Spain’s Authoritarian Era: Primo de Rivera’s Dictatorship (1923-1930)
The Dictatorship of Primo de Rivera (1923–1930)
Causes of the Coup
Several factors explain why the military dictatorship was viewed as a solution to the crisis among the high bourgeoisie, much of the middle classes, and the Army:
- Military Discontent: Unhappiness within the Army following the Disaster of Annual and the effort to suppress the consequences of the Picasso File investigation, which implicated high-ranking generals, including General Berenguer.
- Political Instability: The rise of peripheral nationalisms and the growth of Republicanism and the labor movement.
- Fascist Influence: The triumph of fascism in Italy after the March on Rome in 1922 and the rise of Mussolini, providing an authoritarian model.
The Coup d’État of 1923
Miguel Primo de Rivera, Captain General of Catalonia, rebelled on September 13, 1923. The coup was immediately met with the support of King Alfonso XIII. The rebels declared a state of war, suspended constitutional guarantees, and dissolved the Cortes. The Constitution of 1876 was replaced by a military dictatorship amidst popular indifference and little resistance.
Military Directory (1923–1925)
After the coup, Primo de Rivera acted as a sole minister, advised by a Military Directory. The new government represented the same power bloc that had dominated the country during the Restoration: the oligarchy of landowners and industrialists.
Key Military Measures
- Regional Suppression: Proscription of the Catalan flag and anthem, and restriction of the Catalan language to the private sphere.
- Public Order: Implementation of an “iron fist” policy regarding public order.
- Political Structure: Formation of the Unión Patriótica (Patriotic Union), a single party under military direction, following the successful pattern set by Mussolini’s fascism in Italy.
The Moroccan War
The Directory focused heavily on Africa. The Landing of Al Hoceima in 1925 ended the resistance of the Rif. Its leader, Abd-el-Krim, surrendered to the French Moroccan authorities. The successful conclusion of the war in Morocco significantly boosted the dictator’s popularity.
Civil Directory (1925–1930)
In late 1925, the Military Directory was replaced by a civilian government headed by Primo de Rivera. This move aimed to institutionalize the dictatorship.
Attempts at Institutionalization
In 1927, the National Consultative Assembly was established, formed mostly by members of the Unión Patriótica elected by limited suffrage. Primo de Rivera again followed the Italian model (in this case, the Grand Council of Fascism). This Assembly quickly failed in its attempt to draft a basic law to serve as the dictatorship’s constitution.
Primo de Rivera also imitated the social model of Italian fascism, establishing the National Corporate Labor Organization (Organización Corporativa Nacional), a kind of union intended to arbitrate between employers and workers. This attempt at institutionalization also failed.
Opposition and the Fall of Primo de Rivera
The opposition to the dictatorship covered a wide political spectrum: liberals and conservatives, Republicans, socialists, anarchists, intellectuals, and the student movement. A key element was the growing discontent within the ranks of the Army due to Primo de Rivera’s arbitrary rule.
Following the crash of the New York Stock Exchange in 1929, economic problems rapidly spread worldwide. Social unrest, including the return of widespread strike movements, intensified the opposition to the dictatorship (exacerbated by the devaluation of the peseta).
Elderly, sick, and lacking social support, Primo de Rivera submitted his resignation to King Alfonso XIII on January 27, 1930. The monarch hastened to accept it. Two months later, the dictator died in exile in Paris.