Catalan Nationalism and Spain’s Restoration Crisis
Catalan Nationalism: A Quest for Autonomy
The text is a primary source excerpt from “The Catalan Country” (1906) by Prat de la Riba, a conservative figure who co-founded the Unió Catalanista in 1891 and the Lliga Regionalista in 1901. This writing aimed to inform about the growing nationalist sentiment in Catalan society. De la Riba argues for a Catalan autonomous state within a federal regime, asserting that individuals with shared identities should form a nation with its own state, as opposed to a “pan-national” unitary state. The Renaixença, a cultural movement emphasizing the Catalan language, fueled this nationalism. During Spain’s Restoration, the “Crisis” of 1898 led to intellectual groups advocating for national identity and historical rights, resulting in peripheral regionalism. De la Riba supports a federal system where autonomous national states coexist, respecting regional identities and liberties. He envisions a “compound state” integrating Catalonia into Spain, maintaining unity while allowing for autonomy. Despite advocating for Catalan rights, he emphasizes maintaining Spain’s unity within a federal framework. Under Valentí Almirall’s influence, Catalan nationalism emerged as a political movement. Almirall founded the Centre Català to demand autonomy, presenting grievances to King Alfonso XII. Later, the Unió Catalanista, led by conservative intellectuals, drafted the Bases de Manresa, demanding comprehensive self-government for Catalonia within the Spanish monarchy. Prat de la Riba formed the Lliga Regionalista, merging moderate nationalist groups. Similar nationalist sentiments arose in the Basque Country and Galicia.
Spain’s Restoration Crisis: Oligarchy and Regeneration
This text, dated 1901, is from Joaquín Costa’s “Oligarchy and Despotism, and Other Writings on Agrarian Collectivism.” Costa, a politician, economist, jurist, and historian, was a key figure in the regenerationist movement following the 1898 crisis. He criticized the Restoration’s corrupt electoral system, targeting politicians and lawyers. Costa describes an electoral “gear” involving oligarchs (powerful classes), chiefs (local power figures), and the civil governor (government representative). This system manipulated elections, maintaining power without allowing change. The “box” and “rigging” (ballot manipulation) were tools of this corrupt system. Costa’s work fits within the Spanish Restoration era, specifically the reign of Alfonso XIII, when the system began to decompose. The system, designed by Antonio Cánovas del Castillo, was based on shared sovereignty between the monarchy and the courts, the 1876 constitution, and electoral laws ensuring the rotation of conservative and liberal parties. The 1898 colonial disaster, resulting in the loss of Cuba, the Philippines, and Puerto Rico, exposed Spain’s backwardness and fueled the regenerationist movement. Costa, a prominent figure in this movement, influenced the Generation of ’98 and political leaders like Maura and Canalejas. His ideas contributed to calls for change from above (government reforms), the end of the Restoration, the advent of a republic, nationalist demands for decentralization, and working-class demands for systemic change.