Political Strategies for the Implementation of the Notary Public in the North of Castile: the Abbey of San Salvador de Oña

Abstract

During the Middle Ages, the Abbey of San Salvador de Oña became a major centre for culture and writing in the north of Castile. The function of its “scriptorium” for producing, issuing and validating documents justifying the ownership of its extensive assets are evidence of documentary uses and practices in the High Middle Ages, which paved the way for the arrival of the notary public as a royal, unifying law. Its implementation and development did not trigger any conflict, in fact it was due to a series of political strategies that were beneficial for both the Crown and the monastery.