The Fallen General and the Merchant of Valladolid
After the "tacit truce" with the Low Countries in 1621, Olivares delayed his support for the Army of Flanders. No, he cut it off entirely.
The Count-Duke’s message—"There is no war, so wait for your supplies"—was a command for Ambrogio Spinola, the commander-in-chief of the Army of Flanders, to live not as a noble and honorable knight, but as a mere "mercenary contractor."
As a commander who was intensely pragmatic and prioritized logistics above all else, there was only one thing he could do when an invasion of the Dutch heartland became impossible.
Leaving only a skeleton crew in Wallonia, he marched to the Palatinate, the hottest theater of war. There, he tore the region apart, earning the title of "The Taker of Cities."
The sluggish war ended with a single command from him, and cities that claimed to be Protestant were forced to pay a "special protection tax."
Having trampled the Palatinate like an adult intervening in a children's squabble, he began local requisitioning and peacekeeping to maintain the "Spanish Road," the vital supply line.
Maximilian I, Duke of Bavaria, who coveted the Electorate of the Palatinate, protested vehemently, but Spinola held his ground, claiming he was merely "managing it in trust" until order was restored from the rebels. As he demanded supplies, he had to watch his own chivalric honor crumble by his own hand.
Even surviving on local procurement in the Palatinate only lasted three years. Eventually, the Emperor’s mercenary Wallenstein arrived, and Spinola had to return to the Low Countries.
His credit in the Genoese financial world hit rock bottom. To prevent bankruptcy, he submitted his resignation for "health reasons" and tried to return home, but Olivares, who would have had to shoulder the army's maintenance costs himself, refused. Spinola was forced to keep the army afloat on his own credit.
The extreme stress turned all his hair white; he looked like a man truly facing the end of his life.
'I want to quit everything.'
If he could go back, he would have just lived running his family's bank. What did honor matter? His family was about to be ruined by his own choices!
You chose this military life, so endure it with spite!
He endured with spite, grit, and tears, hoping that one day the royal family would pay back their bonds. The precious core of his heart shattered on an autumn day in 1627.
In September 1627, Olivares issued the "Vellón Declaration," decreeing that interest on the three million ducats of royal bonds Spinola held would be paid in copper vellón coins, not silver.
The royal bonds became worthless paper, and Spinola faced immediate bankruptcy.
Spinola cried out in a final act of resistance: if they didn't accept his resignation and send a replacement commander immediately, he could no longer control his starving mercenaries.
Moved by his desperate, sincere howl, Olivares sent the King’s brother, the "Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand," to settle the situation.
As soon as the prince stepped off the ship, he had several chests opened before the mercenaries. He threw in silver bars, jewels, and even the ceremonial sword and cloak he was wearing, and declared:
"The Crown does not abandon you! I, the Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand, have come to this land myself! I have seen your loyalty! In the name of the Crown, I shall take responsibility until the end!"
-Waaaaah! Prince, take me!
-Kyaaaaa! We will follow you to the end!
The starving mercenaries were more enthralled by the chests the prince had thrown open than by the desperate pleas of the old veteran.
Arriving at the court in Madrid, having lost all honor and glory, Spinola saw the shiny bald head of the Count-Duke, rushed at him, grabbed him by the collar, and shouted:
"Olivares! You made me into this!"
"It was a choice for the sake of the country."
"Is it right to abandon someone who fought for the country like this!"
"When the country stabilizes, I will surely repay you."
"Right now! I! Am dying! A man is dying!"
He screamed like a clown in a sewer, begging, pleading, and kneeling, but when he found no way out, he abandoned his post as "Military Advisor" and left Madrid.
Having given up on everything, he began going to a permanent logistics market in Valladolid, in the northwest, that accepted royal bonds, and spent all day buying wheat.
"Oh, Duke. Why have you used so many royal bonds?"
There, the former commander-in-chief and current full-time investor, Ambrogio Spinola, met the owner of the market.
"Even if the discount rate is high, this is the only place that accepts them."
"At this rate, you'll buy up all my wheat. If you abuse this too much, I'll have to set a daily limit on bond usage per person."
At the Marquis's smiling remark, Spinola flared up and shouted:
"What good is it... what good is it if I buy it! I can't move it out!"
This warehouse market was exquisitely designed to be disadvantageous for valuables and advantageous for low-value bulk cargo. The storage fee of 1% per month was very cheap for cargo that took up large volume and weight; in fact, considering storage costs, it was always profitable to come here. Conversely, small, expensive items suffered a huge loss by entering.
This created a major constraint when transporting goods purchased here. Castile’s unique rivers were unnavigable, the roads were mud pits, and transport was mostly by donkey, not carts. Everything increased shipping costs.
Linen cloth was one of the few things worth transporting, but it was ambiguous to compete with Low Country linen in the international market.
"I agree. But if we break through the roads, couldn't the wheat from this warehouse reach all of Europe?"
His words brought the clown screaming in the sewer back to being Spinola, the commander-in-chief of the Army of Flanders and a great noble representing Genoa.
As he talked with the Marquis and listened to his vision, Spinola thought:
'He thinks completely differently. To him, wheat isn't a commodity; it's just a "resource."'
He attracted population based on cheap grain and a strong settlement policy. He fed them, put them to work, and turned vagrants into members of society. If there were fewer jobs than people, he created jobs to gather more people. He forced the idle Hidalgos to work, insisting, "This is, in any case, honorable work."
He solved the current reality of grown adults failing to become independent and living off their parents by forcing them to leave home at 23. He inserted abandoned children aged 8 to 23 into households lacking able-bodied men as criados (servants), increasing the number of people per household back to six. He settled the population strongly by having the Marquis cover the costs for the criados while outsourcing management responsibility to each household.
If one viewed wheat as a commodity, this was a losing game. But he viewed wheat not as a commodity, but as fuel to make humans work.
Based on resources gathered through integrated logistics, he mobilized even the women of the households to spin thread and weave cloth, without any social constraints. It was frightening that, using Spain’s primitive spindles and distaffs, they could produce enough to even vaguely compete with Low Country linen.
But it was clumsy. The Marquis had succeeded in optimizing "administration," but had not optimized the "process" at all. He was truly a giant holding a spoon. How much more destructive would he be if that giant were given a greatsword instead of a spoon?
One couldn't even estimate the profit if they simply brought in Saxon spinning wheels and horizontal looms.
And Spinola, who had stayed in Flanders for a long time, had his own routes.
"Marquis. Although I have tarnished my name, I still have friends left in my homeland. I will gather their will once."
He left the warehouse city immediately and returned to Genoa, where he gathered the merchants who still remembered his name and obtained investment agreements.
The investment briefing ended in great success. Marshal Velasco and Admiral Enrique each took 5%, Duke João reserved his decision pending family consultation, and while Genoa demanded 20%, it was eventually settled at 15%.
I saw off those leaving the mansion one by one.
"Then, I leave it to you, Marshal."
At my words, Marshal Velasco laughed pleasantly and said:
"Ah. Don't worry, Marquis. From now on, only my sheep will go near your farmland. But I trust you will treat my sheep well."
"I will tell my people clearly. The sheep coming to our neighborhood are the 'good' Mesta flocks."
"I will also tell my subordinates firmly not to cause any trouble. And Marquis. Did you plan this from the beginning?"
I didn't understand what he meant and asked back.
"What are you referring to?"
"The grassland between the farms. Doesn't it feel just right for a flock of sheep?"
It was merely to prevent chain fires in the dry weather, but I answered with a smile.
"Hahahaha. I always look for a path of mutual growth, Marshal."
"Mutual growth. Very good. I am truly relieved by your words that you will 'defend the floor' of wool prices."
"Only the Admiral's and the Marshal's flocks will enjoy that benefit."
I agreed to purchase the low-grade wool that couldn't be sold dearly abroad. Furthermore, making all Mesta sheep coming to this neighborhood the Marshal's sheep, and sending the flocks that originally came here to the pastures the Marshal's flocks used, was a key measure for me to avoid conflict.
"Brother-in-law. This Admiral wishes for you to formally become Enrique's son-in-law this time."
"I will surely succeed, Admiral."
"Hmm! Very good. By the way, have you decided on a name for my nephew who will be born soon?"
At his words, I said humbly:
"I am only praying to God to send us a healthy child."
"A good attitude, brother-in-law. And next time, let's meet at my hunting grounds. I shall teach you what real shooting is."
"It is an honor, Admiral."
Perhaps because the conversation with Duke João had been about hunting, the Admiral invited me to his hunting grounds.
Unlike the others, Duke Spinola brought up work immediately.
"First, expand the warehouses. To target a market that truly makes money, we must produce a 'new fabric' that blends wool and linen. And while I understand Olivares's accountant, we need a trustworthy person at the center of decision-making on our side. Since they need access to accounting and information, a Chief Legal Counsel position would be good."
"Understood, Excellency."
"And I will find a capable person among the textile artisans of the Low Countries, so please entrust him with full authority over the textile industry. He will be responsible for the entire process from fiber extraction to dyeing."
"I will respect that. However, it is difficult if it goes against my policies."
"Ah, don't worry. I agree with your policies as well."
I said I opposed the use of highly toxic dyes like mercury and arsenic, and he agreed.
"It is a pity that I cannot participate yet because I do not have real power in my family."
"There will be another opportunity, Excellency."
I was disappointed that I couldn't include the power-holder of Portugal in this, but I was satisfied with achieving my initial goal.
Leaving the mansion, João gathered with the smugglers again. The pepper that had been on the smugglers' backs was gone, replaced by wheat and beeswax.
"Ribeiro."
"Yes, Excellency."
"It seems you have gained much from this trip."
João had faced his inner nature on this trip. His ambitious nature, which could not be hidden by the mask of an artist, whispered to him.
Asking if he didn't want to be King.