Macaronesia and the African diaspora in the Atlantic world during the Iberian Union (1580–1640)

Abstract

This article examines how the transatlantic relations of the African continent developed during the Iberian Union (1580-1640). Its aim is to consider Africa’s place in oceanic dynamics during the period of Portugal’s incorporation into the Hispanic Monarchy and the consolidation of the Atlantic world by analysing the islands of Macaronesia as a link between Africa and European and American territories. Historical research enables an understanding of the African diaspora in the Iberian Atlantic and the cross-border relations that connected Atlantic Africa with other territories linked to the Oce an through cross-border networks. Primary documentation is an indispensable tool to carry out a comprehensive social, economic and cultural study; to produce an analysis both from the royal perspective as well as at the local level and to confront the interpretation that the metropolis and the islands construct about the object of this study: the African diaspora.