At the Heart of the Medieval Catalan Navy: The Inhabitants of Castelló d’Empúries in Service of James II of Aragon in Sicily, an Example from the Late 13th Century (The Battle of Cape Orlando, 1299)

Abstract

This article presents some information about the participation of nearly one hundred inhabitants of Castelló d’Empúries (currently located in the Alt Empordà region, province of Girona, in the northeastern corner of the Iberian Peninsula) in the Battle of Cape Orlando (coast of Sicily), which in 1299 pitted the fleets of James II of Aragon against those of his brother Frederick III of Sicily. The article provides the names of the participants and discusses several issues related to their involvement in this expedition. It also offers relevant information about the participation of the town’s inhabitants in other military ventures and about the commercial navy of the Empordà region during the same period.