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New Christian Exit Permissions 1621-1640

Introduction By Michael Waas

BACKGROUND

New Christians (Cristãos-Novos in Portuguese) are the descendants of the Jews forcibly converted to Catholicism in 1496-97 in Portugal. King Manuel I (reigned 1495-1521) as part of his dowry arrangement to his first wife Isabella, daughter of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain, he agreed to enforce the Alhambra Decree and expel the Jews in the Kingdom of Portugal if they did not baptize. Before the Decree came into effect in Portugal, however, Manuel I had the Jews of the kingdom forcibly baptized, creating the New Christian class. New Christians were subject to many restrictions, including on whether they could leave the kingdom or not. In order to leave the Kingdom of Portugal, by law, the New Christians did have to obtain royal permission.

These exit permissions, found in the archives of the “Chancelaria de Filipe III” (Chancellery of Filipe III) are a rare view of the movements of New Christians and their familial connections across borders during a time when the Inquisition of Portugal was regaining power and when the Inquisition of Spain was reasserting its power.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This database was organized and provided by Andre Filipe. The Sephardic Research Division thanks him for his research and work in organizing this database.

November 2025

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