Spain’s Second Republic: Reforms and Cultural Impact 1931-1933
The Second Republic: The Constitution of 1931 and the Reform Biennium
The Transition from Dictatorship to the Republic
Following the resignation of Primo de Rivera, the King assigned the government to General Berenguer. However, the return to normality was hindered by the discrediting of the dynastic parties (Liberal and Conservative), the unpopularity of the monarch, and strong opposition from anti-dynastic parties, Republicans, and Monarchists who had converted to the Republican cause, such as Alcalá Zamora and Miguel Maura, as well as Socialists and intellectuals. These groups met in San Sebastian with the aim of ending the monarchy and proclaiming a republic. They formed a provisional government to convene the Constituent Cortes, approve a constitution, and establish a statute of autonomy for Catalonia (“Pact of San Sebastian” – August 1930).
In late 1930, events precipitated a failed coup attempt in favor of the Republic (its leaders were executed, and members of the interim government were illegally imprisoned). A wave of protests ensued from unions, intellectuals, and academics. Monarchist sectors requested elections, Berenguer resigned, and the King ordered a new government under Admiral Aznar, which called for municipal elections on April 12, 1931. Despite being municipal elections, the Republican victory led to the proclamation of the Republic on April 14 and the formation of a provisional Republican government chaired by Alcalá Zamora. In Catalonia, Francesc Macià, leader of Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya, proclaimed the Catalan Republic. On the same day, Alfonso XIII went into exile. The Republic was a fact and enjoyed popular support.
The Provisional Government and the Constitution of 1931
A provisional government was immediately formed, headed by Niceto Alcalá Zamora and composed of left-right Republicans, Socialists, and Nationalists. The government’s task was to run the country until a new Constituent Cortes could establish the new regime.
However, the new government had to respond from the outset to the general desire for reform. It took the first steps towards land reform, initiated labor reforms, began military reform, passed major education legislation, and implemented the Provisional Statute of Autonomy.
The social environment, however, quickly became tense. While the anarchist CNT promoted a widespread campaign of strikes, clashes between the Church and the new government were immediate. The more conservative sector of the Church, headed by Cardinal Segura, placed all sorts of obstacles in the path of the new executive. The old anticlericalism resurfaced in May 1931, and several churches and convents were attacked and burned. Catholic public opinion distanced itself from the new Republican regime from the very beginning.
Finally, in June 1931, elections for the Constituent Cortes were held in an atmosphere of relative tranquility. The polls gave a clear majority to the Republican-Socialist coalition. The new Constitution, adopted in December 1931, reflected the ideas of the majority. These are its main features:
- Popular sovereignty: The new Spanish state was defined as a “democratic republic of workers of all kinds.”
- Universal suffrage: Both male and female. After a long and complex debate in the Cortes, Spanish women gained the right to vote.
- Extensive bill of rights and freedoms:
- Civil rights, divorce, equality for legitimate and illegitimate children.
- Right to education.
- State Powers:
- Legislative power rested in the hands of a unicameral Cortes.
- Executive:
- President with limited powers.
- Head of Government, appointed by the President but requiring the approval of Parliament.
- Judicial power in the hands of the courts.
- For the first time in Spanish history, the right of regions to establish an autonomy statute was recognized.
- Regarding the “religious question,” a secular state was imposed:
- Separation of Church and State.
- Elimination of the budget for worship and clergy.
- Prohibition of religious orders from engaging in education.
- Freedom of conscience and worship.
The Reform Biennium (1931-1933)
After the adoption of the Constitution, a new period began with a government headed by Manuel Azaña, formed by Left Republicans and Socialists. In December, Niceto Alcalá Zamora was elected President of the Republic.
The Republican-Socialist government launched a broad program of reforms in an adverse economic climate marked by rising unemployment. These were the main measures:
- Labor reforms: Initiated by the Ministry of Labor and the Socialist Largo Caballero, these reforms favored the position of workers and unions and met with strong opposition from employers.
- Educational reform:
- Comprehensive program of school construction and teacher recruitment: 6,750 schools and 7,000 teachers with improved salaries.
- Coeducation.
- Religion was no longer a compulsory subject, which aggravated the confrontation with the Church.
- Military reform: Aimed at securing the loyalty of the army to the new Republican regime and reducing the excessive number of chiefs and officers. An oath of allegiance to the new regime was required, and those who refused could opt for early retirement with full pay.
- Agrarian Reform:
- The Basic Law of Agrarian Reform was adopted in 1932. It sought to resettle landless peasants on under-exploited estates.
- Its implementation was a failure, and very few farmers benefited from the law. This caused widespread disappointment among the peasantry in an economic context of growing unemployment.
Cultural Achievements
The vast majority of professors, scientists, and men of letters of the country greeted the new regime with joy, and many of them joined active politics. The Constituent Cortes included, among others, Ortega y Gasset, Gregorio Marañón, Claudio Sánchez Albornoz, Manuel Azaña, Miguel de Unamuno, and Julián Besteiro.
Differences later emerged. Some intellectuals supported the Left’s political nuances (Valle-Inclán, Antonio Machado), while others distanced themselves. For example, Unamuno criticized the organization of the state into regions and defended the Spanish language against the Statute establishing Catalan bilingualism. Ortega y Gasset was also very critical from the time of the adoption of the Constitution.
The policy of spreading culture was very important. Noteworthy is the work of cultural dissemination by the Educational Missions and theater companies such as La Barraca, directed by Federico García Lorca.
From 1933, intellectual leadership was lost. In all fields of knowledge, activity remained in the hands of men of the generations of ’98 and ’14. However, a new group of artists, writers, and thinkers of the Generation of 1927 began to emerge (Dámaso Alonso, Luis Cernuda, Vicente Aleixandre, Rafael Alberti, Pedro Salinas, Jorge Guillén, Gerardo Diego, and the exceptional Federico García Lorca). Other notable authors include Alejandro Casona, Miguel Hernández, and Ramón J. Sender. Added to this is the fullness of the work of painters such as Picasso, Miró, and Dalí, and the first film productions of Luis Buñuel.
Opposition to the Government
The traditional right was disrupted after the proclamation of the Republic in the first months of the new regime. Conservative opposition was restricted to the Employers’ Associations, the National Economic Union, and Lerroux’s Radical Party. This center-right group led the opposition to the government in Parliament.
On the other hand, the revolutionary left did not let up on the new government. The National Confederation of Labor (CNT), an anarchist organization with more than one million members, followed the line marked by extremist militants in the Iberian Anarchist Federation (FAI). The minority Communist Party of Spain (PCE) was also installed in a radical line, defended at the time by the Comintern and Stalin.
The economic crisis, the radical line favored by the CNT, and the refusal of employers to accept the reforms led to a framework of social tensions. Clashes between strikers and the Guardia Civil were frequent and often violent (Castilblanco, Arnedo, Bajo Llobregat).
The debate in Parliament on the Statute of Catalonia and the Agrarian Reform Act led to strong opposition from the forces of the right. Once again, conservative forces resorted to the traditional method of military insurrection. General Sanjurjo attempted a military coup in August 1932 in Seville. The “Sanjurjada,” poorly planned and with mixed support in the army, failed.
The reaction of forces supporting the government was immediate. Parliament approved the Law on Agrarian Reform and the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia. In this area, the Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya, led by Francesc Macià, won the first regional elections.
Despite the failure of Sanjurjo, the Republican-Socialist government showed clear signs of wear. In this context, the serious incidents of Casas Viejas occurred, in which the Assault Guards besieged and killed a group of anarchist peasants. The ensuing scandal led the government to call new elections in November 1933.
For these elections, the right had been reorganized. Three new groups were presented:
- The Spanish Confederation of Autonomous Rights (CEDA), led by Gil Robles, the majority group sponsored by the Catholic Church.
- Spanish Renewal, headed by Calvo Sotelo, which grouped the Monarchists.
- Spanish Falange, the Spanish version of fascism, led by José Antonio Primo de Rivera, son of the dictator.
The left was presented fragmented into multiple groups, and anarchists called for abstention.
The elections were won by conservative groups: the Radical Republican Party and the CEDA.
The conservative victory was answered by an anarchist insurrection that resulted in more than a hundred deaths.