SPANISH KINGS OF THE HOUSE OF BOURBON IN THE 18th CENTURY

FERDINAND VI’S REIGN (1746-1759)

• Ferdinand VI continued his

fathers’ reform program.

• He married Bárbara de

Braganza, persuaded by her

stepmother, Isabel de

Farnesio. In spite of

Bárbara’s ugliness,

Ferdinand fell in love deeply

with her. FERNANDO VI

FERDINAND VI’S REIGN• He named very effective

Spanish ministers: el Marqués

de la Ensenada, he was

appointed in several

Secretaries (Ministeries); José

de Carvajal as Secretary of

State (Interior Minister, now); or

the Jesuist Francisco Rávago,

as royal confessor.

• All of them continued with an

intense reform program.

FERDINAND VI’S REIGN

• In interior politics, he (and his minister Patiño) promoted the naval construction for the Navy, creating shipyards in El Ferrol, Cartagena and Cádiz.

• After that, Spain had a modern and equipped Navy.

• His minister, el Marqués de la Ensenada, tried to unify and rationalize the tax system. He carried out the “Catastro de Ensenada” in 1749. This Catastro is a census or a list of all the properties of the kingdom.

• They tried to perform an unification in the currency, establishing the “Real de a dos” as official coin in Spain.

FERDINAND VI’S FOREING POLICY

• With Ferdinand VI (1746-1759), the main characteristic of his

foreing policy was NEUTRALITY, he didn’t want to be an ally

nor of England neither of France.

• During his reign we didn’t sign any Pacto de Familia and we

didn’t participate in any war.

FERDINAND VI’S FOREING POLICY

• With the Church, he signed the Concordato de 1753, (de carácter regalista).

This deal was beneficial for the Crown as the king could control quite a lot the

Spanish Church, because the king of Spain had the universal patronate

(patronato universal – he could appoint directly Bishops, without depending on

the Rome’s Pope).

• REGALISMO: Es la política de control del gobierno del rey sobre la Iglesia,

imponiéndole las regalías o supuestos derechos absolutos del rey o del Estado

a mandar en la Iglesia como en todos los demás asuntos y personas de sus

dominios.

REINADO DE FERNANDO VI

• Florecimiento cultural con la creación en su reinado de:

La Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando

REINADO DE FERNANDO VI

• El Jardín Botánico o el Observatorio Astronómico.

REINADO DE FERNANDO VI

• El convento de las Salesas

FERDINAND VI’S REIGN

• The marriage between Ferdinand VI and Bárbara de Braganza, didn’t have any children.

• Ferdinand’s stepbrother, Carlos III would be the new king of Spain when Ferdinand died in 1759.

BÁRBARA DE BRAGANZA

BORBONES ESPAÑOLES DEL SIGLO XVIII

CHARLES III’S REIGN (1759-1788)

• Before being king of

Spain, he had been the

king of Naples and Sicily.

• His reigned was

characterised for the

implementation of the

enlightened despotism. CARLOS III

CHARLES III’s FOREIGN POLICY

• He signed the Third Pacto de

Familia (1761) with France.

• That’s why Spain had to

intervene in the Seven Years’

War (1756-1763).

• The British victory finished with

the Treaty of París (1763) We

had to cede Florida to England

and Sacramento to Portugal.

• France gave us Luisiana to

compensate our loses. CARLOS III

CHARLES III’s FOREIGN POLICY• Again in América, Spain

supported the

Northamerican rebels

against England in their

Independence.

• The British defeat finished

with the Treaty de Versalles

(1783) and Spain got back

Sacramento and Menorca.

CARLOS III

INTERIOR POLICY• Following the Enlightened

Despotism, Charles III made

important changes, but without

changing the social, politic and

economic structure.

• He was helped by several illustrated

ministers and collaborators, such

as the Marqués de Esquilache,

Aranda, Cammpomanes,

Floridablanca, Wall and Grimaldi.

CARLOS III

INTERIOR POLICY.

• The 18th century was a period

of economic recovery, higher in

the periphery than in the center

of the Peninsula.

• CENSO DE ARANDA Y

FLORIDABLANCA. In this

context of economic growth,

the Conde de Aranda (1769) and

Floridablanca (1787) carried out

the first census in order to

know the population’s

economic and fiscal potential.

CARLOS III

INTERIOR POLICY

• Measures such as the distribution of communal lands in

Extremadura or the resettlement of Sierra Morena under the rule of

Olavide, reducing the rights of the Mesta and some irrigation works

(Channel Imperial of Aragon, Castilla Canal ...) were taken.

• The enlightened ministers approved measures to promote the

development of the industry. The monopoly of the unions broke;

New Royal Factories (Reales Fábricas) were established with the

State support (weapons, shipbuilding, glass, tapestry, carpets ...).

INTERIOR POLICY

• Regarding trade measures for improving

communication pathways: the abolition

of internal customs were adopted. A

decree of 1778 established the

liberalization of trade with America,

finishing with the secular monopoly of

the House of Trade.

Carlos III firma el Decreto de libre comercio con América en 1778, por Pedro Pablo Montaña (siglo XVIII)

INTERIOR POLICY• In the financial field, the Bank of San Carlos, future Bank of

Spain was established. In this period, the peseta appears,

although it won’t be the official currency of the country until

1868.

INTERIOR POLICY

• 1759-1766 Governments of Esquilache and Grimaldi (Italian). Attempts to introduce reforms found a strong reaction that culminated in the Esquilache Mutiny in 1766. This revolt that erupted against the decree that forced to change capes’ lengths (capas) and hats.

• We can speak of a "nationalist" popular uprising against the Italian minister, managed by the clergy (Jesuits) and the nobility to stop the reforms. The Jesuits, accused of fomenting the riots, were expelled in 1767.

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4OYtSEZVhw

INTERIOR POLICY

• 1766-1788 Governments of the Conde de Aranda,

Floridablanca and Campomanes. This period is dominated by

the great enlightened ministers who tested various economic

reforms, many were not carried out by the opposition of the clergy

and nobility.

REINADO DE CARLOS IIIPOLÍTICA INTERIOR

• La expulsión de los jesuitas se quiso aprovechar para realizar una reforma de la enseñanza que debía fundamentarse en las disciplinas científicas y en la investigación. Sometió las universidades al patronazgo real . Creó las Escuelas de Artes y Oficios. Las propiedades de los jesuitas sirvieron para crear nuevos centros de enseñanza y residencias universitarias. Sus riquezas, para beneficiar a los sectores más necesitados, se destinaron a la creación de hospitales y hospicios.

• Decretó honestas todas las profesiones en 1783.

• Limitó los privilegios de la Mesta y liberalizó los precios del trigo.

• Fue llamado el “rey alcalde” alumbrado público, eje Cibeles-Prado, Puerta de Alcalá, fuentes de Cibeles y Neptuno.