Spanish Restoration: Political System and Key Figures
The Regeneracionista era saw the rise of the Fusionist Liberal Party, later known as the Liberal Party, founded in 1880. Its principal leader was Matthew Práxedes Sagasta. The party’s programmatic bases included universal male suffrage, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, and free trade. Electoral manipulation and chieftaincy were crucial to the effectiveness of the agreed-upon turn (turnismo), which was essential for controlling the entire electoral process. First, electoral districts were created with a population size suitable for control and domination by the authorities, including a large rural population to offset the more free and independent urban vote. Secondly, the Minister of the Interior drew up lists of candidates to be elected, a process known as ‘box’. Finally, elections were held, rigged to accommodate the proposed lists from Madrid. This relied on a series of electoral traps known as ‘rigging’. This systematic falsification of election results involved the ‘boss’, a figure in a town or district with significant economic and political influence, who controlled a particular constituency. The chieftaincy was particularly prevalent in Andalusia, where it developed more intensely than in the rest of Spain, due to the large proportion of illiterates, the rigid labor market controlled by landowners, and the influence of the chiefs in municipalities. Key figures for the Conservative Party included Romero Robledo and Perez de Ayala, while the Liberal Party saw the dukes of Alba, Veragua, and the Count of Fernán Núñez. The work of Joaquín Costa, ‘Oligarchy and Despotism’, clearly reflects the political system of the Restoration in Andalusia.
Political Developments During the Reign of Alfonso XII (1874-1885) and Regency of María Cristina (1885-1902)
The Restoration is divided into two periods: the reign of Alfonso XII and the Regency of his wife, Maria Cristina, which began after the King’s death (1885) and ended with the coming of age of the heir, Alfonso XIII. Throughout this period, the government was in the hands of the two dynastic parties, which alternated in power without opposition. The Carlist, Republican, socialist, and nationalist parties did not manage to obtain a sufficient number of deputies to form a government or exercise parliamentary opposition. The Conservative Party was in power during the early years of the reign of Alfonso XII (1875-1881). During that time, several conservative laws were adopted, restricting freedoms:
- Electoral Act (1876) that restored census suffrage after the 1869 Constitution.
- Control Act of Municipalities (1876), which gave provincial governors and the Crown the power to appoint mayors.
- Reform of the Basque regional system (1876) through the Economic Agreement.
- Press Law (1879), which considered any criticism of the monarchy and the Restoration political system a crime. The law also affected academic freedom in high school and college.
In November 1885, King Alfonso XII died. The Queen had not yet given birth to the heir, Alfonso XIII, who was born in May 1886. The fear of destabilizing the system created by Cánovas urged conservatives and liberals to reach an agreement, the so-called Pact of Pardo, where they agreed to alternate in power peacefully, respect the laws made by each party, and support the Queen Regent. In 1897, Cánovas was assassinated by the Italian anarchist Angiolillo, removing the architect and linchpin of the Restoration system. Cánovas was replaced in the Conservative Party by Francisco Silvela and, later, Antonio Maura.