Vicisitudes del castillo santiaguista de Negra, en el reino de Murcia, bajo la Corona de Aragón (1296-1304)

Abstract

This paper is devoted to study the waveing evolution of the castle and the town of Negra, in the Order's commandery of Ricote, within the kingdom of Murcie and under the sovereignty of Aragon (1296-1304).
This work has its origin in an unedited parchment of Jaime II de Aragon (19.V. 1303), in which he handed the castle and the town of Negra over to Juan López, a knight of the Order of Saint-James from Uclés, ex knight commander of Socovos and later knight-commander of Ricote.
The conflict between Castile and Aragon about the possession of the kingdom of Murcia made Jaime II secure for himself the vassalage of the Murcian Order's commandery in front of Castilian-Grenadine attacks. Without delay, he took possession of the Order's castles of Negra and Ojos (Oxóx), and gave them over in property to the procurator of the kingdom of Murcia, Bernat de Sarria (1301), with the opposition of his general master, don Juan Osores.
Jaime II contravened the Murcian Order's interests stil more, by bestowing Negra's castle on the aforementioned knight, Juan López, in full accordance with the vassalage state to his royal Lord of Aragon. The vicissitudes of this castle would continue on for a space of more than a year and a half, until its final devolution to the Order of Saint-James, in Novembre 1304.