The War in Leon and Castile (Ca. 1110-1130). Internal Crisis and Imaginary of Violence

Abstract

This article deals with an aspect of the deep social crisis occurred in Leon and Castile during the time of Queen Urraca (regnante 1109-1126), the heir of Alfonso VI (regnante 1066/1072-1109). It was a period of war, which even continued after the death of the queen, during the first years of the reign of her son and heir, Alfonso VII (regnante, 1126-1157). The paper does not aim to describe the course of a war in the 12th century. It asks, however, questions about the dynamics of the war. To do so, we look at its material, social and symbolic items throughout a series of pictures from various sources.