Germanies (inCatalan; literally "brotherhoods") were guilds of artisans in theKingdom of Valencia inSpain. Eachgermania ([dʒeɾmaˈni.a]) represented a single trade. Thegermanies are similar to thehermandades (also "brotherhoods", but inCastilian Spanish) ofCastile, which were paramilitary law-enforcement militias. Similar to thehermandades, the Germanies at times took up arms to defend Valencia against raids from theBarbary pirates, but this privilege was revoked and theGermanies suppressed after they revolted against the royal government ofKing Charles I of Spain.
Thegermanies began to take power in Valencia in 1519 after an outbreak of the plague, and the situation degenerated to open warfare between theGermanies and the Crown by 1520. The previous king,Ferdinand of Aragon, had granted permission for theGermanies to take up arms shortly before his death, but the Valencian nobles had mostly quashed this possibility, fearing theGermanies would gain political power if they could back their demands with force.King Charles I, however, issued an edict legalizing theGermanies to take up arms in 1519, which allowed theGermanies to strike back at the royal government after the newViceroy of Valencia refused to seat elected representatives friendly to theGermanies.
TheGermanies were defeated after a year of warfare and another year of guerrilla raids from the countryside. Their leaders were executed as traitors and theGermanies were banned.
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