“In all this kingdom there is no timber” Wood for the king’s galleys: Exploitation and conservation of the Catalan forests in the age of Lepanto

The long and exhausting Mediterranean Holy War, whose climax was the spectacular battle of Lepanto (1571), demanded the constant investment of a massive amount of human, economic and material resources from its contenders. Galleys were undoubtedly the great protagonists of this conflict. These short-lived and relatively fast-to-build oared ships, which were quickly adapted to the needs of Early Modern warfare, required enormous quantities of wood both for their construction and for their spare parts. The Spanish Monarchy had its main galley factory in Catalonia. The fact that hundreds of galleys were built at the Royal Shipyard of Barcelona throughout the 16th century inevitably put pressure on the Catalan forests that were at once being severely exploited by the different sectors of an expanding society. The high demand and overexploitation of the forests led to scarcity, increased costs and, above all, fuelled the fear of running out of naval timber, which inevitably would endanger the survival of the Monarchy. Through the abundant documentary evidence mainly preserved at the Archivo General de Simancas, the chapter analyses the different strategies employed by the Crown for the monopolisation, conservation and exploitation of the strategic forests that supplied the Barcelona shipyard during this period.