“…con pretexto de desigualdad”. Reception and practice of the Real Pragmatic of marriages in a territory of the Hispanic Monarchy: Santa Fe (Río de la Plata), 1778-1787

Abstract

This article studies the reception and practice of the Royal Pragmatic of marriages in the city of Santa Fe. Documents produced by the administration of parochial ecclesial justice are analyzed with the aim to show their potential to study marriage demurral in the context of the Pragmatic. Experiences, knowledge, intentions and strategies of ecclesial judges, young men and their families are studied from a series of marriage objections. In addition, we pretend to reflect on the uses of unequal marriages argument and on the construction of unequal racial identities.