. The
Catalans acknowledgcd his importance by offcring Enrique to be
their lord, but his lack of decission made him lose such opportunity.
England, Genoa and Venice asked for a Castilian alliancc which
alrcady existcd with France and Portugal. Local cfforts had their
outcome in thel_s;apture of Gibraltar and Archidon~ conquered by
the combincd effort of urban militias and local nobi'lity of the area-
the Poncc de León and the Guzmanes. It is true that the King, once
finishcd the wars promoted by the Crown, lcft the initiativc to thosc
who had particular interests in the frontier. 4 r> The conquest of thcsc
two towns caused a good impression in Rome and helpcd to solvc
lhe uneasiness caused b~ thc r?luctancy of Peninsular clcrgy to pay
¡í,P1ºre taxes for the Turk1sh busmess. 47 In the same year (1460), rela-
u tions between Christians and conversos suffered from a series of riots
in Córdoba, which made the vicar-general of the J eronimites ask the
king for authorisation for a general inquisition in thc kingdom, which
he obtained.'rn This was the first in Castile and started precisely in
Toledo, birthplace of many well-known conversos.
Around 1464 the atmosphcre at the Castilian court was more and
more tense. The struggle betwccn the old families and the ncw nobles
reached its peal{, leacling the country to thc verge of civil war, just
what Enrique IV had tried so hard to avoid. The succession to the
throne bccame the excuse for the dívision of the partics. Enrique
IV rriet the League creatcd by the nobility twice that winter to try
to negociate; A commission was established to decide the structure
of the kingdom's futurc government and a manifesto was issued with
all their demancls. 49
The line of argument of the manifesto proposcd the outlines of
oligarchical control of the country, accusing thc King of inability to
4
~ Tate, B.: op. cit., p. 107.
H Valcra, D.: Nlemorial de diversas ha¿añas, p. 26. Rodrigo Sánchez de Arévalo lec-
turcd befare Pius II about the conquest of Gibraltar. He showed interest in includ-
ing Castile in his gco-ethnical descripLion of the world, so he ordered Sánchez ele
Arévalo to write his Libellus de situ et descriptione Hispaniae, cf. Trame, R. H.: op. cit.,
p . 115.
+n Sigüenza, J. de: Historia de la orden de San Jerónimo, pp. 366-367. About the
conflicts in Córdoba, see also Valcra, D.: op. cit. , p. 78.
19
' Enríquez del CasLillo, D.: op. cit., p. 222.
THE POLITICAL APPROACH TO MUSLIMS, r430 --r470 25
solve the economíc crisis. Howcvcr, Enrique could count on the sup-
port of the pcople. It is intcrcsting to consider here the first point
of these daíms, which later formed part of the Sentence of Medina
del Campo (16 January 1465). It deals with the situation of infidels
at thc court. The commission asked for- or rather ordcrcd-.,--Muslims
and Jcws to be ejected from the realm and their confiscatcd prop-
erties to be used to rescue Christian captives in Muslim lands. 50 The
conflíct of the Moorish guarcl, main victim of the mcasures taken
after the Sentence of Medina, shoulcl be unclerstood within a broader
context. Literally,
II. Otrosi: por quanto en las peticiones propuestas por los dichos per-
lados e caballeros e ricos-ornes fue suplicado al dicho señor rey que
apartase de si los moros que trae en su guarda, porque sus subditos
e naturales estan dello muy escandalizados, e asimismo porque los
dichos moros dis que fizieron muchas sinrazones, e que a su altcsa
ploguiese de los mandar apartar de si e punir e castigar, sobre lo qua!
fablamos con el dicho señor rey, e a su señoría plugo que cerca de
lo contenido en este capitulo sea proveido como comple al servicio de
Dios e suyo e bien publico de sus regnos. Por ende nos, acatando el
servicio de Dios e ensalzamiento de su santa fe, e por que la famil-
iaridad e compañia con los dichos moros es muy defendida en dere-
cho e por leyes reales, e la participación con ellos es muy peligrosa e
dapnosa, e por emendar los dapnos e inconvinientes que de lo con-
trario se pueden seguir, ordenamos e declaramos que! dicho señor rey
de aqui a cinquenta días primeros siguientes eche e aparte de si e de
su compañia e casa e corte a todos los dichos moros que trae en su
guarda asi de a caballo como de a pie, e que agora nin en algund
tiempo non los torne nin traya otros para la dicha su casa e guarda:
e _ordenamos e declaramos que los moros de los sobredichos que foc-
sen mudejares, se vayan en dicho tiempo a las morcrias e casas e log-
ares donde son vecinos e naturales, e que de aqui adelante el dicho
señor rey non les de racion nin quitacion nin dadiva nin merced nin
apostamiento a ellos nin a los otros, nin ellos la resciban de su seño-
ría nin de otro por el: e los moros que son del regno de Granada e
de otras partes, ordenamos e mandamos que si los tales moros son
libres, salgan en el dicho tiempo de los regnos e señoríos del rey nues-
tro señor e non esten nin tornen a ellos: e los que son esclavos del
dicho señor rey, en el dicho tiempo los envien a las fronteras de los
moros, para que por ellos se saquen cristianos de los que estan cap-
tivos quantos mas por ellos se puedan sacar, e los envien de tal ma-
nera que dentro del dicho tiempo salgan fuera del regno, lo qual se
50
Paz y Mcliá, A.: El cronista Alonso de Palencia, pp. 60- 69; Memorias de Don Emique
IV de Castilla, pp. 327-· 331·.
 26 CHAPTER ONE
faga e compla de aqui a los dichos cinquenta días. E si los dichos
moros e qualquier dellos non saliere füera de los dichos regnos desde
el dia que esto füerc publicado en la corte del dicho señor rey fasta
los dichos cinquenta dias primeros siguientes, o despues de idos se
volvieren en cualquier manera, ordenamos e declaramos que qual-
quiera persona los pueda tomar e captivar por esclavos, e si se defen-
dieren que los pueda matar sin pena alguna, e esa misma pena ayan
los moros mudejares e otros moros qualesquiera si en algund tiempo
vinieren a vivir o andovieren en la guerra e guarda de casa del dicho
señor rey. 51
The tolerant attitude towards Muslims had finished in Castile and
Hillgarthó 2 thinks this clause is a concession to the clergy. My own
view is that it goes further. MacKay states the importance of this
issuc in its hcading thc list of complaints, but he admits it is not the
main problcm in Castilian politics, nor that all the nobility were
unitcd on this point. Both Enrique's Islamophile tendencics and the
ihterruption of the war against Granada were propaganda for the
1 :aus~ of the nobilityJ~trictly. s?eaking, thc King's attitude ~ow~rds
LMuslims and Jews día not difier much from thc uses of hls time,
. ~d his personal convictions should not be doubted. His quick approval
of the project of an inquisition proposed by the J eronimite Alonso
de Oropesa, his religious foundations in Segovia, fü.~s support of the
{5onventual Franciscans, -~nd the .e~istence of. two p~o~ed .confessors
show that he was a pract1smg Chrisuan. What is certam isUus fondness
l
of Mudejm:...dcCQ.~;;i,tion and habits in his palaces. Acculturation was
cvidcnt in this atmosphcrc according to the wi'h;Csscs, ambassadors
súch as Philippe de Commynes or Leo of Rozmital. On thc othcr hand,
th.esc travell.érs rnight have been heavily imprcssed by customs which
di:ffcred greatly from the ones in their own countrics-regardlcss of
them being Islamic. The accounts of Rozmital and his companions
are full of contradictions and diffcr from Ehingen's, "vho was a Slav
used to travel through Muslim territorics, and who does not mention
any reason for surprise in Enrique IV's court. 53
The particular(ieaction against thc Muslim guard( in thc context
of the accusations against Enrique had a politiéii.'Cj);;:J;'ose. The guard
51
Transl. l\IIacKay, A.: "Thc Balad and the Fronticr ... ", pp. 29-30.
52
1':
~onger study of the events can be found in Hillgarth, J. N.: op. cit., pp. 234
ff.; Plulhps, W.: op. cit., pp. 75 ff. and MacKay, A.: ILJ. España de la Edad Media, pp.
219- 221.
53
Phillips, W.: op. cit., pp. 81 - 89.
THE POLITICAL APPROACH TO MUSLIMS, r430- 1470 27
fwas inherited from Juan II, who had tumed to thcm when his cousin \
lJuan of Navarre (later Juan II of Aragón) took, him prisoncrJ ThcsJ
knights, including sorne Muslim servants of Alvaro de Lúna and
Alonso Pérez de Vivero rcmaincd loyal to the king. 54 Enrique IV con-
jtin~('.g _to i:ely Q!1... 12is fathc1)_g11ard_and, the country being close to
'a-éivil war, it would b~- i:é;i.sonabT~ ·-to assume that his enemies would
try to deprive him of his best rnilitary support. 55
The extensive use of Alonso de Palcncia's chronicle by contem-
porary historians has favoured the nobility's version: writtcn aftcr thc
dethroncmcnt of Ávila, which he had to justify,{falencia56 givcs cxtra-
ordinary importancc to thc accusations of he..!J;:.S.y addressed to the J
king, quoting how the Master of Calatrava and the Marquis of Villena
had been induced by him to convert to Islam! However Alonso de
'tEspina, despite being confessor to the King, ncvcr mcntioned this point-
i.n his J<ortalitium, but on the contrary, he praiscd Enrique's efforts
against Muslims. 571It is also strange to see the King accuscd only of
being Islamophilc whcn the Jewish-converso problem was in its apogcc.
The outcome of what has bccn cxposed was thelc;!issol1,gio.nofthe
~n:Land the return of its mcmbcrs to their places of origin.
From the Sentence of Medina (1467) until the King's death (1474)
chron.iclers focus almost exclusively on the problcm of succession and
civil war. The scarce references to be found about Muslims were
thc claims at the Cortes in Ocaña for the money obtained frorn the
infidcls to revcrt to thc liberation of captives, and an intcrview of
Enrique with chicf Alquirc;:otc frorn Málaga, who .pgs;!.4..hl!:P ~91!1Plªge
and prornised his help against Granada. 1n Enrique IV could hardly
keep h.is reign, and ruled from 1468 to 1474, when he died. The reign
of the Reyes Católicos ..1!13~;1-"k,~,., e ...l:""!JI1..tU.re. with Enrique IV's Muslim
politics, as they startcd a strong offensivc, both diplomatic and mil-
itary, against the remaíns of Granada. But that is another story.
5
~ A.G.S., Q}iitaciones de Corte, leg. l.
5
> See my article "Los elches en la guardia de Juan II y Enrique IV ele Castilla",
V! Simposio internacional de Mudi;jarismo, pp. 4 21 - 4 2 7.
''" Palencia, A. de: op. cit., p. 16 7.
57
FF, f. 170r- v.
''
3
Enríquez del Castillo, D.: op. cit., p. 325.

CHAPTER TWO
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH I:
THE AUTHORS
The social origins and education of thc authors who <leal with the
subject of Muslims in thc Ibcrian Península are essential to understand
their points of vicw. The common dcment to sorne of them is the
University of Salamanca and the centres of intellectual life surrounding
it: Franciscan and Dorrúnican convcnts in Salamanca and Valladolid.
But the Church, in its university and local levels, is not the only
one to take part in this matter. The íntcrnal relationships within
each Mendícant Order and the branches of ecclesiastical power in
the courts of the European kingdoms and in Rome also affect these
writers ... Both Pedro de la Cavallería and 'Isa ibn Djabir, born in a
family of conversos and Muslims respectively, are in contact with these
spheres of infiuence.
Pedro de La Cavallería
The figure of Pedro de la Cavallería, who lived during the reign of
Alfonso V of Aragon, can be considcred separately from the other
authors; despite writing in the same chronological period. He is also
th~ only,: l~an among them. His family took its surname from its
r~iationship ;¡_tli~"a military order- probably thc T emplars-since thc
twclfth ccntury. In thc thirteenth century sorne members hcld the
office of batlíe 1 of the city of Saragossa, which they enjoyed for gcn-
erations. As from 1340, they wcrc protected by the Ordcr of Saint
John and received thcir rents from thc royal trcasurc. 2 Thc subscqucnt
evolution of this family provides an interesting case of how condi-
tions of coexistence worked during the fiftccnth-century.
1
The batlle o[ the Catalan-Aragonese kingdom was a judge whose competences
included ali the territory of a particular town and its lands, where he would judge
surrounded by his own eourt and with severa! officcrs under his authority.
2
Ct:: Enryclopediajudaica, vol. V, "Cavallería". See also Vendrell, F.: "Aportaciones
documentales para el estudio .. .", !>~farad (1943), pp. 115- 154.
_______ ...........·- -·························-··-···- - - - - - - - - -
THE INI'ELLECTUAL APPROACH I: THE AUTHORS 29
This was an educatcd Jewish family, well-known in Saragossa,
which produced a numbcr of members who had stood out cithcr in
civil offices or in the study of Scriptures. For instance, Vidal de la
Cavallería (1370- ?), a disciple of Sclomó de Piera, was famous for his
Hebrew translations and knew thc Latín classics, Christian philosophy
and poct1y.
Howcver, in 1412 someth:ing happened that would mark their
family life forever: the dispute of Tortosa. This attempt to put an -"·
end to the problem of Jews and conversos in Aragon was promoted
by Saint Vincent :Ferrer, Fernando 1 of Aragon (1410-1416) andPope
Bcncdict XIII. A massive catechesis was planned to be attended by
the most important members of the Jewish community. The organ-
izers would dcmonstratc that Jesus possessed ali the messianic fea-
tures promised by the Scriptures. The aljamas of Aragon were invited
to send their best masters to Tortosa on the 15 January 1413. ln-
doctrination bceame a real disputation, which was to last onc wholc
ycar. Qyl~y rabbis and celebritics converted, Vidal and B~nafós de )
la Cavallería among themt_ King Fernando had several requrremcnts, ·
but he had also made a good offer. Convcrsion should be pacific and
the important pcrsons should be followed by their synagogue~l In
exchange, they would obtain royal protection and thcy would réinain
in their offices- forbidden to Jews in theory-both in thc royal court
and in the city hall. Only a branch of the Cavallcrias remained loyal
to their formcr relígion, keeping their surname Ben Labi. l
The polerrúc of Tortosa also had an important effe·cf on anti-
J cwish propaganda. It inaugurated a literary trend which praised
new-converts, followed by Alonso de Espina who referred to Pedro
Alfonso as an cxamplc of true conversion which must be followed. 3
By thc time Pedro was born, the conversion of his family had
been achievcd. His brothcr Bonafós, baptised as Fernando because
the lcing had been his godfathcr, had married the Christian Leonor)
de la Cabra. The only details we have about Pedro's early life are
his own words in the introduction to his :{,elus Christi:
Tamen a mea tenera aetate, iussu fidclissimorum parentum meorum,
sic in quadruplici lingua fui eruditus Latina, Caldea, Arabica et Hebraea,
ut sacri canonis Bibliae studio me mancípavcrim et in servitutem Dei
3
Meyuhas Ginio, A.: La forleresse, p. 72.
 30 CHAPTER TWO
me redegerim; ut a tenera mea aetate (gratia Dei) desiderio desider-
averim aclhaerere Christo Iesu: et aequando scripturam Hebraicam
cum Latina, noverim caecitatem ludaicam: et habens cum ludais et
Sarracenis multas disputationes, novi eorum caecitatem validis rationibus
superatam. 4
Thesc notes eonfirm the trend towards an incrcase in the number
of children going to collegc in the fifteenth ccntury, as stated by sev-
era! authors. It became more common to find people who had riscn
/from the lower groups of society through the study of law .a.nd the
ltciences, who were employed in civil affairs. This new intellcctuat
class __Y.Y.as also open to the higher ranks of conversos. It p;~ved to be
o11é~f the main factors for assímilation and, latcr, one of the favourite
targets for the anti-converso theoreticians. Cavallcría's contacts with
jurors and councillors gave a more legal basis to the religious knowl-
edge he had already acquircd. However, the chapters he devoted to
Islam within his work lackcd the same depth.
·. . . His first public appearance was as eounsellor to Alfonso V of
{ Aragon and commissioner for Queen Maria in the cortes of 1\ifonzón
~nd Alcañiz (1436- 1437). In 1438 he and his family received severa!
-privileges from the king. He was appointed maestre racional of Aragon
and fiscal attorney (procurador fiscal) far the King. As part of his work
as a renowned lawyer he took part in the publication of the obser-
vances and customs of Aragon by the juror (Justicia de Aragon) Martín
Díez de Aux. 5
Pedro started to write a book against Judaism, in his own words
to defend and spread thc faith ofJesus Christ, as he knew what
answers should be given to Jews and Muslims. He addressed in par-
tic:ular those who had sccn him participate in disputes and who had
told him to his facc that the law of Moses and Islam were easier to
believe. 6 His Tractatus z:,elus Christi contra iudaeos, sarracenos et infideles was
finished in 1450. In the following years his family continued to
inerease its propcrtics. 7
At that moment and probably simultaneously to the wave of anti-
• ZC, t: 2r-v.
5
Latassa, F.: Bibliotecas antigua y nueva de escritores aragoneses, p. 312. The .Justicia de
Aragón was a lord who ensurcd the observancc of ancient customs and judged the
litigations betwecn the King and the nobles. He was also an interpretcr of tbc coun-
try's codes for lite.
6
ZC, f. 2r- v.
7
Serrano y Sanz, M.: Orígenes de la dominación española .. ., pp. 191 192.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH I: THE AlJTHORS 31
semitism which affected Aragon and Valcncia8 around 1455, causing '\
the buming of the city's Muslim quarter, Pedro decided to ask a group
of citizens for a testimony stating that his origins and those of his
family were irreproaehablc regarding the purity of his Christian faith.
The legal document was shrewdly written, given that the witnesses
could not deny openly that Fernando/Bonafós de la Cavallería had ¡
been brought upas aJew. 9 Thc generation who had seen him con- '"
vert was still alive. The witnesses, who affirmed that they knew
Fernando, gave their testimony out of friendship or to benefit from
Pedro's position. Thcy wcre D. LopeJiménez de Urrea, Lord of Rueda;
D . .Juan de Villalpando, D. Pedro Perez de Embún, Fríar Juan Bon-
filla of the Order of Santiago, D. Juan Gareés de Marcilla, D. Juan
Fernández de Heredia, D. Juan de Caseda, D. Juan de Francia,
D. Juan de Gurrca and D. Juan de Murillo. Howcver, the proof of '¡
the falschood of this statement was written by Fernando himself, who !
confessed his origins together with his former Jewish name 10 in 1414. '.>
His greatest triumph and confirmation of his religious rchabilita-
tion was the admission of Fernando to the guild of Saint Vinccnt
Martyr of the Racioneros de la Jvfensa at the see in Saragossa. We shall
sec how sorne guilds admittcd even Muslims in their numbers, better
still if it was a famous converso likc Cavallería. 11 By that time he had
already foundcd the. chapel of thc Holy Spirit in thc Town Hall.
Probably Pedro, as maestre racional (cquivalent to the Castilian contador "
Mqyor), would have joined the same guild sooner or latcr, but his
name is not in the capbreu of 1515, ordercd by the prior Pedro de
Sesse. 12
This behaviour, apparently in accordance with sound prineiples,
clashcs with the testimony of one of the witnesses at the Cavallerias'
tria! by the Inquisition around 1480. A Jewish wcavcr reported then
that at the time of the plague, when Pedro de la Cavallería and his
family had moved to the house thcy had in one Aragoncse village,
Pedro uscd to visit his house and enjoy the Saturday meal with wine
and hamin; he answercd to the prayer ovcr the food, he spokc in
0 Sobrequés, S.: op. cit., pp. 241 - 242; Dánvila y Collado, M.: La. .expulsión de los
moriscos españoles, pp. 34-37.
9 Baer, Y. : Historia de los judíos en la España cristiana, p. 528.
JO Serrano y Sanz, lVI.: op. cit., pp. 189- 191. The document clated l3 May 1414
used to be in the Archivo de Protocolos de Zaragoza.
11
See chapter 7.
12
Latassa, F.: op. cit., p. 314.
 32 CHAPTER TWO
Hebrcw to the host and he discussed thc Torah. When asked about
his conversion, he said:
Calla, loco, y qué podía subir estando judío de rabí en suso? Agora
so jurado en cap, y por un cnforadillo U esús de Nazareth] agora me
fazen tanta honra, y mando y vicdo toda la ciudat de Aragon ...
quién me quita a mí que si yo quiero ayunar el Quipur y tener vuestras
pascuas y todo, quién me lo veda a rrú que no lo faga? Quando era
judío, en el sabado no osava yr fasta ahí, y agora fago lo que me quiero. i:i
In this light, bis conversion and his work ;::,etus Christi seem more an
attempt to lead a double life, escaping from the control the Jews
were suffering even in their prívate lives. His scrvices to the Jewish
community might have been important in the position he was hold-
ing, but unfortunately there are no records of these activitics for his
correligionaries.
Pedro de la Cavallería made bis will on tbe 22 December 1458,
according to his wifc, 1'1 but the date of his deatb remains unclear.
The first version, recorded by Menéndez Pidal, 15 rcfers to the strug-
gles following thc division of Aragon into factions around 1465. As
batlle of Saragossa, Cavallería was involved in a case of expropria-
tiori of Juan Ximénez de Cerdán's houses. Tbis knigbt had killed a
neighbour from Villanueva whom he had found cutting wood in the
forests of El Castellar. After the expropríation, the answcr of thc
Cerdáns was to plot Pedro de la Cavallería's murder, wbich accord-
ing to this version would bave happened on the 26 October 1465.
The people of Saragossa rioted, led by the first jurat of the city,
Jimeno Gordo. Thcy took the city flag and brought it to the cburcb
ófSaitit Mary the · Great with 300 knights and 4.000 foot soldiers.
Thé tüwn council started a lawsuit against the murderers, supported
by Juan de Híjar, Artal de Aragon, Lope Jiménez de Urrea, Juan
Fernández de. Hcredia, Felipe Galcerán de Castro, Juan de Villalpando
and other people from Huesca, Barbastro and Daroca. Sorne of them
we have already met as consignatories of Cavallería's statement of
13
"Be quiet, you fool! And how far could I have gone being a Jew other than
a rabhi? Now I am the leading head-juror, and through a lortured man (Jesus} now
they honour me so much, and I command and ovcrsee all the city of Saragossa.
[.. .] Who bothers me if 1 want to fast in Quippur and celebrate your Easter and
evcrything? Who prevents me from doing so? When I was a Jew, 1 <lid not dare
do as much on Saturday, and now I do as I wish." Cf.: Serrano y Sanz, M.: ojJ. cit.,
p. 192.
14
Latassa, F.: op. cit., p. 193.
15
Cf: Suárez Fernándcz, L.: Los 1í-astámara . . ., pp. 449-450.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH 1: THE AUTHORS 33
purity of faith. Thc conftict continued until the Cerdáns surrendered
to the city of Saragossa.
The second version comes from his famous contemporary chron-
iclcr Alonso de Palencia, who said he had met him in 1468, when
he was commissioned to arrange the dowry for thc marriage betwccn
Isabel of Castile and Fernando of Aragon:
Prometió el principe cumplir sumisamente cuanto se le ordenaba [. ..]
torció el camino para Valencia y allí, no sin dificultad, rescató el collar
y reunió el dinero, que se nos entregó a mí y a Pedro de la Cavalleria,
íntegro ciudadano de Zaragoza, para que llevásemos uno y otro al
arzobispo de Toledo, a la sazón residente en Alcalá. 16
Zurita adds that on 9 May 1469 King Juan II sent Cavallería and
the moncy of the dowiy from Saragossa to the Archbishop of Toledo,
accompanied by Alonso de .Palencia, servant to the Archbisbop. He
also had to perform a diplomatic mission: talking to the Earl of
Tendilla :Qiego López de Mendoza to ensure his loyalty to the Arago-
nese prince's party. 17 This version was accepted by other chroniclers
and historians from the fifteenth century, such as Diego de Valera
who could have heard it from Alonso de Palencia himself, Vicens
Vives and Latassa, but Serrano 10 thinks it could have been his son,
which seems doubtfül.
Assuming it was the same Pedro de la Cavallería, the whole episode
started when he was sent to Alcalá with Alonso de Palencia from
Gerona, besieged by thc Angevines, to guarantee that the princess
would fulfil the agrcements of Ocaña and at the same time to be
sure of the acccptance of other nobles. He was carrying a certain
amount of money far Alonso Carrillo, Archbishop of Toledo, on the
condition tbat the princess would soon be in the city. She was there
on the 30 May, so that the two messengers could give her the moncy
and a nccklace. The marriage took place, to the great anger of
Enrique IV, who had not becn consulted as law required. The life
of Pedro de la Cavallería, of wbom we have no more records left,
doses with a link to thc following generation, which would rule the •
country during thc last years of the century.
***
16
Palencia, A.: ojJ. cit., I, p. 27; Valera, D.: 1\l[emo1ial, pp . 158-16,0.
11
Zurita, J.: Anales de la Corona dr. Aragón, XV, p. 603.
18
Cf: Vícens Vives, J.: Juan I1 de Aragón, p. 317; Latassa, F.: op. cit., p. 31'.1;
Serrano y Sanz, M.: op. cit., p. 192.
 34 CHAPTER TWO
Juan de Segovia
Juan Alfonso González was born in Segovia in 1393. One of his
first memories, as he wrote to his friend bishop Jean Germain, was
the number of Muslims he could find in his native city. Brought up
in this mixture of cultures, his ecclesiastical studies probably started
around 1407. If he followed the usual career, he might havc bcen
Bachelor in Arts by 1413 and in theology around 1418, moving thcn
to a chair.
His first years were linked to the University of Salamanca, where
he had studied and to whom he donated his library at bis death.
f In 1421 he was commissioncd to obtain from Martin V a ncw con-
zstitution for thc Univcrsity. Then he became procurador de los negocios
e cabsas de la universidad, where he taught from 1418 to 1433, in threc
diiferent chairs. His prestige was such that he was given severaj}.~~.::',~~
.g[_ab~~~.-without losing his position. 19
A study of the Iberian universitics shows a small number of four-
} te.enth-cent.ury .es·t.abli~hments-Salama~c~ a~d V allado~id .in¡..Castile,
(Ysbon and Co1mbra rn Portugal and Lenda m Cataloma- ,t devoted
to the study of law until /JP.ey incorporated theology charrs in the
-fifteenth centuryJ Ncw centres did not appear. __yntiLanOlund ..1-500,~? ..
Particularly in Salamanca, thc fifteenth ce~t~ry was a period of cx-
pansion in numbers, studies and prestige. The Collcgc of Saint Bartho-
" lomcw was founded by bishop Diego de Ana.ya, bcing home to thc
most rcnowned theologians of Basle and Constance, among them
Al1aya hi~selfall.d bishop Alonso ele Madrigal "el Tostado" of Ávila.
...·..·Humani~m had already spreacl and two kinds of graduates could
!>e clistinguished at university arid associated eccclesiastical institutions.
The philologists were strongly inftuenced by the Italian Humanism
through the study of Latin-and less important, Greek and sup-
ported a new style of educatio/ based on the Later-Roman canon
rather .than the medieval onc¿On the other side, thcologians and his-
torians still upheld the scholastic style and thc providential history.
They surrendered when thc linguists succeeded in cxtending their
19
The details of Juan de Scgnvia's lite are taken from thc cxcellent biography
Juan de Segovia J' el problema islámico, written by Dario Cabanelas and publíshed in
Madrid 1952, unless otherwise stated.
20
See Hillgarlh, .J. N.: op. cit., pp. 183 ff
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH I: THE AUTHORS 35
achievcments throughout thc Iberian universities at the .bcginning of(.
the sixtcenth century. ·
Another distinction which should be taken into consideration were
the scholars who remained teaching at university and those who
moved to a royal court or to Rome, where they were well appreciatcd.
All these factors are important to study the influcncc of Humanism
in their styles and in the use of Latin versus vernacular languages,
as well as to understand their ways of approaching the problems of
their time, including their perception of religious minorities and the
stcps towards their assimilation. Their common cultural baggage was
the study of liberal arts and theology; their distinct focus on humanist-
philological or historieal matters was provided by their personal cxpe-
riences and the development of their careers in the Church. In that
case, Jua~ de Sc~ovia's .approach as both a seholar at. univcrsity ª?d J
later a cliplom;:ttic c;:trdinal of the C~urch, ha~..f1()thmg to do with
a forme~-memher-ofa'je~sl'l comri:türiityaiiArabbi like Pedro de la
Cavalleria or an Observant Franciscan who worked as a mass preacher)
such as Alonso de Espina, with sorne inftuence in the Castilian royal/
court.
Salamanca and thc other famous lberian universities provided edu-
cated ¡priests for employment in the higher ranks of Vatican diplo-
m~9'.J ~s is shown ~y the~on~ list of Castilians vyho .w~rked f~r the
popes m Rome dunng the m1d-fifteenth century_J It is mterestmg to
see what particular kind of jobs they performed: there were cardi-
nals such as Alonso Carrillo, Juan de Torquemada,.Juan de Casanova,)
Juan de Cervantes, Domingo Ram, Antonio de la Cerda andjuan de·
Mella. Juan de Segovia and Juan Rodríguez de la Cámara or del
Padrón were serving cardinal Cervantes. There was a great number
of Ibcrians at the..Rota. From 1428, Juan de Segovia was referendary
to the Pops,.A(~:E!.hassado.r.'t ,we find Alfonso García de Covarrubias,
Juan de Óarvajal, the bishop of Granada, .Friar Gonzalo de Balboa,
Velasco de Cuéllar and Francisco de Toledo. In the Curia, Friar
Lopc de Olmedo, the rcstorer of thc Jeronimitcs;--Añ"d~t;·-,¿~-- E~~obar;
Cosme de Montserrat was Calixtus III's confessor, and Rodrigo
Sánchez de Arevalo, thc castcllan of Saint Angc~~j Sccre!<i.ries .~.?.. _0 e.
Pgp.e- were Fernando Díaz de Toledo-who was doetoi' m deerees
¡nd had wOrKed as doctor and major-·chaplain of King Juan II of
Castile-, and Andres de Gazull, former secretary to the King of
Aragon. The masters of the Sacred l)alace were usually Dominicans;
 36 CHAPTER TWO
between 1417 and 1470, they wcrc Juan de Casanova, Juan Sánchez,
Juan de Torquemada and Jacobo Gil. 2 1 It is not surprising that
Ibcrian influence was noticed in the Latín Church affairs.
Juan de Segovia's skills soon impresscd the high officers of thc
..,.Roman Curia and he was soon called on to j_~~_],gg):~n diplomacy . ..
His life from then onwards was that of á-t~~veller: in i4-2'r'lie ' w3:'~- ·
in Rome, where the patriarch of Constantinople asked him to get
hold of a Koran for hi~.,,.-(¡{ 1428, he travelled to Castilc as refer-
cndary to the Pope to obtaín from Jq_an II thc payment of thc tithe
for a crusade against the Hussit~,.,,f~ 1430 he was questioning the
Muslims in Córdoba and on the fallowing year he tried to have a
religious debate with sorne members of Prince Yusuf ibn al-Mawl's
guard. He finally managed to arrange the dispute of Medina del
Campo with a Granadan ambassador, of which he was very proud.
On his retum to Romc, Juan de Segovia acted again as a com-
UJiissioner for the University of Salamanca. His diplomatic missions
resulted in a number of privileges being bestowed upon him: he was
appointed canon in Palencia and Toledo, archdeacon in Villaviciosa
and in the cathedral of Oviedo. Then he was elected the represen-
~ative of the University befare the Council of Basle (1437).22 This
"'-"
council was the meeting point far all members of the ecclesiastical
higher ranks who would later deal váth the problem of Islam: Juan
de Segovia, Juan de T orquemada, Eneas Silvius Piccolomini, Nicholas
of Cusa and Jean Germain . .Juan de Segovia travelled together with
Juan de Torquemada befare the arrival of their superior, archbishop
Alonso Carrillo. When the conciliarist party declared the primacy of
kh$ council over pope Eugenius IV, Juan de Segovia joined them,
~though rejecting the app~iptment of a new pope (Felix V, elected
on thc 5 November l 439)j His work during the council involved
another defence of the constitutions of the University of Salamanca
and the debate about Virgin Mary's immaculate coneeption, a subject
in which he agreed with Juan de Torquemada. Ultimately he had
to accept the election of Felix V, apologize and, after being fargiven,
he received the cardinalate.
Communication among the Castilian cardinals and their European
counterparts continued over a large span of time, no mattcr what
their side was in the schism. Juan de Segovia and Nicholas of Cusa
2
Gómez Cancdo, L.: Don Juan de Caroqjal, pp. 8- M .
'
22
About the council, see Delarouelle, E. et al.: L'église au temps du grande schisme . . .,
pp. 203-295 and Sacrorum Conciliorwn nove et amplissima collectio, v. XXXII .
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH I: THE AUTHORS 37
met again at the Dict of Nuremberg in 1440 to discuss conciliarist
proposals. From then onwards, thcy were to engage in an interest-j
ing correspondence23 and Segovia would help the Italian car?inal to
find the manuscripts he needed for his works about Islar~J In his
turn, Nicholas of Cusa sent Juan de Segovia a dedicated copy of his
De paceJidei and stood firm in his position of pacific debate, opposing
Islam even when Pius II startcd preparing the next crusade.
The same happencd with Jcan Germain, bishop of Cha16n-sur-
Saóne, whom he had met in Baslc. Germain was son of a modest
family from Cluny, wherc he was born around 1400. He was brought
up in the court of Burgundy, wherc Philip the Good appointed him
to be his counscllor in 1429, after J_:¡g!2i~g.Jris Theology ~octorate
in París, in 1425. He was <lean of the Sainte Chapelle in Dijüñ;·"and
later bishop of Nevers. We havc already cxamined his role as chan-
cellor of the Order of the Goldcn fleece from 1430.21 His Débat du
creslien et du sarrazin was translated to Latín on command of the Duke
of Burgundy and had already reached Juan de Segovia when he
began writing his treatiscs against Islam. 25 He had obtained the infor-
mation from a Carmelite theologian who travclled from Burgundy
to Ayton in July 1455, who had referred to two treatises, a long one
in five books and a briefer one dedicatcd to Philip the Good. At
the same time as he was asking for the books, Segovia sent Germain
his method of conciliation with Islam, together with an oral mcs-
sage. Other documents and lettcrs followcd to justify his position,
but Germain answercd rudely in a refutation and nevcr wrote to
him again.
/ti.s far cardinal Piccolomíni, his lettcrs extend from their first meet-
ing in 1440 at Basle until thc date of Juan de Segovia's deat1!_Jwhen
Piccolomíni hcard about the peaceful rriethod sustaincd by the Castilian
cardinal in Rome, he asked for his writings. Later l:ic would recom-
mend Juan de Segovia the publication of his whole work, advice for
which the latter would always be grateful. 26
In fact, Juan de Scgovia's intercst in Islam began approximately
~" About Nicholas of Cusa, see Anawati, G. C.: Nicolas de Cues ei le probteme de
l'Islam. Correspondcnce between Cusa and Juan de Segovia has been publishcd by
Cabanelas, D .: op. cit., pp. 303- 349.
2• Sec bibliography in Lacazc, Y.: "Un réprcsentant de la polémiquc antimusul-
mane au xv•m• sieclc. J ean Germain, éveque de Ncvers et de Chalon sur Saonc",
Position des theses soutenus a l'École de Charles, P arís 1958, pp. 67- 75.
25
Cabanclas, D.: op. cit., pp. 90, 180- 223, 231.
2fi Gómer. Canedo, L.: op. cit., pp . 234·--236.
 38 CHAPTER TWO
around the time of his participation in the Council of Basle. There
he could see a Latin translation of the Koran brought from Constan-
tinople by the Dominican John of Ragusio, 27 which he had copied.
When he was sent to Germany as ambassador to ask for the emperor's
support for the conciliarist party, he managed to obtain a second
copy-this time in Arabic- from the library of a German monastery.
Unfortunately, his mission was not successful, for the German clergy
refuscd to accept his appointment as a cardinal. His opponents in
the debates were our old friends Nicholas of Cusa and Juan de
Carvajal, and ~on they were joincd by Piccolomini and Empcror
JFrederick III/forquemada was onc of the most ferv.ent writers in
¿~efensc of the papacy, as well as the Castilian Rodrigo Sánchcz de
Arévalo. Fortunatcly, their ecclesiological discussions did not prevent
an intcllectual exchange among these mcn. The correspondence be-
tween Juan de Segovia, Nicholas of Cusa and Eneas Silvius Piccolomini
shows a degrec of affection as, for instance, Cusa wrote:
. ... Rcverendissime in Christo pater, domine et amice singularissime: post
. . rec.ortnrí.ciid~tiónem~ recepi littéras vestras, michi utique gratissimas, quas
legi ét relég1, et de multis maximam recepi complacentiam· in primis
qui~ nexu~ veteris ínter nos amicitie, non tantum vidi int~grum, sed
potms glutmo compactum, quod iocundissime intellexi, maxime autem
huius ostensio michi patuit quando secrctiora michi primum revelastis
et, ut paucis utar, hec stet scntentis: noset essc et mancrc semper amicos
affcctibus atque operibus id ipsum attcstantibus. 23
When Fe1ix V abdicated in 1449, Juan de Segovia's career changed.
He was ordered to retract from his conciliarist ideas and acknowl-
1edge Nicholas V, but this did not involve bcing accepted back into
ft?c Cllria. His Roman carcer was finished, so he resigned his priv-
"ileges in Leon in exchangc for a pcnsion for life. As consolation he
was given the honorary sces of Saint Paul Trois Chateaux (Arles,
1450), Savoy and Caesarca in 1453. Following the fall of Constantinople
in that year, he wrote a letter to cardinal Cervantes about the way
to convert thc Saracens by indoctrination.
27
Cusa, N. of: De /1ace fidei, p. XLVIIl.
20
"Rev~rend Father in Christ, Sir and v_ery singular friend: [. . .) l received your
letters, whi~h w~re most pleasant to me, wh1ch I read and read again, and I received
a .grcat ~at1sfact10n from many of them . Firstly, bccause 1 saw the bond of the old
fnend~h1p bet~veen us no.t only ii;tact l~ut even fi:m!y glued together. [...) Wc are
and w1ll rcmam always fnends as 1s testJfied by aftections and works". Cabanclas, D.:
op. cit., p. 311.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH J: THE AUTHORS 39
He decided to .J~ti.n:_to__thc- priory·óf>Ayton, in Say()y, where he )
devoted himself to writing a history ofthe 'Góun.d l .of Basle, crcated w
a fine library and became fully involved in thc study of the Islamic
problem. When he rcalised the mistakcs made in the translations of
the Koran into Latin which were available to him, he decided to
invite ,'Isa ibn Djabir to make a new translation. According to 'Isa's
biographcr Wíegers, he. was born around 1420 and there are no
more traces of him after 1462. Most of the dctails which have rcached
us about his life wcrc provided by Juan de Scgovia himself. He had
just married in 1456 when he was called to Ayton, so he was eager
to return to Segovia as soon as possiblc and he proposecl his brother
to substitutc. him: He proba~ly ~eld t~c offices of alcald~ and Ja~h (
of the MudcJar a!Jama at Scgovia- mcluding the tasks of rec1ter (muqn') ')
and teacher of Koranic studics. Wiegers thinks he bclonged to thc '
sufi guild (tartqa) of the slziidhil'is, as confirmcd by his masterwork the
Breviario sunní, a compilation of thc laws and observances of the Sunna
(1462). In the colophon of one of the manuscripts of the Breviario he
was mentioned as thc mziftí mayor de los moros de Castilla, a title imply-
ing a kind of hierarchy and his acknow1edgment by the community.
He also appears in sorne prívate documcnts and in one inscription
placed in thc alcazar of Scgovia, always acting as thc .h~~c_:Lc:f t.lie
Mudejar community. 29 ...
·rñ ~¡;y casc,-wliá:t.
;~ are concerned with here is 'Isa ibn Djabir's
J~ollaboration in th. e . t·r·a· n. s.1a.tion . work of his. .fellow~-cílizéli~Jüaff··· ae
~cgovia. He staycd in Ayt9!!_foLJifour months __ (Decembcr 1455 to
M~rch 1456fC.Iveñ:.h!f,kowledge--ürAra15ic; ·castilian and probably
Aragonese, and precisely because he was a reciter of the Koran, he
was the ideal person to . ur1g('!:J:"~"~.ke this huge task. The translation
would be made in the p~~est stYie -offüc "Sthoolof Translators of
Toledo founded by Alfonso X: the Koran would be copied ancl tran-
slated ínto Castilian to be then translated again into Latin by Juan
de Segovia with 'Isa's advice. Thc Muslim writer added sorne comments
on Muf.iammad's genealogy and life, and probably sorne notes to
help understand the most difficult suras. Unfortunately no copy of
this arduous work is left. They worked twelve hours a day. 30 At such
arate, influences must have been mutual, andJuan de Segovia's con- /
tact with a practising Muslim helped hím to incrcase his knowledge )'
~~· Wiegers, G. : J¡/amic Literature in Spanish and A!jamiado, pp. 142-147.
3
° Cabanelas, D.: op. cit., p. 142.
 40 CHAPTE.R TWO
on Islam, as he wrote to a friend in 1458 about thcir habits of food
and fasting.31 Later, Juan de Segovia sent 'Isa a short treatise c:xplaining
Christian faith; on his turn, 'Isa ibn Djabir mentíoned his journey
to Ayton when he bcgan his Breviario in 1462, which suggcsts that
the two works wcre related to each other.
According to Harvey32 it was Segovia who suggested 'Isa ibn Djabir
that it was possible-and cven convenient--for the Castilian Muslim
community, whose knowledge of Arabic was fading, to limit the use
of Arabic as a cult language for practica! reasons. And this dcspite
the difficulties involvcd, obvious to a Muslim juror. Once he had over-
come his s_1:!fl:?.ríse;·· 'Isa ibn Djabir realised the possibilities of stich: 'á
. t'ranslii:l;;;, and decided to compile the Sunna in Spanish. Wiegers
differs from Harvey's opinion, for he has found a reference to the
interest shown in the translation by the repartidores of Scgovia. 33 If we
assume this to be true, the fact that Christians encouraged 'Isa to
makc a Spanish rendering of Islamic laws says much about religious
exchange-undoubtedly for economic reasons also in this case.
Back to Juan de Segovia, by 145 7 his health was deteriorating so
quickly that he ·bound and catalogued all his books to give them to
the University of Salamanca. He died on 24 May 1458. The judge-
ment made about him by Eneas S. Piccolomíni in his Cosmographia
lshows the respect he earned among his contemporaries:
Juan de Segovia, a Spaniard leamed in customs and doctrine, who
tan he compared in doctrine to the highest mastcrs in Theology,
(received the dignity of.cardi~~ _f!9.~--.Amageus, .who called himself
Pope, and after consent:J.Iig to JOlil Nicholas Max1mus Pontifex, after
he resigned the title of cardinal, he was the principal of the church
•... of Caesarea. Secluded .in a small monastery on a very high, hidden
mouritain" having called from Spain a master in the Arabic language,
i:hey túinslat¡;_9._.i,i;ito our language the book called al-Koran in which
Mu}:iammad the pseudo-prophet's miseries and ravings are contained,
and he exposed Iris incompetences with true and clever reasons and
arguments. 3'1
***
31
Ms. Vat. Lat. 2928, f. 197 v. Cf. Wiegers, G.: op. cil., p. 150.
32
Harvey, L. P.: lslamic Spain, p. 83.
33
Wiegers, G.: op. cit., pp. 148 . -149.
3
+ Cf. Cusa, N. de: op. cit., p. XLVI.
TIIE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH r: THE AUTHORS 41
Juan de Torquemada
Just likc Alonso de Espina- but this time fully justified----Juan de
T orquemada has be en attributed a converso origin. Therc are two quo-
tations which may prove it. Fernando del Pulgar says that "sus abue-
los fueron del linaje de los judíos convertidos a nuestra sancta fe
catholica". 35 Also a manuscript of Pablo de Santa 1\!Iaría's Scrutinium
scripturarum includcs a note on famous conversos which mentions the
{Cardinal of Saint Sixtus and his treatise for the conversion of the
Greeks ' Armenians , Bohemians and hcrctics:36 It shuld
,.,,
o not b e iorgot-
r
ten that this Juan de Torquemada was ur:,~~-c of the famo~~...~~_g1:_1isitor
Tomás. """" ~.. ··
·---'·":Hi;'-~rigins can be traced back to Lope Alfonso (d. Burgos, c. 1376),
knighted by Alfonso XI. He was buried with his wife Juana de Tovar
in the church of Saint Eulalia of Torquemada, one of his properties
ncar Palencia. His grandsonJuan was born in Valladolid in 1388 and
resigned a11· his rights to the family's propcrties to become a Dominican
in the convent of Saint Paul in Valladolid, werc he was brought up.37
The spirit of the Dominican arder had insisted much on thc irnpor-
tance of learning as a way of preaehing salvation. Saint Dominic
continually encouraged his friars to study and to use debate as an
intellectual exercise, first in his fight against the Albigensians and
later as a teaching method. Due to their settlement in university
cities, the order cnrolled quite a number of students and professors,
specially in Paris and Bologna,38 a characteristic which the Iberian
foundations would share as well. The system developed with the cre-
ation of studia provincialia and studia generalia, to provide for all levels
of education.
From 1405 the organization of the Dominican collegcs changed.
Provinces could have one or more grammar-schools but never more
than one college of arts, one in philosophy and one of theology in )
___
each vicariate,,. ,_ .
_ , . - ~--
Their geographical diffusion was parallel with and
1
:10 "His grandparents were of the lincage of the Jews who were converted to our
holy Catholic faith". Pulgar, F. del: Claros varones de Castilla, p. 99. ,
36 Thc manuscript was in the former collectíon of the cathedral of Toledo. Cf.:
López Martínez, N .: Los judaíz:,antes castellanos . . ., p. 389.
37 Quétif, l.: Scriptores Ordinis Praedicatorum, l, p. 837 . . .
38 Hinnebusch, W . A: A History oJ tlze Dominican Order, p. 19. About the order m
Castile, see Beltrán de Hcrcdia, V.: "The Ileginnings of the Dominican Reform in
Castilc'', in Spain in the Fjfteenth Century, pp. l 47-220.
 42 CHAPTER nvo
rivalled the influcnce of thc universitics, becoming mixed such as
whcn thc univcrsities gave the friars their degrees, or in those {sjties f
whcre thc Dominicans managed thc university's faculty of theology.J,.
In Salamanca the situation was more complicated, for Franciscans
l and Dominicans faced a ncwly created, independent faculty of thc-
¿ ology. In general, the education received by the Dominicans-and
ny sorne Franciscans also ----in this network of collegcs 39 explains well
enough why they were chosen for the highcst ranks as we have seen
during thc fifteenth century. Torquemada would be no exception.
All his biographers agree upon his ~u~~':~9i-~g-~!_~~-~~$~~~e, which
¡made him ch osen to accompany Luis de Valladolid to Constancc in
l..!_4 17 as ambassadors of King Juan II of Castile. 40 Luis de Valladolid
was then trying to turn thc convcnt of Saint Paul into a scientific
rival to the faculty of thcology of the Univcrsity of Salamanca, as
already was thc Franciscan college.! He obtained permission from the
king to found in Saint Paul a double collcge inspired in the College
of Saint .Jacques in Pa,_!:!§1,._where Torquemada was sent to finish his
trairiiffg·:-affer' - 'th_e_}~~~rney to Constancc.'11 There he obtained his
liccntia in the spring of 1423 or 1424, and a master in thcology thc
next year. Sorne authors say that he taught theology and canon law
at the college, but there is no cvidence-42
Back to Castile, he was appointed prior of his casa mater of Valladolid,
¡and later of Saint Petcr Martyr in Toledo.H But the time of his
Q "'o:ffices in Castile was almost over. In 1431 Eugenius iy__ ~illl.e.dJüm
' to , ~e..;,~s Master of the Sacred Apostolic"'Pi:iiace --~~d soon after
/ne was appointcd papal theologian at . thc Council of Basle~ which
he hdped to prepare. --
From this moment, Torquemada bccame the "voicc" of thc
pontificatc to be heard at ali important assemblies, for which he prc-
parcd speeches on the most varicd subjects ordercd by the succes-
:¡
9 Hillgarth, J. N.: op. cit., pp. 183 ft
'1 º Touron, A. : Histoire des lwmmes illustres . .. , III, pp. 396--397.
41
Torquemada, .J.: 1í·atado contra madianitas, p. 10,
12
' The di1Terent dates come from historians of the Dominican order as opposcd
to the charters of the college in Paris: Quétif, I.: op. cit., p. 837 and Touron, A:
ojJ. cit., p. 398 sustain lhe 15/3/1423 whereas Dcnifle, H. - Chatelain, A E.:
G7tartulaiium Universitatis Parisiensis, IV, Paris 1897, p. 428 and Lópcz Martíncz in
his cdition of Tratado contra madianitas defcncl the 3/3/ 1424·. On the other side, Latín
Ms. 5494 in the National Library of Paris statcs thc date of his master: 6 February
1425, cf. Touron, A.: oj1. cit., p. 398.
·
13
Pulgar, F. del: ojJ. cit., p. 100.
THE JNTELLECTUAL APPROACH I: THE AUTHORS 4-3
sivc popes. This cxplains why his literary production was so diversified:
the Bohcmian-Hussitc issue, communion with the Greek Church, or
the controversy about Mary's virginity are only sorne examples. The
dissolution and removal of the council to Florence and Ferrara kept
him from suffering at Eugcnius IV's deposition. When Felix V was
clccted pope in 1439, Eugenius IV scnt Torquemada together with
Pierre de Meaux, .Jean Frarn;ois de Liste and the Bishop of Spoleto,
to cxhort Charles VII of France to sign a peacc treaty with thc Kíng
of England, so that both could engage in the fight against thc Turks.'1'1
He sharcd his intcrcst, probably not by chance, with Philip of
Burgundy and the chanccllor of the Order of the Goldcn Flcecc,
bishop Jean Germain, whose Exhortation a Charles VII pour alter autremer
could be given to the king at thc sarnc time. Juan de Torquemada
rcccíved there the news that he had bccn made cardinal of Saint 4
Sixtus. Thc othcr airo of the delegation was to persuade the French
monarch to support Eugenius IV as pope against Fclix V, represented -
by Juan d~ Segovia, who was defeated. 45 Then he wcnt to Siena whcrc
his arguments turned against Alfonso "el Tostado", Bishop of Avila.
The defeat of the Turks in Varna was, despite the refusal of Francc
to participate in the crusade, onc of the best pieces of news received
for a long time concerning crusadc. Almost at the same time 'Abd
Allah, Bishop of Edessa, returned to thc Roman Church under the
namc of Ignatius, Patriarch of Syria. Juan de Torquemada was re-
quired by thc commission which examined him. Once finishcd, he
was asked to writc a ncw formulation of the creed far thc Syrians,
which was translatcd into Arabic. 46
In 1449, Juan de Torqucmada had to turn his sights again to the
Iberian Peninsula where riots had ariscn against the conversos in Toledo
and Ciudad Real. Far the most part, historians have stressed the
continuity between the famous pogroms of 1391 and this revolt, with
the difference that they substitute the initial target- the Jews- with
a new social group formed by New Christians of Jewish descent,
uscd by Alvaro de Luna as tax-collectors. According to Bcínart this
is the first violcnt oppositíon to the infiltration of conversos in thc
Christian societyY The rcbcls, mostly urban workmen, issucd a statutc
+l Touron, A.: op. cit., p. 403.
-K• Moroni, G.: Dizionarw di erudizione . . ., p. 4; Quétif, l.: op. cit., p. 838.
-IG Touron, A.: op. cit., p. 411.
47 Bcinart, H.: Cmwersos on Tn'al, II, p. 8.
 44 CHAPTER TWO
accusing conversos of practising Jewish cults and asking them to be
banned from public offices. The conversos' contacts in important Cas-
tilian families stoppcd the statute and involved the King and the Pope
in their defensc. The appeal to thc King led to a trial where the
Seven Parts, local by-laws and practical aspects wcre discussed.
As for Nicholas V, the rebels leaded by Pedro Sarmiento sent him
the statute hoping to obtain his approval. They did not count on
him passing this matter on to Juan de Torquemada, both duc to its
doctrinal nature and the cardinal's origins and his personal implica-
tion in such an issuc (as he also carne from a converso family). It is
obvious that ncither Torquemada nor other persons of the rank of
the Santa Marías, the Bishop of Burgos Alfonso de Cartagena or
Fernán Díaz de Toledo, counsellor to the King, wanted to lose their
offices. Torquemada had his own sources of information through the
dean of thc cathedral of Toledo, who had already sought his advice.
The Cardinal of Saint Sixtus hastened to write a Tractatus contra madi-
anitas et ismaelitas (1450),48 where he defends the nobility of Jews and
attacks his enemies throughout history- including the Castilian rebels
who had issued the statute. It is interesting to see how ardently the
Jcws were defended by a man who would prove so harsh regarding
Muslims. But it should not be forgotten that, if the kindness of thc
conversos could be inferrcd by their being descended from "the chosen
people of God", they were also baptised, with all the saving gracc that
might involve, as Torquemada outlined. The result of this polcmic,
so .interesting compared to the oncs about Muslims, was a bull favour-
ing the conversos on the 24 September 1449.
< In1451, Juan de Torquemada attended the general chapter of
his arder in Rome, ·Three years later he visited Castile in order to
promote thc reformation and foundation of Dominican houses. Another
reason was, most probably, to warn the King about Pope Nicholas
V's plans about the Turks. Juan II could not promise much help,
due to thc disastrous statc of affairs in the realm: general disorders,
the recent death of Alvaro de Luna and, ultimatcly, the King's own
death at the end of the year. Befare travelling back to Rome, Juan de
Torquemada had the opportunity to greet the new king, Enrique IV.
In 1455 it was Nicholas V who dicd, but Torquemada's influence
on the fallowing Pope, Calixtus III, did not change. He was appointed
commandatory abbot of Subiaco and Calixtus tried to mal{e him
18
' Edited by Nicolás López Martíncz. See bibliography.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH r: THE AUTHORS 45
bishop of Lcon or Seville, contrary to the wishes of Enrique IV. It
was impossible, so he had to agree to appoint him Bishop of Albano
and later of Palestrina. It was finally Pius II who gave him an Iberian
see, that of Orense and Mondoñedo,'19 in 1460. Befare that, Torque-
mada had published his Commentaiies to Gratian's Decretum and worked
on the canonization of Saint Vincent Ferrcr. The case was so lengthy
that Calixtus III díed befare signing the bull. 50
Once at the head of the Church, Pius II callcd a council in
Maniua, as has already been mentioned. Torquemada was onc of
the supporters of the enterprise. He lcft Rome with the Pope on the
18 February 1459. While they werc waiting for the legates in Mantua,
Pius II ordered him to write a work about Mul).ammad's errors and
his sect, with a double purpose. Firstly, practical, as a reference dur-
ing the sessions of the council; on a longer tcrm, for those Christians
who lived as subjects or slaves of the Turks. Juan de Torquemada
himself states how he wrote Contra errores peifidi Machometi in a hurry,
not so much to tell Mul).ammad's history as to demonstrate that his
faith contained the mistal{es of all thc heretics. 51
Despite the troubled course of the eouncil, Pius II surprised the
audience with a three-hour-long speech, encouraging them to fight
against thc Muslims by all means available. Cardinal Bessarion an-
swcred on bchalf of thc Curia calling ali the princcs to imrnediate
action. Afl:erwards, thc lcgates of the countries in danger rcvived the
horrors of a Turkish invasion. In the end, the Pope offered a special
indulgence far those who would pay for their fight in Morca for one
year--only 300 men were ready to go. The council voted for the
crusade, but the only specific compromisc was that of the German
emperor, who promised to send 32.000 soldiers and 10.000 knights.
Several measures were taken to put these decisions into practice, as
was explained in chapter one, and Pius II left for Siena (January
1460) in the company of his loyal Torquemada. He was to engagc
again in a doctrinal issue which had to do with the fight against the
enemies of faith.
Since 1448 there had bcen another pending matter for the
pontificate: the Hussites. George Podiebrad, King of the Bohemians
had already received several embassies about this problem. Juan de
+9 Moroni, G.: op. cit., pp . 4 -5. Touron, A.: op. cit., p. 427.
50
Touron, A.: ojJ. cit., p. 4·28.
1
' CE, pp. 3- 8.
46 CHAPTER TWO
Torquemada was in charge of writing a short treatise--··!$ymbolum pro
formatione manichaeorum-·for the indoctrination of three Bohemian
prinees, Georg Kueinie, Stqjsav Turtkovic anc;l Radovan Viencínic.
Although thc initial prqject was summarising the Bogomilc crrors to
reject them one by one, Torquemada's ignorance of thc Bohcmian
languagc limited his work to thc explanation of fifty truths about the
Christian faith. Apart frorn the information he was able to gather
in Rome, he only mcntions one clirect sourcc: "information received
from sorne native clerks in Rome''. 52 All pacific efforts were in vain,
so on the 12 April 1464 there was a lawsuit against Podiebrad, in-
structed by T orquemada, Nicholas of Cusa and Bernardo Erdi, bishop
of Spolcto. 53 The meeting between thc two of them was fruitful, as
whcn Nicholas of Cusa wrote his Cribratio Alc/zoranis, he mentioned
Torquemada's Contra erroris Machometi, written in 1459.
Meanwhile, Juan de Torquemada's links with Castile had been
scarce. They can be rcsumed in his support of prior Juan de Gumiel,
who had worked with him in the reformation of sorne Dominican
houses since 1445. When Gumiel decided to extend the reformation
to other orders; encouraged by the King, the Cistercian abbots claimcd
their rights in Rome, where Torquemada had to plead for him. 5+
In spite of his poor health-he was ill with gout-and his limited
resources, Torquemada managed to invest 2.000 gold coins in cap-
tives's ransoms in 1460. As Pius II had decided to lead the erusade
in 1463, he offered as much cconomic support as he could: the
maintenance of a hundred armcd foot soldiers during one year, which
would cost 4.000 coins. U1timately, his sacrifiee was not necessary
due to the Pope's death and the end of the expedition. 55
,Jn 1467 he resigncd the see of Orense, as well as ali his other priv-
ileges56 and was assigncd a pension on thc income of the Bcnedictine
monastery of San Facundo (Sahagún, León). Unfortunatcly his income
52
Torquemada, J. de: ~mbolum ... , pp. 19-·2 l.
''~ Anawati, G. C.: op. cit., p. l53.
5
'f Beltrán de Heredia, V.: "Colección de documentos ... ", Archivum Fratrum Praedic-
alorum, pp. 21 1-2 19.
55
lbidem, pp. 227 , 2'~ l.
56
Quélif, I.: op. cit,, p. 838; Moroni, G.: ojJ. cil., p. 4. According to Eubel (cf.
Beltrán de Heredia, V.: op. cit., p. 219), the Cardinal had in Spain the following secs:
Cádiz from 27.July 1440 to 13 July 1442; Orense from 11 July 1442 to 10 November
1445; León from 31 July 1460 to 16 Scptember 1'164; Orense from 26 January
l 46S to 8 June 1466. A complete list of his publishcd works is available in Quetif's
article.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH 1: THE AUTHORS 47
was wrongly managed and there are a number of letters lcft com-
plaining to his subordinates during that year.·57 He died in Rome on
26 Septcmbcr 1468, in the convent of Saint Mary on Minerva.
***
Alonso de Espina
Friar Alonso de Espina has also received the attentíon of a great
number of scholars, although most of his biography is a list of con-
jectures without documentary proof.5n A fine example of the vagueness
originated by authors who havc tricd to rebuild his lifc after the suc-
cess of his work is the suggestion that he could be a convcrt from V
Judaism, a fact which Netanyahu has proved to be_f_aj_s!'._:59 Criticism 1
has deduced that he quoted Hebrew and Arabic sources..in transla-
tion, which would provc his ignorance of Hcbrew and Arabic, and
therefore of Judaism.
The most approximatc date given for his birth was 1412, m
Palencia. Go What is certain is that he professed in the convent of)
Saint Francis in Valladolid, and his public life startcd properly in}
Salamanca, where he was director of studies for the famous convent
of Saint Francis. This institution had becn founded outside thc walls
of the city in 1231 by Prince .Fadrique, Alfonso X's brother, to be
a studium with forty doctors and masters. Betwcen 1339 and 1441
a reformation separated it from the University, whose faculty of the-
ology they had managed until then.
57 Beltrán de Heredia,V.: op. cit., pp. 220, 227, 24 1.
50 Thc most imporlant authors who give more or lcss accurate information about
Alonso de Espina are: Bibliografía eclesiástica completa de E\fmña, Madrid 1848- 52;
San Antonio, J de: Biblioteca Universa Francircana, Madrid 1732- 33; v\laddingo, L.:
Annales minmwn, Lyon 16,rn; Sbaralea, J.: Biblioteca histórico-bibliográfica ... , Ro me 1908;
Kamen, H.: 77ze Spaizish lnquisition, London 1965. The latest works about thc friar
are two books by Dr. Alisa M. Ginio, from the Univcrsity of Tel-Aviv: fo.fartaleza
de la fe . en los corifmes de Occidente: Alonso de Espina, autor del Forlalilium , Fidei, Fon tes
ludaeorum Regni Castellae (Salamanca, forthcoming) and La Forteresse de la Foi: la
uision du monde d'Alonso de Espina, moine espagnol, Paris 1998.
''9 Netanyahu, B.: "Alonso de Espina, \Vas He a New Christian?", .pp. 107·-165.
Go García Hernando, .J.: "El problema judío en fray Alonso de Espina", Ertudios
segovianos (1961 ), quoting ano lhcr Franciscan who lived in thc convenl of Santa Cruz
in Valladolid. The reference may be crroncous.
 48 CHAPTER TWO
On thc other hand, waves of rcformation reached the Order as
well. Thc Villacrccian reformation rejectcd scholastic theology as a
way to serve God. Their spirit, closer to the devotio rnodema, <lid not
require university training. They prefcrred studia linkcd to several
convents under the rule of local priors. This was the case of Salamanca,
where theological education was in charge of the friars until it was
transferred to the University and the convent was free to educate
only its friars. Probably Alonso de Espina was brought up in thc same
institution whcre he was later director.
The second of June 1453 marks an important changc in Espina's
life. The episode of his meeting with Álvaro de Luna on his way to
the gallows is recorded by all contemporary chroniclcs, so much so
that it has darkened other aspccts of his life. Espina must have been
living by then either in thc convent of El Abrojo or in Saint Francis,
within the boundaries of Valladolid. 61 The Constablc was travelling
from . his prison in the castle of Portillo to Valladolid, in order to be
executed.
Thc sequence of events common to the Crónica de Juan II, 62 the
Crónica de Álvaro de Luna by his squire .Gonzalo Chacón, and that by
Alonso de Palcncia, 63 is told as"f'ü'[¿-;s~ on his way through Tudela,
the group taking the Constable met certain friars from El Abrojo,
" among them master Alonso de Espina. The friars warned Álvaro de
Luna that he must get prepared for dcath and wcnt with him to
Valladolid, where they rcmained consoling him all night. When he
was taken to the scaffolding, the friars rcmained by his side.
Several explanations have bcen attempted for this meeting. Gonzalo
Chacón only mal;;.es a judgcmcnt about Espina: "a great and famous
learned man and master in theology". Suárez Fernández suggested
that both men could havc been friends, 64 but Round maintains a
more complicated thcory. According to the writcr, the meeting of
the well-known preacher and the Constable had been a manocuvre
61
Thc convent o[ El Abrojo, founded in 1415 on thc lands given by ÁJvar Díaz
de Villacreces to the Franciscan Pedro de Vilacrcccs belonged lo the Franciscan
province o[ La Concepción, divided in 1447. In turn, thc rmc at Valladolid was
dependcnt on Palencia, in the Castilian province. See González Dávila, G.: Teatra
metrapalitana de las iglesias ... , I, pp. 619···643; McKcndrick, G.: 171e F'ranciscan Order,
p. 120; for more information about the situation of the Franciscan convents, scc
Castro, M. de: Crónica de la provinciafi·anciscana de Santiago, Madrid 1972.
62
Crónica de ]uan JI, p. 683.
63
64
Palencia, A. de: ap. cit., p. 4-8.
Suárcz Fcmández, L.: Los Trastámam . . ., p. 211.
THF.. INTELLECTUAL APPROACH 1: THE AUTHORS 49
of.Juan II to persuade Alvaro de Luna- once bis best friend, whom
he had now condemned..-·to havc an cdifying death instead of using
the oceasion far a political dcmonstration. Espina was thc ideal person
to persuade him without questioning thc death sentence. 65 The friar
could well use this situation for his own benefit later.
Meyuhas Ginio believes--influenced by the Jewish school inter-
preting Espina in the light of the lnquisition- that the Franciscan
"was devoid of all feclings of compassion and merey towards human ,.
kind". 66 Such an asscrtion seems excessive if we tal;;.e into account
what Espina himsclf wrote about Alvaro de Luna in his Fortalitiwn:
Et cum cssc vir tantc potcntie ab omrúbus tamen suis relictus fuit,
quia tamen in tanta pressura ad Dominum accessit corde contrito et
humiliato et pedibus meis, licet indignis, se per gencralcm confcssionem
totius vite sue inclinavit. Credo ipsum secundum signa que vidi mis-
ericordiam Dei consecutwn . fuisse. Quia scriptum est: <In quacunque
hora ingcmucrit pcccator omnium iniquitatum eius non recordabor>. 67
In 1454 Alonso was again in Valladolid preaching his Se7mones del
nombre de Jesús. His attempt at such a popular genre of sermon at
the end of the Middle Ages is due, according to his own testimony-
to the miracle of finding twenty-four stones engraved with the name
of Christ in a wcll. Soon after this he faced the Jewish problem for
the first time, when he tried to have a Jew condemncd for the death
of a child at thc High Court (Chancillería) of Valladolid. 60 On bcing
unsucccsfol, he accused thc judges to be influenced by "others of -
theír kind'', i.e., conversos.
It is important to determine Alonso de Espina's place in the royal
court to find out what kind of public he addressed in his sermons
and treatises. It has generally been said that he was confes~or to¡
King Enrique IV, but the office belonged to Lope de Barnentos, 7
Bishop of Cuenca, from 1434. He remained in office at least until
1455, as far as the records show. 69 Howcver, taking into account
Gs Round, N.: 77ie Greatcst Atan Uncrowned, p. 209.
66
Meyuhas Ginio, /\.: La forteresse, p. 94. ·
ljl "And being such a powcrful man, he was abancloncd by ali his [mcn] in thc
cnd, so undcr such pressure he tumed to Gocl with a humble heart, ancl he bowecl
clown over my unworthy feet for the general confession o[ the sins of his whole
life. I think, according to thc signs I saw, that he achieved God's merey ... " FF,
f. 170v. Also in Meyuhas Ginio, A.: La forteresse, p. 49.
6
° FF, f. 14lv.
6H A.G.S., Quitaciones de Corte, kg. 4, pp . 6- 9. His succcssor was friar Pedro
 50 CHAPTER TWO
""'-that Juan II commandcd Espina to confess Álvaro de Luna, one
could assumc that he would ask for sorne kind of reward; if so, why
not entcr thc prince's service? He could havc continued there when
the princc was proclaimed king. Assuming his office of confessor to
the king, Round thinks that thc meeting with Luna would havc
aroused in Espina "a taste for controvcrsy and thc eonviction of bcing
specially qualificd and called by God to give advice to the public
authorities", 70 quoting Monsalvo about the friars being "eomrnitted
to thc production or rcproduction of certain ideological messages".
Alonso de Espina's taste for controversy is obvious, but can be attrib-
uted more to his education than to this particular cvcnt in his life.
Considering the changes of residence of thc royal court, it would not
be strange for a king to have several confcssors in the cities whcrc
he stayed. Alonso de Espina might be one of them when the King
visited Valladolid, Segovia or Salamanca.
Alonso de Espina sharcd the prcaching style of Mendicant Orders.
In thc fiftccnth century, thc struggle between factions of Spirituals and
-Conventuals within the Francisean Order had givcn place to a new
conflict in Castile. The support of laics had helpcd thc Observants-
succesors to the Spirituals, they had their first indcpcndcnt chaptcr
in Castile in 1447-to expand and obtain spccial privileges from thc
pontificate, providing themselves with a scparatc administrative and
juridical structure. 71 Moreover, in 1418 thcrc was another break among
-the eonventuals: Pedro de Villacreces obtaincd a privilege from thc
Pope giving his custody a particular autonomy regarding the main
branch of Conventuals. He had thc support of the Castilian nobility,
which encouraged their expansion throughout the realm. Their ideal
was strict obscrvancc of poverty, the practice of ascetism, contem-
plative life, regular fasts and strict silence.
f The Villacrccians and the Observants shared objectives but hacl
~distinct polícies. By thc end of the century the Conventuals wcrc the
losers, whcrcas the Observants had íncreasecl in numbcrs, patrons
and prcstigc. At that moment, there is a refercncc in Valera's chron-
iclc rcfcrring to the problcms posed in 1455:
de Villacastín, from thc Obscrvant convcnt of Saint Peter in Scgovi.a, lcg. 4, pp.
455- 456.
70
Round, N.: "1\lonso de Espina and Pero Díaz de ·raledo", p. 2. See also
Meyuhas Ginio, A.: La farteresse, p. 86.
71
McKcndrick, G.: op. cit., p. 61.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH I: THE AUTHORS 51
En este tiempo hobo grande ayuntamiento en Segovia de frailes de
San Francisco, los unos oservantes y los otros claustrales, y los oser-
vantes dccian que los claustrales no guardaban la orden de San Francisco,
y que suplicaban al rey que les diese el moncstcrio que alli estaba;
sobre lo qual hobo muy grandes alteraciones; e ayudo mucho a los
oservantes el maestro fray Alonso del Espina, que era hombre muy
letrado y gran predicador, y era oservante y confesor del rey, y con
todo eso los claustrales daban por si tantas razones que no se pudo
vien determinar quales tuviesen mayor razon; y el rey, deseando con-
cordarlos, y no queriendo amenguar a los unos ni a los otros, delibero
dexar a los claustrales en su moncstcrio, como lo habian poseido de
muchos tiempos aca, y mando edificar de nuevo fuera de la i;:ibdad 1
un monesterio muy notable de la advocación de San Antonio, el qua!
dio a los oservantes, y le dio muy ricos ornamentos y todas las cosas
necesarias al culto divino. 72
The historian Diego de Colmenares, born in Segovia, gíves more
information about this convent, built ovcr a Mudcjar palace of.
Enrique IV. The vicar and the friars lived thcrc alonc until the nuns
from Santa Clara moved thcre in 1488. 73 The result of the struggles
in the Franciscan Ordcr was the absorption of Villacrecians and the
reformation of thc Conventuals achieved by Cardinal Cisneros, him-
sclf an Observant.
As far as Espina is concerned, the convents where he lived show
that he belonged to the Obscrvant or Villacrecian paiiics, and this •
must have strongly marked his thcorics. The gcographical extension
of the reformation hclps to trace his steps in Castilc: the reformed
convents were placed mostly in Northern Castile around Valladolid,
Salamanca and Scgovia, in the lands of patrons from the Trastamaran
nobility, namcly the Velascos in Burgos and tl1e Manriques de Lara , _
in Palencia. The wandering life of the Mendicants helpcd thcm to
set up in the countryside, wherc they founded the houses of La
Salceda, La Aguilera and El Abrojo,7'1 both visitcd by Espina. In •
thosc places where finding clerks to fi.11 in thc parishcs was difficult,
spccial licences were given to thc Franciscans to preach in isolated
villages and hamlets, whcrc they were sometímes denounced for
72
Valcra, D. de: ojJ. cit., pp. 9- 10.
73
Colmenares, D.: !Jist01ia de la ciudad de Segovia, II, p. 34. Also in the records
in A.G.S., Casa Real, obras y bosques, leg. 4-6, f. 258-270, 330, 336-337.
71
· :tvicKcndrick, G.: ojJ. cit., pp. 10 -· 12, 17. Sce also Trcmaux-Crouzct, A.: "Francis-
canisme des villes et franciscanismc du champs dans J'Espagne du Bas M.oyen Age",
en Les EsjJagnes médiévales, asj;ects économiques el sociaux, Nice 1983, pp. 53- 67, ancl
:tvicyuhas Ginio, A.: La .forteresse, p. 55.
 52 CHAPTER TWO
vagr,_m,1c:y. ..'. 5 Meanwhile, the Conventuals used to be callcd by local
·a~thorities to preach in towns. In order to avoid accusations, Villa-
crecians had their own system of control: each member of the Order
could move to another convcnt only if he had the assent of all the
comrnunity. Thus, Mcyuhas Ginio's attempt to justify Alonso de Espina's
travcls by his rigid, inflexible character is vcry far frorn the truth. 76
Thc lirnits of the Francísean provinces of La Concepción, Santiago
and Old Castile are also those of Alonso de Espina's journeys.
Another positive aspcct of Espina's stay at court would have been
the chance to mcet important personalities in the ecclesiastical hier-
archy of thc time. From the Fortalitium we know that he had sorne
rclation with the bishop of Lugo, García de Vaamonde; of Palencia,
Pedro de Castilla, and thc Bishop of Salamanca. Furthcrmorc, Bishop
Pedro de Osma was the first to command an illuminated copy of
his work, as early as 1468. These contacts cnhance Espina's fame as
a preacher just as much as the cooperation between Mendicants and
ecclesiastical authorities in matters of faith. 77
Calixtus Ill's first crusade bull for the Península was issued on the
very day of his coronation in April 1456. It contains the earliest ref-
erence to Santiago in a papal bull. He declared indulgcnces could
be applied to the souls in Purgatory. Espina was chosen to prcach
-the crusadc bull on 2 Fcbruary 145 7 in Palencia:
Y ansi fecho, el rey se partio para Segovia, y fue a tener la Pascua
de Navidad a la c;iudad de Palencia, donde le fue trayda la bula de
la Cruzada para bivos e muertos, que el Papa Calisto 111 le embio,
la qual rescibio con grande acatamiento y reverencia; y predicola fray
Alonso del Espina, hombre muy notable y de onesta vida y gran pred-
icador. El qual dixo al rey que debía mucho acatar quan señalada
· gr<lcia avía rescebido del sancto padre, que jamas se fallaria avcr sido
dada semejante yndu]gencia; pero que debía mirar el cargo con que
se la clava, que no podia despender de los maravedís de aquella cosa
alguna, salvo en la guerra de los moros, ecebto el mantenimiento de
los predicadores e cogedores, sin caer en dcscomunion mayor, de la
qual no podia ser absuelto sin personalmente requerir la Sede Apostolica,
lo qual se afirmaba el rey ser muy mal guardado. Fue tan grande el
dinero que por virtud desta bula de cruzada se ovo para el rey durante
el tiempo de los quatro años en ella contenidos, que se afirmava por
los thesoreros e recebtores dellas que, pagadas sus despensas, vinieron
75
McKendrick, G.: op. cit., pp. 51 ..52; Hillgarth, J. N.: op. cít., p. 107.
7
~ Meyuhas Ginio, A.: Lafi1rteresse, p. 93.
77
McKcndrick, G.: op. cit., p. 134.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH r: THE AUTHORS 53
a poder del rey mas de cíen quentos, de los quales muy poca parte
se gasto en la guerra de los moros; de lo qual todos los grandes del
rey no fueron mucho turbados. 78
This task marked another step in Alonso de Espina's career, in a
period whcn crusadc prcaching had turned out to be an almost
financia! rnattcr, for the prcachers werc at the same time collcctors. 79
Anyway, nothing proves that preaching thc crusadc supposed an
increase of power in the hands of Espina. But his influence in the
royal eourt can be measured by the fact that he was ablc to attack
the King openly for his use of crusade funds.
By 145 7, the plague affcctcd the arca around Valladolid. Round
infcrs that Espina would preach scrmons on this subject. He also
spcaks of a fccling of frustration due to thc rcligious policies in the
realm which can be seen in Espina's asserts aboutJews. Thc Fo1talitium
would share the same spirit, as "an appeal to Christian society to
aeknowedge their enemies' evil". He began to write around 1459,
after his en:counter in Medina del Campo with sorne Benedictine
monks who told him about thc cxpulsion of the Jews in France. 30
Given the immensc amount of work rcquired, it probably took him
full-timc dcdication until 1461.
Missionary zcal directcd against Muslims and hostility towards Jews
and conversos was a main feature of Franciscan ideology, although it
might as well be considered "a sign of the times". Its origins are
with the beginning of Franciscan history, when they were inspired to
martyrdom for the faith, encouraged by the tale of Francis's embassy
to the sultan of Egypt and the Franciscan martyrs of Morocco who
were killed when trying to preach against Mu}:iammad. This feeling,
together with the trcnd in Castilian society on the eve of the last
conquests of Muslim territories in the Ibcrian Península, built up
Alonso de Espina's mind. It is precisely at this point that historians
show rnost intransigence, specially those ofJewish origin. McKendrick
defines corrcctly the Franciscan point of view when she says that
"messianism led the Franciscans to dcvelop a particular type of
approach to the problem of conversion. In contrast to the Dorninicans,
and later the Jesuits, who both favourcd a "gradualist" approach to
conversion, the Franciscans wcre much more confrontatidnal". 81
'" Valera, D. de: op. cit., p. 41.
7
~ Houslcy, N.: "fl1e Later Crusades, p. 405.
0
° Cf:: Esposito, lVI.: "Notas sobre el F01talitiumfidei .. .",p. 515.
81
McKendrick, G.: op. cit., p. GI .
 54 CHAPTER TWO
This is the context in which the letter written by Alonso de Espina
in 1461 should be placed. After attending two chapters of the
Observants, one in Salamanca82 and another one in Madrid, he
-wrote the general of the Jcronimite order, Alonso de Oropcsa, about
the disorders of thc realm. He sígned as the King's confcssor, 83 and
shows thc samc intentions which moved him to writc the Fortalitium.
The King gave his approval willingly to thc joint proposal of an
inquisition in the realm. Soon after, Friar Remando de la Plaza and
master Espina insisted that they had got proof of the circumcision
of 100 conversos. The king asked for the proofs in arder to prosecute
those guilty. 8+ Nobody could provide them, so the case was s;t!I.l.~n:;.e.ded.
There is no writtcn record about Espina after that until thc prosc-
-cution and trial of thc Arias Dávila family in 1486. One of the crimcs
Diego Arias Dávila was tricd for was preciscly Alonso de Espina's
• murdcr. The testimonies of several witnesscs give an idea of the con-
spiration between Diego and Shemaya Lubel, the personal physician
of the King from 1456 to 1466. ns The reason for the murder, accord-
ing to the first witness who .had heard it from a friar of Saint Anthony,
had been that one of the royal controllers of financc (contador mqyor),
Diego Arias, wantcd to get rid of such a tough opposition against
conversos and Jcws who were under hís protection.
lt seems that since thc Jews did not wear their badges according
to the canons of the councils, Espina and other friars had proposed
that Christians should wear crosses or badgcs with the name of Christ
scwn to thcir clothes. At that point, the court was in Madrid and
Diego Arias was said to have called upan the Conventuals to oppose
the Obscrvants Jed by Espina, about how the inquisition should be
arranged to facilitate things for conversos. Alonso de Espina reccived
Diego Arias's invitation to his housc--one wonders how he could
accept .an invitation in such conditions- an.d when he rcturncd, he
was feeling ill. He was taken to the convent of Saint Dominic,86
02
vVaddingo, L.: Annales minorum, V, p. 498.
8
'Sigüenza, J.: Hirtoria de la orden de San .Jerónimo, pp. 363- 364.
o; Enr:íqucz del Castillo, D.: op. cit., p. 61. Cf.: Meyuhas Ginio, A.: La fi1rleresse,
p. 130.
!15 Carrete Parrando, C. (ccL): 1'ontes iudaeornm regni Castellae, IV, pp. 33, 72, 79·-80,
1'15· M6. In 1461 the royal court was in Madrid from Septembcr to Deccmbcr,
cf. 'J'orres Fontes, .J.: Itinerario de Enrique IV.
86
The convent, now disappcarcd, was foundcd in the outskirts of Madrid, by
the Valnadú gate. Cf.: Montero Vallejo, M.: El Madrid medieval, Madrid 1987, pp.
lll- 112, 165- 167.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH I : THE AUTHORS 55
where he was lodged. Thcre he was visited by the K.ing, who asked
Bishop Alonso de Cartagcna to pay him a visit and find out if he
had been given certain herbs. The bishop obeyed and was in attcnd-
ance at Espina's death. Ali thc witnesses in the trial affrrmed that it
was "public knowlcdge" that the friar had been murdered by arder ..
of Diego Arias. In view of this account, Espina might have díed after
writing thc letter in 1461, for it is the only ycar when a Francíscan
meeting about the inquisition and the royal court coincide in Madrid.
However, the episode of Friar Hernando de la Plaza has been datcd
in 1463, so then the murdcr would be delayed by sorne ycars.
Wc hear news about Alonso de Espina until 1495, but considering
what has bcen said there must be serious doubts about its validity. 87
Meyuhas Ginio 00 bclieves 1464 to be thc date of his death, due to~·
sorne corrcctions made in the Fortalitium. Howcvcr, those corrections
were only made at thc time of the first printing of the work (c. 1480),
whereas they do not exist in the 1467 manuscript. The death of
Diego Arias Dávila in 1466 is a teiminus ante quem, but otherwisc 1461 •
to 1464 can be accepted as thc pcriod when the author's dcath took
place.
87 List of inaccurate information about Espina:
1479: at Lhc Junta de Alcala to condemn Pedro de Osma. Menéndez Pelayo already
said it was not him (Historia de los heterodoxos españoles, I, p. 556). Preaching
of the "Sermons on our faith" ¡¡t l'vlcdina del Campo.
l 485: rcvision o[ thc Fortalitium.
l 487: .lnquisitor in Barcelona. Pedro Carbonell (fol. 11 1r), working in the Royal
Archives in Barcelona refrrs to him as a Dominican ·-is it possible that there
are two diffcrcnt Alfonso d'Espina?
1491: bishop of Termopilas and assistant of Juan Arias, bishop of Ovicdo. Bishop
o[ Tripoli according to other authors. Othcrs havc him dead .in this year.
1492: consccration of thc church of Esperanza in Medina del Rioseco. Signature
of capitulations with the Franciscans of St. Francis of Palencia.
1495: Builcüng of thc altar to the Concepcion, in St. Francis of Palencia. Buried
there.
88 See l\!l.eyuhas Ginio, A.: La jiJrferene, pp. 88- 93.

CHAPTER THREE
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH II:
A STYLE FOR A PUBLIC
Acculturation is determined by intcrcultural roles and forms of com-
munication which produce a highly selective pattcrning of contacts. In
other words, the ways in which thc donor culture shows itself to the
rccipicnt naturally affects the way in which cultural elements will be
adopted. 1
This is a study of thc intcraction between cultures by means of com-
munication. Whcther it be through oral or writtcn communication,
the pcrception of Islam was something sharcd and manifested at dif-
fcrcnt lcvcls. Although we are working mainly with literary production,
it is worth considering oral sources as far as they have reached us, to
sce .ho"'7 the authors decided to approach a particular public and the
reasons why they chose such a channel.
The first thing to take into account when choosing a particular
style had to be thc audiencc. Furthermore, when dcaling with thc
audience, the first problcm was what language should be chosen:
Latin or vernacular. If the encounter with the publie was supposed
to be face to face, vernacular was always the choice. If we are deal-
ing with a book, the reasons for the use of one or the other are
usually explained in the preface.
In thc case of sermons, the author himself usually copied dovvn
his own either before of after they wcrc delivered, in whichever lan-
guage was more helpful: vernacular if it was just notes for himself,
or Latín if a compilation was expected. The most remarkable case
was that of St. Vineent Ferrer, whose more than two hundred and
eighty sermons were written word by word by the theologians and
jurists who were part of his rctinue, both in Latín and Catalan.
These drafts (reportationes) were later cleaned up as models for other
sermons, leaving the quotations from the Bible incomplete.
The advantage of Latín as the language for model sermon col-
' Glick, T. F. & Pi-Sunyer, O.: "Acculturatíon as an Explanatory Concept in
Spanish History", Comparative Studies in Soáe!J and History, 11 ( 1969), p. 151.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH II: A STYLE FOR A PUBLIC 57
lections was, as D' Avray stated, that it could be translated into any
vernacular. Also, the average preaching friars were much bettcr
trained to mal(e use of this material..--·-even in Latin- than thcy
had ever been before. This madc preaching a common factor in all
of Westei:n Christian Europc, but at the same time it constitutes a
problem for the historian, who has to conjecture the diffcrences in
effectiveness betwcen the communication madc in vernacular and its
rendering in Latin. 2
The faet that a Latín rendition is, out of necessity, addressed to
a Latinist audience would confine its diffusion to educated nobles
and prclates-i.e. the political establishment of mid-fifteenth-century
Iberia·~", but the influence of the Mcndicant sermon teehniques pro-
vided by the social extraction of most of the authors, is fclt in the
language and contcnts, which are simpler and sccm aimcd at a wider
audience. 3
There is, however, a curious statement by thc Jewish translator
of.thc BiblC into Spanish far the Master of Alcantara, in 1424: "The
Latín scicnce and language is so much expanded in Castile, that the
knights and the squires and the citizens have left pure Castilian, and
have mingled with it plenty of Latin, so much so that Latin has
become Castilian."'1 However, this testimony is difficult to believe,
unless Moshe ben Arragel referred to the atmosphcre in the court,
where Humanist ideas were beginning to cxpand, and where a more
Latinized Castilian might have been spokcn. But it is impossible, given
the dubious Latin of educated nobles Iikc the Marqtús of Santillana,
that it should have undergone such a development.
Moreovcr, historiography during the fourteenth century and thc
first half of the fifteenth used vcrnacular, beeause they either ignored,
or did not want to use, the Latín language. The first possibility is
more likely, since it is rccorded that they read the Classics in trans-
lations. This was thc case for bishop Alonso de Santa María, although
bis fellow-countryman, Sánchez de Arcvalo, used more Latin than
Spanish, probably due to his residing in Rome and the faet that
many of his works were eommandcd by the Pope or his interna-
tional circle. 5
~ D'Avray, D. L.: 7he Preaching ef thr. Hiars, pp. 21 , 95.
3
Me Kendrick, G.: The Franciscan Order . .. , pp. 121··- 125.
+ Tate, B.: Ensayos sobre la historiogrqfia jieninsular, p. 289.
5
Ibídem, pp. 70- 74.
58 CHAPTER THREE
In this context, it must rcmain clcar that thc Latin used in the
ecclesiastical environment outside ltaly was still "Medieval" Latin,
as opposcd to the Humanist Latín which was already in fashion
in Petrarch's country. Someone in contact with the Curia, such as
Segovia, rnight occasionally worry about his style- as he docs in a
letter to Cardinal Piccolomini"- , but that was not the general trcnd.
Píccolornini himself, once Pope Pius U, wrote a letter to the Sultan
Muhammad II which was "a modcl of Rcnaissance cloquence, com-
bining a felicítous style with a carcfully structurcd argument, in which
its author achicvcd a rare synthesis of orthodox doctrine and human-
istic values [. . . although] it is too much of an acadernic cxcrcise to
be convincing". 7
Paradoxically, Latin was usually considered when wider diffusion
throughout Europe was intcnded. Therefore, a translation of Germain's
work from F'rench into Latín was ordered by the Duke of Burgundy,
and Segovia's project to translatc thc Koran not only into Spanish,
but also into Latín, was intended to make it availablc to other learned
men who did not know Spanish.8 Elsewhere, there was the case of
Alfonso V of Aragon's letter of defiance to the sultan, written-or at
least recorded--- in Catalan but sent with his ambassador the Marquis
of Ferrara, who would probably have delivered the messagc through
an interpreter. 9 Although the letter has been preserved in Catalan, it
was probably written in Latin, because it was dictated at the Napolitan
court, and usually Aragonese international correspondence was issued
in that language.
The style chosen to deliver the informatíon about Muslims varied,
depending on the expected audiencc and thc subsequent action in-
tended by the priest. From now on, it must be assumed that the
clergy was generally going to dcliver this messagc . Itínerancy was
one of the ways of reaching the public who would not normally
come into contact with thc elite. Books were the othcr means of
reaching the more educatcd audience. Usually both were intended
to complement each other: the masses who rnight be reached by the
prcachers were more helpless to face the attacks of a new rcligion/
culture in a land of forced contacts such as the Península. Thc friars
6
Cabanelas, D.: ]uan de Segovia y el problema islámico, p . 240.
7
Schwocbel, R .: 1he Slwdow ef the Crescent, p. 66.
° Cabanelas, D .: ojJ. cit., p. 138.
\> Sobrequés, S.: "Sobre el ideal ele cruzada ... " Hispania (1952), pp . 247- 249.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH u: A STYLE FOR A PlIBLIC 59
coulcl act on thís ground through scrmons and confcssions, a twofold
technique they mastcred. Unfortunatcly, this approach was bascd on
oral communication and thcrcfore has left few records.
Among them, there are sorne royal licences to preach to Jews and
Muslims in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. Although they
do not refer specifically to the period studied here, they were con-
sidered interesting enough to quote them because the atmosphcrc in
which they were issued corresponded in the kingdom of Aragon-
Catalonia, to a similar approach to Islam in thc kingdom of Castile
onc century latcr. Licences were either collcctivc··-·-given to bishops
or Mendicants- or given to a particular missionary. From 1243
(Statute of Jaime II) the new converts were obliged to gather for
popular preaching. Another letter followed, forbidding the J ews to
be taken out of their ncighbourhoods to listen. Preaching and dis-
putation were openly supported by the King, but social unrest tended
to be avoided: in 1279 prcachers wcre told to kcep the number of
Christians ·around them low, in order not to provokc their audiences.
Thc measurcs be carne tighter when in 1291 both J ews and Saracens
wcrc obligcd to answer and discuss ali kinds of doctrinal texts, ques-
tions and objections posed by the clergy, and to argue about the lit-
erary fragments which were pointed out to them. Moreover, recent
converts were granted safe-conducts to travel around the country
preaching to Muslírns and J cws. 10
The same pressurc was cxcrted on Granadan Muslims aftcr the
conquest of the city: thc royal legatc, J\ilartín García, prcachcd sorne
of his sermons "coram agarcnis", probably to Iviudejars who were
oblíged to attcnd, hoping for their conversion. It docs not mean that
10
Riera i Sans, J.: "Les llicencies reíais per predicar als jueus i als sarrains (segles
XIII-XIV)" Calls, 2, pp. 113-132. The ~afc- conducl to thc Saraccn convcrtJaume
Pcrc was givcn in Valencia, 25 June 1308: "Nos Jacobus [... ] per presentem car-
tam nostram constituimus et reccpimus sub [proteclione] el guidatico speciali fidclcm
nostrum Jacobum Pctri, qui pcr sacre regencracionis baptismum de sarracenorurn
secta ad fidem nostram catholicam est conversus, ita quod nullus cuiuscumque dig-
nitatis, condicionis seu status cxistat, auclcat vcl prcsumat clictum Jacobum Pctr:i et
bona sua et res capen:, inpcdire, detinere vel aliquatenus gravare aut molestare seu
bona sua pignerare ve] occupare culpa, crimine vel delictis alienis, immo ipsum cum
rebus et bonis suis possit libere pcr tcrram nostram ire et fidcm Christi sarracenís
et judcis cum sibi oportunum füerit predicare. Quicumque aut.em contra hoc nostrum
guidaticum et proteccionem venire prcsumpserit, iram et inclignacionem nostram et
penam quingentorum aureorum se noverit absquc remedio aliquo íncursurum, dapno
illato primitus integre restítuto. Data Valencie seplimus kalendas iulii anno predicto.
Petrus Marcii mandato regio facto per Johanncm [. ..) capcllanum domine rc¡.,r:ine."
(A.O.A. Gane. Regia 205, f J74v.)
 60 CHAPTER THREE
thc sermons referred to Islam or to these people, as sorne of them
were exclusively Christian, apologetic and proselitist. 11
The attraction of Christians towards Islam was soon felt by thc-
ologians and was the origin of a rough controversy. Christian condem-
nation of Islam was categorical becausc cultural attraction reached
not only youth but even the political leaders, causing widespread
scandal. 1 ~ This situation was not confined to the first contacts with
Islam in the Península, but repeated itself at regular intcrvals, depend-
ing on socio-cultural factors and on political relations between Muslims
and Christians within thc territory. The phenomcnon arose again in
the fifteenth ccntury in Castile, as has already bcen explained in the
section dcaling with the opposition to Enrique IV. We will come
across further aspects of this Islamophilia versus crusadcr mentality
in futurc chapters.
In this context, it is not surprising to find that most of thc works
devoted to Islam in the fifteenth century are addrcssed to Christians,
and do not have as thcir main aim the conversion of Muslirns. As
Cahen noted, "the purpose was to reinforcc W cstern Christians in
their combativc will. The purpose was to reinforce in their beliefs
those Christians from Islamic states, who were sensitive to the seduc-
tion and pressure of the Enemy. In one word, the purposc was to
retain thc doubtful, to avoid convcrsions to the profit of Islam as
wdl as provoke the conversion of Muslims." 13 The reason for cach
author to write is made explicit at the beginning of each treatise,
after a prayer to seek God's approval and inspiration. AI1 these ded-
ications might seem rnerely commonplace, but the slight differences
among them refer to distinct realities in the authors' own back-
grounds, which might be intercsting to analyse.
A precursor to the fiftecnth-century writcrs, St. Pedro Pascual, H
who shared the life and concerns of the captives in Granada, focuses
on the needs of this group:
... no quiero que el pecador muera en sus malos pecados, mas que
se convierta, e que viva, e por ende veyendo yo que muchos en este ·
11
Ribera, J.: La polémica hispano-musulmana ... , p. XXXIX.
12
Moubarac, J.: L,Islam et le dialogue islamo-chrétien, pp. 272- 278.
13
Cahen, CI.: "Compte rendu critique sur Norman Daniel: blam and the West."
Revue Historique, 227, p. 230.
14
On his life and works, see Armengol, P.: Obras de San Pedro Pascual . .. He was
born in Valencia and became a Mercedary. Appolnted bishop of Jaen in 1294, he
THE JNTELLECTUAL APPROACH II: A STYLE FOR A PUBLIC 61
cativerio por razon que se enbuclven en grandes pecados, e desesperan
de la misericordia de Dios, como Cayn que mato a su hermano Habel
[...] e por razon de mengua de su entendimiento, que no saben la
ley de los christianos ni la de los moros, a quien engaño Mahomat,
e ellos toman plazer en engañar los christianos e sacar de su ley.
Veyendo yo esto, ove dolor de las animas de nuestros christianos,
que veya perderse por no saber ni conosccr la verdad; e por ende
confiando en la misericordia de Dios e atreviendome en la su merced,
e en lo que dixo en el Evangelio: non temades los que an poder sola-
mente de matar los cuerpos; mas temed a Dios que a poder sobre los
cuerpos e sobre las animas, traslade del latin en romanc;c llanamente,
no por rimas ni por concordanc;as, por razon que los rimadores sue-
len añadir o menguar la verdad, la historia de Mahomat asi como
falle escripta en los nuestros libros, que fueron escriptos por algunos
de nuestros sabios, que fueron en el tiempo que comern;o Mahomat,
y ademas de lo que se contiene en dicha historia, escrivi algunas otras
cosas que me dixeron algunos moros, cuydando alabar su ley, e que
falle escriptas en los libros de los moros. E despues escrivi algunas
cosas de lo que falle cscripto en los Evangelios, e en las epístolas, e
en libros autenticos, que se leen en la Santa Iglesia. 1 ~'
Cavallcria states in his preface that his aim is to convert the J ews
and the Muslims to thc Christian faith. Coming from a converted
family, his work is understood to be a refutation of bis former reli-
gion, in the same style as Anselmo Turmeda, a Catalan convert to
Islam, wrote his Tubfa. 16 Both works are more of a justification for
thc conversion and a proof of commitmcnt to the new faith than a
real attempt to convert the mernbers of thcir former religion.
More intellectual efforts, such as Torquemada's small treatise or
Segovia's translation of the Koran, certainly had a more restricted
audience: thc Pope, thc prelatcs around him, and othcr members of
the Church circles. When thc authors were as well 1mown in the Euro-
pean courts as Segovia, copies or translations of their works might
be commanded. Far example, Segovia's Contra legem Mahumet:i was well
known at the Burgundian court. 17 Cusa's Cribrat:io Alchoranis had the
same public: he addressed his treatisc, which he had written "moved
uscd to travcl to Granada with a safe-conduct to visit thc captives, until he him-
self was imprisoncd on thc charge of trying to convert Muslims. Even then he was
given a lícence to preach to the Christians in Granada. Atl:er refosing to be res-
cucd, he was executed for bis works against Islam, after 1299.
1
~ Ibídem, I, pp. 2- 3.
16
Cavalleria, P.: .<,elus C!tristi, f. 2r-·-v. Also Epalza, M.: La Tul¡fa, autobiogrefia y
jJolémica i1isliana, p. 152.
17
Cabanelas, D.: 0/1. cit., p. 195.
 62 CHAPTER THREE THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH n: A STYLE FOR A PUBLIC 63

by the zcal of his faith", 13 to the Popc---it is interesting to scc m A tous vrais cathoJiques fideles et loiaux cristiens de tous estas, salut.
this dcdication the samc words as in Cavalleria's. Autant qu'en la fragilité de ma ?crsonnc en cst, sachent touts, qu~ la
On thc wider Europcan scene, Jean Germain chosc other members principale cause de mon cntrepnnse en ceste euvrc prcs:nt qu y n est
mic petite quant a son eftect, si a este par singulier desir de la vraye
of the Christian community as his addressees: thc numerous pilgrims
foy augmenter et donner en rcverence entendible, autant ~uz simp~cs
and travellers who went to the Holy Land and "often returned full lais commc auz clcrcs lettrez, donnant confusibles les erromques opm-
of scruples [...] and due to thcir lack of knowledge, they think or ions J·udayques et sarrazines et a ycculz esclarcir aucuns poins, arti-
utter reproaches against the holy Christian faith, not knowing thc ' cy aprcz declarez corrune y1 a pa. 21
eles et argumens,
truth of the things which have happencd." 19 He wantcd to provc to
By this time, the Inquisition had alrcady started in Castile, but still
them that there had becn Christian communities in those territorics
no contcmporary rnentioned Espina as one of the introductors of
befare, and that rnany continued to rcsist although sorne had con-
such an institution in thc kingdom. 22 His book was never intended to
vcrtcd to Islam bccause of their lust. The only irrefutable fact of the
become a manual for inquisitors, as it has bccn considered lately, but
Christian wars against Islam proved to be a will to defeat the ene-
was rather the continuation of a controversia! trcnd which can be
mies of the faith .
traccd back to five centuries bcforehand. Its use may have changed
From a more local perspectivc, Alonso de Espina hopcd to rcach
latcr, due to Espina's clear. classification of religious disscnsion, but
public opinion in general, if not directly through his book, combin-
thc risk of reading history backwards is too great at this point.
ing his prcaching work and diffusion through other members of the
Whcn studying ali these writers, wc find ti.ve different methods of
clergy. All through his trcatise, he refers to the differcnt social groups
communication for their thoughts about Islam: sermons, disputes,
who might be in contact with pagans. His fourth book is also a
reports, lcttcrs and trcatises. Each of them has its own characteristics
warning "to prove [...] what Saraccns can do against our strength
and was chosen at a particular moment in thcír careers. The follow-
in faith." The emphasis given to thc third book has made sorne his-
ing table can help us to understand at a glancc why it was so:
torians think that the whole work was intended to alert the influential
circles at the court and the Church about thc convenos issue, 20 but
examining thc rcst of the books, the conclusion is that Espina tricd Communication Audience Style Aims
to approach socicty in general, through the cducated elite, to warn Christian laity. Oral with gestures; Tcach and provoke
Scrmon
them of severa! threats to Christian faith which had ariscn ovcr the "exempla".
previous few years and must have been prcsent in evcryone's minds_
Dispute Christian laity & Scholastic & Convcrsion of non-
Obviously, thc length of the book devoted to the J ews rcveals what non-Christians. dialectic "exempla". Christians.
was the most urgent problem in the eyes of Espina but, if he had
wal1ted to rcmark upan that alone, he would not havc undertaken the Lcttcr Collective or Rhetoric. Provoke dccisions or
unique. Personal Use of reports & rhetorical cxcrciscs.
huge task of gathering all the information for the rcst of the books. or official use. treatises.
The prcface to the first Frcnch translation of thc book reveals the
same intcntions: Rcport Interna! use of Scholastic, lnformation &
clergy. structured discussion.

Trcatise Clergy ancl Mixture of scrmon, Explanation for

sometimes rulcrs. dispute & scholastic. applic¡ttion to
18
Anawati, G.: Nicolas de Cues .. ., p. 153. practica! life.
Germain, J.: Le livre du creslien et du sarrasin. BNP, :tvis. Franc;:ais 69, f. 1v:
19

"souvent rctuurnent plains de scrupules et mal ediffiez et par deffault de cognois-

sancc pensent ou clicnt reprouches contrc la sancte foy chrestiennc ignorans la verite
des ch oses advcnues .... "
20
Beinart, H.: Conversos on bial, p. J l. Also Meyuhas Ginio, A.: La farteresse, pp. 21
Espina, A.: Lafin·tere.1·se de lafai. BNP Ms. Franc;:ais 20067 (c. M80), [ Ir.
207 ·215. 22
Meyuhas Ginio, 1\.: !..a fo1teresse, p. l 18.
64 CHAPTER THREE
a) Sermons
In medieval socictics, it was difficult to draw the linc bctween oral
and written communication due to the high lcvcls of illiteracy. This
barrier mcans that a historian must perccivc the disparity between
the cultural importance of the contents of a speech and its diffusion in
its own time. 22ª It was to guarantee this diffusion that sermon-collections
were made. They can be traced as far as the treatises, far the ideas
which con:figured both wcrc very much the same; far cxamplc, what
Cavalleria wrote was no more than the continuation of an oral tra-
dition in the Aragonese area. 23
Sermons were usually delivered by priests, defined by Espina as
"armourcd knights offaith, living a saintly life and strong as lions". 24
But former Jews and Muslims who had recently converted were also
requested to preach in front of their former correligionaries, to the
latter's great disgust. In these cases, thc friars took a close look to
mal'e sure that the converts did not exceed the tcachings of the
Catholic Church. 25
The aim of a sermon was usually to present a doctrine arranged
in patterns, sorne of which we shall analyse bricfty. Scriptural and
Patristic authorities were used as a theological support, but usually
no basic doctrinal questions were posed, something which was left
for thc longcr treatises directed to more specialised audiences. Although
the structurc of sermon-col)_ections was usually liturgical, following
the calendar, there was a particular genre directed "ad status", to
differcnt groups of roen. Thesc are less numcrous, but central to our
subject, far as well as addrcssing mernbers of religious orders, mer-
chants or wives, they dealt with crusaders26 and, in the case of the
fü Ladero, M. A.: "Comunicación y propaganda de creencias ... " R.Ulvf. (1981),
p. 193.
23
This tradition is dcscribed in Riera i Sans, J.: "Les llicencies reials per
predicar ... " Calls (1987), pp. 113- 143.
21
' FF, f l lr. See also Meyuhas Ginio, A.: Lajorteresse, pp. 104·-!05.
25
Riern I Sans, J.: op. cit., p. 121.
26
D'Avray, D. L.: op. cit., p. 80. An example of this type of collcctions is thc
BNP Ms. Lat. 17509, f. 93r-· 102r, containing thc sermons of Jacques de Vitry on
crusading. Also, the Ordinalio de predicalione Sancti Crucis in Angliae (c. 1216) which,
after some theoretical generalities, devoted its final scction to "The call of thc men
to the cross", with a series of exempla from the forrner crusades. The structure of
t~c sermon is a speech with one main message repeatcd in a variety of ways, and
with formulas repeated to call the attention of the public. Cfr. Tyermann, Ch.:
England and the Crusades, 1095-1588 Chicago, 1988, pp. 163- 165. Also Maier, C.T.:
Preaching the Crusades, pp. 111- 122.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH 11: A STYLE FOR A PUBLIC 65
public preaching in fashion in fiftecnth-century Iberia, they could
even be directed at non-Christians who were expected to convert.
Sometimes the two stylcs wcrc combined, i.e., for the feast of the
Franciscan martyrs, thc sermon would certainly deal with attitudes
toward Islam.
The preachers had different collections of "tools" far building up
a scrmon: thc distinctio, list of different senses of Scriptural terms;
compilations of exempla, fables or examplcs to explain the doctrinal
themy in an easier way; and concordances of the Bible, for finding
a number of Scriptural passages in which a given subject or word
occurs. 27
The exempla were basic for the development of sermons, as they
would later be for preaching literature. They can be defined as "a
brief tale, taken to be true, inserted in a specch to persuade an audi-
cncc with a salvific lesson", ·according to Bremond. 28 This definition
can be discussed by the inclusion of other variations of tales which
were also · used as exempla. Classifications of types of sermon are
divided according to origin (Jcwish and Paleo-Christian traditions,
pagan-classic tales and modern or medieval); depending on the naturc
of the inforrnation provided (written or oral traditions, writtcn stories
being more authoritative); according to the nature of the characters
(supernatural, human or animal) and depending on their structure
and style. A more general classification by Lccoy de la Marche makes
the following divisions:
a) History or legends, including chronicles, hagiography and thc
historical books in thc Bible.
b) Contemporary evcnts or anecdotes, which provide very uscful
information about daily life and customs.
c) Fables from popular tradition.
d) Moralia from the bestiaries. 29
The influence of universities gave birth around thc thirteenth cen-
tury to a more intellectualised way of prcaching, called by histmians
the "scholastic popular preaching", 3º which retained the structure of
university scholastic discussion, while using simpler material of the
27
Ibidem, pp. 72- 75. More can be rcad about sermon structure in Longerc, J.:
La predica/ion médiévale, Paris, 1983. '
2
ª Brémond, C. et al.: L'exemplum, p. 38.
29
Ibidem, p. 39.
30
D'Avray, D. L.: op. cit., p. 167.
66 CHAPTER THREE
aforemcntioncd collections to finish thc speeeh. Howcvcr, the habit
of structuring each sermon systcmaticaJly cannot be attributed solcly
to scholastic influences. They were used dilferently in preaching than
in lectures and treatises. The logical chain (question/ authorities' dis-
cussion/solution) whieh was the basis of the scholastic system, was
not fülly developed in the sermon nor, as we have mentioned, did
it raise fundamental doctrinal questions. This partial use of scholas-
ticism had the advantage of avoiding the problems of orthodoxy
which might have been raised in the academic environment. It was
too dangerous for an average edueatcd theologian to enter too dccply
into sueh matters as the Trinity, the Incarnation or the Eueharist in
front of a varied lay audienee. 31
After the thirteenth eentury, the world of exempla was enriched
with new sources. Pedro Alfonso's translation of thc Disciplina clericalis
was uscd to broaden the genre with Eastern tales, with thc hclp of
the dialogue style. 32 At thc end of thc Middle Ages, exempla wcre
fully incorporated into literary culture, and widely used by authors
who aimed at the conversion ofJews and Muslims. The fact that
the exemplum was used to impress the audience and to move them
with more adequate vocabulary, while being more easily rcmembered
than authority or reasoning, made it a precious weapon for conversion. 33
The structure used for sermons in the Peninsula was dctailed in
Franccsc Eiximenis's Ars praedicandi populo. The introduction, spccifying
thc feast of the day and a subject chosen from thc Bible, was fol-
lowed by a Hail Mary. Once thc public had becn brought into the
subjee1:, an introduct:io thmnati.s was dclivered, repeating the verse which
was going to be commcnted upon wíth a brief literal explanation
al1cl · a short practical application. Thc divisio thematis was the core of
the speech, and each one of its parts had to be confirmed by an
authority. 34 The matter was divided into eonditions, propositions or
just numbered, and memorized in rhymes to make it easier. The
end of the sermon was often omitted and left up to thc preaeher.
The techniques for approaching the audience more closcly included
the use of the second person singular to address thcm, gestures,
31
Ibídem, pp. 170 - 184.
32
Brémond, C. et al.: 0¡1. cit., pp. 51-52.
33
Ibidem, p. 81.
3
+ Eiximenis's piece is taken from Riquer, IVI. de et alii: 0/1. cit., p. 402. The neecl
of authoritics, from Richard of Thctforcl's Ars jJraedicandi, cfr. D'Avray, D. L.:
ojJ. cit., p. 194.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH n: A STYLE FOR A PUBLIC 67
songs, voice inflections and onomatopaeic sounds. The way Vincent
Ferrcr used anachronism and localisms is quite striking; for exam-
plc, he made Mary Magdalen call .J esus bisbe (bishop in Catalan and
Valencian dialect) instead of rabbi. Once, he referred to the same
Mary as the lady of a barony, centre of a love-court in the troubaclour
style. 35 Undoubtedly, this dircct stylc made Biblical tcxts much more
immediate to the public. Fcrrcr's eapacity to speak for three hours
was widcly known by people who listened to him. Squares had to
be prepared in the towns to receive thc masses he moved. It is not
surprising that sorne of the roughest riots against the .Jewish com-
munities were moved by such a powcrful speal{er.
Unfortunatcly, none of the sermons left by Espina dcal with the
problem of Islam36 and his sermon in Palencia whcn he preached
the crusadc bull has becn preserved only in thc part where it refers
to political affairs. The earlíest examples studied on the subject of
Islam wcre delivercd after the fall of Granada by master Martín
García, 37 oí1e of qucen Isabel's eonfessors. In 1500 he received a let-
ter from the monarchs asking him to move to Granada to instruct
the Muslims in the Christian faith so that they could be converted.
Since he was one of the few mcmbers of the clergy who could speak
Arabic, his cooperation vVas vital. 38
35
Sermon 48, delivered in Valencia in 1413. Publishccl in Barcelona, 1927.
3
G. Thc only collection left is a copy of his scrmons on the Eucharist, in Burgo
de Osma Cathcclral, M s. 26.
37
Born in Caspe around 1441, he learned to rcacl and write while working as
a shepherd. He ran away to Saragossa, where he was admítted to study at the
CathedraJ, ancl later he obtainccl a grant to study in thc Spanish School of St.
Clcmcnt in Bologna (14-76- 1480). Once a master, he returned to Saragossa and
was appointed a canon in the cathcclral. He studied thc Bible in Hebrew and
Chaldcan, thc Talmud, ami he also learned Arabic. His first sermons wcre deliv-
crccl in "autos de fe". In 1437, he preachccl before Fernando and Isabel in Saragossa,
achieving thc appointment of royal preacher and confessor to the Queen. He was
also madc a juclge to investigate the dcath of his former master lhe bishop Pedro
de Arbues. In 14·93 he would add thc title of reformer of nuns. He was a good
friend of Cardinal Cisncros. In 1492 he was general inquisitor for Saragossa and
Tarazona, until 1510, when he was dcclared general inquisilor for thc whole king-
dom of Aragon. In l 500 he lcft for Granada, in a special mission commandcd by
the monarchs. In 1515, King Fernando would obtain for him Lhc . bishopric of
Barcelona, but he gave it up lo retire to Caspe, where he Lranslated bis sermons
into Latin bcfore he died in 1521. Ribera Florit, J.: La polémica hispanomusulmana en
los sennones . .. , pp. XXIII-XXXIX.
38
The letter, datccl 4 April 1500, saicl: "Maestre Martin Garcia, ya sabeys como
todos los moros de la ciudad de Granada se convirtieron a nuestra santa fe catholica;
porque muy pocos dellos saben entender hablar sino arabigo y por no haver per-
sonas de yglesia que sepan el arabigo, no pueden los dichos convert.idos ser bien,.••. , , , ..
rl''
..
\\
l'
1
,,\~~~~{/(\"\;:'
. :
 68 CHAPTER THREE
Martín García was well aware of the difficulties he would encountcr
in his task, so he madc surc he had the appropriate sources: he
ordered Juan de Andrés to translate thc Koran and six books of the
Sunna into Aragonese, while he engaged in the writing of his ser-
mons. There are one hundred and fifty-five of these Jcft, of which
thirty-five are expressly dcvotcd to Muslims. 39 Their structure cor-
responded to Eiximenis's, except that the divisio thematis incorporatcd
passages of Jewish and Islamic texts, and at the end he exhorted the
infidels to convert to Christianity. Together with the quotations from
thc Koran and the Sunna, he gave others from the books of such
famous authors as al-GhazalI, Ibn Srna, Ibn Rushd, al-Mas'üdi, Ibn
Abr-Zayd's Risala and the biography of the prophet by Ibn 1-?J:iaq.
His scheme was simple. He dealt, subject aftcr subject, with ali thc
main dogmas of Islam: Koran versus Biblc, God, the angels, Jesus,
Mary, MuJ:iammad and the pillars of Islam. He started by men-
tioning thc suras involved, and immediately afterwards the gloss or
commentary, followed by a discussion and refutation, which would
finally lead to an appeal to conversion. In fact, Martín García's
approach was the closest to a dispute, save that there was no spccífic
contender.
b) Disputes
The Koran forbade disputes against other religions about the dog-
mas of Islam [suras 4: 143; 5:56; 9:29; 60: 13]. In practice, Muslim
leaders realized that this method was necessary in their rclations With
Christians and Jews. Daniel suggests severa] reasons: fear of rea-
sÓn combined with faith, the desire of Islamic govcrnments to avoid
trouble and a contempt far Christianity on thc part of scholars and
jurists. 4° Far whatever reason it might be, l\!Iuslims were not very
instruidos en las cosas de nuestra te, y ay mucha necesidad especialmente agora en
los comienzos que no hay en aquella ciudad personas de iglesia que sepan arabigo,
para instruir a los dichos nuevamente convertidos. Y porque sabernos que vos sabeys
arabigo y que con vuestras letras y predicacion y buen ejemplo podreys mucho
aprovecharles, por ende nos vos rogarnos y encargamos que pues vedes quanto en
ello sera servido nuestro Señor, queraís disponeros a venir a estar algun tiempo a
la dicha ciudad para aprovechar en lo susodicho ... " (A.C.A., Reg. Cancilleria
3614, f. 105v).
39
Nurnbcrs 5, 14-39, 68-69, 86, 90, 106, 125, 127, 130, 138 of the edition in
the Library of the Central University, Barcelona.
40
Daniel, N.: Islam and the West, p. 127.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH U: A STYLE FOR A PUBLIC 69
fond of public arguments, as was repeatedly noted by fiftccnth-century
writers. At first, disputes were only oral, but during the period befare
the end of the Reconquest, they were described in books. New laws
obliged the Muslims to attend to them in all Christian kingdoms.
Disputes intensified with the establishment of Franciscan and
Dominican houses in the Península and the Levant from the thirteenth
- eentury, when the preparation of preachers and missionaries was
greatly improvcd. AH means were authorised for them to engage in
polemics with Muslims in an intellectual crusade to convert thcm. As
a result, Dominicans under Raimundo de Penyafort founded sehools
to teach Janguages and thcology; canon law cxempted missionarics
from the prohibition against sharing roof and table with Saracens and
J ews,'11 and Christian rulers evcn managed to obtain concessions for
Muslim subjects of Muslim lords to convert openly to Christianity.42 In
the thirteenth ccntury, the intervention of Menclieant Orders made dis-
putes seem thc bcst way to eonvey the idea of holy war, an image whieh
was also adopted by thc Jewish and Muslim antagonists, who insisted
on the knowledge, tenacity and heroism of their own partieipants. 43
One of these disputes took place in Murcia between Ibn Rash1q,
son of a notary and poet1 and a monk who has been identified either
as Garci Petri, arehdeaeon in Moroeco, or as Raimundo Martí,
author of the Pugi.o Fidei. The subjcct was the impossibility of imi-
tating the Koran, and the story was told by Ibn Rashrq himself in
A.rabie. He notcd that a group of priests had arrived in Murcia, sent
by the kíng to study Islamic seiences and to translate thcm into their
own language. The purpose of this was to start discussions with thc
weakest Muslims in arder to convert them using polemics, as a way
of "bcing payed by the king and appreciated by their correligionaries".H
When the protagonist went to the madrasa to attcnd a trial between
a Christian and a Muslim, one of thc priests askcd him to stay for
a discussion on the impossibility of imitating the Koran. The Muslim
managed to continue the argument until he recited a verse that per-
suaded the Christians of the futility of their conversation. This dispute
41
Kedar, B.: Crusade and mission, p . 137.
42
That happencd in 1228- 29, when Fernando III of Castile obtained a conces-
sion frorn the Almohad al-Ma'mun, who desperately needcd Castilian aid. lbn AbI
Zar: Rawd al-Qjrtas, Cfr. Kedar, B.: op. cit., p. 138; Sánchez Albornoz,, C.: La España
musulmana, II, Madrid, 1973, p. 40 l. ·
·
13
Gabro'is, A.: Les sources hebraíques médiévales, p. 48.
+i Granja, F. de la: "Una polémica religiosa en Murcia.... " Al-Andalus, 31, p. 67.
70 CHAPTER THREE
has been relatcd, in its style and protagonists, to the tcxt Vocabulista
in Arabico, thc authorship of which is still undcr discussion. 45
This new, agressive scope produced thc wadike metaphor which
was sharcd by treatises, and which we will analyse later on. Raimundo
Llull, following this tendcncy, proposcd the organization of public
disputes to Frederick III of Sicily in his De Participatione Christianorum
et Saracenorum (1312).'16 One wonders why he never proposcd the samc
to a Peninsular king.
Religious controversy in the vernacular languages had been prac-
tised in the Iberian Península for a long time, thc bcst-known example
being thc Dispute of Tortosa, conducted by St. Vincent :Ferrer in
1412. They were equivalcnt, on a popular lcvel, to the theological
works written to defcnd thc Christian faith. Polcmic literaturc assumcd
that the opponent was there to be defcatcd,47 but that was not as
easy when he was faced openly. Gradually, the opponcnt was increas-
ingly considered as someone to be converted rather than defeated.
But still, for an intellectual like Segovia; disputes wcrc a way of get-
ting to. know the adversary, as part of a wider plan for conversion
which was not limited to the person with whom he argued. His first
dispute took place in 1431 with Prince Yüsuf of Granada, who had
flcd to the Castilian court. His attempts to engage the princc or onc
of his companions in a thcological discussion were in vain, but he
rcached sorne practica! conclusions:
No se ha de temer que los predicadores musulmanes quieran enseñar,
argüir o sermonear entre los christianos cuando ellos mismos prohiben
bajo severísimas penas que ninguno de los nuestros hable sobre la ley
·. de Mahoma en tierras del Islam.[...] Rogué entonces al jefe musul-
.. mán que mandaba su escolta me permitiese disputar con alguno de
sus sabios; pero el me respondió que ninguno se atrevería a hablar en
tierra de cristianos. 48
+s Lavajo, J.: Cristianismo e islamismo na Península lbe1ica, II, pp. 480- 483. Vocabulista
in Arabico (13th ccntury). Cod. 217, Biblioteca Ricarcliana, Florence.
46
Llull, R.: De Participatione Chri.stia12orum et Saracenorum in Opera Latina, XVI,
p. 246: "Dum sic Raimundus considerabat, proposuit venire ad nobilissimum virtuo-
sissimum dominum Fredericum, regem Trinacriae, ut ipsc, cum sit fans dcvotionis,
ordinet cum altissimo et potcntissimo rege Tunicii, quod christiani bene litterati et
lingua arabica habituati vadant Tunicium ad ostendendum veritatem de fide, et
quod saraceni bene litterati veniant ad regnum Siciliac disputatum cum sapientibus
christianis de fide eorum. Et fortc per talem modum posset essc pax inter chris-
tianos et saracenos, habcndo talem modo pcr universum mundum, non quod chris-
tiani vadant ad destruendum saracenos, nec saraceni christianos."
<f7 Cardaillac, L.: J\1ori.scos y c1istianos . .. , p. 324.
· ° Cfr. lbidem, pp. 332 ··333.
1
THE lNTELLECTUAL APPROACH TI: A STYLE FOR A PUBLIC 71
Segovia's second dispute in Medina del Campo with the Granadan
ambassador on the subjccts of the Trinity and J esus's divinity was not
very fruitful although, in his account, he insisted on his success in per-
suading his antagonist about sorne Christian dogmas. An ínsufficient
knowlcdge of Christianity was his alleged reason for justifying the
fact that thc Muslim did not convcrt. It did not secm to bothcr him
too much, and as soon as he retircd to Ayton, he started writing
about these expcricnccs. 49
There are very fcw cxtant texts about open disputes between
Christians and Muslims in the Peninsula. Onc of the most peculiar
is thc aljamiado version of thc Desputa de la Unidad or de los kiistiYanos
(Dispute on the Unity), copicd in Castilian by 'Ali al-Garibo. 50 The
main figure of the legend attributed to Ibn <Abbas -·- onc of thc first
companions of thc Prophet-, was "Paul, the Jew", i.e. thc Apostlc.
The choice of this character to discuss the usual matters of thc
Trinity and the divinity of Christ demonstrates how many concep-
tions of the nature of a dispute existed within Peninsular society.
These encounters could eithcr be prepared by the ecclesiastical
authorities in accordance with thc secular powers, or else be started
by a certain individual. The former wcre used as an instrumcnt for
mass-convcrsion and, after the fall of Granada, they would bccomc
more and more similar to public sermons, since no opponcnts wcrc
allowcd. The main difference was that, whilc sermons did not <leal
with basic dogmas-·as has alrcady been mentioned-, disputes were
planncd to teach and discuss these very dogmas. The appointment
of a competent and orthodox thcologian to conduct the dispute was
thcn imperative .
·19 Cabanelas, D.: op. cit., pp. 103-·· 107. The original text tells thc encounter with
the Granadan ambassador as follows: "'I'al ignorancia quedó patente en la discusión
que sostuve en :Medina del Campo con el embajador del rey ele Granada, el cual
vituperaba a los cristianos por comer a su Dios y absolver de los pecados contra
el cometidos; pero luego que escucho mis palabras acerca del extremo ultimarnente
aludido, quedó estupefacto y prorrumpió en esta exclamación: 'Por Dios, no hay
nadie entre los cristianos que sepa explicar esto sino tú.' l'vfas yo le respondí que,
aun sin salir de aquel mismo poblado, se podrían encontrar veinte yersonas que
supiesen exponerlo de igual modo. Entonces conocí, por este y otros casos, cuán
grande es la ignorancia ele los musulmanes, quienes, por desconocer· la verdadera
exposición de nuestra fe, aborrecen y vilipendian a los cristianos." Froin Nls. 7-6-14,
Biblioteca Colombina, Sevilla, [ l 9v, and his letter to Nicholas of Cusa, Salamanca
Univcrsity, Ms. 55, f. 138. Cfr. Carclaillac, L.: op. cit., pp. 326-327. :
''º '1.11ere are severa! copies from the fourteenth to the fiftcenth century in Madrid:
R.A.H. Mss. V7, Tl2, V6; Biblioteca Nacional, Ms. 4944. Cfr. Cardaillac, L.: ojJ. cit.,
pp. 149- 150.
72 CHAPTER THREE
c) Letters
Polemic letters were a really popular gcnre in Europe from the thir-
teenth century onwards. Epistolary style was an easy and convenient
way of making someonc aware of the Muslim qucstion. There are
a number of Iberian cxamples of these letters in thc fifteenth century,
all of them sharing thc qualification of "quasi-public" literary docu-
mcnts. 5 1 Their historical and literary aspects are so intermingled that
nonc of them can be studied without considcring the others. On the
other hand, almost any material could be turned into a letter and
be regarded as such, as long as it confarmed to a frw literary rules.
Letters were also closely related to oral messages, which had been
their origin, so it is easy to find that the documcnt is incomplete
without an oral explanation by an ambassador or messengcr. Thc
concept of a letter as a semw absentium (a speech to someone who is
far away) opened the way to the genre far many works that would
not be written in letter form today. 52 Sorne of them were scen as a
continuation of a dispute, and so used dialogue as the background
far their style, while confarming to the epistolary rules. In fact, it is
possible to speak about one stylc, changing the medium or channel
of communication.
The general scheme laid clown in the artes dictaminis was respected
in the fifteenth-century letters devoted to the Muslim issue, no matter
whether thcy were privatc or official. According to Haskins, 53 "there
should be five parts arranged in a logical sequence. After the salutation
[...] carne the exordium, consisting of sorne c01:nmonplace gcnerality,
a proverb or a scriptural quotation, and designed to place thc reader
in the proper state of mind in order to grant the request which fal-
lowed. Then carne thc statement of the particular purpose of the
letter (the narration), ending in a petition which was usually in the
form of a deduction from the major and minor prerniscs laid clown
in the exordium and narration, and finally the phrases of the conclu-
sion." By the end of the Middle Ages, the cpistolary gcnre was seen
as a rcsult of "the tradition of the associated arts of lctter-writing (ars
51
Constable, G.: Letters and Letter-collections, p. 11. They are defined as quasi-public
because of their view to futurc collection or publication.
52
lbidem, p. 14.
53
Haskins, C. H.: "The Life of Medieval Students as Illustrated by their Letters'',
Studies in Medieval Culture (Oxford, l 929), pp. 2-3.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH n: A STYT,E FOR A PUBLIC 73
dictaminis) and of public speaking (ars arengandi)". 54 To what extent this
is true far thc matter we are dealing with shall be seen immediately.
Thc use of scriptural quotations cxtending to both privatc and
official correspondence hampered the style of the texts. It was used
as a way to "update thc past and adapt it to the circumstances in
which the correspondents were living". 55 Diffusion varicd according
to the personality of the correspondents, but in general the first step
was delivery through messengers who took thc letter, together with
an oral messagc, to its first addrcsscc, in our case usually a ruler or
a mcmber of a religious community. The contents would latcr be
spread through the usual mcans (prcaching, decrces, etc.) if it was
thought to be suitable.
As far Islam, the first letters known on the subject wcre written
around the elcventh century., when thc idea of convcrsion as the
way to assimilatc the Saracens was entering thc minds of Christian
thinkers. Of course the popes, as lcadcrs of Christendom, were sup-
poscd to b~ the first to attempt the approach to Muslim rcligious
leaders, and Gregory Vil did so when he wrote to al-Na~r of Bidjaya.
Written more in the trcatisc style, the letter from the monk of France
to al-Muqtadir of Saragossa (1078) has been thoroughly studied56
as the first examplc of this kind of literature on Iberian soil. Why
the subject did not attract much attention in thc Península is some-
thing which still has to be studied, but the fact is that most of the
letters asking far the conversion of Muslim rulcrs were written abroad.
Probably duc to geographical and cultural distance, the other Europcan
countries wcrc less aware of the unlil{elihood of conversion from
Islam by these means. Mcanwhile, Alexander UI sent an Instructio
fidei to the Sultan of Iconum, Innocent III sent two lettcrs to the
rulcrs of Aleppo (1119) and Morocco (1211)57 and the prcacher of
the Fifth Crusade Olivcr of Cologne invited Sultan al-Kamil to con-
vcrt while he thankcd him for his behaviour towards the defeated
crusaders. 58
54
Constable, G.: op. cit., p. 39.
55
Gabro1s, A: op. cit., p. 49. •
56
Dunlop, D. M.: "A Christian Mission to Muslim Spain", Al-Andalus, 17, pp.
259- 310, and Turlci, A.: "La leltre du rnoine de France .. .", Al-Andalus, 31, pp.
73 ·· 153. Thc original in Arabic is in the library of the monastery of El Escorial,
Arabic Collection, Ms. R.F. 538111.12. '
7
'' P .L. 214, cols. 544-545; 216, col. 434.
58 Sce Kcdar, B.: Crusade and Mirsion, pp. 132-- 133.
74 CHAPTER THREE
Two examples of lcttcrs regarding crusades in the fiftecnth cen-
tury are to be found. Alfonso V of Aragon's defiance of the Ottoman
sultan, Mu}:tammad II, 59 after the fall of Constantinople was not only
a manifestation of chivalric ideals, but a link with other crusader
policies in the Mediterranean. St. Louis had also sent a similar letter
to Sultan Aiyüb 60 before his crusade in 1248. Alfonso's lettcr-dated
30th Scptember 1453-can be considcred as a complcment to the
crusader bull issued by the Pope. Through it, the king was claiming
the role uf champion of the faith for the next expected crusade. The
letter is structured in thrce parts after the address: frrst, the so called
khan was accused of his earlier conquest of Constantinople and his
intention to go further against Rhodes and Rome. He was then
warned to defend himself- a warning followed by invocations to God
and the Virgin Mary. Finally, a crusade was announced, to be pre-
parcd ovcr thrcc years, evcntually reaching thc whole of thc Ottomans'
land. Thc answer to thc lctter was expected through the ambassador,
thc Marquis of Ferrara.
The other letter is Jcan Gcrmain's Exhortation far Charles VII to go
Ove1·seas (also called Le discours du VC!J1age d'oultremer au tres victorieux roi
Charles VII) presented to the king by the bishop himself in 1459,
when he was trying to arrange a peace-treaty between France and
England so that his lord, Philip of Burgundy, would be able to go
on crusade. 6 i He had already performed such a mission bcfore the
king in 1451. The Exhortation is an example of the short treatise-
shape letters. It is divided into two parts, the first dealing with the
troublesome state of Christendom in the East, and the seeond with
possible remedies. The suggestions range from using the powcr of
the sultans of Damascus and Acre to assume the aid from convertcd
Mamluks. Sorne favourable events werc to help achieve the final
defeat of the Turks: the end of the schism within the Church, polit-
ical peace in thc realm and the cooperation of native populations
in the East. Thc space left for the final request, which was the real
aim of the letter, was comparativcly small. The Duke of Burgundy
asked the king his lord to send him on the crusade and to sign a
59
Publishcd in Sobrequés, S.: "El Ideal de Cruzada ... ", I-líspania (1952), pp.
249-250.
60
Richard, J.: "La polilique orientalc de St. Louis. La croisadc de 1248", Les
relations entre L'01ient et l'Occident au A11.!Jen Age, p. 204.
61
See abovc. For a summary of the contenls of thc lctter, see Schwoebel, R.:
1he shadow Qf th.e crescent, pp. 107-· l 08.
THE lNTELLECTUAL APPROAGH U: A STYLE FOR A PUBLIC 75
pea.ce treaty with the King of England as thc Pope had requestcd. 62
However, Charles VII did not take any notice of thcse suggestions,
and still forbade the duke several times to go on crusade lcaving his
flank facing England undefended.
The kingdom of Aragon offcrs two intcrcsting examples of letters
on practica! issues regarding thc Muslim community. The frrst con-
sidered the problcm of Berber corsary raids on the Valencian coast,
hclped by local Muslims. The danger moved Francesc Eiximenis to
writc a letter to the city eouncil at the end of the fourteenth century
rcquesting them to forbid any public praise in the name of Mu}:iammad
unless they wanted to incur God's anger. The use of weapons by
Muslims was to be forbidden so that thcy would not be able to help
their fellow-1\!Iuslims. 63 Howevcr, thc dcvastation in the arca did not
stop and, in 1451, the council appealed to Alfonso V at Naples,
afraid of the armcd Mudejars who were ready to overtal<e the realm
following their prophecíes. Obviously, the council was exaggerating,
as López de Coca demonstrated in his study of the contents of the
lctter, but it is clear proof of how the feelings against Muslims wcre
progressively building up. 64
In Castile, the Franciscan friar, Alonso de 1\!Iclla, addressed a letter
to King Juan II around 1443 trying to cxplain his rclations with the
heretics of Durango 65 (Viscaya) and justify his füght to Granada. The
first aspect has provokcd much interest among Church historians,G 6
but Mella's opinions about Muslims have been totally neglected. After
stating his mistrust regarding the way Christian doctrine was taught
by thc authorities and explaining his viewpoint using numerous quo-
tations from the Bible, he went on:
G
2
Germain, J.: Exlwrtationa Charles VII . .. , fols. 3r- 23r.
63
Eiximenis, F.: Regi.ment de la Cosa Publica. Ecl. by lVI. Sanchis Guamcr (Valencia,
1972), f[ II--V. Cfr. Lopez de Coca, J. E.: "Los mud~jares valencianos ... ", En la
E1j1afia Medieval ( 1982), pp. 652 653.
64
Ibidem, p. 653.
6
" The heresy of thc Free Spirit in Durango proclaimed the common posscssion
of goocls, the rejection of marriagc, thc rcjcction of Christ's prcsencc in the Eucharist
and the belief that !he time of the Holy Spirit had already come to the earth. They
were dispersed arouncl 1440: Alonso de Mella escaped to Granada, and a numbcr
of heretics were burnt in Vallaclolicl and Santo Domingo de la Calzada.
66
The article of Cabanclas, D.: "Un franciscano heterodoxo ... ", Abfodalus, 15,
pp. 233·· 250 prov:ides all the bibliogTaphy on thc subjcct, as well as thc foil text
of -the letfrr.
76 CHAPTER THREE
Proptcr omncs supraclictas causas, o domine, stantcs nos supra clicti
in dicto regno, et diligentcr pcrscrutantcs et examinantes fidem quam
Sarraccni tenent et credunt, reperimus clictos sarracenos non esse
infideles, sicut illuc clicitur, quinymmo rcperimus eos csse catholicos et
fideles et credentes in solum vcrum Deum, creatorem celi et terrae,
· quem cum tanta fide, timore, humilitatc, rcvcrcntia et devotione ado-
rant et honorant in omnibus suis factis et clictis. Et placeret Deo quod
illi qui clicunt se christianos timerent eum, crcdcrent, adorarent et hon-
orarent cum tanta reverentia et timore. Item reperimus clictos sarra-
cenos crecientes et confitentes omnia sancta facta et dicta Ihesu Christi,
quem multo amplius quam christiani, in suis verbis et factis honorant,
credentes de ipso quod secundum rationem potest et debet creditum
esse. Rcpcrimus etiam eos clispositos audirc et auscultare omne illud
quod secundum rationem potest vcrificari; secundum quas ratíones in
eis rcpertas vcraciter cognoscimus Deum non esse duntaxat Deum
christianorum, sed esse Deum omnium illorum qui recte credunt in
eum, et per digna opera adimplent mandata sua. 67
The use of the Franciscan's approach to Islam in a letter of appeal
to the king as the highcst authority who could forgivc Mella in a
matter of local hcresy is very interesting. Díd Mella hope that an
attempt to convert Muslims- even by association, due to his syncretist
ideology- would regain him the sympathy of the king, and therefore
a safeconduct to return to his country? Thc fact that he was killed
by the same Muslims whose religious conduct he praised might sug-
gcst hís nced to return to Castile, so that could have been the reason
for the 1etter as well. Cabanelas's article speaks of Mella's attraction
to Islam. It is not at all obvious. Mella merely says thc Muslíms
were ready to listen and believe whatever reason could prove, and
that theír God and the Christian one were the same, a thought
which might be relatcd to the heresy he preachcd in Durango. But
Islam involved much more than this: the Prophet's acknowledgement
and a change of morals and customs which Mella was not ready to
accept- otherwisc, his appeal to the king for his return to C:astile
would be out of place.
The prívate correspondence between Juan de Segovia and the
members of thc Roman Curia and bishop Jean Germain has already
been mentioncd. The difficulties of finding information about Islam,
translators from Arabic, and translations of the Koran havc simílar-
ities with the situation of Peter the V cnerable when he startcd to
67
Cod. Vat. Lat. 2923, [ 183r- v. Cfr. ibidem, p. 250.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH u: A STYLE FOR A PUBLIC 77
become interested in Islam. 68 Scgovia wrote his lctters ín the stylc
of small treatiscs to inform his fricnds of his method of achicving a
single world rcligion- of course, this would be the Roman Church-
whilc he mcntioned sorne anecdotes about his work against Islam,
one of these being the debates mentioned in the paragraph on dis-
putes. As the study of the letters was made by Cabanelas,G9 together
with their publication, no more will be said about their externa]
structure.
Thc Iast group of letters which shall be examincd hcrc werc circu-
latcd in Rcnaissance Europe regarding the Turks. Almost any public
gathcring was an ideal occasion to deliver an exhortatio waging war
against the Turks: it was just another approach to the problem, in
the "new" rhetoric style. Francesco Filelfo, once a young student in
Constantinople, followcd his . embassy to Murad II by writing an
appeal for Charles VIl to go to Mantua, and several others for suc-
ccssivc Popes to start a crusade. Unfortunately, his work in favour
of a holy v~ar was unsuccessful enough to force him to write a 1et-
ter in which he regretted the situation. 70
The most important manifestation of this style carne from the
Pope himself. Pius ll's letter has been considered by sorne as an
example of the willingncss of thc Renaissance papacy to ncgociatc
with the Turks and cncmics of thc Latín Christian princcs. Other
scholars prefcr to sce it as the expression of thc aims of an orthodox
Roman rcfonnation programme based on Christian humanism. Finally,
somconc defined it as "a temperate, cosmopolitan and rational response
to the challenge of Islam, a moment of vision which was to be fol-
lowed again by ignorance". 71 Probably the ideas of Segovia and Cusa
had sorne influence on the Pope whcn he started the letter after the
council of Mantua. It is vcry unlil<ely that he belicvcd in the conversion
of the sultan, who is shown as the most benevolcnt king. But the
position in which he was left by the Christian rulers during and after
the council cxplains his offer to accept the conquest of Byzantium
in exchange for a conversion to Christianity. On the other hand,
thc fact that he was still thinking of a crusade could give the letter
60
See the edition of bis works in P.L. 189, cols. 661-662.
69
Cabanelas, D.: 0¡1. cit., pp. 303-349.
70
Schwoebcl, R.: "Coexistence, Conversion ancl lhe Crusade ... ", 'Studies in the
Renaissance, l 2, p. 180.
71
Schwoebel, R.: Die Shadow ef the Crescenl, p. 65.
78 CHAPTER THREE
the same meaning as the one from Alfonso V just mentioned. This
time it is the Pope, as hcad of the Christian troops, who addrcsscs
the sultan to warn and defy him. Although he shared Segovia and
Cusa's ideas concerning the concordance between certain parts of
Christian and falamic doctrine, his crusading feeling was also expressed:
if thc sultan <lid not convert, thc Pope was perfectly entitled and
justified to start a holy war against him. 72 That is thc only way to
explain why he chosc thc cpistolary form, since thc Turkish qucstion
was a common fcaturc in all his other works (the Commentaríes, De
captione urbis Constantinopolitane, the Europa, etc.), and he could not be
so naive as to think that the sultan would change his religion.
d) Reports
What we havc callcd rcports is really a subdiv:ision of the prosc
dedicated to Islam. According to their purposes and a less carcful
style, they can be classified either as a step towards chronicles or as
a phase befare the theological treatises. In the first case, reports are
used as a quick way of spreading the ncws about the situation in
the East. Secondly, theological reports wcre used as a reference for
the composition of letters, treatiscs and other majar literary works.
The accounts of the evcnts in thc East have bcen callcd "instant
histories" by Housley, but as they appcarcd after thc first sicgc of
Rhodes in 1480, they fa.11 outsidc the time scopc of this book. n
Befare them, the same role was pcrformed by lctters from the reli-
gious leaders and ambassadors of Latín countries in Byzantium .
.·· .• On the other hand, theologi.cal reports werc ordered by important
figures in the Roman Church to provide enough up-to-date information
on Islam for their subscqucnt literary works. An early example is
William of Tripoli's De Statu Saracenorum. Grcgory X's bull "Dudum
super generalis" (11 March 1273) had askcd far "reports for the
council of Lyon'', and William answered bccause he "had perceived
that your [thc Pope's] enlightened faith wants to know who are the
Saracens and what thcir book says about Christian faith". H 1\!Iore
specifically, Pius II asked for two of thcse reports whcn he was
72
Pius II: Lettera a Maometto JI, pp. 11 O II
73
See Housley, N.: op. cit., p. 388.
74
Lavajo, J.: op. cit., I, p. 36.5.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH n; A STYLE FOR A PUBLIC 79
prcparing his spccch for the start of the council of 1\llantua and far
his Europa. The cardinals chosen were both Castilian. This might
lcad to the conclusion that Castilians, because of the particular situ-
ation in their homeland, were thought to be the best adv:isors when
dealing with Islam.
Torquemada's Contra p1incipales erroris peifidi Nlachometi was written
in a huny following the Pope's order in 1459, while thc Curia was
in Mantua waiting for thc princes' ambassadors. It must have been
finished by thc bcginning of the Council because Pius's introductory
spcech was based on it. He rnust have also used thc information
provided in it for his letter to Mul;i.arnmad II and his references to
the Muslims in his other works. This would explain why Torquemada's
treatise had such small diffusion compared to other contemporary
sources.
To complemcnt this information, Pius II requcstcd Rodrigo Sánchez
de Arévalo in 1462 to provide him with a geographical and historical
account of Spain. There is only one copy left of the Libeflus de situ
et desc1iptione Hispaniae, de regum et regnorum ortu et succesu, et de claríoríbus
bellis et gestis in ea occurrentihus, in Padua, and again the lack of diffusion
can be explained by its use as a mere referen ce book for othcr
works. 75 Arévalo says that it was composed in 1463, after the fall of
Gibraltar, which is the last historical cvcnt to be rnentioncd. De situ
et desciiptione Hispaniae is very similar to thc samc author's Histoiia
Hispanica. The structurc of thc work is a linear tale of política! events,
without many comments or other notes. It contained one introduction
and fourtcen chapters, the first three devoted to geography and the
rcst to thc hist01y of Castile, with special emphasis on the times after
Pcter thc Cruel. The most interesting to our purposes is the thirteenth
chapter, conceived as a praise of Enrique N's carnpaigns and victories
over the Moors. 76 Pius II relied on this data for his Commentaries.
The reports scherne is bascd on scholasticism in a broad sense.
()Jtaestio and disputatio are used as a technique to approach the sub-
ject of Islam, but bccausc therc is no opponent, dialogue is avoided.
Therefore, questions and answers are ali managed by the author
75
Trame, R . H.: op. cit., p. l 1.5. Note 33 specifies: "Padua, Capitular Library,
Cod. A 4.5 R 2, fols. 55r- 67r. Thís work is listed in the catafogue of l 4.68 as Libellus
iussu pajme Pii ab eodem episcopo editus de brevi hi.rtmia rerum Húpanarum el de laudihus dic-
tae regionis."
76
Trame, R . H.: op. cit., pp. 11.5-117.
80 CHAPTER THREE
himself, although the structure is very much the same: the problcm
ís introduced by means of various authorities (sometimes the Koran,
the Sunna and other commentaries; at other times practica! issues
rcgarding Islamic ritcs). The author thcn replies givíng the reasons for
his response-in this case, he basically counter-attacks with Christian
sources and corrects the arguments accordingly. 77
e) Treatúes
This last style brings together ali the aforementioned in a mingling
of influences and motifs. It is ha:rd to distinguish how much of ea.ch
it has encompassed. Cornpared to scrmons, treatiscs reveal "how as
lay-reading increased, the simpler message dedaimed in church passed
eventually to the hand-book of the home." 78 And converscly, thcy
provided raw material for thc composition of serrnons: excmpla, doc-
trine, . . . Both sermons and treatises show the rhetorical rnodel in
use at university and Mcndicant schools, making the scrmon a gloss
of the Scriptures and the treatise a comment on different Christian
sources.
From the twclfth century onwards, most of the polemic treatises
adopted the style of Summae on the Christian side, while Muslims
preferred the genre of Responsae to particular questions, in the same
spirit as Jews. Sorne polemic works from Córdoba :responded to
attacks from the Christians in Toledo, including legal solutions. The
structure of the latter was usually divided into four parts:
···. l. Christian beliefs in Trinity, Incarnation and Christ.
2: The Scriptures and Muharnmad's prophetic mission.
3. Muhammad's mira.eles and prophecics confirmcd the latter.
4. Christian cult and practices were as false as Christian dogmas. 79
Onc of the rnost revcaling examples of the use of different authors
and stylcs for a single purpose was thc elaboration of a preaching
77
For more about scholastic style, see Marenbon, J.: Later 111/edieval Philosophy
(1150- 1350). An lnlroductirm, London, 1987, and Bazan, B. C. et alii: Les questions
disputées et les questions quodlibetiques dans les jacultés de tlzéologie, de droit et de médecine, Turn-
hout, 1985, although they do not specify the stcp from "quaestio" and "clisputatio"
to this kind of litcrature very clearly.
78
Owst, G. R.: Preaching in Medieval England, p. 280.
79
Epalw, l\ll.: "Notes pour une histoire des polémiques .. .", Arabica (1971), pp.
103-105.
THE INTELLECTUAL APPROACH II: A STYLE FOR A PUBLIC 81
programme by Raimundo de Penyafort. At the time whcn he was
most worricd about the conversion of infidels and coordination of
preaching activities within the Dominican Order, he ordered two
treatiscs to this end. First, he addrcsscd Thomas Aquinas to ordcr
a book in the stylc of the univcrsity context in Paris, i.e., a book
intcndcd for missionary use but at university leve!. The Summa contra
gentiles was dirccted towards a learned public, but did not cntirely
meet the needs of the Dominican preachers in the thirteenth century.
This made Pcnyafort look for someone who was in the centre of the
action. In order to achicve a work which could be used by mission-
aries in thc Iberian Pcninsula and North Africa, by the "studia lingua-
rum" and the infidcls thernselves, he addressed one of thc most leamed
membcrs of the Order in the ficlds involved. Raimundo Martí undcr-
took thc huge task of writíng his Summae contra Alclwranum against
Islam, the Capistrum Judaeoru~ and the Pugio Fidei against .Judaism.80
The contrast with letters can be apprcciatcd in Ricoldo de Monte-
crocc's work while his lettcrs we:re more practical, his polemic treatises
were much more theoretical, and adaptcd from an Iberian original. 81
The samc trend can be observed in fiftcenth-century writcrs.
The written rendcring of both disputes and treatises started as early
as the clcventh century, with the Epistle ef al-Kindi. Thc best-known
case in the fifteenth century is Jcan Germain's Débat du crestien et du
sarrazin, 82 based on the latter. Despite adding a more doctrinal base,
this treatise did not contribute anything new to the knowledge of
Islam. 83 Threc more treatiscs by the samc author followed: Adversus
00
Lavajo, J.: op. cit., U, pp. H8-450 .
31
Daniel, N.: Tize Arabs and Medieval Europe, pp. 216-217.
"~ Bibliotheque Nationale de París, Ms. Franc. 948, declicatccl to Duke Philip of
Burgundy.
11
~ The miniatures oJTer thcir particular approach, although using the same rcp-
resentati.ons as were in fashion at thc time in the Europcan courts. The Duke him-
sclf appears in thc first rniniature rccciving the manuscript from the author, surrounded
by the knights of the Golden fleece. At the beginning of Book One ([ 11 v), the
two knight5 who participate in the dispute appear bcforc the sultan on his Gothic
throne, while a bishop- · rcprcsenting Gcrmain- is copying thc argLiment. Both
Muslims are depicted as Turks, whcrcas the Christian knight is dressed in the
Burgunclian fashion. The scene is repeated at thc bc¡,rinning of the Sccond Book
(f. 28v). Thcrc are two more illustrations (f. l 4v), the only oncs to represcnt
l\!Iul).ammad in ali thc manuscripts cxamined. In the first one, he is handling two
camels, going on a caravan. In the second eme, he arrives at Bahira's hermitagc
amidst forests-instead of an oasis-- , to be instructed. Mul.1ammad is 'easily to be
recogniscd by his dark skin, a featurc associated with devilish powers. \Vhen the
character óf thc book changes in the third part, which turns out to be; an apology
of Christianity (see Appcndix III), the iconography of thc miniatures also changes.
82 CHAPTER THREE
Turcarum Alcoranum, Adversus klahometanos et fideles, and De saracenorum
legis falsitate tractatus, all of which are lost. 84 The chaptcrs of the Débal
coincide with the gcogrnphical points mentioned in Germain's Exhmtatio
to Charles VII, showing once more the links between the two gcnres.
But the treatise was written as an explanation of Christian faith, whilc
Espina's was written as a study of Islam to ease the way for thosc
who wanted to fight it. The difference in scope says a lot about the
different situations in which the authors were living.
Another writer who used disputes as a background for his expo-
sition of a method for universal pcacc was Nicholas of Cusa. B5 His
De pace fidei is a discussion among characters of all nationalities and
religions, to unify one single rcligion with different rites. His approach
is so peaceful that he <loes not condemn anybody- not even Mu}.tam-
macl- whereas he adrnits that Muslims would be able to live with
the others just by changing sorne of their customs.
The fact that trcatiscs were intended for a more cducatcd audience-
clergy and nobility -- -dircctly caused Latín to be the languagc chosen,
and the stylc to be a mixture of sermons and thc scholastic. Why
the Ibcrian authors- with the cxccption of Pedro Alfonso- gencrally
failed to use dialogue in their trcatises is explained by the nature of
their work, conceived more as a summa than as an admonition, although
the latter was usually eontained at sorne point vvithin the book.
The next chapters will explain better than any simple classification
the use and structure of treatises on Islam. Sincc thcy are just vehi-
cles for expressing ideas on Muslims, this introduction should not be
extended any furthcr.
Christ appears for the first time sending his Apostles to prcach around thc world.
In !he foreground, Gcnnain is again represenLcd writing his book (f: l 12v). Finally,
in the Fourth Book, the Pope ancl the Patriarch of the Eastern Church are assem-
bled with a council of bishops ancl cardinals (f. 184r).
M See Schwoebel, R.: The Shadow qf lhe Crescent, pp. 107- l 08.
IJ5 Anawatí, G. C.: .Nir.olas de Cues et le j1robleme de l'!slam, p. 145.
CHAPTER FOUR
TRADITION AND POLEMICS: SOURCES FOR
FIFTEENTH-CENTURY AUTHORS
Thc first problem posed by a list of refcrcnccs such as the onc offered
in appendix III is the question of originality in the Middle Ages.
Dependence on authorities was important because it guaranteed the
quality of a book. Although in the fifteenth century sorne place had
been lcft for creation in litcrature, the genres rclated to theology kcpt
the use of authorities as a guarantee for orthodoxy. Of course, thc
first source to be used was the Bible and its commentaries. And be-
cause the subject involved was Islam, the Koran and the collections
of hadith were uscd by the authors who lmew them. Howcver, this
lmowledge was rcdueed to second-hand information or to sorne spe-
cialists who had been ablc to have sorne contact with Muslirns.
Oral sources are mentioned in all the books by Iberian authors. 1
lt may be assumed that, in a country whcrc coexistence had bccn
practiscd for eenturics, any author who wanted to write about Islam
would try to contact an accurate source, i.e., a Muslim, to provide
sorne practica! cletails, apart from thc topics included in formcr trea-
tiscs. Only in a case where the treatise had to be written too quickly
and far away from the Peninsula- ·-such as happened to Torquemada's
Contra errores Mac/wmeti- did the author avoid the use of direct wit-
nesses and stuck to other ccclesiastical authors. In the case of Juan
de Segovia, as we have scen, the fact that <Jsa ibn Djabir was a
faqfh favourcd the accuracy of interpretation of Islarnic doctrine.
Whilc Alonso de Espina has been accuscd of "lack of originality"
rcgarding the subject of the inquisition/ he has also been blarned
for thc freedom with which he prescnted his conclusions. The use
of scholasticism as reference did not mean his work was unoriginal
whcn it comes to analysing its structure and final display. The same
can be said of .Juan de Segovia and Juan de Torquernada.
1
. FF, f 1:32v; Juan de Scgovia: Prologue to the Koran, f l 90r (ed. Cabantlas, p. 289).
2
Meyuhas Ginio, A.: "Reves de croisade ... " Revue de l'Histoire des Religions,
CCXXI2; p. 150; Laforleresse, pp. 96, 109, 207.
84 CHAPTER FOUR
Besides, there is the author's view to be considered. There was
no need to be original. The main objective was to providc as much
information as possible, taken from as many sources as were avail-
able at the time: thc same concept which originated the summae. Jean
Gcrmain spccifies such a trend in bis foreword to the Livre du crestien
et du sarrasin:
Considerees les choses dessus dictes [je] me suis travaille de extraire
de plusieurs doctcurs et saiges ce qui m'a semble prouffitable et bien
servant au reboutement de la dicte secte et a sexaussement de nostre
sancte foy et especialement des extraiz del Alchorant faiz par reverends
docteurs Pierre Venerable jadiz abbe de Cluny, Pierre Alfonsc de la
nation des Espaignes et saint Thomas d'Aquin en ung sien petit livre
contre heresie de Mahumet et autres tant des sains appostres, martirs,
confcsseurs, illustres hommes que de hystoires anciennes consignant les
arrestz, diffinitions et sentences publiqucmenl donnees par les sou-
verains du monde, des principaulx poins de nostre foy comme pourra
apparoir par epistres et actes publiques farz el escrips sur se et aucunes
foiz par remonstrances et manuductions de raisons humaines. 3
The textgoes on to say that he is not trying to explain faith through
reason, but as he sees there is no way to make the sect disappear,
he believes it is time to dcfend thc Church against Islamic attacks
by means of rational argumcnts, which other more intclligcnt doctors
will complete. He appeals to thc Pope to correct him, and to the Kmg.
He insists in a second foreword in the need to put togcthcr prívate
works, summae and collections of sentences in onc single volume so
they can be consulted altogether:
Et car les dictes sentences et diifmítions sont escriptcs en divers volumcs
difficiles a trouver et extraire tant par deffault de livres, negligence
d'entendre a lecture diceulx, l'ignorance de plusieurs et occupations
des choses mondaines et aussí que les diz actes et díffinitions ne sont
trouvez mis par ordre pourquoy a grande difficulte pevent les zcla-
teurs de la sanctc foy chrestiennc avoir plaine cognoissance des choses
dessus dictes, a la consolacion diceulx et confusion de cnnemis de notre
foy, j'embrasseray ce dit oeuvre.
On the othcr hand, within the Order of Preachers (and probably the
same could be said about the Franciscans), communal spirit worked
in a rcmarkablc way over individual interests. Scholars exchangcd
their rcferences and methods, as Vincent de Bcauvais explaincd.
3
Germain, J.: Le li1fre du crestien et du sairasin, ( 2r- v.
TRADITION AND POLEMICS 85
He admitted using sorne texts from Aristotle collected by other
scholars, as an cxample of scientific cooperation. Thcre were also
contacts betwcen Raimundo Martí'1 and Thomas Aquinas while they
were writing their Ií·actatus contra Machometum and the Summa contra
gentiles, around the same time, especially due to Thomas's ignorancc
of Arabic.
Different kinds of authors used diffcrcnt sources. A distinction can
be made betwecn those who werc intcrested in Islam for its own
sake5- although a religious intcrcst was usually in the background-
and those who approachcd it with reference to Christianity and thc
impact Islam had on Christians. The choice of a theological argument
was conditioned by the religious definition of thc two territorics:
Europe and the Ncar East were idcntified with Christianity and Islam.
The fact that most of the authors belonged to the second trend,
those who wcre not intercsted in Islam itself, meant that they did
not try to approach every k.ind of Muslim source, but simply the
more basic emes. Thereforc, the number of Islamic authors quoted
in thc list of references is very small and completely leaves aside the
world of Muslim philosophers and thc qucstion of the transmission
of Greek philosophy through Arabic translations. A very definite line
was drawn between these two fields and theology.
It is important to bear in mind that many references could be
made sccond-hand. This happened with Espina's quotations frorn
Jewish post-biblical studics6 and often had to do with the ignorance
of a ccrtain language. T orquemada uscd thc work of his fellow-
Dominican Raimundo Martí, and it is likcly that his quotations from
Maimonides and Avicenna (lbn Sina) carne from this sourcc. 7 One
of the main reasons for mistakes rcgarding Islamic doctrine was erro-
neous translation from Arabic sources. J\fistal<es were widespread and
readily acknowlcdged, but sorne of them led to important misunder-
standings.
4
Lavajo, .J.: Cristianismo e islamismo na Peninsula lbelica, II, p. 64 7.
' Daniel, N.: The Arabs and Medieval Europe, p. 248.
6
Mcyuhas Ginio, A.: La jorteresse, p. 69.
7
Chapter two of the CE was copied from Martí's Traclalus contra Nlachometum,
which quotes l\IIaimonides. On the other hand, Ibn Slna's De scientia divina or
J\!Jetap!rysics was menlioned in Marlí's Explanatio symbolum apostolornm. Given Martí's
expertíse in Senútic languages, it was almost obliged to use him as source when
these languages were involved, and certainly Torquemada would Iind his writings
easily in any uf Lhe convents of his Order. '
86 CHAPTER FOUR
A widesprcad cxample was the accusation that Muslims were idol-
aters, somcthing the Koran strongly condemned, and was complc-
mcntary to Islamic accusations that Christians wcrc idolaters because
of their use of statues. The confusion started when J ohn Damascene
translated the call to prayer as "Alla wa Koubar", understanding "koubar"
as "Aphroditc's star'', i.e., the planet Venus. Connecting the word
with the name of the Ka'aba at Mccca ("Khaber"), he assumcd thc
stone to be a earved head of Aphroditc, and thercfore, Muslims were
declared idolaters. Further evidcncc exists in the translation of sura
112 by Nicetas Byzantios: "Say He is one God, God the everlasting".
Thc last word was translatcd into Greek as "holosphairos" (wholly spher-
ical), and later as "holosphyros" (made of beaten metal), thus an idoP
These examplcs wcre mentioned in thc Península in thc lndiculus
luminosus of Alvaro de Córdoba (d. 861), which associatcd Aphroditc/
Venus to thc Ka'aba. 9 A little latcr, thc epistle from the monk of
Francc to the King of Saragossa claimed that "thc magicians served
their fircs, the Dualists their Light and Darkness, and the Arabs their
idols and images" . 10 In this context the word "Arabs" might refer
to the inhabitants of the Arabian Península befare the expansion of
Islam, in which case thc statement is justified. Within the Latín
European tradition, Hrotsvita (c. 1000) dcpicted the Saraccns as poly-
theists who adored idols made of marble and gold in her Lije ef
Pelagi,us. 11 But thc most famous are thc verses in the Chanson de Roland
which refer to the Muslims being idolaters. In thc Península, Bishop
Rodrigo Jiménez de Rada stressed Kurayshites' i'dolaf:l)I befare Muham-
mad imposed his sect through battlc, both terms cqually despised by
Christians as expression of a barbarie nature, but at least more accu-
ratc in terms of historyY
Bible and Koran
Quotations from thc Bible should havc been perfcctly accuratc
throughout the trcatiscs, but Meyuhas Ginio found sorne minar differ-
11
Beckingham, C. F.: "Misconceptions of Islam" in Between Islam and C/zriste11dom,
p. 607,
9
Lavajo, J.: op. cit., p. 125.
10
Dunlop, D. M.: "A Christian Mission to IVluslim Spain", al-Andalus, 17, p. 280.
11
Kedar, B.: Crusade and iVIissio11, p. 10.
12
Jiménez de Rada, R.: Historia arabwn, pp. 244-245.
TRADITION AND POLEMICS 87
enccs in the Fortalitium, usually when Espina needed a particular use
for a word. Given that Meyuhas Ginio used the Nuremberg edition
(1494) 13 instead of the 1463 manuscript, it cannot be accepted as a
general conclusion that quotations from the Bible madc by Espina
were inaccurate. In fact, thcrc had been a total rcvision with changcs
roa.de in between by somconc othcr than thc author.
Much more difficult to study is thc author's acquaintance with the
Koran. The problems concerning its first translation ordered by Peter
the Venerable have been set out by D'Alverny in her famous article
"Deux traductions latines du Coran au Moyen Age". 14 Of the two
translations, the one by Robcrt Ketton modified the Arabic syntax
to make it more undcrstandablc, while Mark of Toledo tried a word-
by-word translation taking good ca.re to kccp thc original namcs of
thc suras, omittcd by Robert. 15 The defects of this translation con-
ditioncd thc work of ali th~ writers who approached Islam using
Koranic arguments. In the fifteenth century these were, as has been
said, Nicholas of Cusa, .Juan de Torquemada, Alonso de Espina,
Denys the Carthusian and .Juan de Segovia. 1G When the latter found
out how imperfect the translation was, he decided to start a ncw
rendering advised by an Arabic cxpcrt, as has bccn cxplaincd in
chapter h.YO. Onc of the major mistakcs in Kctton's vcrsion was the
way in which he numbered the suras, which madc correlations
difficult: in the Fortalitium ali the suras are one number ahead, while
if tl1ey are mcntioned by their name, the quotation is correct, prov-
ing Espina's use of second-hand Koranic versions. 17 There was another
translation ordered by King Pedro III of Aragon, known though
Juan de Segovia's request of a Spanish vernacular translation to be
sent to him. 1ª
Juan de Segovia was the greatest Christian collcctor of Koranic
manuscripts in thc fiftccnth century, moved by his idea that argu-
ing against Islam without a proper doctrinal basis distorted the povver
of argumcnt. Thereby, Muslims would think the same confusion was
i:i Meyuhas Ginio, A.: "Rcves de eroisade ... ", p. 146; La Jorteresse, p. 9.
'"' D'Alverny, .M. T.: "Deux traductions latines du Coran au Moyen ,Age'', Archives
d'histoíre doctrina/e et littéraíre du Ml!)•en Age, XVI ( 194-8), pp. 69· 131.
15
Al! these problems are furthcr discussed in D?AJverny, IvL T. and V<rjda, G.:
"Marc de Tolcdc, traducteur d'Ibn Tumart'', al-ilndalus, 16 (1951).
16
Cabanelas, D.: op. cit., pp. 129 130.
17
At least, he used Ricoldo de Montecroce's Rej1robatio Alchnranir. His quotations
gavc the namc of the suras but not the number.
16
Cabanelas, D.: op. cit., p, 129.
88 CHAPTER FOUR
used to teach them Christian doctrine. This moved them to search
for the bcst versions of the Koran in Arabic and Latin available
throughout Europe. In 1437, he found an average vcrsion in Germany
and had it copied. He lent Cusa a copy of the Collectio Toletana when
he left the council of Basle, assuring bis help to find three more vol-
umcs in Northern European libraries: Rore (Bavaria), Cologne and
Roermond (The Netherlands). The last copy-brought from Constan-
tinople- camc from the Dominican library in Basle, and was iden-
tical to the onc he already owned, but written in a better handscript.
In Ayton, in 1455, he received an important fund of Arabic, Latín
and Castilian books, but no Koran amongst them. This contradic-
tion is justified by the refusal of Peninsular Muslims to copy or read
thc Koran for Christians. 19 Despite these difficulties, Juan de Segovia
managed to huy a Koran in Arabic in Granada, which he gave to
the University of Salamanca. 20 His great work was the bilingual trans-
lation of the Koran, now lost, together with 'Isa ibn Djabir. 21 It was
a rendering word by word into Castilian, with explanations written
by the Muslim. Afterwards, Juan de Scgovia <lid the samc from
Castilian into Latin. The manuscript was prepared as an Arabic/
Spanish text with interlinear Latin, written in thirty-three booklets,
which resulted in 198 pages as a whole. Upan his death, it also went
to Salamanca, where Espina could have consultcd it. As a matter
of fact, Juan de Segovia's method was very mu ch the same as Llull's,
considcring their interest in languages. Whercas Llull tried to solve
the problem by creating schools of Arabic, Juan de Segovia was
more realistic and chose to translate into vcrnacular for a more wide-
spread diffusion. Master Martín García, 22 in turn, used quotations
from the translation ordcred by himself from his canon, a formcr
faqzh from Játiva mosque. 23
In the sixteenth ccntury, under the taqrya, the Moriscos necded a
translation of the Koran both to maintain their rcligion and to
19
Ibidem, pp. 137 ·-138.
io Ibidem, p. 156.
21
Vcmct, J.: "Traducciones moriscas del Corán", p. 46.
22
Martín García prcached in Arabic to thc Muslims of Granada as from 1500.
In that city he mct Juan de Andrés, a convcrt faqfh from Játiva, who gave him an
enormous amount of information about the Koran and the Sunna. Martín García
was a General Inquisilor for Aragón and Catalonia, and finally Bishop of Barcelona.
His sermons were published in 1517. Cf Cardaillac, L.: ojJ. cit., p . 317.
23
lbidem, p. 195.
TRADITION AND POLEMICS 89
respond to the Christians, who already had translations which formed
the basis of anti-Islamic polemics. 24 This explains the appcarancc of
the aijamiado translation. Sorne of the Morisco Koran manuscripts
only preserve sorne of the suras, ususally the shortest, which were
more usefül for prayer, although only recitation of the Arabic version
was considered valid as a prayer. 25
The Koran was quoted, but preconceptions about it considerably
changed the way in which it was used. First of ali, the Koran became
an object of ridicule because it was unfamiliar to Christian writers
and thcy did not approach it free of prejudice. On the other hand,
they were unable to realizc that the same method they used could
be turned against them and thcir Scriptures. 26 Generally, authors did
not distinguish between the Koran and Tradition, even if they Jmcw
thc di.fference. Moreover, any referencc to the Koran was introduced
with the sentence: "Mul:iarn'mad said in bis Koran ... " 27 instead of
"God said ... ", which was the phrase used by Muslims. This detail
was important, bccause it involved questioning thc basic doctrine of
revclation: for thc Muslims the Koran was God's revelation, while
for thc Christians it was just Mul).ammad's invcntion. Alonso de
Espina even accused Mul:iammad's successors of having forged it. 28
The Koran was often taken as a collection of commandmcnts prc-
pared by Mul:iammad far his pcoplc. 29 The revelations on which the
Prophet relied were discredited as drcams, specially using the _Liber
Scalae Machometi as a parallel to the Koran, 30 ignoring the fact that
for Muslims the two books had a di.fferent status.
Another problem arose when Christian writers realized that Islam
rejected previous revelation as contained in thc Bible, while they
accepted that God had revealed hirnself to Mases and Jesus as
prophcts. Starting from this point, Islam <lid not accept thc Biblc as
a basis for controvcrsy, since its message had been changcd. But
since Islam acccptcd Judaism and Christianity as former revclations
which ought to be superceded by Mul;ammad's, and moreover; since
2•1Chejne, A. G.: Islam and lhe T1Vest, the lv/oriscos, p. 52.
25
Cardaillac, L.: op. cit., p . 194.
"' Daniel, N.: Islam and the West, p. 75.
27 References such as this occur all throughout the texts of thc authors concerncd,
so r havc omrnitcd the number of thc pages for simplicity.
28
FF, f. 121r-v.
29
Daniel, N.: Islam and the West, pp. 33-35 .
~° FF, f. 12lv.
 90 CHAPTER FOUR
Islam acccptcd Christ as God's messcnger, Christian writers were
aware of thc danger of syncretism.
Reactions form Christian authors varied. Thc answer of Ricoldo
de l\!Iontccroce was in the form of another qucstion: how could .Jews
and Christians, who hated each other so much, agree to corrupt onc
tcxt? Pedro Pascual, Bishop of .Jaén, though that as thc Koran
acccpted Christ and his doctrine, and thc sayings of thc Prophets,
it accepted a doctrine contrary to its own, which meant l\!Iuslims
should recognize the Christian canon of Scriptures. 31 The Koran also
praised Christ and thc Apostles, which meant that if Christ was a
good, just guide, so the men who adhcred to him could not be evil.
Ali this elaborate thcory attemptcd to state that the Koran "vali-
datcd Scripture, while the inconsistency between the two rcligions
invalidated thc Koran". As for Peter the Venerable, his view was
that Scripturcs had to be acccpted or rejccted complctcly, 32 and it
was unbearable that Muslims should use names of characters in the
Sacred Scripture without accepting thc canon. There were even a
number of attempts to determine which parts of the Scripture Islam
could accept. The general conclusion of all this debate was that
Christian writers totaliy ignored the Islamic interpretation of thc
Koranic text.
Polemics in Literature: A Summary
It is impossible to try to rcvicw here the whole field of religious
polernics between Christendom and Islam. Neither is it possible to
depict a pattern in the choice of sourccs for polemics by Christian
authors: there were no fixed criteria. This summary is focused on
the use that fifteenth-century writers made of former works on and
from Islam. 33 In the cases where they were not familiar with Arabic--·
i.e., Alonso de Espina andJuan de Torquemada·· --, dependcnce on pre-
vious works, either trcatiscs or translation of sources, was unavoidable.
The first polemics in the Iberian Península rose with thc first signs
31
Daniel, N.: Islam and the J!Vest, p. 51.
32
Cf Lavajo, j.: op. cit., p. 283.
33
Because of the reslrictccl information available on Islarnic trealiscs in the fifteenth
century, this list will have more Christian authors. For more information about
lslarnic polemics, see the works by Cardaillac, Chejne and Moubarac rnentioned in
the bibliography.
TRADITION AND POLEMICS 91
of acculturation in the ninth century. Mul;iammad's first biographics
took information from the Grcck Fathers to build a series of leg-
cnds to show thc Prophet's evil nature. Álvaro de Córdoba's Liber
apologeticum quoted an carlier biography brought to Pamplona by the
monk Eulogius (845-- 48) and referred to in a letter frorn Bishop .Juan
of Scville. They mention thc Prophet's wcdding with Khadfdja, his
death followed by Iris being caten by dogs and his condemnation in
hell; thcy identified him with thc Beast and established the first tra-
ditions about his decadent morality. 34 Although the apologetic tone
used by these authors responded to a vcry particular situation of the
l\!Iozarabs, all of thcsc tapies discusscd in their works were encom-
passed by fifteenth-century authors. Espina and Torqucrnada also
foliowcd their ideas in the fragrncnts where thcy discussed messianic
imagcs. .
Among thc ninth-century Islamic polemicists, only al-Hashimf and
'Abd al-Masll:i ibn Isl;aq al-Kindf werc well known to the Peninsular
writers th1:ough thc translation attachcd to the Collectio Toletana. Both
werc officers in Caliph al-1\!Ia'mün's court. Al-Hashirnf was 'the sul-
tan's cousin and carne from the Prophet's family. He was thc first
to addrcss his Christian friend asking him to join Islam. Tartar35 is
sure of thc author's Muslim origín for a numbcr of different reasons:
the way in which he referred to Mu}:iammad, bis conviction about
the value of Islam, the munber of Koranic texts he mentioned and
quotations from the Bible, which did not conform with the books
accepted by Christians or Jews.
The Nestorian al-Kind! answered by justifying Christian doctrines
and attacking MuJ:iammad's claims to prophethood. He also introduced
sorne arguments al-Hashimf had failed to mentían, such as the forging
of thc Bible by Christians and Jews. Through this argument, thc
text has bcen dated between 819 and 825. Included in Vincent de
Beauvais's Speculum historiale,~6 this work was used as rcference through-
out the Middlc Ages, and was the basis for Jean Gcrmain's Débat du
crestien el du sanasin.
:¡.¡ Lavajo, J.: op. cit., p. 112. See Díaz y Díaz, M.C.: "Los textos antimahemetanos
más antiguos en céídices españoles," Archives d'histoire doctrinale et littérai're du 1\liqyen
Age, 3 7 (1970), pp. 149- 168.
3
-' Tartar, G.: Dialogue islamo-c!trétien sous le calij1!ie al-1'tla'mún. Paris; 1985.
36
Vincent ele Beauvais: S/1eculum hirto1iale, chapters 41 - 67. The Latin translations
of the Epistle are conlained in the following manuscripts: París, National Library,
Mss. Latin 3'.~93, 3649, 606,l; Rome, Biblioteca Vaticana, Cod. Vat. Lat. 4072;
Oxford, Corpus Christi College, !Vis. LH4.
 92 CHAPTER FOUR
Ibn l:Jazm (d. 1064) turned the polcmic method upside-down whcn
he decided to use the collation of the four Gospels to show the
diffcrences between them, and then turned to compare the Christian
and the Jewish Old Testamcnts to deny Christ's divinity. Such an
approach against Islam was adopted by Christians only in the tw-elfth
century, whcn the Koran was translated for Peter the Venerable.
Thereafter, criticism of scriptural texts became one of thc methods
far dealing with polemics. 37
Around 1100 the Jewish convert Pedro Alfonso (farmerly Moses
Sefardí) introduced in his Dialogus a wholc titulus to debate and refute
Islam, using two characters-· Moyses and Pedro, his farmer Jewish
self and his new Christian personality··-to discuss Islamic doctrine.
There he explained why he had converted to Christianity and not
to Islam. He seems to be the only Christian to quote the Islamic
tradition of Amon and Moab, Lot's sons, who created the sanctuary
at Mccca far thcir idols. Howcver, he cannot explain Mu}:lammad's
reactions towards the worship of idols in the Ka'aba enclosure. 3n
Another dialogue, the Disputatio Abutalib sarraceni et Samuelis iudaei, was
translated by Alfonso Bucnhombre bctween 1339 and 1340 in París.
Later, thís Dominican who spoke Arabic went to Cyprus and was
appointed Bishop of Morocco.
Playing with the Koran in thc same way as Ibn l:Jazm, Raimundo
Marti hoped to demonstrate thc vcracity of the Scriptures. Assuming
that the Koran accepted Christ and the Apostles, he chose them as
a guarantee far the Gospel, making a new interprctation of thc Biblc's
characters. 39
Around 1200 Alain de Lille's Contra paganos saw the light. The
reason why this book ís vcry important as regards our subject is that
his conception of the whole work is very similar to Espina's. The
book is entitlcd (¿uadripartita editio magistri Alani contra hereticos, valdenses,
iudeos et paganos. Its division is the same as thc Fortalitium fidei's except
that Lille ncver wrote about witches and demons. The author's inten-
tions are also the samc: to defrnd the Christian faith by reason
against the new hcrctics and "the spread of old doctrines which
attacked Christian faith without using divine nor human reason, thus
37
Pedro ~onso: Dialogi, PL 157, cols. 597-606. The commcnt in D'Alverny,
M. T. and Va;1da, G.: "l\.farc de Tolcdc, traducteur d'Ibn Tumart'', al-Andalus, pp.
120···121 <loes not give a good explanation of the problcm.
38
Chejne, A. G.: op. cit., p. 80.
39
Daniel, N.: Islam and the West, p. 4·9.
TRADITION AND POLEMICS 93
creating real monstcrs". 40 His main source was the Collectio Toletana
and Petcr thc Venerable's Contra sectam sive haeresim saracenorum. More
will be said about the arguments he used in the next chapter.
Thc other favourite source far Christian polemics against Islam
was the Liber scalae Machometi, translated from the Arabic Kitab al-
Mi 'rarfj around 1264. Apart from the "official translation" made in
Alfonso X's court by the Jewish doctor Abraham de Toledo and
Buenaventura de Siena, there were two other versions circulating in
the Península in the thirteenth century: one contained in Rodrigo
Jiméncz de Rada's Historia arabum and another in a rnanuscript from
Uncastillo (Aragón). By the time Alonso de Espina, Juan de Torque-
mada and Pius II used it for thcir works, anothcr version had become
the most popular in Roman circles: thc one by Ricoldo de Monteeroce.
The reason why sight details change in ali the versions might be the
use of diffcrcnt A.rabie texts~ or perhaps the circulation of the same
manuscript, translated by different people for each author. 41
The Liher scalae was part of the Islamic tradition used more to
ridicule Islamic beliefs than because the authors really thought it was
a basic text in Islamíc rcligious literature. 42 Being in the first person
singular, i.e., from IVIul).ammad's lips, it was considcrcd to be written
in the same style as the Koran, which used thc same dircct farm.
Thc Liber scalae was not chosen because it provided accurate infarma-
tion, but bccause it could be easily discussed. Obviously, the attempt
to rationalizc a schatological text such as the Mi'radj did not help to
understand it in the light of Christian religion. On the other hand, as
Islam insisted on Mulfammad's inability to perform miracles, this tcxt
was unacceptable within a pseudo-hagiographical context, becoming
even more clifficult to understand far thc Christian rcader. Mul:tammad's
40
D'Alvcrny, M. ·r.: "1\lain de Lille et !'Islam", in Islam et chretiens du Midi, pp.
301 - 302.
'H Sce CE, pp. 42- 44; FF, t: 121v-124v. About the Ji.her scalae, the most impor-
tant studies published are the pioneer Asín Palacios, M.: La escatología musulmana J'
la Divina Comedia, Madrid 1907 /London l 926; Cerulli, E.: JI Libro della sea/a e la ques-
ti.rme delle fanti arabo-espagnole della Divina Comedw, Rome 1949, and by the same author,
Nuove ricerche sul Libro della scala e la conoscenza dell'lslam in Occidenle, Vatican 1972.
Therc is an eclition by Muñoz Sendino, J.: La escala de A1ahoma, Madri~ 1949. A new
version has appeared in French as Le Lívre de l'échelle de iVIahomel, ed. by G. Besson
& M. Brossard-Dandrc, Paris l 991; and a Spanish transla tion as Lihro de la escala
de ivlalwma, cd. M. J. Viguera l\tiolins, Madrid 1996. I dealt with the subject more
deeply in my article "El l\tli'radj en la literatura castellana del siglo XV", Mediaevalia,
5·-6 (1994), pp. 231 - 246.
42
Daniel, N.: lrlam and the vVest, p. 233.
94 CHAPTER FOUR
ascent to the seven heavens is used by Espina under the heading
"About the foundations of Mul;tammad's law", and is a clcar example
of deformation of Islamic thought to demonstrate the evil contained
in it. After a nocturnal pilgrimage to Jerusalem (isri¡J) mentioned in
the Koran 17, MuQ.ammad was taken to the seven heavens by Gabriel
by the ladder mentioned in the Latín title for the book. There, he
mct angels and prophets until he finally entcrcd God's sanctuary.
God h:imself sh:owed h:is pleasure in meeting MuQ.ammad, and promised
h:im the salvation of his people if they fulfilled his commandments
(the pillars of Islam). It would appcar, thcn, that Alonso de Espina
did not hcsitate to attributc to this book the same rank as the Koran,
an idea which would horrify any Muslim then and now.
The difference between European and Peninsular writcrs was that
Muslims were present in the everyday life of th:e latter. Therefore,
no chronicler or theologian writing about crusadcs in the Holy Land
ever produced treatises such as the Spanish ones. When William of
Trípoli, a Dominican in the convent of Acre, wrote bis De statu sara-
cenorum around 1273, bis purpose was more informative than polem-
ical. Thc book was adresscd to Latín Christians, not to Muslims.'13
The circumstances surrounding its writing were related to Gregory
X and his desire to lmow about Islam. The optimistic friar was per-
suadcd that the end of Islamic power was close, as thc 'Abbasid
caliphate decayed in Bagdad (1258). The natural conclusion for Islam
was conversion to Ch:ristianity, and the third part of his book was
precisely an attempt to bring together both rcligions by making the
Bible a so urce for the Koran. 44
Within th:e same tradition, Raimundo Llull's Book ef the Heathen
and the . Three Wise Men (c. 1270) mirrored Abelard's Dialogus inter
philosophum, iudaeum et christianum in being more objective than apolo-
getic. Thc three characters tried to prove the truth against each
other, for the pagan to convert to one of them. Whilc the Jcw and
the Muslim exposed the differences among their fellow-bclicvers, the
Christian had enough with the simple explanation of h:is doctrine.
Worth noting is the fact that, at the end of thc book, each contender
excused himself in case he had offended any of the others. Although
the book seems to have been written in Catalan, Llull said that he
had written it "in the way of th:e Arabic Book ef the Heathen". Wheth:er
•:< Kedar, B.: op. cit., pp. 14-5- 116.
1
H Lavajo, J.: op. cit., pp. 364- 368.
TRADITION AND POLEMICS 95
it was copied or translated from an Arabic source, or one of his for-
mer works in Arabic, is not known.'15
Llull's most succcsful method of attacking the Koran was to reduce
it to a common object instcad of considering it "the miracle" of Islam.
He would produce a work in the style of the Koran which showed
his admiration for the sacred text. The subject chosen was also a
dear onc to Islam: the names of God. This was thc origin of thc
Cent noms de Deu,46 a book which was not quotcd by other Christian
authors, but whose method was thc most revolutionary in the context
of polemics. Primar:ily, bccause it did not despise the Koran from
the beginning nor did it start by questioning its divine origin- some-
thing the Muslims would never tolerate- and secondly, bccause it
tricd to assimilate the Muslim way of reasoning regarding religion,
instead of just writing an apology of Christianity.
Finally, Llull's Liber de partici,patione christianorum et saracenorum was
an attempt to demonstratc by means of ph:ilosophy how many things
the two religions had in common referring to the main subjects of
the polemic: Trinity and Incarnation. He had just returned from the
council of Vienne, whose resolutions were establish:ing thc necd for
thc clergy to learn languages and considering the state of continu-
ous war between the knights of Saint J ohn and Islam. He thought
that a peaceful method involving discussion of doctrines would prove
to be successful in granting peace, and so he wrote his treatise dcd-
icated to Frederick of Sicily.
We havc mentioned Pedro Pascual before, a Mercedarian who
became Bishop of Jaén in 1294. He adopted such a critical style in
his trcatises against Islam, which he wrote whilc he was a prisoner in
Granada, that even other Christian authors considercd h:im excessive.
Pedro Pascual used to travcl to Granada with a safe-conduct to visit
the captives until he was imprisoned. He managed to preserve his
licence to preach to the Christians within the city, but finally was
killed aceused of proselytism among the Muslims in 1299. His trea-
tise was quite hard and biased.
There is no figure in the fourteenth century to be compared with
thesc polcmicists, before thc trcnd towards Islam in litcrature started
to deviate towards violence. From all this, it follows that the origins
4
See the introcluction of Llul, R.: Le tivre du gentil . .. París 1966..
"
+~ See Cardaillac, L.: op. cit., p. 314. Aboul the namcs of God in Islam, see Ibn
al-'Arabf: El secreto de los nombres de DioJ, ed. by Pablo Beneito, Murcia 1997.
96 CHAPTER FOUR
of the argumcnts uscd by Alonso de Espina, Juan de Torqucmada,
Juan de Scgovia and Pedro de la Cavallcría must be traced back to
this evolution of the polerrúcs about Islam. Historical circumstanccs
and thc preferences of each author dctcrrrúned tl1e more or less bel-
licosc message of their works. A complete list summarizing all the
sources hereby discussed can be found in appendix II.
Libraries: A n Approach to Diffasion
AJthough the difficulties in tracing the "library-history'' of the treatises
on Islam is great, the results provide sorne useful information. The
Spanish manuscripts from the Collegc of Navarre in París (founded
in 1304) were distributed among thc most important librarics in the
cityY The Collectio Toletana manuscripts in the National Library of
París and the Vatican Library are bound together with the Liber
scalae Machometi helping to attribute the latter to Mul;iammad him-
self, a great mistake found in all the treatises which mention it. 48
Other copies also contained the Prophet's gcnealogy and Alfonso
Buenhombrc's Disputatio Abutalib sarraceni et Samuelis iudaei, a transla-
tion of thc Epistle ef al-Kindz. 49 Juan de Segovia himself owned a copy
of Hermann of Carinthia's works which contained more or less the
samc texts. The last striking coincídencc is the binding together of
Buenhombre's Disputatio with Cavallería's Zelus Christi in a fifteenth-
century manuscript from the Royal Library in Naplcs, which was
later transferred to the Royal Library in Blois and finally to thc
National Library in Paris. 50 Thesc associations help to explain why
there had been no great advance in the use of Arabic sources in
polerrúc treatises since the twelfth century. Only authors such as Martí,
Llull, Montecroce, Juan de Segovia or Alonso de Espina, who incor-
porated sorne new first-hand information, can be considered as taking
a step forward in literature on Islam. And this advance was due
47
From the College of Navarre, the National Library of Paris owns 124 mss.;
L'Arsenal, 102 and the Mazarino, 130. The total amount was approximately 1272
manuscripts, making one of the most important libraries in Paris before dissolution.
From Martin, H.: Catalogue des manuscrits de la Bibliotheque de !'Arsenal, Paris 1899.
4-0 FF, f 12 Lv; CE, f. 7r. The manuscripts are BNP, Latin Ms. 6064· and Ms.
Vat. Lat. 4·072 respectively, both dated in thc fourteenth century with notes from
the ftftccnth.
49
BNP Mss. Latin 3649, 14503; Bibliotheque de !'Arsenal, Ms. Latin 1162.
5 1
r BNP, Ms. Latin 3352.
TRADITION AND POLEMICS 97
either to their knowledge of Arabic, their collaboration with Muslims
or thcir use of more or less reliable witnesses. The rest were reduced
to encyclopaedic cfforts to summarize already-known information.
Starting with the fiftccnth-ccntury authors' "library-history", Caval-
lería's Zelus Christi was diffused in thc arca of influence of the Catalan-
Aragoncsc monarchy. The manuscript was copied for the convcnt of
San Pere de les Pu elles in 14 75. The fact that a minor convent had
a copy proves a certain diffusion beyond the high clergy or citizens
of Saragossa. The book was also published in Venice (1592), coin-
ciding with the converso issue, and in Rome {1606). Both editions
wcrc acquired by pcoplc in Spaín and the one now in the Biblioteca de
Catalunya was owned by the Inquisition tribunal based in the city.
Unfortunatcly, Torquemada's Contra errores was not widely diffuscd
until it was published after 1508 in Paris and in 1606 in Romc. Thc
manuscript was kept in the Vatican Library until thc Morisco issue
caused a revision of ali the information available about Islam, and
helped these short treatises to come to light.
Not even Juan de Segovia's De mittendo gladiis deserved much atten-
tion, despite ali thc corrcspondcnce devoted to it by famous figures
in thc Curia. When Pius II's gcncration of prelates died, the manu-
scripts of his mcthod rcmaincd in the cccl~siastical libraries (the ex-
tant copy being in the cathedral of Seville). But in any case Juan de
Segovia was probably the man who did most far the knowlcdge of
Islam. The transfer of his library to the University of Salamanca is
one of the richest testimonies of his work. 51 The first scction, formed
by thirty-seven parchment manuscripts, included three related to
Islam: a late version of De mittendo gladiis which mentioned the dispute
with the Granadan ambassador, the Koran translated by Robert Ketton,
and a copy of the De mittendo gladiis whích was probably the one
studied by Francisco Sancho in 1565 to make a copy far the Inquisition
(once again, the reviva! of old trcatiscs to face the Morisco problem).
Among the books regarding faith there is Jcan de Rocquetailladc's
Nova expositio or Commentum super prophetia C!Jrilli eremitae presbyteri simul
cum commento Joachimi. 52 Given the sources quotcd by Espina, it is
very likcly that his refutation of Mul;iammad's prophcthood might be
taken from this source. In section four, "books devotcd to preaching'',
51
Hernández Montes, B.: Biblioteca de Juan de Segovia, on the manusoripts 210- 211
of thc Univcrsity of Salamanca Library, dated 1457. Thc books are arrangcd by
subject-hcadings.
52
Ibídem, pp. 99, 253.
98 CHAPTER FOUR
therc is another copy of the Koran by Ketton and a compílation of
Víncent Ferrer's sermons, sorne of them dclivcrcd in Salamanca at the
time when Juan de Segovía was a studcnt thcrc. Finally, among the
books on Scriptural commentarics, thcre was one including Mul.1am-
mad 's genealogy, lifc and successors: it has been identified as a copy
of Hermann of Carinthia's De generatione Mahumet and probably a vcr-
sion of thc Chronica mendosa saracenorum, both of them in the Collectio
Toletana, and given to him by Nícholas of Cusa. 53
Section eight of the subject classification íncludes thc books "refer-
ring to the refutation of MuQ.ammad's sect", given by special vvill
"so that such a great multitude of souls redccmcd by Christ should
not perish due to ignorance". 54 This legacy is most interesting: firstly,
the Koran translated by Juan de Scgovia and cisa ibn Djabir togethcr
with sorne commentarics: thc Summarium psalmorum, a brief explana-
tion of thc suras started by cisa ibn Djabir while still in Spain and
which he ended in Ayton, an exposition of Islamic doctrine in thir-
teen articles, a note on the abrogations and sorne information about
1!lul;iammad. Unfortunately no eopy has been found of Segovia's two
treatises Errores legis Nlahumeti excerpti de libro legis ipsius, Alchoran nominato
(1455) and the treatise he wrote for cisa ibn Djabir. There were also
a copy of thc trcatisc by San Pedro Pascual, which is criticised, a
demonstration of Christ's divinity, an answer to cisa ibn Djabir's letter
and anothcr Koran written in Arabic- probably in Granada55- which
might be thc onc used by clsa ibn Djabir to translate in Ayton. It is
striking to see how indebted Espina was to this collcction of manu-
scripts. It is enough to compare the list of his sources with thesc: most
of thcm are mentioned, or else quoted without a proper re.fercnce.
The author who enjoyed a broader audicnce was by far Alonso
de Espina, and not only in the Peninsula but throughout Europc.
The Latín version of the Fortalitium was copied for Bishop Pedro de
Osma as early as 14·69. This bishop ordered a great number of manu-
scripts for the library of bis see, arnong them Raimundo J\!Iartí's Pugi,o
fidei, copíed in approximatcly thc same period as thc Fortalitium by
a parish priest of Sígüenza (Guadalajara). There is anothcr mention
in the general indcx for thc library of El Escorial at thc cnd of the
sixteenth century, but unfortunately the manuscript has disappeared. 56
53
Jbidem, p. 26'.1.
5
~ lbidem, pp . 34- 35, 107.
55
Ibidem, pp. 108 113.
sG It is recordcd a~ ms. LE. la. It probably disappearcd during the plunder in
TRADITION AND POLEMICS 99
The last extant manuscript was ordered by Bishop John of J\!Iagdeburg
and finished around 14 71.
In the samc ycar the first edition of the Fortalitium appeared and,
from then on, others carne out in Lyon and Nuremberg. 57 Thc
incunabula and their traces can nowadays be found in the most
uncxpected of Spanish libraries: the monastery of La Vid (Burgos)
owns a copy of the Nuremberg edition (1495) which was bought by
its Premonstratensian founders. 58 In 1621, the monastery of Sanjuan
de Corias (Ovicdo) had recordecl a volumc of thc Fortalitium (1587). 59
The inventory of the library belonging to Luis ·de Acuña, Bishop of
Burgos (d. 1495), a famous patron of the arts, also ínclucles a copy
of the Fortalitium. 60 Thcsc catalogues prove the cliffusion of Espina's
work among the clergy, no matter if it was regular or secular, directed
at ímportant bishops or tiny monasteries. However, it has bcen ímpos-
sible to find a copy of his book in any noble library of the time,
which means that his intended public would ncver get hold of thc
informatiori he províded except through members of the ecclesiasti-
cal status.
Translations ínto Frcnch started to be made at the cnd of the
fifteenth century by a ccrtain Pierre Richart, called L'Oisclct, a priest
from Marques (France): there are two manuscripts of this version, in
París and Bern, and several others of a French translation without
the Napoleonic wars. Scc Antolín, G .: Catálogo de los códices latinos de la Real Bibliot.eca
de El Escorial, Madrid 1923.
57
Ali the editions are mcntioned in Palau y Dulcet, A.: J'{anual del librero hispano-
americano, vol. 5, undcr the heading Espina. Also in Rcinhardt, K. & Santiago-
Otero, H.: Biblioteca bíblica ibé1ica medieval, pp. 63-64, but it is incomplete.
58
See Vallejo Pencdo, J. J.: "Catálogo de los incunables de la biblioteca del
monasterio de La Vid", Religión y cultura (1988), pp. 609- 629. The only engrav:ing
of this eclition is placed beforc the incipit of the first book. The motif is the gen-
eral fight against thc enemies of faith, as is found in the main manuscripts. Thc
beardcd l\!Iuslims are depicted wcaring a cap in the Morisco fashion and a long-
sleeved tunic. His wcapons are a scimilar and a halbcrcl. Obviously, the picturc
includes elemcnts of the Turkish inílucnce typical of the last years of the fiftccnth
ccntury. Bcsides this miniaturc, there are marginal notes made by a rcader--prob-
ably a Premonstratcnsian. The ones corrcsponding to the Saracens' war slart in
1vfol)arnmacl's genealogy, wiLh somc references to banners carried by his ancestors
and drawn in the margin of page 323. Thc ncxt illustration corresponds to thc
episode of Lhc dcaning of l\!luhammad's hcart, ancl its weighing by angcls; there
are scaks with a heart on eme of the plates (p. 324).
59
Inventario de los fandos . . . de San Juan de Cmias, Ovicclo 1621 . Madrid, AHN,
[ 45r.
60
Lópcz Martínez, N .: "La biblioteca de Don Luis de Acuña en 1496", Hispania
( 1960), p. 81. The invcntory is dated 19 Dcccmbcr 1496, when his possessions wcrc
transferred to his son Diego (Archive of the Cathedral, Burgos 39/2, [ 425v- 429r).
100 CHAPTER FOUR
mentioning the author. 61 The clue to bis succcss is givcn by the re-
mains of the fifteenth-century German translation preserved in Stuttgart,
a summary of thc ninth consideration on the expulsion of the Jews.
Obviously, as soon as thc conqucst of Granada was over, nobody was
intercsted in the defeat of Muslims in the Península except its own
inhabitants. The editions in clifferent languages continued to be pub-
lished as a guideline for the Inquisition. This was thc rcason for the
widespread interest the book deserved for more than two ccnturies
after its writing.
61
See Reinhardt, K. & Santiago-Otero, H.: op. cit., p. 64.
CHAPTER FIVE
CONTRA ERRORES NIACHOME11 . ..
Structure ef the Treatises
There is a grcat difference bctween what can be considered the
extcrnal structure of fifteenth-century treatises shown in appendix II,
and the internal cohcsion of doctrinal, historical sources and series
of excmpla used to illustrate the general schemc. The contents of
the books are never balanccd. For a start, the spacc devoted to Islam
varíes depcnding on the typc· of work. Juan de Segovia's is a short
treatise (tra.datulus, opusculum) and Islam is the subject in itsclf. Cavallería's
Z,elus Christi ís dcdicated in the first place to Jcws, so Islam is refuted
in just one chaptcr, although it is mentioned in several othcrs. The
case of Juan de Torqucmada is similar to that of Juan de Segovia,
Nicholas of Cusa and, in a clifferent way, Jean Germain. Espina's is
thereforc one of the last type of works dcfined, being a summa against
all the encmies of the Church. The book devoted to Islam is neither
the longcst (which is the onc aboutJudaism) nor the shortest (the one
about witchcs) and is placed fourth, probably following the arder of
Alain de Lille's Qyadripartitus. If it wcre for its importance for Peninsular
clcrgy, it would have been placed befare the book on hcrctics.
The group of writers studied herc are heavily indebted to their
predccessors, starting from the ninth century. However, developmcnt
of methods and concepts and changes in the historical situation make
their treatises resemble much more thc works produced after the
thirteenth century. For general structures, the most important sources
were Ricoldo de Montecroce's Reprobatio Alchorani, Alain de Lllle's
Qyadripartitus, Raimundo Martí's Tractatus contra Machometum, and for
Jcan Germain thc di:fferent dialogues mentioned in previous chapters.
Thc information takcn from the chronicles will be discussed later
in this chapter, but ít <loes not constitute a part of the external struc-
turc because it did not help to organise, but rather to illustratc,
specific points.
Usually the authors had the same basic scheme: first of ali, sorne
kind of introduction helped to pose the question of Islam. Next, a
 102 CHAPTER FIVE
list of IVIuJ:i.ammad's errors and thcir refutation, which could somc-
timcs be found following each individual error. Finally, the last chap-
ters summarized the authors' aims, togcther with the proposcd solution
to the problem which, no matter how or when, was thc defeat of
the Saracens and triwnph of the Christian faith. Thc length of this
last part, which is the core of thc books, varíes according to the
definition of thc plan of action: Espina and Juan de Segovia are
much more determincd about what measures should be taken against
Islam, whilc T orquemada is more succinct, for he is mcrely sum-
marizing the Pope's appeal to the crusade-in only onc chapter.
Subjects for Islamo-Christian polemics havc already been studied
from thc theological point of view in cxtensivc works. 1 Juan de Sego-
via, Cavallería, Espina and Torquemada share the same arguments;
their only innovation is presentation and connections. Discussion of
Christian doctrine at times followcd a catcchetical programme, and
at times took the form of a refutation of the most important Islamic
objections to Catholic faith. In sorne cases thesc matters coincided
with Byzantine objcctions-to the cult of imagcs, for example- , or
with the rcasons given by herctics to leave the Roman Church. Usually
the argument was twofold. Faith and morals were thc main areas
of conftict. 2 In matters of faith, the explanation of the Creed was
one of thc most successful tapies. While the rest of the authors chose
•
1
F~r .ª study s:t~ject by ~ubjcct? see Masson, D.: A1on~théisme coranique el monotlzé-
zsm~ ~zhlzque: doctnnes compares, Pans 1976, and thc class1c Peters, F. E.: ]udaism,
Clznstzam!y and Islam. 17w classical texts and llteir interpretation, Princcton 1990. Among
the boo.ks devoted to this aspcct, the compilation of articles by Baker, D.: Relations
hetween E'ast and 'West in ihe Jl!liddle ilges, Edinburgh 197 3; Bouamama, A.: La littéra-
ture polémique. musulmane co~tre le C'l~'li~nisme depuis ses on'¡[ines jusqu'au XIII' siecle, Argel
1988; Carda1llac, 1:-·: kfonscos y cnstzanos, un enfi-entamiento polémico (1492-1640), Paris
1977 /transl. Maclnd 1979, for the sixtcenth century; thc classic Daniel, N.: Islam
and tlze West, Edinburgh 1960/ 1993; about Byzantinc polemics, see Khoury, A.-T.:
Polémique byzantine contre !'Islam (Vlfl-XIII' siecles), Leiden 1972; Moubarac, Y.: L'Islam
et le dialogue islamo-clzrétien, Beirut 1972--73, and Sweetman, J. vV.: Irlam and Christian
17zeology: ~ stz1cfy ef the interprnlation rj' theological ideas in the two reli,gions, London 1947.
Other arncles are: Anawati, G. C.: "Polémique, apologie et dialogue islamo-chretien.
Positions classiques médiévales et positions contcmporaincs" Ew;leJ docete, 22 (1969),
pp. 375 -4..52; Epalz.a, M. de: "Notes pour une histoirc des polémiques anti-chretiennes
da~s. ~'Occiden~ musulman" A.rab1:ca. Revue d'Études Arabes, 18-1 (1971 ), pp. 99 -- 106.
l he followmg argument 1s based on the work about the nature of preaching
by D'Avray, D. L.: The Preac!tiug qf the Friars, pp. 82- 85, referring to Richard
vVethcringsetfs summa "Qy.i bene /Jresunt". The plan of this work, conceived as a
manual, corresponds to th(~ list of subjccts to be preachcd, showing once more the
close links between preaching and treatises.
CQNTRA ERRORES MACHOMET! ... 103
to discuss its clauscs onc by one, Espina included in his fifth consider-
ation the whole argumcnt about the twelve articles of faith.
In the field of morals, thc discussion was focused on thrcc oppo-
sitions: Christ versus MuJ:iammad, Biblc versus Koran and Christians
versus Muslims.:i Generally, fifteenth-ccntury authors did not try to
follow Islamic doctrine through Islamic sources because of the lan-
guagc, so it was easier for them to organizc the matter according
to Christian dogmas, although this led to a numbcr of deformations
of Islamic traditions. Evcn one of the best-informcd writers) Raimundo
Martí, had problems in dealing with thc concept of Paradisc, marriagc,
adultery) repudiation and sodomy, which were unconceivable for
Christians.
· Vocabulary
The terms ·used for Islam and Muslims are one of the easier systems
to measure the degree of rejection a particular author felt against
that religion. The best classification of anti-Islamic terms has been
macle by Lavajo, 4 referring to the works of ninth-century polemicists.
Although much earlier in time, many of thcse names remained in
use until the fifi:eenth century. For Muslims, thc most common denom-
inations wcrc Chaldcans, Saracens, Hagarens or Ishmaclitcs, Arabs)
Moors, Infidcls, Pagans or just the Enemies. Islam was considcrcd
a heresy, a sect, a false religion, a supcrstition, an error, an invention
of the devil, a deadly poison, an iniquitous law, a sacrilege, a forgery,
etc. All of these names were used to providc the reader with stereo-
typed images which introduced new argumcnts, but it is interesting
to note that most of these words were takcn from the Bible. These
anachronisms reduced the understanding of sects and interna! fighting
betwcen the different groups of Muslims. Thc unity of Islam was
thus cmphasizcd, although the chronicles referred to interna! struggks
in the Pcninsula. 5 In thc contcxt of lberian literaturc, thc mcanmgs
can be cstablishcd as follows:
:iLaw~jo, J.: op. cit., l, p. 130.
•
1
Ibidem, I, pp. 120-121; 203- 205.
5
Richard, B.: "L'Islam et les musuhnans chcz les chronic¡ueurs castillans", Hesperis-
Tamuda ( 197 1), p. 120.
 104 CHAPTER FIVE
"Chaldean", taken from thc Biblical name of the tri bes which
inhabited the regían later known as Arabia, appcars in the Chronicle
ef AljOnso !JI (c. 880).
- "Saracen" dcsignatcs a member of thc rival religion. To becomc
a Saracen mcant to become a Muslim. Saint Jerome had wrongly
used the etymology of "sons of Sarah" in his In Ezechielem. Since
then, ecclesiastical literature always uscd the name and urged chron-
iclers to do so. However, it was more accurate according to tradítion
to use the name "agaren", meaning "son of agar", since the Arabs
wcrc believed to come from the clan of Abraham's slave agar. Obvi-
ously, descent from a slavc was considered pcjorative in the eyes of
Christians, who claimed to dcscend from Sarah's legitimate branch.
As Ishmael was outside thc Covenant so were thc Saracens, according
to Bede. 6
Another suggcsted etymology is the Arabic sharqfyzn, rneaning "the
Orientals". 7 In the Chronicle efAljOnso III, the term had gaincd a pejo-
rative scnse in the description of Islamic triumphs. Thc Chronicle qf
AljOmo VII (twelfth century) used "Saracen" as the general namc for
all Muslims in the Iberian Península, while differentiating their ethnic
origins by means of other Biblical names: the pcople from Córdoba
wcrc Amorrheans, Almoravids wcre Moabites, and Andalusians were
Hagarens or Ishmaclites. It is difficult to find such precision in other
sources, at least in Europcan ones. 8
- "Ishmaelite" also had a Biblical origin: thc sons of Ishrnael. 9
- "Arab" is uscd for an cthnic and linguistic entity. The Arabs
were the pre-Islamic inhabitants of the Arabian Península. By cxten-
sion, it was applicd to Muslims living in the same region, and their
descendants cstablished in the Iberian arca. It was also uscd for thc
groups of population who kept Arabíc as their language in the Iberian
kingdoms whíle it was being replaced by vernacular Romance. It
was used in this sense by Pedro Alfonso. 10
6
Kcdar, B.: op. cit., p. 91. In provcnc;al, "sarrasine" was used for a non-modest
woman-perhaps bccause that is how Christian women who acccptcd living with
Muslims werc called. See Simon, O.: Li sarrasin dins la literaturo prouvens:alo, Toulon
1974.
1
Barkai, R.: Cristianos y musulmanes en la España medieval, p. 31.,
8
Southern R. W.: Western Views qf Islam, p. 14.
9
Ibidem, p. 144.
JO Cf. Kedar, B.: op. cit., p. 91.
CONTRA ERRORES MACHOMETI . . . 105
"Moor" (mauri) was used for the Berbers from North Africa since
the Chronicle qf 7 41. It was currently used in documcnts from evcry
Christian kingdom in the Península, as opposcd to thc líterary
"Saracen". 11
- "Barbarian" was an influcncc from classical authors used in the
Chronicle ef Alfonso VII 12
- "Mudejar" was a localism from thc Arabic muda4jcijan, meaning
tributary, vassal. It is found in documents to designate Muslim vas-
sals of Christian kings in the Península from thc fifteenth ccntury on-
wards.13 Its use as a pcjorativc, marginal term is not real, despítc the
opinion of sorne experts. In my opinion it is just a word suited to
a particular social fact which necdcd acknowledgement in language.
Epic songs show a number of diffcrent ways to call individual
Muslims: sorne have Christian names, such as Felix; others are taken
from the Bible or classical mythology, and appointed according to
the fcatures of the character for, while a Muslim was a pagan, he
was not ne.ccssarily cvil; sometimes Arabic names are found, more
or less changcd whcn translated into Latin or vernacular languages. M
Alonso de Espina uscd real Arabic names, for he was relying on
historical sources, but again thcy change according to Peninsular Ara-
bic (which had its own pronunciation) and to their translation into
Latin. Lí However, they are usually understandable. A worse render-
ing is observed in the editions of the Fortalitium rnade outside the
Península. Sorne examples are: "Avdalla" for cAbd Allah; "Gibla Tarif"
for Djabal Tariq (Gibraltar); "Abderramen" for cAbd al-Ra}:iman, 16
etc. Phonctically ali can be considcred correct according to medieval
spelling. Thc rcst of thc authors only speak of Mu}:iammad, so thcre
are no furthcr difficultics.
11
Cf Barkai, R.: op. cit., p. 21; Cagigas, I. de las: Los mudefjares, p. 63.
12
Barkai, R.: op. cit., p. 144.
13
Cagigas, I. de las: Los mudijares, p. 59.
14 Vernet, J.: "El conocimiento del Islam ... " BRABLB (1965 ·66), p. 353.
15
For a study on A.rabie words in Spanish, see Terés, K: "AntropOnfmia hispano-
árabe (reflejada por las fuentes latino-romances)", Anaquel de estudios árabes, I (1990),
II (1991) and III (1992); Corriente, F.: JÍrabe andalusíy lenguas romances, Madrid 1992;
Ferrando, I.: El dialecto andalusí de la 1Harca kledia. Los documentos toledanos de los siglos
XII y XIII, Zaragoza 1995.
16
See FF, f 142rv, 144r, etc.
 106 CHAPTER FIVE
0Jmbolism
The use of symbolism and commonplaccs is one of the intcllcctual
weapons mastered by ecclcsiastical writcrs. In fact, it was ncccssary
to ensurc understanding by social groups who werc lcss familiar with
theological vocabulary. Among the clergy, rhetorical cxcrcises contrib-
utcd to enhancing prose, and werc considered a proof of authority.
Our authors would, therefore, makc an extensive use of these "intel-
lectual weapons". In a context such as the Iberian Península in thc
fifteenth century, the most effective symbol was doubtless thc use of
military figures. Historians agrce in attributing a belligcrent mood
to ali thcse authors. 17 And indced, it was in the air.
The first to use this stylc was Raimundo Martí in 1278, when he
callcd his treatisc against Jews Pugi.o fidei, the "daggcr of the faith".
Thc sword of the divine word was a motif already included in Biblical
texts and broadly used in ecclesiastical literature. Martí wrotc thc
Pugi,o on command from his superior in the convent of Smnt Catherinc
of Barcelona, who himself had received the order from thc highest
prelates. Other figures involvcd were King Jaime I of Aragon and
Raimundo de Penyafort, former general of the Dominican Order.
For all of them, thc Pugi.o meant a dagger to allow preachers and
defendcrs of the Christian faith to cut "thc bread of the divine word"
for thc Jcws, at thc samc time as thcy "stranglcd their impiety and
killcd their fury against Christ". Thc title might have been suggcsted
by thc patrons of the work themselves, as a dagger to defend and
promote Christian faith while destroying non-orthodox doctrines. As
no enemy was considered more dangerous and inevitable thanJudaism,
that should be the target for Martí. On the other hand, the dagger
should penetrate deeply into the sccrets of thc adversary to neutralize
his attacks on the Christian faith. 18
Chivalric ideals had their place among rcligious thcory, especially
in a territory where war against Sa:raccns was thc background for
any chivalric action. As a result, the fiftecnth century was a time
when military symbolism ftourished in literature. 19 And not only in
polemics: Diego de San Pedro defined his Cárcel de amor (The Prison
of Love) as a fortified towcr with threc corners and a high stair.
17
Ribera Florit, J.: op. cit., p. XIX.
JO Lavajo, J.: op. cit., II, pp. 446··1147.
rn I have omitted refercnccs to carlier writcrs to make the argument more easy-
going, but military alkgory can be lraccd back as far as the Pryclwmac/zia written
hy Prudentius (348-41 O A.D.), and ccrtainly to St. Auguslinc's Ciry of God.
CQNT!l.-1 ERRORES MACHOME11 .• . 107
According to the cxplanation of the prisoner in thc tower, the foun-
dations were his faith; thc four pillars above, his undcrstanding, his
rcason, his memory and his will; the three images which crowned
thc tower were Sadness, Distrcss and Effort, whosc strcngth were
the chains which tied the man; an caglc, meaning his mind, stood
over a capital and finally, the staircasc was the Anguish which led
the prisoncr to his state. The metaphor continues describing each
detail in the scene leading to the tale of thc prisoner's love story. 20
Indeed the fortress was a commonplace in Castilian medieval lit-
crature. Therefore, it is not surprising that Espina chose this symbol
to writc about the enemies of the Christian faith. In the first manu-
script of the Fmtalitium from the cathedral of Burgo de Osma, 21 ordcrcd
by Bishop Pedro de Montoya (1454-7 5) among a great collection of
books signed by his chaplaín and secretary García of San Esteban
de Gormaz, the miniaturcs rcprcsent this idea once and again. 'The
miniatures are not signcd and have been attributed to the l\!laster
a
of Osma, Jeronimite monk callcd Spinosa. 22 Art historians have
20
Diego de San Pedro: Obras, pp. 118- 125 .
21
In the Frcnch vcrsion of the National Library of Paris, Ms. Frarn;:. 20067,
dated 1480, the motifo are vt~ry much thc same as in thc Latin versíon. On the
first pagc thcrc is a coat of arms from the Housc of Burgundy, with the Goldcn
Fleece and the device "Plus cst en vous". The main sccnc is agaín the fortress of
faith housing the Pope and prelates, while women detend it with spears from the
windows. Around thc towcr, several figures with courtly and more popular robes
also have lances. 'l'here are heretics, anti-popes and bishops, but no Jews or Muslims,
or even dcvils. A landscape in the Renaissance stylc provides the background. A
frame of vegetation finishes thc page. The same scheme is repeated for each book,
changing sorne slight details, such as the attitude of women in the windows, the
figures within thc decorativc frame and the characters around ít, which depend on
thc part of the work. Saracens werc reprcscnted according to a simplification of
patterns common to most Northern European ma~uscripts of the time .. Around t.he
tower there are still sorne bishops, onc of whom 1s threatcned by a Saracen w1th
a lance. He is wearing a long robe, and a Turkish turban . To thc left are two
Christian ladics and a lord, and to the right four more laclies look at two men
fighting, one of them a Saracen, dressed as thc one described bcfore, and the oth~r
an armourcd knight with a turban. These characteristics are shared by the men m
the vegetable frame. Saraccns wcrc rcpresented according to a simplificatíon of pat-
tcrns common to most Northem European manuscripts of the fiftcenth ccntury.
Whereas in thc Ibcrian Península their features varied from the Christian ones,
these looked rather as courticrs in disguisc. The text contributcd to. díflerentiate
what Europc understood for "IVluslims"-Turks--, as opposite to the lberian image -
Northern Africans. It rnust he notcd that illumination in Germain's Débat is more
adjusted to the general contents, and more balanced in that cvcry book . has just
one miniature. The same pattern is followed by the French version of the Fortalitiwn
kept in the Bibliothcquc du Roi in Ilrusscls. . . , .
i
1
f,,/lS edades del hombre: libros J' documentos en la Iglesia de Castilla y Leon, Valladolid
1990, p. 384.
108 CHAPTER FIVE
considcred them within the Hispano-Flemish Humanistic style, 23
although they have survivals from the Gothic International period.
However, the miniatures are still urrfinished, i.e., still sketches without
any colour in most cases, and lacking dctails.
Only one part of thc manuscript is illuminated, save the initials
at the beginning of cach new book and a splcndid miniature in thc
incipit, which can be de:fincd as an illustration "in the broad scnse", 24
based on the general contents of thc book. It depicts the fortress of
faith defended by angels and Christian knights against an army of
Muslims, the heretics who are undermining the foundations, Jews in
chains who try to persuade thcm by words, and dcvils and witchcs
who surround the fortrcss everywhere. Inside the castle, the Christian
army is ready to defcnd it, the Pope in the centre surroundcd by
prelatcs and kings. On thc highest tower, which bears the inscrip-
tion "Tower of strength facing the cnemy", Jcsus commands a host
of angels who are fighting a parallel war against demons. The cross
of the Order of Santiago is drawn on all the shields.
Outside the castle, the "crusader king" is :fighting the Muslim army
on horseback, together with bis knights. The bearded Saracens run
away below. There are three small devils on the scene, claiming
their influence on thc :fighters: "Saraccns are mine'', the one below
the central scene is saying. On the fortress thcre is another device:
"We confess that Jesus Christ is truly God and a true man". The
whole scene is an allegorical illustration of the four books in the
Fortalitium. Therefore, it has a didactic-moral function, even more so
if we think that it is the only non-profane illustration in the book.
According to the de:finition at the beginning of the Fortalitium, thc
five books into which it is divided are thc towers of its "fortrcss of
the faith". The first book25 givcs more details about the armour
which Christians must wear to fight their enemics: ít consistcd of
several virtues, such as continencc, justicc, the example of the saints,
the shield of faith, the galley of hope, etc. Likewise, preachers should
use their own armour, which was precisely thc word of God they
had to teach. And they should have thc couragc of a lion, a famous
characteristic for every hcro in epic narrative. This idea was already
23
Domínguez Bordona, J.: Miniatura, pp. 191- 197. See also by the samc author
"Diccionario de iluminadores españoles", BRAH, 140 (1957), pp. 49- l 70.
2
·t Smeyers, M.: La miniature, p. 49.
25
FF, f l lr.
CONTRA ERRORES MACHOME71 ... 109
suggested in Alfonso X's Setenario, law 1OS, where it says: "Item, as
well as temporal armours were cstablished for the defense of flesh,
spiritual oncs were devised for defending from the dcvil". 26 The fol-
lowing books <leal with hcretícs, Jews, Muslims and witches. Thcrc
are only three illuminated eapitals and onc illustration depicting the
topos of the dissecration of the Holy Host in the book dcvoted to
Jews, as well as thc opening pagc dcpícting the coat of arms of Bishop
Pedro de Osma, and a figure of Mary.27
Most of thc illustrations corrcspond to book IV, devotcd to :Niuslims,
although it is di.fficult to say why. Illustrations should have the dou-
ble fonction of underlining the value of sorne passages of the book
and complete the mcaning of the tcxt. Takíng the whole work, the
book about Jews seems to be more valuable to Espina than the one
about Muslims, so the relative importance of the subject is not the
answer. That book IV is dominated by its ninth considcration, a tale
of onc hund,red and fifty-eight battles fought bctwccn the two rcli-
gions, including 90% of the miniatures illustrating the original man-
uscript g.ives sorne cluc. Most of them are sccnes of war, and according
to what has remained, room was left to :fill in at the places where
illuminations were intended, so the layout of this manuscript was
carefully designed. Probably the use of chronicles and illustrations as
exempla was the reason to illustrate only this part of the book, as
shall be explained
J can Germain, in his Exhortation a Charles VII pour aller autremer uscd
Psalm 14 7 as an appeal to the militan! Church betrothed by Christ
in the cross, to bccome a triumphant Church through victory over
Islam, the maín cause for unrcst in the known world. Peacc reigned
before MuJ:¡ammad's arrival- -and here he elaborates a geographical
study of all the regions where the Christian Church had :flourished-
but aftcr him, Islam swung the balance. A long legendary chronícle
of French military triumphs over thc Saracens starts at this point,
parallcl to Islamic misdeeds through the centmies. The names of
Charlemagne, Geoffiey of Bouillon, Clovis, the king of Cyprus, Prester
J ohn and Saint Louis were an example for Charles VII to follow
on the path of crusade, befare the Turks conquered Constahtinople. 28
In his other work, the Dialogue du crestien et su sarrasin, Germain
. ~e; Alfonso X: Setenario, pp. 260--263.
27
FF, f. 9r, 26r, 38v, 55r, 72r, 108r.
211
Germain, J.: E ...hortation a Charles VII, f 3r-- l 2r.
110 CHAPTER FIVE
interpreted the Acts of the Apostles in the same light. Book Ill
describes the "conquests" made by the Apostles in the manner of ncw
Alcxanders. They are "laúghts" who perform "chivalric duties and feats"
for thc Christian monarchy, or scnators in thc Roman tradition.
Anothcr military symbol uscd by Espina was thc reference to
Mul:,iammad's predecessors carrying banners or standards, in the
chapter devoted to his origins. Banners were associated with war, as
symbols of battle and victory, and thus would be understood by any-
body familiar to the ideas of crusade and war. The "soldiery of
Christ" (miliá'a Christi) had a corresponding "banncr of Christ" (vexillwn
Christi), namcly, thc cross, the symbol of the passíon and rcdemption,
the sign of Christ's victory (vexillum crucis), which was latcr used to
mean the cross sewn onto thc clothcs of the crusaders. 29 Lil<.cwise,
Isma.<Il, Nizar and Mul;iammad himsclf had their own banners with
three inscriptions: "haughtiness of life", "vanity of the world" and
"lust", representing evil. 30 Actually, Espina was also referring to a
habit of the Islamíc world where, from the earliest times, the Prophet
or the caliphs bcstowed holy banners upon their generals at the
bcginning of a war. Gcnerally Arabs tíed thcir flags to a staff only
befare battlc. 31
In thc account of wars of the Fortalitium, banners also had a specíal
place, connected to Saint James's apparitions. They had been uscd
by the Church from the clevcnth century in processions, they wcre
mentioned in Church inventaries, etc., but there was still a distinction:
church banners were long staves turning into crosses at the end with
small cloths hanging from transverse bars overhead, differing from
war banners in which the flag was afüxed directly to thc staff. Kings
asked the Pope for banners of the saint befare going to war, as was
the case of the vexillum Sancti Petri. They were rcligious symbols,
pledges of divine protection and victory. 32 On thc contrary, those
carried by Mul:,iammad and those of his kinship meant a plcdgc to
the devil.
Another favouritc image is the ídentification of Mul:iammad with
the Beast of thc Apocalypse. Based on Alfonso X's Primera crónica
general, the text tells how Emperor Chosroes and síx vassal kings--
29
Erdmann, C.: 171e Origin ef ilie Idea qf Crusade, Princeton 1935/ 1977, pp. 35- 37.
° FF,
3
31
f. l 16v.
Erdmann, C.: op. cit., pp. 42, 51.
32
Ibidem, p . 53.
COJ'!TRA ERRORES MACHOMETI . . . 111
symbolized by thc scven heads of the Bcast·----were defeatcd by
Eraclius and how, later on, MuQ.ammad appeared as the Antichrist
in his place. Thosc two figures were identified throughout thc whole
exegetical medieval tradition, in thc commentaries to the Apocalypse,
13. Howcvcr, the explanation of the Beast's features might difler
according to the author's purpose: for sorne it representcd the seven
capital sins; for others, it rcpresented temporal power, as in this case.
The tradition of idcntifying the Beast and the Antichrist can be
traced back to St. Gregory, who was mcntioncd as their main source
by ali medieval polemicists, starting with Álv~ro and Eulogio de
Córdoba in thc !ndiculus de adventu de Enoclz et Eliae, contained in the
Corpus Nfozarabicorum.33 Espina's interpretation can be seen as a mixture
of thc images created by Beato de Liébana and Joachim de Fiore.
Based on Beato are the heads representing thc kings and the horns
as thcir kingdoms, but sorne part of the original and more complcx
image was lost. The multiforrn devil incarnatcd in the form of ani-
mals and monstcrs which was onc of thc favourite symbols of oppre-
sion for the l'VIozarabs did not appear in fifteenth-century trcatises,
nor did thc idcntifieation of thc Dragan (Apocalypse, 12) with Satan
and thc Scrpent. 34 Sorne dctails have been changed, likc thc division
of the kings into two groups, the last three being the ultimate ene-
mics whom the Antichóst must fight. Another proccss of simplification
made the ten horns- ·--which in theory bclonged to the fourth Bcast,
symbol of the fourth cmpire of Rome-be transfcrred to the Bcast
in general, 35 as wcll as their sense of temporal power. The Beast was
thus deprived of its eschatological meaning to become part of a polit-
ical and providcntial plan of history, within the context of Espina's
interests.
The perccption of Muslims within the history of salvation coincides
with Joachim de Fiore. Thcir role as persecutors of Christians and
precursors of the Antichrist was exemplífied by thc figures represented
by thc Beast's heads: Hcrod, Nero, Constantine or Arian, Chosroes
or thc Saracens, the King of Babylon, Saladin or the Turks and the
Antichrist. 36 Continuing to simplify, Espina preferred to use only the
33
Emmerson, R. K.: Antichrist in the A1iddle A,~es, p. 22.
3
Cf.: Lav::i,jo, J.: op. cit., p. 137. See PL, vol. 121, cols. 513-555.
·~
35
See Delcor, M.: A1ito )' tradición en la literatura apocalíptica, p. 49. For Lhe expla-
nation of this metaphor in the Cmpus Jlíozarabicorum, see Lavajo, J.: :op. cit., pp.
136 ·138.
36
Beato de Liébana: Commentarius in Apoca!Jipsin, p. 23 . Daniel 7, 7- -2t1.
112 CHAPTER FIVE
Bcast's fourth hcad, i.c., Chosroes or, dcpending on the context,
1\!Iul;tammad, accorcling to Innocent III's bull "De negotio Tcrrae
Sanctae":
Et quidem omnes pene Saraccnorum provincias usque post tempora
bcati Regorti Christiani populí posscdcrunt; sed ex tune quidam perdi-
tionis filius Machometus pseudopropheta surrexit, qui per saecularcs
illcccbras et voluptatcs carnales multas a veritate seduxit; cuius perfidia
etsi usque ad hace tempora invaluerit, confidimus tamen in Domino,
qui iam fecit nobiscum signum in bonum, quod finis huius Bcstiae
appropinquat, cuíus numerus secundum Apocalypsin Joannis 9 intra
sexcenta sexaginta sex clauditur, ex quibus iam pene sexcenti sunt anni
completi. º7
The identification of the year of Muf:iammad's death was a Spanish
product, for in the first text where it appears, the Liber apologeticus
marryrum, it is dated in the Spanish era (38 years less than the Christian
era). Probably, Espina's most interesting contribution is the calcula-
tion of thís number as 666, this time using thc Christian era: based
on thc tcxt of the Apocalypse and considering that according to the
Speculum historia/e of Vincent de Beauvais (1254), Mul;iammad only lived
for sixty-three years, he concludcs that six hundred and sixty-six is
the munber of years that clapsed from the moment when Our Lord
becarne man to the end of Mul;.ammad's life. Beato de Liébana had
provided the meaning of the Greek equivalent to DCLXVI (antemos
arnoyme leytan). After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, Espina could
elaborate the rest of the calculations. 38
For the same purpose- the identification of Mul).ammad with
thc Beast- Torquemada cpose a simpler scheme. Follovving Jacques
de Vitry's History ef the Eastern Church, he tried to provc through
Mul;.ammad's biography that his lust was the sign of hís being the
Bcast. His fiftccn wives and two concubines confirmcd his doubious
moral principlcs. His ambition made him climb in social status
through tradc and marriage but, as he could not manage to bccome
37
"Ancl certainly Christian peoples owned almost ali thc Saracen provinccs con-
tínuously until after the times of thc holy Regortius. But since then was born a
ccrtain son of destructíon, the pseudo-prophet Mul)ammad, who seduced many
away from Truth by mcans of secular entícements and lustful plcasures. His perfidy
has grown continuously until our times. Ncvcrthclcss, we trust God, who has already
given us sorne good sign that the end of this Beast ís approaching; and its number
according to thc Apocalypse ofJohn is limited to síx hundrcd and sixty-six, of which
almost six hundred years have bccn complctecl." PL, vol. 216, co. 818.
38
FF, f. l l 7r- v.
CONTRA ERRORES MACHOMETI ... 113
a k:ing, he called himsclf a prophet, simulating his holyness. He was
so violent in his doctrine that after being taught by a Nestorian
monk, he had dcceived the Arabs with his pretended law, by means
of incrediblc miracles. He persecuted Christians with careful schcmes,
such as forbidding his disciples to dispute their law and to study phi-
losophy. 1\!Ioreover, he started preaching to common people so that
he could claim to be a prophct without opposition, and he made
his law lustful to attract more believers. His claim of being God's
prophet, his false miraclcs and epilepsy made him a great deceiver.
But he was also a cruel tyrant because he made his disciples live
according to his example- that of the Beast- undcr penalty of death.
Whcn he said they must believc in God and his mcssenger, he was
asking his people to believe in thc Bcast. 39
Resides the inaccuracies contained in the text, explained by the
effort to ridicule the Prophct, there is a difference between Espina
and Torquemada: whilc the Fortalitium starts with l\lluJ:¡ammad's
chronologicaI biography and then introduces the description of the
Beast according to the Apocalypse, Torquemada, probably due to
lack of time and the structure of his work, bcgins dircctly with the
identification with the Beast, explaining fcwcr and usually more
deformed cpisodes of the Prophct's biography.
C/zronicles in Polemics
As has previously been explained, the collectíons of cxcmpla were
introduced from scrmons into preaching líterature. Considering the
different sourccs from which these exempla wcrc takcn -,,-fables, every-
day life, legcnds, hagiography, history--- it is not surprising to see how
Iberian historical sources becamc part of the treatises. This happens
as a trend in Iberian books such as the Valerio de las historias, a col-
lectíon of exempla related to Spanish history. A great part of it
(Book I, title V) is devotcd to war against 1\!luslims. Thc book was
first published in 14-87 by the royal chaplain Diego Rodríguez de
Almcla.
v\Tycliff's Opus evangelicum (1384) used wars against Islam ;to explain
violence in the W cstern world. Ali those wars had thcir origin in
sin, being a clear dcmonstration of thc nccd to rcform the Church.
39
CE, pp. 10- 15.
114 CHAPTER FIVE
Howcvcr, in his De fide catholica he defended thc notion that every-
body could be saved, cvcn Saracens, if thcy appcalcd to Christ befare
death. Thc cxplanation of Islam in a context of schism was a product
of the excesses of ecclesiastical institutions, including the papacy. It
is rernarkable that almost every medieval author conceived Islam as
a punishment for sin- whoever the sinner might be.
The use of these sources in fifteenth-century polcmical literature
responds to thc following features: in general, thcy are historical
examplcs, takcn from chronicles or hagiography; thcir origin is nor-
mally medieval Christian tradition, with an cxccption such as the
Liber scalae from Arabic litcraturc. Thc inforrnation comes from writ-
ten sources rather than oral, although sorne part of it might be thc
author,s own. 40 It is hard to agrcc with Lavajo, who considers thc-
ological works "more serene and better informed"41 than historical
.ones. Ta.king the case of fifteenth-century Iberian writers, the more
historical sourccs thcy use, the more accurate thc work is. Usually
when thcological thought is counterbalanced by historical facts, not-
withstanding thcir intcrpretation and situation in differcnt contexts,
rejection of Islam is less harsh.
Of all the writers studied herc, Espina is the only one to use mate-
rial from chronicles ali through his work. In the Fortalilium fidei this
is particularly noticeable in consideration IV, entirely devoted to the
criticism of Mu}:iammad's ascent to heaven as told in the Liber scalae
and reproduced in Alfonso X's Primera crónica general. Considcrations
VI and VII refer to Mu}:iarnmad's death according to the same
chronicle. Thc story of the first caliphs carne from Jacques de Vitry's
Liber de rebus et statu Yerre Orientalium. Finally, consideration IX is
devoted to thc wars and triumphs of Christians and Muslims in the
Península, the Holy Land and Constantinople. 42
The information takcn from J acques de Vitry for considcration
VII is a vcry interesting anthropological tcxt, and it is surprising to
find it in a book such as the Fortalitium is said to be. Again this is
a proof of Espina's rclativc objectivity whcn it carne to something
more historical than rcligious.+ 3 MuJ:iammad's succession is told in a
somewhat unorganised way, only mcntioning <Al:r out of the four
40
Sénac, Ph.: L'image de l'autre, pp. l 1H· 1'12.
~1 Lavajo, J.: op. cit., p. 24 7.
'
12
FF, f. 12lv- 125r, 14lr- 17lr.
B FF, f. 134r· 135v.
COJVTRA RRROR.ES MAC!!OMETI . . . 115
orthodox caliphs. The struggles for power in the Near East are omit-
ted, except to mention that thcrc were two caliphs, in Egypt and
al-Andalus, no doubt influenccd by the propaganda circulating in
the Peninsula ever sincc <Abd al-Ra}:iman III and the stories from
the crusades. That is also the reason why Saladdin is mentioned sev-
era! times, whilc no other sultan is. The rcst of thc chapter deals
with the peoplcs who did not acccpt Islam in Eastern Europc and
those who, bcing pagans, <lid: Turks, beduins, cte., with a very bricf
account of their geographical situation and their cultures. Evcn the
differences in the way of praying taken frorn Christian prcdecesors
are noted. The work rcveals sorne first-hand informatíon which no
doubt Vitry was ablc to obtain during his travels.
On the othcr hand, considerations VIII and IX are closely related,
the former bcing an account of wars between Christians and l\!Iuslims
«by means of arguments" and thc latter "by means of physical
wcapons". In the structurc of the book, the function of thcsc n-vo
chapters is to introduce thc reader to the most important argument,
explained in three considerations: the reason why Muslims occupy
the Holy Land, what should be imposed on them whcn they became
subjects of a Christian ruler and finally, how and when the end of
their power would come so that thcy would serve under the Christians.
In this aspcct the scheme respccts the use of exempla in sermons,
for starting from an anecdotc, in this case the secular triumphs in
battlc, the author reachcs a general conclusion: the end of Muslim
powcr in the Península and the rest of the world. And in cvery single
battle he recounts thcrc is a particular moral conclusion to learn from,
so consideration IX can be taken as a collcction of cxempla in itself.
Only Jean Germain used historical rcfcrcnccs for the same purposc
as Espina, although he did not kccp the structure of a chroniclc. He
also preferrcd to use episodes of sacred history rather than accounts
of specific battles, and was particularly fond of mentioning the geo-
graphical distribution of saints and relics to support his cxplanation
of thc devclopment of Christian communities. 44
Espina's use of chroniclcs is directly related to his social back-
ground and his position at the Castilian court. Since thesc; particular
groups wcre the ones to mal(e decisions about Islamic affairs in the
Península, his work can be read as a manifcstation of the prevailing
+ I See Le livre du crestien' .. , [, 399r-4 l 9v and the Exhortation a Charles Vil . .. ,
f. 6r- 15v.
116 CHAPTER FIVE
trends. The conclusion is appalling: crusadc was the only way to
expcll thc Saracens from the Peninsula. Howcvcr, thc rcligious per-
sonality of the author conditioned his views on the possibility of
coexistence-always under Christian domination. Consequently, the
book can be read in another direction, as a way to work on thc
minds of high clergy, nobles and the king himsclf, to make them
fulfil their military duties while preachers would coopcratc with their
own m1ss10n.
Thc structure of considcratíon IX is simple: after Alfonso X's
Primera crónica general (c. 1278), Espina develops a tale of one hundrcd
and fifty-eight battles which could be either Christian or Muslim tri-
umphs, but always leacling to a final defeat of the latter. The "longing
far authentic material"45 had led Alfonso X to encourage the transla-
tion and use of Arabic material by means of the vcry famous school
of translators he founded in Toledo. Thc fact that only this part of
the Fortalitium is illuminated suggests a continuation of schemcs of
decoration linked to certain categorics of books, which remained the
same when the book was copied into others. Alfonso X's Crónica gen-
eral might be one of these type-books, and therefore the illumination
of the Fortalitium must be related to one of the versions of the chronicle,
given that it is its main source. And interestingly cnough in a book
about Islam, Mul).ammad is represented not once.
When analyscd carefully, there are scvcral features in the Fortalitium
illustrations which differ from the Alfonsinc miniatures. Starting with
banners, the half-moon standard <lid not appear in thirteenth-century
illuminations. The Arabic lcttcrs written on sorne of them were real
sentences in the Cantigas, whercas the ones in fifteenth-century draw-
ings were just imitations. Fashion had developed on both sides:
Christian armour varied from Fernán González's haubcrk to the
tournament armour in the aforementioned first miniature. Helmets
also ranged from mere basinets or conic-helmcts to thc Moorish-
fashioned round steel-caps, and the more elaborate chivalric helmets
with worked vizors. Finally, landscapes had changed, introducing cas-
tles in the Renaíssance taste rather than real bulwarks for defcnce.
There are also sorne common featurcs such as the double-lobcd
shields (adargas) of the Muslim army, introduced by the Almohads,
and their habit of wearing long robes instead of foil armour. Thc
weapon par excellence was javelins. Muslims were always depicted with
45
Daniel, N .: The Arabs and JVIedieoal Eumpe, p. 93.
CONTRA ERRORES MACHOMETI . . . 117
beards, as was ordcred for Mudejars, although through the frescoes
in the Alhambra we know that by thís time many of them did shave.
The use of Rodrigo Jiménez de Rada's Historia Arabum (c. 1200)
mcant thc incorporation of a numbcr of Mozarab legends bascd on
Arabic oral tradition. 46 The rcst of the sources come from the Mester
de Clerecía, a famous school of Iberian ecclesiastical wrítcrs active
in the thirteenth century. Espina used Gonzalo de Bercco's Life ef
San Allillán de la Cogolla (c. 1250); the Poema de Fernán González (c. 1252),
an epic tale about the first independcnt Castilian count, having an
important symbolic meaning; and the Poema del Cid (c. 1207), to fill
thc blanks of the Crónica general. For the period between Alfonso X's
death and Espina's own life, he chose mostly royal chronicles or
poems such as Alfonso XI's; in any case the sources which he would
certainly find in any ccclesiastical library. The problem posed by the
intermingling of European books containing crusader traditions-
such as Jacqucs de Vitry's- was that they were not a good excrcisc
in pcrccption, but rather a grcat imaginative development combined
with, information gathercd from Byzantine traclition. 47
Each chapter of thc Fortalitium is arranged around sorne key-:figures
or legends, which are grouped in "sagas" or collections of traclitions.
At the same time, the distribution of miniaturcs is linked to the
explanation of the most important battles or miracles. Although most
of them are profane, according to a subject classification, there are
sorne which encompass a religious theme. Sorne of them are chosen
as type-subjects,411 and thus repeated throughout the narrative.
Thc first series starts with the wars against the Byzantinc empire
until the greatest cxpansion of Islam was reachcd (9 wars). Wars
against the Visígoths for the conqucst of thc Península are used as
backgrormd for thc beginning of Christian counter-attack. The com-
bined front of the Carolingians in Catalonia (15 wars) and the bat-
tle of Covadonga in Asturias give way to the core of the Reconquest
under Alfonso III King of León and his successors (28 wars). This
part corresponds to the most impressive miniatures built up in frames
or mcdallions, linked to miracles like the building of thc first church
of Saint James, and also to a nurnber of figurcs in the central margins
including King Alfonso III on his horsc (wars n. 50-·-·52). These wars
46
. Daniel, N.: 77ie Arabs and lvledieval Europe, p. 94.
47
Southcrn, R. W.: op. cit., pp. 30- 31.
48
Smeyers, M.: op. cit., p. 48.
118 CI-IAPTER FIVE
are intcrrupted by a raid in Rome and the parallel story of the epic
hero Bernardo del Carpio. The climax is rcachcd with thc wars of
Fernán Gonzálcz of Castile and his son against the Chamberlain
Muryammad ibn Abi cAmir al-Man~ür, also depicted in several minia-
tures. Thc Castilian lcgcnd of the seven Infantes de Lara descrvcd
as much as twelve wars. There followed the feats of Fernando 1,
Alfonso VI and Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar "El Cid" (30 wars) showing
the national feeling of the author as much as his rcligious aims. This
series is the most heavily illustrated. Therc are sevcral small figures in
the margins dcpicting El Cid, King Femando III and King Alfonso VI
(wars n. 76, 78, 87-89, 90-91, 106-109) as well as large sccnes
about thc conquest of Valencia by El Cid. He is showed fighting
thc King of Morocco and thirty Muslim princes while the city is
besieged by sea. The next scene shows the same place aftcr El Cid's
death. The garrison is emptying the city and the 1\!Iuslim princes líe
dead beneath the walls while their army is disbandcd. It is interest-
ing to see that thc Moroccans are dressed diffcrcntly from Andalusian
Muslims (wars n. 107-111).
On the intcrnational scene the kcy-cpisode of this period is thc
First Crusade (6 wars), illustrated by the capture of Antioch by
Raymond of Toulousc (also rcprcscnted by a saint holding a holy
lance in a small miniature in war 99) and the fall ofJerusalem before
Geoffrey of Bouillon (wars n. 99- 100). Continuing with thc Rcconquest
in the Península, the next seventeen wars include the battles of
Alarcos and Navas de Tolosa. The latter was won by Alfonso VIII
with the help of an angel and is definitely a subjcct for anothcr large
miniature (war n. 121). As for the Second Crusade (3 wars) and
SaintLouis's crusades (7 battles), there are scvcral unlmown Christian
soldiers in the margins of different battlcs (wars n. 66, 119-120). 49
. When the information contained in the Crónica general is finishcd,
the chapters become shorter and more confusing. Dating disappears
or is wrong, and there is seldom more than one reference to cach
reign, compared to the amount of battlcs concentrated in the periods
of Fernán Gonzálcz or Alfonso VI. After the destruction of the T em-
plars, there is a short account of thc battles fought by Alfonso XI
(8 wars) including the capture of Algcciras, depicted in a bíg minia-
ture due to the fact that thc battle was won on the ycar of Saint
4
G Ali these episodes starting from war n. 16 are lakcn, cither complete or sum-
marized, from Alfonso X: P1imera crónica general, I, 567-1009.
COJVTRA ERRORES iv!ACHOMETI . . . 119
Jamcs's Jubilce (war n. 148). These are combíned with the advance
of the Banü 1\!Iarin from North Africa and the rcsistance and capture
of the south of the Península around Granada (1 O wars). The last
three battles are devoted to the Turkish advancc towards Constan-
tinople and the Portuguese conquests in North Africa. The last largc
image is that of the Turks' defeat at Belgrade (war n. 15 7): whilc a
miracle occurs, the Christian army, in armour clifferent from that
uscd in the Ibcrian Península, fights thc Turks. Thesc are wearing
J anissaries caps, dcscribed by the sourccs as somcwhat ridiculous as
compared to Andalusian fashion. 50
Omissions are as important as mentions. First, only Leonese and
Castilian kings were included, except Jaime I of Aragon, Charlemagne
of France and Sancho of Navarre, due to the need to stress Castilian
claims to be the oldest monarchy in thc Península, directly linkcd
to the Visigothíc kingd9m. Also thc gaps in the text of thc Crónica
general are not only intended for brcvity, but also to avoid most
Islamic triuinphs and to leave aside internal strugglcs among Christian
princes, a fact which could be highly discouraging when trying to
persuade these leaders to engage in wars "of religion".
Espina did not attempt an exhaustive journey through ali the Penin-
sular Reconquest, but rathcr a collection of cdifying battles to movc
opinions. However, sorne wcll-known battles are missing in his account,
probably due to thcir cxcessive "worldlincss", i.c., the absence of any
miraculous tradition to attach to them, which madc thcm useless in
thc context of rcligion.
Two tcndcncics can be appreciated in the Forlalitium: a providencial
view of history and a nationalistic and patriotic feeling which informed
the wholc argument. The moral identity of Europe was preserved
by a fiercely determined orthodoxy and religion had become thc
expression of that sense of idcntity, 51 being the basis of nationalistic
ideas in the Península, and identifying the cncmy with the Saraccn.
God-providence had a dircct participation in war, according to the
text. The fall of the Visigothic kingdom and that of Eraclius's cmpire
were caused by the sins of their rulers. Mu}:iammad was an instrument
of God's punishmcnt, but that did not mean that God had left his
people abandoned or that the power of Islam would be eternal. Even
Muslim authors uscd to see Christian history in this way: Mul,iarnmad
''º Bunes, M. A.: La imagen de los musulmanes . .. , p. 25.5.
51
Daniel, N.: Islam and the West, p. 299. Meyuhas Gínio, A.: Laforteresse, p. 151.
120 CHAPTER FIVE
al-Qays1 thought that thc Christian defeats at Algcciras and Almería
were a punishmcnt for the expulsíon of the Ordcr of Templars frorn
Castile, far they acted as protectors of Muslirns. 52
Miracles werc God's more direct way of intervention. These werc
perforrned mainly by Saint James, patron-saint of Castile; Saint
Isidore, Saint l\llillán or by other holy figures such as abbots, bishops
or angcls. The fighting was between two religious communities, not
only between ethnic or social groups, so this invasion of the sacred
is justified in the opposition of Christ and Muhammad and Christians
. '
against Muslims--even the feeling of Euro pe against the N car East
disappears when the Peninsular case is discusscd. It would be hard
to establish a difference between thc way Castilians-not so much
the Catalans and the Aragonese- dcalt with Europeans in chronicles
and the way they did with Muslims. Both Europeans and Muslims
werc foreign to them and their interests and intcrvention from
' .
France, though easy to dcmand, was not always welcome. 53 In fact,
from Alfonso Vl's reign, Castilian conscíousness grew as anti-Frankish
feeling <lid, and was openly manifested in the chronicles. Latcr on,
the Aragonese would fulfil the same role as the French.
In the thirtcenth centmy, new val u es emerged su ch as the notion
that death for the realm or for the faith was better than slavery.
Crusader ideals started to have sorne infiuence on Peninsular thought,
and Castilians startcd to dream of hcgemony, to such an extent that
any externa! cooperation against Muslims was considered dangerous
for the interests of the realm. This was specially so regarding Carol-
ingian campaigns in the Peninsula and, to a lesser extent, when other
Peninsular monarchies were involvcd. 54 Regarding Islam, Jiménez de
Rada's Historia arabum was a better exarnple of coexistence than his
De rebus Hispaniae, duc to his use of Arabic sources. But still he found
it difficult to trust the Saracens, whom his contemporaries thought
were ready to betray both in treaties and battle.
A special patriotic feeling can be obscrved in all fifteenth-century
prose writers including theologians, and is usually related to the use
of local sources for their books. Castilc had bccn creating a self-
52
Cardaillac, L.: op. cit., pp. 15 1-· l 52.
53
Lavajo, J.: op. cit., pp. 240 ff.
5 ·1 Bark. R . : op. cit.,
. pp. 212-213.
ai,
CONTRA ERRORES MACHOMETJ . . . 121
awarcncss which greatly affected ali works bascd to sorne cxtent on
chronicles or story-telling. It is the case of Alfonso García de Santa
María (d. 1456), conveno bishop of Burgos. His Anacephaleosis shows
how traditions were remodelled for conternporary situations in Castile,
more than in Aragon or Portuga1:5 ~ The nced to establish the older
or superior origins of the Castilian monarchy through mythology and
historical sources is clcarly rclatcd to thc self-awareness developed
by Castilian socicty regarding the rest of the Peninsular kingdoms,
cspecially with respcct to Granada. While Alfonso García used royal
gcncalogy, Alonso de Espina preferred the old way of uniting Castile
against "thc enemy" and referred to fighting against Islam as the
link bctwccn the Visigothic power and the Castilian rulers. Internal
affairs of the kingdom were omitted, and legitimacy was never ques-
tioned except by the sword. ·Royal chroniclcrs likc Palencia were re-
markable in this natíonalistic trend, and Rodrigo Sánchez de Arévalo
planned his Compendiosa historia hisj1anica in thc samc spirit. Identification
of enemies of the faith vvith encmics of the people or the country
was a very helpful dcvice. 56 Howcver, in general, all warriors wcrc
called Christíans without making too much of which kingdom thcy
bclonged to; thc unity of t11e Peninsular kingdoms was ncvcr men-
tioned as a condition for Christian triumph. 57
Popular awareness of their historical past was manifosted in a very
intcresting way during the two-month siege of Simancas, in ~ 465.
Thc soldicrs dccided to stage a parody of the dcthroncmcnt at Avila.
The statue representing Archbishop Carrillo was named after Don
Oppas, the traitor brother of Don Julián who, according to tradition,
helped the Iviuslims in their first incursion in to the Península. 58
The parallel suggested bctwccn thc two churchmen helping to bring
clown monarchy, Don Oppas the Visigoth and Carrillo the Castilian>
shows a special identification of fifteenth-century Castilians with their
ancestors, and their acquaintance with epics as a source of histori-
cal information.
55
Tate, R. B.: Ensqyos sobre hisloriogrefía jJenin.mlar, pp. 56- 67.
56
Richard, B.: op. cit., p. 122.
57
Barkai, R.: of!. cit., p. 51. ·
58
Enríqucz del Castillo, D.: op. cit. , pp. 242- 243. Ct: Phillips, W. D.: op. cit., pp.
98- 99.
122 CHAPTER FIVE
Characters far Polemícs
a) lvlu~ammad's biograph:J1
Long ago, Southern realiscd that Christian authors preferred to lcarn
about 1\/Iu}:iammad from "thc meagrc Latin sourcc" rathcr than from
the Koran or Islamic bibliographical compilations about the life of
thc Prophct. His apprcciation was that "thcy wcrc flceing from the
embrace of Islam". 59 Thercfore, the transmission of Mul)ammad's
lifc by European authors was heavily conditioncd by Christian \i\Tcstern
notions: a spccial emphasis was given to his low birth in a family of
idolaters; his social improvcments first through trade and plunder, 60
then by marriagc, which cven brought him a crown; and bis cultural
training which, according to sorne authors, included not only magic,
but also the Trivium and Quadrivium. 6 1 Gradually, Islamic biogra-
phcrs were taken into consideration, after the linguistíc approach of
the thirteenth century. The Christians took from the Arab writers
the emphasis on MuJ:iammad's dcscent. 62 It secms again that Ibcrian
authors were more fa.miliar with traditions rcgardíng Mul:iammad's
lifc than other European ones, spccially thosc who had no contacts
with thc Holy Land.
Whilc polemics referrcd to dogmatic qucstions su ch as the mys-
tery of the Trinity and thc like, debate was fruitful. When Christian
authors rejectcd Mul,iammad's claim to prophethood, thcy started a
new trend which would prove dangerous for religious dialogue. Thcir
mistake was to attempt to validatc Islam according to Christian stand-
ards, and to understand .i\!Iul,iammad wíthin a theological tradition
far from his own.63 Both Raimundo Martí and Ricoldo de Montccroce,
quoted by T orquemada and Cavallería, stated that a real prophet
had to mcet several requirements which wcre not at ali clear for
.i\!Iu.Q_ammad. Several anecdotes demonstratcd that he was lustful: he
claimed to have the sexual powcr of forty men;64 he married several
times contravcníng thc Christian idea of cclibacy and the model of
Southcrn, R . W .: op. cit., p. 26.
5
~
CE, pp. 11- 12.
6Ci
ni D aniel, N.: The Arabs and Medieval Europe, pp. 233 and ff. See Wolf; K. B.: "Thc
Earlicst Latin Lives of Mul;iammad", in Conversion and continui[Y, pp. 89-101.
62
Daniel, N.: Islam and t!ze West, p. 79.
63
Khoury, J\.-Th.: "Les théologiens chretiens ... ", Penpectives de la catholicíté, 25,
pp. 84--86.
64
CE, p. 11.
CON1RA ERRORES MACHOMETI . . . 123
ascetic prophets; he even married his own son's former wife. But
thesc were not the only things to be considered for condemnation.
The most important were his lack of qualities such as clevation of
spirit and contemplation, and his attcmpt to lic for God's sake.
However, in their attempts to reject JVIu}:iamrnad's claims to prophet-
hood, Christian authors did not refcr to a litcrary genre callcd "thc
proofs of prophecy", which was started throughout the Arabic world
in the clcvcnth century by Abü Nu<aim al-IsfühanI and al-Baihakü.
The genre consisted of pseudo-biographies of thc Prophet relating
the miraclcs which made him acknawledged by animals and humans
as God's messengcr. Bibliography about the Prophct was of course
abundant another classical work of special importance in the Península,
the Kitab al-ShijaJ Ji ta'rff hukuk al-Nlustafa (Thc book of remedy to
show the rights of God"s messenger), written by the qa(l.f 'Iyad, a
maliki theologian who actcd as judge in Ceuta and Granada, was so
wcll considered that it was used as a talisman. 65 This kind of lslamic
literature proved that Mul)ammad was spcaking in thc name of God
through miracles, although scholars do not agrce on thc exact impor-
tance of miracles in the making of a prophct in Islam. Prediction
was not considered, for it only referrcd to the Day of Judgcment and
thereforc, was impossible to chcck. 66
Among the lies Mu}:iammad was accussed of uttering was his claim
to be the last prophet, after whom no other would come, nor any
67
prophecy be made. Also, thc Prophet's identification with thc Paraclete
was severcly condemned by Christian writers, as was his identification
with other prophecies from the Old Tcstament. Nor could they
accept that his name was written on God's throne: firstly, because
that would give Paradise and the throne a corporeal naturc which
thc Christian fathers were not ready to accept; secondly, because
therc was no way for JV1ul).ammad to be sure about such a prcmise.
The othcr signs which wcrc supposed to demonstratc thc e:xistcnce
of a prophet were goodness and virtuc, the ability to work miraclcs
and the quality of thc law he preached: it had to be "holy and good,
lcading nations to the worship of the one God, and men to holincss
of lifc and concord and peace". Nonc of these wcrc satisfied by
6~ Schimmel, A. 1L And Mu(wmmad is his messenger, p. 33.
GG Jomier, S.: "La noción de profeta en el Islam", Documentación aji·oasiática ( 1.972),
pp. 5- 6. . . '
67 Th e refercnce is to John 16, 7-14. Mul:i.ammad also dauned that the Prophets
of the Old T cstament had announccd him: ZC, [ 7lv, 138v, 141v.
 124 CHAPTER FIVE
MuJ:iammad according to Christians. 6ª However the Sanusi;yya, in thc
late l\!Iiddle Agcs, quoted the samc qualities for the Prophet: "the
Prophet has four necessary attributes: he must be truthful and trust-
worthy; he has definitely to proclaim the Divine word and has to be
sagacious and intelligent. It is ímpossiblc that he should lic, be faith-
less or treacherous, should conceal the divine messagc or be stupid.
One possible trait is that he may be subject to accidental human wcak-
ncsses". 69 Thc final proof was the success of Islam-its expansion.
In particular, the question of working miracles, which was considered
essential as a refutation, <lid not carn general agreement. Despite the
efforts of MuJ:iammad and thc Koran to prove that miraclcs wcre
not necessary for his mission, both within Islam and Christendom
this aspcct was strcsscd. Torquemada refcrred to thc miracle "of thc
broken moon" as part of MuJ:iammad's magic powers. Espina pre-
ferred the pscudo-miracle of the dovc and the bull to prove that his
doctrine was based on tricks. In both cases, they were agreeíng with
Islamic orthodox doctrine, which said that MuJ:iammad's only miracle
was the rendering of the Koran. 70
Thc last attack was against the very foundation of Islam, thc
shahiida, which was uscd as the formula to submit to Islam. When
MuJ:iammad asked his followers to bclicve in God and his messenger,
he was asking for the aknowledgemcnt of his mission. According to
Christian writcrs, such acknowledgcment should be denied for ali
the other rcasons mentioned throughout his biogTaphy.
Since sources for Mul,iammad's life were more easily acccssible in
Latin, thc accuracy of fifteenth-century writers relied vcry much on
their predecessors. Raimundo Martí, who could rcad Arabic, had
used the Sfra rasul Allah writtcn by lVluJ::iammad ibn I~.Q.aq in thc
eighth century and the collections of traditions, specially the ones
compiled by Mu):iammad ibn Isma.'ll al-Bukhari and Muslim ibn
al-Hadjdjadj al-QushayrI. But sorne polemical texts such as Saint
Eulogius's Liber apologeticus marryrum, which is full of misconceptions,
were considered accurate sources in medieval tcrms. The Byzantine
author Theophanes wrote another version in his Chronographia, used
by Lucas de Tuy, 71 and aftenvards by Alfonso X and Alonso de
Ga Cf.: Daniel, N.: Islam and tlze West, pp. 70- 71, referrcd to Montecrocc's Disputalio,
ch. 8.
6
Y Schimmel, A. M.: op. cit., pp. 52, 57-58.
°
7
CE, pp. 18---19; FF, f. l 19r, L20r-v; ZC, { L40r. The story of thc dovc was
fir;~ used ~y Frances~ Eíximenis, cf. Cerulli, E.: Nuove ricerche ... , p . 21.
Lavajo, J.: op. cit., I, p. 180.
CONTI&l ERRORES 1WACHOMETI ... 125
Espina. Thus, confusion is thc overall imprcssion when analysing the
biographies VlrrÍttcn by Espina and Torquemada. Cavallcría's references
are only to sorne short episodes, so his cannot be considered a proper
biography.
The legend of Balµra-Sergius condcnscd the manifestation ofJcwish
and Christian infl.uences on thc Prophet and the society of his cpoch.
BaJ:iira, a wandering monk in Arabic tradition, became Sergius, a
Ncstorian monk who had bccn expelled from Christendom. 72 On his
flight to Arabia, thc Prophet learnt about Judaism, and either with
or without sorne collcagues- depending on the tradition--·, he "cor-
rupted" the neighbouring tribes. When MuJ:iammad travelled with his
uncle's caravans, he met Sergius and bccame his pupil. For Christian
writers, that was the reason for thc amount of Biblical information
contained in the Koran. The idea underlying such a legend was that
Arabia was an area subject to outside influence because it was unruly
and on the edge of the known world. The most complicated exam-
ple of accúlturation in this background is containcd in the Contrarietas
elfolica- and later transferred to Espina by means of Ricoldo ·de
Montecrocc--where 1tiu):iammad was said to be taught by Bal:iira,
Seleam thc Jcw and the Pcrsian Salon. 73 The story was omíttcd by
Eulogius's biography of Mul}.ammad and did not appear in Iberian
tradition until the Collectio Toletana was diffused in the Peninsula.
Instead, the authors from Córdoba used the myth of Mul:.iammad
"the mage " .74 Th e same ep1t . h et was use d ior
.e Scotto and Gerbert
d' Aurillac, who entcred the legend of the Península as being famous
for the learning and practice of magic arts on a large scale. Seville
was considered as the centre for divination, while Toledo and Córdoba
were associated with the teaching of mathematics, astronomy, astrology,
medicine and alchemy. 75 In the words of Daniel, "the misrcpresen-
tation of the Prophet as a mage may be an unconscious recognition
of thc grcater learning of the Arabs". 76 The Crónica general cxpressed
this idea-as did Espina in the article about the authorship of
MuJ::iammad's sect----in the story of a Jcwish astronomer. He was a
good friend of Mul:iammad's father 'Abd Allah, and himself a learncd
man, expert in Jcwish and Christian laws. When the time carne for
72
CE, p. 14.
73
Daniel, N.: The Arabs and kfedieval Eumpe, p. 242.
71
Lavajo, J.: op. cit., I, p. 300. ·
75
D 'Alver;ny, M. T.: "Marc de Tolede .. .", al-Andalus (1951), pp. 1 !8- 119. Also
Garrosa Resma, A.: ;\/fagi,aJ• superstición en la literatura caslellana .. ., pp. 33-37 .
76
Daniel, N.: The Jlrabs and J\!ledieval Europe, p. 94.

126 CHAPTER FIVE
Mul;iammad's birth, the Jew interpreted hís destiny according to the
stars and announced it to hís parents. Later on, he testified about
thc hcart of Mu}:iammad being washcd and weighed by two angcls,
a tradition takcn from the collection by J\lluslim, 77 although trans-
formed to build up two different storics. Pcrhaps the figure of thc
Jew can be identified as thc sourcc of thc tradition, eithcr Anas ibn
Mal:ik or Abü Darr, misundcrstod by Christian writers. When Abü
Talib assumed the custody of the orphan, the same Jewish astronomer
"taught him natural sciences and the law of Jews and Christians.
From thc knowlcdgc he acquired, he took ali those things which he
latcr included in that evil sect he created, ordained for the ruin of
the souls believing in it".78
But thís was not enough with respect to the origins of Islam, so
both the Crónica general and the Fortalitium insist on Muhammad's
training in the desert not by one, but by a couple of monks: thc heretic
John and the Nestorian Sergius. Such a recurrent reference is ímportant
in the criticism it implies of Mul;iammad's doctrine being unoriginal-
thus not rcvcalcd by God- but rather a forgery of already-established
doctrines which made him a heretic. As Daniel stated, "Latins wcre
not always, but oftcn, well-informed about the history of various
Christian heresies, and thcir chronology makes Islam thc culmination
and often the sum of ali the hercsies, an argument sometimcs worked
out in detail". 79 However, it was diffi.cult to rcgard Islam as a heresy,
beca.use .M:Ul;tammad was thc first herctic to claím that he had received
a revelatíon from God which was not contained in the Bible. The
fact that writers considered his followers in a group apart from
heretics means an acknowledgement of the difference, which was not
yet clear by the time of John Crisostomos.
The next step in the Prophet's career was bis marriage to Khadidja,
lady of Corozan (Khurasan), based on the sura 93. Christian writers
cnhanced thc fact that Khadiqja was one of the first bclievers. Women
were known to be easier to deceive than men according to medieval
standards, and this negative image was implied in this cpisode. It
was too late whcn she discovered that her husband had epileptic
fits. He explained them as a result of Gabricl's apparition, and she
77
Muslim ibn al-Hadjdjadj: Sa(zih j\¡[uslim . . ., ed. by A. Hamid Siddiqf, Lahore
1976- 78, vol. 1, p. 103.
°
7
79
FF, t: 99v . .Jiménez de Rada: Hútoria arabum, p. 243.
Daniel, N .: 1he Arabs and A'fedieval Europe, p. 242.
.....,,..,,.,....,.,......,.,.------------------·- -·- ·
CO.NTRA ERRORt,"'S MACHOME11 . . . 127
bclíeved him. The story was compiled by Vincent de Bcauvais, greatly
successful in European polcmics, quoted by Torqucmada and used
by Espina to explain why J\!Iul;tammad's lifc was monstruous. 80
But by means of the marriage, Mul;iammad had also become a
secular leader. The arabs considered Khurasan to be the key province
of the <Abbasid territory: whoevcr controlled it, controlled the caliphate.
According to Jiménez de Rada, Mu}:l.ammad was offered the throne
and govcrnment of Syria after his marriage. 81 Since the tradition was
introduced into Christian literaturc afrer thc cleventh ccntury, the
Prophet's lordship of Khurasan is one of the most interesting anachro-
nisms in his biography.
But whíle Khadi'dja was considered a matter of state, the Prophct's
other wives were a matter of lust and cause for scandal. Christian
writers saw this personal defect as the reason for Islamic polygamy,
for Mul;iammad had to ask God for revelations to justify his desire
for Maryam, 32 the daughtcr of one of the Arabic rulers, and Zaynab,
thc wife of his adopted son. At least, that was the interpretation of
St. John Damascene, quotcd by Ricoldo in a more elaboratc way
as a justification of adultery. But in general, thc point of morality
was as important as the fact of God sending revelations in response
to political, social and family problems, somethíng which Christian
authors were not at all used to. 83 J\!Ioreovcr, MuQ.ammad dared to
change God's messagc according to his own desires. Polygamy was
bound to be dangerous beca.use it cncouragcd lust.
The concept of religious and secular leadership togethcr, in the
way Mul;tammad and thc cahphs claimcd it, was quite strangc to
Christian cyes. Although thc struggle between pope and empcror had
bccn going on for several ccnturies, none of them claimed to be a
prophet and a secular leader, a messenger of God and a conqueror
of cmpires at thc same time. That was certainly anothcr matter for
criticism. The closcst any fifteenth-century writer got to it was Tor-
quemada's accusation that when J\!Iul:iammad was unable to pro-
claím himself a kíng, he pretended to be a prophet, because it was
easier to deceive peoplc claiming that he had received rcvelation
8
° FF, f. l 18v; CE, p. 12; about epilepsy, p . 18. Ct: Daniel, N.: Islam and the
West, p. 27.
~1 Daniel, N .: Tlze Arabs and },;Jedieval Europe, p. 232. 'fhc story was collcctcd by
Hugh of Fleury (c. 1091- 1124) and rctaken by Vinccnl de B cauvai~.
82
CE, p. 13.
H:l R.icoido de Montecroce: DisfJUlatio, f. 84r. Cf. Schimmcl, A. Ivl.: op. cit., p . 52.
128 CHAPTER FIVE
from God. 34 For Muslims, it was the other way round: the messagc
of Christ, focused on the spiritual and humility, sccmed too weak
and incompletc for thc last prophct. A successful onc would doubt-
less use force if compcllcd to, especially if it helped to expand God's
mcssage. 85
Alonso de Espina used another curious passage of the Crónica general:
the legend of l\llul;tammad and Saint Isidore of Seville, 86 which secms
to be original from the Iberian background. It tells how a certain
Mul;tammad crossed the sea towards Visigothic Spain in the last year
of Recaredus's reign to preach his doctrine in Córdoba. Saint Isidore,
who was just on his way back from Rome, ordered his mcn to catch
him. But MuJ:iammad was warned by the devil and managed to
escape back to the East, whcre he continucd his conquests. It is well
worth noting that ali the characters in the story were contemporaries:
Isidore died in 636, MuJ:iammad in 632 and the last Visigothic kíng
called Recaredus did so in 621, so whoever wrote the story was at
least accurate as far as dates are concerned. However the tradition
remains obscure.
The Prophet's death had to be the final proof of his evil life and
habits. His false announcement of resurrection was obviously a counter-
image of Christ's, and it had to be conveniently cxploitcd. So was
the legend of his bones being gnawed by dogs, or by worms. Espina
was so keen on using ít that he made a wholc chapter of it, the
shortcst in the book:
Sexta consideracio huius libri est de morte Machometi, dignum enim
fuerat ut fnús eius ostenderet qualis ipse fuerat in vita et doctrina.
Unde cum implerentur decem anni regni sui ab illo scilicet anno quo
fuit elevatus in regem in Damasco computando, quidam discipulus eius
cuius nomen Albimor voluit experiri si resurgcrct Machometus díe ter-
cia a morte ad vitam sicut ipse preclixerat. Dixeram enim quod postquam
decem anni sui regni essent impleti, quod dcbcbat mori et rcsurgere
tercia díe cotpusquc suum ca díe deferendum ad celum, et ideo quod
non traderent sepulture. Quare predictus discipulus eius destemperato
quodam veneno tradidit ci ad bibendum occultissime. Machometus
autem statim ut bibit mutatus est omnis color eius, et ideo intellexit
quod mors sua appropinquaverat, et dixit illis sarracenis qui ibi erant
cum eo quod per aquam salvarentur et veniam invenirent. Quo dicto
M Jiménez de Rada, R.: op. cit., p. 245.
85
CE, p. 13.
86
FF, f. l 18r; Primera crónica general, l, 478. Quoted by Cerulli, E.: Nuove ricerche . .. ,
pp. 261- 263.
CONTRA ERRORES MACHOMETI ... 129
subito dcdit animam dyabolo magistro suo, discipuli autem sui clilígcntcr
servaverunt corpus expectando quod resurgeret die tercia ut dictum
cst. Sed postquam ipsi viderunt quod non resurgebat ut prcclixcrat et
fetorem eius tolerare non posscnt, relicto cotporc inhumato, maxima
pars discessit et post XI díes mortis eius venit predictus díscipulus eius
Albimor ut vidcrct quomodo iaccbat et secundum quod narrat Luchas
Tudensis in cronica sua invenit corpus a canibus comcstum corrosis
ossibus. Tune Albimor collectis ossihus sepelivit in civitate quadam
quae dícitur arabice Medina Raziel. Sic ergo qui inter eos prudenciores
füerunt, dcprehensa seductoris falsitate omnia quaecunque dixerat falsa
et irrita extimantes, consídcrantcs ctiam quomodo índignam vitam
cligna marte terminasset, ah eius lege discesserunt. 87
The main point to be deduced from this passage is the withdrawal
of believers from Islam. All thc biography of thc Prophct, and espe-
cially this chapter, are intcnded for that purposc: to demonstrate
lVIuJ:iammad's falschood and· achieve conversions. However, the way
the subject is introduced, without concessions to the figure of the
Prophet, is absolutely unsuitable for any Muslim to read or listen
to. Thc approach was too harsh, and had to be intended only to
reach Christians who were ready to accept an antithesis of thc figure
of Christ.
b) Muslim kings and heroes
Despite the religious intcntion of the treatise, the Fortalitium provides
good informatíon on what should have been the main lines of gen-
eral knowledge of Ibcrian history. The only objection to its method
is its excessive dcpendence on Alfonso X's Crónica general and the lack
of infonnation from later chronicles. This hiatus is particularly notice-
able for thc history of al-Andalus, precisely when it becomes more
confusíng.
Wars against Islam ran through a period of seven centuries, and
ali kinds of governors, caliphs and sultans are mentioncd in the
book-·-since again we are only refcrring to thc F01talitiumfidei-from
everywhere in the Islamic world: the Iberian Península, Northern
Africa, Egypt, Syria and the Turkish empire. In general, their dig-
nities were correctly establishcd. For the governors of al-Andalus,
Espina used the term dux, which corresponds to their military function.
87
FF, 134r. Thc tcxt is copied from the P1imera crónica general, l, 494 and Lucas
de Tuy, Chronicon mundi.
130 CHAPTER FIVE
For Mu<awiyya (661-680), he used rex, as synonimous for caliph. He
kept using this title for the caliph of Córdoba, togcther with amfr al-
muminzn, deformed into "amiramamolin", following thc propaganda
of <Abd al-Ral:iman 111 against thc Egytian Fatirnid rulcrs who were
trying to superscdc the <Abbasids. Y et the author stressed thc fa.et
that the caliph was the hcad of the believers only ín al-Andalus.
Mul:rnmmad ibn Ahí e.Amir, al-Mansü.r, was mentioned as ''the most
powerful among the Saracens below cAbd al-Ral:iman", 38 but no
other title was attributed to him. For the period of the Taifa rulers,
Espina chose to call them reges again, but when thc Almoravids and
Almohads succcssively conquered al-Andalus, he added to the same
name of "king" (rex) of Morocco the dignity of "amiramamolin" of
Western Islam.
A digrcssion on thc crusades shows Espina's interest in introduc-
ing sorne of the chivalric Arabic heroes: Nür al-Dfn was called prínceps
Damasci and Damascenorum rex, 89 while Saladin was just mentioned
as a warrior. The term "sultan of Babylon'' was incorrcctly used for
the Mamluks, whereas the contemporary Banü Marfn from North
Africa and the Nasrids from Granada were all identified as reges.
Finally, Mul;ammad II was acknowledgcd as the greater imperator
Turcorum. 90
Thís líst of digníties is not fortuitous: it shows Espina's acquain-
tancc with thc differcnt political situations within the Islamic world,
and is not simply bascd on prcvious sources. Details such as mention-
ing the families who ruled important border areas "de facto'' befare
thc division of the Andalusian caliphate-for instancc, the Banü Mar-
wan in Badajoz or the Banü Qasf in Calatayud-depict the variety
of situatiohs which were noticeable to the Christian kingdoms. A
number of military chiefs were also mentioned throughout the account,
and although many rulers are omitted, the oncs who were actually
mentioned in the text were correctly placed within their environment.
The only licence in this matter was the figure of Bramante, the
A.rabie ruler of al-Andalus according to the Carolíngian epic cyclc.
Carolingian epics were only mentioned at the point of the tale of
Charlemagne's love for Galiana, Bramantc's daughter.
Barkai comes to the point when he states that "the intcrest shown
88
FF, f. 148v.
89
FF, f. 163v.
9
° FF, f. 170v.
CONTRA ERRORES M1ICHOMETI ... 131
by Christian chronicles towards the oppositc group, the Muslims, as
much in the context of rcligious beliefs as about thc history of l\lluslim
communities, is much greater than that shown by Muslim chroniclcrs
about Christian socícty" .9 1 Although the chronicles are mostly dcvoted
to their ovvn Christian history, thcy also refer to these other aspects
of Peninsular life. In theology books, this tendency was emphasized
and produccd a definite bias, which is to be seen particularly in the
figures of Muslim herocs; for instance, all the praiscs attributed to
al-Mansür by the Crónica general were omittcd in the Fortalitium.
Although Espina cannot avoid the presence of Muslíms in his work,
their only qualitics must be the warlikc ones. Even then, refercnces
are so short that they just act as countcr-heroes as regards Christian
figures.
e) Christian saints
Spanish Christendom was not satisfied with a heavcnly warrior pro-
tector-such as, for example, the angcl Gabriel- , but they made him
dcscend to earth, giving him the role of a contender in the fighting.
Here is the great differcnce between this area of Christcndom and
Islam. Allah, who is a fighting God, stays in the abstract. His help is
given from heaven by mcans of an emanation, but St. James comes
from on High, kills the Muslims with his own sword and offers the
triumph to the Christians. 92
This paragraph summarizes perfectly thc imprcssion left by Castilian
chronicles dealing with war against thc Muslims. Particularly that of
Alfonso X (Espina's main sourcc for the historical chapters), which
used miracles systcmatically to support a newly created self-awarcness. 93
Saint James was "helped" by other saints, namely the patrons of the
most important monastcrícs in the realm: Saint l\!Iillán, Saint Isidore,
and the hosts of angels who fought the l\!Iuslims undcr the holy ban-
ners. Furthcrmore, onc of the ways to distínguish war against thc
Saraccns from fighting other peoples such as the Normans, is Saint
Jamcs's intervention as the "nacional" patron-saint. 94 Warrior saints
appcar in the elevcnth century, and Saint James's actions occur
mostly after the twelfth, whcn thc patriotic feeling was growing
91
Barkai, R.: op. cit., pp. 284--285.
92
!bidem, p. 115.
~~ Jbidem, p. 241.
9
• Ibídem, p. 49.

132 CHAPTER FIVE
greater. He was the favomite where battlcs wcrc conccrncd, while
the other saints uscd to have advisory roles. Gradually, Saint Isidorc's
figure took sorne traces from Saint James's myth and becamc a
Moor-killcr too.
Thc episodes in the Fortalitium where saints appcar are related to
the most significant Christian kings and hcrocs, for examplc Alfonso
III, who built the church of Santiago. Or Fernán González, the
patron of thc monastcry of San Pedro de Arlanza and a key-figure
of Castilian independencc, who was visited by two saints, San Pelayo
and SaintJames. Or El Cid and Fernando III, two legendary figures
of thc Reconquest, related to several saints such as Lazarus, Saint
James and Saint Isidore; Ra.ymond de Toulouse, linkcd to thc retrieval
of the Holy Lance; Alfonso VII who rebuilt Saint Isidore's church
in León; Alfonso VIII, the víctor of Navas de Tolosa in 1212 and
finally John Vayvoda, during the wars against the Turks in 1457,
the most recent accotmt of a miracle which savcd the city of Belgrade.95
The function of miracles within this narrative was to ensure God's
support of the Christian army. Supernatural intervcntion was one
part of divine providence acting throughout history. Just as failure
was a consequence of sin, the apparition of saints and angels in bat-
tles was a way of showing God's choice of a particular :individual.
The concept of war "for the defence of faith" is essential for an
understanding of this choice of charactcrs. The enemy-lslam-was
attacking not only a political powcr, but a religious community, so
it had to be fought by divine forces. The vexillum fidei appears as the
banner of saints, in opposition to Mu1:_iammad's (see above). General-
ization in theological sources means involving all the differcnt kinds
of warriors on the frontier in a · single entcrprise: expansion and
fighting thc enemy of Christ. 96 · ·
d) Christian kings
Monarchy represented the nation, and kings personified its image.
A king in the Península was the head of resistance against Islam,
who represented "an invader of the land". 97 An evil monarch deserved
punishment, which usually :involved thc loss of his authority over his
95
FF, wars numbcrs 49, 62 ·-65, 76, 81, 83, 139, 99, 114, 121, 157. Sce also
Meyuhas Ginio, A: La, forteresse, pp. 155-158.
96
García, F.: "La conquista en la cronística castellana ... " , pp. 57, 61.
97
Barkai, R.: op. cit., p. 144.
' . ' .. ... , -·-- ----· ~--------~-- ...¡
CO.NTRA ERRORES MACHOMEIT .•. 133
realm and, in this context, usually the loss of lands ín hands of the
infidels. The ímagc of "Catholic kings" who followcd God's command-
ments and were consecrated by the Church, was basic in a provi-
dential c:xplanation of history and, viceversa, this kind of history was
used for theological purposes.
Two figures have thc role of evil kings who perrnit the e:xpansion
of Islam over Christendom through their sins: the empcror Eraclius
and the Vísigothic king Rodrigo, who had surrounded thcmselves with
sinful courtiers and advisors. The "very Christian" French kings were
able to dcfeat the Muslims, first in Poitiers and latcr in Catalonia, due
to their closeness to the Church and their support of its reformation.
In the Pcninsula, the great myth of Covadonga and the beginníng
of the reconquest was told without much enthusiasm, leaving greatcr
emphasis for the figures of the Asturian kings who favoured thc
church of Saint James. Alfonso I, called "the Catholic" and Alfonso
III, "thc Chas te", started a series of "most Christian" kings who had
to defeat the Saracens with thc help of the saint. They are impor-
tant in thc context of Castilian sclf-awareness, both because of their
chronicles, which provide the first nationalistic view of the Peninsular
Reconquest, 98 and because of their interest as regards the church of
saint James, in Santiago, as the base for this enterprise.
There are also mentions of those kings who "did nothing impor-
tant aga:inst the Saracens" 99 and therefore were omitted from the
text. This sentencc is opposed to the othcr favourite onc "he returned
to his city with great riches and honour", 100 attachcd to every victorious
king at the end of a famous battle .
.The idea of sorne kind of decadcnce aftcr Alfonso Vrs death, fos-
tcred by fcmale succcssion and internal strugglcs, helped to make
this king another figure of war against Islam. His capture of the
Visigothic capital, Toledo, was an important achievement which
helped to crcate this tradition. Finally, thc chivalric love for the
daughter of his friend, al-Ma'mun of Toledo, added legendary clc-
ments to the story.
It is remarkable that, after Alfonso XI, little mention is made of
Castilian kings compared to thc former part of the text. This is due
98 There is a good study of the image of Muslíms in these kings' .chroniclcs in
Barkai, R.: op. cit., pp. 27- 54.
99
FF, f. 144v.
wo FF, f. l 45v 1T.
 134 CHAPTER FIVE
to the state of civil war and fighting among the five Peninsular king-
doms which is characterístic of the Late 1\lliddlc Ages. Thís situation
stopped Christian kings from making war against the infidcl. Thcol-
ogians had to acknowledge thc fact, and it is to their eflort to change
the target of these wars that we owe the treatises studied in this
bool;. Thanks to Espina's personal cxperience, at lcast his opinions
on Alvaro de Luna and Enrique IV remain. The former we have
alrcady secn; about the latter, Espina seems to be more keen than
many of his contcmporaries:
Et successit prcclicto rege lohanni in regno filius cius Heinricus quartus
qui nunc regnat, decimo octavo rcx Castellc et utí nam felicíter ad
Dei gloriam regnet et utilitatem rei publice. Hic primo regni sui anno,
cum excrcitu suo magno intravit terram saracenorum et obtinuit virilitcr
villam que clicitur Ximena et destruxit Stiponam. Habuit etiam bul-
Iam cruciate contra saracenos et continuavit guerram quatuor annis,
in quibus non modicum saraceni sunt fame afilicti. In signum etiam
voluntatis expugnationis regni Granate cepit devisam malo granatornm
. per ornamento armorum rcgalium. Quid crit Deus novit cuius est
causam et finem bellorum agnoscere, multa enim impedimenta offeruntur
spccialiter clivisio militum in regno contra ipsum propter que iam hoc
anno sexagesimo plus timetur guerra in regno quam contra infideles,
quod Deus sua pietate avertere clignetur. 101
Espina was right, but unfortunatcly God did not stop war in Castile,
and the conquest of Granada could not be resumed until the re1gn
of Isabel ami Fernando.
e) Christ1:an heroes
These individual heroes incarnate Espina's views of human virtues,
in this case with respect to war against the Muslims. They come
from the most popular epic romances, such as Charlemagne, Bemaldo
del Carpio, Fcrnán González and El Cid. They were all favourite
characters of the mester de clerecía, the clerical school which produced
the best examples of thc epic genrc in thc Península. Its mcmbers
used to writc hagiographic, legendary works involving thcir own
monasteries and famous heroes and saints.
To understand how all the characters work together in a given
context, it is worth analysing a sample of Espina's adaptation of the
101
FF, f l 70r- v.
CQNTRA ERRORES M1JCHOMETJ . . . 135
Crónica generaL. Considering the nmnber of elements combined in thc
text, one of the richest is the story of Count Fcrnán González fighting
al-Mansü.r in the battlcs of Lara and Hacinas, 102 taken from the
Poema de Fernán González writtcn in the thirteenth century by a monk
of San Pedro de Arlanza. Thercforc, historical facts wcrc lcss impor-
tant than hagiographical needs. Thc lack of criticism from Espina is
due to thc acceptance of an authority such as the Crónica general and
the fact that an account like this worked perfoctly well for his purposc.
The main inaccuracy was to make al-Mansü.r (940- 1002) fight
against Fernán Gonzálcz (d. 970), whereas he confronted Fernán's
son García Fernández (938-·995) and his grandson Sancho García
(d. 1017). But according to the Poema it was the Count himself who,
aftcr the capture of the castle of Carazo, faced al-Mansür and his
great army from all the Islamic nations. Parallels with thc situation
of the Visigothic kingdom start when Fcmán asked his loyal men
whether thcy should attack such a great force. His vassal Gonzalo
Díaz tried to restrain him from war, but Fcrnán argued resolutely,
as if his council ought to listen to him, rather than gíve him advice.
This attitude parallels Don Julián's advice to King Rodrigo, the last
of the Visigoths. 103
Next morning, when the Count wcnt hunting, a boar brought him
to thc doors of a small hermitage -·· -San Pedro de Arlanza- where
he was rcceived by the monk Pelayo. The hermit told thc count
that he was to win over the Muslims. Back with his mcn, thc count
harangucd them, and the battle started, aftcr sorne signs from Heaven.
Ali the charactcrs mcntioned in this account were famous in epics,
which makes thc vcracity of this battle even more questionable. After
the triumph, Fernán led an army of people from Castile and the
kingdom of León to fight al-Mansür again outsidc Burgos.
The next encounter was in the same area, near Hacinas. Befare
thc battle, the count found out that his friend thc monk was dead,
and wcnt to his hermitage to pray. The three ways of forctclling
extant in cpic texts appear also in this context of hagiographic lcg-
ends: auguries, omen-dreams and messagcs from heavcn t<N abound
in thc parts takcn from the Crónica general. In this context, anothcr
102
FF, f. 148v-·15lr. Based on the Poema de Fernán González, verses 191 - 282,
38l··569; Primera crónica general, l, 689-691 , 698 · 700.
103
Poema, p . 90.
104
Garrosa Resina, 1vl: op. cit., p. 46.
136 CHAPTER FIVE
apparition announccd God's help in the combat. Thc count harangued
his men once more, and the battlc was a complete success. St. James
fought for the Christians, leading a celestial army.
El Cid playcd the role of a link betwccn Christians and ]\lfos-
lims, due to his uneasy relationship with Alfonso VI and his policy
of alliances with sorne of thc Taifa kings, until the arrival of thc
Almoravids. However, his figure in Espina's account is that of thc
perfect Christian knight who fights for his king and his faith despite
everything. In general, historical facts are not classified chronologi-
cally in this part of the work: a great part of thc Cantar de Rodrigo y
el rey Fernando, an epic poem about thc kníght and his king, is mixed
with historical facts and the Cantares referring to Fernando's sons,
Sancho and Alfonso VI. It must be noted that there is no rcfcrence
to the "Oath (Jura) of Santa Gadea", where El Cid madc Alfonso
swear that he had taken no part in his brother's death.
There is no outstanding hero in the Late Middle Agcs according
to the text. From the thirtccnth century, kings started to assume the
role of dcfenders of the faith and representatives of their people.
War had also changcd, and instead of being based on personal feats,
was a question of organised arrnies. Besidcs, war against the Muslims
was only waged when the king was powerful, for his was the capacity
to concentrate troops. The rest of the time the Peninsular kíngdoms
were fighting internal wars, so there was no room for religious ones.
CIMPTER SIX
ISLAM IN THE TREATISES:
RELIGIOUS AND LEGAL ASPECTS
When two societies are at war, or confidently expcct to be at war,
thcy must mutually be aware of whatever separates them, especially
in belief, in the practices of daily lifc and in the events of past and
contemporary history which they share. Therc is likely to be a tendency
to exaggerate or invent clifferences. A society would have to be remarl->.-
ably tolerant to rccogníse the virtues, and malee allowance for thc faults
of their enemies' leaders. 1
Language and Relzgjon
Arabic is not just the language of an ethníc group in lberian territory,
but the language of a religious community and, even more important,
the language of revelation in Islam. Thc Koran itself says that it
was transmitted in pure Arabic (suras 12,2; 13,37; 20,112/113; 26,195;
41,2/3; 44,58; 41,44). According to Blacherc, the language of reve-
lation was the standard version of pre-Islamic poetry, with other
neologisms. 2 Latcr on, Muslim scholars stated that thc languagc uscd
in the Koran was thc purcst variety of Arabic. Christian criticism of
this statement started quite soon in thc Península: Alvaro de Córdoba
attacked the Koran for its confusing style, regardless of the fact that
the same objection could be applied to the Bible. 3 It was precisely
the repetitive style of Koranic Arabic-sentcnces such as "may He be
praised", "there is no god but God", etc.- and the use of such words
as coitus that made Ricoldo de Montecroce assume its human origin. 4
The strictness of Koraníc Arabic and the fact that it was the only
tangue admissible for religious communícation in Islam <lid not go
unnoticed by Christian writers, surprised becausc, on the contrary,
1
Daniel, N.: Islam and the West, p. 246.
2
Cf. Vemet, J. (ed.): El Coran, p . XXVIII; Watt, W. M. & Bell, R.: Introduction
to the Qgr'an, p. B7.
3
Daniel, N.: 'flie Cultural Banie1~ p. 155.
4
Daniel, N.: Islam and the JVest, p. 58.
1
 138 CHAPTER SIX
their Scriptures had bccn vvritten both in Hebrew and Greek, and
their Latín version was accepted for ali purposcs. Espina and Torque-
mada coincided in pointing out thc importancc of Arabic for Islam:
Itcm dicit se essc gcneralem Prophetam, et tamen dicit, quod Alcoranus
est datus sibi Arabice, et quod nescit aliam linguam nisi Arabicam. 5
Several chapters wcre devoted in thc treatises to what they thought
was l\!lu]:iammad's claim that the Koran had bccn revealed by God
in Arabic. Thc discussion of the Prophet's litcracy as a proof of rev-
clation and transmission of the Koran, which was also taking place
within Islam, was related to the problem. 6 Espina went fürthcr, draw-
ing sorne conclusions from Montecroce's argument: it was due to his
Persian, Jewish and Ncstorian teachers that Muhammad thought
about prcaching in Arabic. l\!Ioreover, how could Muhammad pretend
to be scnt to the wholc world if he only preached in Arabic? 7
Connecting Arabic to religion conditioned thc early development
of Islam and its acceptance outside Arabia. In a place such as the
Iberian Península, at a time when Islam was losing territory, it was
an important factor either of survival or, on the contrary, had it dis-
appeared, of assimilation to Christian culture. For instancc, Longás
considers it onc of the causes for rejection of conversion among the
Moriscos in the sixteenth century. Quoting the theologist Guerra de
Lorca, who published his Catecheses mystagogycae jJro advenis ex secta
mahometana ad parochos et potestates in 1586, Longás divides l\!Iuslirns
into four types, whcrc thc dcgree of knowledge of Arabic is one of
the basic clements. 8 Even thc Inquisition considercd speaking Arabic
as a sign of confrontation. 9
Muslims themsclvcs were aware of the importance of thcir lan-
guage as a sign of idcntity (such as Hebrew had bccn for Jews). Whcn
the thcologist Al:imad ibn Ya]:iya al-Wansharisi wrote a fatwa far his
fellow-Muslirns in the Península in 1484, he warned thcm not to
changc their customs or language for Christian ones. Thcy should
5
"He also said that he was the universal Prophet, and yet he also saicl that the
Koran was given to him in Arabic, and that he kncw no language but Arabic."
CE, p. 41 and with only two variations, in FF, f. l 20v, both copied from Ricoldo
De 1\IIontccroce's Disputatio.
G Sce a brief but interesting summa:ry of the impmtance of Arabic as religious
language in Wiegers, G.: op. cit., pp. 31-37 .
7
FF, f. 12lr.
8
Longás, P. : La vida religiosa de los nunúcos, pp. LXIV- LXV.
9
Ruiz, T. F.: "La Inquisicion medieval y la moderna: paralelos y contrastes",
p. 359.
ISLAM IN THE TREATISES 139
lcarn from the example of Toledo, conqucrcd by Alfonso VI in 1085.
Whcn Christians arrived to settle there, Muslims had been so over-
whelmcd that thcy progressively lost their languagc: "And if a Muslim
loses his Arabic language, really he will lose his rite and, moreover,
the loss of all thc sacrcd words and their merit". 10
Geographic distribution of thc use of Arabic in the fiftccnth ccntury
traditionally considered Valencia and Aragon as thc Arabic-spcaking
arcas, while Castile had lost this language for Romance. Howcver,
matters were not so simple. As early as 1363, there were no transla-
tors at the court in Aragon, so the sultan of Egypt was asked to send
his own together with his correspondence. It scems that in the South
of Valencia, Arabic was still spoken. Boswell argues that knowledge
of "poor Arabic" by Muslims in Aragon and Catalonia mcant a high
degree of acculturation and a grcat shock if they evcr thought to cmi-
grate to other Islamic countries. 11 On the other hand, García Arenal
infers frorn the documents she studicd in Navarre and Aragon that
names and · place-names reveal the survival of Arabic in the area. 12
For Housley, 11 Mudejars in Aragon may ncvcr have masteredArabic,
whercas Valencia was the place where the sons of noble Arabic fam-
ilies on thc Mcditcrranean coast used to learn this language. There
seems to be a contradiction in this assertion, sincc what would the
nobles need Arabic for, if ít was not spoken at all in their lands?
Moreover, Aragonese scholars still had abridged compílations of fiqh
in Arabic in the frfteenth century, which proves a permancncc of thc
language at least in the learned groups of society.
In Castile, 'lsa ibn Djabir explained thc need to expound the
meaning of the Koran in alj'amiado for those who did not understand
Arabic. At the same time, ajewish translator complained because the
Arabic uscd in sorne aijamas, which he was askcd to understand and
translatc, was poor and full of mistakes. 14 Al-vVanshar1s1 explicítly men-
tioned Avila as a place wherc contact with Christians had led to the
loss of Arabic language, which produccd the decline of rcligious faith. 15
1
° Cf Sabbagh, L.: "La religion des marisques ... ", p. 48.
11
Boswcll, J.: Tlze Royal Treasure, pp. 384, 398. .
12
García Arenal, M.: "Los mudéjares en el reino de Navarra y en la corona de
Aragon", p. 178.
13
Housley, N.: oj1. cit., pp. 99- 100; 107.
M See the interesting study by Gutwirth, E.: "HispanoJewish Attitudes to the
Moors in the Fiftecnth Cenlury." Sefarad (1989), pp. 237- 262. Scc also Chejne, A. G.:
islam and the West .. ., p. 38, although he rcfcrs to lhe Morisco issue rathcr than
thc time before the conquest of Granada.
15 ·~ .: . ...
\i\'icgcrs, G.: op. cit., p . 206.
.......
.1
!~
~r
<l
rt ~
\ ,· h.
140 CHAPTER SIX
In fact, Avila's moreda was one of the biggcst in the Peninsula, so
thc phenomenon could have happcned in cither of two ways: eíthcr
acculturation could be stronger or elsc such a number of Muslims
together werc able to avoid influences more easily. For Harvey, 16
actions talen by Castilian l\!Iuslims at the time prove that relaxation
was far from being true--although it could sccm so to somebody
living outside the Península taking external evidcnce into account.
On thc contrary, rigorism expanded as soon as Christian leadership
startcd exerting pressure on Muslim communities.
It is difficult to surnmarize the state of Arabic knowledgc in view
of such varicd opinions. From part of thc evidence it is clear that
the Mudejar cornmunity had endured a process of loss of Arabic as
their daily languagc of comunication. But it was still used in the reli-
gious contcxt. The lack of rcligious leadcrs and social status did not
mean complete repression, and Mudejars were allowed sorne libertícs
such as basic education, institutions (aijama, mosque) and sorne contacts
with Granadan and North African scholars who could help to preserve
their cultural foundations. Howcver, the decline of literary production
has been poínted out by modcrn scholars, as well as the vanishing
of thc figure called adib, the learned literate of earlier times. 17 Never-
thcless, Wiegcrs makes an interestíng study of the texts written by
Mudejarsrn from 1240 to 1456 which provcs that thc works for the
intcrnal use of the communíty were thc least important until the
mid-fifteenth century. Morcover, the authors still used Arabic script
in most of them togethcr wíth Latín script. What can be affirmed
is that Romance was uscd in texts sometímes connected wíth rcligíous
discussions, such as a poem from the Cancionero de Baena (1445-·1453)
devoted to the .problem of free will and predestination. 19
As for the kingdom of Granada, it seems that traditional bilingual-
ism was lost in the thirteenth century as a reaction agaínst Castilian
advance. There are few proofs of this in the argument of F. Corriente,
except for Ibn Khaldün's statement that, due to contamination from
Iberian vcrnacular languages, fourteenth-century Granadans spoke a
16
Harvey, L.: hlamic Spain, p. 63.
17
Chejne, A. G.: op. cit., pp. 32-33.
18
Wíegers, G.: op. cit., pp. 47- 68.
19
Cancionero de Juan Alfanso de Baena (ed. J. M. Azáceta), Madrid 1966, vol. 3, pp.
1038- 1048. Cf. ihidem, p. 61.
ISLAM IN THE TREATISES 141
peculiar form of Arabic which was far from the standard one. 20 Their
policy to become the refugc for every Muslim from the Northern
Christian kingdoms rcsulted in a revival of literature and scicnccs-
and therefore, of Arabic--during the last part of the century, as part
of the siege mentality which has been mentioned in the introduction.
Thcre is the related problem of the Moriscos, who wcrc well aware
of this issuc, which was capital in the hostile environment of their time.
It directly influenced their lack of cducatíon and rcligious leaders,
who were vital for thcir survival as a religiously~dcfincd community.
Their most usual complaint was about the emigration of scholars to
Granada or othcr parts of the Islamic world, leaving them without
guídancc, whílc the ones who chose to remain in the Península had
lost their schools and their own sacrcd language. 21
Aljamiado literature was the imperfcct answer to thesc worries.
When the process of "Latinizatíon" bccamc too cvidcnt, Arabic schol-
ars decided to adopt thís script to cnsure thc kind of sacredness that
language confers on a particular Scripture. In doing so, they also
tried to keep thc literal meaning of the Koran and its commentaries
unchanged. And finally, the chance of Christians being able to under-
stand thcir books was definitely reduced, so they must have felt safcr
than if they had translated their books into Iberian vernaculars in
their own script. Another explanation far thc use of the Arabic alpha-
bet was that they had becn rcfuscd a Latin cducation, so they <lid
not know how to wríte in Latín characters, although thcy knew how
to speak in the vernacular. Finally, in a land where the three commu-
nities had endurcd "long-standing interaction at all levels, it was not
uncommon to use Arabic script for wríting Hebrew and Romance,
Hebrcw script for writing Arabic and Romance, or Latin script for
wríting A rabie". 22
One of the signs of assimilatíon which can be traced through lan-
guage is the combination of Arabíc namcs with Christian oncs, and
the progressive change to simple Christian forms. In thc fourtcenth cen-
tury, the process was still bcginning, so we find in Catalan documents
one Mahomat Alfoll, another Mahomat Ballistarius ("thc crossbow-
man"), l\!Iahoma Tintorer ("the tanner"), or "a certain Lopello de
2u Cf Burns, R. I.: lvluslims, Christians and }ews in the Crusader Kingdom ef Valencia,
pp. 177--178.
.
21
Ch~jne, A. G .: op. cit., p. 19.
22
Jhidem, pp. 37, 41.
140 CHAPTER srx
In fact, Avila's morena was one of the bigg·est in the Península, so
the phenomenon could havc happencd in either of two ways: either
acculturation could be stronger or clse such a numbcr of Muslims
togcthcr were ablc to avoid influences more easily. For Harvcy, 16
actions taken by Castilian Muslims at the time provc that relaxation
was far from being true-although it could seem so to somebody
living outsidc the Península taking externa! cvidence into account.
On the contrary, rigorism cxpanded as soon as Christian leadership
started cxerting prcssurc on Muslim communities.
It is difficult to summarizc the state of Arabic knowlcdgc in vicw
of such varied opinions. From part of the evidencc it is clear that
the Mudejar community had endured a process of loss of Arabic as
their daily language of comunication. But it was still used in the reli-
gious context. The lack of religious lcaders and social status did not
mean complete repression, and Mudejars were allowed sorne liberties
such as basic education, institutions (ayama, mosque) and sorne contacts
with Granadan and North African scholars who could help to preserve
their culturalfoundations. However, the decline of literary production
has been pointed out by modern scholars, as well as the vanishing
of the figure called adib, the learned literate of earlier times.17 Never-
thelcss, Wiegers malees an interesting study of the texts written by
Mudejars 18 from 1240 to 1456 which proves that the works for the
intcrnal use of the cornmunity were the least important until the
mid-fifteenth century. Moreover, thc authors still used Arabic script
in most of thcm together with Latín script. What can be affirmed
is that Romance was used in texts sometimes connected with religious
discussions, such as a poem from the Cancionero de Baena (1445- 1453)
devoted to the problem of free will and predcstination. 19
As for the kingdom of Granada, it seerns that traditional bilingual-
ism was lost in the thirteenth ccntury as a reaction against Castilian
advance. There are few proofs of this in the argument of F. Corriente,
except for Ibn Khaldun's statement that, due to contamination from
Iberian vernacular languages, fourteenth-ccntury Granadans spoke a
16
Harvey, L.: Islamic Spain, p. 63.
17
Chejne, A. G.: op. cit., pp. 32- 33.
18
Wiegers, G.: op. cit., pp. 47- 68.
19
Cancionero de Juan Alfonso de Baena (ed. J. M. Azáceta), Madrid 1966, vol. 3, pp.
1038-1048. Cf ibídem, p. 61.
ISLAM IN THE TREATISES 141
peculiar form of Arabic which was far from the standard one. 20 Their
policy to become the refuge for cvcry Muslim from the Northcrn
Christian kingdoms resultcd in a revival of literature and scicnces-
and therefore, of Arabic- -during the last part of the century, as part
of the siege mentality which has been mentioned in thc introduction.
There is the rclated problem of the Moriscos, who were well aware
of this issue, which was capital in the hostile environmcnt of their time.
It dircctly influenced their lack of cducation and rcligious leaders,
who were vital for their survival as a religiously~defined community.
Their most usual complaint was about the emigration of scholars to
Granada or other parts of the Islamic world, leaving them without
guidance, while thc ones who chose to remain in the Península had
lost thcir schools and their own sacred languagc. 21
Aljamiado literature was the imperfcct answcr to these worries.
When the process of "Latinization" bccamc too evident, Arabic schol-
ars dccíded to adopt this script to ensure the kind of sacredness that
language confers on a particular Scripture. In doing so, thcy also
tried to keep the literal meaning of the Koran and its commcntaries
unchanged. And finally, the chance of Christians being able to under-
stand their books was definitely reduced, so they must havc fclt safer
than if thcy had translated their books into Ibcrian vcrnaculars in
thcir own script. Another explanation for thc use of thc Arabic alpha-
bet was that they had been rcfused a Latín education, so they <lid
not lmow how to write in Latín characters, although they knew how
to speak in the vernacular. Finally, in a land where the three commu-
nities had endured "long-standing interaction at ali levels, it was not
uncommon to use Arabic script for writing Hebrew and Romance,
Hebrew script for writing Arabic and Romance, or Latín script for
writing Arabic". 22
Onc of thc signs of assimilatíon which can be traccd through lan-
guage is thc combination of Arabic namcs with Christian ones, and
thc progressive change to simple Christian forms. In the fourteenth cen-
tury, the process was still bcginning, so we find in Catalan documcnts
one Mahomat Alfoll, anothcr Mahomat Ballistarius ("the crossbow-
man"), Mahoma Tintorer ("the tanner"), or "a certain ~opello de
2
° Cf Burns, R. I.: lvluslims, Christians and J ews in the Crnsader Kingdom ef Valencia ,
pp. 177-·· 178.
21
Cht:jne, A. G.: op. cit., p. 19.
22
Jbidem, pp. 37, 41.
142 CHAPTER SIX
Serrha, called in the l\!Iuslim way Abraham". 23 In the fifteenth cen-
tury, the proccss had increascd. Thc mcmbers ofJuan II and Enrique
N's royal guards in Castile changed thcir names in thc sccond gcner-
ation, recorded around 1440- although this might be duc to baptism.
In many of the documcnts, the Arabic namcs were also mcntioned. 24
According to Molénat, the transformation of names was linked to
thc difficulties of Castilian clerks in writing l\!Iudejar surnames fol-
lowing thc Arabic lineage-based system (e.g. Mul:iammad ibn Yusuf).
M. A. Ladero25 has rejected this argument on the basis that scveral
clerks from Toledo and Granada did write thesc Arabic surnames
correctly. It seems that he is right, according to the documents in
most of the Spanish archives. But Molénat is also right when he
says that many of thcse surnames were substituted by refcrences to
jobs or geographical origins of the Mudcjars.
It is impossible to define the importancc of Arabic for Christian/
Muslim rclatíons at the point where rescarch is nowadays. When
Arabic scholars agree on what was exactly the degrcc of acculturation
suffered by Muslims in their language, the documents will be examined
from a different viewpoint. Far thc moment, it is enough to conclude
that theological writers knew that Arabic was very much the basis
of Islamic religion. They perceivcd that their attacks on the Koran
had to be based on this point more than others, for the Mudejar
community was progressively understanding Arabic as a ritual lan-
guage, and it was, thercforc, weaker as a sign of identity. Forbiddance
of public proclamations in Arabic was thc ncxt stcp to ban public
cult, as vvill be seen shortly.
On the Concordance and Discordance ef Islam, Christianiry and Judaism
The fundamental question is, exactly what Christian authors kncw
about Islam in thc rnid-fiftccnth century. 26 Daniel2 7 thinks that the
23
Boswell, J.: ojJ. cit., p. 383.
2+ Echcvarria, A.: "Los elches en la guardia de Juan II y Enrique IV de Castilla",
pp. 424-425.
25 Scc Ladero Quesada, M. A: "Los mud~jares en los Reinos de la Corona de
Castilla", p. 17.
2 r; References to the FortalíliumJ Zelus Christi, Contra errores, Ricoldo de iVIontecroce's
DiJputatio and De mittendo gladio are so frequent in this chapter that I have choscn
to givc thc pagc-numbers in brackcts wherever necessary, instead of boring thc
reader with continuous scarch in notes.
27
Daniel, N.: Tlze Cultural Barriei~ p. 158.
ISLAM 1N THE TREATISES 143
corpus of Islarnic doctrine-ar more properly, ''vvhat 1\!Iuslims were
believed to believe"-was formed in Europe around the twelfth cen-
tury. However, it was not general knowledge, as is shown by the
ignorance of epic genre authors, 2n whose updating never matched
that of religious writcrs. Thc objcct of polemic was not understanding,
but comparison in order to show superiority. 29 Usually, rnisunderstand-
ings arosc from thc ignorancc of Islamic sources or from delibcrate
deformation of these same sources. When thc subject was history,
more accuracy could be expected, but in rcligious aspects thc infor-
mation was transformed to suit a particular purposc. Ncvcrtheless,
it is important to take into account that both chroniclcs and reli-
gious works considered it essential to transmit as much information
about the Islamic world as possible, even if it was not accurate
enough. 30
In thc Pcninsula, it is more likely that this corpus started to be
formed arm~nd the ninth century, and passed through several stagcs
depending on the degree of mutual acceptance conditioncd by political
and social events. Epalza thinks that Arabic polemics rather started in
the eleventh century, when Ibn I:fazm wrote his Kitab al-Fisal about
rcligions and sects. By thcn, rcligion had been somehow politicised
and had become a part of the definition of the powers ruling the
Ibcrían Península. Thc originality of Ibn I:fazm is that he did not
reply to a Christian attack, as happcncd with most of the Islamic
treatiscs, but he startcd on his own initiative. His method of analysing
Biblical tcxts to show their contradictions was later used by polcmi-
cists on both sides. But it also showed a new conccrn far thc incrcas-
ing power of the Christian kingdoms, manifested in thc intellectual
field. 31 His feeling had its counterpart on the Christian side in the
rise of a self-awareness, which inspired texts like the eleventh con-
sideration of the Ji'ortalitium, about "what Saracens must comply with
when living under Christian rule".
Now, the state of this corpus in thc l 450's has been divided into
two fields for easier comprchcnsion. l\!fost commentaries approach
doctrinal matters taking Christian doctrine as the reference> so "what
l\!Iuslims wcrc thought to believe" has to be undcrstood within thc
23
Scc Vcrnct, J.: "El conocimiento del Islam ... ", BRABLI3 (1965··66), p. 35'.1.
29
Cardaillac, L.: op. cit., p. 354. :
30
Barkai, R.: Cristianos)' mu.mlmanes ... , p. 285.
31
Epalá, iVI. de: "Notes pour une histoire des polémiqucs .. ." Arahica (1971 ),
pp . 99-1 Ol. Also by the same author, La Tu(zfa . . ., p . 67 .
144 CHAPTER SIX
contcxt of "what Christians in fact believed". The other possible
approach considered "what Muslims were thought to believe, or
rather, practice" in itsclf, and severe criticism was attached after
Islamic doctrine was expounded. Although it is difficult to draw a
clcar line between both ficlds, it will be probably easier to follow
this pattern, as Alonso de Espina did. To discuss Christian dogmas,
he chose the structure of thc Apostles' Creed, as Martí and the con-
vert Alfonso de Valladolid had done befare, whcreas for Islamíc doc-
trine he probably used the Breviario Sunni, and he dcvoted still another
chapter to thc concordance and discordance of Islam and Christianity.
One interesting aspect is how Christian and Muslim controversy
inftucnced each other. Ibn I:Iazm's criticísm of the Bible was soon
applicd to the Koran. At thc same time, this crossed-criticism obliged
each rcligion to revise and cxplain its dogmas and practíces, so as
to justify them. From St. Anselm to Raimundo Llull, Christian polemic
tried to analyse rationally the most incomprehensible dogmas, includ-
ing the Trinity, and its cfforts were continued all through the Middle
Ages. 32 It was supposed to be the simplest mcthod: as the writer was
in posession of the Truth, only by expounding it reasonably would
it be accepted by any intelligent adversary. Mul;.ammad's prohibition
of debate and discussion of questions of faith was understood as a
way to avoid this kind of persuasion. 33
The use of Ibn I:Iazm's method of Biblical criticism by Muslim and
its counterpart, Koranic criticism, by Christians, provided a number
of subjects for .polcmics. The main difference in the use of revealed
sourccs was that, whereas Islam acceptcd Moses's Torah and Jcsus'
NewTestament as former rcvelations to their own, the other two reli-
gions never accepted those revelations which had come after thcirs.
Thc other characteristic of polemics which must always be borne
in mind is the clivision into two levcls of knowledge of the othcr's
religion. One is a more or less accuratc popular view. The other is
a learned approach, that of the authors of polemic treatises, who
knew the Scriptures and tlleological texts. 3'f When they wrotc polemics
they ncver used arguments prepared for Muslims, so their mission-
ary purpose often failed. Christian faith was defended too obviously,
and communication was made impossiblc. Bacon was one of the first
12
: Cardaillac, L.: 0/1. cit., p. 232.
33
Ibidem, pp. 331-333.
34
Ibidem, p. 208.
ISLAM IN THE TREATISES 145
to rcalize that Christendom only exísted in a small part of the world,
and thc Church's message could not reach the unbclicvcrs because
no adcquatc instruments were used. He tried to classify severa! kinds
of beliefs to refute them, and his use of the Koran and Muslim
philosophers was a step towards comprehension which, unfortunately,
was not continued. 35 Both views influenced each other, but the one
analysed in this chapter is the scientific-theological onc specially.
a) Chrútian doctrine
Discussion had to start with the basis of Christianity: thc exístence
of one eternal God, who was at the same time a Trinity. Islamic
doctrine had rejected this unnatural principle on the grounds that
it was opposed to monotheism and God's unity. Torquemada saw
this issue as MuJ:i.ammad's máin error, so he devoted chapters seven
to eleven of his treatise to thc discussion of the Christian dogma,
thc relationship betwccn thc three persons and thc problem of Christ's
incarnation [CE, 114 . -138; FF, l 38r-v].
Scarccly anybody in the Christian field tricd to approach the unity
of God as Islam conceived it. 36 It was admitted that Muhammad
agrecd with Christian and Jewish traditions in worshipping God as
the creator of the world. However, his role as a Father was not at
all clear [FF, 125r- vJ. Ji'or Muslims, Christ's divine generation was
impossible according to natural standards, for God would never de-
scend to corruption represented by human fiesh. In their turn, Chris-
tians responded by dcnying God's corporcal fcatures as describcd by
Mul).ammad in the J\!li'riiqj [CE, l 2 l ·- 126].
The third pcrson was thc most difficult to define. In Islam, the
mcntion of the Paraclete in the New Testament was undcrstood as a
prophccy about Mul;iammad. The nature of the Spirit was also differ-
ent for Islam, which considered Him God's breath, sent to Christ's
disciples and messengers regarclless of their role in salvation history
[FF, 130v]. Islamic agreement about his participation in the concep-
tion of Jesus Christ as Prophet made it difficult for Christian authors
to reject the only idea of the Holy Spirit in Islam.
Why, then, was incarnation so difficult to accept for Islam? In thc
first place, be cause God could not havc a wife, and al so be cause
35
Southcm, R. W.: Western views on Islam, p. 57.
:iti Epalza, M.: ]esus otage, pp. 37 ... 41.
146 CHAPTER SIX
God himsclf could not bccome suqject to dcath and share othcr
human qualitics [ZC, 4-5; FF, 126v- 129r]. But this also qucstioned
God's omnipotencc, a favourítc subject for ali three creeds, Judaism,
Christianity and Islam.
The image of Jesus in the doublc role of Messiah and second per-
son of the Trinity had bcen developcd through the contacts and dis-
putes among the three rcligions "of thc Book". According to Epalza,
it was Christian insistence on his person which provoked thc reaction
ofJews and Muslims and thc definition of his role in these two faiths. 37
While Christians considered him the Son of God, .Jews thought he
was an impostor and l\/Iuslims only admitted that he was God's mes-
scnger and a great prophet (FF, 126r- v; 138r]. Living in Christian
or Muslim surroundings would make a great cliffercncc to the views
defended: the more prcssurized Muslims felt, the more they would
resort to this subject far polemics.
Jcsus was perceived by Islam as a creature of God, thc foundcr
of Christíanity and a gTeat prophet, with as important a political
role as l\/Iul:iammad himself had. ~ 8 Líkewisc, for Christians, Mul:iammad
was the foundcr of Islam and a historical pcrspective was basic for
the understanding of his doctrine. Christians werc well aware of the
strong prophetic elcments contained in Islam. Mul:iammad assumed
sorne of Chrisf s features with a negative hue, such as a reference to
l\/Iu"Q.ammad's resurrection, which he had never foresccn [FF, l 34r].
On the other hand, the figure of Jesus was simplified and adapted
to favour Christian eonvcrsion to Islam. As prophets wcrc the main
figures in this religion after Mul:;iammad, Christ was given that ilnagc,
bcing thus profoundly islamized. It was in this context that J esus
necded to lose his divinity and his place in salvation according to
Christian standards. ~ 9
Al-Tabarf asked severa! questions about Christ in his Kitab al-din
wa-l-dawla, rnost of them rcgarding the transmission of his message
and his divine character: was .Jesus right whcn he described himself?
Why do Christians then question sorne of his words? Can God the
Creator become subject to illness and dcath? If the Christian Creed
were right, God would havc created Christ, so Christ would not be
37
For the importance ofJcsus in Morisco polcmics due to their life in a Christian
environment, see Cardaillac, L.: op. cit., pp. 43, 233-250.
:in Epalza, M.: Jesus olage, pp. 130 137; 155.
39
Cf. Anawati, G. C.: "Polémique, apologic et dialogue islamo-chrctiens ... ",
pp. 833842.
ISLAM IN THE TREATISES 147
eternal: was he thcn the eternal God or just someone who was chosen
by God? Could Christ be placed in a particular country in a partic-
ular time? Was Christ thc eternal God ora crcatcd man (from John
5,26; 31- 32; Matthew 26,39; Mark 13,32; 10,45)?'1ll Thesc questions
were known and analysed by Christians with carc, bccause the slightest
deviation would entail a condemnation by the Church.
Raimundo Llull was the first theologian to attcmpt an explana-
tíon of the incarnation and the Trinity using Aristotle's philosophy.
He argucd that it was ímpossíblc for God not to be incarnated, and
thereforc that incarnatcd God could not be ollier than Jesus. His
philosophical explanation of thc Trinity involved the three principles
of life: active, passive and reciprocal. 41
Jesus's birth and early life conferred sanctity on him, for he was
God's chosen messenger, according to Ibn al-<Arabf. Thc rcst of his
life, although impossible to compare to 1\llul;iammad's adult life, was
sccn frorn the same prophctic pcrspcctive. Even if he was not the
son of God,' an important Prophct could by 110 means die 011 a cross.
Thercforc, thc Koran taught that thc pcrson who had died in the
Golgota was not Jcsus, but somebody elsc in his place. In the samc
way, resurrection lost its meaning if crucifixion ,,vas not accepted,
and redemption as defined by Christian tradition was qucstioncd.
Such an interpretation of Christ's life and messagc had to be strongly
rcjccted by all the Christian authors [ZC, 13 7v; CE, 102-109; FF,
l 29r- l 30r, l 38r].
In a simpler way, those wcrc also thc main subjects in Friar Diego
de Valencia's Disputa entre un moro filósefo y Gonzalo J\llarante sobre la
Trinidad y la Encarnación (Dispute bctwccn a Moorish Philosopher and
Gonzalo Morantc about Trinity and Incarnation). 42 The debate took
place bctwccn courtly poets and a Muslim, who was introduced as
a mu)adhdhin. Discussion about the Trinity was based on thc infinity
of God's love. Severa! other questions, such as how can a human
soul be judged by God, how to be sure if Christ was thc samc as
Prophets had prophesied and why had he come in his particular his-
torical time, were posed in the form of a catechetical questionnaire.
Real dialogue was avoided, because the whole treatise was written
·
10
Epalza, M.: Jesus otage, pp. 206 ·· 2 l 7; Cardaillac, L.: op. cit., pp. 258- 259.
1
' Cardaillac, L.: 0¡1. cit., pp. 314--315. '
42
lloma, Biblioteca Casatanense, Ms. 1022, f. 97r- J02v. Cf Vázqucz Janeiro, l.:
Tratados cdstellanos sobre la predestinación . . ., pp. 161 -- 172.
 148 CHAPTER SIX
in thc third pcrson, and thc :Niuslim's part was cut whenevcr the
author considcrcd it appropriate.
Muslims demonstratcd total ignorance of the concept of original
sin: why would God creatc man with a sin? Why should man commit
sin if he were good from the beginning? Tbis contradiction implied
that God had created evil, somcthing which Christian authors could
not admit [CE, 126- 129]. Nor could thcy acccpt hazard or predcsti-
nation in history, justified by God leaving crcation to go its own
way (CE, 130- 133]. The Koran teaches that man was created out
of a clot of blood or a drop of fluid, and this statement was also
discussed by Torquemada [suras 16:4, 22:5, 32:8, 35: 11, 40:67, 66:6;
CE, 165- 176]. Finally, thc Islamic version of other creatures--angels,
dcmons and dj1nns- was sevcrcly criticized, especially where it says
that cvcn thc lattcr could be savcd through thc Koran [sura 46:28-31;
CE, 154- 165].
Bcing a prophctic-based religion, Islam statcd that God guided
men in their path towards bim through guides sent from heaven,
whose arrival was a privileged time in history. Their mission was to
bring men God's commandments and advice. Believers had thc oblig-
ation to obey them in ordcr to please God. 43 Although Islam admitted
all the prophets in the Bible, classified in different ranks, their sto-
ries were also different in thc Koran, a main point being that Noah,
Abraham, Nfoses and bis successors were Saracens. The building of
a Meccan sanctuary by Abraham was dcnicd [CE, 41]: both Christians
and Muslims claimed to descend from him, but thc formcr insisted
on being thc lcgiti.mate branch. Thc wholc family trcc was traced
sincc this idea appeared in De generatione JV!achometi, and was also used
in the Fortalitium [l l 6v]. Islam answered by attempting a rchabilita-
tion of thc figure of Ishmael, by mak.ing him the object of Abraham's
sacrificc. Only aftcr this episode took place was Isaac's birth announced
to Abraham [CE, 220-223; FF, 12lr]. 44
The Virgin Mary was chosen as another favourite controversia!
topic, since Islam had partly accepted the importance of her role in
the history of salvation. First, the Koran was accused of confusing
Mary with Mariam, Moses's sister [Koran, 3:30- 33; ZC, 139v]. Evcn
43
Jomier, S.: "La noción de profeta en el Islam" Documentación Afro-asiática (1972),
p. l.
44
Cardaillac, L.: op. cit., p. 57. For thc argumcnt of jewish prophets not beíng
Saracens, sce .Montecrocc, R .: Disputatio, t: 84v.
ISLAM IN THE TREATISES 149
Jesus's virginal conccption, whcrc both rcligions agrccd, was discussed
on the grounds of the conccption by the Holy Spirit or "divine breath"
[CE, 57-69, 78-90, 219- 220; ZC, 130v; FF, 126r--- 127v, 137v].
Torquemada emphasized the fact that Nfary could not possibly have
such an impure tbing as menstruation, nor was she accuscd by her
neighbours of commiting adultery-in fact, this question is suggestcd
by Luke, 2. Thc story of her giving birth under a palm-trec and being
consoled by Jesus was rcjccted on the grounds that Christ could not
have spoken at that time, thus making his first miraclc, becausc the
New Testament states that he performcd none beforc thc wcdding
at Cana [Koran 5:109- 117; 19:16- 34; CE, 214-219; ZC, 140r].
Only one Christian writer, William of Trípoli, analyzed accurately
the Koranic version of the figures of Jesus and Mary . 4 ~
Finally, it was against the Church as the image of Jesus on earth
that thc attacks of Islam were clirected. As an institution, it was
rejected on the grounds that it had spoiledjesus's mcssagc by a work
of centuries.· The Gospcl had bccn misinterpreted, delcting ali ref-
erences to Mul;iammad, which Muslims understood were implied in
scveral verses. Certain texts in the Koran insist on the idea that the
Bible had been corrupted by Jews and Christians throughout history
[Koran 5:52,70; 7:72; 57:27]. Muslim theologians developed this
thought into a number of stages, from total corruption of the texts,
as belicved by Ibn I:Jazm, to softer condemnation. Still, they sought
referen ces to M.ul:iarnmad within these same Scripturcs which thcy
considered corrupt, likc thc convcrt al-Tabarf in bis Book about Religi,on
and the State (Kitab al-din wa-l-dawlii).'16 At the end of thc Middlc Agcs
there were two theories on this subjcct: cither the Christians had
modi:fied the sense of the texts, or else they had changed them physi-
cally. This left room for the Islamic interprctation of certain chosen
parts of the Bible, as did al-Ghazzail. From thc tcnth century onwards,
thc theory of a change in the general sense was accepted, probably
duc to Christian and Jewish polemics.47 Christian vvriters maintained
that the Bible could not be forged and corruptcd at the same time
by Christians and Jcws, given their hatred for each othcr and thc
diffcrent views they had about their sacrecl Scripturcs [CE, . 115- 121;
ZC, 137v, 140r- 141r].
~:.
For a longer explanation, see Daniel, N.: Islam and the f!l.Test, pp. l 93 ff.
46
Epalza, M.: Jesus ota,ge, pp. 14 7, 164, 169.
+7 Epalza, M.: La Tu[ifa _.. , p. 109, quotíng I. Goldzíher.
150 CHAPTER SIX
If Christians claimed that the existence of four versions by four
Evangelists was one of the proofs that the Gospels had becn inspired
by God to several people in diffcrent places, the same point was the
proof for Muslims that the Gospels had bccn intcrpreted and changed
by the authors. Such was the feeling of Ibn I:Iazm, whcn he compared
thc Torah and thc Christian rendering of the Bible, and the four
Gospcls among thcmsclves. 48
Anothcr qucstion of prestige was pointed out by Muslim thcologians:
after its foundation, the Church had been divided into several sects
and creeds, a fact which dcprived it of legitimacy and cohercnce.
On the other hand, Sacramcnts were strange to Muslim eyes because
thcy ínvolved the figure of a pricst bctwecn God and man. Thór
valuc for salvation disappeared since the rcsurrection of Jesus, thc
Son of God, was not accepted [FF, 130v ··l3lr].
This list of misconceptions of Christianity could be made much
l~nger, quoting a largc part of the treatises, where suqjects tend to
be repeated in different places. This would be too long and tedious
but, probably, this overview is enough to realize what points Christian
authors did discuss out of Muslim criticism of Christian sources.
Whereas quotations from the Biblc are abundant, those from thc
Koran seldom appear, exccpt in thosc chapters quotcd from very
spccíal authors like William of Trípoli or Ricoldo de l\!Iontecrocc.
Thesc commentarics were combined with the arguments takcn from
Islamic doctrine itself, based on the Koran, and the Tradition.
b) lslamic doctrine .
Ali the treatiscs studied dcal with two aspects of religious controvcrsy:
that which concerns thcoretical questions, and criticism of religious
practices connected with daily lifc. Usually, thcrc is no clear differcn-
ciation; for example, Christian authors can show thcir contempt for
Islamic sexual practices, but ncvcr realizc how similar Christian prac-
tice was in fact, despite condcmnation of ccrtain attitudcs by thc
Church (namely, in the case of concubines).
F'irstly, the uniqueness of thc Koranic style was qucstioned [ZC,
130v; FF, 124v; CE, chaptcr 4], bccause it could not stand corripar-
ison with true Revelation, i.c., thc Biblc, in thc eyes of Christian
theologians. Its metaphors, the discontinuity of suras, and the lack of
~ 11 Cardaillac, L.: op. cit., p. 345. Sec also Montccroc(:, R.: Disputatio, [ 79v.
ISLAM IN THE TR.EA TISES 151
historic-apocalyptic images49 were sorne of the objections [FF, 119r-v].
They also refuted the possibility that revelation carne as an answer
to actual human problems. ~ 0
Thc other big question about the validity of the Koran was abroga-
tion. No Christian could accept a Scripture which l\!lul,iammad him-
self had dcclared to havc false passages, according to Tradition.
Espina quotcd from l\!lontccrocc that only three thousand words were
true in the Koran out of twclvc thousand contained in the book
[FF, l 19vJ. This would make God a liar, for he changed his mind
from one revelation to another [FF, 120r]. 51 Also, the idea that a num-
bcr of Muslim scholars had worked to arrangc the Koran- probably
a refcrcncc to its compilation- was the excuse to assumc that it was
inspired by thc dcvil [FF, 121 r-v].
Thc most characteristic approach was that of Nicholas of Cusa in
his Cribratio Alchorani, where he tried to read the text ín a Christian
way, finding ín the Koran traces of Christian beliefs. If something
were true, it was necessarily taken from thc Gospel, whereas ali that
was false was due to Muhammad's evil, sincc l\!Iu}:iammad did not
scek God's glory, but his own:12
Sccts within Islam wcrc not acknowledged, nor wcrc law schools,
probably becausc thc most important in the Península was only the
malikite. N cvcrthelcss, MuQ.ammad and his followers were compared
to the sects which had spread from Christendom, namely Sabelians,
Manicheans, Arians, etc. [FF, 119r]. But, on the other hand, the
Koranic statement that everybody could be saved within his own
belief (Koran 2:4, regarding Jews and Christians) was severely critic-
izcd as a dangerous error which encouraged sectarianism. Torquemada
reactcd by arguing that nobody could be saved but thc just, and no
man is just but he who belicves in the true God. Thcrc is only onc
true faith which must be bclicvcd as a whole; ali the othcrs are false
and thcrcfore do not grant salvation-such is the case of Islam,
which is not rcasonable [CE, 145- 154].
The point of Islam was to serve as a warning to prepare believers
for thc Last Day. Judaism, Islam and Christianity had placed the
same emphasis on this eschatological aim [FF, 131r-l32r]. However,
•19 . s .: op. cit.. , p. 6.
.Jom1er,
50
Daniel, N.: 11·/am and tlw West, p. 274. Scc .Niontccroce, R.: Disputatio, f. 80v.
~· 1 Montecroce, R.: Disp11tatio, f. 8lv, 84v.
52
Anawati, G. C.: Nicolas de Cues et le jJrobleme de rlslam, p. 171.
152 CHAPTER SIX
Christians could not accept that Christ would not be the Judge, and
that he would stand befare the tribunal as did cvcry man [CE, 110-·
115]. Faith--manifested in thc scntcncc "I confcss that thcre is Onc
God and Mul,iammad is his messcnger"-··· -was dcfinitely not enough
far salvation [ZC, 13lr; FF, 120v], as the Fathers of the Church
had stated long befare.
Although both religions saw history as a path to Paradise or con-
demnation, thcre was another difforence in orientation: what Christians
saw as providcnce, was regarded by l\!luslims as fate. This madc
Torqucmada compare Mul;ammad to Dcmocritus and Epicureus.
Things without providencc- understood as a divine arder governing
creation-would not e.xist, and would not have any reason to be
created [CE, 130- 133].
Creation as presented in the Koran was not acceptable for Christian
theologians. For a start, the word "creation" meant making something
out of nothing. The Koran spoke about things made out of othcrs,
like the sky, which was made up of smoke coming from steam, or
the sun and the moon madc of the samc light exccpt that Gabriel
had touchcd the moon and made it darkcr [CE, 174-1 76]. The
qucstion became more diffi.cult whcn analising whether Adam's soul
was a portion of God's, or if cvery human soul had been madc out
of a single original souL These are complex philosophical qucstions,
but Torquemada merely mcntions them [CE, 169-174], and Espina
does not even try. It seems that the question of angels and demons
attracted much more attention, so Torquemada devoted six chapters
of his treatise to this suqject [CE, 154-168]. He dísagreed on thc
following: angels could not be corporeal, made of firc, but spiritual,
as the Church had consídered them sínce thc third ccntury. They
could not possibly commit sin, nor could they die befare the day of
Judgement, for they werc pure souls and they wcre needed to hold
God's throne in heaven. According to thc Koran, ·angels were unaware
of the names of things bcfore Adam namcd them, which is quite un-
acceptablc for T orquemada. But the worst was to accept that angels
had been askcd to pay homagc to Adam as God's favourite crea-
ture. This was absolutely impossiblc taken that angels stand betwccn
God and man, so it would be Adam who should honour them.
The last, but strongest, criticism related to the end of the world
was that of Paradise as dcscribcd by Mul,iammad [CE, 187-207;
ZC, 13lr, 138r; FF, 119v, 13lv·-132r, 139r; Disputatio, 8lr]. Al1 thc
authors wcrc deeply struck by the physical nature of this Paradise·--
ISLAM IN THE TREATISES 153
a garden of delights-- , as opposed to the spiritual joys promised by
Christian tradition. The criticism on this subject had been thc samc
from the beginnings of Islam, and topics were repeated combining
philosophical explanations with thcologi.cal constructions. Although
the sccond part of the Liber Scalae cxplaincd in seventeen titles the
physical appearance of Paradise, Espina did not use it as a dialectical
weapon . It is strangc to think that any Christian writer would omit
such a proof of Mu}:lammad's depravation, but other authors likc
Daniel have also notcd that the Koran itself was the main source
for this argument. 53
Christian authors in the Península took good care to be infarmcd
about the current religious practices of Muslims within the territory.
Espina goes as far as saying that he had bcen informed by some-
body who had bcen in Granada shortly befare [FF, 132v]. This
implies a ccrtain acknowledgement of sincere devotion in Muslims,
which every author who had lived in Islamic countries had realised.
Usually th~se writers who livcd without any contact with thc Muslim
population tended to be more critical towards Islamic rítcs.
Monotheistic religions are usually exclusive regarding salvation. Islam
is mainly an acknowledgement of God and future life, and confession
of this belief was considered enough to be saved, although the five
pillars of Islam would provide the basis far a holy life. Likewise, for
Christians, baptism and the other sacraments wcrc the way to Paradise
[CE, 145-154]. Thc abscnce of sacraments and priests in Islam made
it difficult far both rcligions to compare their rituals. But even where
a minister was needed-like thc Friday sermon in mosqucs- it was
difficult to explain the character of such a person within Islam. A
number of prejudices also played an important role in thc discussion.
Recitation of the shahada was widcly knovvn and considered use-
lcss for salvation. The only means to achicve it was real lmowledge
of God, which could not be provided by Islam [CE, 145-154]. The
long discussion which had taken place within the Christian Church
itself about faith not bcing enough for salvation, was brought into
the Islamic controvcrsy. And the Koran itself and its commentators
had alrcady emphasizcd this acknowledgement of an only God and
his Prophet as the first condition to attain salvation. However, Espina
el.id not sccm to be much worricd about the shahada in itsclf, síncc
53
Daniel, N.: lrlam and the West, p. 172.
154 CHAPTER SIX
he <lid not devote a single page of commentary to it-leaving it in
favour of the argument about thc call to prayer.
From now on, we shall be following thc Fortalitium in ils list of
Islamic precepts. Strictly spcaking, Espina's first mistake was to attrib-
utc thcse precepts to MuJ:iammad, instead of the Koran-- --it was just
a classical error in Christian treatises. Another particularity is the arder
used by the Franciscan, suggesting a l\lluslim source which has not
been located yet, or perhaps the information brought by sorne clerk
travelling in Muslim lands, who followed sura 2, The Cow.
According to Tradition, ~aliit (praycr), was first pcrformed by Adam,
and later rcvcalcd to David, Solomon, Jacob and Jonah, one for
each time of thc day:14 The Liber scalae refers to Mul.rnmmad's ascent
to heavcn as the origin of the five Islamic prayers, first ordered to
be fifty by God, and then reduced thanks to Moses's interccssion.
But Christians seldom knew what Islamic prayers consisted of Sorne
polemicists compared thcm to the monastic hours; they knew about
the reading of the Koran and repetition of verses, but none mentioncd
raka,iit or other gestures which might havc surpriscd them.
Preliminary ablutions wcrc traditionally accepted as a means for
externa! cleansing, but they wcre considered unsuitable for providing
ritual purity. Washing was seldom mentioned in relation to prayer,
nor was thc distinction made between different types of ablution
(ghusl, wuef,ü, . ..). Thc fact that both employed water made Christians
suppose that Muslims used ablutions for the remission of sins- --like
baptism-....... , and that was the most criticized aspect of ablutions
becausc water was unable to clean internal faults. 5·5 Most important
of all, it could never rcplace baptism [FF, l 32r]-which, paradoxically,
also used water to wash the interior of man.
Francesc Eiximenis related Islamic tastc for water and baths to
the Jews, the cult of thc Moon and Venus, both of whom inspired
eroticism. This commonplacc had bccn uscd since the bcginning of
controversy between Islam and Christianity and continucd to meet
with success well after thc fiftccnth ccntury. Eiximenis also noted
that Muslims used to wash thcmsclvcs very often, wore broad robes
to help this practice and uscd to drink a lot of water at Mu}.iammacl's
commandment, to the outragc of Christians, who did not practice
51
Longás, P.: op. cit., p. 31.
55
For a longcr discussion on the subject, see Daniel, N .: 11"/am and the T1Vest, pp.
235-237.
ISLAM IN THE TREATJSES 155
thc same habits. % Espina added the famous rccommendation of mak-
ing ablutions with sand where water was not availablc. It seems that
he realized thc differcnce between washing before praycr and Christian
haptism, although he givcs both the same namc:
"The baptism of Saraccns only consists of an ablution of the body
members after their becoming dirty due to sexual intercourse or eat-
ing, as appears in the Koran" _57
Christian writers often tllought that Muslims saw ablution as a
substitutc for confrssion- which never existcd in Islam. The line was
drawn from the need for ritual purity aftcr sexual intercourse and
befare praying, which in Christianity required confüssion befare mass
[FF, 139v].
Ali public manifestation of Islam had be en forbiddcn in the IV
Lateran Council. 58 Being a public proclamation of the Prophet, thc
call to prayer was considered as much a social as a religious ritual,
which inv<?lved the participation in praycr of a whole community
settled in a neighbourhood as opposed to thc Christian community
living sidc by sidc. It was also considered a rcproach to Christians
and an act of solidarity against them, so it led to a number of laws
from Christian rulcrs. In 1311, thc call to praycr was forbidden in
Aragon and punished with the dcath penalty, except in thc Moorish
quarters. But an oral agreement with the king was reachcd in 135 7
in cxchange for payment. This was again suspended by the bishop two
ycars later. 59 New Castilian legislation on this matter was issued by
Cathcrine of Lancaster in 1433, but it was ncver fully implemented.
Churches and mosques became the symbol of two religions facing
each othcr, thc samc as bells as opposed to thc mu'adhdhin. For many
Christian chroniclcrs, mosques were ancient Christian churches which
l\lluslims had transformcd, whcrcas for Muslims, bcing dcprived of
their mosques entailed an offcncc on the part of Christians. No mat-
ter from what sidc of the conflict, churches/mosqucs werc thc first
target in conquest and razzias. 60 When MuJ:iarnmad forbade thc use
of bells just to differ from Christians-so it was said-the latter con-
sidered it an outrage. As soon as their prccminence was a fact, they
56
Epalza, M. de: "Un logos cristia ... " J\!facel ·lania Joan Ji'uster, p. 64.
57
FF, [ 132r: "Baptisma vero saracenorum solum se cxtendit ad ablucionem
membrorum proptcr inmundiciam corum ex coytu vel egestione, ut patet- in Alcorano."
58
See Fernández y González, F.: Estado social ... , pp. 376- 377.
59
Boswell, J: The Rf!Yal 7i-easure, p. 264.
60
Bunes !barra, IvI. A.: La imagen de los musulmanes . . ., pp. 218-219.
156 CHAPTER SIX
answercd by stopping the call to prayer [FF, l 32r], to thc great
annoyance of Muslim communities. They soon found new ways, which
are mentioned in inquisition records, such as playing the bugle. 61
While the obligation of almsgiving (zakiit) was not usually criticized,
fasting and prohibitcd food were often mentíoncd in trcatises. Alonso
de Espina rcfcrred to RamaQ.an as thc month when the Koran de-
scended from heaven, and dcscribcd thc dctails of fasting [FF, 132r].
He kncw about the exemptions admittcd for the ill, those on pilgrim-
age and pregnant women, but nevertheless criticized the idea of fast-
ing during the day and eating at night, as was traditional in Christian
writers, because it <lid not convey the idea of self-renunciation and
sacrifice required for fasting. About the aforemcntioncd thrce precepts,
Torquemada only madc one comment:
VI/e werc taught to fast, pray and give alms infinitely long befo re the
amazing sect of thls Mul]anunad. Stop> stop wanting to sce Mul;lammad
as thc first master in thosc things, in which he is worth no more than
being the last disciple . . . [CE, 34].
His criticism focused on accusing Mu}:tammad of encouraging the
Arabs' lust by trying to constrain them during the day while allowing
thcm complete freedom at night [CE, 34; FF, l 32r].
Following Ramac;lan, Espina described the festival of Breaking
Fast (cld al-Fitr) compared to Jewish Passover because both followed
the moon calendar [FF, l 32r- v]. Two traditions wcrc quoted for
the origins of the Festival: the feast was institutcd by Mul;ammad
to cornmemorate Abraham>s sacrifice of a ram instead of hís son; it
also celebrated the night when the Koran descended from Hcaven.
More practica! issues were described, based on the celebrations
whi.ch took place in thc kingdom of Granada: the night of the Feast,
the king used to sacrificc a ram and takc it to the queen. If shc saw
the animal befare its death, it was sccn as a good augury for thc
following ycar. After that, thc king and his knights went jousting and
playing al-tabla (with lances), a custom which has been recorded by
contemporary Muslim chroniclers. 62
61
Longás, P.: op. cit., p. 54.
62
The gamcs took place in the two main squares in Granada (al-Ramla and al-
Tawwabin) and within the precincts of the Alhambra. There wcrc also bullfights,
beast-fights, horse raccs and jousts with Christians from the valley. The gamc mcn-
tíoned by Espina (al-tabla in Arabic, cañas in Spanish) consisted of a hanged target
which was attacked with lances. The chroniclers who mcntion these entertainments
were lbn al-Khatlb and al-Maqqarl. See Al-Abbadf, M.: "Las fiestas profanas y
ISLAM IN THE TREATISES 157
Pilgrimage to IVIecca was considered from severa! viewpoints. The
convert Pedro Alfonso had transmitted the Arabic traditions about
the cult of idols at the Meccan sanctuary, which were reproduced by
Espina to criticise Muhammad for having accepted them at <Umar's
qucstioning [FF, l 32v]. On the wholc, Espina's discussion was quite
accurate as far as Islamic sources are conccrned. Circumambulation
and lapidation were rituals known to Christian clergy, who could not
fully undcrstand thc new meaning of these pagan customs.
Another aim of pilgrimagc was the visit to the Prophet's shrine-
or rather the place where his body was supposcd to be buried.
Neither Torquemada or Espina, and cven less Pedro de la Cavalleria
mcntioned this possibility. Since the expansion of Islam, local pilgrim-
age had increased and was both easier for people living in such a
distant corner as the Iberian Península, and more difficult for the
authorities to control. Moveinent of vast numbcrs of people with a
religious cause within thc boundaries of Christendom attractcd too
much atterition. Although Pope Clement forbade it, kings were more
tolerant within their realms, like Pedro the Great of Aragon, vvho
allowed pilgrimages to the shrines of IVIuslim saints in Godalesc and
forbade the practice of charging them to cnter the mosque to pray. 63
Howcver, when Aragonese Muslims were forbidden to travel to other
JVIuslim countries, they were refused thc opportunity to visit Mecca,
making the king's "tolerant" measure just a way to control his subjects.
Another díssuasíve weapon imposed by Pedro was to forbid Muslims
from outsidc the city to eat meat from the Moorish quarter, thus
making them fast.
Violence was rejected by Christian authors as being opposed to
Christ's message of love. A prophet was not supposed to encourage
the use of weapons to attain the enemy's conversion, 64 and the Koran
was quoted as saying that, were it God's will to convert somebody
to Islam, it would be done without wcapons [FF, l 20r, l 33r]. On
the other hand, rfjihiid was considered as onc of the means used by
Mu}:iammad to attract followers to his cause. No Arabic expert in
theology (if this existed in pre-Islamic times) could accept bis doc-
trine at first, but he succeeded by persuading simple peoplc who
religiosas en el Reino de Granada." 1Hücelá11ea de Estudios Arabes y Hebraicos XIV-XV,
pp. 90- 91.
63
Boswcll, J.: op. cit., p. 263.
64
Montecrocc, R.: Disputatio, f. 86r.
158 CHAPTER SIX
were ready to follow him in his enterprise as a way to conquer the
closest territories and impose their tyranny ovcr thcm [CE, 246].
As a result, misundcrstanding of thc spirit of djíhad was a fcature
common to all religious writcrs. Thc information, transmittcd again
by Pedro Alfonso, that MuQ.ammad had ordered his followcrs "to
rob, make prisoners, kili the adversaries of God, and to persecutc
thcm in every way" [FF, l 32v] was taken out of context-the strugglc
against pagan tribcs in the Arabian Península. Thc cxtcnsion of this
commandmcnt to Christians ignored the dhímma institution, the re-
spect duc to the peoplc of the Book, and was therefore absolutely
un-Islamíc.
Holy war was considercd an incorrect way of introducing Islam
to the world, an expression of MuQ.ammad's evil and a punislunent
for the sins of Christians [ZC, l 37r]. According to Cavalleria, Muslims
could not claim that success rneant divine approval because then any
defeat would involve God's abandon, especially aftcr the pagan
Tartars had triumphed over them. He failed to scc that Christians
often used thc same reasoning for their own victories. Howcver,
Nfontecrocc quoted MuQ.ammad as saying that his power would last
as long as his military triumphs. 65
Food prohibitions did not deservc much comment except a simple
comparison to J ewish habits, and thc statcment that Christians wcre
permitted ali kinds of food [CE, 34, 207- 213; ZC, 138r; FF, l 19v].
It would hardly be an exaggeration to say that thc favourite sub-
ject was marriage and all the legislation derived from it in both the
Koran and Tradition [CE, 176- 187; DM, ch. IX]. Clcrgy used to
compare Christian and Islamic theory on this subjcct, disrcgarding
the fact that concubínage and aclultery were common within both soci-
eties, only differing in that Islam aliowed sevcral wives instcad of
one, giving them thc title of "official" wives, with ali their rights,
apart from concubincs. Criticism of polygamy quoting the New Testa~
ment was thc mcthod chosen by Espina to approach the matter [FF,
139v]. Fortunatcly, restrictions concerning relatives were well notcd
[FF, 133r].
Torquemada startcd by a long considcration about why polygamy
is unlawful [CE, 176--179]: first of all, it is against I Gen. 2: "They
were two in onc flesh", and thcrcforc against natural law. The next
reasons sccm quite advanccd for his time. Based on thc principle of
r;;, Daniel, N.: Islam and the T1Vest, p. 129; IVIontccroce, R.: Disputatio, f. 86r.
ISLAM IN THE TREA TISES 159
equality of human beings, he considers men should not be allowed
polygamy unless women were granted the same right. Nforeover,
love is not possible among many people, and in the same way many
wives cannot be loved equaliy. In the order of creation, love helps
to distinguish man from the beasts, who chose several females; polyg-
amy is a step backwards in this construction.
Alonso de Espina contributcs by justifying the early examples of
polygamy containcd in the Old Tcstamcnt. In this case, it was a
licence given to the prophets, who in any case did not enjoy it as
a way to appease their lust, as MuQ.ammad clid-[FF, 133r; CE, 186].
Still more emphasis was made on the repucliation [FF, l 33r; CE,
79---183] and readmission of wives, which was generally considered
adultcry if the wifc had marricd another person in between. Apart
from increasing thc numbcr of "legal wives" in sorne cases, it was
not recommended either for -the education of children nor ce1iainty
of parenthood.
Torquemada made yet another distinction betwccn polygamy and
concubinage. Criticism of the latter was even harder, given that it
had becn ordered only for carnal pleasure. No Christian writer tried
to analysc possiblc motives for the establishment of such an institu-
tion within the Arabic tribal systcm at the origins of Islam. Although
Torquemada might seem quite openmindcd for his time, his opinions
were decidedly opposed to the Islamic vicw.
Law forbade sexual intercourse between Mudcjars and Christians,
even with Christian prostitutes because, due to baptism, "they had
bccome the wives of Christ". The death penalty was the punishment
established in Alfonso X's Partl:das, and a whole range of possibilities
listed in Aragonesc laws: firc, drowning, slavery, etc. The Ordinance
of 1412 maintaíned the spirit of these laws, although it was not so
specific. Thc same was applied to marriagc between Christians and
Muslims, except for sexual intercourse with Mudcjar women, whosc
situation was the most unprotected. The consequencc was endogamy
within the Mud~jar community which was at the samc time thc key
to their feeling of iclentity. 66
There was a whole series of law-codes concerning sexual inter-
course between both religions in every Peninsular kingdom. Theologians
did not consider all these measurcs in their arguments: they left them
66
Ladero Quesada, M. A.: "Los mudéjares de Castilla en la Baja Edad Media",
p. 375. For Aragón, see Boswcll, J.: 17ie Rr!JaÍ 1í·easure, p. 344.
160 CHAPTER SIX
to politic al lcadcrs. Inste ad thcy referred to the theoretical bases
which could be applied to intolerance. l\!lixture at this level was con-
sidcrcd dangerous, and influence on weak members of society-
womcn and children-was emphasized. Membcrs of sociccy with less
power were penalized for unions which thc powerful could afford.
If the crime was adultery or fornication among l\IIuslims, forgivcness
was granted through payment. 67
Llnked to the supposed lust of Arab people was the belief that
the Koran encouraged sodomy, when it <lid precisely the oppositc
[FF, l l 9v- l 20v; CE, 186]. Ricoldo de Montecrocc was the first to
analyse the problem in depth. He considered sodomy as one of the
grcat contradictions in the Koran, because it was admitted and con-
demned in the same sura. Still, he was awarc that Islam rejectcd it. 63
In fact, "sodornitc" was considered a grcat insult, which was punishcd
with eighcy whips according to the Breviario Sunni. 69
Friday obscrvance was at first linked to the cult of Venus [CE, 34;
ZC, 138r; FF, 132r, 133v] in the context of the accusations of idol-
atry madc by the Christian Fathcrs. Later on, othcr rcasons were
given for this choice, such as Friday being the day whcn Mu}:iarnmad
was crowned king, according to the legend of his marriage to Khadidja,
lady of Corozan. Better informed theologians pointcd to Mu]:iammad's
dcsire of distinction from Christian observancc of Sunday andJewish
observance of thc Sabbath.
The question of thc dircction of thc qibla, which had already been
discussed within the. Islamic world, was connected to Friday observance
and prayer. Espina says it should look to the South, whcre Mecca
was orientated from the Península. It is interesting to sce that he did
not realize that, takcn from other geographical points, the direction
of prayer would coincide with the Jewish one (West) or the Christian
one (East). Once again, Mu}:iammad's efforts to be different from the
two older rcligions would be the cause for his commandment-he
still forgcts it is really a Koranic commandment, and not Mu}:iammad's
[FF, 133v].
But the best part of the argument is when he takes l\IIu}:i.ammad's
desirc for diíference to everyday habits such as sitting at the table
7
G Ibidem, pp. 344--345.
68
Daniel, N.: Islam and the West, p. 143.
69
Gayangos, P. de: Tratados de legislaúón musulmana, p. 386.
ISLAM IN THE TREATISES 161
for Christians versus sitting on the floor (Muslims), eating with or
without napkins, holding sardines from their tails versus holding them
from their heads to place them on the fire, and so on. It is quite
peculiar that a theologian of his rank would descend to commcnt
upon such trivial affairs, but thcy do provide a new clue to understand-
ing that unease social rclations were starting to creatc among the
Christian community. This feeling can be more worrying than simple
religious thcorctical controversy for the cocxistencc of three social and
religious communities.
Continuing with social legislation, \·ve fmd the following three pre-
cepts taken from Koran 2:178-182. The first one speal{s of retalia-
tion as the penalcy for murdcr, lapidation for adultery and whípping
for fornication as comparcd to Moscs's law [FF, l 33v]. The second
onc, about inhcritance, was strange to Peninsular writers. Islamic law
made fcmalcs inherit half the portion of a man, whcrcas Christian
laws conceded equal parts to both. The same occurred with regard
to witnesses: in Islamic law, a male witness prevails over female tes-
timonies. No further comment is made about these issues, or formal
explanation is given of why thcsc principles of social legislation should
be included in a chapter on rcligious precepts-probably the distinc-
tion was not as precise for thc writcrs as it is nowadays.
The prohibition of wine always posed the samc problem to Christian
thcologians: how could Mul:iammad promisc a Paradise with rivers
of winc if he considered it so dangerous? The answcr to this paradox
was ncver found, but many discussions followed. Sorne writers took
the prohibition to involve grapes and non-alcoholic wine [FF, 133v].
Several popular traditions were introduced into theological reason-
ing, such as the story of angels Aroth and Maroth [FF, 119v] told in
the hadith, who got drunk in ordcr to posscs a woman. This account
made Torquemada exclaim that such a conduct was in no way pro-
per of angels but rathcr of demons. The cardinal again differenciatcd be-
tvvcen drinking and being drunk-which could in fact be considered
a sin. The best reason he could give for Mu}:iammad's strictness was
that the Prophet was trying to preserve peace within his community:
Arabs livcd in a hot area, where drinking strong wine would make
thcm drunk casily, causing disturbances and murders. Given that
l\IIul:iammad was a tyrant, he probably feared his men would then
rise against him [CE, 207-213]. This is doubtless the most imagina-
tive argument read on this subject.
162 CHAPTER SIX ISLAM IN THE TREATISES 163

The mattcr of disputes was classical in polcmic litcrature. Christian e) Other a.~jJects qf controverS)1
thcologians could hardly undcrstand why 1\ifuslims were forbiddcn to
Just as sorne aspects of Islamic belief were unclear for Christian the-
cngagc in rcligious discussion exccpt if thcir religion lacked enough
ologians, thcre were others in Christian faith which Muslims could
basis to be defended in a public argumcnt. Juan de Segovia was one of
not understand. One of thc oldcst issues was the argument about
the defenders of such a rnethod, as we have seen in chapter 2 [Dlvl,
adoration of images, takcn from Byzantine iconoclasm [ZC, 123v--l 24;
ch. IV], and Nicholas of Cusa was ready to follow. Although Espina
CE, 138- 143; FF, 139v·-l 40r]. For a start, Islam did not conceive the
and 'Torquemada did not explicitly defend the samc position, given
diflerence betwccn adoring a statue and adoring somcthing beyond
their preaching skills thcy had to support thc argument [FF, l 33v].
it: both wcrc considered idolatry. The second point was adoring
Circumcision was one of Espina's dcarcst subjects, for it linked
imagcs of thc Virgin and the saints, i.c., rcprcscntations other than
Islam andJudaism, i.e., thc crrors of thc old and the newest laws, an
God's, which were only permittcd in thc Roman Church.
unnatural ritual which had becn supcrccded by Christ and his N ew
Fifteenth-century writcrs had enough references to this problcm
Testament [FF, 134r, 136~137v; DM, ch. XII; CE, 133- 138]. His
but, for a start, the Koran did not refer to it in the verses quotcd
action was both theoretical and practical, for he accuscd sorne converws
by Torquemada. Espina extended the argument to Jews- Moses's
befare the king of practising the ritual in secret. 70
law prohibíted human representation. But the final cxplanation was
The first recrimination to be made was that Muslims prcserved
that, while making images of idols was forbidden, the matter was
this practice dcspitc it bcing recommended only by the Sunna-·--··and
settlcd whcn the images were God's, in ordcr to hclp believers to
not by thc Koran itself Two traditions were mentioned: the first
rcmcmber Him. In relation to this discussion, the Cross was rejectcd
onc, which was broadly acccptcd, was that Mul_iammad had becn
as an object of devotion, mainly because Muslims did not acccpt
circumcised in his mother's womb. This was rejected on the grounds
J esus's crucifixion, and thcy did not see how two pieces of wood
that no such sign had been announced to the Prophct's mother-
could be adored. 72
in a clear comparison to lvlary's annunciation. The sccond had him
Despite Mul_iammad's efforts to eradicate miracles as a sign of
circumcised by Gabriel once he was born, while he was having a
prophethood, thcy were clear proof of this state for Islamic popular
bath. Islamic answer to the question of why thcy did continuc the
faith. Miracles could be performed by anyone chosen by God for a
Jewish practicc was that they were fulfilling Abraham's law, and this
particular mission, and were nota sign of God's particular preference.
gave Espina anothcr controversia! subject to discuss, always bascd on
But anyonc with an important mission would be likcly to have the
scriptural argumcnts. Thc last response was taken back to the origins
powcr to pcrform miracles. In this schcmc, miracles did not prove
oflslam, when many supportcrs carne from the Jewish tribes in thc
that Christ was the Son of God. Yet, Jesus was accepted as the great-
Arabian Pcninsula. Circumcision was in this context an attempt to
est miracle-mal(er after Mul;tammad.
assimilatc these new converts to Islam, as major ablution was thought
Christian writers used the list of false miracles attributed to Muham-
to have been when the first Christians became Muslims [FF, 136vJ. 0

mad provided by thc Syrian Apology to ridicule the Prophct [FF,

This is the most interesting and accurate piece of the argument.
l 19v-120v; CE, 43], forgetting that he had already warned Muslirns
Muslirns felt the need to counterattack at this point, and 'Isa ibn
about believing in miracles. According to Eiximenis, rcfutation of
Djabir recommended a modilication of the typc of circumcision in
miracles was vital to refute Islam?~ On the othcr hand, for Islamic
the Breviarw Sunni, in order to maintain that it had not been practiscd. 71
writers like Ibn al-Samad al-Khazrajf of Cordoba, miracles which
had to do with saints and lvlary-such as thc story of St. Ildephonse's
cloak, given to him by the Virgin hcrself----, were unacceptable. 74
70
Enriqucz D,d ~astifü~, D.: Crónica de Enrique IV, p. 206: " . . . vino alli [Madrid]
el maestro del Espm~ y fray Femando de la Plaza con otros religiosos a notificar
al rey co~no :n sus remos avia grande heregia de algunos que judaizaban, guardando .
72
Epalza, M .: ] esus otage, p . 225.
los ntos JUda1cos_, y c_o:i .nombre de christianos retaxaban sus hijos, suplicandole que 7
See Daniel, N.: !l·Lam aud !he ft11esf., p. 74·. Also Epalza, M. de: "Un logos
:i
mandase hacer mqrns1c1on sobre ello para que füesen castigados." crcstia .. .", p. 71.
71 Wiegers, G.: Islamic Literature ... , pp. 105- 106. 74
Epalza, ivl. : ]esus olage, pp. 184; 215-216.
164 CHAPTER SIX
d) Nfuslims) Heretfrs and ]ews
Polemics against Judaism and Islam were usually considered together
and used by the same authors in defence of Christian faith. Thc evi-
dent relation among the thrcc rcligions "of the Book" was perceived
by most of their members. It made polemic at once desirable and
difficult. l\!Iatters such as common dcsccnt from Abraham or thc
monastic movcmcnt were recognized as points in common. 75
From its origins, Islam was considered a sect born out of a mixture
of Christianity and Judaism. In the beginning, Byzantine polemicists
insisted on considering it a heresy. Following this trend, Islam was
compared to several hercsies until its contents were better known.
A classification was complex to work out, so the terms used for
Mul;i.ammad ranged from "hcrctic" to "schismatic",76 as schism becamc
apparent in the late medieval Church. It is worth noting that thc-
ologians undcrstood Islam in the light of what was happening within
thc Church in thcir particular time: first, the confrontation of here-
sics; later, the rupture of schism. But still Nicolas of Cusa thought
Islam to be a revival of Nestorianism, after his knowledge of Byzantine
polemics. 77
Espina and Torquemada themselves devoted chapters taken from
Ricoldo de l\!Iontecroce to the comparison of Islam with other sccts
or heresies:
Secundus pasus ostendit errores legis Machometi. Undc omnium antiquo-
rum feccs quas dyabolus sparsim seminaverat, simul in JVIachometo
et eius lege recolexít ac renovavit. Ipse namque cum Sabclio negavit
trinitatem personarum in divinis. Secundo docuit Christum esse puram
creaturam cum Arria. Unde et Sergius monachus qui fuit magistcr
Machometi ut dictum est, fuit hereticus arrianus. Tercio aserit quod
iudei non occiderunt Christum sed qucndam ci similem et in hoc con-
venit cum Manichco. Quarto dicit quod Deus transtulit Christum ad
se sed apparebit circa fmcm mundi et occidct Antichristum et pastea
faciet eum Dcus mori. Et quia negavit Christi passionem negat omnia
sacramenta Ecclesie quae a passione Christi sumpsserunt efficaciam, et
in hoc convenit cum donatistis hereticis. Quinto dicit quod demones
possunt salvari per Alchoranum et quod ipsi audito Alcorano multi ex
eis facti sunt sarraceni et in hoc aliqualiter imitatur Origenem qui dixit
75
Moubarac, Y.: L'hlam et le dialogue islamo-chretien, pp. 263· 267.
76
Daniel, N.: Islam and the West, p. 192.
77
Anawati, G. C.: op. cit., p. 157.
ISLAM IN THE TREATISES 165
quod adhuc demones salvabuntur. Sexto dicit quod quando Deus misit
pro eo Gabrielcm, quod ipse ivit ad Deum et Deus imposuít ei manus
et tantam frigiditatem scnsit ex tactu manus Dei super humeros eius
quod fr:igiditas pervenit usquc ad medulam spine dorsi et in hoc con-
venit cum Acromofortis qui ponunt Deum corporcum. Septimo dicit
Spiritum Sanctum esse creaturam et in hoc convenit cum Macedonio.
Octavo dicit quod aliqui angeli facti sunt dcmones quia nolucrunt ado-
rare Adam et in hoc omnino neminem imitatur. Nono ponit quod
ultima hominis bcatitudo est in comcdendo et luxuriando et in vestibus
precíosis et in ortis irriguis et in hoc convenit cum Cherinto herctico et
cum quibusdam paganis. Decimo ponit in capitulo de Mensa quod fami-
lia sua nichil omnino valet nisi complcat legcm et Evvangelium et lib-
rum sibi revclatum, scilicet Alchoranum, et sic docuit gentes iudayzare,
et ideo docuit circumcisionem esse tenendam et in hoc convcnit cum
Vieme herctico. Undecimo docuit indifferenter accipcrc uxores alienum
et in hoc videtur conveniri cum nicholaytis hereticis. Duodecimo docuit
licitum csse plures uxores habere contra Apostolum Prima Corinthiorum,
septimum, et contra constitucionem perfectam legis naturc: "Erunt duo
in carne una." (Gen., 2). Et in hoc convenit cum Nazareis hereticis lici-
tum pónentibus in nova lege articulum de pluraritate uxoris. Tredecimo
docuit uti lotionibus pro baptismatibus in remissionem peccatorum con-
tra Apostolum ad Ephesios, 4: "Una fides, unum baptisma", et in hoc
convenit cum novacianis et donatistis hcrcticis baptisma reycrantibus.
Quartodccímo docuit licita esse sodomiam tam cum masculo quam
cum femina ut patct in Alchorano capitulo de Vaca, et in hoc convenit
cum sodomitis hereticis, licet sarraceni palientur hoc quibusdam honestis
exposicionibus. 711
78
"On the error.; of Mul:tammad's law. The second step shows the errors of
Mul;ammad's law. vVhencc all the old dregs which the devil had disseminatcd were
collected and renewed by him in Mul~ammad and his law. For he denied with
Sabellius the Trinity of persons ín God. Second, he taught that Christ was a plain
crcature, like Aríus. vVhence Sergius the monk, who was MUI:iammad's tcacher, as
has been said, was an Arian heretic. Third, he said that the Jews did not kili Christ
but someonc resembling Him, ancl in that he agrccd with Manicheus. Fourth, he
said that God called Christ to Him but He would appear at the end of the world
and kíll the Antichrist, and aftcrwards God wíll make Him dic. And becausc he
denicd Christ's Passion, he clenied ali the Sacraments of the Church which assumed
their efficacy from Christ's Passion, and in this he agreed with the Donatist heretics.
Fifih, he said that the demons could be saved by thc Koran and that, once they
hacl hcard the Koran, many of them bccame Saracens, and in this he imitated
Origen to sorne cxtcnt, who said that even the devils would be saved. Sixth, he
said that whcn God sent Gabriel to him, he travdled to God and God laid his
hands upon him, and he felt such a coldness from the touch of God's hands on
his shoulders that the cold carne to his spinal marrow, and in this he agreed with
Acromoforts, who male God corporeal. Sevcnth, he said that the Holy Ghost was
a crcature ancl in this he agreed with Maccdonius. Eighth, he saíd that sorne angels
 166 CHAPTER SIX
However, Espina tried to explain why IVfol;iammad was really a schis-
matic and not a hereti.c. There were four conditions to cstablish hercsy,
which Islam fulfilled. The main argument to .dcny thc qualification
of hcrctic was that the Prophet did not confess Islam to be a Christian
scct, but on the contrary, he always introduccd it as something com-
pletely different from its supposed origins (Christianity and .Judaism).
In addition to this, he was mistaken in most part of the doctrine,
inste ad of dcnying certain points while agreeing with thc rcst. 79
When Peter the Venerable was VVTiting his works opposing Islam,
he had already seen it as a possible danger in the place of Manicheism.
Alain de Lille shared thís concept of Islam. In De fide catholica contra
hereticos sui temporis, it was mcntioned together with the Albigensians,
thc Waldensians and thc Jcws, but in a much shorter way. 80 Only
after the Mendicant approach <lid Islam start to be seen as a sepa-
rate religion which <lid not have its roots in Christianity, although
it had been influenced by hereti.cs through Mul;iammad.
Within the Franciscan approach, a very intercsting opinion is
Francesc Eiximenis's. Coming from a mixed socicty in Valencia, Eixi-
menis was sure of Mul:iammad's imítation ofJudaism and its precepts-
circumcision, food prohibition-and about thc good relationship
cxisting between Jcws and IVIuslims in his homeland. Not only <lid
they love each other better than they did Christians, but they also
wcrc made demons bccause thcy didn't want to adore Adam, and in this he imi-
tated nobody. Ninth, he stated that the ultimatc human bealitude is eating, having
intercoursc and precious clothes and watcrcd gardens, and in this he agreed with
thc hcretic Cherintus and with other pagans. Tenlh, he asserted in thc chaptcr of
the .Table Sprcacl that his family was worth nothing if they did not comply with the
Law, thc Gospels and the Book rcvcaled to him-namely the Koran-· and so he
taught the peoplc to behave like Jews, and also taught that circumcision should be
made, and in this he agreed with Vierne the heretic. Elcvcnth, he taught to take
indiscriminately the wivcs of othcrs, and in this he is secn to agree with thc Nicolaite
heretics. Twelfth, he taught that having sevcral wives was pcrmitted, against the
Apostle, and against the perfect constitution of natural law: 'They shall be two in
onc flesh'. And in this he agreed with the Nazaritc heretics who allowecl in their
new law an articlc about [havingl severa! wivcs. Thirteenth, he prescribed the use
of ablutions instead of baptism for the rcmission of sins, against the Apostle: 'One
faith, one baptism', and in this he agreed with thc Novatist and Donatist hcretics
who repeat baptism. Fourteenth, he taught that sodomy was ailowed both with men
or women, as stated in the Koran, chaptcr of the Cow, and in this he agrccd with
thc Sodomíte heretics, although the Saracens conccal this with sorne honest argu-
ments." FF, f. l 19r; Montecroce, R. : Disputatio, f. 78v.
79
FF, Lyon 14ll7, f. 28r.
80
Sec Southern, R.: op. cit., p. 39 and Daniel, N.: Islam and the Mlest, pp. 188--189.
ISLAM IN THE TREATISES 167
spokc cach other's language 81 and used to share their lodgings, rathcr
than Christian ones, which was quite reasonable given the rarified
atmosphere existing in the Península around and aftcr 1391. 82
In general, .J ews and IVIuslims wcre dealt with togcther in religious
and legal works, thcir rcligi.ons wcre dcscribcd in association and a
common remcdy was sought for their attacks against the Church.
Litcrary stylcs ranged from theological treatises to didactic dialogues
likc Llull's Libre del gentil e los tres savis, where a dispute among a Jcw,
a Christian and a l\tfuslim is used to try to persuade a pagan philoso-
pher to convert to one of thc thrcc rcligions. ·
VVe have seen before how most of the Islamic doctrine was discussed
as compared to thc Jcwish law. It is obvious that both have points
in comrnon and diffcrences, but Christian writers used to stress the
formcr. Onc of the first characteristics attributed to them was their
foundation by the devil, and the popular belief that their members
looked like demons-this thought was even taken to iconography.
Demonization of the encmy was more important in Christian than
Muslim sources. The deformative tcchnique was influenced by Apoc-
alyptical literature. 33 Hillgarth thinks, rightly in rny vicw, that "moors
might occasionally be cquatcd in popular spccch with devils or in
legend with sorccrcrs, but there was no general anti-Niuslim feeling
to compare with that against the Jews [... ], whose nature was to
be evil. " 8'1
Thc rclation between the Jews and the diabolic existed in the minds
of both the elite and commoners. That is the reason why Alonso de
Espina could have chosen to íncludc dcmons in his treatise relating
them somehow to Jews and Muslims, a trace of originality in his time. 85
According to the Fortaütium, Adam had sired to two raccs - Jews and
demons--through two diffcrent wives; on thc othcr hand, Mul;iammad's
ancestors had carricd thc dcvil's banners as idolatcrs and the Koran
had come frorn the devil himself. The link was established through
the .Jewish astronomcr who prophesized Muhammad's birth.
81
There are a numbcr of documents from Castilian aljamas to prove this rela-
tionship in the mid-füteenth century. Onc of thc most interesting articlcs cm this
subject is Gunvirth, E.: "Hispano:Jcwish attitudes to thc Moors." :)rjarad, XLIX
(1989), pp. 237 262. .
02
Epalza, M.: " Un logos crcstia ... ", p. 65.
n:i Barkai, R.: op. cit., p. 290.
· Hillgarth, J.: op. cit., p. 127. Prof. Meyuhas Ginio also agrees, in La.forleresse,
01
pp. 152-153.
5
H Ruiz, T. F.: "La Inquisición medieval y la moderna . .. ", pp. Ci4-65 .
168 CHAPTER SIX
\iVhat werc thc vicws of our four authors on thc Jcwish problem
comparcd to the Islamic issuc? A bricf outline of their position will
hclp to undcrstand why Espina is thc only author who tries to conceal
both problems at the same time, although with different solutions.
Juan de Segovia was more interested in holy war and preaching
methods than in the socio-religious problem posed by the marginal
communities. His rcferences to Jews only occur whcn Moses and
Abraham's laws are discussed related to the use Islam made of them,
and in chapter XIV, whcrc he stated thcrc was no hope of salvation
for pagans and Jews within their own rcligions. He must havc left
Jcws aside because the hope of converting them had vanished long
since, and they opposed not armed resistence but economical power
to Christian ambitions.
Pedro de la Cavalleria planned his work as a refutation of Jews
and Muslims togcther, but the balance was lost in favour of the
Jews. By declaring Moses's law superceded by Christ, he wished to
attack both religions at the same time, gíven that Saracens saw thcm-
selves as the continuators of Abraham's law. The whole argumcnt
about the Messiah and the demonstration of the Trinity were devised
to persuade both at the samc time and establish the basis for thc
commentary of the Koran which would follow.
Juan de Torquemada did not mentionjews specifically in his Contra
errores, firstly because t11e subject was too far away from his practica!
aim to direct a crusade against the Turks. He had already dcalt with
conversos, which was a much more immediate problcm far him, bcing
of converso origin. He was not living too clase to thc J ewish issuc, and
popes had no jurisdiction over the community, so his interests werc
much more concentratcd.
Finally, Espina was cvcn more intcrcstcd in J udaism than he was
in Islam, so it is at his work we should look far common interprc-
tations of thc problem. Dcspite the fact that Jews were an unsolved
problem for Christendom which provided no model for dealing with
Muslims, 86 sorne of Espina's plans wcre applicable to both groups,
as shall be secn.
The purely thcological argumcnt follows the same pattern as the
book on Muslims: scriptural commentarics to demonstrate the fulfil-
86
Harvcy, L. P.: op. cit., p. 64.
ISLAM IN THE TREATISES 169
ment of Moscs's law, thc origins of Judaism, the blindncss of Jews
who dcnied thc arrival of the Messiah, etc. The ideas were better
cxplaincd duc to the deeper knowledge of jeV11Ísh somces and Christian
polemists that Espina had. The style of chapters 7 to 12 can be
compared to the core of the argument against Saracens. Classification
prevails when dealing with seventeen cruelties commited by Jcws, four
expulsions from different tcrritorics throughout history, ten miracles
which should conduce Jews to conversion, and six steps in Jewish fool-
ishness. Thcsc chapters can be considered a counterpart to the hun-
dred and fifty-cight battles of the De Bello Saracenorum, in an attempt
to show .the way to Christian triumph: chapters 11 and 12 describe
the obligations of Jews while living under Christian power and their
place at the end of the ·world, whcn they will submit completely to
Christians.
Thesc parallclisms in stnicture are combined with intcrcsting de-
tails within thc text. The Jews' cruelties87 startcd when thcy opcncd
the gatcs óf Toledo to the Muslims at the collapsc of thc Visigoth king-
dom in the Península. A number of cases from Francc, Germany, Italy
and Castile were then reported: poison, human sacrifices, children's
murders, torture, destruction of churches, all from 1183 to 1457. Sorne
of them were excerpted from chronícles, and others were attributed
to witnesses or inquisitors (bishop Alfonso de Vivero of Salamanca,
Alonso de Espina himself).
Conccrning thc four expulsions, 88 thosc from the Holy Land,
England and France led the way to Sisebute's dccree (616) imposing
conversion or migration. Those Jews who had flcd to the Frankish
kingdoms or the North of Africa entered the Pcninsula again with
the Muslim invaders in 714-here we find the two peoples together
once more. Was Espina providing historical antecedents to suggest
that expulsion would be the best way to get rid of the problem of
ass:imilation? Conversion through miracles could be a way out for
those chosen by God to remain. Meanwhilc, he had to think of sorne
ways to favour pcaccful Iifc wherever several religíous communitics
líved side by side. 89
Jews and Muslims should be admitted to livc alongsidc Christians
87
FF, Lyon 1'187, f. 75r- 79v.
im Ibídem, f. 87r- 90r.
89
On this subject, see Mcyuhas Gínio, A.: La forteresse, pp. 132- 149.
170 CHAPTER SIX

in the name of charity, so that the catholic faith would be confirmed,

divine justice could be shown-they were charged with Christ's
death-, in memory of Jesus's passion, so it can nevcr be forgotten, CHAPTER SEVEN
and in order to fulfil thc prophecies of the Day ofJudgement. 90 How
this situation could be arranged in arder to cause as little damagc to THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT:
thc Christian faith as possiblc, is thc subject of the following section. TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION

wne Spirit ef tlze Laws)'

Laws can be read in an extcnsive way, which tells a gTeat <leal about
how people conceivcd theír civilization. At the same time, they can
help to build sorne sort of picture of nearby communities. Clerical
writers were well aware of this, and they included- even copicd word
for word- lcgal texts within theír treatiscs. In a society whcrc religious
and laic principles were mixed, it is necessary to study both aspects
togethcr. Likewíse, royal legislation sharcd a place with ccclesiastical
regulations and recommcndations.
It must be taken into account that, before the end of the fifteenth
century, a Christian statc was not supposed to be exclusively Christian.'
But for Muslims, living under non-Muslim authorities was not con-
sidered in their laws. The loss of political power was a difficult issue
in a structure whose head, the caliph, was both a religious and a
secular lcadcr. Theoretically, the advancc of Christian powcr in the
Península should have resulted in emigTation or conversion,2 but the
coexisting habits created throughout thc Middlc Agcs slowed clown
the trend, despite the recommcndations of foreign affaquis such as
al-Wansharfsf or AJ:imad ibn Abü Djumü ca. 3
Closely related to thc loss of Arabic as their distinctive language
was the decline of aljamas as the cell of Islamic communitary organi-
zation. The aljama had been established for five particular purposcs:
to acknowledge de facto Christian authority while preserving an interna!

1
Harvcy, L. P.: op. cit., p. 64.
2 Epalza, l\11. de: "Les morisqucs, vus ... ", p. 38.
'.l Although al-Wansharlshí recommended emigration, AJ:¡mad b. Abu Djumü'a
(fl. 1503), who had himself fied to Oran from Almagro, was awarc of the practical
problems of living under Christians and the alternative emigration to 1VIuslím tcrri-
tories, and was much more sympathctic lo his fcllow-:Niuslims. See Cantincau, J.:
"Lcttrc clu moufti d 'Oran aux musulmans cl'Andalousic." Journal A.riati.que (1927),
9
° FF, Lyon 1487, f. 9lv. pp. l- 17.
172 CHAPTER SEVEN
indcpcndencc for the religious community, keeping thcir own laws
and bclicfs; to collect taxes for the government; as a support against
Christians' abuses and in order to work to rctrieve political power. ·~
At :first, the need of Christian monarchs to use the manpower pro-
vided by a/jamas was dccisivc for the concession of a certain degree
of autonomy. 5 Still, in the fiftcenth ccntury each one had a judge
to look after Muslim procedures, according to their own laws compiled
by l\/Iuhammad al-Shartosi at the beginning of thc ccntury. When
rcligious leaders disappeared, a void was creatcd and they startcd to
lose power. The chance was taken by local govcmments and lords,
who imposed their will on these unprotcctcd subjects, to the point
that King Enrique IV considered the appointment of an alcalde de las
aljamas to dcfcnd their rights, although it was first done undcr Juan II.6
, Redusion in m01-erias was not really compulsory, but a trcnd favoured
by Muslims themselves. Whether they were a factor of prescrvation
of Arabic language can be questioned, for they were well within city-
lifc and they held most of the trading and building activities, so the
vcrnacular was vital to their transactions with Christians. There are
many studies about single morerías in different cities,7 but so far no
scholar seems to have undertaken a research into their role as guard-
ians of Arabic languagc.
It would be too long and far from our purpose to detail ali the
local codes which cstablishcd thc rclationship between Muslims, Jews
and Christians. However, thc theoretical compilations ordcrcd by
kings provide vcry useful information to complete thc picturc shown
in religious works. Cavalleria's De zelus Christi should be left asídc,
for it focuscd on the commentary of the Koran rather than social
prescriptions. Castilian royal laws in the fifteenth century were based
on the previous Seven partr; and the Fuero real collccted by Alfonso X,
while Aragonese, relied on the more practica! articles of their faeros
and customs.
4
Epalza, M.: "Les morisques, vus a partir des communautes mudéjares ... ",
p . 38.
5
For examplc, the privilege issued in 1305 by Fernando IV of Castile and
rencwcd by his Trastamara successors, which mcntioned the climinishing number
of Mudejars, their uscfulness, etc., which granted them privilcgcs to settle in thc
realm. Cf Torres Fontes, J.: "El alcalde mayor de las aljamas ... " AHDE ( 1962),
p. 14-1.
6
Ibidem, pp. 146, 149.
7
See the differcnt volumcs of Actas del Simposio Internacional de 1\!Jud~jarismo, starting
1981, thc last one being the VII Symposium, in press.
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT: TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION 173
Title XXV of the Seventh Part dcalt with Muslims spccifically.
What strikcs the readcr is that thesc laws referrcd to conversion
rather than to the Muslim community. Conversion to Islam was suit-
ably punished whereas conversion to Christianity was cncouraged,
as in thc Aragoncse fiteros. 8 Matters related to daily life were sccn to
in local laws only. The rest of the subjects mentioned in this Part
were in one way or another rclated to rcligion.
For instancc, its first point has a twofold interpretation. Literally,
it forbids Muslim ownership of the mosques built in Castilian terri-
tory. Thcse were thc Kjng's, and he could offer thcm to whoever he
wanted, At first sight, it looks lil(e a grcat advance on the ''Reconquista"
feeling. However, the situation was more complcx. Since three centuries
bcfore, the most worrying problem among the Islamie Kjngdoms
in the Península was the lacl< of a defincd leadership. Party-kings
and local rulcrs used to take up differcnt positions when faccd with
Christian Cf1:emies, precisely at the time when they should have been
united. This basic structural problem became more acutc towards
the fiftcenth century, when Mudejar groups tended not to have politi-
cal lcaders. The decline of Arabic education contributed to makc reli-
gious leadership fade, with sorne exceptions. The void of powcr was
fillcd by the king-or~ more commonly in Aragon, by the lord- ,
who undertook the role of defender of the community, sometimcs con-
fronting the Church and thc military orders. It is important to realizc
that the King, and not thc Chureh, was the owncr of the mosques
in the early stages of Christian advance. Although it could become a
means of controlling the use of thc building and avoiding public cult,
it could also be taken as a way to keep it from being turned into
a chureh, thus guaranteeing the Muslims' rights to livc their faith
as agreed in thc truccs. Later on, mosques were given to St. Mary's
church- thc catheclral-·-in most cities, showing an important evolution
in the trend.
The second paragraph of the first law seems to confirm this point
of view: nothing should be stolen from a Muslim as long as he were
living among Christians. This statcment can doubtless be applied to
propertíes within the mosque, or even the mosque itself. 9 ·
Law IX rules thc use of messengers for political purposcs, and thc
award of safe-conducts to protect them. If the messenger happencd
6
Tilander, G.: Los Fueros de Aragón .. ., Book VII, 271.
9
See Alfonso X: Las siete partidas, f. 76v- 78v.
174 CHAPTER SEVEN
to owe any unpaid debts to any subjcct of thc Christian kingdom
befare his mission, these could not be claimed. However, if he owed
anything after entcring Castile on his work, he could be askcd to
pay for evcrything, and be taken to court if he refused to do so.
The chief fcature of lcgislation was sexual intercourse betwccn
pcoplc of di:fferent relígion. Notoriously, this applicd to Christian
women, and the punishment was uncqual for the couplc: while the
Muslim man was stoned, a single Christian woman lost half of her
goods the first time, and ali of them thc sccond. If the woman was
married, he would be stoned, while she would be given to her hus-
band to punish her at his own will. If the woman was a prostitutc,
both were beatcn around the town, and the second time, taken to
death-despite the fact that the prostitute was "the wifc of Christ"
according to the same law.
The Aragonese faeros only contain a few articlcs specifically about
Muslirns: one about the tithcs they should pay for those of their
lands which had once belonged to Christians, 'º another about pcnal-
ties imposed for a number of crimes (injuring a Muslim, etc.) and sorne
related to the sale of properties among people from clifferent religions.
There were no theoretical cornpilations in the Península such as thesc
two until the reígn of Isabel and Fernando (1478- 1513) except for
royal ordinanccs, the most famous of which, the Ordinancc of Alcala
(1348), only mcntioned the same issues about Muslims and Jews.
Probably thinking that this was not enough, Espina was dceply
concerncd about how Jcws, Muslims and Christians should live
togcther whilc awaiting thc Last Judgement, always thinlcing of caus-
ing the lcast trouble to thc Christian community. He stuclied the
rnatter thoroughly and establishcd a code of behaviour which kings
should apply in order to rule thcir rcalms safely. Although he men-
tioned sorne ecclesiastical legislation, his main interest was clirected
towards practica! coexistence in thc Península, so he used several
royal laws to explain his views. His opinions about .Jcws extended
to Saracens, as he said in consideration 11, so both groups will be
considered together here as well. According to thc text, there are
several groups of prescriptions: 11
HJ Tilander, G.: op. cit., pp. 11 If.
ii Unless othcrwisc stated, I will follow Espina's order according to FF, Lyon
14137, ff. 9 Lv-92v.
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT: TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION ] 75
1. What Jews and l\!Iuslims may preserve without damaging
Christians
As far as their religious customs were concerned, they could preserve
their rituals. Synagogucs or mosques continued to be theirs, and they
could restare thcm, although not enlarge them. Thcy should not
bother Christíans wíth their rituals. They could celebratc Saturdays-
or Fridays. They could sell goods ali ovcr thc territory and finally,
thcy would not be obligcd to convcrt to Christianíty.
Limitations to this group of prescriptions were cstablished within
the same framework: conccrning rituals, the call to prayer was for-
bidden by the IV Lateran Council and was defined as one of the
rituals which most bothered Christians, so Espina 12 ch ose to recom-
mend its prohibition. Royal ownership of mosques and synagogues
has alrcady bcen commented_upon, so thcre is no nccd to insist on
that point. The sarne applies to royal dccrccs imposing attendance
of proselitis~ sermons in cítics.
2. What should be forbidden to Jews and Muslims
They should not be pcrmitted to be insolent towards Christians,
nor should they be granted justice by their elders (i.e., their aijamas).
They should not testify against Christians. Their privileges rcgarding
taxes should be climinated. No new synagogues or mosques should
be built. Thcy should .not rejoicc or dress up during Christian Easter
celcbrations, nor receive communion. They should not have Christian
servants or slaves. They could not circumcise any Christian or accept
conversions, or allow any Christian to circumcise himself. They should
not hold any public officc. Jcwish or Muslim women were not allowcd
to be nurses to Christian children. Finally, they should not livc with
or marry Christian women but, if it was the case already, thcir chil-
dren should be baptised Christians. This point covers all thc items
mcntioned in local legislation sincc thc clcvcnth century and most
of these clauscs were included in royal laws as wcll.
3. What Christians should not share with Jews or l\!Iuslims
Christians should not eat togcther withJews or Muslims, dueto their
food restrictions. Christians should not call Jewish or Muslim physi-
cians when they felt ill (which we know was false). Their testaments
should not favour eithcr of the tvvo groups. Those Christians who
had sexual intercoursc with Jews or Muslims would be automatically
excommunicated. Converts should not maintain any relatiqnship with ··""''"'"·····""··., .
12
FF, Burgo de Osma, f. 173r.
176 CHAPTER SEVEN
thcir former communitics. lf a son were to convert, he should be
separated from his parcnts in order to preserve his new faith.
None of these clauscs was probably in use ·in fifteenth-century
Castile or Aragon. Espina himsclf was awarc of this, and complained
about sueh state of affa.irs a few pages later, spccially about conversos
and J ewish rítuals which survived. 13 Evcn latcr in thc century, when
the Inquisition was fully established, there were a lot of rcfercnces
to cornmon meals, mixed marriages and unbaptised children.
4. What Jcws and Muslims should be obliged to do
The first prescription of this article concerned conversos: in case they
returned to their former faith- a possibility which Espina scemed to
accept quite easily- , he rcquired them not to blasphemc, under pain
of death. Three difficulties werc rncntioncd: íf somcone did so, their
children should be excluded from blame; Christians who had trusted
the fellow would have special treatment and--·strangely enough, con-
sidering Espina's rcputation clown the centuries-if the Jew had becn
coerced into receiving baptism, the Sacrament was invalidated. 14
As for the rest, they could be absolved from paying ecclesiastical
tithes but not those of the lands they owned. A Christian could testify
against aJew ora Muslim, but never the other way round. Jews and
Muslims should dress cliffercntly from Christians . .Jcws should return
what they had earned on usury-according to St. Thomas Aquinas,
and excepting Muslims, for once.
5. What Jews and Muslims wcrc cnforccd to do by royal laws
Many of the former were not only Espina's recommendations, but
what royal law in fact tried to impose on the realm, often quite un-
successfully. A quick survey on the Trastamaran laws shows that
political · problems within the . kingdom deviated their attention from
these íssues: Enrique II only attempted to establish the use of badges;
Juan I forbadc thcir use of public offices and criminal jurisdiction,
and Enrique III had cnough to do extinguishing the riots which took
place in severa! cities in bis realm. It was to be a forcign woman
who took carc of the mattcr during the regency of Juan II: lcaving
military matters to be scttled by her brother-in-law Fernando de
Antcquera, Cathcrine of Lancaster issued twenty-four ordinances
t:iFF, Lyon 1487, f. 94v.
M He went as far as saying: "Si vero fuenmt absolute coacti ut si per violentiam
in aquam mersi sunt, tales non receperunt baptismum . .. " FF, Burgo de Osma,
f 92v.
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT: TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION l 77
which Espina copied fully into his tcxt as the most important advance
in social legislation in the first half of the century. 15 Her dcath meant
the ordinances wcnt unobserved. Thc next revision was imposed by
the nobility in 1465: the Senten ce of Medina del Campo, 16 issued
by Enrique IV.
A comparison between both documents shows thc continuity of
Castilian royal legislation about Muslims, and confirms the ideas sus-
taincd by Espina in thc Fortalitium. In general, the Scntence enlarged
and spccified the issucs posed by Cathcrinc's ordinances, and added
several others conccrning new social situations or the defencc of the
frontier, which Catherine had not considered.
The :first ordcr was for .J ews and Muslims to live in separate,
walled neighbourhoods [Cath ., l] unless they lost all thcir properties;
councils or alcaldes werc in charge of chosing thc most conveníent
settlcments according to the size of thc community, so that they
could move there in a few months' time. lf thcy were accused of
continuing to live in the Christian quarter and refused to accept the
Sentence, penaltics included enslavcment [Sent., XCVIII]. Moreover,
Christians who wcre living within the boundaries established for the
1vluslim quartcr had to rent or sell their properties to the ncw dwellers
[Sent., XCIX]. Even popular poetry stressed thc failurc of these meas-
ures: the Coplas de iVlingo Revulgo 17 mentioned how the 1412 ordinanccs
regardíng separation of quarters were ncvcr fully imposed.
Muslims should not have markets available to Christians within
thcsc quarters [Cath., 6]. Christian womcn were completely forbidden
cntrance there by day or night, under penalty of fines depending on
thcir state [Cath., 11]. No Jew or ivluslim should leave his city, and
no Christian should welcome thcm in another town, but scnd them
back to their former residen ce [Cath., 16-1 7; Sen t., CXIX]; if any
of them happencd to be leaving the kingdom and were caught on thc
way, they would lose ali thcir properties [Cath., 23; Scnt., CXIX]. Any
Christian could be an accuser for all thcse transgressions [Cath., 22;
Sent., CU], but none could arrest aJcw or Muslim himself, until tl1ey
were callcd to trial. Thcse laws wcrc significant in such territories
as thc north of Castilc, where Muslims were taxed the same· amounts
"' They wcre published by Fernández y González, F.: Estado social y político, pp.
400 40.'i. On fapina's knowledge of Castilian legal codes, see Meyuhas Ginio, A.:
ÍLI. forteresse, pp. 28, 82.
m Nlemorias de Enrique IV de Castilla, pp. 363- 44 1.
17
C( Ladero Quesada, M. A.: "Los :Mudéjares de Castilla en la Baja Edad
Media", p. 373.
178 CHAPTER SEVEN
or even more than Christians. There were cases of Iviuslims who
thrcatened their lords with emigration to Granada due to economic
prcssure, in tcrritorics as far South as Toledo. 18
Thc second matter in importance was the restriction of jobs which
implied dircct contact with thc Christian communíty and even pros-
elitism. Inftuence in the uppcr social circles was limited by the pro-
hibition of holding public officcs or wcapons [Cath., 5; Sent., II,
CIII- CIV] under a fine penalty, which in the Sentence changcd to
the confiscation of all their goods.
Thc next group wcre professions related to medicine, pharmacy
and food supplies [Cath., 2, 10, 21; Sent., CVI], probably influenccd
by thc fcar of poisons--on the other hand, thís prohibition was nevcr
applied, for even the King's physician was usually Jewish or Muslim.
The third group was arts and crafts [Cath., 20]: thosc rclated to
fashion (embroiderers, tailors, shocmakers, etc.) were dangerous bccause
Castilians were more and more inftucnccd by Muslim aesthetics, and
the textile industry was an important source of income for Mudcjars,
who also importcd raw materials from Granada. This measure was
thcrefore as much economíc as social. The prohibition of being car-
pentcrs, builders or blacksmiths had to do with the importance of
the building industry, also in Muslim hands- as it would remain for
years still--and the idea that should there be an invasion from Africa,
these craftsmen would be lilccly to help the invadcrs by making ships
or weapons.
In Catalonia and Valencia, Muslims and Jews were soon excluded
from guilds and cefradías, for their deep rcligious content. Thc two
groups then made their own associations, with an even closer structure.
The Manual de Consells in Valencia records the prohibitions on teach-
ing lVluslim apprentices to be carpenters, armourers or silk-weavcrs,
from 1429 to 1465. Restrictions were also applied to popular gamcs
where weapons wcrc involved, such as the crossbow championship. 19
Still, despitc all thc royal efforts, Muslims continued to practisc
these jobs and defied every pressure as they belonged to guilds
together with Christian craftsmen. Such is the case reported in thc
foundation ordinanccs of the guild (cefradía) of Saints Eloy and Antón,
18
Ladero Quesada, M. A.: "Los Mud~jares en los reinos de la Corona de Castilla",
p. 11:.
19
Archivo Municipal de Valencia, lvlanual de Consells, 291\, f. 163; 38A, f. 13.
Cf.: Bramon, D.: Contra morosy_judios, pp. 107- 111.
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT: TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION 179
in Segovia. The members were builders, blacksmiths and others; thc
document was approvcd by the town council in 1484, although it
was probably just the written rendering of something alrcady in use. 20
Ivfcmbers used to attend thc burial of other guild mernbers, infringing
officíal laws. Thcy also uscd to havc meals togethe~this articlc men-
tioned Ivluslims explicitly·-·- and Muslims were exempted from paying
for the candles to be burnt in church. Oaths wcre taken according
to lslamic law. The money collected within thc guild was equally
availablc to Christians and Muslims. 21
The usual penalties were cstablished far Muslinis who had Christian
servants or slaves in their household and lands [Cath., 4, 19; Scnt.,
CII, CVIIIJ, according to the different jileros. But the foremost humili-
ation was rescrved for .Jews and Muslims in their social acknowledge-
ment by being farbiddcn to use the word Don before their names
. '
as would pcople of distinguished noble descent or those who had an
education [Cath., 12].
Several laws werc devoted to the question of jurisdiction by aljamas.
In 1412, particular judges in the aljamas were forbiddcn, and thcir
attributes were given to the local judges (alcaldes) [Cath., 7]. Taxes
also started to depend on royal will and could not be distributed by
the aijama authorities [Cath., 8- 9]. It is worth noting that by the
l 450's therc were alrcady Muslim communitics who prefcrred to
have their causes secn by the royal judge rather than the aljama one,
probably because Castilian legislation was more precise on the partic-
ular subjcct, or the judge was not to thc Iviuslims' taste. But, in gen-
eral, aq·amas continued acting as thc tribunal for Muslims and J cws.
lt was precisely in these years when the famous .LJ:yes de Moros (Laws
of the Moors) were compiled: according to Wiegers they wcrc not
supposed to be a guidance in those trials to be judged by l\!Iuslim
authorities, but rather far Christian judges.22 Thc figure of <lsa ibn
Djabir confirms the survival of the a!faqui until the end of Enrique
IV's reign.
2
~ .A s:njo C?onzá~cz, M.: . La Exf:!~emadura castellano-orienial en et tiempo de Los. Reyes
Catolzcos. S~goma (14?0 - 15~6), lVf~dnd 1984, vol. 1, p. 330. I thank Dr. G. Wicgcrs
for suggcstmg th1s mtcrestmg pomt, and Dr. lvl. i\senjo for confirming the dctails .
2i A 1
s 10rt comp1·¡ at1on
. of quest10ns
· posed by royal alcaldes under Alfonso X con-
tains thc formula for Muslim oaths to be taken in order to be acceptable to Christian
ª°:tho~ties. Alfonso X: Opúsculos legales . . ., pp. 196- 197 . Scc also ConLrcras, J.:
H~;ona . de :ru_· cmj~oraczones de menestrales en Se._l!,ovia, Scgovia 1921, pp. 120- 12 7.
vV1cgcrs, G .. op. cu., pp. 58 ·-59.
: : il
180 CHAPTER SEVEN
The last concern of 1412 laws was thc external appearancc of
Muslims, which had already bccn discussed in the IV Lateran Council
a century before. Clement IV had proposed the use of distinctive
clothes for Muslims and Jews.23 His recommendations wcrc not fol-
lowed officially until much later, but legislation in thc fiftccnth cen-
tury started to be more precise than earlicr fueros, which just quoted
the pontifical text. Hoods, mantlcs and head-dresses were carcfully
described [Cath., 13- 14], as well as thc quality of textiles employcd
(ccrtain materials could only be uscd up to a certain value) [Cath.,
15; Sent., CXVIII]. Colour badges had to be clearly secn on them-
red for Jews and blue for Muslims [Cath., 13; Sent., XCVIII, CJ.
l\IIen had to wear long beards and hair, as it had bccn in former
times 24 [Cath., 18]. The Sentence was far less dctailcd than thc ordi-
nances in these aspccts.
In order to guarantcc the diffusion of thcse laws, the last clause
ruled thcir publication ali over thc kingdom, and prohibited any
cxemptions or redemption of penaltics to all the authorities involvcd
[Cath., 24·--25; Sent., CXV].
There were several matters added to the Sentence which were not
mentioned by 1412 laws. Changes in the legal procedurcs wcre mixed
with religious issues in order to restrict Muslim propcrties and their
management to favour Christians, to changc thc system of contracts
[Sent., CXIII] whilc rcstraining usury [Scnt., CXII, CXVI], and to
limit their possibilities as witnesses in legal causes [Sent., CXIV].
The counterpart for thcsc laws were titles CLVIII and CCLXXII
of the úyes de Moros25 which established that no witnesses would be
accepted but free Muslims, and that Christians could not inherit
Muslims' properties.
Another set of measurcs agreed with the requirements made in cortes
between 1411 and 1464. Thcy had to do with war against Granada
[Sent., III]; the tenancy of castles on the frontier [Sent., LVII], their
supplies [Sent., LVIII] and thc prohibition on trade with thc kingdom
of Granada [Sent., LXXI].
Thc rcst has interesting points in common with Espina's rccom-
mendations mentioned above. Firstly, Jews and Muslims could not
circumcisc any Christian or accept conversions, or allow any Christian
23
FF, l 73r.
24
From 1340, they used to have a roundhaircut (garceta a la cabeza). Cf.: Brarnon, D.:
op. cit., p . 105.
25
Gayangos, P. de: op. cit., pp. 120, 214- 215.
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT: TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION J8 l
to circumcise himself undcr penalty of confiscation of their goods
and offices [Sent., VII]. As for their rituals and customs, they wcre
ordered to respect Sunday rest [Sent., CI]- with important conse-
quences on the working calendar, for they would probably stop on
Fridays instcad of Sundays until then. 'I'hey had to stay at home
from Holy Thursday to Saturday, as a sign of respect for Christ's
passion. Muslims were thought to joke about the Sacraments and
not to honour the host in processions and when tal<:en to the dying. 26
It was also ordercd for security reasons, as pogroms werc very likely
to start up on those days, given the religious feeling against J ews,
which was easily extended to Muslims, and had already caused trou-
bles in thcir quarters. However, they were called to celebrations, so
that they could perform their music and dances together with Chris-
tians, as happened in Madrid for the Corpus Christi feast, 27 in 1481.
l\!Iosques could not be built ar· enlarged, or else they would be con-
fiscated and givcn to the Cathedral. Public processions to plead far
rain or plagúcs were forbidden. So were public cult and the call to
prayer [Sent., CIX]. Quite naturally, Jews and Muslims should not
receive any crosses, ccclesiastical objects or garmcnts in pawn.
The coincidences found in all these texts can lcad to two conclu-
sions. Either Espina studied the whole legal system concerning Jews
and Muslims in order to create his own scheme, and Enrique IV's
legislation only followed thc usual pattern, or else Espina wrote in
order to help thc king's council to decide about his future policies.
It is hard to know how much of the Sentence was Enrique's own
and how mu ch his advisors'. If the part conccrning Muslims was
really his, it shows thc failure of his attempts to reconduct coexist-
ence whilc at the same time obtaining Granada by means of slow
wearing away. If it was imposcd by the nobility in a time of extreme
need, Espina can be seen as an influential member of the court who
had sorne say in certain matters, and we may conclude that the
Fortalitium was patronised by someonc in the centre of the political
life- maybe the Bishop of Osma? In any case, royal lcgislation and
rcligious theory are really close to each other in these parts, and
both have a parallel, slow evolution towards intolerance from the
beginning of the century until the end of Enrique IV's reign.
26
Ladero Quesada, M. A.: "Los 1vfudéjares en los reinos de la Corona de Castilla'',
p . 19.
27
Torres Balbás, L.: Algunos aspectos del mudqarismo urbano medieval, p. 79.

182 CHAPTER SEVEN
Acculturation .Nlechanisms within Sociery
Acculturation is the term used far cultural change rcsulting from
external-usually mutual- influenccs. Every culture builds a series
of cultural dcfenses through which cxtcrnal intrusions are filtcred.
According to Glick and Sunycr, who have studicd this phenomenon
in the Iberian case,
. .. acculturation involves more than a change in cultural content.
Given the need of two or more cultures to operatc in a pluralistic sct-
ting, protractcd contact tcnds to result in mutual agreemcnts, recog-
nized gTound rules for stabilized cultural rclations. Without such
~ '
agreements and compromises, the result could be a situation so restric-
tive that the survival of the individual can be achieved only at the
price of sacrificing those values and organizational forms that givc a
group its stability and its compass for the future. 28
These authors dcfined four periods in thc acculturation proccss of
the Iberian Península: 1232 to 1492 reprcsents the third, character-
ised by the dissolution of Andalusi. power and an incrcase in Christian
intolerance. They state a correspondcnce betwecn geographical ter-
ritory and cultural boundarics which is not completely acceptable.
It is true that Christian expansion altered the direction of accultur-
ation, surrounding Granada as the centre of Islamic resistence. But
the cultural action of Mudejars within their own society was strong
even under hard . prcssure, and so would it be when thc Morisco
problem arase.
Another statement which is worth carcful discussion is the sup-
posedly greater flexibility of Christian society, which reacted more
creatively to contact with other cultures. 29 It seems that neither of
the societies was consciously ready to accept more influences from
the other in thc fifteenth century. Sincc the first Islamic settlement
in the Península, there had been waves of intolcrance within both
groups, the movement of the Martyrs of Cordoba being just one
example under Ivluslim rule. Tolerancc became a myth with the gen-
eral acceptance of cohabitation during a certain period of Iberian
history, but a detailed study throws many shadows over thc model
created. by historians. As the authors of this article concludc, cohab-
~8 Glick, T. F. & Pí-Sunyer, O.: "Acculturatíon as an Explanatory Concept in
Spanish History", pp. 140-141.
29
Jbidem, p . 150.
·~~~~~--------------------------------------------~
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT: TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION 183
itation was rather a situation of more or less stabilizcd pluralism, of
incomplete assimilation of two cultures. This assimilation was cnvis-
agcd in the 1450's as something desirable, but thc pressurc madc in
this direction resulted in religious confusion, a pcrmeation of radical
ideas and the shattering of faith in providcncc, 30 elements which can
be appreciatcd in Granadan society at this point.
Islamic rcligious life continued almost unchanged aftcr Christian
conqucst in most tcrritories, yet thc fact that these practices wcre
placed under Christian rule meant great changes werc taking place.
The attempt to kccp everything the same can be considered a reac-
tion to avoid sudden changcs, a way of maintaining superficial daily
life while settíng up new clcments in the backgTound.31 'To thc ques-
tion of whether there was more conftict or contact between both
societics at the time of Christian conqucst on the Eastern coast, Bums
concludcd that a ccrtain degrec of social hostility and ritual frccd
individuals from an cxcessive personal hostility. Niuslims and Christians
shared business and everyday life. However, Burns insists that our
concept of "tolerance" cannot be applied to such a relationship.
To start with, religious leaders exhortcd their fellows to leave,
rather than coming under Christian government. Thc same was
ordered by Christian authorities to avoid closer contact betwecn
members of separatc religions. Thc fatwa~ issued by al-Wansharfsi
followcd a trend bcgun by twclfth-century scholars to respond to the
Christian conquest of the Holy Land. Emigration was considcred a
rcligious duty, according to the Koranic prohibition of coexistence
with infidels. Thc idea of Muslims defending their faith and cxpand-
ing Islam in the conqucred territories was only secondary for thesc
theoreticians. If the dhimma mechanism failed and Christians forgot
their pacts, insecurity would affect the whole Muslim community, as
had happcned severa! times in the Península. Only the ill and cap-
.
t1ves werc excepte d !:irom t lus
. rccommend at1on.
. 32
All this reasoning was strongly linked to thc Islamic view of the
statc. The religious attributcs of a secular lcadcr, as personified by
Mu}:iammad and followed by the caliphs, could not be transferred
to a Christian king. Such was the conflict in the Iberian Península
30
Ibídem, pp. 153- 154. .
:~ 1Burns, R. l.: op. cit., p. 19. ·
32
For a comment on late medieval fatwas rcgarding Al-Andalus and thcir impor-
tance, see Sabbagh, L.: "La religion des morisques .. ." , pp. 4S 50.
·¡-
184 CHAPTER SEVEN
when Christians started to overcome al-Andalus. Although rcjcction
of Muslim rulers cxistcd among J\!lozarabs, the feeling was not bascd
on thc same political elements, so it was faced more casily.
On the othcr hand, canonists from the thirtecnth century on-
wards "affirmed that Christians should not expcl such communities
without offending charity, and that these guest-communities had a
right to administrative autonomy and freedom from convcrsion by
force". 33 If the fact that the status of Mudcjars within the Peninsula
was strongly inftuenced by the Islamic dhimma system is acceptcd, it
must also be noted that such a system dcvcloped during the centmies
of coexistencc.
One of thc main political factors to take into account at the dawn
of Ivluslim power in the Iberian Pcninsula is its isolation from neigh-
bouring Muslim kingdoms. The point of refercnce should thcrcfore be
the relatíonship with Castilc. In fact, the history of the two kingdoms
ran parallel between 141 O and 1475, when the enthroncment of thc
Reyes Católicos would change the coursc of Castilian and Aragonese
history. Granada "existed in a situation of constant tension which
had a pronounced psychological effect on the Moorish population,
which was composed mainly of refugees from previous Christian
advances. Such a situation, as Henri Terrase pointed out long ago,
produced a siege mentality, and holy war was popular both among
the inhabitants of the Nasrid state and among the Berbcr mcrcc-
nary troops and voluntccrs from North Africa". 34
Frontier life on both sides was based on a range of settlements
which, no matter their size, performecl sevcral functions. They were
bases from which to attack the enemy, positions of defence and
observation, and trading centres. The maintenance of these fortresses
was the duty of the mona.rchy which, on the Castilian side, developed
the institution of castellanship. The records of meetings at Parliament
(cortes) show that the care of castles was often neglccted either by the
monarch or by castellans, giving risc to a great number of complaints
from the citizens. 35
33
Burns, R. l.: lvluslims, C!zristians and Jews in the Cntsader kingdom . . ., p. 59.
~·•Lópcz de Coca, J. E.: "lnstitutions on the Castilian-Granadan Fronlier", pp.
128- 129.
35
Cortes de los Reinos ... , Parliamcnts mentioning this issue took place in Ocaña,
1422; Palcnzuela, 1425; Zamora, 1432; Madrid, 1433; Toledo, 1436; Madrigal,
1438; and Valladolid, 1451 under Juan II. Under Enrique IV, only in Ocaña, 1469,
when his policics regarding Muslims had been rejectcd and abandoned.
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT: TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION 185
Oscillation on the fronticr meant an unstable social life under
different lords. Only the roa.in royal expcditions produccd important
changes on the frontier, but from Juan II's reign, even the lines of
local action became steady and creatcd an awarencss of the necds
and obligations of the frontier scttlers. Most of them were nobles,
duc to the two main premises of monarchy for such appoíntments
being rewards for military actíon, and a preference for wealthy people
who could support troops in case of need. Enrique IV uscd these
posts which were given to sorne of his fricnds, such as constable
Miguel Lucas de Iranz.o, who fulfilled an important role at the fron-
tier ncar Jaén. 36
Severa! figures bccame vital for the relationship betwccn Christian
and Muslim populations on the frontier. The first were the alcaldes
de la frontera (frontier judgcs _for Moors and Christians), established
to gua.rantee safety and justice. They werc in charge of judging
assaults, robberies, and arranging the rcturn of convicts who had
fted across the frontier. Their appoinhnent was made in both kingdoms
by the monarchs, to whom they wcrc directly related. 37 The alfaqueques
wcrc able to cross the frontier rcgula.rly provided with safe-conducts
(aman), in order to negotiate the ransom of prisoncrs. So werc mer-
chants, interpretcrs who oftcn acted as ambassadors, and the fieles del
rastro, who performed the duties of actual scouts. These profcssions-
if we may call them so--show how permeable the fronticr was in
ali aspects, from the movement of peaceful people to raids and in
the advancc or retreat of the defence line marked by fortresses. Even
captivcs were authorized to stay in the other kingdom after escaping
if they had not stolcn any propcrty.
There was a sensc of common frontier identity between thesc soci-
eties on both sides, who wcre at the samc time peripheral to the
central govemmcnt. Due to this distance, "they had to create their
own semi-formal patterns of behaviour and mutual collaboration in
order to survive". 33 This meant adapting to the opposing society in
several ways, counterbalancing violcnce by a degree of acculturation.
:ilj See Quintanilla Raso, l\tl. C.: "Acerca de las fortalezas andaluzas en la fron-
tera granadina durante el siglo XV", Coloquio de Historia lvfedieuaL Andaluza, Almeria
1988.
17
: Torres Fontes, J.: "El alcalde entre moros y cristianos del reino de Murcia",
~~ 1
33
Maíllo, F.: "Diacronía y sentido del termino elche", Miscelánea de estudios árabes
y hebraicos, XXXI (1982), p. 85.
186 CHAPTER SEVEN
Fronticr conversions 39 were one of the mechanisms through which
thís was achieved in the period studied.
Cultural exchangc was a conscquence of this life on ·both si des of
the "barrier." Thcre is a necd to distinguish inftucnces which rcquirc
a number of pcople interactíng, and those which are independent
from the number of inclividuals involved. Fashion, food habits, gold-
smithing, were used irrespective of their origin, but were not neces-
sarily a sign of conversion or subjection.'10
Conversion and lntegration
The origin of conversion or apostasy in thc Península can be traced
back to thc beginning of Muslim occupation, but that would mean
considering societies which had líttle to do with the fiftecnth century.
As Bulliet argues in his famous study on conversion to Islam in the
Middle Ages, it had an important social dimension, which would
however vanish progressivcly as Castílians and Andalusians incorpo-
rated each othcr's influences ínto their own cultures. The return to
more radical rcligious forms in the time of Nasríd Granada could
not avoid this interaction.
The way Bulliet defines a ''social conversion" suits the Iberian case
perfectly: 41 ít involves sorne movement from one religiously defined
social community to another, being more an individual than a com-
munal action. This possibility implics a society in which social idcn-
tity was normally defined in religious terms, as opposed to tribal or
national terms, which is thc case of the areas which converted to
Islam in the Middle Ages. Thus, we can speak of a relationship be-
tween conversion to Islam and the dcvelopment of an Islamic society,
and likewise, between convcrsion to Christianity and acceptance of
another given social system.
In this schemc, two kinds of converts can be found. Those whom
Bulliet called "ccstatic", did not find thcir spiritual expectations
satisfied within their old religion and tended to become zcalots after
conversion. It was the case of sorne of the converts from Judaism
in Castile, and for example Anselmo Turmcda, who turned towards
39
López de Coca, J. C.: op. cit., p. 149.
40
Ladero Quesada, M. A.: "Los mudejares de Castilla ... ", p. 363.
11
• Bullict, R. : Conversion to Islam in !he 111edieval Period, Harvard 1979, p. 34.
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT: TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURAT!ON 187
Islam. The "non-ecstatic" were more or less satisfied with their pre-
vious religious lifc and changed more for mundane than for spiritual
rcasons. Thcse were more numerous, and the most common in the
context stuclied here. They found lifo in the new rcligion more attrac-
tive insofar as it conformed to thc old religíon. Thcrefore, as con-
version progressed, the ncw religion becamc in its social dimension
increasingly like thc old. This kind of symbiosis was produced in
Iberia since the time of the first arrival of the Muslim invaders, and
thc strugglc to kecp the basic doctrine and social habits of each faith
was onc of the most characteristic foatures of lberian society during
the Middle Ages, as well as onc of thc most outstanding concerns
of Christian clergy and Muslim jurists.
There are no precise data for the number or pcrccntage of converts
on each side, cspecially for a period as late as the fifteenth century.
Molénat42 mentions a few cases in Toledo, usually captives, and most
of thcm in thc two generations between the 1470's and 1520's. The
motives foi thcir taking this step were varied. The first was, of course,
true conviction about their new faith. Therc could also be a desire
to avoid taxes, particularly in the case of convcrsion to Islam, where
the new Niuslim immediatcly stopped paying a poll tax, although the
land was still paid for according to a new law. There was also the
possíbility of being freed from slavery. The convert was entitled to
an amnesty even if he had been condemned to death, no mattcr
what the crimc had been, from insulting the Prophet to rape.
Usually, the influence of authoritics over their subjects, who tended
to imitate their way of Iife and social habits, could movc them to
turn to another religion. Thc ncw convcrt might also try to avoid
confinement in a neighbourhood-morerias in thc case of Castile-
and being the object of recriminating action. Divisions within the
Christian Church might lead sorne people to Islam, which they only
thought to be anothcr heresy of Christianity, but not a diflerent rcli-
gíon, and always less confusing than their own. :Finally, captive
Christian womcn usually turned to Islam when they realized they
would not rcturn to their familics, spccially if they had childrcn, who
had to be cducated as Muslims too.
Ricoldo de Montecroce 41 defincd four ways to cntcr Islam: through
42
Ct: Ladero Quesada, M. A.: "Los mudéjares en los reinos ele la Corona de
Castilla", p. 20.
43
Montecroce, R.: Dispulatio, f. 86r.
188 CHAPTER SEVEN
the sword, deceivcd by the dcvil, through family inheritance, or due
to its permissiveness. In any case, it was preferrcd to idolatry, for
at least they believed in one God. On the othcr sidc, there were
also reasons for a Muslim not to convcrt to Christianity: Muslims
considcred thc diversities of opinion among Christians, i.e., their divi-
sion into sects; their evil lives and their ill-faith, especially the V cnctians
and Genoese, 44 as more dissuasive wcapons than physical ones.
Law codes wcre strict about apostasy. Jews were forbidden to
bccome Muslims at thc Council of Tarragona in 1252. In Castile,
the basis of the wholc local legal system had bcen since the 1250's
the compilations ordcred by King Alfonso X. The Fuero Real, for
example, said:
I. Título de los que dexan la fe catholica. Ningun christiano non sea
osado de tornarse iudio, nin moro, nin sea osado de fazcr su fijo moro
o iudio. Et si alguno lo fiziere, mucrra por ello. Et la muerte deste
fecho sea atal que sea de fuego. 45
The Seventh Part, Title XXV cxplains this article further: it justifies
corrversion to IslaiTI by a sudden attack of madncss in those who
havc lost relatives, or their posessions, or those who havc been evil.
The stated punishment was confiscation of the convert's goods, which
would go to his family-as long as they did not follow his example--
and if he was found within the boundaries of the realm, he should
be killed. Reconciliation was possible only on these grounds:
Apostata en latin tanto quiere dezir en romance como christiano que
se torno judio o moro: e despues se arrepiente, e se torna a la ley de
los christianos: e porque tal orne como este es falso, e escarnecedor
de la ley, non <leve fincar sin pena maguer se arrepienta. E por ende
dixeton los sabicis antiguos que <leve ser enfamado para siempre, de
manera que su testimonio nunca sea cabido, nin pueda haber oficio,
nin lugar honrrado; nin pueda fazer testamento, nin pueda ser esta-
blescido por heredero de otros en ninguna manera.'16
« A tcstimony quoted by Thomas Gascoignc in his Loci et libro veritatum (c. 1450).
Cf. Southern, R .: fll!estem views qf Islam ... , p. 83.
45
"About those who leave the Catholic faith. No Christian should dare become
a Jew or a Moor, nor dare he make his son a Moor or a Jew, and if somebody
<loes so, let him die for it, and the death for such an action must be thc firc."
Alf<;>nso X: Opusculos legales . . ., p. 117 (Lib. IV, tit. I, Ley I).
46
"Apostate in Latin means in the vernacular a Christian who beco mes a Jew
or a Moor and afrerwards repents and returns to the Christian faith: and bccause
such a man is false and a trespasser of the Jaw, he should not rcmain unpunished,
even íf he repents. And therefore the ancíent learned men said that he should be
THE RELJGIOUS ARGUMENT: TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION 189
Morcover, bis sales and donations should not be acknowledged. Thcse
accusations could be made for five years after the convert's dcath.
But it could also happen that sorne of those who denied the Christian
faith and became Moors "would work to do a great service to the
Christians, which would result in a great advantagc for thc land."
In that case, they could be forgiven and excused the scntence of
death, because it would be assumed that they loved the Christians,
and they would turn to the Catholic faith if it wcre not for shame.
Should he rcpent his error and tum to the Catholic faith, his sen-
tence of defamation should be forgiven and he might not lose his
propertiesY
On the ot:her hand, the conversion of Muslims was treatcd with
moderation in the Seven Parts:+B they should be persuaded by means
of good words and preaching, and nevcr forced. For if it wcre God's
will to impose his faith on them, He would surcly find a way to do
so. But if a Muslim decided to become a Christian, nobody should
object to it.
One of the most biased texts about conversion was Nicolau Eimeric's
Manual far /nquisitors, which recommended strict penaltics for converts
to Judaism, either formcr Christians or former converts to Christianity.
Thcy should be prosecuted by religious authorities and givcn to the
secular power in order to be burnt. Converts to Islam should be
trcated likewise. While t:he question ofJudaism is discussed at lengt:h,
conversion to Islam only dcserved a short asscrtion to condernn it in
the same terms. 49 Although the book was written around 1376, it
continued to be used in the following centuries, was printed several
times aftcr 1503 and thc reedition by Francisco Peña betwecn 1578
and 1587 in Rorne implied the Curia's acknowledgement of its prac-
tical value.
The Koran was not very precise in punishing apostates (sura 47:25),
but later compilations of Islamic law did refer to the problern. For
example, 'lsa ibn Djabir's Breviario Sunni recommended obedience to
onc's parents even if they were non-believers; Ioyalty to one's lord
even if he were not a Muslim ... but it comes to t:he point in chapter
defamcd forever, so his testimony should nevcr be heard, nor can he hold an office,
nor an honest place; nor can he make his last will, nor can he inherit from other
people in any way." Alfonso X: Las Siete Partidas, f 77r.
H lbidem, t: 78r.
48
lbidem, f. 76v, law TI.
49
Eimcric, N. & Peña, F.: Nlanual de lnquüidores, pp. 85-88.

190 CHAPTER SEVEN
fifty-one about heretics, blasphemcrs, renegades and suspccts: if some-
one swore against thc Sunna, he should be kept in prison far thrcc
days far him to rcpent, or otherwise be killed. The same would hap-
pcn to whoevcr practiced another religion in secret, far he would
not be consídered either a Muslim or a Christian. Whoever denied
God and blasphemed, should be stoned. 50 (Isa repeated thc prohibition
on inhabiting Christian lands-which he himself did not respcct-
and not indulging in Christian practices, uses or customs, or dress
líkc them, or have their images, in arder to be pure. Despite all
these measurcs, in all the trcaties signed by Christians and Muslims,
both of them·-including the clergy-agreed not to stop anyone from
converting to Islam. 5 1
In Aragon, laws were issued for thc aijamas not to prevent any
Muslim from convertíng to Christianity if he wishcd to do so and
for Christian authoritics to cncourage such conversions by guaranteeing
thc ncw convert's rights to his propcrties, which otherwise belonged
to the aijama. While he was alive, his children had no further rights
to his propertics. They could claim what thcy should havc rcceived
had he remaincd a Muslim only after his dcath. 52
As has bccn mentioned befare, the only way for a Christian to
avoid the death penalty for apostasy was by sorne good seivice to
his former correligionaries. Changing owners in frontier fartresses
had no doubt made many scttlcrs convert to Islam in former periods.
Whcn they saw Christian domination as unavoidable, their only way
to re-integrate into that society was by cooperation with the Christians
in cxchange for forgiveness, as happened in the conquests of Antcquera,
Gibraltar, etc. Many of these stories are included in thc chronicles.
Connected to this phenomenon, raids by both armies in the country-
side involved a number of captives who wcre given the opportunity
to convert-as happened in Granada- , orto remain in prison until
they were ransomed. Sorne of them <lid of coursc convert. If they
were too young, and usually sold in thc market as slaves, they were
brought up as Muslims. Whilc mature captives often returned to
Christianíty as soon as thcy wcre under Christian power, young ones
usually kept their new faíth, and wcre affected by a higher degree
of acculturation. Most of thc rccords left about these mcn rcfer to
50
Gayangos, P.: Tratados de legislación . . ., pp. 383-384.
51
Dufourcq, Ch. E.: op. ci.t., p. 217.
52
Harvey, L. P.: op. cit., p. 105. Tilandcr, G.: Los Fueros de Aragón .. ., book VII,
law 271.
...................... ___________________________________ ,,,,
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT: TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION 191
high officers surrounding thc rulers, and there are a fcw about their
coopcration in the surrcnder of sevcral important strongholds.
Dcaling with renegadcs or converts was not casy, far thcy repre-
sented an antithesis of religious heros. Most of thcm were pressurizcd
by circumstances and had thcir children baptised as soon as they
met a Christian pricst. Their bchaviour whcn faced with situations
where thcir former and new faiths and political commitments were
engagcd, was varied. Narratives frequcntly describe their dcath as
thc time when their true religion emerged: either thcy prayed in thc
Christian way, or else thcy receivcd confessiori. 5 -~
The other side of the coin, Friar Anselmo Turmeda ((Abd Allah
al-Tardjuman, d. 1424- 30) has been considcrcd the paradigm of
conversion to Islam far a long time. His autobiography provides the
first account of this kind of conversion. It was based on the tale of
'Abd al-Salam thc Jew, who had becomc a Muslim in Mu1;tammad's
time. The lattcr had been considercd as one of thc most truthful
traditions Óf the Prophet's life, so it automatically authcnticated
Turmeda's book.
Historians have looked for non-religious rcasons for his convcr-
sion, from a desire to get married to thc dccadence of thc Christian
Church. But the main reason, given by Turmeda himself, was his
conviction of Mul).ammad's identificatíon with the Paraclete, which
had struck him when he studied Islam. It was not thc first case of
a friar who changed his faith for thcological reasons. Diego de Torres
mcntíoned another who became a Muslim in Fez, studied Arabic
and was appointed a preacher in the great mosque for his works
using biblical texts. Later on, he repentcd and was acccpted back
into Christíanity because he was considcred to be mad. 5"
Returning to Turmeda, his work was unknown to Christians until
the ninetecnth century, but it was alrcady quoted befare 1468 by
'Abd al-RaQ.man b. Mu):iammad b. 1viajluf al-Ta'alibf as an outstand-
ing case of conversion. In fact, his book is most extraordinary, because
he used Islamic arguments illustratcd by fragments from thc Bible
instead of Koranic verses, and he dcscribed thc Sacraments wrongly,
somcthing surprising in a Christian friar, who was supposed to know
thcm well. His omission of Mul;.ammad's miracles is also surprisíng}5
as is his attempt to refute Christianity by mcans of historical traclítion
5
~Bunes Ibarra, M. A. de: op. cit., pp. 193- 194.
51
' See Epalza, M. de: La Tu!Jfa, una autobiogrefia polemir.a ... , pp. 27- 40.
;,r, Ibidem, pp. 80-91. ·
192 CHAPTER SEVEN
instcad of rational argumcnts. The Tul;fa was not written for Christians,
but merely as a rejection of Christianity.
Conversion in Iberia had sorne general features which must be
considered. At the top of the social hicrarchy, convcrsion was bascd
on a lineage systern which was an cssential part of political life.
Conversion from Islam to Christianity was helpcd by the lineages'
strugglcs to enthrone thcir own pretenders in Granada. Once one
of them succcdcd, the safest place for the partisans of thc other pre-
tenders was across the frontier, so they would move to the Castilian
court, where they would keep the privílcges accordcd to their rank
by being members of the king's body-guard.
Granadan aristocrats linkcd their families to thc former thirty-six
lineages which had becn cstablished in Granada, sorne of them
dircctly from Arabia. Ibn al-Khatib mentions which of thern prevailed
in each region of the realm. The names of the lineagcs oftcn left
their mark in place-names. Family solidarity ('a~abrya) favoured both
local unity and interna! fights within Granada. The other two fea-
tures which characterised social life in the realm were residence and
profession. The higher the position, thc more urban the family was.
T'he army and intellectuals, together with the court, occupied urban
areas.
Granada was born out of the agreement between threc family
groups plus the immigration of African lineages. A coalition of lineages
lcd by the chief of the Barril Sarradj was to decide thc interna! hís-
tory of Granada during the whole of the fiftcenth century. The legit-
imist Nasrids fought them, lookíng for Castilian aid to bccome military
leaders. 56 Sorne of the most famous names of the Banü Sarradj party
could be found in Castile as refugees as often as the Nasrid princes.
The most intcresting family supporting the Banü Sarradj was the
Mufürridj, whosc founder was a Christian captive sold as a slave and
freed by the cmir's family far whom he started to work as a body-
guard. Abü-1-Surür Mufarridj convcrted to Islam and became popu-
lar as a fighter on the frontier. His Christian orígi.ns were the key to
his ascent to the office of hiüijib (chamberlain, prime minister) in
1409, far it guaranteed his loyalty to the Crown, and not to the par-
ticular intercsts of a lineage. But the lineage he himself foundcd took
different steps: two of his sons werc officers in the Granadan army.
56
Ladero, M. A.: Granada) historia de un pais islámico, Madrid 1969, pp. 32· -36.
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT; TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION 193
Thc third used the title of ghazi (fighter in the path of God), and was
father to thc second prime ministcr in the family, called Abu-1-Surilr
Mufarridj aftcr his grandfather. Thc emir Sa<d ordered his death in
1462 whcn he wantcd to get rid of the Banü Sarradj lcaders. 57 But
there was another member of the clan in thc Castilian court around
1455. Both Valera and Alonso de Palencia mention in their chronicles
a ccrtain "l\!Iofaras" or "Mofarrax", who worked for Mulcy Abu-1-
J:Iasan, the refugce princc of Granada, together with a certain Ridwan
V cnegas, from another convert family. The prince was waiting for
an appeasement of thc interna! dissent to claim his rights to the
throne, and was meanwhile kíndly receivcd by Enrique, who was
hoping to use him in his strategy against Granada. The thrce Moorish
knights were choscn by the king to accompany him in an ensuing
expcdition to Andalusia, hclping to produce one of the cpisodcs
which would later on be turned against him. Whíle they were in
Scville, Mofarrax kidnapped the daughter of his host Diego Sánchcz
de Orihuela and took her out of town. The grcatcst scandal occurred
when the parents wcnt to complain befare the kíng. Enrique IV
blamed thcm for not looking after the girl properly, to the great
astonishment of those who were prescnt. Meanwhile, the Muslim
was thought to have run away to Granada and kept the girl as his
concubine. 58 She became a Muslim, and they had severa! children
togcther.
The most intcresting sources available far the study of Muslim
converts are the documcnts in thc archive of Simaneas. These are
around one hundred records of the wages of the Moorish knights
both Juan II and Enrique IV had as their body-guards, plus several
others for different offices in the court. Thc existence of a Moorish
guard was probably influenced by its counterpart in Granada. The
Christian guard can be traced back to the Caliphatc of Cordoba.
Mentioncd later by Ibn Khaldun and Ibn al-Khatfb, it grew after
its loyalty to MuJ:iammad V had been proved. Its members were
greatly appreciated for thcir commitment to the monarch, even m
such confusing ycars as those betwecn 1419 and 1464.
,
57
Ibidem, pp. 54' ·59; Seco de Lucena, L.: "Nuevas noticias acerca de l¿s Mufürridj"
Etudes d)Orientalirme dediées a la memoire de Levi-Provenral, Paris 1962, pp. 299- 306. See
also Torres Fontes,J. & Sáez, E.: "Dos conversiones interesantes", Al-Andalus (1944),
pp. 507- 512. :
58
Valera, D .: A1emon'al de diversas hazaíias, pp. 10-11; Palencia, A.: Crónica, pp.
68, 76--77.
194 CHAPTER SEVEN
In thc fourteenth century, Muslims were commonly uscd by Ara-
gonese kings to defcnd thcir fortrcsses against Castilian attacks, ali
through an extended arca which included Valencia, Saragossa and
Huesca. In this contcxt, it was considered as a kind of rn:ilitary scrv-
ice. It must be noted that thesc castcllan units seem to have been per-
manently assigned to the aijafe1ias as an elite guard. 59
Thc Castilian lVloorish guard could probably be traccd further
back, but its apogec coincided with the faction strugglc which caused
many Muslim kníghts to flee to Castile. The divísion existing bctween
Crown and nobility in fift:centh-century Castile caused royal trust to
be placed in thc loyalty of thcsc Muslims who had no lord but their
benefactor, the king, and who wcre lookcd upon suspiciously by
many. This feeling was justified in part because kings uscd to rely
on their most faithful soldiers to perform their most secret plans-
such is the case of the attempted murder of the lord of Pedraza by
a Moorish guard on behalf of King Enrique I\16° in 1459. Another
reason for hostilíty was that many of the guards had been renegade
Christians, who had at first become Muslims, and later returned to
Chrístíanity. Sometimcs their resolution to rc-convert was enough to
grant them a pension, especially after the first convcrsions in the
141 O's, following theological disputes and the capture of Antequera.
But, in general, there were no great reactíons against the institution
until 1465.
It is interesting to note that most of the knights were not Muslim
any more, suggesting a mechanísm of assimilatíon in the Castilian
king's policy. The rccords rnention three generations of knights. Most
of the people cited from 141 O to 1420 still had Muslim names, and
many of them left Castilc aftcr sorne years to live in Granada again.
We can relate thcse facts to thc líncagc struggle which was taking
place in Granada at the time. But thc second group of knights, those
who were recordcd in thc books around 1440, had mostly changed
their names to Christian ones, which meant they had bcen baptised.
Most of them also used their native place-narne, or sorne still thcir
fathcr's namc, following the Islamic use. The former Muslim name
was specificd in several cases. The same happcned with thc last
grdup, those recorded in the 1450's and the l 460's.
It is impossible to know if it was compulsory to be baptised to be
59
See Boswell, J.: op. cit., pp. 175-176.
liu Valera, D.: ojJ. cit., p. 20; Cf. Ladero Quesada, M. A.: "El Islam . . ." Las
utopias, p . 224.
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT: TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION 195
a member of thc guard, although it would seem logical for a Christian
king. The accusations against Enrique IV of bcing Islamophile werc
probably made up by the nobility, due to a different view of poli-
tics towards Granada at the time. The guard might be a <loor opcned
to thosc Christian renegadcs or their dcscendants who wished to
rcturn to Castilc for whatcver reason and thus did not have to face
ccclesiastical harassment or social confinement. 61 At the same time,
the king could make good use of knights who had already been
trained, and who would be more loyal to him.
Howevcr, the abnormal situation created by the Moorish guard
had to change by 1464-65. A noble league threatened a civil war
in Castile, but Enrique IV preferred to negotiate. Thc result was a
manifesto issued on 16 January 1465 asking, among othcr things, for
Muslims and Jcws to be ejected from the kingdom, especially those
who were closest to thc king, as has been explaincd in chapter one.
These measures wcre in fact applied, because no wages were paid
to any Moorish knights after 1465. Although anti-Islamic feeling has
always been considered thc reason for the disappearance of the
Moorish guard, a more consistent explanation can be found: Juan
II had already rclied on the Moorish lmights in his hardest times,
when his cousin Juan de Navarra used his influence in Castile and · .·. ·.
had him confined in various fortresses not once, but several times.
Enrique IV continued to use thc guard his fathcr had crcated for
all kinds of purposes including attempted murder. The fact that
around 1464--65 thc country was clase to a civil war and the king
lackcd supporters, may havc pushed the nobles to prcssure him in[
arder to get rid of the most devoted part of his army, thus dcpriv-"J°
ing him of military powcr. \~, _'·'
The departurc of Muslim knights has not bccn studied. Probably .,;,
the ones who were JVIudejars rctumed to thcir Moorish neighbour-
hoods. Those who had converted to Christianity would find it difficult
to go therc; they might either go back to their families in Castilian
cities if thcy had any, or return to the frontier, paid by the local
lords. Othcrs could have sought refugc across the sea, as was the
case in the times of Juan II, when he was asked to lct sorhe knights
cross to Tunis. 62
61
While the knights tended to converl and bear a Christian name, people work-
ing as builders usually kcpt their Muslim names. One more reason for assum.ing
that thc guard was bcing assimilatcd.
62
Carrillo De Huete, P.: Cnmica del Halconero, p . 235.
 -,..-
¡
r
196 CHAPTER SEVEN
·¡
Another example of the complicated religious relationship between
Christians and Muslims are local ordinanccs defining evcryday habits.
The Muslím population tended to be progressively isolated from the
.:!
Christians in most of the territory. Diachronic studies have becn
··•:.•'
undertaken to see thc evolution of this legislation, but it should be
seen in this religious context as well. For this purpose, the case of
a small area in La Rioja, involving the diocese of Calahorra and
the council of Raro might be helpful.
In 1324, the bishop of Calahorra issucd constitutions about excom-
munication in which wcre includcd those Christians who protected
Jews and Muslims in churches so that they could attend the most
important Christian ritcs, thosc who kept their habits or attended
thcir weddings and funerals, those who lived together with Muslims
and Jews, or ate their food, and those who had Muslim or .Jewish
lovers. Later on, in 1453, the local council forbade thc acquisition
of Christian properties by these groups. In 1458, thc Count of Raro
forbade Christians to work far Muslims or Jews unless they could
not find a job among their own pcople. Christian women were not
to be sccn going into a Muslim house without a Christian man. In
1464, Muslims had to be confined in the momia and a wall had to
be built around it, and in 1468 both count and council remembered
the compulsory use of badges and caps by Muslims. 63 It is true that
rcpetition of these orders meant that they wcre never thoroughly cn-
forced, but the trend towards intolerance and conflict is dearly shown.
The End qf Muslim Power
The situation could not be handlcd for much longer, as vvriters were
ready to realize. Thcy idcntified it with the forthcoming prelude to
the Day of Judgemcnt. But befare knowing whcn this would happen,
they nccded to understand why ali this suffering and humiliation had
bccn s9ll_to Christians. The subject was old: Alfonso X's, brothcr
Don Juan NÍ~ucl, famous as a writer, had already asked~th~ --;~;;e
qucstion, and answered that:
Et tienen los buenos christianos que la razon por que Dios eonsintio
que los christianos hobiesen recibido de los moros tanto mal, es porque
63
Cantera, E.: "Los mudéjares en el marco de la sociedad riojana bajomcdieval",
pp. 32-33.
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT: TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION 197
hayan razon de haber con ellos guerra derechureramente, et porque
los que en ella murieren, habiendo complido los mandamientos de
Santa Eglesia, sean martircs o sean las sus almas por el martirio quitas
del pecado que ficieren. M
Juan de Segovia was thc first to approach the mattcr in De mittendo
gladio: he started asking why MuJ:iammad's sect had been so succcss-
ful both in the beginning and in general, in arder to try-1..o d~Y.!§t
a mcthod of conversion. 65 Juan de Torquemada started in the same
way, justifying it by the false promises of the Prophet, his violence
in the extension of Islam, and the lack of evidence of his mission,
which deceivcd thc simple. But soon he moved to the subject of the
possesion of the Roly Land:
Plane audemus dicere, quod sicut propter peccata Israefüarum arca
Domini Philisteis est tradita, ita etiam proptcr peccata Christianorum
et ingratitudinem Terra Sancta tradita est in manibus impiorum
Sarracenorum cisdem demeritis Constantinopolitana civitas imperialis
paucos ante dies cum multi.s adiacentibus populis, non sine maximo
Christianitatis oppobrio (sic) Turcarum servituti subiacta est. 66
Espina tried to explain this argument bctter. It had bccn God's váll
that Christians should not commit sin in the same land where Jesus
"------ ---·~---····
Christ had died. AfterJerusalem liad been captured by the crusaders,
they could livc in thc city as long as they live,s!.,EiS:~!.~9.,~~!.Y:. ~ut when
the offences against Christ started to increase in nuniber, they were
thrown from the land, which was conquered by the Saracens. The
rcsult of this was that, the Muslims being renegadc Christians-
dcceived by the Nestorian Serg-ius-·· , thc possession of thc Holy Land
would only involve confusion for them. They were like the hounds
j:
6
~ "The reason why God allowed the Christians to take such harm from thc
Moors is so that they should be able to make war justly against them, and so that
those dying in such war, having obeyed thc commandments of thc Holy Church,
could be martyrs, theír souls being absolved by such martyrdom of the sins they
might have committcd."
Don Juan Manuel: Li.bro de los Astados 2, 95. Cf.: Carpenter, D. E.: "Social pcr-
ception ancl litcrary portrayal: Jews and Muslims in Medieval Spanish Literature",
Convivencia: ]ews, Muslims and Chri.stians in Medieval Spain, New York 1992, p. 75.
65
Cabanelas, D.: ]uan de Segovia . .. , p. 132.
6
" "Vvc hear that it is said that, the same as far the sins o[ the Israelites, God's
chest was given to the Philistines, also for thc Christians' sins and thcir ungrate-
fulncss, the Holy Land was given into the impious Saracens' hands, and for their
misdeeds the imperial city of Constantinoplc wa.s subject to scrfdom under the
Turkish a tew days ago, with many villages ncarby, not without grcat disgracc to
Christendom." CE, p. 247.
 198 9HAPTER SEVEN
who guard the doors of manors, thus guarding thc doors of Christ's
scpulchrc. Their avarice had led them to admit Christian pilgrims
to the tomb, and this would also contribute to .their confusion. The
last reason for their having the Holy Land was for the conversion
of Jews before the end of the world. 67 As for the conquest of the
Iberian Pcninsula, it has alrcady becn said that .fEspina considercd
the sins of severa! Visigoth kings the rcason for thelarrival of Muslims
in thc Peninsul~
The possibilities left to Christian writers at this point were well
resumed by Burns when spealcing of the medieval missionary: they
could favour conversions via commercial or other contacts· fanatic
'
confrontation, which would result in a much more fanatic response;
infiltration by means of disputes with Islamic learncd men; the con-
version of rulers, which would kad- their subjects in~Christianity,
or finally war followed by prosclytism. 68 We shall sce whi-Clí. solution
was favoured by our authors.
Justification of erusade as ')ust war" was pushed forward in the
thirteenth century by Pope Innocent IV and a number of ecclesiastical
writers. Jacques de Vitry considered crusadcs as a "defensivc, and
hence just, act of warfare/' Once the crusaders arrived, those Saraccns
who had feared conversion in front of their fellows would feel free
to convcrt. J acques needed a fow years in the East to realize that
conversion was not that easy, and had to accept that sorne killing
was necessary in ordcr to imposc Christianity. 69 Accorcling to Innocent,
crusadc and mission could not cxist without each other: crusade had
to open the way for missionarics to reach the lands of Islam. St. Louis's
crusades should have supported this new trend, but their failurc made
theologians think of new approaches to the matter. 70 By the end of
the fifteenth ccntury, they aroused more criticism than respcct: the
scandals caused by indiscriminate use of crusading funds- which
have already been mentioned; the preaching and purchasc of indul-
gences to raisc money; the expeditions against political enemies con-
cealed as "crusades" and the disorganizcd way in which the papacy
conducted the enterp1i.se had undermined the original enthusiasm. 71
67
FF, f. 172r-v.
68
Ilurns, R.: Jvfuslims, Christians and ]ews ... , p. 88.
69
Sermons by Jacques de Vitry, in BNP, Ms. Latin 17509, ff. 93r-102r. Cit:
Kec!ar, B.: Crusade and kfission, p. 128. Scc also Maier, C. T.: Preaching the Crusades,
pp. 10-11.
70
Ibidem, pp. 159-169.
71
Houslcy, N.: 7he Later Crusades, p. 379.
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT: TOLERANCE .AND ACCULTURATION 199
~;.
If 1;.ve spcak of thc Iberian Península, thesc íssues were sccn in a
much more practica! way, for five hundred ycars' cocxistence could
not be in vain. They lmcw how difficult it was to achicvc an impor-
tant number of conversions without exerting violence, and they also
knew how difficult and slow war had been throughout the Middle
Ages. But the end of Granada was close- or at least that was what
ecclesiastical writers expectcd.
At the same time, thc Islamic spirit of rjjihiid as more than just
an impulse of conqucst, but a way of kceping acquired positions, 72
had been replaccd by internal war in Granada, lcaving the Christians
cnough hopes of conquest. Within the Christian kingdoms, 1\!Iuslims
tried to adapt themselves to new conditions, rathcr than trying to
oppose resistence. Nevertheless, the Breviarío Sunni maintained the
oblígation of rfjihad, spcakíng bricfiy of all the points to be considcrcd:
captívcs, loot, tribute, cte. The· suspension of real meaning of thís con-
cept was only a tcmporary stage befare the triumph of Islam. 73 The
viewpoint from outside the Península was quite diffcrcnt: Eastern
chroniclers usually insisted on Granada being the only position left
to the Muslims in the Península. After 1450, al-cAynf stressed the
fact that Ibn al-Al:imar was unablc to resist Christian triumphs, and
could not count on any aid from othcr Muslim countries. Although
Granadans were considercd quite bravc for resisting the siege thcy
werc suffering from Christians, histmi.ans lmew the internal difficultics
the kingdom cndured. H
At the opposite side of Christendom, the Turks rnadc it difficult
to think about the end of Muslim power. All the efforts of ecclesiastical
writers were focused on the release of Constantinople during its siege,
or after its capture. The whole account of Islamic doctrine, Islamic
military advances and Muslim habits was dircctcd towards demonstrat-
ing the urgent need to defend thc Christian faith against their attacks.
And this would be achicved as soon as Muslims were expellcd from
Byzantíum and thc Ibcrian Península. Those who proposed the use
of war, cncouragcd their sovereigns in different ways.
Thc situation the Turks were facing was not the bcst·-- said Jean
Germain to Charles VII of France-because the lords in the Holy
72 See Urvoy, D.: "Sur l'evolutíon de la notion de djihad" Mélanges rfe la Casa de
Velazque;:; (1973), p. 335.
73
Ibidem, pp. % l-36'.3.
74
Arié, R.: "Relations entre musuhnans d'Espagne ... ", Al-Andalus, I, pp. 98,
101.
200 CHAPTER SEVEN
Land were on bad tcrms with the sultan. The lord of Acre had
offered his troops to the pope if they started the "passage" (crusade),
as well as sorne castles. Furthermorc, a large part of the sultan's
army was madc up of Mamluks, who had once been Christians.
Thcy were expccted to back thc Christians in their efforts. More aid
would come from the opressed Grceks, who would coopcrate, sincc
the union of the Churchcs and the end of the conflict bctween pope
and emperor had bcen very positive. Germain could only see advan-
tages in the enterprise, so he hastened to give the king political rea-
sons to cngage in the crusade. While Charles's kingdom was in peace,
as wcll as his mind and family, he would be wise to turn to the
problems of the rest of Christendom, as his ancestors Charlemagnc
and Clovis had done before. Thc prey would be nothing less than
thc unity of Byzantium- perhaps under his rule- , thc capture of
Jerusalem, once the gcographical basis for it established, and the
revival of the crusader spirit which would infiuence the Spanish war
against the Moors in Granada. Moreover, he could count on the
aid of thc Duke of Burgundy, who askcd his permission to join the
arrny. At the same time, he could use crusade as the excuse to sign
truces with the King of England, as he had becn asked to do sev-
era! times by thc pope and the duke himself 75
In the light of modern historiography, this proposal may sccm
na1vc, and Charles VII probably thought so, bccause he did just the
opposite of what Germain was proposing: he refused the appeal to
thc crusade, and he forbade the Duke of Burgundy to attend, because
he needed him on his Northern borders in order to kecp the distance
from England, far from signing truces. Sevcn years later, the matter
was 'still not settled, and Torquemada had to use the same kind of
persuasion at the Councíl of Mantua in 1459.
This time, the audicnce was even more difficult to addrcss, fi.rst
because princes from all over Europe werc supposcd to attcnd, and
then becausc those princes who could make decisions did not arrivc,
but just sent their lcgates, so the Council was reduced to a cliplomatic
meeting. Anyway, Torquemada proceedcd with his exhortation, try-
ing to movc the lcgatcs both with religious and political rcasons: for
the love of J esus Christ and religious zcal for his honour; for love
of the Christian "res publica"; for their own prídc and glory and for
the great reward promised to those engaged in the holy army. The
75
Jean Germain: Axhortation a Charles VII . .. , f. l 4r- 23r.
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUJVIENT: TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION 201
exhortation is full of Biblical references, promises cif glory and praises
of the prínces, trying to move them to follow Pope Pius II in hís
launching of the crusadc. His efforts wcre in vain. 76
Although not vcry rcalistic, Espina's proposal sounds rathcr more
convincing. For a start, his emphasis was placed on the conquest of
Granada, which he lmew somcwhat better than the othcr writers
knew the Ottomans. The sccond reason is that he relicd on one of
the most well-regarded masters in the fight against Islam: Raimundo
Llull. Hís argument is that íf Christians wanted to start a holy war
against Muslims, no place would be bettcr than the Ibcrian Península.
Llull had proposcd five different places to start the war, moving
towards the Holy Land: Constantinople, to tal<.e the route through
Armenia and Syria; Alexandria, vía Egypt; Cyprus, again to continue
through Armenia; Tunis and, finally, Andalusia (al-Andalus). The
first four destinies were dismi~sed on different grounds, ranging from
climate, possibilities of supplies, distance of the journey and whethcr
it was by sea or land, to amount of population willing to follow thc
fighters, number of castles availablc on the way and expenses. Advance
across the Iberian Península was by far the easiest, due to thc priv-
ileged geographical position, abundant food supplies and horses, the
possibility of recruiting people ali the way, the easy journey to the
North of Africa, and thc advantage of finishing off the last Muslim
stronghold in the West of Europe, which left that frontier free for
Christian troops. From Ceuta, the army could movc through Tunis,
Egypt and finally rcach the Holy Land. 77
There was anothcr point mentioncd by Llull, which Espina recallcd
only once without daring to proposc a name, 78 but which was eagcrly
believed by monarchs-and probably encouraged them more than
any ecclesiastical speech. That was the figure of a rex bellator elected
in council to lead the Christian army. If all his subjects dcsired his
victory, thcy would join thc army voluntarily, thus saving a lot of
expense while fighting more courageously. 79 Enrique N was never
in a position to believe he was the chosen monarch. As the emperors
of Gcrmany and Byzantium had proved thcmsclves unable to mect
thc rcquirements, Philip of Burgundy and Alfonso V of Aragon saw
76
CE, pp. 247- 258.
77
FF, f. 17'1.v. The text is copied word for word from Llull, R.: Liber de fine, pp.
'2.76- 277. .
. 76 FF, f. l 73r.
79
Ibident, p. '2.77.
202 CHAPTER SEVEN
themsclvcs as possible leadcrs of the last crusadc. This fecling moved
Alfonso V to write a long lettcr to the sultan, addressing· him as the
"Great Hound" whom he was going to destroy. 80 Later, it was King
Fernando ll of Aragon who thought himself the messianic king who,
after winning Granada from the Muslims, would conquer Jerusalem
for the Church.
More pacific proposals wcre suggested by thc partisans of mission-
ary mcthods. The step from cnforced Saraccn conversion as contained
in thc comments on Gratian's Decretum, to rccognition that baptism
through coertion was invalidatcd automatically, had given way to
the idea of pacific conversion, so dear to mendicant orders. In thc
thirteenth century, the Franciscan spirit introduced sorne changes
regarding the Cistcrcian missionary style. Preaching to Muslims
became an extcnsion of preaching to Christians, and both were the
new ordcr's most important aims. In this contcxt, Mendicants never
supported forced baptism,81 and the means used to achieve convcrsion
were lcss important than the ultirnate cnd. Thc results were in dircct
relation to the preacher's virtuous lifc; cducation was fundamental for
the success of sermons. The desirc for martyrdom was added moti-
vation. 82 Espina undoubtedly learnt from these sources his definition
of "the perfect preacher." But very soon Franciscans started to defend
military intervention in the Holy Land to open the way for mission-
aries, leading to a new style of preaching. Simultancous defence of
preaching and crusade was never criticized from within or without
the orders themsclvcs, and was given papal approval in a bull of
Gregory IX (4th March 1238) granting the friars thc same indulgcnce
as had been given to crusaders by the IV Lateran Council. 83
The Dominican method proposed a new approach to Islam through
the attention of captives and study. Thc main representative of thc
learned branch was Raimundo de Penyafort, who opened schools
for missionaries ali around the Mcditcrranean. Other figures like
Humbert de Romans, William of Tripoli, Pierre Dubois and Ricoldo
de Montecroce, elaborated a ncw thcory of preaching, whose basis
was the study of the enemy's rcligion and languages, treatises writ-
tcn to provide ideas for the preachers, avoiding public debates and
80
Sobrequés, S.: "Sobre el ideal de cruzada ... ", pp. 237-238.
81
Kcdar, B.: op. cit., p. 72.
82
Zananiri, G.: L'Eglise et l'Islam, pp. 184-186.
83
Kedar, B.: 0¡1. cit., pp. 141- 14·2. About Grcgory lX's crusading policies, see
Maicr, C. T.: op. cit., pp . 32- 62.
THE RE.LIGIOUS ARGUMENT: TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION 203
martyrdom, changc in the habits and clothes of the brethren to make
intcgration easier, and the foundation of houses to welcome the friars.
Franciscans soon shared this new impulsc. 84
A product of this symbiosis, L1ull successively defended pcaceful
methods and war as the way to approach Islam. AH his works from
1275 to 1312 givc onc solution or another to the problem of Islam,
and he defended all of them thoroughly, probably according to his
experiences in preaching life. Aragonese policies also conditioned his
views. In the long term, he prefcrred to devote his efforts to the
upper dass of learned Muslims, whom he thought to be ready to
listen; their conversion would be followed by thc rest of the common
pcoplc. He failed to sec that learned Muslims would not necessarily
feel discontcnt with their own faith. 85
The decline of crusades in the fourteenth century favoured a move-
ment of Christian conversions .in the East which worried the papacy.
Dominicans and Franciscans were askcd to work further, instructing
Christians liVing under Muslim rule in thcir own faith and giving
special attention to thosc Muslims who had convcrted and risked
losing their faith again. 86 This trend was followcd, as wc have seen,
by ccclcsiastical writers living in Europe, specially thosc living in the
Iberian Península, who saw the same effect on the Granadan borders.
By thc fifteenth century, both preaching and crusade had proved
useless to put an end . to Islam, and thc advance of the Turks on
the East only helped to assumc that Christians would have to livc
together with the Prophet's rcligion for much longer than they had
thought. New attempts involved spiritual aid givcn to captives as a
mcans to entcr thc Muslim-ruled lands- although it was difficult to
permeatc their social structure, for priests were expelled as soon as
they tricd to proselytize outside the prisons.
Missionary hopes were still sustaincd, however, by such men as
Juan de Segovia and Nicholas of Cusa, who were inspired by thc
few chances of crusades in the East and W cst of Europe succeeding.
They maintained correspondcnce about their respective methods, and
they tried to present thcm to Jean Germain, who obviously continued
preferring the one he proposed. Segovia himself ncvcr rcjccted crusade
on thc whole, for he stated:
84
See Zananiri, G.: op. cit., pp. 186 JI; Richard, J: La Papauté et les ·missions .. .,
pp. 117-120.
85
Urvoy, D.: Penser !'Islam, p. 242 .
86
Muldoon, J.: Popes, Lmi!Jers and Irfcdelf, p. 102.
 T
. 1
i
204 CHAPTER SEVEN
I want to emphasize that I do not condemn thc lawful wars against
thc Muslims owing to their invasion of Christian lands and othcr sim-
ilar causes, but only thosc undertaken with religious motives in mind
or for the purpose of conversion. 87
A gap was thereforc created between the war far territories and the
war for conversion. He only admitted crusade as a temporary solu-
tion for self-dcfcnse, but it could not be relied upon without propcr
planning. Thrce possible remedies could replace it:
- a miraclc, which was unlikely, givcn that God used to rely on
men in these questions;
- preachers, whosc scrmons produced a strong reaction among
Muslims becausc they uscd to attack Muhammad. Thcy also
required a decp knowledge of the other's religion and psychology,
which was difficult to attain in a short period of education. Plus
they had to face Islamic fanatism.
- effective war, which would prevent Muslirns from seeing Christ's
love in thc figure of their attackcrs.
Once the traditional mcthods had been rejected, a new one had to
be proposed: it was structured in three stagcs, and it nccded a long
time to produce its cffccts, but the results would be conclusive. The
first condition was maintaining peace with Muslims. A peaceful atmos-
phere would bring about the intensification of diplomatic and cultural
relations between Christendom and Islam, until comprehension could
replace fanatism. The last stage, after a long period, was the discus-
sion of the fundamental doctrines which divided both religions, start-
ing with the similarities, instead of the contradictions. Such discussions
should be undertaken in front of rulers and alfaquies, so that thcir
knowledge and advice would help to reconcile differenccs. 88
According to Segovia, bis mcthod was based on natural law, in
the traditional principie of preaching adapted to the particular mcn-
tality of Muslims, and was confirmed historically by the success of
peaceful mcthods as opposcd to crusades (and here he mentions the
examples of King Wladislaw in Hungary, the conversion of England
and the works of Saint Boniface in Germany). It could also be helpful
even if it wcre rejectcd by Muslims, because then the Church would
be justified and Muslims would be condcmned by their own evilness
R7 Cf Cabanelas, D.: op. cit., p. 111.
88
Ibidem, p. 118.
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT'. TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION 205
for not listening to pacific reasoning. Segovia becamc so sure that
his mcthod was the best, that he could not help making it known
to as many mernbcrs of the Church as possible. 89 But the latter were
engaged in the prcparation of the crusade and the council of Mantua,
so bis message was not heard.
Both Segovia and Cusa agreed to start their work by translating
and commentating the Koran, this being the main source of informa-
tion about the life and doctrine of Islamic people. In fact Cusa spoke
of Scgovia as the initiator of a revision of the tradicional ideas about
Islam. Cusa's method starts with the Cribratio Alchorani, in which he
exarnined the text point by point, trying to diffcrcnciate Muhammad
from hís doctrine, and to extract from it as much valuable inforrna-
tion as possible. The next book, De pace fidei, is a debate among mem-
bers of all nations and religions, in order to unify all of them in one
religion with a variety of rites. The great novelty is that he <loes not
accuse Muhammad in any way, but prefers to consider Muslims as
just one more nation able to live arnong the others with sorne con-
cessions regarding their customs. His answcr to the capture of Con-
stantinople in 1453 was to contact thc Muslim elite in a conference
to discuss the grounds of a common pacific policy. 90 Needlcss to say,
his proposals were even less use than Segovia's.
All these projects to defeat the enemy on earth found theír decpest
meaning in the arrival of the Day of Judgement. The capture of
Constantinople was consídered a key-event in thc succession towards
the Apocalyptic era. The version of the conquest offered in the
Fortalitium has the freshness of recent ncws and the added advantage
of six or eight years' distance to permit an analysis of the situation.
The argumcnt is quite different from that of Alonso de Palencia,
another contcmporary chronicler, who preferred a historical approach
to the facts. Palencia thought that lack of foresight, European rulcrs'
lazincss and bad management of the troops were thc reason why the
city fell. He only mcntioned one prophecy circulating in the corridors
of the Roman Curia: "Constantina cadent et alta palatia Romae". 91
On the other hand, Espina devoted a great part of the battle to tell-
íng the atrocities committed by the Turks once they had entcred the
69
Ibídem, pp. 121- 123. See Juan de Scgovia: Letter to Eneas Silvio Piccolomini, Ms.
Vat. Lat. 2923, f. 3. :
90
Anawati, G. C.: Nicolas de Cues .. ., pp. 145-147.
91
Alonso de Palencia: Glónica de Enrique IV, 1, p. SO.
 T1
(
206 CHAPTER SEVEN
city, according to thc testimonies of a Russian bishop and the Dogue
of VeniccY2 He proceedcd to explain four prophccics about the cap-
ture of the city, and a comment of St. lsidore. The two first prophe-
cics are related to the supposcd oracles of Emperor Leo VI thc Wise
(886- 912), whom Espina callcd a "Greek philosophee', a classical in
Byzantine apocalyptic literature. The original tcxt was dated between
1100-·-1180, and by thc beginning of thc fourtecnth ccntury, the ora-
cles were transformed into a Latin Pscudo-Joachimitc work, the Vat:icinia
de Summis Pontificibus, 93 this being probably the text which Espina
knew. Both mention a certain column placed in the Church of Saint
Demetrius which had engravings depicting the destruction of the city,
which would take place whcn the names of the emperor and the
pope coincidcd with the ones who founded the city: Constantine and
Grcgory. Prophecics on columns were a commonplacc in Byzantine
apocalyptic literature about the end of thc world, most of which wcre
mentioned in the Catalogus Codicum Astrologorum Graecorum, 94 although
none is the same as Espina's.
The third wonder prcceeding the capture of the city was only
seen by the Turks, and consisted of candlelights burning ovcr the
walls of Constantinople during the níght, and which ascended to
heaven. The Turkísh reading of the sígn was that God wítheld hís
protection from the besíeged, so that the city could be taken. And
it was. 9·5
For many authors, this was thc beginning of the end: Byzantinc
calculations 96 spoke of 1492, Espina himself spoke of an Arameic
calculatíon which placed the end of the world at the time when
Uz----Greece-and the daughter of Edom-Constantinople--fell into
Turkish hands. 97 For cfsa ibn Djabir the end of the world was
approaching, for l\!IuQ.ammad's prophecies had been fulfilled by 1462:
the age of hypocrisy and injustice mentioned in the hadiths had
come. Predictions of struggles were identified wíth the capture of
Constantinople, and the rest of the signs were to come soon: the
Antichrist (al-Dadjdjal) would come and be destroyed by Jesus; the
92
FF, t: l 70v.
93
Cf. Alexander, P.: "The Diffusion of Byzantinc Apocalypses", p. 79.
94
Vasilicv, A.: "Medieval Ideas of the End of the vVorld: West and East",
Byzantion, 16 (1942-43), pp. 462-502.
95
FF, f. l 7lr.
96
MacKay, A.: "Andalucia y la guerra del fin del mundo", p. 342.
97
Bowman, S.: Tlze ]ews qf Byzantium, 1204-- 1453, Alabama 1985, p. 180.
THE RELIGIOUS ARGUMENT: TOLERANCE AND ACCULTURATION 207
eschatological peoplcs of Yadjuqj and Madjudj (Gog and Magog for
Christian writers) would appear, and thc rcst of the prophecies would
be fulfilled. 911 'fsa's Breviario takes from Christian traditions the idea
of the central place of Palestine, and thc scvcn ages to pass befare
thc cnd of the world. But he <loes not mentían the key-figure of
Islarnic mcssianism, the arrival of thc MahdI. It is interesting to see
that neither did Espina mcntion the messianic emperor who was
supposed to defeat thc Antichrist befare entering J erusalem and ren-
dering the city to God.
The end of Islamic rule was described according to the most
renowned eschatological texts of thc Middle Agcs, combined with
the teaching of classical authors likc Plato, Aristotle, Seneca, and Pliny.
Thc last punishment ínflicted by Muslims on Christians was already
in its way: all the lands in th~ world had suffered their invasion at
one time or anothcr, and the Turkísh invasion had updatcd millen-
arist ideas. Persia, Capadoce, Syría, Egypt, Spain, Galia, Gcrmany ...
ali had been ravagcd by Saracens. Such was thc final proof reserved
to those who were willing to confess God's faith. 99 A number of
Christian authors had revealed this punishmcnt: St. Paul, Ishmael thc
Hcrmit, Joachim de Fiore, Hildcgard of Bingen, Cyril of Alexandria ... ,
and sorne fragments of thcir tcxts are accurately quoted by Espina
to enhance the eschatological tone of his speech.
The second step towards final liberatíon is taken from the stoic
Seneca: "Nothing violcnt is perpetual." So the Saracen rule, which
started through conquest and violence, could not survivc much longer.
Two prophecics are quoted to support this statcment: one contained
in Scotto's Sententt,"ae, and a certain Arabic prophccy which said that
a Christian king would conquer Mecca and scatter MuQ.ammad's
bones as a symbol of the cnd of his law. He might be refering to
the prophecy by Juan de Rokasia (Jean de Roquetaillade, who wrote
Vade mecum in tribulatione by 1356), which was adapted to Aljamiado
around 1485, whích proves that it must have been circulating in
Castile befare that date. 100
Then comes the most interesting part of thc argumcnt: when wíll
this happen? Hcrc, Espina reveals himself as most cautious not to
93
Wiegers, G.: op. cit., pp. 125- 128, 240 242.
99
FF, f. l 73v_
10
~ Thc tcxt has not been stuclicd thoroughly yet, and it is probably the Christian
vers10n the one which speaks about the Christian lcing scattcring MuJ:iammad's
bones. For an intcrcsting approach, scc Wiegers, G.: op. cit., pp. 126-127.
208 CHAPTER SEVEN
fall into the apocalyptic discourse. He never resorted to the calcula-
tions of the end of time. He avoided giving a precise date, or speculate
about one. He seems to be happy enough to prcdict that "save a
better judgement, it must cease whcn the Christian pcople are
sufficiently punished." Then, they would be ready to destroy the
l\/Iuslim empirc. Givcn that the capture of Granada was seen as pos-
siblc, and the expectation of a crusade against the Turks, it seems
that the l 460's were a reasonable date to expcct sorne advance to
be made. But no comment is made about who is to lcad thc Christian
army, or how <loes Muhammad relate to thc Bcast or the Antichrist-
an idea which had moved most authors.
The last text to be quoted was headed "About the Saracens' pcr-
pctual serfdom under the Christian yoke". 101 Again Espina <loes not
explain how this serfdom was to take place. Only that the end of
the conflict would bring peace to the world and liberation. How this
has to be understood in the light of the End of the World, only
Espina could tell.
101
FF, f. l 74v.
CONCLUSION
However one may approach it, the central phoenomenon of Medieval
Spain- tlic formative pcriod of its natíonal culture- is the meeting and
bilateral adjustmcnt of two distinct cultures, Christian and JVluslim,
with a third, semi-autonomous cntity, the Jews, playing sorne role in
the events. i
As we have scen, by the fifteenth ccntury this adjustmcnt had given
place to a period of transition towards a new structurc. In the 1450's,
new political circumstances drew attention to thc Islarrúc problem
from diffcrent sides.
How did Christians regard Muslims at the end of their political
powcr in the Iberian Peninsula? Religious litcrature) laws and historical
facts have been used to dcpict the situation in the mid-fiftcenth ccn-
tury, befare thc parties' fcelings became more extreme. I have tried
to prove that 6!Je ideology le;ding to the conquest of Granada and
the final dcfeat of Muslims in thc Península can be traced in scveral
w?E~.~J With the exccption of ~El.Q-~Lide.alist!f?. J1::~!?:~,..Q.l:'..".§.5'.gQ:0-_a,
the othcr authors show an evolution towards i!!._1:9.!_~_rance an.d.YiQknce
which was common to the society and its rulers.
All the books written by Christians rcfcrring to Islam were religious
trcatises discussing their faith. Howcver, most of them were aimed
at Christian readcrs whosc faith was dcclining or who werc threatened
by Muslim power (captives, etc.). The point of view was tllercfore
negative and accuracy only served the ultimate objcctive: persuasion
of the final triumph of the Christian church.
Of the four authors studied in this book, --~-'?-~Q. JJ~~la...Esp..ina is
undoubtcdly ~he most interesting~ "}}.Q.t..only because of the volume of
his work but alscrfor-the·vaficfY"'~t sourccs he used and their interpreta-
tion. His encyclopacdic knowlcdge made the Fortalitium Fi'dei more than j
a first-hand sourcc for Jewish history. His use of chronicles for a t
"book of battles" and his chapters about l\/Iul;ammad and Islamic pre-
ccpts are one of the best works about compared religions in his time.
There is a connection between Iberian authors working abroad,
1
Glick, T. F. & Pi-Sunyer, O.: "Acculturation as ...", p. 138.
 1
1
1

210 CONCLUSION CONCLUSION 211

who dealt mainly with the Ottoman issue, and those working in the of Tole do, Francisco de Cisneros, decíded the royal policy towards }
Península, whose first interest was to disseminate ideas about North the Muslims all through the modern period. I can go as far as to
African and Granadan Muslims. The revival of the Ottoman threat suggest that thcir approach to Islam and particularly Cisneros's tri-
in the East affccted thc whole of Europc, which tended to forget umph was thc cnd of the Mudejar problcm and the origin of thc
that its far West still was under the Muslim yoke. At thc same time, l\llorisco issue. But this would be thc subject for another book. .. .
people in Castile yearned for the final defeat of Granada, regarding
the Turks only as a possible help for Mudejars and Granadans. Both
ways of approaching Islam are personified by Torquemada and
) §~pina, respcctivcly. In any case, given the slowness of communica-
-~tions and thc distancc between thc authors, thc ideas seem to travel
much bctter than might be expected, partly duc to thc good library
system, universities and mcndicant friars.
A lot has been said about the style used to attack Islam and it
has been described in detail, so there is no need to insist hcre on
the importance of traclitional polemics, symbolism and the powcr of
image in manuscripts, which can be compared to the e:ffectivity of
discourse, togcthcr with gesturcs.
Thc steps towards intolerance in rcligious authors can provide a
cluc to thc situation of acculturation in thc Península. Laws show
an attcmpt to harden positions against Mudejars, whilc coexisting
\.\iith them¡/Some superficial elements were kept the same to avoid
reaction against more subtle transformatiou.~ Whereas conversion to
Christianity was seen as most desirable and was supported by local
law-codes, the opposite was scverely punished. However, the in:ftucnce
of Mudejars in the society around them was still too important-
cven ~-~~J>.~lwark--.0Lr2y~_J?,9~~r.
The relation between the dcfeat of Islam and the end of the world
had been poínted out in the seventh century, but thc imminence of
thc fall of Granada produced more litcraturc on thc subject. Thc
samc happencd on the Muslim sidc, whcrc ctsa ibn Djabir thought
thc time had come to defeat the Christians, and even the Jews had
their own prophecies about the end of the world coming around
1453/1492. But internal quarrels among the Granadan parties brought
forward the last triumph of Christians, while a strong monarchy was
growing in the Península.
Thc following gencration of authors gathered all the ínfiucnces
and knowlcdge of the prcvious ones, but times had changed, and
the application of similar principles brought new reactions. After the
fall of Granada, 0ie outcome of the confrontation between the first
~chbishop of the city, Hcrnando de Talavera, and the Archbishop
 CHRONOLOGY

141 O Capture of Antcquera by Christian troops

1412 Dispute of T ortosa
Cathcrinc of Lancaster's ordinanccs about Muslims
1415 Capture of Ccuta by thc Portuguese
141 7 Torquemada, Juan Il's ambassador to the Council qf Constance
1422 Clemcnt VII elected pope by the Aragonese
1424 Translation ef the Bible efAlba into Spanish by the Jew Nloshé Arragel
1429 Council of Tortosa: constitution to rcspcct Clement IV's dis-
posítions on Muslims
1431 Cortes in Palencia to discuss war against Granada
Battlc of La Higueruela
Dispute ef 1Vfedina del Campo (Segovia)
Torquemada, Master ef the Sacred Apostolic Palace
1432 Expedition of Alfonso V of Aragon to Tunis
1434 Council of Baslc under Eugcnius IV
1436 S~govia travels to Germany and copies Ketton's translation ef the Koran
1437 Portugucsc crusade to Tangier
1438 Thc Council moves to Ferrara
1439 Thc Council movcs to Florence. Felix V is proclaimed
1441 "Manifesto" agaínst Alvaro de Luna
Segovia, cardinal
1442 Cardinal Cesarini, legate to coordinatc forces for a crusadc
against the Turks
1443 Crusader success at Edirnc
Conquest of Naples by Alfonso V of Aragon
DisjJute between Torquemada and El Tostado
1444 Varna: dcath of Wladislav I
144 7 Cavalleria claims his puril_JJ ef ascent
1448 Crusader defeat at Kosovo
Segovia's retirement
1449 End of the schism
RioLs against Jews and converts in Toledo: works by Torquemada and
Alonso de Cartagena
1450 Sforza, Dukc of Milan
214 CHRONOLOGY CHRONOLOGY 215

Treaty Aragon-Venice 1460 Civil war starts in Catalonia

Cavalleria's ":(,elus Christi" Torquemada, bishop ef Orense: ((Symbolum pro injónnatione Mani-
1451 Philip of Burgundy proposes a crusade m a spcech to his clzaeorum"'
knights of the Golden Flcccc 1461 Death of prince Carlos de Viana
Albano-Aragonese alliance Germain's 'Vébat du Chrestien et du Sarrazin"
Death of Murad Il and enthronement of l\!Iu]).ammad II Possible death ef Alonso de Espina
Se,govia> bishop of Savoy 1463 Bull "Ezechiclis Propheta": crusade starting at Ancona
1452 Fredcrick III's coronation in Rome 1464 Death of Pius II
Thc N asrids attack Murcia 1465 Sentence of Medina del Campo
Jean Germain 's "Discours du voyage d'Outremer" Enrique IV's dethronement in Avila
1453 Capture of Constantinople by thc Turks Possible death ef Pedro de la Cavalleria
Diet of Regensburg 1466 Leo of Rozmítal visits Castile
Treaty between Castile and Aragon 1467 Deaths of prince Alfonso of Castile and Philip the Good of
Death ef Alvaro de Luna. Alonso de Espina is his corifessor Burgundy
Segovía> bishop of Cesarea: "De mittendo gladio cordis Saracenorum '' 1468 Dealh ef Juan de Torquemada
Alfonso V of Aragon defi.es the Sultan
1454 Dcath of Juan II of Castile and enthronement of Enrique IV
Banquet of the Peasant in Burgundy: oath of crusade
Diet of Frankfurt
League of Lodi
J org von Ehingen visits Castilc
1455 Defense of Belgrade
Beginning of the Castilian campaigns against Granada
Alfonso V of Aragon takes thc cross
Death of Nicholas V and accession of Calixtus III
Plunder of the Moorish neighbourhood in Valencia
Alonso de Espina attends a Meeting of 1''ranciscans in Madrid
1456 Deaths of John Capistrano and John Hunyadi
Enrique IV's trip to Ceuta. He is given thc administration
of the Spanish Military Orders
1457 Meeting at Alfaro (Enrique IV and Juan de Navarra)
Espina preaches the bull ef crusade
Piccolomini and Torquemada> cardinals
1458 End of the Granadan campaigns
Dcaths of Calixtus III and Alfonso V of Aragon
Thc Portuguese conqucr Arzila
Death ef Juan de Segovia
1459 Council of Mantua
Juan de Torquemada: "Contra Errores Machomeli"
Espina begins the "Fortalitium Fidei >J
 APPENDIX I:
SOURCES OF FIFTEENTH-CENTURY TREATISES

CE: Contra enores j1e1fidi i\!Iachometi

FF: Fortalitium fidei . ..
LCS: Livre du Chrestien et du .Sarrasin
.·. f
ZC: <:,elus Christi . ..
[] : So urce quoted without mcntioning authorship

1. Classical Sources

Aristotlc (d. 322 BC): Aietaphysica. CE, FF.

- Physica. CE.
·--·· Ethica. CE; FF.
- Política. CE.
- Liber de substantia orbis. CE.
- De anima. CE.
- De proprietatibus elementorum. CE.
- De animalibus. CE.
Boethius (d. c. 525): De Sancta Tiinitate. CE.
Cícero (Tullius, d. 43 BC). CE, FF.
[Hippocrates (d. c. 399 BC)J. CE.
Lactantius (d. c. 320): Divinae Institutiones. CE.
Origen (d. c. 255) [through Eusebius of Ccsarea]. CE.
[Plato (d. 347 BC): Timaeus]. FF.
Plotínus (d. 269): Enneads. FF.
Porphyry (d. c. 30 1): De regressu animae or De abstinentia. CE.
Seneca (d. 65): Ti·agoediae. FF.
~billine Oracles. FF.
Vcgctius Rcnatus (c. 383-450): Epitoma rei militaris. CE.
Virgil (d. 19 BC): Bucolica. CE.

2. Docton qf the Chw·ch

Ambrosc (d. 397): De Spiritu Sancto. FF.

- De T rinitate. CE.
- De efficiis ministmrum. CE.
Anastasius, Pope (d. 401). CE.
Augustinc (d. 430): bis work in general. CE, ZC.
- De civitate Dei. CE, FF.
-- De Trinitate (419). CE.
218 APPENDIX I SOURCES OF FIFTEENTH-CENTURY TREATISES 219

- De verbís Domini. CE, FF. Jacques de Vitry (d. 1244): Historia On'entalis Ecclesiae. FF.
- De Gene.fiad litteram (401). CE. Juan de Segovia (d. 1463): Tractatus contra sarracenos:::::: De mittendo gladio corda
- Tractatus in ]ohannis evangelium (414). CE. sm;acenorum. FF.
- Senno de Nativitate Domini. CE. Joachim de Fiore (d. 1202): Speculum visionum. FF.
- De .fide Sanctae Trinitatis. CE. John Damascenc (d. 749): De fide orthodoxa. FF.
Cy:ríl of Alexanclria (d. 444): Thesaurus de sancta et consubstantiali Tlinitate. CE, FF. John of Podio (d. 1455): Collectio Historiarnm (Ms. copied for the Library of
Damasus, Pope (d. 384). CE. the Royal Palace, Madrid, by thc samc secretary as FF). FF.
Gregory the Great (d. 604): Moralia in Job. CE, FF. John Duns Scotus (d. 1308): Commentarium supra libros Sententiarum. FF.
Jerome (d. 420): A letter to Pope Damasus. CE. Leo N, Pope (d. 855). CE.
John Chrysostom (d. 407): Contra judaeos et gentiles. CE, FF. Liber generationis et vitae Machumeti. FF.
Leo 1, Pope (d. 461): Sermo de Nativitate Domini. CE. Lucas Tudensis (d. 1249): Gnronicon Mundi. FF.
Methodius (Pseudo-) (c. 674-678): Se1mo de regno gentium et in novi.r.fimi tempo-
1ibus certa demonstratio (De fine seculi). FF.
3. Arabic & ]ewish Sources Nicholas of Lyra (c. 1349): Postilla. CE, FF.
Pedro Alfonso (c. 1110): Dialogus. LCS, FF.
'Abd al-Masih ibn lsl;iaq al-KindI and <Abd Allah b. lshma'Il al-HashimI Raimundo Llull (d. 1315): Liber de fine. FF.
(9-1 Oth c.): Risa/a. LCS. Raimundo Martí (d. 1284): Pugio fidei. FF.
Abraham ben Afra. ZC. [- : Tl·actatus contra Machometum.] CE.
lbn al-Haqim de Málaga (Ronda?). FF. [Ricoldo de Montecroce (d. 1320): Improbatio Alchoranis.] FF.
lbn Rushd (Averroes, d. 1198). ZC. Robert Ketton (c. 1143): Koran. FF; CE; LCS.
Kitab al-Mi'radj (Liber Scalae Nfachometi). FF, [CE]. Rodrigo Jiménez de Rada (d. 1247): Historia Arabum. FF.
I.iber generationis lvfachometi. FF. Sigebertus of Gembloux (d. 1112): Chronica (Historia Regum Franciae). FF.
Moshc ben Maymon (Maimonides, d. 1204): Cuide fer the doubiful. CE. Thomas Aquínas (d. 1274): Summa contra gentiles. CE, LCS.
-- Summa Iheologica. CE.
Vincent de Bcauvais (d. 1264): Speculum Historiale. FF.
4. Medieval Christian Sources (Greek & Latín) Vicente Ferrer (d. 1419): Sermon "Ecce ascenclimus Hierosolimam". FF.
[William of Tripoli (c. 1273): De statu Saracenorum et de Mahomete pseudo-propheta
Alain of Lllle (d. 1203): Qy.adripartitus liber contra hereticos. FF. et eorum lege et fide.J FF.
Alfonso X (d. 1284): Generalis Historia Hispaniae. FF.
Alfonso Buenhombre (d. c. 1343): Disputatio Abutalib Saraceni et Samuelis
Iudaei. FF.
Alexander de Hales (d. 1245): Summa Iheologi.ca. FF.
Anselm of Canterbury (d. 1109): Monologíum. CE.
Bartholomeus Anglicus: De prop1ietatibus rerum (c. 1250, translated in the 15th
century by Vicente de Burgos). FF.
[Beatus of Liebana (c. 798): Commentarium in Apoca!Jpsin]. FF.
Bernard of Clairvaux (d. 1153). CE.
Calixtus 111 (d. 1458): Bull. FF.
Cathalogus Regum Terrae Sanctae. FF.
Clement V (d. 1314): Cl.ementinarum, V, tit. II, l. FF.
Cronica Beati Petri, Francisci, . . . Egi.dii . . . FF.
Dennis the Carthusian (d. 1405). FF.
Dionisius Areopagitcs (c. 532): De dívinis nominibus. CE.
Hildegard von Bingen (d. 1179): Scivias seu visiones (Líber revelatíonum Dei). FF.
Historia exaltationis Sanctae Crucis. FF.
Hugh of St. Victor (d. 1141): De Sacramentis. FF.
Isidore of Sevílle (d. 636): l!)ymologiae. FF, CE.
 Ti

EXTERNAL STRUCTURE OF FIFTEENTH-CENTURY TREATISES 221

APPENDIX II: EXTERNAL STRUCTURE OF
FIFTEENTH-CENTURY TREATISES
The aim of this appendix is to givc a comparison of the main su~jccts and
their prcsentation at a glance. The original division of the treatises has been
respected, but the titles for the chapters have not bccn translated word-.for-
word bccause they lackcd dcfinition of the contcnts, and the chaptcr headmgs
have becn cither translated or summarized.
XIV. Therc was and is no hope of eternal life far pagans and Jews, and
cvcn less for Muslims who have abandoned God's doctrine and discipline
XV. There is no hope for Saracens, who do not observe God's command-
ments nor precepts
XVI. Thcre is no hope for Saracens because they do not have sacraments
XVII. l\!Iu.Q.ammad frccd Jesus by rejecting· his divinity, but not his inter-
cession because he carne from Abraham's lineage
XVIII. l\!lul:iammad pretended he was given Abraham's law, which was
consídered divine
XIX. Includes the words from the Koran MuQ_ammad recitcd as if they
were Abraham's law, . to which he added abusing glosses

l. JUAN DE SEGOVIA: De mittendo gladio in corda San-acenorum
I. Consideration: Bishops and doctors of the Church try to convert Saraccns
by preachíng the divine word
JI. Explains the reasons for the continuous war between Saracens and
Christians and thc maintenancc of MW¿.ammad's law
III. Contains adviccs to finish with the war, continued by Chrístians to
defend Chríst, the Church and its prelates' honour, attacked by MuJ:iammad
IV. Debate with the king of Granada's ambassador
XX. Explanation of what is contained in human law; differences among
divine, natural and scriptural laws and the law of divine grace
'.i
XXI. Christ did not dissolve but complete Moscs's law. About circumcision.
How it cannot be proved that Abraham receíved another law from God
XXII. MuJ:iarnmad ordcred Moscs's law to be respected so that it supcrceded
·. ¡
Chríst's. Due to envy, Saracens want to extinguish the namc of Christians
XXIII. Praises of Mul;ammad contained in the Koran are divided in four
types:
·.:¡
l. About himself

V. It was not considcred enough to send twelve men to prcach Christian

2. About the virtue of his actions or·
3. His judgcments when he was alive o
faith to the Saracens, as were the Apostles. History of three hundred years 4. Miracles he performed " ~ . (;)
of attempts es· le i~'i
VI. Dcmonstrates how in a short time the law of the Saraccns expandcd
XXIV. Mul:iammad's life and actions \ ~$ 11' / /'

by a multitudc of fighters. Reasons for the war XXV. Mu]:iammad affirmed that worlcs of nature, art and fortune were~~Q,!.EC.t:",f"/"
already mirades. Explanation of why he did not pcrfonn any other, accord-
VII. About the Saracens' hopes to convert rnany Chrístians by affirming ing to the Koran
sorne of thc truths contained in the Go-spcl
XXVI. Miraclcs told in the Koran, with four differences:
VIII. Seven crrors contained in the Koran, beíng the two maín oncs related 1. What is told in such a confussing way is not intelligent
to thc rnysteries of Trinity and Incarnation, and how it was easy for 2. vVondcrful actions are rcasonablc, but miracles are not
Muhamrnad to introduce them appealing to idolatry, distressing the Church 3. They are promises, not exhibitions
by mcans of Nestorian and Arian errors 4. They are invisible, nevcr seen by men
IX. Errors regarding marriage contained in the Koran XXVII. l\!liraclc of the seven slecpers
X. Exhortation and precepts for the Saracens to continue fighting, con- XXVIII. Lucipher's sin. lnspired by him, Mul;i.ammad's law dcnies Chríst's
ccding índulgence to thosc who die, and promising thcm Paradise divinity
XI. Points out excessive praises contained in the Koran as well as a num- XXIX. Reason why l\!Iul;tammad's sect expanded in such a short time. Ali
ber of other errors his religion is bascd on himself, as is shown by two sentenccs: :Therc is
XII. Críticism of MuJ:iammad's Paradise as described in the Koran only one God and Mul)-ammad is his mcssenger '

XIII. Account of the truths of the Christian faith according to Church XXX. Twenty-one reasons why MuJ:iammad's sect was accepted and
prelatcs and doctors multiplied
 222 APPENDIX JI
XXXI. Response to thc first fourteen reasons. Right actions are not worth
without the ríght faith
XXXII. Response to four of the last seven reasons:
1. V\lhy Mu}:lammad's scct continucd to be expanded
2. How this was done, including the martyrdom of Christians
3. They do not possess a numer of divine books or about human law
XXXIII. Answer to the last thrce reasons:
1. Saraccns' misery is greater as their triumphs increasc
2. About war for conversion
3. V\lhy in the beginning the Church did not prosecute Mul)_ammad's
sect as a heresy
XXXIV. Ways to convert the Saracens, being the lcss convenient the two
former:
l. Waiting for a miracle
2. Sending preachers
XXXV. About the third: War and its reasons
XXXVI. Saracens adored the principie of their world, whose messenger is
Mul;iammad, assuming that onc was the creator and other the legislator
XXXVII. Fourth way to convcrt thc Saraccns: the way of peace, by instruct-
ing multitudes and signing peace
XXXVIII. Saracens will realise that the hapiness promised to them was
· Uot true, and as they see the Christians are not unbelievers, they will turn
, . · ·. · to •· their religion.
' ... .··. ,.. ·
2. PEDRO DE LA CAVALLERIA: ,Zelus Chrúti ...
Preface
Which are the Scriptures common to Jcws, Christians and Saracens
Part I: Against the J ews
1 Article: Thc Messiah was promised in thc law
2 Articlc:
l. To whom was He promised
2. The Messiah had to arrive far the remission of sins
3. Before the Messiah's arrival, souls did not enjoy Paradise after death
4. Moses's law did not bring glory after death
5. This happened because of the original sin
6. Again about original sin
7. JVloses's law was imperfect
3 Artide: The Messiah was promised in the Law, and he is both God
and human
EXTERNAL STRUCTURE OF FIFTEENTH-CENTURY TREATISES 223
4 Article: The Messiah must su:ffer and die for the remíssíon of sins, and
due to his death ali sacrifices must finísh
5 Articlc: Once celebrated this sacrifice, a new Law would convey thc
Messiah to all souls through sorne choscn men
Answers to sorne of the Jews' doubts
1. About the Trinity
2. About the end of the sabbath
3. Why the Messiah has not eliminated punishment .for Adan:i's sin
4. V\lhy don't the Christians circumcide thcmsclvcs, 1f Jcsus did so
5. Why thc Christians have images in churcl~es . . .
6. Why the food forbiddcn by Moses's Law 1s allowed to Chnstians
7. Why the old Jewish feasts are not valid for Christians if Christ cele-
brated them
8. Why are Christians buricd within the church if thc Jcws havc cemeteries
outsidc thc cities
Refutation of the Islamic sect [divisions are not made by the author]
1. Discordance between Christian and Islamic faiths
1.1. Trinity
1.2. Jesus was not crucificd and dead. About his divinity
1.3. Thc Koran is inimitable
1.4. Peoples of thc Book will be saved
2. Christ's pcrson and actions
3. Creation, Paradise and the Last Judgement
4. Contradictions in the Koran
5. Angels
6. Holy war
7. Christ is thc Mcssiah, but not the son of God
Reasons against idiots, showing that Jesus's faith is true and necessary
Part II: philosophical proves of the truth of Christ's faith
Summary
About divine providence
3. JUAN DE TORQUEMADA: Contra mores pe1jidi Machometi
Prcfacc
1. Mul;iammad's description and life
2. Dcmonstration of Mul;iammad's false prophethood
3. About all the líes Mul;iammad said about himself
1. He is the last prophet
2. Therefore, there are no more prophecies to be delivered
3. He is announced by Christ when he promises another messenger
4. Muhammad's name is eternally written on God's throne
 1 \

EXTERNAL STRUCTURE OF FIFTEENTH~CENTURY TREATISES 225

224 APPENDIX II

33. Having sevcral wives is permitted

5. Ali the prophets beforc him announccd his arrival 34. Repudiation is a]so allowed
6. He asks Muslims to believe in God's messengcr '.35.
Adultery and fornication are lav.fol for Mul:i.ammad
4. The Law contained in the Koran is not divine, bccausc it <loes not 36. About sodomy
fulfü the following conditions: 37. Aftcr resurrection, material pleasures are promiscd to Muslims
1. It is not rational 38. Future hapiness is placed in vain things
2. It should command honest, just, holy things. Although fast and 39. About pleasures in Paradise, where wishes will become true
prayer are good, they are not acknowledged 40. Wine drinking is a sin
3. It should clirect towards God both external and internal human 41. Ali creatures invoke God in praycr
actions 42. The Virgin Mary gave birth on a palm-tree
4. It must be confirmed by natural law. It is not even confirmcd by 43. Once Christ was born she was consoled of her sadness
mirades, but imposcd by the sword 44. Shc was Mary, and the trcc produced dates for her to cat
5. It must be a wise law for the people 4·5.She was accused of_adultery by her neighbours
6. It must contain the truth 46. Apostles and prophets were Saracens . . . .
7. It must not be based on fables 4· 7.
Mul;iammad chargcs God with false and cVJl thmgs, 1gnormg that He
8. It must be in accordance with God in everything is the supreme goodness
9. It must be possiblc (quoting the Mi'radJ) 48. Twelve characteristics of Christian religion which should makc thc
5. Principies and foundations to refute Islam Muslims convert:
6. Mu.Q.ammad's main crrors (discusscd in chapters 7-4 7) 1. Its origin is the best: Christ
7. He denics the Trinity 2. It has thc holiest doctors and mastcrs
8. He denies Christ's divine generation 3. It is confirmed by divine power
9. He dcnies the Holy Spirit is God 4. It has prophets as authoritative witnesses
1O. He denies lncarnation 5. It has got true documents beyond question
11. Christ is not God 6. It has honcst commandments
12. Christ did not die in the cross 7. It gives advice to reach perfection
13. Christ wil1 not be the judge in the Last Judgement 8. It forbids evil things
14. The Bible was corrupted by Christians and .Jews, so thcrc is nothing 9. It has extraordinary virtuous sacraments
left which corresponds to God's real mcssage except what is said in 10. It is excellent bccause it is not based on weapons or violence, but
the Koran on humility and patience
15. He affrrms God is corporeal and has a body 11. Its essence is incorruptible firmness
16. God is thc reason far all evil 12. It promises eternal hapiness
17. He defended fate and denied divine providence 49. Five reasons why Mu.Q.ammad's sect was so successful, as opposed to
18. About circumcision Christian Church
19. lmages worshipped: criticism 1. His Paraclise is made of pleasures
20. He believcs Christians are forced to adore their priests 2. Lust and flcsh are permittcd
21. vVhoever lives rightcously can be saved in his sect 3. Only easy precepts are commandcd
22. Nobody is saved except Muslims 4. Tirannic violencc and the power of weapons are used by Mul:i.ammad
23. Angels are corporcal, made of fire 5. No prophet before him was .rejec.ted . .
24. Angels will die before the Last judgement 50. Admonition to makc the Cathohc pnnces raisc agamst the Turks
25. Angels commit sins
26. Demons can be saved through the Koran
27. God ordered the angels to pay hommagc to the first man 4. ALONSO DE ESPINA: ForLalitiwn Fidei (Book Four)
28. Angels ignored the narnes of things before Adam named them
29. Adam's soul is a portion of God's soul First considcration: About MuJ:i.ammad's origin
30. Ali human souls have been made from one soul 1. Mul)ainmad's origin and birthplace
31. The sky is smoke made of sea steam 2. About the author of Mu}:lammad's scct
32. The sun and the moon were made of the same light, but Gabriel 3. When was Mul)ammad's sect startccl
touchcd the latter making it darker
 T
!
226 APPENDIX II EXTERNAL STRUCTURE OF FIFTEENTH-CENTURY TREATISES 227
1
Second considcration: Muf.iammad's life and customs 14. Wine abstinence
1. His life was bcastlikc and lustful 15. Inheritance
f
2. His lite was ambitious 16. Testimony and witnesses
3. His life was monstruous due to epilepsy 17. Forbiddance of disputes with non-Muslims
18. Circumcision
Third consideration: Quality of Mul;i.ammad's doctrine and law
1. How Mu]:iammad's law was given Sixth considcration: About Mul;arnmad's vile death
2. Errors in Mul;i.anunad's law Scvcnth consíderation: Mul)ammad's successors
3. Fallacies and fablcs in Mul;iammad's law 1. The sect did not pcrish thanks to the Devil's shrewdncss
4. )\lfischicfs in Mu},tammad's law 2. Mul)ammad's successors in the East and West
5. l\!Iu.Q_ammad's law is not confirrncd by miraclcs 3. Diversity of people who accepted Mu.Q_ammad's law
6. Mul;iammad's law is full of contradiction 4. Diversity of pagans whom Muslims sometimes imitate
7. Mul;iammad's law is not divine because it has been rebated by men
and the devil was its founder Eighth consideration: the war of Muslims against Christians using arguments
1. Those who are called Christians do not descrvc that name
Fourth considcration: Foundations of Mu},tammacl's law, including his ascent 2. Against Chríst's Incarnation. Against the Holy Spirit being God
to hcavcn · 3. Christ is not God
Fifth consíderation: Concordancc and discordance of Muhammad's law with 4. Against Christ's death, · because he is supposed to be immortal
Christ's in the articles of faith . 5. Against the Trinity
- First article: I bclicvc in onc God . . . represented by jasper 6. Against Paradise being contemplation of God and not material goocls
- Second article: I believe in Jesus Christ ... representcd by saphire 7. Against marriage with just one woman
- Third article: who was born from the Holy Spirit ... represented 8. Against Baptism
by chalcedony 9. Against veneration of images
· · Fourth articlc: who died under Pontius Pilatc ... by emerald 10. Jews and Christians corrupted the Bible and thcrc is no truth left
- Fifth article: who descended to Hell ... by sardonyx in it but what is mcntioncd by thc Koran
.... Sixth article: He ascended to Heaven and is sitting at the right of Ninth consideration: about the wars and triumphs of Christians and Saracens
the Father ... by sard by means of wcapons from Mul)ammad's time until thc present (158 battles)
- Seventh articlc: and he wi11 come to judge . . . rcpresented by chrysolite
- Eighth article: 1 believe in the Holy Spirit ... by beryl Tcnth consideration: about thc possession of thc Holy Land by Saraccns
- Ninth articlc: I believe in the Holy Catholic Church ... by topaz l. Why do Saracens hold the Holy Land
- Tenth article: I belicvc in thc saints' communion ... by chrysoprise 2. Thcrc is no bcttcr land to start the crusade than Spain
- Eleventh article: 1 believe in the resurrection ... by jacinth Elevcnth consideration: VVhat must Saracens comply with when living under
- Twclfth article: and in eternal life, amen ... by amethyst Christian rule
About the discordance of Mul).ammad's preccpts: Twelfth considcration: end of Saracen power and their pcrpetual serfdom
l. Prayer under Christians
2. Ablutions befare prayer 1. Thc last punishment for the Christian people by means of Saracens
3. Proclamation in loud voice 2. End of the Saracen powcr
4. Fast 3. When must Muf.iammad's law cease
5. Easter 4. Perpetua} serfdom of Saracens under Christians
6. Pilgrimage to Mecca
7. Plunder and death for in:fidels
8. Food allowances 5. NICHOLAS OF CUSA: Cribratio Alchorani
9. Number of wives
10. Forbidden marriages with relativcs Book I: The Koran
11. Observation of Fridays
12. Prayer towards the South Prologue
13. About judging 1. The Koran. God cannot be the author, but thc dcvil
228 APPENDIX II EXTERNAL STRUCTURE OF FIFTEENTH-CENTURY TREATISES 229

2. Contents of the Koran according to Muslims 17. Christ's death and its fruits
3. Thc Final .Judgemcnt according to the Koran 18. About Paradise
4. The Koran contradicts the Biblc and is wrong in thosc passages 19. Invcctive against the Koran
5. The Gospel must be prcfcrred to the Koran, because even thc latter
acknowlcdgcs its mcrits Book III: Mul).ammad; God in the Koran; Abraham; Christ's role in salvation
6. The Gospel is light for the Koran because it contains everything which
is true ín the latter 1. Faith in one God, according to thc Koran, will save evcrybody: lack
7. The elegance in style does not prove thc Koran's divine origin of prccissíon, becausc then it would include heretics
8. Jesus must be followed rather than l\!lu}.tammad, because he was placed 2. Mul).ammad was not sure about what to do or to belícvc. His asser-
higher by God tion that "Thcre is only one God and Mu}:iammad is his Mcsscnger"
9. The Koran wrongly blamcs Christians for adoring Jesus-considcring is false in the second prcmise
him a prophet- ; thcy do it as God 3, Mul;i.ammad tried conversion through violence when he could not do
1O. Christ is the son of God: dcmonstration it through words, and he kept chang1ng his mind
11. Why Jesus did not call himself God, but the Son of God 4. About God in the Koran; is he an absolute God ar is he contained
12. Christ's praise in the Koran and the demonstration of his divinity in his crcaturcs?
13. Christ, who is the 11\Tord of God, easily proves to be the son of God- 5. God in the Koran is Muf,tammad's servant
thc Koran and thc Gospel agree 6. MuQ.ammad persecutes Chrístians against God's will
14. Koranic objections to thc former only try to specify sorne points to 7. MuQ.ammad bclieves in the rieed of God's presence in everything that
give Christ more glory happens
15. Jesus, being the Messiah, is also the son of God 8. Mul;iammad's aim is his own exaltation
16. Jesus, being God's '\!\lord and Legate, is also his son 9. Confusion in Mul).ammad's references to Christ as God, in singular or
17. Other testimonies in the Koran which prove Christ is thc son of God plural
18. It should be understood from the Koran that God communicated Christ 1O. Other variations ín Mul;ammad's sayings: about every monotheist to
his spirit and soul be saved, discussion of conversion to Christianity
19. How it should be undcrstood from the Koran that Christ is the per- 11. Against the Koran being Abraham's law
fcct man 12. Differences between thc Koran, which says Abraham was an idolater,
20. Digression about God's crcation of the Word (intelligence) and the Biblc, with a different version
13. The promise made to Abraham
Book II: The Trinity; Christ's dcath; Paradise 14. Abraham's pact excludes the Arabs
15. Only Christians adoring the Trinity can be Abraham's descent
1. Mystic theology which dcmonstrates that God is ineffable 16. The Arabs ignore Abraham's law and persecute ít
2. Theology which affirms that God is triunc l 7. Recommendation for the sultan to arder Mary's cult and the prcaching
3. How through intellect wc can see divine nature of the Gospel
4. How wc are raiscd from intellectual to divine fecundity 18. To the caliph of Baghdad, about the paragraphs regarding Abraham,
5. Activity of ali beings as dcmonstration of God tri.une which must have been included in the Koran by Jews
6. Intellect as guidance for divine activity: so was thc Word created 19. Without Christ nobody can be a saínt
7. Lave in relation to the aforcmentioned 20. Christ deserved immortality: demonstration
8. Dcclaration of thc Ho1y Trinity .1 21. Declaration of Adam and Christ's similitude
9. Discussion of the enigma of the Trinity
.·,
10. More about thc thrcc persons: parallcl with thc three pronouns "I-you-he"
11. The Arabs must aclmowlcdge the Trinity: discussion of the identification .1 6. JEAN GERMAIN: Le livre du crestien et du sarrasin
of Mul).ammad with the Holy Spirít
12. Christ was really dead and crucified Book I: About thc mistakes and foolishness of the Muslim sect Qettcr from
13. Crucifixion was Christ's exaltation and purification al-Hashimi]
14. Christ's death and thc transmigration of his soul: Mul).ammad <lid not
deny his dcath but bis soul's death 1. About Pedro Alfonso's Dialogus
15. About Jesus Christ's rcsurrectíon 2. Foreword to the Saraccn's epistle
16. The mystery of Christ's birth and death: cxplanation of his mission 3. The Saracen's attempt to convcrt the Christian
230 APPENDIX lI
EXTERNAL STRUCTURE OF FIFTEENTH-CENTURY TREATISES 231
4. The Saracen claims he is familiar with Christian Scriptures and rites
26. Paradise is rcachcd through difficulties, and not through easy lifc
5. The five pillars of Islam
27. 'Worship of the cross is not idolatry
6. Islamic fasts and prayers
28. Christian law is what Saracens pry for cvcryday
7. Islamic ecremonies
29. Christians have not changed thc Scriptures
8. Mu}:iammad's preccpt about conversion or destruction of infidels
30. Epilogue
9. Resurrection and Last Judgement according to Islam
10. Paradise
Book III: Establishment and devclopment of thc Christian faith by impor-
11. Hell
tant figures
12. Islamic Lcnt, circumcision, purification and marriagc
13. Pilgrimage and blasphemy in Islam 1. How Christ disposed the conquest of Christian monarchy and thc clcc-
14. The Saracen's objections: the Trinity, Christ's divinity, worship of thc tion of the main lcadcrs
cross, chastity and pcnitence 1. Conquests made by St. Peter, Christ's lilitenant and vicar
15. The Saracen's farewell 2. The second lmight, who is St. Paul
3. Lcgatcs lcfr in Syria by the Apostles: St. James called "of Galicia"
Book II: Christian objections against Islam and justi:fication of thc Christian 4. St. James the Minar, bishop of Jerusalem
faith [Al-K.indf's answer] 5. St. Matthias, who accomplished the salvation of Judaea
6. St. Matthew and bis conquest of thc foreign nations of Ethiopia
l. Foreword to ask for the Saraccn's benevolcncc
and savage Africa
2. Summary of the first letter and its argument
7. Lettcrs bctwccn Abgarus, king of :Mcsopotamia, and Je sus
3. Mul;iammad's generation and his life according to chapter 4, book I
8. Triumphs of Simon and Judas in Babylone, Susania, Media and
4. Mu}:iammad's lust and polygamy
Persia
5. De:finition of prophecy, its kinds and why Mul;iammad cannot be a
9. Triumphs of Bartholomew's lincage in Licaonia, low Judaea, Albania
prophet
and Armenia
6. Muhammad's shameful death
1O. About St. Thomas's chivalric dceds in judaea
7. The.re are only two divine Laws, and Mul).ammad's is evil
11. About thc fruitful prcachíng of the Gospcl made by the triumphant
8. All legislators must have a guaranteecl authority
conqueror St. Philip apostle in thc great city of Sarmata, high
9. They must try their laws to tcnd towards righteousness
Dacia and Russia
10. Mu}:iammad is nota legislator nor is his law valid, nor <loes it conform
12. About the execution of the noble scnator St. John the Evangelist
to these conditions
when he was in a rnission in Asia l\!linor
11. Mul;iammad's grcat changcs in the Scriptures (Koran)
13. Thc glorious apostle St. Andrew and his conquest of the regions
12. Fast, prayer and ahns were ordcrcd long before Mul:;iammad
of Greece, Macedone, Thesalia, Morea etc.
13. Against rythm in writing praised by the Saracens
14. How St. Bernabe preached the Gospcl in Italy
14. Christian faith possesscs ali virtues while Islam includes all vices .
15. How St. Luke, an expert in medicine, performed his duty in Bithinia
15. How Saraeens wrongly believe that Mul).ammad's name was wntten
being scvcnty-four years old
on God's throne befare the Crcation
16. How St. Mark preaehed in Egypt, in Lybia and Arabia
16. Difference betwecn Church institutions and those of Islam: circumcision
17. Polygamy and tepudiation 2. The First Seven Deacons
18. Holy works done by the Church and supcrstitions in the mosque 1. St. Stephen, the first martyr
19. Christ's merey and forbidance of holy war 2. St. Philip converts the king of Ethiopia's treasurer
20. God suffers from mcn's tribulation, against Islamic concept of Paradise 3. Works of the other five deacons in differcnt countries
21. About Christian martyrs
3. Summary of the great works of sorne of the disciples for the expansion
22. When should miracles be pcrformed: MuJ:i.ammad did not have such
of the Gospel, and their conquests
a powcr
23. Real Paradise is spiritual, and not phisical 4. How thc apostlcs' disciplcs brought Christian faith to the world
24. Fortune and glory are not the supreme goodness for man, according l. Disciples of St. James and St. Pcter
to the philosophcrs 2. Conquests of St. Pctcr's disciples
25. Mul;iammad's heaven and hell are poetic 3. Wonderful deeds of St. John's disciplcs
232 APPENDIX II EXTERNAL STRUCTURE OF FIFTEENTH-CENTIJRY TREATISES 233

5. Achievemcnts of the greatest men in the world, called cmincnt 12. Thc gospel is vcrificd by the Sybills
1. From Virgile's nine Sybills to Constantinc 13. Synodal scntcnces of Eastcrn and Western doctors
2. The cmperors Constantine and Licinio 14. Scntcnces of thosc doctors close to the Council of Chalccdon
3. Those who preached the Cospel from Constantine to MuJ:¡ammad 15. Objections made by the Saracen and answers
4. Those who preached the Gospel until Charlcmagne 16. Conclusion and dcmand of a sentencc from the Sultan
5. Those who preached ... until St. Louis
6. Preachers from St. Louis to the present time
7. Epilogue

Book IV: Dcclarations of faith and documents proving how Islam differs
from Christianity
1. How was Christian faith authorised before Constantine the Great
1. First Council of.Jerusalem and thc Apostle's symbol under Tiberius
2. 11 Council of Jcrusalcm under Claudius
3. 111 Council of Ephesus and St. John's Gospel undcr Nerva
4. IV Council of Cacsarea- discussion about Easter- under Antonius
Comodus
5. Council of Rome against African Novatists, under Detio
6. Council of Antioch-condemnation of Paul of Samos---under Aurclius
7. How before Constantine, thcrc wcre already bishoprics, prelates,
parishes, etc.
8. Why has the author mcntioncd thesc councils and epistlcs
2. Dcclarations made in the great Council of Nicaea, about Trinity
3. Declarations made in the Council of Constantinoplc under Thcodose
4. Councils of Africa, Carthage and Numidia against Pelagius under Arcadius
and Honorius
5. Mctropolitan Council of Ephesus, under Thcodose
6. Council of Caledonia
7. Declarations made in Constantinople and approved by Pope Martin
8. Great Council of Constantinople against monophisitcs, and other Eastern
and Western Councils

Book V: Summary of Christian doctrine

1. About the different laws [religions]
2. lnstitution of the Christian faith
3. Comparison between Christian law and thc Old Testament
4. The Gospcl gives the Christians rcasonable laws
5. Allegiance of the Gospel with true philosophy
6. Christian faith is a "res publica" which tends to maximum happiness
7. About true happiness
8. How the martyrs, hoping to rcach true happiness, cstablished Christian
faith in the world
9. Miracles made by martyrs to authorise the Gospcl
1O. Fruits of Christian faith against idolatry
11. The destruction of the Jcwish pontificate and rcalms and their captiv-
ity as testimony of Christian holy faith

i
 BIBLlOGRAPHY

1. Primary Sources

1. 1. Manuscrij1ts
Alfonso X: PJimera Crónica General de Erpaña. El Escorial, Ms. Y-i-2, X-i-<l. BNM,
Ms. 12837.
Alfonso de Valladolid: Libro de las tres creencias. Ms. Ese. III.P.21. (14 c.) BNM Ms.
930 (14--15 c.).
Buenhombre, Alfonso: Disputatio Abutalib Saraceni et Samuelis ludaei, quae .fides praecellat.
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 GENERAL INDEX

'Abbasids 130 Alfonso VIll of Castile 118, 132

'Abd al-RalJman 105 Alfonso X o[ Castile l, 39, 4 7, 93,
'Abd al-Ral)man III 130 109- 110, 114, 116, 121·, 129, 131,
'Abd al-Ral;iman ibn Mul;iammad Ibn 135, 159, [ 72, 1138, 196
Majlüf al-Ta'alibl 191 Alfonso XI of Castilc 18, 4 l,
'Abd al-Salam l 91 117·-118, 133
'Abd Allah l 05 Alfonso, prince 215
'Abd Allah, Mul;iammad's father 125 Alfonso, Lope 4·1
'Abd Allah, bishop 43 Alfonso, Pedro (Moses Sefardí) 29,
'Abd al-MasIJ:.i_ ibn Isl)aq al-Kindl 91 66, 82, 92, 104, 15 7-158
Abelard 94 Algcciras 120
Abraham 101·, 148, 156, 162, 168 Alhambra 117
Abü Darr 125 · 'Ali al-Garibo 71
Abü Nu'aim al-Isfühanr 123 Almería 120
Abü-1-Surür Mufarridj 192 Almohads l 16
Abü Talib 126 Almoravids 136
Acre 74, 94, 200 Alquir¡;otc of l\l[álaga 27
Acuña, Luis de 99 Amon 92
Adam 152, 154, 167 Anafe (Casablanca, 1\lforocco) 15
Adrianopolis 1O Anas ibn JVlálik 125
Africa 9, 13 Anaya, Diego de 34
AlJmad ibn Abü pjumü'a 171 Ancona 13, 215
AIJmad ibn Yal:iya al-Wansharishr al-Andalus 129, 130, 184, 201
138-139, 171, 183 Andrés, Juan de 68
Aiyüb, sultan 74 Antequcra (Castile) l 90, 194, 213
Alain, cardinal 11 Antichrist 111, 206, 208
Alarcos, battle of 118 Antioch 118
Albano 45 Antón, saint 178
Albania 11, 13, 16 Aphrodite 86
Alcalá 33, 17'1 Arabían Peninsula (Arabia) 86, l 04·,
Alcántara, Order of 20 125, 138, 158, 162
......- , Master of 5 7 Aragon 1, .5, 9-10, 13, 16- 17, 20, 23,
Alcañiz (Aragon) 30 29---32, 59, 75, 121, 139, 190, 214
Aleppo 73 Aragon, Arta] de 32
Alexandcr JU, pope 73 Archidona 23--21·
Alexandria 201 Arian 1 l l
... . . - , Cyril of 207 Arias Dávila, Diego 54- 55
Alfa.ro 214 Aristotle 85, 11-7, 207
Alfoll, Mahomat 1'ti Arles (Francc) 38
Alfonso I of León 133 Armenia 201
AlfonsolIIofLeón 104, 117, 132-133 Aroth and Maroth, angcls · 161
Alfonso V of Aragon 8, 10- 1 l, Arragel, Moshe ben 5 7, 213
15-17, 28, 30, 58, 74- 75, 78, Arraiolos, earl of 14
201- 202, 213-214 Arzila 15, 214
Alfonso V of Portugal 14-15 Aurillac, Gerbert d' 125 ,
Alfonso VI ofCastile 118, 120, 133, Austria 8
139 Ávila 27, 34, 121, 139- HO, 215
Alfonso VII of Castile 105, 132 Avicenna (Ibn Slna) 85
 --------------------------'"'
T
248 GENERAL INDEX GENERAL INDEX 249

Avis, Order of 14 Capadoce 207 Cologne (Germany) 88 Eloy, saint 178

al- 'Aynl 199
Ayton (Savoy) 37 , 39- 40, 71, 88, 98
Azuara 14
Babylon l 1l
Baena (Castilc) 14-0
Bagdad 94
Bal;1Ira 12 5
al-Baihakü 123
Balboa, Gonzalo de 35
Ballistarius, Mahomat 141
Banü Marln (dynasty) 119, 130
Banü Marwan 130
Banü QasI 130
Banü. Sarradj 192- 193
Barbastro (Aragon) 32
Barcelós, carl of 14
Barrientos, Lope de 49
Basle, Council of 9, 14, 34, 36-- 39,
42, 88, 213
Beato de Liébana 11 1- 112
Beauvais, Vincent de 84, 91 , 112,
127
Bede 104·
Belgrade ll, 119, 132, 214
Ben Labi (family) 29
Benedict XIII, pope 29
Berceo, Gonzalo de 117
Bern 99
Bessarion, cardinal 12, 45
Bingen, Hildegard of 207
Blois 96
Bologna 41
Bonfilla, .Juan 31
Boniface, saint 204
Bosnia 12-13
Bouillon, Geoffrey of 109, 118
Bramante 130
Brancowitz of Serbia 16
Buenhombre, Alfonso 92, 96
Burgo de Osma (Castile) 107
Burgos (Castile) 44, 51, 99, 121, 135
Burgundy 7, 37, 214
Byzantios, Nicetas 86
Byzantium 3, 9, 16, 78, 200-201
Cabra, Leonor de la 29
Cacsarca 38
Calahorra (Castile) 196
Calatrava, Master of the Order of 27
Calixtus III, pope 10· 11, 15- 17, 20,
35, 44- 45, 52, 214·
Cana 14·9
Capistrano, John 8, J 1, 214
Carazo (Castile) J 35
Carinthia, Hcr·mann of 96, 98
Carlos de Viana, prince 17, 24, 2 l 5
Carpio, Bernaldo del 1 18
Carrillo, Alonso, archbishop of Toledo
and later cardinal 33, 35, 36, 121
Cartagena, Alfonso de 44, 55, 213
Carvajal, Juan de, cardinal 1 1, 35,
38
Casanova, Juan de, cardinal 35-36
Caseda, Juan ele 31
Casti\e (Castilla) 5, 10, 13, 18- 20,
23- 24., 26, 34, 36, 39, 44, 46,
50- 52, 57' 59-60, 63, 75-76, 118,
120-121, 134135, 139, 169, 174,
184, 187-188, 194. ·195, 214-215
Castilla, Pedro de 52
Catalonia (Catalunya) 34, 59, 97,
133, 139, 178, 215
Catherinc of Lancaster, regcnt of
Castile 176-177, 213
Cavallería, Fernando (Bonafós) de la
29, 31
Cavallería, Pedro de la 3, 6, 28,
30- 33, 35, 64-, 96-97' lo 1-102,
125, 157-158, 168, 172, 213- 215
Caval\ería, Vidal de la 29
Chacón, Gonzalo 48
Central Europe 11
Cerda, Antonio de la, cardinal 35
Cervantes, Juan de, cardinal 35, 38
Ccsarini, cardinal 9, 213
Ceuta 14- 15, 23, 123, 201 , 213- 214
Chalon-sur-Saóne 8, 37
Charles VII of France 8, 12, 43, 75,
77) 82, 199-200
Charlemagne 109, 119, 130, 134,
200
China 16
Chosroes 110- 112
Christ 80, 90, 92, 103, 109- 110,
120, 128, 146, 162, 204
Cid (Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, "el Cid")
117, 136
Cilicia l l
Cisneros (Francisco Jiménez de
Cisneros), cardinal 51, 2 l l
Ciudad Real (Castile) 43
Clement IV, pope 157, 180, 213
Clement VII, pope 213
Clovis 109, 200
Cluny 37
Colognc, Oliver of 73
Commyncs, Philippe de 26
Constance 34, 4-2
Constantinc 111, 206
Consiantinople 3, 8- 11, 16, 18, 36,
38, 74, 109, 114-, 119, 201,
205--206, 214
Córdoba (Castile) 24-, 36, 80, 125,
128, 182
Córdoba, Álvaro de 86, 9 l, 111, 137
Córdoba, Eulogio de 111
Corias (Oviedo, Castile) 99
Coimbra (Portugal) 34
Cohnenares, Diego de 51
Covadonga (Asturias, Castile) 11 7
Cuéllar (Castile) 22
Cuéllar, Velasco de 35
Cueva, Beltrán de la 19-20
Curia l O, 35-36, 38, 45, 76
Cusa, Nicholas of, cardinal 36- 38,
4·6, 61, 77-79, 82, 87- 88, 98, 101,
151, 161·, 203, 205
Cyprus 12, 92, 109, 162, 20 l
Damascenc, John, sa:int 86, 127
Damaseus 74
Daroca (Aragon) 32
David 154
Demctrius, saint 206
Demetrius Paleologus of Marea 16
Democritus 152
Dcnys the Carthusian 87
Despuig, Luis 16
Díaz de Toledo, Femando 35, 44
Díez de Aux, Martín 30
Dijon 37
Djerba 16
Domínic, saint 41
Duarte I of Portugal 9, 13- 14
Dubois, Pierre 202
Durango (Viscaya, Castile) 75- 76
Eastern Europe 9, 115
Edessa 43
Edirne 213
Edom 206
Egypt 11, 53, 115, 129, 139, 20 l, 207
Ehingen, Jürg von 21, 26, 214
Eimeric, Nicolau 189
Eiximcnis, Francesc 66, 68, 75, 154,
16'.3, 166
El Castellar (Aragon) 32
El Escorial (San Lorenzo de) 98
England 7, 24, 74-75, 200
Enrique II of Castile 176
Enrique III of Castile l 76
Enrique IV ofCastile 'J, 18- 27, 33,
44- 45, 49, 60, 79, 134, 142, 172,
177, 181, 185, 193-195, 201,
214- 215
.Enrique of Portugal, prince 13-1 '1
Enríquez del Castillo, Diego 21- 22
Epicureus 152
Epirus 12
Eraclius 111, 119
Erdi, Bernardo 46
Escobar, Andrés de 35
Espina, Alomo de 6, 27, 29, 35, 41,
47-55, 62- 64, 67, 82- 83, 85, 87,
89-94, 96-98, 101- 102, 105, 107,
109- 110, 112- 113, 115-117, 121,
125, 127- 131 , 134, 138, 144,
151-- 157, 159, 162- 164-, 166 169,
175- 177, 180- 181 , 198, 201- 202,
206- 210
Ethiopia 16
Eugenius IV, pope 9, 14, 36, 42- 43,
213- 215 .
Eulogius 91 , 124 r: \~1
Europe (Europa) 2, 1 l, 79, 8:.J, 88, \~,... ·. _>
119- 120, 203, 210 \,.O/'_,._ < ../
., '>f'> ·~ •' .
·~· ··~~=~--;_:_,~J'::~~~ :' ,.
Fadrique, princc 4 7
Fclix V, pope 9-10, 36, 38, 43, 213
Fernández, García 135
Fernándcz de Heredia, Juan 31 - 32
Fernando I of Aragon (de Antequera)
29, 176
Femando U of Aragon (and V of
Castile) 1, 33, 134, 174-, 202
Fernando I of Castile 118
Femando III of Castile 136
Fernando of Portugal, prínce 13 .. 15
Ferrante, ruler of Naplcs 17
Ferrara, Council of 43, 213
-- ..., marquis of 58, 74
Fcrrer, St. Vincent 29, 66-.. 67, 70, 98
Fez 191
Fez, king of 15
Filelfo, Francesco 77
Fiare, Joachim de 111 , 207
Florence 9- 10, 43, 213
France 7, 9, 14, 24, 53, 73-74, 120,
169
Francesco Sforza of Milan 12, 213
Francia, Juan de 31
 -T-~~~~~~~~)
rn

1~
lH
250 GENERAL INDEX GENERAL INDEX 251 í~!;
lll!
Hospilallers 8 Jesus 68, 89, 1013, 141-- 147, 149, Louis XI of France 13
li~
Frankfurt, Diet of 9, 214
Frcderick III, empcror 11 - 12, 37, Hrotsvita 86 163, 170 Lot 92
70, 95, 214 Huesca (Aragon) 32, 194 Jimena (Castile) 22 Lubel, Shemaya 54 :;{:

Gabriel 95, 126, 131, 162

Hungary 8-10, 12- 13, 16; 2°'1
Hunyadi, John 11, 214
Jiménez de Rada, Rodrigo 86, 93,
117, 120, 127
Lucas de Iranzo, IV!iguel 19, 185
Lugo (Qastile) 52 ~ll
Galcerán de Castro, Fclipi; 32 Jiménez de Urrea, Lope, lord of Luna, Alvaro de, constable 13, i!l!
lberian Peninsula (Iberia) l, 3, 5, 7, Rueda 31-'.12 17-18, 27, 43- 44, 4-8-50, 134., 21 '.3 ¡m¡
Galia 207
John, saint 147 Lyon 99 !tfü
Galiana 130 13, 16, 20, 28, 43, 53, 60, 64,
69-71, 73, 81 , 83, 91, 93, 104-106, John, heretic 126 - ·, Council of 78 1m1
Garcés de Marcilla, Juan 31
García, Martín 59, 67-68, 88 114- 116, 119, 121, 125, 129, John Crisostomos 126 m~
~:!~l

García, Sancho 135 132- 133, 137- 138, 140, 143, 157, John, Order of Saint 28 Madrid 54--55, 214 m~
García de Covarrubias, Alfonso 35 160, 167, 169, 174, 182-184, 186, John VIII, emperor 9 I\/Iadrigal, Alonso de "el Tostado" 34, !tít!:1
~::

García de Vaamonde 52 192, 198- 199, 201, 203, 209-210 Jonah 154 43, 213 - mu
Gaunt 8 lbn 'Abbas 71 Juan 1 of Castile 176 Magdcburg, John of 99
Maimonides 85
rn~
Gazull, Andrés ele 35 Ibn Abr Zayd 68 Juan l[ of Aragon {also, de Navarra)
Ibn al-Al)mar, emir o[ Granada 199 4, 17, 24, 27, 33, 195, 214 Malom, David 15 m11
Genoa 8, 17, 24 :.::::i

Germain, Jean 8, 34, 36 ··37, 43, 58, Ibn al-'Arabr 147 Juan II of Caslilc 13, 18, 27, 35-36, Málaga 18, 27 m11
Ibn J:Iazm 92, 143-144, 1'19- 150 42, 44, 4-8-50, 75, 14·2, 172, 176, Mamluks 130, 200

1
62, 74, 76, 81- 82, 84, 91, 101 , 109,
115, 199- 200, 203, 214-215 lbn Isl)aq 68 185, 193, 195, 214 Manriques de Lara (family) 51
Germany 11-12, 38, 169, 201, 204, Ibn Khaldün 140, 193 Juan Manuel, prince 196 Mantua, Council of 4, 12, 20, '15,
207 Ibn al-Khatib 193 Juana "la Beltraneja" 23 77, 79, 200, 214
: 1HE!
Gerona 33 Ibn Rashrq 69 Julián, Visigoth noble 121, 135 María, queen of Aragon 30 _! mm
al-Ghazall 68, 149 lbn Rushd 68 Marche, Jacques de la 11 . ¡¡1¡r¡
Gibraltar 23-24, 79, 105, 190 Ibn al-Samad al-Khazrajf 163 Ka'aba 86 Mark, saint 147
Gil, Jacobo 36 Ibn Srna 68 al-Kamil, sultan 73 Marques (France) 99
Girón, Pedro 19 Iconum 73 Ketton, Robcrt 87, 97c. 93, 213 Martí, Raimundo 2, 69, 81, 85, 92, '. 1!1!11

Godalcsc (Guadalest, Valencia) 157 Ignatius, patriarch of Syria ('Abd Allah Khadfclia 91, 126-- 127, 160 96, 98, 101, 103, 106, 122, 121., ' ¡¡¡¡¡¡
Golden f1eece, Ordcr of thc 7, 8, of Edcssa) 43 Khurasan 126-127 144-
Ildephonse, saint 163 Kosovo 213 Martin V, pope 34 1
37, 43
Gonzálcz, Fernán, earl of Castilc Innocent 111 73, 112 Kucinic, Georg 46 Mary (Virgin) 68, 74, 109, 148- 149, 1i!!lfil
116-118, 132, 134 - 135 Innoccnt IV 198 Kurayshites {tribe) 86 162-163
Granada 1, 5, 13, 15-17, 19- 20, 'Isa ibn Djabir 2, 28, 39-40, 83, 88, Mary Magdalen 6fr --6 7
22-2'.3, 25, 27, 60, 71, 75, 88, 95, 98, 139, 162, l 79, 189 190, 206, La Concepción (Franciscan province) Maryam, Moses's sister 148
100, 119, 121, 123, 134, 140, 142, 210 52 Maryam, Mu]:iammad's wifc 127
153, 156, 181- 182, 184- 186, 190, Isaac 148 La Higueruela, battlc of 18, 213 al-Ma'mün, caliph 91
192- 194, 199- 201, 208-210, Isabel I of Castile 1, 33, 134, 174- Lara, battle of 135 al-Ma'mün of Toledo, 133
213 --214 Isabel of Portugal, duchess of ---- ---, Infantes de 118 al-Mas'üdi 68
Gratian 202 Burgundy 7, 14 Laso de la Vega, Garci 22 Matthew, saint 147
Greece l 7, 206 Ishmael 104 Lateran Council, IV 180, 202 Mathias Corvinus of Hungary 12
Grcgory, saint 111, 206 Ishmael the Hcrmit 207 Lazarus 132 Mecca 86, 92, 157, 160, 207
Gregory VII, pope 73 Isidorc, saint 120, 128, 131- 132, Lecce, Robert de 11 Meaux, Pierre de 43
Gregory X, pope 78, 94 206 Lemnos 11 Medina del Campo (Castile), Sentencc
Gumiel, Juan de 46 Isma'rl 110 Leo VI, "the vVise", cmperor 206 of 25, 27, 177, 215
Gurrea, Juan de 31 Italy 8, 12, 169 León 38, 45, 135 --------, Dispute 36, 53, 70, 213
Guzmanes (family) 24 'Iyad, qac;l.r 123 Lérida (Catalonia) 34 Mediterranean 1, 9, 16- 17, 20, 74,
Lille (France) 8 139, 202
Hacinas, battle of 135 Jacob 154 Lille, Alain de 92, l O1, 166 Mella, Alonso de 75- 76
Bagar 104 jaén 90, 95, 185 Lisbon 14, 34 Mella, Juan de, cardinal 35
al-Hashimr 91 Jaime I o[ Aragon 106, 119 Liste, Jean Fra119ois de 43 Milan 9- 10, 213
Raro (Castile) l 96 Jaime II of Aragon 59 Llull, Raimundo 70, 88, 94-96, 14 7, Millán, saint 117, 120, 131
Henry IV of England 8, 43 James, saint 110, l 17, 119- 120, 167, 201, 203 Moab 92
Herod 111 131 ·-- 133, 136 Lodi, League of 10, 16, 214 Mondoñedo (Castile) 45
Híjar, Juan de 32 Játiva 88 López de Mendoza, Diego, earl of Mons (Burgundy) 8
Holy Land 10- 11, 62, 94, 114-115, Jerome, saint 104 Tcndilla · 33 Montcfalconc, Antonino de 11
Jerusalcm 11, 94, 197, 207 Louis IX of France, saint 7'1, 109, 198 Monzón (Aragon) 30
122, 169, 183, 198- 199, 201-202
)l,ri
¡~¡~

·j f¡~
---------------------------------------
252 GENERAL INDEX
Montecroce, Ricoldo de 81, 90, 93,
96, 101, 122, 125, 127, l37-l38,
150-151, 158, 160, 163, 187, 202
Montserrat, Cosme de 35
Moran te, Gonzalo 147
Morea 13, '15
Morueco 53, 69, 73, 92, 118, 130
!\foses 89, 144, 148, 154, 161, 163,
168
Moyses 92
Mu'awiyya 130
Mu}:iammad (the Prophct, Mahomat,
Mahoma) 39, 45, 53, 61, 68, 70,
7~ 80, 82, 86, 8~ 91- 93, 96-9~
102 --103, 105, 109-114, 116, 120,
123-129, 132, 138, 144-147, 149,
151-164, 166-167, 183, 191, 197,
204-206, 208-209
Mu}:iammad II, sultan 8, 13, 17, 58,
79, 130, 214
Mu}:iammad V, emir of Granada 193
Mul).ammad al-Qysr 120
Muhammad al-ShartoshI l 72
Mu6ammad ibn AbI 'Amir al-1\fan~ür
118, 130 131, 135
Mu}:iammad ibn I~l).aq 68, 124
Mul).ammad ibn Isma'Il al-BukharI 124
Mul:;iammad ibn Yüsuf 142
Muley Abü-1-I:Iasan 193
al-Muqtaclhir of Saragossa 73
Murad II, sultan 77, 214
Murcia 69
Murillo, Juan de 31
Muslim ibn al-Hadjdjadj al-Qushayrf
124
Mytilene 11
al-Na~ir of Bidjaya 73
Nasrid 19, 130, 192, 214
Naples 12, 75, 96, 213
Navarre 5, 139
Navas de Tolosa, battle of Las 118,
132
Ncar East 85, 115, 120
Necropontc 13
Nero 111
Ncvers (Francc) 37
Nicholas V, pope 9- 10, 16, 22, 38,
44, 214
Nicopolis 7
Ni zar
Noah 147
North Africa 15, 81, 105, 119, 129,
169, 201
Nür al-Drn l30
Nuremberg 37, 87, 99
- - , Diet of 13
Ocaña 27, 33
Old Castilc (Franciscan province) 52
Olmedo, Lope de 35
Oppas 121
Orense (Castile) 45-46, 215
Oropesa, Alonso de 26, 54
Osma, Pedro de Montoya, bishop of
52, 98, l07, 109, 181
Ottomans 2, 4, 74, 201, 210
Oviedo (Castile) 36
Pacheco, Juan, marquis of Villena 19,
27
Padua 79
Palencia (Castile) 36, 41, 47, 51-52,
213
Palencia, Alonso de 15, 17-18,
21-22, 27, 33, 48, 121, 193, 205
Palestine 207
Palestrina 45
Paris 37, 41- 42, 81, 92, 96, 99
Pascual, Pedro 60, 90, 95, 98
Patriarch of Constantinople 9
Paul, apostle 71, 207
Paul II, pope 13
Pedraza (Castile) 194
Pedro 92
Pedro IIl of Aragon ("the Great") 87,
157
Pedro of Portugal, prince 14
Pelagius (Pelayo), saint 86, 132
Penyaforl, Raimundo 69, 81, 106,
202
Peña, Francisco 189
Pércz de Embún, Pedro 31
Pérez de Guzmán, Fernán 18
Pérez de Vivero, Alonso 27
Pcrsia 207
Peter the Cruel (Pedro I of Castile)
79
Pcter the Venerable 76, 87, 90,
92- 93, 166
Petri, Garci 69
Philip "the Good", duke of Burgundy
7- 9, 11 - 13, 17, 37, 43, 58, 74·,
200 ··201, 214-215
Piccínino, condottierc 16- ·l 7
Piera, Selomó de 29
Pius II, pope (Eneas Silvius
Piccolomini) 3, 1·, 8, 11 -- 12, 18,
GENERAL INDEX
36-38, 40, 45 . 46, 58, 77- 79, 93,
97, 201, 214- 2 15
Plasencia (Castile) 52
Plato 207
Plaza, Hernando de la 54-55
Pliny 207
Podiebrad, George, king of the
Bohemians 45-46
Poiticrs l 33
Ponce de León (family) 24
Porto (Portugal) 14
Portugal 3, 5, 9, 13-14, 24, 34, 121
Prester John 109
Pulgar, Fernando del 41
1\1-qa~r al-Saghir (Alcazarquivir)
Ragusio, John of 38
Ram, Domingo, cardinal 35
Recaredus 128
Regensburg, Diet of 8, 214
Reyes Católicos (Fernando II of
Aragon and Isabel I of Castilc) 23,
27, 184
Rhodes 8, 12, 74, 78
Richart, Pierre ("L'Oisclct") 99
Rodrigo, king of the Visigoths 133,
135
Rodríguez de Almela, Diego 113
Rodríguez de la Cámara,Juan,
cardinal 35
Roermond (Holland) 88
Roland 86
Romans, Humbert de 202
Rome 9, 11, 16, 23- 24, 28, 35-37,
4·2, 44- 47, 57, 74·, 97, 189
Ronda 18
Roquetaillade, Jean de 97, 207
Rore (Bavaria) 88
Rozmital, Leo of 26, 215
Sa'd, emir of Granada 193
Sahagún (Castile) 46
Saint Angclo (Romc) 3.5
Saladin 111, 130
Salamanca (Castile) 28, 31·, 36, 40,
4-2, 47, 50-52, 54, 88, 97, 169
Samothrace 11
San Esteban de Gormaz, García de
106
Sánchez,Juan 36
Sánchez de Arévalo, Rodrigo 10, 19,
35, 38, 57, 79, 121
Sánchez de Orihuela, Diego 193
253
Sancho VII "el Fuerte" of Navarra
119
Sancho, Francisco 97
Santa María, Alonso de 44, 57, 121
Santa María, Pablo de 4-1, 44
Santiago (de Compostela, Castile) 133
Santiago, Order of 20, 22, 31, l 08
- - , (Francíscan province) 52
Santillana, marquis of 18, 57
Saragossa '~, 28, 32-33, 86, 97, 194-
Sarah 104
Sarmiento, Pedro 14 1
Savoy 38-39
Scanderbeg of Albania 13, 16
Scotto 125, 207
15 Scgovia (Castile) 39-40, 50---51
Segovia, Juan de (Juan Alfonso
González) 2-3, 6, 34-40, 43, 58,
61, 70, 76- -78, 83, 87·-88, 96-98,
101-102, 162, 168, 197, 203--205,
209, 213--214
Seneca 207
Serbia 1O, 16
Sergius 125, 197
Sesse, Pedro de 3 l
Scrrha, Lopello de 14· l
Seville 20, 45, 97, 193
Seville, Juan of 91
Siena 12, 45
Siena, Buenaventura de 93
Sigüenza (Guadalajara, Castile) 98
Simancas 12 l, 193
Siscbutc, Visigoth king 169
Solomon 154
Spain (Hispania) 5, 79, 128, 207
Spinosa (Master of Osma) 107
Spoleto, bishop of (Bernardo Erdi)
43, 46
Stuttgart 100
Subiaco (Italy) 44
Syria 11, 43, 127, 129, 201, 207
al-Tabarf 146, 149
Talavera, Hemando de 2 !0
Tangier 14· 15, 213
Tarragona, Council of 188
Thasos 11
Theophanes 124
'l'homas Aquinas, saint 81, 85, 176
Tintorer, Mahoma 141
Toledo 1, 24·, 33, 36, 42--44, 81,
116, 125, 133, 139, 142, 169, 187
Toledo, Abraham de 93
Toledo, Francisco de 35
254 GENERAL INDEX
Toledo, Mark of 87
Taifa 13
Torquemada (Castilc) 4l
Torqucmada,Juan de 4, 6, 11,
35-36, 38, 4!- 46, 61, 79, 83, 85,
87, 90- 91, 93, 96- 97, 101 -·102,
l 12-113, 125, 127, 138, 148,
151· ·152, 157-··159, 162-164·, 168,
197, 200, 210, 213-215
Torquemada, 'l'omás de 41
Torres, Diego de 191
To rtosa, Dispute of 29, 7O, 213
- · ·, council of 213
Toulouse, Raymond of 118, 132
Tovar, Juana de 41
Trcbizond 12, 16
Trípoli, William of 78, 94, 149-150,
202
Tudela 48
Tunis 16, 195, 201, 213
Turl.Gsh empire l 29
Turks 7, 9-11, 13, 16, 20, 43, 111,
213-214
Turmeda, Anselmo 61, 186, 191
Turtkovic, Stojsav 46
Tuy, Lucas de 124
<Umar 157
Uz 206
Valencia 2, 17, 33, 118, 139, 178,
194, 214
Valencia, Diego de 14 7
Valera, Diego de 33, 193
Valladolid (Castilc) 28, 34-, 41- 42,
47, 49- 51,
V alladolicl, J\.lfonso de l 44
Valladolid, Luis de 42
Varna 43, 213
Vclascos (family) 51
Venegas, Ridwan 193
Venice 10, 12- 13, 16, 24, 97, 206,
214
Venus 86
Vía, Juan de la 16
Viencinic, Radovan 46
Vienne, Council of 95
Villacreces, Pedro de 50
Villalpanclo, Juan de 3 l·-32
Villanueva (Aragon) 32
Villaviciosa (Castile) 36
Visconti 9
Vitry,.Jacques de 112, 114-115, 117,
198
Vivero, J\.1fonso de 169
Wladislaw of Hungary 204, 213
Wyccliff, John 113
Ximénez de Ccrdán, Juan 32
Yadjudj and Madjudj 207
Yiisuf ibn al-JVlawl, prince 36, 70
Zaynab, J\foJ:i_ammad's wife 127
Zurita, Alonso 33
10. Roth, N. Jews, Visigoths and Muslims in Medieval Spain. Cooperation
11. Zwartjes, O. Love Songs from al-Andalus. History, Structure and Mea-
12. Echevarria, A. The Fortress of Faith. The Attitude towards Muslims in
13. Macpherson, l. & MacKay, A. Love, Religion and Politics in Fifteenth
MEDIEVAL IBERIAN PENINSULA
TEXTS AND STUDIES
EDITEDBY
RACHEL ARIÉ AND ANGUS MAcKAY
l. Le calendrier de Cordoue. Publié par R Dozy. Nouvelle édition,
accompagnée d'une traduction frarn;aise annotée par Ch. Pellat. 1961.
ISBN 90 04 00486 6
2. Imamuddin, S.M. Muslim Spain 711-1492 A.D. A Sociological Study.
2nd edition 1981. ISBN 90 04 06131 2
3. Monroe, J.T. Islam and the Arabs in Spanish Scholarship (Sixteenth
Century to the Present). 1970. Out of print.
4. Gallego Blanco, E. The Rule of the Spanish Military Order of St. James
1170-1493. Latin and Spanish Texts, edited with apparatus criticus,
English translation and a prelíminary study by Enrique Gallego Blanco.
1971. ISBN 90 04 02665 7
S. Tíbi, A.T. (ed.). The Tibyan. Memoirs of 'Abd Allah b. Buluggin, Last
Zirid Amir of Granada. Translated from the Emended Arabic Text and
Provided with Introduction, Notes and Cornments by Arrrin T. Tibi.
1986. ISBN 90 04 07669 7
6. Arié, R. Études sur la civilisation de l'Espagne musulmane. 1990.
ISBN 90 04 091165
7. Schippers, A. Spanish Hebrew Poetry and the Arabic Literary Tradi-
tion. Arabic Themes in Hebrew Andalusian Poetry. 1994.
ISBN 90 04 09869 O
8. Wiegers, G. Islamic Literature in Spanish and Aljamiado. Y9a of
Segovia (fl. 1450), His Antecedents and Successors. 1994.
ISBN 90 04 09936 O
9. Scales, P.C. The Fall of the Caliphate of Córdoba. Berbers and Anda-
lusis in Conflict. 1994. ISBN 90 04 09868 2
and Conflict. 1994. ISBN 90 04 09971 9
ning of the Kharja. 1997. ISBN 90 04 10694 4
Fifteenth Century Spain. 1999 ISBN 90 04 11232 4
Century Spain. 1998. ISBN 90 04 10810 6