Carlos Domingo de Borbón

At the table

Diet of the Laboring Poor

Poor laborers often ate soup with oil or cornmeal porridge in the morning and legumes or salted sardines at midday. Wine was considered expensive, so these families typically drank it only on feast days, sometimes to excess.

What people wore

The essential Spanish national costume

Women of all social classes wore a black skirt called a basquiña and a head-covering shawl called a mantilla when going out in public or to church, removing them immediately upon entering a home.

Getting around

Post riders travelled quickly between stations

Travelers could ride as post, which was the fastest and most advanced way to move around Spain, covering 36 to 48 kilometers per day on average. Riders moved between postal stations, typically 14 to 22 kilometers apart, aiming to spend only 45 minutes per league traveled.

What it cost

Domestic servant wages and perks

In the late 18th century, a maid working for a family typically earned 24 reales per month in addition to her meals and chocolate.

Music

Guitar and Castanets in Popular Life

The guitar was the most popular instrument among ordinary people, frequently used to accompany singing and dancing at home, in streets, and at festivals. Dancers often played simple castanets held in their palms to accompany themselves during performances.

Daily life

Difficult access to water supplies

Water was a daily constraint for ordinary people who lacked piped access and often fetched it from public fountains or bought it from water carriers. To supplement supplies, households collected rainwater in cisterns or relied on local wells, requiring significant manual labor to provision for drinking, cooking, and cleaning.