The Treaty of Almizra (or Treaty of Almiçra) was the third of a series of three treaties between the

Crown of Aragon The Crown of Aragon ( , ) an, Corona d'Aragón ; ca, Corona d'Aragó, , , ; es, Corona de Aragón ; la, Corona Aragonum . was a composite monarchy ruled by one king, originated by the dynastic union of the Kingdom of Aragon and the County of ...

and Crown of Castile meant to determine the limits of their expansion into

Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a "historical nationality". The ...

so as to prevent squabbling between the Christian princes. Specifically, it defined the borders of the

Kingdom of Valencia Kingdom commonly refers to: * A monarchy ruled by a king or queen * Kingdom (biology), a category in biological taxonomy Kingdom may also refer to: Arts and media Television * ''Kingdom'' (British TV series), a 2007 British television drama s ...

James I of Aragon James I the Conqueror ( es, Jaime el Conquistador, ca, Jaume el Conqueridor; 2 February 1208 – 27 July 1276) was King of Aragon and Lord of Montpellier from 1213 to 1276; King of Majorca from 1231 to 1276; and Valencia from 1238 to 1 ...

signed it on 26 March 1244, but

Alfonso X of Castile Alfonso X (also known as the Wise, es, el Sabio; 23 November 1221 – 4 April 1284) was King of Castile, León and Kingdom of Galicia, Galicia from 30 May 1252 until his death in 1284. During the April 1257 Imperial election, election of 1257, ...

did not affirm it until much later. According to the treaty, all lands south of a line from Biar to

Villajoyosa La Vila Joiosa () is a coastal town and municipality in the Province of Alicante, Valencian Community, Spain, by the Mediterranean Sea. The town is known to the locals simply as La Vila. It is the historic and administrative capital of the ''co ...

through Busot were reserved for Castile. This ended most further Aragonese expansion on the Iberian peninsula. The treaty succeeded those of Tudilén and Cazorla, which were constantly breached. The clause by which neither party seemed capable of residing was that neither crown should diminish the partition assigned to the other or put any obstacle in the way of the other attaining unto his portion. That clause was broken when James I conquered Caudete,

Villena Villena () is a city in Spain, in the Valencian Community. It is located at the northwest part of Alicante, and borders to the west with Castilla-La Mancha and Murcia, to the north with the province of Valencia and to the east and south with th ...

, and Sax, which technically belonged to Castile. At the same time, the ''infante'' Alfonso was holding

Xàtiva Xàtiva (, es, Játiva ) is a town in eastern Spain, in the province of Valencia, on the right (western) bank of the river Albaida and at the junction of the Valencia– Murcia and Valencia Albacete railways. It is located 25 km we ...

in the zone assigned to Aragon. The treaty first received mention in the second chapter of '' Llibre dels fets''. The text of the treaty itself, however, was finally published in 1905. The treaty was signed in Campo de Mirra, where a monument, erected in 1977, still ommemorates it. In 1296, during a break in the war between the two crowns,

James II of Aragon James II (Catalan: ''Jaume II''; Spanish: ''Jaime II;'' 10 April 1267 – 2 or 5 November 1327), called the Just,, an, Chaime lo Chusto, es, Jaime el Justo. was the King of Aragon and Valencia and Count of Barcelona from 1291 to 1327. H ...

conquered the

Kingdom of Murcia After roughly two decades as a protectorate of the Crown of Castile, the territory of the Taifa of Murcia became the Kingdom of Murcia ( es, Reino de Murcia, links=no, a territorial jurisdiction of the Crown of Castile) in the wake of its conque ...

. The kingdom was divided and Medio Vinalopó, Bajo Vinalopó, L'Alacantí, and

Vega Baja del Segura Vega Baja del Segura (in Spanish) or Baix Segura (in Valencian) is a ''comarca'' in the province of Alicante, Valencian Community, Spain. To the north its neighbouring ''comarcas'' are the Baix Vinalopó and Vinalopó Mitjà. Its southern limi ...

were incorporated into Valencia by the treaties of Torrellas (1304) and

Elche Elche ( ca-valencia, Elx) is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality of Spain, belonging to the province of Alicante, in the Valencian Community. According to 2014 data, Elche has a population of 228,647 inhabitants,

(1305).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Treaty Of Almizra Almizra Almizra Almizra Treaties of the Crown of Castile 1244 in Europe 1240s in Europe 13th century in Aragon 13th century in Castile Aragonese conquest of Valencia