Key Political and Economic Terms of the 18th and 19th Centuries
Definitions
Old Regime: A set of political and social institutions that governed cultural life in Europe from the end of the 15th century until the 18th century. The term was first used by revolutionaries in 1789 to refer to the existing order before the revolution. From a political standpoint, it is characterized by the existence of absolute monarchy. From a social standpoint, it is characterized by the existence of a stratified society with privileged groups and low social mobility. From an economic point of view, it is characterized by a preponderance of agriculture, employing 80% of the population.
Oligarchy: A political regime in which a minority exercises political and economic power. It comes from the Greek words oligos, meaning “few”, and arche, meaning “power”, altogether meaning “power of a few”.
Seignorialism: The name given to the economic and legal relations existing in the old feudal regime between lords, subjects, and serfs. These relations were based on ties of personal dependence between feudal lords and vassals. The lords assumed many of the powers of the state, such as protection, defense, and the pursuit of justice.
Absolute Monarchy: A system of government characteristic of the Old Regime under which the king holds all powers. There is no separation of powers. The king receives power directly from God and is only accountable to God for their actions.
Estate: Each of the existing social groups in the society of the Old Regime. Each of these groups has its own rights and duties.
Enlightened Absolutism: The application of the political doctrine of absolute monarchies in the 18th century. Monarchs carried out reforms inspired by Enlightenment philosophy. Their motto was “all for the people, but without the people”.
Division of Powers: A liberal political principle according to which each of the three powers (legislative, executive, and judicial) is exercised by a different person or institution.
Court: A representative assembly composed of representatives elected by citizens. Legislative power resides in the courts, and sometimes they have an executive function. In Spanish constitutions, a bicameral court system with two chambers, the Senate and the House of Representatives, predominated. Only two constitutions, the Constitution of Cadiz in 1812 and the Second Republic, established a unicameral system of courts.
Liberalism: A political doctrine that emerged in the 18th century based on the theories of Locke, Rousseau, and Montesquieu, and a political movement that fully developed in the 19th century. Liberalism defends individual freedom, respect for private property, the development of written constitutions, and the separation of powers. The application of this political doctrine to economic life is called economic liberalism and advocates for the non-intervention of the state in economic life, which is governed by its own laws: the laws of supply and demand.
Free Trade: An economic practice of economic liberalism that advocates for the free movement of goods with the disappearance of any state barriers (tariffs, import duties, etc.).
Protectionism: An economic doctrine that advocates for state intervention in economic life to protect the production of national industry and agriculture through the imposition of obstacles to the free entry of goods from abroad, which could compete with domestic production. Protectionism was in force in Spain for most of the 19th century due to pressure from Catalan and Basque industrialists and landowners of the plateau.