Desterrar el vicio y serenar las conciencias: mendicidad y pobreza en la Caracas del siglo XVIII

Abstract

Despite an exceptional economic prosperity and a very favourable political and administrative context (creation of the intendancy, of the audiencia or high court...), new fears arose in Caracas towards the end of the eighteenth century. Among these was the fear of poverty and idleness, which led to the project to construct a poor house, the 'Casa de Misericordia'. Using original sources, in particular the minutes of Caracas town council sessions, this article determines the circunstances of this foundation, which was an integral part of a new system of social control and urban planning, and its meaning for different protagonists (State, Church, local elites, the underclass), beaving in mind its importance for the history uf mentalities in America.