The Spanish Constitution of 1812
A. Constitution of Cádiz
The Constitution of Cádiz, Spain’s first constitutional text, followed the Statute of Bayonne. This extensive text, comprising 384 articles, comprehensively covers certain topics, such as the electoral process. An express declaration of rights appears at the beginning, possibly to avoid influence from the French Constitution. The drafting of a constitution in Cádiz was deemed necessary. A commission was appointed, consisting of five absolutist deputies, four liberals (including Argüelles and Perez de Castro), three Americans, and the liberal chairman Muñoz Torrero. The text was submitted for discussion on August 18, 1811. Not all items generated equal debate; many were adopted without discussion. Within seven months, the articles were approved on March 19th. The document proceeded to confirmation and signature by all members. It’s known as “La Pepa” due to its signing on St. Joseph’s Day.
B. The Constitution of 1812
The Constitution’s core principle, national sovereignty, is defined in Article 3 as “essential and exclusive.” This article sparked debate between liberals and absolutists, who rejected the concept of sovereignty due to its implications for the social contract between the people and the sovereign. For the first time, the principle of political equality for Americans, previously discussed in legislation, was included. The Constitution established the division of powers, outlining each branch’s responsibilities. It detailed the election of a legislature and electoral regulations, establishing a representative system. Male voters over 25 cast individual votes indirectly at three levels: parish, district, and province. Deputies required an annuity. The legislature created laws, oversaw the executive branch, managed military policy, approved alliances and trade agreements, set the budget, and controlled monetary policy, health, press freedom, and education. The King could not dissolve or suspend the courts. A permanent council was established for periods without parliamentary activity.
The King held executive power, enacting laws and wielding a two-year veto, with limited power expansion possibilities. The judiciary resided solely with the courts, holding absolute power to “enforce laws in civil and criminal matters,” prohibiting royal interference. The King served as head of state, and Crown property became “national assets.”
Article 4 established the concept of full ownership and abolished linked property, a significant economic contribution of liberalism. While lacking an explicit declaration of individual rights, various articles reflected them: freedom of the press, inviolability of the home, and individual property. Duties included “love of country,” tax contributions to government spending (feudal taxes were eliminated), and military service.
“Public education” was established, encompassing a universal theory of childhood education. Secondary and higher education were also regulated. Catholicism was recognized as the state religion, a compromise with the Spanish Church.
Other articles addressed provincial administration with centralized state management, established the National Military (city volunteers defending the liberal system), mandated military service, and referenced public education.
The Constitution’s validity was short-lived, suppressed in 1814, reinstated during the Trienio Liberal (1820-1823), and again from August 1836 to June 1837. However, it remains a significant example of early liberalism.
Context and Creation
Crisis and Local Boards
The crisis of the Spanish monarchy in May 1808 saw Carlos IV and Fernando VII leave Spain to meet Napoleon, who transferred the crown to his brother, Joseph I. A Governing Board, chaired by Prince Don Antonio, was formed in Spain, overseen by French General Murat. The May 2nd uprising marked the start of military operations and political reorganization, leading to the Cortes of Cádiz. Local boards (18 with varying territorial areas) emerged for political organization and war direction. The idea of political change within them was minimal, with appointments often favoring established figures. However, some regions, notably Asturias, declared that “sovereignty always resides in the people.”
Central Board and Cortes Election
The Central Board, formed in Aranjuez on September 24, 1808, eventually fled to Seville and then Cádiz, leaving matters to a Regency advocating administrative reformism (Floridablanca), parliamentary forms (Jovellanos, a supporter of the English model), or liberal reforms (Rozas, Calvo Quintana). Their most decisive action was convening Parliament without a clear electoral model. While Florez Estrada advocated for laws “expressed and published by the nation itself,” others favored a dual-chamber reform project (Jovellanos).
A complex, indirect, three-tiered election system selected 208 deputies, representing provincial boards, city votes, and a small portion of Spanish Americans. The number reached around 300, with one-third clergy, a significant percentage of officials and lawyers, and a minority merchant class. Politically, they divided into liberals and “serviles.” The first regular election occurred in 1810, followed by another in 1813, which saw an increase in absolutist members.
The Cortes of Cádiz
The inaugural parliamentary session on September 24, 1810, featured President Muñoz Torrero’s speech emphasizing national sovereignty and separation of powers, based on natural law. These principles became the court’s first rulings. Debates on press freedom ensued, resulting in its recognition alongside freedom of political thought (religious thought remained under Church censorship). The feudal estate system was challenged, with proposals for a meritocratic society based on merit rather than the Jacobin equality of the French Revolution. Liberal figures included Argüelles, García Herrero, and Manuel José Quintana.
The abolition of the seigneurial system was crucial, focusing on the demise of manorial courts but not territorial aspects. Political power was nationalized by abolishing serfdom and services tied to jurisdictional titles, suppressing lords’ rights. Nobles retained income and wealth rights, recognized as full ownership upon presentation of certificates, leading to peasant disputes and legal issues.
Trends included disentailment of Crown buildings, suppression of convents, alienation of properties, and the untying of entails. The final blow to the social order came with the abolition of guilds and the establishment of freedom of labor, alongside the abolition of internal customs and provincial tax equality, marking the beginnings of a national market.
The elimination of the Inquisition sparked numerous interventions, both within and outside the courts, particularly from the ecclesiastical sector.