SOCIAL COMPOSITION OF CONFRATERNITIES IN JEREZ DE LA FRONTERA AT THE END OF THE MIDDLE AGES (1392-1520)

This article studies the social composition of confraternities in Jerez de la Frontera at the end of the Middle Ages. It is based on the analysis of the affidavits preserved in the Historical Archive of Affidavits of Jerez de la Frontera for the period between 1392 and 1520. The interpretation of the data is carried out from a double perspective: on the one hand, the point of view of the sex of the members; on the other, the point of view of their professional occupation and their belonging to the different sectors of the economy. In this way, the human component of the brotherhoods is valued, beyond other more usual such as patrimonial and devotional aspects, thanks to which they can be considered as true tools for the study of the Old Regime societies.