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Revolutionary Wars and Public Finances: The Madrid Treasury, 1784–1807

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  • Barbier, Jacques A.
  • Klein, Herbert S.

Abstract

This study is based on the manuscript accounts of the Madrid Treasury for 1784– 1807. It confirms the customary view of an inexorable descent into bankruptcy, but also shows why this situation arose. A detailed analysis of receipts demonstrates the importance of colonial revenues and the stability of traditional income sources. In wartime, such as repeatedly plagued the country, the former was jeopardized and the latter proved too inelastic to respond to rising demand. On balance, the inescapable conclusion is that Spain was a limited fiscal entity which could not meet the challenge of a revolutionary era without breaking decisively with the restrictive structures of the Old Regime.

Suggested Citation

  • Barbier, Jacques A. & Klein, Herbert S., 1981. "Revolutionary Wars and Public Finances: The Madrid Treasury, 1784–1807," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 41(2), pages 315-339, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:jechis:v:41:y:1981:i:02:p:315-339_04
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    Cited by:

    1. Roger D. Congleton, 2013. "Early Spanish liberalism and constitutional political economy: the Cádiz Constitution of 1812," Chapters, in: Francisco Cabrillo & Miguel A. Puchades-Navarro (ed.), Constitutional Economics and Public Institutions, chapter 4, pages 47-67, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    2. Grafe, Regina & Irigoin, Maria Alejandra, 2006. "The Spanish Empire and its legacy: fiscal redistribution and political conflict in colonial and post-colonial Spanish America," Journal of Global History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 1(2), pages 241-267, July.
    3. Francis, Joseph A., 2014. "Resolving the Halperín Paradox: The Terms of Trade and Argentina’s Expansion in the Long Nineteenth Century," MPRA Paper 57915, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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