Synopsis
MODERN STATE OF SPAIN. by Jean-Francois Baron De Bourgoing. This comprehensive travel-essay, translated from the Paris edition of 1807, offers a complete view of Spain’s topography, government, laws, religion, finances, and naval and military establishments, as well as its society, manners, arts, sciences, agriculture, and commerce. Bourgoing traverses Madrid, Toledo, Aranjuez, Arragon, Cadiz, Seville, Valencia, Barcelona, Grenada, and the Pyrenees, describing monuments, churches, canals, and royal palaces, and noting the condition of agriculture, industry, and trade. He admires humanistic reforms, such as the Arragon canal by Don Ramon Pignatelli, and documents the evolution of public buildings, schools, and charitable foundations. The narrative blends historical description with reflections on governance, religion, and the social fabric of early modern Spain, including the treatment of foreigners, the role of the clergy, and the wealth of ports like Cadiz and Seville. It closes with a retrospective, assessing Spain’s potential for reform, and the author’s cautiously optimistic appraisal of its prospects under enlightened leadership.
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