Spanish Crises: 1868 Revolution and Primo de Rivera Era

Causes of the 1868 Spanish Revolution

After 1860, economic and political crises converged, resulting in an unstable situation in Spain under Isabella II. The crises included:

• Financial Crisis: Originated from evidence that railway investments were unprofitable.
• Industrial Crisis: Especially severe in Catalonia, exacerbated by the interruption of cotton exports due to the U.S. Civil War.
• Food Crisis: Primarily caused by a series of bad harvests.

Besides these economic factors, a number of political events fueled discontent:

• The Night of San Daniel in 1865, when police fired upon students demonstrating in support of the dismissed rector, killing nine people. The government supported O'Donnell.
• In 1866, the government harshly repressed the Revolt of the Sergeants at San Gil Barracks, who called for political system reform, and executed those involved.

Given this situation, the opposition established a platform aimed at ending the conservative government's power. This led to the Covenant of Ostend, signed in that city by progressives and democrats in exile.

The death of the popular O'Donnell and the declining support for Isabella II further contributed to the climate of change.

Context Before Primo de Rivera's Dictatorship

Factors contributing to the political climate leading up to Primo de Rivera's era included immediate causes and underlying background issues.

Immediate Causes

• Impact of the Disaster of Annual (1921): The army's demand for more budgets and resources to respond militarily contrasted with public indignation and opposition to the continuation of the war, along with demands for accountability.
• Picasso File: This involved a confrontation between the Army and the Courts regarding accountability for the Annual disaster.

Background Factors

• Rise of Nationalism: Moderate Catalan and Basque nationalism grew, but more radical groups like Catalan Action (founded 1921) also emerged, perceived as endangering the "unity of the motherland."
• Rise of Labor and Social Protest: The division of the dynastic parties and their inability to cope with the transition to democratic rule fueled the rise of Socialist and Republican movements (the PCE was founded in 1921 as an offshoot of the PSOE).
• International Context (The Interwar Crisis): The rise of authoritarian governments (e.g., Mussolini), events like Hitler's failed coup in Munich (1923), and the French occupation of the Ruhr (1923-1925) created an international environment where democratic fragility was evident.