Second Spanish Republic: Constitutional & Reformist Eras

The Constitutional Period (1931)

The Provisional Government agreed to convene Constituent Cortes. In those months, Manuel Azaña, Marcelino Domingo, and Francisco Largo Caballero drafted the first decrees concerning the military, rural areas, and culture. The first conflict arose early: on May 11 and 12, 1931, convents were burned in Madrid and other cities. This incident, coupled with the curtailment of the Church's privileges, deeply incensed important sectors of Catholics and created the conditions for the bishops to move into legal opposition (evidenced by the expulsion of Cardinal Segura and the Church's support for groups like CEDA, Acción Nacional, from 1933 onwards).

The June 1931 elections were held with great civility, with a 70% turnout. The Republican-Socialist coalition won a clear victory (250 seats) over Lerroux's Radicals (90 seats) and the Right (80 seats). The Constituent Assembly drafted a new constitution, which was ahead of its time. The most contentious debates were those related to the issue of religion and regional autonomy. It was adopted on December 9, 1931, and featured:

• A single-chamber parliament (unicameral).
• Universal suffrage, extended to both men and women.
• A state declared as "integral," not federal, but allowing for regions to gain autonomy.
• Recognition of individual rights.
• Government power to expropriate property for public interest.

Niceto Alcalá Zamora (a Right Liberal Republican) was elected President of the Republic, and Manuel Azaña presided over the government formed by Republicans, Socialists, and Nationalists.

The Reformist Biennium (1931-1933)

The new government embarked on a series of radical reforms aimed at separating church and state, fostering modernization, decentralizing the state to satisfy nationalists, and redistributing land. These reforms ultimately divided the country into two opposing sectors.

The Question of Religion

The separation of church and state and the secularization of a predominantly Catholic society were absolute priorities for the first Republican governments, yet they became an endless source of conflict. At the root of this conflict lay, on one side, the traditional anti-clericalism of much of the petty bourgeoisie (which occasionally manifested itself in more marginalized sectors of society), and on the other, the jealous attitude of much of the episcopate regarding its prerogatives. The urban Church accounted for 2% of government expenditure, and its influence on education was undisputed. To change this, successive decrees dissolved the Jesuits, confiscated their estates, established civil marriage, divorce, and the secularization of cemeteries. The Law of Religious Congregations of 1933 prohibited the Church and religious orders from teaching, engaging in trade, and industry, prompting a collective pastoral letter calling for peaceful resistance.