The Cedula of Population was a 1783 edict by the representative of the

King of Spain The monarchy of Spain or Spanish monarchy () is the constitutional form of government of Spain. It consists of a Hereditary monarchy, hereditary monarch who reigns as the head of state, being the highest office of the country. The Spanish ...

José de Gálvez José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced very differently in each of the two languages: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced ...

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Trinidad Trinidad is the larger, more populous island of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the country. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in ...

to immigration from, primarily, the French Caribbean islands. Negotiated by Phillipe Rose Roume de Saint-Laurent, a key figure in Trinidad's colonial history, the edict consists of 28 articles governing several forms of land grants to encourage population growth, naturalization of inhabitants, taxation, armament of enslavers, the duty and function of a militia to protect the island, and merchant and trade issues.

History

The edict of 1783 invited persons of either gender and of the

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who would swear loyalty to the Spanish Crown to receive land allotments in sizes depending on their race and heritage. Specifically, it granted of land to each Roman Catholic who settled in Trinidad and half as much for each enslaved person that they brought. Sixteen acres (65,000 m²) was offered to each free person of color, or '' gens de couleur libre'', as they were later known, and half as much for each enslaved person they placed on Trinidad The effect of the cedula was immediate, as what had once been a small colony of 1000 in 1773 had boomed to 18,627 inhabitants by 1797. The Cedula of Population of 1783 laid the foundation and growth of the population of

. The Spanish, who possessed the island, contributed little towards advancements, with El Dorado the focus; Trinidad was perfect due to its geographical location. French planters with their slaves, free persons of color, and mulattos from neighboring islands of

Grenada Grenada is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean Sea. The southernmost of the Windward Islands, Grenada is directly south of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and about north of Trinidad and Tobago, Trinidad and the So ...

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Dominica Dominica, officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island country in the Caribbean. It is part of the Windward Islands chain in the Lesser Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean Sea. The capital, Roseau, is located on the western side of t ...

migrated to Trinidad during the French Revolution. The Spanish also gave many incentives to lure settlers to the island, including exemption from taxes for ten years and land grants per the terms set out in the Cedula. These new immigrants establishing local communities of Blanchisseuse, Champs Fleurs, Cascade, Carenage and

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. Trinidad's population jumped from just under 1,400 in 1777 to over 15,000 by the end of 1789. Upon the capture of Trinidad by the British in 1797, the Cedula of Population became a paramount document that established the legal status of the free persons of color in Trinidad in the declaration of capitulation. In particular, it protected their "liberty, persons and property like other inhabitants." in the British crown colony.

References

{{reflist 1783 documents Spanish period of Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad (island) 1783 in New Spain 1780s in the Spanish West Indies 18th century in Trinidad and Tobago 1783 in law Settlement schemes in Central America and the Caribbean Edicts