Description
THE EXERCISE OF ECCLESIASTICAL JUSTICE IN HUELVA DURING THE ANCIENT RÉGIME
Book Summary
This work rescues from oblivion the anonymous lives that were caught on the fringes of morality and the law during the Ancient Régime. Through judicial records of the Ecclesiastical Justice system, the author reconstructs stories of crimes, passions, and transgressions that occurred in the town of Calañas, under the jurisdiction of the Archbishopric of Seville. A rigorous analysis that gives a voice to visitors, defendants, witnesses, and the accused, offering a unique window into the daily life, social control, and moral deviations of the era.
What is it about?
The book delves into the trial archives of Ecclesiastical Justice to unearth the conflicts and moral disorders that shook rural Huelva during the Ancient Régime. The research focuses on the town of Calañas, where ecclesiastical courts prosecuted crimes such as illicit love affairs, incontinence, assaults, and other behaviors considered deviations. Through the testimonies of those involved—from the visitors who inspected the parishes to the accused and their witnesses—the work reconstructs a social fabric where faith, authority, and transgression intersected. This is not just a study of institutions, but a choral account that returns a voice to those who were judged, showing how ecclesiastical justice shaped the life and morality of an entire community.
Main themes
- History of ecclesiastical justice and its application in rural areas during the Ancient Régime.
- Social and moral control through ecclesiastical courts in Early Modern Spain.
- Microhistory and the recovery of anonymous voices: defendants, witnesses, and accusers.
- Moral transgressions and everyday crimes: illicit love affairs, assaults, and incontinence.
- Power relations between the Church, the community, and the individual in 18th-century Huelva.
Who is it recommended for?
This book is intended for historians, researchers, and students of early modern history, social history, and religious history. It will also be of great interest to readers passionate about microhistory and studies on daily life, social control, and morality in the Ancient Régime, as well as those interested in the local history of Huelva and its province.
What this book contributes
- A detailed and documented vision of the actual functioning of ecclesiastical justice in a rural community.
- The recovery of silenced voices in history, offering a bottom-up perspective of judicial processes.
- An in-depth analysis of moral norms and their transgression, revealing the social tensions of the era.
- A novel approach that connects institutional history with the personal experiences of the accused.
- Original archival material and direct testimonies that enrich the understanding of the Ancient Régime.
Technical specifications
- Author: CORBACHO GONZALEZ, VICTORIA EUGENIA
- Publisher: University of Huelva
- Language: Spanish
- Subject: HISTORY, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL HISTORY, HISTORY OF RELIGION
- Collection: ARIAS MONTANO
- Binding: Other
- Number of pages: 302
- Weight: 681 g
Editorial assessment
This is a rigorous academic work that offers a significant contribution to the study of ecclesiastical justice and the social history of the Ancient Régime. Its main value lies in the author's ability to transform judicial records into a vivid and human narrative, bringing the reader closer to the moral and social complexities of an era. It is an essential read for specialists and a valuable resource for those seeking to understand history through its anonymous protagonists.