'Emporium of the Orb': The Gaditan Virgin and Other "Delirious" Theories from History's First 'Gaditano'

Jerónimo de la Concepción

Friar Jerónimo de la Concepción, a Carmelite, authored the extensive 1690 work titled 'Emporio del Orbe, Cádiz ilustrada: investigación de sus antiguas grandezas.' This monumental book, comprising over 720 pages, was published in Amsterdam, a prominent European printing center of its era, and took the friar nearly a decade to complete.

His methodology, as noted by historian Arturo Morgado, lacked critical discernment; he readily accepted and incorporated apocryphal chronicles and historical falsifications into his narrative. Despite this, his erudition was impressive, drawing from some 340 authors to construct his comprehensive history of Cádiz, believing wholeheartedly in the veracity of his sources.

The context of the book's creation was crucial, as Cádiz was fiercely competing with Seville to become Spain's primary commercial port. The city authorities, eager to promote Cádiz's grandeur and historical significance, financially supported Friar Jerónimo's endeavor, seeing his work as a means to solidify the city's prestigious image.

Emporio del Orbe

The 'Emporio del Orbe' is structured into two main parts, further divided into eight books, offering a sweeping account of Cádiz's history. The first part delves into the city's sacred and ancient origins, which is where the most 'delirious' theories, as described by Morgado, are found, possessing almost no documentary value.

Among these fantastical claims, Friar Jerónimo asserted that Cádiz was the first to discover America, invented the battering ram, was the first to bury its dead, and was the most advanced in building stone walls. Most notably, he posited that the Three Kings departed from Gades two years before Christ's birth and that the Virgin Mary had Gaditan ancestry, even including a detailed genealogical tree to support this assertion.

Conversely, the second part of the book is considered historically fundamental, focusing on events following the Catholic conquest, the establishment of various convents, and subsequent historical occurrences. This section provides a more grounded historical account, making the overall work, despite its inaccuracies, the only complete history of Cádiz published during the Modern Age.

Cádiz City Council

The Cádiz City Council has embraced 'Emporio del Orbe' as a central inspiration for the third edition of its annual cultural program, 'Orgullos@s de Nuestra Historia,' scheduled for September. This initiative aims to celebrate and explore the city's glorious past, drawing directly from the friar's influential work.

The program specifically focuses on the period from the 15th to the 18th centuries, when Cádiz transformed into a powerful international commercial port. The council's adoption of the book's title, 'Emporio del Orbe' (Emporium of the Orb), directly reinforces the enduring narrative of Cádiz as a global commercial hub, a concept firmly established by Jerónimo de la Concepción.

Ultimately, the work achieved its objective by transcending its historical inaccuracies to become a valuable reference manual that cemented Cádiz's identity as a significant commercial center. As Professor Morgado explains, all cities require a foundational narrative, and 'Emporio del Orbe' provided Cádiz with a compelling, albeit partially embellished, story of its Phoenician, Roman, and later commercial glories, culminating in events like the Cortes of 1812.