The Morisco Problem and the Politics of Belonging in Sixteenth-Century Valladolid
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The Morisco problem and the politics of belonging in sixteenth-century Valladolid by Stephanie Maria Cavanaugh A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of History University of Toronto © Copyright by Stephanie Maria Cavanaugh, 2016 Abstract The Morisco problem and the politics of belonging in sixteenth-century Valladolid Stephanie Maria Cavanaugh Doctor of Philosophy Department of History University of Toronto 2016 This dissertation examines how Moriscos (Spanish Muslims forcibly converted to Catholicism, and their descendants) responded to religious prosecution and assimilationist policies with both legal action and noncompliance. The Morisco problem was the failure of the early modern Spanish Crown and Church to assimilate the Moriscos into Catholicism in the wholesale and controlled manner desired by those institutions. Central to this problem was their identification: the determination of their individual and communal legal statuses and corresponding privileges, related but not equivalent to their religious “identities.” This dissertation focuses on two groups living in the Castilian city of Valladolid: Castilian Moriscos native to that region and Granadan Moriscos resettled there after 1570. Chapter One looks at the Castilian Moriscos’ legal fight to remain in their long-time residential enclave, Valladolid’s Barrio de Santa María. The second chapter, “Petitioning for Grace,” explains how they mitigated Inquisitorial prosecution by petitioning the king for Edicts of Grace and negotiating with the Inquisition an annual monetary tribute designed to protect their property from confiscation. Chapter Three, “Contested Relocations,” examines how Granadan Morisco deportees relocated to Valladolid challenged prohibitions on their mobility. The fourth chapter, “Litigating for Liberty,” focuses on Moriscos enslaved as children during the Granadan rebellion and war who later won their freedom ii in courts of law. The final chapter, “Resisting Expulsion,” shows how Moriscos resisted and disrupted the process of their final expulsion from the Spanish Kingdoms in 1609-1614. This project’s critical intervention in the field is its focus on the textual record Moriscos generated through legal action, sources that include court records, leases, petitions and claims, tax settlements, licenses, passports, charters of Old Christian status, and letters of manumission. This thesis argues that the identification of the Moriscos was a process of negotiation in which they themselves took part. It challenges the traditional narrative of the marginalization of the Moriscos: for all the prosecution and prohibitions they faced as suspected heretics and dissidents, these documents tell a tale of significant economic industry, civic integration, and legal agency. iii Acknowledgments My first round of heartfelt thanks must go to my dissertation committee. I’m lucky that Mark Meyerson has supervised my entire career as a graduate student. He oversaw my Master’s project, instructed me in coursework, directed the major field for my comprehensive exams, and guided me through years of research and writing to produce this dissertation. I have been motivated to do this work by Mark's encouragement and also by the example of his own meticulous and exemplary scholarship. Natalie Rothman has played many formative roles in my development as a scholar. She has been a wonderful teacher, a galvanizing collaborator, and a generous mentor — and I’m forever grateful. From coursework through dissertating, Ken Mills has provided inspiration and reflection for which I am very appreciative. I thank Nick Terpstra for his excellent feedback as internal advisor on my defence committee, and Paul Cohen for his support throughout my time at the University of Toronto. I thank Ben Ehlers for serving as external examiner on my defence committee and for his valuable comments. I also owe a real debt of gratitude to Heidi Bohaker and to Gary Waite, both brilliant historians who played early and decisive roles in my career and who positively shaped my worldview and my interests. For providing financial support, I would like to thank the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), the Government of Ontario (Ontario Graduate Scholarship), the Department of History at the University of Toronto, and the Serai project at the University of Toronto Scarborough. I conducted my primary research between 2010 and 2012 at various historical archives in Spain, where I benefitted from the expertise of many archivists, scholars, and librarians. Thank you to Isabel Aguirre Landa for her direction at the Archive of Simancas and to James Amelang for his useful advice in Madrid. Doña Guadalupe Ramos de Castro (Professor Emerita of Art History, University of Valladolid) took me under her wing while working in the Provincial Historical Archive of Valladolid; there, she was known among the archivists for being far more knowledgeable of their collection than any printed guide. I remember her fondly and am grateful for her expertise, notably for directing me to a number of useful manuscripts and for her local historical knowledge of Valladolid. My research trips were especially enjoyable because I made good friends while working in the archives, including Cecilia Tarruell, Graça Borges, João Pedro Gomes, Violet Soen, and Manuel Lomas Cortés. A special thank you must go to Beatriz González Tuero and Juan Blanco for making me at home in Santander and for taking me on incredible road trips across northern Spain whenever the archives in Valladolid were closed for long weekends. iv I am privileged to have paired the creative fulfilment of my work with true friendship. I started graduate school hand-in-hand with Stacy Hushion and have been trying to keep up with her ever since; none of this would have been as exciting without her. My alliance with Sarah Tracy has sustained me through the writing process and so much more. She and Julie Anderson deserve special thanks for reading early chapter drafts and providing critical feedback. With them, I thank Mike Wilcox and Andrea Day for many excellent writing dates in many excellent cafés. I thank Alexandra Guerson for years of advice and conversation, and Sarah Loose for being my partner at conferences and through adventures in digital humanities. Many other friends have been instrumental in this work and I have been fortunate to count a number of them among my colleagues at the University of Toronto. I have a big family that has cheered me on relentlessly. My ability to do this work is contingent on their active encouragement and love. I thank my brothers Scott, Thomas, and Dax and my sister-in-law Michelle for reminding me what matters and for being awesome. I’m grateful to have the Robinsons and Greenwoods in my corner: Bonnie, Bill, Sarah, and Lena. I thank my Nana and Papa, Deolinda and John Cardoso, for always being in the front row and for making me a curious person. I thank Barry Grant for being my father with unwavering support and for teaching me not to be afraid. In earning my doctorate and in everything else in my life, I’ve stood on the shoulders of my mother, Maria Cardoso-Grant. She is the most formative element of me, and has guided me with love, grace, and humour, no matter what. I’m rarely speechless, yet I don’t know how to thank Andrew Robinson because he is everything to me. Suffice it to say I couldn’t have done this without him. Our beautiful daughter Elliot is now two-and-a-half years old. She is clever, resilient, and a constant joy to me; time spent writing this dissertation became painful but more purposeful after she was born, and I’m so very thankful. v Table of Contents Abstract ……………………………………………………………………………………. ii Acknowledgements …………………………………………………………………………iv List of Tables & Appendices ………………………………………………………………. vii Introduction ………………………………………………………………………………….1 Chapter 1: The fight for the barrio …………………………………………………………. 23 Chapter 2: Petitioning for Grace …………………………………………………………… 46 Chapter 3: Contested Relocations ……………………………………………….................. 82 Chapter 4: Litigating for Liberty ………………………………………………………….. 126 Chapter 5: Resisting Expulsion …………………………………………………………….160 Epilogue …………………………………………………………………………………... 200 Works Cited ………………………………………………………………………………. 204 vi List of Tables & Appendices Table 1: Morisco population figures for Valladolid…………………………………………….170 Appendix 1: Morisco citizens in Valladolid, 1565 ……………………………………………..224 Appendix 2: Parishes in Valladolid, 1571 ……………………………………………………...227 Appendix 3: Enslaved Granadan Morisco minors at the Royal Chancery Court of Valladolid …228 Appendix 4: The Morisco population in the Inquisitorial District of Valladolid, 1594 ……….230 Appendix 5: Register of the Granadan Moriscos in Valladolid, 1609 …………………………232 Appendix 6: Register of the antiguos Moriscos, Barrio de Santa María in Valladolid, 1610 ... 244 vii 1 Introduction The Morisco problem was the failure of the early modern Spanish Crown and Church to assimilate the Moriscos into Catholicism in the wholesale and controlled manner desired by those institutions. Central to this problem was their identification — the determination of their individual and communal legal statuses and corresponding privileges, related but not equivalent to their religious “identities.” Moriscos were Spanish Muslims forcibly converted to Catholicism and their descendants. Collectively suspected of insincere Christianity and in some cases of political disloyalty,