The

Fuero (), (), () or () is a Spanish legal term and concept. The word comes from Latin , an open space used as a market, tribunal and meeting place. The same Latin root is the origin of the French terms and , and the Portuguese terms and ; all ...

s of Navarre ( es, Fuero General de Navarra, eu, Nafarroako Foru Orokorra, meaning in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

''General Charter of Navarre'') were the laws of the

Kingdom of Navarre The Kingdom of Navarre (; , , , ), originally the Kingdom of Pamplona (), was a Basque kingdom that occupied lands on both sides of the western Pyrenees, alongside the Atlantic Ocean between present-day Spain and France. The medieval state took ...

up to 1841, tracing its origins to the Early Middle Ages and issued from Basque consuetudinary law prevalent across the (western) Pyrenees. They were a sort of constitution which regulated the social order and defined the position of the king, the nobility, and the judicial procedures, which meant that the royal decisions needed to conform to the provisions set out by the charters. The first such written document goes back to 1238. The next codifications are attested by modifications or amendments (''amejoramientos'') dated to 1330 and 1419. After 1512, Navarre was divided into two, with

Upper Navarre Navarre (; es, Navarra ; eu, Nafarroa ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre ( es, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, links=no ; eu, Nafarroako Foru Komunitatea, links=no ), is a foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, ...

a part of the nascent

Kingdom of Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

and

Lower Navarre Lower Navarre ( eu, Nafarroa Beherea/Baxenabarre; Gascon/Bearnese: ''Navarra Baisha''; french: Basse-Navarre ; es, Baja Navarra) is a traditional region of the present-day French ''département'' of Pyrénées-Atlantiques. It corresponds to the ...

an independent kingdom (incorporated into

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

in 1620).

Upper Navarre

From 1515 until 1841, Upper Navarre was in effect an autonomous kingdom in personal union with the Spanish crown. It was allowed to retain a large degree of home rule, preserving much of the institutions of the independent kingdom, not exempt of tensions with the ever centralizing drive of Castile and attempts at reunification with independent Navarre to the north of the Pyrenees led by the Parliament. In 1528, the ''Cortes'' of Navarre sitting at Pamplona authorised a simplified law code known as the ''Fuero Reducido''. Although widely used, it was never confirmed by the king. A viceroy represented the Spanish monarch. The ''Cortes'' (the Parliament) was the main legislative body, composed of three estates of clergy, nobles and burgesses. There was a Royal Council and a Supreme Court, as well as a ''Diputación del Reyno'' or Government of Navarre (similar to the ''Generalitat'' of Aragon and the ''Generalitat''s of Catalonia and Valencia).

Lower Navarre

An Occitan translation of the Navarrese ''fueros'' was made under the title ''Los Fors et Costumas deu Royaume de Navarre deça-ports''. It was approved by Henry III in 1608, then confirmed by Louis II in 1611 before Navarre was integrated into France in 1620. It was re-confirmed by Louis in 1622. It was not printed until 1644 and its last printing was in 1722. It was in effect until the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...

. A modern edition was published in 1968.Joaquín José Salcedo Izu, review
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References

Medieval legal codes Kingdom of Navarre Basque history Legal history of Spain 1230s in law 1238 establishments in Europe {{Europe-law-stub

Upper Navarre

Lower Navarre

See also

References