Preface

Summary

Poverty and welfare is an enormous topic, but in the sixteenth century its scope is limited some what by the documents that are available. For the first part of the book, which deals with crown policy and welfare reforms, much information has been printed, and I have relied heavily upon the British Library's excellent collection of sixteenth century books and other printed material. As for documents, the state archives of Madrid and Simancas have been consulted, together with other smaller collections, but the Archive of Simancas has provided the most useful information, especially the sections Patronato Eclesiástico, which contains much information about charitable institutions, and Consejo Real and Estado, which yielded facts about the policy of the crown and the city of Toledo. In Toledo, the archives of the city, the cathedral, the diocese, the parishes, the notaries, the Diputación, and the Hospital of Tavera, as well as the Lorenzana Collection in the Toledo Public Library, have been consulted and all have contributed useful material. The minutes of the city council meetings and other documents in the municipal archive have provided the core of information about the city's policy toward the poor. If it appears that the policy of the church has been neglected, or that the discussion of the Toledo prelates is uneven, this is because many important church documents are inaccessible, a great loss in a city where the church played such an important role in poor relief.