Salamanca - History Lab

Location of the 18th century noble houses in Salamanca

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

The nobility in the Modern Age was one of the most important groups in Spanish societies. This is why it can be studied from different historical approaches. This article deals with the reflection left by this social group through the mansions they inhabited, marking part of the evolution of the city of Salamanca during the Modern Age.
In the 18th century, the houses of those Salamancan families that made up the Salamancan nobility who settled in the city during the 16th century stand out, and who in this more recent chronology enjoyed a higher social and economic position than their previous generations. As can be seen in the resource, the vast majority of the Salamancan noble houses in 1784 were located in the centre of the enclosure, with only a few families established in the outer rings.

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Rate of growth of the Salamancan collegiates between 1551 and 1596

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:30:03 +0000

Among the students of Salamanca in the 16th century, we can distinguish between those who belonged to the city itself, those who belonged to a religious or secular community, the pupils and those who could afford the expense of lodging their children in the city so that they could study. In addition, there was a type of college which offered scholarships to students who fulfilled certain conditions, and which served to support them financially and in terms of means during their studies. These colleges could be divided into regular colleges, secular colleges and colleges of the Military Orders.
Thus, from 1566 onwards, the number of collegiate students increased considerably in all three types, until, in 1571, the military order colleges and, in 1581, the secular colleges began to decline steadily. The regular colleges, on the other hand, began an unstoppable rise from 1566 to the end of the century, almost doubling the number of students and tripling the number of military order collegiates.

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Annual Unjustified Absenteeism at the University of Salamanca (1700-1750)

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:30:03 +0000

During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, absenteeism from university chairs was a frequent phenomenon in Spanish universities. This abandonment can be explained through several causes, such as the consideration of the professorship as a temporary occupation in the face of better opportunities, low salaries or the obligation to carry out tedious administrative tasks. This resource analyses this phenomenon, focusing on the University of Salamanca during the first half of the seventeenth century.
The fines can be seen mainly in the regency professorships, also called cursatorias. The fact is that the professorships were a compulsory step towards promotion, while the regency professorships were mainly for the purpose of retirement. Particularly noteworthy in this respect were the fines for the Law and Logic-Philosophy faculties, which amounted to more than 300 lessons per year.

The post Annual Unjustified Absenteeism at the University of Salamanca (1700-1750) first appeared on History Lab.

Pupil cost evolution (1595-1628)

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:29:25 +0000

From the first half of the 16th century onwards, the University of Salamanca provided accommodation for students who would be tutored by a bachelor so that the young people could progress in their studies while having basic aspects such as food, religious education and board covered.
Not all the boarding schools were of the same social category and did not pay the same price, but it is clear from the figures that the great majority came from privileged social groups with economic possibilities. Parents would commission this boarding as an investment in order to make their children more profitable for them.
As opposed to this complete boarding school, other models emerged, such as the governorship or the camaristas, with more economically accessible services because each one covered their needs with the amounts they could contribute, and not a fixed rate for all of them, with the cost of maintenance being approximately 65% of the total.

The post Pupil cost evolution (1595-1628) first appeared on History Lab.

Salaries at the 17th century Salamanca university

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:29:25 +0000

This research seeks to discover the economic conditions of the university institution in Salamanca during the 16th century. It has been found that the most important item of Salamanca’s expenditure in percentage terms was to cover salaries, both for the professorships and the minor professorships, substitutions and officials, accounting for 55-60% of the total expenditure. The professorships were one of the most costly items, accounting for 35-38% of the expenditure.
As can be seen in the resource, the university services gradually increased their budgets during the 16th century, mainly due to the institution’s own internal growth and the gradual overcoming of a structural crisis that had been dragging on since the beginning of the century. This fact can be seen in the figures of the janitors, secretaries, sweepers and bailiffs.
One of the posts whose salaries were most reduced was that of chaplains, as the University of Salamanca maintained many medieval features during the first half of the 16th century, such as the excessive presence of ecclesiastics and the nature of studies centred on law and theology, which led to a progressive decrease in enrolments for these studies.

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Testamentary practices of Salamancan servants (1601-1650)

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

Attitudes to death are a reflection of the mentality of the time. Between 1601 and 1650, the 106 wills compiled by the author for the socio-professional group of servants in Salamanca give us a clear picture: the majority of servants were women (75% as opposed to 25% men). Despite the predominance of women, only 2.5% were able to sign, while in the male group this rises to 23%. Women were more likely to make offerings (47.5%), to leave their master as executor (57.7%) and their soul as heir (57.5%). The deep religiosity that permeated Ancien Régime society was also evident among male servants. Indeed, up to 38.5% offered their inheritance to their soul to ensure their welfare beyond the earthly life through masses and offices for the souls. It was also common for them to ask to be accompanied at their funeral by a clergyman or by a religious institution, such as the confraternities.

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Burial place of the Salamancan servants (1601-1650)

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

The servants of Salamanca between 1601 and 1650 were predisposed to be buried in the church, followed by places not yet determined, convents or hospitals. This attitude to death is conditioned both by the mentality of the time and by the socio-economic characteristics of the group to which they belonged. Why in the Church? The motivations identified by the author reflect, firstly, the family conscience, as their ancestors were buried there, and secondly, the lower economic cost, as it was cheaper than the other options. Those buried in convents either had a relationship of dependence on them, being servants of these institutions, or had devotions to certain religious orders, which is why there was a higher percentage of men than women who chose this option: 26.9% compared to 22.5%. However, many of the testators (23.75% of women and 34.6% of men) did not specify the place of burial, leaving the choice to their executors, where relatives and masters were the most common choices.

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Deaths in the parishes of Salamanca during the cholera epidemics of 1834, 1855 and 1885

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:28:46 +0000

During the 19th century, cholera was the pandemic par excellence. In the specific case of Salamanca, it caused three major mortality crises in 1834, 1855 and 1885. Due to their disruptive effects on the course of life, cholera epidemics had a great impact on the societies of the time. This disease is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae, which we now know is transmitted through the ingestion of contaminated water or food. The development of mortality in Salamanca is summarised in this graph, where parish deaths show an upward trend linked to population growth. The main peaks of the three cholera epidemics of 1834, 1855 and 1885-86 are striking, where a significant proportion of the deaths, 35% on average, were not recorded in the parishes. However, the first two epidemics were much more intense, about 8 on the Dupâquier scale, and with a Del Panta and Livi-Bacci index implying more than twice as many deaths as expected. In comparison, the 1885 epidemic is less intense, with an excess mortality of 56% and a Dupâquier index below 3. Thus, the absolute excess mortality would be at its highest in 1855, over 700 deaths, compared to around 600 in 1834 and around 400 in 1885.

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