Season 1, Episode 11

Joan tells his brother to ensure that Queen Sibilla does not re-enter Barcelona sens licencia nostra, without our permission.

Episode 11

Today’s Document

Subject: Joan and Martí figuring out how to respond to Queen Sibilla’s flight from Barcelona
Date: January 4, 1387
Day of the Week: Friday
Language: Catalan
Archival Reference Number: ACA CR R1952 f8r
Link to PARES
Place: Bella Dona
Sender: Joan
Recipients: Martí

Sourcing: Joan refers to several different letter writers, indicating a flurry of back-and-forth correspondence; he asserts his authority over what is going to happen to Queen Sibilla; Joan entrusts his brother Martí to handle the situation effectively; it is not outside the realm of possibility that Pere could bounce back, regain consciousness, and Joan and Martí would have to account for their actions in this moment
Contextualization: Joan operates within strict boundaries for the identity of a king, that the strength of the king’s body is closely tied symbolically to the strength of the kingdom ¹

Corroboration: looking at this document in comparison to the one from January 1st, adds to the interpretation that Joan and Martí trust each other very much
Close-Reading: the last two lines of the letter send a mixed message about Joan’s plan to get to Barcelona versus his plan to jaure in Bella Dona; I think it’s possible to infer from this that the symptoms of his illness have started

This document reveals a fair amount of anxiety over the possible trouble that Sibilla could cause if she were to re-enter Barcelona
The document conceals conversations that were very likely taking place about Joan’s endurance or condition in relation to the journey to Barcelona

What is Joan’s health condition at the moment of this letter?
Do Joan and Martí feel the need to prepare for the eventuality of their father bouncing back?
What kind of information is Joan getting from the other correspondents mentioned in the letter?
How is Vincent Ferrer negotiating the identities of priest and political operative?

Kantorowicz, Ernst H. The King’s Two Bodies: A Study in Mediaeval Political Theology. Princeton University Press, 1957.
Silleras Fernández, Núria. “Money Isn’t Everything: Concubinage, Class, and the Rise and Fall of Sibil.La de Fortià, Queen of Aragon (1377-87).” In Women and Wealth in Late Medieval Europe, edited by Theresa Earenfight. Palgrave Macmillan, 2010.

Ernst H. Kantorowicz, The King’s Two Bodies: A Study in Mediaeval Political Theology (Princeton University Press, 1957). ↩