The climate in Zafra from 1750 to 1840: history and description of weather observations

Weather observations in Zafra during the period 1750 to 1840 have been compiled and studied. Zafra was the capital of the Duchy of Feria, located in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula. The documentary sources used in this work are weekly reports submitted to the Duke (who lived in Madrid) that contain a section describing the weather of the preceding week or less. Regular and updated meteorological information was vital to the government of this Duchy as farming and ranching constituted the bases of the economic activity in this region, allowing the estimation of crop yield and quality and a better management of the trade of agricultural products. Therefore, this documentary source is exceptional to study the climate of SW Iberia due to its continuity, homogeneity and high temporal-resolution.