China en el caleidoscopio del saber misional hispano (1580-1610): Juan González de Mendoza, Diego de Pantoja y el imperio de los Ming

Abstract

After the Iberian union of 1580, the Spanish Monarchy of the Habsburgs became one of the main gathering points for information on China, ruled at that time by the Ming dynasty. The missionaries linked to the Catholic King, by right of patronage or by being natives of their kingdoms, acted as informants, also, in that Spanish scenario, sending relations and detailed reports that should serve multiple purposes, from the evangelizing eagerness of the great Asian empire, to the strategic needs of the Spanish power. In this work we relate two very different works, but united by some semblances, such as the works of the Castilians Juan González de Mendoza, Augustinian, and Diego de Pantoja, Jesuit.

Keywords

• Spanish Monarchy
• Order of Saint Augustine
• Society of Jesus
• missionary knowledge
• information networks
• early modern sinology