Bahia
Item
Country
PT
Name of institution (English)
Overseas Historical Archive
Name of institution (official language of the state)
Language of name of institution
por
Contact information: postal address
Calçada da Boa-Hora 30, 1300-095 Lisbon
Contact information: phone number
00351 210 30 91 00
Contact information: web address
Contact information: email
ahu@ahu.dglab.gov.pt
Reference number
PT/CU/005
Type of reference number
Archival reference number
Title (official language of the state)
Bahia
Language of title
por
Creator / accumulator
Conselho Ultramarino
Date(s)
1604/1828
Language(s)
por
Extent
281 boxes, and 19,610 documents
Type of material
Textual Material
Scope and content
The Bahia sub-collection is part of the Conselho Ultramarino (Overseas Council) fonds. This institution had jurisdiction over all overseas territories of the Portuguese Empire. Therefore, its archive included numerous letters, royal orders, and documentation exchanged with other institutions of the Portuguese Crown. This collection, in particular, contains various documentation concerning the Portuguese colonial administration related to Bahia.
Among the numerous documents that are part of this collection, a few contain information regarding Portuguese New Christians. Some examples are the following:
CU/005-002/0001/00092, October 15, 1614: Contract for collecting "dízimos" (tithes) between the Portuguese Crown and Simão de Leão. Simão de Leão paid 45,000 cruzados for the responsibility of collecting tithes in Salvador, Sergipe del Rey, Ilhéus, and Espírito Santo for a year (from August 1614 to July 1615). The family of Simão de Leão had its origins in Porto, where his predecessors were influential merchants of colonial products to various ports in Northern Europe. Several of the members of this New Christian family lived in Bahia, among them Simão de Leão, Diogo de Leão, and António Mendes de Leão.
PT/AHU/CU/005-002/0002/00155.00157, June 26, 1617: Petition presented by Manuel Serrão Botelho to King Filipe II of Portugal, requesting the position of "provedor da fazenda" (a colonial official with extensive powers mostly over taxes and economic matters) in Bahia. In his application, he argued that although he was a New Christian, he had married an Old Christian woman and had no relationships with other New Christians. The document is published in Fonsêca (2007), p. 109.
CU/005/0149/11467, October 23, 1762: Land demarcation documents of Bahia. It mentions rural and agricultural areas in Bahia where "Jewish women" should establish themselves.
CU/005/0168/12707, October 24, 1772: Letter from Francisco Xavier de Castilho to Queen Maria I of Portugal (1734-1816), referring to some insults directed by some ecclesiastical ministers against New Christians who expressed the desire to enter the ecclesiastical service in the archbishopric of Bahia.
CU/005-001/0061/11753, May 10, 1785: Letter from the Archbishop of Bahia, Friar António Correia, to the Secretary of State for Navy and Overseas, Martinho de Melo e Castro, informing him of his view about the distinction between New and Old Christians.
CU/005/096/18732, March 20, 1799: Document concerning the history of Ilhéus, its origins, agriculture, trade, population and precious woods, written by Balthasar da Silva Lisboa to D. Rodrigo de Sousa Coutinho. In his account, Lisboa states that some of the first settlers of Ilhéus were "Jews".
Among the numerous documents that are part of this collection, a few contain information regarding Portuguese New Christians. Some examples are the following:
CU/005-002/0001/00092, October 15, 1614: Contract for collecting "dízimos" (tithes) between the Portuguese Crown and Simão de Leão. Simão de Leão paid 45,000 cruzados for the responsibility of collecting tithes in Salvador, Sergipe del Rey, Ilhéus, and Espírito Santo for a year (from August 1614 to July 1615). The family of Simão de Leão had its origins in Porto, where his predecessors were influential merchants of colonial products to various ports in Northern Europe. Several of the members of this New Christian family lived in Bahia, among them Simão de Leão, Diogo de Leão, and António Mendes de Leão.
PT/AHU/CU/005-002/0002/00155.00157, June 26, 1617: Petition presented by Manuel Serrão Botelho to King Filipe II of Portugal, requesting the position of "provedor da fazenda" (a colonial official with extensive powers mostly over taxes and economic matters) in Bahia. In his application, he argued that although he was a New Christian, he had married an Old Christian woman and had no relationships with other New Christians. The document is published in Fonsêca (2007), p. 109.
CU/005/0149/11467, October 23, 1762: Land demarcation documents of Bahia. It mentions rural and agricultural areas in Bahia where "Jewish women" should establish themselves.
CU/005/0168/12707, October 24, 1772: Letter from Francisco Xavier de Castilho to Queen Maria I of Portugal (1734-1816), referring to some insults directed by some ecclesiastical ministers against New Christians who expressed the desire to enter the ecclesiastical service in the archbishopric of Bahia.
CU/005-001/0061/11753, May 10, 1785: Letter from the Archbishop of Bahia, Friar António Correia, to the Secretary of State for Navy and Overseas, Martinho de Melo e Castro, informing him of his view about the distinction between New and Old Christians.
CU/005/096/18732, March 20, 1799: Document concerning the history of Ilhéus, its origins, agriculture, trade, population and precious woods, written by Balthasar da Silva Lisboa to D. Rodrigo de Sousa Coutinho. In his account, Lisboa states that some of the first settlers of Ilhéus were "Jews".
Archival history
The Conselho Ultramarino (Overseas Council) archive had different locations in Lisbon. The archive moved to Campo Santana, near the city centre, in 1750. It was relocated to a building in Rua do Ouro in 1796 and later to another in Rua Augusta. Later, the archive moved to Terreiro do Paço, where the Conselho Ultramarino was located. In 1834, still quite disorganised, the archive was placed in the Secretaria de Estado dos Negócios da Marinha e Ultramar (Secretariat of State of Navy and Overseas). In 1842, Filipe Roberto Da Silva Stockler, former archivist of the Conselho Ultramarino, was charged with organising the archive.
In 1931, the documents of the Conselho Ultramarino fonds were transferred to the Arquivo Histórico Colonial (Colonial Historical Archive), later renamed Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino (Overseas Historical Archive). The archive was placed in Palácio da Eva in Junqueira, Belém (west of Lisbon). After that, some other fonds produced by the Conselho Ultramarino were added to the archive collection, namely some that were in the Arquivo Nacional da Torre do Tombo (National Archive of Torre do Tombo).
In 1931, the documents of the Conselho Ultramarino fonds were transferred to the Arquivo Histórico Colonial (Colonial Historical Archive), later renamed Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino (Overseas Historical Archive). The archive was placed in Palácio da Eva in Junqueira, Belém (west of Lisbon). After that, some other fonds produced by the Conselho Ultramarino were added to the archive collection, namely some that were in the Arquivo Nacional da Torre do Tombo (National Archive of Torre do Tombo).
Administrative / Biographical history
The Conselho Ultramarino (Overseas Council) was regulated on July 14, 1642, and instituted one year later. This body was responsible for all affairs related to the Portuguese overseas territories. Its duties included the financial (with jurisdiction over all assets of Portuguese colonies, except the Azores, Madeira, and North African territories), judicial and military administration, the regulation of shipping, the appointment to overseas positions, and the attribution of benefits for services rendered in colonial territories. Later, some of these duties were transferred to the Junta do Comércio, Agricultura, Fábricas e Navegação (Board of Trade, Agriculture, Industry and Navigation) and the Conselho do Almirantado (Council of the Admiralty) after their creation in 1755 and 1795, respectively.
During the period in which the Portuguese court was in Brazil (1808-20), the activity of the Conselho Ultramarino was reduced to routine procedures, such as the payment of wages or issuing licenses. Then, the Mesa do Desembargo do Paço e da Consciência e Ordens, created in Rio de Janeiro in 1808, assumed some of the functions of the Conselho Ultramarino and other state bodies. The Conselho Ultramarino was abolished on August 30, 1833.
During the period in which the Portuguese court was in Brazil (1808-20), the activity of the Conselho Ultramarino was reduced to routine procedures, such as the payment of wages or issuing licenses. Then, the Mesa do Desembargo do Paço e da Consciência e Ordens, created in Rio de Janeiro in 1808, assumed some of the functions of the Conselho Ultramarino and other state bodies. The Conselho Ultramarino was abolished on August 30, 1833.
Access points: locations
Access points: persons, families
Access points: subject terms
Access points: document types
System of arrangement
The collection is divided into two subseries (Bahia-CA and Bahia-LF), whose contents are arranged chronologically. The collection includes boxes outside these series, also arranged in chronological order.
Access, restrictions
Digital copies are available online:
Links to finding aids
Author of the description
Miguel Torres de Carvalho, 2023
Bibliography
Linked resources
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