Carlism: History, Ideology, and the Carlist Wars
Carlism: A Historical Overview
Carlist G. (1833-40) was born in 1830, the daughter of Ferdinand and Mª Cristina d’Naples. According to Salic law, passed by Felipe V in 1713, the crown could only pass between men; women were excluded and only had the right to the throne in the absence of a male heir. This law was directly repealed by Ferdinand upon hearing news of his wife’s pregnancy. This changed the situation, as the king’s eldest child could now inherit, even if not male.
This significantly reduced the options for the throne for the infant Carlos Isidro, who was backed by the absolutist intransigentes. King Ferdinand took over. In late 1832, he made three important decisions: he forced Charles to go to Portugal for refusing to recognize his niece Elizabeth as heir to the throne, removed prominent supporters of the infant from their positions as heads of the Army, and ordered political amnesty for liberals, prisoners, and those outside the country.
After the death of Ferdinand VII, Charles claimed the rights to the crown against Isabel. Numerous armed uprisings occurred for Carlos, beginning a civil war that pitted Carlists against Elizabethans. The Elizabethan side was supported mainly by the urban middle class and public employees. They chose to defend Elizabeth’s dynastic rights, confident in the possibility that a victory in the war would promote their access to power and the triumph of their ideas. As a result of Isabel’s minority, Queen Cristina d’Naples temporarily took over the regency. Charles received the backing of all those social sectors that feared the possibility of a liberal landed gentry.
The Ideological Background of Carlism
The ideological background of Carlism was in favor of the immobile and counter-absolutism. The Carlist political program, simple and vague, was summarized in its motto: “God, Country, Jurisdiction, and King.” Their ideological values were:
- The defense of religious absolutism.
- Fundamentalism.
- The maintenance of Basque and Navarrese charters.
- Fidelity to the country.
The Three Stages of the Carlist Wars
The civil war between Carlists and Elizabethans had three stages:
a) 1833-35
Gen. Thomas, commanding the 35,000 men of the Carlist army in the north, employed guerrilla tactics and managed to control large rural areas in the Basque provinces and Navarra. He died while trying to take over Bilbao. In the first two years of the war, both sides used brutal methods of repression against their adversaries. Ramon Cabrera was charged with directing the Carlist troops, formed by 5,000 men.
b) 1836-37
Following his success in Bilbao, Espartero, in command of the Elizabethan army, entered. The armed Carlist columns made several expeditions, penetrating Castilla, Andalucia, Santander, Asturias, and Galicia, with the purpose of extending to other territories. All these operations failed, and the Carlists found no new support among the populations of the central and southern peninsula.
c) 1838-40
The Carlist side, weakened and demoralized by military defeats, suffered continuous losses. These caused discrepancies among the Carlists. Although they continued to resist in Aragon and Catalonia until July 1840, the civil war ended in victory for the Liberal Elizabethan troops. Charles escaped to France, and the Agreement of Velgara was signed in 1839, concluding the war. The Isabelins recognized the grades of officers to facilitate their reintegration into the Spanish Army.