This paper is a research instrument presenting the codex E-278 - Ordens Régias 1681-1809, from the archives of the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Curia. Preceded by an introduction about the documentation, and an overview of the contents, the core of the work consists in an index of decrees, charters, and letters sent on behalf of the King of Portugal to the Bishop of Rio de Janeiro between 1681 and 1809. It is part of a larger research project of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro - Brotherhoods, Chapels and Rituals in Eighteenth-Century Rio de Janeiro - that selected three codices for publication and further historical research on the role of Rio in the Portuguese Empire during the Ancient Regime.
royal decree; codex; bishop; Old Regime; Portuguese Empire