 Swedish consuls in Galicia: the economic function of consuls in turbulent times (1793–1806)Martin Almbjär Scandinavian Economic History Review, 2025, vol. 73, issue 1, 25-41 Abstract: This article is about the creation of a Swedish network of consuls in Galicia during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars. Contrary to previous findings that show consuls with weak positions vis-à-vis the host authorities or the merchant community could do little to aid merchants and ships, the paper demonstrates that consuls could provide economic functions despite having no jurisdiction or official recognition from the receiving state. In contrast to those who view self-interest as something that hindered consuls from executing economic functions, the paper demonstrates a synergy between self-interest and public goods. The paper also shows a growth in Swedish trade with Galicia, but it is unclear if the network members facilitated this development. Lastly, the article argues that the creation of the Swedish consular service, contrary to previous research, cannot be seen as driven by the Swedish central authorities with a mercantilistic agenda in mind. Instead, the process was rather dynamic and involved various actors and agendas. Date: 2025 Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:taf:sehrxx:v:73:y:2025:i:1:p:25-41 Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from DOI: 10.1080/03585522.2024.2347879 Access Statistics for this article Scandinavian Economic History Review is currently edited by Espen Ekberg and Francisco Beltran Tapia More articles in Scandinavian Economic History Review from Taylor & Francis Journals |
Is your work missing from RePEc? Here is how to contribute.
Questions or problems? Check the EconPapers FAQ or send mail to .
EconPapers is hosted by the
School of Business at Örebro University.