The Spanish civil optical telegraphy network. Approach to a fortified telecommunication system

Abstract

The semaphore telegraph developed by the Colonel of the General Staff Jose María Mathé in Spain during the Carlist Wars taken place in the mid-nineteenth century was conceived as a net of fortified towers. The aim was to ensure the government's communications of the state capital with the cities of the peripheral regions of the Spanish peninsular territory in a fast and safe way to allow an immediate response. The instability of the nation required a wireless fortified system despite the optical telegraphy was being replaced by the electric system in the most advanced countries. Visibility and strategic situation were the main needs to transmit a codified message from each tower to another. Mathé's system reflects the evolution of this Mediterranean typology of military architecture adapted to the civil society. Despite tower's uniqueness they have barely been studied. This communication is focused on the line from Madrid to Valencia. Stopped working after a decade of use, the towers remain as the only testimony of the system. The conclusion of this research is to study the deterioration and general actions for this unknown defensive and technological architecture.