Kingdom of Aragon
In 1283, after King Peter III was excommunicated by Pope Martin IV for having occupied Sicily, a feudatory kingdom of the Holy See, the Aragonese oligarchy confederated to limit royal power and extract new privileges. The king was forced to grant the General Privilege in what would be known as the revolt of the Union in 1283. His son James II is forced to grant the Privilege of the Union. During the reign of James I, various assemblies, more or less crowded, had met to settle lawsuits. The Privilege of the Union requires the annual convocation of a court of nobles and citizens, which will end up including four arms: the rich men, the infanzones and knights, the ecclesiastical authorities and the universities. At that time, the cities, towns and communities of the kingdom were called universities. The Courts of Aragon were not convened with the required regularity, but eventually took control of the kingdom's taxation, granting funds to the king in exchange for the maintenance and extension of the privileges of the estates represented in them.