The Restoration Period in Spain: Political Stability and Reform

The Regency of Maria Cristina (1885)

In 1885, Alfonso XII died, and the regency passed to his wife, Maria Cristina of Hapsburg. To ensure the stability of the regime during this long regency, Cánovas and Sagasta established the agreement known as the Pact of El Pardo. Cánovas pledged to support a government chaired by Sagasta.

The Liberal Government and Reforms

This Liberal government led to the longest stage of the Restoration and was characterized by the consolidation of the party and the liberal application of its program, notably by adopting the Law of Associations in 1887. For Sagasta, it was not easy to maintain the unity of such a heterogeneous party, and internal differences arose in 1890. In 1890, Cánovas and the Conservative Party returned to government.

Key Policies and Economic Shifts

The most characteristic features of this phase were:

• The implementation of universal suffrage.
• A protectionist turn, marked by the tariff imposed in 1891.
• Moderate and prudent reforms in response to the growing labor movement.

Political Crises and Regionalism

In 1893, the government faced the war in Melilla. The implementation of the liberal program, combined with tariff policies and overseas reforms, highlighted the heterogeneity of the Liberal Party. By 1895, the failure of conciliation led to the final crisis of the Cánovas government and the return of the Restoration.

Opposition Movements

• Carlism: During the Restoration, Carlism enhanced its regional and minority influence, dividing into three groups: fundamentalists, traditionalists, and integrists.
• Republicanism: Since 1868, Republicanism became an active force in Spanish political life, though it was hampered by internal divisions.
• Regionalism: Regionalist movements gained vigor in Catalonia and the Basque Country, where a developing middle class cemented national sentiment through linguistic and cultural differentiation.
• Labor Movement: Growing from the 1868 revolution, the labor movement split into two main tendencies: Anarchism (opposed to political participation, with groups in Catalonia and Andalusia) and Socialism (the Spanish Socialist Party remained a small party with limited electoral impact at the time).