Empire Rising: Spain

Through the efforts of numerous workers and the Spanish Government, Spain’s industry has seen tremendous improvement.

By the end of 1874, Spain’s annual steel production had surpassed 200,000 tons, a target set by the Ministry of Industry at the time.

Pig iron production was even higher, approaching 600,000 tons. The construction of railways increased domestic demand for steel, prompting steel factories to continually establish and rapidly expand within the industrial base.

Notably, among Spain’s total steel production exceeding 800,000 tons, the Royal Family’s steel factories contributed more than a quarter of it.

These steel factories have different names, but they all share the same prefix—Royal.

The Royal Family’s steel factories are spread throughout Spain, with the largest being the Royal Barcelona Steel Factory established in the Barcelona Industrial Base.

However, the scale of the Royal Seville Steel Factory and the Royal Madrid Steel Factory is not far behind, collectively contributing nearly 200,000 tons of steel, marking a crucial aspect of the Royal Family’s industrial layout.

Carlo no longer has a concrete concept of the current scale of assets held by the Spanish Royal Family.

It’s not that Carlo doesn’t care about the expansion of the Royal Family’s industries, but rather the Royal Family’s layout across various industries has become so extravagant that detailed statistics are no longer possible.

The assets of just these steel factories alone amount to tens of millions of Pessetas, generating annual revenues exceeding tens of millions—something the Royal Family could never have imagined in the past.

Steel factories are just one part of the Royal Family’s industrial layout; there are many other related factories, railway companies, mining companies, oil companies, and more.

In addition to two major banks and companies in the agricultural sector, these enterprises bring nearly 100 million Pessetas in annual income to the Royal Family.

Beyond steel production, Spain has achieved significant growth in coal production as well.

Simply put, coal and steel production are inseparable. An increase in steel production also signifies an increase in iron ore and coal mining, as only with coal and iron ore can steel be refined.

However, compared to the growth in steel production, the growth in coal production hasn’t been as significant. The primary reason is the impact of the economic crisis, which led to a substantial drop in coal prices.

The export prices of coal from various European countries are now about the same as Spain’s coal mining costs, eliminating the need for additional mining.

After all, Spain’s domestic coal reserves are not abundant, so they should be used sparingly. When the price difference between the two is negligible, Carlo prefers to import coal from abroad rather than mine domestic coal.

Prime Minister Prim handed Carlo a government work report spanning nearly a hundred pages, with content from the Ministry of Industry alone covering several dozen pages.

The Ministry of Industry’s accomplishments in 1874 were too brilliant, with rapid advancements in every sector. Carlo took a long time to read this report, and after finishing the report from the Ministry of Industry, Carlo’s satisfied smile became even more radiant.

The Royal Family also had a significant contribution to the Ministry of Industry’s achievements.

For example, the accomplishments in shipbuilding submitted by the Ministry of Industry were actually the result of the expansion of the Royal Guanizuo Shipyard.

After a prolonged decline, the largest dock remaining at the Royal Guanizuo Shipyard could only construct medium-to-large naval ships up to 6,200 tons.

But the ship designs produced by the shipyard far exceeded this limit, necessitating a new round of expansion for the Royal Guanizuo Shipyard.

The shipyard is crucial for Spain’s future naval expansion, and Carlo is highly attentive to this matter.

In fact, Carlo had already decided to expand the Royal Guanizuo Shipyard before the naval ship designs were even completed.

After investing substantial funds, the Royal Guanizuo Shipyard acquired two massive docks capable of building 10,000-ton giant ships, and one large dock for constructing medium-to-large naval ships of 7,500 tons.

Previously, building one ironclad in Spain required 2 to 3 years, but with two 10,000-ton docks simultaneously constructing, it now only takes a year and a half to build an ironclad nearing 10,000 tons.

Of course, this is not a simple matter of addition. The Royal Guanizuo Shipyard needs more skilled workers, as well as ship design engineers and marine engineers, with an increasing demand for highly scarce top-tier talent.

Fortunately, the Royal Family alleviated the talent shortage at the Royal Guanizuo Shipyard by purchasing a British shipyard during the economic crisis and bringing in some of its excellent talents.

Additionally, the Ministry of Industry has numerous accomplishments in other areas.

But there’s no need to mention those now; the Ministry of Industry was undoubtedly the Cabinet department achieving the greatest achievements within the Spanish Government in 1874.

Besides the Ministry of Industry, other departments also made significant achievements in 1874, such as the Department of Education, which Carlo is particularly concerned about.

Of course, compared to the great achievements of the Ministry of Industry, the Department of Education’s achievements seem more like steady and gradual progress.

In 1874 alone, more than a million people received literacy education in Spain, marking the highest number since Spain commenced its literacy education initiative.

The reasons for this are not only increased government investment in the Department of Education but also rising incomes, leading to many school-age children and young people returning to school.