Note 1 — Chapter I · Of King Jayme I. of Aragon and how he resolved to conquer Majorca and drive out the Moors

The more generally accepted story is that when the Count of Barcelona was severely wounded in a battle between Charles the Bald and the Normans, the Emperor came to the wounded Count’s tent and asked what reward he could give to a warrior to whom he owed so much. The Count asked for the grant of a charge on his plain gold shield. The Emperor dipped his hand in the blood from the Count’s wound, and passed his four fingers down the shield. ‘A device gained by blood,’ he said, ‘should be marked with blood.’