Part VIII
Blanca Febo (continued)
On Shaky Ground
Heresy in Navarre
traduttore, traitore!
The news of the first translations of the Scripture into the vernacular in late 1490s coincided with the first wave of Renaissance in Navarre, but did not inspire any local attempts at such a controversial feat. Latin, which was still lingua franca in Europe, quite often used even by more educated merchants and traders who travelled the length and breadth of Europe, was not by any means alien to Navarrean nobility, let alone clergy; so it should come as no surprise that neither this news nor –almost 30 years later- the tidings from far away Norway about some monk criticizing the Church stirred much interest in Navarra.
those Vikings; only hacking and burning on their mind
It was the diplomatic report about the of-some-obscure-German-dynasty King of England George I having broken up with Rome in June 1521 which shook people of Navarre and made them realize how serious a threat Reformation was.
first to go
In just four months Protestant propaganda reached Navarre and preventive measures had to be taken.
mother church will guide us
Indeed, Navarre had attracted lots of free-thinkers and was in the midst of the second wave of Renaissance, this time not imported Venetian one, but one of unique Navarrean polish.
Navarrean Renessaince
The Republic had had its disagreements with the Holy See, yet had always stayed faithful, now instead of prosecution on religious grounds it encouraged debates and disputes, admittedly aiming at proving the wrongs and howlers in the Reform. This moderate approach was not changed even when, due to King of Aragon Enric I’s marriage to the Protestant Duke of Lorraine’s sister, new teachings rapidly took root in Aragon.
the beginning of bonds between Aragon and Lorraine
Cloutilde de Lorraine, famous for her charity and personal warmth, won the hearts of various peoples of the Crown of Aragon; much-loved, unlike her husband Enric I, she also tried to ease the tension in Aragonese-Navarrean relationships. Thus in the early years of Protestant movement people of Navarre associated it with her and her good-naturedness.
moderate approach
The stance Navarre adopted towards the Reform, seemed to be the one of the Pope and Catholic Hierarchy as well, as church doctrines were debated and the good word and scholarly arguments were used to help the lost lambs see the true light.
help them see the light
Everything changed when Charles IX used religion, along with his claims on Gascogne and Calais, as an excuse to declare war on England. The stands polarized and stakes suddenly popped up like mushrooms all over Europe.
spreads like fire
This didn’t bypass Navarre, after Cloutilde’s death the relations with more and more protestant Aragon plummeted again, the fact that Enric I married an English princess did not help. On streets of Navarrean towns, especially in Lower Navarre, the first stakes were lit.
purging Navarre
Diplomatic Maneuvers
The Liberator of Navarre could take neither his position in Navarre nor Charles IX’s favours for granted. Letting de Herida retreat and than run to the court in Valliadollid to ask the King of Castile Alfonso XIII to intervene turned out to be a wise move. De Landivar had a good argument to declare de Herida a traitor and confiscate his property to pass it over to the Republic, which gained him some much-needed popularity. Naturally, Castile wouldn’t lift a finger, her eyes turned westwards, tempted rather by the riches of the New World than mountainous soil of Navarre; nor would Alfonso XIII risk a conflict with his ally Charles IX. De Landivar was in fact King of France’s client but yet he dared to bargain with France. Admittedly Charles IX, having used him, had grown tired of his flunkey. The Navarre-held Gascogne was not part of Charles’ plan; thus the negotiations between the French Crown and the Republic commenced.
Charles IX's terms
Held in Foix, they dragged for over a year as the Republic was in no position to capitalize on occupation of Gascogne, the resolutions of the so-called Ruling of Foix proclaimed: handing over Gascogne to France, Trade Agreement between France and Navarre, perpetual mutual friendship between the two states.
which do you think i chose?
the Ruling of Foix; the religious event helped a lot with getting TA
De Landivar was left empty-handed, not even formal protection from France was promised; his reckless attack on England brought Navarre nothing, but increased revolt risk, war exhaustion and ruined international standing. His pro-French policy was discredited and the anti-French feelings were running high. Furtunately, in 1529 the wars with Austria and England were finally brought to a close, Navarre had lost nothing but it’s reputation and internal stability and integrity.
i think i won these
This was what Aragon had been waiting for. After Alfonso VII’s death in 1524, his brother Enric I’s wife, Cloutilde – a distant cousin of Juan de Yanguas’ wife – mitigated her husband’s anti-Navarrean stance. The granting of Malta to the Knights of Saint John, although not to the Republic’s liking, can hardly be described as an act against her.
Knights on Malta! ...and not somewhere beyond the Pillars of Hercules 
Yet the death of Cloutilde in 1528 along with the internal strife caused by ‘Little Wars’ made Enric I hastily press his claims again.
rigid with feAAR!
De Landivar, undoubtedly a talented commander, definitely not a skilled diplomat decided to once again turn to the tried gamble and proclaimed a guarantee of Aragon’s safety; this failed again.
de Landivar gambles
Enraged, Enric I pronounced de Landivar a usurper and dictator and, the irony of it, he vowed to reinstall his ‘dearest cousin’ Consul Blanca and the Council of Ten as the real governing power in Navarre, and –to avoid any future commotion in the province and ensure its citizens safety - he pledged to make Navarre an autonomous province of the Crown of Aragon.
and fails
De Landivar’s patrols reported on swarming Aragonese troops in the border forts, some provocative forays into Navarrean territory, and the very Enric I heading north with his army; the conflict was brewing and the outbreak of war seemed inevitable.
Imminent Election
De Landivar’s popularity was short-lived; having rid of de Herida did not buy him that much support. The mayor of Pamplona got an axe, de Landivar appointed a new one without voting or consultation with the City Council; the loss of Gascogne in failed talks with France, the ostentatious ignoring of the Consul and the Council of Ten, promoting Lower Navarreans and his loyal comrades to most lucrative positions in the Republic’s administration; all this alienated de Landivar from the nation.
folk hero no more
Many Loyalists, along with bishop of Pamplona, distanced themselves from de Landivar’s regime; the remaining Legalists approached the Moderates and as early as in late summer 1529 the opposition took to arms.
there's only one Liberator
The revolt was quelled, and its leader Juan de Yanguas, who got severely wounded, fled first to Castile, than to Lorraine, to his mother’s family. De Landivar accussed de Yanguas of not only treason but also heretic leanings, but the sympathies of the people lay with the exiled noble. Navarre was far from peace and quiet.
does anyone know the difference between the two options? both give -1 stab
Consul Blanca, now in her early 50s, was nothing like the carefree, silly girl she used to be when she ascended to the throne of the Kingdom of Navarre. She’d been ailing for some time, the fear of house-arrest (her sisters’ fate) had been growing stronger and stronger; betrayed by her husband, disillusioned about de Landivar, a stranger to her sisters she had no one to turn to for assistance. How she missed the old de Faucompre’s measured judgments! That was not the Republic they both envisaged all those years back. Sensing the end coming, she felt she had to do something, to navigate Navarre safely through the first elections and to snatch the power out of de Landivar’s hands. She approached de Guzman, asked him to probe the other council members, than along with a group of trusted lawyers they drew up a bill reforming the institutions of the republic.
scholars of Navarre worked hard
The bill, although in its preamble expressed thanks to de Landivar for saving the Republic from de Herida’s ambition, was actually directed against the Liberator. Basically, it strengthened the power of the Council of Ten (handing over the authority over the army to the Council), made sure five post in it were elective ones, stated that the Consul must be an adult of at least 16 and reaffirmed he or she must be of the Febo family. Thus neither de Landivar nor his underage children might become the next Consul.
the bill; was any other NI a better choice? what d'ya think?
As soon as de Landivar left to check the unrest on Aragonese border, Consul Blanca ceremoniously proposed the bill to the Council; surprisingly shortly debated, voted 8 to 2 in its favour (only de Landivar’s representative and the mayor of Pamplona were against it) the bill passed and the new legislation was introduced. Will it be enough to curb de Landivar’s ambitious appetite?
