Study guide: Decrees of Nueva Planta

📋 Course Outline

1. Origins and Purpose of the Decrees
2. Central State Administration
3. Government of Catalonia and Aragon
4. Taxation and Cultural Repression

📅 Key Dates

1. 1700-1746Philip V began the Bourbon dynasty and imposed the French absolutist state model.
2. 1717The University of Cervera was created to centralize studies and maintain loyalty to Philip V.
3. 1724The secretaries of the Secretariats of the Dispatch began to be called ministers.

📖 1. Origins and Purpose of the Decrees

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Decrees of Nueva Planta: A set of decrees promulgated by Philip V that abolished laws, privileges and institutions in Catalonia, Aragon and Valencia as punishment and a means of control for supporting the Austrian cause during the War of the Spanish Succession.

📝 Essential Points

• The territories affected by the Decrees of Nueva Planta were Catalonia, Aragon and Valencia.

💡 Memory Hook

Austrianist support → punishment and Bourbon centralization

📖 2. Central State Administration

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Intendants: Royal officials responsible for collecting taxes.

★ Must-know

• The five Secretariats of the Dispatch were:
  • State
  • Grace and Justice
  • War
  • Navy and Indies
  • Finance

Further detail

📌 The Cortes were abolished and integrated into the Cortes of Castile.

💡 Memory Hook

EGWMF: State, Grace and Justice, War, Navy and Indies, Finance

📖 3. Government of Catalonia and Aragon

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Captain General: The highest political and military authority in Catalonia and the Crown of Aragon.
• Royal Audience: The supreme body for administration and justice.
• Superintendent: The highest financial authority in Catalonia and the Crown of Aragon.

📝 Essential Points

• The territory was divided into 12 corregimientos; corregidors were appointed by the king, while regidors were chosen by the Royal Audience.

• The abolished institutions were:

  • the viceroys
  • the Generalitat
  • the Council of One Hundred
  • the vegueries

💡 Memory Hook

The king’s centralized power replaces viceroys, the Generalitat, the Council of One Hundred and vegueries

📖 4. Taxation and Cultural Repression

🔑 Key Concepts & Definitions

• Cadastre: A fixed annual tax imposed by the central government in 1716.

★ Must-know

📌 The royal cadastre was assessed according to property, whereas the personal cadastre was assessed according to earnings from work.

• Castilian was imposed in:
  • judicial proceedings
  • administration
  • education

Further detail

• The closed universities were:
  • Barcelona
  • Lleida
  • Girona
  • Tarragona
  • Vic

💡 Memory Hook

1716 cadastre → 1717 University of Cervera → language imposition

📊 Synthesis Tables

Central Authorities and Responsibilities

Authority	Main responsibility
Captain General	Highest political and military authority
Royal Audience	Supreme administration and justice
Superintendent	Highest financial authority