The Canary Islands as a transit location in the trade between the metropolis and the colonies were always an ideal territory for the incursions of pirates and privateers. The eastern islands, because of their proximity to Africa, suffered periodic aggressions from Algerian pirates and the western islands, like the entire archipelago, were subject to the vagaries of the interests of high politics. Frequent were, the skirmishes with the secular English enemy who tried to claim in the Canarian waters the cargo of the ships returning from America, to add the smaller vessels engaged in island traffic to its fleet or to get supplies in cities or ports. Proof of this are, for example, the attack on Santa Cruz in 1706 by the English Admiral John Jennings or also the onslaught of the English Admiral Horatio Nelson, in 1797, during the French Revolution and after the declaration of war between Spain and England.

The population of the Canaries during the 18^th century is characterized by a moderate growth, a high birth rate is offset by a slightly lower mortality rate due to subsistence crises, which were followed by periods of famine, epidemics (that after overcoming the plague restarted with yellow fever and the dreaded smallpox) and years of bad harvests. This population growth is tempered by the increased overseas migration, featuring mainly young single males. From 106,000 inhabitants in the late 17^th century, the population rises to 193,000 a century later. Tenerife is still, as in the previous century, the most populated island, but the differences with the other islands are smaller, because the wine crisis encouraged greater migration.