19th Century Spanish Social Structure and Labor History

Social Classes in 19th Century Spain

In the nineteenth century, a new social structure was divided into two classes: the proletariat and working people. The liberal model was able to survive the nobility and gentry who abounded in the interior of Spain. But as the century progressed, the noble heritage decreased. At the end of the century, industry exceeded noble fortune. The middle classes were a small number (less than 5%), but they shared the lifestyle of powerful groups.

Urban Classes and the Democratic Party

Regarding classes, the urban lower classes were dedicated to services; many women worked in domestic service. A quarter of the working population were women. In Catalonia, the craftsmen were artisans and merchants who were against the liberal model and constituted much of the Democratic Party.

Land Ownership and Agricultural Contracts

For sales, land was concentrated in few hands, and the number of laborers increased in strength due to vegetative growth and the transformation of small landlords and tenants. In the late nineteenth century, it was difficult to distinguish between a small owner, a tenant, or a landless laborer. The emphyteutic contract allowed one to freely dispose of the land and leave it in inheritance. Thanks to disentailment laws, many farmers were able to become owners. Owners who did not cultivate used Masoveria contracts (where home and land are received in exchange for a part of the harvest), partnership (unlimited contracts and distribution of fruits to the owner), or Rabassa Morta (cultivation of the vine until the death of the vines).

Industrialization and the Proletariat

The proletariat appeared thanks to the industrialization process, which brought an organization of labor. The pattern involved buying the workforce of a worker in exchange for a wage. Working hours were long and underpaid, from 12 to 14 hours, in poor places and conditions. Population growth led to field conflicts and continued uprisings.

Early Labor Protests and the 1855 General Strike

First came the workers' protests of the 1830s (burning crops, killing livestock, and the appearance of Luddism, urging the burning of machines). In 1835, the Bonaplata factory was burned in Barcelona. As protests reduced wages, the Society of Weavers and the Mutual Association of Weavers of Barcelona were created in 1840 in Spain to handle demands regarding labor and social affairs. Federations of trades brought together workers in the same industry, who paid a fee for support if they got sick, were made redundant, or faced conflict.

The first major conflict in the progressive biennium was the strike against self-acting mules (selfactines), which were considered to be taking work away from workers. This led to the prohibition of workers' associations, employers suspending contracts, and redundant workers, resulting in the first general strike in Spain in 1855. The proposals were not accepted, and later, with the return of the moderates to power, a decree banned workers' associations.