The Mercenary Mediterranean_ Sovereignty, Religion, and Violence in the Medieval Crown of Aragon - Hussein Fancy

a mercenary economy 79

the ambassador to “express his desire to be friends with him [the sultan]

just as his father, King Pere, and grandfather, Jaume, were.”^18 The focus

of these negotiations, however, was the treatment of Christian soldiers

in Tlemcen. Alfons requested that all these Christian troops, regardless

of origin, be placed under Aragonese law ( fuero d’Aragon) and under

the command of an alcaidus or alcayt, nominated by the Aragonese king.

(The Arabic al- qā’id comes into Latin as alcaidus or alcaldus and into

Romance as alcayt or other similar variants. Although the Arabic simply

means leader, in the context of Christian militias these terms specifically

meant captain.)^19 Alfons also stipulated the amount of these soldiers’

salaries, the manner in which they would be housed, that they should be

properly provisioned with horses, camels, and mules, and finally, that they

should have a priest accompanying them.^20 In short, Alfons was aiming to

gain control over all aspects of the soldiers’ physical, legal, and liturgical

lives. He sought to mark these soldiers out not only as Aragonese subjects

in North Africa but also as Christians.^21 In return for the service of these

Christian mercenaries, Alfons requested that Abū Sa‘īd supply the Crown

with Muslim troops whenever their help was required (cada que mester

oviere su aiuda).^22 Thus, again, the jenets were linked to soldiers of the

other faith, moving in the other direction.

At the same time as the embassies to Fez and Tlemcen, Alfons order

another mission under the leadership of Conrad Lancia to travel to the

Ḥafṣid court.^23 Lancia’s instructions were short and his purpose narrow.

He was meant to renew and enlarge the parts of the treaty signed by King

Pere at Coll de Panissars, particularly those parts related to the treatment

of Christian soldiers in the service of the sultan. As with Garcia’s mis-

sion to Tlemcen, Alfons requested that all Christian soldiers, regardless

of origin, should be placed under the jurisdiction of an Aragonese alcayt.^24

Provisions were also made for salaries and housing.^25 But Lancia’s in-

structions make no mention of recruiting jenets. These final negotiations

merely aimed at maintaining the status quo, and the fact that no treaty

followed them meant little to the Aragonese king. Lancia’s mission to Tu-

nis masked the most fascinating part of Alfons’ Mediterranean strategy.

The Last Almohad

In order to understand what followed, what grander plan lay behind these

three missions, one must step back fifteen years to the collapse of the