Els Menorets

The visit of Saint Francis to Spain in the early thirteenth century set the stage for the remarkable expansion of his order in the realms of Aragon. The popularity of the Order of Friars Minor and its immediate acceptance by contemporary society, especially by the crown and the merchants, enabled the Franciscans to establish themselves in all the major urban centres. This study is an attempt to reconstruct, primarily from unpublished archival sources, the early years of the Franciscans in the realms of Aragon, showing their rapid progress as trusted ambassadors, messengers, spiritual advisers and cultural leaders. As an integral part of the mosaic of late medieval urban social life, the menorets interacted with Christians, Jews and Muslims, inspiring artistic endeavour and the creation of charitable organizations, and thereby imparting much of the charisma of their founder to an increasingly complex world. The primary evidence gathered in this volume should be of interest to many students and scholars of Spanish medieval history. The appendices contain transcriptions of over fifty representative documents, alphabetical and chronological lists of all friars for whom there exists some documentary evidence, the names of those who held positions as provincial ministers, guardians, custodians and lectors, as well as other information. The book includes a glossary, an exhaustive list of archival sources, and an index of names and subjects.