Germans into Spaniards? Naturalization and ‘National’ Belonging among Merchants from the Holy Roman Empire in Seventeenth-Century Seville

Abstract In the seventeenth century, the Andalusian port city of Seville was a major centre of world trade. Merchants from across Europe were attracted to the city. Most of them aspired to participate directly in the Indies trade, which was restricted by law to natural-born Spaniards. The only legal way for foreigners to get into this lucrative business was by obtaining a carta de naturaleza. To obtain this coveted document a foreigner had to fulfil strict preconditions, such as at least twenty years’ residency in the Spanish realms, possession of substantial real estate, and ten years’ marriage to a Spanish woman. These requirements were intended to guarantee that only foreigners who were already well integrated into Spanish society could obtain the status of native Spaniards. Nevertheless, most naturalized foreigners maintained close ties to their fellow countrymen, who were organized in ‘nations’ that grew out of religious brotherhoods. Focusing on one of these migrant communities—merchants from the Holy Roman Empire—this article analyses the relation between migration and national belonging at a time when modern concepts of ‘nation’ and ‘citizenship’ were still being formulated. It argues that rather than changing one ‘nationality’ for another, the naturalized merchants developed complex identities characterized by multiple cultural affiliations.