Antiguo Régimen - History Lab

Map of the areas of single heir predominance in Aragon during the Modern Age

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:32:25 +0000

During the Modern Age, the Kingdom of Aragon had a system of unequal transmission of inheritance, i.e. the testator had free disposal of his goods to bequeath them in any quantity and amount to the parent or parents he wished, obliged only to reserve 5 sueldos in money and 5 in white lands for each of the legitimate children. In effect, for all those with sufficient movable and immovable property to bequeath, a single heir could be chosen almost exclusively, in contrast to the Castilian system of equal distribution of inheritance. The resource shows the distribution in the Kingdom of Aragon of the areas where the family policy of the sole heir predominated; in the north, the Pyrenean valleys and the Cinca valley, and in Lower Aragon, the districts of Matarraña and Guadalope. For these areas, the author observes that the sole heir used to receive real estate on condition that it formed part of his matrimonial capitulation. However, the rest of the kingdom opted for an equal distribution, although there were several variants depending on family affinity or the carrying out of a “quita”: leaving the inheritance to the spouse and the latter, upon testament, distributing it among those children who showed the best behaviour, or reserving assets to be used for the salvation of the soul through the masses of souls, the foundation of chaplaincies, patronages or pious works.

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Map of the ecclesiastical division of Spain at the end of the 18th century

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:31:59 +0000

During the Modern Age, Spain acquired numerous regional and provincial divisions. The different eras and reigns, especially in the 18th century, modified the jurisdictional divisions of the civil administration. The Enlightenment sought a more rationalised structure of Spain with criteria of convergence of interests. However, there was another division, parallel to the civil division, and equally important. This was the ecclesiastical division into archbishoprics. The Spanish ecclesiastical structure took shape during the Reconquest, with the archbishopric of Toledo being the greatest beneficiary on a territorial level due to its central location. Like the civil structure, it underwent changes, arriving at the end of the 18th century with the structures shown on the map. The archbishopric of Toledo was still the most important in the Peninsula and one of the largest, along with the archdiocese of Santiago de Compostela. These large areas were subdivided into dioceses and bishoprics and these, in turn, into vicariates, archpriestships and parishes. The complicated interweaving of civil and ecclesiastical jurisdictions meant that they did not coincide with each other until well into the contemporary period. Even some provinces, such as Albacete, did not have civil-religious concordance until the creation of its diocese in 1949.

The post Map of the ecclesiastical division of Spain at the end of the 18th century first appeared on History Lab.

Evolution of the unrest in the kingdom of Navarre (1512-1808)

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:29:56 +0000

The society of the Ancien Régime was not exempt from conflict. The resource shows the evolution of collective violence in the kingdom of Navarre during the modern period. To do this, the author uses the lawsuits detected in the General Archive of Navarre and the Diocesan Archive of Pamplona to quantify them. The 800 lawsuits were distributed between 1512 and 1808, with the highest incidence occurring between 1576 and 1590. From that time onwards, the number of conflicts decreased and these were peaceful years for the inhabitants of the urban world of Navarre, which was where most unrest broke out. Community stability was broken at the time of the breakdown of the Ancien Régime: from 1771 to 1800, lawsuits, both in the civil and ecclesiastical courts, increased to the levels of the late 17th century, with the difference that incidents were more widespread in those years. According to the records, the majority of the offending protagonists were youths (48%), and the setting, with 52%, was the public street. It was common for the victims to be local authorities (43%) and other young people (20%). Of those convicted in the civil courts, the most common penalty was banishment (49%), while the ecclesiastical court opted for pecuniary penalties, i.e. the payment of a fine (40% of cases).

The post Evolution of the unrest in the kingdom of Navarre (1512-1808) first appeared on History Lab.

Socio-professional distribution by heads of household according to age groups. Lorca, 1797

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:29:41 +0000

With this resource, the authors highlight the social mobility of the peasantry at the end of the Ancien Régime in the municipality of Lorca (Murcia). The relationship between day labourers, tenant farmers and tenant farmers shows a decrease in the number of day labourers over the course of their life cycle, while the group of farm labourers remains stable. The change of occupation among day labourers, who account for more than 50% of the heads of household aged between 20 and 25, becomes more pronounced from the age of 50 onwards.

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Distribution by head of household of day labourers without property according to age group. Lorca, 1797

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:29:41 +0000

Social mobility within the group of day labourers without property is determined by the moment in the life cycle in which they find themselves and by the space in which the day labourer’s activity is carried out. The graph shows that in the city the level of social mobility is lower than in the countryside and, above all, than in the huerta. The municipality of Lorca (Murcia) is at an intermediate level due to its characteristics as an agro-city. In short, neighbourhood relations, familiarity, solidarity and proximity are closely related to this phenomenon, which is also linked to the economic conditions of the areas of activity.

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Deaths in the city of Granada between 1647 and 1648

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:29:36 +0000

Epidemics were a constant throughout the Modern Age, decimating the number of inhabitants. The graph shows the evolution of mortality in the city of Granada in two years: 1647 and 1648. In the context of the typhus that struck the city, mortality was stable during the first year, but from June onwards it increased considerably until September, when it remained almost constant until November and December. At the beginning of 1648, the first months are more benign; however, from June onwards, it increases again until its peak in September where, unlike the previous year, it drops considerably until December. Analysis of the data reveals the seasonality of deaths in Granada: the summer months. By age group, adults suffer the most from this phenomenon, followed by children and, finally, young people. Apart from the extraordinary epidemiological effects, the mortality rate is in line with that of the old demographic regime.

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The post Deaths in the city of Granada between 1647 and 1648 first appeared on History Lab.

Evolution of the population of Palma de Mallorca (1478-1746)

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:29:36 +0000

Demographic changes and population trends show a clear tendency towards a general increase in population during the Modern Age. This process can be divided into 3 phases, one of stagnation (1478-1573), another of increase with respect to the beginning of modernity (1573-1600), and finally the maintenance phase with cycles of ups and downs caused by subsistence, climatic and epidemiological crises (1600-1746). The dynamics of Palma de Mallorca were in tune with those of the island. It is calculated that the population of Palma was, in 1503, 30% of the total; a figure that was maintained with small variations during the 16th and 17th centuries (in 1695 it fell to 24% of the total). Consequently, the Mallorcan rural environment was very important, so much so that the population density of the island was among the highest in the Crown of Aragon and Castile at the end of the 16th century.

The post Evolution of the population of Palma de Mallorca (1478-1746) first appeared on History Lab.

Income of the Cathedral Chapter of Cádiz during the 17th and 18th centuries

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:29:31 +0000

The cathedral chapter was of great importance in Cadiz during the Ancien Régime, due both to its economic power and the promotion of worship that they carried out during their ceremonies in the cathedrals. One of the most characteristic signs of the prebendados of Cádiz was the number of family members living in their homes, an average of six people. This indicates that the prebendados often took in relatives in a situation of dependence or need.
This fostering was possible due to the high economic potential of the prebendados, who had both their own income and the income they received for the benefit of their social position, such as the tithe and some properties, making up a sufficient patrimony to sustain the way of life they led. The evolution of the Cádiz chapter’s income depended almost directly on agricultural production, stagnating in the first half of the 17th century and growing again in the second half.

The post Income of the Cathedral Chapter of Cádiz during the 17th and 18th centuries first appeared on History Lab.

Inheritance systems in Modern Spain

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:29:13 +0000

According to the authors of the resource, “the inheritance systems sought the joint stability of men and women, mixing collective solidarity and particularised benefits” in search of succession strategies. In contrast to the traditional simplification of inheritance transmission models, the authors show us the more complex reality of the systems in their distribution throughout the national geography. The systems of sole heirs are subdivided according to the testator’s intention to promote a male or without defined priority. Within the former, Catalonia and the north of Aragon stand out, while in the latter, the areas of Navarre and Vizcaya stand out. For the Castilian egalitarian system, two variants have also been identified according to family motivations: favouring one heir with the third of improvement and the fifth of free disposition, leaving 2/3 of the inheritance for the rest destined to the offspring, or relatives in the absence of the former. This ensured the predominance of one heir over the others, but safeguarded a part for the overall distribution. Guipúzcoa, Asturias, the mountains of Santander and the province of Lugo (the latter already in the 18th century) reproduced this system. In the rest of the Crown of Castile, equal distribution between men and women, elders and minors predominated, except in cases where, out of affection or help in the testator’s old age, the testator tended to improve the inheritance of the person who assisted him. However, in order to avoid excessive patrimonial atomisation, wills could establish a patronage, chaplaincy or entailed estate in order to fix the endowed assets and provide the successors with constant assets that could not be alienated; another formula was to use part of the patrimony as a matrimonial dowry to ensure the social and biological reproduction of the family.

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Phases and geography of ageing in Spain, 1787-1910

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:28:52 +0000

Population ageing is the result of a demographic process that has developed over the medium and long term. This process began around the middle of the 19th century, while it accelerated in the 1960s-1970s. This table shows the rates of demographic ageing in the different geographical areas of the peninsula in the transition from the Ancien Régime to the contemporary period, taking into account those over 60 years of age. The first of the three most noteworthy of these three patterns corresponds to the Balearic Islands, where the ageing of the population took off in earnest between 1787 and 1877. This was due to the improvements experienced in terms of mortality, as shown by the gain in years in the life expectancy of its inhabitants between both dates -13.9 years-. The relative stagnation of its ageing during the last quarter of the 19th century came to an end at the turn of the century thanks to the same improvements mentioned above. In this way, the model was consolidated in a regional area whose average level of ageing was above 8.5%. The changeover was driven by improvements in mortality and the effects caused by the intensification of emigration, a fact demonstrated between 1787 and 1860-73, where the average life expectancy of the inhabitants of Asturias, Galicia, Navarre and the Basque Country experienced a net gain of 10.9, 4.0, 1.5 and 1.9 respectively, compared with the decline of the Valencian Country and Catalonia, which stood at 3.2 and 0.1. The second pattern of behaviour is offered by the north of the peninsula and inland Spain. The road to ageing began in the last quarter of the 19th century, although the socio-productive bases were little or nothing alike. It is enough to recall the particularity of the agricultural world in the interior of the peninsula, which was marked by the predominance of day labourers, low densities of inhabitants per square kilometre, structural mortality and an intense process of population redistribution from the centre to the periphery. This picture hardly matched that of the north, where demographic ageing was accompanied by a high number of inhabitants per square kilometre, low fertility, relatively benign mortality and high life expectancy. Finally, the third ageing model corresponds to that of the Mediterranean coast and the south of the peninsula, since, between the late 18th and 19th centuries, the over-60s as a proportion of the total population remained at an ageing rate of around 6.5-7.9%, rising from 1900 onwards.

The post Phases and geography of ageing in Spain, 1787-1910 first appeared on History Lab.