In the 13th century, King James I of Aragon conquered the Valencia and the Balearic Islands. Subsequent conquests expanded into the Mediterranean, reaching Sardinia, Corsica, Sicily, Naples and Greece, so by 1350 the Crown of Aragon ""presided over one of the most extensive and powerful mercantile empires of the Mediterranean during this period"" (Woolard 16). Catalonia's economic success formed a powerful merchant class, which wielded the Corts as its political weapon. It also produced a smaller middle class, or "menestralia", that was "composed of artisans, shopkeepers and workshop owners" (McRoberts 11).