Esquilache riots, Madrid 1766

On March 23rd 1766, the populace of Madrid revolted against the implementation of a decree banning the traditional dressing —embozo (folded top of the long cape) and wide-brimmed hat. The measure was isued in the wake of the so-called Free Trade in Grains Act of 1765, which for the first time opened to competition the urban bread supply. Introduced in a period of bad harvests, these measures exacerbated the discontent against King Charles III’s favourite, the Marquis of Esquilache, whose house was attacked. On the next day the revolted tried to get an audience from the king and attacked the royal guard composed by foreigners. The populace only calmed down when the king confirmed in a letter the grants conceded, which centered around the resignation of Esquilache and the derogation of the decrees. The rioters displayed a high degree of self-organization, fostering collective deliberation beyond traditional corporation and neighbourhood adscriptions; their discourse, though traditionalist in form, included republican tropes and projected until well after the riot in pasquinades. The grants would be later revoked following a public ceremony organized by the traditional corporations. The riot fostered important institutional reforms in local administration in favor of popular participation and extending representation in municipal governments. It would also entail the expulsion of the Jesuit order, and the devise of a whole agenda of social control against the emerging “crowd”.