Spanish Political Turmoil: From Regency to Republic (1833-1874)
The Regency of Maria Cristina and the First Carlist War (1833-1843)
Maria Cristina’s Regency and the Rise of Moderates and Progressives
In order to keep the throne for her daughter, Maria Cristina, the Queen Regent had to renounce the Fernandine extremes of absolutism and sought the support of the moderates. She appointed a new ministry headed by Martinez de la Rosa. He attempted The Royal Statute in 1834, which replaced the 1812 Constitution with a mix of traditionalism and liberalism where he recognized the fueros.
In 1835, Mendizabal replaced de la Rosa as Prime Minister. He had to solve two problems: financing the civil war and the disposition of the monastic properties. That’s why the disentailment of Mendizabal started in 1836, where he declared all the properties belonging to the regular clergy national property and sold them at public auction. The disentailment did not affect the secular Church. Its aims were to finance the civil war and to strengthen the middle classes economically. Monasteries and religious orders for men were suppressed, but monks received pensions from the state.
To eliminate the last remnants of feudalism and to stimulate the economy, the Desamortización/Disentailment was a relatively successful endeavor. However, it did not work as a true agrarian reform because the ones that bought the land were the wealthy.
Maria Cristina replaced the progressive Mendizabal with the moderate Istúriz, but soon replaced him with Jose Maria Calatrava. The progressives began a series of revolts, such as the Pronunciamiento of La Granja, forcing the Queen to restore the 1812 Constitution.
The 1837 Constitution and the End of the First Carlist War
In 1837, the progressives drafted a new constitution which stated that the Crown could not rule without a parliament, but the King could choose the ministers. They did not have enough time to enforce it because the moderates won the elections that year. The government in that period was constantly changing from moderates to progressives.
In 1839, Espartero (liberal) and Maroto (Carlist) signed the agreement of Vergara, which ended the war in the Basque Country and Navarre. Espartero forced the Regent Queen to abdicate, and he became Regent in 1840.
The Regency of Espartero and His Reforms
Espartero made several reforms:
- Disentailments and the suppression of the diezmo (tithe)
- Suppression of republican rings and pronunciamientos
- Elimination of the fueros in the Basque Country
Provincial governments were established in place of the traditional Juntas. Tariff privileges were abolished, and the same happened with Navarre and the Ley Paccionada.
But the strongest opposition to Espartero came from a group of moderates, led by General Ramón Maria Narváez. The Cortes elections of 1843 were won by a coalition of moderates and progressives. Espartero was unable to control the new assembly, so he dissolved it, and the reign of Isabel II began.
The Reign of Isabel II (1843-1868)
The Moderate Decade (1844-1854)
Isabel II reigned from 1843 to 1868. She was 13 years old when Espartero was overthrown. She married Francisco de Asís when she was 16, to harmonize with French diplomatic interests.
The moderates ruled in Spain from 1844 to 1854, led by Narváez. Hundreds of radicals were executed. They established rural security with the creation of the Civil Guard (1844). The moderates made a new constitution in 1845 (80 articles). National sovereignty was ignored, and the power of the monarch increased with the veto (power over all legislation). The moderates repromulgated the local government law of 1840. The Bank of Spain was established in 1847. A criminal code was made (Basque provinces and Navarre were excepted, where the fueros were partially restored). Sale of church lands were suspended, and a concordat was signed in 1851. Narváez was Prime Minister from 1844 to 1851. Then, the ultra-conservatives controlled the government until 1854. The new Prime Minister was Antonio Bravo Murillo (a dictator). He reorganized the provincial administration and outlined a new road, canal, and railway construction program, which was too much for the moderates and forced him from power in 1852. There was much corruption.
The Progressive Biennium (1854-1856)
From 1854 to 1856, the progressives recalled Espartero from retirement and made a provisional government which held elections for a constitutional reform. The Spanish revolution of 1854 began with the Vicalvarada. The new legislation was to open Spain to business enterprise. Madoz’s disentailment took place in 1855. There were three principal political factions: The Liberal Union (under General Leopoldo O’Donnell), the moderate wing of the progressives, and the progresista puros. Espartero refused to lead the progressives, and in 1856, O’Donnell got the Queen’s backing for a new cabinet.
The Return of the Moderates and the Liberal Union (1856-1868)
Moderates returned to power from 1856 to 1868, with O’Donnell’s “long ministry,” who promised pure constitutionalism. During the government of the Liberal Union, a new peak of liberalism was reached, with a consensus between liberals and moderates. He governed from the height of railway extension and an economic boom, but it failed because its sources of support were too heterogeneous. After O’Donnell’s failure, Narváez and he alternated in government, both with very little support, until the establishment of a political dictatorship by Luis Gonzalez Bravo (after O’Donnell died in exile).
The Glorious Revolution and the First Spanish Republic (1868-1874)
The Glorious Revolution and the Provisional Government
Between 1866-1868, unionists, center, and left opposition made an agreement and accomplished the “Gloriosa,” the democratic revolt of 1868 that agreed they had to depose a futile Queen and let the structure of the new regime be determined. This dethroned Isabel II. General Francisco Serrano (the leader of the liberal unionists) became the head of the provisional government while Juan Prim was the leader of the progressive party. In 1869, a new constitution was drafted, and Juan Prim was elected as Prime Minister.
The Reign of Amadeo I and the First Republic
Prim chose the Duke of Aosta (Amadeus) as King in 1870, but one year later Prim died, and Amadeus was left without support. Finally, in 1873, he was forced to abdicate, and Spain was named a Republic by a parliamentary majority.
The First Republic was created, but the republicans wanted a federal republic while the radicals preferred a unitary one. They created a mixed republic with four different presidents (Estanislao Figueras, Pi i Margall, Nicolás Salmerón, and Emilio Castelar). Eleven months later, Manuel Pavia, the Captain General of Madrid, led a coup d’état, creating a unified republic dominated by General Francisco Serrano. The First Republic was marked by three Civil Wars: the 3rd Carlist War, the Cantonal Revolution, and the Ten Years’ War.
Key Figures and Events:
- Maria Cristina: Queen Regent
- Martinez de la Rosa: Moderate politician
- Mendizabal: Progressive politician known for his disentailment policies
- Espartero: Liberal general and Regent
- Narváez: Moderate general and Prime Minister
- Isabel II: Queen of Spain
- O’Donnell: Leader of the Liberal Union
- Prim: Progressive politician and Prime Minister
- Amadeus I: King of Spain