Spain's Restoration: Politics and Challenges

The Spanish Restoration Period

Alfonso XII and Maria Cristina

The Restoration began when Alfonso XII (son of Isabel II) returned the Bourbon dynasty to the Spanish throne in 1875.

• The conservative politician Cánovas del Castillo convinced Isabel II to abdicate in favor of her son Alfonso.
• This intervention was supported by the middle class and the army.

Key events:

1. Alfonso signed the Sandhurst Manifesto, in which he promised a constitutional government.
2. A military pronunciamiento (led by General Martínez Campos) proclaimed Alfonso king.
3. Alfonso XII died in 1885, before his legitimate son Alfonso XIII was born.
4. His widow, Maria Cristina, served as regent until Alfonso XIII came of age (1885-1902).

The Political System of the Restoration

The political system was based on two main pillars:

• The Constitution of 1876:
  • It allowed different parties to govern without needing to change it.
  • It contained a declaration of rights, but the governing political party could add laws to restrict these rights.
  • It established shared sovereignty between the King and the Parliament.
  • It established universal or limited suffrage, depending on the party in power.
• Pacific Alternation of Power:
  • Two main political parties alternated in government:
    • The Conservative Party, led by Cánovas del Castillo (the former Moderate Party).
    • The Liberal Party, led by Sagasta (the former Progressive Party).
  • The system of alternation: When the government in power began to lose strength, the King would ask the leader of the opposition to call an election.
  • Elections were often manipulated using fraudulent methods such as the 'pucherazo': landlords exerted pressure on their tenants to vote for the party in question.

Internal Problems of the Restoration

The Restoration system faced internal problems caused by:

• Parties excluded from power.
• The workers' movement.
• Newly formed regional and nationalist movements.

Parties excluded from the alternation of government:

• The Republican Party, divided into different groups.
• The Carlist Party, reorganized after its supporters in the north and the Maestrazgo were defeated in the Third Carlist War.
• The Socialist Party (PSOE), founded in 1879.