The provincial militias during the reign of Philip V in Spain

Mahón, November 17, 2025

The scheme devised by Felipe V is going to divide the Army into two large structures; a professional Army that I call “Royal Guards”, and another much less prepared that received the name of “Provincial Militias”.

The Provincial Militias, became an institution directed and commanded by the Nobility of the country. The Regulations of 1734 and 1766 had corrected the defects of the old companies and modernized their organization, so that in 1808 no army in Europe had a better reserve than the Spanish Provincial Militias. They consisted of 4 grenadier divisions of two battalions each and 43 regiments of a single battalion of 8 companies.

The chiefs and officers were members of the most distinguished families in Spain, the Sergeant Major and the Assistants belonged to the Regular Army, the troops belonged to the fifth, but different from those of the Regular Army.

Soldiers served for 10 years.