ABSTRACT
The demands of the war against Great Britain prevented Manuel de Godoy from achieving his aspirations with regard to the army. The nascent middle classes were eager for a measure of political and social recognition that would match their economic importance. The writer goes on to complain of the decadence of the upper classes in comparison to the common people, another explanation that was frequently seized upon by British observers as a cause of Spain's problems. All over Spain the common people were enduring famine, epidemics, inflation and chronic under-employment. Ignorant, traditionalist and fanatically anti-French, as Godoy had been warning los rryes for some years, they were an easy target for agitators of all descriptions. The young George Bell described the men high in rank as contemptible, selfish, cowardly, ignorant, faithless and cruel. Discounting the hapless figure of Joseph Bonaparte for all practical purposes, Spain was left with no other government than the mere concept of loyalty to absent Ferdinand.
