Spain’s Restoration Era: Monarchy, Politics, and Society

Restoration: The Return to Constitutional Monarchy

King Alfonso XII, son of Isabel II, was proclaimed king in 1874, marking the beginning of the Restoration. The new king supported a constitutional monarchy and appointed Canovas del Castillo as chairman of the government. Canovas was instrumental in the return of the Bourbons to the throne. He ended the war in Cuba and the Carlist War. The political system was based on two pillars: a new constitution and the alternation of parties in power.

The Tiempo Pacífico (Time of Peace)

Power was assigned to two political parties who accepted the constitutional monarchy and peacefully alternated in government (turnismo). These parties were the Conservatives and the Liberals. The monopoly of power by the Conservatives and Liberals was made possible by the existence of electoral corruption. In rural areas, local bosses forced the population to vote for the party that suited them. In cities, votes were manipulated, a practice known as pucherazo. This produced election results that alternately gave victory to the Liberals and Conservatives.

Opposition to the System

The anarchists were harshly persecuted due to their involvement in attacks. They created the National Labor Confederation (CNT). The socialists were led by Pablo Iglesias, who founded the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE) in 1879. Later, the Union General de Trabajadores (UGT), a union closely linked to the PSOE, was created. Nationalist parties emerged, reacting against the creation of a centralized state. These parties were particularly important in Catalonia, the Basque Country, and Galicia.

A Weak Industrial Revolution

In 19th-century Spain, economic changes were not as intense as in Britain due to several factors: raw material shortages, poor communications, and a lack of a market for products. Consequently, foreign firms often invested in the creation of modern factories. The first industries were textiles and iron and steel.

Undoubtedly, the most important innovation was the railroad. The railroad network had a radial structure with its center in Madrid, and the track width was greater than in the rest of Europe, hindering exchanges. New sectors developed: electricity, petroleum, and the chemical industry. Spanish industry had two major problems: it was uncompetitive, and the modern sectors were concentrated in very few areas.

The Liberation of the Land

The main transformation in agriculture was the liberalization of land, achieved in two ways: the abolition of entails, meaning nobles could lose their land due to debts, and the confiscation of land. The Desamortización of Mendizabal involved the State selling land belonging to the Church, and the Desamortización of Madoz involved the sale of land belonging to municipalities. The liberation of the lands allowed many bourgeois to buy plots, but it also caused the impoverishment of many peasants.

Slow Population Growth

The Spanish population increased more slowly than in other European countries. The birth rate remained high, and the mortality rate decreased slightly. More advanced regions grew above the national average. The rural exodus led to increased demographic weight on the periphery, and cities grew greatly.

Social Classes

The ruling class included the bourgeoisie and the aristocracy. The aristocracy was made up of nobles, while the bourgeoisie comprised the owners of factories. The middle class included civil servants and small entrepreneurs who lived in the cities. The lower classes had a low economic level and a high rate of illiteracy: jornaleros (day laborers), peasants, and workers were concentrated in industrial regions. The main unions were the anarchist CNT and the socialist UGT. Also present were servants, beggars, and marginalized individuals.