Excerpted and adapted from Portal Historia Hispánica from the Royal Academy of History of Spain / Extraído y adaptado de Portal Historia Hispánica de la Real Academia de la Historia de España
Carlos III, King of Spain | Spanish Influence on American History
English
Biography
Born in 1716, Carlos III was king of Naples and Sicily (1734–1759) and, subsequently, king of Spain (1759–1788). Carlos III’s domestic reforms showcased his commitment to improved trade and commerce, modernized agriculture and land tenure, and science and university research. Equally important were his endeavors to expand Spain’s colonial reach. These ventures were set against the backdrop of ongoing rivalry with Great Britain.
Carlos III recognized that the American Revolution provided a unique opportunity: Spain could solidify control of the Gulf Coast and the Mississippi River while simultaneously weakening British colonial power in the Americas. He approved both trade and military assistance for the patriots in the thirteen rebelling British colonies.
Carlos III was succeeded by Carlos IV, his son.
Portrait of King Charles III of Spain by Anton Raphael Mengs, 1767 (Museo del Prado, Spain)