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An ''hidalgo'' (, ) or a '' fidalgo'' (, ) is a member of the Spanish or Portuguese
nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The character ...
; the feminine forms of the terms are ''hidalga'', in Spanish, and ''fidalga'', in Portuguese and Galician. In popular usage, the term ''hidalgo'' identifies a nobleman without a hereditary title. In practice, ''hidalgos'' were exempted from paying taxes, yet owned little
real property In English common law, real property, real estate, immovable property or, solely in the US and Canada, realty, is land which is the property of some person and all structures (also called improvements or fixtures) integrated with or aff ...
.


Etymology

Since the twelfth century, the phrase ''fijo d'algo'' (lit. son of something) and its contraction, ''fidalgo'', were used in the
Kingdom of Castile The Kingdom of Castile (; es, Reino de Castilla, la, Regnum Castellae) was a large and powerful state on the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages. Its name comes from the host of castles constructed in the region. It began in the 9th ce ...
and in the
Kingdom of Portugal The Kingdom of Portugal ( la, Regnum Portugalliae, pt, Reino de Portugal) was a monarchy in the western Iberian Peninsula and the predecessor of the modern Portuguese Republic. Existing to various extents between 1139 and 1910, it was also kn ...
to identify a type of
nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The character ...
. In Portugal, the
cognate In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words in different languages that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymological ancestor in a common parent language. Because language change can have radical ef ...
remained ''fidalgo'', which identified nobles of a similar status to a ''hidalgo'' in Spain. In the Kingdom of Aragón, the ''infanzón'' was the noble counterpart of the Castilian hidalgo. The pronunciation changes in Spanish occurred during the late
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
, the letter-F sounding was lost, and replaced with the letter-H spelling and pronunciation of ''hidalgo''. (see ''
History of the Spanish language The language known today as Spanish is derived from a dialect of spoken Latin, which was brought to the Iberian Peninsula by the Romans after their occupation of the peninsula that started in the late 3rd century BC. Influenced by the peninsul ...
'') In time, the term included the lower-ranking
gentry Gentry (from Old French ''genterie'', from ''gentil'', "high-born, noble") are "well-born, genteel and well-bred people" of high social class, especially in the past. Word similar to gentle imple and decentfamilies ''Gentry'', in its widest c ...
, the untitled, lower stratum of the nobility who were exempted from taxation. The ''
Siete Partidas The ''Siete Partidas'' (, "Seven-Part Code") or simply ''Partidas'', was a Castilian statutory code first compiled during the reign of Alfonso X of Castile (1252–1284), with the intent of establishing a uniform body of normative rules for the ...
'' (Leyes de Partidas), suggests that the word ''hidalgo'' derives from ''itálico'' ("italic"), a man with full Roman citizenship. In the previous
Visigoth The Visigoths (; la, Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, Wisi) were an early Germanic people who, along with the Ostrogoths, constituted the two major political entities of the Goths within the Roman Empire in late antiquity, or what is kn ...
monarchies, the condition of the ''hidalgo'' was that of a freeman without land wealth, but with the nobleman's rights to wear arms and to be exempt from taxation, in compensation for military service; the military obligation and the social condition remained in force by the ''
Fuero Juzgo The ''Fuero Juzgo'' () was a codex of Spanish laws enacted in Castile in 1241 by Fernando III. It is essentially a translation of the ''Liber Iudiciorum'' that was formulated in 654 by the Visigoths. The ''Fuero Juzgo'' was first applied legally ...
'' law.


Origins

The ''hidalguía'' has its origins in fighting men of the ''
Reconquista The ' ( Spanish, Portuguese and Galician for "reconquest") is a historiographical construction describing the 781-year period in the history of the Iberian Peninsula between the Umayyad conquest of Hispania in 711 and the fall of the N ...
''. By the tenth century the term ''infanzón'' appears in Asturian-Leonese documents as a synonym for the Spanish and
Medieval Latin Medieval Latin was the form of Literary Latin used in Roman Catholic Western Europe during the Middle Ages. In this region it served as the primary written language, though local languages were also written to varying degrees. Latin functioned ...
terms ''caballero'' and ''miles'' (both, "
knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...
"). These ''infanzones'' were
vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerai ...
s of the great
magnate The magnate term, from the late Latin ''magnas'', a great man, itself from Latin ''magnus'', "great", means a man from the higher nobility, a man who belongs to the high office-holders, or a man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or ot ...
s and
prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pre ...
s and ran their estates for them as petty nobility. In these first centuries it was still possible to become a ''miles'' simply by being able to provide, and afford the costs of, mounted military service.Sánchez-Albornoz, "''España y el feudalismo carolingio''", 778-787; Suárez Fernández, ''Historia de España'', 141-142; MacKay, ''Spain in the Middle Ages'', 47-50, 56-57, 103-104, 155; and Menéndez Pidal, ''La España del Cid'', 86-88, 544-545. Only by the mid-twelfth century did the ranks of the knights begin to be—in theory—closed by lineage. In the frontier towns that were created as the Christian kingdoms pushed into Muslim land, the ''caballeros'', and not the magnates who often were far away, came to dominate politics, society and cultural patronage. From their ranks were also drawn the representatives of the towns and cities when the ''
cortes Cortes, Cortés, Cortês, Corts, or Cortès may refer to: People * Cortes (surname), including a list of people with the name ** Hernán Cortés (1485–1547), a Spanish conquistador Places * Cortes, Navarre, a village in the South border of ...
'' were convened by kings. It was in the twelfth century that this class, along with the upper nobility, began to be referred to as ''hidalgos''.


Types

''Hidalgos de sangre'' (by virtue of
lineage Lineage may refer to: Science * Lineage (anthropology), a group that can demonstrate its common descent from an apical ancestor or a direct line of descent from an ancestor * Lineage (evolution), a temporal sequence of individuals, populat ...
) are "those for whom there is no memory of its origin and there is no knowledge of any document mentioning a royal grant, which obscurity is universally praised even more than those noblemen who know otherwise their origin", or in other words, an immemorial noble. When challenged, an ''hidalgo de sangre'' may obtain a judicial sentence validating his nobility from the Royal Chancillería of Valladolid or Granada, if he can prove that it has been accepted local society and custom. In this case, the resulting legal document that verifies his nobility is called a ''carta ejecutoria de hidalguia'' ( letters patent of nobility). To qualify as an ''hidalgo solariego'' ("ancestral hidalgo"), one had to prove that all four of one's grandparents were hidalgos. ''Hidalgos solariegos'' were regarded as the most noble and treated with the most respect. ''Hidalgos de privilegio'' (by virtue of royal privilege) and ''hidalgos de Real Provision'' (by virtue of meritorious acts) entail a grant of nobility from His Majesty the King of Spain in his position as monarch, or from his position as protector of a military confraternity or hermandad. ''Hidalgo de bragueta'' (" fly-of-the-trousers hidalgo") obtained tax exemption for having seven sons in legal matrimony. In Asturias, Cantabria and other regions of Spain every seven years the King ordered the creation of ''padrones'' ("registers") where the population was classified either as ''hidalgos nobles'', and therefore, exempt from taxation due to their military status or ''pecheros'' (from an archaic verb, ''pechar'', "to pay") who comprised the ''estado llano'' ("lower ranks") and were excluded from military service and had to pay taxes. These ''padrones'' constitute nowadays a source of information about population genealogy and distribution as well as proof of nobility in certain cases. Over the years the title lost its significance, especially in Spain. Kings routinely awarded the title in exchange for personal favors. By the time of the reign of the
House of Bourbon The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a European dynasty of French origin, a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Navarre in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Spani ...
, over half a million people enjoyed tax exemptions, putting tremendous strain on the royal state which wasn't calling their services to arms but relied more on professional armies and costly mercenaries. Attempts were made to reform the title and by the early nineteenth century with the forced levies to military service of all citizens by
conscription Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to Ancient history, antiquity and it continues in some countries to th ...
without any minimum requirements of nobility or pay or loyalty by honour but by
coercion Coercion () is compelling a party to act in an involuntary manner by the use of threats, including threats to use force against a party. It involves a set of forceful actions which violate the free will of an individual in order to induce a des ...
on
desertion Desertion is the abandonment of a military duty or Military base, post without permission (a Pass (military), pass, Shore leave, liberty or Leave (U.S. military), leave) and is done with the intention of not returning. This contrasts with u ...
, it had entirely disappeared, along with the social class it had originally signified and most of its centuries-old developed
code of honour Code of Honour (Chinese: 正义武馆) is a Malaysian-Singaporean television drama series and the fifth production by MediaCorp Studios Malaysia Sdn Bhd. It stars Elvin Ng , Rui En, Andie Chen , Paige Chua , Zheng Geping , Chris Tong & Tiffany ...
in the nation's social culture. Influenced by policies in France, hidalgos all became 'pecheros' (taxpayers), without the privileges of the former title, and along with all citizens were also subject to conscription. Both
estates of the realm The estates of the realm, or three estates, were the broad orders of social hierarchy used in Christendom (Christian Europe) from the Middle Ages to early modern Europe. Different systems for dividing society members into estates developed a ...
(social classes) became combined, compulsorily contributing to the nation in service and taxes without exemption, while the titled nobility and royalty kept their former privileges and exemptions.


Literature

In literature the ''hidalgo'' is usually portrayed as a noble who has lost nearly all of his family's wealth but still held on to the privileges and honours of the nobility. The prototypical fictional ''hidalgo'' is Don Quixote, who was given the sobriquet 'the Ingenious Hidalgo' by his creator, Miguel de Cervantes. In the novel Cervantes has Don Quixote satirically present himself as an ''hidalgo de sangre'' and aspire to live the life of a knight-errant despite the fact that his economic position does not allow him to truly do so. Don Quixote's possessions allowed to him a meager life devoted to his reading obsession, yet his concept of honour led him to emulate the knights-errant. The picaresque novel '' Lazarillo'' features an hidalgo so poor that he spreads breadcrumbs on his clothes, to simulate having eaten a meal. His ''hidalgo'' honour forbids him from manual work but does not provide him with subsistence.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator. His original works include "Paul Revere's Ride", ''The Song of Hiawatha'', and '' Evangeline''. He was the first American to completely trans ...
's ''Tales of a Wayside Inn'' includes "The Theologian's Tale" which recounts the tragedy of Hidalgo who betrays his two daughters to the Grand Inquisitor. Hidalgo himself lights the fires, then from a tower casts himself into the depths of despair.


See also

*
Cuban nobility Cuban nobility encompasses all the individuals and families recognized in Cuba as members of the aristocratic class, hence possessing inheritance privileges. History The 19th century Spanish Empire saw much of its power weakened by its rival cou ...
* Hidalgo (disambiguation) * Principalía


References


Bibliography

* * * * * * *


External links

{{Wikisource1911Enc, Hidalgo (title), Hidalgo *In Spanish
''Hidalgos de España''
(Association of Spanish nobles) Spanish noble titles Spanish words and phrases History of the Spanish language