medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture

i guess this guy (and his reviewer) didn't Get the Memo about the Inquisition
being a "Myth."

c

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Received: Thu, 03 Nov 2011 11:43:45 AM EDT
From: The Medieval Review <[log in to unmask]>
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Subject: TMR 11.11.03 Smith, Crusade, Heresy and Inquisition (Bollo-Panadero)

Smith, Damian J. <i>Crusade, Heresy and Inquisition in the Lands of
the Crown of Aragon (c.1167-1276)</i>. Series: The Medieval and Early
Modern Iberian World. Leiden: Koninklijke Brill NV, 2010. Pp. 249.
$138.00. ISBN: 9004182896, ISBN-13: 9789004182899.

Reviewed by María D. Bollo-Panadero
        Colby College
        [log in to unmask]


Introduction: The Series: The Medieval and Early Modern Iberian World,
published by Koninklijke Brill, brings a very welcome new book:
<i>Crusade, Heresy and Inquisition in the Lands of the Crown of Aragon
(c.1167-1276)</i> by Damian Smith, as very few recent studies have
been dedicated to Heresy, Crusade and Inquisition in the context of
Catalonia and Aragon and, more specifically, in the course of the
twelfth and thirteenth centuries.

The study consists of five chapters framed by an informative
introduction and a brief conclusion. In the Introduction, the author
refers to the lack of studies in the area. He states that this could
be explained by different factors: first, Catalan historiography has
been more focused on socio-economic issues in the last thirty years;
second, French historians have always considered the south lands of
France as part of France; third, the linguistic diversity of the area
has always presented difficulties for many historians when it comes to
the use of different sources. The author also mentions the most recent
works on the subject of Heresy and Inquisition in Catalonia and
Aragon. He concludes the Introduction establishing the norms he
followed for the denomination of heretic groups as well as for the
territories included in this book.

Chapter one, "The Defeat of the Crown of Aragon," is divided into four
parts. The first part, "Muret," begins in reference to the death of
the King of Aragon and Count of Barcelona at the battle of Muret
(1213), in Southern France, where the King was fighting against a
group of crusaders lead by Simon de Monfort who, according to the
author "had moved from attacking the lands of heretics to taking the
lands of innocent men, including the lands where there had never been
any heretics" (36). At this point, the author then presents the
relationship between Peter II and the lords of the region who were
under his protection and analyzes the possible reasons for the defeat.
In the second part, "The Long-term Relationship," Smith explores the
historical relations that have existed between the northern and the
southern parts of the Pyrenees. The third part, "The Build-up of
Power," recounts the beginning of the power in the lands of the count
of Barcelona in 1068 and how the Crown of Aragon and the county of
Barcelona became united. The fourth part, "The Albigensian Crusade,"
presents how heresy sprouted out in the region. It also highlights the
important role that Peter II played in Las Navas de Tolosa (1212) by
helping his cousin Alfonso VIII of Castile against the Almohads, and
how this victory would change Pope Innocent's vision on the Crusade in
Languedoc. Finally, the chapter illustrates the relationship between
the main nobles and the Pope, and how the relationships between the
Popes and the Crown of Aragon through the end of the twelfth and the
beginning of the thirteenth century come to define the era.

Chapter two, "Wars, North and South (1213-76)," is also divided into
four parts. In the first part, "The Minority of James I," the author
opens with the succession of the throne after Peter's death, given
that the heir, James, was only five-years old at the time. Smith
analyzes the conflicting relationship between the crusaders, the
noblemen of Languedoc, the Pope and the King of France and Aragon. The
second part of the chapter, titled "The Conqueror," describes James's
conquest of important Muslim cities with the help of the lords of the
southern French provinces, despite the fact that some of these nobles
were themselves heretics and others had ties with heretic groups. In
the third part, "The Path to Corbeil," the author analyzes James's
struggles to keep his domains in the Provence region and Languedoc,
lands also coveted by Louis IX, the king of France, at a time when he
was finishing the rendition of Xàtiva and was facing political
contentions with the kingdom of Castile and Navarra. After a long
period of negotiation, an agreement is reached at Tortosa (1258): the
marriage of Philip and Isabel, the second son of Louis and the third
surviving daughter of James. Later at Corbeil, James would renounce
all his claims on the Occitan lands, except Montpellier and the
Catalan counties north of the Pyrenees, and Louis would renounce his
claim to rights in the Catalan counties. The fourth part, "The
Resistance," explores the events of the revolts of Marseille and many
Provençal lords against Charles of Anjou--specifically, the actions
taken by Prince James, the king's second surviving son, in
Montpellier, who created a difficult situation for his father and his
politics in the region.

Chapter three, "Heretics in the Lands of the Crown and Beyond," is
divided into eight parts. In the first part, "The Spread of Heresy and
the Meeting at Saint-Félix," the author traces the heretical movements
in the west since c. 1140 until the first quarter of the thirteenth
century, introducing the main sources to the study of heresy in the
region, including the polemic text known as the <i>Charte de
Niquinta</i>. In the second part, "Heresy in Catalonia," Smith, first,
explores the context of accusation, denunciation, excommunication and
disputes over the lands taken from heretics. Next, the author explains
the political forces and interests of some nobles in the south of
France. Furthermore, he introduces the first references to the
heretics in the lands of Catalonia and Aragon, stating that Alfonso II
and Peter II considered the heretics a major problem, as is revealed
in the fact that part of their laws was explicitly punitive against
the heretics themselves and even those who gave aid to them. The third
part, "The Viscounts of Castellbò," the fourth, "Josa del Cadí, Berga
and Gósol," the fifth, "Cerdanya, Conflent and Rousillon," and the
sixth part, "Lleida and the Mountains of Siurana," trace the history
of heretical movements in these areas and the establishment of the
Inquisition at different times. The seventh part, "Heresy and
Conquest," traces the spread of heresy in the lands taken over by
James II, especially the cities of Majorca and Valencia. The final
part of this chapter, "Beyond the Crown of Aragon," the author asserts
that, given the large number of pilgrims from France to Santiago of
Compostela, it is logical to think that many heretics would have
infiltrated the towns and villages in their way. Nevertheless, there
is not much concrete evidence to prove this theory. In an attempt to
shed some empirical light on the subject, Smith chooses to focus on a
treatise written by Lucas of Túy against heresy c. 1236.

The fourth chapter, "Waldensians and the Catholic Poor," is divided in
five parts. In the first part, "Valdes and Durán," the author starts
by pointing out the neglect of previous scholars concerning the
subject of the Waldensians in the Crown of Aragon. Besides the great
threat that they represented to the Catholic Church, their threat was
even greater than that of the Cathars, since they were much closer to
the Catholic orthodoxy. The author traces the reforms of Valdes and
the impact he had in Durán of Huesca, a prominent religious figure who
decided to follow Valdes's steps and founded the Catholic Poor,
implementing the reforms that Valdes carried out in the Church of
Lyon. In the second part, "<i>The Liber Antiheresis</i>," Smith
analyzes this work whose author is, most likely, Durán of Huesca, and
presents the differences between the Madrid manuscript and the later
Paris manuscript in which the Waldensians appeared to be greatly
criticized. The third part, "The Crown, Durán and the Catholic Poor,"
analyzes the legislation against the Waldensians, also called
<i>Sabatati</i> and the Poor of Lyon, in the lands of Aragon and
Catalonia. Durán was obviously under suspicion of heresy as a letter
from Sancha de Aragon to Innocent III clearly demonstrated. Durán and
his followers spent some years at the Roman Curia and gained the
support of many cardinals and finally the Pope, who saw in Durán the
possibility of bringing some dissidents back to the Church some. The
fourth part, "Opposition and the Protection of the Catholic Poor,"
examines the challenges that Durán and his followers had to face when
they returned from Rome to Languedoc and across the Pyrenees and tried
to put into practice their way of life. Even having received the papal
approval for their practices, they were denounced as heretics and,
therefore, had to go to Rome on different occasions. In the fifth
chapter, "<i>The Liber contra Manicheos</i>," Smith analyzes Duran's
book, and states that Durán's main concern was the modern Cathars, or
the Cathar Goths, large in numbers in the dioceses of Toulouse,
Carcassonne and Albi.

Chapter five, "Inquisition in the Crown of Aragon," is divided into
six parts. The first part, "The Origins of Inquisition," presents how
the Inquisition was established at the end of the twelfth century in
the lands of Catalonia and Aragon to persecute Waldensians and other
groups denounced as heretics. In the second part, "The Legislation of
the Crown," the author comments on the 1194 Alfonso's legislation and
on the legislation of Peter II against heretics. In the third part,
"Inquisition in the Crown Lands," the author presents how the
institution of the inquisition was backed by James I at the Court of
Tarragona in 1234 and lists the statutes of Toulouse, promulgated in
1229 against the heretics and those "who were the receivers, defenders
and favorers of heretics" (185). The fourth part, "Ramon de
Penyafort," is dedicated to this important Dominican, scholar and
specialist in Roman law, from the region of Barcelona, who played an
important role in the application of inquisitorial procedures. The
fifth part, "Inquisition in practice," explores how the inquisition
was applied mainly in Catalonia. Although the inquisition was
eventually expanded to other regions such as Aragon and Navarra, the
activity in these regions was much less than in Catalonia. New
statutes dealing with heretics were promulgated in the council at
Tarragona 1242 under the lead of Ramon of Penyafort. In the sixth
part, "James I and Inquisition," the author analyzes the practice of
the double standards of James I when it involved the persecution of
heresy.

In the Conclusion, Smith comments on the fact that Catalonia, because
of Raymond Roger of Foix and Arnaud of Castellbò, was the region with
a larger number of heretics, especially Waldensians, given that the
first legislation of the kings of Aragon was primarily against this
group; he states that the Crown was determined to eradicate heresy and
recalls the work done by the Dominicans and the Franciscans in pulling
to the Church those who could have been potentially attracted to the
heretics.

Smith's <i>Crusade, Heresy and Inquisition in the Lands of the Crown
of Aragon (c.1167-1276)</i> is certainly a work whose target public is
a very specialized one. It is admirable the archival work done by the
author, but the actual organizational content of the book at times
prevents more than just a leisurely reading. While it is clear that
some readers would find the abundance of information provided a source
for further scholarly dialogue on the subject, others would detect a
palpable barrier in the flow of ideas, thereby making the reading
confusing at times. This comment however does not diminish from the
important contribution that Smith's book brings to the area of study.
<i>Crusade, Heresy and Inquisition in the Lands of the Crown of Aragon
(c.1167-1276)</i> is certainly a significant addition to the field and
an important reading for those interested in Medieval Iberia in the
twelfth and thirteenth centuries.

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