Spain's History: Liberal Triennium to Isabella II's Reign

The Liberal Triennium (1820-1823)

One of these liberal coups, headed by Colonel Riego, succeeded in taking power. Ferdinand VII was forced to reinstate the Constitution of 1812 and the liberal legislation.

The Ominous Decade (1823-1833)

Ferdinand asked for help from the Holy Alliance, which sent an army, the Hundred Thousand Sons of Saint Louis, to restore the absolute monarchy in Spain. The King faced many problems in this period:

• Independence of the Spanish American colonies
• State bankruptcy, due to the high level of debt during the War of Independence and the lack of income.
• The succession problem owing to a lack of a male descendant. Ferdinand issued the Pragmatic Sanction that repealed the Salic Law, by which women were not allowed to reign.

Minority of Isabella of Bourbon: Period of Regency (1833-1843)

The First Carlist War (1833-1839)

Issuing the Pragmatic Sanction was considered illegal by Ferdinand's brother, Carlos María Isidro of Bourbon, the official candidate to the throne (according to the Salic Law). The succession problem evolved into a civil war. Two parties fought against each other:

• The followers of Isabella (under minority) and her mother, the Regent María Cristina of Bourbon. They were moderate absolutists, forced to make concessions to the liberals in exchange for their support.
• The followers of Carlos María Isidro (called Carlists). They were radical absolutists (clerics and peasants of the North East of Spain), who defended the traditional absolute monarchy and a federal state.

The war lasted up to the Convention of Vergara (1839), by which the defeated Carlists accepted Isabella as the Spanish queen. Due to the help of the liberals, the Regent María Cristina was forced to introduce reforms, inspired by the progressive liberals. They set the foundations for introducing capitalism in Spain:

• Constitution of 1837 (National sovereignty, not shared with the Crown, census suffrage, wide individual rights)
• Confiscation and privatization of church assets (Mendizabal Decree, 1836)
• Economic measures promoting the free market economy

After Maria Cristina's resignation, General Espartero was appointed regent, who had to step down as well in 1843. The 13-year-old Isabella became the effective queen of Spain this year.