Cadiz Cortes and the Dawn of Spanish Sovereignty
The Rise of Armament and Defense Boards
During the Peninsular War, Armament and Defense Boards emerged at local and provincial levels. These boards played a crucial role in:
- Filling the power vacuum: They stepped in to govern in the absence of a legitimate central authority.
- Defense and governance: Their primary objective was to defend the country and maintain order.
- Legitimacy: They claimed to rule in the name of Fernando VII.
- Importance: They are considered the first expression of national sovereignty in Spain, as local and provincial boards sent representatives to form the Central Junta.
- Composition: The structure consisted of 13 Supreme Boards and a Central Board, chaired by Floridablanca, which coordinated the various boards.
As the French advanced, the Central Board relocated to Seville and then to Cadiz.
Internal Divisions within the Junta Central
The Junta Central was divided into two main factions:
- The conservative sector: Supporters of absolutism who wanted the Boards replaced by a Council of Regency.
- The liberal sector: Revolutionaries who believed that the abdication of Bayonne broke the covenant between the king and his people. They argued that the people, in defending against the invader, assumed sovereignty through the boards.
In 1810, the Central Board dissolved, paving the way for a Council of Regency.
The Cadiz Cortes
The Cadiz Cortes convened with all members in a single assembly. Its members primarily came from:
- Urban middle classes
- Some members of the nobility and gentry
The Cortes held its first session on the Isla de León in 1810 and later moved to Cadiz, meeting in the church of San Felipe Neri until 1813.
Political Trends within the Cortes
The members of the Cortes were divided into groups based on their political leanings:
- The Jovellanos: Followers of the Enlightenment, they believed sovereignty was shared between the king and parliament.
- Liberals: They sought to dismantle the Old Regime and establish a constitution.
- Absolutists: They defended the Old Regime.
Legislative Achievements of the Cadiz Cortes
The most significant achievement of the Cortes of Cadiz was the promulgation of the Constitution on March 19, 1812. Additionally, the members implemented:
Political Reforms
- Declaration of national sovereignty and defense of the separation of powers.
- Administrative centralization in the provinces, with a governor and a deputation.
Social Reforms
- Removal of privileges from the nobility, including feudal courts, entail, and purity of blood tests.
Economic Reforms
- Abolition of internal customs unions.
- Desamortizaciones (disentailment).
Cultural and Religious Reforms
- Freedom of the press, eliminating censorship.
- Abolition of the Inquisition.
The Constitution of 1812: Key Features
The Constitution of 1812 was a landmark document with the following characteristics:
- Popular origin: It was created by representatives of the people.
- First liberal document: It was the first institutional paper in Spain with a liberal ideology.
- Influence: Strongly influenced by the French Constitution of 1791, except on religious matters.
- Length and rigidity: It was a long and rigid document.
Basic Liberal Principles
The Constitution enshrined several basic liberal principles:
- National sovereignty: The people elect their representatives through universal suffrage, although to prevent corruption, it eventually became census-based suffrage.
- Indirect universal male suffrage: Women did not vote, and people indirectly elected members through representatives.
- Constitutional monarchy.
- Separation of powers:
- Legislative power vested in the Court and the king.
- Executive power vested in the king.
- Judicial power vested in the courts.
- Liberal and natural rights: Property, inviolability of the home, equality before the law, freedom of the press, and prohibition of torture.
- Proclamation of Catholicism as the sole and official religion of the state.