What is the historical significance of the account in the ‘Chronicle Fratris Salimbene di Adam Ordinis Minorum’ of a hypothetical ascent of King Peter II of Catalonia —the Great— to the summit of Canigó in 1285? And what is the relationship between this account and the popular revolt that took place in Sicily in the spring of 1282, known as the Sicilian Vespers?
At the end of the 13th century, the old Franciscan friar Salimbene of Adam or Parma (1221-1290), secluded in the monastery of Montefalcone (Italy), in an act of memory, wrote down his personal impressions of his eventful life. He is not an apocalyptic chronicler, but a prophetic one. He does not offer a tremendous vision of his world, but narrates events for later reflection. His ‘Chronicle Fratris Salimbene di Adam Ordinis Minorum’, written between 1283 and 1290, is a bit of everything: autobiographical, history of the order, history of the cities of northern Italy, universal chronicle of the time of Frederick II Hohenstaufen ‘stupor mundi’ or diary of his travels in France and Italy.
The origin of the myth
In the autumn of 1889, G. Uzielle published in the ‘Bollettino’ of the Italian Alpine Club an extensive article entitled: ‘Leonardo da Vinci and the Alps’. This work was completed with three appendices, the third of which was entitled ‘Ascensione di Pietro III de Aragona al Canigou’. It is in fact a fragment (p. 354 – 355 of the first edition) of the famous chronicle of Adam of Salimbene.
The first modern edition of the chronicle was published in the work ‘Monumenta Historica ad provincias Parmensem et Placentinensem pertinentia, III’ (Parma, 1857). The second, more complete and elegant edition was written by Oswald Holder-Egger and can be found in the ‘Monumenta Germania Historica: Scriptores, book XXXII’ (Hanover, 1906). Thus, the importance of Adam’s Salimbene for Pyreneanism is due to folio 459 (p. 597 – 599 of the second edition) which is entitled: On the death of King Peter of Aragon.
The context in which Uzielle’s article appeared in the Italian ‘Bollettino’ is the context in which the great work on Pyreneanism written by Henri Beraldi, ‘Cent ans aux Pyrénées’, was about to be published. With the publication of this great work, the body of knowledge that would later become known as Pyreneanism began to be built up. Beraldi, as an inveterate bibliophile, created this whole world; he brought back characters from the past: De Carbonnières, Russell, Cadier… the great myths of the great Pyrenean exploits are present. But it doesn’t end there. Around 1911, Beraldi wrote an article entitled ‘Tentative de Pierre III au Canigou’, published in ‘Le passé du Pyrénéisme’, in which he wrote: ‘Finally, we are faced with the first well-characterised act of mountaineering. Climbing for the sake of climbing, conquering a peak. Three years after the Sicilian Vespers. Ascent via Vallmanya or Taurinyà, ascent of Els Cortalets followed by the hole of Els Estanyols, an impressive place with dark weather; abruptly overcome by a black joke. In short, an attempt on the Canigou in 1285‘.
Thus, as a result of these two articles and later works, the historiography places as the first ascent to the summit of a mountain, the one made by King Peter II the Great of Catalonia in 1285, on the summit of Canigou. As we shall see, folio 459 of Salimbene di Adam’s chronicle has been erroneously interpreted as true, when in fact it is a metaphorical treatment of the power disputes between two kings —Peter of Catalonia and Charles of Anjou— and two territories, Catalonia and France.
The context in which Salimbene de Adam wrote his chronicle is very particular. It is therefore necessary to analyse the entire text of the chronicle rigorously and to contextualise the events narrated in it with the social and political mentality of the 13th century. The present must look at the past with a critical eye because, if we do not do so, we are condemned to deform historical reality.
Therefore, anything that deviates from this line of work -rigour and contextualisation- generates sterile debate. The historian’s main task is to create knowledge and, for this to be possible, we must not detach events from their space or their time. To avoid this, we have a set of tools at our disposal – documents, chronicles, annals, chronologies, archaeological remains, oral history – that will help us to approach the study of the past with the greatest possible transparency. But this is not the end of the story. Then comes the second rule we must follow: reading the documentation. Simply reading it leads us nowhere, but only to historical distortion. We must therefore know how to read between the lines. And that is the mistake we are trying to correct.
“The historiography places as the first ascent to the summit of a mountain, the one made by King Peter II the Great of Catalonia in 1285, on the summit of Canigou.”
A look behind the chronicle
To understand the background to Salimbene d’Adam’s chronicle of the Canigou narrative, we must make a double effort: on the one hand, to understand the socio-political context in which the chronicle was written and, on the other, to patiently analyse the events that took place between 1280 and 1285. These five years are the key to unmasking the myth.
Folio 459, section A, begins with the significant title: Of the death of Peter, King of Aragon. Despite this beginning, Salimbene already warns us in folio 445, section B, when he comments ‘Knowing beforehand, that in less than a year, four illustrious personages, will be delivered to death by the will of God, there was the sepulchre of all the living is found…’ followed by ‘…and the first will be King Charles, the second Pope Martin, the third Philip, King of France, the fourth Peter, King of Aragon…’. Thus, King Peter of Aragon (of Catalonia) is the fourth important personage to die during that year of 1285.
Recalling what was written above, Salimbene begins the text by telling us that ‘In the same way, in the present millennium, during the wake of the blessed Martin, Peter, king of Aragon, closed, concluded with his own death, the last day; on this, the youngest of the brothers, the guardian heard him in confession; he was buried in Vila-Nova, in the same place as the younger brothers…’. In fact, King Peter II of Catalonia died on the night of November 10-11, 1285 —Saint Martin’s Day— in Vilafranca del Penedès, although he wrote Villa-nova. In fact, he had already been seriously ill for some weeks while he was on his way to Salou (Tarragona) to embark for Mallorca and settle family matters with his brother Jaume, who had taken an active part in the French crusade against King Peter. It was just over a month ago —October 1, 1285— that King Peter’s army had defeated the Crusader troops at Panissars pass.
The Sicilian Vespers
However, the conflicts were not limited to family matters. At the root of the crusade was the Sicilian question. Seeing death approaching and under pressure, King Peter demanded that Sicily be returned to the Church and asked ‘…to send an embassy to Pope Honorius IV, to obtain concord between the sons of Peter of Aragon and the sons of France who claimed to be consanguineous…’ to resolve the situation.
Finally, the last problem to be resolved – as a consequence of the French crusade – was the Castilian question over the Murcia region. But neither the family issues nor the Sicilian question, much less the issues with Castile, could he take charge, as illness put an end to his life.
Folio 459, section B, begins with the suggestive title: ‘On the recommendation of Peter, King of Aragon, as evidenced by an example given above’. This example is the one that has aroused the most controversy in the historical panorama.
Salimbene introduces us to the protagonist of his narrative, praising him heroically “This King Peter of Aragon was a man of great heart, a strong soldier, and wise in war…,” and he demonstrates this by means of past deeds “… for this man was of great boldness, and much drive…,”, and more specifically by what “… is manifested in the enterprise of the kingdom of Sicily, which against King Charles and Pope Martin he dared to invade them.” Throughout the entire chronicle, Salimbene describes this whole affair in detail. In fact, the Sicilian question will be one of the great conflicts of the 13th century. At the origin of the conflict is the question of to whom the island should belong. The interest in Sicily was mainly due to the fact that the island was the granary of the Mediterranean and the key to the trade route to the East.
Charles of Anjou had tried to project himself throughout the Mediterranean by means of a new crusade. With the intention of dealing a blow to his adversaries, he planned a new sack of Constantinople, reproducing the outlines of the previous one. But the situation went awry when the Italian south openly confronted his personal policy. The Sicilians had begun to understand that their projection as a republic – similar to that of Genoa or Venice – was in grave danger. This debate, Charles, did not understand and preferred to destroy such an initiative.
Following the insular policy of his father, King James I, on August 30, 1282 a powerful company of Catalan ships commanded by King Peter landed on the Sicilian coast, specifically in Trapani, from the Tunisian coast of Al-Coll, where he had gone to help his vassal and ally Abu-Bekr, lord of Constantine. Once in Sicily, King Peter went to Palermo to be crowned king on September 27, 1282. His presence there was not gratuitous: his wife was Constance of Sicily, purified by Frederick II. With this act, King Peter vindicated the memory of the past of the Hohenstaufen family on the island, the past that the policy of Charles of Anjou had tried to erase. The Sicilians were convinced that this was the best and most successful option to forge their project. That is why, on March 31, 1282, the Sicilians had risen up in arms against French rule on the island. This event was known as the revolt of the Sicilian Vespers.
The conflict put Charles’ policy in check, leading him into a tense situation. King Peter’s refusal to leave Sicily led him to two new horizons: the war dispute against Charles and the legal dispute against the Pope. In both he was victorious. While he crushed Charles at Nicotera – Calabria -, he destroyed the Pope’s forces at Panissars pass.
“The Sicilian question will be one of the great conflicts of the 13th century. At the origin of the conflict is the question of to whom the island should belong. The interest in Sicily was mainly due to the fact that the island was the granary of the Mediterranean and the key to the trade route to the East.”
An example for the audience
Salimbene explains that, to demonstrate all this, he will give another example of the bravery shown by King Peter: ‘Evident, though followed by another example, with this one which we clearly set forth’. It must be said that in the Middle Ages it was very common to resort to fantastic examples, impossible for mortals to achieve, a terrain reserved only for heroes. The purpose of the example is to better capture the reader’s attention, as was the case here. This recourse to fictionalising an episode to reinforce the image of a valiant king is not an isolated case in medieval literature. For example, similar accounts of Charlemagne and his legendary ascent of the Pyrenees, where he is said to have received a divine revelation about his mission in Hispania, can be found in the French tradition. This narrative symbolises his campaign to spread Christianity and his role as a defender of the faith. Similarly, parallels can also be found with Richard the Lionheart and his adventures in the Holy Land, as French chivalric novels place the hero in a space of uncertainty – of adventure – such as the forest, in order to reassert his power and courage.
Salimbene situates his example in a concrete space “In the confines of Provence and Hispania…” and presents us with the objective “… there rises a high mountain, which the people of the country call Mount Canigou…”, and surrounds it with mystery “…although we could call it Mount Tenebrous”. Since the protagonist of the example is the Catalan king, Salimbene -surely- chose a geographical space close to the king’s territory.
Since ancient times, the Canigou had been considered the highest mountain in the Pyrenees, impossible to reach. But just in case it was not clear that the undertaking was too risky, he turns to a geographical description provided by the second century Greek geographer Ptolemaeus of Alexandria in his ‘Geographia’, who collected empirical observations that allowed him to identify geographical landmarks relevant to navigation: “This mountain that navigators see first on arrival, after leaving, is the last point we can see: when it has disappeared, no other is visible…”. Thus, the impossible goal has been set. Despite some internal problems, such as the wars with the Saracens, the male revolt or family problems, the insular policy initiated by King Peter after his marriage to Constance of Sicily (June 13, 1262) would not stop. King Peter will pursue his policy to the last consequences, even if this becomes a personal matter.
After emphasizing the danger of the enterprise proposed by the king “…no man has ever lived there, nor has any son of man ever dared to climb it because of its extraordinary height, and the difficulty of the path and the effort…” he decided to go ahead with the adventure. Despite serious misgivings within the kingdom, especially from the Church, about his intentions to invade Sicily, King Peter persisted with the initial idea. At first, King Peter will have the political support of two important allies: Castile and Constantinople. Therefore, Salimbene tells us that “Well, Peter of Aragon, having decided to climb the mountain, called to his side two knights, intimate friends, whom he honoured with his affection…” and they promised him “…never to be separated from him.”
As already mentioned, the Sicilian campaign began on August 30, 1282. Once started, it was almost impossible to stop it, despite the papal excommunication of November 9, 1282. At this point, Salimbene tells us that “…they felt frightful and altogether terrible thunder…” until his companions “…fell to the ground, dead of fright under the weight of fear and dread of what had befallen them…” that despite King Peter’s efforts to restore the situation, the two companions “…lost their courage…”. In reality, the two alliances he had signed with Castile and Constantinople never became effective. On the other hand, seeing that the papal excommunication had not worked, the Pope ceded the kingdoms of King Peter to any Christian prince who wanted to conquer them. Thus, on August 27, 1283, he offered them to the king of France and on February 27, 1284 – in a ceremony held in Paris – he granted the investiture to Philip III of France, the Scoundrel. From that moment on, the crusade began to take shape. However, King Peter continued with his enterprise.
“On the borders of Provence and Hispania, there rises a high mountain which the people of the country call Mount Canigou, although we could call it Mount Tenebrous. This mountain, which the sailors see first on their arrival, after setting sail, is the last point we can see. When it has disappeared, no other can be seen and no man has ever lived on it, nor has any son of man ever dared to climb it because of its extraordinary height, and the difficulty of the route and the effort.’
The Bordeaux challenge
But there is something that honours even more the figure of King Peter. In folio 427, Salimbene explains in detail the famous challenge of Bordeaux. Charles of Anjou had communicated, by means of an embassy to King Peter, that the latter had not been chivalrous and had entered Sicily without reason. Therefore, this issue had to be resolved chivalrously – that is, with the sword – and for this reason they met on June 1, 1283 in the city of Bordeaux to resolve the Sicilian question. King Peter soon realized that this was a diversionary manoeuvre by the French king to drive him away and kill him far from his kingdom – as had happened to his grandfather at Muret – which forced him to leave Bordeaux prematurely. And foreseeing the imminent invasion of Catalonia by the crusades of the Pope and the French king, King Peter asked his allies for help. The refusal was total, and King Peter had no choice but to face the situation alone. It is for this reason that Salimbene tells us that “….Peter climbed alone with great difficulty…”.
King Peter therefore positioned his army on the main hills of the Albera mountain range – Panissars, Pertús and Banyuls – to block the passage of the Crusader troops. Despite the Croatians’ attempts to get through, King Peter’s troops managed to stop them. But it was the Abbot of Saint Peter of Rhodes who indicated to the Crusader troops the Coll de la Maçana pass – near the castle of Requesens – which allowed them to cross the Albera (12 June 1285) and quickly reach Gerona to lay siege to it. After a few months of intense fighting – land and naval – the Catalan troops defeated the Crusader troops. Perhaps the best known of these was the battle of Coll de Panissars, on 1 October 1285.
The double meaning of the chronicle
And now we come to the most daring part of the narrative. Salimbene explains that ‘…and when he reached the top of the mountain – King Peter -, he found a lake…’ when he saw this ‘…and in that place, he threw a stone…’ it was then that ‘…a horrible dragon, of great dimensions, came out and began to fly all over the air filling it with shadows and darkening it with its breath…’ after that, ‘… King Peter began his descent…’.
This is the fragment where lies the great metaphor hidden in Salimbene’s text to explain the reign of Peter II the Great of Catalonia. King Peter’s insular policy led him to set Sicily (the lake) as his main objective; after testing the area with the Tunisian campaigns, he finally landed in Trapani (he threw the stone); Pope Martin IV excommunicated it and placed all its kingdoms under the jurisdiction of the French king (a great and horrible dragon came out); the French invaded Catalonia after the proclamation of the crusade dictated by the Holy See (the sky darkened with the dragon’s breath).
At the end of his adventure, Salimbene acknowledges his merits and compares them to the undertakings of the great Latin hero, Alexander the Great. Thus, Salimbene tells us: ‘… In my opinion, the exploits of Peter of Aragon can be compared to those of Alexander, who by many terrible undertakings and exploits strove to merit the praise of posterity…’.
“When he went up to the top of the mountain – King Peter – he found a lake, and in that place he threw a stone. Then a horrible dragon came out, of great size, and flew through the air, filling it with shadows and darkening it with his breath, King Peter began his descent. In my opinion, the exploit of Peter of Aragon may be compared with the exploits of Alexander, who by many terrible undertakings and feats strove to merit the praise of posterity.”
The end of the myth
The figure of King Peter II the Great of Catalonia is interesting because of the events linked to him. He did not allow himself to be surprised in the face of so many adversities, to the point of astonishing his adversaries. He knew how to face his challenge and he overcame it. And this is his metaphor; his personal existence. And this is the vision that Salimbene captures in his chronicle. For this reason, the context in which the figure of King Peter II of Catalonia (Aragon) appears in the chronicle is always related to the Sicilian problem. Salimbene describes this issue clearly, describing the evolution from the time of Emperor Frederick II, through the period of King Manfred and Charles of Anjou, to King Peter II of Catalonia.
Salimbene senses that King Peter II the Great of Catalonia – like Charles of Anjou – will be one of the most important figures on the political scene in the 13th century. He believes this because he has first-hand knowledge of events. He knows that King Peter had to travel a long road and face all kinds of hardships to achieve his ultimate goal. That is why Salimbene, recognising his tenacity and his conviction in himself, shows a certain sympathy for the Catalan king. And that is why we should not be surprised by the metaphorical eulogy he gives in his chronicle once he learns that the king is dead.
The problem – as always – lies in the way we look at the past. From a rigorous point of view, everyone knows that the existence of a lake on top of a mountain is more than improbable, because if so, we would be defying the laws of physics. It is common sense. Not to mention the existence of dragons. If we deny these two premises, our thinking as historians must place us before a key question: What is the chronicler trying to explain to us through his narrative?
However, if we do not make this small effort and bring the fictional narrative back to reality, to give it veracity, we are going down a very dangerous road. Nevertheless, some have travelled it. That is why we find dates for the action narrated in Salimbene. Neither 1276 nor 1285 are possible. They are not because the Canigou adventure never existed, although the romantic idea of a feudal man facing the mountain is so suggestive: The real adventure was Sicily. Pyreneanism begins when man is curious to understand reality and embarks on the adventure of observation, but… that is another matter.
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Oriol Garcia Farré 
