THE BELL OF HUESCA - LA CAMPANA DE HUESCA
The king of Aragon, Alfonso I el Batallador, who died on September 7, 1134, without descendants, bequeathed his kingdoms to the Military Orders (that is, to the order of the Templars, the San Juanistas and the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem), but no one thought of fulfilling that will. The Aragonese nobles, gathered in Jaca, offered the Crown of the Kingdom to their brother Ramiro, Bishop of Roda Barbastro. Ramiro was celebrating the Nativity of the Virgin in Tierrantona when he received the news of his brotherâs death the day before, having to occupy the throne. His coronation took place in Zaragoza on September 29, 1134, but with the commitment to return in two years to his ecclesiastical tasks, once the line of succession was secured.
The King, fed up with the excesses and rebellion of the Nobles, tried to take charge of the situation, but he had no idea how to do it; So he dispatched a trusted messenger to the monastery of San Ponce de Tomeras to ask his abbot for advice, with whom he had a deep friendship since his youth, when he took up the habits of a monk there. The messenger arrived at the monastery and quickly asked to be received by the Abbot, to whom he transmitted the Kingâs message. The latter, after a brief thoughtful silence, ordered the messenger to accompany him to the garden. As they walked, and without anyone saying a word, the Abbot was cutting the cabbages (some sources speak of roses) that stood out the most over the others. After the walk, the Abbot turned to the messenger and said:
âReturn to my Lord the King, and tell him how much you have seenâ
The messenger, astonished at what had happened, mounted his horse and returned to convey the Abbotâs message to the King. The monarch, unlike the stunned messenger, did understand what the Abbot meant. Now he knew exactly what he had to do.
Ramiro summoned the nobles to Cortes in Huesca, informing them that he wanted to show them a bell that he had ordered built, the sound of which would be heard throughout the kingdom. The nobles received the news between surprise and mockery, but on the day set there they appeared, curious to contemplate that bell that the King was talking about âletâs go see that madness that the King wants to doâ, says the Chronicle of St. Juan de la PeĂąa (Drafted in the fourteenth century) that the nobles thought. Before starting the Cortes, he invited them to a copious barbecue washed down with abundant good wine to agree on an agenda among all. After dinner, the King was inviting one by one the main members of the nobility to enter the room below the throne to discuss in private with them and show them the famous bell.
The nobles, as they entered, were cut down by six burly mountaineers who promptly decapitated them. Headless bodies were thrown into a corner while heads were arranged in a circle. Fifteen heads were arranged in this way on the ground when he brought in Bishop OrdĂĄs de Zaragoza, the main leader of the conspiracies against him. The Bishop, seeing the show, was overwhelmed. The King asked him if he did not think it was the most beautiful bell ever made, and if he believed that something was missing, to which the Bishop, full of terror, replied that nothing was missing. The King then replied:
âYes, something is missing, and this is the clapper, and to make up for it your head is destined.â
OrdĂĄs was also beheaded and his head hung from a hook in the middle of the circle formed by the other heads.
Once the bell was finished, the King invited the rest of the nobles to enter with him to admire the bell that he had told them so much about.
âYou are going to see the bell that I have melted in the underground to ring for greater glory and strength of Ramiro II! I am certain that its ringing will make you restrained, solicitous and obedient to my commands â.
The nobles upon entering the room were terrified at what they saw. They understood that they were not dealing with a wimp that they could handle at will, but that Ramiro II had proven to be a strong king who would not hesitate at anything in order to preserve the kingdom of Aragon.
As Aragonese that I am, I believe in the legend of the Bell of Huesca. And as a lover of History I have read that during the Reign of Ramiro II a few Nobles disappear from the documents âŚâŚ. The room where the events occurred continues to exist, it is part of the Huesca Museum, as it stands next to the old Royal Palace.
Between 1879 and 1880, the painter of Romanticism, JosĂŠ Casado del Alisal painted a huge painting at the Spanish Academy of Fine Arts in Rome that represents the moment when the King discovered the "Bellâ to the Nobles. Property of the Prado Museum, the painting has been deposited and has been exhibited in the Huesca City Hall since 1950.
Now you too can have this work of art in your home.
To do this first you need the painting âThe Rape of the Sabine Womenâ by @thejim07ââ.
You can download it HERE.
As always, I have to thank my colleagues @navidesignsââ and @artyssimsââ for being my guinea pigs as always.
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Fallecido el 7 de septiembre 1134 el rey de AragĂłn, Alfonso I el Batallador, sin descendencia, legĂł sus reinos a las Ărdenes Militares (es decir, a la orden de los Templarios, a los Sanjuanistas y a los caballeros del Santo Sepulcro de JerusalĂŠn), pero nadie pensĂł en cumplir dicho testamento. Â Los nobles aragoneses, reunidos en Jaca, ofrecieron la Corona del Reino a su hermano Ramiro, Obispo de Roda Barbastro. Â Ramiro se encontraba celebrando la Natividad de la Virgen en Tierrantonaâ cuando recibiĂł la noticia de la muerte de su hermano el dĂa anterior, teniendo que ocupar el trono. Su coronaciĂłn tuvo lugar en Zaragoza el 29 de septiembre de 1134, pero con el compromiso de regresar en dos aĂąos a sus quehaceres eclesiĂĄsticos, una vez asegurada la lĂnea de sucesiĂłn. Con un rey inexperto y en apariencia pusilĂĄnime los nobles aragoneses pensaron que podrĂan manejarlo a su antojo.
El Rey, harto de los desmanes y rebeldĂa de los Nobles tratĂł de hacerse cargo de la situaciĂłn, pero no tenĂa la menor idea de cĂłmo hacerlo; asĂ que despachĂł un mensajero de confianza al monasterio de San Ponce de Tomeras para pedir consejo a su Abad, con el que le unĂa una profunda amistad desde su juventud, cuando tomĂł allĂ los hĂĄbitos de monje. El mensajero llegĂł al monasterio y rĂĄpidamente pidiĂł ser recibido por el Abad, al que le transmitiĂł el mensaje del Rey. Ăste, despuĂŠs de un breve silencio pensativo, ordenĂł al mensajero que lo acompaĂąara al huerto. Mientras paseaban, y sin que nadie pronunciara palabra alguna, el Abad fue cortando las coles (algunas fuentes hablan de rosas) que mĂĄs sobresalĂan sobre las demĂĄs. Acabado el paseo, el Abad se volviĂł hacia el mensajero y le dijo:
âVuelve a mi SeĂąor el Rey, y cuĂŠntale cuĂĄnto has vistoâ
El mensajero, atĂłnito ante lo que habĂa pasado, montĂł en su caballo y regresĂł a transmitir al Rey el mensaje del Abad. El monarca, al contrario que el estupefacto mensajero, sĂ que entendiĂł lo que el Abad querĂa decir. Ahora sabĂa exactamente lo que tenĂa que hacer.
Ramiro convocĂł a los nobles a Cortes en Huesca comunicĂĄndoles que querĂa enseĂąarles una campana que habĂa mandado construir, cuyo sonido se escucharĂa por todo el reino. Los nobles recibieron la noticia entre la sorpresa y la burla, pero el dĂa fijado allĂ se presentaron, curiosos por contemplar esa campana de la que el Rey les hablaba âvayamos a ver esa locura que el Rey quiere hacer â, dice la CrĂłnica de San Juan de la PeĂąa (Redactada en el siglo XIV) que pensaron los nobles. Antes de empezar las Cortes, les invitĂł a un copioso asado regado con abundante buen vino para consensuar un orden del dĂa entre todos. En la sobremesa, el Rey fue invitando uno a uno a los principales miembros de la nobleza a entrar en la sala de debajo del trono para debatir en privado con ellos y enseĂąarles la famosa campana.
Los nobles, conforme iban entrando, eran reducidos por seis fornidos montaĂąeses que sin perder tiempo los decapitaban. Los cuerpos descabezados eran echados a un rincĂłn mientras las cabezas eran dispuestas en un cĂrculo. Quince cabezas se disponĂan de esta forma en el suelo cuando hizo entrar al Obispo OrdĂĄs de Zaragoza, principal cabecilla de las conjuras contra ĂŠl. El Obispo, al ver el espectĂĄculo, quedĂł sobrecogido. El Rey le preguntĂł si no le parecĂa la mĂĄs hermosa campana jamĂĄs hecha, y si creĂa que le faltaba algo, a lo que el Obispo, lleno de terror, contestĂł que no faltaba nada. El Rey entonces le contestĂł:
âSĂ que le falta algo, y esto es el badajo, y para suplirlo destino tu cabezaâ.
OrdĂĄs fue tambiĂŠn decapitado y su cabeza colgada de un gancho en medio del cĂrculo que formaban las otras cabezas.
Una vez terminada la campana, el Rey invitĂł al resto de los nobles a entrar con ĂŠl para admirar la campana de la que tanto les habĂa hablado.
âVais a ver la campana que he hecho fundir en los subterrĂĄneos para que repique a mayor gloria y fortaleza de Ramiro II,! Estoy cierto que su taĂąido os harĂĄ comedidos, solĂcitos y obedientes a mis mandatosâ.
Los nobles al entrar en la sala quedaron aterrorizados ante lo que vieron. Comprendieron que no se las tenĂan con un pelele al que pudieran manejar a su antojo, sino que Ramiro II habĂa demostrado ser un rey fuerte que no vacilarĂa ante nada con tal de conservar el reino de AragĂłn.
Como AragonĂŠs que soy, creo en la leyenda de la Campana de Huesca. Y como amante de la Historia he leĂdo que durante el Reinado de Ramiro II unos cuantos Nobles desaparecen de los documentosâŚâŚ. La sala donde ocurrieron los hechos sigue existiendo, forma parte del Museo de Huesca, ya que se levanta junto al antiguo palacio Real.
Entre 1879 y 1880, el pintor del Romanticismo, JosĂŠ Casado del Alisal pinto en la Academia EspaĂąola de Bellas Artes de Roma un enorme cuadro que represente el momento en el que el Rey descubre a los Nobles la âCampanaâ. Propiedad del Museo del Prado, el cuadro esta depositado y se expone en el Ayuntamiento de Huesca desde 1950.
Ahora vosotros tambiĂŠn podĂŠis tener en vuestras casas esta obra de arte.
Para ello primeo necesitĂĄis el cuadro de âEl Rapto de las Sabinasâ de @thejim07ââ.
Lo podĂŠis descargar AQUĂ.
Como siempre he de dar las gracias a mis compaĂąeros @navidesignsâââ y @artyssimsâââ por ser como siempre mis conejillos de Indias.
gracieabrams
yousharknotpass
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