Las siete partidas, the Seven-Part Code, is one of the most remarkable
law codes of medieval times. The code, written in the Castilian vernacular,
was compiled about 1265, under the supervision of Alfonso X, the Wise (1252-1284),
of Castile. Among the wide range of topics covered in this law code
are many items that deal with military affairs.
Food is something without which men cannot live; it is necessary
that they have it continually, and if they cannot do without it elsewhere,
much less are they able to do so in castles where they are, as it were,
shut up and guarded, so that they cannot go out anywhere without the order
of the governor; and, moreover, it might happen that even if he commands
them to go forth, they are powerless to do so; through being besieged or
constantly attacked by the enemy. - For this reason it is necessary for
him always to keep the castle furnished with provisions and especially
with water, which can be less dispensed with than other things, and if
there is a supply of it, that he may know how to preserve it, and use it
in moderation so that it may not fail. Search must be made, and everything
else that is possible be done, in order to have water; for as a castle
cannot be defended without men, so they cannot exist or protect it, if
they do not have the means of sustenance; therefore the first thing that
should be provided is water, for not only is it needed to drink, but for
many other purposes which are indispensable, and since, from the lack of
it rather than the want of anything else, they may more quickly perish,
great care should be taken that it does not fail; for, although water is
very common and cheap, among men nothing is more dear when it cannot be
obtained, for which reason it should be well guarded. Moreover, bread
should be provided, and of such a kind as is understood will keep best
in the climate of the country. The same precaution should be taken with
regard to meat and fish, nor should salt, oil, vegetables, or other things
which are very useful for the provisioning of the castle, be forgotten.
Care should also be taken to provide mills or hand-mills, charcoal, wood,
and all those other articles called utensils, without which provisions
cannot easily be made use of, even although they are supplied; and men's
clothing and shoes should also be included, because they are things which
cannot be dispensed with, since they assist them to live and to make a
more creditable appearance. It is better for the castle to be provided
with what we have specified before it becomes necessary to use haste, wherefore
everything which is furnished the governor for the use of the castle, should
be deposited in it, not only what we have mentioned, but also all
other articles which are necessary. For, if he should act otherwise
and the castle be lost through the want of any of these things, he will
incur the penalty of treason, as one who had the means to defend the castle
of his lord, and did not avail himself of them, for which reason it was
lost.
In order that castles may be guarded and protected whenever it is
necessary, they should be well supplied with arms. For, although they
maybe furnished with men and with provisions, if they are not provided
with arms, all else will be as nothing, for by means of them men must protect
themselves. In addition to all the weapons which the lord leaves in his
arsenal, the governor should always have his own, in order to show that
he desires to protect his loyalty, and he should also keep there everything
necessary to make and repair said arms, so that they may be used when required;
for a weapon which a man cannot make use of, is rather a hindrance to him,
than an advantage. And, above all, care should be taken, that the people
in the castle do not steal or reduce them in number in anyway, so that
they may be available when needed; and those who do so should be severely
punished. For if: he who steals what belongs to another deserves exemplary
punishment for the reason that he causes his property to be diminished,
how much more does he deserve it who steals that by means; of which he
causes the loyalty of another to be diminished, and him to incur the penalty
of treason.
Wherefore all the arms in the castle, those belonging to the lord as
well as those in possession of the governor, should, be well guarded, not
only to prevent them from being stolen, or disposed of as we have mentioned,
but also to avoid their being injured or destroyed, excepting such as may
be lost in the protection and defense of the castle. This should
not, however, be done by way of contempt, and by neglecting them, or by
making use of them in such a way as will not be for their benefit or protection,
or for that of those of the place. Wherefore, a governor who does
not keep the castle provided with arms in this way, or makes an ill use
of those which he has there by which conduct the castle may be lost, will,
on this account, incur the penalty of treason; and although it may not
be lost, he should pay double the value of all the arms which are destroyed
through his fault.
The ancient people of Spain well knew how to preserve their loyalty
by paying careful attention to all those matters by which castles may be
better defended, so that their lords might not lose them; and after careful
investigation of all by which this might be more thoroughly accomplished,
they ordained that those who occupied the castles should do two things;
first, they should defend them with valor and intrepidity; second, they
should do this with wisdom and prudence; and by their acting with valor
and intrepidity was meant that they should defend the castle with great
boldness, wounding and killing the enemy as vigorously as they could, so
as not to permit him to approach it. In doing this, they should not spare
father or son, or any lord whom they formerly acknowledged, or any other
man in the world who was on the other side, and wished to make them lose
the castle; for, it would be very unjust and contrary to law to protect
a man who is a traitor. They should, moreover, have the resolution to endure
all fears and hardships which may come upon them, not only from watching,
but also from the thirst, hunger, and cold, to which they are exposed;
for since they must not surrender the castle except to their lord, it is
necessary that they derive courage from themselves, in order to be able
to do this, and not by their own fault commit treason. Wherefore they should
not fear death, or any other danger which can be borne, so much as an evil
reputation, which is something that will always attach to them and their
descendants, if they should not do their duty in defending the castle.
For which reason the ancients deemed it proper that, when a governor saw
military engines in course of preparation, or mines opened, or any other
way of reducing castles begun, he should explain these things to those
who are present, so that they may not be dismayed. For although it
is a natural thing, for men to fear death, yet, since they are aware that
they must endure it, they should rather wish to die while acting in a loyal
and lawful manner, and give persons reason to praise them after death much
more than when they were living; leave a glorious name as well as a good
reputation to their, descendants, and have a way opened by which the lords
with whom they lived would be obliged to confer benefits and honors upon
them, and always confide in them; than to exhibit downright cowardice,
on which account they will be considered wicked, and be liable to undergo
a traitor's death, or, if they escape this, will be despised and dishonored
and render their descendants, infamous forever.
For this reason the ancients always placed eminent men in charge of
castles, who could clearly show and know how to explain these matters to
those who were there, so that they might have courage to behave properly,
and be able to avoid incurring the penalty of treason. This should be done
in the morning, when all are assembled, before they are scattered, and
while fasting, neither having eaten nor drunk, and they should exhort them
not to be gamblers, or robbers or quarrelsome persons, or interfere with
one another, that they may not be embroiled with or oppose, the governor;
and when it is not certainly known that anyone is meditating treason, or
any other wicked act by which injury may result to the castle; this should,
nevertheless, be established in such a way that it can be proved upon the
culprit, or evidence given by which it must be believed. Governors, more
than other men, are obliged to do this.
Men must have great wisdom and prudence in order to defend castles,
for, although valor and intrepidity are very noble qualities in themselves,
yet, in most instances, they should be assisted by intelligence and prudence
in order that the means which men desire to employ to enable them to conquer,
may not cause them to be vanquished. And, although this is very necessary
in all warlike operations it is especially requisite for those whose duty
it is to defend castles from the enemy, as they are more frequently taken
by skill and artifice than by force. The besieged can manifest such boldness
in attacking the besiegers that if they do not act with sufficient wisdom
and intelligence for the castle to remain in safety, it will be lost. On
this account it was decreed, in Spain that, after a castle had been invested,
no one should open the gate in order to make a sally, without the order
of the governor; for if anyone did so, and the castle were lost on this
account, he would be considered a traitor, and should be put to death in
the most creel manner in which it could be inflicted, and should forfeit
half his possessions. Even if the castle were not lost, he should
lose his life for the reason that he disobeyed the order of the governor,
at a dangerous time; but they deemed it proper that, so far as the governor
was concerned, he should not himself attempt such a proceeding, for if
he did, even though he were killed or taken, he would not be exculpated
from treason, if at that time the castle were lost; because since it was
given to him to defend, he should not leave it without the command of the
king, or of the other lord of whom he held it. The order must be positive,
so that he can prove it by credible witnesses. Moreover, those charged
with the defence of castles should be endowed with prudence, in order to
provide arms, stones, and other articles necessary for their protection,
so that they may not be obliged to tear down walls, towers, or anything
else to defend themselves, for, if they do so, and the castle is lost,
they should not escape the penalty aforesaid. They should also take
good care of the arms, so that they may not be destroyed, except when this
is necessary, as above stated.
We have mentioned in the laws preceding this one, the three ways
in which castles should be received, protected, and defended, as was formerly
that if he is not experienced in such matters, he should be notified to
have men with him who are so, in order to oppose the military engines of
the enemy, or make use of those which he has caused to be constructed inside
the fortifications, if it should become necessary. Moreover, the governor,
as well as the men whom he has with him in the castle, should be prudent
and wise enough to be able to conceal the losses which they suffer, or
the injury which they sustain from the besiegers, so that they may strengthen
themselves, and the enemy may not have occasion to press upon them, or
learn their ill-fortune. Those who act in this manner preserve the loyalty
which they are bound to keep, and, moreover, perform deeds far which they
should receive honor and distinction from their lords.
Intelligence and prudence are two things which greatly assist men
in preserving their loyalty, for intelligence gives them wisdom to show
it, and prudence enables them to guard it. Wherefore the ancient
Spaniards, who possessed these two qualities, paid especial attention to
that by means of which their lord was protected from loss, themselves from
evil fortune, and the kingdom from injury. And by careful consideration
of this subject, it did not appear to them that providing castles with
men, arms, and the other supplies which we mentioned in the preceding laws,
was sufficient to defend them perfectly, but they also held that assistance
should be furnished in time of war, when they were known to be besieged
or attacked. This assistance should be given in two ways; first, by labor;
second, through affording succor by means of men, and other things which
castles have need of. The first, which relates to labor, should be performed
in this way, namely; where any structure has been overthrown, or has recently
fallen down in a castle, the men who are there should render assistance,
as soon as possible, by making repairs, in order that the castle may not
be lost for that reason. And, although this work ought to be performed
in time of peace, nevertheless, if the lord did not do it through lack
of prudence, or on account of great obstacles by which he was impeded,
those who hold the castles should immediately give their aid in repairing
them, whenever they think it necessary; and they cannot avoid affording
assistance in this matter, in every way possible, on account of their descent,
or of any quality which they possess, for loyalty is more precious than
lineage, or any other attribute which can exist. Hence where anyone refuses
to act, and the castle is lost on this account, he will incur the penalty
of treason, which he cannot escape in any way whatever.
From Las Siete Partidas , translated by Samual P. Scott, introduction
by Charles Lobingier, (New York, 1931).. The University of Pennsylvania
Press has recently reissued this translation in a five volume set, with
a new introduction by Robert I. Burns, S.J.