THE CONSTRUCTION OF the family memory of the Marcs of Eramprunyà is closely linked to what is known as the “Book of the Barony of Eramprunyà” (Llibre de la Baronia d’Eramprunyà). I intend to analyze the contribution of this manuscript, produced between the fourteenth and the fifteenth centuries, to the construction of the collective identity of this lineage. From the outset, we can point out that the Llibre de la Baronia d’Eramprunyà is a compilation of the normative corpus with which this seigneury was ruled. In other words, this book featured copies of the documents that guaranteed the governability and administration of the territory owned by the Marc family, with the clear intention of reinforcing its seigneurial power. This collection of documents also includes autobiographical accounts written by some of its authors, which allows us to relate it to the memorial tradition of the libri di ricordanze of late-medieval Italy.

The architect of the book was Jaume Marc I (1351–1375) who, after seizing the seigneury of Eramprunyà in 1351, ordered the compilation of the documents that legitimized his inheritance, which he had claimed after initiating a process to incapacitate his nephew Pericó, allegedly dumb and deaf, in order to take charge of the seigneury. Laying claim to his legitimate rights as Eramprunyà's heir led to a confrontation with his sister-in-law Magdalena, Pere Marc's widow (1338–ca. 1347) and guardian of the said Pericó, a conflict that ended with the appointment of Jaume Marc I as the new lord. It was precisely his desire to assert his rights over Eramprunyà that led him to commission the book discussed here. However, although Jaume Marc I began the compilation, it should be noted that the manuscript is a transgenerational creation involving all his successors until Jaume Marc IV (1466–1498).

This chapter analyzes how the various lords of Eramprunyà contributed to the construction and articulation of the memory of their lineage through the legitimating discourse that is extraordinarily embodied in the Llibre de la Baronia d’Eramprunyà. To this end, we will first explore how the Marcs, the protagonists and subjects of this docu-mentary collection, became lords of Eramprunyà, and how they grew from being professional scribes to becoming part of the knightly class under the protection of the royal house.