Judicate of Arborea

The Judicate of Arborea was one of four independent judicates into which medieval Sardinia was divided. It occupied the central-west of the island, between Logudoro to the north, Cagliari to the south-east and the Mediterranean to the west. Its earliest known seat was Tharros, but Oristano served as its capital for most of its existence. Arborea outlasted the other judicates and survived well into the fifteenth century. At its greatest extent it controlled the whole island except the cities of Alghero and Cagliari. The judicate was repeatedly drawn into the rivalry between Pisa and Genoa, and later into the conflict between the Sardinian rulers and the Crown of Aragon. Its rulers developed and revised a body of legislation, and Eleanor of Arborea took power in 1387 as regent for her sons. Aragonese pressure and internal disputes gradually reduced the judicate's independence, and in 1420 Alfonso V of Aragon purchased the rights of the viscounts of Narbonne. The last ruler renounced his claim at Oristano, bringing the judicate to an end. Its institutions and legal legacy remained influential in Sardinia long afterwards.