War contracting and artillery production in Spain

Abstract

This article is part of a special issue on the relation between war and military enterprises in the long eighteenth century. The focus is on artillery as a military enterprise providing for the needs of the army and the navy. The paper shows the difficulties faced by Spain in producing guns (cast iron and bronze). The structure of ownership of firms, the nature of production systems, and scarcity of funding and technological shortcomings are considered. The state turned to monopolistic practices from the 1760s onwards but this change did not produce significant technological change. Contrary to expectations, wars did not stimulate production in the long run. From the early years of nineteenth century, the sector found itself overwhelmed by military invasion, financial crisis, and the decline of naval demand. Together, these factors caused the collapse of gun production.