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This document is a royal directive, dated 26 January 1635 at Lisbon, addressed to the Overseas Council, concerning a proposal to utilise the recent peace with the Republic of England to facilitate English mercantile shipping between Macau and China. The text records that representations were made to the Portuguese Crown, supported by official documents, advocating that advantage be taken of the terms of capitulation to permit English vessels to carry merchandise to China and return with Chinese goods to the Kingdom. The directive notes that Portuguese trade in that region was much weakened and rendered almost impossible by Dutch opposition, observing that the Dutch did not spare the English despite having concluded peace with them. The marginal annotations include a later reference to Macau, dated 6 January 1666, and a summary title indicating the subject as a commission to send English ships with merchandise to China. The document bears stamps of the Colonial Historical Archive and the Navy and Overseas Archive.

This document comprises a series of administrative records, dated between 1647 and 1662, from the Portuguese Overseas Council concerning a dispute over an appointment in the Estado da Índia. The central subject is the formal complaint of Dom Braz de Castro, who alleges that the Viceroy, Dom Phelippe Mascarenhas, deliberately delayed informing him of his royal appointment as Captain-General of Macau until the eve of the fleet's departure for China in March 1647. The papers include Dom Braz's petition to the Patriarch of Ethiopia, dated 23 June 1648, requesting a formal protest be recorded against the Viceroy, whom he describes as a known enemy, to pre-empt any prejudicial reports. The Council's subsequent consultation, endorsed by Joaõ de Montelmo, Jorge de Lyra, and others, notes the Viceroy's failure to provide an explanation and recommends that the necessary provisions for the favour be issued to Dom Braz. A further fragment contains a notarial certification from Goa, bearing a compass rose monogram, which appears to relate to judicial proceedings in the city. The material is stamped with marks of the Overseas Historical Archive in Lisbon.

This abstract is for a historical document transcription from the Portuguese colonial archive, dated 26 March 1647 and 26 May 1647, concerning a petition for a royal decree (alvará) related to trade with China. The document comprises two parts: the first is a formal petition from António de Lexe (or de Sousa/Sequeira) to the Portuguese Crown, requesting the renewal of a decree originally granted in 1582 that permitted him to undertake a voyage to China as a ship's boy (grumete). The petition notes that the original decree was issued before the acclamation of the current monarch and was confirmed by the King of Castile, and it includes a certified copy from the India House (Casa da Índia). The second part is an administrative note recording a request for a decree to formalise a commercial share in a voyage to China. The document is signed by several officials, including João Gomes de Mendonça, and bears the stamp of the Overseas Historical Archive in Goa. Archival references place the document within the Macau collection (Gaveta 1, document 59). This material provides primary evidence of the bureaucratic processes governing Portuguese colonial trade, individual petitions for commercial privileges, and the administrative mechanisms of the Macau-based China trade during the mid-seventeenth century.

This document is a translation of a seventeenth-century Portuguese administrative resolution and council representation, dated 28 January 1647, from the Council in Goa to King John IV. The text concerns the logistical organisation of a military and naval expedition to Portuguese India, specifically addressing the dispatch of vessels and infantry from Lisbon. Key figures mentioned include the Marquis, Jorge de Castro, Jorge de Albuquerque, and João Delgado Digueira, who signed the document, alongside the scribe João Miguel Pacheco. The resolution details the appointment of vessels, the urgent arming of ships for Ceylon, and the necessity of writing to the Viceroy and Captain-General. The Council petitions the King to execute the decree through the Conselho da Fazenda, discusses the routing of a supply ship to Lisbon due to navigational difficulties and a lack of experienced pilots, and notes the need for notification of vessels departing Lisbon for India. The document provides primary evidence of colonial administrative procedures, naval logistics, and the governance of the Estado da Índia during the mid-seventeenth century, reflecting the Crown’s efforts to sustain its overseas territories.

This letter from the Senate of the City of Macao, dated 20 November 1646, is addressed to the King of Portugal. The document details the city’s critical provisioning difficulties, which cannot be alleviated by the Treasury in Goa due to its current constraints. In response, the merchants of Macao, acting as loyal vassals, have consented to a voluntary five per cent duty on all goods entering the port. This levy is to be applied to the sustenance and defence of the city and its inhabitants for the duration of the suspension of trade and commerce with Japan. The letter, written by Secretary Afonso de Barros Caminha and signed by João de Barros, conveys the King’s trust in the Senate’s zeal for his service. The document provides primary evidence of colonial fiscal policy, local commercial agency, and the economic impact of the cessation of Japanese trade on the Portuguese settlement of Macao in the mid-seventeenth century.

This document is a translation of a highly corrupt seventeenth-century Portuguese manuscript from the Overseas Historical Archive, dated 1856 but concerning events and correspondence from 1626 to 1646. It comprises a series of fragmented reports, royal decrees, and council opinions regarding the economic and political state of Macau and Portuguese trade in Asia. The central subject is the critical importance of silver to the China trade, upon which the prosperity and survival of Macau depended. The text details the three primary sources of silver for this commerce: from the Portuguese kingdom, from Japan (a trade then restricted), and from Manila. It reveals deep anxieties within the Portuguese colonial administration that the closure of the Japan trade and the scarcity of silver from Europe, compounded by the political division between Portugal and Castile, threatened Macau’s viability. The documents explicitly warn that the city’s wealthy and warlike inhabitants, driven by economic necessity, might rebel against the Crown. Proposed remedies include permitting Macau’s merchants to trade with Manila in designated ports of friendly kingdoms, but only as a temporary measure until the Japan trade could be reopened. Key figures mentioned include Salvador Correia de Sá and King João III, with the text reflecting the strategic and commercial challenges facing the Portuguese Estado da Índia in the mid-seventeenth century.

This document is a formal council memorandum from 1645, concerning the governance and strategic concerns of Macao under Portuguese colonial administration. It outlines the Council’s concerns regarding the appointment of Captain Luís de São Paio, who is deemed unfit for the role due to a lack of experience in Indian and Japanese commerce and the inability to manage Dutch threats. The Council recommends appointing a suitable individual from the Kingdom or India, possessing authority, talent, and experience to secure Macao. It references historical precedents involving figures such as Dom Francisco Coelho and Dom Sebastião Lobo, and suggests the appointment of Salvador Corrêa de Sá, a council member, to strengthen the region’s defences and economic stability. The text also mentions the importance of naval and military support, including the deployment of galleons and infantry. This document provides valuable insight into 17th-century Portuguese colonial administration, military strategy, and the challenges of maintaining control over strategic ports in Asia.