The Reign of Alfonso XIII: Political Instability, Social Unrest, and the Rise of Dictatorship
The Reign of Alfonso XIII
After the start of the 20th century, the reign of Alfonso XIII began.
- This event marked the end of the Restoration stage, as the peaceful alternation between the two large parties, based on electoral manipulation, went into crisis.
- The opposition forces grew (worker parties, nationalist, Republicans, and trade unions) and conflict also increased. In this context, there was a coup d’état by General Primo de Rivera, which was accepted by the King.
- The reign of Alfonso XIII ended with the municipal elections of April 12, 1931, which were won by the Republican parties.
Political Situation of the Reign
The opposition grew around parties of different persuasions:
- New Republican parties, such as the Republican Union, founded in 1903
- The worker parties were consolidated: Spanish Socialist Woker Party (PSOE), had been founded in 1879, and in 1921 the Spanish Communist Party (PCE) was founded.
- The regional nationalist parties were created: the Basque Nationalist Party (BNP) had founded in 1895 and the Regional League of Catalonia in 1901.
The main problems of the reign were:
- Social, as there were conflicts between landowners and farmers, on one hand, and business owners and workers on the other.
- The nationalist problem in particular Catalonia and the Basque Country
- The military problem due to the Moroccan War, with successive defeats of the Spanish army.
The Moroccan War
As a consequence…
- They tried to resolve this conflict at the Algiers Conference 1906, between Germany, United Kingdom, France, and Spain.
- It recognized France’s protectorate over Southern Morocco and Spain’s protectorate over the north, and Germany’s recovery of the money lent to the Sultan of Morocco
The Start of the War and the 1909 Crisis
Spain stared to exploit the iron mines in its zone of influence
- This peaceful penetration failed when, in 1909, several Berber or Kabyle tribes attacked the workers building the railway that linked Melilla with the nearby mines.
- In the so-called disaster of Barranco del Lobo, the Spanish had considerable losses and reinforcements had to be sent from the Spanish Peninsula. The Government of Maure mobilized reserve troops, most of whom were working-class fathers.
- The mobilization was contested by numerous protests.
In Barcelona
- In Barcelona, a general strike was organized and there were barricades in the streets and confrontations with the army. This is known as the Tragic Week, with many deaths, injuries, and arrests, some of whom were sentenced to death.
- There was also the burning of buildings, which led to the fall of Maura’s government.
- Between 1909 and 1914, there were attempts to maintain the Spanish protectorate zone without new actions that could cause deaths or other negative repercussions for Spain.
THE DICTATORSHIP OF PRIMO DE RIVERA
COUP D’ÉTAT
In September 1923, Miguel Primo de Rivera, a general captain from Catalonia, carried out a coup d’état with the king’s support because of increased exports and the disappearance of competition. The population passively responded to the coup and the 1876 Constitution was suspended alongside a declaration of a state of war.
THE EFFECTS OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR, THE 1917 CRISIS, AND THE CONTINUATION OF THE MOROCCAN WAR
FIRST WORLD WAR (1914-1918)
Impacts
Spain remained neutral during the war, but the war still had social and economic impacts on Spain.
Exports
Due to the lack of competition, Spain began to increase its exports because other countries were focused on the war.
Price Increase
Prices, but not salaries, increased because of the higher amount of exports.
Protests
This made many companies wealthier, but the purchasing power of workers and public officials decreased. This led to an increase in protests.
THE 1917 CRISIS-01: Rise of Strikes
General discontent led to the rise of strikes and criticism across parties not involved in the rotation system. The Government suspended the Cortes to prevent opposition in Morocco.
Protest for Working Conditions
A crisis broke out in July as a protest by the army to improve working conditions.
Goal of Democracy
The army protests turned into a regeneration of political life and democracy.
Catalonia gets involved
Catalan political opposition responded by summoning an assembly of parliament to advocate for Catalan autonomy and to write a constitution.
Trade Union Mobilization
In August, the worker discontent became a general strike, including the worker trade unions that demonstrated their capacity for mobilization.
Repression of Strikes
The army repressed the strikes and the Catalan parliamentarians integrated into the government out of fear of social revolution.
THE CONTINUATION OF THE MOROCCAN WAR
France
In 1919, at the end of WWI, France restarted its operations in Morocco and tried to dominate the entire protectorate.
Ceuta
To better defend its Moroccan territory, Spain divided it into two parts First, Ceuta, led by General Berenguer.
Melilla
The second, Melilla, was led by General Fernández Silvestre, and later expanded its territory.
Annual
Abd el-Krim united several tribes and, in 1921, launched an attack on Spanish troops at Annual. This resulted in a disaster and the death of 8,
000-13,000 Spanish troops.
The causes of the coup were:
Political Crisis
This explained the instability of successive governments
Increase in Strikes
There was an increase and strikes and confrontations between owners and workers
Nationalist Sentiment
The growth of nationalism and fear arose amongst the army and the right-wing that Spain would become fractured.
Discontent with the Army
This was due to poor living conditions, a lack of medical supplies, and recent defeats in Morocco (like Annual).
Rise of Fascism
Mussolini came to power in 1922, creating an influence of fascism around Europe.
MILITARY DIRECTORY (1923-1925),
In the first stage of the dictatorship, the Government was composed of only members of the army, called the Military Directory.
End the Cacique System
The objective was to end the cacique system
by giving greater dominance to the entire protectorate. To better defend its autonomy to the municipalities, which invested in irrigation, school, and healthcare equipment, etc.
Harsh Repression
There was harsh repression against the actions of the worker movement, with a center in Ceuta, led by General Berenguer, and this and against nationalism.
Military Action in Morocco
France and Spain agreed to carry out powerful military action to defeat the guerrillas led by Abd el-Krim. This was the joint landings in Alhucemas, which ended the war.
CIVIL DIRECTORY (1925-1930)
Though Primo de Rivera had promised to leave his position when the Krim united several different tribes and in 1921 launched
political situation was pacified after the military success in Morocco, he tried to stay in power with a government composed entirely of civilians, the Civil Directory.
Economic Boom
The beginning of the Civil Directory coincided with an economic boom and allowed investments in infrastructure. The 1929 stock market crash weakened the government, and Rivero resigned.
Dictablanda
The king instructed General Berenguer to form a government and return to the 1876 Constitution. This action was very slow, and he was replaced by Admiral Aznar. This is the stage known as “soft dictatorship”.
The Second Republic
The Dictablanda ended with the organization of municipal elections.
After this, the Second Republic was declared.