ENCYCLOPAEDIA of Rebellions

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Girona riots 1640

Synopsis
After the peasant insurrection in Santa Coloma de Farners against the billeting of soldiers, the protests reached the towns. The retreating troops of Leonardo Moles met up in Girona with the regiments of Juan de Arce, who were also fleeing the peasant insurrection. On 16 May, two days after the destruction of Santa Coloma de Farners, the local authorities of Girona decided to close the city gates and prevent access to the tercios. Some 4,000 soldiers remained encamped on the outskirts. Over the following days, thousands of insurgents arrived and surrounded the tercios. Finally, the governor general of Catalonia (Ramon Calders), who was taking refuge in Girona, ordered the troops to withdraw in an attempt to calm the spirits of the peasants. On 25 May, however, the crowd stormed into Girona. They entered thanks to the pressure exerted by some local residents from inside the city to open the gates and allow the outsiders to enter. During those days, ministers and royal officials were hunted down, as well as soldiers who were still in the city. In all, six soldiers and two royal officers were killed. On 30 May, the governor general and the rest of the royal authorities managed to leave the city. The violence, however, continued until 18 June, when the local authorities managed to expel the outsiders from the city.
Additional info

Starting date: . Ending: . Duration: 1 month. Name in sources: Motines de Girona. Location: Girona Country (current): Spain. Monarchy: Spanish. Main participants: Artisans, Peasants. Number of participants: >500. Main reasons & motivations: Anti-seigneurial, Fiscal, Political. Leadership: Unknown. Relevance: low.

Further reading
BUSQUETS i DALMAU, Joan (1994). La Catalunya del Barroc vista des de Girona. La crònica de Jeroni de Real (1626-1683). Barcelona: Publicacions de l’Abadia de Montserrat, 2 vols. ELLIOTT, John H. (1963). The Revolt of the Catalans. A study in the Decline of Spain (1598-1640). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. SIMON i TARRÉS, Antoni (2019). 1640. Barcelona: Rafael Dalmau editor.
Cite this entry

Gracia-Arnau, Ivan (2023). "Girona riots 1640", in J. V. Serrão and M. S. Cunha (coord), Rebellions in the Early Modern Iberian World. http://atlas.cidehusdigital.uevora.pt/revolt/catalan-revolt-1640/girona-riots-1640/ (accessed on 18 Fevereiro 2023).