Medieval Spain was a patriarchal society, yet elite women were able to maintain autonomy and gain independence due to the Visigothic laws regarding partible inheritance. These laws increased women’s autonomy as both brothers and sisters inherited wealth and property equally from their parents. Marital wealth was considered separate, with children inheriting from individual parents, not between spouses. This paper will be divided into two parts: first it will examine the inheritance laws in Book IV of The Visigothic Code. It will then review the lasting impact these laws had on women’s lives, as well as on their positions in society, both during Visigoth rule and the ensuing centuries. By examining the lives of royal women in medieval Spain, this paper will argue partible inheritance laws developed under The Visigothic Code increased women’s autonomy and gave them more power within society.

The Visigothic Code combined Roman and Germanic aspects of law, bringing all of Iberia under the same jurisdiction. The laws were the product of the conquered Roman’s influence on the Visigoths as they adapted to the new society. Known as Lex Visigothorum, the code was first written in 654 CE under King Recceswinth.[1] Book IV, Title II of The Visigothic Code specifically discusses partible inheritance laws. It highlights how wealth and property were to be managed in the event of death, and the specific order in which inheritance shall occur. The Visigothic Code offers insight into the laws of inheritance within the Visigoth kingdom.

An examination of the Visigothic Code regarding inheritance laws demonstrates the rights women had to property and wealth under Visigoth law. When analyzing Book IV, Title II, the equality between genders is apparent. The Code states that “brothers and sisters shall share equally in the inheritance of their parents… the sisters shall have the property equally with their brothers.”[2] This concept is fundamentally different from many other nations in Europe. Fernandez describes the differing systems of inheritance in his article, “In the name of the Father: Inheritance Systems and the Dynamics of State Capacity.” He explains, “historically, European regions systematically favored men during medieval times, and the system of male-preference cognatic primogeniture was widely used.”[3] Primogeniture inheritance saw the sole heir as the eldest male son, a system that differs greatly from partible inheritance, which gives all children an equal share, regardless of gender. This change to partible inheritance under Visigothic rule brought an increase of women’s rights as they were able to inherit wealth and property from their parents equally along side their brothers, a practice that was both unusual and unique in medieval Europe.

While brothers and sisters inherited wealth equally from their parents, the wealth of husbands and wives was separate under Visigothic law. Law XIII reads that if a mother dies and the children are still under age, the father is to hold onto the maternal property until the children turn twenty, and then “shall give to them half of what they are entitled to from their mother’s estate… the remaining half the father shall reserve for himself… and after his death, it shall descend to his children.”[4] Law XIV states the rules for a woman whose husband dies. It says, “A mother, during her lifetime… shall share equally with her children in the income derived from the estate of her deceased husband. But she cannot give away, or sell… her share of the property.”[5] The only time husband and wife inherited from each other was when “they leave no relatives nearer than the seventh degree.”[6] These laws display the proceedings for inheritance after the death of a husband or wife.

Remarrying could interfere with a spouse’s inheritance. The law clearly states that a woman must remain a widow, or else she forfeits her inheritance to her children immediately.[7] This is also applicable to the husband, although slightly different. The law states that if a widowed husband remarries, he may retain control of the property, but he must create a legally binding inventory of the estate that indicates the inheritance of the children “in order that none of the property [of the deceased mother] may be lost.”[8] These laws appear to have been put in place to protect the property and wealth of the deceased, ensuring it is available for the children and not inherited by a new spouse.

What impact did the Visigoth inheritance laws have on women during Visigothic rule? Lucy Pick discusses the Visigoth kingdom in her book, Her Father’s Daughter. Pick explains how the partible inheritance laws positively affected women’s lives. She writes that under Visigoth law, “a bride’s property did not become her husband’s, nor did his property become hers.”[9] Because they did not inherit from each other, this meant that marriage was not the most profitable way of gaining wealth and property.[10] Due to this fact, women were less dependent on their husbands and instead remained involve with the lives of their parents and siblings. Pick writes that this continued connection, even after marriage, to their families meant that women’s “roles as sisters and daughters remained as crucial to her… as her connections as a wife.”[11] Visigoth inheritance laws changed the family dynamics within Iberia as women did not rely solely on their husbands for wealth and property.

“Visigothic law gave women a great deal of power and freedom.”[12] While a woman’s wealth and property attained through inheritance may have been managed by her husband, she legally had the right to control it.[13] This increased elite women’s autonomy in Gothic Iberia, as the law mandated women maintained control over their own wealth and property. Women’s value within society increased as children inherited on the matrilineal line, as well as the patrilineal one, reinforcing the significance of the mother as more than just a domestic figure.[14] Widowed or unmarried women who had large inheritance had the ability to be independent of men and pursue their own endeavors.[15] The Visigoth inheritance laws increased women’s positions within society as they were able to own property, control their own inheritance, and thus obtain greater autonomy within Iberia.

An interesting aspect of Visigoth society is that inheritance laws conflicted with Visigoth succession of the throne.[16] Visigoth inheritance laws stated that children were to inherit their father’s wealth and property, yet their King’s were elected, so there was no guaranteed inheritance of the kingdom. Pick highlights this contradiction, noting the issues it caused. She says the children of the king “could have no secure expectation they would succeed their father in that office. But as the children of one of the wealthiest men in the kingdom, they had rights under Visigothic law to inherit a share of their father’s riches.”[17] This let to a sharp distinction of the difference between the king’s wealth prior to taking the throne and his assets during his reign.[18]

By the eighth century, the Visigoths had been conquered. Although their kingdom had fallen, the Visigoths left a legacy that had a lasting impact on Iberia throughout the medieval period. While Pick acknowledges there was “discontinuity between the Visigoths and Asturian monarchies,” she highlights the persistent characteristics of the Visigoths, such as their inheritance laws.[19] While other aspects such as kingship changed, Visigoth inheritance laws remained in Iberia and continued to impact women’s lives.

In medieval Spain, religious roles became a prominent way for royal women to obtain power. These roles offered opportunity for women to participate in politics, own large estates, and build strong social networks outside of the confines of marriage.[20] Pick writes that after the fall of the Visigoths, every daughter of a King of Leon-Castilla was not “married off in a strategic alliance,” but instead remained unmarried and obtained a religious role within society.[21] Although they were unmarried, they were still tied to their family and therefore were expected to support them. Pick highlights this, saying “royal women were given away to God, rather than to husbands, so they were kept inside their family. Their cultural work of prayer, memory, and consul benefited their brothers, whose rule they supported and validated.”[22] These women often had significant influence in the kingdom and were beneficial to their family due to the resources and networks they controlled. By taking religious positions, royal women gained autonomy with the opportunity to accumulate influence, wealth, and power.

Partible inheritance had a lasting impact on Iberian society, raising the question of queenship. After the collapse of the Visigoth kingdom in 711, there was a change in how kings were succeeded. Kings were no longer elected, instead, positions became hereditary. Miriam Shadis discusses royal women beginning in the twelfth century in her article, “Women, Gender, and Rulership in Romance Europe: The Iberian Case.” She highlights how the change in kingship sparked fear that a woman could inherit the kingdom. She writes, “women in medieval Iberian realms could potentially inherit the throne. This possibility was due primarily to the Visigoth tradition of partible inheritance.”[23] The partible inheritance laws had become engrained in society and thus women were included in the rights to inherit, including succession of the throne. Although this did not happen often as they could only claim the throne if there were no sons available, there were five hereditary queens in medieval Iberia. The five queens include Uracca of Castile and Leon in 1109, Peronella of Aragon in 1137, Berenguela of Castile in 1217, Isabel of Castile in 1474, and her daughter Juana in 1504.[24] The Visigothic laws regarding partible inheritance impacted royal women as they earned the potential to inherit the throne as succession became hereditary.

Although only five women inherited the throne, Shadis examines the impact this had on royal women’s upbringing and position in society. Because daughters of kings had the possibility of inheriting the kingdom, their upbringing changed, and so did their role in society as they grew older. Shadis writes, “the possibility that they might rule made the experiences and education [of girls] much more potent, consequentially enabling even those who did not rule to have a much stronger role on the political scene.”[25] A superior education and stronger networks allowed women to play a more prominent role in the political ongoings of the kingdom, even when they did not become queen.

This paper has highlighted partible inheritance under The Visigothic Code and demonstrated its beneficial impact on royal women. The Visigoth’s laws on inheritance stated that brothers and sisters were to inherit wealth and property equally from their parents, allowing women to have greater freedoms as they had personal assets under their control. Because husbands and wives did not inherit from each other, family dynamics shifted so that women’s roles as sisters and daughters was just as important, if not more so, than her role as a wife. Although the Visigoth kingdom collapsed in 711 CE, the concept of partible inheritance remained in Iberia. Royal women were placed in religious positions so they could remain free from marriage alliances and instead remain loyal to their families. Partible inheritance had a significant impact on royal women when the succession of the throne became hereditary. Royal women’s positions in the political sphere increased as they obtained better education in preparation for potential queenship, opening opportunities for them within society. Royal women in medieval Spain were able to establish strong political roles, substantial wealth and property, and thus gain greater autonomy due to the Visigothic laws on partible inheritance.

Bibliography

“Book IV: Concerning Natural Lineage.” In The Visigothic Code (Forum Judicum), translated and edited by S.P. Scott, 121-142.    Boston: The Boston Book Company, 1910.

Constable, Olivia Remie. “Visigothic Legislation Concerning the Jews.” In Medieval Iberia: Readings from Christian, Muslim,      and Jewish Sources, 23. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2012.

Fernandez, Eric. “In the Name of the Father: Inheritance Systems and the Dynamics of State Capacity.” Macroeconomic Dynamics 25 (2021): 896-923.

Pick, Lucy. Her Father’s Daughter: Gender, Power, and Religion in the Early Spanish Kingdoms. Ithaca & London: Cornell University Press, 2017.

Shadis, Miriam. “Women, Gender, and Rulership in Romance Europe: The Iberian Case.” History Compass 4, no. 3 (2006): 481-487.

Footnotes

[1] Olivia Remie Constable, “Visigothic Legislation Concerning the Jews,” In Medieval Iberia:

Readings from Christian, Muslim, and Jewish Sources, (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2012), 23.

[2] “Book IV: Concerning Natural Lineage.” In The Visigothic Code (Forum Judicum),

translated and edited by S.P. Scott (Boston: The Boston Book Company, 1910), 121.

[3] Eric Fernandez, “In the Name of the Father: Inheritance Systems and the Dynamics of State

Capacity,” Macroeconomic Dynamics 25 (2021): 900.

[4] “Book IV: Concerning Natural Lineage,” 124.

[5] “Book IV: Concerning Natural Lineage,”125.

[6] “Book IV: Concerning Natural Lineage,”125.

[7] “Book IV: Concerning Natural Lineage,”125.

[8] “Book IV: Concerning Natural Lineage,”124.

[9] Lucy Pick, Her Father’s Daughter: Gender, Power, and Religion in the Early Spanish Kingdoms (Ithaca & London: Cornell University Press, 2017): 34.

[10] Pick, Her Father’s Daughter, 34.

[11] Pick, Her Father’s Daughter, 36.

[12] Pick, Her Father’s Daughter, 36.

[13] Pick, Her Father’s Daughter, 36.

[14] Pick, Her Father’s Daughter, 37.

[15] Pick, Her Father’s Daughter, 36.

[16] Pick, Her Father’s Daughter, 36.

[17] Pick, Her Father’s Daughter, 32.

[18] Pick, Her Father’s Daughter, 32.

[19] Pick, Her Father’s Daughter, 23.

[20] Pick, Her Father’s Daughter, 62.

[21] Pick, Her Father’s Daughter, 62.

[22] Pick, Her Father’s Daughter, 60.

[23] Miriam Shadis, “Women, Gender, and Rulership in Romance Europe: The Iberian Case,”

History Compass 4, no. 3 (2006): 481.

[24] Shadis, “Women, Gender, and Rulership in Romance Europe,” 481.

[25] Shadis, “Women, Gender, and Rulership in Romance Europe,” 482.