I like listening to Podcasts. I usually listen to those about history and stories. Among the Basque language podcasts, Kirmen Uribe's New York Worlds, Paper Sea, from The Lost Library Chronicles of the Past and on the Zuzeu Podcast Basque Criminals I listen to the shows often.
In fact, a few weeks ago I was listening to the show "Berdabioko Atea" from the Basque Criminals show.
And what the hell, this story tells the story of a man named Berdabio and his gang who were imprisoned in Pamplona prison in 1748 for counterfeiting coins. It also tells how this Berdabio wrote verses to his accuser in Trabuco.
Cover image of the show "Berdabioko Atea" from the Zuzeu podcast's Euskal Gaizkleak show
These verses, according to the variation collected by Father Donostia in Aranaze and included in his 1929 songbook, go as follows.
|
1. I am a Bardavio native. 2. I don't remember myself, 3. In the morning there is a man, |
4.-If we could remember for a while 5. To the Lord of the Morning Scribes: 6. Lice and head lice |
An idea immediately came to my mind; could there be any historical evidence for this story and the counterfeiting of money that appears in it? What kind of counterfeiting were Berdabio and his associates involved in?
I began my research and immediately found the first traces, since both the Navarrese coinage master Ibañez Artica and Mr. Cano Borrego mention Berdabio in their coinage works. The verses are rooted in a historical event.
So, who were Berdabio and his fellow prisoners in the Pamplona prison? Well, Patziku Peruna has searched for all the traces in his book "There is a Man in the Morning". Here is the list:
- Joseph de Etchagarai – Berdabio, a Navarrese man from Goizueta named after the farm where he lived (baptized in Lesaka)
- Joseph de Quillaberri – from Larraine and therefore from Xuver
- Gracian de Echeverria – from Hazparne and therefore Lapurra
- Juan Antonio Navaz – From Zubieta and therefore from Navarre
In addition, a few days later, Juan Bernardo Amitesarobe from San Sebastian was also taken to the same prison as his colleagues. Amitesarobe was the administrator of the Elama ironworks.
The Elama ironworks as it appears today – Urumea innasta Website
And Patziku found traces of his anecdotes in both the Goizueta municipal archive and the Pamplona General Archive. Here is what the Deputy Mayor of Goizueta wrote:
"Morning of February 20, 1748: Roble de los expenses originated in the conduction to the royal prisons of the persons of Joseph Etchagarai and consorts indications of fake coins and verification of his crime.
A timely account that I Joseph Antonio de Zabaleta, Deputy Mayor of this Villa de Goizueta in the current year of 1747 of the expense that is originating in the adberiguation of the crime of manufacturers and distributors of dieciochenos that they are indicted Joseph de Etchagarai, Joseph de Quillaberri, Gracian de Echeverria and Juan Antonio de Navaz prisoners, and driving them from this Villa to the royal prisons of the city of Pamplona, being separated from the expense incurred in the diligences practiced at the beginning of his prison, at the instance of the mayor of the Villa de Lesaca as a result of the theft of the lamps of the Parish Church of her, that although this Villa supplió por aquella se has remitido quenta individual asking for its restitution.
On the 22nd of December 1747, when it was recognized the cover of the term called Yaicomeaca Jurisdiction of this Villa de Goizueta, reason of the people who occupied it, from six in the morning until three in the afternoon, where they found the instruments of molds and effects al parecer de fabricar moneda dieciocheno"
Patziku Perurena – There is a Man in the Morning, 2010 book cover
Berdabio and his companions were imprisoned in the Goizueta prison around December 15, 1747, for the theft of silver and copper from the church of Lesaka. While there, someone, apparently a trabuco, accused them of counterfeiting money and on December 25, that is, Christmas Day, they were sent to the prison in Pamplona. The charge against them was the counterfeiting and distribution of “dieciocheno” coins by casting molds. But what was this coin called “dieciocheno” and what role did it play in the coinage of Navarre?
In fact, the “diociocheno” or “dihuite” was not a Navarrese coin. It was a small silver coin minted in the Kingdom of Valencia between 1610 (some believe that it actually started in 1592) and 1707. As its name suggests, it had a value of eighteen Valencian dinars and, in terms of law, it seems to have remained nominally valid at 11 dinars (around 917 thousandths) throughout its history. In terms of weight, although it started in 1592 with a weight of around 2.50 grams, it lost weight throughout its history and by the beginning of the 18th century was around 2 grams. But what was a Valencian coin doing in the Kingdom of Navarre in the mid-18th century?
Silver dieciochen coin minted in Valencia in 1687 under the reign of King Charles II of Spain – 2.01 gr
The last silver or gold coins minted by the southern kingdom of Navarre were issued in 1659. From that year onwards, the kingdom had no opportunity to issue medium or high value coins. This gap left by the Navarrese institutions was largely filled by silver coins from Castile, Aragon or France, as the use of gold coins was very limited and limited. Foreign silver coins were theoretically accepted according to their intrinsic value (and not their nominal value), and given the extensive trade relations with Castile and the North, we can say that this policy was very useful and sensible. Regarding small copper coins, the Navarrese institutions were strict in preventing the entry of foreign money or the exit of local money. Navarre minted copper coins throughout the 18th century.
According to Mikel Sorau, this dependence on foreign silver and gold coins did not cause too many problems until the French Revolution. In a single moment, chaos and unrest arose, and this moment is said to have been the year 1747. In this year, the arrival and accumulation of dieciocheno coins collected around the French border took place. In many cases, these coins had ragged edges, and due to the distrust of merchants and the people in general, they were the cause of disputes and riots. And it was in that same year that our Berdabio episode occurred.
Octagonal copper coin of one Maravedi, minted in 1745 under the reign of Philip V of Spain, King Philip VII of Navarre – Pamplona Mint
Before that, the first withdrawal order for old silver real coins had already been issued in 1726, under the order of Philip V. This order referred to the half, one and two reals and the coins of the reign of Charles II, called Maria. These coins, in most cases, had an irregular and rough edge. The first Bourbon king wanted to replace them with new coins with regular and rough edges produced by new machines in all his territories, in order to prevent fraud by cutting the edges. However, this order had problems with enforcement in Navarre and as a result the use of old coins continued in the little red kingdom. Subsequently, and for the first time, instead of silver leaving Navarre, it arrived in large quantities, in the shadow of all these old coins that had already been banned in other territories.
The next problem was brought about by the Pragmatic King of 1737. This decree increased the value of silver coins and, as a result, the Council of Navarre had to draw up a new equivalence between silver and the local copper maravedi coins. According to the Council, the half real should now be worth 19 maravedi, the whole real 38 (previously 36) and each dieciocheno 25, but if delivered in groups of three it would then be worth 76 maravedi or two reales (therefore the equivalent of 25 and 1/3). Similarly, four silver reales would be worth 153 maravedi (instead of the original 152) and eight reales 306 maravedi.
Octagonal copper coin of one maravedi minted in 1748 under the reign of Ferdinand VI of Spain, King Ferdinand II of Navarre – 2.59 gr – Pamplona Mint
The courts of Tudela in 1743 and 1744 presented arguments against these equivalences. In the case of the dieciochenos, they argued that the value of this coin of the Kingdom of Valencia was only that of 24 maravedas. Due to the difference between the maravedas and the third, it was said that a large number of dieciochenos were entering from the Kingdoms of Catalonia, Aragon and Valencia in exchange for the new silver coins found in Navarre. This argument was accepted on February 2, 1744, and the dieciocheno became worth 24 maravedas.
Since they were coins made by hammering, and did not have a rim that limited the round circumference, the dieciochoenos were an easy target for counterfeiters and edge cutters, easy to either counterfeit or to obtain new silver by cutting the edges.
As a result of all this, in 1747 August 13th The king ordered the Council of Navarre to withdraw the deiciochoenes from circulation in the Kingdom of Navarre. The counterfeit or counterfeited coins were to be exchanged for the same value as the legitimate ones.
The following happened in the following days:
- August 23rd The royal decree received the envelope of the Council of Navarre. The Council also wrote to the Provincial Council, recommending that all preparations for the execution of the decree be carried out in secret and as quickly as possible. It was a unique opportunity, indeed unrepeatable, to exchange old or counterfeit coins that had been damaged and mutilated for full value. If the rumor spread, it would appear from all sides, including all the old dieciochoeno coins that remained outside Navarre.
- On August 24, the county council acknowledged the notification and August 28th He called for a new session to be held.
- August 28th The council informed the council of the measures agreed upon by the provincial government. Before the order was published by bando, it would be received by all the Merindad leaders, so that it could be notified in all the towns on the same day and time. The exchange would be carried out in the shortest possible time and a scribe would record the money received and given. Since the greatest danger would come from the amount of coins that could be brought across the French border, special measures and a shorter time were proposed. Baztan for the valley and Bera, Lesaka, Igantzi, Aranaz and Etxalar for the people.
- At the beginning of September, the Council of Navarre sent copies of the order to the Merindian leaders, explaining the procedure to be followed. The order, in the cities, towns and districts of the kingdom September 10th at 10 am would be announced. In the towns of Tudela, Sangüeza and the border with the Kingdom of Aragon, or in the valleys of Bera, Lesaka, Igantzi, Aranaz, Etxalar and Baztan, a period of 24 hours was given from that moment to exchange money. In the rest of the towns and cities, the period was 48 hours.
- The report submitted by the council to the king on October 31st stated the following. Overall 34,802 silver reales and 24 maravedas that the eighteen cents that were worth it were received and exchanged. The intrinsic value of all these dieciochoenos was 16,711 silver reals and 27 maravedis. There was therefore a great deal of counterfeiting and counterfeiting of the 18th century coins circulating in Navarre at that time! Based on this value, we can say that around 57,000 coins were collected and exchanged.
The Madrid court ordered the provincial government to send the collected coins to the Madrid mint, but at the same time He informed him that he would only pay him the intrinsic value of 16,711 silver reals and 27 maravedis. The council complied, but at the same time protested the great losses this decision would cause to its treasury and demanded an additional payment of 18,090 silver reales and 33 maravedis. We have not found any documents that tell us how this dispute ended. In any case, this is how the journey of the eighteenth century in the Kingdom of Navarre ended.
But what was the fate of the gang that we left behind in the prison of Pamplona? The accusation of counterfeiting money was a serious matter in those days and Berdabio and his associates found themselves in danger of being hanged.
The stories and verses passed down from generation to generation in Urumea and Bidasoaldea present many variations on Berdabio and his companions. In some cases, they said that they had a hidden mine, that they extracted gold to make gold coins, others that these coins were made of silver or copper, that sometimes they ended up on the gallows, in other cases in poverty...
If we look at the area around Goizueta and Lesaka, this was a mining, coal and ironworks region. The Romans began to extract silver and other metals from the Aiako Harri mines in the 1st century. Gold mining was also carried out in the area around the village of Kambo in Lapurdi. In the Middle Ages, iron was extracted from the Aiako Harri mines and numerous ironworks were established throughout the valley, using charcoal from the surrounding forests. The Berdabio farmhouse itself is said to have been a former ironworks until the 17th century, but by the 18th century both mining and ironworks were in decline.
However, metalworking and casting were centuries old in the valley and it is in this context that we must examine the stories of Berdabio. Of a hidden mine, certainly, but not to extract silver or copper ore from it, but certainly to work there in secret and in secrecy. It seems that Killaberri and Etxeberria came to Goizueta to work the mines, but the theft of silver and copper from the church of Lesaka indicates that the metal sources were certainly not the old mines in the area.
What the Berdabio Farm in Goizueta Looks Like Today – Photo by Bisirimiri – Wikiloc
According to the document signed by the deputy mayor of Goizueta, on December 22, 1747, molds and tools for casting dieciochoenos were found. In the investigations carried out in the following days, more tools and molds were found, but no trace of the counterfeit coins. Local legend has it that Berdabio hid the tools in a walnut tree near his farmhouse and that they were never found. That year, Berdabio himself lived in the farmhouse, as a tenant, and the other three as tenants, in the middle of another house belonging to Berdabio's mother. What business they were involved in together!
In any case, it is not easy for me to imagine that Berdabio and his associates were involved in the production of new dieciochenos made from molds. It is very likely that they participated in the elaborate minting and cutting of these dieciochenos and, after collecting the collected silver, they sold them across the border. In any case, whether it was a matter of counterfeiting or minting money, Berdabio and his associates were certainly no more than simple workers working under orders in this business, there must have been someone higher up in it, but we do not know who he was. The capture of Amitesarobe, the administrator of the Elama ironworks, is an event that leads us to this conclusion, but we do not know what happened to Amitesarobe.
In fact, after all the investigations carried out by the Pamplona court, it became clear that Berdabio and his three companions were simple citizens with no resources. No assets, no property and no income, poor and destitute, with the exception of a few beehives taken from Killaberri.
Jose Antonio Huarte, mentioned in the verses The scribe of Goizueta and the so-called evidence presented by the mayor was not strong enough. After a full year of referrals, December 24, 1748 The Pamplona court issued a verdict of incompetence:
"Joseph de Quillaberry, Grazian de Echeberria, Juan Antonio Nabaz and Jph de Echagaray are declared poor, and they are ordered to be assisted by the curials of our real courts without taking away the rights with which they are bound by the Mayor of the villa de Goizueta la abejera, and its product is sent to the clerk of the cause, and this supplies its food to Josef de Quillaberri, and so it is declared and sent, encrypted by the Lords Mayors Ezquerra, Leiza and Lanziego.
By this sentence of poverty, the accused avoided paying the costs of the trial, and would have to receive food at the expense of the kingdom. This was not a verdict of innocence, but in the absence of solid evidence, and without any hope of any future income, it was not in the interests of the state to keep these four poor people in prison for long.
And so it was, because on the day of the Innocents in 1748, it seems that he was on Berdabio Street, with his friends…all his friends? Actually, no, Juan Antonio Nabaz from Zubietarra had to stay in prison. A little later, after another year, Nabaz was sent to the prisons of Oran, in what is now Algeria. Why was Nabaz sent to prisons in Africa? Well, to be honest, we don't know, maybe he had other debts with the justice system before.
Patziku Perurena has also found the name of the informant mentioned under the nickname Trabuko, Juan Fermin Aginaga A Goizueta man, who worked in the mines around Elama. And also the man who Trabuko supposedly killed in Elama, known as "tontotxo", or perhaps as Patziku says, Francisco Villanueva miner
These verses of Berdabio were passed down orally from generation to generation, until they were written down on paper by Basque linguists at the beginning of the 20th century. However, once again, the one who spread them orally around the world is not from 270 years ago, he died just twelve years ago.
Nexgraff Image created by graffiti artist Mikel Laboa – Behind the fronton of Pasai San Pedro – 2018
Mikel Laboa used a variation of Berdabio's verses, collected by Resurrección María de Azkue in 1922, in his song "Goizuetan", published in 1966.
Let's stay high and welcome Mikel Laboa.
1. In the morning there is a man
It's called "Trabuco"
beautiful words, false heart
never give up
the diligences he has carried out
He will regret it.
2. Well, remember well.
What did you do in Elam?
If that deceased had been
followers in Lesaka
You would have been here before now.
I am in the port now.
3. My wife brought it.
The dowry of Aranaztik,
It would be better if you didn't see it in your eyes.
The gate of Berdabio,
now he wouldn't have it
The weight of the sun.
4. I don't remember myself.
because I'm not the only one
I leave the ones that grow there.
two sons and three daughters
May the Lord of heaven hear.
the cry of their mother.
Finally, Berdabio returned home, but Josefina or Serafina Bergara His wife no longer lived in the farmhouse of the same name. She returned to her birthplace of Arano in 1748, with three daughters and two sons. His wife did not therefore run away with Trabuko, as is shown in the Euskal Gaizkileak podcast.
Yes, as it appears there, poor Berdabio died in extreme poverty on November 6, 1771. No income from counterfeiting money, but eternal fame from his verses.
Bibliography:
INTERVIEW WITH PATZIKU PERURE – Sautrela – EITB – link
SON OF BERDABIO – Wikipedia – link
THERE IS A MAN IN THE MORNING – Patziku Perurena – Alberdania Publishing House – 2010
THE CRIME OF MONEY FORGERY – Miguel Ibáñez Artica – Blog Numisarchives – link
MONETARY POLICY IN THE KINGDOM OF NAVARRA AT THE END OF THE ANCIENT REGIME (1747-1838) - Mikel Sorauren - link
LA MONEDA NAVARRA EN EL SIGLO XVIII – PD Cano Borrego – 2018 – Revisa Hecate N° 5 – link
NAVARRE COINS AND ITS DOCUMENTATION (1513-1838) – 1975 – Jorge Marín de la Salud
DIECIOCHENOS – FALSE FALSE – Absolutely recommended blog – link
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