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The question of values has significance in so many of the operations of the Inquisition that an outline of the successive mintages of Spain becomes almost a necessity. The subject is complicated, after the middle of the sixteenth century, by the progressive but fluctuating depreciation in the moneda de vellón, or base coinage, which became practically the standard of value in all transactions.

The monetary unit of Castile was the maravedí, anciently a gold coin of value but, in the fifteenth century, diminished to a fraction of its former estimation. A declaration of Ferdinand and Isabella in 1503 says that formerly the silver real was equal to 3 maravedís, but now it is worth 34.[1334]

The unit of weight was the marc, or half-pound, of 8 ounces or 4608 grains. The intermediate weights were the ochavo of 72 grains, the adarme of 36 and the tomin of 12. These were applicable to all the precious metals but, up to 1731, the marc of gold was reckoned to contain 50 castellanos of 8 tomines, making 4800 grains, whereby the grain was reduced ¹/₂₅.

The standard of fineness was fixed, by Ferdinand and Isabella, for gold at 23¾ carats, but was reduced by Charles V to 22 carats, at which it remained. For silver the standard maintained since the fourteenth century was known as once dineros cuatro granos (pure silver being doce dineros) equivalent to .925 fine. In 1709 Philip V reduced it to once dineros or .91667, and in some mintages even lower.

Gold Coins. When Ferdinand and Isabella revised the coinage, in 1497, they ordered the marc to be worked into 65⅓ excelentes de la granada. This coin was worth 374 maravedís and thus was practically the same as the ducat or escudo which was rated at 374. There were also the dobla alfonsi or castellano or peso de oro, equal to 485, the dobla de la banda to 365, the florin to 265. Thus the ducat, which was the coin most frequently quoted, was equivalent to 11 silver reales. The ratio between gold and silver fluctuated between 7 and 8 to 1.

SPANISH COINAGE

In 1537 Charles V ordered coronas and escudos, 22 carats fine to be worked 68 to the marc and to be worth 330 maravedís, which he says was the weight and fineness of the best crowns of Italy and France. With the progressive depreciation in the value of silver, the coinage law of Philip II in 1566 raised the escudo from 330 mrs. to 400. The old ducats were to be current at 429 mrs., the castellanos at 544. The tendency of silver continued downward and in 1609 Philip III permitted the escudo to pass for 440 mrs., threatening three years’ exile and a fine of 500 ducats for asking or receiving more. In 1612 he allowed the castellano in bullion to be sold for 576 mrs. under the same penalties for exceeding it. The escudo or crown remained the standard gold coin. In 1642 it was raised to 550 mrs.; in 1643 to 612 and then reduced to 510 owing to variations in the silver and vellón coinage. In 1651 it is rated at 16 silver reales, in 1652 at 14, in 1686 at 15, but with a new coinage of lighter weight silver it was raised to 19, and the doblon, or piece of 2 escudos, to 40 reales. For larger transactions multiples of the escudo were struck, known as doblones de a dos, de a cuatro and de a ocho, containing respectively 2, 4 and 8 escudos. The latter, which became popularly known as the Spanish doubloon, were rated in 1726 at 18 pesos or pieces of eight silver reales, in 1728 at 16, in 1737 at 15 and in 1779 at 16 again, the doubloon and the peso being virtually of the same weight, each a fraction under an ounce. In 1738, to supply the lack of silver money there were coined half-crowns of gold, worth in vellón 18 reales 28 mrs. This fraction was troublesome and, in 1742, the weight was changed to correspond with 20 reales, and the coins became known as veintenos or escuditos.

Silver Coins. The silver unit was the real, which, under the coinage laws of Ferdinand and Isabella, was worked 67 to the silver marc, of 11 dineros 4 grains fine (.925), worth 34 maravedís. It long continued of this standard but, in the financial mismanagement under Philip IV, the weight was reduced by ordering the marc worked into 83 reales and 1 quartillo (83¼ reales), the old coinage in circulation being advanced 25 per cent. in value by making the peso equivalent to 10 reales instead of 8, but as this failed to afford the expected relief it was suspended in 1643, to be again tried in 1684 when the real was reduced to 84 to the marc, and the old coinage was rated at 10 to 8 of the new. In 1709 we first hear of the peseta, as a name applied to the French coin introduced by the War of Succession, rated at 2 reales, and subsequently used to denote the double real of Spanish mintage. At the same time the standard was reduced to 11 dineros or .91667 fine. During the subsequent years of the reign of Philip V the variations in the silver coinage were numerous and perplexing. The peso, escudo de plata, or piece of 8 reales, was the leading coin, and in 1726 it was ordered that it, whether minted in the Indies or in Spain, should be current for 9½ reales, and, as this did not bring it to an equivalent with gold, in 1728 it was declared equal to 10 reales. This however was now confined to the mintage of the Indies, which came to be known as plata nacional; the small coinage of the Spanish mints was termed provincial and was allowed to remain current at a discount of 20 per cent. It was 77 reales to the marc and the fineness was only 10 dineros, reduced in 1728 to 9 dineros, 22 grains or .798 fine, rendering it in reality only about three-quarters the value of the standard. There were thus two entirely distinct silver currencies coexistent, and to these was added a third, popularly known as Marias—“plata nueva que vulgarmente se llaman Marías”—which was called in by decree of April 27, 1728, but which was still in circulation in 1736. Under these circumstances considerable circumlocution was necessary when quoting sums in silver to define the exact kind of coin meant as, for instance, in the coinage law of July 16, 1730, we are told that the allowance for expenses to the official known as the Fiel, was “un real de plata provincial, valor de 16 quartos de vellón.” In fact, as we shall see, the debased coinage known as vellón had become the real standard of financial transactions.

In the later periods it will simplify the appreciation of amounts recorded to remind the reader that the peso, or piece of 8 reales, is the modern dollar, and the real, or one-eighth of this, is the coin familiarly known of old in various parts of the United States as the “bit,” the “elevenpenny bit” shortened to “levy,” the ninepence or the shilling. The maravedí was ¹/₃₄ of this, or about ⅜ of one cent.

In the colonies there is frequent allusion to the peso ensayado as distinguished from the peso de a ocho, which I gather to be a piece worth 400 maravedís, or nearly 11¾ reales—a little more than a ducat.

SPANISH COINAGE

Vellon Coinage. The debased coinage known as vellón was an alloy of silver and copper, which proved the source of unutterable confusion in Spanish finance. As we find it prescribed by Ferdinand and Isabella in 1497, it is merely a token coin convenient for small transactions, consisting of 7 grains of silver to the marc of copper, worked into 192 blancas, the blanca being one-half of the maravedí. Complaints were made that it was exported at a profit, so that it became scarce, and in 1552 Charles V, to remedy this, reduced the silver to 5 grains. The extravagant expenditures of Philip II rendered him eager to clutch at any expedient to relieve immediate necessities and, in 1566, he adopted the unfortunate device of issuing a moneda de vellón rica, with 2½ dineros, 2 grains (98 grains) of silver to the marc of copper, to be worked into quartillos, 80 to the marc (worth ¼ real or 8½ maravedís), into quartos, 170 to the marc (worth 4 maravedís) and medios quartos, 340 to the marc (worth 2 maravedís). The blancas or half maravedís, were retained, but the silver in them was reduced to 4 grains to the marc, worked into 220 pieces. Although there do not appear ever to have been larger coins of vellón issued than those authorized by Philip II the flood of this inferior money supplanted the precious metals. It became the basis of all internal transactions and the precious metals were reduced virtually to the position of commodities. There was a restamping of this coinage in 1602, in which the silver was omitted, put into forced circulation at a value of 7 to 2. With all the power of Spain, backed by the treasures of the New World and wielded by an autocratic monarchy, it was impossible to maintain so vicious and artificial a currency at par, and there followed, during the seventeenth century, a series of the most desperate attempts to remedy the evils which were crippling the commerce and industry of the nation.[1335] In 1619 there was a solemn promise made that no more of the pernicious stuff should be issued for twenty years—a promise only made to be broken and renewed in 1632. In 1625, under the severest penalties, the premium on gold and silver was limited to 10 per cent., and in 1628 the nominal value was reduced one-half, but in 1636 the permissible premium on silver was recognized as 25 per cent., immediately after which the vellón coinage was restamped and trebled in value. In 1640 the premium was allowed to be 28 per cent. and in 1641 there was another restamping and the value was doubled, followed by recognizing the premium as 50 per cent. In some accounts before me of the salaries and expenses of the Supreme Council of the Inquisition, not dated, but evidently belonging to this period, the figures set down are increased when added, in one case by 28 per cent. and in another by 50, to adjust them to the currency in which they were expected to be paid. In other statements some items are specified as payable in vellón and others in plata. In the effort to bring the vellón to par in 1642, it was suddenly reduced to one-sixth of its current value and then, in 1643, it was raised four-fold. This resulted, in 1647, in a premium of 25 per cent., but when, in 1651, it was again restamped and restored to the value which it bore prior to 1642, the premium rose to 50 per cent. In June, 1652, another attempt was made to reduce it to one-fourth, but this seems to have been a failure and in November the edict was suspended. In 1660 its further issue was suspended and the experiment was again tried of an alloy containing 20 grains of silver to the marc, or about ¹/₂₃₀, which became known as moneda de molino de vellón ligado. This was so unsuccessful that, in 1664, its nominal value was reduced one-half and all other vellón currency was prohibited, while in February, 1680, a still further reduction of 75 per cent. in its value was ordered and in May its use was forbidden, it was declared to have no value as currency, and the premium of 50 per cent. was permitted as against other vellón coins, which had still continued in circulation. This lasted for four years, when in 1684 the moneda de molino was restored to circulation with a nominal value double that of the last reduction.[1336] With the eighteenth century the pretence of alloying copper with a fraction of silver was abandoned. In 1718 a pure copper coinage was issued and by this time the premium on specie recognized by law had advanced to nearly 100 per cent. In spite of the prohibitions to ask or receive more than this, people were forced to pay more. Traders kept the copper coinage tied up in bags representing the larger coins and refused to furnish the latter except at an advance.[1337] The premium gradually rose until, in 1737, the real de plata provincial was recognized legally as worth 2 reales de vellón and the real de plata nacional as worth 2½. Although there were no coined reales de vellón, they were the standard money of account on which all transactions were based. In the laws regulating the mints the salaries of the officials are always stated in vellón. Thus, in 1718, the superintendent of the mint of Madrid has 24,000 reales de vellón, the treasurer 16,000, and so forth. In 1728 the superintendent is allowed 500 escudos de vellón, the contador 400, etc. In 1730 it is provided that the sum of 120,000 reales de vellón is to be placed in the hands of the treasurer for current expenses and he is to give security in 20,000 ducados de vellón on unencumbered real estate. From this it follows that, when the kind of coin is not specified, there may be some difficulty in estimating the value of a sum of money mentioned. The difference between silver and vellón went on increasing. In 1772, when a new coinage of gold and silver was issued, the gold escudo, worth 16 reales de plata, was declared to be worth 37½ reales de vellón.

With the Revolution the old coinage passed away and was replaced by the decimal system, the peseta and céntimo being equivalent to the French franc and centime. Yet still prices continue to be quoted in reales, which are now rated at 25 céntimos, or about 5 cents of American money.

Nothing is more difficult than to ascertain accurately the variation in the purchasing power of money, but perhaps the price of labor affords the most trustworthy standard. In the fifteenth century this would seem to have been about 6 maravedís a day. In the eighteenth, common laborers employed in the mints received 3½ reales de vellón per diem, while those in more confidential positions such as watchmen were paid 6.[1338]

As a matter of course the kingdoms of the Crown of Aragon had their independent systems of coinage, which were based on the old divisions of the marc, almost everywhere prevalent, of libras, sueldos and dineros, or pounds, shillings and pence, there being 20 sueldos to the libra and 12 dineros to the sueldo. In the documents of the early period there are frequent fluctuations in the relations between these coins and the Castilian system, but as a rule there were reckoned 20 Aragonese sueldos to the ducat, which therefore was equivalent to the libra. In Catalonia the sueldo barcelonense was 24 to the ducat, and there was also a coin known as morabatin, equal to 9 sueldos. Unification of currency throughout the monarchy was a desirable object, long frustrated by the stubborn particularism of the provinces. It was especially difficult to bring about in Catalonia, where the vellón coinage had been largely diluted by the allies during their long occupation of the principality in the War of Succession. An edict of 1733 informs us that there were 24 dineros to the Catalan real, but most of those in circulation of the coinage of 1653 had been restamped by the allies to double their nominal value. They had also coined dinerillos Catalanes with the same alloy of silver as the mintage of 1653, but with only half the weight, yet circulated at the full value. The edict denounces the dinerillos of both Aragon and Catalonia as an intolerable abuse and with superfluous emphasis orders their use to be abandoned, immediately in Aragon and in Catalonia as soon as sufficient money of vellón can be coined to take their place. The effort was futile for another edict of 1737 assimilates the dinerillo of Aragon and Valencia to the Castilian ochavo, or piece of 2 maravedís, and the dinerillo of Catalonia to 1 maravedí. In 1743, in consequence of disputes arising between troops quartered in Catalonia and the peasants, it was ordered that the vellón money of Castile should circulate freely in Aragon, Catalonia and Majorca. As late as 1772 an edict calls in the local small coinage of Valencia and orders it replaced with Castilian money, but this was so unsuccessful that it was followed, in 1777, with one confining the use of these coins to Valencia and forbidding their circulation elsewhere. When the unification of the currency occurred does not clearly appear, but it probably was not until the revision of the monetary system in the present century.

The old cruzado of Portugal, to which reference sometimes occurs, was virtually the same as the Spanish ducat.