ABSTRACT
The intrusion of the agents of the Hispanic Monarchy in the Basque region changed the forest landscapes from the late 1560s onwards. The supposed Basque shipping “crisis” and “timber shortage”, reported by Philip II's agent Cristobal de Barros, provided a justification for the king's intentions of taking control of Basque forests on the pretext of finding an urgent solution to the so-called crisis of Basque shipbuilding. A limited nationalist scope has dominated the historiographic discourse on the topic, but recent views show a different narrative proving the existence of a Basque transnational network.
The merchants involved in the Atlantic fisheries and Northern trade were forced to find alternative solutions to the monarchic strains. The Basque mercantile and fishing fleet began departing from the south of France. Despite the changes in ship proportions and measurements by the late 16th century, Basque traditional forest practices continued and spread as an adaptable resource, useful to build different proportioned vessels and designs such as war naos and merchant ones. Not only was there no “crisis”, but also the continuation of ancient forestry techniques, efficiently provided a supply of timbers used to build different vessels allowing Basque shipping to grow and reach its peak during the 17th century.
