The Disaster of ’98: Spain’s Colonial Loss
The Disaster of ’98
Since 1898, insurrections in Cuba had been almost continuous, suppressed by both military means and political agreements. However, in 1895, with the Cry of Baire—a public statement on the independence of the island—the rebels were joined by the intellectual José Martí. The revolt drew participants from the petty bourgeoisie and the most popular elements of island society. The Spanish government sent up to 130,000 soldiers under the command of General Martínez Campos. The general’s tactics did not work, as neither Sagasta nor Cánovas were willing to grant major concessions to the Cubans beyond those enjoyed after the Peace of Zanjón. Both agreed not to yield an inch on sovereignty: Cuba was considered part of Spain. The response was military, with the Spanish contingent reaching over 300,000 soldiers. General Valeriano Weyler was appointed as the new head of operations.
Two events in early 1897 brought an end to the military domination of the island. Firstly, liberals began to distance themselves from Cánovas’s politics, calling for a more political, rather than military, approach. Secondly, the Republicans won the U.S. election. The new president, McKinley, favored intervention in the race to replace the Spanish in the domain of the island. Following the assassination of Cánovas, Sagasta came to power and attempted to solve the problem by political means. A new constitution for Cuba was established, declaring it an autonomous state within the Spanish crown. In 1898, the new insular government took office, but political tension was unbearable, and conflicts broke out between Spanish residents of the island, Cubans, and the military.
In the naval battle of Santiago de Cuba, the Spanish fleet surrendered to the power of U.S. ships, and the Spanish government had no choice but to sue for peace. In the Peace of Paris, Spain lost all its overseas possessions: Cuba and Puerto Rico in the Caribbean, and the Philippines and the Marianas in the Pacific.
Economic Consequences
While economic losses were limited, and the Spanish economy recovered relatively quickly, the loss of the colonies was a heavy blow to the exports of Spanish industries. These colonies had represented important markets and sources of certain products and raw materials.
Spanish Culture 1875-1898: The Silver Age
The period between 1875 and 1936 is known as the Silver Age. The Restoration period was marked by:
- A considerable willingness to work in the scientific field.
- An effort towards Europeanization.
- A predominance of description and observation, particularly in the scientific order.
Key Figures and Movements:
- Science: Santiago Ramón y Cajal, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine.
- Literature: Marcelino Menéndez y Pelayo, who dedicated his life to the history of ideas, criticism, and the history of Spanish and Latin American literature. Literary naturalism was characterized by an ideal observer of reality, serving a social critique of the ruling classes of the Restoration and the discovery of regional identity.
- Painting: Joaquín Sorolla is the plastic reference, situated within the same aesthetic as naturalist writers.
Naturalism encouraged the cultivation of the authentic and the popular. The novel revealed the regional landscape, genre painting depicted everyday scenes, and in music, there was the apotheosis of zarzuela.
Education and Regionalism
In the field of education, the Restoration regime eliminated the most liberal faculty from official centers. Education acquired religious and conservative overtones. A group of academics founded the Free Institution of Education, led by Francisco Giner de los Ríos.
The peripheral nationalist revival of regional languages and literature accompanied these developments. In Catalonia, the Renaixença emerged. In Valencia, there was also a revival of the Valencian language. In Galicia, the Galician language achieved literary restoration.
The Generation of ’98
The Generation of ’98 raised the need to regenerate Spanish society. It was a heterogeneous group coalescing around the exaltation of Spanish nationalism and the values of Spain.