Morisque

The Morisques (of Spanish Morisco ) were Moslem of Spain converted of force to the Catholicisme following the edicts of conversion of 1502. They constituted an important minority in Raising Spanish, the valley of the Èbre and the Andalusia.

Origins

The Reconquest , which end in 1492 with the catch of Grenade, and the annexation of the Castille leave on the Spanish ground several hundreds of thousands of Moslems. According to the agreements of rendering, those are authorized to preserve their religion: " Es asentado E acordado that ningún moro O will mora No haga fuerza has that torne cristiano nor cristiana". It is established and granted that one will not force any Moor or mauress to become Christian or Christian.

Certain Moslems, conscious of the difficulties of the cohabitation, prefer to exile themselves; others will remain and take the name of mudéjar. The agreements of rendering will be more or less respected as much as the influence of the archbishop of Grenade lasts: Hernando de Talavera. But a hardening of the church takes place under the influence of the cardinal Francisco Jiménez de Cisneros, confessor of Isabelle II and archbishop of Tolède (1495). The tax pressures and religious lead the mudéjares Grenade to the revolt in 1499. This one extends quickly to the mountains around. After the resumption of control by the crown of Castille, Mudéjares de Grenade are constrained either with the exile, or with forced conversion. This measurement is then extended to all the kingdom of Castille in 1502, then with all the Moslems of Spain by decree of Charles Quint in 1525. The former Moslems, new Christian, remaining on the ground of Spain are then called moriscos or morisques by the Spaniards.

Social status

The distribution of Morisques inside Spain is rather irregular: of a negligible presence in Catalonia, they represent approximately the eighth of the population of the Aragon and the quarter of the population of the kingdom of Valence and they reach more than 55% in the kingdom of Grenade.

One finds a nobility morisque which keeps titles, loads and richnesses. Eager to be integrated, they take names of Spanish origin. Nearly one the third of the new converts are landowners profiting from a certain ease and lending money to the old Spanish nobility. Among the farmers, Morisques specialize rather in the breeding of silk (around Grenade) and the culture of early products where they as well as possible exploit the grounds thanks to the irrigation. In the municipalities where persists a traditional organization (aljamas), the morisque culture is preserved thanks to the solidarity of all. Mainly crypto-islamist, Morisques are subjected outside to the Christian traditions but preserve between them them culture and tradition of origin. By decree passed in 1526 between the state and the morisques municipalities, those obtain against the payment of a tax of 40 000 ducats distance of the the Holy Office.

Hardening

The cohabitation between populations not speaking the same language and not sharing the same culture becomes difficult. The conflicts are exacerbated. A temptation of return to oneself is born.

In 1535, under the pressure of Charles Quint, the pope Paul III founds a condition known as of " cleanliness of sang" (Limpieza of sangre): any person eager to reach certain important loads in Spain was to prove that it did not have a Jewish ancestor or Moslem since at least four generations. This condition will become a law which will be repealed only in 1865.

With the arrival on the throne of Philippe II, the situation of Morisques becomes more precarious. Around Philippe II, two schools clash: some think that the assimilation of Morisques takes time but will end up succeeding. Others lean rather for a total eviction of this population. A ground problem is felt. A programme of expulsion and reconquest of the ground is set up since 1559. In 1567, measures are taken to make lose in Morisques their cultural identity: prohibition of the veil, prohibition of the Arab language and destruction of the Arab texts. In spite of the protests of unquestionable Morisques which ensure the king of their fidelity, these laws are applied with firmness and are felt by the morisque population like Brimade S.

The revolt

In the Christmas Eve 1568, a rising is organized in the district of Albaicin with Grenade. The first chief of the rebellion is a 22 year old young man, Hernando de Valor, going down from Omeyyades, which takes the name of Aben Humeya. The revolt gains all the valley of Lécrin then extends to all the mountains from Alpujarras. The revolt is violent. Exactions on the Christian population are made (massacres and tortures). The answer of the Spanish authorities is of a width comparable (rapes, flights, massacres, plunderings) in particular with the seat of Durcal by the troops of the marquis of los Velez.

Power struggles internal lead to the assassination of Aben Humeya by one of its rivals and cousin Aben Abou (1570). This one itself will be betrayed and assassinated by Gonzalo el Seniz in 1571.
The revolt is crushed in 1571 by Don Juan of Austria, wire naturalness of king Charles Quint, and victorious of the Bataille of Lépante vis-a-vis the Turks and to Barbaresque of Euj Ali. Morisques of the kingdom of Grenade are then dispersed in all Spain.

Expulsion

However, even distributed in the remainder of Spain, even impoverished and dispossessed of their ground, Morisques remain a spine in the foot of the Spanish Church. Philippe II eager to be combined the countries of North Africa against Barberousse had shown a relative leniency. The arrival on the throne of Philippe III precipitates the end of the morisque population. Under the influence of the marquis de Denia and of duke of Lerme, Philippe III signs on September 22nd, 1609 the decree of expulsion of all Morisques of Spain. This decree prepared by troop movements applies with speed and intransigeance.
Only the morisques women married to old Christians are authorized to remain. The deportation is done under terrible conditions. Men, women, children go to foot interior of the grounds to the coasts, constrained to pay them-even to them food and their water. They are then embarked in galères which deposit them on the coasts of North Africa. The number of deportees is so important that have it must call upon private sometimes conveyers who do not wait to arrive on the coast for to unload Morisques. Certain authors claim that the losses of this deportation amount to 75%.

Morisques the deportees find refuge mainly with the Morocco (Rabat, Fès, Tétouan) but also in France, in Italy, in Turkey. Small communities emigrated in Syria, with Istanbul where they concentrated in the district of Galata, around Arap Jami (mosque of the Arabs), and in a transitory way in Toscane.

One estimates at approximately: 300000 the number of people thus moved for a Spanish population of 8 million. The confiscation of the goods will be done with the advantage mainly of the duke of Lerme and the Inquisition.

Art and morisque culture

If the population were not accepted by the Spaniards, the influence of their culture was felt in all Europe. In architecture, architectural specificities of morisque art are found in mosques but also in churches and houses of private individuals.

In literature, the Aljamiada literature (of Arabic Al' adjamiyya - words from abroad) is a transcribed morisque clandestine literature literature Moslem and written in Spanish but using Arab character. The literature that they produce is primarily nun but one finds there even first Kamasutra in Spanish language. The moresque set of themes had passed in popular poetry (" romances" fronterizos, treating last wars of reconquest of Grenade) as of before 1492 then appears in more copious works like the novel the abencerage of Villegas or the history of the civil wars of Grenade of Pérez de Hita which is translated into French. Is created then, thanks to Lope de Vega, a " new romancero" , on morisque romantic subject, the romancero being the whole of the Castilian popular poems (" romances") derived from the medieval chansons de geste (" Romancero of Cid")

Cervantès, author of Don Quichotte of Mancha (1605-1615) presents her work like a translation of a text written in Arabic, Histoire of gift Quichotte of the English Channel, written by Cid Hamed Ben-Engeli, Arab historian . The sympathy of Don Quichotte to certain characters, like Zoraïda or Ricote, made accept certain obliging authors that Cervantès would belong to these people. However the genealogy of Cervantès and the severity with which he judges the morisques ones throughout the work cancel this thesis.

Victor Hugo, in Notre-Dame de Paris refers to a morisque dance probably resulting from the culture of this time.

Thoinot Arbeau, in its Orchésographie (1589), described a Dance morisque or moresque, known in all Europe.

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