The Reformist Biennium: Transforming the Second Spanish Republic
The Reformist Biennium
Days after the adoption of the Constitution, the first constitutional government was formed, chaired by Manuel Azaña. He ceded the presidency of the Republic to the conservative Alcalá Zamora, who had been the president of the provisional government. This government proposed the task of transforming Spanish reality through the following reforms:
1. Military Reform
This reform sought the creation of a professional and democratic army, aiming to end its macrocephaly (one officer for every three soldiers). The Retirement Act required military assets to pledge allegiance to the regime, allowing officers to retire with full pay if they wished. The reform did not fully achieve its objectives, as the number of retired officers was lower than expected.
2. Religious Issues
The Republic proposed to secularize national life. Fear of the influence religious orders held through education led to the dissolution of the Jesuit order and the Congregations Act, which limited property ownership and allowed for the dissolution of orders deemed a danger to the state.
3. Agrarian Reform
This was the largest project undertaken by the Republic. The Agrarian Reform Law, passed by the Cortes, aimed to expropriate estates and settle peasants. The law allowed for the expropriation of large, poorly cultivated lands with compensation. The results were quite limited and led to an increase in social tension.
4. Labor and Educational Reforms
To improve working conditions, the government adopted the Law on Labor Contracts, which governed collective bargaining and established a forty-hour workweek. Furthermore, the state stimulated a model of education that was mixed, secular, compulsory, and free.
5. Reorganization of Rights and Political Opposition
These reforms alienated conservatives and monarchists. By the end of 1932, the CEDA was directed by Gil Robles, and in 1933, José Antonio Primo de Rivera created the Spanish Falange. Some sectors of the army attempted to capitalize on the discontent of the Republic's enemies, leading to a failed coup in 1932.
6. Workers and Social Conflict
The most radical sectors (FAI) saw the Republican experience as an opportunity to lead a revolution, promoting labor conflicts and peasant insurrections. Strikes, uprisings, and land occupations increased. Activists took over city halls, burned property records, and pushed for the collectivization of libertarian communism. These incidents led Azaña to resign; subsequently, the President of the Republic dissolved Parliament and called for elections in November 1933.