THE ECONOMY OF JUSTICE: PRIVILEGES, LITIGATION, AND THE DISTRIBUTION OF LAND IN SIXTEENTH-CENTURY CASTILE

Abstract

While historians of early modern Spain are well aware of the litigiousness that characterized sixteenth-century Castilian society, they have yet to explore fully the political and economic implications of this tendency. This article delves into these ramifications by examining land disputes between towns in a particular region of Castile known as the Marquesado de Villena. In the Marquesado, land not only constituted an economic resource; it was also tied to the area's strong tradition of municipal privileges, which granted municipalities jurisdiction over specific territories. More often than not, the struggle over this valuable asset played itself out in the judicial sphere. Monarchy and municipality worked within the shared constraints of judicial institutions, because there was ample room for the flux and fluidity of resources within this space. That is, the different political players agreed that the distribution of land was to be a function of justice, so long as openings existed for each party to d...