Los puertos del Rey: Síntesis interpretativa del fenómeno urbano en el norte de Espa？a durante los siglos XII y XIII

the author of this article analyses the beginnings and development of sea ports along the northern border of the kingdom of castile during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. he studies the role played by the king in this area; it helps us to understand the consolidation of a network of ports in the north of the peninsula. the kings started by granting royal foundation charters ("fueros") to the small villages along the cantabrian coast, not only to establish their rights and obligations, but also to reinforce, by means of a legal instrument, the royal control over the coast, thus modifying the regional balance of power. secondly, following the foundation of sea ports, material and logistic structures developed, which promoted commercial relationships and human connections, on the one hand between sea ports on the atlantic coast of the peninsula, and on the other between these foundations and their hinterlands and overseas markets, thereby reinforcing the internal urban structure in the north of castile.