A letter from Ermengol and Constance

Translated letter:

In the name of the Lord.  I, Ermengol, count, together with my spouse Balaschita whom they call Constance, are the sellers to you Arnau and to your wife Arsenda, buyers; by this document of our sale we sell you that castrum of Artesa, which came to me, said Ermengol, from my parents and from seizure and whatever rights and to me, said Constancia by my tenth or gift from my husband and whatever rights.  And this said castrum is in the county of Urgell, and that castrum abuts in the east at the wall (cinglo) at Petros and the boundary of castrum Graeló where the crosses were made for the boundary between said castrum of Graeló and Artesa and from there it goes along that wall up to Texonera and from there through the torrent of Espulcellas up to Sanillo and through Sanillo up to the font of Organellas and the circle of the perjurers, and from there it goes to Maruniol which is from the boundary of the Pons castrum and goes through Malsech and thence goes from Cio to that ridge of Almenara; and in the south it abuts that castrum of the said Artesa to Monte Roto and thence to Boccenio and thence it reaches that Puteda Maior and thence through that ridge of Laspatella and thence it reaches that roadway which goes to Balaguer and to that torrent of St. Felix and goes through that torrent of St. Felix to the river Sigarim; and in the west it abuts said castrum of Artesa on the said river Sigarim and goes along the river Sigarim, up to that torrent which they say is enclosed (incluvas), and in the north the above-named castrum abuts that tower of Dalila and thence through that bank up to the hill where the land they call Tessio is and thence the boundary rises to that wall where the crosses are that divide the boundaries between Graeló and Artesa.  As much as the four abutments enclose and these boundaries contain, we sell you the aforenamed castrum of Artesa with its towers and walls and with all that pertain to those boundaries, that is, lands, vineyards, stones, moveables and immoveables, woods, uncultivated lands, meadows, pastures, waters and waterways, viaducts and their reducts, fruitbearing and non-fruitbearing orchards, with their exits or reentries, whatever it can be called, completely, and by our right we hand it over into your domain and power as your own allod.  And we received from you the agreed price of one thousand five hundred solidos in kind, and that is manifest.  Which, if we sellers or any man who might oppose this document of sale to break it, he could noit prevail, but he or we must pay you double with all improvement and henceforth this charter would remain firm for all time.

This charter of sale was made on the 4th ides of October in the 8th year of the reign of king Henry.  Sign+ of Ermengol, count by the grace of God.  Sign of Belaschita, countess, whom they call Constance.  We who ordered this document of sale to be made and asked witnesses to sign it.  Sign+ of Raymond William of Lobera.  Sign+ of Bernard William.  Sign+ of Baldovin.  Sign+ of William Sanz.  Bonefilius, priest, wrote this document of sale as asked on the day+ and year above.

Original letter:

In nomine Domini. Ego Ermengaudus, chomes, simul cum coniugue mea Balaschita que vocant Constancia, venditores sumus tibi Arnaldo et uxori tue Arsendis, emptores, per hanc scripturam vindicionis nostre vindimus vobis ipsum kastrum de Artesa, qui nobis advenit ad me jamdicto Ermengaudo de genitores meos sive de aprisione vel per quamcumque voces et ad me prefata Constancia per meum decimum sive de donacione de viro meo vel per quacumque voces. Et est ipso kastro predicto in comitatum Orgellitensis, et afrontat ipsum kastrum a parte orientis ad ipso cinglo qui est ad ipsa Petrosa sive ad ipso termino de kastro Grazilo ubi sunt ipsas cruces qui fuerunt factas per termino infra predicto kastro Grazilo et Artesa et deinde sic vadit per ipso cinglo usque ad ipsa Texonera et deinde vadit per ipsum torrentem de Espulcellas usque de ipso Sanillo et vadit per ipso Sanillgo usque ad ipsam fontem de ipsas Organe­llas sive a cercho periuratorum, deinde sic vadit usque ad ipso maruniol qui est de termine de kastro Ponts inde sic vadit per Malsech et deinde sic vadit a Cio et sic vadit ad ipsa serra de Almenara et de meridie sic afrontat ipso kastro de Artesa supranominato ad Monte Roto et deinde sic vadit a Boccenio et deinde sic pergit ad ipsa Puteda Maior et deinde sic vadit per ipsa serra de Laspatella et deinde sic pergit ad ipsa strata qui pergit ad Balaguer sive ad ipso torrent de Sanctum Felicem et vadit per ipso torrent de Sanctum Felicem usque in flumine Sigarim, et de occiduo afrontat predicto kastro de Artesa in prefato flumine Sigarim et vadit per flumine Sigarim usque ad ipso torrent que dicunt ad ipsas incluvas, et de parte vero circii afrontat ipso kastro suprascripto ad ipsam turrem de Dalila et deinde sic vadit per ipsa choma usque ad ipsam collem ubi est ipsa terra que dicunt de Tessio et deinde sic ascendit ipso termine ad ipso cinglo ubi sunt ipsas cruces qui dividunt terminos infra Grazilo et Artesa. Quantum infra istas quatuor afrontaciones includunt et isti ter­mini continent, sic vindimus vobis prenominato kastro de Artesa cum suas turres et suos muros et cum omnia que ad eius terminos pertinent, id sunt, terris, vineis, lapides, mobiles sive immobiles, silvis, garricis, pratis, paschuis, aquis aquarum, vieductibus vel reductibus eorum, pomiferis vel inpomiferis, cum exiis vel regressiis earum, quid quid dicit vel nominari potest, totum ab intecrum, et de nostro iure in vestro eum tradimus dominio et potesati [sic] ad vestrum proprium alaude. Et recepimus de vos precio placibile mille quingentos solidos in res valentem, et est manifestum. Quod, si nos vinditores aut ullus homo qui contra ista scriptura vindicionis venerit ad inrumpendum non hoc valcat vindicare, set conponat aut conponamus vobis in duplo cum omnem suam inmelioracionem et in antea ista karfirma permaneat modo vel omnique tempore. 

Facta karta vindicionis IIII idus octuber anno VIII regni Aenrici re­gis. Sig+num Ermengaudus, gracia Dei chomes. Sig+num Belaschita, comitissa, que vocant Constancia. Nos qui hanc scripturam vindicionis fieri iussimus et testes firmarique rogavimus. Sig+num Raimundi Villelm de Lobera. Sig+num Bernard Villelmo de Miduino. Sig+num Richard Altemir. Sig+num Pons Mir. Sig+num Girard Arnald. Sig+num Rodlan. Sig+num Bernard Villelmo. Sig+num Baldovin. Sig+num Villelmus Sanz. Bonefilius, sacer, qui ista scriptura vindicionis rogatus scripsit et sub+die et anno quo prefixo. 

Historical context:

The count and countess of Urgell sell a castrum as an allod to the viscount and viscountess of Ager for 1500 solidos.  The seizures mentioned are presumably from Saracens, the source of much of Arnau’s territory.  Castrum is an administrative unit including a fortified castle.  

Printed source:

Pedro Sanahuja, Historia de la Villa de Ager (Barcelona:  Editorial Seráfica, 1961), 318-19, #6.

Date: