Fragmentum historicum ex cartulario Alaonis
Encyclopedia
The Fragmentum historicum ex cartulario Alaonis ("historical fragment from the cartulary of Alaón"), also called the Crónica de Alaón renovada ("revised chronicle of Alaón"), is a short, anonymous chronicle
of the County of Ribagorza
. According to most scholars, it was written in the early fifteenth century by a monk of Alaón
, but at least one places its main composition towards 1154. It was first edited and published under the current description by José de la Canal
in España Sagrada (46:323–29).
On folio 106r of the cartulary in which the Fragmentum was found is preserved a marginal notice, in a thirteenth-century hand, indicating that a certain presbiter vel monacus (presbyter and monk) named Domingo wrote this codex during the episcopate of Raimundo Dalmacio, Bishop of Roda from 1078 to 1094, during the reign of Sancho Ramírez. From this, Joaquín Traggia Uribarri inferred that Domingo was the author of the Fragmentum and the first historian of Ribagorza, though the Fragmentum is written in a hand of the early fifteenth century. Whoever copied it into the cartulary left only one blank page (folio 104r), which was not sufficient for the whole text, even though the last paragraphs are written in very small letters. The conclusion of the Fragmentum had to be placed on the bottom half of the previous page (folio 103v), leading José de la Canal to incorrectly begin his edition with the text from folio 103v (which begins Adhuc de Episcopis).
The Fragmentum, unlike the near-contemporary Canónica de San Pedro de Taberna (1415), was written in good faith, although its author may have intended to lend it greater credibility by copying it into the generally much older cartulary. Internal evidence also suggests that the historian was a learned man of the fifteenth, not the twelfth, century. He gives the correct etymology (inconceivable in the twelfth century) of Sobrarbe
(from super Arbem, above mount Arbe) and notes correctly that Ribagorza was called Barbitania in ancient times. He incorrectly asserts that Sancho the Great passed on the kingdom of Sobrarbe and Ribagorza to his son Ramiro I
, while in fact it was Gonzalo
. His chronology of the counts of Ribagorza indicates that he had access to the archives of Alaón and Obarra, and he notifies the reader that the act of consecration of bishop Borrell can be found in the archives of the Cathedral of Urgell. In his dependence on archival material the anonymous historian Fragmentum was writing on the cusp of modernity.
Chronicle
Generally a chronicle is a historical account of facts and events ranged in chronological order, as in a time line. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and local events, the purpose being the recording of events that occurred, seen from the perspective of the...
of the County of Ribagorza
County of Ribagorza
The County of Ribagorza or Ribagorça was originally the independent creation of a local Basque dynasty, later absorbed into the Kingdom of Navarre, and then into the Crown of Aragon. Historically it had a strong connexion with the counties of Sobrarbe and Pallars. Its territory was the valleys of...
. According to most scholars, it was written in the early fifteenth century by a monk of Alaón
Abbey of Santa María de Alaón
The Abbey of Santa María de Alaón is a former Benedictine abbey, earlier a Cluniac priory, in Sopeira near Ribagorza, in the province of Huesca, Aragon, Spain, established in the late 11th or early 12th century and built in the 12th...
, but at least one places its main composition towards 1154. It was first edited and published under the current description by José de la Canal
José de la Canal
José de la Canal was a Spanish ecclesiastical historian.He was born to poor parents, in Ucieda, a village in Cantabria, Spain. Under the care of an uncle, an Augustinian friar, he studied in the Dominican and Augustinian convents of Burgos; at Burgos, in 1785, he was formally received into the...
in España Sagrada (46:323–29).
On folio 106r of the cartulary in which the Fragmentum was found is preserved a marginal notice, in a thirteenth-century hand, indicating that a certain presbiter vel monacus (presbyter and monk) named Domingo wrote this codex during the episcopate of Raimundo Dalmacio, Bishop of Roda from 1078 to 1094, during the reign of Sancho Ramírez. From this, Joaquín Traggia Uribarri inferred that Domingo was the author of the Fragmentum and the first historian of Ribagorza, though the Fragmentum is written in a hand of the early fifteenth century. Whoever copied it into the cartulary left only one blank page (folio 104r), which was not sufficient for the whole text, even though the last paragraphs are written in very small letters. The conclusion of the Fragmentum had to be placed on the bottom half of the previous page (folio 103v), leading José de la Canal to incorrectly begin his edition with the text from folio 103v (which begins Adhuc de Episcopis).
The Fragmentum, unlike the near-contemporary Canónica de San Pedro de Taberna (1415), was written in good faith, although its author may have intended to lend it greater credibility by copying it into the generally much older cartulary. Internal evidence also suggests that the historian was a learned man of the fifteenth, not the twelfth, century. He gives the correct etymology (inconceivable in the twelfth century) of Sobrarbe
Sobrarbe
Sobrarbe is one of the Comarcas of Aragon, Spain. It is located in the northern part of the province of Huesca, part of the autonomous community of Aragon in Spain...
(from super Arbem, above mount Arbe) and notes correctly that Ribagorza was called Barbitania in ancient times. He incorrectly asserts that Sancho the Great passed on the kingdom of Sobrarbe and Ribagorza to his son Ramiro I
Ramiro I of Aragon
Ramiro I was de facto the first King of Aragon from 1035 until his death. Apparently born before 1007, he was the illegitimate son of Sancho III of Navarre by his mistress Sancha de Aybar...
, while in fact it was Gonzalo
Gonzalo of Sobrarbe and Ribagorza
Gonzalo Sánchez was made Count of Sobrarbe and Ribagorza, two small Pyrenean counties, before 1035 by his father, Sancho III of Navarre. He succeeded to these domains after his father's death in that year and ruled them as vassal of his brother García Sánchez III until his death...
. His chronology of the counts of Ribagorza indicates that he had access to the archives of Alaón and Obarra, and he notifies the reader that the act of consecration of bishop Borrell can be found in the archives of the Cathedral of Urgell. In his dependence on archival material the anonymous historian Fragmentum was writing on the cusp of modernity.