Spain's Second Republic: Political Crises and Civil War Genesis

The "Black Biennium" and Radical-CEDA Government (1933-1935)

In the first half of 1933, conservative forces gained ground, aiming for the government to resolve the Republic's contradictions. In the elections of that year, center-right parties achieved victory. A government was formed by the Radical Republican Party, headed by Alejandro Lerroux, with parliamentary support from the CEDA (Spanish Confederation of Autonomous Rights).

Although the CEDA had been the winning party in the elections, it had not achieved an absolute majority. President Niceto Alcalá Zamora doubted the CEDA's loyalty to the republican regime and thus tasked Lerroux with forming the government.

During this biennium, many reforms from previous years were suspended. This led to increased civil unrest and the radicalization of left-wing parties. As a result of this crisis, Lerroux formed a new government which included three CEDA ministers. The left perceived this as an attempt to dismantle the Republic, leading the Socialists to call a general strike throughout the country. This strike largely failed, except in Asturias and Catalonia.

The response to the formation of the new government represented a will to defend the democratic Republic against the rise of authoritarianism and fascism. Spain became increasingly radicalized into two main groups: the conservative (authoritarian, Catholic, and ambiguously Republican) and the democratic (Republican and progressive). By then, the country was already grappling with the prospect of civil war.

The Popular Front and the Outbreak of Civil War (1936)

To try and halt the escalating conflict between both positions, Alcalá Zamora dissolved the Cortes (parliament). When the next elections took place, socialist, communist, and republican parties united to form the Popular Front, aiming to reinstate the policies of the reformist biennium.

The CEDA, in turn, spearheaded an alliance of monarchist and conservative parties, advocating for reactionary policies and opposing separatism and Marxism.

The elections proved favorable to the Popular Front. It was then that the army, organized by right-wing forces, launched an intervention against the Republic. The military uprising on July 18, 1936, marked the beginning of the Spanish Civil War, which plunged the country into bloodshed for three painful years.

Women's Rights in the Second Republic

Women in the Republic were freed from the shackles of the past. The Republic enacted several key reforms:

• Equality before the law with men.
• Admission to employment and public office.
• Right to vote.
• Recognition of civil marriage and equality of both spouses.
• Suppression of adultery as a crime.

With these reforms, the Republic gained significant support from women. However, it did not fully succeed in eliminating the traditional ideal of women, as few had the opportunity to pursue traditionally male-dominated professions, often due to societal pressures. This newfound freedom for women was tragically interrupted by the Civil War, and Franco's regime subsequently re-established a highly traditional and restrictive role for women in Spain.