Spanish Restoration: Alfonso XII and the 1876 Constitution

The Restoration of the Constitutional Monarchy

General Martínez Campos proclaimed Alfonso XII, son of Isabel II, as king in 1874, which began the Restoration. The regime of the new king, a supporter of constitutional monarchy, named Cánovas del Castillo as the President of the Government. Cánovas was the real architect behind the return of the Bourbons to the throne. He worked to organize and stabilize the political situation. On one hand, he ended the war in Cuba and the Carlist War; on the other, he created a new political system in which all parties had room to accept the monarchy within a constitutional framework. This political system was based essentially on two pillars: a new constitution and the alternation of parties in power.

The Constitution of 1876

The Constitution of 1876 had a conciliatory character, as it embodied progressive principles. To appease both moderates and progressives, it included a comprehensive list of rights and liberties. To satisfy the moderates, it proclaimed a confessional state and shared sovereignty between the Cortes and the King, who was granted broad powers.

The Pacific Turn: Alternation in Power

The exercise of power was given to two political parties that accepted the constitutional monarchy and took turns in government peacefully (the Turno Pacífico). These parties were:

• The Conservatives: Led by Cánovas, they proclaimed themselves defenders of the Church and social order.
• The Liberals: Led by Sagasta, whose governments developed major social reforms and adopted universal male suffrage in 1890.

The monopoly of government by Conservatives and Liberals was made possible by the existence of electoral corruption. The King decided which party was to form a government first, and later, elections were held that were rigged so that the chosen party won. In the countryside, powerful individuals known as caciques forced the rural population to vote for the government party, a practice called caciquismo. In the cities, which were less influenced by caciques, votes were manipulated if the election results were not as expected. These rigging practices were designed so that election results gave victory alternately to Conservatives and Liberals. For a long period of time, this system provided stability to Spanish political life.

Historical Definitions

• Free City: A city whose sovereignty is in dispute and is placed under the administrative control of an external power.
• Cordon Sanitaire: Countries surrounding the Soviet Union and Europe which were intended to isolate the "communist contagion."
• Reparations: Quantities of money that a country held responsible for a war must pay to the victors.