The Sun.
London, England, 1809-09-22 00:00:00

viz SP4NISH CORTES.

In our extraets from the Spanish Papers, intro-
duced into our columns yesterday, we had the satis-
faaion of submitting to the attention of our Readers
a itoyal Order respelling the Convocation of the
Cortes, which is represented as being " the moat
important obje& that can or ought to employ the

Supreme Jtmta." Vie cannot avoid expressing our
great satista&ion on the discovery that the Excrutive
Council of Spain is at last convinced of the necessity

of this measure, which we have so repeatedly urged
as indispensable to the salvation of the country.—A
short explanation of the constitution and duties o/
the Spanish Cortes will shew the reasons which have,
induced us to recommend so strenuously the recog-
nition of its authority.
It is not generally known, but it is a fa& of great:
consequence, and highly honourable to the intelli-
gence and spirit of the Spanish nation, that. the re-
presentatives of the Commons formed a consthuent
part in the Supreme Assemblies of that kingdom a
century . before they were admitted to that rank in
the other European nations. Zurita mentions r:

convention of the Cortex in the year 113,?, nt
which the procuradores de las eirulalcs y villas were

present.
The Cortes was composed of the Nobility, the
Clergy, and the Representatives of the Cities. They

were the depositories of die Legislative Govern.-

ment, the Executive being confiffed to the King,
under the itispeCtion, however, in some provinces at
least, of the ..1-11,Sti=, or Supreme Judge, who, like
the Ephori with the Lacedemoninns, was the prO-
teetor of the People and -the controuler of the
Prince.
From Gil Gonzales de Avila, who gives the Writ
of summons to the town of Abula, in ;390, wq,
learn, that Bishops, Dukes, Marquisses, the Mast-erg
of the three Military Orders, as Condes and Ricos
Hombres, were required w attend the Cortes. The
sending Members on that occasion were 4R
in number, and their Representatives t q 5. These
places commissioned more or fewer members to dism
charge their important funtaions in that assembly,
according to their rank and dignity, which-appears
to. have been nearly in. proportion to their papal.
lation.

There was one regulation which, in midern timis
at least, would be extremely embarrassing :--no law
could pass without the assent of every individuil of
the Cortes. Its powers were prodigiou,ly extrosive-I

without its permission no tax could be impoi.ed, no
money could be coined, and no war could either be

commenced or terminated. It governed all tlip
ferior Courts, redressed al(grievances, ow) inspected
every department of public administration., l'he
King could neither prorogue nor dissolve it ; and its
session continued during 40 days. For several cen.,
turies prior to the 14th it met annually, but subse-
quently to that period biennially. Those who ap-
plied for relief to the Cortes did not approach that
Assetnbly as lowly supplicants and humble peti-
tioners;laut they demanded its assistance as the ttirth-
right of freemen. •
It is well known, that until the time of Ferdinand
and Isabella, at the close of the 15th century, the
k'ngdoms of Leon, Castile, and Arragon, weres_nnt,
twounited.former,
rFlrrrasto the ow
the silenceports and d
the historians
ie
of tti
at ttz:
rigs,C ortevls,,ed uarrien g u
ntdhee r
the fourteenthnecessity
and fifteenth
ss t
y of
resortingfteen thcteontthn;
annals of Arragon to supply Ow ch.ficiency, but it iS
probable that we shall commit no material erre./ in
supposing that these contemporaneous establish':
ments were similar in the extent of, their power 3:
and privileges.
The Cortes of Arragon not only opposed tho ate
tempts of their Kings to increase their revenues and
extend their prerogatives, but they claimed and eX;
ercised for some time the extraordinary power 0.
appointing the ,officers of Lis household, 2's well ag
the members of his Council. The Corte's looked
with a jealous eye upon the military authority, Eq'a-
in order to controul it, rfised troops under its own
immediate orders, and nominated the persons who
were to command them. In the year 1:503,
an act
of the Cortes is on record, conceding to the .Kifit
permissiOn to appoint Officers for a body of troops:
destined to be employed in Italy.
We are told that the Cortes of Arragon were vi
gilantly attentive to all the ceremonies sanctioned by
antiquity, in their proceedings, and the 14,110 w. mg
remarkable fact is stated in support of-the allegot, n
" According to the established, laws and customs of
Arragon, no foreigner had liberty to enter the. Hall
in which the Cortes assembled. Ferdinand, in the
year 1481, a;:pointed his Queen, Isabella, Regent
of the kingdom, while he was absent during the
course of the campaign.
The law required that .11
the Cortes;
butuldt a
akes
the
b laa was
a feiger,
t hof fidelity
L,etore
she could be admitted, the Cortes thought it neces
sarY to pass an Act, authorising the Serjeant-Porter
.
to open the door of the Hall to allow her to elltel-
olrietyn in presence
resence