Nuevo Mundo - History Lab

View of Seville from the west bank of the river

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:30:33 +0000

After the conquest of Granada (1492), Andalusia was fully incorporated into the Habsburg monarchy, and the population increased throughout the 16th century. This increase in population was particularly significant in the city of Seville, which in the 16th century had more than 100,000 inhabitants thanks to the economic development brought about by trade with America. In fact, the port of Seville exercised a monopoly on American trade by establishing the Casa de Contratación (1503) in the city. As a result, it became one of the most important European cities, as it was the gateway for goods from the New World that would later be traded, via various routes, throughout Europe. The increase in Seville’s mercantile and financial activity attracted many Castilians and foreigners who flocked to the city, some to settle there and enjoy its riches, others to embark for the New World in search of new opportunities.

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Screen of the Palace of the Viceroys of Mexico

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:30:33 +0000

The Viceroy was the administrative figure during the Spanish Empire responsible for administering and governing, on behalf of the Spanish Monarchy, a territory. The Viceroy was therefore the personal representative of the King of Spain in other places. In the case of the Americas, due to the great extent of its possessions, the Spanish Crown created two Viceroyalties, the Viceroyalty of New Spain (1535-1821) and the Viceroyalty of Peru (1542-1824). In the case of the former, the life of the Viceroyalty of New Spain was governed internally from the buildings that formed the surroundings of the main square of Mexico City, such as the Viceroyal Palace, the City Hall, the Mint, the University and the Cathedral. The palace, in addition to being the seat of the viceroy, included numerous official offices, making it the nerve centre of viceregal power. The five panels on the right of the screen in the image depict the characteristics of this building before it burned down as a result of the riot of 1692. Opposite the façade of the Palace was the city’s most important market, El Parián, where many goods arrived from Manila. Its stalls sold all kinds of products and utensils, as well as the numerous foodstuffs that supplied the city from the surrounding area. The remaining three pages contain an incomplete view of the Paseo de la Alameda in the Spanish capital. This work offers a view of viceregal society and the role played by its different members. Thus, the ruling class is represented by Spaniards and Creoles, who were involved in the official and leisure world, going to the palace or strolling along the Alameda, while mestizos, mulattos and indigenous people were mainly engaged in service and merchant work.

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Conquest of Mexico. Moctezuma’s reception

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:30:33 +0000

The image depicts the retinue formed by the Emperor Montezuma and his nobles, organised to meet Hernán Cortés and welcome him as he entered the city of Mexico-Tenochtitlán, the Aztec capital. This work is part of a set of 24 panels produced using the technique of ‘enconchado’. This passage of the Conquest of Mexico was narrated by numerous chroniclers, who served as inspiration for the authors of several pictorial series in which the images depict the most significant events of the story. The series is signed in 1698 by two painters who lived in Mexico City, the capital of the Viceroyalty of New Spain: Juan and Miguel González, the most famous artists in the production of enconchados. The entire ensemble was commissioned for King Charles II and from the beginning of the 18th century it became part of the royal collections. In the enconchados, the pictorial layer is combined with fragments of mother-of-pearl arranged on a preparation of plaster applied to a wooden support, often covered with canvas. The production of this type of work can be traced to Mexico between the mid-17th and 18th centuries.

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Contracting House

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:30:33 +0000

The Contracting House was the institution responsible, from its first ordinances in 1503, for managing all commercial matters related to the New World. It was initially set up in Seville, the main hub of trade with America, where it remained for more than 200 years. Its splendour was such that in the mid-16th century it displaced other European financial centres such as Antwerp. Its first headquarters were in the Royal Shipyards of Seville, but it soon moved to the premises of the Real Alcázar. It remained there until 1717, when it moved to Cadiz, where it remained until 1790, when the institution was abolished. During its first decades of existence in the 16th century, it enjoyed great influence, which would diminish with the passing of time and with the creation of bodies such as the Consulado de Cargadores (Consulate of Chargers). At the end of the 17th century, its role was secondary, a condition that was further reinforced throughout the 18th century, mainly after its transfer to Cadiz. Its most visible activity throughout the 16th and 17th centuries was undoubtedly the organisation of the convoys that marched in the Carrera de Indias: the fleets of New Spain and Tierra Firme. He was also in charge, among other duties, of preparing the merchant ships and galleons of war, registering the merchandise, examining the passengers who embarked and preparing the pilots. It also managed the remittances from the Indies corresponding to the King and private individuals, and functioned as the first instance in its judicial sphere.

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Mainland Galleons

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:30:33 +0000

The Mainland Galleons were the ships of the Carrera de Indias that linked Spain with the Viceroyalty of Peru. This fleet differed in part from the Fleet of New Spain, as it brought together the fleet of Tierra Firme, a convoy of merchant ships, and the Armada de la Guardia de la Carrera de Indias, a squadron that was destined for the military protection of the fleet in the Atlantic. These fleets transported silver from the main mining centres in Peru, such as Potosí, La Paz and Oruro, which is why the Armada accompanied them, especially on their return to Spain. On their return journey, they were also joined by the fleet from New Spain. This combination of navy and fleet is known as the Tierra Firme galleons. On their journey to America, they left from Andalusia, stopped in the Canary Islands and from there they travelled mainly to the ports of Cartagena de Indias and Nombre de Dios, which in the 17th century was replaced by Portobelo. Over time, Peruvian trade caused the crisis and early disappearance of the Tierra Firme galleons and Portobelo fairs, as the Atlantic trade was progressively abandoned and the Pacific trade became more important, seeking the Pacific Race to the Philippines and China and the supply of European goods through Mexico and the fleets of New Spain. This new design led to the slow languishing of the galleons in the late 17th and early 18th century until they were finally scrapped in 1739. The image shows the plan of the galleon “Nuestra Señora del Mar”, one of those of the Armada of General Marqués del Vado, which was wrecked in the Gulf of Bermuda, its captain and owner being Admiral Francisco de Pineda. It shows how the galleon, which has four masts and sails hoisted, is surrounded by five boats where most of the crew have been assembled, while some of its members are lowered into them by ropes. There is a large amount of water coming out of the scuppers.

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Drawing of the ball game

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:30:26 +0000

The ball game was a sport with ritual and religious connotations, played by the pre-Columbian peoples of Mesoamerica since at least 1400 B.C. It was practised both in everyday life and in religious celebrations, and it seems that it sometimes served to resolve land disputes or trade relations, among other things. The sport has evolved over time in various forms. It is still practised today in some parts of Mexico. Although with variations, it seems that the most widespread version of the game involved players hitting the ball with their hips, elbows and knees, without letting it fall to the ground. Over time, stone hoops were also introduced, which the ball had to be touched or passed through. The weight of the ball was considerable, as it was made of rubber and is thought to have weighed up to 4 kg. The playing fields may have varied in their characteristics, but all had long narrow courts with side walls used to bounce the ball. The winner of the game was protected and supported by the gods, although it is not known whether the winners were sacrificed or whether it was the losers who offered their lives to the deities. The game had an important religious and ritual component, even, as has been noted, including human sacrifice, although it also retained a character of enjoyment and leisure, for the recreation of children and women.

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Drawing of the production of grana or cochineal

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:30:14 +0000

Cochineal is a species of aphid, mainly from Mexico and Peru, which has been used in the Americas for more than 2,000 years to dye clothes and colour food. In the 16th century, the Spanish began exporting it to Europe, where it fetched a high price as a dye for cloth and for use by painters. Later, the Spanish introduced it to the Canary Islands, where its cultivation became an important economic resource for the islands. When the Spanish conquered Mexico in 1521, they saw the indigenous people collecting insects from the nopales and soon realised its exceptional properties as a natural pigment. In Europe, since the Middle Ages, people had been looking for ways to obtain a perfect red pigment to dye fabrics. Medieval dyers, who were organised in guilds, were capable of producing many colours, but red was extremely difficult to obtain. The rich crimson and scarlet silks were dyed with kermes in centres located especially in Italy and Sicily. With the discovery of America, cochineal displaced kermes as it produced a stronger red in smaller quantities. By the 1570s, the European textile industry had become dependent on the use of cochineal. According to sources of the period, in 1580, around 133 tons of grana were produced in the whole of New Spain alone. Its growth did not stop increasing for centuries and soon ships loaded with dried insects were also targeted by pirates.

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Port Royale 2

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:28:22 +0000

Port Royale 2 is a naval trading video game set in the Caribbean Sea during the 17th century. Throughout more than 60 ports, the objective is to create your own production and distribution centres, expanding your commercial empire and influencing the development and growth of the New World.
Another of the characteristic elements of this game is the representation of the pirate problem in the Caribbean waters, with decisions being necessary between maximising profits or using some ships as escorts, at the cost of the losses that this movement must generate. Regarding the available fleet, Port Royale 2 has 16 ship types available, ranging from small merchant ships to large cargo vessels.

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Port Royale 3

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:28:22 +0000

In Port Royale 3 the mighty kingdoms of Spain, England, France and Holland struggle to dominate the colonies scattered throughout the Caribbean in the 17th century. It is against this backdrop that the player must make his place among the great historical personalities through his skills as a merchant or directly through military combat. The 60 port cities and 16 historical types of ships, such as galleons and frigates, remain in the game.
For the first time in the prolific Port Royale saga and as the most important novelty compared to its predecessors, the game has a multiplayer mode for 4 players in local network or via internet, allying or competing to found the most relevant trading company in the Caribbean. Moreover, through the complex trading system implemented in the game, it will be the actions taken that regulate the supply and demand of both the transport of goods and the manufactured craft industry itself, deciding the price of the different goods.

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Port Royale 4

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:28:22 +0000

Joining the colonial forces of Spain, France, England and the Netherlands, you must learn to manage a small settlement into a major trading city in the 16th and 17th century Caribbean. New in this fourth instalment of the franchise is the increased management and trade between the different islands, mediating large trade routes to meet the growing needs of each city. This time, everything is represented in a unique scenario in which everything takes place in real time, dispensing with the typical rooms typical of this saga. In addition, turn-based strategy also makes its debut in the saga, as this is how the naval battles take place and opens the door to a new military strategy.
Also new this time is the chronological expansion backwards in time, not only focusing on the 17th century, as there are four campaigns -one for each of the previously mentioned colonial powers-, each one is developed at the time when each of them dominated the Caribbean. Another substantial change is that introduced in urbanism and city planning, since poor management – locating housing adjacent to industry – or poor planning of basic services can lead to major problems such as plagues, social unrest and even mass emigration, which has a direct impact on the productivity and performance of the controlled nation.

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