Hello and welcome to the final, volatile years preceding the outbreak of
civil war. We left off last week in 1931, just as the Second Republic
had taken over the reigns of government from the defunct parliamentary
monarchy. Not surprisingly (for those of us aided by hindsight),
political and social tensions began to make themselves felt almost
immediately after the inception of the new regime. Certain controversial
reforms, most notably the Agrarian Reform, as well as the institution of
what, at that time, was considered ultra-modern legislation (i.e. the
separation of Church and State, freedom of religion, universal suffrage,
the right to divorce, etc.) caused the extreme right to conspire against
the Republic, at first erratically and unsuccessfully, then methodically
though still unsuccessfully, and finally militarily and effectively.
Before going on to examine the specific content of these radical new
measures, it will first be helpful to block out the Republic’s general
path of development - which can best be described as a brave and rocky
road to defeat.
An Overview within an Overview
The
Second Republic based its political function on the Constitution of
1931, the existence of a wide array of parties, and regular elections to
determine the members of the legislative and executive bodies, the
Parliament and the government respectively. Comprised of 125 articles,
the Constitution set forth, among other principles, the equality of all
Spaniards, the separation of Church and State, the division of powers,
the right to political autonomy within Spain’s different regions, and
many fundamental points of civil liberty.
Azaña’s Reformist Biennum
The
five year’s of the Republic’s existence were divided into three distinct
phases, known as the Reformist Biennium (1931-1933), the Black Biennium
(1933-1935) and the Popular Front (1936). I will give a very brief
sketch of each period so as to provide readers with a broader
perspective before delving into the particular developments of each
period. The Reformist Biennium, under the presidency of Manuel Azaña,
receives its name from the ruling coalition’s attempts at profound
social and political transformation. It was during this time, for
example, that the Agrarian Reform and the Catalan Statute of Autonomy
were implemented as well as important laws that, on the one hand,
protected workers and, on the other hand, reduced the hegemony of the
Church and the Army in Spanish society.
The Counter-Reform
The
Black Biennium is so called due to the rise of the Partido Radical de
Lerroux and CEDA, two conservative parties that eventually
formed a centre-right coalition, effectively managing to annul the
legislative opus of the previous phase. Now it was the left who,
resenting the loss of its hard-won gains under Azaña’s rule, organized a
general strike in 1934. In Asturias, this manifestation escalated into a
full-scale proletariat revolt that was bloodily repressed by military
intervention. The conservative coalition remained in power despite the
incident until economic scandals and administrative corruption caused
its downfall and, subsequently, the collapse of Spain’s entire political
centre.
The Popular Front
In
December of 1935, Parliament was disbanded with two transition
governments holding down the fort until new elections could be held in
February of 1936. The Popular Front, a coalition of all of Spain’s
left-wing parties, won the new parliamentary majority with 287 seats out
of 473. However, at that time, a majority of seats did not necessarily
translate into a majority of power, for the main strength of the country
still resided in the privileged elite, a hefty chunk of which was
comprised by the armed forces, a rather unmanageable ilk. In the early
months of 1936, with the almost total disappearance of its political
centre, Spain became diametrically polarized into two blocks, the
Bloque Nacional and the Frente
Popular.
Meanwhile, Azaña, who had been appointed president of the Republic,
patiently resumed the task of social reform, endeavouring once again to
institute the policies that had been annulled during the Black Biennium.
The right wing, which by this time had become nothing less than
reactionary (i.e. monarchical factions, religious factions and those
determined to maintain the country’s status quo), was categorically
opposed to any action taken by the left and quickly united behind a
military conspiracy that had been brewing for several months.
Civil War Breaks Out
A
climate of political uncertainty punctuated by violent confrontations
between the right and the left grew to unobtainable dimensions - a
situation virtually identical to the social panorama directly prior to
Primo de Rivera’s grab for power. The tension finally reached breaking
point on 13th July, 1936 when Calvo Sotelo, leader of the
National Block, was assassinated in Madrid by left wing activists. The
shooting provoked the immediate reaction of the right and is classically
considered the spark that ignited the war. In truth, however, Calvo
Sotelo’s assassination, while significant, was simply the incident (one
of many) that fell in closest proximity to the launch time of the army’s
premeditated military coup. On the afternoon of 17th July
1936, the Generals Franco, Mola, Yagüe and Goded, with the support of
the Church and the political right, staged an uprising against the
Popular Front, thus initiating the Spanish Civil War.
Closing
We
will conclude our ‘overview within an overview’ for this week, resuming
next time with the most important points of reform and counter-reform
within the Second Republic. We will also detail Franco’s military
machinations, carried out with utmost secrecy from the Canary Islands.
Join us then. |