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MILITIARISM AND CHRISTIANITY IN MEDIEVAL SPAIN: THE ORDER OF CALATRAVA

The defeat of King Roderic at the hands of Tarik in the Guadalquivir valley in 711 marked both the ascendancy of Islam and the collapse of Visigothic dominion within the Iberian Peninsula. This victory allowed the Umayyad forces of Musa ibn Nusayr, governor of North Africa under the caliphate of Walid I, to secure within their newly acquired Iberian territories the city of Oreto, its castle, and surrounding region. Renamed Kalaat-Rawaah (Calatrava) by its Muslim conquerors, the strategic importance of the Campo of Calatrava throughout the Spanish Re-conquest centered on its geographic positioning within Iberia. It was located between the rival cities of Muslim Córdoba and Christian Toledo, or on a larger scale, between Al-Andalus (Muslim Spain) and the Kingdom of Castile.[1] The Campo of Calatrava throughout the twelfth century became the center of some of the fiercest clashes between Christian and Muslim forces.[2] The Campo of Calatrava’s strategic importance stimulated the creation of the Order of Calatrava, Spain’s first clerico-military institution.

The Campo de Calatrava remained under Muslim control up until the early twelfth century when it was recapture by king Alfonso VII of Castile and León (r. 1126-1157) in 1147. A political-religious struggle that emerged within the Muslim world between the rulingAlmoraviddynasty (1056-1147) and the Almohads(1130-1269) facilitated Alfonso VII's re-conquest of the Campo de Calatrava.[3] However, the untimely death of Alfonso VII in 1157 left the once unified realm of Castile and León divided between his two heirs, Sancho III (r. 1157-1158) and Ferdinand II (r. 1157-1188). The Almohads at this juncture were completing the final phases of restoring Muslim unity throughout Al-Andalus.[4]

The notice of Alfonso's death, as well as reports of the dynastic discordance which followed between his two heirs, enticed the Almohads to begin preparations for launching a major offensive expedition against the Campo de Calatrava. As rumors circulated of the Almohads intentions, Sancho III sought among his nobles a defender of the Campo of Calatrava. His initial efforts were unsuccessful as no one within the court dare place themselves in the precarious position of holding off a major Muslim offensive expedition. At this point, Raymundo, abbot of the Cistercian Monastery of Santa María de Fitero, answered Sancho III’s appeals.[5]

Accompanied by Fray Diego Velázquez, a monk of noble lineage trained and experienced in the art of war, Raymundo offered to take up the defense of Calatrava. Sancho III, in dire need to resolve his desperate situation as soon as possible, agreed to Raymundo's request and entrusted to him the Campo of Calatrava. The patronage awarded by Sancho III stipulated that the territory of the Campo of Calatrava was to be held perpetually by Raymundo and his successors in exchange for waging war against the "enemies of the cross of Christ."[6] Raymundo, after receiving this benefice, returned to Santa María de Fitero where he proceeded to mobilize all the available monks and goods from his monastery and to transfer them to Calatrava. Although the Almohad attack never materialized, Raymundo did successfully organize a miltia for the defense of Calatrava (composed of both monks from his monastery and laymen from the vicinity). This same force successfully began to battle the Muslims in this region.[7]

While militia of Calatrava appears to have been of Spanish origin, many historians argue that it may have been influenced by the Islamic ribat.[8]

[1]See Appendix I for a map showing the locations of Córdoba, Toledo, and Calatrava.

[2]Roger Collins, Early Medieval Spain (New York: St. Martins Press, 1983), 151-152.

[3]Ira M. Lapidus, A History of Islamic Societies (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988), 374-346.

[4] Joseph F. O'Callaghan, A History of Medieval Spain (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1975). 227-233.

[5] Ibid., 300.

[6] Olivia Remie Constable, ed., Medieval Iberia: Readings from Christian, Muslim, and Jewish Sources (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1997), 158-159.

[7]Joseph F. O’Callaghan, The Spanish Military Order of Calatrava and its Affiliates (London: Variorum, 1975), 183.

[8] Elena Lourie, “The Confraternity of Belchite, the Ribat, and the Temple,” Viator13 (May 1982): 159.