ABSTRACT
This chapter explains that a Castilian notary was called to a house in Seville to attend to the legal needs of an ailing English merchant, Thomas Malliard. His client died five days later, having dictated his will in the presence of his three executors, Roger Barlow, Robert Thorne, and Thomas Bridges. It also describes that Seville, a port on the River Guadalquivir, had been the commercial centre of Andalucia during the fifteenth century, when ships traded with the Mediterranean, the Barbary Coast, and the Canaries. In the summer of 1522, Thomas Malliard, Roger Barlow, Thomas Bridges, and Robert Thorne were all resident in Seville. Malliard may have made contact with the Herrera family through his business interests on La Palma in the Canary Islands. With Francisco Del Alcazar's support, Lopez de Herrera used Malliard's will as a catalyst for challenging the English merchants' position in Seville.
