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.

1. Introduction

The notarial records of Castelló d’Empúries contain extensive information on the formation of armed contingents during the late Middle Ages. These records cover the medieval period from the 1260s through the late 15th century, with particularly rich documentation around the year 1300, spanning the final decades of the 13th century and the first quarter of the 14th century. Hundreds of entries reveal the participation of numerous inhabitants of Castelló and the broader Empordà region in various military actions throughout the Mediterranean.1

As detailed in the following pages, some information is missing, and the overall situation was more complex than the notarial records alone suggest. Nonetheless, the thousands of preserved documents—many of which refer directly or indirectly to these matters—and the ability to trace nearly every individual involved, give the Castelló records immense value, making them an outstanding source for studying the medieval Catalan navy.

From the data analyzed, the most significant military venture in terms of local participation occurred in the late 13th century, specifically in the year 1299. That year, more than a hundred inhabitants of Castelló—the most populous village in the domain of the Counts of Empúries—participated in the Battle of Cap Orlando in Sicily, serving King James II of Aragon.2

In fact, there were even more participants. As will be shown, some combatants on the Aragonese side remain unnamed; we only know of them through records related to their complaints about unpaid wages during the first third of the 14th century. Additionally, the names of Castelló and Empordà inhabitants who fought on the Sicilian side—led by Huguet, the brother of the Count of Empúries—are largely unknown. However, the one hundred documented inhabitants of Castelló already represents a significant number for the population of the village at that time. Recent historical estimates suggest that Castelló’s population during its medieval peak, in the first half of the 14th century, ranged between two and three thousand inhabitants. Some of the latest studies even indicate that this number may have approached nearly five thousand inhabitants during that period.

2. A Favourable Local Context (1285–1305)

The enlistment of a relatively large number of people from Castelló in the Battle of Cape Orlando in 1299 took place within a favourable local context—favourable, that is, in terms of forming armed contingents—which spans from the late 13th century to the first quarter of the 14th century. During this period, many inhabitants of the comital town of Castelló d’Empúries are recorded as participating in various military events of differing nature.

We begin this timeline in 1285, when Peter the Great and his loyal subjects faced the incursion of a large Franco-Papal army through the Pyrenean passes of the Empordà region. Of course, the practice of arms was not unknown to some people of Castelló before this date. For example, it is highly likely that some took part in the comital assault on the nearby royal town of Figueres in 1274, when Count Hugh V stormed the town and carried away gates and stones from its walls to Castelló as a show of power in northeastern Catalonia—an illustrative case close to the dates under consideration. It is also probable that numerous men had joined other companies engaged in more localized conflicts. One such instance occurred on 10 April 1263, when Arnau Roig, Joan Pontós, Castelló Garriguella, Bernat Alenyà, and the castellan Pedro Valladolid formed a company to serve the Count of Empúries in his conflict against Ponç Guillem de Torroella.3 Due to the limited documentation preserved from before 1285 and the scale of the conflict between the Houses of Aragon and Anjou from that year onwards—which involved massive troop mobilization—we may take 1285 as a starting point to understand a reality later fully illuminated by the notarial records of Castelló: the substantial involvement of a significant portion of the population in military actions of various kinds and intensity; that, for many inhabitants of key towns, the profession of arms was neither foreign nor unusual; and, specifically for our topic, that enlistment aboard a galley was not—even for the most arduous tasks—a forced sentence, as it would become from the late 15th century onward and throughout the early modern period. Like any other form of naval military service, it was voluntary and compensated with a salary (Orsi Lázaro 2019, p. 211).

The first example from Castelló in this regard is privateering, specifically the outfitting of numerous corsair expeditions departing from Roses, the maritime port of the local comital town, headed toward the Occitan and Provençal coasts of the Kingdom of France as well as the Muslim territories of southern Iberia and the Maghreb. The earliest documented attacks against the French kingdom date to the period when King Philip the Bold of France began mobilizing troops in the plains of the Empordà and Gironès regions. To resist the French threat, King Peter the Great needed to disrupt their supply lines and hinder their southward advance. For this reason, as chronicler Bernat Desclot explains, while the main Catalan fleet remained stationed near Barcelona to defend it from potential attacks or landings, the king authorized certain corsairs to sail toward the Gulf of Lion and the coast of Girona to inflict as much damage as possible on the enemy. One of these corsairs was an Alicante native named Albesa who—according to Desclot—attacked Narbonne in mid-1285 (Soldevila 2008, cap. CLVII). He is likely the same Pere Albesa later documented in Castelló as promoting expeditions in subsequent years.

During the second half of the 1280s, the threat of French occupation persisted. Despite the failed French siege of Girona and the invading army’s withdrawal, alongside the death of Philip the Bold near Castelló or Perpinyà, the war continued. For instance, the demolition of a house adjacent to one of Castelló’s gates was ordered by the Count of Empúries in 1288, undoubtedly to improve the town’s defenses (AHG, Ca 4, p. 46). Notably, the same count granted the Viscount of Rocabertí permission the following year to dismantle the fortifications of Sant Climent Sescebes to prevent their use by potential French attackers; shortly thereafter, several Catalan knights and inhabitants of Peralada made a pact not to abandon the town (AHG, Fons Notarial de Peralada (Pe), 18 May 1033, and 4 June 1289). Corsair expeditions, however, continued and likely increased: Pere Albesa and the corsairs Guillem Castelló and Esteve Gaià sailed “in maris regis Francie” (1286); the Ibizan Bartomeu Coïres and the Castelló native Berenguer Sifreu sailed toward Muslim lands (1286); Albesa and Castelló, with the Castelló native Berenguer Egidió, raided against enemies of the King of Aragon (1287); Ferrer Mont-roig sailed again toward the south (1287); Berenguer Rostet, Pere Torre, and Joan Gosta operated against the infidels of “Yspania” (1287); Rostet and Guillem Ruix raided against the enemies of the king and count (1287); Esteve Gaià attacked the Provençal coast (1288); Gaià and the Torroella native Pere Aumar undertook another expedition in the same year and direction (1288), and Pere Torre and Berenguer Rostet again sailed toward Muslim lands (1288), among others.

As shown in the table (see Appendix A, Table A1), following the 1280s these expeditions were directed exclusively toward Muslim territories, resulting in hundreds of notarial records. These documents provide valuable insights into the financing of the expeditions, the value and specifications of the ships, the crew’s wages, and related matters.4 We will comment further below, particularly on the participation of Castelló inhabitants in the Battle of Cape Orlando and their remuneration, with the understanding—presumably—that many participants in the battle also took part in corsair expeditions before or after.

Alongside privateering, the notarial records of Castelló offer abundant information on the formation of various mercenary companies. Among the best-documented companies were those led by the brothers Ponç and Domingo Saguer, who took part in the Aragonese conquest of Sardinia in 1323 (Gironella Granés 2025). Contracts signed by them and about thirty infantrymen to travel to the island in the service of Prince Alfonso of Aragon have been preserved, along with numerous references to the brothers themselves, who were true military professionals. Their careers began with piracy, continued with defending and/or accompanying the Count of Empúries locally and across the Mediterranean, and culminated in their integration into companies engaged in more intense warfare. Ponç, in particular, besides the Sardinian campaign, was one of four promoters of a corsair expedition in 1305 and organized at least one more in later years with a forty-four-oar ship he personally owned (1330). Around 1320, he captained a company of eight men—including his brother—to accompany the Count of Empúries to Sicily. He was also part of a company led by another Castelló native, Guillem Escarrer, who served as general bailiff of Catalonia during the early reign of James II and later as counselor to King Robert of Naples. Escarrer’s company operated in Campania and Tuscany, advancing Robert’s political interests in Italy in the early 1300s. As for Domingo, in addition to accompanying his brother to Sicily and Italy, he joined in 1315 a company of Christian mercenaries serving the King of Morocco, which we will discuss shortly. Most importantly to our topic, the Saguer brothers and their thirty men were not the only inhabitants of Castelló who participated in the conquest of Sardinia. Beyond those who served aboard galleys and other vessels, there were at least two infantry companies: one led by the crossbow-maker Bernat Despuig and another by Ramon Ferrer, who committed to providing 200 and 100 men, respectively. Evidently, Despuig and Ferrer recruited many of their men from outside Castelló’s walls. In fact, the only information we have on them comes from the royal expedition register; details about the members themselves—including whether they truly numbered 200 and 100—remain unknown.

Around the same time, during the second decade of the 14th century, we encounter the final references to a company of soldiers from Castelló and the Empordà who operated in the Maghreb for several years—initially in the service of the King of Tlemcen and later the King of Morocco. This group could be called the Seguí Company, after its leader, the knight Bernat Seguí from the Garrotxa and Empordà regions, along with several of his brothers and relatives (Gironella Granés 2024a).

The last mention of this group dates to 1359, when the remains of four Seguí family members were returned to Castelló for burial in their hometown, according to the document recording this event. However, most of their documented activities center around 1300: beginning in the late 1290s (1295–1296), when Bernat Seguí and his brother Guillem recruited various knights, squires, and even a jester to serve the King of Tlemcen—the latter serving Seguí personally, a vivid example of how a miniature feudal world was transplanted to African soil, likely to entertain the leaders and glorify them both abroad and back home. In 1303, another brother and additional knights departed again from Castelló for Morocco; and in 1315, Arnau Seguí followed the same path, having previously contracted Domingo Saguer among others.

Other companies existed for shorter periods, formed for specific events, and were led by less prominent figures than the Seguí, Escarrer, and Saguer families. For example, around December 1304, Bartomeu Blanc recruited a company of forty crossbowmen from Castelló and the surrounding county to serve the nobleman Guillem Esteve of Narbonne for one month (“XL ballisterios bonos et sufficientes et bene preparatos mecum insimul de villa Castilionis et comitatu Impuriarum”) (AHG, Ca 2094, 30 December 1304). Another example is Ramon Sabater, a sailor from Narbonne settled in Castelló, who was hired by the Genoese merchant Gaspare Ardovini, based in Aigues-Mortes, to sail with his galleys to La Rochelle. Two men from Castelló, Castelló Vilar and Bernat Montiró, initially committed to the voyage but ultimately failed to appear at the agreed departure point (AHG, Ca 12, 10 November, and 3 December 1299; AHG, Ca 2100, 12 July 1308).

Regarding Ramon Sabater, one might assume he was the same individual as the Castelló native of the same name who fought at the Battle of Cape Orlando in 1299 and the later unsuccessful siege of Almeria led by James II in 1309. However, we know this is not the case, since the Narbonnese Sabater had already died by July 1308, when his widow, Dolça, collected money owed by Castelló Vilar for failing to show up for the voyage to La Rochelle. Meanwhile, the Sabater who fought at Cape Orlando and in Almería was still alive in 1327, when he granted power of attorney to collect the wages he was owed. This serves as a valuable reminder to exercise caution when dealing with identical names.

Finally, we can also highlight expeditions sponsored by the Counts of Empúries, lords of the town of Castelló. Among the most notable during the period under study—apart from the participation in the Battle of Cape Orlando—was the occupation of part of the Viscounty of Rocabertí, led by Count Ponç Hug IV in 1295. Contemporary sources mention more than a thousand troops—though this figure may be exaggerated—and confirm that inhabitants of predominantly rural parishes along the county–viscounty border purchased numerous crossbows (Gironella Granés 2019). This detail, well known in Girona historiography, illustrates the types of weapons local communities possessed during this period.

Years later, Ponç Hug IV, together with his brother Ramon, a distinguished knight of the Hospitaller Order, participated in an expedition with five galleys that sailed across the Mediterranean from Catalonia to the island of Rhodes, stopping at various points along the North African and Sicilian coasts (see Appendix A, Table A4). The expedition included sailors and fighters from across the Crown of Aragon, including four from Mallorca, two from Eivissa, two from València, two from Tortosa, and one from Tarragona, all of whom enlisted for four months of service on 13 May 1310 (AHG, Ca 26, 13 May 1310). Participants also came from several towns within the county, particularly those along the coast (AHG, Ca 416, 21 November 1328). Among them were many from Castelló: seventy men or their sons and/or heirs who, nearly twenty years later (in 1327), were still receiving wages owed to them. Others had already been paid or would receive payment later.

3. The Participation of Castelló Inhabitants in the Battle of Cape Orlando in 1299

Having reviewed the information above, let us now turn to what is known about the inhabitants of Castelló who served under King James II of Aragon in the Battle of Cape Orlando in 1299. First and foremost, it must be acknowledged that some participants remain unidentified. As noted earlier, most of the surviving evidence consists of individual claims made by participants—or their relatives and heirs—to recover unpaid wages. Although multiple claims were often filed over the years (in some cases, three or four), and some collective legal actions are also documented, the full roster remains incomplete.

One particularly revealing document from 1322 records four men from Castelló—Ponç Oliveres, Castelló Giró, Pere Ceres, and Bernat Cabiscol—seeking compensation for a Muslim slave they captured during the battle, who was subsequently taken from them by an officer aboard the royal galley (Mallorquí Garcia, forthcoming). Of the four, however, only the claim for unpaid wages submitted by Cabiscol has been preserved. This does not imply that the total number of participants was four times the documented figure—such an estimate would likely be excessive. Nevertheless, it is reasonable to assume that the actual number considerably exceeded the roughly one hundred individuals listed in the Appendix A (see Table A2).

3.1. The Expedition’s Participants

Regardless of the precise number, what is certain is that the inhabitants of Castelló who took part in Cape Orlando encompassed a variety of roles and responsibilities. Besides the Count of Empúries and other noblemen from the region, there were clear distinctions among the crews regarding their functions aboard the galleys as well as their social and economic status. Some held high-ranking positions, while others were common laborers—the essential workforce behind war and seafaring operations. Among them were rising members of the local community who viewed the Sicilian campaign as a prime opportunity to advance within the patronage networks of the ruling elite; others simply sought to earn a livelihood—particularly if the spoils of war could supplement their agreed wages (Orsi Lázaro 2018, 2019; Burguera-Puigserver 2024). In short, their backgrounds and motivations were diverse.5

Foremost among them was Guillem Escarrer, who held a prominent position aboard the galley carrying Admiral Roger of Lauria and the king himself (“in galeria […] Guillelmus Scharrarii ducebat ad mandatum nobili Rogerii, almiralli domini rege, scilicet per I die ante quam batallia fiet usque dominus rex fuit in Barchinona reversus”).6 The Escarrer family had been documented in privateering activities in Castelló since the 1260s and maintained close ties to the comital family of Empúries—connections that clearly elevated their status both locally and beyond the Empordà region. I will not elaborate further here, as a comprehensive study by Elvis Mallorquí will be published soon, and he has generously allowed me. We can also speculate about the whereabouts of Pere Briolf, Pere Nicolau and Pere Teuler on 13 October 1300, 24 March access to the extensive documentation he has examined (Mallorquí Garcia, forthcoming). It is worth adding that other men from Castelló and the Empordà are recorded aboard the royal galley; however, most embarked on Empordanese and Mallorcan galleys, suggesting both the training of these individuals and the fleet commanders’ intent to staff the royal galley with an elite crew. Among these were Felip Cortil of Llançà, who served as lower-ranking officer;7 Pere Benet, a crossbowman; Bernat Malarç and Joan Sardina, a rowers.

Occupying roles comparable to Guillem Escarrer were Berenguer Sifreu, Joan Sacasa, and Berenguer Escolta, identified in documents as officers (“patrono sive comit”, in the singular) of three galleys: Sifreu commanded the comital galley Catània alongside Bernat Martí; Sacasa captained another galley with En Farigola or Figuerola, from Torroella de Montgrí; and Escolta led a Mallorcan galley.8 As shown in one of the tables, the first two also organized privateering expeditions around the time of the Sicilian campaign. They thus occupied a social rank just below that of Escarrer in terms of the advancement military service and loyalty to feudal elites could bring. By 1300, the Escarrer family already counted among its members a general bailiff of Catalonia and a prior of Montserrat. Meanwhile, Sacasa had served as veguer of Castelló at least between 1287 and 1288; Sifreu was likely related to Guillem Sifreu, also veguer of the town between 1296 and 1298, and by 1305 Berenguer was involved in managing the customs of Cadaqués on behalf of the Count of Empúries.9 Regarding Escolta, although he commanded a Mallorcan galley, he is documented as a resident of Castelló in 1301, and his sister was married to another Castelló native, Castelló Lladó.

Just below them were four lower-ranking officers (“notxerio” in the singular): Guillem Bernat Bardoner and Joan Alaó aboard the galley of the aforementioned Sacasa; Berenguer Ferrer aboard the galley of Bernat Malgraner and Jaume d’Ordis (the latter from Roses), which apparently sustained the most damage and/or attacks during the expedition;10 and Guillem Soquer aboard the galley commanded by the previously mentioned Berenguer Sifreu and Bernat Martí. These four individuals possessed the experience necessary to assist the senior officers in navigating and managing the galleys, and they undoubtedly logged many hours of service aboard various vessels across the Mediterranean. Some likely had military experience as well, such as Bardoner, the brother-in-law of the aforementioned Guillem Escarrer (married to Bardoner’s sister) and a member of a Castelló family involved in privateering since the mid-thirteenth century.

Berenguer Ferrer was the son of a jurist and the brother of one of the priors of the convent of Sant Domènec. As for Alaó, it is almost certain he was related to several individuals sharing the same surname who owned ships or shares in ships and engaged in commerce along the Catalan coast and throughout the western Mediterranean during this period. In the Appendix A, we include some information on shipowners and shipmasters from Castelló which—pending a comprehensive study compiling all available data from the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries—suggest possible connections between the surnames of some of these individuals and those of certain participants in the Battle of Cape Orlando. Notably, the surnames Bianya, Gomarell, Malarç, and Sitjar stand out; to a lesser extent—at least based on the documents in question—we also find Noguera, Llorenç, Soquer, Blanc, Cerdà, Burgès, Escolta, Sabater, Serra, and Teuler. However, as already mentioned, the documentation has its limitations, and it is certain that some information eludes us (particularly concerning participants in the Sicilian expedition for whom we have no direct evidence of involvement). Therefore, a thorough study of Empordà’s maritime activity during this period will be necessary to either confirm or refute these potential links.

The remainder of the participants served as crossbowmen and rowers (with differing contractual conditions in the case of the latter). Here we do find recurring names and surnames linked to individuals involved in privateering or other military enterprises mentioned earlier in the article. In some cases, the identification is certain—such as with Pere Cerdà, whose wife attempted to collect money still owed from the Sicilian campaign on 7 October 1301, while Pere himself was “in Yspania sive Barberia contra sarracenos” on an expedition led by Joan Sacasa, who had also participated in the Sicilian campaign. In other cases, the identification is very likely, though the presence of homonyms must be taken into account to avoid confusion. For example, Pere Margarit, who went to Sicily as a crossbowman, failed to appear for a privateering expedition led by Guillem Castelló, Pere Albesa, and Berenguer Egidió against the French Mediterranean or Muslim territories a few years earlier (1287) (AHG, Ca 3, 31 March 1287). It is probable he was part of the crew on the privateering expedition organized by Pere Borrassà and Bernat Ram against Muslim lands with a vessel of about 20 oars (1305) (AHG, Ca 79, 27 September 1305). We also know that around February 1316, he purchased a cuirass and an iron helmet from another man from Castelló (AHG, Ca 89, 16 April 1316). Pere Ferrer, a crossbowman at Cape Orlando, had served as a lower-ranking officer on the 1287 expedition led by Castelló, Albesa, and Egidió (AHG, Ca 14, 15 May 1287). Guillem Cervià and Pere Ramon, rowers in Sicily, also participated in privateering in 1300 (AHG, Ca 75, 20 February 1301). Similarly, it is likely that Ponç Oliveres, Guillem Llorenç, Bernat Malarç, Joan Puig, and Guillem Rostell, who were present in Sicily in 1299, were related to various individuals sharing the same surnames who are documented in privateering activities before and after that year: Pere Oliveres (1288); Arnau Llorenç, Ponç and Guillem Malarç, Pere Puig, and Bernat Rostell (1305) (AHG, Ca 4, 8 July 1288; AHG, Ca 23, 25 February 1305; AHG, Ca 24, 12 July 1305; AHG, Ca 79, 27 September 1305).

We can also speculate about the whereabouts of Pere Briolf, Pere Nicolau and Pere Teuler on 13 October 1300, 24 March 1301, and 26 June 1308, respectively, when their wives attempted to collect their unpaid wages and declared that their husbands were absent from Empordà.11 Even more intriguingly, we might wonder what Bernat Sardina, Berenguer Gomarell, and Bernat Bruguerol—who were also present in Sicily in 1299—were doing at the far end of the Mediterranean (“in partibus Romanie”) when, in April 1327, their wives requested payment of the amounts still owed to them by the royal administration. In the cases of Sardina and Gomarell, both women acted as administrators of their husbands’ estates as well as those of their three children. In Bruguerol’s case, his sister sought to recover his possessions in the East, as he had died there not long before (AHG, Ca 120, 18 April 1327). Were they there for commercial purposes? That is certainly possible. Although most notarial records from Castelló refer to commercial expeditions along the Catalan and Occitan coasts (see the Appendix A, Table A6), there is some evidence of men venturing farther afield. For example, in March 1296, Pere Giró prepared to travel to “Romanie” with 125 lliures entrusted to him by his father aboard a ship owned by the Castelló native Pere Sabater and his partners—the earliest known reference to such a voyage (AHG, Ca 10, 11 March 1296). Alternatively, could they have been there on military service? In truth, even Sardina’s wife was uncertain of his precise whereabouts, as her own words indicate: “nunc dicitur esse in partibus Romanie”.

What is certain is that the Gomarells, Sardinas, and Bruguerols all had strong maritime and military traditions in their families. Besides owning shares in various vessels (see the Appendix A, Table A5), we know that Ponç Gomarell promoted a privateering expedition in 1290 with Joan Egidi using a 40-oar ship; that in March 1287, both men jointly entrusted nearly 60 lliures worth of French cloths for sale in Mallorca; that Bernat Gomarell participated as a “notxerio” in a privateering expedition in 1295—even at an advanced age, given that he already had at least one grandson; and that Francesc Bruguerol was fined for drawing a sword during an incident in Castelló around 1308 and later joined the company of thirty infantrymen led by the Saguer brothers in the conquest of Sardinia in 1323, and before April 1316, Berenguer Bruguerol had sold a cuirass and an iron helmet to the aforementioned Pere Margarit (AHG, Ca 3, 12 March 1287; AHG, Ca 358, 5 December 1290; AHG, Ca 17, 27 May 1295; AHG, Ca 2100, 4 July 1308; AHG, Ca 89, 16 April 1316). During this period (1327), a small Castelló community was established in Greece, between Athens and Thebes, likely a legacy of the Great Catalan Company led by Roger de Flor (Gironella Granés 2024a). This company had departed from Sicily in the early 14th century to fight the Turks in service of the Byzantine emperor—a story well known to historians. In Thebes, records mention Bernat Robert, who in 1326 and 1328 sold various properties in Castelló through his procurator. Shortly before 1331, Bernat Ram died there. Around the same time, there are records of four more individuals from Castelló residing “in vicariatu castri Levadie, in casali vocato Petrochio”: Francesc Marcó, his wife Ramona, their friend Beneta Cabiscola, and Guillem Belda.

We know that in the summer of 1328, Francesc briefly returned to Castelló to deliver 70 sous to Guillem’s mother—money sent by Guillem—and also managed matters regarding the properties of the two women. Notably, this shows that women from Castelló had settled outside Catalan lands. In the case of Beneta Cabiscola, it is plausible she was related to Bernat Cabiscol, a participant in the Sicilian expedition of 1299, since women’s surnames were commonly feminized during this period. Beneta may have been Cabiscol’s wife.

Finally, regarding the participants from Castelló in the Battle of Cape Orlando, we still have relevant information about the usual professions of some of them, as well as about the relationships they established, both in Sicily and in their daily lives in the Empordà region. As for the first point, we know that among the members of the expedition there were three tailors—Guillem Borrell, Arnau Far and Ramon Pere; two mattress makers—Guillem Cargol and Ramon Riera also known as Cargol; a weaver—Berenguer Font; a butcher—Bernat Martí; and a sailor—Pere Serra (see the Appendix A, Table A2). Although this represents only a small percentage of the total, it clearly supports the observation made at the beginning: that the profession of arms was an activity in which a relatively significant portion of society participated, at least at specific moments.

As for the ties among them, we have the example of the aforementioned group of four companions—Ponç Oliveres, Castelló Giró, Pere Ceres, and Bernat Cabiscol—who captured, among other things, a Muslim slave during the battle (Mallorquí, doc. 10 November 1322). This suggests the existence of such groupings within armies or companies of arms, formed not only for battlefield cooperation but also to facilitate financial arrangements, such as acting as guarantors for each other when money was distributed at enlistment. Two of these men, Oliveres and Giró, later joined the company led by Guillem Escarrer through Italy in service of Robert of Anjou. They also conducted business together after their return. On 11 December 1299, Ponç Oliveres, Castelló Giró, and a son of the late Bernat Cabiscol prepared to transport wheat and barley to Marseille on a galley belonging to the Count of Empúries, captained by Arnau Dalmau.12 That same day, they settled accounts related to a shipment of cloth that Giró had purchased in Montpellier and Narbonne, which Cabiscol had transported and sold in Barcelona (AHG, Ca 12, 11 December 1299). Later, their paths diverged.

Bernat Cabiscol’s story has been discussed earlier. Regarding Ponç Oliveres, records show he financed or took part in a privateering expedition in 1305; in that same year, agreed to free two slaves for a set price; in 1310, together with four other men from Castelló, sold a vessel; and in 1319, engaged in the sale of textiles in North Africa, among other activities—though it cannot be confirmed all these references apply to the same person (AHG, Ca 78, 1 April 1305; AHG, Ca 79, 25 October 1305; AHG, Ca 26, 19 January, and 26 April 1310; AHG, Ca 2037, 28 June 1319). The problem of homonyms is even more pronounced for Castelló Giró. Of approximately twenty references dated between 1286 and 1327, we know he invested in or participated in privateering (at least in 1305), was involved in multiple slave transactions, served as one of the four leaders of the municipal council in Castelló in 1317 and 1321, and acted as procurator of the local hospital for the poor in 1323 (AHG, Ca 2087, 6 March 1286; AHG, Ca 23, 18 December 1304, and 20 January 1305; AHG, Ca 78, 7 April 1305; AHG, Ca 78 bis, 7 and 17 May 1305; AHG, Ca 94, 25 February 1317; AHG, Ca 105, 26 September 1321; AHG, Ca 110, 6 May 1323). As noted, in 1326 he represented Bernat Robert legally in Thebes and in 1327 acted as arbiter alongside Ponç Oliveres in a dispute between a Valencian shipowner, Castelló Benet—likely related to the Benet family that had members fight at Cape Orlando—and a man from Castelló over a grain shipment from Roses to Aigües Mortes (AHG, Ca 120, 7 February 1327).

Undoubtedly, the information currently available raises important questions about the pitfalls of recurring names, yet these challenges also provide motivation and compelling reasons for further research.

3.2. The Conditions of the Journey: Wages and Weaponry

The records from the men of Castelló who took part in James II’s expedition to Sicily in 1299 still offer valuable insights into the agreed wages, the roles each individual played aboard the ships, and the weapons they carried. Regarding wages, somewhat surprisingly, the data is sparse; formal claims for unpaid wages rarely specify the amounts owed and even less frequently detail the originally agreed terms. Occasionally, discrepancies appear—such as those involving Pere Nicolau and Pere Terrer—though it remains unclear whether these arose from errors or other unknown factors (see the Table A2 in the Appendix A).

One of the most detailed accounts concerns Bernat Martí, a butcher or meat seller, who reports that his salary as a rower for four months was 65 sous. This aligns with the wages of three other rowers from nearby towns around Castelló who also enlisted—earning 60, 66, and 68 sous for four months—and corresponds with the pay received by rowers contracted by the Empordà-based corsairs during the same period.13 These figures highlight disparities in pay even among participants holding similar positions, and they reveal that wages were lower than one might initially expect. Historiography has already noted that such wages point to motivations beyond salary for participants (Orsi Lázaro 2018; Burguera-Puigserver 2025).

In the case of privateering, these relatively modest wages—especially compared to pay for less risky activities—may have been offset by the opportunity to invest their earnings, or part of them, into the expedition. In the event of success, profits could increase significantly.14 Regarding the expedition to Sicily, the case of four men from Castelló who captured various goods and a Saracen slave suggests a similar reality of profit sharing. Unfortunately, our data remain limited. We know only that in November 1322, Ponç Oliveres, Castelló Giró, Pere Ceres, and one of the sons of the late Bernat Cabiscol (who served as a crossbowman on a galley captained by fellow Castelló native Joan Sacasa; no claims survive for the other three) petitioned the executors of Guillem Escarrer—also from Castelló and captain of the royal galley—for payment of 400 sous. This represented the value of a captive Escarrer had taken from the count’s galley in his absence and kept for himself. Though details are incomplete, this suggests there was substantial booty to be divided among the crew. The 100 sous that each of these individuals would have received already represented a significant increase over their initial wages, especially when factoring in the sale or distribution of other spoils (“les altres cozes que en aquela batayla avien goanyades”).

Naturally, some crew members earned more than the simple rowers. For example, Bernat Malarç, a bow rower on the royal galley who died during the expedition, had an agreed salary twice as high—120 sous for four months. It is safe to assume that crossbowmen and other specialized positions such as lower-ranking officers received higher pay than rowers. Indeed, in 1305, each of the forty “bonos et sufficientes et bene preparatos” crossbowmen led by the Castelló native Bartomeu Blanc on an expedition to Narbonne received 80 sous for one month of service. As for the “notxerios”, their pay undoubtedly reflected their maritime expertise and training. Among the Empordà corsairs, such crew members earned between 3% and 4% of the expedition’s profits, without bearing any risk of losses—on voyages that, as previously noted, might involve up to fifty people aside from the promoters.15

Regarding the second issue raised at the beginning of this section—the roles of the various individuals aboard the galleys and the weaponry they might have had at their disposal to face a foreseeable confrontation with the Sicilian fleet—we primarily have information about their occupations. In most cases, the claims specify the position held on board the ships, and often indicate whether the individual was assigned to the outbound or return galley. Apart from the “còmits” and “nauxers” mentioned in the previous section, we count forty-six crossbowmen, thirty-seven rowers, one servant, and several instances in which certain individuals are mentioned with two different roles in separate claims. We cannot determine whether these discrepancies are due to errors, homonyms that elude us, or changes resulting from crew transfers between ships. In some cases, individuals held multiple occupations, such as Ramon Bou, a notary from Castelló who enlisted as “ballisterio et scriptore” during the expedition led by the Count of Empúries and his Hospitaller brother at the beginning of the 14th century, as noted earlier.16

Concerning weaponry, the documents regarding the Sicilian expedition provide no specific details. However, information about some expedition members and their relatives offers partial insight. Notably, some individuals owned their own arms. For example, Pere Margarit owed 20 sous for iron cuirasses and an iron helmet sold to him by Berenguer Bruguerol in 1316 (AHG, Ca 89, 16 April 1316). Similarly, Francesc Bruguerol, a relative, had to borrow money from his uncle Castelló in 1308 to pay a fine imposed by comital justice for involvement in a sword-related incident or, at minimum, for brandishing a sword in public (AHG, Ca 2100, 4 July 1308). For those without personal weaponry, rentals were possible. Around September 1325, Joan Cames intended to enlist in a fleet of Mallorcan galleys and rented from Joan Calabró—possibly the same individual who participated at Cape Orlando in 1299—an iron helmet, a gorget, and some cloth-reinforced cuirasses valued at 45 sous, for six weeks at a price of 7 sous (AHG, Ca 368, 19 September 1325). Even non-combatants sometimes possessed arms, like Ponç Sunyer, a sailor and caulker, who, when hired for a one-year term by Arnau Dalmau in 1299, demanded delivery of “cohirasses et unum capellum” and insisted he not be compelled to go “in ligno armato contra sarracenos” (AHG, Ca 12, 22 November 1299).

In many cases, if not all, the organizers endeavored to supply some of the necessary weaponry. For instance, the Empordà corsairs in 1305 saw Guillem Canut purchase two dozen lances, while Pere Borrassà and Bernat Ram acquired one dozen lances and one dozen “ascones” among other items (AHG, Ca 79, 15 July 1305). Canut also acquired some cuirasses and an iron helmet, likely for his own use (AHG, Ca 79, 8 July 1305; AHG, Ca 24, 15 March 1306). Certain expeditions probably included the promoters’ heraldry as well, as may have been the case with the Seguí company at the close of the 13th century. Before departing from Castelló toward Tlemcen, Bernat Seguí owed at least 1000 sous to saddler Berenguer Duran (perhaps the homonymous rower present in Cape Orlando) and a painter from Castelló “ratione armorum per nos ad opus familie nostre a vobis emptorum” (for arms purchased by us for the work of our family) (Gironella Granés 2024a).

Lastly, information related to participants at Cape Orlando in 1299 and other military ventures mentioned herein provides insights into the arms market and prices during the period. In July 1297, Bernat Borrassà commissioned Berenguer Rostell to spend 630 sous on eighteen “cuhiraciis” and eighteen “gorgeriis” (AHG, Ca 20, 30 July 1297). In October of that year, the same Rostell sold ten “pulcras et novas” iron cuirasses to Grau Sardina, an apothecary from Barcelona and likely a relative of the Sardina family referenced here, for 300 sous (AHG, Ca 20, 10 October 1297). In May 1305, Pere Sitjar purchased eight dozen crossbows from a crossbowman from Girona for 300 sous (AHG, Ca 78 bis, 17 May 1305. In July 1309, Pere Ferrer committed to making a suit of armor valued at 80 sous for a wealthy cloth merchant from Peralada who took part in the conquest of Almeria in the service of James II (AHG, Pe 11, 28 July 1309). Naturally, not all pieces of armor carried the same price. Some years later, for example, when the swordsmith from Castelló, Guillem Roca, purchased knives on credit worth 280 sous from a man in Barcelona, he pledged several items—“copertas de medalia equi et unum asuberch militis de medalia et unum capellum ferri militis et unum capellum ferri clientis et manegas de medalia”—valued at 267 sous (AHG, Ca 53, 26 March 1331). Clearly, everyone sought to equip themselves according to their individual needs and means.

4. Conclusions

In the previous sections, we have analyzed various issues concerning the inhabitants of Castelló d’Empúries who took part in the Battle of Cape Orlando in 1299. We have started by examining the local context of the late 13th and early 14th centuries, providing some information about the participation of a good number of residents of Castelló in other maritime and military ventures of varying intensity. We have uncovered several insights about members of the Sicilian expedition, both during the voyage and in their daily lives in the Empordà region or other Mediterranean areas. Finally, we have gathered some data on the wages paid to the members of the expedition and on the weapons they may have carried. All of this, with the intention of contributing to the knowledge of the Catalan war navy during the Late Medieval period.

For some, Cape Orlando was a brief exception in their everyday lives; others, despite having a trade, had already taken part in—or would later participate in—other military endeavors. Some enlisted for the pay or the possibility of sharing in a hypothetical booty; others saw it as a step forward in their advancement within the clientelistic networks of power, as an additional merit toward the longed-for political and social ascent. Motivations varied. In any case, it is a first-rate example of a reality widely known in historiography: the participation of broad sectors of the Late Medieval population in armed events of diverse nature and intensity.

There was certainly a risk. Some died. But the potential benefits could also be considerable. The case of Guillem Escarrer, who commanded the royal galley, serves as an example, as do other members of the Castelló town elite like the Sacasa, Sifreu, Bardoner, or Saguer, among others, for whom participating in this type of expedition was the perfect means to climb the clientelistic networks of power. And also in the case of the more modest individuals, such as the four companions who managed to capture a Saracen slave and other goods during the campaign, which significantly increased the initially agreed-upon wages.

These were not rootless individuals. Although we still lack a comprehensive study of all the participants (something that is actually possible due to the extensive documentation available—though homonymy poses a significant challenge), some questions remain unanswered. Still, we are not talking about wandering mercenaries. In addition to the data presented, we have information suggesting that some enlisted alongside friends, acquaintances, and/or relatives. We find four individuals with the surname Ramon; three with the surnames Benet, Bernat, and Ferrer; and two each with the surnames Cargol, Escolta, Jofre, Jover, Malarç, Martí, Puig, Sabater, Sardina, Soquer, and Terrades. Furthermore, nearly two-thirds of the outstanding wage claims were filed—from Castelló itself, by the men involved, or their wives, children, or other relatives—as late as the 1320s, particularly in 1327. Certainly, as noted, some led relatively nomadic lives or settled in distant Mediterranean regions. Yet even in these cases, a degree of rootedness is evident. The reason we have information on inhabitants of Castelló who settled in Greece is, in fact, due to the ties they still maintained with their place of origin.

Finally, it should be highlighted here that in the Appendix A, two tables are included that provide valuable information about the commercial maritime activity of Empúries—specifically, ship prices, itineraries, and the crews and goods transported on board. We have not analyzed them here, as much of the related documentation remains unpublished, but we can draw some useful insights from them relevant to our topic. Regarding prices, for instance, we have data on the sale of three-quarters of the comital galley Catània just after its return from Sicily, as well as prices for some newly built smaller vessels. The price of a ship depended heavily on its usage, so having access to prices of new ships is particularly important.

As for maritime trade, we can observe a fleet largely composed of llenys (small vessels) that mostly sailed along the Catalan coast and the Gulf of Lion. Some went farther afield. We also have examples of ships from the Empordà region reaching the Mediterranean islands and North Africa. Still, the majority navigated the nearby coasts, typically with crews of five to ten sailors (sometimes more in the case of privateering, though not reaching very high numbers), braving natural hazards and other possible challenges. Lords of the sea, lords of war.