Jerónimo de Curiel (c. 1530 – 2 September 1578), or Géronimo de Curiel, was a Spanish merchant and courtier. Curiel was noted for his influence in European diplomacy and mercantile activity from the late 1550s.

Diplomatic career

Curiel was born into the prominent

Curiel family The Curiel family (Dutch: Curiël ''or'' also known as: da Costa) is a prominent Sephardi Jewish family. Until the late 18th century, the family held diplomatic positions for the Portuguese Crown in Hamburg and Amsterdam. History The family's ...

, who held diplomatic positions across

central Europe Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the area' ...

. He was the uncle of Alonso de Curiel through bis brother Diego de Curiel, who was also an influential merchant. Curiel started his career between

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

and

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, furthering trade for the

Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...

. In 1560, he was appointed Agent of

Felipe II of Spain Philip II) in Spain, while in Kingdom of Portugal, Portugal and his Italian kingdoms he ruled as Philip I ( pt, Filipe I). (21 May 152713 September 1598), also known as Philip the Prudent ( es, Felipe el Prudente), was King of Spain from 1556, K ...

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

, the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. Curiel's influence reached its height under

Margaret of Parma Margaret of Parma (; 5 July 1522 – 18 January 1586) was Governor of the Netherlands from 1559 to 1567 and from 1578 to 1582. She was the illegitimate daughter of the then 22-year-old Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and Johanna Maria van der G ...

, who recommended that Curiel be created the King's head of the Treasury in 1567. With the arrival of the

Duke of Alba Duke of Alba de Tormes ( es, Duque de Alba de Tormes), commonly known as Duke of Alba, is a title of Spanish nobility that is accompanied by the dignity of Grandee of Spain. In 1472, the title of ''Count of Alba de Tormes'', inherited by G ...

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...

, Curiel saw his position diminish as the Duke forced out those with whom he disagreed. In 1569, Curiel and

Francisco de Ibarra Francisco de Ibarra (1539 –June 3, 1575) was a Spanish-Basque explorer, founder of the city of Durango, and governor of the Spanish province of Nueva Vizcaya, in present-day Durango and Chihuahua. Biography Francisco de Ibarra was born a ...

attempted to tarnish the Duke's reputation in a report for the King. Whilst the report was being reviewed, Curiel was stabbed at night, surviving after an intensive recovery. Curiel left Flanders to serve as the King's Agent in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, with little of the great influence that he had enjoyed in the Netherlands. In Paris, Curiel strengthened relations between Spain and France.

References

Curiel family Spanish diplomats Spanish merchants 1530 births 1578 deaths Year of birth uncertain {{Spain-politician-stub