Bernard Desclot (in Catalan: Bernat Desclot) was a Catalan

chronicle A chronicle (, from Greek ''chroniká'', from , ''chrónos'' – "time") is a historical account of events arranged in chronological order, as in a timeline. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and local events ...

r whose work covering the brief reign of

Peter III of Aragon Peter III of Aragon (In Aragonese, ''Pero''; in Catalan, ''Pere''; in Italian, ''Pietro''; November 1285) was King of Aragon, King of Valencia (as ), and Count of Barcelona (as ) from 1276 to his death. At the invitation of some rebels, he con ...

(1276–1285) forms one of the four '' Catalan Grand Chronicles'' through which the modern historian views thirteenth- and fourteenth century military and political matters in the

Kingdom of Aragon The Kingdom of Aragon (; ; ; ) was a medieval and early modern Monarchy, kingdom on the Iberian Peninsula, corresponding to the modern-day Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Aragon, in Spain. It became a part of the larger ...

and the

Principality of Catalonia The Principality of Catalonia (; ; ; ) was a Middle Ages, medieval and early modern state (polity), state in the northeastern Iberian Peninsula. During most of its history it was in dynastic union with the Kingdom of Aragon, constituting together ...

,The other three sources are the autobiographies of

James I of Aragon James I the Conqueror ( Catalan/Valencian: ''Jaume I or Jaume el Conqueridor''; Aragonese: ''Chaime I'' ''o Conqueridor''; ; 2 February 1208 – 27 July 1276) was King of Aragon, Count of Barcelona, and Lord of Montpellier from 1213 to 1 ...

and

Ramon Muntaner Ramon Muntaner () (1265 – 1336) was a Catalan mercenary and writer who wrote the '' Crònica'', a chronicle of his life, including his adventures as a commander in the Catalan Company. He was born at Peralada. Biography The Catalan Com ...

and the royal chronicle of

Peter IV of Aragon Peter IV (Catalan: ''Pere IV d'Aragó;'' Aragonese; ''Pero IV d'Aragón;'' 5 September 1319 – 6 January 1387), called the Ceremonious (Catalan: ''El Cerimoniós''; Aragonese: ''el Ceremonioso''), was from 1336 until his death the king of ...

. including the "

Aragonese Crusade The Aragonese Crusade (1284–1285), also known as the Crusade of Aragon or Crusade against Catalonia, was a military venture waged by the Kingdom of France against the Crown of Aragon. Fought as an extension of the War of the Sicilian Vespers ...

". Desclot's ''Chronicle'' begins in the eleventh century but gains especial interest when he comes to describe events current within living memory. Bernard's literary model was

Romance Romance may refer to: Common meanings * Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings ** Romantic orientation, the classification of the sex or gender with which a pers ...

, and his account is spiced with dramatic monologues of the central characters and thrilling episodes, such as the escape of Peter's brother,

James II of Majorca James II () (31 May 1243 – 29 May 1311) was King of Majorca and Lord of Montpellier from 1276 until his death. He was the second son of James I of Aragon and his wife, Violant, daughter of Andrew II of Hungary. In 1279, by the Treaty of Perp ...

, from the fortress of

Perpignan Perpignan (, , ; ; ) is the prefectures in France, prefecture of the Pyrénées-Orientales departments of France, department in Southern France, in the heart of the plain of Roussillon, at the foot of the Pyrenees a few kilometres from the Me ...

, through the castle's drains. Nothing of Bernard himself is known save what little can be gleaned through his ''Chronicle''. F.L. Critchlow provided an English translation of the section covering the reign of Peter III in ''Chronicle of the Reign of King Peter III of Aragon, 1276-85'' (Princeton University Press) 1928.

Gallery

Crònica-bernat-desclot-ms-1-BC-f8r.jpg Crònica-desclot-ms-647-BNE.f33r.aragonesos-i-catalans copy.jpg Desclot2.jpg Ms.486 Bib.de Cataluña. Barcelona-2.jpg, Page of Bernard's chronicle (Ms.486 Bib.de Catalunya, Barcelona)

Notes

External links

Webpage dedicated to Bernat Desclot
at the AELC (''

Associació d'Escriptors en Llengua Catalana The Associació d'Escriptors en Llengua Catalana (, "Association of Writers in the Catalan Language", or "Association of Catalan-Language Writers"), also known by the acronym and initialism, acronym AELC, is a professional organisation of authors, p ...

''), written in English, Catalan and Spanish. {{DEFAULTSORT:Desclot, Bernard Chroniclers History of Catalonia Military history of Catalonia Medieval Catalan-language writers Medieval Catalan writers 13th-century historians 1280s births Year of death unknown 13th-century Catalan people