Empire Rising: Spain

As the year 1880 arrived, Spain’s busyness wasn’t confined to just the cities of Madrid and Barcelona.

As the most populous region of Spain, Andalusia had a birth rate exceeding 5% for two consecutive years, topping both the birth population and birth rate rankings among all Spanish regions.

The population of Andalusia exceeded 3.5 million, which was nearly 700,000 more than the second-ranked Castilla y León region.

With a birth rate as high as 5%, Andalusia had as many as 170,000 births in 1879, with the total number of births far exceeding those of the second and third-ranked Leon and Catalonia.

However, Andalusia also had a death rate as high as 2.5%, losing more than 80,000 people last year despite having 170,000 newborns.

Among Spain’s 16 regions, Andalusia’s population is as high as 3.5 million, far ahead of other regions.

The second-ranked Castilla y León region has a population of only about 2.8 million, followed closely by the Catalonia Region, with a population of about 2.63 million.

After the construction of the Barcelona Industrial Base, Catalonia experienced rapid development, with its population quickly growing from just over 1.8 million to over 2.6 million, with the majority of the additional 800,000 being workers and their families from the industrial area, and only a small number being immigrants other than workers.

At Catalonia’s current rate of development, surpassing the population of Castilla y León is only a matter of time, and it might even happen within the next year or two.

The fourth most populous region is Galicia, which had about 1.92 million at the start of 1880. The Valencia Region ranks fifth with a population of about 1.74 million.

Following these is the La Mancha Region south of Madrid, with a population just over 1.5 million. Besides these six regions, the populations of other Spanish regions have not reached the million mark, and many regions have populations of only 100,000 to 200,000.

The Extremadura and Aragon regions both maintain populations just above 900,000, and these are also the regions besides Madrid most likely to surpass a population of one million.

The population of Madrid has already surpassed 650,000, with a birth rate of 4.3%, resulting in more than 27,000 newborns each year.

Along with a portion of immigrants, the annual population increase in Madrid is approximately 30,000 to 40,000 people (after deducting deaths).

At this rate of growth, it would take at least 10 years for the population of the Madrid Region to exceed one million.

However, the reality is certainly not so straightforward. With Madrid’s Nocturnal City becoming famous in Europe, more and more European immigrants will come to Madrid to travel and settle.

Combined with the increase in newborns brought by Madrid’s population growth, Madrid’s population could potentially exceed one million within the next 5 to 8 years.

Below Madrid, the populations of Asturias, the Basque Country, and the Murcia Region are all around 600,000.

Originally, the population of the Basque Country was not so large, but the Spanish Government relocated a portion of the population from other areas and immigrants to the Basque Region, successfully diluting the proportion of Basques and resulting in a population increase in the Basque Country.

Beneath these regions with populations exceeding 600,000, the Canary Islands, located outside the mainland, actually have nearly 400,000 people.

The Canary Islands have a unique position, serving as a transit station for material transportation between Spain and the African Colony. Because of this, the population of the Canary Islands has grown relatively rapidly in recent years, and the island’s economy is quite prosperous.

The Canary Islands still have nearly 400,000 people, while the populations of Navarre, Cantabria, and the Balearic Islands are only about 300,000. The combined populations of these three regions do not even reach the million mark, which also serves to demonstrate how genuinely sparse their populations are.

Of course, these three regions are not the least populated regions in Spain. The least populated region on the Spanish mainland is the La Rioja Region, with just over 150,000 people. Most of the region is in desolate areas rarely touched by humans and has been largely abandoned for development by the Spanish Government.

The combined populations of these regions exceed 19.8 million, accounting for the vast majority of Spain’s population. There are still about 200,000 people scattered across Spain’s various colonies, the majority of whom are colonial populations who have just acquired Spanish citizenship and have not yet migrated to the Spanish mainland.

It is worth mentioning that more than 600,000 Cubans were not included in the calculations of Spain’s population. Most Cubans do not have any favorable views of Spain, so naturally, the Spanish Government does not include them in population statistics.

Moreover, since they are not Spanish citizens, they also do not enjoy any related welfare and policies.

Carlo even decided to abandon the Cuban Colony in the next few years and put all the funds from it into the development of the African Colony.

If possible, Carlo would even prefer to sell the Cuban Colony to the British in exchange for the opportunity for Spain to completely colonize Morocco.

Currently, among all Spanish colonies, investing in Morocco holds the most value. Since Morocco can be localized as a colony, investments here will never result in loss because this land will always remain under Spain’s control.