A Legal-Historical Approach to the Mayorazgo: Origins, Evolution, and Current Implications

Cantín Larumbe, Marta (2026) A Legal-Historical Approach to the Mayorazgo: Origins, Evolution, and Current Implications. In: Instruments for Preserving the Unity of Family Business and Agricultural Assets: Perspectives of Legal History. Legal Heritage . Central European Academic Publishing, Budapest, Miskolc, pp. 169-194. ISBN 978-615-7027-30-5

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Abstract

Even though the mayorazgo is not a figure specific to commercial or business law, it maintains in common the main characteristic of family businesses: the concern to preserve and guarantee the control of the company by the family, avoiding the entry as partners of third parties who are not part of the family. The Mayorazgo, a legal institution of the Crown of Castile in the Ancien Régime, played a crucial role in the preservation of properties and noble titles, effectively preventing the partition and dismemberment of lordships. The origin of the mayorazgo dates back to the 13th century, although it was definitively regulated only in the Laws of Toro in 1505. In this sense, the institution of the mayorazgo was essential to preserve the inheritance, as the assets were immutable; they could not be sold, alienated or censured, except with royal authorisation. The institution of the mayorazgo was abolished – as a consequence of the Spanish liberal revolution – by the Decree of 27 October 1820. However, noble lordships still exist – not jurisdictional – with mere consideration of titles of the Kingdom. It is important to note that the purpose of this paper is not to delve into the detailed study of the origins or to present the doctrinal debates. Instead, it aims to provide a first approach to the Spanish institution of the mayorazgo.

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