The Catalan Republic ( ca, República Catalana, ) was a short-lived independent state under French protection proclaimed in 1641 by the States-General of

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the north ...

led by

Pau Claris Pau Claris i Casademunt (; 1 January 1586 – 27 February 1641) was a Catalan lawyer, clergyman and 94th President of the Deputation of the General of Catalonia at the beginning of the Catalan Revolt. On 16 January 1641 he proclaimed the Cata ...

, during the

Reapers' War The Reapers' War ( ca, Guerra dels Segadors, , es, Guerra de los Segadores), also known as the Catalan Revolt, was a conflict that affected a large part of the Principality of Catalonia between the years of 1640 and 1659. It had an enduring ef ...

. The States-General of Catalonia, headed by the President of the Deputation of the General of Catalonia (or Generalitat) Pau Claris, proclaimed the Catalan Republic on 17 January 1641. On 23 January 1641 the ''Braços Generals'' led by Pau Claris proclaimed

Louis XIII of France Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown ...

as Count of Barcelona, putting the

Principality of Catalonia The Principality of Catalonia ( ca, Principat de Catalunya, la, Principatus Cathaloniæ, oc, Principat de Catalonha, es, Principado de Cataluña) was a Middle Ages, medieval and early modern state (polity), state in the northeastern Iberian P ...

under French sovereignty. Louis XIII was succeeded upon his death in 1643 by

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Vers ...

(the 'Sun King'), who remained Count of Barcelona until 1652, when Catalonia was reincorporated into the

Spanish Monarchy , coatofarms = File:Coat_of_Arms_of_Spanish_Monarch.svg , coatofarms_article = Coat of arms of the King of Spain , image = Felipe_VI_in_2020_(cropped).jpg , incumbent = Felipe VI , incumbentsince = 19 Ju ...

History

During the

which started in 1640 (and included as a part of the Franco-Spanish War) the States-General of Catalonia ( ca,

Junta de Braços The Junta de Braços or Braços Generals (''States-General'') was, during the early modern age, an institution of the Principality of Catalonia, convened by the Generalitat of Catalonia in cases of emergency or urgency. It was composed by the rep ...

or ), an extraordinary council of representatives of the

Catalan Courts The Catalan Courts or General Court of Catalonia ( ca, Corts Catalanes or ) was the policymaking and parliamentary body of the Principality of Catalonia from the 13th to the 18th century. Composed by the king and the three estates of the realm ...

without the king, summoned by the Generalitat, sought support in France and was appointed plenipotentiary of the King of France on 29 August 1640. On 27 October an agreement was finally reached with du Plessis-Besançon to obtain supplies against the army of the King of Spain directed by Pedro Fajardo, Marquis of los Vélez. With the victory of the army of the Marquis of Los Vélez in

Tarragona Tarragona (, ; Phoenician: ''Tarqon''; la, Tarraco) is a port city located in northeast Spain on the Costa Daurada by the Mediterranean Sea. Founded before the fifth century BC, it is the capital of the Province of Tarragona, and part of Tar ...

on 23 December it continued its advance towards

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

, while the French army of d'Espenan proceeded to leave Catalonia to France at the beginning of January 1641. Negotiations with the French intensified, on 3 January a delegation of three Catalans met with

Cardinal Richelieu Armand Jean du Plessis, Duke of Richelieu (; 9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642), known as Cardinal Richelieu, was a French clergyman and statesman. He was also known as ''l'Éminence rouge'', or "the Red Eminence", a term derived from the ...

who assured them protection if they were a republic like

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

. In this sense on 14 January du Plessis-Besançon went at the residence of the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

of the Deputation of the General of Catalonia or Generalitat, Pau Claris, to still conferring. From this negotiation, on 16 January, Pau Claris presented a proposal before the States-General by which the King of France agreed to put the Principality under his protection if Catalonia changed its government to a

republic A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...

. On 17 January 1641, the States-General of Catalonia proclaimed the Catalan Republic under French protection for the first time. A week later, following the defeat of the Catalan army in the , near Barcelona, du Plessis-Besançon managed to convince the Catalan authorities that the help they needed could only be obtained from France if they recognized Louis XIII of France as sovereign. Pau Claris appealed on 23 January to Louis XIII, recognizing him as

Count of Barcelona The Count of Barcelona ( ca, Comte de Barcelona, es, Conde de Barcelona, french: Comte de Barcelone, ) was the ruler of the County of Barcelona and also, by extension and according with the Usages of Barcelona, usages and Catalan constitutions, of ...

(as Louis I) and placed the Principality of Catalonia under French sovereignty. On 26 January 1641, at the end of the Battle of Montjuïc, the army of Philip IV was defeated by a Franco-Catalan army and had to withdraw. Pau Claris died a month later. Louis XIV was titled as Count of Barcelona in succession to his father in 1643. Finally, the dismissal of the Count-Duke of Olivares, the ravages caused by the famine and the plague, the commitment made by Philip IV to respect the Catalan constitutions and institutions, and the retaking of Barcelona by Philip's army put an end to the war in 1652, and the Principality of Catalonia was reincorporated into the

Monarchy of Spain , coatofarms = File:Coat_of_Arms_of_Spanish_Monarch.svg , coatofarms_article = Coat of arms of the King of Spain , image = Felipe_VI_in_2020_(cropped).jpg , incumbent = Felipe VI , incumbentsince = 19 Ju ...

References

External links

First Catalan Republic
{{Catalonia topics States and territories established in 1641 History of Catalonia Politics of Catalonia Former republics Reapers' War Thirty Years' War Former countries in Spanish history Former countries in French history 1652 disestablishments 1641 establishments in Spain