A long-term marriage in an urban context: the retail structure of La Coruña during the first third of the twentieth century

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe paper analyses some issues related to the structure and evolution of retail in a medium-sized Spanish city, from the early twentieth century to the Civil War (1936–1939), trying to place it in the context of Spanish urbanization. Since the early nineteenth century, La Coruña consolidated as the most important city of the north-west quadrant of the country, competing initially with Santiago de Compostela (the iconic religious capital of the region), and later on with Vigo, the city that underwent the most solid and rapid industrial development in the region since the final decades of the century. Industry appeared late and did not alter the economic base of La Coruña, as the local economy was sustained by commercial and services activities, which had a long-run tradition. This tendency became more accentuated during the first third of the twentieth century. This was not an exception, because most of medium-sized Spanish cities followed a very similar pattern, particularly those which shared a very important factor, the port, as this was responsible for the rise of several tertiary sectors. Besides, La Coruña was a provincial capital, and this meant the growth of administrative functions, and a strong commercial influence on its hinterland.