Order of Monfragüe
Encyclopedia
Military order
A military order is a Christian society of knights that was founded for crusading, i.e. propagating or defending the faith , either in the Holy Land or against Islam or pagans in Europe...
founded at the castle of Monfragüe
Monfragüe
Monfragüe is a comarca of Extremadura, western Spain, which contains the most recently designated of the country's fourteen National Parks ....
near Plasencia
Plasencia
Plasencia is a walled market city in the province of Cáceres, Extremadura, Western Spain. , it had a population of 41,447.Situated on the bank of the Jerte River, Plasencia has a historic quarter that is a consequence of the city's strategic location along the Silver Route, or Ruta de la Plata...
on the Tagus
Tagus
The Tagus is the longest river on the Iberian Peninsula. It is long, in Spain, along the border between Portugal and Spain and in Portugal, where it empties into the Atlantic Ocean at Lisbon. It drains an area of . The Tagus is highly utilized for most of its course...
in 1196. The order was founded by the knights of the Order of Mountjoy who dissented from a merger with the Knights Templar
Knights Templar
The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon , commonly known as the Knights Templar, the Order of the Temple or simply as Templars, were among the most famous of the Western Christian military orders...
. The order never prospered and on 23 May 1221, by order of Ferdinand III of Castile
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...
, it was merged into the Order of Calatrava
Order of Calatrava
The Order of Calatrava was the first military order founded in Castile, but the second to receive papal approval. The papal bull confirming the Order of Calatrava as a Militia was given by Pope Alexander III on September 26, 1164.-Origins and Foundation:...
.
Formation
In the twelfth century Monfragüe was the centre of a Mountjoy commandary before it became the headquarters of its own order. The earliest reference to the commandary is in an economic transaction involving the commander, Gonzalo Padilla, and his fellow brothers (freyes, freires) of the Order. As early as 1186 the Order had tried to amalgamate with the Templars but failed. The remaining decade of its existence was spent in a state of utter collapse. The Order was united in December 1187 with the Hospital of the Holy Redeemer, but already a distinction had appeared in its ranks between the master of the order, Fralmo, and his followers on one hand and the commander of the Order in the Kingdom of CastileKingdom of Castile
Kingdom of Castile was one of the medieval kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula. It emerged as a political autonomous entity in the 9th century. It was called County of Castile and was held in vassalage from the Kingdom of León. Its name comes from the host of castles constructed in the region...
, Rodrigo González, and his support. By mid-1188 there was a schism in the Order, though it does not appear to have broken down along the lines Castile and 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...
on one hand and the Crown of Aragon
Crown of Aragon
The Crown of Aragon Corona d'Aragón Corona d'Aragó Corona Aragonum controlling a large portion of the present-day eastern Spain and southeastern France, as well as some of the major islands and mainland possessions stretching across the Mediterranean as far as Greece...
on the other, as sometimes supposed. When the final split occurred in 1196, over the successful amalgamation with the Templars, all opponents of the merger would have had to leave the lands of Alfonso II of Aragon
Alfonso II of Aragon
Alfonso II or Alfons I ; Huesca, 1-25 March 1157 – 25 April 1196), called the Chaste or the Troubadour, was the King of Aragon and Count of Barcelona from 1164 until his death. He was the son of Ramon Berenguer IV of Barcelona and Petronilla of Aragon and the first King of Aragon who was...
, a strong supporter of the Temple.
The internal split of 1188 was sparked by opposition to the leadership of Fralmo and he was forced to leave Alfambra
Alfambra
Alfambra is a municipality located in the province of Teruel, Aragon, Spain. , the municipality has a population of 676 inhabitants....
, the Order's headquarters, by the supporters of Rodrigo. In 1198 his supporters claimed that at that time (1188) Rodrigo had been acclaimed master (he had not). In March 1195, Pope Celestine III
Pope Celestine III
Pope Celestine III , born Giacinto Bobone, was elected Pope on March 21, 1191, and reigned until his death. He was born into the noble Orsini family in Rome, though he was only a cardinal deacon before becoming Pope...
issued a bull granting a "certain house", evidently the Holy Redeemer, which Fralmo had been seeking for his own purposes, to the Templars. The validity of this action was subsequently to be challenged by the knights of Mountjoy opposed to a merger with the Templars. The final split within the Order of Mountjoy occurred only with the Templar merger in 1196. The discontents managed to hold onto Monfragüe, which they made their centre of operations, and make Rodrigo González their master. They were confined to Castile.
Acquisitions
Alfonso VIII of CastileAlfonso VIII of Castile
Alfonso VIII , called the Noble or el de las Navas, was the King of Castile from 1158 to his death and King of Toledo. He is most remembered for his part in the Reconquista and the downfall of the Almohad Caliphate...
was the principal benefactor of the Order. The first document confirming the existence of the Order of Monfragüe was promulgated at San Miguel de Sortello on 13 January 1197 by Alfonso, who granted to the order and its master, Rodrigo González, an annual rent of fifteen cahices toledanos of salt from the mines of Talavera
Talavera
Talavera may refer to the following:Places* Talavera de la Reina, a city in Toledo province, Spain, where two battles took place:** Battle of Talavera, during the Peninsular War** Battle of Talavera de la Reina , during the Spanish Civil War...
. On 31 May 1210, at Cuenca
Cuenca, Spain
-History:When the Iberian peninsula was part of the Roman Empire there were several important settlements in the province, such as Segóbriga, Ercávica and Gran Valeria...
, Doña Sol, widow of Pedro Martínez, alcalde
Alcalde
Alcalde , or Alcalde ordinario, is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and administrative functions. An alcalde was, in the absence of a corregidor, the presiding officer of the Castilian cabildo and judge of first instance of a town...
of Talavera, with the presence and permission of Alfonso VIII, sold most of her inheritance in Gébalo (Xenalo) to Rodrigo González and the Order for 500 maravedíes. When Ferdinand III dissolved the Order in 1221 all its possessions in Talavera were granted to the city.
On 30 June 1206, at Frías, Alfonso gave to the Order and Rodrigo
González ten yugadas of land in the free territory of Magán
Magán
Magán is a municipality located in the province of Toledo, Castile-La Mancha, Spain. According to the 2006 census , the municipality has a population of 1989 inhabitants....
. On 19 January 1210, at Moratalaz
Moratalaz
Moratalaz is a district of Madrid, Spain. It is a well known area because musicians such as Melendi and Alejandro Sanz have lived there. Moratalaz is on east of municipality of Madrid, it has 634.42 km² of surface area and is delineated by the highways of M-30 to the west, M-40 to the east, M23 to...
, the king granted to the Order, Rodrigo González its master, and Juan García, a commander, a same-sized territory (ten yugadas) acquired from the monastery of Santa María la Real
Santa María la Real
Santa María la Real is a monastery in the small town of Nájera in the La Rioja community, Spain. Originally a royal foundation, it was ceded by Alfonso VI to the Cluniac order. It was an important pilgrimage stop on the Camino de Santiago...
of Burgos
Burgos
Burgos is a city of northern Spain, historic capital of Castile. It is situated at the edge of the central plateau, with about 178,966 inhabitants in the city proper and another 20,000 in its suburbs. It is the capital of the province of Burgos, in the autonomous community of Castile and León...
in exchange for Navarrete, as well as ten aranzadas of vineyard in Magán and the same amount in Fontalva and Ayllón
Ayllón
Ayllón is a municipality located in the province of Segovia, Castile and León, Spain. According to the 2007 census , the municipality has a population of 1,243 inhabitants....
; he also granted them a mill in Arfagazo. In return Alfonso received the castle and village of Segura de Toro
Segura de Toro
Segura de Toro is a Spanish village in the north of Cáceres. There are some celtic rests which can indicate a possible celtic origin. It's situated by the Tras la Sierra mountains....
near Béjar
Béjar
Béjar is a town and municipality in the province of Salamanca, western Spain, part of the autonomous community of Castile and León. It lies had a population of 15,016 .-History:...
.
Union with Calatrava
Pope Innocent III
Pope Innocent III was Pope from 8 January 1198 until his death. His birth name was Lotario dei Conti di Segni, sometimes anglicised to Lothar of Segni....
and the Cistercians approved and the final decision was laid down in June 1216, despite protests from the Templars. The decision to amalagamate the Orders was affirmed by Pope Honorius III
Pope Honorius III
Pope Honorius III , previously known as Cencio Savelli, was Pope from 1216 to 1227.-Early work:He was born in Rome as son of Aimerico...
in 1217. Nonetheless it was delayed, probably until the king of Castile felt the need of having a more secure state of affairs among the orders guarding his southern frontier.
At Segovia
Segovia
Segovia is a city in Spain, the capital of Segovia Province in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is situated north of Madrid, 30 minutes by high speed train. The municipality counts some 55,500 inhabitants.-Etymology:...
, on 23 May 1221, Ferdinand III granted all the rights and castles, including Monfragüe, to the Order of Calatrava
Order of Calatrava
The Order of Calatrava was the first military order founded in Castile, but the second to receive papal approval. The papal bull confirming the Order of Calatrava as a Militia was given by Pope Alexander III on September 26, 1164.-Origins and Foundation:...
, effectively merging the smaller order into the larger. This command was not perfectly followed through and initially Mauricio, the bishop of Burgos, and Tello Téllez de Meneses, the bishop of Palencia, aided by the archdeacon of Valpuesta, were assigned to arbitrate ongoing disputes. Yet as late as 1225 there were conflicts between the brothers of the old Order of Monfragüe and the master and knights of Calatrava. On March 1 that year, Honorius III sent a commission under the bishop, dean, and archdeacon of Burgos to resolve the dispute. They failed and the dispute was brought before Rome, where the Calatravan delegates failed to appear. In May 1234 Gregory IX
Pope Gregory IX
Pope Gregory IX, born Ugolino di Conti, was pope from March 19, 1227 to August 22, 1241.The successor of Pope Honorius III , he fully inherited the traditions of Pope Gregory VII and of his uncle Pope Innocent III , and zealously continued their policy of Papal supremacy.-Early life:Ugolino was...
nonetheless sent it to a tribunal in an attempt to reach compromise before judging in favour of Monfragüe. On 5 June 1234 Gregory ordered the possessions of Monfragüe be restored to those members of the Order who opposed the merger with Calatrava. This does not seem to have taken place and the merger seems to have been complete by 1245, when Ferdinand could grant Calatrava Priego de Córdoba
Priego de Córdoba
Priego de Córdoba is a town and municipality of southern Spain in the extreme southeastern portion of the province of Córdoba, near the headwater of the Guadajoz River, and on the northern slope of the Sierra de Priego. The population in 2008 was 22,558....
in exchange for the castle of Monfragüe (among others).
References to the "lands and rights once held by the Holy Redeemer" continued throughout the remainder of the century and in after the abolition of the Templars in 1312, James II of Aragon
James II of Aragon
James II , called the Just was the King of Sicily from 1285 to 1296 and King of Aragon and Valencia and Count of Barcelona from 1291 to 1327. In 1297 he was granted the Kingdom of Sardinia and Corsica...
was counselled to revive the Order of Mountjoy or the Holy Redeemer and grant Templar lands to it with Montesa
Montesa
Montesa may refer to:* the Spanish motorcycle manufacturer, now known as Montesa Honda;* Order of Montesa, a Christian military order;* Montesa, Valencia, a municipality in Spain....
as its headquarters. This was done, but the order was called the Order of Montesa
Order of Montesa
The Order of Montesa is a Christian military order, territorially limited to the Kingdom of Aragon.-Templar background:The Templars had been received with enthusiasm in Aragon from their foundation in 1128...
.