The Treaty of Capdepera was an agreement signed between King

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 1276 ...

and Abu'Abd Allah Muhammad, the Muslim

qadi A qāḍī ( ar, قاضي, Qāḍī; otherwise transliterated as qazi, cadi, kadi, or kazi) is the magistrate or judge of a '' sharīʿa'' court, who also exercises extrajudicial functions such as mediation, guardianship over orphans and mino ...

on the island of

Menorca Menorca or Minorca (from la, Insula Minor, , smaller island, later ''Minorica'') is one of the Balearic Islands located in the Mediterranean Sea belonging to Spain. Its name derives from its size, contrasting it with nearby Majorca. Its capi ...

, on June 17, 1231, in the current

Majorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest island in the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain and located in the Mediterranean. The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Bal ...

n town of

Capdepera Capdepera is a small municipality on Majorca, one of the Balearic Islands, Spain. Capdepera is a historical village just 8 km from Artà. Originally there had been a watchtower where the Castle of Capdepera stands today which was used to guar ...

. The treaty was signed at the

Castle of Capdepera The Castle of Capdepera is a walled fortress located in the Spanish municipality of Capdepera, on the island of Majorca. It is one of the largest castles on the island. Its construction began in 310, but in the fourteenth century it was rebuilt on ...

, in what was known as the "Torre den Nunis". The treaty permitted the island of

to remain under Muslim rule, while remaining subject to the

Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and an, Aragón ; ca, Aragó ) is an autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces (from north to sou ...

ese king by means of the payment of a tribute. Having conquered Majorca, James I decided against an invasion of the neighbouring island because he needed the forces for the conquest of

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...

. Thus he resorted to a stratagem of dissuasion. He ordered huge bonfires, which could be seen from Menorca, to be lit in the town so that the Muslims who lived there would think that there was a great army ready to invade. The committee in charge of going to Menorca to

parley A parley (from french: link=no, parler – "to speak") refers to a discussion or conference, especially one designed to end an argument or hostilities between two groups of people. The term can be used in both past and present tense; in prese ...

was formed by the Master of the Knights Templar, Fray Ramón de Serra, the knight Bernardo de Santa Eugenia, and Pero Masa, lord of Sangarrén.

References

{{Reflist Capdecera Treaties of the Kingdom of Majorca 1231 in Europe Reconquista 13th century in Al-Andalus 13th century in Aragon 1230s treaties