Late Medieval and Early Modern Spain
Question 1
Muslim rule in Spain brought with it numerous economic and cultural advantages that benefitted both Jews and Christians (p. 143). Ruiz (2007) states that “Muslims were on top, and there was no question as to whose religion was dominant” (p. 143). Under the rule of Muslims, people from different religions were forced to engage in common cultural and commercial ventures and share physical spaces on an equal level. The Muslims took part in numerous economic activities such as medical practice, money lending, husbandry, clothe dying, and building trades. But when the caliphate collapsed in the 1030s, Christians began to make it into lands occupied by Muslims. These conquests by Christians – especially the 1085 conquest of Toledo – brought a good number of Muslims under the rule of Christians (p. 144). The Muslims that fell under the rule of Christians came to be described as Mudejars. When Christians conquered Iberia, the Mudejars did not leave, and they were not initially forced to convert from Islam to Christianity.
Even after they fell to Christian rule, Muslims were not restricted to limited economic activities (p. 145). They engaged in real-estate and brisk commercial with Christians. Muslim artisans and shopkeepers during this period could not survive by just doing business with their fellow Muslims; they had to trade with people of other religions such as the Jews and the Christians. According to Ruiz (2007), up to the point of forced conversion and expulsions, we must assume that Muslims interacted with Jews and Muslims in their daily financial affairs, business transactions, and the like (p. 146). During ceremonies and processions in the holy week, Muslims played significant ritual roles. Contradictory and different messages during the festivities oscillated patterns of inclusion and exclusion. While the forced participation of Muslims in the ritualized Christian performances humiliated the Muslims and reinforced the superiority of Christians, participating in the ceremonies also created inclusion spaces (p. 147). In other words, the festivities sanctioned and confirmed the insertion of Muslims into Christian societies. Muslims – and even Jews – were always expected to participate in Christian celebrations.
Most Mudejars resided in the rural areas of Valencia and the areas of Aragon, and a good number of them were rural labourers. As such, they enjoyed protection from their lords and generated significant income from them. Other Muslims also continued to do their initial jobs, and they even occupied the same lands they held before. The Crown of Aragon did not encounter the same economic and structural crises that affected Castile because of the contributions of the Mudejars. The Valencia hinterland did not witness any radical decline in agricultural productivity, meaning that agricultural production remained at its highest until after the Moriscos were finally final expelled; the Moriscos were Muslims that were forcefully converted to Christianity.
Question 2
Vibrant and novel cultures were created in the Spanish realms in the midst of crises that endured in the era (Ruiz, 2007, p. 164). Even though different cultural productions underwent reforms, leading the way was literature written in different languages such as Catalan, Latin, Galician, Hebrew, Castilian, and Arabic. These numerous works of literature also covered a wide range of themes and genres (Ruiz, 2007, p. 164). They ranged from romances, chronicles, satirical poetry, erudite philosophical treatises, mystical works, and commentaries, among others. These works reflected new ideas that came from Italy; they reflected aesthetic concerns and Renaissance humanism. There were also developments in architecture, music, painting, and other forms of art that shaped the artistic landscape of Spain. Intellectual transformations, which were articulated though royal entries, elaborate festivals, and fashion, also became bound in politics (Ruiz, 2007, p. 164).
Patronage, artistic displays, and literary references became an important aspect of how nobles and kings displayed themselves in the 14th and 15 centuries. Therefore, culture became hegemonic counter-discourses and discourses in towns and courts. These discourses not only affected and mingled with other cultures, but they were also affected by several other forms of culture, especially cultures coming from below (Ruiz, 2007, p. 164). Cultures from below could emerge in carnivals, festivals, folklore, and popular piety and expressions. Ruiz (2007) argues that Spain had different linguistic communities by 1300 (Ruiz, 2007, p. 166). Galicia, for example, had its own cultural identity and its own language. The author states that in the 12th and parts of the 13 century, Galician poetry reached its peak, and he provides the example of Cantigas de Santa Maria, a collection of poems written by Alfonso X in Galician in honour of the virgin. However, Galician declined in the late 13th century, and the role it played in subsequent centuries was small.
Hebrew also showed a lot of vitality in the 13th century; the language was mostly used during liturgy (Ruiz, 2007, p. 166). The Zohar – a Jewish mystical tradition – was written in Hebrew. However, Jewish literary figures were sometimes or often written in Castilian. There were also witnessed interests in Hebrew, especially in the Kingdoms to the East; this was in an attempt to convert the Jews. Jewish cultures also influenced Christian populations and cultures (Ruiz, 2007, p. 166). In the late 14th and 15th Centuries, for example, Castilian literary poetry was influenced by Hebrew literary forms. Furthermore, Arabic was also used in other forms of literary works such as chronicles and lyrical poetry, and it was also an important vehicle in the history of Granada, a city that was considered to be an important cultural centre for the Muslims (Ruiz, 2007, p. 166). However, Spanish populations had limited or no access to the minority religious languages and their histories.
The Catalan culture’s great achievements endured throughout the middle ages. Literary works written in Catalan include Muntaner’s, chronicles, Ramon Llull’s works (in Catalan and in Latin), and the 19th century’s enchanting chivalrous romances (Ruiz, 2007, p. 166). Plastic arts, architectural forms, and Catalan literature represented an alternative to Castilian cultures, which were on the rise in many respects. The future of languages as future instruments of the empire rested on writings that emerged from below and vernacular speech foundations (Ruiz, 2007, p. 167).
It should, however, be remembered that writing about the culture of Spain in the late medieval period also poses some challenges because there wasn’t anything like Spanish culture during the time. For example, regional manifestations through literary traditional and local languages made the history of some cultures different from those of other cultures. Castile culture, for instance, differed from Aragon culture, although some traits were common. Aragon culture was deeply connected to Italy and was, therefore, more receptive to renaissance influence than Castile was (Ruiz, 2007, p. 165).
Some aspects of Castilian Culture can also be learned from Jorge Manrique’s “Ode to the Death of My Father.” Manrique wrote the poem as a tribute to Rodrigo – his father – who had just passed away. The poem is intensely emotional, and it integrates the hope for salvation, the inevitability of death, the medieval world view, and Manrique’s personal loss. The poem also captures some of the political conflicts that were witnessed during his time. From it, we learn that Castile was agitated by power struggles in the 15th century, and it also serves as a reminder to readers that political displays and intrigues are all ephemeral in nature, especially in the face of death. Besides being a historical document, the Coplas also gives the reader some insight into the cultural values and beliefs that permeated Castile at the time.
From it, we learn, for instance, that Castilian culture was very much conscious about the image of death, especially its inevitability. The poet compares human lives to rivers that flow through to the sea: “Our lives are rivers, gliding free 25/To that unfathomed, boundless, boundless sea” (Jorge Manrique, p. 49, lines 25-26). He uses this metaphor to echo the short-lived nature of human lives. His poem also provides us with a window through which we can understand the cultural values of the Castilian society, especially the nobles and the middle class. The poet insists on the vanity of wealth, the high price people pay for desiring worldly things, and the advantages of living short lives. This clearly shows us that the Castilian peoples believed that the chances of people going through sadness and experiencing pain increase when they live longer.
The Castilian people also strongly believed that death was egalitarian or democratic in nature. Whether one is weak or powerful, whether one is a peasant or a nobleman, all are equal in the face of death because whether rivers are small or big, they all flow to the sea. By stressing that human beauty, youth life and wealth are all temporary, and the egalitarian nature of death, the poet enables us to understand the cultural motives and values that we common in Castilian society. While all people believed that they were equal in the face of death, they also knew that the manner in which they lead their lives differed. They understood that the moral and social values they chose to neglect or uphold differed.
Manrique’s poem also gives us a window through which we can understand how the Castilian people acquired fame. His father, Rodrigo, for instance, fought the infidel, and he south no earthly wealth or goods, and so he continues to live in memory. This helps us to understand that Castilian culture insisted on leading one’s life with honour by treating family, servants and even friends with dignity and honour. In Castilian culture, therefore, fame was not acquired through amassing a vast amount of wealth but rather through being loyal and having exemplary behaviour. Fame (reputation in modern societies) in Castilian culture conferred upon people some “immortality,” and it permeated every aspect of the moral economy and was shared by the noble people.
The Coplas also evokes the importance of Gothic blood, something that even people in high positions believed in. Because of the belief in Gothic descent, many people in Castile were swept into dishonourable lives and occupations. The poet also reminds the reader that even those at the top can find themselves at the bottom. Visigothic descent was a central and powerful ideological tool to blood discourses in Castilian society. People with Visigothic blood were considered to be worthy of nobility: “The noble blood of Gothic name, heroes, emblazoned high fame” (Jorge Manrique, p. 53, lines 97-98) But the poet also notes in his poem that even those with nobility in their blood sometimes ended having lesser positions in society. Descendants of Muslims and Jews were not considered to be having Visigothic blood and were therefore not worthy of nobility.
Works Cited
Jorge Manrique (1440 – 1479). Ten centuries of Spanish Poetry: Ode on the Death of his Father
Ruiz, T. F. (2007). Spain’s Centuries of Crisis: 1300-1474 (Vol. 13). Blackwell Publishing Ltd.