Chronica latina regum Castellae
Encyclopedia
The Chronica latina regum Castellae, known in Spanish as the Crónica latina de los reyes de Castilla, both meaning "Latin Chronicle of the Kings of Castile", is a medieval Latin
history of the rulers of Castile from the death of Count Fernán González in 970 to the reconquest
of Córdoba
by King Ferdinand III
in 1236–39. It was probably composed by Juan de Soria, the Bishop of Osma and chancellor
of Ferdinand III, between 1217 and 1239. The majority of the text deals with the reigns of Alfonso VIII (1158–1214) and Ferdinand III (1217–1252). It was designed with two purposes: for use at the royal court as a speculum principis and to defend the interests of Castile against those of the Kingdom of León
.
The Chronica originally ended in 1230 with the death of Alfonso IX of León
, who was succeeded by Ferdinand III. Modern historians disagree whether the continuation down to the capture of Córdoba six years later was written by Juan de Soria or by another author. One has even suggested a composition in three stages between 1223 and 1237 by the same author, Juan de Soria. The sources of the Chronica were the documents of the royal archives, to which its author had access, although he also records events from memory. He makes little use of other narrative histories, which were the main sources of the contemporary chronicles called Chronicon mundi and De rebus Hispaniae
. Juan also includes contemporaneous events from the Maghrib
, the Byzantine Empire
, and the Kingdom of France
in order to place Castilian history in context, something neither the Chronicon nor the De rebus do, although the later histories composed at the request of Alfonso X, the Grande e general estoria and the Estoria de España
do.
The Chronica is preserved in only one late fifteenth-century manuscript, MS
G-1 or 9/450, in the library of the Real Academia de la Historia
in Madrid. It is a copy of the original and is found on folios 89 through 122. The structure found in most printed editions, of four sections subdivided into chapters, was added by its first editor, Georges Cirot.
Medieval Latin
Medieval Latin was the form of Latin used in the Middle Ages, primarily as a medium of scholarly exchange and as the liturgical language of the medieval Roman Catholic Church, but also as a language of science, literature, law, and administration. Despite the clerical origin of many of its authors,...
history of the rulers of Castile from the death of Count Fernán González in 970 to the reconquest
Reconquista
The Reconquista was a period of almost 800 years in the Middle Ages during which several Christian kingdoms succeeded in retaking the Muslim-controlled areas of the Iberian Peninsula broadly known as Al-Andalus...
of Córdoba
Córdoba, Spain
-History:The first trace of human presence in the area are remains of a Neanderthal Man, dating to c. 32,000 BC. In the 8th century BC, during the ancient Tartessos period, a pre-urban settlement existed. The population gradually learned copper and silver metallurgy...
by King Ferdinand III
Ferdinand III of Castile
Saint Ferdinand III, T.O.S.F., was the King of Castile from 1217 and León from 1230. He was the son of Alfonso IX of León and Berenguela of Castile. Through his second marriage he was also Count of Aumale. He finished the work done by his maternal grandfather Alfonso VIII and consolidated the...
in 1236–39. It was probably composed by Juan de Soria, the Bishop of Osma and chancellor
Chancellor
Chancellor is the title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the Cancellarii of Roman courts of justice—ushers who sat at the cancelli or lattice work screens of a basilica or law court, which separated the judge and counsel from the...
of Ferdinand III, between 1217 and 1239. The majority of the text deals with the reigns of Alfonso VIII (1158–1214) and Ferdinand III (1217–1252). It was designed with two purposes: for use at the royal court as a speculum principis and to defend the interests of Castile against those of the Kingdom of León
Kingdom of León
The Kingdom of León was an independent kingdom situated in the northwest region of the Iberian Peninsula. It was founded in AD 910 when the Christian princes of Asturias along the northern coast of the peninsula shifted their capital from Oviedo to the city of León...
.
The Chronica originally ended in 1230 with the death of Alfonso IX of León
Alfonso IX of Leon
Alfonso IX was king of León and Galicia from the death of his father Ferdinand II in 1188 until his own death...
, who was succeeded by Ferdinand III. Modern historians disagree whether the continuation down to the capture of Córdoba six years later was written by Juan de Soria or by another author. One has even suggested a composition in three stages between 1223 and 1237 by the same author, Juan de Soria. The sources of the Chronica were the documents of the royal archives, to which its author had access, although he also records events from memory. He makes little use of other narrative histories, which were the main sources of the contemporary chronicles called Chronicon mundi and De rebus Hispaniae
De rebus Hispaniae
De rebus Hispaniae or Historia gothica is a history of the Iberian peninsula written in Latin by Archbiship of Toledo Rodrigo Jiménez de Rada en the first half of the thirteenth century on behalf of King Ferdinand III of Castile....
. Juan also includes contemporaneous events from the Maghrib
Maghrib
The Maghrib prayer , prayed just after sunset, is the fourth of five formal daily prayers performed by practicing Muslims.The formal daily prayers of Islam comprise different numbers of units, called rak'at. The Maghrib prayer has three obligatory rak'at. The first two fard rak'at are prayed...
, the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
, and the Kingdom of France
Kingdom of France
The Kingdom of France was one of the most powerful states to exist in Europe during the second millennium.It originated from the Western portion of the Frankish empire, and consolidated significant power and influence over the next thousand years. Louis XIV, also known as the Sun King, developed a...
in order to place Castilian history in context, something neither the Chronicon nor the De rebus do, although the later histories composed at the request of Alfonso X, the Grande e general estoria and the Estoria de España
Estoria de España
The Estoria de España, also known in the 1906 edition of Ramón Menéndez Pidal as the Primera Crónica General, is a history book written on the initiative of Alfonso X of Castile "El Sabio" , who was actively involved in the editing...
do.
The Chronica is preserved in only one late fifteenth-century manuscript, MS
Manuscript
A manuscript or handwrite is written information that has been manually created by someone or some people, such as a hand-written letter, as opposed to being printed or reproduced some other way...
G-1 or 9/450, in the library of the Real Academia de la Historia
Real Academia de la Historia
Real Academia de la Historia is a Spanish institution based in Madrid that studies history "ancient and modern, political, civil, ecclesiastical, military, scientific, of letters and arts, that is to say, the different branches of life, of civilisation, and of the culture of the Spanish...
in Madrid. It is a copy of the original and is found on folios 89 through 122. The structure found in most printed editions, of four sections subdivided into chapters, was added by its first editor, Georges Cirot.
Editions
- Georges Cirot, ed. "Chronique latine des rois de Castille jusqu'en 1236", Bulletin hispanique, 14 (1912), 30–46, 109–18, 244–74, 353–74; 15 (1913), 18–87, 268–83, 411–27. (editio princepsEditio princepsIn classical scholarship, editio princeps is a term of art. It means, roughly, the first printed edition of a work that previously had existed only in manuscripts, which could be circulated only after being copied by hand....
) - Luis Charlo Brea, ed. Crónica latina de los reyes de Castilla. Cádiz: Universidad, 1984. ISBN 978-84-600-3487-2
- María D. Cabanes Pecourt, ed. Crónica latina de los reyes de Castilla. Zaragoza: Anubar, 1985. ISBN 978-84-7013-211-7
- Luis Charlo Brea, ed. "Chronica latina regum castellae". Chronica hispana saeculi XIII, Corpus Christianorum. Continuatio Mediaevalis. Brussels: Brepols, 1997. pp. 7–118.
- Luis Charlo Brea, trans. Crónica latina de los reyes de Castilla. Clásicos latinos medievales, 8. Madrid: Akal, 1999. ISBN 978-84-460-0919-1
- Crónica Latina de los reyes de Castilla in Spanish online.
Further reading
- Inés Fernández-Ordóñez, "De la historiografía fernandina a la alfonsí", Alcanate, III (2002–3), 93–133.
- Amaia Arizaleta, "La Chronica regum Castellae: aledaños de la ficción".
- Francisco Bautista, "Escritura cronística e ideología histórica".
- Stéphanie Jean-Marie, "Violence et pouvoir dans la Chronica latina regum Castellae", Cahiers d'études hispaniques médiévales, 28 (2005), 267–80.
- Peter Linehan, "Juan de Soria: the Chancellor as Chronicler".
- Ana Rodríguez, "Modelos de legitimidad política en la Chronica regum Castellae de Juan de Osma".
- Ana Rodríguez, "De rebus Hispaniae frente a la Crónica latina de los reyes de castilla: virtudes regias y reciprocidad política en Castilla y León en la primera mitad del siglo XIII", Cahiers de linguistique et de civilisation hispaniques médiévales, 26 (2003), 133–50.