George Robert Graham Conway: Transcripts from National Archives of Mexico

Transcripts of volumes of Inquisition Records from the National Archives of Mexico. The majority of the transcripts concern legal suits and trials. There is also material describing the family and descendants of particular individuals, including Juan Suarez Davila and Diego Suarez Pacheco, 1529-1588; Martin Lopez and Geronimo Lopez; Don Tristan de Luna y Arellano and his son, Don Carlos, 1559-1611; Don Tristan de Arellano, 1575-1634; Rodrigo de Vivero, 1597-1673; and Don Rodrigo de Vivero, Conde del Valle de Orizaba, 1597-1673. The volumes also contain descriptions of journeys, including the voyage of Captain John Hawkins to Mexico, 1568-1570; Thomas Blake, a Scottish merchant in Mexico, 1534-1566; diaries of Padre Benito de la Sierra and Padre Miguel de la Campa, made on board the frigate Santiago de la Nueva Galicia on the expedition from San Blas to Vancouver Island, 1775; the Zaldivar family in Zacatecas, 1613, and the expedition to the Tiburones in the Gulf of California, 1750; the California voyage of Jua de Ulloa, 1539; and a 'Narrative of a Journey through Japan and Description of that Kingdom Together with Certain Recommendations and Projects for the Better Government of the Spanish Dominions', by Rodrigo de Vivero, 1609. There are also transcripts describing Englishmen in Mexico, covering 1573-1588, 1559-1576, 1660-1684, and 1728-1786. Other subjects covered in the volumes include the escape of prisoners from the Jail of the Holy Office, 8 March 1573; the renovation and replacement of the old Sanbenitos; The Inquisition, 1520-1624; 'Libro Primero de Votos', 1573-1600; matters relating to New Spain, 1599; Thomas Cavendish, Oaxaca, 1587, and his raid on Guatulco; '17 Expedientes Relativos a Exploraciones en la Costa de la Alta California', 1789-1791; a discourse of D. Rodrigo de Vivero Conde del Valle de Orizaba; 'Archivos del Colegio de la Paz (Vizcainas)' relating to Francisco Cervantes de Salazar, 1575-1587; and documents relating to the Spanish retreat from the City of Mexico in June 1520.

Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).

Presented by G.R.G. Conway, 1950.

A catalogue of the collection can be found on ArchiveSearch.

J. Street, 'The G.R.G. Conway Collection in Cambridge University Library: A Checklist', Hispanic American Historical Review, 37 (1957).