Neve’s cursus honorum: from merchants to Entailed estates. Linking of property and inheritage lawsuit (1743-1771)

The social rise of enriched merchants by colonial trade was a constant in Modern Centuries. In the noble promotion, the Entailed estate was consolidated as a fundamental way to allowed the conservation and perpetuation of the family’s heritage and memory. The Neve’s represent the prototypical image of a family of foreign origin living in Seville, attracted by the riches of Indies. They manage to ennoble themselves and form part of the local noble hierarchy. The foundation of Miguel de Neve’s Entailed estate allowed the consolidation of the lineage. The clauses laid down in this foundation caused a complex conflict of succession in the mid-18th Century, involving the Marquises of Moscoso, who were resident in Indies and who had been responsible for the succession of the Entailed estate.