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111-694: After the Spanish transition to democracy , the group split, with one faction uniting to the Unión General de Trabajadores (historically affiliated with the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party or PSOE), another joining the Workers' Commissions ( Comisiones Obreras , affiliated with the Communist Party of Spain ), and a third continuing as a small, independent trade union. This Spain -related article

222-636: A pronunciamiento in Sagunto, which delivered the coup de grâce to the Republic and brought the Bourbon Restoration . The Constituent Cortes was called upon to write a federal constitution. The radicals preferred a unitary republic, with a much lesser role for the provinces, and once the republic had been declared the two parties turned against each other. Initially, the radicals were largely driven from power, joining those who had already been driven out by

333-516: A totalitarian regime ". Javier Tusell pointed out that "those who in the past were in bed with totalitarianism now felt entitled to prohibit the totalitarianism of others". The reforms of the Fundamental Laws governing royal succession and the composition of the Cortes, designed by Fraga, also failed. Fraga had intended to make the Cortes bicameral , with one chamber elected by universal suffrage and

444-659: A Cabinet session, Estanislao Figueras yelled: "Gentlemen, I can't stand this any more. I am going to be frank with you: I'm fed up with all of us!" So fed up that on 10 June he left his resignation letter in his office, went for a walk through the Parque del Buen Retiro and, without telling anyone, boarded the first train departing from the Atocha Station . He would only step down upon arriving in Paris . " The federal republic for Pi y Margall The procedure — there's no reason to hide it —

555-557: A battalion of infantry and various artillery and cavalry units, to march on the militiamen. The coup d'état failed as soon as it started, and the government dissolved the military units participating and the Permanent Committee of the Assembly. The writs were issued for Constituent Cortes elections on 10 May which resulted 343 seats for federal republicans and 31 for the rest of the political forces. The elections themselves developed in

666-463: A clear political program based on two points: This program was clear and unequivocal, but its realization tested the political capacity of Suárez. He had to convince both the opposition to participate in his plan and the army to allow the process to run uninterrupted, and at the same time needed to bring the situation in the Basque Country under control. Despite these challenges, Suárez's project

777-517: A constitution, in the middle of 1977. In 1978, the Moncloa Pact was passed: an agreement amongst politicians, political parties, and trade unions to plan how to operate the economy, during the transition. The Spanish Constitution of 1978 went on to be approved in a referendum, on 6 December 1978. Prime Minister Adolfo Suárez's party, the UCD, received a plurality , but not an absolute majority , in both

888-743: A coup d'état and established a unified republic dominated by Francisco Serrano . The period was marked by three simultaneous civil wars: the Third Carlist War , the Cantonal Revolution , the Petroleum Revolution in Alcoy ; and by the Ten Years' War in Cuba . The gravest problems for the consolidation of the regime were the lack of true republicans, their division between federalists and unitarians, and

999-452: A democratic, constitutional and parliamentary monarchy. For the transition to succeed, the army needed to refrain from intervening in the political process on behalf of Francoist elements within the existing government. As Raymond Carr explains, In containing the right and keeping the army loyal to the government the support of the King, as commander-in-chief of the army, was critical, enabling

1110-646: A dream of Spanish intellectuals since the end of the 19th century. Previous attempts at democratization included the First Spanish Republic and the Second Spanish Republic . General Francisco Franco came to power in 1939, following the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939), and ruled as a dictator until his death in 1975. In 1969, he designated Prince Juan Carlos , grandson of Spain's most recent king, Alfonso XIII , as his official successor. For

1221-428: A further clear agenda. Many UCD members were fairly conservative and did not want further change. For example, a bill to legalize divorce caused much dissension inside the UCD, in spite of being supported by the majority of the populace. The UCD coalition fell apart. The clashes among the several factions, inside the party, eroded Suárez's authority and his role as leader. The tension exploded in 1981: Suárez resigned as

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1332-602: A large part of the army to oppose Suárez, opposition that further intensified when the PCE was legalized. Meanwhile, Gutiérrez Mellado promoted officials who supported political reform and removed those commanders of the security forces (the Policía Armada and the Guardia Civil ) who seemed to support preserving the Francoist regime. Suárez wanted to demonstrate to the army that

1443-553: A llegar, en sus justísimos desquites, hasta Murcia, y a no dejar en Murcia piedra sobre piedra. The Jumillan nation wishes to live in peace with all nearby nations, and particularly with the nation of Murcia, her neighbor; but should the nation of Murcia dare not to recognize its autonomy and violate its borders, Jumilla will fight back like the heroes of May 2 , and shall be victorious in her demands, ready to arrive at Murcia, in its most just retribution, itself and leave no stone standing upon another. There is, however, no record of such

1554-450: A manifesto, nor of any similar declaration, in the municipal archives; and the proceedings of the time seemed to be within normality. This has motivated several historians to deny the authenticity of the manifesto and even the very existence of the Jumilla canton, stating that its invention was merely a form of anti-republican propaganda. The most active – and known – of the cantons

1665-488: A motion declaring the town a Social Republic, and the next day many federalist deputies left the Cortes in protest. About a week later, on 9 July, Alcoy followed suit, when during a strike directed by local leaders of the First International , the police fired to the gathered workers who responded by taking up arms and gaining control of the city. These events became known as the Petroleum Revolution . Shortly after,

1776-722: A new coup, now supported by the Civil Governor of Madrid: a battalion of militiamen took positions along the Paseo del Prado , and four thousand more perfectly armed volunteers gathered near Independence Square under the pretext of passing review. Having heard from the plot, Pi i Margall mobilized the Civil Guard . For his part, after the Minister of War appointed Baltasar Hidalgo as the new Captain General for Madrid, he ordered Brigadier Carmona and

1887-403: A new president was elected. Figueras' fellow federalist and government minister Francisco Pi y Margall was elected on 11 June, but on his speech to the Assembly he declared he was at a complete loss and without a program. The main efforts of the new government focused on the drafting of the new Constitution and some social character-related bills: On 16 June a 25-member Committee was set up by

1998-522: A quite unorthodox environment, and the resulting representation was ridiculous, as most factions in Spain did not participate: the Carlists were still waging war against the Republic, while the alfonsino monarchists of Antonio Cánovas del Castillo , the unitary republicans and even the incipient workers' organization close to the First International all called for abstention . The result was clearly favourable to

2109-552: A rock and the proverbial hard place of the cantonal revolution. However, the effective Commander in Chief of the Republic rejected all calls, from both military and political instances, to exert repression on the cantonal uprisings, as he argued they were just following his very own doctrine. Thus, he was forced to resign on 18 July after just 37 days in office. He would later sorely describe his experience as premier: So many have my upsets with power been that I can no longer covet it. While in

2220-638: A strange telegram sent by the city's captain-general to the Minister of the Navy: "Saint Julian castle shows Turkish flag". Such "Turkish flag" was in fact the cantonal flag, the first red flag in Spanish history (the Ottoman Civil Ensign was a plain red flag, hence the captain-general's terminology). Gálvez's passionate speeches allowed him to gain control of the Navy ships docked in the city, which at that time were among

2331-532: A thousand parts, similar to the successors to the Cordoba Caliphate . The strangest ideas and the most dishevelled principles came from the provinces. Some said to be about to restore the old Crown of Aragon , as if the ways of modern Law were spells from the Middle Ages . Others wanted to form an independent Galicia under an English protectorate. Jaén was preparing to wage war against Granada . Salamanca

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2442-582: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article related to one or more trade or labor unions is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Spanish transition to democracy The Spanish transition to democracy , known in Spain as la Transición ( IPA: [la tɾansiˈθjon] ; ' the Transition ' ) or la Transición española ( ' the Spanish Transition ' ),

2553-510: Is a period of modern Spanish history encompassing the regime change that moved from the Francoist dictatorship to the consolidation of a parliamentary system , in the form of constitutional monarchy under Juan Carlos I . The democratic transition began after the death of Francisco Franco , in November 1975. Initially, "the political elites left over from Francoism" attempted "to reform of

2664-434: Is said to have concluded after the landslide victory of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) in the 1982 general election and the first peaceful transfer of executive power . Democracy was on the road to being consolidated. The end result of the Transition according to Casanova was "at least from 1982 onwards, a parliamentary monarchy, based on a democratic constitution, with a large number of rights and freedoms,

2775-537: Is usually considered the heart of this government, which had to face several problems already endemic to the Republic, such as the Third Carlist War, separatist insurrections (this time from Catalonia), military indiscipline, monarchic plots, etc. His government dissolved the National Assembly and summoned Constituent Cortes for 1 May. On 23 April Cristino Martos, Speaker of the old National Assembly, attempted

2886-492: The Bourbon monarchy with the proclamation of Alfonso XII as king. King Amadeo I abdicated from the Spanish throne on 11 February 1873. His decision was mainly due to the constant difficulties he had to face during his short tenure, as the Ten Years' War , the outbreak of the Third Carlist War , the opposition from alfonsino monarchists, which hoped for the Bourbon Restoration in the person of Alfonso , son of Isabella II ,

2997-596: The Cantonal Rebellion swept across Spain with the federalist sentiment giving rise to several independent cantons. Uprisings were daily news in the south-eastern area of Valencia , Murcia and Andalusia . Some cantons were provincial in nature, like Valencia or Málaga , but most comprised just a city and its surroundings, like the more localised cantons of Alcoy , Cartagena , Seville , Cádiz , Almansa , Torrevieja , Castellón , Granada , Salamanca , Bailén , Andújar , Tarifa and Algeciras . Even smaller were

3108-459: The Captain General of Madrid , Manuel Pavía , pronounced against the federalist government and called on all parties except Federalists and Carlists to form a national government. The monarchists and Republicans refused, leaving the unitary Radicals and Constitutionalists as the only group willing to govern; again a narrow political base. General Francisco Serrano formed a new government and

3219-530: The Movimiento Nacional , he declared that the purpose of his government was the continuity of Francoism through a "democracy in the Spanish way" ( Spanish : democracia a la española ). He believed political changes should be limited: he would give the parliament, the Cortes Españolas, the task of "updating our laws and institutions the way Franco would have wanted". The reform programme adopted by

3330-515: The 28th Congress of the PSOE in May 1979, secretary-general Felipe González resigned, rather than ally with the strong revolutionary elements that seemed to dominate the party. A special congress was called that September, and realigned the party along more moderate lines, renouncing Marxism and allowing González to take charge once more. Throughout 1982, the PSOE confirmed its moderate orientation and brought in

3441-415: The Carlists and the cantonal revolution, the actual territory in which the short-lived Republic exerted undisputed authority did not extend much further than the province of Madrid itself and North-Western Spain, as cantonal uprisings took place as far north as Ávila . Due to the rapid pace of the events, and without time for the new Constitution to be passed by the Cortes, Pi i Margall found himself between

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3552-532: The Civil War still haunted Spain. Francoists on the far right enjoyed considerable support within the Spanish Army , and people of the left distrusted a king who owed his position to Franco. The King's legitimacy rested on this appointment; his father, Don Juan, did not renounce his claim until 14 May 1977. Liberal opinion at the time held therefore, that the throne's legitimacy could only be saved by establishing

3663-896: The Constituent Cortes were carried out in June 1977. The elections held on 15 June 1977 confirmed the existence of four important political forces, at the national level. The votes broke down in the following manner: With the success of the Basque Nationalist Party ( Basque : EAJ, Euzko Alderdi Jeltzalea ; Spanish : PNV, Partido Nacionalista Vasco ) winning 8 seats and the Democratic Pact for Catalonia (PDC, Pacte Democrátic per Catalunya ) winning 11 seats in their respective regions, nationalist parties also began to show their political strength in these elections. The Constituent Cortes (elected Spanish parliament) then began to draft

3774-517: The Cortes rejected changes to the Criminal Code, which had previously made it a crime to be affiliated with a political party other than FET y de las JONS . The members of the Cortes, who vehemently opposed the legalization of the Communist Party, added an amendment to the law that banned political organizations that "submitted to an international discipline" and "advocated for the implantation of

3885-547: The Cortes to study the draft Constitution of the Federal Republic of Spain , the redaction of which is mainly attributed to Emilio Castelar , with debate starting the following day. On 28 June Pi i Margall renewed the composition of his government, but due to the slow pace of the constitutional debates in the Cortes, events came crashing down on the government at a stunning pace. On 30 June the City Council of Seville passed

3996-540: The Cortes, and it shall be responsible to the same." In the same session, the first government of the Republic was elected. Federal republican Estanislao Figueras was elected the first "President of the Executive Power", an office incorporating the heads of State and Government. No "President of the Republic" was ever elected, as the Constitution creating such office was never enacted. In his speech, Figueras said that

4107-583: The Fundamental Laws. It also had to garner support within the Armed Forces and in the Spanish Labour Organisation . It also needed to appease the democratic opposition to Francoism. The approach towards the dissenters was that they would not be part of the reform process, but would be allowed to participate in politics more generally, with the exception of the Communist Party of Spain ( Partido Comunista de España , PCE). This conservative reform

4218-625: The Government I have lost my calm, my illusions, my trust in fellow men which was the base of my character. For each grateful man, a hundred ungratefuls; for each disinterested and patriotic one, hundreds that wanted from politics nothing more than the satisfaction of their whims. I have received bad for good. The draft of the Federal Constitution of the First Republic of Spain developed at length into 117 articles organized under 17 titles. In

4329-449: The June 1977 and March 1979 elections. To exercise power, the UCD had to form parliamentary coalitions with other political parties. From 1979, the government spent much of its time working to hold together the many factions within the party itself, as well as their coalitions. In 1980, the Suárez government had, for the most part, accomplished its goal of a transition to democracy and lacked

4440-510: The Political Reform Act. Suárez had to risk even more to involve the opposition forces in his plan. In December 1976, the PSOE celebrated its 27th Congress in Madrid , and began to disassociate itself from the demands of the PCE, affirming that it would participate in the next call for elections for the Constituent Cortes. At the beginning of 1977, the year of the elections, Suárez confronted

4551-712: The Principles of the Movimiento Nacional (National Movement), the political system of the Franco era; took possession of the crown before the Francoist Cortes Españolas ; and respected the Organic Law of the State for the appointment of his first head of government . Only in his speech before the Cortes did he indicate his support for a transformation of the Spanish political system. This de facto alliance between Juan Carlos and

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4662-474: The Republic "was like a rainbow of peace and harmony of all Spaniards of good will." The passage of these resolutions surprised and stunned most Spaniards, as the recently elected Cortes (now National Assembly) had a wide majority of monarchists. Ruiz Zorrilla spoke in these terms: "I protest and will keep doing so, even if I'm left on my own, against those representatives that having come to the Cortes as constitutional monarchists feel themselves authorized to make

4773-489: The Republic as the form of government, leaving its organization to the Constituent Cortes." In his speech for the proposal (to which he was a signatory, along with Figueras, Salmerón, and other opponents), Pi y Margall—himself a federalist—renounced for the moment to establish a federal republic, hoping the would-be-assembled Constituent Cortes to decide over the issue, and announced his acceptance of any other democratic decision. Then another republican, Emilio Castelar , took

4884-582: The Spanish Federal Republic on 9 March which was overcome by a series of telegraphic contacts between the government and the Catalan leaders. On 23 April a new coup attempt was set in motion; this time by a collusion of alfonsino monarchists, members of the old Liberal Union and monarchic sectors of the Army; but failed when several units refrained from supporting it at the last hour. Francisco Pi y Margall

4995-660: The Spanish Nation is the Democratic Federal Republic". The president, having carried out the Cortes' regulations for the definite approval of proposal of law, arranged to hold a nominal vote the next day. The resolution was passed 8 June by a favorable vote of 219 representatives and only 2 against, and the Federal Republic was thus declared. Most of the federalists in parliament supported a Swiss -like confederative model, with regions directly forming independent cantons. Spanish writer Benito Pérez Galdós , aged 21 at

5106-462: The Transition. While often cited as a paradigm of peaceful, negotiated transition, political violence during the Spanish transition was far more prevalent than during the analogous democratization processes in Greece or Portugal , with the emergence of separatist, leftist, fascist and vigilante terrorist groups and police violence. The re-democratization also led to Spain's integration into Europe,

5217-479: The afternoon of 23 February 1981. The coup leaders claimed to be acting in the king's name. However, early on the following morning, Juan Carlos gave a nationwide speech unequivocally opposing it, saying that "the Crown, symbol of the permanence and unity of the nation, will not tolerate, in any degree whatsoever, the actions or behavior of anyone attempting, through use of force, to interrupt the democratic process." The coup

5328-446: The army and exercised influence over important sectors of the military. The ever-present threat of a coup d’etat from the hardliners required careful navigation. To resolve the issue, Suárez intended to support himself with a liberal group within the military, centered on General Díez Alegría . Suárez gave the members of this group the positions of authority with the most responsibility. The most notable personality of this faction within

5439-565: The army was General Manuel Gutiérrez Mellado . However, in July 1976, the Vice President for Defense Affairs was General Fernando de Santiago , a member of a hardline group within the army. De Santiago had shown his restlessness before, during the first amnesty in July 1976. He had opposed the law granting the right to unionize. Suárez dismissed Fernando de Santiago, nominating Gutiérrez Mellado instead. This confrontation with General de Santiago caused

5550-626: The best in the Spanish Navy. Under his command, the fleet wreaked havoc on the nearby Mediterranean shore, causing the Madrid government to declare him a pirate and set a bounty on his head. Back on land, he led an expedition towards Madrid that was defeated at Chinchilla . Two cantonal frigates, the Almansa and the Vitoria , set sail towards a "foreign power" (the Spanish city of Almería ) for fund-raising. As

5661-499: The changes through a popular referendum . On 15 December 1976, with a 77.72% participation rate, 94% of voters indicated their support for the changes. From this moment, it was possible to begin the electoral process (the second part of the Suárez program), which would serve to elect the members of the Constituent Cortes , the body that was to be responsible for creating a democratic constitution. With this part of his plan fulfilled, Suárez had to resolve another issue: should he include

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5772-480: The city would not pay, it was bombarded and taken by the cantonalists. General Contreras, commanding officer of the cantonal fleet, ordered the Marcha Real to be played as he unboarded. Afterwards, the deed would be repeated in Alicante , but on the trip back to Cartagena they were captured as pirates by the armoured frigates HMS Swiftsure and SMS Friedrich Karl , under the UK and German flags respectively. There were days in that summer in which we thought our Spain

5883-399: The commission meant that Fraga and the reformists lost control of much of the legislative direction of the country; the reformists had been planning updated "Laws of Assembly and Association", which included a reform of the Spanish Criminal Code . Even so, the new Law of Assembly was passed by the Francoist Cortes on 25 May 1976, allowing public demonstration with government authorization. On

5994-417: The conditions that the opposition groups first demanded in 1974. These opposition forces met in November 1976 to create an association of democratic organizations called the Democratic Convergence Platform . Suárez had initiated political contact with the opposition by meeting with Felipe González , secretary general of the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE), in August 1976. The positive attitude of

6105-404: The consequence of a complex transition, riddled with conflicts, foreseen and unforeseen obstacles and problems, in the context of economic crisis and political uncertainty." However, as then-prime minister González said later, "the state apparatus was retained, in its entirety, from the dictatorship". Importantly, most of the significant aspects in the Transition were adopted by consensus between

6216-421: The continuation of terrorist attacks by ETA (m) ("ETA Military"; later simply "ETA") or to a lesser extent, GRAPO. Meanwhile, restlessness in various sections of the armed forces created fear of an impending military coup . Reactionary elements in the army attempted a coup known as 23-F , in which Lieutenant Colonel Antonio Tejero led an occupation by a group of Guardia Civil of the Congress of Deputies , on

6327-445: The decision to turn the nation from monarchist to republican overnight." For most monarchists, though, the impossibility of restoring Isabella II as Queen, and the youth of the future Alfonso XII made the Republic the only, though transitory, viable course of action, particularly given the inevitable failure that awaited it. The first government of the Republic was formed of federalists and progressives who had been ministers during

6438-522: The door to parliamentary democracy in Spain, this legislation could not simply create a new political system by eliminating the obstacles put in place by the Franco regime against democracy: it had to liquidate the Francoist system through the Francoist Cortes itself. The Cortes, under the presidency of Fernández-Miranda, debated this bill throughout the month of November; it ultimately approved it, with 425 votes in favor, 59 against, and 13 abstentions. The Suárez government sought to gain further legitimacy for

6549-420: The elections pushed Suárez to take the riskiest step of the transition: the legalization of the PCE in April 1977. However, throughout this critical period the government began a strategy of providing greater institutional space to the Unión General de Trabajadores (UGT) union, more moderate and linked to the Socialists, in comparison to the Communist-oriented CCOO . The manner in which a unified trade union

6660-480: The end of compulsory conscription, the regulation of child labor and the abolition of slavery in Puerto Rico. The government inherited a state of war, the so-called Third Carlist War , ongoing since 1872, and the Ten Years' War , ongoing since 1868, to which the Cantonal rebellion added up in 1873. The January 1874 coup of Pavía ousted the government, giving way to a praetorian republic under General Serrano . In December 1874, General Arsenio Martínez Campos staged

6771-418: The establishment of the Republic, compulsory military service was removed and voluntary service set up with a daily salary of 1 peseta and one crust (loaf?) of bread. A Republican volunteers corps was also established with an enlistment salary of 50 pesetas and a daily salary of 2 pesetas and 1 crust of bread. The second Figueras government had to face the attempt of proclamation of the Estat Català inside

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6882-405: The federal republicans, which captured 343 of the 371 seats, but turnout was probably the lowest in Spanish history, with about 28% in Catalonia and 25% in Madrid. On 1 June 1873 the first session of the Constituent Cortes was opened and the presentation of resolutions began. The first one was debated on the seventh of June, written by seven representatives: "First Article. The form of government of

6993-521: The first article, the following is found: Composing the Spanish Nation the states of Andalucía Alta, Andalucía Baja, Aragón, Asturias, Baleares, Canarias, Castilla la Nueva, Castilla la Vieja, Cataluña, Cuba, Extremadura, Galicia, Murcia, Navarra, Puerto Rico, Valencia, Regiones Vascongadas. The states will be able to conserve the actual provinces and modify them, according to their territorial necessities. These states would have "complete economic-administrative autonomy and political autonomy compatible with

7104-419: The floor and said: Sirs, traditional monarchy died with Ferdinand VII ; parliamentary monarchy with the flight of Isabella II ; democratic monarchy with the abdication of don Amadeo of Savoy ; nobody has done away with it, it has died on its own; nobody brings the Republic, save all circumstances, a cabal of society, nature and history. Sirs, let us greet it like the sun rising with its own strength on

7215-469: The government to retire factious generals who regarded it as their duty to maintain the existing constitution. The King did not initially appoint a new prime minister, leaving in place the incumbent head of government under Franco, Carlos Arias Navarro . Arias Navarro had not initially planned a reform of the Francoist regime; in the National Council of the Movement , an advisory assembly of the ruling FET y de las JONS ( Falange ) party and other groups in

7326-433: The government until then: the Radical Democratic Party of Manuel Ruiz Zorrilla and the Constitutional Party of Práxedes Mateo Sagasta . There also was a small republican minority in the National Assembly, ideologically divided between federalism and centralism. One of them, Federal Democratic Republican Party member Francisco Pi y Margall moved the following proposal: "The National Assembly assumes powers and declares

7437-407: The government was the one proposed by Manuel Fraga , rejecting Antonio Garrigues' plan to elect a constituent assembly . Fraga's programme aimed to achieve a "liberal democracy" that was "comparable to the rest of the Western European countries" through a "gradual and controlled process", through a series of reforms of the pseudo-constitutional Fundamental Laws of the Realm . This is why his proposal

7548-427: The governments and the opposition. In addition to this pragmatic, civic, "a-nationalist" leadership in Madrid, contributing factors to the success of the Transition were a Monarchy as a cohesive unitary symbol and the neutralisation of the Army's influence on political life. Additionally, the contrasting action of Basque violence and the peaceful mobilisation of Catalonia, successfully transformed Spanish politics during

7659-505: The head of government, and Leopoldo Calvo Sotelo was appointed, first to lead the new cabinet, and later, to the presidency of the UCD; social democrats led by Francisco Fernández Ordóñez defected from the coalition, later joining the PSOE, while Christian democrats left to form the People's Democratic Party . While the democratic normalization had succeeded in convincing ETA (pm) , the "political-military" faction of ETA, to abandon arms and enter parliamentary politics, it did not stop

7770-502: The institutions of dictatorship" through existing legal means, but social and political pressure saw the formation of a democratic parliament in the 1977 general election, which had the imprimatur to write a new constitution that was then approved by referendum in December 1978. The following years saw the beginning of the development of the rule of law and establishment of regional government , amidst ongoing terrorism, an attempted coup d'état and global economic problems. The Transition

7881-436: The kidnapping of two important figures of the regime: the President of the Council of the State José María de Oriol , and General Villaescusa, President of the Superior Council of the Military Justice. From the right, during these kidnappings, members of the neo-fascist Alianza Apostólica Anticomunista conducted the Atocha massacre, three of them labor lawyers , in an office on Atocha Street in Madrid, in January 1977. In

7992-533: The lack of popular support. Subversion in the army, a series of local cantonalist risings, instability in Barcelona , failed anti-federalist coups, calls for revolution by the International Workingmen's Association , the lack of any broad political legitimacy, and personal in-fighting among the republican leadership all further weakened the republic. The Republic effectively ended on 3 January 1874, when

8103-502: The life of the nation would not be suspended for a single moment; there would be no fear of deep conflicts arising between the provinces; it would be the easiest, fastest, safest way and the less exposed to contrariety... " —Francisco Pi y Margall After Figueras' flight to France, the power vacuum created was tempting general Manuel Sodas into starting a pronunciamiento when a Civil Guard colonel, José de la Iglesia, showed up at Congress and declared that nobody would leave until

8214-497: The many republican insurrections and the division among his own supporters. The Spanish Cortes , which were assembled in a joint and permanent session of both the Congress of Deputies and the Senate , declared themselves the National Assembly while waiting for any final notice from the King. The overwhelming majority was with the monarchists from the two dynastic parties that had exercised

8325-534: The middle of 1976 had seemed open to a limited truce after Franco's death, resumed armed confrontation again in October. The time from 1978 to 1980 would be ETA's three deadliest years ever. However, it was between December 1976 and January 1977 that a series of attacks brought about a situation of high tension in Spain. The Maoist GRAPO ( Grupos de Resistencia Antifascista Primero de Octubre ) began its armed struggle by bombing public locations, and then continued with

8436-496: The midst of these provocations, Suárez convened his first meeting with a significant number of opposition leaders, who published a condemnation of terrorism and gave their support to Suárez's actions. During this turbulent time, the Búnker capitalized on the instability and declared that the country was on the brink of chaos. Despite the increased violence by the ETA and GRAPO, elections for

8547-407: The monarchy. Four ministers, in particular, had served with King Amadeo: Echegaray (Finance), Becerra (War), Fernández de Córdoba (Navy) and Berenguer (Infrastructure). At the beginning, they were plagued by a terrible economic situation, with a 546M peseta budgetary deficit , 153M in debts requiring immediate payment and only 32M available to fulfill them. The Artillery Corps had been dissolved in

8658-570: The most virulent moment of the Carlist and Cuban wars, for which there were not enough soldiers or armament, nor money to feed or purchase them. Besides, Spain was going through a deep economic crisis matching the Panic of 1873 and which was exacerbated by the political instability. In previous years, unemployment had risen steeply amongst field and industrial workers, and proletarian organizations responded with strikes , demonstrations , protest rallies and

8769-459: The name of Alfonsists as supporters of Alfonso , the son of the former Queen Isabel , and were organised by Cánovas del Castillo . This period of the Republic lasted until Brigadier Arsenio Martínez Campos pronounced for Alfonso in Sagunto on 29 December 1874 and the rest of the army refused to act against him. The government collapsed, leading to the end of the republic and the restoration of

8880-448: The next six years, Prince Juan Carlos remained in the background during public appearances and seemed ready to follow in Franco's footsteps. Once in power as King of Spain , however, he facilitated the development of a constitutional monarchy as his father, Don Juan de Borbón , had advocated since 1946. King Juan Carlos I began his reign as head of state without leaving the confines of Franco's legal system. As such, he swore fidelity to

8991-580: The occupation of abandoned lands. On 23 February the newly elected Speaker of the National Assembly, radical Cristino Marcos , plotted a failed coup d'etat in which the Civil Guard occupied the Ministry of Governance and the National Militia surrounded the Congress of Deputies , in order to establish a unitary republic. This prompted the first remodeling of the government in which the progressives were ousted and replaced with federalists. Twelve days after

9102-496: The officers strongly declared opposition to the legalization of the PCE. The PCE, for its part, acted ever more publicly to express its opinions. According to the Communists, the Political Reform Act was anti-democratic and the elections for the Constituent Cortes should be called by a provisional government including members from the opposition. The Communists particularly and the opposition more broadly did not show any enthusiasm for

9213-472: The opposition groups who had not participated at the beginning of the transition? Suárez also had to deal with a third problem: coming to terms with the anti-Francoist opposition. Suárez adopted a series of measured policies to add credibility to his project. He issued a partial political amnesty in July 1976, freeing 400 prisoners; he then extended this in March 1977, and finally granted a blanket amnesty in May of

9324-511: The other having an " organic " character. Torcuato Fernández-Miranda , the president of the Council of the Realm , placed Adolfo Suárez on a list of three candidates for King Juan Carlos to choose to become the new head of government, replacing Arias Navarro. The king chose Suárez because he felt he could meet the challenge of the difficult political process that lay ahead: persuading the Cortes, which

9435-480: The political forces opposed to maintaining the status quo is considered to be a key part to the success of Spain’s transition to democracy. The transition was an ambitious plan that counted on ample support both within and outside of Spain. Western governments, headed by the United States , now favoured a Spanish constitutional monarchy, as did many Spanish and international liberal capitalists . The spectre of

9546-500: The political normalization of the country meant neither anarchy nor revolution. In this, he counted on the cooperation of Santiago Carrillo, but he could in no way count on the cooperation of terrorist groups. The Basque Country remained, for the better part of this period, in a state of political turbulence. Suárez granted a multi-stage amnesty for numerous Basque political prisoners, but the confrontations continued between local police and protesters. The separatist group ETA , which in

9657-556: The problem of legalizing the PCE. After the public indignation against anti-reformists aroused by the Massacre of Atocha in January 1977, when far-right terrorists murdered labor leaders aligned with the PCE, Suárez opened negotiations with Communist leader Santiago Carrillo in February. Carrillo's willingness to cooperate without prior demands and his offer of a "social pact" for the period after

9768-519: The provinces. One way or another could have, without any doubt, produced the same constitution and it would not have been, in my opinion, neither patriotic nor political, to ensnare the proclamation of the Republic due to intransigence over this point. Even though the "bottom to top" procedure was more logical and proper of a Federation, the other, "top to bottom" was more likely for an already-formed nation like ours, and less dangerous in its implementation. There would be no cessation of continuity in power;

9879-469: The revolution of 1868 or by the Carlist War . The first republican attempt in the history of Spain was a short experience, characterized by profound political and social instability and violence. The Republic was governed by four distinct presidents— Estanislao Figueras , Francesc Pi i Margall , Nicolás Salmerón , Emilio Castelar ; then, only eleven months after its proclamation, General Manuel Pavía led

9990-538: The same day the Law of Political Associations was also approved, supported by Suárez, who affirmed in parliamentary session that "if Spain is plural, the Cortes cannot afford to deny it". Suárez's intervention in favor of this reform shocked many, including Juan Carlos I. This intervention was key in Juan Carlos' decision to appoint Suárez as Prime Minister in the following month. The Arias-Fraga reform collapsed on 11 June, when

10101-431: The same time, the PSOE led many local and regional administrations. This comfortable political majority allowed the PSOE to give the country a long period of tranquility and stability, after the intense years of the transition. First Spanish Republic The Spanish Republic ( Spanish : República española ), historiographically referred to as the First Spanish Republic ( Spanish : Primera República española ),

10212-593: The same year. In December 1976, the Tribunal de Orden Público (TOP), a sort of Francoist secret police , was dissolved. The right to strike was legalized in March 1977, with the right to unionize being granted the following month. Also in March, a new electoral system act ( Ley Electoral ) introduced the necessary framework for Spain's electoral system to be brought into accord with those of other countries that were liberal parliamentary democracies . Through these and other measures of government, Suárez complied with

10323-400: The sky of our nation. After Castelar's powerful speech, amidst passionate applause, the Republic was declared with a resignation of the monarchists, with 258 votes in favour and only 32 against: "The National Assembly assumes all powers and declares the Republic as the form of government of Spain, leaving its organization to the Constituent Cortes. An Executive Power shall be elected directly by

10434-419: The social democrats, who had just broken from the UCD. Winning an absolute majority in parliament in two consecutive elections (1982 and 1986 ), and exactly half the seats in 1989 , allowed the PSOE to legislate and govern without establishing pacts with the other parliamentary political forces. In this way, the PSOE could make laws to achieve the goals of its political program, " el cambio " ("the change"). At

10545-490: The socialist leader gave further support for Suárez to carry forward his reforms, but everyone clearly perceived that the big problem for the political normalization of the country would be the legalization of the Communist Party (PCE), which at the time had more activists and was more organized than any other group in the political opposition. However, in a meeting between Suárez and the most important military leaders in September,

10656-547: The spectator crazy and rendered the historic functions impossible. Days and nights went by without the Cortes deciding how the ministers should be appointed: if they would individually elected by a vote of each representative, or if it would be better to authorize Figueras or Pi to come up with a list of the new government. Each and every system was agreed on and later scrapped. It was a puerile game, which would have caused laughter if it had not been deeply sad. The situation reached such levels of surrealism that, while presiding over

10767-540: The time, wrote about the parliamentary atmosphere of the First Republic: The sessions of the Constituent (Cortes) attracted me, and most afternoons I spent in the press box, enjoying the spectacle of indescribable confusion cast by the fathers of the country. An endless individualism, the coming and going of opinions, from the most thought-out to the most extravagant, and the deadly spontaneity of most speakers, drove

10878-571: The village-based cantons of Camuñas (in Albacete) and Jumilla (in Murcia). The latter is said to have issued a manifesto stating: La nación jumillana desea vivir en paz con todas las naciones vecinas y, sobre todo, con la nación murciana, su vecina; pero si la nación murciana, su vecina, se atreve a desconocer su autonomía y a traspasar sus fronteras, Jumilla se defenderá, como los héroes del Dos de Mayo, y triunfará en la demanda, resuelta completamente

10989-483: Was afraid of the closing of its glorious university and the demise of its scientific prowess [...] The uprising came against the most federalist of all possible governments, and at the very moment the Assembly was preparing a draft Constitution, the worst defects of which came from the lack of time in the Committee and the surplus of impatience in the Government. — Emilio Castelar An even worse problem

11100-418: Was appointed President of the Republic although it was a mere formality since the Cortes had been dissolved. Carlist forces managed to expand the territory under their control to the greatest extent in early 1874, though a series of defeats by the republic's northern army in the second half of the year might have led to the end of the war had it not been for bad weather. However the other monarchists had taken

11211-523: Was broken later that day, but demonstrated the existence of insurrectionary elements within the army. Calvo Sotelo dissolved parliament and called for elections in October 1982. In the 1979 election, the UCD had achieved a plurality, but in 1982, it suffered a spectacular defeat with only 11 seats in the Parliament. The 1982 elections gave an absolute majority to the PSOE, which had already spent many years preparing its image of an alternative government. At

11322-556: Was carried out without delay between July 1976 and June 1977. He had to act on many fronts during this short period of time in order to achieve his aims. The draft of the Political Reform Act ( Ley para la Reforma Política ) was written by Torcuato Fernández-Miranda, speaker of the Cortes, who handed it over to the Suárez government in July 1976. The project was approved by the Suarez Government in September 1976. To open

11433-476: Was completely disbanded. The idea of legality was lost to a point any employee of [the Ministry of] War would assume full powers and notify the Cortes , and those charged with handing and fulfilling the law would disregard it, raising or booming against legality. It was not about, as in other instances, replacing an existent Ministry or a form of Government in the accepted way; it was about dividing our homeland in

11544-447: Was composed of appointed Francoist politicians, to dismantle Franco's system. In this manner, he would formally act within the Francoist legal system and thus avoid the prospect of military intervention in the political process. Suárez was appointed as the 138th Prime Minister of Spain by Juan Carlos on 3 July 1976, a move that, given his Francoist past, was opposed by leftists and some centrists. As Prime Minister, Suárez quickly presented

11655-563: Was dubbed as a "reform in the continuity", and his support came mostly from those who defended a Francoist sociological model. In order for reform to succeed, it had to earn the support of the hardcore Francoist faction known as the Búnker , which had a major presence in the Cortes and the National Council of the Movement, the two institutions that would have to eventually approve the reforms of

11766-421: Was openly the reverse of the past: the result could be the same. The provinces had to be represented in the new Cortes, and if they had any concrete idea on the limits over the powers of the future states, they could take it to the Cortes and defend it there. As the delimitation of the powers of the provinces would have also determined that of the state, the delimitation of the central power would determine that of

11877-490: Was partly inspired by the historical period of the semi-democratic Bourbon Restoration (1876–1931), and was criticised for not taking into account the social and political circumstances of the time. The project coalesced into a proposal to reform three of the Fundamental Laws, but the exact changes would be determined by a mixed commission of the Government and the National Council of the Movement, as proposed by Torcuato Fernández-Miranda and Adolfo Suárez . The creation of

11988-464: Was strategically countered is an important feature of the Spanish transition, as it limited radical opposition and created the basis for a fractured industrial relations system. Adolfo Suárez knew well that the Búnker —a group of hard-line Francoists led by José Antonio Girón and Blas Piñar , using the newspapers El Alcázar and Arriba as their mouthpieces—had close contacts with officials in

12099-566: Was the Canton of Cartagena , its autonomy declared on 12 July at the city naval base under the inspiration of the federalist congressman Antonio Gálvez Arce , known as Antonete . The Canton of Cartagena would live six months of constant wars, and even minted its own currency, the duro cantonal . The first deed of the Cartagenan cantonalists was the capture of the Saint Julian castle , which motivated

12210-569: Was the Third Carlist War , in which the rebels controlled most of the Basque Country , Navarre and Catalonia without opposition, and sent raid parties throughout the Peninsula. The Carlist pretender, Charles VII , had formed a rival government in Estella with his own ministers and was already minting currency, while the French connivance allowed him to receive external aid and fortify his defences. Between

12321-407: Was the political regime that existed in Spain from 11 February 1873 to 29 December 1874. The Republic's founding ensued after the abdication of King Amadeo on 10 February 1873. On the next day a republic was proclaimed by a parliamentary majority made up of radicals, republicans and democrats. The period was beset by tensions between federal republicans and unitarian republicans. The period also saw

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