Page 182 - Conflitti Militari e Popolazioni Civili - Tomo I

182 XXXIV Congresso della CommIssIone InternazIonale dI storIa mIlItare • CIHm

recruitMent systeM Of seaMen and its iMPact On MaritiMe cOMMunities
In addition, the crown had mechanisms to force compliance with its requirements,
through the compulsory recruitment of men or ships . Avoidance mechanisms were often
18
implemented, however, which prevented the achievement of the proposed targets, mostly in
times of crisis. For instance: in 1557 a royal decision made it compulsory to have artillery
on board; in 1571, new regulations make it clear that shipmasters and captains used to leave
Lisbon with artillery on board, as required, but would leave it in Cascais, a few miles away, to
lighten the load and avoid the inconvenience of having cannons on the ship and the resulting
reduction in cargo capacity .
19
The increase of royal orders forcing eseamen into the navy applied throughout the Por-
tuguese coast, and the drastic exacerbation of the penalties imposed on those who evaded
recruitment or attempted to desert, including the imprisonment of their families, also speak
volumes about the frequency of desertions .
20
Records of “apenamentos”, that is, the press-ganging of seamen, can be found in many
municipal documents for Vila do Conde, at least from 1538 onwards. But they became more
common in the 1580s and the first decades of the 17 century. This is clear from the catalogue
th
of those we were able to identify, which refer not only to Vila do Conde, but to the whole
surrounding area along the coast . To this we must add references to the recruitment not just
21
of individuals, but of ships that should be included in the defence or supply fleets .
22
The catalogue of these reports, its chronological development and the increasingly re-
pressive and threatening tone illustrate how the policies of forced recruitment of men and
ships harmed and oppressed the civilian population.

naVal war and cOastal attacks and their iMPact On seafaring cOMMunities
Shipwrecks, pillaging and piracy are, together, part of a collective memory and illustrate
episodes of one of the most evocative chapters in the history of Portuguese overseas expe-
ditions. The dramatic nature of certain experiences is undeniable, both on a personal level,
involving death, physical injuries and captivity, and on an economic level, involving the loss

already studied by Moreira, Manuel António Fernandes - Os mareantes de Viana e a construção da atlan-
tidade, Vina do Castelo, Câmara Municipal, 1995 and those published by SILVA, Francisco Ribeiro da - O
corso inglês e as populações do litoral lusitano (1580-1640). “Actas do Colóquio “Santos Graça” de Etno-
grafia Marítima “, Póvoa de Varzim, 1985, Vol. III, pp. 333-334 e MAURO, Fredéric - Portugal, o Brasil e o
Atlântico (1570-1670), Lisboa, Ed. Estampa, 1989, vol. I, p. 107.
18 These are termed, in the documents, “apenamentos”.
19 Certas providências régias respeitantes à guarda da costa do reino e do comércio ultramarino no século de
Quinhentos. “Boletim Cultural da Câmara Municipal do Porto”, vol. 30, 1967, pp. 335-360.
20 Cf. Polónia, Amélia – Expansão e Descobrimentos numa perspeciva local. O porto de Vila do Conde no
século XVI, Lisboa, IN-CM, 2007, vol. 1, pp. ----
21 A.M.V.C. – A/31; A/ 70; A/95; A/106; A/176; Lv. 23, fl. 113v.-114; Lv. 25, fl. 302v.-303; Lv. 122, fl. 198-
199, fl. 229-230, fl. 438v.-439; Lv. 123, fl. 57v.-58, fl. 200-200v.; Lv. 124, fl. 152.
22 See the letters of 19.07 and 03.08.1571, about the incorporation of vessels from Vila do Conde into fleets,
respectively to defend against an armada from La Rochelle, and another, called in the letter “Luterana”
[Lutheran] (A.M.V.C. - A-89 and 91) and the records of A.D.P. - Fundo Notarial. V. Conde, 1º cartº, 1ª sr., lv.
8, fl. 107v-108v.; 108v.-110; 110-111.