Casa de la Contratación
Item
Country
ES
Name of institution (English)
General Archive of the Indies
Name of institution (official language of the state)
Language of name of institution
spa
Contact information: postal address
Avenida de la Constitución s/n // Calle Santo Tomás 5, 41071 Seville
Contact information: phone number
0034 954500528
Contact information: web address
Contact information: email
agi1@cultura.gob.es
agi2@cultura.gob.es
Reference number
ES.41091.AGI/11//CONTRATACION
Type of reference number
Archival reference number
Title (English)
House of Trade
Title (official language of the state)
Casa de la Contratación
Language of title
spa
Creator / accumulator
Casa de la Contratación
Date(s)
1492/1795
Language(s)
spa
Extent
51 series
Type of material
Textual Material
Physical condition
Good
Scope and content
The second collection in volume and importance of the Archivo General de Indias is the one formed by the documents of the Casa de la Contratación. This extensive fonds is divided into 51 series according to the subject and typology of the documentation. It includes very interesting materials related to all the activities of the Casa de la Contratación, such as those regarding trade and shipment of goods between Spain and America, the organisation and control of fleets and navigation, control of the "Passengers to the Indies", civil jurisdiction in matters of trading companies, freight, deceased property, contracts, and so on. For instance, section 3 ("Naturalezas de extranjeros") includes records of the naturalization of foreign-born merchants who operated in Spanish America, among them several Portuguese New Christians. Numerous other examples of documentation regarding the participation of New Christian merchants in Spanish American trade can be found throughout the various series of this fonds, which make it one of the most important collections for research on New Christian networks in the Spanish Atlantic.
Archival history
The Archivo General de Indias, established in Seville in 1785, preserved the fonds produced by the institutions created by the Spanish Central Administration for the government and administration of Spanish overseas territories. These institutions are the Consejo de Indias y Secretarías de Despacho (Council of the Indies and Secretaries of State and Office), Casa de la Contratación (House of Trade), and the Consulates of Seville and Cádiz. Likewise, other fonds of smaller institutions and even individuals related to the Spanish colonies in America are preserved.
The geographical scope covered by the records of this fonds is broad, including Iberian America and the Philippine Islands. There is also abundant documentation on other neighbouring countries such as the United States, Brazil, etc.
As to the chronological scope, the documentation covers more than four centuries, from 1492 to the independence of the Spanish territories in America in the first third of the 19th century. Records are also preserved until the second third of the 19th century on the islands of Cuba and the Philippines, which remained Spanish provinces until 1898.
The archive is housed in the Casa Lonja de Mercaderes, the old merchants' exchange of Seville. Today the Archivo General de Indias houses some nine kilometres of shelving, in 43,000 volumes and some 80 million pages, which were produced by the colonial administration.
The geographical scope covered by the records of this fonds is broad, including Iberian America and the Philippine Islands. There is also abundant documentation on other neighbouring countries such as the United States, Brazil, etc.
As to the chronological scope, the documentation covers more than four centuries, from 1492 to the independence of the Spanish territories in America in the first third of the 19th century. Records are also preserved until the second third of the 19th century on the islands of Cuba and the Philippines, which remained Spanish provinces until 1898.
The archive is housed in the Casa Lonja de Mercaderes, the old merchants' exchange of Seville. Today the Archivo General de Indias houses some nine kilometres of shelving, in 43,000 volumes and some 80 million pages, which were produced by the colonial administration.
Administrative / Biographical history
The Casa de la Contratación de Indias, a Crown agency for the Spanish Empire, was created by the ordinances of January 20, 1503. It had its headquarters in the Reales Alcázares de Sevilla, where it remained until its transfer to Cádiz in 1717. The House was settled there until 1790, when its extinction was decreed.
The House was created to manage the trade with the overseas territories, in the image of the Casa da India in Lisbon. This body had a triple mission: to direct Spanish American trade and navigation, to serve as a commercial court of justice, and as a scientific institution to study and train on maritime and cartographic issues.
The House was created to manage the trade with the overseas territories, in the image of the Casa da India in Lisbon. This body had a triple mission: to direct Spanish American trade and navigation, to serve as a commercial court of justice, and as a scientific institution to study and train on maritime and cartographic issues.
Access points: locations
Access points: subject terms
Access points: document types
System of arrangement
The complex administrative organisation of the Casa de la Contratación gives rise to an enormous volume of documentation that does not have, of origin, a systematic arrangement, nor an organic classification. This may be due to the division of documentation between Seville and Cádiz.
Finding aids
Links to finding aids
Author of the description
Rui Queirós de Faria, 2021
Bibliography
Linked resources
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| Title | Alternate label | Class |
|---|---|---|
| Archivo General de Indias | Collections (official language of the state) |