The Canalejas Presidency and Spain in WWI
The Canalejas Presidency (1910-1912)
Following the Tragic Week, a series of liberal governments, including that of Moret, paved the way for Canalejas. His administration (1910-1912) aimed to revitalize Spanish political life through several key initiatives:
Anticlericalism and the Padlock Law
The events of 1909 highlighted the anticlerical sentiment among leftist political forces. In response, Canalejas pursued the separation of church and state, culminating in the Padlock Law. This law prohibited the establishment of new religious orders in Spain without prior government approval.
Tax Reform and Opposition
Canalejas’s proposal to replace the unpopular consumption tax with an income tax based on urban wealth sparked opposition from the landed gentry.
Provincial Associations and Catalan Support
The planned establishment of provincial associations garnered support from Catalans but faced resistance from centralist politicians.
Military Service Reform
The government also enacted legislation reducing mandatory military service in peacetime to five months.
Canalejas’s Assassination and Political Fragmentation
Canalejas’s reformist agenda was tragically cut short by his assassination in November 1912 by an anarchist. This event led to the fragmentation of the Liberal Party into various factions, with new leaders like Romanones, Alba, and García Prieto lacking the clarity of their predecessor. A similar division occurred within the Conservative Party, with some members following Dato or La Cierva, while Maura, resentful of his 1909 dismissal, formed his own Maurist group. Amidst this fragmentation, the opposition reorganized. In 1910, an electoral coalition of radicals, republicans, and socialists (the Republican-Socialist Conjunction) achieved significant gains, securing seats for figures like Alejandro Lerroux and Pablo Iglesias. That same year, anarchist federations united to form the National Confederation of Labor (CNT), which would become the country’s leading trade union. Furthermore, 1912 saw the emergence of Melquiades Alvarez’s Reformist Party, representing a right-wing republicanism advocating for greater autonomy and a shift towards leftist positions.
Spain During World War I
Spain declared neutrality at the outbreak of World War I. This neutrality had profound social and economic consequences:
Negative Impacts
- Rising prices and commodity shortages due to exports to belligerent nations.
- A societal divide between pro-Allied and pro-German factions.
Positive Impacts
- Significant profits for the industrial and commercial bourgeoisie in Catalonia and the Basque Country due to increased exports.
- Growth in the Asturian coal mining industry and benefits for landowners in the Meseta and Andalusia.
- The influx of gold reserves allowed the state to pay off debts and acquire foreign capital for mining and railway development.
Conflicts of 1917
Despite this relative prosperity, three major conflicts erupted in 1917 under the conservative government of Dato:
Military Juntas
In 1916, infantry officers formed Juntas, essentially military unions, to advocate for their economic and professional interests. Initially banned, these Juntas were eventually recognized by the Dato government in June 1917 to avert a potential military coup.
Catalan Autonomy and the Parliamentary Assembly
The Catalan nationalist movement and leftist parties demanded constitutional reform. Facing parliamentary opposition, Dato bypassed parliament and ruled by decree. This led Catalan representatives to approve a request for Catalan autonomy and call for a Parliamentary Assembly in Barcelona, comprised of all Spanish deputies and senators. The Assembly urged the government to form a Constituent Assembly to establish a new political framework. However, subsequent social unrest and Alfonso XIII’s influence on Catalan leader Cambó resulted in the inclusion of two Lliga members in García Prieto’s new government, ultimately dissolving the Assembly.
The Constitutional Crisis of 1917
The summer and autumn of 1917 witnessed the most severe crisis of the Restoration monarchy. The military, the bourgeoisie, and the working class, though not directly aligned, shared the common goal of ousting the government and reforming the constitution.
The Railway Strike
In March 1917, the UGT and CNT trade unions issued a joint manifesto that foreshadowed the nationwide railway strike. Despite solidarity from anarchists, socialists, republicans, and reformers, the government’s firm support of the army led to the strike’s suppression and the arrest of its leaders.
The combined pressures of these conflicts intensified the constitutional crisis gripping the Restoration monarchy.