Introduction: The Series: The Medieval and Early Modern Iberian World, published by Koninklijke Brill, brings a very welcome new book: Crusade, Heresy and Inquisition in the Lands of the Crown of Aragon (c.1167-1276) 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 Charte de Niquinta. 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, "The Liber Antiheresis," 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 Sabatati 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, "The Liber contra Manicheos," 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 Crusade, Heresy and Inquisition in the Lands of the Crown of Aragon (c.1167-1276) 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. Crusade, Heresy and Inquisition in the Lands of the Crown of Aragon (c.1167-1276) is certainly a significant addition to the field and an important reading for those interested in Medieval Iberia in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries.