The documentary exhibition “Dominus Rex: as inquirições medievais dos reis de Portugal” (Dominus Rex: medieval censuses of the kings of Portugal) seeks to commemorate the 800th anniversary of the first general censuses ordered by King Afonso II of Portugal, in conjunction with an international conference that strove to highlight the importance of these royal surveys for knowledge about the past of the Portuguese kingdom alongside establishing their significance in the broader context of the medieval West and similar initiatives carried out by other powers – whether royal, princely, lordly or ecclesiastic – as part of processes to assert their respective powers and defend their prerogatives, goods and rights.

The present exhibition thus proposes an itinerary through the most significant testimonies related to the medieval censuses of the kings of Portugal, from the manuscripts detailing the very first censuses, more general in nature, ordered by King Afonso II (1220), to those carried out more than a century later by King Afonso IV, in a context of crisis and confrontation of powers. In the meantime, the inquests of King Alfonso III and King Dinis, with successive enlargements in the space inquired about and a more aggressive strategy of affirmation of the power of the “lord king”, including the 1290 issuing of the first sentences resulting from abuses detected by the surveyors and handed down by the royal courts.

With free access, the documentary exhibition is on display at Torre do Tombo from 20 October, when it will be officially opened with the presentation of the respective catalogue, and, following an extension, on display until 19 January 2020. The initiative is jointly organised by the Institute of Medieval Studies, the School of Social Sciences and Humanities, NOVA University and the History Centre of the University of Lisbon, with the support of the National Archive of Torre do Tombo.

Dates: 20 October 2020 to 19 January 2020 [extension] (Free entrance)
Location: National Archive of Torre do Tombo
Organisation: Institute of Medieval Studies – School of Social Sciences and Humanities, NOVA University (IEM-NOVA FCSH); History Centre of the University of Lisbon (CH-IUL)
Support: National Archive of Torre do Tombo
Coordination: Amélia Aguiar Andrade (IEM; NOVA FCSH); José Augusto de Sottomayor- Pizarro (CEPESE, FLUP; ACL); Filipa Roldão (FLUL; CH-IUL); João Luís Inglês Fontes (IEM-NOVA FCSH; CEHR-UCP).