Watch LookMovie. The Great Roundup was an operation organized by King Ferdinand VI and his minister, the Marquis of Ensenada, with the aim of exterminating the Romani population in Spain. Under the pretext of "cleansing" the country, between 10,000 and 12,000 Gypsies (almost 1% of the Gypsy population at the time) were captured without any trial or formal charges.