Information of the surrender of the Moorish capital spread fast through the dominions of the victorious monarch. Attracted by the richness of the new conquest, the subjects of Jaime deserted their barren country by thousands to fix their residence and improve their fortunes in a land so favored by the bountiful hand of Nature. The void occasioned by the departure of fifty thousand Moslems was speedily filled, so far as the mere enumeration of individuals might supply a deficiency of population. But intelligence, industry, enterprise, and taste were not prominent characteristics of the Aragonese and Catalonian peasantry who replaced the Moorish merchants and artificers of Valencia. These were qualities which could not be provided by promiscuous immigration. The new colonists presented a striking and unfavorable contrast to the remaining inhabitants; the numbers of the latter were eventually reduced by systematic persecution, and the decadence of Valencia dates from the day of its subjection to Christian authority.
The internal affairs of his kingdom urgently demanding his attention, Jaime was forced to leave the scene of his triumph before the political organization of the new province was complete. During his absence, his lieutenants persistently abused their delegated authority for the sake of private emolument. The national obligations incurred by the conclusion of: a truce had no significance in the eyes of these professional marauders. The King had scarcely embarked, before a predatory inroad convinced the Moors of the duplicity of a foe who violated without compunction engagements which had been ratified with every circumstance of deliberation and solemnity. The grievous conditions of partisan warfare were renewed. The existence of a truce was considered an advantage, as increasing opportunities for surprise. Every individual who wore a Moorish dress was classed as an enemy and treated accordingly. Fields were ravaged. Castles were taken and sacked. The peasantry fled from their homes in terror. The country was rapidly assuming the melancholy appearance of those regions of the Peninsula which had been harassed for generations by the alternate occupancy of hostile armies, when the arrival of the King arrested the progress of destruction. Such property as could be found and identified was restored to its owners. The frightened cultivators were invited to resume their peaceful avocations. The noble, who, with his retainers, had unceremoniously occupied the fortress of some Moslem prince, was summarily deposed from his recent and illegally acquired dignity. By every means in his power the King endeavored to make reparation for the wrongs committed without his sanction by an undisciplined and reckless soldiery. This conduct, dictated by sentiments of personal honor and public equity, was, however, not destined to endure. The long period designated by the truce was eminently unfavorable to the designs of both clerical avarice and royal ambition. Episcopal piety was grieved by the infidel possession of cities whose revenues would sustain with ease the pecuniary burdens of an extensive bishopric. The worthy prelate saw with horror and indignation the performance of Moslem rites in sumptuous mosques protected by the unwonted indulgence of a Christian prince, and longed for the day when the wealth of these splendid establishments might be confiscated for the benefit of the Church of Christ and the treasury of a corrupt and sensual priesthood. With military success and expanding power the public opinion of the age tended more and more to the disregard of treaties contracted with an enemy who was daily becoming less capable of resistance. The constant and universal excitation of theological odium contributed mainly to the adoption of this false and pernicious principle of political ethics. Secular ignorance came in time to sincerely believe the odious doctrine defended by ingenious casuists and promulgated by ecclesiastical hypocrisy and hatred from motives of personal interest. For its acceptance and pursuit to an inevitable conclusion, the degradation of Spain from the high position it occupied under the first sovereigns of the Austrian dynasty is to be chiefly attributed. No people can systematically repudiate its contracts, even with an adversary incapable of resenting his injuries, without forfeiting the respect and confidence of the other members of the great community of nations. The diplomatic perfidy inaugurated by religious malice and royal subserviency in the Moorish wars of the Peninsula was subsequently repeated, on a larger scale, in the politics of Europe, and was responsible for most of the incredible atrocities which accompanied the conquest of Mexico, Central America, Peru. Already tacitly acknowledged as a maxim of national policy in a country which subsequently displayed its willingness to sacrifice the most obvious principles of public faith and morality for the exaltation of ecclesiastical power by the foundation of the Jesuit Order, the peremptory abrogation of a treaty with the votaries of a hostile faith was considered, during the epoch under consideration, rather a meritorious than a reprehensible proceeding. Therefore the King of Aragon, after he had rebuked his officious subordinates for their ill-timed energy and exhibited a plausible zeal for redress by restoring their possessions to the injured Moslems, felt no reluctance in committing the same offence against honor and justice as soon as his own plans were matured. His martial emulation had been excited by the exploits of Ferdinand of Castile in the West, and he feared that that monarch might be tempted to include in his ambitious projects the subjugation of the remaining Eastern states of Moorish Spain, which he himself already regarded as his own by the doubtful claims of geographical proximity and anticipated conquest. With the insatiable avidity of the conqueror, he preferred to violate his royal word rather than to be insulted by the presence of a foe who still enjoyed possession of a region equal in extent and advantages to any recently added to the dominions of Aragon, and, what was even more important, who could not hope to offer any serious opposition to his arms. The ever-available pretext of religious expediency, or even duty, urged by able and pious advocates, was no doubt efficacious in removing any conscientious scruples he might have entertained.
The city of Xativa, situated on the frontier of the now diminished Moorish domain and south of the Xucar, the boundary established by the treaty, was the first place to experience the effects of Spanish duplicity and the resistless impetus of Spanish power. Its manufacturing interests had from time immemorial been among the most extensive and profitable in the Peninsula. Under the Romans, its linen products enjoyed a reputation for fineness and durability which spread to the limits of the empire. During the Moslem occupation, it was the centre of the paper industry in Spain. The adoption of cotton as a material for the fabrication of this most useful article of commerce is said to have been due to the practical genius of the artisans of Xativa. At a time when the scribes of Christian Europe were reduced to the necessity of erasing the works of classic authors to obtain parchment for the preservation of pious homilies and monkish legends, the mills of Xativa were producing great quantities of paper, much of which, in texture and finish, will compare not unfavorably with that obtained by the most improved processes of modern manufacture. The demand for this product, indispensable among a people of intellectual tastes like the Hispano-Arabs, was enormous. The factories of the city supplied the imperial scriptoriums whence issued the voluminous works that filled the vast libraries of the khalifs. The literary necessities of a highly educated population, the multiplication of manuscripts, the requirements of innumerable institutions of learning had a tendency to constantly promote this industry, of which Xativa was the principal distributing point in the empire, and of whose profits it enjoyed a practical monopoly. In consequence of this lucrative branch of traffic, the citizens in time amassed prodigious fortunes, and many of them rivalled, in the splendor of their domestic establishments and their equipages, the magnificent displays of royalty. But this was far from being the only source of the opulence of Xativa. The same genial climate, the same wonderfully productive soil belonged to the district surrounding that city which had made the principality of Valencia a model of agricultural perfection. In the thirteenth century it presented to the casual observer the same charming aspect it had exhibited under the khalifate. Aside from occasional temporary occupation by freebooters, it had almost entirely escaped the destructive effects of internal discord and foreign invasion. Its inhabitants retained to a large extent their possessions, impaired somewhat by the casualties incident to national misfortune and by the resultant diminution of the manufacture which had been the principal source of their prosperity. But the abounding harvests, the interminable orchards, the vast plantations of cane and cotton still attested the flourishing and happy condition of an industrious people. The knowledge of these manifold advantages and the overpowering incentive of military glory more than counterbalanced, in the mind of the King of Aragon, the moral obligations he had incurred. Without a formal declaration of war, without any intimation of broken faith or meditated hostility, a numerous Christian army, commanded by Jaime in person, pitched its tents before Xativa. Under ordinary circumstances that city was not incapable of an obstinate defence. Its fortifications were strong and in good repair. Its immense castle, which is still its most conspicuous feature, was second in extent and massiveness only to the famous citadel of Almeria. The population was numerous, the facilities for obtaining subsistence excellent. In imitation of many of the Moslem communities of Spain which royal incompetency and national indifference had abandoned to their fate, the inhabitants of Xativa had erected their city into an independent principality, whose laws and institutions were modelled after those of a republic. This political anomaly had not yet secured even the confidence of its originators. The experimental stage of government had not been passed. The radical deviation from principles always recognized as essential elements of a constitution which had endured from time immemorial and on which the entire Moslem polity was based was not regarded with favor by a large and powerful faction, in which were included many of the most wealthy and influential citizens. This want of harmony was fatal to the liberties of Xativa. It was found impossible to secure the co-operation of parties which mutually distrusted each other, and the sudden appearance of an enemy increased the uncertainty and danger of the situation. It was not improbable that the enterprise of Jaime had been undertaken with a previous knowledge of the political conditions prevailing in the last great city of Oriental Spain which remained in the hands of the Moslems. Apprehensive of the result of a siege which must terminate disastrously, the magistrates of Xativa hastened to propose a compromise. An agreement was concluded by which the place was not to be surrendered to any sovereign but the King of Aragon. A number of castles and a considerable extent of territory which acknowledged the jurisdiction of the city were given up as the price of a temporary respite; other unprotected places distracted by revolution and without hope of relief sought the dangerous protection of a Christian suzerain; and the greater part of the region south of the Xucar was incorporated into the Aragonese monarchy, which received this important addition to its realms with no other exertion than that required by the commission of a deliberate act of perfidy.
Family troubles and the civil dissensions which distracted the kingdom of Jaime deferred for three years any further molestation of the Moslems of Xativa. Profiting by their dearly purchased experience, they utilized every moment of that interval in preparing for the approaching conflict. Foreign engineers were employed to direct the efforts of the native laborers. The castle, already one of the best fortified in Europe, was still further strengthened. The walls of the city were increased in height and protected by additional buttresses and barbicans. An efficient militia was organized, and the citizens, whose enervating climate made them reluctant to undergo the duties of military service, were thoroughly instructed in the use of arms. Magazines sufficient to contain supplies for an extended siege were erected and filled. These preparations, which indicated the determined spirit of the Xativans, were productive of important results when the Aragonese again invested the city. The King, whose force was wholly inadequate to the reduction of the most formidable fortress in the Peninsula, was repulsed; but the capture of Alcira and Denia, after an obstinate resistance, in a measure indemnified him for the disappointment he was compelled to endure before Xativa.
In the mean time Ferdinand had subjected to the crown of Castile the remaining Moorish cities of Andalusia, and his occupation of Murcia seemed to indicate an intention to encroach upon those provinces of the East which the King of Aragon, in the formation of great plans of conquest, already regarded as his own. The latter learned with apprehension of the progress and the increasing reputation of his enterprising and successful contemporary. Like the aspiring young Greek general, the trophies of his rival would not suffer him to sleep. The prospect of additional power and glory to be acquired by a monarch whose exploits had already eclipsed the distinction in arms he himself enjoyed and had won the applause of Christendom, was not flattering to his vanity and ambition. He collected an imposing army, and bound himself by a solemn oath never to slacken his efforts until Xativa should be taken. Once more the siege of the Moorish stronghold was begun. The defence was conducted with signal ability and courage; but the garrison, well aware that no hope of assistance could be entertained, was induced to propose terms of accommodation before the city was reduced to extremity. Such was the impregnable character of the place that remarkably favorable conditions were obtained by the besieged. The nature of these conditions may well excite surprise. The Christians seem to have gained nothing in reality but a nominal occupation of those quarters of the town which, in case of renewed hostilities, were not susceptible of effective defence. The great citadel, which dominated not only Xativa but also the surrounding country, remained in possession of the Moors. At the expiration of two years it was to be evacuated, and two other castles were to be given in exchange for its peaceable transfer to the Aragonese. The Moslems were guaranteed protection of person and property as well as permitted the practice of their religion and the operation of their laws. Such equitable treatment of an infidel foe had been long unknown to the savage code of the princes who directed the Reconquest. Never since the Christian power attained to prominence had concessions equally generous been granted to the vanquished Saracen. It would appear, however, that this leniency was really only a pretext to gain by treachery what was unattainable by force. For a time the treaty was respected. The murmurs of the soldiery, defrauded of their expected prey, were silenced by ample donatives from the royal treasury. The inhabitants, deluded by a show of impartiality and moderation, pursued in peace their ordinary employments. But this condition was only temporary. The grasping ambition of Jaime was not to be satisfied with the mere shadow of possession and authority. Considerations of moral obligation were unceremoniously swept aside by the royal casuist the moment they conflicted with the imperious demands of political necessity. Excuses were invented and opportunities found to accuse the Moors of infraction of the treaty. The enmity of the conquerors was, in accordance with the baser and more mercenary instincts of humanity, first directed against the rich. Opulent merchants were condemned, without accusation or trial, to exile and beggary. Their property, the chief cause of their persecution, was confiscated by the crown or divided among the clergy and the nobles, who received with complacent gratification the rewards of national perfidy and dishonor. Possession of the citadel was secured by stratagem; the castles for which it was to have been exchanged were retained by the Christians, and numbers of Moorish maidens became, in spite of the faith of conventions and in defiance of the canons of the Church, unwilling ministers of the pleasures of the orthodox but voluptuous conqueror. The melancholy end of the governor of Xativa, Yahya-Ibn-Ahmed, will arouse the compassion of every reader who sympathizes with the misfortunes which ill-directed resolution and bravery are liable to encounter in every age. He was a personage of the highest consideration among his countrymen. His talents and his integrity had elevated him to the first position in the state. His wealth enabled him to sustain with dignity the civil and military honors conferred upon him by an appreciative and admiring people. In the defence of the city he had more than justified the exalted opinion universally entertained of his capacity. The treaty he negotiated with an enemy of vastly superior resources and elated by recent conquests was the most advantageous to the weaker party of any recorded in the annals of the Peninsula. He scrupulously observed every condition of that agreement which his adversaries repudiated at their convenience without shame and without excuse. With the other wealthy citizens of Xativa he was driven from his home; his estates were appropriated by the rapacious foreigner; he was forced to subsist by the charity of strangers in a land where he had formerly displayed the ensigns and exercised the prerogatives of royalty; and, while his fate remains in doubt, his death was popularly believed to have been hastened by poison or starvation.
The subjection of Xativa by the King of Aragon caused a rupture between the two greatest soldiers of Western Europe which, had it developed into open hostility, would have seriously imperilled the cause of Christianity in the Peninsula. It was not without reason that Jaime had apprehended the dangerous effects of Castilian ambition. The tendency of conquest must hereafter inevitably be to the eastward. Andalusia, forever lost to the Moslem, was now an integral part of the dominions of Ferdinand. It was well known that the aspirations of that conqueror had not been satisfied by the acquisition of the most valuable portion of the Saracen empire. His intention to dispute the doubtful claim of Aragon to the coveted region lying east of Granada had already been disclosed by his occupation of Murcia. It was not merely by arms that the astute King of Castile endeavored to extend, at the expense of his rival, his already formidable power. The political interests of the two monarchs had recently been nominally united by the marriage of Alfonso, the heir to the Castilian throne, and Yolande, the daughter of Jaime. Instigated by his father, that prince endeavored to induce the Moslem governor to surrender to him the city of Xativa, in contravention of the treaty negotiated with the King of Aragon. This scheme was frustrated by the vigilance of Jaime, and the expulsion of the principal citizens, some of whom were suspected of complicity in the designs of Ferdinand, was determined upon in consequence of the discovery.
Foiled in this attempt, Ferdinand then demanded the place as the dowry of his daughter-in-law. But the King of Aragon, whose pride was not inferior to that of Ferdinand, was unwilling to relinquish to the importunity of a rival the substantial fruits of his courage and energy, and it required all the address and the blandishments of his queen to reconcile the conflicting pretensions of her husband and her kinsman. The ancient boundary of Murcia and Valencia was eventually re-established as the frontier of the two Christian monarchies. The designs of Jaime were hereafter prosecuted to a successful termination without hinderance from the intriguing policy of Castile, and in a few years all the other fortresses held by the Moslems in the East of the Peninsula were incorporated, either by conquest or negotiation, into the realms of the kingdom of Aragon. The remaining years of Jaime were passed amidst the distracting turmoil of family disputes and feudal encroachments. An ill-advised expedition to the Holy Land, in which the crusading fleet was dispersed by a tempest and which ended ignominiously, for a time engaged his attention. On the seventh of July, 1276, he died at Valencia, the scene of his greatest triumph.
This famous king was one of the most extraordinary personages of mediæval history. The romance which colored his entire career antedated his very existence. The son of Pedro II. and Marie, Countess of Montpellier, whose marriage had never before been consummated and was immediately afterwards practically annulled, he owed his origin to an artifice, not infrequently met with in the merry tales of the Middle Ages, but in this instance exhibiting a singular mixture of the humorous and the pathetic. Even his name he owed to chance. His mother lighted twelve candles, to represent the twelve apostles, and that of St. James having burned longer than the others, her son was christened for that worthy as his patron saint. While yet a little child, he was intrusted to Simon de Montfort, crusader, soldier of fortune, and persecutor of the Albigenses, to be educated. That freebooter, the most eminent in his infamous calling of any of the military outlaws of his time and who subsequently defeated and killed the father of his charge on the field of Muret, caused the boy to be betrothed to his own daughter before he had attained the age of four years. It afterwards required all the influence of the Pope, moved by the entreaties of the Spanish clergy, to rescue the royal infant from the hands of Simon and place him upon the throne of Aragon.
Held in the arms of the Bishop of Tarragona, he repeated mechanically and without comprehension the customary oath to maintain and execute the laws of the realm. From the very beginning his abilities, child as he was, were exercised with tact and discretion in the treatment of his uncles, who attempted to govern in his name, and of the nobles, who obstinately disputed his authority. It was not long before his genius asserted itself and commanded the respect and obedience of his unruly vassals. Personal advantages, which have so much influence with the majority of mankind, bore no small share in effecting this result. Nature had lavished upon him her most precious gifts. His stature greatly exceeded that of other men. His features were handsome; his form exhibited the proportions and the muscles of a Roman gladiator. His manners were singularly winning; his demeanor conspicuous for its graces among a people renowned for their courtesy. While fearless in the presence of danger, such was his compassion that he shrank from the signature of a death-warrant, and more than once a criminal escaped the consequences of his misdeeds through the gentleness and humanity of his king.
No prince in Spanish history occupies a more exalted position for manly qualities, dauntless valor, and lavish generosity. His reign of sixty-three years is the longest, if not the most eventful, in the annals of the Peninsula. It was practically one uninterrupted campaign. This great king won thirty pitched battles over the Moslems. He was the exemplar of the prevalent crusading passion of the time. His popularity with the clergy surpassed that of any of his royal contemporaries. He founded and endowed at his own expense two thousand churches in the territory conquered from the Moors. He knew the Scriptures by heart, and during every grand religious festival he preached from the pulpit to vast congregations with all the unction and probably with more than the eloquence of an ecclesiastical orator. His memoirs, written under the title of a chronicle, disclose a profound knowledge of human nature, acute observation, and a remarkable degree of literary culture, considering the advantages he enjoyed and the circumstances under which his life was passed. Powerful even in death, the provision of his will excluding females from the succession has always been sacredly observed as an inviolable part of the constitution of the kingdom of Aragon.