Chapter VIII (4)

By these and similar measures,[1292] these unhappy people were at length goaded into rebellion; and in 1568 they took the desperate step of measuring their force against that of the whole Spanish monarchy. The result could hardly be doubted; but the Moriscoes maddened by their sufferings, and fighting for their all, protracted the contest till 1571, when the insurrection was finally put down.[1293] By this unsuccessful effort, they were greatly reduced in numbers and in strength; and, during the remaining twenty-seven years of the reign of Philip II. we hear comparatively little of them. Notwithstanding an occasional outbreak, the old animosities were subsiding, and in the course of time would probably have disappeared. At all events, there was no pretence for violence on the part of the Spaniards, since it was absurd to suppose that the Moriscoes, weakened in every way, humbled, broken, and scattered through the kingdom, could, even if they desired it, effect any thing against the resources of the executive government.

[1292] Some of the other steps which were taken, before 1566, to affront
the Moriscoes are enumerated in _Prescott's History of Philip
II._, vol. iii. p. 10, and elsewhere. In the reign of Charles
V., there were many acts of local tyranny which escape the
general historian. One of them, on the part of the Bishop of
Guadix, is worth quoting. 'On le vit pousser l'intolérance
jusqu'à faire raser les femmes et les obliger à racler leurs
ongles pour en faire disparaître les traces du henné, cosmétique
inoffensif dont il abhorrait l'usage, en raison de ce que les
Arabes l'avaient introduit.' _Circourt_, _Histoire des Arabes
d'Espagne_, vol. ii. p. 226.

[1293] Its concluding scene, in March, 1571, is skilfully depicted in
_Prescott's History of Philip III._, vol. iii. pp. 148-151. The
splendid courage of the Moriscoes is attested by Mendoza in his
contemporary history of the war; but, in narrating the horrible
outrages which they undoubtedly committed, he makes no allowance
for the long-continued and insufferable provocations which they
had received from the Spanish Christians. What he mentions of
one of the battles is curious, and I do not remember to have
seen it elsewhere recorded. 'Fue porfiado por ambas partes el
combate hasta venir á las espadas, de que los Moros se
aprovechan menos que nosotros, por tener las suyas un filo i no
herir ellos de punta.' _Mendoza_, _Guerra de Granada_, edit.
4to. Valencia, 1776, p. 168.

But, after the death of Philip II., that movement began which I have just described, and which, contrary to the course of affairs in other nations, secured to the Spanish clergy in the seventeenth century, more power than they had possessed in the sixteenth. The consequences of this were immediately apparent. The clergy did not think that the steps taken by Philip II. against the Moriscoes were sufficiently decisive; and even during his lifetime they looked forward to a new reign, in which these Christians of doubtful sincerity should be either destroyed or driven from Spain.[1294] While he was on the throne, the prudence of the government restrained in some degree the eagerness of the Church; and the king, following the advice of his ablest ministers, refused to adopt the measures to which he was urged, and to which his own disposition prompted him.[1295] But, under his successor, the clergy, as we have already seen, gained fresh strength, and they soon felt themselves sufficiently powerful to begin another and final crusade against the miserable remains of the Moorish nation.[1296]

[1294] An instance of this was exhibited in 1578, on the very day in
which Philip III. was born. 'Predicando en un lugar de Aragon,
todo de Moriscos, llamado Ricla, ó Torrellas, un religioso,
llamado Vargas, el mismo dia que nació su Magestad, viendo el
poco fruto que hacia con sus sermones, dixo, como en Profecia, á
aquella gente rebelde: Pues no quereis despedir de vuestros
pechos esta infernal secta, sabed, que ha nacido en Castilla vn
Principe que os ha de echar de España.' _Porreño_, _Dichos y
Hechos de Phelipe III._, in _Yañez_, _Memorias_, Madrid, 1723,
p. 224; and nearly the same words in _Janer_, _Condicion de los
Moriscos_, p. 60. Mr. Prescott, in his _History of Philip II._,
vol. iii. p. 139, quotes a Ms. letter from Don John of Austria
to Philip II., written in 1570, and stating that the Spanish
monks were openly preaching against the leniency with which the
king treated the Moriscoes. 'Predicando en los púlpitos
publicamente contra la benignidad y clemencia que V. M. ha
mandado usar con esta gente.'

[1295] In a recent work of considerable authority, it is denied that
Philip II. entertained the desire of expelling the Moriscoes.
'El carácter austero y la severidad de Felipe II. redundaban en
favor de los moriscos, porque no daba oidos á las instigaciones
de algunos personajes que señalaban la expulsion general como
unico remedio eficaz para los males que ofrecia al pais aquella
desventurada raza. Acababa el monarca de tocar los tristes
resultados de una emigracion por las funestas consecuencias de
la despoblacion del reino granadino, y preferia continuar en la
_senda de la conciliacion_, procurando de nuevo la enseñanza de
los conversos.' _Janer_, _Condicion de los Moriscos_, Madrid,
1857, p. 59. But to say nothing of the fact that this is
contrary to all we know of the character of Philip, we have, on
the other side of the question, the testimony of Archbishop
Ribera, who had often communicated with the King on the subject,
and who distinctly states that Philip desired the expulsion of
the Moors from Spain, 'El hechar los Moros deste Reyno, ha sido
cosa muy desseada, y procurada por los Reyes Predecessores del
Rey nuestro Señor, aunque no executada.' ... 'El Rey Don Felipe
Segundo, nuestro Señor, despues de suceder en estos Reynos,
_tuvo el mismo desseo_; y assi mandó, que se juntassen los
Prelados deste Reyno para buscar remedio el año de 1568; siendo
Arçobispo desta Metropoli el Reverendissimo Don Hernando de
Lloazes. Hizieronse en aquella Junta algunas Constituciones de
consideracion. Visto que no aprovechaban, mandó el año 1587 que
se hiziesse otra Junta, _en la qual me hallé yo_: añadimos
tambien algunas nuevas Constituciones. Y constando á su Magestad
que no eran bastantes las diligencias passadas, y que siempre
perseveraban en su heregia, se resolvio de mandarlos hechar del
Reyno, ó por lo menos meterlos dentro de la tierra.' _Ximenez_,
_Vida de Ribera_, Roma, 1734, 4to. pp. 419, 420. This important
passage is decisive as to the real feelings of Philip, unless we
assume that Ribera has stated a deliberate falsehood. But,
strange to say, even the book in which so remarkable a passage
is contained, appears to be unknown either to M. Janer or to M.
Lafuente.

[1296] 'El rey Felipe III., hombre de rudo ingenio, se dejaba gobernar
con facilidad por aquellos que sabiendo los temores de su
conciencia, se aprovechaban de su imbecilidad para conseguir
cuanto querian. Muchos eclesiásticos, recordando las espulsiones
de judios y moros ejecutadas de órden de Fernando é Isabel, y
conociendo que á Felipe III. seria agradable imitar á estos
monarcas, le aconsejaron que condenase al destierro á todos los
moriscos que vivian en sus reynos; pues no solo se obstinaban en
seguir la ley mahometana, sino que tenían tratos con los turcos
y entre sí para buscar sus libertades por medio del rigor de las
armas.' _Castro_, _Decadencia de España_, Cadiz, 1852,
pp. 101, 102.

The Archbishop of Valencia was the first to take the field. In 1602, this eminent prelate presented a memorial to Philip III. against the Moriscoes; and finding that his views were cordially supported by the clergy, and not discouraged by the crown, he followed up the blow by another memorial having the same object.[1297] The Archbishop, who spoke as one having authority, and who from his rank and position was a natural representative of the Spanish Church, assured the king that all the disasters which had befallen the monarchy, had been caused by the presence of these unbelievers, whom it was now necessary to root out, even as David had done to the Philistines, and Saul to the Amalekites.[1298] He declared that the Armada, which Philip II. sent against England in 1588, had been destroyed, because God would not allow even that pious enterprise to succeed, while those who undertook it, left heretics undisturbed at home. For the same reason, the late expedition to Algiers had failed; it being evidently the will of Heaven that nothing should prosper while Spain was inhabited by apostates.[1299] He, therefore, exhorted the king to exile all the Moriscoes, except some whom he might condemn to work in the galleys, and others who could become slaves, and labour in the mines of America.[1300] This, he added, would make the reign of Philip glorious to all posterity, and would raise his fame far above that of his predecessors, who in this matter had neglected their obvious duty.[1301]

[1297] These memorials are printed in the Appendix to his Life by
Ximenez. See the very curious book, entitled _Vida y Virtudes
del Venerable Siervo de Dios D. Juan de Ribera_, _por el R. P.
Fr. Juan Ximenez_, Roma, 1734, 4to. pp. 367-374, 376-393. This
work is, I believe, extremely rare; at all events, I endeavoured
in vain to obtain a copy from Spain or Italy, and, after some
years' unsuccessful search, I met with the one I now have, on a
London book-stall. M. de Circourt, in his learned History of the
Spanish Arabs, does not appear to have been aware of its
existence, and he complains that he could not procure the works
of Ribera, whose Memorials he consequently quotes second-hand.
_Circourt_, _Histoire des Arabes d'Espagne_, Paris, 1846, vol.
iii. pp. 168, 351. Nor does Watson seem to have known it; though
both he and M. de Circourt refer to Escriva's Life of Ribera.
_Watson's Philip III._, London, 1839, pp. 214-221. An abstract
of these Memorials is given by Geddes, who, though a learned and
accurate writer, had the mischievous habit of not indicating the
sources of his information. _Geddes' Tracts_, London, 1730,
vol. i. pp. 60-71.

[1298] 'Por lo qual se puede creer, que nuestro Señor ha querido
reservar esta obra tan digna de pecho Real para Vuestra
Magestad, como reservó la libertad e su pueblo para Moyses, la
entrada de la Tierra de Promission para Josue, la vengança de la
injuria antigua de los Amalequitas para Saul, y la victoria de
los Filisteos para David.' _Ximenez_, _Vida de Ribera_, p. 370.
Again, p. 377: 'Y al primer Rey que tuvo el Mundo, en siendo
elegido por Dios, y confirmado en su Reyno, le embia á mandar
por un Propheta que destruya á los Amalequitas, sin dexar
hombres, ni mugeres, ni niños, aunque sean de leche, en fin que
no quede rastro de ellos, ni des sus haziendas. Y porque no
cumplió exactamente su mandamiento, cayó en indignacion de Dios,
y fue privado del Reyno. Al segundo Rey, que fue David, le mandó
Dios en siendo jurado, que destruyesse los Philisteos, como lo
hizo.'

[1299] 'El año quando se perdio la poderosa Armada, que iba á
Inglaterra, confiado de la benignidad del Rey nuestro Señor, que
está en el Cielo, me atreví con el zelo de fiel vassallo y
Capellán, á dezir á Su Magestad; que aviendo gastado mucho
tiempo en discurrir, que causa podia aver para que Dios, nuestro
Señor, permitiesse aquel mal sucesso se me havia ofrecido una
cosa de mucha consideracion, y era, querer dezir la Magestad
Divina á Su Magestad Catolica; que mientras no ponia remedio en
estas Heregias de España, cuyos Reynos le avia encomendado, no
se debía ocupar en remediar las de los Beynos agenos. Y ahora
confiando en la misma benignidad, y clemencia de Vuestra
Magestad, me atrevo tambien á dezir, que aviendo considerado la
causa, porque Dios nos ha quitado de las manos la toma de Argel,
aviendose dispuesto todas las prevenciones para ella con la
mayor prudencia, y sagacidad, que hemos visto en nuestros
tiempos, y sirviendonos el mar, y los ayres, y las ocasiones, de
la manera, que podiamos dessear, tengo por sin duda, que ha
sido, querer nuestro Señor dar á Vuestra Magestad el ultimo
recuerdo de la obligacion, que tiene, de resolver esta platica.'
_Ximenez_, _Vida de Ribera_, p. 373. It would be a pity if such
admirable specimens of theological reasoning were to remain
buried in an old Roman quarto. I congratulate myself and the
reader on my acquisition of this volume, which is a vast
repertory of powerful, though obsolete, weapons.

[1300] 'Todas estas cosas, y otras muchas, que dexo de dezir, por no ser
prolixo, me hazen evidencia, de que conviene para el servicio de
Dios nuestro Señor, y que Vuestra Magestad está obligado en
conciencia, como Rey, y Supremo Señor, á quien toca de justicia
defender, y conservar sus Reynos, mandar desterrar de España
todos estos Moriscos, sin que quede hombre, ni muger grande, ni
pequeño; reservando tan solamente los niños, y niñas, que no
llegaren á siete años, para que se guarden entre nosotros,
repartien dolos por las casas particulares de Christianos
viejos. Y aun hay opinion de personas doctas, que estos tales
niños y niñas, los puede Vuestra Magestad dar por esclavos, y lo
fundan con razones probables.' _Ximenez_, _Vida de Ribera_, pp.
379, 380. 'Destos que se han de desterrar, podra Vuestra
Magestad tomarlos que fuere servido por esclavos, para proveer
sus Galeras, ó para embiar á las minas de las Indias, sin
escrupulo alguno de conciencia, lo que tambien será de no poca
utilidad.' p. 384. To do this, was to be merciful; for they all
deserved capital punishment, 'merecian pena capital.' p. 381.

[1301] 'Aora, Catolica Magestad, vemos que Dios nuestro Señor ha
reservado para Vuestra Magestad, y para su Real Corona, el
nombre, y hechos de Rey Catholico: permitiendo por sus secretos
juizios, que los que han sido siempre enemigos de su Iglesia se
conserven, y que los que antes eran Catholicos, ayan degenerado,
y apostatado de su santa ley y assi va la honra de Dios nuestro
Señor, y el exemplo, y confusion de los otros Reyes, en que
Vuestra Magestad tenga sus Reynos limpios de Hereges, y
principalmente á España. Y quando esto huviesse de costar
grandes trabajos, y todo el oro, y plata, que hay en las Indias,
estaria muy bien empleado: pues se atraviessa la honra de Dios,
la de su Santa Iglesia, el antiguo renombre desta Corona,' &c.
_Ximenez_, _Vida de Ribera_, p. 382. And on the neglect of duty
by Charles V. and Philip II., see p. 370.

These remonstrances, besides being in accordance with the known views of the Spanish Church, were warmly supported by the personal influence of the Archbishop of Toledo, the primate of Spain. In only one respect did he differ from the views advocated by the Archbishop of Valencia. The Archbishop of Valencia thought that children under seven years of age need not share in the general banishment, but might, without danger to the faith, be separated from their parents, and kept in Spain. To this, the Archbishop of Toledo strongly objected. He was unwilling, he said, to run the risk of pure Christian blood being polluted by infidels; and he declared that sooner than leave one of these unbelievers to corrupt the land, he would have the whole of them, men, women, and children, at once put to the sword.[1302]

[1302] 'The most powerful promoter of their expulsion was Don Bernardo
de Roias y Sandoval, Cardinal Archbishop of Toledo, and
Inquisitor-General and Chancellor of Spain. This great prelate,
who was brother to the Duke of Lerma, by whom the king for some
years before, and for some years after the expulsion was
absolutely governed, was so zealous to have the whole race of
the Moriscoes extinguished, that he opposed the detaining of
their children who were under seven years of age, affirming that
of the two he judged it more advisable to cut the throats of all
the Moriscoes, men, women, and children, than to have any of
their children left in Spain, to defile the true Spanish blood
with a mixture of the Moorish.' _Geddes' Tracts_, vol. i. pp.
85, 86. Navarrete has pronounced a glowing eulogy upon the piety
and other noble qualities of this prelate; and says that
'llenando de esplendor con su virtud tres sillas episcopales,
mereció que Clemente VIII. le honrase con el capelo, y fué
elevado á la primada de Toledo y al empleo de inquisidor
general.' _Vida de Cervantes_, pp. xcvii., xcviii., Barcelona,
1839.

That they should all be slain, instead of being banished, was the desire of a powerful party in the Church, who thought that such signal punishment would work good by striking terror into the heretics of every nation. Bleda, the celebrated Dominican, one of the most influential men of his time, wished this to be done, and to be done thoroughly. He said, that, for the sake of example, every Morisco in Spain should have his throat cut, because it was impossible to tell which of them were Christians at heart, and it was enough to leave the matter to God, who knew his own, and who would reward in the next world those who were really Catholics.[1303]

[1303] 'He did assure all the old Christian laity, that whenever the
king should give the word, they might, without any scruple of
conscience, cut the throats of all the Moriscoes, and not spare
any of them upon their professing themselves Christians; but to
follow the holy and laudable example of the Croisado that was
raised against the Albigenses, who, upon their having made
themselves masters of the city of Bezeir; wherein were two
hundred thousand Catholics and hereticks, did ask Father Arnold,
a Cistercian monk, who was their chief preacher, "Whether they
should put any to the sword that pretended to be Catholics;" and
were answered by the holy Abbot, "That they should kill all
without distinction, and leave it to God, who knew his own, to
reward them for being true Catholics in the next world;" which
was accordingly executed.' _Geddes_, vol. i. p. 84.

It was evident that the fate of the wretched remnant of a once splendid nation was now sealed. The religious scruples of Philip III. forbade him to struggle with the Church; and his minister Lerma would not risk his own authority by even the show of opposition. In 1609, he announced to the king, that the expulsion of the Moriscoes had become necessary. 'The resolution,' replied Philip, 'is a great one; let it be executed.'[1304] And executed it was, with unflinching barbarity. About one million of the most industrious inhabitants of Spain were hunted out like wild beasts, because the sincerity of their religious opinions was doubtful.[1305] Many were slain, as they approached the coast; others were beaten and plundered; and the majority, in the most wretched plight, sailed for Africa. During the passage, the crew, in many of the ships, rose upon them, butchered the men, ravished the women, and threw the children into the sea. Those who escaped this fate, landed on the coast of Barbary, where they were attacked by the Bedouins, and many of them put to the sword. Others made their way into the desert, and perished from famine. Of the number of lives actually sacrificed, we have no authentic account; but it is said, on very good authority, that in one expedition, in which 140,000 were carried to Africa, upwards of 100,000 suffered death in its most frightful forms within a few months after their expulsion from Spain.[1306]

[1304] '"Grande resolucion!" contestó el débil monarca al ministro
favorito: "hacedlo vos, duque."' _Lafuente_, _Historia de
España_, vol. xv. p. 375. But this reply, so far from being a
mark of weakness on the part of Philip, was a strictly logical
application of the principles which he entertained, and which,
indeed, were almost universal in Spain. We know from his
contemporary biographer, that 'Determinó el Rey en los
principios de su Reynado, como Rey tan poderoso y Catolico, de
consagrar y dedicar à Dios la potencia de sus Consejos y Armas
para extinguir y acabar los enemigos de la Iglesia Santa.'
_Davila_, _Historia de la Vida de Felipe Tercero_, lib. i.
p. 44.

[1305] This is the average estimate. Some authors make it less, and some
more; while one writer says, 'The numbers expelled have been
estimated at four hundred thousand families, or two millions of
souls.' _Clarke's Internal State of Spain_, London, 1818, p. 33.
But this is incredible. M. Castro (_Decadencia de España_,
Cadiz, 1852, p. 105) says, 'España perdió en los moriscos un
millon de habitantes;' and M. Janer (_Condicion de los
Moriscos_, Madrid, 1857, p. 93), 'Sin entrar en cálculos sobre
los que habia cuando se expidio el edicto de Valencia en 1609,
ni sobre los que fenecieron en las rebeliones, de mano armada,
de sed, de hambre ó ahogados, creemos poder fijar,
aproximadamente, en novecientos mil los que llegaron á poner el
pie fuera de la península, despidiéndose para siempre de las
costas y fronteras de España, cuya cifra deducimos del exámen y
contexto de unos y otros escritores, de las listas que nos han
quedado de los expulsos, de los datos de diversas relaciones,
estados y documentos examinados con este solo intento;' and
further on, p. 105, 'la expulsion de un millon, ó novecientos
mil de sus habitantes.' Llorente (_Histoire de l'Inquisition_,
vol. iii. p. 430, Paris, 1818) says, 'un million d'habitans
utiles et laborieux;' Ximenez (_Vida de Ribera_, Roma, 1734,
4to. p. 70), 'novecientos mil;' and Boisel, who was in Spain,
fifty years after the expulsion, and collected the traditionary
evidence, says, 'Il sortit neuf cens tant de mille hommes de
compte fait, de Valence, d'Andalousie, et de Castille.'
_Boisel_, _Journal du Voyage d'Espagne_, Paris, 1669, 4to. p.
275.

[1306] _Watson's Philip III._, pp. 234-235. _Davila_, _Vida de Felipe
III._, p. 146. _Yañez_, _Memorias para la Historia de Felipe
III._, pp. 281, 290. _Janer_, _Condicion de los Moriscos_, pp.
83, 84, 90. Some particulars respecting their expulsion may also
be seen in Cottington's Letters from Madrid, which were written
in 1609, but are of very little value. _Winwood's Memorials of
Affairs of State_, vol. iii. pp. 73, 91, 103, 118, London,
folio, 1725.

Now, for the first time, the Church was really triumphant.[1307] For the first time, there was not a heretic to be seen between the Pyrenees and the Straits of Gibraltar. All were orthodox, and all were loyal. Every inhabitant of that great country obeyed the Church, and feared the king. And from this happy combination, it was believed that the prosperity and grandeur of Spain were sure to follow. The name of Philip III. was to be immortal, and posterity would never weary of admiring that heroic act by which the last remains of an infidel race were cast out from the land. Those who had even remotely participated in the glorious consummation, were to be rewarded by the choicest blessings. Themselves, and their families, were under the immediate protection of Heaven. The earth should bear more fruit, and the trees should clap their hands. Instead of the thorn should come up the fir-tree, and instead of the brier, the myrtle. A new era was now inaugurated, in which Spain, purged of her heresy, was to be at ease, and men, living in safety, were to sleep under the shade of their own vineyards, sow their gardens in peace, and eat of the fruit of the trees they had planted.[1308]

[1307] In a contemporary sermon in commemoration of their expulsion, the
preacher joyfully exclaims, 'Pues, que mayor honra podemos tener
en este Reyno, que ser todos los que vivimos en el, fieles á
Dios, y al Rey, sin compañia de estos Hereges y traydores?'
_Ximenez_, _Vida de Ribera_, p. 423. Another clergyman cries
out, 'Al fin salieron estos, y quedó la tierra libre de la
infamia de este gente.' _Davila_, _Vida de Felipe Tercero_, p.
149. See also p. 151. 'Y es digno de poner en consideracion el
zelo que los Reyes de España tuvieron en todo tiempo de
sustentar la Fé Catolica; pues en diferentes expulsiones que han
hecho, han sacado de sus Reynos tres millones de Moros, y dos
millones de Judios, enemigos de nuestra Iglesia.'

[1308] See the sermon by the Archbishop of Valencia, printed at length
in the Appendix to _Ximenez_, _Vida de Ribera_, pp. 411-428. I
would fain quote it all, but the reader must be content with
part of the peroration, pp. 426, 427. 'Entre las felizidades,
que cuenta el Espiritu Santo que tuvieron los hijos de Israel en
el govierno del Rey Salomon, es una; que vivian los hombres
seguros, durmiendo á la sombra de su parra, y de su higuera, sin
tener de quien temer. _Assi estaremos en este Reyno de aqui
adelante_, por la misericordia de nuestro Señor, y paternal
providencia de Su Magestad, todo nos sobrará, y la misma tierra
se fertilizará y dará fruto de bendicion. Brocardico es, de que
todos usabades, diziendo que despues, que estos se bautizaron,
no se avia visto un año fertil; _aora todos lo seran_, porque
las heregias y blasfemias de estos tenian esterilizada,
abrasada, y inficionada la tierra, como dixo el Real Propheta
David, con tantos pecados y abominaciones.' ... 'Y edificarán en
las tierras, que antes eran desiertas, plantando viñas, y
bebiendo el vino de ellas, y sembrarán huertas, y comeran del
fruto de los arboles, que han plantado, y nunca seran hechados
de sus casas, dize Dios. Todo esto promete nuestro Señor por dos
Prophetas suyos. _Todo (digo otra vez) nos sobrará._' All this
was to happen to the people; while, as to the king, he, in the
same sermon, p. 416, is likened to David; and it was declared by
another high authority, that his expulsion of the Moriscoes was
so great an exploit ('hazaña'), that 'durára su memoria por los
venideros siglos.' _Porreño_, in _Yañez_, _Memorias para Felipe
III._, p. 281.

These were the promises held out by the Church, and believed by the people. It is our business to inquire how far the expectations were fulfilled, and what the consequences were of an act which was instigated by the clergy, welcomed by the nation, and eagerly applauded by some of the greatest men of genius Spain has produced.[1309]

[1309] 'Amidst the devout exultation of the whole kingdom,--Cervantes,
Lope de Vega, and others of the principal men of genius then
alive, joining in the general jubilee.' _Ticknor's History of
Spanish Literature_, vol. i. pp. 428, 429. Compare _Dunlop's
Memoirs_, vol. i. p. 16. Porreño says that it may be placed
among the seven wonders of the world; 'la podemos poner entre
las siete maravillas del mundo.' _Yañez_, _Memorias_, p. 297:
and Davila (_Vida de Felipe Tercero_, lib. ii. cap. 41, p. 139)
pronounces it to be the most glorious achievement which had been
seen since the days of Pelayo. All this is natural enough; but
what is really curious is, to trace the modern remains of this
feeling. Campomanes (_Apendice á la Educacion Popular_, vol. iv.
p. 130, Madrid, 1777), a very able man, and far more liberal
than most of his countrymen, is not ashamed to speak of 'la
justa expulsion de los moriscos desde 1610 á 1613.' Ortiz, in
1801, expresses himself with more hesitation, but is evidently
in favour of a measure which liberated Spain from 'la perniciosa
semilla de Mahoma que restaba en ella.' _Compendio de la
Historia de España_, vol. vi. pp. 304, 305. Nay, even in 1856,
the great modern historian of Spain, while admitting the serious
material injury which this horrible crime inflicted on the
country, assures us that it had the 'immense advantage' of
producing religious unity; unable to perceive that the very
unity of which he boasts, generates an acquiescence and
stagnation of mind fatal to all real improvement, because it
prevents that play and collision of opinions by which the wits
of men are sharpened and made ready for use, 'Con la expulsion
se completó el principio de la unidad religiosa en España, que
fué un bien inmenso, pero se consumó la ruina de la agricultura,
que fué un inmenso mal.' _Lafuente_, _Historia de España_, vol.
xvii. p. 340, Madrid, 1856. And, the year after this sagacious
sentiment had been given to the world, another eminent Spaniard,
in a work crowned by the Royal Academy of History, went still
further, and declared, that not only did the expulsion of the
Moriscoes cause great benefit by securing unity of creed, but
that such unity was 'necessary on the Spanish soil.' 'Y si bajo
el aspecto económico reprobamos semejante medida por la
influencia perniciosa que tuvo desde el momento de dictarse, la
imparcialidad de historiadores nos obliga á respetarla por los
inmensos bienes que produjo en el órden religioso y en el órden
político.' ... 'La unidad religiosa era necesaria en el suelo
español.' _Janer_, _Condicion Social de los Moriscos de España_,
Madrid, 1857, pp. 110, 114. What are we to think of a country in
which these opinions are expressed, not by some obscure fanatic,
from the platform or the pulpit, but by able and learned men,
who promulgate them with all the authority of their position,
being themselves deemed, if anything, rather too bold and too
liberal for the people to whom they address their works?

The effects upon the material prosperity of Spain may be stated in a few words. From nearly every part of the country, large bodies of industrious agriculturists and expert artificers were suddenly withdrawn. The best systems of husbandry then known, were practised by the Moriscoes, who tilled and irrigated with indefatigable labour.[1310] The cultivation of rice, cotton, and sugar, and the manufacture of silk and paper, were almost confined to them.[1311] By their expulsion, all this was destroyed at a blow, and most of it was destroyed for ever. For, the Spanish Christians considered such pursuits beneath their dignity. In their judgment, war and religion were the only two avocations worthy of being followed. To fight for the king, or to enter the Church was honourable; but everything else was mean and sordid.[1312] When, therefore, the Moriscoes were thrust out of Spain, there was no one to fill their place; arts and manufactures either degenerated, or were entirely lost, and immense regions of arable land were left uncultivated. Some of the richest parts of Valencia and Granada were so neglected, that means were wanting to feed even the scanty population which remained there.[1313] Whole districts were suddenly deserted, and down to the present day have never been repeopled. These solitudes gave refuge to smugglers and brigands, who succeeded the industrious inhabitants formerly occupying them; and it is said, that from the expulsion of the Moriscoes is to be dated the existence of those organized bands of robbers, which, after this period, became the scourge of Spain, and which no subsequent government has been able entirely to extirpate.[1314]

[1310] 'Los moros eran muy diestros en todo lo que mira á obras de
agua.' _Campomanes_, _Apendice á la Educacion Popular_, vol.
iii. p. cvii. 'The Moors were the most intelligent
agriculturists Spain ever had.' _Laborde's Spain_, vol. ii. p.
216. Even Jovellanos admits that 'except in the parts occupied
by the Moors, the Spaniards were almost totally unacquainted
with the art of irrigation.' _Clarke's Internal State of Spain_,
p. 116. See also _Circourt_, _Arabes d'Espagne_, vol. i. p. 255,
vol. ii. p. 12, vol. iii. pp. 162, 222; _Bourgoing_, _Tableau de
l'Espagne_, vol. ii. pp. 170, 171; and _Townsend's Spain_, vol.
iii. p. 74. Remains of their splendid aqueducts still exist.
_Hoskins' Spain_, vol. i. pp. 120, 125, 291, 292. Compare _Spain
by an American_, vol. ii. p. 112 with _L'Estat de l'Espagne_,
Genève, 1681, p. 399.

[1311] Compare _Janer_, _Condicion de los Moriscos_, pp. 47, 48, with
_Campomanes_, _Apendice á la Educacion Popular_, vol. iii.
p. xxii., and _Dunlop's Memoirs_, vol. i. p. 13.

[1312] The more sensible among the Spaniards notice, with regret, this
national contempt for every form of useful industry. See
_Campomanes_, _Educacion Popular_, p. 128, and _Sempere_,
_Monarchie Espagnole_, vol. ii. pp. 277, 278. A traveller in
Spain in 1669, says of the people, 'ils méprisent tellement le
travail, que la plûpart des artisans sont étrangers.' _Voyages
faits en divers Temps par M. M****_, Amsterdam, 1700, p. 80.
Another traveller, between 1693 and 1695, says, they 'think it
below the dignity of a Spaniard to labour and provide for the
future.' _Travels by a Gentleman_ (by Bromley?), London, 1702,
p. 35. A third observer, in 1679, assures us that 'ils souffrent
plus aisément la faim et les autres nécessitez de la vie, que de
travailler, disent-ils, comme des mercenaires, ce qui
n'appartient qu'à des esclaves.' _D'Aulnoy_, _Relation du Voyage
d'Espagne_, Lyon, 1693, vol. ii. pp. 369, 370. For further
illustrations of this, see _Labat_, _Voyages en Espagne_, Paris,
1730, vol. i. pp. 285, 286. _Capmany_, _Qüestiones Criticas_,
pp. 43, 49, 50. _Laborde's Spain_, vol. i. p. i. _Ranke's
Spanish Empire_, p. 103. _Townsend's Journey through Spain_,
vol. ii. pp. 240, 241.

[1313] 'Pudo, pues, decirse con razon de nuestra patria, que de Arabia
Feliz se habia convertido en Arabia Desierta, y de Valencia en
particular, que el bello jardin de España se habia convertido en
páramo seco y deslucido. Dejóse en breve sentir en todas partes
el azote del hambre; y al alegre bullicio de las poblaciones
sucedió el melancólico silencio de los despoblados, y al
frecuente cruzar de los labradores y trajineros por los caminos
siguió el peligroso encuentro de los salteadores que los
infestaban, abrigándose en las ruinas de los pueblos desiertos.'
_Janer_, _Condicion de los Moriscos_, p. 100. See also _Dunlop's
Memoirs_, vol. i. p. 16. Campomanes says, 'El gran número de
artesanos, que salieron con la expulsion de los moriscos, causó
un golpe mortal á las manufacturas, y á la labranza.' _Apendice
á la Educacion Popular_, vol. i. p. 13. And p. 268, 'El punto de
decadencia de nuestras manufacturas, puede fixarse desde el año
de 1609, en que tubo principio la expulsion de los Moriscos.'

[1314] 'Sur la carte d'Espagne, en mille endroits est inscrit ce funeste
mot, _despoblado_; en mille endroits la nature sauvage a repris
la place des cultures. Étudiez la direction des despoblados, et
consultez les registres des commissaires de l'expulsion, vous
verrez presque toujours que les familles morisques couvraient
ces solitudes. Leur patrimoine abandonné forma le domaine des
voleurs, qui établirent avec une sorte de sécurité leurs
correspondances effrontées à travers toute l'Espagne. Le
brigandage s'organisa comme une profession ordinaire; et la
contrebande, sa compagne, leva le front avec autant d'audace,
autant de succès.' _Circourt_, _Histoire des Arabes d'Espagne_,
vol. iii. pp. 227, 228.

To these disastrous consequences, others were added, of a different, and, if possible, of a still more serious kind. The victory gained by the Church increased both her power and her reputation. During the rest of the seventeenth century, not only were the interests of the clergy deemed superior to the interests of laymen, but the interests of laymen were scarcely thought of. The greatest men, with hardly an exception, became ecclesiastics, and all temporal considerations, all views of earthly policy, were despised and set at nought. No one inquired; no one doubted; no one presumed to ask if all this was right. The minds of men succumbed and were prostrate. While every other country was advancing, Spain alone was receding. Every other country was making some addition to knowledge, creating some art, or enlarging some science. Spain, numbed into a death-like torpor, spellbound and entranced by the accursed superstition which preyed on her strength, presented to Europe a solitary instance of constant decay. For her, no hope remained; and, before the close of the seventeenth century, the only question was, by whose hands the blow should be struck, which would dismember that once mighty empire, whose shadow had covered the world, and whose vast remains were imposing even in their ruin.

To indicate the different steps which mark the decline of Spain would be hardly possible, since even the Spaniards, who, when it was too late, were stung with shame, have abstained from writing what would only be the history of their own humiliation; so that there is no detailed account of the wretched reigns of Philip IV. and Charles II., which together comprise a period of nearly eighty years.[1315] Some facts, however, I have been able to collect, and they are very significant. At the beginning of the seventeenth century, the population of Madrid was estimated to be 400,000; at the beginning of the eighteenth century, less than 200,000.[1316] Seville, one of the richest cities in Spain, possessed in the sixteenth century upwards of sixteen thousand looms, which gave employment to a hundred and thirty thousand persons.[1317] By the reign of Philip V., these sixteen thousand looms had dwindled away to less than three hundred;[1318] and, in a report which the Cortes made to Philip IV., in 1662, it is stated that the city contained only a quarter of its former number of inhabitants, and that even the vines and olives cultivated in its neighbourhood, and which comprised a considerable part of its wealth, were almost entirely neglected.[1319] Toledo, in the middle of the sixteenth century, had upwards of fifty woollen manufactories; in 1665, it had only thirteen, almost the whole of the trade having been carried away by the Moriscoes, and established at Tunis.[1320] Owing to the same cause, the art of manufacturing silk, for which Toledo was celebrated, was entirely lost, and nearly forty thousand persons, who depended on it, were deprived of their means of support.[1321] Other branches of industry shared the same fate. In the sixteenth century, and early in the seventeenth, Spain enjoyed great repute for the manufacture of gloves, which were made in enormous quantities, and shipped to many parts, being particularly valued in England and France, and being also exported to the Indies. But Martinez de Mata, who wrote in the year 1655, assures us that at that time this source of wealth had disappeared; the manufacture of gloves having quite ceased, though formerly, he says, it had existed in every city in Spain.[1322] In the once-flourishing province of Castile, every thing was going to ruin. Even Segovia lost its manufactures, and retained nothing but the memory of its former wealth.[1323] The decay of Burgos was equally rapid; the trade of that famous city perished; and the deserted streets and empty houses formed such a picture of desolation, that a contemporary, struck by the havoc, emphatically declared that Burgos had lost every thing except its name.[1324] In other districts, the results were equally fatal. The beautiful provinces of the south, richly endowed by nature, had formerly been so wealthy, that their contributions alone sufficed, in time of need, to replenish the imperial treasury; but they now deteriorated with such rapidity, that, by the year 1640, it was found hardly possible to impose a tax on them which would be productive.[1325] During the latter half of the seventeenth century, matters became still worse, and the poverty and wretchedness of the people surpass all description. In the villages near Madrid, the inhabitants were literally famishing; and those farmers who had a stock of food refused to sell it, because, much as they needed money, they were apprehensive of seeing their families perish around them. The consequence was, that the capital was in danger of being starved; and ordinary threats producing no effect, it was found necessary, in 1664, that the President of Castile, with an armed force, and accompanied by the public executioner, should visit the adjacent villages, and compel the inhabitants to bring their supplies to the markets of Madrid.[1326] All over Spain, the same destitution prevailed. That once rich and prosperous country was covered with a rabble of monks and clergy, whose insatiate rapacity absorbed the little wealth yet to be found. Hence it happened, that the government, though almost penniless, could obtain no supplies. The tax-gatherers, urged to make up the deficiency, adopted the most desperate expedients. They not only seized the beds and all the furniture, but they unroofed the houses, and sold the materials of the roof, for whatever they would fetch. The inhabitants were forced to fly; the fields were left uncultivated; vast multitudes died from want and exposure; entire villages were deserted; and in many of the towns, upwards of two-thirds of the houses were, by the end of the seventeenth century, utterly destroyed.[1327]

[1315] 'Declinó pues muy sensiblemente la vasta monarquía, y callaron
atonitos los historiadores, como huyendo la necesidad de traer á
la memoria lo que veian y apenas creian. Enmudeció pues la
historia de España en los dos reynados de Felipe IV. y Carlos
II. viendo continuaba nuestra decadencia, hasta quedar España al
nivel de los menos poderosos Estados de Europa. Este silencio
nos ha privado de saber no solo las causas de nuestra
decadencia, sino tambien de los acontecimientos civiles y
militares del siglo xvii.' _Ortiz_, _Compendio de la Historia de
España_, vol. vi., Prologo, p. i. No attempt was made to supply
the deficiency complained of by Ortiz, until 1856, when M.
Lafuente published, in Madrid, the sixteenth and seventeenth
volumes of his History of Spain, which contain the reigns of
Philip IV. and Charles II. Of this work, I have no desire to
speak disrespectfully; on the contrary, it is impossible to read
it without interest, on account of the admirable clearness with
which the different topics are arranged, and also on account of
its beautiful style, which reminds us of the best days of
Castilian prose. But I feel constrained to say, that, as a
history, and especially as a history which undertakes to
investigate the causes of the decline of Spain, it is a complete
failure. In the first place, M. Lafuente has not emancipated
himself from those very prejudices to which the decline of his
country is owing. And, in the second place, he has, particularly
in the reigns of Philip IV. and Charles II., not used sufficient
diligence in searching for materials for studying the economical
changes through which Spain has passed. Looking too intently at
the surface, he mistakes symptoms for causes; so that the real
history of the Spanish people every where escapes his grasp. As
the object to which my studies are directed, compels me to
contemplate affairs from a larger and more general point of view
than he has done, it naturally happens that the conclusions at
which we arrive are very different; but I wish to bear my
testimony, whatever it may be worth, to the great merit of his
book as a work of art, though, as a work of science, it appears
to me that he has effected nothing, and has thrown no new light
on the real history of that unfortunate, albeit once splendid,
nation, of which his eloquence, his learning, and his taste,
make him one of the chiefest ornaments.

[1316] See _Dunlop's Memoirs_, vol. ii. p. 320; and the interesting
calculations in _Uztariz_, _Theorica y Practica de Comercio_,
Madrid, 1757, folio, pp. 35, 36. Owing to the ignorance which
formerly prevailed respecting statistics, such estimates are
necessarily imperfect; but, after the desolation of Spain in the
seventeenth century, an extraordinary diminution in the
population of the capital was inevitable. Indeed, a contemporary
of Charles II. states that in 1699, Madrid had only 150,000
inhabitants. _Mémoires de Louville_, Paris, 1818, vol. i. p. 72.
This account is taken from 'un mémoire manuscrit, en langue
espagnole, trouvé dans les papiers du marquis de Louville.'
p. 67.

[1317] Capmany (_Qüestiones Criticas_, p. 30), who seems to have written
his able, but not very accurate, work for the express purpose of
concealing the decline of his country, has given these figures
erroneously. My information is derived from an official report
made in 1701, by the trade-corporations ('gremios') of Seville.
'Fijan la época de la ruina de nuestras fábricas desde el
reynado de Felipe II. y añaden "haber llegado á tener solo en
esta ciudad al arte mayor, y menor de la sede, el número de mas
de diez y seis mil telares, y se ocupaban en los exercicios
adherentes á él, mas de ciento treinta mil personas de ambos
sexos."' _Campomanes_, _Apendice á la Educacion Popular_, vol.
i. p. 473, Madrid, 1775. See also _Uztariz_, _Theorica y
Practica de Comercio_, p. 14, 'diez y seis mil telares;' where,
however, no authority is quoted.

[1318] 'El principal origen y causa de que los 16,000 telares de seda,
lana, oro y plata, que se contaban en Sevilla, se hallen oy
reducidos á menos de 300.' _Uztariz_, _Theorica de Comercio_, p.
243.

[1319] _Sempere_, _Monarchie Espagnole_, vol. ii. p. 52, who refers to
the report of the Cortes published by Alonso Nuñez de Castro.

[1320] _Laborde's Spain_, vol. iv. p. 338, where it is also said, that
Tunis became, in consequence of the expulsion of the Moriscoes,
famous for the manufacture of caps, which 'were subsequently
imitated at Orleans.' Compare, on the cap-manufactories of
Tunis, a note in _Campomanes_, _Apendice, á la Educacion
Popular_, vol. iv. p. 249.

[1321] 'Tolède, où se mettaient en [oe]uvre 435,000 livres de soie,
avait déjà perdu ce travail, qui suffisait autrefois à
l'existence de 38,484 personnes. La population de cette ville
avait éprouvé un tiers de diminution, et vingt-cinq maisons de
ses familles les plus illustres étaient passées dans le domaine
de divers couvens.' _Sempere_, _Monarchie Espagnole_, vol. ii.
p. 50.

[1322] See his interesting essay, reprinted in the appendix to
_Campomanes_, vol. iv. p. 251. He says, 'La fábrica de los
guantes, que tenian pocos años ha todas las ciudades de estos
reynos para el consumo de España y las Indias, era muy
considerable; y se ha destruido, despues que se dió entrada al
consumo de guantes estrangeros.' Such a statement, made by a
contemporary, is unimpeachable; but the reason he assigns is
inadequate.

[1323] Segovia, as it appeared in 1659, is thus described in _Boisel_,
_Journal du Voyage d'Espagne_, Paris, 1669, 4to. p. 186:
'Autresfois, cette ville qui paroist assez grande, estoit fort
riche, tant à cause que les rois de Castille y demeuroient, qu'à
cause du grand commerce des laines et des beaux draps qui s'y
faisoient; mais à présent le trafic n'y est plus, et on n'y fait
plus que fort peu de draps, de sorte que la ville est presque
désert et fort pauvre. Une marque de sa pauvreté, du mauvais
ordre d'Espagne, et du peu de prévoyance des Espagnols (quoy
qu'on dise de leur flegme), c'est que le jour que j'y arrivay
jusques à deux heures après midy il n'y avoit point eu de pain
en toute la ville, et ils ne s'en étonnoient point.' The decline
of the silk and wool manufactures of Segovia is also noticed by
Martinez de la Mata, who wrote in 1650. See his _Dos Discursos_,
edited by Canga, Madrid, 1794, p. 8. Saint Simon, who was there
in 1722, says, 'A l'égard de leurs laines, j'en vis les
manufactures à Ségovie qui me parurent peu de chose et fort
tombées de leur ancienne réputation.' _Mémoires du Duc de Saint
Simon_, vol. xxxvii. p. 230, Paris, 1841. Segovia used to be
famous for the beautiful colour of its cloth, the dye of which
was taken from a shell-fish found in the West Indies, and is
supposed to be the same as the purpura of the ancients. See a
note in _Dillon's Spain_, Dublin, 1781, pp. 19, 20.

[1324] Such is the language of a Spaniard in the middle of the
seventeenth century. 'Porque á la ciudad de Burgos, cabeza de
Castilla, no le ha quedado sino el nombre, ni aun vestigios de
sus ruinas; reducida la grandeza de sus tratos, Prior, y
Cónsules, y ordenanzas para la conservacion de ellos, á 600
vecinos, que conservanel nombre y lustre de aquella antigua y
noble cuidad, que encerró en si mas de seis mil, sin la gente
suelta, natural, y forastera.' _Campomanes_, _Apendice á la
Educacion_, vol. i. p. 453, Madrid, 1765. An intelligent
Dutchman, who visited Spain in 1665, says of Burgos, 'elle a
esté autrefois fort marchande, mais depuis peu, elle a presque
perdu tout son commerce.' _Aarsens de Sommerdyck_, _Voyage
d'Espagne_, Paris, 1665, 4to. p. 16. To me, it certainly appears
that facts of this sort have more to do with the real history of
Spain than the details of kings, and treaties, and battles,
which the Spanish historians love to accumulate.

[1325] 'Could contribute little to the exigencies of the state.'
_Dunlop's Memoirs_, vol. i. p. 285. Compare _Lamentos
Apologéticos_, in _Dos Discursos_, edit. Canga, Madrid, 1794, p.
82, on the state of things in 'lo mas fértil de Andalucia.' The
government first became alive to all this when it found that no
more money could be wrung from the people. In May 1667, a
council of state, convoked by the queen, reported that 'quant
aux ressources qu'on voudrait tirer de l'Espagne, sous forme de
dons volontaires ou autrement, le conseil estime qu'il est bien
difficile d'imposer aux peuples des charges nouvelles;' and in
November of that same year, at another meeting of the council, a
memoir was drawn up, stating that 'depuis le règne de Don
Ferdinand le Catholique jusqu'à ce jour, la monarchie d'Espagne
ne s'est pas encore vue si près de sa ruine, si épuisée, si
dénuée des ressources nécessaires pour faire face à un grand
péril.' See extracts from the proceedings of the Councils,
published, for, I believe, the first time, by M. Mignet, in his
_Négociations relatives à la Succession d'Espagne_, vol. ii. pp.
124, 601, Paris, 1835, 4to. See also, in the same valuable work,
vol. ii. p. 127, a letter to Louis XIV., from his ambassador at
Madrid, dated 2nd June, 1667, and stating that 'l'extrémité est
ici si grande qu'il se fait une contribution volontaire de tous
les particuliers que l'on appelle _donativo_, pour fournir
quelque argent présent pour les nécessitée publiques.'

[1326] In 1664, Sir Richard Fanshawe writes from Madrid to Secretary
Bennet, 'Since my last to you, of yesterday, the President of
Castile, having, by the king's special and angry command, gone
forth to the neighbouring villages, attended with the hangman,
and whatsoever else of terror incident to his place and
derogatory to his person, the markets in this town begin to be
furnished again plentifully enough.' _Memoirs of Lady Fanshawe_,
_written by herself_, edit. London, 1830, p. 291.

[1327] Nothing but the precise and uncontradicted evidence of a
contemporary witness could make such things credible. In 1686,
Alvarez Osorio y Redin wrote his _Discursos_. They were
published in 1687 and 1688; they were reprinted at Madrid in
1775; and from the reprint, pp. 345-348, I extract the following
particulars: 'Es preciso decir con la mayor brevedad, que pide
el asunto, en la forma que los comisionantes continuamente están
saqueando todos los lugares, con capa de servir á V.M. Entran en
ellos, intíman sus comisiones á las justicias, y ellas les
suplican, tengan misericordia de los moradores, que estan con
mucha necesidad. Y luego que toman el uso, dicen: que á ellos no
les toca dispensar en hacer gracias: que traen orden de cobrar
con todo rigor las cantidades, que deben los lugares; y tambien
dicen han de cobrar sus salarios. Y se van entrando por las
casas de los pobres labradores, y demás vecinos; y con mucha
cuenta y razon, les quitan el poco dinero, que tienen: y á los
que no tienen, les sacan prendas: y donde no las hallan, les
quitan las pobres camas, en que duermen: y se detienen en vender
las prendas, todo el tiempo que pueden.' ... 'Los saquéos
referidos van continuando, obligando á los mas vecinos de los
lugares, á que se vayan huyendo de sus casas, dexando baldías
sus haciendas de campo; y los cobradores no tienen lástima de
todas estas miserias, y asolaciones, como si entráran en lugares
de enemigos. Las casas, que hallan vacías, si hay quien se las
compre, las venden: y quando no pueden venderlas, las quitan los
texados; y venden la texa, y madera por qualquier dinero. Con
esta destruicion general, no han quedado en pie en los lugares
la tercera parte de casas, y han muerto de necesidad gran
multitud de personas. Con lo qual los lugares no tienen la mitad
de familias, que antiguamente habia en España. Y si no se pone
remedio á todo referido, será preciso, que la vengan á poblar de
otros Reynos.'

In the midst of these calamities, the spirit and energy of Spain were extinguished. In every department, all power and life disappeared. The Spanish troops were defeated at Rocroy in 1643; and several writers ascribe to that battle the destruction of the military reputation of Spain.[1328] This, however, was only one of many symptoms.[1329] In 1656, it was proposed to fit out a small fleet; but the fisheries on the coast had so declined, that it was found impossible to procure sailors enough to man even the few ships which were required.[1330] The charts which had been made, were either lost or neglected; and the ignorance of the Spanish pilots became so notorious, that no one was willing to trust them.[1331] As to the military service, it is stated, in an account of Spain, late in the seventeenth century, that most of the troops had deserted their colours, and that the few who were faithful were clothed in rags, received no pay, and were dying of hunger.[1332] Another account describes this once mighty kingdom as utterly unprotected; the frontier towns ungarrisoned; the fortifications dilapidated and crumbling away; the magazines without ammunition; the arsenals empty; the workshops unemployed; and even the art of building ships entirely lost.[1333]