AS MISERICÓRDIAS PORTUGUESAS ENQUANTO PALCOS DE SOCIABILIDADES NO SÉCULO XVIII

This paper aims to study the Misericordias as places of socialisation in the eighteenth century Portugal, focusing on the moments of gathering between brothers and between brothers and the community. I have chosen three particular moments: the elections, the Holy Week ceremonies and the funerals, and analysed the social relations promoted by the Misericordias in each one of them. The spaces of sociability created by these confraternities (the Misericordias), apart from reinforcing its members’ identity, promoted the group’s cohesion and enhanced the institution.