Spain’s Restoration Era: Alfonso XII and Canovas’ System
The System of the Restoration
The Draft of Canovas
Alfonso XII of Spain.
The military coup of General Martinez Campos at Sagunto accelerated the accession to the throne of Alfonso XII. His triumphal entry into Madrid on 14 January 1875, began a long period of political stability (Restoration). This regime will moderate the re-establishment with two new features:
- It is a civilian regime in which the military lacked the prominence they had in the Elizabethan stage, determined by the civil power.
- It is a system integrator, because only one party held power.
There are two stages: the first until 1885 with the reign of Alfonso XII and the second until 1902 with the regency of Maria Cristina, during the minority of Alfonso XIII.
Canovas, Architect of the Restoration
The new system was conceived and organized by Antonio Canovas del Castillo, a politician from the extinct Liberal Union, with long experience in public affairs and great knowledge of the history of Spain.
Canovas had matured a draft of what should be the future of Spain: a nation at peace in the political and social sphere that would keep the legacy of history and assimilate the news of this. A synthesis of the new and old, achieved through agreement and compromise. He had to draft a new constitution and create solid political parties that could alternate in power. This led to the creation of the Constitution of 1876.
The Constitution of 1876
Canovas exercised power as minister-regent from January 31, 1875, and was ratified as prime minister by the king. He started the constitutional process by convening a Constituent Parliament through elections by universal suffrage and appointed a large committee of eminent persons, the Commission of Notables, to draft a constitution to be approved by the courts.
The new constitution was promulgated in May 1876 and was the longest in duration. It tried to find a balance between the moderate constitution of 1845 and the democratic one of 1869. Its most important features were:
- A shared sovereignty between the king and the Cortes.
- A bicameral system with two legislative chambers that had equal rights. The House of Representatives consisted of 50,000 citizens. The elections would be governed by an electoral law based on census. The Senate was composed of three types of senators: senators in their own right, and elected for life.
- The king maintained the executive power and his figure was inviolable and sacred. He had supreme command of the Armed Forces, named the prime minister, and could also dissolve the Cortes.
- A comprehensive bill of rights and freedoms.
- Unit of laws throughout the country that suppresses Basque privileges.
- The state denominational. The Catholic religion was the official one, but freedom of worship was established.
This constitution had some parallels with the 1845 constitution as an expression of conservative principles espoused by the liberal gentry regime. It presented some unique features in the European Parliament, such as the broad authority granted to the king’s policies. When the monarch decided to use this authority, it caused the system to wear down and the prestige of the crown to diminish.