El brazo militar de Cataluña durante el primer gobierno de Felipe V (1700-1705)

Abstract

In December 1703, the Military Wing in Catalonia refused to obey the order to amend the will of Charles II. They argued that they «were just a board of nobility established in the Cortes which was never informed of such power». This simple concept that the Military Wing had of itself is surprising, and more so if one takes into account that a few years later, the Earl of Robres considered that «no body other than that one is comprised in the removal of the homeland laws enacted by King Philip V». How can such contrasting impressions exist? The aim of this paper is to analyze the performance of the Military Wing of Catalonia during the years of the War of the Spanish Succession and to highlight the crucial role played by this institution in the defense of the Catalonian constitutional framework.