MARINE INSURANCE IN CASTILE IN THE 15TH AND 16TH CENTURIES

The book studies trade and navigation at a global scale in the XV and XVI centuries based on an analysis of maritime insurance in Castile, a perspective which has hitherto scarcely been addressed by historiography. The author draws on research into numerous documents, prominent amongst which is the information contained in close to 20,000 insurance policies taken out in the aforementioned two centuries and which have been conserved in Spanish and foreign archives, particularly in the large Burgos exchange house. The various parts of the book examine the legal characteristics of maritime insurance, together with those related to reinsurance and life insurance. In addition, an analysis is provided of the various types of ships, as well as both the main and secondary routes, the volume and value of the cargo transported, the names and origin of those involved (ship-owners, merchants, shipping agents, commission agents…), the events and conflicts to emerge and how these were dealt with, the financial world of insurance and how insurance prices evolved. What results is a description of a vast maritime landscape revolving around the Iberian Peninsula, stretching from the Baltic to the Island of Chios, through Newfoundland, Latin-America, Africa and Asia, and which helps us to reconstruct the trade and port networks of the time. It also enables us to study another aspect of the finances of the Spanish Monarchy. In sum, it provides further insights into the economic and maritime history of Europe.