Sierra de Alcaraz - History Lab

Life cycle and peasantry in the Sierra de Alcaraz (1753)

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

One of the most characteristic groups due to their mobility and social reproduction during the Modern Age were the labour and livestock labourers. The large number of this profession, together with that of labourer and farm labourer, marked the labour activities for young people up to 35 years of age in the Sierra de Alcaraz, a study area in central-southern Spain. Why did it increase so much up to that age? These activities were a good way to enter the world of work. Of the three dominant professional groups, from the age of 35 onwards, it was the young men who abandoned their work the most to seek another livelihood, normally sponsored by the clientele networks they had acquired in their old trade, while the day labourers and farm labourers remained relatively stable until the age of 45. This structure is influenced by the life cycles of the protagonists; the departure from the family nucleus, where many of the young men’s own tasks were carried out, led them to seek another form of independent life.

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Type of landholding and age of the head of the family in the Sierra de Alcaraz (Albacete) in 1753

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:28:33 +0000

In the Sierra del Alcaraz area of the 18th century, property was unequally distributed among the number of owners. The inequality between large and small landowners was also affected by another factor: age. Ownership and the life cycle of the individual are intimately linked in the family environment: while the parents acquire land, the children work on it as helpers. When they reach the age of 35 to 55, the stage of greatest accumulation of property takes place; their parents, already in the final years of their lives, give them the land so that they can perpetuate themselves in the family. However, until the time of their death, those over 55 years of age will continue to concentrate their wealth. Of the owners over this age, 25.7% are counted as medium-sized owners, compared with 23.4% who had no real estate, a not insignificant figure, which only increases from the age of 65 onwards with 35.5%. This trend in medium-sized property ownership contrasts with the dynamics of small and large estates. Thus, among small property owners, those between 35 and 44 years of age stand out most, and large property owners between 45 and 54 years of age.

The post Type of landholding and age of the head of the family in the Sierra de Alcaraz (Albacete) in 1753 first appeared on History Lab.

Approximation to the value of dowry letters in the Sierra de Alcaraz in the 18th century

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:28:27 +0000

The dowry was the movable and immovable property that the woman brought to the marriage. Its amount and composition varied according to the economic possibilities of the family: clothes, kitchen utensils, furniture and household goods were the most common. From the studies carried out in the Sierra de Alcaraz (province of Albacete) for the 18th century, we obtain that the average value of the dowry was 10,086 reals. This average is the result of a clear inequality between the few most valuable dowries (10% of the dowries were worth more than 25,000 reales, accounting for 44% of the overall amount) and the greater number of dowries with a value ranging between 1,000 and 5,000 reales: 52% of the cases. This 52% is a reflection of the general economic inequality, although regional variables can be observed; in the cities of Lorca and Murcia this percentage drops to 40; the party of Cáceres shows similar data, although the city of Cáceres doubles the average amount of the dowry in relation to the Sierra de Alcaraz. The variability is explained through socio-economic factors predominant in each place, as well as its demographic structure and property ownership.

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Contributions to marriage in the Sierra de Alcaraz according to wills (18th century)

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:28:27 +0000

Wills, like wills and letters of dowry, were another way of contributing movable and immovable property to the marriage. Being a much more widespread practice than dowry deeds, their information is of great importance. From the set of wills studied for the Sierra de Alcaraz (province of Albacete) in the 18th century, we found that in around 35-45% of the cases the contracting parties had contributed something to the marriage. Of the total cases, 41.3% had brought no more than 500 reales, a small figure compared to the average: 3,566 reales. In terms of gender, women contributed more frequently than men, but their value was lower than that of men (averages of 2,687.5 versus 5,170.9 reais). The differentiation between men and women was also determined by what they contributed; while men tended to give tools linked to agricultural work (tools, chickens, small livestock or grain), women’s goods corresponded to the domestic sphere (clothes, frying pans, beds…). Affective relationships within the family were evident when the kinsmen helped their maidens with goods. In the same way, friends could contribute to the dowry of the woman, although these cases were more widespread the higher the social and economic status of the bride’s family.

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Typology of the heirs in the Sierra de Alcaraz in the 18th century

ad_hlab_min — Sat, 19 Feb 2022 16:28:27 +0000

The transmission of property is fundamental to explain the material perpetuation of families. In most cases, children were designated as heirs, although in their absence, the property was passed on to other members of the family. Of the cases studied for the Sierra de Alcaraz, in the province of Albacete, in the 18th century almost 85% of the inheritances were destined to children, followed by spouses (9%), siblings (6.9%), grandchildren (4.6%) and nephews and nieces (3.3%). The data provided by the Sierra de Alcaraz follow the practices of the egalitarian model of the Castilian inheritance system; a descending level of transmission and with relative equivalences between men and women (53.76% and 46.24% respectively). In terms of matrimonial status, in the transmission of assets, an attempt was made to put unmarried children on an equal footing with gifted children if they had married, so that the eldest son did not benefit more than the others as a general rule. On the contrary, younger children could be given advantages because they had not yet left the family nucleus and were able to help with the work or assist the testators when they were ill. If the children were young, the spouses were appointed curators and usufructuaries or, in their absence, the closest relatives.

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