In the first major study in English of Spanish agrarian history, James Simpson examines how traditional agriculture responded to population growth and the integration of commodity markets. He argues that decisive changes in farming techniques only occurred at the start of this century; development was then interrupted by the Spanish Civil War and subsequent short-sighted government policies, only resuming in the 1950s. This comprehensive study will be of relevance to historical geography and agrarian history, as well as economic history.

Growing up in the aftermath of the Video Nasties, during the late eighties and early nineties, James Simpson is from a small town in the North East of England where talking about grisly horror flicks was the norm in his school playground. For the last few years, he has written about cult cinema for several magazines and websites as well as running his own-now-defunct site: Infernal Cinema. He has interviewed horror stars Emily Booth, Barbie Wilde, and the legendary Lloyd Kaufman, amongst others, during this time. He appears in the Jason Impey documentary: VIPCO: The Untold Story. This is his first book. His favourite VIPCO movie is Spookies.

1. The relative backwardness of Spanish agriculture; 2. Traditional technologies and market opportunities, 1765-1880; 3. The limits to technical change, 1880-1936; 4. Markets and institutions, 1880-1936; 5. The state and the end of traditional agriculture; 6. Spanish agriculture in a European context.