The "coutadas" (royal preserves) of Almeirim: royal power and administration of the territory from a historical and geographical perspective in Portugal (c. 1560-1650)

poder real y administración del territorio desde una perspectiva histórico-geográfica (c. 1560-1650)

Abstract

This essay intends to shed light upon the evolvement of the coutadas(royal preserves, royal forests) of Almeirim from 1560 to 1650. Firstly, this article presents a short state-of-art to introduce the materials and methods deployed afterwards. The royal preserve of Almeirim converged the political, socio-economics interests and the needs of the Crown, the inhabitants' needs of Almeirim, and others. The royal preserve of Almeirim was created due to the hunting activities of the royal family. By the end of the 16th century, the Crown shifted its attention to shipbuilding. As a result, there were implemented policies on planting and the conservation of the existing pinewoods.

Finally, this article addresses the issues that arose among different administrations from 1615 to 1640. In this period, the Crown took steps towards reducing the royal preserve of Almeirim, and there are provided some evidences on the reversal of this process after the dynasty Braganza seized the throne in 1640.