XVIII Century Fact

Ancien régime Europe certainly spent heavily on its armies and navies, and their use in war accounted for some 54 per cent of public spending in the European monarchies during the eighteenth century.

Darwin, John (2010-08-08). After Tamerlane (p. 114). Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. Kindle Edition.

For comparison, the US in 2015 is expected to spend about $0.8 trillion of its total public spending of $6.1 trillion on defense (13 %). That spending is not quite half of the total world defense spending ($1.7 trillion).

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