Slave trade in Spanish Monarchy

What is it about?

The gradual process of rapprochement between the Dutch Republic and the Spanish Monarchy after 1648 was not only a matter of diplomatic action but was also underpinned by the role of a wide range of non-state agents, reflecting the fragmentation of sovereignty characteristic of both imperial polycentric political structures. In this chapter, we analyse the role played by Manuel de Belmonte (alias Isaac Nunes Belmonte), a leading member of the Sephardic community in Amsterdam, who acted as a connector between the Spanish ambassador and the republic’s mercantile elite during the second half of the seventeenth century. As agent and resident of the Catholic king in Amsterdam, he sent detailed information about smuggling ships or irregular seizures of vessels by the WIC. Belmonte acted also as a private go-between and engaged in business with the holders of the asiento and with a cosmopolitan network of merchants who aspired to control this lucrative trade.

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Photo by Polly Sadler on Unsplash

Photo by Polly Sadler on Unsplash