pastoreo - History Lab

Royal Provision of the Catholic Monarchs to the Concejo de la Mesta, allowing shepherds to dispose of unowned livestock without a known owner

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:32:42 +0000

The Honourable Council of the Mesta was an institution of medieval origin which, throughout the Modern Age, extended its powers and privileges to the benefit of the herdsmen ahead of the farmers. Thus, a law of 1501 came to determine that all land on which transhumant herds had grazed at least once was reserved in perpetuity for grazing and could not be used for other purposes by the owner. In this context, the document contains legislation by which the Catholic Monarchs allowed shepherds to dispose of unowned livestock without a known owner. The Mesta was abolished in 1836.

The post Royal Provision of the Catholic Monarchs to the Concejo de la Mesta, allowing shepherds to dispose of unowned livestock without a known owner first appeared on History Lab.

Office of the owners of transhumant livestock in La Rioja (18th century)

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:29:07 +0000

Transhumance has been a very relevant activity in the Spanish rural environment in pre-industrial times. Nowadays, knowledge about the work of shepherds is scarce due to a lack of documentation, as the phenomenon of pluriactivity must be taken into account. Had this not existed in the Rioja sierras – mainly through textile activity – the labour relations between stockbreeders and shepherds would have been very different. In socio-economic terms, it is understood that shepherds enjoyed transhumance in three ways: as owners, wage earners and enjoying exemptions granted by the monarchy (free of council offices, quintas and levies). However, it is necessary to clarify which type of shepherds we are referring to, as the hierarchies are not comparable in any field. The “mayorales” included management capacity and initiative, knowledge of the environment, administrators of goods and proxies for the herdsmen. As far as livestock owners were concerned, the ownership of livestock was the least evenly distributed of all. While two thirds of the inhabitants owned land and three quarters of them owned some kind of livestock, the owners of transhumant sheep accounted for only 27% of the inhabitants, being the most exclusive and concentrated asset in the hands of large livestock farmers and shepherds. The table shows the distribution of the flocks in various socio-professional groups. The stockbreeders, who were a handful of neighbours, accumulated 86% of the cattle; the shepherds, almost two thirds of the owners, owned 10% of the cattle in herds of less than 100 head. The rest, which did not exceed 20%, absorbed 3.2% of the livestock.

The post Office of the owners of transhumant livestock in La Rioja (18th century) first appeared on History Lab.

Working life of the transhumant shepherds of La Rioja (Viniegra de Abajo, ca. 1740-1800).

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:29:02 +0000

Transhumance was a very important activity in the Spanish countryside in pre-industrial times. Nowadays, knowledge about the work of shepherds is scarce due to a lack of documentation, as the phenomenon of pluriactivity must be taken into account. Had this not existed in the Rioja sierras – mainly through textile activity – the labour relations between stockbreeders and shepherds would have been very different. In socio-economic terms, it is understood that shepherds enjoyed transhumance in three ways: as owners, wage earners and enjoying exemptions granted by the monarchy (free of council offices, quintas and levies). However, it is necessary to clarify which type of shepherds we are referring to, as the hierarchies are not comparable in any field. The majorales encompassed management capacity and initiative, knowledge of the environment, administrators of goods and proxies for the herdsmen. Moreover, the mayoral contracts required a power of attorney that enabled them to make decisions on the spot. However, the transhumant shepherds in La Rioja numbered around 2,150, at a rate of five for every thousand people. Of the total number of inhabitants in the La Demanda and Cameros mountain ranges, they accounted for around 30%. These shepherds had an average grazing period of 5.4 years, with 68.3% of those who worked in transhumance for less than five years, which does not allow them to be identified as shepherds. Even less with the 39 who did it for less than one year of service, people who were dismissed or expelled before the time of the first contract was up. In this sense, the herds suffered a significant labour turnover where the labour market of the transhumant herds was a particularly open environment where labour came and went very easily.

The post Working life of the transhumant shepherds of La Rioja (Viniegra de Abajo, ca. 1740-1800). first appeared on History Lab.