With the German emperor on the throne of Seville, and soldiers that bit by bit incorporated new American territories into the Castilian crown, started what was called the Spanish Empire, where the sun never sets, which had dominance in Europe until the 18^th century.

The end of the 15^th century as well as the 16^th century, without doubt, are the golden years of Seville. It’s the time of fleets going to the Americas, of the palatial houses, of Mudejar and Renaissance art of great artists and merchants from all over Europe. They called Seville the New Rome, and in the 16^th century it became the capital of the world.

Seville, the port and the door to the Americas

The discovery of America marked a Before and an After in the history of Seville. Until now it had been one of the most important cities of Castile but in this moment it changed into one of the most important of Europe.

The Monopoly and the House of Trade

The cause of which has its origin in the newly discovered lands belonging to Castile and its queen, Isabel, who bestowed on Seville the monopoly of trade. This meant that the American gold and silver could only arrive to its river port, and the luxurious goods that would be traded with the New World could only leave from there. This attracted merchants, artists and business people from all over Europe, who made their fortune, but also adventurers, explorers and sailors who wanted to see the Americas which Columbus had discovered beyond the seas. And just like this, Seville became the port and the door to the New World.

The gold and silver from America was disembarked in Arenal and went directly to the House of Trade, located in the Alcazar. It was in charge of all the business related with America: ordered the departure of the ships, the goods that were taken in them, and the passengers that could embark, at the same time as its other tasks such as training the pilots of the ships and administer justice in matters of its jurisdiction.

A flourishing city

The European Bourgeoisie found in Seville their ideal place for business, the impact of which is seen in the streets with names from the foreign settlers, like Alemanes (Germans) or Francos (French). Not to be forgotten, that products such as cacao or tomatoes entered into Europe through Seville, as well as other strange and exotic foods for western people.

As well as the merchants and their wealth, there arrived artists and scientists, adding flourishes to the art and culture which is embodied in buildings such as the Market House, the City Hall, the palatial houses  or in manifestations like the creation of the University of Seville, by the Master Rodrigo de Sanealla. Another of the illustrious people who lived for a time within its walls was Miguel de Cervantes and it was here, its thought, where he started to write his masterpiece El Quijote. Such was the glory of Seville that Emperor Carlos V himself decided to celebrate his wedding in this city, which took place in the Alcazar. Because of this, tiles were added to the Gothic Palace with the famous motto ‘Plus Ultra’ meaning further beyond, the emperor’s greatest pride and which now forms nothing less than part of the Emblem of Spain.

‘The city of the bad government’

But while they built great structures like the City Hall, the Bell Tower of the Giralda, and the great renaissance palaces, other inhabitants had barely enough to sustain themselves. Poverty was rampant, and groups of people, like sailors and people of the sea opted for the most part to live in Triana, where the suburb’s circumstances meant it was easier on the purse strings.

In addition, it wasn’t just artists and bourgeoisie that settled in this capital, but also people from every class and condition who were looking for new opportunities in Seville, an exit from the destitution that life had pushed them into. Wrongdoers and crooks tried to build their own businesses. Since medieval times an anonymous person had confirmed that Seville was a city of disorder and bad government.

This is solidified by the fact that Madrid was definitively established as the capital. Even if it was a decision based on its central location by Felipe II, it’s true that it was far away from cities such as Seville, the financial capital, to govern them, and so the local government was left in the hands of its officials. The positions on the local authorities were many and very valuable for the prestige and the influence that they gave, circumstances that the crown took advantage of, to get out of their financial troubles, by putting them up for sale. Therefore began the corruption and growth of the City Council, which excessively increased the quantity of its individual components.  

These characteristics made the 16^th century Seville a city open to the world, the centre of the first global economy, a city filled with art, chaotic but flourishing and an immense babel tower which astonished travellers of the time, leaving behind phrases like this for posterity:

They who have not seen Seville, has not seen a marvel.

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Image source: Flickr. Sandra Vallaure