The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1854-09-14
NO. 4O2.

many did not accept this novelty till 1895
and it was unknown in France till 1903, in th
time of Philip the Handsome. With regar
to this last PowER, an historian, Father Oar
iel, says that it only occurred in 1855, whe
King John convoked the States General a
Paris, to deliberate on the means Of defendin
the kingdom, invaded on almost all points b
the English; then France saw itself represent
ed by the three great bodies afterwards style,
the three estates. Our Kings, writes that his
torian, had only convened up to that date tn
nobility and clergy, to discuss the wants of th
kingdom; what they called the third estate
tiers etat) that is to say, Deputies from tn
principal towns Of France, had not vet beer
considered political arm of the nation, nor a
q party authorized to vote in public delbera
tons. In Spain, on the contrary, from The
twelfth century, all the towns and villages
and even all the rural municipalities, enjoyed
the right of voting in CoRTEs by virtue of theil
patents of incorporation. In fact, the deputies
Of the municipal corporations acted concur
rentiy with the Cortes of Leon from 1888 K
| 1889; and also with those of Carbon, convened
in the kingdom of CASTLE IN the same year
1888. They were summoned to give their ap
probation to the clauses of the marriage com
pact between the Princess Berenguela, daueh
i
Of the Emperor Frederick"
The Cortes of Aragon, as well as those OF
CASTLE, had their origin in those ancient as
semblies known as National Councils Il is
evident at that epoch the Church alone was
organized, and could alone exercise an organi.
zing power. The Cortes were composed OF
four different Glasses: /. The nobility of toe
highest rank; 2. The equestrian order, or in.
ferior nobility; 3. The representatives of cities
and boroughs; d. The ecclesiastical order, com
posed of the dignitaries, and representatives o.
| the inferior clergy. No law could pass in thi
assembly without the consent Of these WHIT
had right of suffrage. Without the permits
sion of those four estates, no tax could be i'm
posed, war could not be declared nor peace
ratified, nor money coined or changed in any
form whatever They had the right of watch
ing over all the departments of administration
and reforming all abuses. Those who were
| injured or oppressed, addressed themselves to
| those ESTATES, to render justice, not as Suppli-
ante, but in the tone of free men, claiming the
| protection Of public guarantees, and requiring
| from the guardians of national institutions
| their decisions on subjects submitted to their
cognizance and adjudication.
The Assembly of the Cortes was presided
| over by grand Justioisry or Justzs, whose
immense authority was formidable, even to
kings. This grand Justiciary, seated on a
throne, surrounded by the mobiles of the ma.
ton, the riecs hombreS, the deputies of the cler.
him uncovered and PROSTATE himself at his
feet; and then the powerful magistrate ut
tered with loud voice the formula of the
famous oath which he administered. During
this coronation ceremony, tho Justisa held o
naked sword against the Kings breast, saying
to him, awe, who are of IS much value as
you and can do moro than you, make you our
King, on condition that you will maintain our
privileges and liberties; if not, not" This
oath will remind our readers Of the stern brew
ity of Sparta.
A few specimens Of the laws culled from
the old documents, may be acceptable, at least
to the student. "No King shall make war
with another King or Queen, peace, or truce,
or do any important act, without having taken
counsel with twelve ricos hombres and twelve
elders OF the country."-Fuero de NdrGrTd,
b. /, tit. !. Whenever the King shall have &C.
caSon to make var, he must assemble the Pre-
cursdors, OF Cortes to explain its Causes, that
they may say if the war is just or unjust 50
that in the first case, the people recognising
it to be useful shall furnish the necessary aids !;
and thas, in the second, no var shall be made
addressed by sixty-nine members Of the Cortes
to the King on the 14th of April, 1914. Dr.
Robertson, speaking of the Archduke Philip,
father Of Charles V, observes that, being q
stranger, it was thought expedient to invite
him to Spain, that he might accustom himself
to the laws and manners adding i" that it
was expected that the COrtes, whose authority
was then so great in Spain, that no title to
the crown was reckoned valid unless it re-
ceived their sanction, would acknowledge his
right of succession, together with that of the
InfanSs, his WIFE"
To return to the Justiza. As the title i'm
plies, he was, as it were, tho impersonatiOn Of
justice, and, consequently, the supreme inter
prefer of the law. By virtue of his prerogs-
tive he could inquire into the whole conduct
of the King, and even cite him 10 appear per-
sonally before the Cortes, and depose him IL be
violated his oath. What 10 curious is the fact
that this almost omniposent funotionary was
never chosen out of the highest class Of mobiles,
but out of the second order, the caballerOs, or
equestrian order. During several centuries,
tho Cortes assembled annually. About the be-
ginning of the fourteenth century, tho practice
was to convene it every two years. Once as
sembled, the King could not prorogue the SEES
sion, nor dissolve the Assembly, without the
COLbtuI VI VIC bA0 bCSctOu Woo uACN
at forty days In 1442, the Cortes committed
the grave error of electing the Justiza for life,
and decreeing that he could only be deposed
by majority of their votes and thus no be-
came more powerful than the King
This colossal antagonist of royalty however,
was gradually onfeebled in Aragon, as tho en-
croaohments of monarchical power become sub
tie and successful So far back as 1894, Peter
had obtained the abolition of the old corona
ton oath, to which reference has been made.
Ancient chronicles relate that that Prince,
holding in his hands the original charter which
created that oath, drew his poniard, with
which he pierced his hand, and his blood squirt
ed over the parchment; Peter then exclaimed,
that law which gave the subjects power to
elect their King, ought to be expunged by the
blood of Kingn From this circumstance he
was called PETER OF THE PoNIARD. At the
close of the last century, his statue was still
standing in the palace at Sarragossa, holding
the poniard in one hand and the parchment in
the other. But this proud and daring King did
not obtain from his subjects, as proud and
daring as himself, the abolition of the oath, till
he had conceded to them many valuable priv
ileges.
The Office of Justiza continued TO the reign of
Philip III, but his authority was then little more
than nominal. The extension of royal authori-
ty had stranglsd the Constitution, and the
Cortes were little more than dilapidated
monument of former liberty. After the reign
of Philip II, it fell into still greater decay,
and, under Charles ii, the famous Constitution
of Aragon was no more than an historical ira
dition Nearly the same results happened in
CASTLE but at an earlier period. In 1245, Fer
dinand iii instituted the "Supreme Council
of Castile,n which superseded the Delibera-
tive Estates" This tribunal was called by
the Kings Our Council and was the depos-
itory of the fundamental laws of the kingdom !;
it superintendent the high police, and was the
final court of appeal in lawsuits 1t appoint