Code   .  101155378
Start   .   2024
Duration   .  24 months
Principal Investigator   .   Ágatha Francesconi Gatti

INSTITUTIONS

Funding Entity

European Commission - Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions Postdoctoral Fellowship

Research Unit

CHAM - Centre for the Humanities
 

Coordinator Institution

Universidade Nova de Lisboa
 

Partnerships

Max Planck Institute for Legal History and Legal Theory

The “Iberian Patronages” research project proposes a reflection on the close connection between the religious sphere and the forms of governance in the Iberian empires of the Modern Period. The main objective of the research is to develop a study on the impact of the creation of the Sacred Congregation for Propagation of the Faith (Propaganda Fide) over the government dynamics of Portuguese and Spanish empires from an analysis of the defense made by these monarchies of their right of royal patronage before the Holy See. Established by Pope Gregory XV in 1622, Propaganda Fide was designed to be the dicastery of the Roman Curia specialized in coordinating and promoting missions around the world. This task put it in a position of potential direct conflict with both Iberian monarchies. Focusing on this new context, the central core of the investigation will be to unravel the jurisdictional aspect not only of the conflicts that emerged, but also of the policies embodied by the Iberian monarchies in the context of the controversy that arose with the Papacy regarding the unrestricted legitimacy of their royal patronage.

GOALS

“Iberian Patronages” focus on developing an in-depth study of the impact that the creation of the Sacred Congregation ‘De Propaganda Fide’ has had on the regime of the Iberian Patronages. Guided by this purpose, the project includes different scales of investigation: the debate marked by the defense, by the Iberian monarchies, of the right to exercise exclusive spiritual jurisdiction over the entire territory encompassed by their patronage; the policies and strategies adopted in Lisbon and Madrid aiming to curb the interference of the Propaganda Fide in their respective overseas territories; the jurisdictional disputes between the missionaries who operated under the jurisdiction of the Iberian patronages and the apostolic vicars and missionaries sent to different locations by the Propaganda Fide; and the emergence of new institutions dedicated to safeguard the Iberian monarchies’ spiritual jurisdiction over native populations. From this perspective, the ‘Iberian Patronages’ research project expects to contribute to the investigations that sights on the key role played by religion in the configuration of colonial societies, discussing the intimate and structural relationship between the religious dimension and the dynamics of territorial domination and assimilation of local populations.