Catalan Renaissance and Political Awakening in 19th Century Spain
The Catalan Renaissance
The Resurgence of Catalan Language and Culture
The recovery of Catalan language and culture, neglected since 1714, played a crucial role in the Renaissance, a cultural and literary movement that sought to revive Catalan identity.
Persistence of Catalan Identity
At the beginning of the 19th century, a century after the Decree of Nueva Planta abolished the political and administrative structure of the former Crown of Aragon, Catalonia maintained a clear rejection of administrative centralization and Castilian language and laws. As a result, Catalan had virtually disappeared as an administrative language by the early 19th century. Despite this, Catalan persisted as the everyday language of the majority. Furthermore, Catalan society preserved its customs, traditions, and way of life, including specific forms of family and work organization, land ownership, and economic development.
Literary and Cultural Revival
A campaign to recover Catalan as a literary language began, culminating in the restoration of the Floral Games in 1859. This contest awarded poems written in Old Catalan (Limousin) and soon became a significant civic event. The revival extended beyond language to a broader search for Catalan identity.
Folk Revival
A popular cultural movement advocated for the use of spoken Catalan. This movement had a tradition of popular literature and drama, which addressed contemporary themes.
The Beginnings of Catalan Politics
Federalism
From the early 1840s, amidst political and social struggles, federalism emerged alongside republicanism, with Abdón Terrades as a key figure.
Valentí Almirall and the Catalan Centre
Valentí Almirall was instrumental in defining Catalan politics, transforming the Catalan nationalist movement into doctrines and parties prepared to participate in public administration. He took a leftist and progressive approach, founding the first newspaper entirely in Catalan, Diari Català (1879), and systematizing Catalan political doctrine in his book Lo Catalanisme (1886).
The Failure of Almirall’s Project
Almirall’s attempt to unite all Catalan factions into a political force capable of electoral intervention proved unsuccessful. On one hand, Almirall’s Catalanism was too republican for the Catalan bourgeoisie, who leaned towards monarchist parties. On the other, his emphasis on the social aspects of the movement and federal republicanism failed to attract grassroots support. Ideological differences led to a split, and the Catalan Centre dissolved.
The Lliga de Catalunya and the Message to the Regent
The Lliga de Catalunya (1887) emerged with a more conservative approach than Almirall’s, aligning better with the increasingly dissatisfied middle class. One of its first initiatives was the message to Queen Regent Maria Cristina (1888), outlining regional demands. The League also campaigned against the draft civil code debated in the Spanish Parliament (1889). The government eventually amended the code, a perceived “first victory” for Catalanism.
The Impact of 1898 on Catalonia
The disaster of 1898 had profound economic and military consequences. In Catalonia, it led to political shifts and the emergence of a new generation of intellectuals and activists advocating for a new political program and the creation of a party to contest elections and pursue autonomy. They criticized the corruption of dynastic political parties and demanded electoral and social reforms.
Galicia, Valencia, Aragon, and Andalusia
Galician society was predominantly rural. The emergence of Galician nationalism was later than in Catalonia and the Basque Country, despite a more homogenous society with deeply rooted language and cultural traditions.
Valencianism began as a cultural movement championing language and culture, led by Teodor Llorente and Constantí Llombart. Political Valencianism emerged with the creation of València Nova (1904), which organized the First Valencian Regionalist Assembly.
Aragonesism originated in the late 19th century, driven by a nascent bourgeoisie defending civil law and Aragonese cultural heritage, while promoting a romanticized view of the kingdom’s origins and medieval institutions.