Kamer van de Huisarmen
Item
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Country
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BE
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Name of institution (English)
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FelixArchief (Antwerp City Archives)
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Language of name of institution
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dut
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Contact information: postal address
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Oudeleeuwenrui 29, 2000 Antwerpen
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Contact information: phone number
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0032 33389411
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Contact information: web address
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https://felixarchief.antwerpen.be/
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Contact information: email
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stadsarchief@antwerpen.be
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Reference number
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BE SA 367782
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Type of reference number
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Archival reference number
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Title (English)
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Chamber for Poor Relief
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Title (official language of the state)
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Kamer van de Huisarmen
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Language of title
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dut
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Creator / accumulator
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Kamer van de Huisarmen
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Date(s)
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1449/1875
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Language(s)
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dut
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Type of material
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Textual Material
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Scope and content
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The Kamer van de Huisarmen (Chamber for poor relief) fonds comprises documentation related to the internal administration, as well as financial and heritage management of institutions under the supervision of this Chamber. The fonds is organised into six main series, following a functional criterion: Bestuur (Management), Secretariaat (Secretariat), Financieel beheer (Financial management), Patrimoniumbeheer (Heritage management), Sociaal beheer (Social management), and Documenten ingezameld van andere archiefvormers (Documents collected from other archives). These series include resolutions, accounting books, inventories, ledgers, correspondence, and information concerning poor relief initiatives. It also includes wills and legacies whose testamentary clauses benefited these institutions. It is the case of the will of Fernando Ximenes de Aragão (Testamenten, contracten en legaten, X, Ferdinando Ximenes d' Arragon), an influent Spanish converso who bequeathed a part of his inheritance to charity, with the particular aim of supporting the foundation of a new institution for poor relief in Antwerp.
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Archival history
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Over the centuries, poor relief and social assistance in Antwerp were organised by the Tafels van de Heilige Geest (Tablets of the Holy Spirit) and the Kamer der Huisarmen. In 1796, these services were transferred to the Bureel van Weldadigheid (Bureau of Benevolence) and the Commissie van Burgerlijke Godshuizen (Commission of Civil Almshouses). In 1925, the Commissie van Openbare Onderstand (Public Assistance Commission) undertook the responsibility for poor relief and social assistance. The safeguard of the respective archives was under the care of these institutions until they were transferred to the FelixArchief. Individual hospitals and healthcare institutions also formed their own archives.
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(source: FelixArchief website)
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Administrative / Biographical history
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By 1450, Antwerp was facing an unstoppable flow of immigration by virtue of its economic development. This increase in the city's population led to the growth of impoverishment and displacement. The vast majority of migrants looking for work or some material assistance were categorised as vagabonds. Begging and vagrancy were considered criminal offences and were penalised with corporal punishment and forced labour. However, the effect of the repressive measures was very limited. In several cities, new institutions for poor relief were established, as was the case in Antwerp, where the Kamer van de Huisarmen was established in 1458.
On October 7, 1531, Emperor Carlos V decreed that begging was strictly forbidden, aiming to halt the flow of migrants seeking material assistance. However, the emperor did ensure efficient social policies and, eventually, traditional poor relief measures and institutions had to be reorganised, especially in Antwerp, a metropolis where elites were interested in guarantying control over the growing population of poor residents and immigrants.
On November 15, 1540, the city council decreed that the goods belonging to the Tafels van de Heilige Geest (local institution for poor relief), the almshouses, the St. Julianus Hospital and other charitable institutions should be handed over to the "aalmoezeniers" (almoners).
The city council also reorganised poor relief institutions. The "aalmoezeniers" were expected to record the name, address, age, marital status, occupation, physical condition and wages of every family eligible for public aid. The Tafels van de Heilige Geest, however, continued to refuse to deposit their financial funds into a central treasury. In 1558, the Antwerp "aalmoezeniers" turned to the Council of Brabant, which decided in their favour. On May 5, 1558, the city council ordered that all charity foundations were to be subjected to the "aalmoezeniers". Consequently, by the end of the 16th century, they had control over the Tafels van de Heilige Gees and almost all small almshouses.
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(source: FelixArchief website)
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System of arrangement
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The Kamer van de Huisarmen fonds is organised by functional criteria. Each collection refers to a different activity/process.
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Author of the description
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Kevin Soares, 2022
