Cofradía de Santiago; Century XIV

Anonymous, «Libro de la Cofradía de Caballeros de Santiago de la Fuente», held by the Brotherhood of Santiago, Burgos Cathedral, manuscript, illustrated, 94 leaves, 21 missing, folio size, 29 x 21 centimeters, Burgos, 1338-1636.

Introduction

The illuminated manuscript chronicles the history and membership of the Brotherhood of Knights of Santiago in Burgos. Founded in 1338 during the reign of King Alfonso XI, as indicated by the preamble to the Rule on folio 27 verso, the Brotherhood was composed of members of the social and political elite of Burgos. The manuscript spans several centuries, primarily from the 14^th to the 17^th century.

The first 13 folios include a record of four deeds dating from 1396 to 1415, all related to the financial dealings of the Brotherhood.

Folio 14 marks the beginning of the original Rule of the Brotherhood, adorned with an illuminated initial «E» and a vignette of Christ flanked by saints and angels.

Portraits and illumination

The manuscript includes a list of the members, known as «cofrades» in Castilian, alongside their portraits and coats of arms. The book contains 295 portraits, added over time, with the last one dated to 1636.

The knights depicted in the manuscript held significant roles in the city, such as mayors, scribes, and other high offices. Many of the knights' families, like the Camargos from France and the Sanchestels from England, are noted for their diverse origins.

The portraits begin on page 21, initially with four to a page until folio 44, after which the number decreases to three, two, and eventually single figures per page.

Binding and preservation

The manuscript is bound in red leather with gold fillets and clasps, a 19^th-century binding aimed at preserving the parchment pages. Originally, it had 94 leaves, but 21 are now missing, as noted in a contemporary annotation at the front.

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Bibliographical reference of century XIV.

Classification: Manuscript, Armorial roll, Castilian language and In color.

Author: unknown.

Here are the articles quoting this reference:

• Alfonso Sánchez de Perella, collage
• Uhagón y Guardamino, F. R.; 1904

Internal resources: 86 images in JPEG format.

Académie internationale d'héraldique, AIH, «Vocabulaire-Atlas Héraldique en six Langues: Francais - English - Deutsch - Español - Italiano - Nederlandsch», by Gaston Stalins, Le Baron Stalins, with the collaboration of René Le Juge De Segrais, Ottfried Neubecker, Martin de Riquer y Morera, Giacomo Carlo Bascapé, and Mario Gorino-Causa, 119 pages, 530 black and white heraldic pictures, Société du Grand Armorial de France, 179 Boulevard Haussmann, París, 1952.

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This book begins with the following sentence: «Heraldique - science et art - qui prit naissance en France vers la moitié du XIIe siècle, s'est propagée très rapidement dans les principaux pays européens».

The number of terms and words of the heraldry by languages is as follows:

• French language: 523 heraldic terms.
• Dutch language: 521 heraldic terms.
• German language: 519 heraldic terms.
• Spanish language: 511 heraldic terms.
• Italian language: 506 heraldic terms.
• English language: 502 heraldic terms.

The names of the authors and collaborators have been checked with [Académie internationale d'héraldique; 1999].

Its 530 heraldic illustrations correspond, according to my calculations to 509 drawings, numbered from 1 to 530. Some images contain several numbers, for example, the image that shows a coat of arms with its mantling, number 528, and its supporters, number 529, a griffin and a lion rampant, it is the same illustation, but with 2 numbers.

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Bibliographical reference of century XXI.

Classification: Dictionary, French language, English language, German language, Castilian language, Italian language and Dutch language.

The names of the authors are:

• Stalins, Gaston.
• Le Juge De Segrais, René.
• Neubecker, Ottfried.
• Riquer y Morera, Martin de.
• Bascapé, Giacomo Carlo.
• Gorino-Causa, Mario.

Bibliographic reference mentioned in the following articles:

• Ixai Lanzagorta Ochoa, plain tincture
• Sanz Lacorte, J.; 2007
• Sir Thomas Grenville II
• Val'Quirico, wreath an owl

External link:

• Heraldic glosary 1952.

Internal resources: Aih1952.00.Vocabulaire.Original.pdf, Aih1952.01.Vocabulaire.Sefidn.pdf and Paper edition with a Swedish bookplate.

Juan José Martinena Ruiz and Faustino Menéndez Pidal de Navascués, «Book of Armory of the Kingdom of Navarra», Published by the Institución Príncipe de Viana, Directorate-General for Culture, Government of Navarra, 484 pages, ISBN-13 978-84-235-2166-1, ISBN-10 84-235-2166-4, Pamplona, 2001.

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Reproduction and transcription of the manuscript armorial [Bosque, J. del; 1540], that is, the copy of the «Book of Armory of the Kingdom of Navarra», preserved in the General Archive of Navarra.

The coat of arms accompanying this bibliographic reference is that of Rada de Navarra following Juan del Bosque.

Both authors had already written and published, separately, about the armorial [Bosque, J. del; 1540], an example of the first is [Martinena Ruiz, J. J.; 1982] and an example of the second is [Menéndez Pidal de Navascués, F.; 1974].

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Bibliographical reference of century XXI.

Classification: De bibliotheca.

Authors: Martinena Ruiz, Juan José and Menéndez Pidal de Navascués, Faustino.

The following article cites this bibliographic reference:

• Bosque, J. del; 1540

External links:

• Record in Sancho el Sabio.
• National Library of Spain.

Jaime Febrer, «Trovas de Mossen Jaime Febrer: que tratan de los conquistadores de Valencia», edited by Joaquín María Bover, new edition made with reference to the first and an old manuscript, with notes, illustrated with portrait plates and heraldic plates, 312 pages, printed by Pedro José Gelabert, Palma, 1848.

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Historical context and content

Jaime Febrer lived during the reigns of Jaime I El Conquistador, 1207-1276, and his son Pedro III El Grande of Aragon and I of Valencia, 1239-1285. Febrer is believed to have authored a manuscript detailing 278 knights who participated in the conquest of Valencia alongside Jaime I, forming the foundation of many noble lineages in the city and kingdom of Valencia.

The manuscript, dedicated to Pedro III and I of Valencia, is composed in short verses known as «trovas» ~ «trobas», written in the «Lemosín» language, an old form of Valencian. Each trova includes a description of the knights' coats of arms.

A re-edition of this manuscript was published by Joaquín María Bover in 1848 in Palma de Mallorca.

Illustrative example of trova 39, Alpont

The «trova 39» is dedicated to Pedro Alpont, whose ancestor helped the General Otger Kathaló and adopted the surname Alpont following an event involving a bridge. This poem «trova 39» serves as an illustrative example, describing the blazon of Pedro Alpont. The blazon described in this trova is simple: «Argent, a Bridge».

The story included in this trova tells how Otger Gotlant, also known as Oger Catalón or Catazlon, a general under King Pepin of France, was near the Rhône observing the Moors. He crossed the river by one of its bridges to better track the enemy’s movements. Suddenly, he was attacked by a squadron of Saracens, forcing him to retreat hastily. A soldier on the other side of the river saw this and began shouting in the Lemosín language, calling for reinforcements: «Al pont, caballers, al pont» ~ «To the bridge, knights, to the bridge», as Otger and his men were in danger. According to this «trova 39» by Jaime Febrer, from that moment on, this soldier was known by the surname Alpont. One of his descendants, named Pedro Alpont, participated in the conquest of Mallorca and later moved to Valencia, following King Jaime I El Conquistador, leaving behind the Alpont surname for his successors.

Another Alpont, referred to as Alpont II, appears in trova number 40, where his blazon is characterized by a trident.

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Bibliographical reference of century XIII.

Classification: Valencian language and In black and white.

Author: Febrer, Jaime.

External resource:

• Biblioteca Valenciana, Trovas de Mossen Jaime Febrer.

Internal resources: FebrerJXIII.Trobas.BoverJM1848.Parcial.155.Paginas.pdf Partial PDF with the first 155 pages.

John Burke, «A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Commoners of Great Britain and Ireland: Enjoying Territorial Possessions or High Official Rank; but Uninvested with Heritable Honours», 4 volumes, volume 1 with 726 printed pages, volume 2 with 740 printed pages, volume 3 with 738 printed pages, volume 4 with 805 printed pages, published for Henry Colburn by R. Bentley, Bell and Bradfute, in Edinburgh, and J. Gumming in Dublin, London, 1836.

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Overview

This extensive work spans four volumes, 726 + 740 + 738 + 805 = 2309 pages, and provides a detailed account of the genealogy and heraldry of commoners in Great Britain and Ireland who held territorial possessions or high official ranks, yet were not vested with heritable honors.

Coats of arms and blazons

Each volume contains black and white illustrations of coats of arms, typically including the crest and wreath, with some also featuring supporters. The illustrations do not utilize hatching or tricking for tinctures, the tinctures must be seen in the text of the written blazons. For each lineage, the coat of arms is illustrated at the beginning, followed by a genealogical account, and the blazon is provided at the end. For example, for the Talbot lineage, in the volume 3, page 359-360, the blazon is written as follows: «Arms - Gu. a lion rampant, within a bordure engr. or. Crest - On a chapeau gu. turned up ermine, a lion statant or, the tail extended. Motto - Prest d'accomplir.» where «gu» is Gules and «or» is Or.

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Bibliographical reference of century XIX.

Classification: Armorial roll, English language and In black and white.

The author is Burke, John.

The following article cites this bibliographic reference:

• Talbot, lineage of England

External resources:

• Archive.org volume 1.
• Archive.org volume 2.
• Archive.org volume 3.
• Archive.org volume 4.

Internal resources: BurkeJ1836.Commoners.Volume.01.pdf 758 pages in PDF format, BurkeJ1836.Commoners.Volume.02.pdf 772 pages in PDF format, BurkeJ1836.Commoners.Volume.03.pdf 762 pages in PDF format and BurkeJ1836.Commoners.Volume.04.pdf 838 pages in PDF format.

Juan Mogrovejo de la Cerda, «Árbol de los Veras compuesto por Alonso López de Haro, Criado de Su Majestad y Ministro de su Real Consejo de las Órdenes y Cronista de los Reinos de Castilla y León», bound in original parchment, Milan, 1636.

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Contents

The book contains a total of 66 main genealogical trees, each with an average of 28 nodes/persons, totaling over 1700 nodes. Additionally, it includes 41 lines of descent with approximately 1150 individuals. The content is composed of:

• Title page with the coat of arms of the Veras.
• Errata and additions.
• Dedication.
• Warnings and introduction by Juan Mogrovejo de la Cerda, folios 1 to 4.
• Tree of the Veras, folios 6 to 66, with 61 genealogical trees.
• Eulogies of five Christian princes known for their virtue and valor, with trees of their descendants up to the Count of La Roca, folios 67 to 72.
• Linear trees of descent from Don Fernando Carlos Antonio de Vera, Doña María Antonia de Vera y Tovar, and Doña Catalina de Vera, folios 73 to 114, with 41 trees.
• Limitations of the work on folio 115.
• Indexes with handwritten corrections, folios 116 to 122.
• Additions to the edition, including a genealogical tree of Don Luis Francisco de la Cerda Sandobal y Rojas, Marqués de Alcalá.
• Additional handwritten documents attached but not bound.

In the previous image, The canting arms of Juan Antonio de Vera y Zúñiga, Count of La Roca, in this book about his genealogy, are canting because «vair~veros~Vera».

The motto in the beak of his sable eagle is «Veritas Vincit», although some authors claim that not all his trees honor this motto [Vera-Ortiz, J.A.; 2009].

The colored version of the coat of arms in this image was painted by me. Blazon: Vair ancient, a bordure gules charged with eight saltires couped Or.

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Bibliographical reference of century XVII.

Classification: De bibliotheca, In black and white and Castilian language.

The author is Mogrovejo de la Cerda, Juan.

Bibliographic reference mentioned in the following articles:

• Vera, lineage of Aragon
• Vera-Ortiz, J.A.; 2009

External resource:

• National Librari of Spain, Vera's tree.

Internal resources: Physical book..

Anonymous, «The Cnut Gospels», call number Royal MS 1 D IX, illuminated manuscript, Canterbury, circa 1020.

Contents and history

This manuscript, containing the Four Gospels, dates from the early 11th century. It is believed to have belonged to Christ Church, Canterbury, and may have been created there. It is named after Cnut, King of England, who reigned from 1016 to 1035, due to an added text in Old English that names Cnut and his brother Harold as brothers of the monastery.

Despite its royal associations, the manuscript only entered the Old Royal Library in the early 17^th century, when Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales, acquired the library of John, 1^st Baron Lumley.

Decoration and inscription details

The manuscript features full-page decorations at the beginning of each Gospel, with initials illuminated in gold, and lush stylized leaves in the borders, characteristic of late Anglo-Saxon decoration. For example, the border of the Gospel of Mark includes stylized leaves and embedded roundels of saints, and the incipit page for the Gospel of John is particularly notable for its decorated frame and gold initials.

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Bibliographical reference of century XI.

Classification: Manuscript, English language and In color.

The author is unknown.

Bibliographical reference mentioned in the following article:

• o-XI, heraldic document

Sigue por: Mayer, L. A.; 1933.