10th - 15th century: The War of the Bands

During the Middle Ages, Basque feudal nobility was divided into two constantly battling factions in what was known as the “War of the Bands”. The names of the bands varied according to the territory but they always bore some reference to the concept of noble kinship of the time, which included the feudal lord and his vassals, or referred to the birthplace of the principal families. This was not limited to the Basque territories; in fact it was a widespread phenomenon across all of Europe. One particular aspect in Gipuzkoa was that, halfway through the fifteenth century, the two bands united to oppose the new towns which were starting to cover the territory.