The Second Spanish Republic: Proclamation, Challenges, and Political Landscape
1. Proclamation of the Second Spanish Republic
Proclaimed on April 14, 1931, the Second Republic arose from the monarchy’s political mismanagement and its inability to address the serious problems inherited from the nineteenth century. The new government introduced reforms to democratize and modernize Spain, despite the unfavorable international context dominated by the economic crisis and the rise of fascism.
1.1 Fall of the Monarchy and Establishment of the Provisional Government
Following Primo de Rivera’s resignation in 1930, the government attempted to revert to the pre-1923 situation and restore the 1876 Constitution. The internal problems of dynastic parties and the growing anti-royalist opposition hindered cohesion. On August 17, 1930, various nationalist and republican parties signed the Pact of San Sebastian to promote a revolutionary political movement through an armed insurrection. Socialists and the CNT, legalized after Primo de Rivera’s fall, endorsed the pact.
The revolutionary movement failed. The military uprising was suppressed, and the general strike never materialized. However, this failure led to the government’s collapse. Forced to call elections on April 12, 1931, the government witnessed the triumph of republican-socialist candidates in 41 of the 50 provincial capitals, despite electoral fraud. King Alfonso XIII chose exile, and on April 14, 1931, the Republic was proclaimed in several Spanish cities. Niceto Alcalá-Zamora, on behalf of the revolutionary committee, formed a provisional government composed of Republicans, Socialists, and Nationalists.
The provisional government called for elections and initiated urgent social and military reforms, later developed under the Republic’s constitutional government. These included a law to improve peasant employment and educational reform. These reforms faced opposition from a sector of the army and the economic oligarchy, who felt their interests threatened. Clashes also arose with the Church, which rejected the Republicans’ secular ideas, leading to convent burnings.
1.2 The International Situation
The 1930s were marked by a deep economic crisis. The global economic crisis began in 1929 with the New York Stock Exchange crash, though its impact on Spain was less severe. Foreign trade and investment were the most affected sectors.
Amidst this economic crisis, totalitarianism proliferated. Influenced by Italian Fascism, in power since the 1920s, and German Nazism, governing from 1933, these ideologies presented themselves as solutions to socioeconomic problems. The Soviet communist regime also faced difficulties with the acceptance of Republican reformism.
1.3 Diversity of Ideologies and Political Parties
The Republic saw a diversification of political parties. The Republicans were divided into several factions:
- On the right: Alejandro Lerroux’s conservative Radical Party, Niceto Alcalá-Zamora and Miguel Maura’s conservative Progressive Republican Party, and the Catholic-leaning Conservative Republican Party.
- On the left: Manuel Azaña’s Republican Action and Marcel·lí Domingo’s Socialist Party, advocating for a secular state.
Trade unions supporting the Republic were represented by the PSOE and its affiliated union (UGT). The CNT regained prominence with leaders like Buenaventura Durruti. The Communist Party (PCE), formed in 1920, began to emerge. The Workers’ Party of Marxist Unification (POUM), led by Andrés Nin and created in 1935 in opposition to Soviet Communism, also appeared.
Nationalist parties, particularly Catalan ones, favored the Republic. The Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC), led by Francesc Macià and Lluís Companys, with support from the Socialist Union of Catalonia (USC), played a significant role. The Catalanist Republican Party (CRP) had less support. The Galician Republican Autonomous Organization (ORGA) also gained prominence.
Right-wing political forces included:
- Catholics: Acción Popular, which in 1933 formed the Spanish Confederation of Autonomous Right-wing Groups (CEDA), led by José María Gil-Robles.
- Monarchists: Renovación Española, led by José Calvo Sotelo.
- Carlists: Traditionalist Communion.
- Landowners: Especially from Castile and León, who formed the Agrarian Party.
Authoritarian groups closer to fascism also began to form. In 1931, Ramiro Ledesma Ramos and Onésimo Redondo founded the Juntas of the National Syndicalist Offensive (JONS). In 1933, José Antonio Primo de Rivera founded the Falange. The two merged in 1934.