Spain's Political Turmoil: Primo de Rivera & Second Republic

The Dictatorship of Primo de Rivera

The crisis of liberalism and the Restoration model led to the coup of Primo de Rivera, who succeeded without resistance. He had the support of the king and the sympathy of public opinion. The new regime was based on different political foundations than liberalism: a one-party system (Patriotic Union), representing corporate and routine administration in the hands of the military or technicians.

There was a regenerationist will to dismantle caciquismo and promote Spanish nationalism against peripheral nationalism. He controlled order by declaring a state of war and reformed provincial and municipal governments. The war in Morocco ended after the landing of Alhucemas. The dictatorship had two phases: the military and the civilian board.

Economic policy was characterized by economic nationalism and interventionism to promote industrialization. The market was regulated, strong protectionism of national industry was established, and a National Economic Council was created, responsible for authorizing the installation of new industries. There was a promotion of domestic production through favorable tax and credit policies.

A National Infrastructure Plan was developed, which included the construction of reservoirs, the creation of River Basin Authorities, road construction, and railway improvements. Public debt was used for financing. Monopolies were created in various sectors (CAMPSA, Telefonica).

The dictatorship gradually gained enemies (old parties, the army, Catalan nationalists, republicans, the intellectual world) and failed to articulate a political end to emergency rule, which led to the downfall of the dictator in 1930.

The Second Spanish Republic

The Second Republic was proclaimed after the municipal elections of April 12, 1931. It went through three phases.

Reformist Biennium (1931-1933)

The 1931 Constitution was adopted, establishing religious freedom, freedom of expression, association, assembly, the right of autonomy, and the separation of church and state. The government, headed by Azaña, implemented major reforms:

• Religious reform: divorce, civil marriage, secularization of cemeteries.
• Military reform: voluntary retirement, removal of captaincies, and the General Military Academy.
• Land reform: Agrarian Reform Law.
• Social reform: social insurance, reduction of working hours.
• Education reform: new schools, increased numbers of teachers, pedagogical missions.
• State Reform: Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia and the Basque Country.

The Right-Wing Biennium (1934-1936)

In the 1933 elections, the right-wing CEDA triumphed, initiating a reversal of the reforms of the previous period and releasing those involved in the 1932 uprising (Sanjurjo). In October 1934, a revolutionary movement occurred (Madrid, Basque Country), and the Generalitat of Catalonia (Companys) declared an independent Catalan state under the Spanish Federal Republic. The most serious events occurred in Asturias.

The Popular Front (1936)

In the following elections (February 1936), the Popular Front won, which included the most significant parties and trade unions on the left (January 1936). The program included amnesty for those convicted of the events of 1934 and the recovery of the main priorities of the Azaña biennium (agrarian reform, the Catalan statute, education). Azaña became President of the Republic. He freed political prisoners and reactivated the reforms initiated in the reformist biennium: autonomy statutes, land reform. Social unrest and street violence increased.