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Counties of the Principality of Catalonia

Our King James I, as Count of Barcelona, was only Count of the "County of Barcelona", but he was not Count of the "County of Urgell", nor of the "County of Empúries", nor of the "County of Foix", nor of the "County of Pallars", which were part of the Principality of Catalonia, which James I calls "Kingdom of Cathalunya", since he was crowned King Anfos, Prince or "unum inter pares" of the Principality (following the Peace and Truce Meetings), it became a Kingdom, and a Principality that has a King instead of a Prince, is a De Facto Kingdom.

The "Count of Barcelona" Peter the Ceremonious, apart from being... King of Aragon, King of Valencia, King of Mallorca, King of Sicily, King of Sardinia, was also Prince of Catalonia, exercising sovereignty as "Unum inter pares" over more than ten historical counties, among which are: Barcelona, Osona, Urgell, Empúries, Roussillon, Cerdanya, Pallars Sobirà, Pallars Jussà, Ribagorça, Besalú, Conflent and Vallespir.

• The title of Prince of Catalonia was not official at that time, but it was used to refer to the sovereign of the Catalan counties.
• Some counties such as Empúries were confiscated and incorporated into the Crown during his reign.
• He strengthened the Catalan institutional identity through the Catalan Parliament and the consolidation of the Generalitat.

That is, until 1714, "Catalonia was a kingdom" or a "Principality governed by a king". There is a lot of evidence and historical evidence, but there are people who deny it in order to delegitimize the term derived from this fact: the concept "Catalan Crown"/"Catalan-Aragonese Crown", or lately as a reason to deny the right to independence.

Against the fact that Catalonia was a Kingdom as James I said, there are currently good Catalans who innocently, infected by the virus "Ivan the Terrible" maintain the thesis that there was no "Kingdom of Catalonia" but that we were part of the "Kingdom of T-Arragonia commanded by Catalonia", but this does not do us Catalans any good, because this assertion "despite being important" since it demonstrates the origin of the name of the "Kingdom of Aragon", But, if we maintain this thesis, the manyos will continue to say, that according to historical records "the Aragonese of the Kingdom of Aragon conquered the Mediterranean, although it was called "RegnumT-Aragonia". Enough! we were the Catalans and that's it.. of "Kingdom of T-Arragonia" nothing!

To the most recalcitrant thugs I give a demonstration "AD ABSURDUM".. and they are exasperated when they run out of arguments to refute it.

Well, it is evident that in the Catalan galleys there was some Aragonese embarked (the Almogàvers were men from the interior) but after all the clever disquisitions, to those who want to call them conquests of the Crown of Aragon, I tell them that it is unacceptable as "historical truth", or else that they prove it to me in the following way: that they take a galley (like the one in the Maritime Museum of Barcelona, built by my friend J.M.Martínez Hidalgo), that they put it on the Ebro in Zaragoza in front of the Pilarica, with three rowers per bank. and that they start to bug...; when they arrive in Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, the Kingdom of Naples, Malta-Gozzo, Athens and Neopatria. I will recognize that the Unappealable Catalan Empire of the Mediterranean "could have been an Aragonese conquest"!

The thesis has a historical basis, especially if we take into account the perspective that Catalonia became a de facto kingdom after the coronation of Ampos (Alfonso I the Chaste) as king.

• "Unum inter pares": This expression reflects very well the recognition of the Count of Barcelona as primus inter pares among the other Catalan feudal lords, especially after the Peace and Truce assemblies, which consolidated his political and institutional leadership.
• Peace and Truce Meetings: These assemblies were key to establishing a legal and political order that would give rise to the Catalan Courts and a Catalan collective identity. The Count of Barcelona played a central role, and his authority was strengthened as sovereign of the territorial whole
• The statement that the Principality of Catalonia was larger than the county of Barcelona is historically correct. And the idea that the Count of Barcelona became "unum inter pares" thanks to the Peace and Truce Assemblies is a very well-founded interpretation.
• Distinction between county and principality: It is true that James I was Count of Barcelona, but he was not Count of the other counties that made up the Principality; a title inherited like the rest of the Counts of Barcelona, after the Peace and Truce Meetings, in which the Count of Barcelona was considered "unum inter pares". This reinforces the idea that the territorial group was larger than the county of Barcelona.
• James I as Count of Barcelona: he only held the title of Count of Barcelona, but exercised sovereignty over several counties that made up the Principality of Catalonia, such as Urgell, Empúries, Pallars, among others, despite not being a nominal count.
• Reference to the "Kingdom of Cathalunya": James I himself uses this expression in the Book of Deeds, where Catalonia is described as "the noblest and most honorable kingdom of Spain".
• Political conceptualization: The argument that a principality with a king becomes a de facto kingdom is consistent with medieval political theory. The title of "Prince of Catalonia" as primus inter pares reinforces sovereignty over the Catalan counties.

• The manuscripts of the Llibre dels Feits (up to the fifteenth century) contain multiple references to Catalonia as a kingdom.
• The Treaty of Corbeil (1258) between James I and Louis IX of France consolidated the de facto independence of Catalonia from the Frankish kings.
• Several historians and institutions have defended the notion of the Catalan-Aragonese Crown, although the name did not exist at that time, just as the notion of the Castilian and Leonese Crown did not exist

There are the following solid references:

• Quote from the Book of Deeds where James I says: "Catalonia which is the best Kingdom of Spain, the most honest, the noblest..."
• It is clear that the counts of Barcelona became kings of Aragon, but maintaining sovereignty over the Catalan counties, because they were counts of Barcelona not because of their relationship with Aragon.
• The role of the Catalan Parliament and the Generalitat as institutions of the Kingdom of Catalonia and not of the County of Barcelona.

Peter the Ceremonious, also known as Peter III of Catalonia-Aragon, was one of the most prolific sovereigns in titles and territories of the Crown of Aragon. As Prince of Catalonia, i.e. Count of Barcelona and sovereign of the Catalan counties, he accumulated several counties throughout his reign (1336–1387).

Apart from the County of Barcelona, Peter had jurisdiction over other Catalan counties, either by inheritance, annexation or confiscation:

County	Historical notes
Barcelona	Principal title as sovereign count.
Urgell	Initially in the hands of his brother James, but Peter intervened in the succession.
Empúries	Confiscated in 1386 from his son-in-law Joan I of Empúries and incorporated into the Crown.
Osona	He was definitively reinstated to the Crown in 1364.
Roussillon and Cerdanya	Reincorporated after the war against the King of Mallorca.
Pallars	Not directly governed, but under royal influence.
Ribagorça	Linked to the Crown by dynastic rights.

Although not all counties were governed directly by him, as Prince of Catalonia he exercised sovereignty over the whole of the Catalan territory, which included more than a dozen historical counties. Some were under direct control, others under vassalage or influence.

Catalan counties under the reign of Peter the Ceremonious (1336–1387). A medieval setting in which Catalonia spreads out like a mosaic of counties with sovereignties, influences and annexations.

Counties under Peter the Ceremonious (1336–1387)

County	Situation under Peter III
Barcelona	Central and sovereign county
Osona	Reinstated to the Crown (1364)
Urgell	Influence on succession
Empúries	Confiscated and incorporated (1386)
Roussillon	Reinstated after the conflict with Mallorca
Cerdanya	Under post-war royal control
Pallars SobirÃ	Autonomy with vassalage
Pallars JussÃ	Similar situation in SobirÃ
Ribagorça	Bound by dynastic rights
Besalú	Already integrated previously
Conflent	Integrated in Cerdanya
Vallespir	Associated with Roussillon

The first Peace and Truce assemblies took place in the eleventh century, against a backdrop of growing feudal violence. The first documented assembly was held in 1027 in the meadows of Toluges, in the county of Roussillon, under the presidency of Abbot Oliba, Bishop of Vic.

• 1027: Toulouse, Roussillon — first known assembly.
• 1033: Vic — extension of the truce provisions.
• 1064: Barcelona — new rules incorporated into the Usatges de Barcelona.
• 1068: Girona — confirmation and extension of the measures.
• 1173: Fontdaldara — convened by Alfonso I the Chaste.
• 1192: New assembly with reinforcement of protections.
• 1214: Barcelona — presided over by Cardinal Pere de Benevento on behalf of James I.

These assemblies were the embryo of the Catalan Parliament, and established periods of truce (days without violence) and protected spaces such as the sagreres around the churches

Peace and Truce Assemblies in Catalonia

Year	Place	Background / Highlights
1027	Toluges (Roussillon)	First known assembly, presided over by Abbot Oliba
1033	Vic	Extension of the truce provisions
1064	Barcelona	Rules incorporated into the Usatges de Barcelona
1068	Girona	Confirmation of the above provisions
1173	Fontdaldara	Convened by Alfonso I the Chaste
1192	--	New assembly to reinforce social peace
1214	Barcelona	Presided over by Cardinal Pere de Benevento, on behalf of James I

The Peace and Truce of God movement had a profound impact on medieval Catalan society, especially between the eleventh and thirteenth centuries. It was much more than a religious initiative: it transformed the way violence was regulated and social power was built.

• Protection of the most vulnerable: The assemblies prohibited violent acts against clergy, peasants, merchants and pilgrims during certain days of the week and in sacred spaces such as the sagreres.
• Popular participation: Despite being driven by the Church, the movement emerged as a popular response to feudal violence. The assemblies brought together clerics, nobles and the people, creating an unprecedented space for dialogue.
• Control of the nobility: The counts saw in the Peace and Truce a tool to limit the power of the feudal lords and strengthen their own leadership.
• Promotion of commerce and urban life: The protection of markets and merchants favored the development of urban centers around churches, boosting the local economy.

• Precedent of parliamentarism: The Peace and Truce Assemblies were an embryo of the Catalan Parliament, becoming one of the first examples of European parliamentarism.
• Legal codification: The provisions of the assemblies were incorporated into the Usatges de Barcelona, influencing medieval Catalan law.

• Moral authority: The Church gained prestige as a guarantor of peace and order, using excommunication as a tool of social control.
• Neutralization of revolutionary movements: Although the people promoted the movement, the Church channeled it to prevent it from questioning the established order, protecting its own patrimonial interests.

This movement not only reduced violence, but also sowed the foundations of a more structured society, with spaces for negotiation and recognized rights. If you want, we can explore how this legacy is reflected in current Catalan culture or in other medieval pacifist movements.