ABSTRACT
And he at once went to the Kingdom of Valencia with richs homens and knights and men afoot of Catalonia and Aragon. And when he was in the city of Valencia he disposed his richs homens and knights and citizens and almugavars1 and retainers and seamen, and distributed
them all where he saw they were wanted, and he went towards Jativa and encountered the Moors who were in great numbers by the canal of Alcoy, and he defeated them, sending them all to death and perdition. And then he went to another part of the country and did the same, so that, when he was believed to be in one place, he was in another, and where he could not go on horseback, he went on foot with the almugavars. And so he conducted the war with so much vigour that the Saracens did not know what to do, for where they thought to be most safe, there they were taken and killed, and their enemies made captive all they wanted to and put the fear of death in their hearts, so that they did not know where to go. And they decided to occupy a strong castle, which is distant one league from Jativa and is called Montesa, and from there to do great damage to all the country.
