"Ríos de madera". Recursos forestales e hídricos para la Real Armada durante el siglo XVIII en Guipúzcoa y Navarra
- 1 Universidad País Vasco
ISSN: 1699-7778
Year of publication: 2019
Volume: 9
Issue: 39
Pages: 426-455
Type: Article
More publications in: Tiempos modernos: Revista Electrónica de Historia Moderna
Abstract
The Spanish Monarchy had to conduct a great effort during the eighteenth century in order to maintain its European leading position, performing a policy of strengthening of its naval power. This demanding programme would not be possible without the provisioning of naval supplies, from abroad as well as from the Monarchy territories, through the system of private contracts (asientos) or using the direct management. In the case of naval supplies from the Iberian Peninsula, the extraction of materials such as masts, spars, timber, tar and bitumen could be cheapen thanks to the use of rivers. Nevertheless, this caused the nationalisation and appropriation of the river uses, coming into friction with the needs and activities of the inhabitants of river basins.