The Empire of the Cities: Emperor Charles V, the Comunero Revolt, and the Transformation of the Spanish System

377 Pages·2008·2.54 MB·English

by  Aurelio Espinosa

The Empire of the Cities
Studies in Medieval and
Reformation Traditions
Edited by
Andrew Colin Gow
Edmonton, Alberta
In cooperation with
Thomas A. Brady, Jr., Berkeley, California
Sylvia Brown, Edmonton, Alberta
Berndt Hamm, Erlangen
Johannes Heil, Heidelberg
Susan C. Karant-Nunn, Tucson, Arizona
Martin Kaufhold, Augsburg
Jürgen Miethke, Heidelberg
M.E.H. Nicolette Mout, Leiden
Founding Editor
Heiko A. Oberman †
VOLUME 137
The Empire of the Cities
Emperor Charles V, the Comunero Revolt,
and the Transformation of the Spanish System
By
Aurelio Espinosa
LEIDEN • BOSTON
2009
Cover illustration: Francesco Mazzola (Parmigianino) and Studio, The Emperor Charles V
Receiving the World, 1529–1530 (oil on canvas). Stiebel, Ltd., New York.
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Espinosa, Aurelio.
The empire of the cities : emperor Charles V, the comunero revolt, and
the transformation of the Spanish system / by Aurelio Espinosa.
p. cm. — (Studies in Medieval and Reformation traditions ; 137)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-90-04-17136-7 (hardback : alk. paper) 1. Castile (Spain)—
History—Uprising, 1520–1521 2. Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, 1500–1558.
3. Spain—History—Charles I, 1516–1556. I. Title.
DP174.E87 2008
946‘.042—dc22
2008029646
ISSN 1573-4188
ISBN 978 90 04 17136 7
Copyright 2009 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Hotei Publishing,
IDC Publishers, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers and VSP.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission
from the publisher.
Koninklijke Brill NV has made all reasonable efforts to trace all rights holders to
any copyrighted material used in this work. In cases where these efforts have not
been successful the publisher welcomes communications from copyright holders, so
that the appropriate acknowledgements can be made in future editions, and to settle
other permission matters.
Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by
Koninklijke Brill NV provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to
The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910,
Danvers, MA 01923, USA.
Fees are subject to change.
printed in the netherlands
CONTENTS
Foreword ..................................................................................... ix
List of Figures, Tables and Maps .............................................. xi
Introduction ................................................................................ 1
The Black Legend Revisited .................................................. 1
The Post-Franco Paradigm ..................................................... 9
The Argument and its Place in Current Scholarship ........... 14
Chapter One. The Struggle for Power ................................... 35
The Late Medieval Compromise: The Dynastic and
Municipal Partnership ....................................................... 35
The House of Burgundy and Politics of Patronage .............. 42
The Arrival of Charles in Spain ............................................ 46
The Comunero Revolt ............................................................... 65
Comunero Justice ....................................................................... 71
Chapter Two. Parliamentary Authority, Merced, and the
Reform of Local Administration ........................................... 83
The Aristocracy ...................................................................... 87
The Fiscal System of the Parliament ..................................... 102
The Cortes of 1523 and Absolute Power .............................. 108
Local Power and Corregidores ................................................... 114
The Audits of Corregimientos .................................................... 121
Chapter Three. Executive Reform, Hispanicization,
and Early Modern State Formation ....................................... 135
The Spanish Administration .................................................. 138
The Council of State ............................................................. 146
The Council of Aragon ......................................................... 152
The Council of Finance ......................................................... 154
The Council of Castile ........................................................... 162
The Household ....................................................................... 176
Downstairs and Upstairs Household ................................. 180
Medical Staff ...................................................................... 182
Hunting Organization ....................................................... 185
vi contents
Defense Department .......................................................... 185
The Chapel ........................................................................ 189
The Formation of a Spanish Monarchy ................................ 192
Marriage Negotiations ....................................................... 193
The Household Upstairs .................................................... 199
The Downstairs and the Stables ....................................... 199
The Regency (1529–1532) under Empress Isabel and
President Tavera ............................................................. 202
Chapter Four. Judicial Reform and the Nature of Early
Modern Government as a System of Courts ........................ 207
The Appellate System ............................................................ 208
The Petitions of the Cortes .................................................... 213
President Tavera’s Reform Program and the Chancery
of Granada ........................................................................ 217
The 1522 Audit . ................................................................. 218
Tavera’s Reforms and President Sánchez de Mercado .... 220
Opportunities and Incentives ............................................ 225
The Audit of 1530–1531 ................................................... 227
A Balance of Power ........................................................... 230
Tavera’s Sponsorship: The 1530s ...................................... 232
Conclusion: Sponsorship and Responsibility .................... 237
The Success of Reform: President Tavera’s Authority and
the Chancery of Valladolid ............................................... 237
Mendoza’s Audit of 1525 .................................................. 238
Mendoza’s Audit: Legal and Management Changes ........ 244
The Audit of 1530 ............................................................. 246
The Audit of 1533 ............................................................. 249
The Advantage of Reputation and the Attraction of the
Legal Vocation ................................................................... 252
Chapter Five. New Spain and the Establishment of Local
Networks and of a Reformed Judiciary ................................. 257
The Establishment of Castilian Republics ............................ 260
Local Elections ................................................................... 261
Privileges of Municipal Participation ................................ 263
The Mexican Appellate System ............................................. 265
The Viceroyalty of Mexico ............................................... 266
Institutional Implementation and Procedures of Judicial
Reform ............................................................................... 269
contents vi
Audits of the Appellate Courts ......................................... 270
From Encomienda to Corregimiento ......................................... 271
Conclusion .......................................................................... 273
Conclusion .................................................................................. 275
Appendices: Figures, Tables and Maps ...................................... 279
Glossary of Castilian Terms ....................................................... 303
Works Cited ................................................................................ 313
Index ........................................................................................... 343
FOREWORD
I have been interested in the history of Castilian representative insti-
tutions for many years. Inspired by Helen Nader’s work on Castilian
farming towns, I became aware of the vitality and continuity of ayun-
tamientos throughout the Spanish empire. I pursued the study of the
bureaucracy and parliament at a critical period in Spanish history, the
comunero revolt (1520–1521). The premise of this book is that the Cas-
tilian municipalities of the revolution transformed the Spanish system
into a meritocracy, advancing their democratic platform to establish
and maintain an accountable administration of justice.
Acknowledgements
I would not have been able to write this book without the support of
my wife, Alison, who continues to make many sacrifi ces. I dedicate
this book to her.
I am grateful to the anonymous readers and editors at Brill Academic
Publishers, especially Rob Desjardins and Rhonda Kronyk who offered
many corrections and facilitated the revision process. Andrew Gow,
Editor-in-Chief, made conceptual suggestions that helped me to shape
the book’s theoretical framework. I am reminded of Charles’ acknowl-
edgement of gratitude and dependence: “en las espaldas del presidente
y de los del nuestro consejo.” I too am indebted to many scholars in
our discipline and I want to express my deepest gratitude to Alan E.
Bernstein, Heiko A. Oberman, and Donald Weinstein.
In using the archives and libraries of institutions I have benefi tted
from the advice of archivists and from the dedication of knowledge-
able staff. Most of my research was done in Simancas, where Isabel
Aguirre Landa and los servidores were very gracious and resource-
ful. Juan José Larios de la Rosa, the archivist of the Archivo Ducal
Medinaceli, opened the doors of the Archivo Hosptial Tavera. Larios’
historical habilidad allowed me to navigate the uncharted depository.
Hilario Casado Alonso, César Olivera Serrano and Jack B. Owens
have given me wise consejo and encouragement, demonstrating their
buenas letras. Jana Hutchins of the Arizona State University Institute