Page 187 - Conflitti Militari e Popolazioni Civili - Tomo I

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normal running of institutions. The oldest documentary reference to presumed attacks by
privateers on Vila do Conde was collected in documents related to the Santa Clara Monastery
and dates back to the period before 1519. It is a general letter confirming all the rights and
powers bestowed by King Manuel “… since the deeds and privileges from that monastery to
the present one are not found because they were hidden at the time the house was taken…” .
44
In fact, both people and institutions seem to shape their lives around these imminent dangers.
As an example, take the particular care of those responsible for the mother church, which
had a special box for storing the most valuable objects of worship, removing these from the
church at times of invasion and subsequent looting .
45
These references are random and do not suggest any structural implications for the life of
the community. There are others, however, that can be analysed if we turn our focus to issues
such as demographic structure, family structure or collective psychology. Premature deaths,
captures and captivity and the mass exodus of the male population have profound implica-
tions for the structure and daily life of these maritime communities. Experiences of this kind,
related to unofficial, but endemic, war are, in the long run, carried over into the heart of the
families and communities. This is a result of the fact that this “war” is not waged by troops,
forces on battlefields, but by civilians in their everyday lives.

lOcal iMPact Of war On faMily, deMOgraPhic structure,
cOllectiVe behaViOur and Mentalities
Overseas expeditions, trade and emigration showed the same trend: an exodus of males,
whether temporary or permanent, for various periods of time. The male/female ratio in Vila
do Conde reveals a clear discrepancy from what might have been expected. Values extracted
from baptism records were close to the historical norm , but death records , on the other
46
48
47
hand, showed an adult male rate which was far lower than expected . as a consequence,
49
there was an increase in the proportion of females in the demographic structure. At death, the
male values are so obviously low that the only explanation is the exodus of males. It is there-
fore clear that family units could not remain intact. Indeed, low fertility rates, caused by large
inter-generational gaps; marriages without children; a considerable number of unmarried
women; and a high rate of early widowhood were also outcomes of these circumstances.

sOurce: aMélia POlónia
One of the main consequences was the emergence of single-parent families, where
women were the heads of households. As a result, women were increasingly responsible for
maintaining family order, particularly among families of seamen and merchants, the groups
that represented the most significant proportion of the active male population in the town.

44 IAN/TT - Leitura Nova. Além Douro, lv. 5, fl. 66. Carta de Évora-20. September. 1519.
45 A.M.V.C. - Lv. 1599, fl. 13v.
46 ADP, Fundo Paroquial, V. Conde, Baptismos, lv. 1 e 2; and Óbitos, lv. 1.
47 Male rate average for the period 1535 – 160 = 101,1.
48 ADP, Fundo Paroquial, V. Conde, Óbitos, lv. 1
49 Male rate average for the period 1591-1640 = 64,1.