In the year 1134 the king of Aragon, Alfonso I el Batallador dies. . The king had no offspring and his will and succession raised blisters between the nobles and the Church:
In the name of the greatest and incomparable good that is God. I Alfonso, King of Aragon, of Pamplona […] thinking of my fate and reflecting that nature makes all men mortal, I proposed, while I was alive and healthy, to distribute the kingdom that God granted me and my possessions and income from the most convenient way for after my existence. Therefore, fearing divine judgment, for the salvation of my soul and also that of my father and mother and that of all my relatives, I make a testament to God, to Our Lord Jesus Christ and to all his saints. And with good spirits and spontaneous will I offer to God, to the Virgin Mary of Pamplona and to San Salvador de Leyre, the castle of Estella with the entire town [...], I donate to Santa María de Nájera and San Millán [...], I also donate to San Jaime de Galicia [...], I also donate to San Juan de la Peña [...] and also for after my death I leave as my heir and successor the Sepulcher of the Lord that is in Jerusalem [...] I do all this for the salvation of the soul of my father and mother and the remission of all my sins and to deserve a place in eternal life…
He left the kingdom of Aragon to the Order of the Holy Sepulcher (others also include the Orders of the Temple and the Hospital). The orders received some seats, but it was agreed to find a solution to this nonsense. The solution was to appoint Ramiro, Alfonso's brother, who was confined in a monastery, as his successor. Ramiro II the Monk (the nickname was obvious) he found a kingdom besieged by the kingdoms of Castile and Navarre and with some nobles who wanted to manipulate him at will.
The "Monk", inexperienced in government affairs, decided to ask the abbot of the Tomeras Monastery for advice. He sent a messenger who met the abbot in the orchard, after raising Ramiro's problems, the abbot limited himself to cutting the branches that protruded from a hedge, without saying anything. The messenger did not understand anything, but he related the facts to the king. The "Monk" understood the abbot's message and summoned the nobility in Huesca. He made them pass one by one and beheaded them until they formed a bell with their heads.
He left the bishop of Huesca for last (some say that he was the worst of all and others that he gave him an opportunity to repent):
What do you think of this bell? , asked the king.
The clapper is missing , answered the bishop proudly.
The answer irritated the king and he replied:
Your head will be the clapper .
The rest of the nobles took notice and the kingdom calmed down. He abdicated after 17 years of reign and retired to the monastery from which (I think) he would never have wanted to leave.
Foto: WikipediaÂ
