Margaret of Parma (1522–1586); Giovanni Aliprandi (fl. 1560s–1570s).

[verso:] Ordini per l’administratione de i denari di S. Altezza da osservarsi per Gio. Aliprandi.

Brussels, 1 November 1567.

Folio (ca. 31 x 21 cm). 1, [2 blank], 1 pp. Italian cursive manuscript in ink.

1 page, large folio (c. 31–33 × 21–22 cm), c. 28–30 lines in Italian cursive. With heading: Signed at foot.

Condition: Traces of seal. Light overall browning and scattered spotting, minor marginal wear; a well-preserved administrative manuscript of the period.

Ordinance signed by Margaret of Parma, Governor of the Habsburg Netherlands, in which she secures control over her finances just before she leaves the Low Countries following her resignation.
The document establishes a centralized system of financial control, requiring that all monies belonging to her be remitted directly into her possession. Funds assigned to her maestro di camera (Giovanni Aliprandi) are to be transmitted exclusively by written mandates signed by Count Prospero Tedesco (majordomo), Huccio Sirigatti (master of accounts), and Mutio Davanzati (controller), “et non per altra via.” The chamberlain is further prohibited from making payments without proper authorization, and is required to issue receipts and retain supporting mandates.
Additional provisions prescribe regular accounting procedures, including monthly reports (quinternetti) of all sums received and disbursed, and the registration of transactions in account books. The document reflects a structured system of fiscal oversight within the ducal household.
Dated shortly before Margaret’s departure in December 1567, following the arrival of the Duke of Alba and the collapse of her conciliatory policy toward the unrest. As such, the ordinance belongs to the final phase of Margaret’s governorship, when authority in the Netherlands was shifting from civil administration to military control. Without explicitly referring to political events, the document reflects a moment of transition, in which financial procedures were formalized and consolidated. Such measures may be understood in connection with the impending reorganization of government and the practical requirements of concluding her administration.

Condition: Paper slightly toned and spotted, edges darkened. Traces of a lacking red wax seal to lower margin. Three old horizontal folds. Edges somewhat frayed with small marginal losses without loss of text. Otherwise in good, legible condition.