Spanish Doubloon
History of Spain series
Prehistoric Iberia
Roman Hispania
Medieval Spain
– Visigothic Kingdom
– Suevic Kingdom
– Byzantine Spania
– al-Andalus
– Reconquista
Kingdom of Spain
– Age of Expansion
– Age of Enlightenment
Reaction and Revolution
First Spanish Republic
The Restoration
Second Spanish Republic
Spanish Civil War
Spain under Franco
Transition to Democracy
Modern Spain
Topics
Economic History
Military History
Social History

The Economic history of Spain covers the development of the Spanish economy over the course of its history. Image File history File links File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... The history of Spain spans the period from pre-historic times, through the rise and fall of the first global empire, to Spains modern-day renaissance in the post-Franco era. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Alhambra-petit. ... This article describes the prehistory of the Iberian Peninsula from the appearance of the first human populations until the arrival of the Phoenicians and the first recorded contacts with other European cultures. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Iberian Peninsula. ... After the disorders of the passage of the Vandals and Alans down the Mediterranean coast of Hispania from 409, the history of Medieval Spain begins with the Iberian kingdom of the Arian Visigoths (507 – 711), who were converted to Catholicism with their king Reccared in 587. ... Migrations The Visigoths (Western Goths) were one of two main branches of the Goths, an East Germanic tribe (the Ostrogoths being the other). ... The Suebi or Suevi were a Germanic people whose origin was near the Baltic Sea . ... ... The Byzantine Empire at its greatest extent under Justinian I. Justinians inherited empire in pink with his conquests, including Spania, in orange. ... Al-Andalus is the Arabic name given the Iberian Peninsula by its Muslim conquerors; it refers to both the Caliphate proper and the general period of Muslim rule (711–1492). ... For other senses of this word, see Reconquista (disambiguation). ... During the reign of Emperor Charles V (Carlos I of Spain), who ascended the thrones of the kingdoms of Spain after the death of his grandfather Ferdinand, Habsburg Spain controlled territory ranging from Philippines to the Netherlands, and was, for a time, Europes greatest power. ... The Age of Enlightenment came to Spain in the eighteenth century with the accession of King Philip V, the first Spanish king of the French Bourbon dynasty. ... History of Spain series Prehistoric Spain Roman Spain Medieval Spain - Visigoths - Al-Andalus - Age of Reconquest Age of Expansion Age of Enlightenment Reaction and Revolution First Spanish Republic The Restoration Second Spanish Republic Spanish Civil War The Dictatorship Modern Spain Topics Economic History Military History Social History Spain in the... Flag of the Spanish First Republic The First Spanish Republic lasted only two years, between 1873 and 1874. ... The Restoration was the name given to the period that began in December 29, 1874 after the First Spanish Republic ended with the restoration of Alfonso XII to the throne after a coup detat by Martinez Campos, and ended on April 14, 1931 with the proclamation of the Second... Anthem El Himno de Riego Capital Madrid Language(s) Spanish Government Republic President  - 1931–1936 Niceto Alcalá-Zamora  - 1936–1939 Manuel Azaña Legislature Congress of Deputies Historical era Interwar period  - Monarchy abolished April 14, 1931  - Spanish Civil War 1936–1939  - Surrender to Franco April 1, 1939 Currency Spanish peseta... Not to be confused with the Spanish Civil War of 1820-1823. ... The Spanish Civil War officially ended on 1 April 1939, the day Francisco Franco announced the end of hostilities. ... The Spanish transition to democracy or new Bourbon restoration was the era when Spain moved from the dictatorship of Francisco Franco to a liberal democratic state. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The military history of Spain includes the history of battles fought in the territory of modern Spain, as well as her former and current overseas possessions and territories, and the military history of the Spanish people regardless of geography. ...

Ancient Era

Ruins of a Roman garum factory near Tarifa, Spain

The prehistoric Iberians and Celts were some of the earliest groups in what is now Spain. The Iberians developed agriculture and metal working. Celtic economy centered around cattle raising, like other Celtic societies. For sometime, many historians have suggested that the prehistoric Celts living in Spain should be blended together with the prehistoric Iberians and be referred to as Celtiberians; however, in Spanish Celtic society this concept is widely regarded as insulting, bigoted, and purely speculative. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (3518x2359, 1799 KB) Summary Factoría romana de salazones de pesacado y salsa garum en Baelo claudia, cerca de Tarifa, Cádiz, España. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (3518x2359, 1799 KB) Summary Factoría romana de salazones de pesacado y salsa garum en Baelo claudia, cerca de Tarifa, Cádiz, España. ... The Lady of Baza, made by Iberians The Iberians were an ancient, Pre-Indo-European people who inhabited the east and southeast of the Iberian Peninsula in prehistoric and historic times. ... Celts, normally pronounced // (see article on pronunciation), refers primarily to the members of any of a number of peoples in Europe using the Celtic languages or descended from those who did. ...

Europe's oldest city, Cádiz, began as the result of the ancient metal trade. The city of Tartessos had an impressive wealth of local metals and traded with the British Isles for tin. The Phoenicians saw Tartessos as a valuable trading partner and, around 1100 BC, founded their own city nearby, Cádiz. Location Location of Cádiz Coordinates : Time Zone : General information Native name Cádiz (Spanish) Spanish name Cádiz Postal code – Website http://www. ... Tartessos (also Tartessus) was a harbor city on the south coast of the Iberian peninsula (in modern Andalusia, Spain), at the mouth of the Guadalquivir river. ... This article describes the archipelago in north-Western Europe. ... This article is about the metallic chemical element. ... Phoenicia (or Phenicia ,[1] from Biblical Phenice [1]) was an ancient civilization centered in the north of ancient Canaan, with its heartland along the coast of modern day Lebanon and Syria. ...

The Carthaginians and Greeks also traded with Spain and established their own colonies on the coast. Spain's mineral wealth and access to metals made it an important source of raw material during the early metal ages. Roman Carthage with former military harbor Carthage (Greek: , Latin: , from the Phoenician meaning new town; Arabic: ) refers both to an ancient city in Tunisia and to the civilization that developed within the citys sphere of influence. ...

The Romans governed all of the Iberian peninsula after the Second Punic War. Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew from a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula circa the 9th century BC to a massive empire straddling the Mediterranean Sea. ... Combatants Roman Republic Carthage Commanders Publius Cornelius Scipio†, Tiberius Sempronius Longus Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus, Gaius Flaminius†, Fabius Maximus, Claudius Marcellus†, Lucius Aemilius Paullus†, Gaius Terentius Varro, Marcus Livius Salinator, Gaius Claudius Nero, Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio Calvus†, Masinissa, Minucius†, Servilius Geminus† Hannibal Barca, Hasdrubal Barca†, Mago Barca†, Hasdrubal Gisco†, Syphax...

Middle Ages

While much of Europe fell into a Dark Age after the decline of the Roman Empire, those kingdoms in the Iberian peninsula that today are known as Spain maintained their economy. First, the Visigoths took over in the absence of Roman administrators and established themselves as nobility. Later, the Moors occupied parts of the Iberian Peninsula along side the Catholic kingdoms. After 800 years of warring, the Catholic kingdoms of what is today known as Spain, expelled all the Moors and any converted Muslim known as Moriscos from the Peninsula. Eventually, the Moors integrated into Arabs societies. The taking back of land and expulsion of the Moors is known as the Reconquista. Petrarch, who conceived the idea of a European Dark Age. From Cycle of Famous Men and Women, Andrea di Bartolo di Bargillac, c. ... This article is about the historiography of the decline of the Roman Empire. ... Migrations The Visigoths (Western Goths) were one of two main branches of the Goths, an East Germanic tribe (the Ostrogoths being the other). ... For other uses, see moor. ... For other senses of this word, see Reconquista (disambiguation). ...

The Kingdom of Castile, united with the Kingdom of Aragon, established a merchant navy that rivaled that of the Hanseatic League. The reasons for this situation appear to have been rooted both in the structure of the economy and in the attitude of the Castilians. Restrictive corporations closely regulated all aspects of the economy-production, trade, and even transport. The most powerful of these corporations, the mesta, controlled the production of wool, Castile's chief export! Coat of arms Kingdom of Castile in the 15th century. ... Capital Zaragoza Area  – Total  – % of Spain Ranked 4th  47 719 km²  9,4% Population  – Total (2003)  – % of Spain  – Density Ranked 11th  1 217 514  2,9%  25,51/km² Demonym  – English  – Spanish  Aragonese  aragonés Statute of Autonomy August 16, 1982 ISO 3166... Carta marina of the Baltic Sea region (1539). ...

Union and Exploration

The Archivo General de Indias now holds all the records of the Council of the Indies and served as the center for commercial administration in the Spanish Empire after its completion in 1598 (Archives right, Cathedral left)

The Reconquista allowed the Catholic Monarchs to divert their attention to exploration. In 1493, Pope Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia, a Valencian) formally approved the division of the unexplored world between kingdoms of what is today Spain and Portugal. The Treaty of Tordesillas, which the kingdoms signed one year later, moved the line of division westward and allowed Portugal to claim Brazil. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1800x1200, 453 KB) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1800x1200, 453 KB) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... The Archivo de Indias, Seville The Archivo General de Indias (General Archive of the Indies) is the document repository, housed in Seville in the ancient merchants exchange, the Casa Lonja de Mercederes, of extremely valuable archival documents illustrating the history of the Spanish empire in the Americas and the Philippines. ... Ferdinand on the left with Isabella on the right Coffins of the Catholic Monarchs at the Granada Cathedral The Catholic Monarchs (Spanish: los Reyes Católicos) is the collective title used in history for Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon. ... 1493 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Pope Alexander VI (1 January 1431 – 18 August 1503), born Roderic Borja (Italian: Borgia), (reigned from 1492 to 1503), is the most controversial of the secular popes of the Renaissance and one whose surname became a byword for the debased standards of the papacy of that era. ... Cantino planisphere of 1502 depicting the meridian designated by the treaty. ...

In 1493, when Cristóbal Colón brought 1,500 colonists with him on his second voyage, a royal administrator had already been appointed for what the Catholic kingdoms referred to as the Indies. The Council of the Indies (Consejo de Indias), established in 1524 acted as an advisory board on colonial affairs, and the House of Trade (Casa de Contratacion) regulated trade with the colonies. The newly established colonies were ruled under the Kingdoms of Castile and Aragon, today known as Spain. Christopher Columbus (conjectural image by Sebastiano del Piombo). ... The Consejo de Indias (Council of the Indies), in full the Real y Supremo Consejo de Indias (Royal and Supreme Council of the Indies) was the most important administrative organ of the Spanish Empire, both in administering the Americas and in the Philippines, combining legislative, executive and judicial functions. ... Events March 1, 1524/5 - Giovanni da Verrazano lands near Cape Fear (approx. ... The Casa de Contratacion is translated in English to the House of Trade. ...

New discoveries and conquests came in quick succession. Vasco Nuñez de Balboa reached the Pacific in 1513, and the survivors of Ferdinand Magellan's expedition completed the circumnavigation of the globe in 1522. In 1519 and between 1531 and 1533 the Incas and the Aztecs were overthrown because the post-Crusades Roman Catholic conquistadors believed that the Incas' and the Aztecs' beliefs and practices were akin to devil worshiping. The ease with which the two ancient cultures were over thrown resulted from the fact that the Incas and the Aztecs were elitist cultures: i.e., with few at the top of their society and many at the bottom. Thus, there were too few at the top of their society who could outwit the sophisticated conquistadors. Vasco Núñez de Balboa Balboa setting his dogs upon Indian practitioners of male love; (1594); New York Public Library Vasco Núñez de Balboa (c. ... 1513 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Presidential railcar named Ferdinand Magellan, see Ferdinand Magellan Railcar. ... Events January 9 - Adrian Dedens becomes Pope Adrian VI. February 26 - Execution by hanging of Cuauhtémoc, Aztec ruler of Tenochtitlan under orders of conquistador Hernán Cortés. ... Events March 4 - Hernán Cortés lands in Mexico. ... January 26 - Lisbon, Portugal is hit by an earthquake - thousands die. ... Events January 25 - King Henry VIII of England marries Anne Boleyn, his second Queen consort. ...

Decline

Sixteenth-century kingdoms of a united Aragon and Castile was ultimately the victim of its own wealth. Military expenditure did not stimulate domestic production. Bullion from American mines passed through Aragon and Castile like water through a sieve to pay for troops in the Netherlands and Italy, to maintain the emperor's forces in Germany and ships at sea, and to satisfy conspicuous consumption at home. The use of precious metal brought from America and spent on Aragon and Castile military establishment quickened inflation, left the population without sufficient specie to pay debts, and caused goods to become too overpriced to compete in international markets.

American bullion alone could not satisfy the demands of military expenditure. Domestic production was heavily taxed, driving up prices for Aragon/Castile-made goods. The sale of titles to entrepreneurs who bought their way up the social ladder (a practice commonly found all over Europe), removing themselves from the productive sector of the economy, provided additional funds. The overall effect of plague and emigration reduced Aragon/Castile population from over 8 million in the last years of the 16th century to under 7 million by the mid-seventeenth century, with Castile the most severely affected region.

Bourbon Reforms

Economic recovery was noticeable, and government efficiency was greatly improved at the higher levels during Charles III's reign. The Bourbon reforms, however, resulted in no basic changes in the pattern of property holding. The nature of bourgeois class consciousness in Aragon/Castille hindered the creation of a middle-class movement. At the instance of liberal thinkers including Campomanes, various groups known as "Patriotic Societies" or "Economic Societies" were formed to promote economic development, new advances in the sciences, and Enlightenment philosophy (See: Sociedad Económica de los Amigos del País). However, despite the development of a national bureaucracy in Madrid, the reform movement could not be sustained without the patronage of Charles III, and it did not survive him. Charles III of Spain - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Pedro Rodríguez, Conde de Campomanes (July 1, 1723 – February 3, 1802), Spanish statesman and writer, was born at Santa Eulalia de Sorribia, in Asturias. ... The Sociedades Económicas de Amigos del País (Economic Societies of Friends of the Country) were private associations established in various cities throughout Enlightenment Spain, and to a lesser degree in some of her colonies (the Philippines, Cuba, Chile, and elsewhere). ...

Napoleon and the War of Independence

Aragon/Castile's American colonies took advantage of the postwar chaos to proclaim their independence, and most established republican governments. By 1825 only Cuba and Puerto Rico remained under the Spanish flag in the New World. When Ferdinand VII was restored to the throne in Madrid, he expended wealth and manpower in a vain effort to reassert control over the colonies. The move was unpopular among liberal officers assigned to the American wars. Ferdinand VII (October 14, 1784 - September 29, 1833) was King of Spain from 1813 to 1833. ...

Primo de Rivera

An aristocrat, Miguel Primo de Rivera was appointed prime minster by the king, and for 7 years dissolved parliament and ruled through directorates and the aid of the military until 1930. Spanish dictator Miguel Primo de Rivera y Orbaneja Miguel Primo de Rivera y Orbaneja, Marqués de Estella (Jerez, January 8, 1870 - Paris, March 16, 1930) was a Spanish military official who ruled Spain as a dictator from 1923 to 1930, ending the turno system of alternating parties. ...

Protectionism and state control of the economy led to a temporary economic recovery. The precipitous economic decline in 1930 undercut support for the government from special-interest groups. He established no new system to replace parliamentary government. Criticism from academics mounted. Bankers expressed disappointment at the state loans that his government had tried to float. An attempt to reform the promotion system cost him the support of the army. This loss of army support caused him to lose the support of the king. Primo de Rivera resigned and died shortly afterward in exile.

Second Republic, 1931-1936

The republican government substituted the monarchy, inheriting the international economic crisis as well. Three different governments ruled during the Second Spanish Republic, failing to execute numerous reforms, including land reform. General strikes were common and the economy stagnated. Anthem El Himno de Riego Capital Madrid Language(s) Spanish Government Republic President  - 1931–1936 Niceto Alcalá-Zamora  - 1936–1939 Manuel Azaña Legislature Congress of Deputies Historical era Interwar period  - Monarchy abolished April 14, 1931  - Spanish Civil War 1936–1939  - Surrender to Franco April 1, 1939 Currency Spanish peseta...

During the Spanish Civil War, the country split into two different centralized economies, and the whole economic effort was redirected to the war industry. According to recent research^[1], growth is harmed during civil wars due to the huge contraction on private investment, and it was the case of the Spanish divided economy. Not to be confused with the Spanish Civil War of 1820-1823. ...

The Franco Era, 1939-75

Spain emerged from the civil war with formidable economic problems. Gold and foreign exchange reserves had been virtually wiped out, and the neglect and devastation of war had reduced the productive capacity of both industry and agriculture. To compound the difficulties, even if the wherewithal had existed to purchase imports, the outbreak of World War II rendered many needed supplies unavailable. The end of the war did not improve Spain's plight because of subsequent global shortages of raw materials, and peacetime industrial products. Spain's European neighbors faced formidable reconstruction problems of their own, and, because of their awareness that the Nationalist victory in the Spanish Civil War had been achieved with the help of Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini, they had little inclination to include Spain in any multilateral recovery program. For a decade following the Civil War's end in 1939, the economy remained in a state of severe depression. Image File history File links WorkersOliveSpainLOC.gif Workers in an Olive Orchard in Spain from the economics section of the Country Dtudies report on the Library of Congress website. ... Image File history File links WorkersOliveSpainLOC.gif Workers in an Olive Orchard in Spain from the economics section of the Country Dtudies report on the Library of Congress website. ... GOLD refers to one of the following: GOLD (IEEE) is an IEEE program designed to garner more student members at the university level (Graduates of the Last Decade). ... The foreign exchange (currency or forex or FX) market exists wherever one currency is traded for another. ... For other uses, see War (disambiguation). ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... Nationalism is an ideology that creates and sustains a nation as a concept of a common identity for groups of humans. ... Hitler redirects here. ... Mussolini redirects here. ... Year 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... WORLD OF WARCRAFT IS THE BEST GAME EVER INVENTED AND PLAY IT. IF YOU DONT PLAY WORLD OF WARCRAFT, YOU ARE A nOOb. ...

Branded an international outcast for its pro-Axis bias during World War II, Francisco Franco's regime sought to provide for Spain's well- being by adopting a policy of economic self-sufficiency. Autarchy was not merely a reaction to international isolation; it was also rooted for more than half a century in the advocacy of important economic pressure groups. Furthermore, from 1939 to 1945, Spain's military chiefs genuinely feared an Allied invasion of the peninsula and, therefore, sought to avert excessive reliance on foreign armaments. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... “Franco” redirects here. ... An autarky is an economy that limits trade with the outside world, or an ecosystem not affected by influences from the outside, and relies entirely on its own resources. ... Year 1939 (MCMXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ...

Spain was even more economically held back in the 1940s than it had been ten years earlier, for the residual adverse effects of the Civil War and the consequences of autarchy and import substitution were generally disastrous. Inflation soared, economic recovery faltered, and, in some years, Spain registered negative growth rates. By the early 1950s, per capita gross domestic product (GDP) was barely 40 % of the average for West European countries. Then, after a decade of economic stagnation, a tripling of prices, the growth of a black market, and widespread deprivation, gradual improvement began to take place. The regime took its first faltering steps toward abandoning its pretensions of self- sufficiency and toward inaugurating a far-reaching transformation of Spain's held back economic system. Pre-Civil War industrial production levels were regained in the early 1950s, though agricultural output remained below that level until 1958. This article is about GDP in the context of economics. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into underground economy. ... Year 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

A further impetus to economic liberalization came from the September 1953 signing of a mutual defense agreement, the Pact of Madrid, between the United States and Spain. In return for permitting the establishment of United States military bases on Spanish soil, the Eisenhower administration provided substantial economic aid to the Franco regime. More than 1 billion dollars in economic assistance flowed into Spain during the remainder of the decade as a result of the agreement. Between 1953 and 1958, Spain's gross national product (GNP) rose by about 5 % per annum. The Pact of Madrid, signed in 1953 by Spain and the United States, ended a period of virtual isolation for Spain, although the other victorious allies of World War II and much of the rest of the world remained hostile to what they regarded as a fascist regime sympathetic to... Dwight David Ike Eisenhower (October 14, 1890–March 28, 1969), American soldier and politician, was the 34th President of the United States (1953–1961) and supreme commander of the Allied forces in Europe during World War II, with the rank of General of the Army. ... Measures of national income and output are used in economics to estimate the value of goods and services produced in an economy. ...

The years from 1951 to 1956 were marked by substantial economic progress, but the reforms of the period were implemented irregularly, and were poorly coordinated. One large obstacle to the reform process was the corrupt, inefficient, and bloated bureaucracy. By the mid-1950s, the inflationary spiral had resumed its upward climb, and foreign currency reserves that had stood at US$58 million in 1958 plummeted to US$6 million by mid-1959. The growing demands of the emerging middle class--and of the ever greater number of tourists--for the amenities of life, particularly for higher nutritional standards, placed heavy demands on imported food and luxury items. At the same time, exports lagged, largely because of high domestic demand and institutional restraints on foreign trade. The peseta fell to an all-time low on the black market, and Spain's foreign currency obligations grew to almost US$60 million. The peseta is the former currency of Spain and, (along with the French Franc), of Andorra. ...

A debate took place within the regime over strategies for extricating the country from its economic impasse, and Franco finally opted in favor of a group of neoliberals. The group included bankers, industrial executives, some academic economists, and members of the Roman Catholic lay organization, Opus Dei. The term neoliberalism is used to describe a political-economic philosophy that had major implications for government policies beginning in the 1970s – and increasingly prominent since 1980 – that de-emphasizes or rejects positive government intervention in the economy, focusing instead on achieving progress and even social justice by... For other uses, see Bank (disambiguation). ... Economists are scholars conducting research in the field of economics. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... For other uses, see Opus Dei (disambiguation). ...

During the 1957-59 period, known as the pre-stabilization years, economic planners contented themselves with piecemeal measures such as moderate anti-inflationary stopgaps and increases in Spain's links with the world economy. A combination of external developments and an increasingly aggravated domestic economic crisis, however, forced them to engage in more far- reaching changes.

As the need for a change in economic policy became manifest in the late 1950s, an overhaul of the Council of Ministers in February 1957 brought to the key ministries a group of younger men, most of whom possessed economics training and experience. This reorganization was quickly followed by the establishment of a committee on economic affairs and the Office of Economic Coordination and Planning under the prime minister. A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. ...

Such administrative changes were important steps in eliminating the chronic rivalries that existed among economic ministries. Other reforms followed, the principal one being the adoption of a corporate tax system that required the confederation of each industrial sector to allocate an appropriate share of the entire industry's tax assessment to each member firm. Chronic tax evasion was consequently made more difficult, and tax collection receipts rose sharply. Together with curbs on government spending, in 1958 this reform created the first government surplus in many years. Year 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

More drastic remedies were required as Spain's isolation from the rest of Western Europe became exacerbated. Neighboring states were in the process of establishing the EC and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA--see Glossary). In the process of liberalizing trade among their members, these organizations found it difficult to establish economic relations with countries wedded to trade quotas and bilateral agreements, such as Spain.

Spanish membership in these groups was not politically possible, but Spain was invited to join a number of other international institutions. In January 1958, Spain became an associate member of the Organisation for European Economic Co- operation (OEEC), which became the Organisation for Economic Co- operation and Development (OECD) in September 1961. In 1959 Spain joined the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. These bodies immediately became involved in helping Spain abandon the autarchical trade practices that had brought its reserves to such low levels and that were isolating its economy from the rest of Europe. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is an international organization of those developed countries that accept the principles of representative democracy and a free market economy. ... Year 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... “IMF” redirects here. ... The World Bank (the Bank), a part of the World Bank Group (WBG), was formally established on December 27, 1945, following the ratification of the Bretton Woods agreement. ...

In December 1958, after seven months of preparation and drafting, aided by IMF, Spain unveiled its Stabilization Plan on June 30, 1959. The plan's objectives were twofold: to take the necessary fiscal and monetary measures required to restrict demand and to contain inflation, while, at the same time, liberalizing foreign trade and encouraging foreign investment. The plan's initial effect was deflationary and recessionary, leading to a drop in real income and to a rise in unemployment during its first year. The resultant economic slump and reduced wages led approximately 500,000 Spanish workers to emigrate in search of better job opportunities in other West European countries. Nonetheless, its main goals were achieved. The plan enabled Spain to avert a possible suspension of payments abroad to foreign banks holding Spanish currency, and by the close of 1959 Spain's foreign exchange account showed a US$100-million surplus. Foreign capital investment grew sevenfold between 1958 and 1960, and the annual influx of tourists began to rise rapidly, bringing in very much needed foreign exchange. is the 181st day of the year (182nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Deflation is a decrease in the general price level, over a period of time. ... Income, generally defined, is the money that is received as a result of the normal business activities of an individual or a business. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Year 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

As these developments steadily converted Spain's economic structure into one more closely resembling a free-market economy, the country entered the greatest cycle of industrialization and prosperity it had ever known. Foreign aid took the form of US$75 million in drawing rights from the IMF, US$100 million in OEEC credits, US$70 million in commercial credits from the Chase Manhattan Bank and the First National City Bank, US$30 million from the Export-Import Bank of the United States, and funds from United States aid programs. Total foreign backing amounted to US$420 million. The principal lubricants of the economic expansion, however, were the hard currency remittances of 1 million Spanish workers abroad, which are estimated to have offset 17.9 % of the total trade deficit from 1962 to 1971; the gigantic increase in tourism that drew more than 20 million visitors per year by the end of the 1960s, accounting by then for 9 % of GNP; a car industry that grew at a staggering compound rate of 21.7 % per annum from 1958 to 1972 - and drove the rapid development of other industries that supplied and serviced it; and direct foreign investment, which between 1960 and 1974 amounted to an impressive US$7.6 billion. More than 40 % of this investment came from the United States, almost 17 % came from Switzerland, and the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) and France each accounted for slightly more than 10 %. By 1975 foreign capital represented 12.4 % of all that invested in Spain's 500 largest industrial firms. An additional billion dollars came from foreign sources through a variety of loans and credit devices. The success of the stabilization program was attributable to plenty of good luck and good management and the impressive development during this period was referred to colloquially as the "Spanish miracle". A free market is an idealized market, where all economic decisions and actions by individuals regarding transfer of money, goods, and services are voluntary, and are therefore devoid of coercion and theft (some definitions of coercion are inclusive of theft). Colloquially and loosely, a free market economy is an economy... The Chase Manhattan Bank, now part of JPMorgan Chase, was formed by the merger of the Chase National Bank and the Bank of the Manhattan Company in 1955. ... Citibank was founded in 1812 as the City Bank of New York. ... The Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank, Exim Bank or Eximbank) is the official export credit agency of the United States Government. ... Remittance advertising in Oxford Street, London with Russian slogans. ... A white SEAT 600, an icon of the Spanish Miracle The 1957 built, 142m high, Torre de Madrid somehow heralded the advent of the Spanish Miracle The Spanish miracle (Spanish: Desarrollo económico de España) was the name given to the Spanish economic boom between 1959 and 1973. ...

The Post-Franco Period, 1975-1980s

Franco's death in 1975 and the ensuing transition to democratic rule diverted Spaniards' attention from their economy. The return to democracy coincided with an explosive quadrupling of oil prices, which had an extremely serious effect on the economy because Spain imported 70 % of its energy, mostly in the form of Middle Eastern oil. Nonetheless, the centrist government of Adolfo Suarez Gonzalez, which had been named to succeed the Franco regime by King Juan Carlos de Borbon, did little to shore up the economy or even to reduce Spain's dependence on imported oil. A virtually exclusive preoccupation with the politics of democratization and the drafting of a new political system prevailed. Year 1975 (MCMLXXV) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Spanish transition to democracy or new Bourbon restoration was the era when Spain moved from the dictatorship of Francisco Franco to a liberal democratic state. ... Synthetic motor oil An oil is any substance that is in a viscous liquid state (oily) at ambient temperatures or slightly warmer, and is both hydrophobic (immiscible with water, literally water fearing) and lipophilic (miscible with other oils, literally fat loving). This general definition includes compound classes with otherwise unrelated... A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ... Adolfo Su rez Gonz lez (September 25, 1932) Spanish politician and statesman. ... King Juan Carlos I His Majesty King Juan Carlos I (Juan Carlos Alfonso Víctor María de Borbón y Borbón), styled HM The King (born January 5, 1938), is the reigning King of Spain. ...

Because of the failure to adjust to the changed economic environment brought on by the two oil price shocks of the 1970s, Spain quickly confronted plummeting productivity, an explosive increase in wages from 1974 to 1976, a reversal of migration trends as a result of the economic slump throughout Western Europe, and the steady outflow of labor from agricultural areas despite declining job prospects in the cities. All these factors joined in producing a sharp rise in unemployment. Government budgetary deficits swelled, as did large social security cost overruns and the huge operating losses incurred by a number of public-sector industries. Energy consumption, meanwhile, remained high. Year 1974 (MCMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar) of the 1974 Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1976 Pick up sticks(MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... A budget deficit occurs when an entity (often a government) spends more money than it takes in. ... Social security primarily refers to social welfare service concerned with social protection, or protection against socially recognized conditions, including poverty, old age, disability, unemployment and others. ...

When the Socialist government headed by Felipe Gonzalez took office in late 1982, the economy, inflation was running at an annual rate of 16 %, the external current account was US$4 billion in arrears, public spending was large, and foreign exchange reserves had become dangerously depleted. In coping with the situation, however, the Gonzalez government had one asset that no previous post-Franco government had enjoyed, namely, a solid parliamentary majority in both houses of the Cortes (Spanish Parliament). With this majority, it was able to undertake unpopular austerity measures that earlier governments had not. Socialism is a social and economic system (or the political philosophy advocating such a system) in which the economic means of production are owned and controlled collectively by the people. ... Felipe González Márquez (March 5, 1942). ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ...

The Socialist government opted for pragmatic, orthodox monetary and fiscal policies, together with a series of vigorous retrenchment measures. In 1983 it unveiled a program that provided a more coherent and long-term approach to the country's economic ills. Renovative structural policies--such as the closing of large, unprofitable state enterprises--helped to correct the relatively poor performance of the economy. The government launched an industrial reconversion program, brought the problem-ridden social security system into better balance, and introduced a more efficient energy-use policy. Labor market flexibility was improved, and private capital investment was encouraged with incentives. Year 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar). ...

By 1985 the budgetary deficit was brought down to 5 % of GNP, and it dropped to 4.5 % in 1986. Real wage growth was contained, and it was generally kept below the rate of inflation. Inflation was reduced to 4.5 % in 1987, and analysts believed it might decrease to the government's goal of 3 % in 1988. This article is about the year. ... Year 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ...

Efforts to modernize and to expand the economy together with a number of factors fostered the remarkable economic boom of the 1980s. Those factors were the continuing fall in oil prices, increased tourism, and a massive upsurge in the inflow of foreign investment. Thus, despite the fact that the economy was being exposed to foreign competition in accordance with EC requirements, the Spanish economy underwent rapid expansion without experiencing balance of payments' constraints.

In the words of the OECD's 1987-88 survey of the Spanish economy, "following a protracted period of sluggish growth with slow progress in winding down inflation during the late 1970s and the first half of the 1980s, the Spanish economy has entered a phase of vigorous expansion of output and employment accompanied by a marked slowdown of inflation." In 1981 Spain's GDP growth rate had reached a nadir by registering a rate of negative 0.2 %; it then gradually resumed its slow upward ascent with increases of 1.2 % in 1982, 1.8 % in 1983, 1.9 % in 1984, and 2.1 % in 1985. The following year, however, Spain's real GDP began to grow by leaps and bounds, registering a growth rate of 3.3 % in 1986 and 5.5 % in 1987. The 1987 figure was the highest since 1974, and it was the strongest rate of expansion among OECD countries that year. Analysts projected a rise of 3.8 % in 1988 and of 3.5 % in 1989, a slight decline but still roughly double the EC average. They expected that declining interest rates and the government's stimulative budget would help sustain economic expansion. Industrial output, which rose by 3.1 % in 1986 and by 5.2 % in 1987, was also expected to maintain its expansive rate, growing by 3.8 % in 1988 and by 3.7 % in 1989. Year 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar). ...

A prime force generating rapid economic growth was increased domestic demand, which grew by a steep 6 % in 1986 and by 4.8 % in 1987, in both years exceeding official projections. During 1988 and 1989, analysts expected demand to remain strong, though at slightly lower levels. Much of the large increase in demand was met in 1987 by an estimated 20 % jump in real terms in imports of goods and services.

In the mid-1980s, Spain achieved a strong level of economic performance while simultaneously lowering its rate of inflation to within two points of the EC average. However, its export performance, though increasing, raised concerns over the existing imbalance between import and export growth.

The Modern Spanish Economy

Growth of real GDP per capita in Spain from 1950-2000. Values in 1996 dollars.

The Spanish economy boomed from 1986 to 1990, averaging five percent annual growth. After a European-wide recession in the early 1990s, the Spanish economy resumed moderate growth starting in 1994. Today, Spain's mixed capitalist economy supports a GDP that on a per capita basis is 90% that of the four leading West European economies. The center-right government of former President Aznar successfully worked to gain admission to the first group of countries launching the European single currency (the euro) on January 1, 1999. The Aznar administration continued to advocate liberalization, privatization, and deregulation of the economy and introduced some tax reforms to that end. Unemployment fell steadily under the Aznar administration but remains high at 10.4%. Growth of 2.5% in 2003 and 2.6% in 2004 was satisfactory given the background of a faltering European economy. The socialist president, Rodriguez Zapatero, has initiated economic and social reforms that are generally popular among the masses of people but that are anathema to conservative elements; indicators of economic growth have continued to maintain good trends, however. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (907x587, 161 KB) Summary Graph of growth in real Gross Domestic Product per capita in Spain from 1950-2000. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (907x587, 161 KB) Summary Graph of growth in real Gross Domestic Product per capita in Spain from 1950-2000. ... Year 1990 (MCMXC) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1994 (MCMXCIV) The year 1994 was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by the United Nations. ... José María Aznar López (born February 25, 1953) was President of the Government (styled Presidente del Gobierno, i. ... For other uses, see Euro (disambiguation). ... is the 1st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... In general, liberalization refers to a relaxation of previous government restrictions, usually in areas of social or economic policy. ... This article does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Deregulation is the process by which governments remove, reduce, or simplify restrictions on business and individuals in order to (in theory) encourage the efficient operation of markets. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero (born August 4, 1960) is the Prime Minister of Spain. ...

References

1. J and Imai, K. Measuring the Economic Impact of Civil Wars (2000)

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