The political and judiciary creation and uses of memory. Between the imaginary gentleman figure and the reality of the seigneurial manor in the Cantabrian coast: la Puebla de Escalante (Cantabria) at the end of the Middle Ages

Abstract

This article analyses the creation of memory by the people of the town of Escalante, modern Cantabria, and the way it was employed in judicial and political arenas as a means of ending the domination of the village by various members of the Guevara lineage from the late 14th century. By examining judicial documents generated during the lawsuits that the villagers fought against their seigneurs throughout the 15th century, I shall illustrate how memories were activated and how they were used in those, and later, legal processes. In order to achieve this, I shall examine the context within which the forensic enquiries were undertaken. Secondly, I shall follow the course of the judicial dispute and define how memory was created and presented in favour of the villagers’ positions. Finally, I shall investigate the differences between the imaginary constructed during interrogations on the basis of this recreated memory, and the reality of the continued aristocratic domination over the town.