Carlism and Elizabethan Reforms in 19th-Century Spain
The Rise of Carlism and the Elizabethan Era
Faced with two options, the insurgents proclaimed the child king Carlos Maria Isidro, trusting him to defend absolutism and traditional society. This began a long civil war in which the defenders of the Ancien Régime faced supporters of a liberal reformist process.
Carlism vs. Elizabethan Cause
- Carlism presented itself as a traditionalist and anti-liberal ideology. Under the slogan ”God, Fatherland, and Fueros,” they grouped the defenders of the dynastic legitimacy of Infante Carlos, absolute monarchy, the social prominence of the Church, and the preservation of a particularist land tenure system. Among Carlist leaders were members of the clergy and the rural gentry. The Carlists found strong support in rural Basque Country, Navarra, and parts of Catalonia, Aragon, and Valencia, where they had a broad social base among farmers. Many were smallholders impoverished by the new state taxes and suspicious of these changes.
- The Elizabethan cause had the support of the nobility and high officials, as well as a sector of the ecclesiastical hierarchy. The regent was forced to seek the support of liberals. In this way, the government had to accept the demands of liberals who demanded the end of absolutism and the Old Regime.
The First Transitional Government (1833-1836)
The will of Ferdinand VII established a governing council to advise the Regent Maria Cristina, chaired by Francisco Cea Bermúdez and made up of moderate absolutists, with the aim of reaching an agreement with the Carlists. The new cabinet proposed timid administrative reforms. The only significant reform was the new provincial division promoted by Javier Burgos. In 1833, Spain was divided into 49 provinces. However, the extent of the Carlist uprising began to shake the Elizabethan throne due to a lack of solid support. Some military advisors convinced the royal governor of the need to appoint a new government capable of achieving the support of liberals. For this, Francisco Martinez de la Rosa, a moderate liberal, was elected president, and he began limited reforms. His suggestion was the Royal Statute, a set of rules to summon some courts, which maintained the scheme of the Ancien Régime but adapted it to the new times.
The Moderate Constitution of 1845
The work of the moderates is highlighted by the Constitution of 1845, in which sovereignty was shared between the Parliament and the Queen, granting the latter many powers. Legislative power was also shared between the Parliament and the Queen. The Parliament consisted of two legislative bodies, the Congress of Deputies and the Senate. The Congress was composed of representatives elected by voters through a restricted census based on high income, representing less than 1% of the population. The Senate was composed of senators appointed by the Queen in unlimited numbers. Rights and freedoms were declared, including freedom of expression, but their boundaries were determined by law, decided by members of the Cortes—people of higher incomes—who would make laws to their advantage, preventing access to power for other social and political groups, such as progressives.
The Progressive Biennium (1854-1856)
The instigator of the *Vicalvarada* was another general, Leopoldo O’Donnell, leader of the Liberal Party. The movement did not intend to dethrone Elizabeth II, a declared enemy of constitutionalism, but to force her to accept democratic reforms interrupted in 1844. As a result, a two-year period began, known as the Progressive Biennium. Isabel II asked Espartero to form a government, leading to the expulsion of the Jesuits and the prohibition of Catholic processions and manifestations. Espartero oversaw the second confiscation in 1855, seizing communal property from municipalities, allowing for cultivation where it was previously not possible. The Biennium coincided with a favorable economic period, partly due to the Crimean War (1853-1856), where Turkey, France, and Great Britain fought against the Russian Empire.
Differences Between Moderate and Progressive Liberalism
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Moderate Liberalism:
- Leaders: General Narvaez
- Social Support: Nobility and reformist industrial, financial, and landowning bourgeoisie
- Sovereignty: Shared sovereignty (the king has the power to influence executive and legislative power)
- Suffrage: Very restricted census suffrage
- Rights: Limited
- Constitution: 1845
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Progressive Liberalism:
- Leaders: General Espartero
- Social Support: Small and medium industrial and commercial bourgeoisie and urban popular groups (in 1856, due to lack of support, they turned to democratic power and republicanism)
- Sovereignty: National sovereignty (to limit the influence of the king in the legislature)
- Suffrage: Wider census suffrage
- Rights: More extensive
- Constitution: 1812 and 1837
Free Trade vs. Protectionism
Protectionism aims to tax or prohibit the entry of products into the country so that foreign producers do not find it profitable to export their products. Initially, the Catalan bourgeoisie did not find support from the rest of Spain. Cereal producers defended free trade to export their grain, but competition from other states led them to defend protectionism.
Spanish Agriculture in the 19th Century
Spanish agriculture was backward, with low productivity and traditional methods. The economy was based on agriculture, and a bad harvest could cause a high death rate.
- South: Wheat, cereals
- North: Corn, potatoes
- Mediterranean: Vineyards, olive groves
The abundance of cheap labor did not encourage landowners to modernize farming.
The Democrats
A split in 1849 led to the formation of the Democratic Party, which called for a further expansion of political rights for the population, along with a series of social rights. Its members were in favor of popular sovereignty, universal male suffrage, and the election of municipal and provincial councils. They recognized the social predominance of the Church but demanded freedom of worship. They drew support from the urban working classes.