Alfonso XII’s Reign: Restoration, Politics, and Constitution
Reign of Alfonso XII
The instability of the Democratic Sexenio caused a shift of the bourgeoisie toward conservative positions. The failure of the Republican ticket awakened a broad social desire for a restoration. Antonio Canovas del Castillo was the greatest political actor of the moment and the architect of the Restoration, preparing the return to Spain and the throne of Alfonso XII, son of Isabel II.
During those years, supporters of the Bourbon restoration had taken active diplomatic efforts to gain international support for the new monarch. However, the monarchists were divided into different groups according to the candidate they supported (Prince Alfonso, Duke of Montpensier). Canovas’ intention was that the Bourbon restoration be imposed as a result of a state of mind and not by a new military coup. This was drafted and signed in Prince Alfonso’s Sandhurst Manifesto, setting out to the Spanish people their religious ideals and conciliatory purposes. But the military once again stepped forward, and the trigger of the Restoration was the statement in Sagunto (1874) by General Martinez Campos, who proclaimed Alfonso XII King of Spain. On January 9, 1875, the monarch arrived in Barcelona.
Canovas del Castillo had not only prepared and directed a strategy to enthrone the House of Bourbon, but also designed the new political system. His inspiration was the English model, whose stability, in his view, was based on the rotation of the Presidency of two major parties and the historical consolidation of two institutions: the monarchy and Parliament. This was ultimately to apply the English doctrine of the balance of powers.
To Canovas, the nation was a historic building set up over time. History had established the king and parliament as the two key institutions of the Spanish nation. Canovas returned to the approaches of liberalism and its defense doctrine of joint sovereignty between the king and the Cortes, which formed the ideological basis of the former Moderate Party.
Modeled on the English bipartisan system, Canovas intended that the work of government be shifted exclusively to two principal parties, alternating in power and in opposition. To implement this system, he not only set up the Conservative Party but also organized their opposition with the collaboration of Sagasta, who created the Liberal Party. The Conservative Party was formed in the framework of the 1868 revolution as the continuation of the Moderate Party, integrating the old moderate supporters of the Constitution of 1845, the Catholic Union, and alfonsinos. The Liberal Party brought together the moderate left bourgeoisie.
The 1876 Constitution
The result was the 1876 Constitution, moderate, albeit with some rights from the progressive Constitution of 1869. Its great advantage lay in its elasticity, i.e., its provisions were compatible with governments of very different political orientations. Its main features were:
- Following the tradition of moderate and sane Canovist theory, it established joint sovereignty between the king and parliament.
- The Bill of Rights was similar in appearance to that of 1869 but was limited to recognizing a general and specific regulation left to the ordinary laws.
- The religious issue was the subject of fierce debate, but Canovas’ position was imposed: Catholicism was declared the state religion, and demonstrations of any other religion were banned, although there was individual freedom of worship.
- The prerogatives of the king were increased. According to Moderate tradition, he held executive power, was free to appoint and dismiss ministers, approved and promulgated laws, and convened, dissolved, and suspended parliament.
- The power of the Parliament was limited. The Senate had a highly elitist and conservative nature, comprising three groups: senators in their own right, senators appointed by the king, and senators elected by the largest taxpayers and corporations. The Congress was elected, but the Constitution did not define the type of voting, which allowed the party in power to establish it at any moment.
Although the opinion of the electorate did not matter, the farce, to be complete, had to come through a legitimate vote. Madrid was the oligarchy or minority ruling political estuary. The oligarchs were those who carried out the fraud. The provincial capital was a key figure in the civil governor, and finally, in the counties, towns, and villages were the local warlords.
Thanks to Canovas del Castillo, the 1876 Constitution was promulgated. It was stable and durable, ended the traditional military’s political role and practice of delivery, cleared the two wars legacy of the previous period (the Carlist and Cuba), and a good international economic situation favored the consolidation of poor Spanish capitalism.
End of the Carlist War and Ten Years’ War
The completion of the Third Carlist War was due to several reasons: the Carlist troops’ own military wear, the new policy that rallied to the government side those who had supported the Carlist, and the development of greater offensive military capabilities of the new regime.
In the Ten Years’ War in Cuba, General Martínez Campos was sent with an army of 25,000 men. The result of his work was the Peace of Zanjón, which ended the war and offered some concessions to the Cuban rebels: improving political and administrative conditions of the island and a broad amnesty.