“The Grand Morisco Conspiracy”

Abstract

This chapter analyzes the most significant Morisco rebellion plot in the kingdoms of Valencia and Aragon after 1570. It highlights Morisco agency in their dealings with the Ottomans. This chapter also traces the circulation of the vizierial letter among some Morisco communities of Aragon and Valencia and analyzes its content alongside the testimonies of a Morisco spy for the Inquisition named Luis Moreno. Between 1576 and 1583 Moreno warned the inquisitors about a plan to take up arms that had been devised by members of several prominent Morisco families of Aragon, in conjunction with other wealthy Morisco families of Valencia. Moreno's accounts to the inquisitors reveal the existence of rifts and fractures within Morisco communities.