CEPESE CEPESE | CENTRO DE ESTUDOS DA POPULAÇÃO, ECONOMIA E SOCIEDADE

The Provedores of the Misericórdia of Porto (1499-2017)

The Misericórdia of Porto is one of the most important and ancient Portuguese charity institutions. With a history of more than five centuries, it was crucial to make known its “provedores”, that is, the persons that, since 1499, were responsible for its administration, their "head", as mentioned in its original bylaws.

As such, this project aimed to trace, across three volumes, the biographies of the 240 personalities who took over such functions, as well as the action they developed as provedores. In addition, it studied the election process, the prerogatives and obligations of the provedores and their evolution over time and to outline their profile with respect to geographical origin, age, professional and political career, academic training and family relations, in order to determine the traits that characterize providers individually while allowing a collective perspective.