Regency of Maria Cristina: Political Landscape and Opposition

The Regency of Maria Cristina (1885-1902)

Upon the death of Alfonso XII, his wife, Maria Cristina of Hapsburg, assumed the regency with the support of the dynastic parties. They signed the Pact of Pardo, agreeing to maintain the monarchy, rotate political power, and uphold legislative measures. Maria Cristina entrusted power to the Liberals, led by Sagasta, who governed between 1885 and 1890, a period known as the Long Parliament.

The Liberals implemented a program of liberalization, developing advanced reforms and consolidating the political system. They approved the Commercial Code and Civil Code (1889), aligning with the tenets of economic and political liberalism. Legal protection was extended to the burgeoning agrarian capitalism and landlordism.

Regarding social reform, the Law of Association (1887) encouraged the development of anti-dynastic parties. Jury trials were introduced, and limited slavery was abolished in Cuba.

In 1890, universal male suffrage was adopted, although limited by electoral fraud. Some liberals opposed Cuban independence, recognition of regional particularities, and military reform (access based on merit).

The return of conservatives to power in the 1890s marked a shift back to protectionist economic policies, favoring the interests of Catalan and Basque industrialists, as well as Castilian cereal bourgeoisie. Little attention was given to social issues, demonstrated by repressive measures such as the Terrorism Act (1894), aimed at suppressing social unrest and anarchist movements.

Foreign policy remained consistent with the guidelines established during the reign of Alfonso XII.

From 1895 onward, successive governments grappled with colonial problems.

Political Opposition During the Restoration

The Restoration era saw the exclusion of non-dynastic formations, suppressed Carlists and Republicans, regionalists challenging the central government, and labor organizations opposed to the liberal capitalist order.

The opposition remained weak and unable to capitalize on systemic corruption.

Key Opposition Groups:

1. Carlists: Defeated in 1876, they lost the prominence they once held due to the Vatican and the Catholic hierarchy's support for Alfonso XII. Carlism was largely confined to the Basque Country and Navarre, regions with strong Catholic and foralist traditions.
2. Republicans: Severely repressed at the beginning of the regime, they failed to recover from the failure of the First Republic.
3. Federalists: Led by Francisco Pi i Margall, they leaned towards socialist positions and found grassroots support in Catalonia and Valencia.
4. Unionists: Led by Nicolás Salmerón, this centrist party, formed in 1891, advocated for territorial and political unity of the state.
5. Radicals: Established the Progressive Republican Party, advocating armed struggle, and staged several uprisings until the death of their leader, Manuel Ruiz Zorrilla.
6. Possibilists: A minority group led by Emilio Castelar, eventually fully integrated into the Liberal Party.

Federalists and loyalist supporters of peaceful political action joined forces with the Liberal Union party, though they did not consolidate until 1903.