ABSTRACT
In the second half of the eighteenth century, Spain found itself frequently at war with Great Britain and at odds with its erstwhile partner, France. It lost territory in Europe and the Americas and began to see its global empire crumble. Under the rule of the Bourbon Kings Ferdinand VI (1746–1759), Charles III (1759–1788), and Charles IV (1789–1803), the crown implemented a series of reforms domestically and abroad, many initiated in the prior half century, that sought to centralise power and shore up Spain’s administration and defence. They ranged from long-term efforts to modernise the bureaucracy to emergency war taxes. These measures prompted a variety of reactions, largely negative, in Spanish America.
