Primo de Rivera's 1923 Manifesto: Coup d'État in Spain

Primo de Rivera's Manifesto: Announcing the Coup

We are facing a historical, political source. It is a manifest that Primo de Rivera performs, addressed to the Spanish population, announcing the reasons for the coup and the first steps taken. The author (individual) is Miguel Primo de Rivera (1870-1930), an important military man who got his promotion through participation in colonial wars (Morocco, Philippines...). Since 1922, he was the Captain General of Catalonia, where he distinguished himself by supporting the Catalan bourgeoisie against social protests. After the coup in which he stars, he ruled Spain in a dictatorial manner until 1930, when the king withdrew his confidence. Shortly after, he died in exile.

The Context of the Coup

At the moment when the text is dated, the country is in a difficult situation. The Restoration political system is dying; dynastic political parties are divided into factions that are not conducive to good governance (failure of the concentration government). Social tension is very high due to the effects of the post-war crisis and the pressure of the labor movement, leading employers to use terrorist methods to contain their successes (gangsterism in Barcelona). Autonomist nationalism, and even separatism, is booming, especially in the Basque Country and Catalonia. In the latter region, some officials have displayed nervousness about what they consider attacks on the unity of Spain. The monarchy is increasingly contested, and the owner, Alfonso XIII, is becoming unpopular. The situation is aggravated by the crisis of Annual (1921). The subsequent parliamentary inquiry into the responsibilities seems to affect the monarch directly. This situation of social chaos is what determines the action of Primo de Rivera.

The Main Idea of the Manifesto

The main idea of the text is to terminate the existing political regime (the Restoration, 1875-1923), due to the serious situation in the country, and replace it with a military dictatorship that seeks a solution to the problems gripping Spain.

The Role of the Army

The main support of the insurgent general will be the army, which will be of great importance throughout the dictatorship. This fact is already clear from the first lines of his manifesto, which makes a distinction between the country on the one hand and the military on the other, seeking to stress the importance of the latter. The general took power, he said, not as a way out, but as a duty, as an obligation under the circumstances. Failure to do so, the author predicts, would lead to a tragic end for Spain. He, as a representative of an estate responsible for defending the nation, states he cannot escape this responsibility.

Origins of Spain's Problems

The text refers to the beginning of the problems that threaten the country: the crisis of '98. Since then, the regime of the Restoration has been facing a series of conflicts that the political parties have no solution for. There is talk of immorality, the most serious, indeed, and without considering other economic corruptions, is that of despotism. Antonio Maura had created a fraudulent political system to maintain a semblance of a democratic system, but power could only lie in the hands of the two dynastic parties, the conservative and liberal. These, through electoral manipulation exercised, especially in the field, thanks to the chiefs, buying and coercion of voters, or the simple alteration of the votes, got those people the government had provided elected.